Althouse: "'[S]arcastic' media-savvy comedies and morally murky antiheroes tend to draw Dems."

December 8, 2011

"'[S]arcastic' media-savvy comedies and morally murky antiheroes tend to draw Dems."

"[S]erious work-centered shows (both reality shows and stylized scripted procedurals), along with reality competitions, tend to draw conservatives."

At the link: lists of liberals most and least favorite shows and conservatives most and least favorite shows. "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" appear on the liberals' favorite and the conservatives' least favorite lists. That's understandable, because both shows are written with a strongly liberal perspective. What show appears on both the liberals' least favorite and the conservatives' favorite lists? "Swamp Loggers"! "Swamp Loggers"... what's going on there? Check it out. It's about really hard work. Okay? Enough said?

198 comments:

DaveW said...: Punkin' Chunkin' isn't on there?; 12/8/11, 10:26 AM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)

… and morally murky antiheroes tend to draw Dems

I like’em too, but the reality, IMO, is that there aren’t morally murky anti-heroes…It’s a carry-over of the Western trope of the “Dance Hall Girl with a heart of gold”…they don’t exist. IF you have a heart of gold, you’ll fail as a dance hall girl…and being a dance hall girl crushes the heart of gold….One is either, generally good, or generally bad….Rhett Butler, the Cowboy with No Name, even my hero “Mr. Reese” really can’t exist…because good people can’t do bad things, consistently and bad people can’t do good things, consistently….So we are saying we love shows about people who can’t exist, but we like to think they do.; 12/8/11, 10:29 AM
xnar said...: "Shocking meat video" rates high on the liberal lists because of the moralistic bend.

Conservatives like it because it makes us think about what's for dinner.; 12/8/11, 10:34 AM
Scott M said...: Okay? Enough said?

Better duck...; 12/8/11, 10:38 AM
Sofa King said...: Top Shot and Mythbusters are two of my favorite shows.

Kind of ironic: Mythbusters is based out of San Francisco, featured Obama in an episode, and I'm pretty sure that both Adam and Jaimie are both atheists.; 12/8/11, 10:46 AM
Chip S. said...: "South Park" is among conservatives' least favorite shows? Only among those who don't watch it, I'd guess.; 12/8/11, 10:47 AM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)

What gets me about “Swamp Loggers” or “The Deadliest Catch” is the maintenance FAILURES presented…Does no one ever perform a Preventive Maintenance and Service Check? “Hey Frank a’fore you take the Feller-Buncher out thar inna the swahmp, less check:
1) Track tension;
2) Track Lubrication;
3) Oil levels,
4) Coolant levels;
5) Hydraulic fluid levels;
6) Hours operated, and consult the -10 to see what services are necessary at this point in service life.”
Oh no, it’s seemingly, “fahr that puppy up an’ git’er dun, owt in the swamp an’ cuss lahk fools when the machine breaks down.” I don’t know but none of my friends ran their Infantry Companies or Artillery Batteries that way, and then seemed to have fewer maintenance headaches or at least fewer SURPRISES.

And on the “Deadliest Catch” one boat always had a bad diesel engine…”Will they be able to make harbor safely, TONIGHT on ‘The Deadliest Catch’?” Oh I don’t know, why didn’t Cap’n Bob REPLACE the D@mn engine or did Cap’n Bob and his Engineer ever WORK on the thing?; 12/8/11, 10:47 AM
Sofa King said...: On the other hand, I also like Family Guy and ATHF. I guess that proves I'm a libertarian.; 12/8/11, 10:47 AM
Alex said...: One thing I've noticed since 2000 is how many shows glorify the homosexual.; 12/8/11, 10:48 AM
bgates said...: I think conservatives avoid a lot of the Democrats shows because they feature snide leftists who aren't half as smart as they think they are trying for cheap laughs by throwing offhand baseless insults at the right.

If we wanted that, we'd just listen to the President.; 12/8/11, 10:48 AM
Pastafarian said...: I guess I'm really a liberal Democrat.

"Always Sunny in Philadelphia" is my favorite show on television; and "Parks and Rec" is probably second.

And I can't imagine watching some of the shows on the Conservative list.

I'm surprised and disappointed that Mythbusters made the conservative cut. It's a weekly affront to the scientific method and sound design of experiments; and whenever they do anything related to firearms, they made monumentally stupid errors.

I stopped watching when they "debunked" the verified through-the-scope shot of legendary sniper Carlos Hathcock, basically calling the man a damned liar.; 12/8/11, 10:49 AM
rcocean said...: Did you know that 90 percent of all convicted felons that can vote are Democrats and liberals?

Or that drug users, people who watch "The View" and those under treatment for mental illness are almost always Democrats, and presumably liberal?

I think that tells you something.; 12/8/11, 10:49 AM
TWM said...: Funny, I'm very conservative, but I have more favorite shows in the liberal list (Parks and Recreation, The Office, Cougar Town, Modern Family, The Soup, and It's Always Sunny in Philly) than I do in the conservative list (Castle, Mythbusters, The Middle).

I also love many of the conservative least favorite shows like South Park, Dexter, and The Walking Dead.

I'd like to think liberals are the same way, but considering their intolerance for any point of view besides their own I doubt it.; 12/8/11, 10:50 AM
Thorley Winston said...: Other than Dexter and The Walking Dead, I don’t consider myself a regular watcher of any of the shows on the lists. I used to watch The Office, Family Guy and South Park but they’ve kind of grown stale and I’ll watch them if they’re on but I won’t make any special effort to view them. I tried to watch Treme (largely because I was such a huge fan of The Wire) but it failed to catch my interest but maybe I’ll give it another chance in the future.

I’d like to see where the breakdown comes on other current shows like:

Sons of Anarchy (FX)
Homeland (Showtime)
Game of Thrones (HBO)
Boardwalk Empire (HBO)
Justified (FX)
Mad Men (AMC)
Hell on Wheels (AMC)
Breaking Bad (AMC)
The Big Bang Theory (ABC); 12/8/11, 10:51 AM
Anonymous said...: Joe said...
(The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)

What gets me about “Swamp Loggers” or “The Deadliest Catch” is the maintenance FAILURES presented…
-----------------------------------

You need to watch "Gold Rush" and be driven to madness...there are all the maintenance failures of SL and DC raised to a power.; 12/8/11, 10:51 AM
Sofa King said...: What gets me about “Swamp Loggers” or “The Deadliest Catch” is the maintenance FAILURES presented…Does no one ever perform a Preventive Maintenance and Service Check?

I would guess that PMCS doesn't make lively television and rarely appears on screen, but it is funny how often it seems like easily preventible failures occur.

Proper prior planning prevents piss poor performance.; 12/8/11, 10:51 AM
Pastafarian said...: Sofa King said: "Top Shot and Mythbusters are two of my favorite shows. Kind of ironic..."

Indeed. I direct you to their slander of Carlos Hathcock, and his spotter, who confirmed the kill.; 12/8/11, 10:52 AM
TWM said...: "I stopped watching when they "debunked" the verified through-the-scope shot of legendary sniper Carlos Hathcock, basically calling the man a damned liar."

I must have missed that episode. Shameful. I never really took them at their word, it's just fun to watch them blow things up.; 12/8/11, 10:52 AM
edutcher said...: I have a feeling Lefties don't watch the Westerns channel.

Joe said...
(The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)

… and morally murky antiheroes tend to draw Dems

I like’em too, but the reality, IMO, is that there aren’t morally murky anti-heroes…It’s a carry-over of the Western trope of the “Dance Hall Girl with a heart of gold”…they don’t exist. IF you have a heart of gold, you’ll fail as a dance hall girl…and being a dance hall girl crushes the heart of gold…

Actually, they did. Most were only in it for a few years (after being widowed, running away from home, etc.) and then left to get married.

One hooker in Rhyolite NV stayed to nurse victims of a cholera epidemic and eventually died from the disease.; 12/8/11, 10:54 AM
Dan in Philly said...: Yeah, I figured this would end up here when I first read it. If I may presume to do what dems do all the time and read the minds of those with whom I disagree for the purpose of slandering them:

Liberals value cleverness above almost any other virtue. Hense, they are always praising their candidates as smart the slandering the GOP'ers as dumb. Shows they praise all have this quality" they can be described as smart.

Of course I think these shows are kind of a Malcom Gladwell kind of smart - they make you feel smart because they are superficially clever and yet still simple enough to understand. To me (my IQ is >2 SDs above the norm) they seem quite trite, boring, and predictable, but I see the appeal.

Conservatives do value hard work more than cleverness and enjoy watching shows about the everyman, which is why such shows appeal to them.

