#i love the implication that they forget Steve’s birthday every year

[artiststarme]

The Party Forgets Steve's Birthday

Thank you for the prompt @nburkhardt ! I hope it meets your expectations!

Now with a Part 2!

~*~*~*~

Steve was used to being forgotten. His parents regularly left for months at a time without regarding him at all, his old friends at school had only ever seemed to remember him when they wanted to use his house to throw a party, and his own girlfriend conveniently forgot about him when she chose to sleep with the guy that gave him his first concussion. He was well past being surprised when people neglected to think about him. 

So he really shouldn’t have been surprised when everyone forgot his birthday. 

He woke up the morning of his twentieth birthday to an empty house and an even emptier heart. Just like every other day, his parents were off on a business trip ignoring his existence. They hadn’t even left him a message congratulating him on making it to twenty, a feat Steve never thought he would accomplish. The mailbox was just as empty as it always was and it was like Steve didn’t exist to his parents at all. He didn’t know why he expected anything different. He’d been ignored, cast aside by them, his entire life and he still had the gall to expect things to change. 

Steve had a shift at Family Video at 4 until close so he had to change out of his pajamas eventually. But right up until the moment he had to leave, he sulked from the comfortable nest of blankets on his couch. He grieved the loss of love from his parents that, looking back, may have never existed in the first place. 

He also waited for his friends to call. Eddie, Robin, Nancy, or Jonathan had to know it was his birthday today. He’d told them enough times and Robin had called him a “troublesome Taurus” at least once. The older teens may not have enough excitement over just another birthday to come over to his house but surely they would call. But as time marched on, his phone sat silent despite his staring at it. 

Well, he was seeing Robin at work so she was probably just waiting to tell him in person. And maybe the others were throwing a surprise party for him. The Party threw a birthday party for each one of the members on their special day so maybe it was Steve’s turn this year to be introduced to the tradition. After the horrific Spring Break from hell, he thinks he deserved it. 

While the Party was fine now, this encounter with the Upside Down had been their worst yet. Max was in a coma for two weeks before she woke up but the repercussions of Vecna’s mind-melt were permanent. She was now blind and she still hadn’t managed to leave her wheelchair over a month later. 

Eddie was ambushed by demobats and ripped apart even though his job was supposed to be the decoy that was out of danger. Steve had to give him CPR to restart his heart through the shock then had to sprint with him out of the Upside Down and into the nearest car in the Rightside Up, a car that he had to hotwire with Eddie’s minimal guidance. Then they had to clear his name with the police and townspeople that wanted nothing more than the outcast to go down for a crime he didn’t commit. 

And Steve. While his injuries were less severe than the others, his skin would always show the scars from the demobats. His neck was still blemished and his abdomen was sunken where the bats tried to use him as a meal. Mentally, his self-confidence was gone and he had nightmares every night about the feel of the teeth tearing through his flesh. He almost didn’t make it out of there this time which made this birthday all the more special. 

When he walked into the video store for his shift, all of the kids and Eddie were there. Steve had the brief thought that they were probably putting their final touches on the surprise party but that passed quickly once they turned to look at him. 

“Oh look, your esteemed babysitter is here which means he can deal with you. Now, if you don’t mind I’m going to go hang out with other grownups instead of sticking around with you children. Bye now!” Robin told them dramatically, waggling her fingers in their faces. She turned to Steve, “hey Dingus, your children have been trying to rent a rated R film for the past twenty minutes. You deal with that while I go on my date with Vickie. Toodles!”

Steve didn’t even have time to say anything in response before she made her way to the back to clock out and left his sight. He was still watching where she used to be when he heard a throat clear. It was fucking Dustin, of course it was. The little bastard had a smug smirk on his face and wiggled his eyebrows. 

“Gross dude, no. I keep telling you that it's not like that with Robin and I. Get your head out of the gutter,” Steve told him, rolling his eyes and shaking his head.

“We can see how you look at her! It’s not rocket science, Steve. Just ask out the pretty girl already and stop being a lonely loser,” Dustin told him in a sarcastic tone. The other kids nodded while Eddie left to awkwardly look through the horror aisle full of movies he’d already seen. That fucker knew Robin was a lesbian and was just leaving him to suffer through this alone, on his birthday no less. 

“Look, I’m not talking about this today and I’m not renting you a tape that’s rated R. Is that all you’re here for?” Maybe this was a ruse and they were going to shower him with birthday wishes. 

“Oh come on! Eddie can rent it for us under his name!” Dustin whined. 

“I said no.”

"But-" Dustin started.

“Whatever, let’s go guys. Steve’s just being an asshole today,” Lucas said from his spot near the door. 

Will tucked his head down instead of acknowledging the asshole comment but still agreed, “we can go to the arcade!”

“Steve’s an asshole everyday. Today he’s just being unhelpful. If we wanted someone useless, we should’ve asked my dad,” Mike sneered at him. 

Being compared to Ted Wheeler was too much for Steve and the brats were starting to give him a headache. “Whatever dipshits, get out of my store. Go bother someone that cares. Bye!”

With some angry mumbles and grumbles, they shuffled out and made their way to the arcade (or so Steve assumes). Eddie poked his head out from the horror aisle then and upon seeing the coast was clear, hopped up to situate himself on the counter. “You having a bad day then?”

Steve sighed, “yeah you could say that. They were starting to give me a headache.”

Eddie hummed and poked Steve’s leg with his toe. “What’s up with you today? You seem… mad. Did something happen?”

Steve wasn’t mad, he was disappointed. He was disappointed that he didn’t mean as much to anyone else as they meant to him. The Party was his family but he was just an inconvenience to them. That was a common theme in life and many people have told him that through the years. His parents, Tommy and Carol, Nancy, some of the girls he’d taken on dates. Every single one of them considered him to be an inconvenience at best, a disappointment at worst. 

He really thought that he’d collected a good group of friends over the past few years that would treat him better, that didn’t just want to use him but loved him as he did them. Apparently not. 

He said as much to Eddie. “Do you ever feel like you mean something to someone and then it turns out that you don’t matter as much as you think you do?”

Eddie’s face twisted and he pulled a chunk of hair to cover his mouth. But he still nodded slightly before clearing his throat and answering his question. “Um yeah, I feel that way around you guys all the time.” 

Steve shot him an alarmed look but he continued. “It’s not meant to be a dig at you or anything! You guys have all been friends for so much longer that it just, it still feels like I’m an outsider still. You know?”

