“Fly The Friendly Skies”

Today's Buzz ...
Or not?? They probably are as friendly, but are they as safe?? Probably not, according to correspondent Jeanne Meserve ... at least not according to the latest GAO report released yesterday. The TSA is still confiscating your shampoo, toothpaste and deodorant, but missing the bomb-making components that made it through the screening devices and the pat-downs. How comforting. Once again, where’s the logic – where’s the rational, sane thinking here? It’s been six years since 9/11 – and why haven’t we simply copied the security model from El Al Airlines and implemented it here? I guess that would have circumvented all of the money shelled out for various commissions and study panels and focus groups and (more) no-bid contracts – to start a brand new “security” system from scratch. Welcome to the “American Way” ...



I’m really looking forward to the Democratic Debate tonight (and no disrespect to Wolf(bot) – he does a very good job in these events), but I wish there was a different moderator. Anyway – Anderson spoke with Wolf, Gloria Borger and John King about the strategies that the candidates need to employ tonight to be “successful”. I think the Hill is going to be hit hard with being a “poll-tested” candidate, as John characterized it. It was disturbing to hear that US voters seem to be accepting of a candidate that they may not fully trust to be honest, but feel will be “electable”. If trust isn’t a significant part of that equation, then what is?? What constitutes “electability”?? That word keeps getting thrown around, yet no one had provided any kind of definitive explanation of what it means. Wait a minute – I totally forgot – this is p-o-l-i-t-i-c-s ...






And we move along to OJ – a night without OJ, is like a night without, well, sleaze for one thing ...!! The judge ruled yesterday that there is enough evidence for a trial – as Jeff Toobin predicted. But OJ is already back in Florida – so there was no jail time involved – for now. And I doubt that there will ever be – but we can only hope at this point. And I’ve decided that one of my main goals for what is sure to become front page news is to never (ever) learn the names of all of the unsavory D-list con artists pictured below:



If you’re a woman married to a man with the last name of “Peterson”, perhaps it’s time to consider a divorce?? Or maybe just getting on the first bus, train, or plane out of town? How creepy is this Drew Peterson character? I hope that Stacy Peterson is found, if only to be able to convict her murderer (and no, I’m not specifying a name, to uphold the right to be “innocent until proven guilty”).



The last story of the evening totally shattered my heart into a million pieces. I’m still missing a few thousand, believe me. I’d heard about advanced stage Alzheimer’s patients becoming attached to other people after they no longer recognize their loved ones, but I never knew it was as prevalent as it obviously is. It’s difficult enough to have to watch a husband, wife, parent, sibling, etc. deteriorate in front of you, and know that there’s nothing that can be done other than to try and make their life as comfortable as possible. But in the case of a spouse, to have to accept that you’ve been ‘replaced’ (in a way) by a new ‘love’ is simply devastating beyond words. I was in awe of June Schnyder, whom Gary Tuchman interviewed last night. And also former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor – she is in a similar situation with her husband. I’m just not sure that I would have the strength and the faith that they have to continue doing what they can to play a role in their husband’s lives. I know intellectually why it happens and that it’s not a personal rejection – but it is personal, because it’s happening to you. Which is why I so admire all of the women (and men) who are faced with these situations and are dealing with them with grace and dignity.




Other news and notes:

CNN is expanding its international newsgathering resources: “In the biggest expansion of international newsgathering resources in its 27-year history, CNN Worldwide today announced plans to significantly increase the number of correspondents worldwide, open a regional newsgathering hub in the United Arab Emirates, invest in a London-based digital-production unit, and make major investments in CNN’s International Newsource and CNN’s in-house wire operations.” You can read the full press release here.


John McCain in hot water (again): There was a question asked at the AC360 Yahoo group about the “flap” over a McCain supporter who used a derogatory word to describe Hillary Clinton – during a Q&A session with the Senator. The event was being videotaped, so the question – and McCain’s response – were aired and discussed at length during “Out In The Open” with Rick Sanchez on Tuesday evening. Apparently, as these kinds of things go, it’s become a heated discussion topic, with McCain’s camp (and other conservatives) accusing CNN of all kinds of things relating to liberal bias. Here’s my dos centavos (as I posted for the group as well):

I'm going to take a shot at this, only because I happened to be home when "Out In The Open" was on Tuesday night, so I saw (or heard, as I was working in another room) this all unfold - live. I did see the actual video, though, and I know that there's all kinds of 'fall-out' from this report. I also caught the last few minutes of OITO last night too. I'm not going to comment on how Rick Sanchez did (or didn't) handle the report, either - more 'astute' critics are already weighing in on that. And this is only IMHO ...