If there were ever a clever show about an everyman at work, both sides would watch it :); 12/8/11, 10:54 AM
MadisonMan said...: The quality programming you miss by not having cable.; 12/8/11, 10:55 AM
Thorley Winston said...: One thing I've noticed since 2000 is how many shows glorify the homosexual.

I think it’s obligatory on HBO that each show must have at least one gay or bi character. I don’t mind it when the characters are interesting (like Omar Little from The Wire) but after a while it’s like “we get it, you’re a premium cable network and you think you’re being provocative, now how does this relate to the nine other plots that are going on in this show I’m trying to follow?”; 12/8/11, 10:55 AM
Alex said...: I put "Dexter" as an exception to the typical antihero show the lefties like. It's very deep and I don't see how it's a very liberal show at all.; 12/8/11, 10:55 AM
Alex said...: But for my money, "Mad Men" and "Breaking Bad" are the best on TV right now.; 12/8/11, 10:56 AM
Chip S. said...: I predict that at least one sociology dissertation will be written on the finding that Republicans like "Wheel of Fortune" and Democrats dislike "The Price Is Right."; 12/8/11, 10:56 AM
Pastafarian said...: They sought to "disprove" that Hathcock shot an enemy sniper with a round through that sniper's scope and into his eye.

The idiots took a modern scope with hard-coated optics, multiple internal lenses, and pressurized nitrogen; and they were personally unable to duplicate the shot that a world-class rifleman made, through a 1960s era Vietnamese scope (hollow-tube with a lense at each end).

Well, we can't do this vaguely similar task, given 3 or 4 tries; BUSTED. I wanted to reach through the screen and wring their damned necks.; 12/8/11, 10:59 AM
MadisonMan said...: I predict that at least one sociology dissertation will be written on the finding that Republicans like "Wheel of Fortune" and Democrats dislike "The Price Is Right."

How can anyone not like the Price is Right. True, it's gone downhill from the days of Janice and Anitra, but it's still very fun to watch.; 12/8/11, 10:59 AM
Scott M said...: "South Park" is among conservatives' least favorite shows? Only among those who don't watch it, I'd guess.

This. I would like to see the demographics of this survey. I'm betting conservatives, say, 40 and under would rate it highly. Anyone that knows anything about SP knows that they are crude, yes, but still come down right-of-center.; 12/8/11, 11:02 AM
Kirk Parker said...: MadMan,

You can miss even more by not having an antenna either.; 12/8/11, 11:02 AM
Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...: But for my money, "Mad Men" and "Breaking Bad" are the best on TV right now.

Right on Alex. Especially "Breaking Bad". It's awesome. I admit I like a lot of DIY shows as well. However, the fake lib news shows are predictable and boring.; 12/8/11, 11:03 AM
Scott M said...: I also love many of the conservative least favorite shows like South Park, Dexter, and The Walking Dead.

I'm calling bullshit on this survey, then, if Walking Dead is considered a "conservative's" least favorite. WD is a huge hit with conservatives I know that HATE Hollywood horror and zombies in particular. What's more, the subject matter of the show in no way cuts liberal or conservative. In the sense that such labels wouldn't count for much in the face of Armageddon, the show's writers do an excellent job with the presentation.; 12/8/11, 11:04 AM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)
You need to watch "Gold Rush" and be driven to madness...there are all the maintenance failures of SL and DC raised to a power

I watched the first episode of Season Two, when they were starting up their Excavator….”They didn’t winterize it and the temperatures got down to -40 degrees, WILL IT START?”

OMG, I was pulling out my hair and SCREAMING, “Would it have been SO freak’n hard to have drained the oil, the hydraulics, the coolant, and removed the battery!? Really it’s only ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL TO YOUR OPERATION, but you couldn’t be bothered to take a few hours to properly maintain your equipment?”; 12/8/11, 11:05 AM
kjbe said...: I'd like to think liberals are the same way, but considering their intolerance for any point of view besides their own I doubt it.

They are...and they can also be no less intolerant and open-minded than you.; 12/8/11, 11:06 AM
Scott M said...: I think it’s obligatory on HBO that each show must have at least one gay or bi character.

HBO went COMPLETELY out of their way to put a male-on=male blowjob scene in Game Of Thrones. The show was good enough that I overlooked what would normally be a game-ender for me. Not the gratuitous sex, but the fact that they would go so far from the subject matter to pander.; 12/8/11, 11:07 AM
Chip S. said...: How can anyone not like the Price is Right.

I think they should try syndicating it in hard-core Democratic regions as The Price Is Unfair, and watch ratings soar.; 12/8/11, 11:08 AM
The Drill SGT said...: Joe said...consult the -10 to see what services are necessary at this point in service life.”
Oh no, it’s seemingly, “fahr that puppy up an’ git’er dun, owt in the swamp an’ cuss lahk fools when the machine breaks down.” I don’t know but none of my friends ran their Infantry Companies or Artillery Batteries that way, and then seemed to have fewer maintenance headaches or at least fewer SURPRISES.

Joe, your stock went up even higher with me, but you left off Armor Companies and Cav troops. The sorts of heavy tracked equipment outfits that are analagous to those loggers.

No Leaders in a Tank unit would dream of letting a morning go by without performing PMCS (Preventive Maintence Checks and Services) on all the equipment according to the Operators manual (the -10 manual)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/M1A1-Abrams-Tank-Combat-Operators-Manual-Vol-1-2-/160377295736

ps: We joke about showers being PMCS for the infantry.

PPS: Nothing gets crews attention like talking about making a crew buy an engine pack after they let it run with a low oil level :); 12/8/11, 11:08 AM
Anonymous said...: 12/8/11 11:02 AM

Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...
But for my money, "Mad Men" and "Breaking Bad" are the best on TV right now.

Right on Alex. Especially "Breaking Bad". It's awesome. I admit I like a lot of DIY shows as well.
-------------------

On one level 'Breaking Bad' is the ultimate DIY show. DIY meth, DIY prusssic acid, DIY explosives..Walter White is very into DIY.; 12/8/11, 11:08 AM
TWM said...: "I'm calling bullshit on this survey, then, if Walking Dead is considered a "conservative's" least favorite. WD is a huge hit with conservatives I know that HATE Hollywood horror and zombies in particular. What's more, the subject matter of the show in no way cuts liberal or conservative. In the sense that such labels wouldn't count for much in the face of Armageddon, the show's writers do an excellent job with the presentation."

I agree, although once or twice I felt it moving every so slightly to the left, so far they've managed to keep it pretty much in the center.

I just wish they would spend a little more time killing zombies than whining about personal issues. Keep to the original comic!; 12/8/11, 11:09 AM
Wince said...: What show appears on both the liberals' least favorite and the conservatives' favorite lists? "Swamp Loggers"! "Swamp Loggers"... what's going on there?

I dunno. But from the title it sounds like it would rate high on Titus' list.; 12/8/11, 11:10 AM
Scott M said...: I agree, although once or twice I felt it moving every so slightly to the left, so far they've managed to keep it pretty much in the center.

In what way did they move slightly to the left? I ask because maybe I missed something. Can't have that.

Was that mid-season finale a kicker or what???; 12/8/11, 11:12 AM
The Drill SGT said...: Scott M said...

HBO went COMPLETELY out of their way to put a male-on=male blowjob scene in Game Of Thrones.

I'm through nearly three of the books and don't recall any BJ's or Gay characters... Some Eunuchs though :); 12/8/11, 11:12 AM
Bob Ellison said...: I'm pretty conservative, and I don't like Colbert because his show is stupid. I like The Daily Show, because it's funny.

What I'd really like to see is a Rasmussen poll on conservative/liberal reactions to Team America: World Police.; 12/8/11, 11:13 AM
Wally Kalbacken said...: I'm partial to "Storage Wars" myself.; 12/8/11, 11:15 AM
Scott M said...: I'm through nearly three of the books and don't recall any BJ's or Gay characters

There wasn't any implied or overt guy action. The only tenuous link to a possibly gay character is only mentioned in passing a couple of times and has zero effect on the plot or advancing the story. HBO decided to make it integral.; 12/8/11, 11:16 AM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)
ps: We joke about showers being PMCS for the infantry

ScottM will be heading to your 8 digit grid coordinates, soon….he’ll be the fellow with the AT-4 looking for you!

As to the Walking Dead, I can’t watch shows about zombies, but the folks over at HotAir.com and Ace of Spades, just rag on it…they call it Desperate Housewives with Zombies…and Jonah Goldberg just trashes it…mostly because, according to them, the characters spend too much time talking about their “feelings” and spend far too little time acting like they are surrounded by a ravenous horde of FLESH-EATING ZOMBIES! At my French Fry Emporium we discuss the TWD, and conclude, “Brinks Trucks” and HMMWV’s…plus a Greyhound Diesel Bus. I add the Mk-19 40mm AGL, because the Mk-19 makes ANY situation better.; 12/8/11, 11:19 AM
TWM said...: "In what way did they move slightly to the left? I ask because maybe I missed something. Can't have that.

