Flames, Failures, and Film Critiques: Friday's Mixed Bag

Have you ever wondered what could trap someone inside a high-tech vehicle? The tragic case of Michael Sheehan, who perished in his Tesla Cybertruck after a crash, raises alarming questions about vehicle safety design. According to a wrongful death lawsuit, the Cybertruck's electrically operated doors became inoperable after power loss, with manual release latches allegedly too difficult to locate in an emergency. This shocking revelation forces us to question whether automotive innovation sometimes sacrifices essential safety features for aesthetic appeal.

Switching gears to career advice, we explore three seemingly innocent phrases that could instantly disqualify you during job interviews. Mentioning your entrepreneurial ambitions signals to employers that you're already planning your exit strategy. Surprisingly, emphasizing "work-life balance" might suggest misaligned priorities to potential employers searching for passionate, committed candidates. Even honestly disclosing a previous layoff could work against you, as executives often assume top performers are reassigned rather than let go during downsizing. These counterintuitive insights might just save your next job opportunity.

For movie buffs, we discuss the critical reception of "The Roses," a remake of the 1989 dark comedy starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner. Despite featuring talents like Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman, critics are panning it as "weak and witless." But as seasoned viewers know, critical consensus doesn't always align with audience enjoyment. This discussion raises our question of the day: What highly acclaimed, universally praised film left you thoroughly unimpressed? Share your controversial movie opinions and join the conversation about when critical darlings miss the mark for regular viewers.

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Liberty Line each week on Sunday, look for topics on my X file @americanistblog and submit your 1-3 audio opinions to anamericanistblog@gmail.com and you'll be featured on the podcast. 

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Chapters

• 0:29 Friday intro and story preview
• 1:16 Tesla Cybertruck death lawsuit details
• 5:43 Three interview dealbreakers revealed
• 7:34 Critics trash "The Roses" movie remake
• 11:23 Question of the day and sign-off

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:15

Good morning, happy Friday. We made it through the week. Half a day for me, woot, woot, alright. I have three stories, one of them's fairly tragic. The other two are very lighthearted. The reason I brought the tragic one up? I just find it well, it's horrible for one thing, but I don't know I need to know more about this kind of stuff that's happening. Well, what did I do? I thought I shared it on X. I guess I didn't know I need to know more about this kind of stuff that's happening. Well, what did I do? I thought I shared it on X. I guess I didn't. Oh, here we go. You ready? All right, here we go.

Speaker 1: 1:02

Family sues Tesla after Cybertruck owner dies in a 5,000 degree inferno, causing bones to disintegrate. This poor guy burned alive to death in his that doesn't make sense uh, in his cyber truck, and I don't know. This is just strange, don't? I mean? Do cyber trucks have automatic locks where I mean, surely you are able to get out? I don't know. Let's read the story. I only read the headline when I first shared it, so let's see what happened. A Tesla owner was burned alive in his Cybertruck after the stainless steel beast erupted in a 5,000-degree inferno, so intense that it caused his bones to disintegrate, according to a wrongful death lawsuit filed in Texas. This is horrible.

Speaker 1: 1:37

Michael Sheehan, 47, bought the futuristic pickup in April of 2024. Just three months later, on August 3rd, the truck veered off the road, slammed into a culvert and burst into flames near Beach City around three miles. So what do you mean? It veered off. The truck doesn't just veer off by itself. So what the hell happened? I guess we're not going to find out. The raging fire trapped Sheehan inside the vehicle, as I hope he was unconscious. The raging fire trapped Sheehan inside the vehicle as the batteries powering the $100,000 SUV went into catastrophic failure. Court filings say the blaze was so hot went into catastrophic failure. Court filings say the blaze was so hot Sheehan's skeletal system literally fractured from the heat. Yeah, I know, you told us that already. I want to know why. What happened? Why was he locked? Just three months later, on August 3rd, the truck veered off the road, slammed into a culvert and burst into flames. The raging fire trapped Sheehan and said Well, how did it trap him inside? Somebody needs, I need, more information. He was eight inches shorter in length than he was. Oh God, he was eight inches shorter in length than he was before he burned. Attorney Scott West said that's thermal fracture.

Speaker 1: 3:05

She hands, widow shannon and his parents filed the lawsuit in june accusing tesla of selling a vehicle of defectively designed okay, this was a single vehicle trash the trash crash. The petition states the crash forces were survivable except by the for the ergonomic shortcomings and deficient crash. Worthiness West, a former industrial designer engineer turned trial lawyer, blasted the company's priorities. He alleged that Tesla put aesthetics ahead of basic safety, making it nearly impossible for Sheehan to escape once the truck lost power. Instead, sheehan found himself locked in a firetruck. So what does that mean? How did that happen?

Speaker 1: 3:58

The lawsuit says the Cybertruck's electric. Here we go. Maybe this explains it. The lawsuit says the Cybertruck's electrically operated doors can't be opened once power is cut. Well, that doesn't make sense. Exterior handles fail and the manual release latches inside are unreasonably difficult to locate in an emergency. That doesn't make sense. Who would design a truck like that, really? So you can't open the door from inside. Even Even when you cut the truck off, there's no power to it. You can't open it from the inside. That's what this is saying.

