Free Republic

Now that I’ve actually seen a few episodes, “Duck Dynasty” is relatively harmless entertainment. Whatever “reality TV” means, it’s definitely not that. It’s a semi-scripted sitcom, basically cornball self-parody. Think “Hee Haw” without the music. I find it utterly inane, but then I don’t watch TV with children. The “tell” is the show’s women, cute Southern sorority girls turned mommies. In real life, no way would those women tolerate their “menfolk” running around looking like a truckload of ZZ-Top impersonators. They’re also not going on TV with hay in their hair like some Hollywood director’s idea of a country girl....

A stir in the upscale restaurant at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills was evident as soon as the men with the forest-thick beards and camouflage gear entered, accompanied by wife, kids and entourage. The group instantly seemed out of place among the lunchtime crowd of sharply attired patrons, many in suits and ties. But it was immediately clear that more than a few of the customers recognized them as the Robertsons of A&E's "Duck Dynasty."It was late February, more than nine months before "Duck Dynasty" became the lightning rod for one of the year's most contentious TV controversies....