I think this comes down to a moment of judgment. Life isn't scripted. And Senator McCain knew that there was a camera rolling in that room. No one would be talking about the woman's choice of words if he had taken a mere 10 seconds to say something like: "Although I support your right to speak your mind, I'd rather not have any of my fellow candidates referred to in those terms. Now to answer your question ..." and then MOVE ON. Take care of it right then and there. And my opinion would be no different if this was Guiliani, Romney, Obama, Edwards or any of the others - I would say the exact same thing. If you think you're 'qualified' to be the next US President, then you %&$# well better be sure that you know how to properly handle a microscopic "blip" like this. And not let it turn into the "controversy of the day", like it has.

SOOO ... moving on ... ;-)

A very quick “shout-out” to David at ‘The Middle Way Forward ’ – he posted my additional comments from Anderson’s speech on Tuesday at his blog – how kind of him to do that!! And as for his post-speech analysis – I agree 100% with you, David – “We Need More Anderson Coopers”!!!

Tonight on Anderson Cooper 360°:



Thanks for visiting – updates posted as needed – have a terrific day!

“Bring Some Heat …”

Today's Buzz ...
The more I hear about the latest OJ “caper”, the more I’m convinced that you just couldn’t have paid a screenwriter enough to write the idiotic, bumbling, arrogant, sleazy script that this scenario is turning into. Honestly – what are we suppose to think when Michael McClinton - one of the “star” prosecution witnesses - says this on the stand: “He (OJ) said to show them your weapon and look menacing.” I laughed – what more can you do? And if this really does go to trial, and it looks like it will, it will make the prior three-ring-circus involving an OJ trial look like a serious study of judicial equity. Maybe if we prayed that it all just goes away???




I know that the cynic in me is going to ring through loud and clear, but when I heard that Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue was leading a prayer observance yesterday - for rain – I envisioned one of those horribly stereotypical Indian rain dance scenes. Come on. Praying for rain??? Aren’t we a little beyond that kind of tactic – at least technologically speaking? We can get water to the Southeast – maybe not in the amounts that they’re used to having available with normal rainfalls – but I have the impression that no one wants to admit the proverbial 800-pound elephant in the room – no one wants to shoulder that economic burden. It all comes down to money.



I’m not the best “viewer” when it comes to paying attention during call-in segments, I admit it. And last night’s was no exception. I do enjoy listening to interviews with both Deepak Chopra and Dr. Mehmet Oz, and I did agree with what was said regarding prayer from the perspective that it assists to relieve stress for the individual praying, and allows them to feel “uplifted” (I’m paraphrasing) by belief and hope through the act of prayer. And I’m all for that, as I also feel that – and I have nothing against prayer (don’t let my cynicism above fool you). And there are times when I feel praying to give someone else strength in a time of need or grief is a positive act, but in many cases, I’m uncomfortable when someone asks me to pray for them, or for others. I feel like I’m being asked to ask an omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent higher force to change a course of events already set in motion. It’s probably why I never ask anyone to specifically pray for me; if someone offers, I let them know it’s appreciated, but I don’t like putting people in that position. Have you ever had anyone (other than an atheist or agnostic) turn you down? Anyway ...



I’m not going to post anything separately about yesterday’s broadcast, as nothing other than the death of Donda West really interested me to any great extent. How sad to have that happen under the circumstances that are rumored to have occurred ... especially when she was so close to Kanye and so supportive of his career. She was such a source of strength and now that’s no longer present for him to rely on. It’s always tough to lose a parent, no matter how old you are. And now we hear that her surgeon, Dr. Jan Adams, is having his license reviewed by the Medical Board of California for possible suspension or revocation due to two DUI’s he’s had in the past four years. I’m quite certain that this story will be continuing on for quite awhile, and has certainly sparked a great deal of interest in the possible dangers associated with cosmetic surgery.



Other news and notes:

Best wishes to Nancy Grace – she’s been hospitalized with blood clots in her lungs as a result of her pregnancy – that’s pretty serious, but she’s apparently doing well. She gave birth prematurely to twins back on November 4th, but the babies reportedly are doing fine also. I don’t watch her show, and generally don’t condone her interview tactics, but you’ve got to give her points for defending her beliefs!