“Yeah, I guess that makes sense. I feel like that too, man.” Eddie went to cut him off but he continued speaking. “No, seriously! It just feels like no one gives a shit about me even after all these years. Like, I woke up today thinking everyone was going to be calling me and coming over, just making a big deal all around, but no one did. I mean, it’s not like anyone’s ever done anything big for my birthday before but I just. I expected people to care this year.”

Eddie’s face slowly paled the more Steve spoke until his skin was practically translucent. “It’s your birthday today?”

“Yeah,” Steve chuckled sardonically. “I finally made it to the big 2-0. I kinda expected to have a party today since everyone else in the Party got one for their birthday but it’s fine. Even now I’m still just the babysitter, I guess.” 

Tears started to well in Eddie’s eyes and he lunged behind the counter to give Steve a hug. “Stevie, big boy, I’m so sorry! You deserve so much more than just a party today, baby. And you’re so much more than just the babysitter. You’re family to all of us, man.”

Steve shrugged again, “maybe that’s the problem. My family has never liked me either so that’s probably the case here too. It’s fine, I got my hopes up and I shouldn’t have. No one’s ever cared before so why would they start now?”

Eddie went to speak but a customer came in. Steve took their presence as a sign and pushed Eddie gently away from behind the counter. “I have to go help them, Eddie. See yourself out, okay? I’ll see you later.”

And then he was off to do his job and ignore the fact that Eddie was still watching him with tears in his eyes. He had other things to deal with today than Eddie’s hurt feelings. Like helping customers and trying to stomp down the soul-crushing disappointment in his chest. After all, what else could he have expected for his birthday?

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[sunmoonandeddie]

feelings are fatal (17/24)

pairing: bucky barnes x reader, past steve rogers x reader

word count: 3,346

summary: After the events of Endgame, you struggle to come to terms with what you’ve lost, though you’re learning that you still have something to gain.

chapter warnings: swearing, violence, creepy men

masterlist

a/n: HEYYYYY HAPPY TWO YEAR BLOG BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!!!

Bucky’s heart was pounding as he finally shook the last of the Hydra goons that had been chasing him, glancing every which way just to double check.

He didn’t feel good about this.

It hadn’t even been ten minutes since the two of you had gotten separated, and he hated it. Granted, he always hated being away from you, had since you were fifteen.

Back then it was because he didn’t trust the Red Room instructors. Now it was because he was in love with you and being away from you made him feel like a part of his heart was missing.

Speed walking towards the entrance of Coney Island, he dug his phone out of his pocket and dialed Pepper’s number.

“Oh, my god, thank god. What the hell is wrong with you?” Pepper demanded angrily of him. “Do neither of you know how to answer your phones? Are you okay?”

“I don’t know,” he said. He could hear his blood pumping in his ears. “We had to separate so I could try to lead the bad guys away, but they just… disappeared. I’m heading for our meeting spot now.”

Morgan and a few other kids were babbling in the background about how their day had gotten cut short, but he knew that the littlest Stark would understand better than anyone else once they explained to her.

Pepper was suspiciously quiet for… a long time. A long, long time.

“Pepper?” Bucky whispered, his voice cracking.

There was an unspoken question between them.

What if he’d fucked up?

Should he have stayed with her?

What if they’d gotten to her?

And one that was looming over his head, heavier than ever.

What if he never got to tell you how he felt?

“I’m here,” she said reassuringly.

“What if…” Bucky’s heart cracked inside of his chest. His throat was closing up with each passing second, his flesh palm sweaty. Keeping his grip on his cell phone was becoming a challenge. “What if I n-never g-get to tell her h-how I feel?”

“Don’t think like that.”

“God, I’m so fucking stupid,” he cursed as he made his way to the aquarium. His eyes flickered around the crowd, almost hoping he’d see the two women from earlier. They would’ve recognized you and might’ve seen you.

But there was no sign of them.

“Those fucking special skills or whatever would really come in fucking handy right now,” he cursed. With the way people were parting like the Red Sea in front of him, he knew he probably had his less-than-friendly expression on.

His Murder Face, as you called it.

Or his Resting Bitch Face, according to Sam.

Bucky ran his vibranium hand over his face as he tried not to panic. For one, he hadn’t even gotten to the meeting spot yet. Most likely, you were there waiting for him and he was worrying over nothing. “Tony and Natasha will haunt me forever if I let something happen to her.”

A sigh resounded over the phone. “You didn’t let something happen to her, Bucky. Hell, we don’t even know if something is wrong with her yet. But they both know that you have… you have literally devoted your entire being to taking care of her, protecting her. You did what you thought was the best option in the moment. And maybe… Maybe there was no getting out of that ambush without something happening to one of you.”

Rounding the corner to the tunnel, his heart stopped inside his chest.

You weren’t there.

“Bucky? Bucky? What’s going on? You there? What’s happening?”

It was like the world around him had gone fuzzy, and all he could hear was a ringing in his ears.

You weren’t there.

You weren’t there, and it was all his fault.

He told you to go to the tunnel.

How fucking stupid was he? The tunnel was possibly the worst place he could’ve told you to go to. It’s closed off, a literal tube with water all around you except two very small exits that were easily blocked.

What had he done?

Slumber had come easy for you for once. You were so exhausted, even your bones weary, from dancing all day. And by all day, that meant for over twelve hours because of your sadistic new instructor.

The last one had been… disposed of.

You’d woken at sunrise as usual and gone straight to ballet, only for the instructor to not let you go after the normal three hour class.

The rest of the girls filed out of the dance studio, some glancing back at you in curiosity.

There was no worry in their eyes. It was every girl for themselves these days.

If you thought real hard, you could remember a time when you all looked out for each other. You would braid each other’s hair, give a warning if any of the instructors or Madame B were near. If someone didn’t wake up when they were supposed to, the girls would shake her awake and help her get ready on time.

But that time was no more.

Those that ran the infamous Red Room didn’t like when their… students banded together. Things were better for them when you all hated each other and sought ways to sabotage the others.

It made you more likely to kill during a sparring session, and they only wanted girls who were willing to go all the way.

“Is there something you needed from me, madam?” You asked, your hands folded behind your back, spine straight, your chin high.

Good posture had been beaten into you within a week of arrival.

You didn’t forget a lesson like that anytime soon.

The instructor was new to you girls, though you had been told she wasn’t new to the Red Room. She’d been one of you, once upon a time.

One of the few who had survived to graduation, and then lived long enough after to be brought back as an instructor.

