113 Comments
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Caeser

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Et tu, Brute?

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Lifelike facial reconstruction of the 54 emperors of the Roman principate:

https://voshart.medium.com/photoreal-roman-emperor-project-236be7f06c8f

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Nero looks like he used the Latin equivalent of "bro"

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Anybody here on the boards take the Roman history class of Professor Erich Gruen, now Emeritus and a prolific author?

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Not I, didn't take any classics at Cal, but was assigned Plato (Phaedrus) and Thucydides for Rhetoric? Maybe? I was going to write this spurred a life-long interest in the period, but thinking about it, it started earlier than that. As a kid on a RAF base in East Anglia we had a six-week crash course on Roman History, went on field trips to various ruins. Anyway I am widely read on the era, but no Gruen

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Gruen assigned 18 primary sourcebooks as the reading material for the class, which took up a lot of time. Got an "A" in the class, though.

Just google Erich Gruen books and you'll see all of them

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The Last Generation of the Roman Republic looks like an interesting read.

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Ides

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My MiL was born on the 13th. Every year, she says "March 13th, beware the Ides of March! Hahahaha!" The first year of my marriage I said "but the ides is on the..." only to be hushed by my wife, who reminded me that telling her mother that she's wrong had very little upside.

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Does she actually believe that March 13th is the Ides of March? Or was she just joking? If she actually believes that, how did that happen?

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Saint...

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Boston Marathon Bomber complains that prison is uncomfortable

https://boston.cbslocal.com/2021/03/10/boston-marathon-bomber-dzhokhar-tsarnaev-sues-over-treatment-prison

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I'm not exactly a big proponent of the American carceral state but boo hoo dude

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Pi

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Raspberry

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the missus made macaroons yesterday for the first time. Raspberry Cream ones...nomnomnomnomnomnom

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i wanted to like and use things things to teach the kids about computers and code. but aside from a couple small projects they didnt take too much interest.

but they did get some experience with circuits and putting stuff together so hopefully it will come in handy some day ..

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A friend of mine teaches at Virginia Tech and does some pretty esoteric coding for applied math purposes - he came up when there was a real DIY ethos in his early teens with things like Amstrads and Sinclairs in the UK... and he could not get either of his kids to even pretend that they cared about coding far less dicking around with a Raspberry Pi. I think I helped by pointing out that some of us just aren't seeing code syntax intuitively.

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They're fun little boards. There are new ones called ESP-32 boards that are much smaller and pretty powerful.

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Today in Covid

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Just got back from my first dose of Pfizer. I did feel guilty because my qualification is my procrastination to lose weight. I felt especially bad when I saw the people waiting outside the hospital...turned out that was a group waiting for their shuttle back to the nursing home and the general population getting shots is a lot more mixed age-wise.

Nonetheless, it's a great relief. The girl, who really struggled to schedule me for the second dose so it took 3x as long as everyone else, was also the most that I have talked face-to-face to a woman in over a year.

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you get her number

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Should I feel bad for finding this slightly humorous?

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Germany halts Astra Zeneca trial due to clotting issues

https://www.thelocal.de/20210315/germany-suspends-use-of-astrazeneca-vaccine-over-blood-clot-concerns/

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AZ and others say no causation of clots & vaccines. The stock hasn't moved, so it looks like Wall Street agrees.

https://twitter.com/Quicktake/status/1371381042083422210

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scheduled for dose one at Pfizer HQ this week. they just opened up eligibility for household members of employees.

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Can you adopt me?

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you just have to be a member of the household or a regular caregiver or something. just come live w/ us for a while in the attic.

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you could just volunteer to drive me around for a week while i am still on crutches!

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I'd be the driver. Though I guess i would have to quarantine for 10 days when going to NY wouldn't I?

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i think they got rid of the interstate quarantine rules.

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Elsewhere in college

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ACC eliminates the intra-conference transfer rule

https://theacc.com/news/2021/3/15/general-acc-eliminates-intraconference-transfer-rule.aspx

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They also need to prevent the teams from blocking players from transferring to certain teams. I remember Pitt said they had a department policy and wouldn't grant a release to allow Cam Johnson to grad transfer to another ACC school. They got so much shit from the media and others that they finally allowed Cam to transfer to UNC.