Was that mid-season finale a kicker or what???"

It's hard to give specifics because they never went that way, just gave me the impression they were going that way and then pulled-back. Like the whole pregnancy/abortion thing. Or the way they almost, but not quite play the "redneck" characters to a cliche but pull back. My point was they seem to be working hard to keep it neutral in this regard which in the end will keep viewers of all stripes.

And yeah that ending was a kicker. We need more of that.; 12/8/11, 11:19 AM
Anonymous said...: Wally Kalbacken said...
I'm partial to "Storage Wars" myself.

12/8/11 11:15 AM
-----------------------

Count me as a fan too. I'm surprised it didn't make a ripple in the survey since it's a ratings winner and has spawned a spin-off and imitators.; 12/8/11, 11:21 AM
Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 12/8/11, 11:22 AM
Carol_Herman said...: Without a TV for years and years; I just watch what goes viral.

When Cobert went into Zoo-cot-tee, here, park. They found Justin and Ketchup. And, the send up was hilarious.

Unlike litmus paper and the "pre-born" ... where you can specify a specific group ... You can't do that with comedy.

Heck, Uncle Milty appealed across the board. So did I Love Lucy. And, M.A.S.H.

And, I know lots of people who do "yada-yada." So Seinfeld's 8 seasons got watched!

Most people just aren't at either ends of the scale. They fall in between, as Independents.

Up ahead in the election of 2012? I'll guess the Independent wins. Obama comes in second. And, the GOP trails into 3rd place.

Won't change the dynamics. At either extreme.

And, smart candidates aren't looking to have "religious appeal." Let alone the Funny Underwear Guy.

While the ONLY media coverage we get happens to be controlled by the elites ... In the corridor between them, and DC. (Corzine has no idea what happened to the money!) Obama also has the same defect.

Good laughter, by the way, depends on the TRUTH BEING FUNNY.

It's a better test than "litmus paper."; 12/8/11, 11:23 AM
Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...: Besides Breaking Bad, I would also recommend Friday Night Lights. If you're into WWII catch the WWII In HD series. I watch Walking Dead but recognize it has problems.

I've tried to watch South Park. It can be funny but there is just something about watching a cartoon that turns me off.; 12/8/11, 11:24 AM
Thorley Winston said...: "In what way did they move slightly to the left? I ask because maybe I missed something. Can't have that.

The only thing that I can think of was when Darryl (best character on the show with Shane being a close second) hallucinated his brother Merle (the racist redneck drug dealer) deriding him for hanging out with n-words and Democrats. I guess we were supposed to take away from that some sort of negative commentary on conservatives or something. I didn’t take it that way (and I usually consider myself somewhat attuned to political commentary in the shows that I watch).; 12/8/11, 11:31 AM
Chuck66 said...: I like American Pickers, Storage Wars, and for oldies...King of the Hill.

I have a couple of friends that like Glee so have watched it a few times with them. It is getting worse as it gets even more liberal.; 12/8/11, 11:31 AM
Chuck66 said...: Chip S, South Park should appeal to conservatives. I love it as it is very very un-PC. Yes, they poke fun of conservatives to (mostly social conservatives), but there are no other shows that can get away with attacking liberal pillers.; 12/8/11, 11:33 AM
john said...: It is no surprise to see listed but very surprising not to see discussed:

"Dirty Jobs": one of the least favorite liberal shows. lol.

Since commercials were not on the list, liberals didn't get a chance to vote against Mike Rowe's Ford ads.; 12/8/11, 11:33 AM
Scott M said...: I guess we were supposed to take away from that some sort of negative commentary on conservatives or something.

I'm with you. It was a character with innate characteristics. It wasn't, especially given the rest of the case, a comment on conservatives any more than the gangbangers were negative Hispanic comments or the woman that died in the CDC was a negative black comment.; 12/8/11, 11:34 AM
Chuck66 said...: Let me ask you this (to show how hostile Big Media is to conservatives).

Almost every show has gay people in it (always the heros). Since I left my last job, I personally don't know any homosexuals (well, the guy that cut my hair last week). How many shows have the main characters going to church? I know hundreds of people who do. Maybe not religously, but at least belong to a church.; 12/8/11, 11:35 AM
Thorley Winston said...: I've tried to watch South Park. It can be funny but there is just something about watching a cartoon that turns me off.

I don’t have a problem with cartoons (looks at the bookshelf in the living room filled with anime DVDs) and I used to consider myself to be a South Park fan. I find that I don’t watch it as often because increasingly it seems to have chosen toilet humor over clever satire and that’s not something that I care to watch.

On the other hand, King of the Hill was a show that managed to provide a pretty consistent high level of humor without relying on shock value or insulting the intelligence of its audience. Surprisingly it was made by the same guy who created Beevis and Butthead (which is back on the air).; 12/8/11, 11:36 AM
Scott M said...: case=cast; 12/8/11, 11:38 AM
Thorley Winston said...: Good point, portrayals of western religion in television and most movies seems to vacillate between either (a) the bigoted religious zealot or (b) the shallow “spiritual but not religious it’s all good so long as you have faith in SOMETHING.”; 12/8/11, 11:42 AM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)

South Park is very nice, I just hate how they act like they’re very “transgressive.” Well ask about Mohamed or Islam….we can make fun of “Chef” and Scientology (and that’s fine with me) but they didn’t have the cojones to actually take on Islam.

I believe one of the more Conservative complaints about The Walking Dead is the, seeming, antipathy the writers and characters have towards firearms…EVERYONE needs to be packing, two weapons, at least…

Yeah noise attracts walkers, well I’d be using that angle too…Fou-gas/Napalm or the Mechanical Ambush….Leave something to make noise, attract a crowd of Walkers, and *BOOM* fewer Walkers.; 12/8/11, 11:42 AM
Curious George said...: No mention of The Office?

I even watch reruns over and over it's that funny.

We'll see if it lasts with Michael Scott gone.; 12/8/11, 11:47 AM
Wikitorix said...: I stopped watching when they "debunked" the verified through-the-scope shot of legendary sniper Carlos Hathcock, basically calling the man a damned liar

The Mythbusters were unsatisfied with those results and actually filmed the revisit (where they confirmed the myth) before the original test even aired.; 12/8/11, 11:51 AM
Scott M said...: The Mythbusters were unsatisfied with those results and actually filmed the revisit (where they confirmed the myth) before the original test even aired.

The Mythbusters just shot a cannon through someone's house and embedded the round in the person's minivan...on the other side of the house.; 12/8/11, 11:53 AM
MadisonMan said...: How many shows have the main characters going to church?

Tim Allen's new show has a church scene coming up. Mercedes on Glee goes to church.

(I don't watch many shows; there may be others); 12/8/11, 11:53 AM
damikesc said...: South Park is very nice, I just hate how they act like they’re very “transgressive.” Well ask about Mohamed or Islam….we can make fun of “Chef” and Scientology (and that’s fine with me) but they didn’t have the cojones to actually take on Islam.

That was a Comedy Central decision. It was not Parker & Stone.

They even added the ending of Jesus crapping on the American flag to show how ridiculous their rules are in regards to what they will and will not show on air.

Don't blame SP for that. Blame their network. The whole "All of it is fair game or none of it is" line from the show pretty well summed up their feelings.

If they can't even get Moahammad on air --- and got heat having him in a panda bear suit, what do you suspect they could do?

And put me down for Big Bang Theory. I have fallen in love with that show.; 12/8/11, 11:54 AM
Scott M said...: How many shows have the main characters going to church?

Excellent point and brought to mind a Walking Dead episode where they wander into a town looking for a little girl, only to find a deserted church. A few members of the cast spend personal moments praying. The least religious thing mentioned was along the lines of "I don't know if you're listening".

Given the situation they find themselves in on that show, even the most strident atheist might start thinking something more than natural is going on.; 12/8/11, 11:56 AM
Seeing Red said...: I would like to watch some of those shows, but why watch a show where I'm going to be insulted and I know the actors want people with my views silenced or in psych wards so they can build what they perceive to be heaven on earth?; 12/8/11, 11:56 AM
ricpic said...: It's all about the snark. The snark that is the hallmark of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report is catnip to libs. Why? Because snark is the natural posture toward opponents of those whose superiority, in their own minds, is a given. Not earned by argument. Or God forbid by performance. A given. It follows that a liberal doesn't argue with a conservative. He simply dismisses with snark. Reality be damned.; 12/8/11, 11:57 AM
Lyssa said...: How does a person have a "least favorite" show? If you don't like the show, don't watch it, and how do you sort through all of the shows that you don't watch to rank them as a least favorite?

