Smart Bitches Trashy Books | All of the romance, none of the bullshit.

Here in the US, the Writers Guild of America is on strike and has been since October 31, 2007. Their strike affects American television and movie production. If the strike isn’t resolved, most American tv for the coming season will be reality shows which don’t require WGA writers to script as they are “unscripted.” Yeah, they’re about as unscripted as WWE wrestling matches. Also, I intensely dislike reality television. But this isn’t about me.

The issues forcing the strike are the amount of money generated by online sales of television shows and movies, and increasing the residuals generated by television program and movie sales on iTunes or any other online vendor.

The WGA strike captains have started uploading YouTube videos to highlight the issues behind their strike, and an unreal number of actors have started making videos highlighting the importance of writers for the “Speechless” campaign to support the WGA. The Screen Actors Guild, The Teamsters, and several local outposts of the Service Employees Union, the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, the United Auto Workers union, and the sister guilds to the WGA in Canada, Greece, Australia, Great Britain, and New Zealand all support the WGA strike.

Our Friday Videos this week demonstrate support for the WGA strike, and to support the work of the writers behind the scenes of much of the entertainment I enjoy. 

You can see all the Speechless videos online at Speechless Without Writers.

Friday Videos, to send you and yours out into the weekend wonderment with one simple, comforting thought: How did we survive without YouTube?

First: from Jennie, Martha Stewart opines about nuts.

There is a longer version here, wherein a guy in the audience at about 0:21 seconds in has to hide his laughter. HA!

I have to confess something: I have a total weakness for Bollywood. I have an entire 8 minute video of a really funky dance sequence featuring Aishwarya Rai on my iPod. If I can tolerate the incredibly high pitches, I dig it. The traditional Hindi dance moves performed by men in modern clothing - the juxtaposition just about kills me.

But this video, from Bitchery reader Megan, has me totally transfixed. Not only are the nuns gay, Benny Lava, but man, I am looking at anoraks in a whole new light. Sexy, sexy!

Two videos for your viewing pleasure, both salutes in their own way to different Asian cultures, specifically those of Japan and South Korea.

First: from Charlene, RoboCock a Japanese sex toy video demonstration - SWEET LORD ALMIGHTY it is not work safe. Be ye warned! (Is it wrong of me to want to try to use it as a blender/mixer?)

Second: not the greatest video quality, but still fun to watch. Samsung employees doing an amazing coordinated dance involving a heaping crapload of people wearing shirts with different colored panels creating an incredible synchronized visual fiesta for your eyeballs. I’m a big fan of the maniacally dancing bandleader on the podium at the bottom, the strangely blond uberhappy cheerleaders, and the unintentional comedy at about :55 in, left side of the screen.

Bitchery Reader Melissa Francis went above and beyond the call of duty and, well, I'm square dancing with Fabio. What can I say?

It's strangely addictive.