Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
Blue Yeti ·
Dec 29, 2010 at 9:54pm
It's our last show of the year and we go out with a bang. With guest Pat Sajak, we cover the great blizzard of 2010, the topless President, the myth of the great warming, run the table on whether celebrities in politics really matter, discuss death panels, Palin, take an optimism poll and much more.
Bullets, now grammatically correct and sanitized for your protection:
- Urban snow removal (or the lack thereof) has been in the news this week. Rob Long wrote about it on Ricochet. And as long as we're on the topic, check out Idiot With A Tripod, a short film shot during the storm by Jamie Stuart. Roger Ebert thinks it ought to be nominated for an Oscar.
- Tim Flannery is the author of The Weather Makers: The History & Future Impact of Climate Change. On his web site he says that "coal export [from his native Australia] is no longer acceptable" and that "the United Nations asserts with near certainly - that that carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping greenhouse gases from human activities have been the main causes of warming since 1950." Oh boy. Tim Blair, a journalist based at the Sydney Daily Telegraph routinely takes exception with his fellow countryman, as is evidenced by this column published today.
- Sadly, a search of Dartmouth's Office of the Registrar's website does not turn up any courses called "Clouds". A more prosaic sounding "How The Earth Works" appears to be the required science course these days.
- Time Magazine's cover story "The Cooling of America" predicting the coming global freeze was published almost exactly 31 years ago on December 24th, 1979. They're blinding us with science!
- While the MSM continues to ignore the story, Lileks.com is thankfully providing Pulitzer level coverage of the Lileks Gazebo Disaster and his own personal Infrastructure Replacement Program. We are still waiting for the federal government to declare it a disaster area.
- Speaking of Pulitzers, The New York Times is reporting that the press has been forbidden from photographing the President topless. Meanwhile, the U.S.-Russia buffness gap grows.
- A little background on the great Alar Apple Scare of 1989. Turns out, the NRDC was behind the whole thing.
- James calls her Candy Loving, but we're pretty sure he means Candy Morrison, AKA Darlene Grey, one of the well-endowed stars of Russ Meyer's 1966 documentary Mondo Topless.
- Col. Chris Gibson is the newly elected representative of NY-20. Sure, he's also a PhD with a slew of medals earned during a distinguished military career and was a professor at West Point, but we think it's cool that he attended Ichabod Crane High School. He'll be blogging on Ricochet and will be a guest on the podcast in January.
- The Rasmussen poll James refers to is here.
- You can buy charcoal body wash here, but we prefer to simply fill our backyard BBQ with water and soak in it.
- Relax, you can still watch Rob's appearance on Red Eye. For reasons unknown to us, they did not seat him in the leg chair.
- While we mourn the blown opportunity to be included in Sajak's will, do yourself a favor and read his hilarious Twitter feed and watch the equally funny videos he's been posting on YouTube.
The direct link to this week's episode. But please do us a solid and subscribe. Don't use iTunes? Visit our Feedburner page for a number of other subscription options.
The Ricochet Podcast is sponsored by Encounter Books. Our featured title this week is How the Obama Administration Has Politicized Justice by Andrew C. McCarthy. Available for $5.99 at EncounterBooks.com.
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Comments :
Sep '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
Unfortunately, the recording date happened too soon, but I would like to see Claire Berlinski on next week discussing nasal irrigation and Vitamin D therapies and their effects on her URTI. Trust me, I'm not a doctor.
May '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
Loved the podcast, Lileks salesmanship, and Sajak, Long, and Robertson's wit and insight.
Nice to see Australia makes it into the podcast for once, alas it was because of that Climate Change anti-Tiresias - Tim Flannery. Being an Aussie, does not exempt us from having our own cranks pontificating to others in the Antipodes
Why we believe so called expert opinions like Flannery (a BA in English, and PhD in Palaeontology), or ex-VP's like Gore (English again, but avoided science and maths apparently) have even a basic competence in real sciences is a mystery to me.
Perhaps much of the Left is too in love with an Apocalypse, any Apocalypse, to confidently project itself into the future.
A Happy New Year to all, and looking forward to more Ricocheting in 2011.
May '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
Pat mentioned during the podcast the left's current regular joke of just mentioning Sarah Palin's name. I like this Maher show clip as Christopher Hitchens slaps down the similar "Bush" joke. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HECI4QK_mXA
Great first 50 shows. Thanks.
May '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
No, they're sciencing us with blindness!
I'm still waiting for the first film, series, mini-series, cartoon premised on Climate Change. Well, not waiting, but dreading.
The saving grace for Mayor Bloomberg is that be it a blizzard or "normal" big storm, snow starts melting as soon as the storm passes--not long enough for my delivery of cross-country wax and new poles to arrive from Eagle River, WI.
Say, these guys need a wider audience: Minnesotans for Global Warming, M4GW.com , right Mr. Lileks?
May '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
Hold Hearings!
If the Republicans in the House do nothing more than hold hearings, they will be back in the minority in two years.
They are in the majority because a whole lot of people dug into their pockets and worked nights and weekends in campaign HQ to send them there to DO things, specifically to repeal Obamacare, get a REAL handle on government spending, and make REAL progress on dismantling the regulatory state.
If all they do is shuffle deck chairs for two years, there will be no point in sending them back.
