I quit watching any significant amount of television news a couple of years ago. The spin just astounds me from all sources. I did catch a brief part of Good Morning America and their unabashed promotion of the WNBA All Star game that was played last Saturday night. The word historic was used often. The Brittney Griner “out of Russian Jail” theme was a big selling point. I don’t watch NBA, so there is little chance I’m watching WNBA but I did peek at the ratings from the broadcast that was billed as a historic, must-see event by the propaganda machine we call ABC.
Saturday’s WNBA game earned a .05 rating and 709,000 viewers on ABC. Lol. That’s below the 2015 WNBA All-star game before we started trading arms dealers for basketball players stuck in Russia, so that storyline apparently did not resonate with the Lee Greenwood/county fair crowd that you and I know. The WNBA has had 15 All Star Games and this year’s broadcast on prime time, Saturday night, ranked ninth in viewership.
This is the current disconnect in our world. Media groups that are fully entrenched in our urban cores on the coasts have no idea how disinterested the rest of the country is in their day in and day out infatuation with promoting inclusion and equity beyond its base concept and the exaggeration of the number of people impacted.
In case you were wondering what you get in return for a Russian arms dealer that is responsible for the deaths of Americans, Griner put up 18 points and dunked twice in the game.
Actors in Hollywood are going on strike. See if you can make it through the pain. In other news, NFL training camp starts shortly, so you don’t need Netflix for the next few months.
Speaking of Chief’s training camp, here’s my St. Joseph tips for you. If you want a beer and some lunch, head to Magoon’s Delicatessen. Old school bar with tons of memorabilia on the walls and booths and bar stools that probably held some of your grandparents. This ain’t a chain bar, so don’t expect anything more than cold beer or stiff drink, friendly bartenders, good sandwich on a paper plate and you will probably drive past a couple of tweekers on the way there and you might smell a little Mary Jane from the outdoor patio area, that’s part of the ambience, embrace it.
If you want to entertain the kids and yourself, they’ve got a new place called Ricky Dean’s in the north area of town. Food, drinks, entertainment like arcade games, pickleball, pool, rock climbing walls, etc. A local entrepreneur launched this bad boy a few months ago and it’s getting good reviews from the locals.
If you’re more into the outdoor recreation scene, you might try the River Bluff Trails Park. This newly constructed escape has miles of cross-country trails for biking, joggers and hikers in the loess hills overlooking the Missouri River basin.
My first blush, no look, no research Kansas City Chiefs prediction is 11-6 this year and a wild card team. I think they may struggle early and catch a good mid-season roll. It’s hard to hold the mountaintop! Don’t bet your house on this prediction, unless you rent, then go ahead, not yours to worry about.
(Guy Speckman can be reached at gspeckman@me.com or watching WNBA games)