“I’m told you’re a prodigy,” she drawled as she slowly walked towards you, her platinum blonde hair pulled into a tight ballerina bun much like your own. While all of you girls wore black leotards, hers was a pale lilac, a shimmering rehearsal skirt tied around her waist that swished around her thighs. “That you are Madame B’s new pride and joy… Though, just based on your dancing, there is absolutely nothing to be prideful of. It is a surprise to me that you haven’t been… taken care of.”

The implication was clear.

Just based on that morning’s class, she thought you were bad enough at ballet to be killed.

Was it possible she just wanted you executed now? Was she about to do so?

Even though Madame B would be pissed, there were more girls that they could train. She’d only be upset for so long before she’d have a new prodigy, a new pride and joy.

Before the Soldat would have a new trainee.

Before your Soldat would have a new trainee. All the other Soldats could have all the trainees they wanted, but your Soldat, your Seven… The thought of him training another girl made bile rise up in your throat.

“Do you have pointers for things I could work on, madame?” You asked, shoulders tensing as she circled you. Like a vulture ready to scavenge a dying animal.

“I simply thought I could lend you some extra practice time,” she said, a sickly sweet smile spreading over her lips as she looked you up and down. “And don’t worry about Madame B and your other instructors. I already let them know that I wanted extra time with you today.”

The way she was speaking was setting off alarms in your mind.

“Perfect,” you said clearly, not letting your fear show. The instructors could smell fear and would use it against you until your heart stopped beating.

“Do you know the role of Aurora in the Sleeping Beauty ballet?” She asked, eyes cold. When you nodded, she chuckled. “Good. You’ll be dancing it on pointe, start to finish. Now.”

You were shocked when she then turned and started the music, but you did as she said.

Now, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty is his longest ballet ever, at almost four hours long.

And you danced all of it.

“Below average,” the instructor said, glaring daggers at you. “Again.”

You needed water desperately, your lungs fighting for air as you pretended to be unbothered by having done that by taking slow, even breaths.

But you had to do it again.

And again.

Every time you finished, she gave some comment about how your dancing was shit, how you’d never be good enough.

At this point, you wished she would simply kill you and get it over with. You were exhausted and your muscles felt like they were going to give out at any moment.

“MALEN’KAYA!”

You fell out of your pirouette in your shock, gasping as your ankle twisted and you fell to the ground. “Fuck!”

Your Soldat stormed into the dance studio as you looked up, eyes wide.

When had he gotten back? He’d been on a mission for the past few days, and fuck, you’d missed him something fierce.

“Soldat,” the instructor breathed out as she stopped moving, staring up at him with blue eyes. “Remember me?”

“Yes,” he said, glaring at her like she was a pile of dog shit he’d stepped in.

She moved towards him, her hand coming to rest on his chest. “I was hoping to see—” She was cut off as he raised his hands to hold her face. The harsh woman looked so… soft for him. “I missed you. Did you miss me?”

“No,” he snarled, his voice dropping almost an octave. “You should’ve thought twice before touching my malen’kaya.”

The light that had been in her eyes when she first saw him quickly disappeared as she realized she was totally, and utterly, fucked.

Your heart caught in your throat as he so easily twisted her head, a loud snap ringing through the air. He let her limp, lifeless body fall to the ground with a thump before turning and rushing to you. The darkness that had been in his face was long gone as he pulled you close, his hands running over you to try to find sources of injuries.

It took you a moment to realize he was speaking, your ears ringing as you stared at the dead woman on the ground.

“—you okay? What the hell happened? Who allowed this?” He asked, talking a mile a minute as he checked over you. Once he finally got to your pointe shoes, he took in a shaky breath. “I have to check,” he said as he reached for the pink ribbons tied around your ankles.

In the two years since you’d known him, you’d never seen his hands shake like they were.

Your eyes locked in on his face, his brows furrowed and his cheeks flushed, as he tentatively untied one of your pointe shoes. He slowly slipped it off, his breath catching in his throat as he looked at your foot. It was only when the second one came off that you finally looked at the damage.

Well… You were sure your feet could have looked much worse after dancing for over twelve hours, but… It still wasn’t pretty.

“I’m okay. It doesn’t hurt that bad,” you lied, trying to soothe him.

He was usually much more composed than this, his face harder.

Even when he was feeling a bit nicer, a bit softer, it was nothing like this.

The Soldat shook his head, looking absolutely pissed. “You don’t have to lie. Never lie to me.”

“I’m not lying,” you insisted. “But that might be because right now, they’re numb, so I can’t feel anything at all from about my ankles down. But that does mean I didn’t lie.”

You were attempting to joke with him, lighten up the mood a bit. However, he definitely didn’t seem to be taking the bait.

When you glanced over at the windows, for some reason you were surprised to see how late it was. “Oh.”

“Yeah,” he drawled as he scooped you up, leaving your pointe shoes behind as he carried you to the locker room. The man was somehow almost completely silent as he set you on a bench and grabbed a first aid kit out of what seemed to be thin air, before gently cleaning away the blood.

Water was dripping somewhere in the locker room, the droplets hitting the tiled floor with soft clinks.

“You were gone,” you whispered, eyes trained on his face. He was still so handsome, even with the frown lines that were starting to appear. Not that you could blame him, everything he’d been through would more than warrant a few wrinkles. “You were gone so long…”

The Soldat’s eyes were soft, despite being the color of the ice that coated the windows. “I know… I can’t stand being away from you, but if I didn’t go… They’d find some way to punish me.” His rough flesh hand cupped your cheek. “And I think they’re starting to catch on that the best way to punish me would be through you, malen’kaya.”

For a second, you thought he was gonna kiss you. From the way his eyes flicked down to your lips and back up again, you could’ve sworn on your life.

But then he took in a deep breath.

And his hand left your cheek.

You tried to push down the disappointment that welled up in your throat, biting your lip.

“Come on, malen’kaya,” he said as he finished wrapping up your poor feet. “Let’s get you to bed.”

The other girls were already sleeping when he carried you into your room, each one of them with a single wrist handcuffed to the bed frame.

“Hate knowing that you’re locked here all night,” Soldat said, his lips brushing against the shell of your ear as he approached the only empty bed in the room. “It’s like… putting a lark in a cage. I don’t like it.”

“I know,” you said. “But… It’s just how it is.” You looked up at him with bright eyes as he laid you down and tucked the blanket in around you, making sure you were nice and cozy before he took your left wrist and cuffed it to the metal frame.

