Elon Musk

Points of Ponderation…Episode 3.25

A semi-regular attempt to address some of life’s minutiae that might otherwise be overlooked…..

Anyone who knows me understands that I’m a Batman guy. I’ve had no interest in seeing the vast majority of Marvel movies released in the past twenty years, and have not bothered with the last few incarnations of Superman. However, with DC Comics aiming to create their own “cinematic universe” (which will obviously include new adventures of the Caped Crusader), and based on a trailer that looked interesting, I had preliminary plans of checking out the newest Superman flick that hit theaters this week…until director James Gunn opened his yapper, and now I’m out. Apparently the latest version of the Man of Steel is a thinly veiled treatise on immigration, and Gunn is oddly proud of that, which is the problem with so many Hollywood types these days. They don’t simply view themselves as artists creating pleasant entertainment to distract the masses from the harsh realities of daily life. Instead, they see their vocation as a platform to pontificate on sociopolitical issues and sway public opinion. They are crusaders, hellbent on imposing their worldview on an unsuspecting audience just trying to relax & have fun. I understand that folks have the freedom to choose whether or not to buy a ticket, but let’s be honest…most people don’t do research before going to see a movie. Superman kind of sells himself, right?? Which makes it all the more loathsome to soil such an icon with “perspective” that many moviegoers might not support.

I don’t have it in me to go into a long tirade about the Jeffrey Epstein situation. However, it’s frustrating to see people that we were excited about not long ago, people we trusted…Kash Patel, Pam Bondi, Dan Bongino…clearly lying & trying to gaslight us. That’s what the previous administration did, and it’s a huge reason they were voted out of office. If there’s anything we’ve learned in the past year, it is just how deep government corruption goes. They are all…on both sides of the aisle…dirtier than we ever could have imagined.

What the hell is up with Elon Musk?? I understand that he’s a genius. It makes sense that his entrepreneurial spirit and “Get it done” attitude probably aren’t compatible with the frustrating labyrinth of the federal government, where accomplishing much of anything is an uphill climb. However, whatever the root of his beef with President Trump may be, throwing a childish tantrum is a bad look that reflects poorly on Musk and further impedes Trump’s agenda, as if he needs anymore roadblocks. I don’t know if the “third party” Musk is trying to get off the ground will have any legs, but if it does things won’t end well for the American people. At the end of the day a third party will not succeed, and can only serve to hamstring the movement Musk not only endorsed but fully participated in. The potential outcome might be putting the kind of Marxists we just got rid of in charge again, which would be disastrous. Trump & Musk either need to hug it out & get back on the same page, or Musk has to step off, stay out of politics altogether, and settle back into running his successful businesses while Trump continues to cook in The White House.

I honestly didn’t have New York City electing a Muslim Socialist Mayor just two short decades after 9/11 on my 2025 Bingo Card. I guess free stuff means more to voters in The Big Apple than respecting the memories of 3000 friends & neighbors who were brutally murdered on one of our nation’s darkest days. 

My father always taught me that there are three sides to every story…one side, the other side, and somewhere in the middle is the truth. Obviously not all immigrants are violent thugs, but isn’t it a worthy goal to rid ourselves of the ones who are?? And doesn’t the fact that people sneak into America illegally instead of going thru the proper channels atleast paint them in a bad light, no matter what their intentions might ultimately be?? On the flip side, do leftists consider the fact that many immigrants come here legally, build a life, get an education, and contribute more to society than unskilled labor?? Some even become business owners. Intimating that immigrants aren’t capable of doing anything beyond the low paying jobs others don’t want is vaguely racist, which is odd when coupled with the same folks patronizingly promoting racism as being a psyop that poor white people are too stupid to escape. Honestly, the arrogance, moral superiority, and absolute tackiness of leftists has become exhausting. Thankfully the masses seem to be more aware of that fact with each passing day.

Points of Ponderation…Episode 2.25

A semi-regular attempt to address some of life’s minutiae that might otherwise be overlooked…..

