Reader question:

Please explain this headline, Biden plays ‘truth or dare’ with GOP.

My comments:

First off, Biden refers to Joe Biden, President of the United States. He’s a Democrat. GOP, on the other hand, stands for Grand Old Party, the nickname of the Republican Party.

Biden playing “truth or dare” with GOP suggests that President Joe Biden is confident in his record and achievement. Therefore, he’s willing and able to tell the truth about his performance in office.

That’s my take, based on years of following American politics.

Hard to understand?

Well, you’ll have a better idea if you understand the game of truth or dare.

Truth or dare is a popular party game, a fun game played at parties.

Well, it’s meant for good fun but can turn ugly, but let me explain.

In truth or dare, each player is asked to answer a question truthfully or he or she must perform a risky, challenging or downright impossible task. To answer truthfully represents the “truth” part of the game, while doing an impossibly difficult or embarrassing task is the “dare” part, dare, as in, I dare you to do it.

Players take turns to play the game. Before each question is asked, a player is required to pick Truth, or Dare. If you’re not worried about telling the truth on a subject chosen, you pick Truth; if not, then you pick Dare.

You pick your own poison, as they say, for better or worse.

Here’s a question (for example): What’s the biggest lie you’ve ever told?

Well, if you are afraid to let others know the biggest lie you’ve ever told (because they then will ask every embarrassing detail about it), you may choose Dare, in which case you are asked, for example, to go without blinking for five minutes or to eat a piece of pork raw.

Things like that. And when you’re done, another player takes their turn and keeps the game going.

Like I said, it’s meant for good fun but it can get embarrassing.

In our Biden example, though, the idea is that Joe Biden can afford to stick with the “truth” part of the game. He can just tell the truth and avoid anything remotely daring or risky. He can afford to do so because his record is good enough, judging from what Biden supporters say.

Republicans, on the other hand, will try to ask the most difficult questions possible, figuratively speaking, and dare Biden to do so (tell the truth)

All right, here are media examples of “truth or dare”:

1. Kobe Bryant called himself the greatest NBA player of all time, ahead of Michael Jordan and LeBron James.

The Los Angeles Lakers guard finished his career in 2016 as a five-time NBA champion. The NBA commissioner, Adam Silver, quickly described him as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport.

In a guest appearance on “The Late Late Show With James Corden” on Tuesday, Bryant was involved in a “truth or dare”-type game where he had to answer a question or eat something repulsive.

He was asked to rank himself with Jordan, the former Chicago Bulls icon, and James, the current Lakers forward, in order of greatness – or take a bite out of a cow’s tongue.

Bryant was hesitant to answer Corden’s question, but he appeared even more perturbed at the thought of eating the tongue.

“All right, fine,” he said. “I’m the best. Michael’s second-best. LeBron is third.”

Jordan is most successful of the three players, as he has six NBA Finals wins – one more than Bryant and two more than James.

But James recently eclipsed Jordan’s overall points haul. James now has 32,516 points in 1,197 games played – 224 more points than Jordan, who’s fifth on the all-time points-scored list.

- Kobe Bryant called himself the greatest basketball player of all time, ranking Michael Jordan 2nd and LeBron James 3rd, BusinessInsider.com, March 28, 2019.

2. The first snippet of Britney Spears’ new memoir has been revealed.

Nothing will be off-topic in the 41-year-old singer’s book, as the Toxic hitmaker discusses everything from her 13-year conservatorship to her romance with Justin Timberlake.

In a new extract shared ahead of the release date, the mom-of-two revealed she had an abortion in 2000 after falling pregnant with Justin’s baby in 2000.

Amid the pages, obtained by People Magazine, she detailed her first kiss with Justin during a game of truth or dare, reflecting on their ‘instant connection’.

“Being in the show was boot camp for the entertainment industry: extensive dance rehearsals, singing lessons, acting classes, time in the recording studio, and school in between,” she wrote. “The Mouseketeers quickly split into our own cliques, divided by the dressing rooms that we shared: Christina Aguilera and I were the younger kids, and we shared a dressing room.

“We looked up to the older kids – Keri Russell, Ryan Gosling, and Tony Lucca, who I thought was so handsome. And I quickly connected with a boy named Justin Timberlake.

“It was honestly a kid’s dream – unbelievably fun, particularly for a kid like me. But it was also exceptionally hard work: we would run choreography thirty times in a day, trying to get every step perfect.

“[Once] at a sleepover, we played Truth or Dare, and someone dared Justin to kiss me. A Janet Jackson song was playing in the background as he leaned in and kissed me.’

The former couple went on to start dating in 1999, before their relationship came crashing down three years later.

- Britney Spears reveals childhood kiss with ex Justin Timberlake in first look at new memoir, Metro.co.uk, October 17, 2023.

3. For many, the annual Met Gala is an exciting time. The rich and famous guests who receive invitations to the fundraiser and pay the ticket price arrive at the Metropolitan Museum of Art ready to rock the red carpet. The rest of the world watches from home, fawning over their faves or unafraid to tweet their brutal opinions on the event’s worst-dressed stars.

Like any high-profile event, the Met Gala requires a certain level of decorum. Anna Wintour, the editor-in-chief of Vogue, is a longstanding chairwoman of the gala and has certain expectations. It's not a night of no-holds-barred debauchery – in fact, there are strict rules every Met Gala attendee must follow. If you don't follow the rules, you may not be allowed back.

There are some celebrities that you won't catch at the Met Gala anytime soon. While some of them landed on Wintour’s bad side, others simply don’t want to go and plan to stay far, far away.

Former President Donald Trump went to the Met Gala many, many times since he began attending in the ’80s. Donald first brought Melania Trump (then Melania Knavs) as a guest in 2003. In 2004, Donald proposed to Melania at the event. They attended together for many years after then, but haven’t gone since 2012. The truth is Donald won’t grace the Met Gala red carpet ever again – he’s forever banned from the event.

In 2017, Anna Wintour shared the news in the “Spill Your Guts or Fill Your Guts” segment on James Corden’s talk show. The segment operates like Truth or Dare: Corden and his guests take turns asking tough questions. Anyone who refuses to answer must eat or drink interesting foods.

Corden asked, “So my question is, who would you never invite back to the Met Gala?” Wintour laughed and the crowd cheered, likely dying to know the answer. She paused before answering: “Donald Trump.” The crowd cheered even louder. She never explained why, but based on all the scandals and controversy in Donald’s life, Wintour's choice is unsurprising.

- Donald Trump & Other Celebs You Won’t Catch At The Met Gala Anytime Soon, TheList.com, May 3, 2024.

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About the author:

Zhang Xin is Trainer at chinadaily.com.cn. He has been with China Daily since 1988, when he graduated from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Write him at: zhangxin@chinadaily.com.cn, or raise a question for potential use in a future column.

（作者：張欣  編輯：丹妮）