I’m so pleased to hear that NY Governor Eliot Spitzer has come to his senses, and will no longer be advocating for issuing driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants. He managed to rip into the federal government’s lack of action about immigration during his “concession” speech, but that subject takes too much time for purposes of the “mention” I’m giving here. Hopefully, Gov. Spitzer won’t have any “re-lapses” about other similar hot-button issues where he is just so clearly and unequivocally wrong.




Who knew that Renee Zellweger has such good taste? I’m not "big" on celeb news here, but there IS a reason I'm posting this – here’s an excerpt from the upcoming Harper’s Bazaar interview with RZ entitled – “Renée Zellweger - Not Big On 'The Scene' “ – “A perfect night for Texas-born Zellweger? Staying in and watching CNN, apparently. Newscaster "Anderson Cooper would probably be involved at some juncture," she says.” Things that make you go “hmmm” ... I'll leave the rest of the article for you guys to read on your own, if you have any interest ...

And I’m not sure how many of you have noticed the bandaged left hand of Dr. Sanjay Gupta – although it’s certainly difficult to miss!! He spent a few minutes yesterday on American Morning describing what happened – he fell down a flight of stairs a couple of weeks ago while covering the wildfires and ended up having surgery on his left hand (with pins inserted – yuck!). He’s apparently a good therapy patient, but expressed a little concern about getting back 100% use of his hand. Here are some screen caps of the segment, and yes, the last one with Kiran is her showing the position of Sanjay’s fingers right after the accident - it’s not what it first appears to be, you naughty readers!!! ;-)







Tonight on Anderson Cooper 360°:


Thanks for visiting - updates posted as needed - have a terrific evening!

Double Disappointment …

Today’s Buzz ...
Well, I’m certainly glad that I don’t have reason to use that entry title too often, but last night was an exception. The first disappointment was that the segment before the Planet in Peril Roundtable only covered a summary of the OJ preliminary hearing. Although, trying to be positive about it, it was relatively short and there were a couple of instances of welcomed “snark”:

Anderson commenting after AP reporter Linda Deutsch discussed Thomas Riccio’s testimony:

COOPER: Yes, Riccio is certainly a charmer.

And a little more snark as Jeff Toobin discusses Bruce Fromong’s testimony:

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: You know, I watched (Bruce) Fromong's testimony. And I thought, boy, Simpson showed absolutely horrible judgment in getting involved in this whole ridiculous situation.

COOPER: Wow. Bad judgment, O.J. Simpson?

TOOBIN: I know. It's a bold conclusion on my part, I know.

Other than that, and the opinion from Jeff that there would probably be enough evidence presented for the judge to move for a trial, I didn’t think there was anything else notable reported.




And disappointment # 2 (reluctant as I am to say this) was the Roundtable itself. This discussion was suppose to be held at the conclusion of the second night of the Planet in Peril documentary, but was postponed due to the California Wildfires. My recollection is that it was suppose to be live, and I think that it lost some of the impact by being pre-taped. In addition, there were very few v-mail questions used, and of those that were, I thought they weren’t very, well, compelling. I didn’t particularly care for all the clips once again being shown – I would have rather had more time spent with the “experts” interacting with one another and presenting their evidence about why they do (or don’t) believe that climate change (for example) is occurring at the rate that many other scientists have concluded that it is. Or why we should be concerned about the “non-natural” chemicals being absorbed by our bodies – even though studies do not show harmful effects at current exposure levels. Sanjay made a good point on this topic when he said: “I think it's one of those things that's difficult in medicine, which is the absence of evidence doesn't mean there's no effect. That's an important point. Just because science hasn't caught up yet doesn't mean that we won't find that out.” The specific discussion was about lead and the fact that the ‘initial acceptable level’ of exposure has dramatically decreased over the past 40 years, and we now wish we knew then what we know now!! Isn’t that always the case??









I was quite surprised, though, by the news that Senator James Inhofe seems to believe that Anderson Cooper personally attacked him by calling him names and issuing threats. WHAT??? What has this guy been smoking, because I want to get some too!! (J/K)!! "Crooks and Liars" has labeled him a “serial Global Warming denier” – here’s what he claims:

InHofe: “I’ve been personally attacked by Anderson Cooper. It’s taking place right now, even this week, calling me every kind of name — all kinds of threats. This is what you, you people say ‘why don’t more members of the House and Senate tell the truth about climate change?’ This is the reason. This is what we’re subjected to. I have got a big family at home that has to watch all this.”



