Sick of Covid-19

The novel coronavirus is everywhere. Where the real epidemic can be found is in the headlines. There is a LOT of misinformation out there. Also, there is a lot of emotions tied up in this story. Everything from panic to apathy mixed with a fair amount of ignorance for added kick.

In this episode, Ric takes a look at what is happening out there and how all of the emotional coverage of this situation is sitting with the general public. Hint: Not too well. A point is proven in this episode in that whenever something becomes politicized, it becomes worse for everyone involved, whether you have chosen to be or not.

Also in this episode, the Girl Scouts are out trying the old hard sell on the cookes and it leads to Ric's unpopular thought.



NEXT WEEK: Video watching and podcast listening is about to get REAL popular.

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Know Thine Enemy

Here of late, if the current news cycle is anything to go by, we humans have become a rather vociferous bunch. There seems to be some sort of revolution happening all over the world. The United States included.

Although to be fair, ours has a certain game show vibe happening. Nevertheless, the old adage is true, "The next revolution will be televised." The issue this time around is that here in this country, the most vocal people seem to be the less knowledgeable about what they are either fighting for or against. Here is a little something that might help. Learn what drives your opponent before you open your mouth.



NEXT WEEK: The Annual War on X-mas Update From The Front Lines

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Sarcastic Bullets

 Part of what it takes to being on the air these days is healthy sense of sarcasm and being a bit of a cynic. In this episode, Ric talks about why he speaks like that. In light of the recent mass shootings, he uses that subject to display just how powerful sarcasm can be. It's the vehicle that drives others to react in interesting ways.

Some of you out there may not like what they hear in this episode and Ric makes no apologies. As he says, "You have the right to freedom of speech, but you are not free from the consequences of your speech." He'll explain as he lays out the current status of what seems to be happening in America.



NEXT WEEK: TV on the internet.

Willfully Ignorant

There seems to be quite a bit of willful ignorance going around. A friend of mine brought that to my attention while talking about the state of the society these days. He said he was backing away from using the word "idiot" because it wasn't quite accurate. Instead, the term "willful ignorance" is being used and it makes perfect sense.

Also, our old friend Mick Kolassa brought forth a new collection of songs and we'll hear a couple of them on this episode.



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NEXT WEEK: Ms. Zeno

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In The Absence of Reason

After spending some time in the social media echo chamber bouncing about through the news cycle, it occurred to me there is something missing from all of this, reason. There is a lot of tough talk out there from people who are propped up by their hidden identities. These people blindly write their feelings with no real purpose. Surely, they aren't trying to convince someone of their superior point of view.

But what happens when these same "flame throwers" get out in public. Are they the same person? No.

Plus a conversation and performance with Sorianna Wood.



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NEXT WEEK: Karen Altman Latham

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Suffer The Children

It's in the news and a good number of God fearing Americans are turning a blind eye to this horrendous act going on right now. The separation of families, specifically children from their parents under the guise of stopping illegal immigration. Guess what? It's really isn't a matter of having political differences anymore. It is now have a difference of opinion on a moral level.

Something else, if you want to try and defend this despicable act, you can't unless you are just as despicable of a human being as those who put this policy into play.

On a much lighter note, Mark Wiklund came to the studio talk songwriting and to perform a few songs.



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NEXT WEEK: Sorianna Wood

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How To Lose an Election with Kieran Hilbert & Friends

I know the title sounds suspect. The two subjects are not related. But something happened to me this morning which caught me a little off guard and gave rise to the 2 ways you can lose my vote if you were to run for some sort of political office.

Also, Kieran Hilbert & Friends are from Germany. They came to Memphis to play. They also came to Radio Memphis to talk and play. It was a big time when Dianna joined me in the studio for this international incident.



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NEXT WEEK: The Delta Project

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Dividing By Zero

We sure have become a divided nation. Over everything. It started with the guy in the White House, maybe sooner and now us Americans seem to love to get into a debate over anything and everything. Mayonnaise or Miracle Whip? Sardines on a sandwich or no?

There is this school of thought that being divisive is a bad thing. But is it, really?

Plus music from Pengea.



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NEXT WEEK: Five dollars will make you holler. Plus music from Jupiter Stone.

