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GabFest.

Hello and welcome to the Slate Political Gab Fest for December 14th, 2012, The Union Made Edition.

I'm David Plotz, the editor of Slate, here in D.C.

I went to the dentist today.

I'm feeling very sparkly.

From New Haven, joining us is a woman.

I imagine your dental hygiene is as excellent as your pros, Emily.

Emily Bazelons, Slate Senior Editor. That's so kind of you, David. I went to the dentist's last week. It must be that time of year. It was awesome. It was awesome? That's how you feel about the dentist? Actually, no, it was awful. I don't know why I said that. I don't know why I said that. I was just speaking.

It was awful.

It was actually one of those epically bad ones where they told me also.

Did you have cavities?

No. Because you grind your teeth? Yeah. Oh, but I avoid it. I avoided it. And they just gave me such a lecture. It's the only time I ever do anything where I really get lectured and I just sort of sit there.

Because they gave such a lecture. It's the only time I ever do anything where I really get lectured. And I just sort of sit there. Because they gave you a lecture because your teeth are disappearing? Because I'm not doing the proper things to protect my teeth, namely wearing this. Are you supposed to sleep with a mouth guard? Yes, which it's just, it's a horrible thing to do.

That's horrible. As our colleague Emily Jaffe once called it, the world's most effective method of birth control.

That was not germane.

It was just a great line of hers.

...