Podcast 439

World War III. Thanksgiving 2016 is here, and with it a raft of insane stories pulled from the week’s news, all designed to get your crazy uncle Joe absolutely apoplectic at the Thanksgiving Day table. Turkish F-16’s shoot down a Russian Su-24 Bomber and Syrian ‘rebels’ shoot down a rescue chopper with US provided TOW Missiles. Pass the dressing please. As ‘World War III’ trends on twitter, relax and set the table. According to the President, ISIS is ‘contained’ but we’re being warned to watch out for attacks this Thanksgiving on US and Europe and US citizens all over the world. Donald Trump has so frightened the so called ‘establishment wing’ of the Republican Party, they’ve started a ‘guerilla’ advertising campaign against him funded by … wait for it and drum roll please … supporters of Jeb Bush. Will anyone pay any attention to the republicans when they don’t have ‘The Donald’ to kick around anymore? Rimshot! Meanwhile there’s no shortage of nonsense on the democrat side of the fence either, with Hillary Clinton promising tax credits for people taking care of their parents, and Bernie Sanders suggesting, you know, more free stuff, by rounding up all the rich people and taking their money on Monday … when all that is spent by Wednesday, we’ll have to come up with another scapegoat. Are you going to eat those yams? Woodrow Wilson was a racist but since we can’t actually call a progressive a racist, leave Woodrow alone. And Andrew Jackson too. But Trump? It’s alright to call him repugnant and a racist, because he’s a republican, right? More mashed potatoes please. Numbers on the economy have been revised, and its going great, except for the oil glut, the 25 percent increase in your health insurance premiums and a big build up of inventories. Retail numbers are down because no one goes to the mall anymore. Really? To fix it, we need more focused and efficient government spending, cause we haven’t done that, right? How do I get out of here? Sponsored by X Government Trucks and Ryan Plumbing and Heating of Saint Paul. 

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Podcast 438

Post Paris Reset. In an odd way there isn’t much to add to the observations in Podcast 437. Almost everything predicted regarding coverage of and reaction to the Paris Attacks has come true. In the aftermath of ‘Paris’, an hour or two spent with cable news yields little new information, but provokes an emotional response with viewers. This emotional response is intensified hour after hour as the same footage is replayed, the crawl at the bottom of the screen details the statements of politicians, while ‘experts’ argue on screen. Conversely, in ten minutes spent on line, one gets an idea of the contours of new developments with the story. Yet, people sit staring at Cable TV News for hours expecting some new development, getting more and more frustrated and angry, or afraid and concerned. This doesn’t advance the story, and doesn’t make it any easier to understand what has happened and what can be done about it. The media is complicit in creating an all-or-nothing, right-left, up or down orientation to every story, especially big stories that get covered and discussed hour after hour. The results are predictable; Politicians are already urging we send hundreds of thousands of troops into Iraq, or to ‘declare war on ISIS’. The only reasonable conclusion that has been drawn is that the Syrian refugee program in the US should be suspended until Congress can determine whether the vetting process is effective or not and even that has become a contentious issue to be argued ad infinitum. Meanwhile we’re no closer to developing a foreign policy that addresses Russia, the Rise of China and Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and terrorism. Politically, we don’t seem to have any idea where we want to be as a country in fifteen or twenty years. Given this philosophical vacuum, the same voices that got us into Iraq twice in the last 20 years are already advocating a continuation of the same failed policies, with predictably negative results. Is this what you want? Best be sure, because you’re about to vote for it. Again. Sponsored by Hydrus, Pride of Homes and Luke Team Real Estate. 

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The Bob Davis Podcast

Podcast 261

Giving Thanks? Is it Thanksgiving or Halloween? Because sometimes it’s hard to tell. In keeping with the snark of the times, some of the things that are the most irritating about the nearly four day “Thanksgiving” “Holiday”. First, the Pilgrims don’t have much to do with it. You can thank that dictator Lincoln for the ‘holiday’, and that dictator Franklin Roosevelt for moving “Thanksgiving” so we could celebrate an orgy of consumption. For God’s sake, don’t blame the Pilgrims. What about the down market behavior? If you watch TV 24/7 you wouldn’t be worrying about beheadings or the plummeting price of commodities, you’d be worried about downmarket behavior that would make Judge Judy happy. Fighting over wide screen TV’s, Barbies, panties and stealing stuff from other people’s carts so you can get the deal. Staying with relatives? The relentless blare of the TV and endless commercials for ED medication, back pain mitigators, cures for baldness, vitamin drinks, charities, car dealers, is slightly more informative than local TV news, featuring 40 minutes of round robin coverage from — you guessed it — the local Wal Mart! Our solemn attitude of gratitude gives way to buying, you know, stuff. Thanksgiving also signals the quickening; The vaunted ‘Holiday Season’ where reality rarely meets expectations and expectations are very, very high. In Podcast 261, a list of ways to mitigate the disaster, especially if you’re a man. (Editors Note: I’m thinking about a cruise next year, that starts the week before Thanksgiving and ends about January 1oth. You know you’re in trouble when you start envying the people on ‘Survivor’.) Sponsored by Depotstar.

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