• Morning AB, All. As always, thank you AB for doing this thread so reliably and keeping the peace with gentle thread policing. Thank you Bray for weekly written wisdom, Thank all yon contributors for excellent commentary to flesh it all out.
• Below are the words from my daily political diary. It is quite long so scroll on by if not interested. But do stay around and add your commentary and point of view to the thread.
• • Daily Miscellany
Thoughts and flashes of brilliance that enter my head from nowhere.
Enjoy. Or abhor, depending on the effect of my "wisdom".
Who are these Medicare Plus people and why do they call me every damn day?
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Review "Secrets of the Zoo"
"Secrets of the Zoo" airs on NatGeo Wild-WILDH- at 9 pm on Sunday nights.
It's proven to be quite a successful series, interesting and a learning experience.
The series is featured at the Columbus Zoo, which I know nothing about except what I see on the show. It is a large, well-managed Zoo in which the public can get close to the animals and interact with them.
A show usually features three animals in the zoo, afflictions or sickness they might be fighting, and the Veterinarians and staff that make them better. For example a recent episode featured some newly obtained otter babies, a giraffe that just had a baby, and a cougar that unusual inflammation of the eyes.
The episode will go on to show the newborn otters, obtained from another zoo because their mother stopped caring for them. The Zoo employees are shown trying to accustom the baby otters to the water, beginning with a small wading pool which the otters do not like, on to a larger and deeper pool of water.
Zoo employees who ride around the zoo caring for the animals in the wide open meadows are shown tracking a beautiful giraffe and her calf she was expected to drop any minute. They spot the baby giraffe but explain how their job is not done until they witness the baby nursing, pooping, and peeing...that all natural processes are working fine. Then the baby must be captured to be examined by the zoo veterinarian. Capturing a baby from the herd is quite the job.
The cougar too must be captured to have its eyes examined and get medicine if needed. Cougars are a bit on the dangerous side and the viewer gets to see all involved in capturing the cougar from its den, doing what is necessary to calm the animal and transport it back to the zoo medical offices.
It's a good learning show, artfully and dramatically produced, with great human beings who love their charges.
Watch it. And get your kids to watch it too.
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Taking a Look at Conservative Political Talk Show Pundits
Since I listen to a lot of talk shows on both radio and TV I thought it might be worth the time to discuss them at some length.
We must begin with the greatest of them all, Rush Limbaugh. I have listened to Rush since Bill Clinton got involved with Monica. It's not the entire time he's been on the air but we are talking over 20 years of Limbaugh devotion.
He was born to do what he does. Sadly, Rush was recently diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer. He has to be off the air frequently of late and I, just as sadly, was po'd about it. Showing a strain of selfishness that I have and am not proud of.
But there is none better and the rest of the pack know it.
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We move on to both a radio and talk show pundit that came to recognition BECAUSE of Rush Limbaugh. That would be Sean Hannity who would get a B- if I were giving out grades here. Hannity got a lucky break and many people got to follow Rush on radio stations across the USA.
Sean is notorious for interrupting guests and quite rudely I might add. I hurry to insert here that I love to watch Hannity's evening Fox TV show as he has gotten quite a reputation through the years and has groomed quite a few people to give him insights on what goes on behind the scenes.
As for his interruption tendency, lookit, sometimes political talk hosts have to stop guests from taking over the show. I get that. But Hannity doesn't just politely insert words to cut a talkative guest short. He will start talking, on and on, right over the guest.
Still, with his contacts and his experience I'd have to put Sean Hannity as second in terms of talented political talk show hosts.
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Next, in almost a tie, are two female political talk show hostesses: Judge Jeanine and Laura Ingraham. Laura too has both a radio show AND an evening Fox cable show. Judge Jeanine, who once ran for a public office, including Senate against Hillary Clinton and Attorney General of New York. She has a Fox cable political talk show that airs on weekends and is voted best of the bunch every week.
