Sunday, December 29, 2019

How FOX News Controls What Gets Reported

WARNING: Foul Language.

You’re watching Fox News.
You just don’t know it

Like em' or not they are good at what they do. They set the bar... the rest follow. However according to 'Business Wire' (12/11/2019) "FOX News Channel (FNC) notched its highest-rated year in primetime in its 23-year history with 2.5 million viewers...". So in the grand scheme of things even combined these news shows are only watched by less then 1% of the American population. That being the case I suppose it's no big deal since 320 million aren't watching any of these news channels.

Hell even Trump has only 68 million followers. Meaning over 250 million could care less what any of them have to say. Less then half of the population bothered voting in 2016. Perhaps politics won't be on my front burner in 2020. These are things I need to consider going forward.

Idea For A New Musical (REPOST)

Is there anyone who understands what a keeper this could be if the musical scores were updated?

Are there any visionaries out there? Imagine this show tied in with a toy manufacture! I do realize shows these days run $10-11 million on Broadway. That’s why perhaps one of the big toy manufacturers should think about what this could mean. Imagine ELMO reintroduced with electronic modifications to today's demand for the newer toys.


About Flahooley


My Video Interpretation

Friday, December 27, 2019

COPPA Spell The End For YouTube As We Know It?

YouTube will be greatly impacted like never before under the FTC's Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA) starting January 2020.

A number of people have already deleted their videos. The folks who depend on monetizing their videos will be impacted the most. Not only are their videos in question but the very ads that appear on them as well (which they have no control over). Meaning they'd have to give up their advertising revenue completely or risk getting fined. Thus the quality of YouTube will be greatly diminished.

Music videos as well a video game screen grabs could be subject to nearly a $42,000 fine for each deemed unfit for children (whatever that means). Same could apply to many of mine on YouTube. Even if you mark them for adults only doesn't let you off the hook. Who knows how many on this blog I linked to could be in violation as well.

I seriously believe two things are going on here. In my opinion this isn't about kids. Forget about the so-called 'nanny state'. This isn't about that. Rather it's about raking in huge amounts dough for the government. For years governments all over the world have been hitting Google with millions of dollars in fines so they can line their coffers. This gives them one more excuse to not only whack Google but now it users as well.

The second reason is more sinister. When the FTC deems what is appropriate and is not begins to crack the door open towards government censorship. If the FTC gets away with this it could be only the beginning.

As for me I will monitor this closely come 2020. I dread the decisions I may have to make as our government seeks to exercise greater and greater control over all things. We were promised less regulations by this president. COPPA is NOT heading in that direction to be sure.

Uploaded Nov 18, 2019

(The deadline 12/09/2919 has passed for comments to the FTC)

LINK TO : COPPA and YouTube: Answering Your Top Questions (12/17/2019)

LINK TO: COPPA @ The Federal Trade Commission



Federal Trade Commission (09/04/2019)
Google and YouTube Will Pay Record $170 Million for Alleged Violations of Children’s Privacy Law
"In addition to the monetary penalty, the proposed settlement requires Google and YouTube to develop, implement, and maintain a system that permits channel owners to identify their child-directed content on the YouTube platform so that YouTube can ensure it is complying with COPPA. In addition, the companies must notify channel owners that their child-directed content may be subject to the COPPA Rule’s obligations..."

Thursday, December 26, 2019

Are Broadway's Best Years Behind It?

Looking over upcoming shows it appears they've become more like concert performances rather then great theater. Will 2020 bring us any outstanding original musicals? It seems most of what is in store are rewrites based on previous rock tunes, movies or revivals of the long gone great composers and lyricists from the past.

Some of Broadway's best Performances


Here's one show I'd like to see come to Broadway.
Notre Dame de Paris

Notre-Dame de Paris (the musical) was performed since 1998 in 23 countries. Never on Broadway. It has 53 musical numbers. It tells the sad story of the three men who loved the gypsy dancer Esmeralda and lost her to death.

Tuesday, December 24, 2019

A Christmas Video I Made Years Ago

Bobby Vinton's Kissin' Christmas LIVE (1996)

I really wanted to watch Bobby Vinton's Branson Christmas special from 1996. That's when I realized it's no where to be found. So I decided to dig into my archives and load some of it here. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. What a talented guy. He ought to re-release a DVD of it. Better yet a TV Special maybe on PBS.