Jul '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
ParisParamus, where Ya been?
Jul '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
Just a few things (it could be a lot more, but...):
A "confident argument:" I like that label. "You people want the same DMV people in charge of Yer health? You want UPS delivering medicine and health service to You and Yer Family? Call for a cop and for a pizza and see which arrives first....."
Clouds: funny, funny. And only because it came from Peter.
Ice caps melting: An entirely full glass of ice water sits on My table. The ice melts and the water has never risen above the lip of the glass. I'd be more concerned with magma displacing the ocean's water.
And people recycling water bottles? I tell them,"Really?! I'm better than you. I drink tap water."
Edited on Dec 30, 2010 at 7:05pmJul '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
And Blue Yeti..... You didn't credit the music!
May '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
Jimmy Carter, no, I'm talking about something mainstream and banal that appears on weekly television. That offends all of us (here) with its climate change foregone conclusion premise.
Sep '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
The Ricochet Regulars (yes guys you owe me royalties for that one) really seem to have jelled, and it helps having such experienced hosts as Sajak and Robinson. I think the foursome works really well, because to draw a boxing analogy, Sajak and Robinson are more the counterpunchers, whereas Long and Lileks like to throw the first punches and the endless parrying results in some truly delightful conversations. I hope I'm not coming off as a shameless bootlicker (if I am, I expect to be paid for the privilege) but I think you guys have really hit your stride in Number 50. As strange as it sounds, not having Steyn on for so long has probably helped the chemistry, so it will be a treat to hear Steyn come back on with you guys.
In the beginning, I used to notice a definite drop in energy and some meandering moments when Steyn wasn't on, like you guys had lost your compass on a back woods trek, but I don't think that's the case now.
Sep '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
I've developed a verbal tic where I keep saying "you guys". I blame Claire.
May '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
For the record, the storm NYC had this past week (it's been melting ever since) simply wasn't, or should have been that big a deal. It was a blizzard, or nor'easter(sp?) that started and ended within 24 hours. The snow was powder (at least when it fell). It happened during a week with reduced traffic on the roads. That the DOS couldn't easily deal with this snowfall is disgraceful, and does suggest that the Mayor should focus on a high salt diet for the DOS rather than a low salt diet for diners.
I'm looking forward to a real storm that paralyzes NYC for real, and the suburbs even more--especially so that other attorneys can pay me to go to court for them since I have cross-country skis but not a car. I want the temperature not to rise about freezing for at least a week, and at least 24 inches. Thank you.
Oct '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
I'm listening to the podcast and what Lileks said about Chavez cozying up to Iran, which has missiles. Last night I watched the film Thirteen Days. It brought up a question in my mind: will there be a future Venezuelan Missile Crisis? Chavez seems benign to me at the moment but I wonder if this is a plausible scenario, whether it's the Iranians who want to have that kind of reach or Chavez who wants to stir up trouble.
Oct '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
Re: health care rationing
It's important to know why lefties don't listen when you warn that govt health care requires rationing. Their reply? "Health care is already rationed." You know, because not every 64 year old can afford to buy a new organ or two.
I know, ridiculous; by this logic, food is rationed too. But that word "rationing" just doesn't get any purchase on leftists, and possibly not on their fellow travelers. As awful as the specter of rationing is, there might be stronger ways of campaigning against govt health care. Possibly by talking about the suffering that doctors will face.
Dec '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
Enjoyable and at times laugh-out-loud, as ever. Two memorable points for me: Peter's "profound truth"; and Pat's point that death panels are a necessary and inevitable aspect of socialized medicine. Outraged condemnation of death panels is the politically easy and obvious response by conservatives, but the truth is if you suppress markets, alternative forms of "allocation" must take their place.
So to follow-up on JD Fitzpatrick's point, the question becomes "How to campaign against socialized medicine (and other forms of socialized cost) while being both honest and politically effective"? Perhaps JD is right in his suggestion, but he's surely right I think that it's a challenge conservatives need to work on.
Edited on Jan 1, 2011 at 11:17amJan '11
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
LK
Interesting that Palin has become 'persona non grata' as to invitation to participate on ricochet.
Also on Peter's 'Uncommon Knowledge' Berelinski seems not to like Palin much either.
I guess the 'conservative intelligencia' seems not to like her a lot either.
I'm still patiently waiting for an explanation - other then references to reality show, stupid, NOT Margaret Thatcher, etc. You guys are bright - you own me an intelligent argument as to your discomforture with Palin! Try not to use Obama/Biden talking points.
For us the 'great unwashed' she is that figure that adds celebrity to conservatism. A topic on Podcast # 50.
Sajak's comment that just mentioning her name is enough to connote the joke. Maybe that's true among the intellegencia - but - for the unwashed it probably connotes someone who is prepared to battle for conservatism. See has gone after Peta (dead raindeer), the new entitlement program just being conceived in the Left's womb (s'more incident) and other not so politically correct topics with a vengence. But 'nary a peep' from the favourite sons of conservative values sanctioned by the conservative intelligencia.
So can I have an intelligent analysis?
Jun '10
Re: Ricochet Podcast #50: Speed The Plow
I'd like to thank everyone involved in making the podcasts for an excellent year of entertaining and informative discussion. Here's to the next 50!