Monthly Archives: May 2019

“It just seems like capitalism masquerading as religion”: Sarah tells Mike how a horror movie resurrected a ritual and established an industry. Digressions include “Avatar,” the NFL and the ethics of book publishing. The final five minutes are an unintentionally concise description of the core moral principle of this show.

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“We want stories that don’t exist in systems”: Mike tells Sarah what happened when Utah set out to solve one of America’s most intractable problems. Digressions include the Paleo diet, the planet Mars and the inadequacy of the term “up the river.” Jimmy Carter makes an extended cameo appearance.

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“Why did we make fun of Dan Quayle for misspelling the word ‘potato’ when we should have made fun of him for arguments like this?” Mike tells Sarah how a real vice president blamed a fictional single mom for causing one of the most divisive events of the 1990s. Digressions include “Designing Women,” “Alien” and “The Brady Bunch.” Listeners finally learn that Sarah has a lovely singing voice.

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Links!

• Dan Quayle’s speech to the Commonwealth Club of America, which set off the whole controversy
• A clip of his (only!) mention of Murphy Brown
• A scene from the “Murphy Brown” episode where she gives birth
• An interesting overview of the political issues involved
• A review of Judith Stacey’s “Brave New Families”
• The infamous front page of the New York Times on May 21, 1992
• “Blending politics and entertainment: Dan Quayle versus Murphy Brown”
• 1994 American Prospect article, “The New Crusade for the Old Family”