Tucker Off the Rails

Tucker Carlson had a recent interview with Jacob Rees-Mogg, a former British MP and noteworthy pundit.  Where Tucker had his famously -infamously - friendly interview with Vladimir Putin in 2024, his conversation with Rees-Mogg was positively contentious bordering on hostile.  Fine, that makes for a more interesting interview, but Tucker comes across as a Putin apologist and maybe even a Hitler apologist.  Good grief!  The centerpoint of the discussion was that Rees-Mogg has argued that the UK should build up its military under the old truism that 'if you want peace, prepare for war.'  Tucker attacked this notion repeatedly.  Among his attacks was to say that England ruined itself by fighting in World War I and World War II, both of which he argued were entirely voluntary.  Indeed, the UK joined WWI because Germany attacked Belgium.

"Who cares?" Tucker argued.

"We had a treaty," Jacob replied.

Then there was World War II.  The UK went to war with Germany because Germany invaded... Poland!  Heck, Germany was merely reclaiming territory that had been 'stolen' in the Treaty of Versailles.  15% of Poland had been Germany/Prussia.

"Why not leave the Germans to it?"

"We had a treaty."

Tucker argued that the wars left the UK much worse than it was.  He pointed out that the UK now had a population that was 19% foreign-born.  If you can't even stop boats from landing on your shore, what makes you think you can face nuclear-armed Russia?  Really, if Putin so wished it, he could win tomorrow by nuking Ukraine or rolling out hypersonic missiles.  The UK stands no chance against Russia, which has a much bigger military.

The point that Tucker refused to understand was that strength deters aggression where weakness encourages it.  The UK was clearly unprepared in both 1914 and 1939.  Aggressors took that weakness as an invitation to attack.  By contrast, the US was strong post-WWII and remained so throughout the Cold War.  As such, the Soviets did not see weakness and no war resulted.

Repeatedly, Tucker spoke highly of Russia while dissing the UK and disapproving of US involvement in both Iran and Ukraine.  Heck, he condemned Hiroshima as unjustified.  'You can never kill innocents.'  Wow, there is a rule that, if followed, would lead to a loss every time.  Sheer stupidity.

Jacob Rees-Mogg had the patience of Job during this debate.  Somehow, he interjected some lighthearted moments despite Tucker's unrelenting series of attacks.  At the conclusion, Tucker thanked Jacob for putting up with his nasty questions.  Rees-Mogg brushed it off as a friendly discussion, showing he is unruffled by such.  Indeed, he came off rather well while Tucker sounded like a crackpot who sympathized with tyrants.

There was a time when I thought highly of Tucker, but it seems that his former employers - both CNN and later Fox - reined in his extremes.  Now free of editorial control, he has gone off the rails. 

Lanterns

In 2016, Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) is the Green Lantern, but has been assigned a trainee, John Stewart (Aaron Pierce).  Hal is clearly not keen on this, and the training is mostly non-existent.  However, Hal does offer the ring to Aaron and then puts the trainee in a do or die situation, literally.  After surviving the challenge and on his way to rejoin Hal, Hal suddenly materialized.  Only he looked different.  As it happened, this is a backup Hal, a projection from the ring that was made in 2006.  This version of Hal is much friendlier and a bit concerned that he might be dead.  In the brief chat, Hal 2006 thinks that Hal 2016 isn't doing a good job of training.  Hal 2006 also said to tell Hal 2016 about Rushville.  Upon regaining the ring, Hal 2016 flies to Nebraska and tells John to meet him there.  Rushville, Nebraska, is where Hal received the ring and his predecessor died.  This cannot be coincidence.  There are strange things happening in the town, but Sheriff Kerry Kane (Kelly Macdonald) is not keen on having Hal and John poking around.  It turns out that exploding aliens have an interest in Rushville, so Hal is determined to find out why.

The series is told in a non-linear fashion.  Though the story initially unfolds in 2016, it hops forward to 2026 and back as far as 1973.  Mostly, the story is split in two, with half the episodes concerning an event in 2016 and the other half taking place in 2026, plentiful flashbacks throughout.  John was chosen by the Guardians in infancy to be the next Green Lantern, whereas Hal received the ring by happenstance when the previous Lantern died unexpectedly.  But somehow it is Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion) who is the current Green Lantern (Superman, Peacemaker) when the series jumps to 2026.

Where Ryan Reynolds would manifest his costume whenever he started using the ring, Chandler has an actual suit in the closet that he only wears a couple of times.  Usually, he's in jeans and a leather jacket. Hal is extremely reckless, to the point of infuriating the viewer. It is astonishing how often his ring is running low on power.  Even when he doesn't have his ring, he acts as if he is impervious.  Is he suicidal?  It often seemed like it.  Nonetheless, though he was often a jerk, he does possess charm that makes him likeable overall.