I will not poke fun or criticize government employees fearful of losing their jobs. Anyone who has ever been fired or “downsized” understands their concern. Having said that, the insane overreaction to Elon Musk & DOGE is baffling. First of all, the amount of waste and absolute corruption that has been found is quite alarming, yet way too many people seem to be completely ignoring it. Secondly, the whole point of Musk asking government workers to reply to an email stating five things they do on the job is simply to prove they actually exist. Why?? Apparently there have been federal employees & social security recipients receiving checks who a) are 150 years old 🤔 or b) never existed in the first place, which obviously raises alot of questions. Also, if a government agency had 15k employees five years ago but has 25k now, I think asking why that number ballooned so exponentially in just the past few years is fair. If 10k people lose their jobs it is unfortunate for them and no one is denying that, but it is also clear that those 10k jobs were superfluous. If the agency ran smoothly with less employees then the additional staff is, in the big picture, wasteful. Elon Musk was hired to trim the fat, and he is doing exactly that. It happens in the private sector on a daily basis. It is understandable that people would be upset about losing a gig that, in most instances, pays well and offers good benefits. It makes even more sense that people who, in some cases, lose a rather comfortable gig that pays them well while not demanding much, would be angry. Having said all of that, may I suggest that, instead of acting like a petulant child after losing a job that, in the grand scheme of life, was apparently unnecessary, you instead channel that energy into moving on to something bigger, better, and more worthy of your skills & talent.

Rewatching the same movie or television show again & again isn’t a sign of laziness, it is actually a form of emotional regulation. When life feels overwhelming or unpredictable, your brain craves familiarity. Watching a show or movie you already know gives you a sense of control, comfort, and stability. There are no surprises & no tension. You know exactly what happens next, and that predictability helps calm your nervous system. A study from the University of Chicago found that people are more likely to return to familiar movies & TV shows when they feel depleted or emotionally drained. Rewatching provides a way to restore energy and regain a sense of peace. In moments when the world feels uncertain your brain reaches for what it knows.

Pop star Katy Perry is NOT an astronaut. Neither is Jeff Bezos’ wife Laura Sanchez or Oprah Winfrey’s gal pal Gayle King. I don’t want to engage in wacky conspiracy theories, so we will proceed on the assumption that Blue Origin’s space dildo did actually take flight. Contrary to King’s whining, what those ladies’ participated in was indeed a joy ride, not a mission. They barely penetrated space for ten minutes. I am sure it was a very cool moment, but instead of simply expressing gratitude for an opportunity they most certainly didn’t earn, an experience that was handed to them based on fame, fortune, and connections, they could not stop themselves from pompously bloviating in an effort to convince the masses that they’d accomplished something meaningful. I’ve had bowel movements that lasted longer than their little jaunt into “space”, and the fact that it received more media coverage than the March rescue of actual astronauts that had been stranded on the International Space Station for nine months is nauseating. Society’s culture of celebrity worship is misguided at best, and a sad symptom of much bigger issues.

Points of Ponderation…Episode 1.25

A semi-regular attempt to address some of life’s minutiae that might otherwise be overlooked…..

When the Frasier reboot on Paramount+ was announced a few years ago I was SO excited. OG Frasier is one of the best sitcoms of all time, and I just knew the reboot would be fantastic. Then the first season premiered in October 2023, and though I was pleased to see my pal Dr. Crane onscreen once again, it just didn’t have the same je ne sais quoi. It was a pleasant enough show, but unremarkable. What made the original great was a) the ensemble & b) superb writing. Neither element worked in the follow-up. Season 2 premiered last September, and four months later I have not watched a single episode. I’ll get around to it eventually, but my lack of enthusiasm is obvious. Now it has been announced that Paramount+ canceled the series. I suppose another streaming platform may extend a lifeline, and if that happens I hope the powers-that-be will make necessary changes and inject the show with moxie & palpable wit. However, if this is the end of the road for Frasier Crane that’s okay too. His formidable legacy remains largely unscathed.

I have considered becoming a “content creator” for various reasons, but the truth is that I’m not that creative, and despite being an infrequent blogger my assumption is that no one would have much interest in my spin on things. Since I have never created a video & likely never will, the comically brief TikTok ban here in the United States had virtually no impact on my life. Having said that, I am generally not in favor of banning things, especially when no one can properly articulate the harm. First of all, why are we trying to ban an app because it is owned by a Chinese company, yet we have allowed China to buy a whole lot of American land?? Which is more detrimental or potentially outright dangerous?? Secondly, if one is concerned about social media manipulation, then let’s ban Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, and Google as well, since we all understand the social engineering & political machinations those entities have engaged in. I’ll cop to ignorance of the details in this situation, but isn’t TikTok a mostly innocuous platform for kids & very lonely adults to post silly and largely inconsequential videos that provide brief snippets of entertainment?? Am I being naive?? Biden, Trump, or someone stepped in to negotiate a compromise, and I assume the long term hope is for TikTok to be purchased by an American company, which would assuage most concerns. Or perhaps the entrepreneurial spirit will eventually prevail and a new & improved app that provides all the same bells & whistles will emerge. Y’all keep me posted…I’ll be here reading a book.

