Podcast 461

All About Iowa. Do you want the Iowa Caucuses to determine which presidential candidates are ‘viable’? In a state of slightly more than three million people, party leaders expect one hundred fifty thousand to show up to caucus, slightly more than in the 2012 cycle. Over the last year Iowans have been sliced and diced by pollsters, pundits, political psychologists, and sociologists. Anyone who attends political events – and there have been hundreds of them since last year – will see famous candidates, film stars, and national TV stars. It’s a spectacle, a circus, and a show being put on for one state. As the hours are counting down to the caucus Monday, February 1st, the Bob Davis Podcasts attends a Marco Rubio rally. One side of the room is reserved for the stage, the other for media. In between, are the Iowans, ready to comment when reporters approach them. Of course reporters will approach, like fish feeding at the water’s surface. ‘Who will you caucus for?’, ‘What do you think of Donald Trump?’. The answers to these and many other scintillating questions will be filed, dissected, and added to the national story line. All About Iowa. Fasten your seat belts. A rural backwater, albiet a very nice one with very nice people, is about to decide which candidates are the most viable. At least that’s how they see this process. After Monday’s caucus, the story lines will change, predictions will be adjusted, and some campaigns will never recover. Is this how we want to elect a president? While there is much to celebrate in the American political system, as I attend events and cover the caucus and the events leading up to it, what comes through louder and clearer is the dark and potentially dangerous relationship between big government, big media, politicians, pollsters and the population of a single state that has insinuated itself into the political process in an unprecedented way. All about Iowa? Indeed. Sponsored by X Government Cars and Ryan Plumbing and Heating of Saint Paul.

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Podcast 380

Rural Virginia. The road trip continues in the Old Dominion. It’s already hot in the south. As darkness falls, the night is alive with frogs, and insects; Many invading the Mobile Podcast Command Unit. With no bug spray, an interesting collection of available tools was used to rid the unit of critters. A hair dryer, compressed air for cleaning electronics, swatting, biological cleaning spray, and lysol air freshener. Then, finally down to business. A few hundred yards down a dirt road where this podcast was recorded are the remains of a village that has been here since before the revolutionary war. How often do we think about where this country will be in one hundred, or two hundred years. The people who lived here two hundred years ago depended on an expression of modern technology – at the time – to assure their livelihood; The mill. They did not know they were living in ‘ancient’ times by our standards. They didn’t worry about slow Internet, or decry broadcast television and its endless commercial clusters detailing drug side effects or how much cheese is on a pizza. When it comes to the news, this podcast has some stories for political junkies to consider. No one seems to be able to say with any clarity or authority what’s wrong with economy, or why its important. Meanwhile the same story lines regarding the latest GDP numbers keep replaying. Then there is the trans pacific partnership trade authority bill republicans are inexplicably supporting. More executive authority for this president? American citizens can’t review or read the bill and reporters can’t read it either. That doesn’t stop Paul Ryan and the Speaker, and the Senate Majority leader and other so called ‘conservatives’ from supporting it. Meanwhile, the Chinese have apparently hacked all the US Government data bases and extracted potentially damning information about high US officials. How is it possible the FBI can fly over our cities listening to our cell phone calls, but the government is unable to protect our privacy rights from the Chinese? We have a government that can’t seem to protect our rights, is riddled with incompetence and corruption, but seems to be quite capable of violating our privacy, and running amok. Why couldn’t Americans find reasons to shut down the federal government, regardless of where they stand on the political spectrum. And another theme that comes up every time we approach a presidential cycle is ‘why don’t we have an independent political party’. The solution, according to some brainy analysts, yet more candidates in the debates. Sigh. The fact is, American political parties have traded places, shifted and changed names, and have been born and died throughout our history. Sponsored by X Government Cars. 

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Podcast 330

Kirk, Spock & Puppies. Updates to start the week on the big stories. First, Leonard Nimoy, the actor who played Mister Spock on the original “Star Trek” series, died this weekend. We could leave it at that, but apparently the actor who played Captain Kirk on the show, William Shatner is unable to attend Nimoy’s funeral because of other engagements. This has provoked outrage from chi-dults (Editor’s Note: Child-Adults, or Chi-Dults.) infuriated that Captain Kirk would not attend the funeral of his first officer. People! This was a TV show in the mid 1960’s! Captain Kirk and Mister Spock aren’t real. Frank Underwood is not the President of the United States. There really isn’t a beautiful woman, also known as ‘The Mother Of Dragons’ as seen in ‘Game of Thrones’. It’s shocking, but it’s time someone finally told you the truth. These are actually TV shows. Dramatic portrayals of stories, made for distribution over your television! Imagine! Meanwhile, in the real world Christians are being kidnapped by the hundreds for presumed execution by beheading or some other horrible fate, at the hands of terror armies in the Middle East. And the top story? A puppy that, regrettably, was lit on fire and left for dead in a dumpster on the Red Lake Reservation in Northern Minnesota. If it bleeds it leads, and the Puppy Dog’s fate leads! The dog is recovering and will require several skin grafts. A five thousand dollar reward is offered for the identity of his tormenter. Perhaps visiting Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu will be happy to take the back seat to Captain Kirk and Mister Spock, and the puppy dog. Netanyahu will speak to a joint US Congress presumably to urge President Obama not to make nuclear deal with Iran. President Obama is furious at Congress for inviting Netanyahu and the Prime Minister for accepting, and will not be watching. As far the Islamic State is concerned, remember that big Iraq army offensive to retake Mosul from the IS? Postponed again. We’ll tell you why in this podcast. And US Economic Growth in the 4th quarter of 2014 has been revised townward from 2.5 percent to 2.2 percent, suggesting the US economy has a long way to go before the boom the President and some cheerleading financial reporters seem to think is happening, actually happens. By the way, where’s the ‘cheap gas acting like a tax-cut’ effect? Experts say next quarter. Yeah. Sure. Foreign Policy and Economics are sure to be major issues in the 2016 Presidential race. Minnesota is projecting a budget surplus and some podcast subscribers want to know what will happen with the surplus. Let’s put it this way; Don’t expect a rebate. And, if you thought the job of an Air Marshall was boring, listen to this podcast. Sponsored by X Government Cars! 

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