Which makes me think most people have never or barely seen the shows they dub their leasts.; 12/8/11, 12:01 PM
damikesc said...: I would like to watch some of those shows, but why watch a show where I'm going to be insulted and I know the actors want people with my views silenced or in psych wards so they can build what they perceive to be heaven on earth?

I subscribe to this belief. I refuse to watch anything Matt Damon or Ben Affleck or involved in. I would say "I also avoid Julia Roberts movies for that reason", but I avoid them because she is a talentless hog.

I refuse to watch 30 Rock because I loathe Fey and Baldwin. Screw both of them.

If a movie comes out involving Ferrell that I think looks interesting (seldom a risk, admittedly), I'll pirate it to insure he gets no money from me.; 12/8/11, 12:06 PM
Chip S. said...: @Lyssa: bingo!; 12/8/11, 12:06 PM
The Drill SGT said...: Joe said...
(The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)
Yeah noise attracts walkers, well I’d be using that angle too…Fou-gas/Napalm or the Mechanical Ambush….Leave something to make noise, attract a crowd of Walkers, and *BOOM* fewer Walkers.

Nothing beats Fougasse to brighten or ruin your whole day.

The ones I used to build were a 55 gallon drum of jellied gas in a small slanted trench, wide side of barrel toward enemy, sand bagged on all but the enemy face. Claymore mine behind the barrel, with a White Phosphorus grenade strapped in between claymore and barrel.

boom,
20 zillion ball bearings go ripping out through the WP and gas barrel.

You get a 40 meter directed ball of fire that inflicts death, burns and serious psycho trama :)

did I mention it knoocks folks out due to the concussion and lack of oxygen and illuminates the area for 15 minutes?

what's not to like if you are on the giving end....; 12/8/11, 12:09 PM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)

Well on The Walking Dead, we don’t worry about thinning out the herd of Walkers, Drill Sgt.

I am amazed at cable/satellite TV…”Cupcake Wars” and “The Cake Boss” and “Storage Wars” and “Sweet Genius.” There a show for EVERYONE

I am also amazed at HGTV’s Home Hunters and it’s various clones. What do these people do for a living, “It’s our first house and we have a budget of no more than $225,000.” WHAT my Life Partner and I lived in a house that the partner bought for $47.5 K! What gives here, how does these folks afford the houses/condo’s/apartments they are looking at?!; 12/8/11, 12:18 PM
Hoosier Daddy said...: "... WD is a huge hit with conservatives I know that HATE Hollywood horror and zombies in particular. What's more, the subject matter of the show in no way cuts liberal or conservative..."

Love the show but there is the one trope I'm tired of and that's the guy banging his best friends wife. Ok, you thought he was dead, you still don't bone his wife. At least according to my code. Casual acquaintance, sure tap it. Best friend, keep it in your pants.

Oh and weaponry seems to be at a premium. This is Georgia, not Massachusetts. I'm waiting for season 2 to stream on Netflix.; 12/8/11, 12:18 PM
Monkeyboy said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 12/8/11, 12:19 PM
Levi Starks said...: After reading the reasons posters here don't think the results are accurate is because conservatives, and liberals who read, and post on this site are not going to be reflective of the "average".; 12/8/11, 12:21 PM
Monkeyboy said...: The Drill SGT @ 12:09

...remind me never to piss you off.; 12/8/11, 12:21 PM
traditionalguy said...: Swamp Loggers is about the native intelligence of men working really hard for a reward they get to keep.

That is 180 degrees opposite to Obama's Community of Re-distribution apparatchiks who only pretend that they work.

My other favorite was Mixed Martial Arts, but after a while it got boring watching the amateur wrestlers always shoot a take down and then winning by beating the helpless man on the bottom's face to a pulp.; 12/8/11, 12:22 PM
Scott M said...: Ok, you thought he was dead, you still don't bone his wife.

It's become apparent that the guy in question, the main character's former partner, is an amoral jackass. While he's got some good qualities, he doesn't appear to have much in the way of a conscience. Aside from that fact, given the situation and facing the end of the world, I would think a man and woman (woman was one step out the door when it all happened anyway) who already shared a strong bond would cleave to each other.; 12/8/11, 12:22 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: If "The View" is on your list, you lose.; 12/8/11, 12:26 PM
The Drill SGT said...: Monkeyboy said...
The Drill SGT @ 12:09

...remind me never to piss you off.

When the sappers come through the wire at night with demo charges, there is no such thing as nice.

They don't give quarter and we didn't either till dawn...

Or to quote me on another thread:

11. Always cheat; always win. The only unfair fight is the one you lose.

12. Have a plan.

13. Have a back-up plan, because the first one won't work.

19. Decide to be aggressive ENOUGH, quickly ENOUGH.

20. The faster you finish the fight, the less shot you will get.

21. Be polite. Be professional. But, have a plan to kill everyone you meet.; 12/8/11, 12:30 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: The Republicans almost lost with The Bachelor, but the Democrats snatched defeat with The View.; 12/8/11, 12:30 PM
Dan in Philly said...: Levi, you are correct. It's always fun to look at studies of "average" conservatives or liberals and feel smug, but that's all it does in terms of what it tells you about the non-average ones.

I have a debate with some friends who claim they think christianity is bunk because most christians can't answer their questions about the faith. I reply that most christians are not theologians, and you really don't have to be a theologian to be a chrsitian.

But just because most people who belive in the theory of relativity don't undertsand it doesn't mean it's nonsense - it's just over the heads of most and those of us who don't understand it take it on faith from those who do. So it is with many things, religion included. Those who believe may not know the answers, but they know the answers are there and are understood better by those who study such things.; 12/8/11, 12:30 PM
Michelle Dulak Thomson said...: Man. I guess I don't watch as much TV as the average right-of-center girl; at least 90% of those shows I've never even heard of.

Of the ones I've actually watched, I like Jon Stewart, love 30 Rock, enjoy Mythbusters. Letterman used to be funny, but it was an awfully long time ago, and anyway not really a practical proposition when you get up at 5 a.m.

On the animated side, I do like Family Guy, loved the late lamented King of the Hill (thanks for mentioning it, Thorley Winston), and am kind of mystified that The Simpsons appears nowhere on these lists. (Possibly because it skewers liberal and conservative pieties equally?) South Park I haven't seen much of, but what I have was sharp and funny.

But then, I don't watch much TV, and what I do is mainly local news, Law & Order reruns, and ABC's This Week.

wv: fliaqsh. Somehow that ought to be a word.; 12/8/11, 12:32 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: I don't watch TV. This list is as good an argument as any as to why others should do the same.

(The occasional episode of Mythbusters, Man Versus Wild, or How It's Made, all via Netflix, remaining permissible.); 12/8/11, 12:35 PM
TWM said...: "Oh and weaponry seems to be at a premium. This is Georgia, not Massachusetts. I'm waiting for season 2 to stream on Netflix."

As Tallahassee exclaimed upon finding a bagload of high quality weapondry in a brand-new Humvee in the movie Zombieland, "Thank God for rednecks!"

Also, this is Georgia so where are all the high-quality 4-wheel SUVs? And I know they have to have found at least one new RV to use by now.; 12/8/11, 12:36 PM
Alex said...: Freeman - not even documentaries like "The Civil War"?; 12/8/11, 12:37 PM
Thorley Winston said...: Love the show but there is the one trope I'm tired of and that's the guy banging his best friends wife. Ok, you thought he was dead, you still don't bone his wife. At least according to my code. Casual acquaintance, sure tap it. Best friend, keep it in your pants.

They had the same trope in “Homeland” but the main character seems to have come to grips with it.; 12/8/11, 12:37 PM
TosaGuy said...: "am kind of mystified that The Simpsons appears nowhere on these lists."

Simpsons jumped the shark long ago. Fox airs it and people watch it simply because of inertia.; 12/8/11, 12:40 PM
Thorley Winston said...: The Republicans almost lost with The Bachelor, but the Democrats snatched defeat with The View.

I can honestly say that I’ve never watched either although when Laura Ingraham used to have her radio show syndicated in my area she did a regular feature about what happened on The Bachelor from the night before supposedly as part of her “Culture Watch.”
After a couple of weeks I had an epiphany and realized that the only thing sillier than people who watch these sorts of shows and talk about them are people who supposedly hate these shows and can’t stop talking about them.

I don’t listen to very much talk radio anymore.; 12/8/11, 12:44 PM
Alex said...: So was "Miami Vice" a liberal show?; 12/8/11, 12:45 PM
Lyssa said...: Oh and weaponry seems to be at a premium. This is Georgia, not Massachusetts.