A few thoughts on the recent Presidential Inauguration:

Whether the event was moved indoors due to cold weather (the official explanation) or there were safety concerns (likely valid) in the wake of previous attempts on President Trump’s life, it’s a shame because it truly diminished the ceremony’s usual majesty. 

I don’t share others’ concerns about a perceived oligarchy, but it was odd to see Big Tech billionaires like Mark Zuckerberg & Jeff Bezos sitting in such prominent positions. I suppose Trump might be playing chess by employing a Corleone inspired “keep your enemies closer” strategy, but it was a slightly disturbing visual given the manipulation those folks have participated in the past few years. Leftists scoff at conservative allegations about the Soros Family, but part of that is because they are smart enough to remain mostly in the shadows and the politicians they…influence…retain plausible deniability. 

Speaking of the tech guys…no, Elon Musk was not giving a freakin’ Nazi salute. If you believe that you’re exactly the kind of simpleton the media has been playing like a fiddle for decades. Trust me when I tell you…the Trump Administration, just like anyone else in power, will make their fair share of mistakes & miscalculations that’ll be justly criticized. Y’all don’t need to fabricate BS.

Kudos to Carrie Underwood, who reacted with grace under fire when there was an equipment malfunction. I don’t know enough about such things to opine, but I realize it wasn’t an ideal setup or the arrangement she was expecting at all. It turned out to be a happy accident though, as I think most would agree that Ms. Underwood’s acappella performance of America the Beautiful was powerful & inspiring. 

I am not a Presidential scholar, but the concepts of “preemptive” pardons & executive orders make me a bit squeamish no matter which political party is wielding the pen. They seem like rather dictatorial ideas for a constitutional republic. 

2023 Sammy Awards (Part 1)

As you may know, Hollywood came to a virtual standstill for several months in 2023 due to a writer’s strike. What you may not realize is that even imaginary awards shows were affected. Putting together this fake program takes months of preparation from a team of hundreds of people, and not being able to put in that work at all throughout last summer has had an impact. Having said that, we made the decision to soldier on and attempt to live up to the standard that our make-believe awards show has met or exceeded for nearly 15 years, which means the bar is set low enough that you probably won’t notice much difference.

The Sammys have grown from a simple Year in Review in 2009 to an annual tradition of celebrating the highs & lows, heroes & reprobates, thrills & chills of the recently concluded trip around the sun, recalling all of the moments, people, and stories that deserve praise or scorn.

To host this year’s show we have invited one of America’s most unique comedians. He has had multiple comedy specials on Netflix, hosted a few television programs that no one has ever heard of, and is actually nominated for a Sammy Award for a 2023 film based on his life. Please hoist your beverage of choice and toast our guy Bert Kreischer!!

After an hysterical opening monologue from our host it’s time to hand out our first two awards. We are happy to welcome back one of the hardest working people in sports, from hosting an afternoon program on ESPN to occasionally stepping into the WWE Universe to adding energy to College Gameday, you either love him or you don’t. Please welcome back to The Sammys former Indianapolis Colts punter Pat McAfee!! And the nominees are:

The Agony of Defeat Award

Damar Hamlin
On January 2, 2023 Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin went into cardiac arrest in the midst of a football game on live television. All the sudden the fun escape that so many of us enjoy became very real & quite scary.

Transgender Participation
It’s been a hot topic for awhile but really ramped up in 2023. The number of young people identifying as transgender has doubled in the past five years. So what happens when a biological male who now calls themselves female (because it never seems to be the other way around) decides to play women’s sports, with undeniable advantages in strength, size, speed, and every other significant metric?? It’s a polarizing issue that, as usual, comes down to facts vs. feelings.

Bob Huggins
In June 2023 West Virginia Mountaineers Hall of Fame basketball coach Bob Huggins was arrested & charged with DUI. Just a couple of months earlier he had made some quite politically incorrect remarks on a radio show and was already on thin ice. The DUI was the straw that broke the camel’s back, and Huggins was forced to resign. A few weeks later he tried to rescind his resignation, but the university had moved on. It’s a sad ending to a great career. Actions have consequences. Public figures, though fallible human beings like the rest of us, need to be smarter & more aware of their behavior.

and the Sammy goes to…..

Actually, we’re going to deviate from the norm and have Pat McAfee give out two trophies at once. And the nominees are:

The Thrill of Victory Award

Bulldogs Repeat
In January 2023 the Georgia Bulldogs captured their second consecutive NCAA National Championship by absolutely mauling the TCU Horned Frogs 65-7.

Damar Hamlin
The aforementioned Hamlin was revived on the field by heroic medical personnel, and after a bit of a stay in a Cincinnati medical facility actually returned to the football field this season. The Bills have been understandably cautious in using him, but it’s nice to see a happy ending.

