Devastating Tornado, 2008 Talk, Raw Politics, CSI Effect, The Queen's Visit, Prince Harry To Iraq, And The Hoff's A Mess (Monday's First Hour)
Hi everybody. CNN has cool video, so of course that's what we're starting with tonight. It was shot by two storm chasers. Two storm chasers that are out of their freaking minds. I mean, what they got is amazing, but they were way, way too close. At one point it was only a twist of fate that the twister didn't jump or change direction ever so slightly and kill them. Seriously, don't try this at home, kids. I used to love storms when I was a kid. Now they just freak me out because I've had a few close calls, one of which I shared when 360 covered the Florida tornadoes in February.
Next up we have Gary Tuchman live in Greensburg, Kansas, a town that was all but destroyed by a twister Friday night. Approximately 10 people were killed and I say approximately because I think some of the facts changed in between this hour and the second hour. Gary tells us that the people of the town came back today to see what was left, but really, with 95% of the town destroyed, there's nothing to see. He likens the scene to the lower ninth ward in New Orleans. It's like a whole town has just been wiped off the map. And if that's not depressing enough for you, Gary tells us they spent the day with Norman Volz, a man that lost his wife when a steel pole hit her in the head as they were riding out the tornado. That's horrible. Anderson asks how big the town is/was and Gary tells us 1500 to 1700 people. That's pretty tiny. Actually I went to high school with more people than that. I bet everybody knows each other and hopefully they can rebuild.
Moving on now to an Anderson piece that recaps the stormy weather on Friday and Saturday. We learn that at one point the Greensburg tornado measured seven miles across, which is just mind boggling. I know what it's like to have straight line winds come down over an area about a mile in radius, but man, I can't imagine a tornado seven miles across. And the weather wasn't just in Greensburg. Over the two days there were over 140 tornado sightings reported. We then get a little weather lesson because everybody becomes a meteorologist in these kind of situations. After this we have a Jeff Flock piece that shows us more devastation, as well as introduces us to a guy that the twister battered up pretty bad. This concludeth the tornado coverage (for the hour anyway) and I'm a bit suprised they didn't hit on the whole issue of the National Guard's equipment being in Iraq. I'm missing an angle here, 360. Let's keep them honest.
Transitioning now to some political discussion with David Gergen, Arianna Huffington, and Ramesh Ponnuru, senior editor of "The National Review" and writer of one messed up book. Anderson begins by bringing up some new polls that are out and apparently Clinton has widened her lead on Obama. Arianna thinks Clinton came off more disciplined in the debate, while Obama was more laid back. However, she's a bit skeptical of the polls since they all seem to vary and also because their response rates are so low, with only 30 to 35% of people bothering to answer the questions. Well, I'd totally answer. Of course they'd have to get me on the phone first. Good luck with that. Anderson then points out that Al Gore doesn't even cut into Clinton's support anymore. The Gerg is a bit "eh" about things. He doesn't think enough people were watching the debates for them to have made any real difference. Anderson notes that both Giuliani and McCain don't seem to be distancing themselves from Bush, but he wonders if they will in the future. Ramesh says that at the end of the day the republicans started the war and that "... you can't tell the American public, oh, look over there, you know?" Actually I think you can. Oh no, wait. I'm thinking of the media. Look! Anna Nicole Smith died! Paris Hilton is going to jail! Rosie is leaving The View! Ooooh shiny.
Arianna states that right now there's great dissatisfaction with the republicans that are running and she brings up the evolution thing from the debate. "They did distance themselves from evolution," says Anderson. "And I'm sure, maybe, in the next debate, they will distance themselves from gravity," says Arianna. Ha! Shh! Don't give them ideas. Anderson then notes that with the unpopular war the republicans seem to be doing pretty well. I don't know if I'd say that. The Gerg thinks it's because some perceive the party as to the left of the mainstream. Yeah, the people with that perception are called right wing republicans. Seriously, when talking about the party as a whole, how are they out of the mainstream? In any regards, The Gerg believes the democrats will take back the White House in 2008 Woo hoo! Oh, but The Gerg has an iffy track record, so I better continue with my low expectations thing. Then The Gerg starts talking about France's election. Wait, we like the French now? I never get the memo. As Anderson goes to throw us to commercial he tells us, "You have no doubt seen the "Extra" video." Except what's currently playing is video of the Queen. "Well, that's actually not the "Extra" video. I don't think Queen Elizabeth has appeared in an "Extra" video yet. But you never know what she does in her private time," says Anderson. Smoooth. Somebody's on the ball tonight. And then he had this to say about David Hasselhoff's ex-wife regarding their custody battle: "And, of course, why keep it private? Why not talk about it on "LARRY KING," which is what she did." Snarky. Hee.
