Podcast 235

Walk and Talk. Review of last week’s Ebola and political news, on an evening neighborhood walk, during a perfect fall night in the Upper Midwest. What’s the first thing you thought about when you woke up today? How about the difference in being born during this time, or perhaps 1418? (Editor’s Note: Yes, this is the first thing I thought about when I woke up the day I did this podcast. Who knows where that came from!). The 1400’s? Probably not a great era to be born in no matter what your station in life; Peasant, or Royal. Life expectancy? Between 20 and 35 years. Probably the best place to live? A united China, at the dawn of the Ming Dynasty, in that era. 1400’s was also the peak of the North American Indians. While we can be concerned about the medieval things that happen in our time; Beheadings, the spread of Ebola and the fear associated with both, all other measurements of life these days compared to say, 1418 are much more desirable. Speaking of Ebola. At the suggestion of Republican Senator John McCain, President Obama has appointed an Ebola Czar. Now everyone is upset that the Ebola Czar isn’t a General. Really? How can moderate Republicans like McCain go around talking about ‘smaller government’ when their best suggestion on how to handle Ebola is more government? How did that work out with The Department of Homeland Security after 9/11. The President oversees the Defense Department, NIH, the CDC and has a Surgeon General. What about Obama being the Ebola Czar since he’s responsible. Minnesota’s Republican Senate Candidate Mike McFadden finally hits a home run by advocating a travel ban, while Senator Al Franken wants to think about it some more. Meanwhile, the President tells America not to ‘panic’. Who’s in charge? According to the New York Times, President Obama is privately ‘livid’ that apparently no one is. Message to the President: “Pssst…Sir…uh…You’re in charge!”. Additional thoughts on the President’s no drama process. Maybe he just doesn’t want to do what anyone else wants to do, and uses ‘process’ as an excuse. Philosophically, he doesn’t believe the US is exceptional, blames European Colonialism for the problems of the world, and hews pretty much to the progressive belief in expanding government … particularly the Federal Government, and actually the executive branch of the federal government. Houston, we have a problem. We have a bad president, and if we can make it to January 20th 2017, we’ll have a new one. Hopefully someone who has had executive experience as Governor and not another former Senator, and please no more community organizers! Finally, the political ‘moneyballers’ continue to predict a Republican Wave, for the election on November 4th, 2014 and then take back the prediction. What’s the difference between political scientists, television personalities and writers who know how to use excel? Political scientists concentrate on real voting data, historically, and use poll data sparingly. We won’t know what will happen in this election, until at least November 4th, 2014 — late into the evening. Sponsored by XGovernmentcars

Podcast 220

Bonfire at the Broadcast Bunker. On what may be one of the last great nights of the early fall/late summer season in the upper midwest, a back yard bonfire produces some reflection on this year’s election (not exactly inspiring), constant media predictions about its outcome (which are probably wrong) and the increasing desire to just vote and get it over with. A little bit of insight on where content for podcasts comes from. It would be easy to just pull some news stories and talk about them. The good stuff comes from what you pull from deep down. What does one do when there is no inspiration? Go to Yoga, have dinner with friends, light a late night bonfire by the bunker and turn on the microphones! A rant about restaurants that have TV monitors everywhere, the constant ‘push’ of the media filling ‘the news beast’ with updates, which really don’t mean anything, and why this podcaster will continue to scan, print and read to stay on top of developments. And, what about the 2014 election cycle. We have heard many predictions about its ‘probable’ outcome, from a ‘Republican Wave’, to the Democrats holding the Senate and gaining seats in the House. Are any of these predictions close to being correct? What will the ‘big story’ be on election night? What constitutes a ‘republican wave’, a loss or a win for democrats? How will a republican controlled Senate play in Season 6 and 7 of ‘Obama!, the series? How reliable are polls? Are they in any way useful in giving us any idea of what everyday Americans are thinking and feeling? Or, have people checked out of this one already? (Two misstatements in this podcast. First; Republicans don’t have to win 6 races, they have to pick up 6 seats to gain control of the Senate. Second, Republicans aren’t retaining control of the Senate. The Democratic Party currently holds a majority in the US Senate.) Sponsored by X Government Cars

Podcast 217

What’s on Your TV? Sometimes, when you look at the day’s news, it’s hard to tell whether the news is real, or whether it is season 7 of some show on Netflix. So why not talk about what you’re watching on Netflix, HBO GO, Apple TV or some other distributor of content. And why not wonder whether the development of time-shifting whole seasons of TV shows might eventually replace the constant thrum-thrum-thrum of nonsense from the Cable News Channels, TV Networks and Network News Shows? Sitting out on the deck, with a fire and a cup of coffee, enjoying an early fall night to talk about how the lines between what is real and what is make believe are becoming more blurry. Like the lines between real acting and drama, and porn. How do we know what we ‘know’. How do we tell the difference between what is real and what is make believe, when politicos, pundits, politicians and reporters are appearing in movies and movie-like TV shows, which sometimes include situations that are oddly predictive, or reflective of what ‘really’ happens. Compare your viewing habits to the host of the Bob Davis Podcasts viewing habits. Homeland, Boardwalk Empire, Mad Men, The Last Ship, Tyrant, Revenge, Reality Shows, Californication, House of Cards, The Walking Dead, Mob City, The Stand, Weeds, Russian and Swedish Crime Movies, Hong Kong and Taiwanese Chinese Mafia Movies, documentaries, 1950’s, 1960’s, 1970’s, 1980’s and 1990’s network series, You Tube, Torrents and more. There’s so much to watch, and so little time. Who needs reality? Besides, there’s only so many more evenings we can sit in our lounge chairs with the warm breeze blowing through the windows until 5 AM, watching and watching…and watching more. Season 5 of ‘whatever’ is on! Sweet! Sponsored by X Government Cars