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Beau Baldwin can't establish a running game, relies on a mediocre passing game. Tries to stay competitive by going for it on fourth down. Loses.

https://www.espn.com/college-football/matchup?gameId=401281548

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Spring football?

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I think it's the conferences that didn't play in the fall and scheduled games in the spring.

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So... like we should have.

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Probably, though then everyone would have complained that the P12 blew its shot at getting into the playoff.

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FCS is playing spring football - they talked about it on the Shutdown Fullcast.

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OUR CRUMBLING DEMOCRACY

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Raising taxes...to pay for things? What a quaint and reasonable idea.

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Bring it on.

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Trump was supposed to be a political Godzilla in exile. Instead, he’s adrift.

https://www.politico.com/news/2021/03/14/trump-post-presidency-475733

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I'm still on the RNC mailing list after I signed up for tickets to the Tulsa rally (the one that nobody attended). Trump is still front and center of their breathless money-raising campaigns. This week, it was a lottery to meet Trump at Mar a Lago, an official e-birthday card for Melania, and a plea to stop the Socialists. Averages one email per day.

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Send money to me, not the RNC!

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Yup, although his story arc would be better if he just died of La Rona.

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PRO

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Giants beat Cleveland, but they keep playing. Umps go home. CLE backup catcher calls balls and strikes, resulting in SF's Joey Bart getting a 5-ball walk.

https://twitter.com/JesseThorn/status/1370873404711075840

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...they kept playing? Just for fun/experience? Sounds like it would have been a fun game to watch, actually.

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I'm guessing Cleveland had a list of pitchers they wanted to get an inning in and they needed the Giants to bat in the B7 and maybe the Giants wanted to have some hitters see pitches. I guess a win/win?

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That's pretty typical for this particular spring training with all the 7-inning games and 2-out innings.

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wut

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wot.

I wish we had african food in Shanghai. I am contemplating a trip to Guangzhou just to have ethiopian food. (and cantonese too)

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22 pitch at-bat for Guillorme, including facing six >100mph pitches

https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1371181080846475264

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A's lose 1-0 on a two-hitter.

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CAL

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Go Bears!

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[Base] Freshman SP Palcualoto sits 'em down in an 8.1 inning gem (7-1)

https://twitter.com/CalBaseball/status/1371219592559857668

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[WTen] Bears triumph over the Toreros (4-3)

https://twitter.com/CalWomensTennis/status/1371238447248068608

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[WGym] #6 Bears defeat Huskies again four days after their last victory over them. Cal scores third-highest score in program history (197.225-196.525)

https://calbears.com/news/2021/3/10/womens-gymnastics-no-6-cal-dispatches-huskies.aspx

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Top seed for the Pac-12 Championship this weekend. Utah, as the host, is probably still the favorite (if anyone bets on college gymnastics), but Cal is certainly capable of making some history this weekend.

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% of women's gymnastics roster from home state:

Cal: 55%

Arizona: 32%

ASU: 22%

Washington: 15%

Stanfurd: 11%

Oregon State: 10%

Oregon: 6%

Utah: 0%

Oregon does not have a gymnastics team. They have a tumbling/acrobatics team.

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Oregon is one of two D-1 universities that has a tumbling/acrobatics team, the other being Baylor. If you're wonder what it is, it's like the flip and fly portion of cheerleading.

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Did you watch "Cheer" on Netfilx? I'm glad I watched it, but what a weird universe.

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[SB] Cal wins 3 of 4 on consecutive double-headers this weekend vs. UC Davis (8-0, 3-2) and Fresno State (0-8, 7-5). Last game won via grand slam.

https://calbears.com/news/2021/3/14/softball-cal-at-fresno-state.aspx

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I went for a walk this evening with the extra hour of daylight. I went around Roosevelt Island opposite the Kennedy Center and was wearing a Cal cap. At one point I noticed a handful of turkeys and stopped to watch. Someone walking by asked what I was looking at and I pointed out the turkeys and then he noticed the cap. He was also a Cal grad. No "Go Bears" from him but we did talk about how nice Berkeley and the Bay Area are. A nice walk. Also saw a downy woodpecker, a pileated woodpecker, and about a half dozen deer. Not bad for being so close to the city.