That drives me crazy, too. Plus, the one guy with the bow and arrows seems to really have a good thing going (it can be fired from a safe distance and isn't loud enough to attract other walkers) - why aren't they all scrambling to learn archary? (And why haven't all of the women learned to shoot by now? Jeeze, you'd think they'd be practicing that every possible spare moment.)

I was really intrigued by the plot with the vet comparing the walker disease to mental illness and wanting to still respect their humanity. Very interesting.; 12/8/11, 12:49 PM
Thorley Winston said...: Simpsons jumped the shark long ago. Fox airs it and people watch it simply because of inertia.
I still tune in for the Tree House of Horror Specials every year but I haven’t been a regular watcher for a few years now. One interesting thing about the staying power of the show is that when it premiered, I was closer to Bart Simpson’s age and he was the focal point of the show. Now I and a lot of other original fans are closer to Homer’s age and he’s become the focal point. If it stays on much longer, they’re going to have to come up with some interesting stories for Abraham Simpsons ;); 12/8/11, 12:49 PM
Lyssa said...: If "The View" is on your list, you lose.

To contradict my earlier argument, that is one show that, while I certainly don't watch, I've seen enough of to know that it would fall onto my "least favorite" list.

(I used to work in a place that had it on the breakroom while I was heating up my food. I tried to leave as soon as humanly possible.); 12/8/11, 12:52 PM
MadisonMan said...: Nothing beats Fougasse to brighten or ruin your whole day.

Why is it named after a type of bread? Anyone know?; 12/8/11, 12:53 PM
Thorley Winston said...: I was really intrigued by the plot with the vet comparing the walker disease to mental illness and wanting to still respect their humanity. Very interesting.

It kind of reminds me of the Borg from TNG. Originally they were basically cybernetic zombies and it was kill or be assimilated (eaten). Eventually the figured out a way to cure the drones and restore their individuality. Which made all of the times when the crew of the Enterprise or Voyager were forced to kill Borg all the more tragic.

It would be interesting if TWD goes a similar route and Herschel is proven right.; 12/8/11, 12:55 PM
Michael said...: Swamp Loggers is excellent. It not only focuses on guys who work really hard, a liberal might get some idea of how "sustainable" some lumber is. These guys are often pulling Cypress logs that fell off barges a hundred years ago. Very valuable wood in return for very hard and dangerous work. The wood will be made into furniture or shelving to fill the homes of rich lefties who will brag about its cost and from whence it came.; 12/8/11, 12:57 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: I saw part of The Bachelor the first season it ran. Now I occasionally hear others talking about it. I don't understand the appeal of watching it nor do I understand the appeal of being on it. It makes no sense.; 12/8/11, 12:57 PM
The Drill SGT said...: MadisonMan said...
Nothing beats Fougasse to brighten or ruin your whole day.

Why is it named after a type of bread? Anyone know?

I suspect that the connection is that the French bread version often has things like olive, onion or cheese baked inside.

The original military fougasse were crude mines of mixed rocks and black powder

just a guess; 12/8/11, 1:01 PM
Scott M said...: It would be interesting if TWD goes a similar route and Herschel is proven right.

I'm not sure how much canon is involved with this very new story, but there's a book out detailing the story of someone, if the graphic novels are followed, the cast is going to run into next season, the Governor.

In this book, which is set in the same world, at the same time (opposite side of Atlanta, though), one of the characters sticks a pistol in the face of a zombie cop. The cop freezes, looking at the barrel, and, according to the description from of the characters, almost looks sad. There is another instance where a legless zombie girl is about to be "put down" and the character about to swing the bat notices that the thing looks down and away as if sensing what's about to happen.

Not enough to validate Herschel, who will have to explain how he knew about them looking for a little girl but never said anything about the one in the barn he knew he had, but interesting, nonetheless.; 12/8/11, 1:02 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: The View may be the worst show I've ever seen. It could well be renamed "Warrant for Misogyny."; 12/8/11, 1:04 PM
Anonymous said...: Jay Leno? Really?

The guy may be the most dull, unfunny comedian in America.

I'd rather watch Dane Cook, and that's saying something.; 12/8/11, 1:04 PM
Sofa King said...: What I love about Top Shot is not just the sexy, sexy armament, but also the character and sportsmanship of the participants. The end of the season before last, with that Air Force sniper who intentionally missed so that the family man could have a chance to win...that was pretty neat.; 12/8/11, 1:11 PM
Scott M said...: The View may be the worst show I've ever seen.

You've never seen Golden Girls?; 12/8/11, 1:12 PM
Levi Starks said...: Or facts of life?; 12/8/11, 1:15 PM
X said...: E. Hasselbeck must have anosmia.; 12/8/11, 1:15 PM
Levi Starks said...: I gave up on myth busters after they tried to bust "drafting" as a way to save fuel.; 12/8/11, 1:17 PM
Triangle Man said...: I don't watch TV. This list is as good an argument as any as to why others should do the same.

Nanny much Freeman?; 12/8/11, 1:17 PM
themightypuck said...: I can't wait until next fall when Swamp Loggers: North Korea premieres.; 12/8/11, 1:18 PM
Alex said...: Who is watching "Civil War" on Netflix along with me? Come on folks!; 12/8/11, 1:19 PM
Sofa King said...: I gave up on myth busters after they tried to bust "drafting" as a way to save fuel.

Why is that? I thought the results were pretty interesting.; 12/8/11, 1:20 PM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)
Who is watching "Civil War" on Netflix along with me? Come on folks

SPOILER ALERT: The South Loses, Alex….and Lincoln doesn’t make it past the last Act.; 12/8/11, 1:21 PM
Shanna said...: Democrats don’t like Discovery’s Deadliest Catch. But they swoon for NBC’s Parks and Recreation.

Republicans seriously need to start watching Parks and Recreaction, if for no other reason than things like the Ron Swanson pyramid of greatness.; 12/8/11, 1:21 PM
MadisonMan said...: @Drill, that makes sense. (Well, except the part about having olives inside bread. Ugh).; 12/8/11, 1:22 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: Nanny much Freeman?

Arguing for something is now nannying? People are so exquisitely sensitive these days.; 12/8/11, 1:23 PM
Shanna said...: Looking at the list, did this thing control for age at all?; 12/8/11, 1:25 PM
Scott M said...: SPOILER ALERT: The South Loses, Alex….and Lincoln doesn’t make it past the last Act.

Hitler: "They lose me after the bunker scene."; 12/8/11, 1:28 PM
Alex said...: I just want to know what Freeman does for recreation.; 12/8/11, 1:29 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: This.; 12/8/11, 1:29 PM
MadisonMan said...: People are so exquisitely sensitive these days.

I'm outraged!!; 12/8/11, 1:30 PM
Anonymous said...: Watss tv? Dont u guysss hv a job or sumpin, yknnow, famblys n stuff dat keeps u way 2 bizzy to park yer kiester on d couch n veg out?

'Sides, on tv, even d heteros are monos. Leastaways, n loggin n fishin n truk drivin, yknow dey are straaits, n dey act lik it.; 12/8/11, 1:33 PM
Lyssa said...: Thorley said: It would be interesting if TWD goes a similar route and Herschel is proven right.

I said that to my husband, and he pointed out that when they were at the CDC, the scientist walked them through the "zombification" process, and it did show clear and what appeared to be unequivocal brain death.

I don't think that that shuts the door entirely to continued life/humanity, but it makes it harder to accept. (Of course, Herschel wasn't at the CDC, so he doesn't know this.); 12/8/11, 1:34 PM
Scott M said...: (Of course, Herschel wasn't at the CDC, so he doesn't know this.)

I was very glad to see that they didn't go full-bore Suthun' white racist in regards to his stepdaughter's relationship with Glenn. They did not and he just came off as a normal guy who was kicked over into denial when his wife and son turned.; 12/8/11, 1:41 PM
Anonymous said...: Deres nuttin glam bout maintenal. Buncha guys gettin greasy hands n cussin @ d gear. Plus, taks tym. Borringg. Worst ting izz d banged nuckls n bandaids. Dat's y deyy don show d guys field-strippin deyr saws. Sides, wen 3 guyzz r workin on dyr gear, alll dey do is tak bout huntin, fishin, drinkin, and chiks. N dey tosss nsults 2 n fro. Good tyms!; 12/8/11, 1:42 PM
Shanna said...: Ya’ll are reminding me that I need to watch the first season of TWD on Netflix! I caught the first episode or two but since I gave up cable I haven’t really been keeping up.

I saw part of The Bachelor the first season it ran. Now I occasionally hear others talking about it. I don't understand the appeal of watching it nor do I understand the appeal of being on it. It makes no sense.