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New Media Doesn't Mean No Media

You can think of this as part 1 of a two part show regarding the state of the media in this country. In this episode, I take a pretty fervent stand in defending the news media, in general terms, mind you. Part two will look into the actual people that make up the news media. More on that next week.

There has been some talk that the President Elect wants to close the White House Press Room and do away with the White House Press Corps. Can he do that? Sure. He can do what he wants. Is it a good idea? Nope.

Plus music from Dan Montgomery.



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NEXT WEEK: The people in the news media are kind of sick. Plus music from Lucero.

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From The Trenches of the Great Xmas War

How is it that people who call the "war on Christmas" an actual war are always those who feel they are being marginalized? Seriously. Is there an actual movement to suppress those who say "Merry Christmas"? It's laughable. Seriously. Look at what you people are arguing about.

I have been chastised for saying "Happy Holidays". What the fuck, man?

What I seem to be being chastised for is for being open to the idea there are actually people out there who don't celebrate Christmas. You know, like those who celebrate Hanukkah. God forbid I recognize those who don't share the same customs as I or my family have. It's called acceptance.

Therein lies the problem. There are a lot of people out there who just won't accept ANYTHING from anyone unless it agrees with them, 100% of the time. Sad.

Also in this episode, music from The Fast Mothers.



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NEXT WEEK: Is 2016 really worth reviewing? Plus music from Ransom.

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The Overton Park(ing Lot)

Overton Park, here in Memphis has had it's share of controversies over the years. Now the battle lines have been drawn between the conservancy and the Memphis Zoo. The Memphis City Council along with the Mayor of Memphis have decided the zoo should take control over a large amount of acreage for use as a parking lot.

This, by no means is the end of the fight. But, it doesn't look good for fans of the park.

I'm not offering any solutions here. Just pointing out the obvious, as I like to do. The point of this episode is to shine a light on how things are done here in this city. It could (and has probably already have) happened in your city.

Think of this as a cautionary tale.

Plus, music from The Thomas Jackson Orchestra.

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Crazy From The Hate

That's not a typo. Yes, it is hot here. Very hot, in fact. There are those around here who hate the heat. But, they also tend to hate a lot of things out there. Social media has allowed me to see an interesting slice of people. Hate is high up on the list of things people talk about.

It may be politics, people, situations, music, movies or whatever makes people feel this strong emotion and then become so vocal about these things.

The bottom line is this, it would seem before you go and hate something, maybe you should see if you, in fact hate that thing. Hate is a strong word. A very strong word and right now, in our weird politically charged world, there has been a lot of talk of hate. Maybe we should take a closer look at what we really hate.



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NEXT WEEK: Part 1 of a conversation with Willie "Too Big" Hall.

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Get Bent (Politically)

We have entered the time when a good chunk of your social media feed is regards to very political posts. People seem to think, for the most part, that you should follow what they believe. No matter what you think, if it is not like them, you are dead wrong.

Acceptance has left the building and everyone now has a voice on social media. Some of the things I have seen have made me quite nervous. Someone actually invited me to a confederate flag rally where the words, "... we really need to get as many WHITE people to come...". Yup, that happened. I unfriended him.

Then I was added to a similar group as though they were thinking I believe in the same thing as they do. Nope. Pro tip: Don't blindly add people to groups if they haven't asked to join in the first place.



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NEXT WEEK: Bank Robbery

On another note. Look to the right of this post near the top of the page that says, "Be My Patron". Please give that a click. Thanks!

Taboo Talk

I can hear it now, "How dare you discuss such taboo things." That. And, "You are going to hell." And then there might be this, "I always figured you were like that." Those comments and more showing up in the comment section below would not surprise me. With that being said, just take a listen for yourself.



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On another note, this podcast has just been listed as a featured podcast on our new network. Blubrry. You can find it at http://www.blubrry.com/ricchetter/ and here is the cool thing about being with these fine folks, you can listen to the podcast through your Roku by adding the free Blubrry channel. We're thrilled around here. Also, as of this writing, the podcast now has over 11,000 subscribers!

Thanks to all of you for enjoying the show. As long as you are all listening, we'll keep producing them.

Stay tuned!