“Get some sleep,” he murmured, brushing his metal fingers along your cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Oh, God…

Everything hurt…

Why did everything hurt?

It was like your head had been shoved under water, but your eyes were too heavy to open.

“—gotta take the video and send it.”

“How do we know he’ll come?”

“Oh, he’ll come. He’ll always come for her.”

Who was that? The voices sounded vaguely familiar, but not quite.

“His precious malen’kaya.”

You slipped back into unconsciousness even as you fought the darkness coming over you, slumping down again.

The clock ticked obnoxiously loud as you sat in the diner booth, your knee pulled up to your chest. A cold cup of half-drank coffee was sitting on the table in front of you.

You’d been waiting over an hour for him to show.

The lunch rush had come and gone, and the waitresses—in their rockabilly uniforms and roller skates—were shooting you pitying looks.

“This is fucking ridiculous,” you huffed as you got to your feet and slammed a crisp twenty dollar bill on the vinyl table top. “He asks me on a fucking date and then doesn’t fucking show. How fucking typical.”

It had only been two days since the mission where he’d asked you out on a date. Your ankle was wrapped, and you were under strict orders to rest.

So, of course, you’d dragged yourself out to this diner that he insisted on taking you to.

Well, meeting you at since you really, really didn’t want to deal with the awkwardness of riding in the same car.

If you were being honest, it hurt. A lot. You’d gotten your hopes up over the past two days, tossing and turning at night as you dreamed of what would happen on your date. Would it go anywhere? Would he end up being the love of your life?

You hadn’t had a crush on anyone since…

Well… Since your Soldat.

You missed him so fucking much.

And he wouldn’t have stood you up.

“Fuck Steve Rogers.”

Your face was flushed as you headed home, storming through the streets of Manhattan to the Avengers Tower. You needed time to stew, and the subway would be too fast.

“I should’ve just stayed home and taken that fucking bubble bath,” you huffed as you got in the elevator and rode up to the residential floors. Even if it had been meant to be a casual first date, you’d done your hair and stressed over your makeup, wearing your nicest pair of leggings and sneakers that didn’t have mud on the bottoms.

And even if the plan had been for it to be casual, you’d been looking forward to flowers and a kiss on the cheek, stealing a fry from his plate and maybe playing footsie under the table.

Just a little.

Like other girls got to do.

The elevator music was getting into your head, and there was no doubt it’d be haunting your dreams. But when the doors opened onto the common area floor, you were just about ready to burst into tears.

Because Steven Grant Rogers was sitting at the kitchen island and eating a sandwich as he laughed at some joke Rhodey made.

You couldn’t believe him. Was this his plan all along?

Steeling yourself, you straightened your spine and walked with purpose, planning on walking right by without even acknowledging him.

But of course, that wouldn’t be your luck.

As soon as Steve caught sight of you, he froze, his blue eyes going wide. Breathing out your name, he quickly scrambled to his feet. “Wait! Wait! Please! I’m so fucking sorry, I completely forgot!”

“It’s fucking fine, Rogers. It’s clearly a sign that this is was a bad idea in the first place,” you said, your voice cold enough to freeze him again.

“What?! No! Please, I’m just…” He groaned as he followed you onto the elevator that would take you up to the other residential floors. “I just had three meetings before noon and completely forgot! That doesn’t mean I don’t want this date with you!”

Taking a breath, you turned on him, glaring at him like he was a piece of dog shit on your shoe. “You know what the cherry on top of this is?” You asked with a laugh. “My first fucking date of my entire fucking life, and I get stood up. Fuck you, Rogers. Fuck. You.”

You’d successfully shocked him, and left him looking like a guppy, his mouth hanging open as he watched you leave him standing there.

When you came to again, you actually found the strength to open your eyes.

The room around you was like every stereotypical hostage room you’d ever seen in real life, and in movies.

Almost like the one Olivia Pope had been in on Scandal.

Though, you had a feeling that this one was real and wasn’t just a fancy set in a warehouse.

“Where am I?” You asked yourself, trying to take stock of everything. “Okay. Head hurts. Expected that. Don’t feel any sharp pains… so he probably shot me with a tranquilizer and not a bullet… Which is probably better for my chances of escape.” It was so fucking cold, your entire body was trembling. “No phone, so no way for the others to track me. Same clothing I was in… so at least there’s that.”

Your voice died as you heard movement beyond the black steel door in front of you, watching as it slowly opened. Your heart sank as you realized who was standing in front of you.

“It’s been too long, malen’kaya.”

[placetobenation]

Spoiler alert for those of you who taped this fight and still haven’t gotten around to watching it yet. On February 11th, 1990, in Toyko, Japan, James “Buster” Douglas as a 42 to 1 underdog pulled off the biggest upset in boxing history, arguably in the history of sports. Mike Tyson was one of the most dominate athletes in all of sports up until that point. He had become the youngest Heavyweight Champion of the World ever at the age of 20. By 21, he would be the undisputed World Heavyweight Champion, unifying the WBA, WBC, and IBF championships. By 22, he would defeat the lineal champion Michael Spinks in 91 seconds making him truly undisputed as the most dominate force in the heavyweight division and the Baddest Man on the Planet. Tyson’s meteoric rise to the top at such a young age suggested that he would continue to be a dominate force going into the 90’s. This fight against Douglas was seen as a tune up fight for a future encounter with number one contender Evander Holyfield. No one was taking this fight seriously except for Buster Douglas.

Personally, there are few of us who remember the first time one of our heroes let us down. This fight took place three days before my 10th birthday. Mike Tyson was one of my childhood heroes. I was too little to really understand some of his character flaws. In large part my love of Mike Tyson was tied closely with my love for the 1987 NES Classic Mike Tyson’s Punch Out! I had seen some boxing on tv but really couldn’t appreciate some of the nuances of the sport. All I knew was that Mike Tyson was one of the coolest guys on the planet along with Jim McMahon, Barry Sanders, Bo Jackson, and Robin Yount. I had wanted very badly to see Tyson take on Buster Douglas, hoping to witness Tyson knock out some bum in about 30 seconds. We didn’t have HBO and my Mom remembered the pain in the backside that we had to go through when I talked her into ordering the Tyson vs Spinks fight in 1988. Pay Per View didn’t used to be so easy to order. And to be treated with a 91 second fight, the whole thing seemed hardly worth it. Instead, she promised to have her friend from work tape WrestleMania 6 for me, so I got over not seeing Tyson vs Douglas pretty quickly. Besides, Mike Tyson was going to be on Saturday Nights Main Event shortly after my birthday. Tyson was going to knock out Hogan and help Savage regain the WWE Championship. Mike Tyson appearing in wrestling was two of my favorite things coming together. So I was feeling pretty optimistic going into this fight. When I found out that Mike Tyson had lost, I couldn’t believe it. As in, this did not compute. I was in denial. I had seen Tyson beat Michael Spinks in 91 seconds. I had seen him take out Little Mac with one punch. I was in denial. Then to find out that Buster Douglas would be taking his place to referee the Randy Savage vs Hulk Hogan match on Saturday Nights Main Event, I was crushed. The world is a much simpler place when you are nine.

