A Festivus Miracle! Detroit Today Holds 2016 Airing Of Grievances

Cards Against Humanity Co-Creator Max Temkin and WDET’s Candice Fortman have a lot of problems with 2016.

Stephen Henderson smiles with WDET's Festivus Pole in the studio

Stephen Henderson smiles with WDET's Festivus Pole in the studio in 2016.

Jake Neher/WDET

Festivus 2016 is upon us. It’s the holiday Frank Costanza made up to replace all the negative aspects of the Christmas season on the iconic 1990s sitcom Seinfeld. As he rained blows upon a man who reached for a doll he hoped to buy for his son… he thought there had to be a better way.

“A new holiday was born — A Festivus for the rest of us!”

“The tradition of Festivus begins with the airing of grievances. I’ve got a lot of problems with you people! And now you’re going to hear about it!”

Since 2016 has been a tough year for many of us — especially when it comes to pop culture and politics — Detroit Today Host Stephen Henderson thought, what better way to tell 2016 to shove off than a good old Festivus airing of grievances?

Joining Henderson to help facilitate the Festivus festivities is Max Temkin, co-creator of the not-safe-for-work card game Cards Against Humanity, and WDET Marketing Director Candice Fortman.

“This year, we suffered, all of us, through another Taylor Swift break-up, which means that soon we’ll have to suffer through another Taylor Swift album,” says Fortman. “And I just don’t have the space for that in 2017. I don’t have the time, energy, or the want for another Taylor Swift album.”

Temkin’s first grievance seems to spurn the very premise of the conversation.

“I’m tired of people complaining about 2016 like it’s the year’s fault,” he says. “The year is just an arbitrary amount of time. And the fact that society is so bad, that’s really our fault. That’s not really the year’s fault.”

Click on the audio player above to hear the full conversation, including the grievances listeners felt they needed to air. And happy Festivus!

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  • Detroit Today
    Dynamic and diverse voices. News, politics, community and the issues that define our region. Hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Stephen Henderson, Detroit Today brings you fresh and perceptive views weekdays at 9 am and 7 pm.