Hope they have to stand up in one place for the debates.

[LakeArenal]

[pandr32]

1. Agreed

Fatso will be leaning hard on the podium.

[sheshe2]

7. Nix the podium as well.

He will fall flat on his face after 15 minutes.

[CottonBear]

12. One stands on a podium and stands behind a lectern.

lec·tern
/ˈlektərn/

noun

a tall stand with a sloping top to hold a book or notes, from which someone, typically a preacher or lecturer, can read while standing up.

This has been driving me crazy for years!

Signed,

CB - Grumpy Vocabulary Perfectionist

Edit: I hope that I didn’t offend you, sheshe2.
I love your DU posts! 😀

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

19. Me, too! See #10.

A pet peeve since forever. Someone who is leaning on a podium is probably very, very drunk.

[CottonBear]

22. LOL! We are fellow Vocabulary Perfectionists!

I’ve always wanted to tell you that I LOVE your DU name!

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

23. Thank you!

The Velveteen Rabbit was a favorite book when I was a kid (and I still have the battered stuffed rabbit), but I think ocelots are even cuter.

[CottonBear]

27. Oh! I also loved the Velveteen Rabbit when I was a child.

Ocelots are so very beautiful.

My favorite animal is the horse. My DU name was inspired by a beautiful Oldenburg filly that I used to have, whose barn name was Cotton.

[csziggy]

29. Merriam-Webster disagrees

Definition of podium

(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : a low wall serving as a foundation or terrace wall: such as
a : one around the arena of an ancient amphitheater serving as a base for the tiers of seats
b : the masonry under the stylobate of a temple
2a : a dais especially for an orchestral conductor
b : lectern

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/podium

Apparently podium has become synonymous with lectern through usage creep.

[CottonBear]

31. Damn usage creep!

Thanks for the link and information. 😀

I, however, shall continue to use the term lectern!

[csziggy]

32. When I was studying library science (now called Information Technology)

One of the courses was about reference material, such as dictionaries. Part of the history of Merriam-Webster is that after the Webster's New International Dictionary, Second Edition (1934) was complete and they began reviewing words and definition for the Third Edition, they changed the core mission.

For the Second Edition, their mission was to define the correct pronunciation and usage as determined by grammarians and linguists. For the Third Edition they decided that mission had been fulfilled, so they began tracking the changes in word usage and pronunciation as well as new word being introduced into the common language.

The Third Edition came out in 1961 and was still controversial when I was in college in the 1970s so our Reference professor wanted to make sure her students understood the difference and could explain it. Language purists still prefer the Second Edition to this day, but the editions since the '60s and the online edition conforms to the philosophy of the Third.

I suspect both versions are very useful, in the same way that the Oxford English Dictionary is useful, for understanding "correct" usage and how the language has evolved.

Side note - I just unpacked my parents' reproduction copy of the Merriam-Webster First Edition. I can't wait until I find my Abridge Oxford Dictionary, and the three volume Third Edition to put on my shelves. Then I will begin a hunt for the Second Edition!

[RainCaster]

2. What will DFT do when he can't hug a podium in a death grip?

How would he stay upright?

[LakeArenal]

3. Exactly. Okay. They only have to stand til one of them can't and cries uncle.

[Totally Tunsie]

9. LOL - Sounds like the finale of "Survivor",

which is appropriate because Mark Burnett is responsible for publicizing this maniac.

[JHB]

6. He'll slowly pace around and figit like a 3 year old

In other words, the usual.

[sheshe2]

11. He will do what he did in 2016

Link to tweet

Remember this? It was disgusting.

[JHB]

13. Dammit! I wanted to use that but couldn't find a clip!

Thus, without the visual, reduced it to "figit".

[sheshe2]

15. I couldn't find the gif, but this worked.

[JHB]

18. It would merit a brief pause, turning to face him...

...a calm "Donnie, what's up with the chair, man?", then turning back and picking up the talk where he left off.

[sheshe2]

21. Ha!

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

20. If he's hugging a *podium* in a death grip he's flat on his face on the floor.

[csziggy]

30. He'll stagger over and hump a flag.

[NoRoadUntravelled]

4. Remember when he stood glaring behind Hillary?

I imagine if he does that this time Joe will crack a joke that makes him look foolish.

[LakeArenal]

5. If he does again Joe won't have to crack a joke to make Dump look foolish.

[NoRoadUntravelled]

24. True!

[sheshe2]

16. He stalked her. nt

[NoRoadUntravelled]

26. Yes, he did.

Tried to intimidate her to make him look tough for his base.

[dalton99a]

8. Put in a ramp to make him walk up and down - and no railing

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

10. But at a considerable distance,

and no moving around or lurking behind anybody. And no lectern to lean on. (Note: a podium is a platform you stand on. A lectern is the thing Trump leans on.)

[bdjhawk]

14. Can you see him standing in his heels and lifts

Without a lectern to lean on?!! Comical!! While Joe stands straight and tall!! Who is the strong man, li’l mushroom?!!

[LakeArenal]

17. Plus Dump's already diminished mental capabilities.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

28. Give them really flimsy lecterns like music stands,

and when Fat Nixon tries to lean on his, it will collapse. Good fun.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

25. It was so ridiculous four years ago.

A moderator should have told him to stop hogging camera time!