That’s quite a thought-provoked response; I’d be remiss not to return the favor.

>Come on, you can't believe after
>all we've seen that these
>reality shows are not interfering
>with the results in one
>was or another.

So anything out of the ordinary that you are unable to explain in a straight-forward manner is a conspiracy. Let me ask, did you think the 1980 USA Olympic Hockey Team was a conspiracy too?

>No one has been smart
>enough to control the game
>like a Dan or a
>Derrick

Of course we are not treated to a Dan or Derrick every season. That’s a shame. We rarely are thanks to the ineptness of casting.

>What?? I'm not saying that proactivity
>is gender related.

You stated in a prior post, “saying that survival has anything to do with being proactive shows a bias for the males,” so naturally I interpreted that as you drawing a correlation between proactivity and being male. I’m glad we now agree playing proactively is not contingent on one’s gender.

>I'm saying that James should have
>understood Natalie's reaction.

Natalie clearly initiated the “Dear James” scenario that I have always believe was inevitable. And when knowing one of them was definitely getting evicted, that’s when she decided to hand James the “letter.” Also knowing how it would be perceived by a majority of BB fans/viewers, she need to try to put the Black Hat on James...but I, for one, am not buying it.

>Please listen to
>what the players say or
>else why should I even
>debate your fan fiction.

I do listen to what players say...I just don’t take their words as Gospel. I’ll state again, Corey had two choices dealing with one of the more stupid twists devised by Production. Either honestly confirm how moronic that bribe twist really was by not using it, or to pour a little Kool-Aid to the viewers and make them think this moronic idea DID “change the course of the game” as hoped by Production and written in the care package. I hope you enjoyed the Kool-Aid as much as Production enjoyed wiping the egg off its face.

>Please
>abandon your fan fiction that
>it was only a prank
>when James said he wanted
>the $5K in the DR!

If you still want to take the silly prankster at his word, then knock yourself out. With the way James has been performing this season, “bribing” him to not win a comp would be like “bribing” a vegetarian to not eat the Outback steak dinner. LOL. Along the same lines, logic must prevail that Victor would never evict Paul over an emotional Mess. So I’ll state, yet again, this so-called “bribe” ended up being a “gift.” Corey decided to go with his gut and present that gift to Victor. His gut did not fail him when Vic reciprocated the favor after he went on to win the next HOH. Victor SPECIFICALLY stated he was repaying that favor. Now it’s MY turn to state, “Please listen to what the players say.”

>>You don’t need to question whether
>>Corey was sandbagging early on,
>>because I’m convinced he wasn’t.

>I know, that's why he's "Dopey".

So not sandbagging and ALWAYS putting your best foot forward and giving your best effort is being “Dopey.” WOW. I can’t speak for all but on a personal note whenever I visit my father’s mausoleum, I thank him profusely for instilling that “best effort” mentality in my culture...and I’ll proudly wear a dunce cap when doing so.

>Corey lost some on his own
>like that false start in
>the 1st round...

Even the most trained world class track stars are susceptible to false starts. Vic and Paulie were killing that comp. Sure Corey could have offered additional competition, but Paulie pretty much owned that POV from beginning to end.

>A smart man would NEVER
>have said that in front
>of Corey and within earshot
>of Nicole.

Some of your most skilled, intelligent and astute individuals accused of any wrongdoing can slip up when properly interrogated. But you being so fixated on bashing James prevents you from giving credit to Paul for using his persistence to extract information he was able to use to his advantage.

>The timing difference is key here.

Timing; Schmiming…and the wheels on your bus SPIN round and round.

>But what good will that do
>him?

It will prove to do a world of good for James going forward. Unless Victor wins POV, it’s a safe bet Vic will be evicted tomorrow. If so, Paul will gobble up James before the color disappears on Victor’s memory wall picture. And why not? James has to know Corey/Nicole would take each other to the F2. Actually any scenario other than Paul winning F4 HOH AND either Nicole/Corey winning POV, James can coast to F3.

>THAT WEEK they were safe but
>it was THAT WEEK that
>their game went down the
>drain. It wouldn't have
>if James had been HoH.

Hypothetically if James took that HOH, with seven HGs remaining it would be hard to assume how things would have panned out. Heck, we can’t even agree who was “wearing the pants” between James/Natalie. With Victor’s blood still on his hands (thanks to the stupid dumba$$ Co-HOH twist) James wanted to secure his and Natalie’s safety WITHOUT any more blood on his hands. Also the human side of James came to the forefront giving Nicole the opportunity to receive a letter from home she so badly wanted.

HMMM, so let’s recap these “dumb decisions” made by this “imbecile.” He saves Corey’s game and the Nicorey showmance making the “dumb decision” to evict Victor. He allows Nicole to receive a letter from home (as I guess any “imbecile” would) and the perks that come with being HOH making Nicorey a happy couple. And this same Nicorey dominating the end game comps which we see are also benefitting James quite handsomely. I’m going to lean more toward Kingfish’s assessment...”smart little feller.”

>>The couple
>>who collectively performed the weakest
>>in the competitions became most
>>vulnerable.

>And who is that couple?

Going back to F7 here are the win tallies for each duo:
Bromance – Vic F6-HOH, F7-Battleback TWO
Showmance – Nic F7-HOH/POV; Corey F6POV, F5 HOH FOUR
Nomance – NADA

How convenient you need to go back to F8 to note Natalie’s ONLY win; so hell, let’s just start from the beginning:
James/Natalie – 2
Nicole/Corey – 8
Vic/Paul – 7
Paulie/Zakiyah (although one-sided) – 5
Even Frank/Bridgette in the House about half the time had TWICE as many with – 4

Bottom line, despite Natalie’s “blame game” tactic to throw James under the bus, let the record show they have little choice but to hold themselves accountable because of their competition futility.

>She told James
>that he was her soul
>mate. That was big
>so why do you dismiss
>it?

Yes, for Natalie to refer to James as her “soulmate” is a powerful statement. But she needed to say something powerful for damage control. Given James high popularity, I would not be shocked if she walked onto the studio to a chorus of some BOOs had she not back pedaled as furiously as she did. By this time next year I presume MANY more will be dismissing it as well.