Stephen Colbert’s Tips on What to Avoid This Thanksgiving

On Thanksgiving Eve, The Late Show host Stephen Colbert had some advice for those returning home to brave their relatives over the food-happy holiday.

“Another beloved Thanksgiving tradition is stronger than ever: arguing at the dinner table,” offered Colbert. “Because according to Pew Research, Americans are more divided along party lines than ever. So I would avoid controversial subjects like politics, religion, sports, movies, and how much voter ID you need to buy cereal.”

The comedian was referring to a study conducted late last year that posed 10 questions to participants on “political values,” with the gap between Democrats and Republicans rising to 36 points (up from 33 points in 2014). For example, 71 percent of Democrats believe the government should do more to help the needy, while only 24 percent of Republicans think so.

“There will be a lot of heated discussions this year, and if you’re looking for a new topic to scream about, may I suggest: gender superiority at board games,” Colbert added.

Colbert then broke down a Wall Street Journal column published this week. Headlined “Sorry, Feminists, Men Are Better at Scrabble,” the piece claimed—using little in the way of research—that men are the superior Scrabble players because all the winners of the World Scrabble Championship have been men since the event began in 1991.

“Just because men keep winning a thing doesn’t mean they’re better at it. Have you seen who the president is?” cracked Colbert.

“But the piece says this proves women just aren’t cut out for Scrabble, because ‘Championship Scrabble… rewards typically male obsessions: strategy, math, a passion for competition, and a drive to memorize facts,” he continued. “Memorizing facts is a male obsession? Really? Let me fact-check that with my entire research department.”

Colbert then threw to his Late Show research department: a room of six women.