Latest Episodes for this Channel
Sun August 17 2008
Wooden pegs held Noah's Ark together, and almost everything else until the 18th Century, even though nails were found among Roman ruins. Ori...
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Wooden pegs held Noah's Ark together, and almost everything else until the 18th Century, even though nails were found among Roman ruins. Originally, nails were made by hand and then Thomas Jefferson brought back a nail cutting machine from France which created a nail making industry in the US. The Polynesians found them so valuable that they traded anything they had for them, or simply ... read more
Wooden pegs held Noah's Ark together, and almost everything else until the 18th Century, even though nails were found among Roman ruins. Originally, nails were made by hand and then Thomas Jefferson brought back a nail cutting machine from France which created a nail making industry in the US. The Polynesians found them so valuable that they traded anything they had for them, or simply stole them right out of the planks keeping European boats afloat. Charles says he’s "technically hopeless" and the idea of using nails to put in a cabinet is "beyond belief". And although there are known flaws in airplane design and construction, one very effective tool used to build them was rivets. Pre-war buildings and bridges also used rivets, including the Seagrams Building, Lever House, and the Chrysler Building, a classic Arts Deco design and "one of the most gorgeous buildings" ever constructed, Charles thinks. Today, in New York, Richard Myer glass buildings are architectural "beauties", Charles says, but most great, innovative modern architecture is happening outside the US.
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Sun July 13 2008
Surgery, including plastic surgery, began long before Alexander the Great and was essentially born out of war to remove foreign objects from the bod...
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Surgery, including plastic surgery, began long before Alexander the Great and was essentially born out of war to remove foreign objects from the bodies and repair damage to the faces of survivors. Right from the beginning, surgery was done quickly to try to keep a person from bleeding to death. Yet, lack of sterilization promoted infection and many who survived surgery were lost anyway. ... read more
Surgery, including plastic surgery, began long before Alexander the Great and was essentially born out of war to remove foreign objects from the bodies and repair damage to the faces of survivors. Right from the beginning, surgery was done quickly to try to keep a person from bleeding to death. Yet, lack of sterilization promoted infection and many who survived surgery were lost anyway. "Doctors didn't wash their hands so whatever they got from one body, they'd pass on to the next," Charles says. Even a woman giving birth in a 19th Century hospital had a greater chance of losing her baby and her own life to infection than if she had stayed home with a midwife. Today, catching an infection in a hospital is still all too common. Also common, is the glut of Washington DC. Although the income of officials may be lower than expected, it's still more than deserved, with many receiving above $150,000 to "inflict their damage upon the country and destroy the public trust," Charles says. Bush even has an Ethics Advisor who earns $124,000 to be ignored, and a Special Assistant for Economic Speech Writing who he doesn't dare ignore because "he has no idea about the economy," says Charles. "There are millions of deputy assistant directors for who knows what and all your tax money is going to them." Bush has been "selling off the government." "The feeling generally is, if you want to get something done in Congress, you have to pay for it." Rather than being representatives of the people, Congress has become lobbyists for big business. "Then the media is leaned on by the government too." But we need our representation. Thus, the Census was started. It's worth billions of dollars because each state's worth is based upon its population. In the first Census of 1790, those considered "less than", Native Americans and most slaves, were not counted. Today, people working hard for a better life for their children and themselves – "illegal immigrants" – are not counted. Exactly what has been learned in 218 years?
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Sun July 06 2008
Charles finds the idea of going back to college appealing. "It would be fun to learn" in an academic environment again, "but I don't want to be tes...
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Charles finds the idea of going back to college appealing. "It would be fun to learn" in an academic environment again, "but I don't want to be tested", he says. Charles studied law but was really a frustrated doctor. When he was on case, he used to "watch autopsies because I didn't want to be intimidated by the medical examiner." But in his field, trial lawyers are the most in... read more
Charles finds the idea of going back to college appealing. "It would be fun to learn" in an academic environment again, "but I don't want to be tested", he says. Charles studied law but was really a frustrated doctor. When he was on case, he used to "watch autopsies because I didn't want to be intimidated by the medical examiner." But in his field, trial lawyers are the most interesting. "Trial lawyers must have a personality. You have to be somewhat of an actor," Charles thinks. "I like trial lawyers but most other lawyers seem rather dull. It's just the nature of the business." Yet, trial lawyers often cross the charm line and become "egocentric", Charles says. "Melvin Belli, known as the ‘King of Torts' used to go to the airport and have himself paged." Then there were those who were truly great and didn't need to seek attention from strangers: Ella Fitzgerald! Charles says, "She's my favorite singer of all time. I love Ella." She wasn't really a blues singer, yet she did a "great scat". But she couldn't remember lyrics, so she would make them up as she sang until she could find her way back to the song. "Harold Arlen and Ella are the perfect match," Charles thinks. But something that's not so perfect is obvious plastic surgery. It looks bizarre and unnatural. "I think it's hideous," says Charles.