Speaker 1: 4:42

Tesla the filing continues gave owners insufficient warning or training on how to exit post-crash. Well, I don't think they're required to do that, wow. But when Tesla delivered the Cybertruck to him, the instructions they gave him were woefully inadequate to handle a situation like this. I mean, I've sold cars. I didn't have to tell people how to get out of the car if it crashed. Um, of course, I didn't sell Cybertrucks either. So this is crazy. All right, I guess you can go finish that reading it. I still don't have any answers for you on that. I don't know. I don't know anything about Cybertrucks and how they work. Okay, so moving on.

Speaker 1: 5:29

Here are three things in an interview you most likely won't get hired for. All right, this is from the New York Post. Three things, one of them. I read the first one. I'm like well, duh, that's obvious. Who would say that in an interview?

Speaker 1: 5:44

Saying I want to start my own business someday to a recruiter sounds like oh my gosh, y'all Sorry, I don't know what is wrong with me. I want to start my own business someday. To a recruiter sounds like you're planning your exit before you even walk through the door. I mean, yeah, who does that? At most companies, executives agree new hires start making financial sense after about three years. Wow, if you signal that your plan is to leave and launch your own thing, most companies won't want to take that bet. Well, no duh, who would do that? What dumb ass would do that? What else, let's see. Yes, there's something that just about every employee wants to do, but what? Okay?

Speaker 1: 6:25

Another thing that is keeping you from getting this job is that you value work-life balance. Thank you, I can't stay. Who came up with that? Work-life balance shit. Thank you, I can't stay. Who came up with that? Work-life balance shit. Companies want to know that you're motivated, that you want to win and that your goals align with theirs. Productivity and passion matter. Another thing that should be kept under wraps in an interview although it's a common experience with many corporate workers never say you were let go as part of your company's recent layoffs. Wow, why not? This advice from Welch might come as a shock, but it's for a good reason. Seasoned executives know that in many layoffs, companies pluck out the top performers and reassign them elsewhere in the organization, and they are wondering why they didn't happen, why this didn't happen to you, okay. Well, that makes sense, all right.

Speaker 1: 7:19

Moving on to our last thing? All right, there's a new movie out called the Roses and it's a, I guess, a remake of War, the War of the Roses, remember with, I think with Michael Michael Douglas, is that his name, his name? And um, oh my gosh, I see her, I see her face. Catherine, no, kathleen Turner, and it's funny because I re-watched that movie, just like last year when I decided to go on this uh, adventure of re-watching old movies. That was one of them that I re-watched and it was really good. But here we go. I've seen previews for this and I thought, oh, I'd like to see that because it has Olivia Colman in it and I love her. Come her back, she's okay. All right, let's see what, apparently, the critiquers, or whatever they're called, reviewers are trashing it. So let's see what they say Antiquers or whatever they're called reviewers are trashing it. So let's see what they say.

Speaker 1: 8:18

Bickering couples can be delicious to watch Emma Thompson, and I love her too. And Kenneth Branagh's Beatrice and, oh my God, Benedict, what? And lit a sexy match in Much Ado About Nothing. And Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton boozily ripped each other to pieces in who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf. And then there's Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman's Till Death Do Us Part duo in the Roses, many, many rungs down from their present predecessors.

Speaker 1: 8:49

This domestic blitz is weak and witless. Oh no, that means if they don't like it, that means I probably will. I have learned that a long time ago. When these people who make their livings off of watching movies and give us reviews of it when they don't like it, it means I will. So the crabby characters are an unappetizing and cringy pair that would push a person to find any excuse to sprint out of an awkward dinner party. Well, that's what the movie is about, dumbass. Did you watch the original one? This is probably some 20-something-year-old soy latte person writing this Probably is not even aware that the first one is out. Let's see. Maybe he does, let's see.

Speaker 1: 9:37

Actually, actually, the basic premise of director jay roach's film based on the novel the war of the roses is sadistic. Good fun. I didn't know there was a book first. I have to get the book partners. Contempt turns deadly. And why not another 1989 screen version? Yes, so he does know about it, but did you watch it and did you read the book?

Speaker 1: 9:58

Who knows this inferior one? More nancy myers golden state real estate porn than scorching black comedy. Well, I like nancy myers. I know she's a liberal, but I like her. She makes good stuff, isn't smart, tense or fiery enough to render bad behavior into punchy entertainment. The movie is spicy as corn chowder.

Speaker 1: 10:18

Our terrible two are theo, and renowned architect, and ivy, a cook who abandoned a professional kitchen in london for the fruit loops of motherhood. When theo's ambitious new california building embarrassingly collapses during a power storm, so does his career. On the same fateful night, ivy sparsely attended a hobby restaurant gratingly called We've Got Crabs oh my gosh gets a rave review from a prominent food critic and business explodes. Roles suddenly reverse, so too does their resentment. All right, so I'm still gonna watch it. I don't care, I'm gonna watch it because I like those two. All right. Question of the day. I'm sorry, this episode kind of sucked. All right question of the day. Okay, well, speaking of movies, what big movie out there was hyped up and everybody loved, everybody was talking about it, and then you saw it and you thought it sucked. What is that movie? That's the question of the day. All right, I gotta go. Thanks for listening. Love y'all. Bye, have a great weekend.