On now to some "Raw Politics" with Candy Crowley. Aw, you can't even see the computer in that shot. No fun. Okay, so first up we learn that House democrats are working on a new Iraq spending bill, this one gives Bush half the money now and half in July. I don't see how that's better. In other news a conservative has won the French election. Oh noes? Yay? Whatever. John Edwards is still getting flack over that $400 haircut (let if go, people) and now people are bringing up his house too and wondering if someone so rich can speak for the poor. "Would it have been better if I had done well and didn't care?" Edwards asked. Touche. Also, Clinton was all up on Obama's turf while he was courting in Detroit and Bill Clinton is apparently into crossword puzzles and made his own. Hey, isn't he in that documentary about them? Hmm. Finally, the Associated Press apparently has run out of things to do and decided to ask the 08ers their idea of sleeping in. Joe Biden says 9:00 a. m. Eh, no. Thanks for playing. Mike Huckabee says 5:30 a.m. Good Lord. He clearly didn't understand the question. That's what time I got up this morning and let me tell you, it did not feel like sleeping in. The wife of Dennis Kucinich says they like to get up for brunch and then go back to bed until 4:30 p.m. Now there's the right idea. BTW, have you seen Kucinich's wife? I think he's going to let her get up at whatever time she wants. Ahem.
Next up we have a piece from Jeffrey Toobin. Yep, Toobin. It seems our senior legal analyst has penned a piece for the New Yorker on the CSI Effect. Okay, I know this might come as a shock, but it turns out that real life forensics isn't exactly like the tv show. Gasp. I knooow! And while I'm rocking your world I should also point out that Alias isn't exactly like the CIA, The West Wing isn't exactly like the White House, and contrary to what's implied by 24, torture doesn't work. So anyway, in the piece we learn that hair analysis isn't as conclusive as you might think. They usually use the words "similar to." A DNA match is really the gold standard these days. In 1987 a man was convicted of a rape based on hair at the scene. DNA proved him innocent 15 years later. I bet that guy really hates hair analysis. Man.
Transitioning now to Richard Quest live, who has been covering the Queen's visit. This guy is a total trip. That accent. I can't stop cracking up. There's no way he's for real, right? I mean, he's right out of central casting, goes by 'Dick', and is from Cleveland, right? Oh, and let the record show I had that line all worked out in my head before Anderson totally stole some of my thunder during the second hour. Wisconsin. Pshaw. Anyway, Richard has brought a quiz for Anderson and Anderson sees this as an opportunity to test his "good breeding." The first question is how one should greet the Queen. Anderson doesn't think you're supposed to do anything. "Wrong!" bellows Richard. Oh, strike one. The second question involves how one should address the Queen. "Not honey," says Anderson. Oh, you're not even trying. Gloria can't be happy. Strike two. The final question involves when one should stop eating when dining with the Queen. Anderson says when she does. Ding ding ding. "One out of three," says Richard. "PA-THE-TIC." They then talk about some more Queen protocal and Anderson asks about Richard's white tie. Richard is quite shocked to learn that Anderson has never worn one. You know, I can barely even tell Richard is wearing one because it disappears into the white shirt. Richard then gives Anderson a whole lesson on how to work the ensemble. "It is good to know. I will put that in the -- I don't know what I'll put that in," says Anderson. Put it on a post-it! I love post-its. Heh. So that whole thing was a hoot. I wonder if Richard does parties.
Moving on now to a Tom Foreman piece on Prince Harry going to Iraq. I thought we already went through this. Anyway, he's going to be deployed there for a while and obviously there's been some concern, especially since it's been reported insurgents have circulated his picture and there's a bounty issued. If things get too hairy (heh) they reserve the right to bring him back. You know, I have to respect him wanting to fight just like everyone else, but ultimately it's pretty stupid. Every man he fights with is at even more risk now. After this we're played a clip of David Hasselhoff's wife on Larry King. Afterwards Anderson tells us, "And by the way, that's the attorney who used to be the attorney representing Larry Birkhead, who is now suddenly all over the place." Ooh, subtle cynicism. I like it. I also like the fact that that was short, there was no piece, and we didn't have to hear an expert afterwards. So they plugged Larry King and they didn't tick me off. Good job, 360! The Shot tonight is seriously disturbing. It's a kid's character named Farfur that is used to teach Palestinian kids terrorism and the show is played on Hamas' official tv station. Forget everything we're doing in Iraq, we want to fight terror, this is where the battle starts. And on that happy note...the show was really good tonight. It was great to see them NOT do blanket coverage of the tornadoes. Absolutely they deserved coverage and even top story, but to say that 360 tends to overdo things would be an understatement. So, yay! Good job. A-
Next up we have Gary Tuchman live in Greensburg, Kansas, a town that was all but destroyed by a twister Friday night. Approximately 10 people were killed and I say approximately because I think some of the facts changed in between this hour and the second hour. Gary tells us that the people of the town came back today to see what was left, but really, with 95% of the town destroyed, there's nothing to see. He likens the scene to the lower ninth ward in New Orleans. It's like a whole town has just been wiped off the map. And if that's not depressing enough for you, Gary tells us they spent the day with Norman Volz, a man that lost his wife when a steel pole hit her in the head as they were riding out the tornado. That's horrible. Anderson asks how big the town is/was and Gary tells us 1500 to 1700 people. That's pretty tiny. Actually I went to high school with more people than that. I bet everybody knows each other and hopefully they can rebuild.
