Topic: Honorifics

Adam Curry and John Dvorak conduct the formal knighting ceremony for episode 1600. New knights and dames, including Bessie Tolbert, Jonathan Poehler, and Carl Wazowski, are granted their titles and "seated" at the virtual roundtable. The ceremony includes the traditional list of eccentric refreshments, from "hookers and blow" to "mutton and me," as the hosts celebrate 16 years of independent media deconstruction.

Senator John Kennedy questioned judicial nominee Mustafa Kasheubai regarding a court order that invited participants to declare their pronouns and "honorifics" such as "Mix." Kennedy also challenged the nominee on an article where he suggested setting aside "conventional ideas of proof" when dealing with issues of equity, diversity, and inclusion. The nominee defended the statements as being related to interpersonal respect rather than legal standards.

A viral TikTok video features a trans non-binary teacher discussing alternative honorifics to "Mr." or "Ms.," such as "Captain," "Sergeant," or "Lord." The hosts use this as an example of how social media trends and "opposition strife" are used to keep the public distracted and agitated. They argue that such content is part of a broader media model designed to generate conflict rather than provide news.

A dispute arose within the Peerage Committee regarding the correct honorific for Renee Dupont, who was missed in a previous knighting ceremony. While a missed knight is typically dubbed a "Black Knight," the hosts debated whether "Black Dame" or "Dark Dame" was an appropriate equivalent. The committee ultimately decided to stick to standard titles to avoid unintended racial or social connotations, settling on "Dame Plus" as a temporary compromise.