Clips From Bobby Vinton's Kissin' Christmas Show 1996 LIVE

Sunday, December 22, 2019

Amazon e-mail Scam Alert



There have been several different versions of this scam over the years. All of them have one thing in common.. they want you to call a phony number. Like any other phishing attack no one should ever reply. If someone wants to check out their account they should use their internet' browser's bookmarks to log in. This applies to any emails not just those from Amazon.

This also applies to phone calls. Always dial the number on your bill or login.

Thursday, December 19, 2019

My Answer Machine Took Another Scam Call

It's really good at that :-)

A woman thinking she was speaking to someone said, "This is the awards department. Can you hear me?"

It's an oldie but goodie. If you say yes it's being recorded. Usually it's some company looking to switch your utility, telephone provider or something similar. Your saying yes gives them go ahead to do whatever they're looking to do. In other words you inadvertently gave your consent verbally.

It's called TELEPHONE SLAMMING (Wikipedia). Don't fall for it.

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

Two Senators Already Planning To Violate Their Oath

Both Lindsey Graham ("I'm not trying to pretend to be a fair juror here") and Mitch McConnell ("I'm not impartial") made themselves very clear publicly several times how they will vote. It wouldn't surprise me if Senate Democrats made a motion to disqualify these two individuals at the beginning of the Senate hearing. Oh the motion may not pass because the Republicans hold the majority. BUT what these two declared before the hearing begins will forever be on record Could there be others?

Depends whether Justice Roberts will allow the motion or if it's even made.

Monday, December 16, 2019

Patriots Football Try To Pull A Fast One?


How come other teams don't seem to have these problems?

Mandatory Minimums Being Abused By Prosecutors?

Prosecutors have options for what charges they wish to pursue. Are some prosecutors imposing charges they know carry minim mandatory sentences in order to get the accused to plea to lesser charges, which do not, in order to make their record look good for getting a large number of convictions? As a result a number of innocents could end up in jail.



Defendants already are at a disadvantage. Many do not have the re$ources to pay the additional court cost$ for a trial by jury and lawyers who require large upfront fees.

Something else I personally seen. Cops sitting around chewing the fat with justices they've come before numerous times until the person they've charged arrives.

I'm also familiar with a guy who dated an assistant DA. Agreed he gave her some crap but let's just say this, after the breakup it didn't go well for him.

Snopes Setting The Record Straight


Every year FOX News pulls this. It's one thing to spin the news. Another to make shit up.

Sunday, December 15, 2019

Robot Appreciates The Help


I envision a day in the future when a FedEx, USPS or UPS truck pulls up. Unleashes dozens of these rascals from the back of the truck. All the driver has to do is wait for them to come back after making deliveries all at the same time. Something a delivery driver never could do. Assuming these trucks would even need a driver :-)

Avoid Route 22

Another couple of accidents yesterday. In my opinion if your daily commute involves the Lehigh Valley section of route 22 you'd be wise to avoid using it. Oh it might save 15 or 20 minutes but you'd be better off leaving 15 or 20 minutes earlier using some other streets and roads. Beats getting stuck between exits in where accidents have become a daily occurrence.

Some may say it increases the chances of getting hit somewhere else. Well it's healthier then getting slammed at 60+ mph or waiting in line for hours. If there is an accident lots of other options are available getting around them. I'd avoid the I78 section of 309 as well.

When I used to work I felt a lot less stress. Often times I'd mix it up and take various different routes. Traveling via 22 or 309 my whole focus was on traffic. These others allowed me to relax and enjoy the ride before and after work. I can't think of a time I got stuck behind an accident scene without having the ability to turn off avoiding it. More then I can say for some of my fellow workers who insisted on using these major traffic arteries.

There were about a half a dozen back roads I used between Allentown and Fogelsville. Most of them taken care of better in the winter then Pennsylvania's highways. As I bonus other then a school bus here and there I almost never encountered a tractor trailer. A lot safer if you have a breakdown too.

Anyone have any thoughts they want to share?

Saturday, December 14, 2019

Hallmark Pulls Commercial Of Brides Kissing

FOX News
Hallmark pulls Zola commercial of brides kissing after conservative group calls for boycott

So What. We all know Hallmark's stick. All their movies are the same. Boy meets girl. Girl meets boy... PERIOD!