Mike Tyson would go on to disappoint me pretty much for the rest of his career after the Douglas fight. Whether it be learning the facts of life from an older kid at school when asking out loud why Tyson was going to prison or his comedy fight in his comeback match with Peter McNeely. The time Mike bit off Evander Holyfield’s ear or getting exposed and dissected by Lennox Lewis. And let’s not forget his final match in which he just gave up because his heart wasn’t in it anymore. This night in Tokyo really was the beginning of the end for “Iron” Mike Tyson. The aura of invincibly was gone.

As for the fight itself, the entire HBO broadcast is up on YouTube and I will link to it here. The pre-fight hype really spelled out just how hopeless the situation for Buster Douglas was. Just the way Jim Lampley says the fight is “scheduled” for 12 rounds and points to all the empty seats doesn’t really sell anyone on the broadcast they are about to see. I have to respect the journalistic integrity of Lampley and Larry Merchant, who are calling this fight. They aren’t trying to BS the audience in anyway. They use words like mismatch, non-competitive, and annihilation. Merchant’s first comment is striking. “This match was over before it even began or soon thereafter.” They really capture the mood surrounding the fight. Nothing to see here, folks, but Don King and some Japanese businessmen are paying for this fight so let’s get this over with. At some point during the fight they explain that the Japanese wanted this fight mostly as a status symbol, hosting it at the Tokyo Dome to give people a chance to say they saw Mike Tyson defend his championship. I understand this completely. On May 3rd, 2008, I went to the Home Depot Center in Carson, California to see Oscar De La Hoya take on Steve Forbes. I bought the cheapest ticket possible, nearly at the top of this soccer stadium. I watch the fight through binoculars amongst a group of other common people. But we all get to say that we saw one of the all time great fighters live and in person.

They couldn’t even be bothered to find out what Buster Douglas looked like when drawing the poster.

The pre-match hype videos for Tyson and Douglas also don’t inspire a lot of faith. The gist of them are that Mike Tyson is a force of nature that has dominated the world of boxing and capture the imagination of all. Also he scared some of the locals while visiting Japan by catching a pigeon with his bare hands. On the other hand, James “Buster” Douglas is from Columbus, Ohio. They even name drop Woody Hayes as having a slight connection to Douglas’ trainer. They did put over that Buster Douglas’ mom had died just weeks before the fight, the implication being his heart might be heavy coming into this match. The boxers enter the ring and they aren’t doing much to even focus on Douglas’ strong points. He might as well have had ‘Opponent’ on the back of his robe.

The Japan Sporting Commission set up a ceremony where want to present Mike Tyson with a belt that supposedly belonged to Joe Louis. Tyson turns his back to them, not acknowledging their existence and completely disrespecting them. I am sure that did nothing to endear him to the Japanese public. The tale of the tape should be the first indication that something isn’t right here because Douglas has pretty much every physical advantage in size and reach. Douglas is in the best shape of his career, ten pounds lighter than his most recent fight with Oliver McCall. Tyson looks bored with this whole thing and just wants to get back to the hotel. Evander Holyfield is at ringside and we are promised an interview with him “in a few short moments.”

Round 1

Douglas takes control of the bout immediately, working the left jab and tying up Tyson whenever he tries to get inside. Douglas displays an uncharacteristic quickness which avoids some of Tyson’s attempts to explode inside and land the combination that will put this fight away early. When Tyson charges forward, Douglas quickly evades the onslaught and ties the champ up. Douglas keeps working the jab and has Tyson fighting his fight.

This is a defining image that really sums up this fight.

DeDamos’ Score Card: 10-9 Douglas.

Round 2

Tyson explodes out of the corner, hoping to catch Douglas off guard and land the big combination. That doesn’t work. Douglas avoids the onslaught, landing a few blows inside before tying Tyson up. We see a little bit of Tyson’s bob and weave, peek-a-boo defense to avoid Douglas’ reach. Mike quickly abandons that, opting instead to absorb the left jab and try to get inside to land a big uppercut. Douglas is too fast for him, beat Tyson to the punch and landing some devastating rights before tying the champ up. Before the end of the round, Douglas unloads on Tyson and to Mike’s credit, he keeps on his feet. Nothing did too much damage but Douglas is landing his shots and controlling the tempo of the fight.

DeDamos’ Score Card: 10-9 Douglas. 20-18 Douglas.

Round 3

Tyson tries exploding at the bell again and again get frustrated by Douglas. Tyson through the round does match to get some good shots in at the body but can’t follow up with any of them. He is still looking for the big punch, namely an uppercut, to put this away. Douglas is tiring out some. He is landing his leg jab still and getting in a few combinations when Tyson gives him an opening. Douglas is still doing a good job frustrating the champ by tying him up inside. Tyson is trying to land what he can while tied by but there is nothing behind those punches. Tyson is shows some signs of life. He didn’t prepare well for this fight at all and it shows. Douglas keeps leading with the right cross when Tyson tries to get inside, always being on step ahead of Iron Mike.

DeDamos’ Score Card: 10-9 Douglas. 30-27 Douglas.

Between rounds we see how ineffective Tyson’s corner is. They basically tell him to stay the coarse and punch on the inside. Tyson rolls his eyes and looks about fed up with this nonsense. Douglas is in his head and Tyson is thoroughly frustrated.

Round 4

Both guys are looking gassed and have slowed down quite a bit. The announcers are seeking answers for what they are witnessing. Tyson firing trainer Kevin Rooney might have something to do with why his is so ill prepared and easy to hit. Tyson keeps trying to explode forward but Douglas keeps tying him up and neutralizing the champs offense. Tyson has some success early in the round, landing some jabs, catching Douglas in the chin. To Douglas’ credit, he keeps on his feet and doesn’t get taken back. It looks like Tyson might win the round but Douglas gets back to working the left jab and explodes with a flurry towards the end of the round. It’s hard to say what landed and what didn’t as both men were trying to land some punches to win the round. Douglas is still controlling the pace of the fight.