I watched a season or two of the bachelor (or parts of, don’t I ever made it through the whole thing), so let me try to explain:

Appeal of watching: Laugh at the ridiculous professions of love for someone you just met, or alternately, root for your favorite to ‘win’, just because.
Appeal of being on: Get your 15 minutes, start professional tv reality show career, or get your own Bachelorette season.

At least that’s my take on it. It has nothing to do with romance or true love, because it’s the most unromantic show I’ve ever seen and none of those couples stay together. I did think the season when the guy at the end was like ‘pass’ was hilarious.

The View may be the worst show I've ever seen.

On this, we agree.; 12/8/11, 1:54 PM
write_effort said...: In this Dem household we watch The Middle. I very much like Patricia Heaton. Good, good writing on that show. Hard subject to write about creatively.; 12/8/11, 1:56 PM
TWM said...: "Deres nuttin glam bout maintenal. Buncha guys gettin greasy hands n cussin @ d gear. Plus, taks tym. Borringg. Worst ting izz d banged nuckls n bandaids. Dat's y deyy don show d guys field-strippin deyr saws. Sides, wen 3 guyzz r workin on dyr gear, alll dey do is tak bout huntin, fishin, drinkin, and chiks. N dey tosss nsults 2 n fro. Good tyms!"

Man, it's exhausting just attempting to read this so I can't imagine how tired you must be from typing it.; 12/8/11, 1:56 PM
Scott M said...: I very much like Patricia Heaton.

Same here, but I could never watch "Ray" as much as I like the comic himself. His sitcom was just like "Mad About You". Entire shows about people arguing. Nothing else.; 12/8/11, 2:00 PM
J said...: Many modern "liberals" may enjoy Jon Stewart and Colbert but that doesn't mean they represent the authentic democratic tradition of, say, FDR or JFK (or Bertrand Russell). They represent the tradition of Starbucks, d-Kos, Hillary Clinton, Crapple, etc. Stewart's not always a PC lib-rall anyway: at times he's approved of fatboy Beck (as in Glenn), and religious conservatives. He's amusing about once a month.; 12/8/11, 2:00 PM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)
Hitler: "They lose me after the bunker scene.

*LMAO*; 12/8/11, 2:13 PM
J said...: South Park

SP's definitely Squat and the A-tards material--probably a bit challenging. Maybe there's a ebonics guide to South Park available somewhere.

SP's on occasion slightly amusing (e.g., the mockery of the LDS mob and biblethumpers) but the animation's juvenile as are the jokes; 12/8/11, 2:13 PM
J said...: SP needs some more humor about torah-thumpers (and koran-thumpers), as does Teevee as a whole. Play that funky shofar, yid boy.; 12/8/11, 2:15 PM
X said...: There's common ground here folks. No one likes Carlos Mencia.; 12/8/11, 2:26 PM
Scott M said...: No one likes Carlos Mencia.

CC brought him on after Dave Chapelle's success seemingly as a hispanic carbon copy. Thing is, Mencia had been doing Mencia for a long time as a stand-up. The show was "meh" but his stand-up is excellent. Daniel Tosh is a white Mencia.; 12/8/11, 2:31 PM
X said...: yeah, it's hilarious when every punchline is basically "I'm a mexican"; 12/8/11, 2:37 PM
NorthOfTheOneOhOne said...: I love "Swamp Loggers", I was raised in Eastern North Carolina. They're working in a lot of my old stomping ground. Rocket City Rednecks is good too.

I'm amazed at how NatGeo, A&E and Discovery have recently discovered the South. It's like it's the last place in the country where people have real jobs.; 12/8/11, 2:39 PM
Scott M said...: yeah, it's hilarious when every punchline is basically "I'm a mexican"

Surely you meant to type, "beaner".; 12/8/11, 2:40 PM
MarkW said...: "South Park" is among conservatives' least favorite shows? Only among those who don't watch it, I'd guess.

Yes, the political outlook is more right, but the cultural outlook is left -- my religious conservative relatives would absolutely HATE the show if they ever watched it. The over-the-top crude and obscene humor would not seem funny at all to them.

In general, 'South Park Republicans' are libertarian types (economically conservative but culturally liberal).; 12/8/11, 2:42 PM
Scott M said...: culturally liberal

Honestly, I'm not really sure what that even means any more.; 12/8/11, 2:43 PM
X said...: I forgot how much he loved that word. Apologies to Ned Holness.; 12/8/11, 2:46 PM
Lyssa said...: Daniel Tosh is a white Mencia.

Daniel Tosh is bloody hilarious. I know I'm a worse person for thinking that, but I can't deny that it's true.; 12/8/11, 2:53 PM
Scott M said...: Daniel Tosh is bloody hilarious. I know I'm a worse person for thinking that, but I can't deny that it's true.

His stand-up was always good. His CC show, being unabashedly derivative (aka "hacky") is a whole ten yards of brilliant. What I want to know is how he manages to snag all of the celebrities, past and present, that he gets to do cameos.; 12/8/11, 2:58 PM
Mary Beth said...: I had never heard of "Swamp Loggers" so I started watching the video. I got as far as "there's snakes" as part of how it is "oozing with danger" and I stopped watching.

That cute green snake isn't going to hurt anyone.; 12/8/11, 3:00 PM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)
That cute green snake isn't going to hurt anyone

That snakes got a a vicious streak a mile wide! I mean look at the BONES….; 12/8/11, 3:05 PM
Scott M said...: That snakes got a a vicious streak a mile wide! I mean look at the BONES….

We've got to think of something else. That green snake's DYNAMITE!; 12/8/11, 3:06 PM
Chip Ahoy said...: I do not know about conservative and liberal preferences, but whatever your persuasion Robert Irvine hosting Restaurant Impossible on the Food Network is the best show on teevee. Fact!

Like all of the makeover shows the subject (victim if you like) is first completely psychologically destroyed. That's the fun part. Grown men cry every episode. Then rebuilt.

It's bootcamp all over the place with this guy Robert Irvine. It's very militaristic, he reminds me of my dad. The combination of harshly abusively direct criticism combined with tender understanding support is quite impressive. Struggling to make ends meet, at the end of their rope, acknowledging their crisis and forced at last to face their long checkered past of poor choices and ongoing failures, Irvine makes mush of these people.

They crumble.

Into mush. Mushy crumbles.

Sobbing crumbly mushy wet threadbare dishrags.

*glees*

Anyway, Irvine fixes the kitchen. Strips the front room. Rewrites the menu. Trains the cooks and service people. Teaches food service programs, inventory, accounting etc. It is shown why so many restaurants fail. These people simply cannot cook. They cannot organize a kitchen or even come up with a coherent restaurant theme without muddling it. They cannot keep the place clean. They know nothing of interior design. They allow their menus to get out of hand. They operate well below Health Service standards.

Presumable all reversed in two days and with $10,000 but I do not believe that part. Too much fudging within the chronologic continuity to be believable so we cut them some slack for lying to us about the timeline.

I notice the designers do not last beyond two episodes. I'm certain they're thinking the exposure is good but there's no way they're going to put up with the way Irvine drives them. They all manage eventually but they gotta be thinking that it can be hardly worth the aggravation.

Then at the very end there is an update printed in the corner. The owners often slip back to their wayward practices. One hoarder resumed his hoarding. He stuffs valuable space with useless crap, space that attracted customers as a dance floor. Now it holds junk again. Another owner reverted to his earlier method for seafood boil that is clearly inferior to the method Irvine showed him. The owner's method oddly gets more diluted with each order through the course of the day while Irvine's method is more traditional and totally ace, an altogether better product. So in those cases where no lasting change is possible the viewer rightly goes,"FAIL !" .; 12/8/11, 3:07 PM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)
We've got to think of something else. That green snake's DYNAMITE

Would it help to confuse it if we run away more?; 12/8/11, 3:10 PM
Mary Beth said...: Thorley Winston, there were more shows I like from your list than both of the other "like" lists combined.; 12/8/11, 3:11 PM
Scott M said...: Would it help to confuse it if we run away more?

Go and change your armor.; 12/8/11, 3:15 PM
john said...: The Drill SGT -

You bring back memories (mostly not so good) of having to wrestle those fougasse drums into banked holes behind the claymore and wp. We exploded several on purpose just to see what they would do, and one by accident that sent one of our team to the hospital. The injury wasn't too bad, fortunately.

We always thought the name was local, an Americanized mix of something Vietnamese and French. But it actually has a pedigree, going back 300 years or so. Still, not sure why it has that name.; 12/8/11, 3:17 PM
J said...: Yo it's another episode of dyslexic Seinfeld impressions on Althaus. (and most of blogland).