Brady Retires…Again
After first announcing his retirement in February 2022 then returning just 40 days later like Jesus wrestling with Satan in the desert, the alleged GOAT QB finally put us all out of our misery exactly one year after retiring the first time.

UConn’s Madness
The Connecticut Huskies basketball team won their fifth National Championship, beating the Miami Hurricanes & San Diego St. Aztecs in the Final Four, both in convincing fashion.

Nuggets Win NBA Title
In June 2023 the Denver Nuggets defeated the Miami Heat in five games to claim their first ever NBA Championship since joining the league in 1976. It was nice having an NBA Finals that didn’t include the LA Lakers, Golden St. Warriors, or any involvement at all from Lebron James.

LIV-PGA Merger
When LIV Golf won this award a year ago I opined that “I’ll be surprised if the whole thing is anything more than a memory five years from now.” To be fair I guess LIV is still a thing, but in June 2023 LIV Golf, the PGA Tour, and PGA European Tour announced that the three organizations would pool their commercial rights into a new venture intended to unify the game of golf on a global basis. So now the lines are blurred, and y’all know what happens when too many cooks are in the kitchen.

and the Sammy(s) go to…..

Damar Hamlin. Come on…the dude died on live television then came back to play football again the following season. That’s badass 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻.

To present our next award it seems appropriate to bring on a lady who knows a thing or two about disappointing movies, having starred in Rhinestone in 1984, with more recent cameos in duds like Miss Congeniality 2: Armed & Fabulous and the big screen adaptation of The Beverly Hillbillies. On the other hand, she’s a country music legend, was actually inducted into the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame in 2022, and is now apparently an honorary Dallas Cowboys cheerleader. Please get on your feet for Dolly Parton!! And the nominees are:

Most Disappointing Movie

The Machine
Comedian Bert Kreischer has built a career on a gimmick of removing his shirt onstage and a hilarious story about partying with the Russian Mafia in college. Someone decided to flesh that story out into a feature film and cast Mark Hamill as Bert’s crotchety father. I’m reminded of so many pedestrian movies based on SNL sketches that take a really funny concept and expand it beyond its intended limits. Sometimes it’s best not to mess with greatness.

The Flash
Michael Keaton is the best big screen Batman. Period. End of story. That’s the only reason I visited the local cineplex to see this movie, and that part works. It filled my inner 17 year old with absolute joy to see Keaton don the cape & cowl again. However, when it comes to time travel & messing with the time-space continuum 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home did it much better.

The Iron Claw
Pro wrestling fans have been anticipating it for quite awhile. The tragic story of Texas’ Von Erich family would seem to be more than suitable for the silver screen. Unfortunately filmmakers made some poor casting choices and inexplicably cut out one of the brothers altogether. The Von Erichs deserve better.

and the Sammy goes to…..

The Flash. As much as I enjoyed seeing Michael Keaton as Batman again after all these years the rest of the movie is a mess. The actor portraying the titular superhero is apparently a douchenozzle in real life, but he’s also not a good actor. There were alot of questionable decisions made by the filmmakers, not the least of which was choosing George Clooney for a surprise cameo. It should’ve been Christian Bale.

To present our next award it is an honor to welcome the man who won it a year ago. He was a bit hesitant to return to an awards show, but once we told him it was imaginary he happily agreed. Please give a warm welcome to, but keep your distance from, iconic comedian Chris Rock!! And the nominees are:

Favorite Water Cooler Topic

Chinese Spy Balloon
From January 28 to February 4, 2023, a high-altitude balloon originating from China flew across North America, all the way from Alaska & western Canada before being shot down by the Air Force off the coast of South Carolina. The balloon was in fact equipped with surveillance technology, but the Biden Administration, as with so many of their nefarious activities, downplayed the situation and the media dutifully carried the water for them.

Asbury Revival
In February 2023 a worship service at Asbury University in central Kentucky (about a half hour from Lexington) turned into a two week revival with approximately 70,000 people visiting from around the world. The school made the decision to end services after a couple of weeks for various logistical reasons, but the impact the event made is remarkable.

Titanic Sequel
In June 2023 a submersible operated by an American tourism company imploded during an expedition to view the wreck of the Titanic in the North Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada. Five people were killed. In hindsight it became clear that mistakes were made, shortcuts were taken, and the tragedy was entirely preventable.

Ozempic
A drug that’s been used to treat diabetes for several years became quite popular in 2023 as a weight loss medication. I know someone who lost about 100lbs., so I asked my doctor about it. I took Ozempic for a few weeks, but the gastrointestinal side effects were just too much for me to deal with.

