For as long as I can remember, I have been watching the McLaughlin Group. I eagerly anticipated the last two episodes of December, the best/worst of the year. While the show is not quite the same without its inimitable host (RIP John), I still consider it the best weekly political show.
Here are some of my best/worst for 2018. I tried not repeat answers given by the panelists.
Biggest Loser: Financial stability. Between the astronomical federal deficit and debt, increasing personal debt, skyrocketing healthcare costs, the "trade war" with China, and the see-sawing stock market, it looks like stability is a thing of the past.
Worst Politician: Baby Boomers. Yes, that's right, I am designating an entire generation as the worst politician. Whatever your political viewpoints might be, you have been fighting in the gutter for the last thirty years and succeeded in bringing the entire political system down to that level. You've warred on other generations, demonstrated an unprecedented generational narcissism, politicized the personal to the point where you cannot associate with people who disagree with you at all, and consider anyone who disagrees with you on every point to be a total moron deserving only contempt, among other things. Thanks!
Underreported Story: Good news. Yes, there has been some good news, but we are so caught up in seeing everything at all times as a disaster that we only focus on the negative and then wonder why we are in such a funk.
Overreported Story: The Amazon HQ2 search. This was particularly acute in Colorado, where I live, because it was supposedly on the short list of possible locations. It was a monstrously self-indulgent shakedown attempt for the most advantageous concessions from local governments. Local news, ratio, and television were all full of stories.
Bummest Rap: Millennials. I am a proud gen-Xer, but I feel that Millennials have gotten a bum rap. First off, Baby Boomers lump everyone who came after them as a Millennial, when they really mean Gen X, the Millennials, and gen Z (teens to early twenty-somethings). Millennials get tagged as frivolous whiners who waste their time on social media. However, I see a generation that is tolerant and willing push (i.e. expand) social boundaries, generous with their time and money to social commitments, and willing to think outside the box in many ways.
Sorry to See You Go: Ok, I have two candidates (several panelists made two selections for some categories). First, the White Rhinoceros. The last living member of the species died earlier this year. Like Martha the passenger pigeon and Lonesome George the Pinta tortoise, there was a last white rhino. It is always depressing when a species goes extinct. As Theodore Roosevelt said, it is like losing all the great works of art or literature from an artist or author. Sadly, species are becoming extinct faster than we can catalog them; meaning, that there are some who will pass from the earth that we will never even have identified. Second, Toys-R-Us, because shopping for toys online just flat out sucks.
Best Political Theater: Kevin Kruse's tweets. Princeton historian Kevin Kruse has taken on the awesome responsibility of using history to combat those who misuse the past to defend their political views, most notably Dinesh D'Souza.
Worst Political Theater: President Donald Trump's tweets. Awful stuff. Peppered with lies, distortions, and self-pity. The worst of it is that these tweets decide and announce important national policy, fire cabinet officers, and dominate the news cycle.
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