ABC’s “The View”, today’s topic of outrage.

So let me just ask you… have you SEEN this!? Really, have you SEEN THIS?!

A while ago I happened to be flipping through channels and saw that they were announcing the new host to replace Rosie… so I paused to see who it would be. I couldn’t believe they dug up Whoopi after her miserable failure of a network sitcom called “Whoopi” and her 5 year stint as the center square on Hollywood Squares. But the wormhole goes so much deeper…

I’m not proud to admit this but I watched (through my DVR) part of a show. I was setting my box to record Sarah Silverman’s show and came across her appearance on The View — thought it would be funny to see how she interacted. Truth be told she was funny as usual and burned them on a few issues, but here’s the disturbing part: I had to skip through three segments of nothing but idle estrogen-ridden “small talk” to even get to her appearance!

Apparently their show format goes a little something like this:

1. Segment A. “Small talk” for about 10 minutes.

2. Segment B. “Small talk, continued” for about 8 minutes.

3. Segment C. “More small talk, continued (although nobody enjoyed the first blocks).

4. Segment D. “Guest Segment” for about 4 minutes (I might add, less than half the time they spent gushing about which celebrity they had a crush on and why). People like myself wanting to tune in to hear Sarah Silverman talk about some candid issues couldn’t have been treated with more than a few MINUTES of this god-awful excuse for a show? I don’t understand the logic. If middle-aged housewives have NOTHING better to do than watch this crap I suggest they go back to bed, because that would be time better spent.

5. Segment E. “More small talk and wrap the show”. Worthless.

In summary, ABC’s “The View” is exponentially worse than I thought it was… it’s taken me this long to watch a single episode (well, 4 minutes of one) and I don’t intend on watching it again for obvious reasons.

I heard a great song on my XM Radio the other day by Chicago and it really got me thinking — in fact, it struck me in a very patriotic way. I don’t have to get into a huge political rant but it summed up my feelings in a song about the way the world is going, and more specifically the way our government has been moving in the last… oh, seven years. Check out the lyrics to the song and a video I found of Chicago performing it back in 1975.

It really hits home for me, and I hope it sparks a little patriotism in you too — Always question your government.

HARRY TRUMAN / by CHICAGO
America needs you
Harry Truman
Harry could you please come home
Things are looking bad
I know you would be mad
To see your favorite men
Prevail upon the land you love
Americas wondering
How we got here
Harry all we get is lies
Were gettin’ safer cars
Rocket ships to mars
From men who’d sell us out
To get themselves a piece of power

Wed love to hear you speak your mind
In plain and simple ways
Call a spade a spade
Like you did back in the days
You would play piano
Each morning walk a mile
Speak of what was going down
With honesty and style

Americas calling
Harry Truman
Harry you know what to do
The world is turnin’ round and losin’ lots of ground
Oh harry is there something we can do to save the land we love
Oh woah woah woah

Americas calling
Harry Truman
Harry you know what to do
The world is turnin’ round
And losin’ lots of ground
Harry is there something we can do to save the land we love
Oh
Harry is there something we can do to save the land we love
Harry
Harry is there something we can do to save the land we love

First of all, let me make something clear:  I LOVE FAMILY GUY.  I think it’s the funniest cartoon on television and I can’t get enough of it!  At the same time, I have to be critical of the new episodes and compare them to everything from the past.

If you saw this week’s episode “Movin’ Out (Brian’s song)” was incredibly weak for the series.  It centers around Brian’s current love intrest Gillian.  The problem I had with the episode is the overuse of the casual conversation between Chris and the shop worker.  I sat during the long, drawn-out conversations thinking “wow, we’re stretching this a bit huh?”.

The Star Wars season opener was good, but probably should have been a 1/2 hour episode.  Don’t get me wrong — I loved it, but it could have been condensed.

Here’s to hoping that upcoming episodes live up to my high standards — and I think they will.

Now, a look back at a classic scene from not too long ago…