The Sound of Freedom
It’s a movie about child trafficking in Colombia. While the subject matter deserves more attention and it is an important topic that we all need to be more aware of, I will be honest and tell you I did not watch it. Movies are an escape. I watch them to laugh, be entertained, and forget about the struggles of life. Does that make me a bad person?? So be it.

Bud Light
Last Spring, when Anheuser-Busch hired a guy who is “Tik Tok famous” for “identifying” as a woman as a new spokesperson, the backlash from the blue collar, middle class, traditional values crowd that tends to be Budweiser’s most significant demographic was swift & impactful. Sales declined & stock prices fell dramatically. More often than not boycotts are “full of sound & fury, signifying nothing”, but in this case Bud Light learned a lesson they’ll probably not forget, atleast for awhile.

Travis & Taylor
I’ve never understood the Taylor Swift hype. She’s just another fairly talented, somewhat attractive singer. They’re a dime-a-dozen. I do understand that Travis Kelce is perhaps the best tight end in football. They’ve been dating for several months, with her attending a few of his games. The sports media has been all in on covering the romance. Is it a PR stunt?? I don’t think so. Should anyone be buying them housewarming gifts?? Probably not.

Oliver Anthony
Last summer a Virginia folk singer went viral with a song called Rich Men North of Richmond, with lyrics like “Lord knows they all just wanna have total control…Wanna know what you think, wanna know what you do…And they don’t think you know but I know that you do…’Cause your dollar ain’t shit and it’s taxed to no end…’Cause of rich men north of Richmond”. The song struck a chord amongst the working class who have been struggling to make ends meet while Big Government tosses them aside to kowtow to the Climate Change Crowd, Pronoun Mafia, Ukraine, and Hollywood’s Elite. The humble singer has turned away multiple offers to cash in on his overnight fame, choosing to retain his principles and continue living a quiet, simple life out of the spotlight.

TwitterX
In 2022 Elon Musk bought Twitter. In April 2023 the social media juggernaut was renamed “X”. In general I have supported the decisions Musk has made for the site, but this was just a dumb rebranding. I don’t really care at this point because my page got hacked and I can’t get it back, despite multiple efforts to do so.

Tucker Carlson & Don Lemon
In April 2023 both controversial newsmen were fired…Carlson from Fox News, Lemon from CNN. Carlson seems quite content doing his own thing, unconstrained by corporate BS. Lemon will undoubtedly pop up somewhere in the future and be just as much of a tool.

Hollywood Strikes
This past summer both the Screen Actors Guild & Writers Guild of America went on strike for several months. It didn’t affect my life all that much to be honest, except for a few movies & TV shows I like having delays in production.

The Debt Ceiling
This again?? It seems like an annual battle between Congress & The White House, no matter which political party controls those entities. Perhaps if we’d stop sending billions of dollars overseas and take care of our own problems it wouldn’t be as much of an issue.

Cocaine At The White House
This past summer the Secret Service found a small bag of nose candy in the White House. Normally this would be a big deal, but when it comes to the Biden Administration the status quo of “move along…nothing to see here”, with the news media running cover, means that the mystery was never solved and the story just faded into the ether. There’s no way that blow belonged to the President’s son, a known substance abuser, right?? Of course not.

Will & Jada
Chris Rock has quickly bolted, and really, who could blame him. At any rate, what in the blue hell is up with Will and Jada Pinkett-Smith?? I am not a mental health professional, but both seem rather unstable, and their marriage appears to be quite dysfunctional. The less we hear about them in 2024 the happier many of us will be.

and the Sammy goes to…..

Asbury Revival. It’s good to see a positive story once in awhile, and it’s even better when it involves God touching thousands of lives. Our society needs much more revival. The great thing is it’s your personal choice. You can either embrace God moving so mightily in the world, or if God, faith, church, etc. isn’t your thing then you can choose to ignore it.

This feels like a great time to take a break. Stay tuned for Part 2 of The Sammys.

2021 Sammy Awards: Part 1

A dozen years ago we transformed a simple Year in Review into the world’s coolest fake awards show. There have been a couple of off years, making this presentation the Tenth Annual Sammys!! Because your humble Potentate of Profundity is a man ahead of his time this show was pandemic proof long before there was a pandemic. We have no live audience & no acceptance speeches. Everything is not only virtual, it is completely imaginary. Having said that, please feel free to mask up, sanitize your laptop, tablet, or mobile device, and even head to a local medical facility to get tested once the show is over. As always The Sammys are way more groovy than the Oscars, Emmys, Grammys, Golden Globes, or anything MTV produces. We have fun when appropriate but also pay proper respect to subjects that have earned it. Hope springs eternal, so we still believe that the show is worthy of some kind of television deal, although having an online presence might actually be just as valuable nowadays. So slip into your most comfortable sweats & rattiest old t-shirt, grab a beverage & enough snacks to last for awhile, make one final trip to the loo (that’s British), and hunker down as we enjoy one final reminiscence of the year that was while simultaneously praying for good things to come.