DeDamos’ Score Card: 10-9 Tyson. 39-37 Douglas.

Between rounds we see Evander Holyfield in the crowd, watching a $12 Million pay day against Tyson in June fly right out the window. Evander knows what he is seeing and doesn’t like it one bit.

Round 5

Tyson is lost without a map. There is no explosiveness. No evasion. Douglas imposes his will on Tyson in this round. Douglas works the left jab, Tyson keeps coming inside to try to establish something and keeps catching a right cross of his effort. Douglas has been leading with the right all fight and now it has swollen Mike’s eye shut. Tyson’s legs are getting weak but he takes everything Buster gives him and stays on his feet. I don’t know that Tyson landed a punch that round.

DeDamos’ Score Card: 10-9 Douglas. 49-46 Douglas.

Between the rounds we see the legendary moment where Tyson’s corner uses a condom filled with ice water to reduce the swelling on his eye. I am only assuming it was ice water, they may have used lukewarm tap water. These corner men were so bad that they didn’t bother to bring the proper equipment. Normally, the corner would have a cold press or end-swell. It’s a piece of iron that is kept cold for occasions such as this. Every fight corner has one. It’s standard equipment. It is so comically amateur that this defies description.

Round 6

Tyson shows some of the explosiveness that he has left, leaping in with lightning quick strikes which aren’t landing. Douglas is still too quick to let these punches land with the effectiveness they need to score the knockout. Tyson looks for the uppercut inside but keeps running into that lead right from Buster. Tyson desperately wants to land the big punch that will end this bout before it gets any further. Douglas is relaxed and in control. He keeps landing two left jabs and a right cross, which has worked for him all fight. Tyson lands a few punch inside but there isn’t much behind those them. Douglas continues to be the ring general.

DeDamos’ Score Card: 10-9 Douglas. 59-55 Douglas.

Round 7

The song remains the same. Tyson attempts a low blow early in the round. It had nothing behind it and thankfully the ref didn’t see it. For those who question the heart and toughness of Mike Tyson, a lesser boxer would have fallen by now from the beating he has received at the hands of Buster Douglas. Tyson is clearly frustrated and looking for that opening to land the uppercut.

DeDamos’ Score Card: 10-9 Douglas. 69-64 Douglas.

Round 8

Douglas comes out the first half of the round a bit off. He isn’t throwing many punches, just tying up the champ and taking his time. Buster might be a little too loose and relaxed. Douglas just looks off compared to where he was in the last three rounds. Midway through, Douglas starts landing his left jabs, probably realizing that he has to keep winning rounds if this goes to the 12th. Tyson keeps running into Douglas’ lead right as he comes inside. Douglas sees an opening near the end of the round and starts unloading on Tyson. Tyson takes everything Douglas dishes out then finally hits that uppercut he has been looking for all night,putting Douglas on the mat for the first knockdown of the fight.

This is where we have some controversy. Don King and his people will contest the fight over. The count appears to be a bit slow. The ref and the time keeper are off by about 2 seconds. When Douglas gets knocked down, he punches the mat in frustration. Douglas is listening for the referees count, taking all the time he is allotted before getting to his feet. Having watched this over several times, I am confident that Douglas could have gotten up well before the ref’s count of 9 which would have been the time keepers count of 11.

Douglas gets to his feet and is saved by the bell before Tyson can strike again.

DeDamos’ Score Card: 10-8 Tyson. 77-74 Douglas.

Round 9

This is the pivotal round of the fight. How will Douglas respond to getting knocked down? How much does he have left? If he can’t maintain control of this fight, be the ring general Douglas has been for the previous 8 rounds, Tyson will take control of the fight and score the knock out. Douglas has to show that he has conditioning and heart that he has lacked his whole career, notably in his only other title fight against Tony Tucker. Douglas rises to the occasion, tying up the champ and taking his time to clear the cob webs. Tyson looks to quicken the pace of the fight, to land that final punch that will end the fight. But Tyson is running on empty too. Douglas unloads on Tyson with a flurry of blows with 2 minutes to go in the round. Tyson answers back and wobbles the challenger. Douglas keeps on his feet and goes back to neutralizing Tyson and slowing him down. Then with a minute left, Douglas opens up his offense again. Tyson gets to the ropes to keep him on his feet. Douglas punches himself out trying to get Tyson on the mat but Tyson keeps on the ropes. Tyson clears his head and looks to land a few bombs but there is nothing behind his punches. He misses more than he hits and the round is mercifully over. It was gut check time for Douglas and he make a statement. He is still in this fight and not going anywhere.

DeDamos’ Score Card 10-9 Douglas. 87-83 Douglas

Round 10

Tyson comes out with a nice right, tagging Douglas in the side of the head. Now it’s Tyson looking to tie up Douglas who is looking for an opening to put this fight away. Douglas finds that opening mid way through the tenth. Douglas opens up with a fiery combination, knocking down Tyson for the first time in his professional career. Tyson looks for his mouth guard as he flounders around the mat. Tyson can’t get to his feet by ten and his on dream street. James “Buster” Douglas has done the impossible. He has overcome 42-1 odds and beat the undefeated Mike Tyson to become the undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the World. No one believes what they are seeing.

Buster Douglas overcame the death of his mother two week before the fighter and the mother of his child being hospitalized with kidney issues to take on the biggest challenge of his career. And he won. One only sports book would even take bets on this fight. This was the ultimate underdog story of a man defying all expectations, tapping into all of his potential, moving past a career of underachievement, and putting it all together on one night to become the undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the World. The way he prepared for this fight, Douglas could have beaten anyone that night. Tyson came in completely unprepared and when he wasn’t able to intimidate his opponent, he didn’t know what to do.

Tyson showed the kind of class that would be the hallmark of his career, quickly exiting the ring without acknowledging that the man who beat him just had the fight of his life. He didn’t shake the man’s hand or congratulate him. Imagine that ending to Mike Tyson’s Punch Out. “You didn’t do shit, Little Mac. I’m going to tie your ass up in court. Screw you, pal.” Buster Douglas makes sure to credit his mother and his father for this win. His dad had been his trainer early in his career but following the Tony Tucker fight, Buster made the hard decision to fire his dad. According to the shoot interviews I have watched, it seems like Buster Douglas didn’t respond well to his father’s constant pressure on him, which lead to Buster’s underachievement in much of his career. Still, Buster loved his father but to get to the next level, he had to go in another direction. The post match interview with Evander Holyfield, he is trying to put a good spin on things even though a lot of money just slipped through his fingers. He is saying the right platitudes but the look on his face tells a different story. It would be six years before the world would see Tyson vs Holyfield but that is a story for another day.