The South Park duo earn their living mocking catholics (and some WASPs)--ie, Mary on her period,etc-- they dare not mock the Chosen. How tee-vee Komedy-Co operates.; 12/8/11, 3:20 PM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)
Go and change your armor

All right this entire thread is becoming SILLY! I mean I like a good joke as much as the next man….; 12/8/11, 3:21 PM
Anonymous said...: TWM sez readin txt dilect is xhaustin

Naw, jes lik lernin any othr dialect Practis, practis, practizza 4 its ezy Tak liks dis 2 yr kidz on d phone ever timm

Sides, Dante sez d Internet is ascendal, so its all good Ifn u cant readd dis easy, its tym 4 yr rockin chair, olddd (grin); 12/8/11, 3:23 PM
Scott M said...: All right this entire thread is becoming SILLY! I mean I like a good joke as much as the next man…

Come to think of it, most people enjoy a good laugh better than I do.; 12/8/11, 3:24 PM
J said...: Speaking of dyslexic Seinfelds, it's Squat and his new mormon pedo pal Byro-X!

Grazi for evidence, scum; 12/8/11, 3:25 PM
Scott M said...: Cartman: And so the party journeyed onward. The great wizard, the skillful ranger, and the covetous jew.
Stan: I'm a PALADIN, Cartman!
Cartman: Jews can't be Paladins.

Correct. South Park never makes fun of Jews.; 12/8/11, 3:30 PM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)
Speaking of dyslexic Seinfelds, it's Squat and his new mormon pedo pal Byro-X!

Grazi for evidence, scum

Is there a translation service available for this? I realize what is REALLY being said is, “Look at me, look at ME! Someone please note my existence!” But is there a more low-level translation of this gibberish?; 12/8/11, 3:30 PM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)

I’m hoping that there is someone, anyone who can point my in the direction of information on the Zionist-Imperialist bankers who dominate at least 75% of Financial institutions, myself…..; 12/8/11, 3:32 PM
Joe said...: (The Uncredentialed, Crypto Jew)

Well “Do you want to Super-Size that?” Calls…Good luck all.; 12/8/11, 3:33 PM
J said...: Yeah Reason's far too challenging for you Joey Kissinger. Stick to like the Schecky Green impressions, dreck; 12/8/11, 3:39 PM
damikesc said...: I do not know about conservative and liberal preferences, but whatever your persuasion Robert Irvine hosting Restaurant Impossible on the Food Network is the best show on teevee. Fact!

Love that and Kitchen Nightmares. He actually re-did a restaurant near me in SC. I went there a month after the show aired.

Their menu totally changed back and it was crap. Again.

Also, Irvine's girlfriend is the smoking hot Gail Kim. Well played, sir.

The South Park duo earn their living mocking catholics (and some WASPs)--ie, Mary on her period,etc-- they dare not mock the Chosen. How tee-vee Komedy-Co operates.

Missed Cartman's rather consistent stream of anti-Semitic jokes and lines? It's not exactly been hidden for the last, what, 14 seasons.; 12/8/11, 3:50 PM
Cedarford said...: Alex said...
One thing I've noticed since 2000 is how many shows glorify the homosexual.

================
The progressive Jews of the media that call the shots in entertainment programming definitely have a Gay Agenda. Gay is the New Cool they are trying to push hard, in any venue they can as long as it doesn't hurt their wallets.
Top Chef and Top Dessert Chef resemble a LGBT Convention. Project Runway??
They have pushed Idol and Dancing with the Stars to get as gay and fey as possible. If they could, they would have gay same sex couples in dance competition and every other song on Idol a gay anthem.

This follows the media masters early "message politics" campaign of the 80s, 90s still going strong today - the "Elevate the Magic Negro" period.
That would be the shows and dramas that always had the genius black computer expert, the all-wise Female black judge that wraps up the hard case with her brilliant ruling and 100% moral authority. (Perhaps Sotomayor got the Wise Latina lawyer from seeing TV and thinking not only black judges are better than any white one.)
The only difficulty Hollywood's progressive jews had was what Negro to cast as Batman's genius weaponeer, who to head the "top secret physics project", what black would be "the President's neurosurgeon" - or what Magic Negro would guide the confused white protagonist to play better golf, and do it morally impeccably.
The wise Magic Negro cop bringing the evil white CEO to justice..; 12/8/11, 4:00 PM
Scott M said...: Missed Cartman's rather consistent stream of anti-Semitic jokes and lines? It's not exactly been hidden for the last, what, 14 seasons.

An entire show making fun of a Jewish bris. An entire show where the studio executives (both extremely Jewish in mannerisms and speech) were going to "cancel" Earth as a show because we don't fight enough anymore, only to be blackmailed into keeping Earth going because the boys had pictures of them with alien hookers.

Nope. South Park doesn't make fun of Jews at all.; 12/8/11, 4:09 PM
The Drill SGT said...: john said...
The Drill SGT -

You bring back memories (mostly not so good) of having to wrestle those fougasse drums into banked holes behind the claymore and wp.

I hope you tested them at night :)

We had an alternate design that we never used. It had 8inch powder container and was fired the long way. it was supposed to be a narrower, longer range burn. too much trouble. never built them :); 12/8/11, 4:45 PM
Anonymous said...: Jz jes talkinn hizown txt dilecta Ya gotta b in d momenttt wit him, jes go wit d floww Don thiink, jes beee, n yll get im.

Den agin, you may nottt wan go dere, as he's mosly bout smackkk.

ChipS haz righht idee: go Solzinsky on J, hes got no defens ginst dat.; 12/8/11, 4:48 PM
J said...: who gives a fock Scott-Seinfeld. Jewish entertainers make jokes about themselves. Lightweight like you, dreck.

or what Magic Negro would guide the confused white protagonist to play better golf, and do it morally impeccably.
The wise Magic Negro cop bringing the evil white CEO to justice..

Yes. Media-marketing . Note it on ads as well---the guru-black selling insurance, cars, or deodorant, beer, etc.; 12/8/11, 4:49 PM
J said...: An "engineer" eh andi-mumbles aka anny, aka Byro with the klan act?
Now pretend to be the little reg, perp. grazi for evidence, stalker; 12/8/11, 4:53 PM
The Drill SGT said...: john said...
The Drill SGT -

You bring back memories (mostly not so good) of having to wrestle those fougasse drums

one of my worst days in Nam was when I was replacing out of date fougasse mines. rolled the drum off and looked down.

The spoon on the WP grenade had rusted off and the striker was stuck by mud from igniting the grenade igniter.

quickly I put my thumb over the striker.

For the rest of you, a White Phosphous grenade is a cylindrical object and weighs 2 pounds. The average soldier can throw it 15 meters and it has a bursting radius of 20 meters.. exciting...

when the pin is pulled, and thrown, the spoon (handle) flies off and a stiker is spring loaded to snap down on the primer.

so me holding the live grenade in my hand, got in a jeep and we drove up a mountain till I could toss it off the side of a cliff.; 12/8/11, 4:55 PM
john said...: Disarm any on fsb Tomahawk or Roy?; 12/8/11, 5:40 PM
Unknown said...: I read this in the Washington Post, they gave a much more detailed list.

Obviously I'm slow on pop culture, because I haven't heard of half the the show.

The View is quite possibly the worst show I've ever seen. Although I'm conservative, I do like Jon Stewart in small batches.

And The Mentalist, love it.; 12/8/11, 7:13 PM
Anonymous said...: Wee noo ugot smakk, Jnny-1-note. Anything elss? Surprzz us! Show u got some deeepps. Hitt back wit sum commentary dat makks suma us think "Huh, maybe I've haven't seen all sides yet, and need to".; 12/8/11, 7:14 PM
The Drill SGT said...: I was up in I Corps. 101st as I assume you were. 70-71

I was never at Tomahawk or Roy.

I was at Phu Bai, Eagle, Carroll, Bastogne, Veghel and Vandergrift

also some trips to Dong Ha and A-4; 12/8/11, 7:15 PM
john said...: Hee hee. Same time, same places:

24th corps, 1/83 art., 8" and 175mm. 93E turned 93F (metro). My last half year there was on JJCarroll.

Maybe we should get off and continue the conversation (if ur interested) in Ann's restroom, time-out room, rumpus room, or whatever its called now.