To host this year’s show we have called upon one of America’s most popular yet enigmatic comedians. He has won five Emmy Awards & three Grammys, but The Sammys are undoubtedly his career pinnacle. In October 2021 he came under fire for some jokes that hurt the feelings of certain special interest groups, people that are apparently unfamiliar with the history of stand-up comedy. Fortunately for us he stared cancel culture in the face and flipped it the bird, which makes it an immense pleasure to welcome Dave Chappelle!!

After a brief yet wickedly funny & edgy opening monologue it’s time for our first award, and we are thrilled to welcome a lady who wasn’t so successful in beating back cancel culture. Last Spring she was fired from daytime snoozefest The Talk after being one of the co-hosts for over a decade. No matter where you stand on that particular issue The Sammy Awards believes in both free speech & redemption, so please give a warm welcome to one of the most famous rock star wives in the world…Sharon Osborne!! And the nominees are:

Favorite TV Show

Cobra Kai

I’m not a binger. I am an 80’s kid used to television shows premiering in September, airing a couple dozen episodes, and concluding their seasons in May. Summertime was nothing but reruns. All those rules have changed though, and I find myself caught between adapting and eschewing television altogether. One program I am willing to adapt for is Cobra Kai, the continuation of The Karate Kid film trilogy that introduced us to Daniel LaRusso & Johnny Lawrence. Cobra Kai catches up with Daniel & Johnny three decades later and integrates a whole new generation of youngsters into their story. The show does a nice job of balancing nostalgia & teen angst, as well as juggling drama, action, romance, & humor.

WWE Raw/NXT/Smackdown

I’ve been a pro wrestling fan for probably four decades, and it tends to be rather cyclical. Stars come & go, promotions rise & fall, and the presentation evolves. To be honest the product seems to be in a bit of a lull right now, but I still watch, and despite its various issues & no shortage of competition WWE is still on top, mostly due to superior production value and the best television deals. One competitor…Impact Wrestling…has had a half dozen obscure television homes in the past 15 years and currently airs on something called AXS TV, a channel I have but forget that I do. Conversely, WWE Raw & NXT both air on USA Network, while Smackdown is on Fox. Wrestling isn’t “Must-See TV” as much as it used to be, and there are nights I doze off while watching, but it’s been a part of my life since I was a pre-teen and that’s probably not going to change.

General Hospital

When I was a kid there were about a dozen soap operas on television, and at one time or another I probably checked out most of them. Today though, only four remain, and only one has kept my interest. It’s not always compelling, but GH has retained a certain level of quality thanks to solid writing and good performances. Soaps receive their fair share of ridicule and deservedly so, but when you consider some of the names that got their start on daytime dramas…Meg Ryan, Kevin Bacon, Tommy Lee Jones, Alec Baldwin, Demi Moore, John Stamos, Marisa Tomei, Julianne Moore, David Hasselhoff, Robin Wright (just to name a few)…perhaps the genre deserves a bit more respect.

NFL Redzone

From September thru December there is nothing I enjoy more than hunkering down in my humble abode on Sunday afternoons and watching “seven hours of commercial free football”. It has spoiled me to the point that spending three hours at other times watching just one game feels odd. I wish someone would borrow the concept for college football, although there are probably too many moving parts & competing interests involved for that to work.

and the Sammy goes to…..

General Hospital. Here is the issue with Cobra Kai (as well as many other streaming shows): Netflix released Season 3 on New Year’s Day 2021, and then Season 4 didn’t come along until New Year’s Eve a year later. Conversely, General Hospital airs Monday thru Friday year-round. Sometimes I watch, sometimes I don’t. Occasionally I’ll DVR it, while oftentimes I don’t. More frequently than fans would prefer it gets pre-empted by breaking news. Sometimes the storylines are riveting, other times they are cringeworthy. Yet, despite all the inconsistency, the fact is GH is (almost) always there, which is the essence of soap operas. We literally watch these characters grow up over the course of many years. We invite them into our homes, and in return they share their dysfunctional families, wild adventures, illicit activities, forbidden affairs, rocky romances, and crazy (fictional) lives with us. Are there better ways to spend one’s time?? Of course, and if I had a more…consequential…life perhaps I wouldn’t waste my time on such tomfoolery, but sadly that’s not the case.