John has a big chip on his shoulder.  Because he has been groomed for life to be the next lantern, it is understandable that Hal is not particularly friendly.  That the writers chose to make his racial background a major factor in his life was irritating.  You would think he grew up in the 50's and 60's rather than the 90's and aughts.  John proves to be a stand-up guy who has more integrity than most give him credit.

The show doesn't feel like a superhero show.  It feels more like a noirish detective show that happens to have sci-fi elements.  This is True Detective meets X-Files with a superhero included.  It is a peculiar fusion that was made more difficult because no one got along with anyone else.  Every relationship is contentious.

Good popcorn fun.

Bet on a Winning Major

The Trump Administration has proposed a new rule for college loans and grants: if your proposed degree will not result in a higher income than no degree, the government will decline to fund your education.  That's a start.  In truth, the government shouldn't be funding education at all, especially college education.  However, this is a step in that direction.  There is no reason to get a degree in art history just to work as a barista at Starbucks.  Even before this new rule, many colleges have been pruning degrees that don't lead to high earnings.  The student debt crisis combined with the underemployment of recent grads is changing the education landscape.  The shrinking pool of students - a result of declining population - will lead to a reduction in the number of colleges.  Some have already closed.

The quickest way to resolve the student debt problem is to get the government out of it and then allow students to declare bankruptcy on their debt.  Watch the cost of college plummet, the number of worthless degrees vanish, banks demand that colleges provide proven value, and students take responsibility for the debt they incur rather than look to the government for a bail out.  As is, we have too many 'educated' people and not enough jobs that require that education.  Turns out that the blue-collar jobs like a welder or electrician are far more profitable than the white-collar jobs these days.

Starship's First Mission

Today, Flight 14 of the SpaceX Starship took place.  For the first time, it achieved orbit and deployed 26 Starlink V3 satellites.  This was no test flight, this was a successful deployment mission that saw both the booster and starship successfully maneuver back to earth and land relatively softly.  Yes, they could probably have caught them with the chopsticks if they had wanted to up the ante for the day.  However, enough success has been achieved.  Though there are still hurdles to overcome, the starship - as is - has become economically viable.

Uncharted (2022)

Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) returned to consciousness to find himself dangling out of an airplane far above the ocean.  A string of crates connected by cargo straps swing from the loading ramp of a plane.  As Nathan sought to climb back toward the plane, he found enemies among the crates who he must overcome.  Finally, he gets onto the loading ramp.  Ha!  Then a red car hit him!

Days earlier, Nathan Drake arrived at his job as a bartender in NYC.  In addition to mixing drinks, he had light fingers for a lady's jewelry.  However, Sully (Mark Wahlberg) spotted his pilfering and did some counter pilfering.  He also left a business card.  It turned out that Sully was something of a thief himself and suggested they team up on a heist of Ferdinand Magellan's hidden cache of gold.  Sully already has a map, but there is need for a key.  They go to an auction where Santiago Moncada (Antonio Banderas) plans to purchase the key, unless Drake and Sully can steal it first.

Next, they go to Barcelona to find Chloe (Sophia Ali) who has the second key.  With the two keys, they must traverse through ruins that are both part of a church, the sewer system, a subterranean bar, and a fast food joint.  Wow, all this stayed intact for four centuries.  Yeah, not buying that.  Amazingly, they acquire yet another map, this one being an island in the Philippines.  Time to stowaway on Moncada's cargo plane and we've caught up to the opening act.

Drake, Sully, and Chloe are not likable people.  Tom Holland's natural charm is carrying the character.  Only the fact that Moncada and his goon squad are murderous villains justifies the unscrupulous actions of our 'heroes.'  Many of the action scenes are beyond ludicrous and even look like something out of a video game.  The duel between two 16th century sailing ships being carried by helicopters was just too much.

Mindless popcorn fun.  Entertaining in its parts but disappointing as far as story and characters.

Banned Media

Is it wrong for the president to eject certain media agencies from the White House press room?  CNN, MSNOW, and Politico certainly think so.  Many other news agencies agree.  However, there is only so much space in the press room.  Do certain agencies have a right to that limited space?  Do they have more right to the space than an obscure newspaper from Wyoming or Iowa?  Sure, it makes sense to have news agencies with the greatest reach to have access as that gives the easiest route to disseminate news.  Then again, that could be a detriment if those news agencies are consistently hostile.

In the early days of the republic, there were party papers.  Andrew Jackson's Kitchen Cabinet had a couple of friendly newspaper editors as members.  Jackson's message was printed as he wanted it printed.  Did the people only get government propaganda through such a system?  No, the Whigs controlled newspapers as well, blasting whatever message the Jacksonian papers delivered.

Supposing that there are 100 seats in the pressroom, why can't the administration choose which agencies get them?  If a thousand news agencies across the country and internationally apply, could the administration just pick the 100 least hostile?  Would that be censorious?

