Everyone always loves a new Ken Burns release (Even those who want to defund PBS,) Tonight is the start of the 6 hour, long awaited release of Ken Burns’ Prohibition, which explores not only the 13 year dry period in the United States but also what lead up to the 18th amendment, until its repeal. We are told it might not be what we think.
The series will run 2 hours a night Sunday, Monday, Tuesday. I can’t wait. The DVR will be on maximum overdrive this week.
Of course, if PBS had to make it on their own, Ken Burns would be fine. His documentaries do so well that people would pay to see them (the DVDs sell pretty well). PBS only shows his stuff when they want to raise money….which is your hint about what would survive if PBS were defunded.
I like PBS being public broadcasting. It is for everyone. It is part of our culture. Do you watch American Experience? Masterpiece? I watch all those shows. A country shouldn’t strip down all its culture just because of who is in office.
I have no desire to pay for shows I don’t watch. Same beef with the Cable Companies. I’d like to be able to buy the channels I want to watch and not have to pay for 200 baseball channels, 5 religious channels, etc. I don’t want to pay to watch that dick Esteban sell guitars. Free Market, all the way. Ken Burns would be just fine. As for the rest of PBS? No interest, outside of the fact that I’m pretty sure I saw a boobie once on Masterpiece theatre, during some hoity-toity production they were doing when I was, like, 12.
I don’t want to read all the articles in magazines and papers I buy either. That’s sort of the way it goes.
Many people don’t have access to cable, especially in more rural areas. PBS comes in on antenna. The children’s shows have helped many kids prepare for school just by teaching them to count and the alphabet. I don’t think anyone can argue that Sesame Street was not valuable. It is an investment I am willing to make. I don’t go the the library often but I sure support it. Same reason.
To only provide services I personally use just seems selfish to me.
I’m still cracking up over that last statement. And I vote, people!!! 🙂
Oh, man, I almost forgot! Bob Ross can stay, too. Is he PBS?! We lost a damn national treasure the day THAT man died! I am a Bob Ross junkie! My absolute favorite hippy apart from Steve Jobs!
hippie?
You must have been much deeper into PBS than I was. Not even sure who Bob Ross is. Is he that painter guy?
So are you ready for Prohibition?
He’s the painter guy! Love that Dude!! Yes, I’m ready for Prohibition! I’ve been stoked about it since I learned about it the other week. Someone always uploads it right after each episode is aired, usually in HD, and I download it the next day and carry it around on my computer so I can watch it over and over again. Different take on DVR. We have DVR, but I can’t sit at home and watch it.
where do you go to find it so you can download it?
No, I dont think you should reward people who don’t go home when they should.
But, I think we have sophisticated enough equipment that we can track this information through other means than rounding up their children.
Now I will agree that there are 1000 better ways of doing this than using the children to get to the parents. With you there 100%. On the other hand, I’m not so sure you’re even going to see kids rounded up. The illegals are taking off big time. Like I said, an ounce of prevention.
I use bit torrent (combined with an industrial-strength anti-virus) to get the Ken Burns episodes. I used to use Newsgroups, but they are REALLY going downhill in the last few years…Nothing but virus-ridden malware and password-protected junk these days. You still need newsgroups to get to bestiality pictures, if that’s your bag, but most anything of value has gone bit torrent these days.
I think I had better leave it alone although I so use tempramental VLC media player.
I gotta tell ya’….VLC media player and bit torrent and the world is your oyster. Now there are one million potential hazards with bit-torrent, but they can be managed with enough experience and self-protection. I often use a full-body condom when using bit-torrent.
I’ll bite. What is bit torrent? I heard it (probably seen is more accurate) but never knew what it was.
Loved Bob Ross and not because I ever cared about landscape painting but because he lulled me with his voice! So calming after a night up with a colicky baby, and I do not say this in jest, but in all seriousness. So sad he went too soon.
I remember laying on my sofa, turning on Bob Ross, and letting him hypnotize me into a sort of “twilight” sleep. There was something magical about that dude, I’m telling you!!
bit torrent is a client you download and install. Then you use a torrent search engine (I know of very few that aren’t super-malware gateways) to find torrent files. You download the torrent file into your bittorrent client and download whatever it is you’re after from “seeders” who have the whole thing and share it, and “leechers” who are others downloading the same thing. Between the seeders and leechers, you download little pieces from all over the place. You have a ratio between how much you take (leech) and how much you give (seed).
So bit torrent is peer-to-peer file sharing, like limewire used to be when it first started and was awesome.
I remember the good ole limewire days. Sigh.
So what did everyone think? I saw some real parallels with a certain political movement.
It was typical Ken Burns….informative and entertaining in equal parts. I also heard some things that I knew would resonate with folks here. Always interesting to see/hear how situations coincide to make the seemingly impossible possible.
My great grandfather emmigrated from Russia to escape the Pogroms in 1905. He was a very successful beer brewer in his home town. He came here with nothing except his family (one of whom was smuggled in through Ellis Island in a suitcase because she was ill).
My great Aunt Fanny told my grandfather that America had streets paved with gold and that they should go there as they had a relative willing to sponsor them. It was a decision frought with fate and destiny. You see, my grandfather had wanted to go to Germany instead, but because he trusted his daughter Fanny, he listened, and to American they traveled.
Jewish tradition involves wine every Friday night for Shabbat and every holiday. It was interesting to watch the evolution of Prohibition and its connection to immigration. I wzs also fascinated by the infilatration of “Sin” into the push for prohibition.
I loved how when Susan B Anthony was not allowed to speak at a “Temperance” meeting, she formed her own group with Elizabeth Stanton. From that point on, Womens Sufferage was intertwined with this prohibition movement. Really amazing turn of events. The men, in their effort to keep women “in their place” ended doing the exact opposite, they inspired a movement of womens rights!
Life is an amazing journey, you just don’t know where it will lead you.
I liked the “smashers”. How cool was that? It is also fascinating to think of those types of incidents happening today with 24/7 media coverage.
I was enthralled by this documentary. The saloons, in the late 1890’s and early 20th century, where not just a place to drink alcohol, it was a place to cash checks, learn english, vote, get jobs, get free food etc!
The income tax was borne out of Prohibition, unbelievable!
What I am wondering, is today so different in abuse of alcohol and how it affects peoples lives? I am not suggesting that Prohibition is appropriate, but the expense of substance abuse is still a crisis in this country in my opinion.
Or was Prohibition born out of the income tax?
I walked away from the first night thinking I had a little more sympathy for those women who first led the charge. They were unempowered, weren’t able to work at decent paying jobs, had kids to feed, and their rat bastard husbands were spending their money on the way home from work at a local bar (who conveniently cashed their check on the way home.)
I guess they did the only thing they do they could do. It wasn’t for the reasons I thought it was.
Funny reading Elena’s first impressions. Mine were somewhat different and I suspect it is generational.
I think this is a documentary I will have to watch at least twice! Human history just repeats itself over and over, very interesting similarities I see today as I see in the documentary.
Hope they repeat this soon. Sounds interesting.
@Rick
It will probably be online soon. Also, you can buy it on Wed.
It is being repeated throughout the day also.