Ye gads.if someone has a problem with this go watch one of the other 300 streaming or cable channels. It makes we question why a sponsor would consider wasting their money pitching to a group of viewers who most likely it won't appeal to.

Could it just be they pulled this stunt to get all this valuable free publicity? I wouldn't be surprised if they amped up this so-called conservative group's so-called boycott. Folks it called VIRAL marketing (or as I like to call it rope-a-dope). People get paid lots of money for this very thing. Looks like they'll reap many times the publicity without the ad even airing.

Damn... Now even I am bringing attention to them.

My Bad :-(

Thursday, December 12, 2019

Bernie Sanders Helped Rescue This Vet

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

I've Been Following Britain's Brexit

Here's the conclusion I've reached.They're In.
They're out.
They're back in again.. oh wait a minute
They're back out.
Maybe there will be another vote.
No there won't.
They'll leave the European Union with a deal in place.
Well maybe there won't.
Will Brexit be postponed again?
No
Well maybe
Never mind. Their not certain of anything.
One big advantage the U'K has is if they don't like what one prime minister is doing they simply get rid of them and appoint a new one. No need for impeachment. Course on the other hand it's hard to keep up with who's leading the country from one week to the next. Sometimes the Queen has to approve things. Sometimes she doesn't. Kind of makes one wonder how England managed to survive this chaos over centuries.

But through out it all...
Here's who I'll miss the most (John Bercow).
He was the speaker of the House Of Commons.
He's been replaced by SIR Lindsay Hoyle.




Face it C-Span's coverage of the U.S. House is boring as hell. It wouldn't be nearly so if our own congress was as rowdy as England's. Bet it would get much better larger ratings if this crew were carrying on the business of the people under the dome.



I can only imagine what conservatives would think of Bercow being in charge rather then Pelosi. I also wonder how smoothly things would go if instead of impeachment congress was empowered to replace Trump midterm. England removed Theresa May and replaced her with Boris Johnson. Now there's talk of 'snap elections' to replace Boris who only assumed office on July 24, 2019. Throughout it's history England had 83 prime ministers come and go. Some lasted as little as two years. Yet England manages to go on. So too would United States although you'd never know it with the way Republicans are carrying on.

Saturday, December 7, 2019

Radio Prank That Went Terribly Wrong

I was going through some of my old files and came across this gem from several years ago.

WARNING: Foul Language

OOPS :-(

PMJ Band- Stacy's Mom

Recorded at the Smith Center in Las Vegas

According to THE OFFICAL PMJ BAND WEBSITE March they'll be in York and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Unfortunately this is about as close as they will get to the Lehigh Valley. As far as I know they've never been here. What a shame. I consider these performers some of the most talented I've seen.

I also enjoy their touch of humor

Friday, December 6, 2019

Bunch Of Random Thoughts (12/06/2019)

There was a shooting where a Saudi aviation student killed three on our Pensacola Naval air base. I'm not going to say a lot about this other then Saudi Arabia isn't exactly trustworthy given what happened on 9-11 and a whole bunch of incidents since.

Without fail no matter what subjects I post the ones on Trump end up stressful for me having to debate endlessly on things I never mentioned. Perhaps in the future I'll simply post my thoughts singularly on him disallowing comments. It frustrates me to post about several things and the one people seem to care about is arguing over Trump. Starting with this one I will not allow further comment regarding him. Currently my Trump posts are receiving 5x's more views then any of the others There's a lot of stuff that requires more attention.

The house passed a bill the senate is expected to approve against robo-calls. I'm up to my neck in them several times a day annoying me. What a pain in the ass. No my chimney doesn't need cleaning. The IRS is not coming after me. My credit card wasn't hacked. My 29 year old van's warranty isn't about to expire. Neither is Microsoft going to charge me $299 on my credit card for services. The other four or five hang ups apparently aren't that important either. And I most certainly am not calling myself from that same phone. Anything I have to say to myself I already heard from the voices in my head. They needn't bother to inform me of the free cruise I might have won. Just send the tickets and we'll go from there. If some sheriff might come and arrest me for something.. you know where I live. Wanna save me money on my electric bill? Send somebody over with free solar panels.

I installed Norton internet security years ago so I wouldn't get malware. Seems to me popping up once or twice a day on my desktop bugging me IS MALWARE itself. I'm trying to do a disk image backup which takes 90% of my memory/ Norton thinks it's a good time to do some intensive background task. Go away!