Moving on now to an Anderson piece that recaps the stormy weather on Friday and Saturday. We learn that at one point the Greensburg tornado measured seven miles across, which is just mind boggling. I know what it's like to have straight line winds come down over an area about a mile in radius, but man, I can't imagine a tornado seven miles across. And the weather wasn't just in Greensburg. Over the two days there were over 140 tornado sightings reported. We then get a little weather lesson because everybody becomes a meteorologist in these kind of situations. After this we have a Jeff Flock piece that shows us more devastation, as well as introduces us to a guy that the twister battered up pretty bad. This concludeth the tornado coverage (for the hour anyway) and I'm a bit suprised they didn't hit on the whole issue of the National Guard's equipment being in Iraq. I'm missing an angle here, 360. Let's keep them honest.
Transitioning now to some political discussion with David Gergen, Arianna Huffington, and Ramesh Ponnuru, senior editor of "The National Review" and writer of one messed up book. Anderson begins by bringing up some new polls that are out and apparently Clinton has widened her lead on Obama. Arianna thinks Clinton came off more disciplined in the debate, while Obama was more laid back. However, she's a bit skeptical of the polls since they all seem to vary and also because their response rates are so low, with only 30 to 35% of people bothering to answer the questions. Well, I'd totally answer. Of course they'd have to get me on the phone first. Good luck with that. Anderson then points out that Al Gore doesn't even cut into Clinton's support anymore. The Gerg is a bit "eh" about things. He doesn't think enough people were watching the debates for them to have made any real difference. Anderson notes that both Giuliani and McCain don't seem to be distancing themselves from Bush, but he wonders if they will in the future. Ramesh says that at the end of the day the republicans started the war and that "... you can't tell the American public, oh, look over there, you know?" Actually I think you can. Oh no, wait. I'm thinking of the media. Look! Anna Nicole Smith died! Paris Hilton is going to jail! Rosie is leaving The View! Ooooh shiny.
Arianna states that right now there's great dissatisfaction with the republicans that are running and she brings up the evolution thing from the debate. "They did distance themselves from evolution," says Anderson. "And I'm sure, maybe, in the next debate, they will distance themselves from gravity," says Arianna. Ha! Shh! Don't give them ideas. Anderson then notes that with the unpopular war the republicans seem to be doing pretty well. I don't know if I'd say that. The Gerg thinks it's because some perceive the party as to the left of the mainstream. Yeah, the people with that perception are called right wing republicans. Seriously, when talking about the party as a whole, how are they out of the mainstream? In any regards, The Gerg believes the democrats will take back the White House in 2008 Woo hoo! Oh, but The Gerg has an iffy track record, so I better continue with my low expectations thing. Then The Gerg starts talking about France's election. Wait, we like the French now? I never get the memo. As Anderson goes to throw us to commercial he tells us, "You have no doubt seen the "Extra" video." Except what's currently playing is video of the Queen. "Well, that's actually not the "Extra" video. I don't think Queen Elizabeth has appeared in an "Extra" video yet. But you never know what she does in her private time," says Anderson. Smoooth. Somebody's on the ball tonight. And then he had this to say about David Hasselhoff's ex-wife regarding their custody battle: "And, of course, why keep it private? Why not talk about it on "LARRY KING," which is what she did." Snarky. Hee.