Naw, lets just compare notes sometime.; 12/8/11, 7:32 PM
Jose_K said...: portrayals of western religion in television and most movies seems to vacillate between either
The Keys of the Kingdom. Gregrory Pecks
Scarlet and Black Gregory Pecks
The quiet man. John Wayne and John Huston
Hell at midnight. Frank Sinatra.
Ben Hur,11 Oscars
Moses
Heaven was witness mr Allison. Kerr and Mitchum.
The movie about japanese prisoners camps with Glenn Close.
Jesus of Nazareth, Zefirelli with every great name of the cinema
The passion of the Christ.
The sandals of the fisherman
The power and the glory
The agony and the extasis
All movies about religion. Few but of great quality.
.....
Big bang theory, House. NCSI. Numbers. The Tudors. Coupling( the british version)Classic liberal; 12/8/11, 7:43 PM
Joe Schmoe said...: Parks & Rec and 30 Rock have grown on me. Both have employed a novel device for major network sitcoms: a patriarchal, conservative man successfully mentoring a supposedly idealistic, liberal woman.

Ron Swanson is the character on Parks who is a libertarian/conservative who loves meat and hunting. Even though he runs the Parks Dept. he would love nothing more than for all the local govt. to go away. Alec Baldwin plays a fat-cat 1% Republican on 30 Rock. Just their personas are supposed to cause eye-rolls, I guess.

Funny thing to me, though, is that these guys come off as thoroughly capable, competent bosses. And even though they (network writers) try to stereotype them, they are the best characters on their shows.; 12/8/11, 7:44 PM
Joe Schmoe said...: I think Curious George mentioned The Office; yes, Michael Scott was one of my favorite all-time TV characters. That show has gotta be doomed without him.

That show is quite devoid of political overtones.; 12/8/11, 7:47 PM
Known Unknown said...: Nanny much Freeman?

I think they're referring to The Nanny with the peerless Fran Drescher; 12/8/11, 9:30 PM
Known Unknown said...: I think Curious George mentioned The Office; yes, Michael Scott was one of my favorite all-time TV characters. That show has gotta be doomed without him.

I prefer the original BBC version, but Carrell was good as Michael Scott.; 12/8/11, 9:30 PM
Jum said...: Ah, but I be lovin' me some Swamp People - how can you not love watching people work their asses off in the Louisiana bayous and swamps for 12 hours a day, 30 days in a row, trying to catch as many as 20 alligators a day, using rotten chicken stuck on a big-ass hook, and then hauling them into your skiff by hand after you've shot 'em in their tiny reptile brain with a tiny .22 cal. rifle? What a hoot these folks are. Just hearing Troy's voice makes me break into a big smile. Hard, hard work, but there's no boss but you or a family member, and there's nooo guvmint man looking over your shoulder.; 12/8/11, 11:05 PM
Nancy Reyes said...: With all the movies the make foreigners think crime and immorality are "normal" in the USA, I am that we get these "dirty job" type shows on TV here in the Philippines. It shows another side of the USA...hard working guys and gals.; 12/8/11, 11:36 PM
Don M said...: Conservatives: Can Be Griffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff.

Liberals: Always Slitheryn.; 12/8/11, 11:58 PM
bagoh20 said...: I miss the indian head test pattern. I loved that show.; 12/9/11, 1:12 AM
bobby said...: When I was at college, (a drippingly liberal place with a big sign arched over the entrance gate that said "from each according to his ability, . . . ."), I was constantly shocked that no one else - no one! - could figure out and fix a car problem, or repair a bike, or adjust a ski binding, or figure out an amplifier phase issue, or run a chainsaw, or replace a light switch, or rig a crane, or . . . anything!

They had no interest in any such activity. It wasn't that they devoted their time to more valuable purposes - they all spent stupifying amounts of time stuck and waiting for someone to come and fix things for them.

So, no, they're not going to appreciate Swamp Loggers or Deadliest Catch, or any of that type of show, at all.; 12/9/11, 3:43 AM
Anonymous said...: My nephew thinks colbert and that smirky Jon whatsisname are news programs.

Also: America is doomed.; 12/9/11, 6:38 AM
Don said...: TV?

Oh, that thing that sucks 30% of life away and creates sitting and watching people do stuff we can't into a lifestyle choice.

Chucked it long ago.

I think it was right after an unfortunate event where I caught part of "The View" and realized that 'stupid' was now the new normal - at least as conveyed from the box.; 12/9/11, 6:41 AM
TWM said...: "I think Curious George mentioned The Office; yes, Michael Scott was one of my favorite all-time TV characters. That show has gotta be doomed without him.

That show is quite devoid of political overtones. "

Actually, in a recent episode the gay character, Oscar, made a full out swipe at Republicans by apologizing to a park ranger for their cutting national park funding. However it was the first time I ever saw anything political during the series.

And the guy who took Michael Scott's place. Andy Bernard, is doing a great job. He's different from Scott, but in just as good and in many ways better.; 12/9/11, 6:42 AM
Joe Schmoe said...: I miss the indian head test pattern. I loved that show.

Me too, although I always seemed to catch the same episode.; 12/9/11, 8:19 AM
Scott M said...: Me too, although I always seemed to catch the same episode.

I've always been partial to the Hypnotoad Hour.; 12/9/11, 8:21 AM
Joe Schmoe said...: Actually, in a recent episode the gay character, Oscar, made a full out swipe at Republicans by apologizing to a park ranger for their cutting national park funding.

I missed that one, but I guess I'm not surprised. The efforts to 'diversify' a show's cast by adding gay characters has led to just about absolute uniformity among the archetypal gay male: flamboyant, effeminate, liberal, fashion-consumed, and outrageous.

Oscar on the Office is actually much more toned down than most. I would've been really surprised if you'd claimed he declared himself a Log Cabin Republican.; 12/9/11, 8:24 AM
Joe Schmoe said...: And gay women are hugely under-represented on TV. What's the deal with that? Another lib canard exposed, I'd posit. We support gay rights as long as we get good ratings!; 12/9/11, 8:26 AM
Joe Schmoe said...: I've always been partial to the Hypnotoad Hour.

??? I don't 'capichay', as they say around here.

wv: shiaties - the latest craze in exercise and cleansing; 12/9/11, 8:28 AM
Scott M said...: ??? I don't 'capichay', as they say around here.

One doesn't constitute a "they", certainly not that one. As far as Hypnotoad, it's an obscure Futurama reference. They're gay quotient is pretty low, but they do have a pre-op transvestite hookerbot that does small cameos every once and a while. For some reason, it has a Puerto Rican accent.; 12/9/11, 8:32 AM
Joe Schmoe said...: Sorry for monopolizing, but my new specialty is coming in at the end of threads as they lay dying. I've got young kids and stuff like jobs, so my days and nights are full.

This one's for rcommal, if he happens to check in here:

What site do Alt-tards like me go to get information when arguing with J?

Wiccaperpia; 12/9/11, 8:33 AM
Joe Schmoe said...: they do have a pre-op transvestite hookerbot that does small cameos every once and a while. For some reason, it has a Puerto Rican accent.

LOL. Haven't seen Futurama, although a Simpsons fan (some of the same writers and animaters, I think?).; 12/9/11, 8:36 AM
Joe Schmoe said...: One doesn't constitute a "they", certainly not that one.

I thought He That Must Not Be Named got it from She That Must Not Be Named, No Not Her, But The One Who's Name Rhymes With Barrel Berman.; 12/9/11, 8:39 AM
Joe Schmoe said...: I prefer the original BBC version, but Carrell was good as Michael Scott.

EM, I did love Ricky Gervais on that, but Carrell is still my guy. I saw an interview with Carrell where he said he refused to watch the BBC version because he thought he'd just cop Gervais' character. Good choice as he did carve out his own role, similar but different to Gervais.

And the guy who took Michael Scott's place. Andy Bernard, is doing a great job. He's different from Scott, but in just as good and in many ways better.

TWM, I'm having a hard time moving beyond the Michael Scott era. I liked Andy as a supporting cast; to me he hasn't grown into the role yet. And I'm afraid that his main development path is to not worry about being liked and becoming a competent boss. That does strike me as a comedic gold mine. Michael was a sales savant, so he got away with a lot of weird behavior because at the end of the day he brought in sales. Andy already has a track record as a pathetic salesman.

I still get a kick out of Dwight.

Off to work. Have a good day everyone.; 12/9/11, 8:49 AM
richard mcenroe said...: I wouldn't know; I don't watch network series television, don't watch the reality shows which are about as authentic as pro wrestling.

Watch some BBC America: early adopter of "Sherlock", "Top Gear" (yes, Jeremy Clarkson rags on America but I know that his car will inevitably stall, sink, explode, tip over in the end so I can just wait for his comeuppance), Dr. Who for Jenna Coleman and the eyebrows, occasional movies, and that's about it.

Too many places to get entertainment these days, to give my eyeballs to the schmucks who give money to Dunham, Fey and Alec Baldwin...; 11/9/14, 5:42 PM
richard mcenroe said...: The Drill SGT: Willie Peter makes you a believer...; 11/9/14, 5:45 PM