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March Madness people talk to me I want this to be the biggest thread in the DBD as March Madness is my favorite postseason in sports

My hot takes: Winthrop over Villanova, Georgetown over Colorado, Oregon State over Tennessee (less confident on this one), UNC over Baylor in one of my brackets, 2 other ones to be wary of are Colgate over Arkansas and Texas Tech going to the Elite 8 v Illinois if they can find just enough offense!

Let me know your upsets, hot takes, Cinderella teams, and your champions below!

Link for those who haven't seen the bracket yet: https://www.ncaa.com/march-madness-live/bracket?utm_campaign=hp-rr-links-mbk

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I don't know if it's the result of several years of Cal's crushing ineptitude, but I have no interest in the tournament. I haven't watched any college basketball this year (or last year).

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I just enjoy watching brackets fill themselves out, and this is pretty much the prime example of it. I often pay little attention to college basketball until like a week before the tournament, and then I'm super interested.

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Whoever wins SDSU/Syracuse has a very good shot at the Elite Eight since WVU is overseeded and I'm not convinced on Houston.

Michigan is for sure the first 1 seed out, to FSU if not before then. I wouldn't be surprised if UConn came out of that quadrant, frankly.

Ohio over Virginia seems to be popular and I see the appeal. Morehead St. over WVU and North Texas over Purdue are the other two major upsets most likely in the first round imo.

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The 5 seeds do seem very ripe for upsets this year. I'm also going to pick Syracuse to reach the Sweet 16 as usual, because it always seems to happen despite their low seeding.

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I havent watched a single second of college basketball this season so my picks will be interesting. If this is the year I win the pool, then I will know my destiny is not with this sport.

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UNC over Baylor is definitely a hot take, and I'm a huge UNC BB fan. But, and there's a big but, that's provided they beat Wisconsin. I haven't looked too much into Wisc but they have big boys down low and play a slow paced offense. In the past that has slowed UNC down and they struggle (see Virginia). They like to pound it inside and play inside out. If they can't get it inside, their guards aren't great at penetrating and dishing. Other than Kerwin Walton, they aren't a good outside shooting team. And if they can't get the D to move around, he can't create 3s on his own. I don't know if Wisconsin is a good outside shooting team but that usually kills the Heels. Their D philosophy is that they're willing to give up the 3 to prevent teams from penetrating (though they are bad at defending the penetration). That being said, it looks like Wisconsin has lost 7 of their last 10. Outside of the one game against Florida State where the Heels hit something like 26-27 FTs, the big men struggle at FTs, especially the man-beast Day'Ron Sharpe.

Baylor will be interesting because UNC should clean up their own missed shots (and there will be plenty). However, they always struggle with quick guards that can shoot so I could see Baylor feasting on 3s and make the Carolina big men defend the perimeter which doesn't bode well. They like to keep 2 big men in at all times so expect Baylor to punish the big man that has to defend a small forward or guard when they switch.

I could easily see Georgetown beating Colorado. Georgetown is playing real well right now. I'll need to get the bracket and check out the games.

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Ohh my heart https://twitter.com/Ashleyoutloud/status/1371298855078170630?s=20

@Ashleyoutloud: My four year old was about to have a whole tantrum and my 6 year old helped him manage his breathing so he could calm down.... I’d say I’m doing freaking alright

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So are we in a nation wide housing bubble? Home prices are soaring across the nation in rural, suburban and urban areas.

I suppose once interest rates start to go up, housing will begin to at least plateau, if not decline.

Also as more people get vaccinated we should see the inventory go up.

For the moment, I’m going to sit this out for the next 3-6 months.

Been house hunting since November and put in 6 offers, all $40-66k over asking and waiving contingencies and still can’t get a home.

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That's still the case out here in MD. A neighbor recently put a house up for sale and within about a week the sale was pending and they ended up with 15k over asking (and I thought their asking price was already a bit ambitious).

