I have watched the O'Reilly factor before.....unfortunatley.
Thursdays show began with a discussion of whether or not Obama has lost control of the economy. O'Reilly says he has lost 12% of his approval rating in only 6 weeks. He also says the stock market has gone down 17% since Obama came into office, possibly because Wall Street doesn't trust the new President. He brings up the $75 million dollars going towards mortgage bailouts, and the total of $20 trillion dollars planned on being spent for the bailout of our economy.
To comment on this there is Neil Cavuto, a guest on the show of likewise political bias. He says this mortgage bailout shouldn't happen, and families should simply move into smaller houses or start renting. He also says that Wall Street has no faith in the bailout, it is feared by many that this will turn out to be a big failure.
Next on the show was a Professor at Temple University, Marc Lamont Hill. I thought he was articulate, informed, and intelligent. A good discussion I enjoyed watching that was anything but one-sided. Yes, finally...I want to see someone who disagrees with the host.
Later, upon discussion of Rush Limbaugh, O'Reilly manages to mention the fact that Rush only has a chance at success now that he (himself) has moved up to television, because he was the biggest competition for Rush in radio talk shows. It may be true, but it sounds a little conceited, and a little insulting (with the incinuation that Rush couldn't have made it big if O'Reily hadn't moved out of the way).
I did love when they showed the clip of David Letterman making fun of Rush though. That was hilarious.
Laura Ingrim is on the show next, and she belives we are losing our country thanks to the new President and his bailout plan. This involves us losing our culture, and our very identity, among other things. What does that mean anyway? How could one person cause a whole country to suddenly lose its entire culture and identity, especially in such a small time frame? He inherited most of the issues we are facing today.
The last guest is Megyn Kelly, who comes on to comment on various random topics. A few things they talked about were: the octuplet mom, that horrible chimp attack, a dentist that was arrested for managing to convince female patients to allow him to feel them up (for medical reasons?), and finally, the Bachelor??
Last thing on the show was some YouTube video of a dog. Why? I don't know...
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Talk Radio
I have listened to talk radio a few times before. I enjoy listening to it in the car in the morning. I think its kind of soothing first thing in the morning and informative at the same time. I also like to hear other people's opinions and views on current events or anything in general, especially when I don't agree with them. Hearing a point of view that is so different than my own helps to either secure my assurance about my opinions, or sways me to change what I may have thought before. I think its important to try and see things from all angles in order to stay informed.
I listened to the Brian Lehrer show from Thursday February 12th. This was the first time I have ever heard his show. Sometimes I found the conversation a little dry. The host and guests are from a variety of political standpoints which allows for a great discussion of current politics. Allowing callers to voice their opinion allows for diversity of thought even more. You are able to get the opinions of average Americans as well as those of the host and guests.
In the beginning they were discussing what mayor Bloomberg thought about what political parties stood for, and he does not think either party stands for anything. He says the individual people in politics represent what they believe in regarding national and social issues. He has agreed with people from both sides before.
I think political parties were made for a reason. Political parties were made with ideals that each party would stand for. They organize people to get a general idea of how many people stand for each different set of ideals. This can be useful in lawmaking, as well as many different aspects of running a country. If you are affiliated with one certain party, you don't necessarily have to vote for the person of the same general beliefs, but I do think that political parties were established for a reason.
A discussion of the stimulous bill was taking place and one of the people on the show mentioned that from the perspective of city and government officials, the stimulous bill is like a mirage, like the image of an oasis in a desert, because they thought they would be getting much more out of this bill than it turns out they are. She went on to say this bill will result in thousands of lost pensions. She also brings up the fact that the people in control of delegating the money are not used to this type of scrutiny and accountability like they are now with how the bill money will be spent.
I think its important that Americans be well informed as to exactly how this bill money will be spent, and maybe a lot more organizations and businesses need to be held accountable when it comes to their finances to prevent a crisis like the one we are having. I think it is terrible that after this bill is passed, theer will still be thousands of lost pensions, but at the same token it is helping fund public schools and preventing thousands of teachers from getting laid off. The bill can't rescue everything and everyone, and maybe it will turn out to be a mirage to some, but it sounds as if it should help at least some in the future.
Listening to the Brian Lehrer talk show informed me of a lot, and I enjoyed it although I did find it a tad boring. I will continue to listen to talk radio because I enjoy the diversity of thought and opinions.
I listened to the Brian Lehrer show from Thursday February 12th. This was the first time I have ever heard his show. Sometimes I found the conversation a little dry. The host and guests are from a variety of political standpoints which allows for a great discussion of current politics. Allowing callers to voice their opinion allows for diversity of thought even more. You are able to get the opinions of average Americans as well as those of the host and guests.
In the beginning they were discussing what mayor Bloomberg thought about what political parties stood for, and he does not think either party stands for anything. He says the individual people in politics represent what they believe in regarding national and social issues. He has agreed with people from both sides before.
I think political parties were made for a reason. Political parties were made with ideals that each party would stand for. They organize people to get a general idea of how many people stand for each different set of ideals. This can be useful in lawmaking, as well as many different aspects of running a country. If you are affiliated with one certain party, you don't necessarily have to vote for the person of the same general beliefs, but I do think that political parties were established for a reason.