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Sun June 29 2008
Charles doesn't eat Cracker Jacks, but he'll go to a Minor League baseball game. He just went to see Trenton Thunder play. They lost, but it was g...
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Charles doesn't eat Cracker Jacks, but he'll go to a Minor League baseball game. He just went to see Trenton Thunder play. They lost, but it was good baseball. "Minor League Baseball is really special. It's a pastime. You actually talk to the other fans during a game. It's fun and inexpensive," he says. "Growing up in New York, I used to go to Yankee Stadium all the time and get... read more
Charles doesn't eat Cracker Jacks, but he'll go to a Minor League baseball game. He just went to see Trenton Thunder play. They lost, but it was good baseball. "Minor League Baseball is really special. It's a pastime. You actually talk to the other fans during a game. It's fun and inexpensive," he says. "Growing up in New York, I used to go to Yankee Stadium all the time and get the cheap seats. We used to sit out off right field hoping someone would hit a ball to us." Years later, "I actually caught a screaming line drive" that was a foul ball. "The ball actually hit the stomach of an enormous man sitting behind me, bounced off, and I just turned around and caught it." But baseball food is bad and overpriced and most stadiums won't allow you to bring your own food. "I don't eat hotdogs," Charles says. "You wouldn't believe what goes into a hotdog." Not as much as goes into an election campaign. But knowing when to gracefully bow out seems to be a lost art. Both Bill and Hillary have "diminished their reputations" with this campaign, Charles thinks. "Hillary is now all about Hillary" and she used to believe in something – stand for something. Now, "Hillary will do anything to get Hillary elected and I think it will have adverse consequences for her career in the Senate."
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Sun June 22 2008
The first question Charles would ask the Presidential candidates in the next debate is: "Do you believe in evolution?" See how they answer this qu...
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The first question Charles would ask the Presidential candidates in the next debate is: "Do you believe in evolution?" See how they answer this question with any honesty and still hold on to all their base support. There is an ongoing battle between those who want to keep religion out of schools and those who would manipulate everyone to believe as they believe. A case in Penns... read more
The first question Charles would ask the Presidential candidates in the next debate is: "Do you believe in evolution?" See how they answer this question with any honesty and still hold on to all their base support. There is an ongoing battle between those who want to keep religion out of schools and those who would manipulate everyone to believe as they believe. A case in Pennsylvania where the school board wanted "intelligent design" to be taught in their schools, was recently brought to trial with the judgment being that "intelligent design" was creationism – "a religiously-motivated rejection of evolution" and therefore did not belong in the school system. Now "the Texas School Board is trying to get evolution out of their school books. How can you have a system that teaches science and math but then when it contradicts certain personal beliefs, it just doesn't count?" asks Charles. Intelligent design is really "unintelligent design", he thinks. Well, religion has it's "hell" but so do the airlines and airports. Charles thinks going to an airport these days is terrible. "Flying cross-country is now a nightmare," he says. "It takes forever to get there", prices are rising, planes are "superpacked" and flights are constantly being cancelled or delayed. "It's amazing how badly managed the US airlines are and it all began with deregulation." Except Southwest Airlines which is "so smart – it's the only Amaerican airline company that knows what it's doing," says Charles. "Southwest has foresight." They have all the same type of aircraft and only purchase new, American planes which "generally need less maintenance and are more fuel efficient. They also buy fuel contracts way in advance. The reason they're going to make a profit this year is because they hedge their bets." Some people think it would be smart to establish an efficient train system, but it would need the same kind of intelligence to organize and run it that Southwest has because "Amtrak doesn't own the tracks going cross-country – the frieght companies do and so freight trains take priority over passenger trains." Right now, Amtrak only owns the tracks in the Northwest Corridor. The relatively new Acela "is a wonderful train". It's more reliable than flying, but also more expensive. However, "ecologically, it's better." And a passenger is better taken care of. Charles says, "there are quiet cars on trains where you're not allowed to use cell phones. I like the quiet cars."
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