Podcast 274

Story Lines. A few loose ends on the big stories, heading into the weekend. Frustrating that most media outlets continue to peddle the story that all the President has to do is ‘order’ relations with Cuba normalized, and they are. Then comes all the stories about how it got done, who benefits, the businesses that are chomping at the bit to get into Cuba. Thing is, the law concerning sanctions on Cuba is different. These aren’t sanctions placed entirely with executive orders. A welter of laws regarding just how relations are to be normalized with Cuba will have to be repealed, or the President is going to have to demonstrate to Congress that Castro Land has suddenly become a free country. Meanwhile there is mounting evidence that ‘normalizing’ relations with Cuba will strengthen a murderous regime, and has enriched itself, and left the people of Cuba with nothing. These facts are apparently not interesting to the media in the US. The President says sanctions haven’t worked against Cuba. Aside from asking ‘which ones?’, if sanctions don’t work why did Secretary of State John Kerry not say, just prior to sanctions being placed on Russia, ‘Sanctions work’. Well? Which is it? If they don’t work, why waste your breath on Russia, or for that matter North Korea. The US now says North Korea hacked Sony, with help from China and Russia. But it’s all Sony’s fault, right? Let’s look at it this way; Sony just got raped by a fraternity of North Koreans, Chinese and Russians and we’re blaming the victim? It gets weirder and weirder everyday. The Sony hack, and the company’s reaction, as well as the reaction of the United States Government, will have far reaching consequences. The President seems fine standing up to right wingers, clinging to their guns and religion, but apparently not when it comes to China, Russia and North Korea. With Obama on his way to Hawaii, for yet another vacation, don’t expect him to be standing up to anyone in the near future. The good news for the weekend? The IRS head says the agency may have to shut down for a few days because of budget cuts. Merry Christmas! We now know how to stop government spending. Just keep cutting the IRS until it closes, and they won’t be able to collect taxes, much less raise them. And, a winter storm is headed across most of the country for Christmas. In the upper midwest that will means snow. Sponsored by Depotstar.

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Podcast 272

Christmas Insanity. Stories we are missing because of all the reporting on Congress, Oil, Australia and … Christmas. Suddenly we have to be told how to ‘deal’ with the Christmas Holiday, by practicing ‘abundance without attachment’. In english, that means we should not criticize commercialism, or judge materialism, but be unattached to money and just enjoy ‘the experience’. (Editor’s Note: I am well acquainted with the concept of practicing non attachment, but I don’t think it has anything to do with the rash of lazy journalism regarding spending money during the ‘holiday season’.) The biggest problem is expectations, being generating because of all the emotional stimuli in commercials and these incessantly cheerful all christmas all the time radio stations. Maybe the bad reporting comes from the fact that this is the worst time of the year to be doing issues or news based media, since people are checking out. Nothing is wrong with materialism, even the love of money. What’s wrong is the media’s obsession with predicting economic performance based on individual sales days like black Friday and Cyber Monday. The whole season becomes an economic bellwether? The truth is, its only since about the 1930’s in the US that Christmas per se, has become this macro holiday, with all its attendant markers for the wider economy. The best Christmas gift so far? The Sony Hackers. Revealing how Hollywood is actually the rapacious capitalist, rather than Wall Street. Anyone want to see if millionaire Senator Elizabeth Warren will take on greedy Hollywood execs? Why is it always Wall Street Banks, or dirty industrial companies. Eew. Do we still value people who actually make things? Or do we care more about the perfumed princes and princesses of Hollywood and the whales, global warming, public-private partnerships to preserve water and other nonsense. MSNBC’s days may be numbered. A new digital service called MSNBC Shift will be testing programming for the ailing progressive mouthpiece no one is listening to. Don’t rule out a completely new approach’ sports or entertainment. While Fox enjoys huge audience numbers, they sit astride a delivery channel (cable television) that may actually have an expiration date. Remember when Global Warming enthusiasts said warming causes tornadoes? The US had fewer tornadoes in the last three years, since they started measuring these things back in the 1950’s. And finally, the dumbest story of the week; “Scientists” say the warmer it is, the less you make. 54 degrees is the optimal temperature for productivity. Sigh. Sponsored by Baklund R & D.

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Podcast 270

Florida Christmas. We’re in a ‘News Lock’. This happens in between major events, when the media machine keeps churning away on the same topics, even though everyone has moved on. And while The Bob Davis Podcasts continues to keep an eye on world and national events, the great thing about podcasting is, there’s no point in joining the crowd, repetitively pounding away on the same nonsense, and saying nothing new. We’re getting close enough to Christmas, 2014 to say its the holiday season. The trials and tribulations. The expectations. The disappointments. And, the good things too. (Editor’s note: One of the things that comes up this time of year for me is the road trips my family used to take to Florida every other year, to spend Christmas there with my grandparents. It was oddly free of the pressures and intensity of ‘The Season of Peace’. I think its because we were on an adventure, and the main topic of conversation was where to stay when we got to Valdosta.) Take a break from the ‘News Lock’ and reminisce about your own family’s Christmas road trips. From the used cars my father insisted on buying, including the 63 Chevy, 66 Buick ‘Vista’ wagon, the 64 Elektra and the 68 Elektra, a lifetime exposure to secondhand smoke, the luxury of the Howard Johnson’s, versus the TravelAll (Dad’s favorite, cause it was cheap!), Uncle Roy in Jacksonville, the Orange Groves and finally…finally, the Ocean. Plus, discount shopping with my Grandfather, spilling Raisinets on Grandma’s expensive couch, Christmas lights in the humid night air, walks down the beach, and Jelly Fish. Lots of Jelly Fish. And the places we visited on those trips. Kennesaw Mountain (Editor’s Note: Which I thought was in Kentucky, but in fact it is in Georgia), Caverns, Saint Augustine and the Mansions of South Florida. In today’s high speed culture, most people fly if they go anywhere, and its too bad because there is much to be learned on a road trip. Sponsored by X Government Cars and by Depotstar.

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