A discussion of the stimulous bill was taking place and one of the people on the show mentioned that from the perspective of city and government officials, the stimulous bill is like a mirage, like the image of an oasis in a desert, because they thought they would be getting much more out of this bill than it turns out they are. She went on to say this bill will result in thousands of lost pensions. She also brings up the fact that the people in control of delegating the money are not used to this type of scrutiny and accountability like they are now with how the bill money will be spent.
I think its important that Americans be well informed as to exactly how this bill money will be spent, and maybe a lot more organizations and businesses need to be held accountable when it comes to their finances to prevent a crisis like the one we are having. I think it is terrible that after this bill is passed, theer will still be thousands of lost pensions, but at the same token it is helping fund public schools and preventing thousands of teachers from getting laid off. The bill can't rescue everything and everyone, and maybe it will turn out to be a mirage to some, but it sounds as if it should help at least some in the future.
Listening to the Brian Lehrer talk show informed me of a lot, and I enjoyed it although I did find it a tad boring. I will continue to listen to talk radio because I enjoy the diversity of thought and opinions.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Superbowl
The Superbowl began with a clash of the two major football league champions, the NFL and the AFL. They wanted to know who the best really was, so the tradition officially began in January of 1967 with Superbowl I. Millions of Americans watch the event today every year, making it a solid staple of our culture, as well as a connecting piece for many people in our society that may not have anything else in common.
Baseball and football (at least our version of it) are two sports that are uniquely American. They both began here and have remained a tradition in our school activities and our professional sports for years, and will likely remain an organized sport in our country for many years to come. Like football’s Superbowl, baseball has the World Cup as yet another event that is highly anticipated throughout the nation, and our nation alone.
Even Superbowl ads have become somewhat of a tradition, and favored topic of conversation among us after the big game. Who ever thought commercials would be something people would want to talk about outside of being involuntarily (and frustratingly) subjected to them while enjoying our favorite shows? I guess that is just what happens when you live in a consumer-based society. We rely on consumers in order to keep our economy intact, so advertisement during the most watched television event in America is obviously going to be something business owners will be willing to pay a lot of money once a year to be a part of. For a commercial of such great cost, companies go all out in making the most memorable (and therefore, profitable) advertisements they can come up with.
The Superbowl, even with its relatively short existence, has become an icon of American tradition. The sport itself, the halftime show, the buildup of the big game, and the advertisement opportunities that annually come along with the making of the Superbowl has made it not just a simple game of football. It is the anticipation of a career milestone, the glory of being a national hero, the satisfaction of striving for something all season long and feeling the immense emotion that comes along with such victory or loss, the pressure of a successful thirty second commercial worth three million dollars, the dreams made and the dreams broken in countless coaches, players, and gamblers; the list of people and careers affected by this event are countless.
Baseball and football (at least our version of it) are two sports that are uniquely American. They both began here and have remained a tradition in our school activities and our professional sports for years, and will likely remain an organized sport in our country for many years to come. Like football’s Superbowl, baseball has the World Cup as yet another event that is highly anticipated throughout the nation, and our nation alone.
Even Superbowl ads have become somewhat of a tradition, and favored topic of conversation among us after the big game. Who ever thought commercials would be something people would want to talk about outside of being involuntarily (and frustratingly) subjected to them while enjoying our favorite shows? I guess that is just what happens when you live in a consumer-based society. We rely on consumers in order to keep our economy intact, so advertisement during the most watched television event in America is obviously going to be something business owners will be willing to pay a lot of money once a year to be a part of. For a commercial of such great cost, companies go all out in making the most memorable (and therefore, profitable) advertisements they can come up with.
The Superbowl, even with its relatively short existence, has become an icon of American tradition. The sport itself, the halftime show, the buildup of the big game, and the advertisement opportunities that annually come along with the making of the Superbowl has made it not just a simple game of football. It is the anticipation of a career milestone, the glory of being a national hero, the satisfaction of striving for something all season long and feeling the immense emotion that comes along with such victory or loss, the pressure of a successful thirty second commercial worth three million dollars, the dreams made and the dreams broken in countless coaches, players, and gamblers; the list of people and careers affected by this event are countless.
Monday, January 26, 2009
iPod
The invention of the iPod has greatly affected my life in a positive way. Previously released portable music devices are bulky, inconvienient, faulty at times, and only offered a limited music selection. The Walkman was awesome when it first came out, but you are limited to one tape by one artist, unless you wanted to carry extra tapes with you. The Discman came out once CDs became the big thing, but they had the problem of skipping , as well as also having the problem of limited selection unless you want to carry extra CDs with you. Finally, the iPod came out. The iPod is small, functional, and you can add a vast music selection. You could also now put all of your CDs onto a mechanical device the size of a business card instead of lugging your big CD book everywhere. The invention of the iHome made the iPod even more appealing, adding the ability to share your entire music collection with anyone anywhere. The iPod is convienient for jogging (or working out in general), to listen to in your car, and to bring along everywhere you go.
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