To present our next award we are intrigued to welcome a man who probably never thought of himself as a villain. Unfortunately for him the powers-that-be at ABC/Disney disagreed, and in March of last year he “departed” The Bachelor (and its spinoffs) after nearly two decades. His crime?? Suggesting mercy & grace be extended to a young woman who made the heinous mistake of attending a politically incorrect party when she was an 18 year old college student. While The Bachelor (and its spinoffs) might be the most mind-numbingly asinine franchise on television and has undoubtedly contributed to the decline & eventual fall of civilization, it is equally true that Harrison did absolutely nothing wrong. Therefore we are happy to extend mercy & grace to him, so please give an enthusiastic welcome to Chris Harrison!!  And the nominees are:

The Joker Award for Villain of the Year

Lebron James

Basketball fans can debate all they want about the greatest player of all time…is it King James or Michael Jordan??…and that’s fine. I will always choose Jordan for various reasons, and unfortunately one of them has little to do with basketball. Social media and the influence of ESPN has allowed & encouraged players to not “stick to sports”, which isn’t a good thing in my opinion, and Lebron James is one of the more vocal offenders. President Lincoln famously advised “better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and to remove all doubt”, but with Twitter, 24/7 sports & news channels, and various other technologies it is nearly impossible for fans not to know the thoughts & beliefs of sports stars, actors, musicians, and others who we simply want to entertain us with their transcendent talent & skill. Sadly it is a Pandora’s Box that cannot be closed.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi

I’ve never been to California, and don’t have any desire to visit after seeing the kind of garbage it produces. Pelosi has represented her district (mostly San Francisco) for nearly 35 years and has spent much of the past 15 years as the first & only female Speaker of the House of Representatives. Normally that’d be an accomplishment to be celebrated, but the problem is this woman is absolutely batshit crazy, which leaves me with the impression that her constituents are insane as well. Anyone can make a mistake. It’s easy for a politician to beguile voters, but one would think that once that elected official proves themselves to be completely off their rocker a change would be made. I am a proponent of term limits anyway, but without that safety net I just can’t help but wonder what kind of clueless sheep keeps voting for this lush?? And how in the hell does she keep getting re-elected Speaker??

Dr. Anthony Fauci

Look, I have tremendous respect for doctors. Having had more than my share of health issues thru the years I am grateful to the medical community for saving my life multiple times. I am sure that Dr. Fauci is a brilliant man, and I understand that we’ve all been flying by the seat of our pants in the midst of a global pandemic. That being said, from Day 1 Fauci’s messaging has been…to be kind…confusing & contradictory. I have gotten bad vibes from him for awhile. I don’t know who bought & paid for him, but at best he is a useful tool, and at worst he is in the thick of sinister machinations. Oftentimes a coach will be fired because he/she has “lost the team” and the organization needs “a new voice”. Such is the case with Fauci. A significant portion of the American public is not only really tired of dealing with virus related issues, they have lost trust in Dr. Fauci. It’s time for him to go.

Kamala Harris

Much like Pelosi, one would hope that the first female Vice President (a “woman of color” no less) would be an historic milestone to honor, and it would be…if she wasn’t a terrible person doing a horrible job. From the get go Harris’ only qualifications were her gender & race, which regrettably is enough for too many people. I think we need to aim higher when it comes to the most prominent public offices in the nation, but that seems to have been an issue for the past few decades. Kamala Harris is a cackling fool who shouldn’t be in charge of anything, and honestly that’s the nicest thing I can say about her.

Bill Gates

Credit where it is due…Gates has been at the forefront of computer technology for decades, and we salute him for that. However, I must have missed the part where he received his medical license. As with Fauci’s inconsistent & dubious communication on the virus front, the vaccine has suffered from bad PR, starting with Computer Guy being one of its chief proponents & leading spokesmen. It just seems odd. Let’s face it…we’ve all been on edge the past couple years, and when it feels like a billionaire is pushing something that is out of his wheelhouse because he has skin in the game the collective thought process that perhaps we’re all being played makes a lot of sense. You want to deal with the problem of “vaccine hesitancy”?? I’m not sure of the answer, but the genesis of the problem may have been Bill Gates.

Don Lemon

No one cares about his race, nor do people dislike him based on his sexual preference. Those are convenient excuses. No…a lot of people despise Lemon because he is a smug, angry, vile, divisive, deceitful douchenozzle masquerading as a “journalist”. Gone are the days when folks on the news tried to maintain the guise of impartiality. I can deal with that. But anyone who has ever watched The Food Network knows that presentation is important, and all you need to know about CNN is that they are okay with someone as disingenuous & loathsome as Don Lemon representing their brand.