Check out this link from Crooks and Liars, referencing these delusional remarks – and also available is the video clip. And yes, if you LIVE in the state of Oklahoma, please vote out this guy next year - he's a danger to ALL of us!!!

So all in all – probably not THE most compelling use of 50 minutes, as there were a lot more options for this presentation that could have been used – for example, maybe even a “town-hall” type of meeting where selected viewers could have questioned the experts “live”, but there was probably the feeling that they wanted to wrap-up PIP, using the 'roundtable', as close to what they originally planned as possible, and last night was the result.

The second hour last night was a repeat of the “Anvil of God” special with Tom Foreman – I think I’ll write about that over the weekend!

tonight on Anderson Cooper 360°:


Thanks for visiting – updates posted as needed – have a terrific day!!

MMMMM …. Theraflu

Today's Buzz ...

** tonight on Anderson Cooper 360°:


Not that being “doped up” on it is any excuse for lapses in judgment of what constitutes a quality news program ...

I don’t think I can say much about last night’s program that hasn’t already been said (by myself or others) ... it had much more repetitive OJ coverage, with the same cast of shady characters, than a lot of people would have preferred ... but they are outweighed by those who tune in for it ... as was even mentioned at one point. Thank heavens for some perspective on this debacle from Jeanne Moos last night!!!

And there was a Jeffs trial update – which is, honestly, another story that got just a bit more air time than I would have preferred. Again - not that it shouldn’t be covered and exposed for what it is, but I keep coming back to the word “proportionally”. That said, it almost sounded like the case against Jeffs isn’t strong enough to produce a conviction, which would be astounding, but juries are completely unpredictable.

Which briefly reminds me – I should correct one portion of my entry from yesterday – the deadlocked Phil Spector jury won’t (yet) be allowed to consider a lesser charge of manslughter, but will be able to hear additional defense and prosecution arguments.

Did anyone watch the Cafferty Files special last night? It was just as enlightening as I anticipated ... good interviews with Senator Hagel (can he be drafted to run for President?) and Whoopi Goldberg – and a concise “reminder” from Candy Crowley’s segment about exactly how next-to-impossible the current two-party political system has made it for a third party to become viable in the United States. That’s just wrong ...

A quick “OT” program note for tonight – Bill Clinton is the guest on The Daily Show, and Jeff Toobin is the guest on The Colbert Report. If you watch TCR, you know that Jeff will be so flummoxed (or laughing so much) by the end of the five minute interview that he won’t know which way is up ...

Back to 360° for a moment – the screen cap below is a little ironic – Anderson is laughing while there’s a picture of OJ in the background ...


And the second news break was too funny – Erica just calls it like she see it - about Marcia Clark and about the thought of an "Anderson makeover" (you go, girl) ...


Update # 1

Anderson has joined the growing list of Benefit Committee members who are working on an event called "Stand Up For Heroes: A Benefit for The Bob Woodruff Family Fund", which will be held on November 7th during the New York Comedy Festival. The event will feature performances by Lewis Black, Bruce Springsteen and Robin Williams. As you probably remember, Bob was severely injured during a roadside bombing while covering the Iraq War in January 2006. The Bob Woodruff Family Fund assists service members injured while serving in the United States Armed Forces. Special emphasis is placed on the "hidden signature injuries" of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan – traumatic brain injury (TBI) and combat stress injuries including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). You can read more about the event, the BWFF and how to donate here.

Another day, another OJ (hour, that is …)

Today's Buzz ...

** tonight on Anderson Cooper 360° (subject to change):


** About last night's program: Considering that there will be probably another 30 – 45 minutes devoted to this topic on tonight’s 360° because of today’s scheduled court appearance, I wanted to further comment on my concerns from yesterday. It’s not that I don’t think this story should be covered – I’d just like to see it done in proportion to the relevance of the other events that arguably should be covered in the course of an hour long news program.

It’s no surprise that this latest saga now has all kinds of questionable characters coming out of woodwork. I’m not an attorney or a police officer, but how could the Las Vegas police grant immunity to someone like Thomas Riccio so soon in the proceedings? And what about this less-than-reputable licensing agent (Mike Gilbert) who helped OJ scam his way into millions of dollars through cash-only memorabilia sales? Wouldn’t it be so ironic at this point if OJ managed to weasel his way out of all of these pending felony charges, only to be finally jailed for tax fraud by the IRS? Wasn’t that the way that gangster Al Capone was finally taken down (if I’m remembering the “Untouchables” movie correctly)?

