The network tv season has just about reached its conclusion.\u00a0 Summer re-run season is upon us and in a meaningful way it no longer matters at all.\u00a0 I am effectively down to one show (\u201cThe Middle\u201d) that I truthfully consider entertaining.\u00a0 It\u2019s been about two years since \u201cThe Big Bang Theory\u201d was funny.\u00a0 \u201cLast Man Standing\u201d which used to add a tiny amount of right wing commentary in with the family sit-com formula had a comatose season that telegraphed the news that this season would be its last.\u00a0 \u201cKevin Can Wait\u201d is a pale shadow of how funny \u201cKing of Queens\u201d sometimes was and nothing else on the tube even mildly interests me.\u00a0 So, I\u2019ve finally had to face it.\u00a0 There is no reason to watch network television anymore.\u00a0 Cable is slightly more promising.\u00a0 There are a few series that I hear are entertaining.\u00a0 I\u2019ve been watching earlier seasons of Silicon Valley and it is funny but hardly worth paying for HBO.\u00a0 I can probably stream whatever I want on Amazon or Netflix or Hulu or blah, blah, blah.\u00a0 So, I can probably also join the ranks of those who have cut the cable and use the internet as their data and entertainment umbilicus.\u00a0 But for me that\u2019s weird.<\/p>\n
The baby boomers were raised by the boob tube.\u00a0 It seemed like it was always on.\u00a0 It was the background music to our lives.\u00a0 ABC, NBC and CBS were our babysitters, our teachers, our neighbors and in a strange way our friends.\u00a0 We sort of depended on them to tell us what cars were cool, what other kids were wearing and what music we should listen to.\u00a0 Now I guess that has been replaced by the ubiquitous cell phone link to you-tube and facebook and whatever is trending on Twitter.\u00a0 Well, I don\u2019t do cell phone, but I guess the internet on my laptop is the equivalent.\u00a0 So now I amuse myself with that.\u00a0 But it\u2019s not the same.\u00a0 Sure, I\u2019ve replaced the network news with a handful of blogs and news aggregators.\u00a0 And I search for reviews of movies and cable shows and books on the right-wing blogs and for the most part I can find what I want but something is missing.<\/p>\n
In the 1990s I went to work and could talk to coworkers and find out about shows like Seinfeld and Home Improvement and it felt like we all shared a similar perspective on the humor or the take on current events.\u00a0 The writers of the shows reflected the common culture and the sensibilities of the country at large.\u00a0 That\u2019s completely gone.\u00a0 We are fractured and alienated from each other to such an extent that it almost isn\u2019t meaningful to talk about one country as existing anymore.\u00a0 I guess we are at least two peoples.\u00a0 And unfortunately, the group I\u2019m in doesn\u2019t have a media.\u00a0 We have the rudiments of one.\u00a0 But it\u2019s much harder to make it work effectively and it doesn\u2019t feel as seamless and comforting as the old one was.<\/p>\n
So, this post is just me thinking out loud and reflecting on where we are.\u00a0 I can remember one day during the Iraq War driving home from work and listening to NPR on the car radio.\u00a0 The slanted and dishonest reporting was so unbearable that I vowed never to listen to another show of any kind on Public Radio or television.\u00a0 And just saying it felt good.\u00a0 But it was the beginning of a long process to identify alternate sources and structures to patronize and support. \u00a0I buy my fiction from sources that do not force a leftist narrative on their authors.\u00a0 I never click on a news article from the NY Times or the Washington Post or Politico or any of the other leftist mouthpieces.\u00a0 I never watch a Colbert or a Jon Stewart routine.\u00a0 I don\u2019t go to or rent a movie with a leftist slant or agenda.\u00a0 I support politicians who vote for the things I want.\u00a0 I sent a substantial check to Donald Trump during his campaign.\u00a0 I only support charities and organizations that reflect my values.\u00a0 I fill in the gaps around the places where the cancer had to be excised.<\/p>\n
And I write this blog.\u00a0 I give my opinions and I spread the word on any people or sites that I think are right wing and useful.\u00a0 And I try to entertain and give encouragement.<\/p>\n
So where are we?\u00a0 At the beginning.\u00a0 Is it good enough? No, but it\u2019s a beginning.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The network tv season has just about reached its conclusion.\u00a0 Summer re-run season is upon us and in a meaningful way it no longer matters<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[26,189,188],"class_list":["post-1092","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-events","tag-american-exceptionalism","tag-orions-cold-fire","tag-right-wing-media"],"yoast_head":"\n