The judges score cards are the biggest travesty of this fight. The American judge had it at 88-82, which is pretty close to where I had it. He must have scored the 8th a 9-9, giving that round to Douglas. Maybe I have a lot to learn about scoring. The first Japanese judge had Tyson leading 87-86. The second Japanese judge had it tied 86-86. I don’t want to accuse anyone of being bribed by Don King but that is better than the alternative. At least being on the take would make sense. I invite you to watch this fight and tell me what your score card looks like. I can’t imagine any unbiased person could watch this fight and have Tyson winning it or a tie. If this had gone 12 rounds, either they were going to rob Douglas of the decision or those two judges had no business judging a boxing match or anything else for that matter. I hope the judge who had Tyson ahead on his card was either in King’s pocket or they have such poor judgment that they was never allowed to judge anything ever again. Not a wet t-shirt contest, a hot dog eating contest, and certainly never judge his neighbor.

Following this fight, Don King and the Tyson camp almost immediately protested the decision. The WBA and WBC were willing to take their complaints seriously but ultimate this never went any where. For Buster Douglas, having his title win tied up in court by Don King really messed with him. For the moment though, Buster Douglas was a household name overnight. WWE quickly replaced Tyson as the special guest referee for The Main Event match between Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage. To my disappointment, Douglas didn’t help Savage win the belt. Sega made a deal with Buster Douglas to quickly put out a video game. They repackaged the 1988 boxing title Final Blow , which had not been released in North America, as James “Buster” Douglas Knockout Boxing. Douglas even appeared in the “Genesis Does What Nintendon’t” commercials. The idea being Nintendo has Tyson in Punch Out, well we have the guy who beat Tyson therefore we have the better game system. Douglas picked up some acting gigs and media appearance. I don’t know if he was prepared for becoming a media sensation overnight.

On October 25, 1990, James “Buster” Douglas defended his undisputed World Heavyweight Championship against Evander “Real Deal” Holyfield. Douglas came into the fight out of shape and unprepared. He was quickly dismantled by Holyfield, being knocked out in the third round. This was a disappointment for pretty much everybody. Douglas had really turned the corner on his career in the fight against Tyson. Boxing was desperately in need of stars and if Douglas had been able to make a competent showing against Holyfield, it would have been good for the sport overall. Douglas didn’t return to his pre-Tyson form in this fight. He was worse than he had ever looked in his career. Douglas blames this on the prolonged court battle with Don King and being distracted by the threat that his win in Toyko could be taken away. It’s hard to believe that no one in Douglas’ camp could have gotten through to him. King was a snake in the grass and these sort of tactics were well within his character. But King also didn’t have a leg to stand on. If in fact Douglas was distracted by this legal battle then his team failed him terrible. Let the lawyers handle the legal matters, get your fighter focused on what he has to do in the ring. That didn’t happen. Douglas would disappear from boxing until 1996. He had ballooned to over 400lbs and slipped into a diabetic coma. It was a near miracle that Douglas survived this coma much less returned to the ring. Douglas would win a series of fights against tomato cans, never really able to regain the footing he once had in his career. Buster Douglas would quietly retire in 1999. Today, Douglas is at peace with his life and career. He makes occasional media appearances. It seems like he is in a good place in his life and has no regrets.

It is well documented what happened to Mike Tyson following this fight. A downward spiral began that lasted him the rest of his professional career. Tyson would go on to have some big fights and big pay days. But he never was the same boxer after this fight with Douglas. Truthfully, firing Kevin Rooney as his trainer and the death of his mentor Cus D’Amato may have been the real beginning of the end for Tyson but the lose to Douglas was a moment in time where we can pinpoint the wheels falling off. In 2005, Tyson would have his last fight against Kevin McBride, a young prospect but not someone seen on Tyson’s level. The fight went to seven rounds. To start the seventh, Tyson refused to leave his corner, giving up on the fight and boxing. In a rare candid moment, in the post fight Tyson admitted that he didn’t have it anymore and it was disrespectful to the sport for him to come out here and embarrass himself. When asked if he was worried about disappointing the fans Tyson said that the fans knew his career ended in 1990. It’s a heartbreakingly honest interview in which Tyson says what everyone already knew. It’s worth watching the McBride fight for the post-fight interview alone. Boxing can be a world with a lot of dishonesty so to see someone be so brutally truthful was unusual. Today, Tyson seems to be in a good place in his life. He has tried to make peace with his past and make amends from some of his terrible deeds.

Buster Douglas was never that good before, he would never be that good again. But on one night in Toyko, Buster Douglas put everything together to be the ultimate underdog story and fought a nearly perfect fight.Few underdog stories even compare. Perhaps only The Miracle on Ice is a bigger upset in the history of sports. Upsets are part of what makes sports interesting. People love the idea that on any given day, the 42-1 long shot can pull it over and be the World Champion. Whether it’s the 1994 Denver Nuggets knocking off the first seed Seattle Super Sonics in the playoffs. The 2003 Florida Marlins knocking off the Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees to an improbable second World Series title. Sports often go the way we expect them to, with unbelievable talent becoming champions and dynasties. But sometimes Mazeroski hits a walk off home run. Sometimes Havichek steals the ball. Sometimes we do believe in miracles. And sometimes Buster Douglas can beat Mike Tyson.

[newstfionline]

For foreign reporters, hints of ‘House of Cards’ in ‘Trump Show’

Linda Feldmann, CS Monitor, July 14, 2017

WASHINGTON--Sean Spicer, Steve Bannon, Stephen Miller--all are players in the palace intrigue known as the Trump White House. And they’re all household names ... in China.

Chinese TV viewers can’t get enough of the “Trump Show,” and coverage of America in general, says Ching-Yi Chang, White House correspondent for Shanghai Media Group.

“They’re interested in everything--your entertainment, your politics, how your system functions,” Mr. Chang says. Chinese people “very much enjoy ‘House of Cards,’” he adds, by way of explanation.