On now to some "Raw Politics" with Candy Crowley. Aw, you can't even see the computer in that shot. No fun. Okay, so first up we learn that House democrats are working on a new Iraq spending bill, this one gives Bush half the money now and half in July. I don't see how that's better. In other news a conservative has won the French election. Oh noes? Yay? Whatever. John Edwards is still getting flack over that $400 haircut (let if go, people) and now people are bringing up his house too and wondering if someone so rich can speak for the poor. "Would it have been better if I had done well and didn't care?" Edwards asked. Touche. Also, Clinton was all up on Obama's turf while he was courting in Detroit and Bill Clinton is apparently into crossword puzzles and made his own. Hey, isn't he in that documentary about them? Hmm. Finally, the Associated Press apparently has run out of things to do and decided to ask the 08ers their idea of sleeping in. Joe Biden says 9:00 a. m. Eh, no. Thanks for playing. Mike Huckabee says 5:30 a.m. Good Lord. He clearly didn't understand the question. That's what time I got up this morning and let me tell you, it did not feel like sleeping in. The wife of Dennis Kucinich says they like to get up for brunch and then go back to bed until 4:30 p.m. Now there's the right idea. BTW, have you seen Kucinich's wife? I think he's going to let her get up at whatever time she wants. Ahem.
Next up we have a piece from Jeffrey Toobin. Yep, Toobin. It seems our senior legal analyst has penned a piece for the New Yorker on the CSI Effect. Okay, I know this might come as a shock, but it turns out that real life forensics isn't exactly like the tv show. Gasp. I knooow! And while I'm rocking your world I should also point out that Alias isn't exactly like the CIA, The West Wing isn't exactly like the White House, and contrary to what's implied by 24, torture doesn't work. So anyway, in the piece we learn that hair analysis isn't as conclusive as you might think. They usually use the words "similar to." A DNA match is really the gold standard these days. In 1987 a man was convicted of a rape based on hair at the scene. DNA proved him innocent 15 years later. I bet that guy really hates hair analysis. Man.
Transitioning now to Richard Quest live, who has been covering the Queen's visit. This guy is a total trip. That accent. I can't stop cracking up. There's no way he's for real, right? I mean, he's right out of central casting, goes by 'Dick', and is from Cleveland, right? Oh, and let the record show I had that line all worked out in my head before Anderson totally stole some of my thunder during the second hour. Wisconsin. Pshaw. Anyway, Richard has brought a quiz for Anderson and Anderson sees this as an opportunity to test his "good breeding." The first question is how one should greet the Queen. Anderson doesn't think you're supposed to do anything. "Wrong!" bellows Richard. Oh, strike one. The second question involves how one should address the Queen. "Not honey," says Anderson. Oh, you're not even trying. Gloria can't be happy. Strike two. The final question involves when one should stop eating when dining with the Queen. Anderson says when she does. Ding ding ding. "One out of three," says Richard. "PA-THE-TIC." They then talk about some more Queen protocal and Anderson asks about Richard's white tie. Richard is quite shocked to learn that Anderson has never worn one. You know, I can barely even tell Richard is wearing one because it disappears into the white shirt. Richard then gives Anderson a whole lesson on how to work the ensemble. "It is good to know. I will put that in the -- I don't know what I'll put that in," says Anderson. Put it on a post-it! I love post-its. Heh. So that whole thing was a hoot. I wonder if Richard does parties.
Moving on now to a Tom Foreman piece on Prince Harry going to Iraq. I thought we already went through this. Anyway, he's going to be deployed there for a while and obviously there's been some concern, especially since it's been reported insurgents have circulated his picture and there's a bounty issued. If things get too hairy (heh) they reserve the right to bring him back. You know, I have to respect him wanting to fight just like everyone else, but ultimately it's pretty stupid. Every man he fights with is at even more risk now. After this we're played a clip of David Hasselhoff's wife on Larry King. Afterwards Anderson tells us, "And by the way, that's the attorney who used to be the attorney representing Larry Birkhead, who is now suddenly all over the place." Ooh, subtle cynicism. I like it. I also like the fact that that was short, there was no piece, and we didn't have to hear an expert afterwards. So they plugged Larry King and they didn't tick me off. Good job, 360! The Shot tonight is seriously disturbing. It's a kid's character named Farfur that is used to teach Palestinian kids terrorism and the show is played on Hamas' official tv station. Forget everything we're doing in Iraq, we want to fight terror, this is where the battle starts. And on that happy note...the show was really good tonight. It was great to see them NOT do blanket coverage of the tornadoes. Absolutely they deserved coverage and even top story, but to say that 360 tends to overdo things would be an understatement. So, yay! Good job. A-
posted by eliza at 12:32 AM
1 Comments:
I love Richard Quest, I believe he is on CNNi a lot. I don't know about others, but I kept cringing everything they played the Hoff's video over & over. I can't believe a 15 year old made the tape. I don't know if I believe his ex-wife when she says that she has no idea who released the tape, but you never know. It could have been one of the lawyers, or even the kids.
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