respublica

News about news

Once again Fox News has thoroughly beaten all the other cable networks in the weekly ratings. This is all day and all night. The number one cable news program is The Five on Fox. We watch this every afternoon at 4 because it is one of the more enjoyable news programs. The five people like each other, are able to laugh and there is always at least one person who takes a different point of view. We watch all 3 cable networks during the day and none but Fox ever has anyone with an opposing point of view.

MSNBC is the worst at being totally one sided. CNN has recently changed from totally liberal to adding other voices.

Primary Day

Tomorrow, Tuesday June 28, is the Illinois primary when voters for each political party choose which people they want on the November ballot. I have no idea what the turn out will be, often this is punk poor unless there is some sort of major issue at hand. For 20 years or more I was an election judge in Collinsville precinct 1. The only election day more boring and endless besides the primary was local elections. So few people actually make the effort to vote in either of these elections that it makes for a really long long day for judges. Go vote!

What has caught my eye regarding this primary election is who is funding the republican candidates for governor. There are two hoping to defeat JB Pritzker in November, Richard Irvin and Darren Bailey. I'm certain Pritzker won't have much of a party challenge so the interesting race is from the GOP. So who is paying for the two GOP candidates ads which play one against the other? A group of Illinois democrats. Watch the tv ads all the way to the end and you'll see.

This seems unseemly to me and tells me something about how worried JB is. I'll be very interested in who becomes Pritzker's opponent after tomorrow's election.

 

President's speech

Tonight is the State of the Union speech by President Biden. The world is not the way he expected it to be when he and his staff began working on it. I can't imagine not tuning in to listen and can't imagine knowing how to respond to every awful thing going on in Ukraine.

But what bugs the heck out of me is watching the news. Every single cable network is guessing what he'll say, critiquing it one way or the other. If some or all of them have received an advance copy, I wish that would stop. Let the media hear it as we will and not have a list of pros and cons ready the minute he finishes. Let us ponder it ourselves before being bombarded with cable network experts within minutes. That goes for all the cable networks who this morning are already starting to parse his not yet given speech.

What's new in Senate offices?

Our daughter Katie made some of the news in Politico this morning. It came as part of the daily congressional news blurbs (the Huddle). Scroll down until you see a header with the word Mozzarella.

Here is the text which I copied and believe me, the family is laughing.

"Mozzarella Mystery:  You cannot survive a vote-a-rama without snacks; that’s just a fact. So when your Huddler saw a report Tuesday morning that an enterprising (but unidentified) Senate aide was heading to work armed with an air fryer … reader, I was inspired.  A source revealed the identity of the air fryer toting aide: Katie Bailey, legislative director for Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.). Katie, I salute you for the commitment, preparation and initiative to haul your air fryer to work as vote-a-rama loomed. Braun’s team feasted on piping hot mozzarella sticks as the Senate worked into the night. Photo evidence here.

Political Memes

It does not take long for clever people to create humorous photo memes from a normal photo. Remember the inauguration when a photo of Bernie Sanders sitting a long way up in the stands, all bundled up, took off. People all over photo shopped that photo into all kinds of different situations. Our daughter even did this to a picture of me and our grandson Connor.

Yesterday a photo appeared on many news outlets showing the Bidens with the Carters. That original image gave the impression that the two Bidens were giants. Of course that got all the clever photo shoppers to work creating memes. Some people are pretty clever.

First the original from the news

Then the take-offs

The Amazing age

When we see people on the news for years we can almost forget how old they are. Today I was shocked by an MSNBC news story on California senator, Dianne Feinstein. They reported issues with her loss of memory, forgetfulness etc. And, this was causing problems with her membership on the Judiciary Committee. She remembers so little. It seems Dick Durbin may be actually taking over that committee on the sly.

She was re-elected in 2018 and is now 87, almost 88!

This is just too much. Too much ego out there in DC.

A comment to ponder

The election is over, but it isn't, and isn't that to be expected in this crazy year? I'm not going to get into a partisan discussion, that will be happening all day on cable, Twitter, Facebook..everywhere. But one guest on MSNBC's Morning Joe program had one of the best recommendations we've heard in a long time. Rather unexpected from that program for sure.

Jim VandeHei, co-founder of Axios and Politico, told the Morning Joe group that this election should make political media look seriously into finding humility. He had good reasons for this statement and included himself in it. He actually seemed chastened and puzzled by results which showed so many Americans who voted took issue with the constant promotion of democrats by the majority of media. The others on the Morning Joe panel were actually kind of stunned into silence and maybe thought by this.

If any take his advice and do some introspective thinking, we may all benefit. That might work for those who promote the right side of politics as well. Although they are much fewer in number no matter how angry people get that there those who don't fall in line with the majority.

What a difference four years makes

In 2016 we were about a month away from a presidential election and while the partisanship among all of us was getting hot, it was nothing like this year. On this date that year a presidential candidate debate was about to take place on the campus of Washington University, right down the street from Concordia Seminary. Ahead of that debate was a parade of Budweiser Clydesdales on the Wash U campus and I went with a friend to see it.

What makes that year different was the joy everyone who came out for this exhibited no matter their political leaning. We could all enjoy on thing on a beautiful fall afternoon without looking around judging who was for who politically. And, we could also go out into a big crowd and not wear a mask, not worry about getting the Covid. Not possible this year.

I miss those days, so near and yet so far from now.

As an aside, on that day in 2016 the total of  ladders and mattresses which fell on St. Louis roads was Ladders 136, mattresses 76. A far cry from this year which is ladders 62 mattresses 52.

A frustrating time

I'm worn down by all the things going on right now as well as the many contradictory interpretations of them. So much stuff on so many fronts: political, athletics, health, cities in chaos. Plus two major party conventions with non-stop approval or condemnation by the incessant cable news experts.

It's dizzying and I want it stop. All of it. Frankly in normal times I would have been overwhelmed by the continuing work needing to be done in and around our house since we moved back. But now I'm thankful for it.

The best advice I found these two weeks is don't watch the conventions broadcast by cable networks. Go to CSPAN and watch without the constant rebukes or praise. Think for yourself as you watch, not wait to hear what the cable people and their partial guests have to say before forming an opinion.

Add to all this, the hurricane roaring to Louisiana and Texas. It's just more 2020.

Too much cable interference at the conventions

We've been attempting to watch each political convention. Last week the democrats, this week the republicans. What has been frustrating is how the cable people have been inserting themselves into the proceedings as though we can't interpret what is happening for ourselves. They have been talking over whatever is being presented on the convention floors.

I about had it last night and found I wasn't the only one bothered by this, many on twitter were exasperated as well. Many began advising to just go to CSPAN where they showed just the convention speakers with no commentary. I'm not sure I even want to bother anymore, cable people believe they are the be all and end all of what is going on for each party.