Anyway – I’m also baffled as to why this “tasered” student is getting so much coverage. I’m hearing that it was all some kind of pre-planned publicity stunt. The tape that keeps getting shown over and over seems suspicious. Oh well – just “don’t taser me, bro” – right??

And justice is once again in the balance – the Phil Spector jury is deadlocked and will now be able to consider a lesser charge of manslaughter.

Remember to watch the Cafferty Files special tonight at 8:00 PM ET!! And tomorrow night at 8:00 PM – check out a new SIU special – “Judgement in Jena” – you can read more about it here – “CNN's Kyra Phillips gets to the heart of a racial crisis gripping a small southern town. A can’t miss hour of justice in black and white.” I know that I wouldn’t have been as aware as I was about this issue as soon as I was – without the 360° coverage – it was one of the first programs to bring this story to light.

And in that same line of thought – Anderson gave what seemed to be a typically humble speech yesterday when accepting the Mickey Leland Humanitarian Award – you can read more about it here – I’ll see if any more can be found – and I know that (relatively) no one will see this, but in response to one item in the speech - without any question whatsoever and without any doubt whatsoever – Anderson’s stories DO make a difference – which is probably why some of us bristle so uncomfortably when he’s obligated to spend inordinate amounts of time on totally and completely useless coverage of, well, too many topics to list here. Enough said (for now) ...

And – not to leave on a completely “down” note – but I’m staging my own tiny protest by posting no screen caps from last night – although I WILL go back and get one of the bears in the hammock for later – they were just too cute!! But here’s one for something that I’m definitely looking forward to!

Thanks for visiting – updates posted as needed – have a terrific day!



Update # 1 - another day, another conference ...

Anderson will be presenting the "Planet in Peril" documentary at the CMJ07 Music Marathon & Film Festival in NYC - it runs from October 16th thru October 20th - here's the CMJ press release and you can read more about the marathon here as well.

OD on OJ …

Today's Buzz ...

** tonight on Anderson Cooper 360°:


** From last night's program: OK – it’s a little early to be making that kind of pronouncement, but I sense a disturbing trend to this latest criminal saga. I’m still not sure I understand why this story warranted about 45 minutes on 360° last night ... other than the “breaking news” about a third suspect being arrested, I didn’t learn anything new. If someone else did, please feel free to share ...

And Jeff Toobin once again makes a statement that I bristle at – not that he’s wrong (per se), nor can I disagree with it, but it aggravates me to no end. He kept commenting on OJ’s “charm” and “charisma” ... and OJ has the network of friends that (unfortunately) supports that statement. And it’s still beyond my comprehension. Many times, when you see a certain person – sometimes a celebrity – isn’t there a particular descriptive word or two that instant pops into your mind? Well, for me, whenever anyone refers to OJ Simpson – that word is “murderer”. I can’t help it. I still remember waking up on the night of Sunday, June 12, 1994, right at the end of the local 11:00 PM news and hearing the “breaking” report of a possible murder at the home of Nicole Brown Simpson – and having a very bad feeling about whatever had happened.

I’m glad that Anderson interviewed Daniel Petrocelli last night. He has worked so hard for so long to seek some semblance of justice within this mess. And while I disagree with the Goldman family’s decision to publish “If I Did It”, I’m glad that Kim Goldman was interviewed as well.

Anyway ... moving on ... I hope that 360° stays with the plan of updating the McCann story tonight. Especially since Randi Kaye has been working so diligently to gather the latest information – she had a segment shown on AM this morning as well.

Also – I wanted to give a “plug” for the Jack Cafferty special that airs tomorrow night – an hour long version of the Cafferty File segments that he does on The Situation Room each weekday. I like Jack for telling it like it is – there simply isn’t enough of that and there should be so much more. I would much rather see an hour of Jack every night instead of Campbell Brown, but that’s IMHO. I’m also looking forward to reading his new book. You can check out more info about tomorrow’s program here.

Thanks for visiting ... and thank you to everyone who has sent me good wishes about the blog ... updates will be posted as needed ... have a terrific day!





Update # 1

If I had a shred of artistic talent, I could create caricatures as good as this one - courtesy of SuBee and posted at Flickr - you can link to her caricature slideshow (she has one posted of Larry King also) here: