The Mountain News – WA

By Bruce A. Smith

The two primary streaming services in the nation, Netflix and Hulu, are quite different from each other. Netflix focuses on feature-length projects and TV series, much of it done in-house or under contract to independent production companies. Most notably, Netflix is the home of Orange is the New Black, Weeds, and hundreds of comedy specials. It also offers a backlist, so that shows that have been off-the-air for a while, like The Blacklist, can be viewed in their entirety, which is great for binge-watching.

In contrast, Hulu is mostly a re-play of regular TV shows from broadcast networks, like The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, Law and Order- SVU, or Chicago PD. Generally, only the shows from the current season can be viewed, at least on my payment program. Continue reading →

By Bruce A. Smith

The streaming services Netflix and Hulu are releasing hundreds of new shows every year. However, the algorithms that are supposed to sort out which ones we would like to see, based upon our past viewing selections, are ineffective. Out of ten shows Netflix proposes to me, I may like only one enough to watch more than twenty minutes. In fact, finding shows that I truly enjoy is arduous. It is a modern-day version of trying to find a needle in a haystack.

Some media are trying to correct this, like the New York Times, since the public wants to consume so much TV. Binge-watching is a new reality for us, and I for one, love it. The NY Times has a full-time team watching and recommending new streaming shows, but there are so many platforms, such as Amazon Prime and Sling TV, that these near-global reviews are worthless as well – I simply can not afford to subscribe to every streaming service. Even Hulu has several different program packages to purchase, and I had to up-grade my Hulu account to add “Showtime” so that I could watch Homeland, which I consider to be the finest TV series ever created. Hence, I’ve started to keep my own records to pass on to friends, focusing on shows that may not be headline news or a household name. I trust Mountain News readers will enjoy these broadcasts as much as I have.

This round I’ll focus on Netflix. Tomorrow, Hulu. Continue reading →

By Bruce A. Smith

The Graham Kapowsin Community Council has announced this week that it is hosting its 16th Annual Expo this weekend at the Lodge in Frontier Park, Graham. In addition, there will be a Fun Run-Walk. along with a fundraiser to furnish monies for its ongoing program to supplement the free lunch and breakfast programs sponsored by the Bethel School District. The GKCC’s “Feed the Homeless Children” seeks to address the nutritional needs of the hundreds of Bethel students who do not have a permanent domicile, and thus suffer frequent food shortages, especially whenever school is not in session, such as during weekends, holidays, and snow days. Admission is free, and the Expo has art and crafts, along with entertainment. Continue reading →

Editor’s Note: The following is purportedly written by a British author named Nate White. His essay is published here with permission pending, as I attempt to find this fellow. I received this piece from my ex, who got it from her brother in Tucson, who got it from his other brother in Europe, and now I pass it along to all of you at the Mountain News.

Why do some British people not like Donald Trump?

By Nate White

“A few things spring to mind. Trump lacks certain qualities which the British traditionally esteem. For instance, he has no class, no charm, no coolness, no credibility, no compassion, no wit, no warmth, no wisdom, no subtlety, no sensitivity, no self-awareness, no humility, no honour and no grace – all qualities, funnily enough, with which his predecessor Mr. Obama was generously blessed. Continue reading →

By Bruce A. Smith

The 47^th Anniversary of the DB Cooper skyjacking was celebrated with a gathering of experts and aficionados to discuss the details of the case, and ponder new evidence and suspects.

Continue reading →

Special to the Mountain News –

In the recent political commentaries at the Mountain News, a discussion has erupted on the value of the Federal Reserve. Below is an introductory essay on “The Fed” from contributing author Steve Klein, and readers are encouraged to respond in the commentary section:

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Briefly in answer to your question about my comments:

The “elephant in the room” is the massive debt and the money the government has to borrow to pay the interest on that debt, the exact issue Republicans decried under Obama, yet Obama left office with the trends of decreasing the debt. Watch for Trump to attempt to discredit Democrats by declassifying docs and try to get Hillary locked up that will embarrass them mainly as a distraction, however I do not see he has the backbone to release UFO info the government has, nor free energy details, nor do away with the Federal Reserve banking system. If Trump got rid of the Fed, his family empire’s whole house of debt-supported cards comes tumbling down, and in my view, he is too much of a narcissist to risk his family’s fortunes to save his country. Though if he does, I’ll be firmly in his corner. Continue reading →

By Bruce A. Smith

The following story is a selection from my upcoming book: Stories of the Journey – From the Suburbs of NY to God-Realization, due in early 2019.

I’ve come to realize that I am an adventurer. I’m like a dog that likes to ride in the car, sticking his face out the window for every mile—always sniffing the breeze, wanting to see what’s ahead and around the corner.

Others may want a more obvious destiny like parenthood, and watching a daughter grow into womanhood or coaching a son in Little League. But not me. I’ve been married four times and have no children, as I’ve never felt a pull to have any of my own. Continue reading →