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I put in a full price offer on a place in December, got outbid by $500K. I hope they enjoy the super cute house!

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So there was a bidding war? Did it go several rounds?

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I went on a pandemic vacation house buying spree maybe a month ago, but after a bit realized it wasn't the right time, and then kinda re-thought the whole thing. Although I SHOULD have bought a place at Pajaro Dunes in 2010, prices were so cheap... sigh

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holy shit that's a non-trivial bid difference

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$500K? Wow

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It was an extremely great house, but not worth what they paid, IMO. https://www.trulia.com/p/ca/san-francisco/1932-buchanan-st-san-francisco-ca-94115--2082957894

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That mantle is fantastic. The whole house is great, but 500k over asking? Insanity.

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Agreed. Beautiful house and mantle but $500k over asking is insane.

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Yeah that wood carving, or however they did it, is really cool.

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Wow that's an awesome looking house!

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I agree with Cugel, that was very well presented. It's very "you."

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Whoever prepped it for sale did a great job.

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That home gym is worth 2.3M alone!

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That kitchen and master bedroom were very impressive. I also like the out door space.

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eh, also I think covid is a driving force, a lot of people who would be normally moving or downsizing or what have you are staying put, and or don't want to mingle with others.

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I have a few friends who - due to permanent wfh - have moved out of expensive markets. A facebook couple who now lives in the Philly exurbs. A friend at Twitter just moved to Las Vegas. Some Houstonians moved out of apartments into single family homes, despite not being with family.

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I would think that's playing a large part of it. After years of saving, my brother and sister in law are finally ready to buy a house - but inventory is low and prices are apeshit - so I think they're just going to renew their lease and wait to see what happens.

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I also believe that Covid is playing a role in the lack of inventory for the reasons you mentioned.

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for the soccer dorks out there, Yunus Musah has committed to the US national team over England, Italy and Ghana. 18 year old midfielder with bags and bags of potential in a position of need. American Golden Generation in full force...

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funny how we still can't tap into local hispanic leagues though

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Mexico seems to be doing a decent job of it. They have full time scouts scouring American sandlots looking for Mexico eligible players

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I have rarely been as vexed as when Thomas Rongen was like "well kids are going to want to play for the country of their fathers what are you going to do." Strong example of what goes wrong when you put someone who didn't grow up in an immigrant country into a role of trying to recruit the sons of immigrants so that you're not overly reliant on upper middle class, predominantly Anglo travel team players... but that leads to a whole other rant about American soccer nativism

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The lost opportunity in the States to be a dominant world power in footy is pretty sad. I think even minimal investment in engaging in the Latino community would yield an almost immediate bounty of top level players to build out player pool depth. As it stands, it is pure luck identifying them but now that Mexico is pulling dozens of American born youngsters south to play in Liga MX, its getting tougher and tougher to pull them back into the fold. As it stands, a solid quarter to a third of the Mexican youth national team pool is American born. Smh

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It's one thing to be training folks from other countries for olympic sports, at least that has a payoff for NCAA competition... but this is basic sporting malpractice.

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Good for Steven Yuen, first Asian American to be nominated for Best Actor at the Oscars. I really want to see Minari, looks brilliant

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I also think the director is the first American-born Asian person to be nominated in that category.

In other Oscar categories: having seen Judas and the Black Messiah, I'm wondering who exactly the lead is in that movie if Daniel Kaluuya and Lakeith Stanfield are both "supporting" actors. The whole story revolves around them.

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Also a Utah grad (Issac Lee Chung)

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Theory is people believe Chadwick Boseman is a lock for best actor, so want to give the guys a chance at something.

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That's definitely why they're doing it (and not the first time a studio has pushed a lead performance in a supporting category for a better chance at winning), but the particular weirdness here is that while the studio pushed Kaluuya for Supporting, they pushed Stanfield for Lead and yet the Academy put him in Supporting anyway. There's not really any argument that neither of them is a lead.

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haha I read an article today about exactly that

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I've seen some Twitter jokes that if neither of those guys are the lead, then by omission the Academy is basically saying that the actual lead in the movie is the white guy (Jesse Plemons). Yeah, kind of.

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