The media is overwhelmingly left leaning, which means it is reliably hostile to Republicans and cheerleaders to Democrats.  A quick request from ChatGPT came up with these numbers:

With such an obvious tilt in the coverage, why wouldn't the administration take some action to mitigate it?  Where the Trump Administration seeks to limit access to proven hostile news agencies - which he claims produce 'fake news' - the Obama DOJ was aggressive in law enforcement regarding reporters and their sources.  He was getting net positive coverage and still sought to muzzle the media.

The entire press corps apparatus in the White House is a convenience first extended by President Theodore Roosevelt, which means it did not exist for the first half of the country's history.  There is no requirement for it.  Besides, Trump is constantly out speaking.  In his first term, he had 88 press conferences, which averages to around 2 a month.  By contrast, Biden had 37, less than 1 per month.  Trump was interviewed 326 times, or nearly 7 times a month; Biden 125, or 2.6 times per month.  There is no dearth of Trump in the media.

Supergirl (2026)

Kara Zor-El (Milly Alcock) is on a planetary pub crawl to celebrate her 23rd birthday when Ruthye (Eve Ridley) entered the bar.  The bar is one of those hives of wretched scum and villainy that abound in space settings and Ruthye is a teenaged girl who clearly does not belong.  Ruthye offers a bounty of a well-made sword for anyone who helps her avenge the murder of her family by Krem (Matthias Schoenaerts).  One rather large and thuggish monster that looks like an evil version of a teenaged mutant ninja turtle simply confiscated the sword.  With a resigned sigh, Kara intervened to recover the sword, demonstrating that she was a skilled combatant despite the vast size difference.

Though Ruthye followed Kara back to her starship, Kara declined to help on her quest for revenge.  However, by a miracle of bad luck, Krem appeared, poisoned Krypto - Kara's dog, and stole her starship.  Krypto had three days to live unless Kara could retrieve the antidote from Krem.  Now Kara was committed to finding Krem though she still wasn't keen on the revenge quest.

In order to even begin to chase Krem, Kara had to take public transport.  She waited at a galactic bus stop in the middle of a field until a rocket bus arrived.  Interesting.  Oh, yeah, this planet had a red sun so she didn't have powers.  Sounds awfully reckless.  On the other hand, she was incapable of getting drunk in systems with a yellow sun.  Though she had left Ruthye behind, Ruthye appeared on the space bus!  In fact, Ruthye proves to have a talent of stowing away on ships.  There follows fights with Sklarian Raiders, investigations, interrogations, false friends, rescues of slave girls, and more battles with brigands.

There are multiple flashbacks to detail Kara's past.  Her father, Zor-El, was the brother of Superman's father.  Zor-El had created a shield generator that allowed a city to escape the doomed planet of Krypton.  Kara was born and raised on this floating chunk of Krypton.  However, like Superman, she was sent to Earth.  Superman (David Corenswet) makes several appearances, both in flashback, on facetime calls, and a homecoming scene at the end of the movie.

Based on the graphic novel Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, which itself was a retelling of True Grit, the movie is a hodgepodge of action scenes that are poorly stitched together.  Kara tends to be a slovenly drunk, a woman who seems to be drinking away her sorrows rather than celebrating her birthday.  At one point, she plops onto the toilet while leaving the door open.  Um, okay.  On the other hand, Ruthye is sober and clearheaded but naive beyond belief.  Does this planet have no law enforcement to deal with the likes of Krem?  Does she expect noble behavior among the patrons of the bar?  But for the presence of Kara, Ruthye had walked into her likely enslavement by entering the bar.  Did she not know that?  Does not matter because Kara and Ruthye need to meet somehow.  About halfway through, the pair encountered Lobo (Jason Momoa), a bounty hunter who happened to be tracking one of Krem's associates.  He looks like some space Hells Angel with evil clown makeup.  Yeah, this movie needed a dark edge and this character doesn't really fit.  His inclusion comes off as nothing but fan service.  Krem is a lazy villain.  He's just competent enough to be a nuisance but not competent enough to be a threat.  Whenever he and Kara fight, one or the other pull up short from securing victory.  Kara could have snatched the poison cure in an early encounter, but doesn't.  No, let's have something distract her.  Krem has just poisoned Kara with Kryptonite, but pauses for a monologue.  Sigh.

Kara is not a likable character.  A woman doing a solo pub crawl is a big red flag.  That she would go to a planet with a red sun to do such makes her seem suicidal.  She certainly has cause to be depressed, but is drunkeness the cure?  Much of the time, she looks hungover and unkempt.  Even in the midst of the adventure, she is still somehow always less than 100% on account of this poison, that green sun, or those Kryptonite arrows.  And what is with all the primitive melee weapons?  Why are the villians running around with swords, axes, crossbows, and spiked chains?

Mediocre.  Skip.