Do I want to leave feedback on some website? Well maybe you ought to let me see what I came for before asking.

My package is coming at the end of the day. Where is it? Oh now it's changed.. still in transit. Thanks for the info. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe not. Maybe they'll ring the doorbell. Maybe not. It could even end up at the same number address on a different street one block away.

It may come a bit late in the year but the IRS recommends workers fill out a new W4 form to more accurately reflect their situation. Otherwise the expected refunds may not materialize. The main problem seems to be if a couple earns less then $25,000 each there won't be enough withheld when they file jointly on the $50,000 they earned together. If you didn't do it, oh well there's always next year.

Good news most of next year's local property taxes aren't going up. On the other hand we were promised if we allowed state gambling games they'd go down. Then promised if casino slots were approved we'd be sitting pretty. Then table games. Now it marijuana sales. Still waiting. Will increased sales tax finally do the trick? How about legal prostitution?

Huge numbers of people view these posts but only one or two people end up commenting. What's with that?

Monday, December 2, 2019

Bunch Of Random Thoughts (12/02/2019)

I see a couple of streaming services are no longer going to support certain older smart TV models. So much for cutting the cord if you're forced to buy a new TV whenever they decide. In the long run this cost a lot more.

If I were a rich man-- I'd only take as much as I can use to live a comfortable life. Nobody (I mean nobody) has needs for millions a year. I sincerely would be more then happy with a nice house debt free and a couple buck$ left over to enjoy. More then that I'd find individuals on my own who could use some help. Maybe bail them from medical debt or someone working their butt off and getting nowhere. Forget churches organizations where usually leaders are making a living more then decent off of them.

What's a non-profit? There's a hellva lot of rich churches, hospitals and research organizations that own vast properties and whom it's hired help are well compensated. IMO nearly half are legal scams to avoid paying taxes.

Pennsylvania has one of the largest number of legislators who are paid almost the highest in the nation for the 70 days they're in session. I wonder if there were none for a year or two if anyone would ever miss them?

To be honest I know I'm out of the loop but can anyone else name three movies or hit songs these top award show gatherers performed? Speaking of TV concerts, etc. anyone else notice how producers edit in audience screams to every damn performance? Watch mouths closely. Lots of clapping.. few mouths open. They also like to focus on a avid bunch but look in the background and you will see lots more unenthusiastic as they in the foreground.

The next president-- I don't like any of them. You mean out of 300+ millions this is all we can come up with? Where are the reasonable minds? Each seem to be trying to outdo the other's radical ideas on both sides. Most of their ideas don't mean squat anyways unless congress approves their crazy plans. A do nothing congress? Maybe not such a bad thing. Besides with all the appeals and lawsuits it seems the judicial system ends up making most the decisions these days.

Be honest, how many shopping for Christmas are buying crap for somebody else.

ROPE A DOPE-- How has any of these so called 'smart' thingies made life more simplified or cheaper to use?

UPDATED 12/02/2019 12:00 PM
I've removed The West Easton Website from my sidebar. The site has become almost unusable with the owner's so-called security improvements. I'm not too fond of supporting someone trying to monetize their blog either. It won't let me click on the post unless I give up my first born by registering my info. Ain't gonna happen. Too-da-loo.

As long as I'm being cranky-- What the hell is wrong with these meteorologists? I've been saying since Friday there ain't going to be no damn accumulation Monday in Allentown. It's impossible since the hour by hour temperature forecast never was suppose to drop below 35 degrees. Do they even know what temperature is freezing anymore? Last night my camera out front picked up city plows going up and down my street in the drizzle. Great for OT.. not so much for taxpayers. The first 10 minutes of every newscasts between here and Philly where beating their drums trying to get people upset. Seems to me they'll do anything to get attention so they can fill their airtime with nearly cost free BS reporting.

People ignore warnings when time after time these so-called experts continually hype up this and nothing happens. There used to be a DJ/weather expert up in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. who was always 100% accurate. He used to walk over, lift up the window and tell people what it was doing. It didn't take him 5-10 minutes explaining all the intricacies for something which could be said in less then a minute. Oh and by the way... there won't be any on the ground Tuesday (tomorrow) either no matter what they try and tell you. I can also confidently report it will get dark tonight.