But if any parallels between the Netflix drama and real life are a bit overdrawn--even in a week of stark revelations in the Trump-Russia saga--there’s no doubt that the Trump presidency has gripped the imagination of a global audience.

And as with their American counterparts, foreign correspondents who cover the White House call it the story of a lifetime--profound in its implications for their home countries, and a fascinating window into the experiment called American democracy.

The story isn’t just about a flamboyant businessman who improbably winds up in the White House, and sends a legion of investigative reporters into high gear, however. It’s also about the small towns and cultural diversity of a vast nation.

Like France’s Alexis de Tocqueville and Ilf and Petrov of the old Soviet Union, international observers have long found America an endlessly fascinating subject for study and exploration. When Akiyoshi Mitsuzawa, a reporter for the Japanese newspaper Seikyo Shimbun, came to the US recently on a two-week reporting trip, he spent only a day in Washington and more time in the middle of the country.

Probe more deeply, and members of the foreign press corps in Washington marvel at Americans’ abiding sense of patriotism as they salute the flag, sing the national anthem at ballgames, and thank military veterans for their service.

Branka Slavica, US correspondent for Croatian TV, says her countrymen are impressed that, after 241 years, America “still celebrates its birthday in such a beautiful way.” She went to the National Mall on July 4 to interview Americans who had come from all over the country to watch the parade and the fireworks.

“People were really, honestly excited about the Fourth of July,” says Ms. Slavica, who has been based in the US for 12 years. “They are every year. It doesn’t matter who is the president.”

Among the foreign correspondents based in Washington, many escape the capital when they can--out of their own curiosity and their bosses’ desire for coverage that captures the richness of America.

“We try to look at the world and America from a bit more of a helicopter perspective” than the beat reporters in Washington, says Jorgen Ullerup, US correspondent for the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten. “We go to a lot of places where people are crazy about Trump.”

Mr. Ullerup and his wife just spent a week in Kentucky looking into the opioid epidemic. Ullerup has also spent time with a fundamentalist snake handler in Tennessee, and visited the Nevada ranch of the rebellious Cliven Bundy (who, Ullerup discovered, has Danish ancestry).

But Trump is like a magnet, says Ullerup. “I travel the country to do other stories, but somehow it always comes back to Trump.”

“Today I did a correspondent’s letter about staying at the Trump hotel in Las Vegas,” he explains. “I’ve done a whole lot of Russia stories. Yesterday I wrote about the GOP and health care... The other day I wrote about Spicer.”

Not that he much minds. President Obama had gotten kind of boring. When Ullerup first arrived seven years ago--long before a President Trump was on anyone’s radar--he was struck by how divided America was. In Europe, Mr. Obama was seen as a superstar, but here, Ullerup found “everybody was blocking him.”

“In Europe, people are a little bit surprised that there’s so much negativity about Obama, because it looked like he had gotten America out of the economic crisis much faster than Europe,” Ullerup says.

“What we didn’t focus on was that people had felt forgotten, that their wages didn’t rise,” he says. “People were talking about the unemployment rate going down, but paying less attention to the people who were leaving the labor market.”

Today, he says, America seems more divided than ever. Trump’s campaign talk of NATO as “obsolete” only added to Danish (and European) anxiety about US dedication to the alliance. Ullerup speaks of a recent trip to Virginia Beach for Warrior Week, in which 35 Danish veterans from the Afghan and Iraq wars participated.

“When they came into a restaurant, people would clap or say, ‘Thank you for your service,’” he says. “That never happens in Denmark.”

Ullerup rarely makes it to the White House briefing room. But for other foreign correspondents, being on scene is where it’s at.

“In the first few months, it was a bit chaotic,” especially compared with the orderly and opaque Obama White House, says Philip Crowther, White House correspondent for France 24 TV since 2011.

Mr. Crowther says he’ll never forget the first full day of Trump’s presidency, when Mr. Spicer came out and “literally shouted at us” about the crowd size at the inauguration.

“The podium was way too big for him,” Crowther says. “The next day, I saw them wheeling it out of the West Wing, and replacing it with one that would suit him better.”

During the campaign, foreign reporters were shut out of Trump campaign events, and they feared their White House press passes would be deactivated after Trump took office. That didn’t happen.

Crowther just finished a year as president of the White House Foreign Press Group, a group of about two dozen foreign correspondents from all over the world committed to maintaining a daily presence in the White House.

“You basically have to remind the White House that you’re there,” says Crowther, a native of Luxembourg with British and German citizenship.

Today, foreign reporters get called on at briefings, as they did under Obama. Though with only one seat in the briefing room reserved for foreign press, most are left standing cheek-by-jowl in the cramped space. But they’ll take what they can get.

German radio correspondent Sabrina Fritz is packing up to leave after six years in Washington. And like her foreign colleagues, she is struck by the evolution she has witnessed.

When she first arrived in the US, Ms. Fritz says, the country seemed “very open to everything”--gay marriage, people of other religions, fighting climate change, more vegetables at schools.

“I liked this spirit--all those very, let’s say, European values,” she says. “You have to pay here for your plastic bags, and I thought, wow, a lot of things are changing.”

Over time, Fritz saw that nothing is as simple as it seems. She has traveled the country, talking to workers involved in fracking in North Dakota and cowboys in Wyoming. Like many reporters, she read “Hillbilly Elegy,” the J.D. Vance memoir that offers a window into the lives of the white underclass.

Fritz also made multiple trips to Detroit, and saw a once-great city begin to revive. For her, Detroit’s nascent comeback reflects a glass-half-full attitude that is quintessentially American. “You are a nation of survivors,” she says.

Still, she worries about the future of US-European trade, and about Trump’s decision to pull out of the Paris climate accord. “There’s a danger that the US will fall behind, and become more isolated.”

Is America still a beacon of democracy, as it likes to see itself? TV reporter Chang smiles and quotes “House of Cards” character Frank Underwood: “Democracy is so overrated.”

Chang grew up in Taiwan, “a very vibrant democracy,” he says. “But there are always drawbacks to democracy.”

Sometimes “the people” make the wrong decision, he says, pointing to UK citizens’ decision to leave the European Union. In Washington, expansion of the metro system has been chugging along slowly for years. In China, a project like that would be finished in six months, he says.

Others point to the transparency of the American system as admirable. Slavica of Croatia marvels at the televised open hearing last month of James Comey, the fired FBI director.

“I also love confirmation hearings,” she says. “Whoever the president chooses has to go through a public hearing. That’s a nice test.”