The Cuomo Brothers

At the beginning of 2021 Andrew Cuomo had been the Governor of New York for a decade, while younger brother Chris was another face of CNN. By the end of the year both were unemployed. I was a big fan of their father Mario when I was a kid. He was Governor of New York in the 1980s and delivered a riveting keynote address at the 1984 Democratic National Convention. 40-something year old Me may have different views than 12 year old me, but I am still somewhat surprised that Cuomo the Elder raised such twatwaffles. Andrew Cuomo resigned his office in August amid multiple sexual misconduct allegations, and if that wouldn’t have brought him down it would’ve been his gross mishandling of COVID in New York that was so egregious it makes Fauci look like a Boy Scout. A few months later CNN fired Chris Cuomo when it was discovered that he was using his job & his contacts to aide his brother’s defense. It was always an unusual situation…one brother in the media, the other holding a significant political office…but it worked until it didn’t. Perhaps if both men led their lives with honor & integrity instead of being the abhorrent human beings that they are both would still have their jobs.

and the Sammy goes to…..

All of Them. It’s a seven way tie. I cannot differentiate between them. A few simply need to stay in their lane, while we’d all be better off if the others would go away forever, never to be heard from again. I’ll leave it up to you to decide which is which.

Our next presenter knows a thing or two about excellence. He escaped the coal fields of southern West Virginia in the 1960s and went on to become an aerospace engineer at NASA, eventually seguing into a literary career. He has written multiple best-selling books, most notably 1998’s Rocket Boys, which was adapted into the film October Sky a year later. It is an honor to welcome distinguished military veteran & fellow West Virginian Homer Hickam Jr.!! And the nominees are:

The Bruce Wayne Award for Excellence

Governor Ron DeSantis

Rarely will I ever pat any politician on the back. Democrat. Republican. Independent. It doesn’t really matter, especially if they’ve enjoyed the spotlight a little too long. That being said, Gov. DeSantis seems like the kind of leader others should emulate. I’ve never been to Florida, so I am not familiar with that political scene or how DeSantis got to where he is right now. I do know that he has served as Governor since 2019 and is a former Navy SEAL who spent some time in Iraq. He has stepped onto the national stage by keeping Florida open during the pandemic and foregoing the scare tactics that have brought several other places to a virtual standstill the past couple of years. The numbers rise & fall almost daily, so I won’t bore y’all with statistics, but my understanding is that places like California & New York with quite stringent COVID restrictions aren’t better off than Florida, which returned to relative normalcy a long time ago. DeSantis could be a future Presidential candidate…one that promotes conservative policies that a lot of folks would support sans the kind of baggage & dysfunction that has been emblematic of recent years.

Tucker Carlson

Rush Limbaugh died nearly a year ago, leaving a void in the sociopolitical discourse. There are plenty of conservative voices out there willing to take up the mantle, but none will ever truly meet the standard. I am not suggesting that Carlson is the one to step into Rush’s shoes because I simply don’t believe that is possible, but of all the contenders he is the one I have enjoyed the most. I don’t watch his television show every night, and I don’t think I have ever seen the entire hour. I am just not the same political enthusiast that I was two decades ago. However, in small doses…perhaps an interview here & there or his opening monologue…Carlson is more than palatable.

Elon Musk

We are at a place in American history when we are encouraged to hate “rich people”, especially ultra-wealthy billionaires. However, is that the right mindset?? Perhaps, instead of jealousy & derision, we should show such individuals respect, striving to learn what makes them tick and why they are so successful. Elon Musk is the 50 year CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, which seems to have done more space exploration than NASA in recent years. He is allegedly worth $300 billion, making him the richest person in the world at the moment (maybe that’s why Bill Gates is hellbent & determined to profit from the pandemic). Musk is difficult to pigeonhole, having expressed a variety of opinions that would land him all over the political spectrum. I hope that he stays out of that arena in the future because his contributions in the private sector are much more valuable. We all know how that goes though, right?? If he’d decide to jump into the fray his name recognition & vast wealth would make him a legit force, especially since there is a blueprint for such a path. We’ll see.

and the Sammy goes to…..

None of Them. First of all, it saddens me that there are only three nominees for this award. Every effort will be made to focus more in 2022 on acknowledging those who make a positive impact on the world. As much fun as The Sammys have poking fun at absurdity and ridiculing outright foolishness, we don’t seek to be excessively negative. All of these nominees made a productive contribution in 2021, but none stand out or feel worthy of such recognition.

This feels like a good place to pause, but please stay tuned for Part 2 of The Sammy Awards…coming soon!!