Laura is very knowledgeable but while Laura doesn't interrupt guests like Hannity, she does allow her guests to engage in on-air shouting matches that are very annoying. I know that a bunch of guests of very differing political views often get involved in on-air debates but Laura allows it to go on entirely too long.
Justice Jeanine has a weekend show that I really quite enjoy. She doesn't have twenty five guests to come on for her to interrupt or engage in on air verbal fist fights.
Jeanine Pirro has a talent that this listener quite enjoys.
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Next we have Fox cable talk show host Tucker Carlson. I enjoy Tucker Carlson who rarely interrupts guests and keeps a close and polite attention to the show's dynamic. The only problem I have with Tucker is....well he's not all that interesting. He is on air around Hannity and Ingraham's shows and I suppose he has to dig up topics that they don't already cover all over the place. Nonetheless, he's new to the political talk show theme and he's very good at it.
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Next we have one of more famous of the political talk show hosts and definitely one of the most knowledgeable. I speak of Mark Levin, also known as "The Great One".
I enjoy Mark Levin's radio political talk show although after an hour I tend to end my listening. If something really big is going on Mark Levin is first on my dial in the early evening of his broadcast times.
Levin also has a show on Fox cable on Sunday nights, titled "Life, Liberty and Levin". Folks, do not be angry but I despise that show. First, Mark only has one guest on the show and often it's somebody very boring and from a long time ago. Mark tends to talk very softly as he interviews this guest, so much so that often I cannot hear him as I begin to doze off for the night during his air time. Also, he doesn't tell the broadcast audience often enough just who the hell his guest is so you better not tune in after the show begins.
I don't think this show is going to last. It's just boring and more boring.
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We end with two political talk show hosts who are not that well known but are worth an honorable mention.
First, Mark Steyn, a frequent fill-in for Rush Limbaugh and he does a damn good job of it. Although I get tired of Mark after about 3 days of Rush missing.
But he's funny and I generally agree with his political view points.
Finally, Greg Gutfield. Gutfield has a Fox cable show that airs on Saturdays and he's also on weekdays as one of the hosts on "The Five".
I quite enjoy Gutfield although I can only take him one day a week. He's not that most glib of political talk show hosts but he's on point and I also like his kinda co-hosts Kat Timpf and Tyrus.
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Review Shark Tank
https://abc.com/shows/shark-tank
Kevin O'Leary, Mark Cuban, Barbara Cocoran, Robert Herjavec, John Daymond, Lori Grenier
Indeed Shark Tank is one of my favorite shows. Although there are a couple of Sharks who I distinctly do not like, more on this later.
First, hey, almost every "invention" presented on Shark Tank I like! In fact, at times I sit up straight and wonder where I can get such an item.
Further, if ever a TV show was the definition of capitalism and talent, it is this show.
As for the Sharks, they all bid on items as offered, sometimes accepting the request from the entrepreneur, most times not. I really like Lori Grenier, who is big on Home Shopping Network and right there you got a happening customer base. I also like Kevin O'Leary, who likes to call himself "Mr. Wonderful". Lori is very generous with her offers but will stick only to those items that will show well on HSN. Mr. Wonderful tends to bid on a return for each item sold. Thus if those beach towels with a handy pouch sell 100,000, Mr. Wonderful will get a certain amount for each item sold.
If nothing else, Robert Herjavec is very handsome. In fact, as I guess, I believe he got married to an entrepreneur who appeared on the show. Don't hold me to this but as aging memory serves.
John Daymond doesn't bid all that often but he's got a gracious smile and will make offers, often on sports type items, but not always.
Throw out Barbara Corcoran because she was once guest on some show and went on a love rant about Mayor Bloomberg, how much she admires him, how she'd vote for him.
Right there I have no respect for anybody who loves that awful failure with no personality.
Also throw out Mark Cuban because this guy loves the TV camera and I'm betting he has political plans for his future. He was a huge fan of Hillary Clinton so right there who wants this guy on their side with that bad judgement?
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TIME FOR A SMILE
