Men in Gorilla Suits
Men in Gorilla Suits Ep. 117: Last Seen…Showing Respect

Respect means different things to people. For some, it is something to be demanded; others respect everyone until they are given reasons not to. Some people respect others so much that they have a hard time respecting themselves, while megalomaniacs often respect only the person they see in the mirror. It's a fascinating thing, respect -- so much so that it's the topic for this week's episode.

We begin talking about when we first became aware of this thing called respect. After that, we discuss what people need to do to earn our respect...if anything at all.

Next, we dedicate a bit of time to talking about whether or not we have self-respect before talking about how important respect is to a functioning society.

If you've ever wondered what we most respect about ourselves, we cover that...and then move on to why we think so many people have a hard time respecting themselves.

Find out if we've ever found ourselves in situations of conflicting respect before we get all sappy and share what we respect most about each other.

If there's one truth in the world, it's that "kids these days" have no respect...or is that something unfairly put upon them by disrespectful older people?

Find out who we've respected most -- and least -- in our lives before we wrap it all up by asking if respect for those around us is on the decline, the rise, or the same as it's always been.

Show some respect (or even disrespect) in the comments below.

Direct download: migs117.mp3
Category:Pop Culture -- posted at: 7:17pm CDT

Men in Gorilla Suits Ep. 116: Last Seen…Becoming Obsolete

The 5 1/4" floppy disk. Holding just over 1 megabyte of information, they were the proverbial shit. Until 3.5" floppies became all the rage! Somewhere in a closet, Christopher has an old tape drive...and even better: a Zip Drive.

Yes, there was a time when you could hold 100 megabytes of information on single disk!

Of course, all those storage methods are now obsolete. We can now access well over 100 gigabytes on a micro SD card that's a choking hazard to a two-year-old kid. (The past was such a safe place...never had to worry about a child choking on a copy of Zork!)

This week, we talk all about obsolete things. We really had a great time with this episode!

We begin by talking about the first thing we owned that ever went obsolete. After that, we jump to things that were around when we were younger -- that doesn't exist anymore...but we wish did.

Consumer products come and go (and a few lucky ones stick around a long time). We discuss our favorite failed consumer products, as well as those we wish succeeded...and those we were glad to see become obsolete and go away. Also: we talk about the consumer product we wish had failed, but still lingers on.

But it's not just things that become obsolete over time. We talk about places we went to when we were younger that no longer exist. After that, we talk about people you don't see anymore -- and the type of person we wish would fade away.

There are more things made today than any other time in history. We discuss whether new things have a shorter life span today, or if it's still about the same as it's always been. After that, we talk about the "next big thing" we were surprised to see fail.

Things are becoming obsolete right now. We talk about recent memories of things fading into obscurity and wrap up this episode discussing the next things to vanish from our lives.

There might be a day when comment sections on blogs are obsolete, but as of today, they are still a thing. We'd love to hear your thoughts about obsolete things in the comments below.

Direct download: migs116.mp3
Category:Pop Culture -- posted at: 9:13am CDT

Men in Gorilla Suits Ep. 115: Last Seen…Watching Series Television

Binge-watch.

A few years ago, it meant nothing. Now, for many, it's a way of life: streaming television shows -- episode after episode. Last weekend, by lunch time, Christopher had watched all 13 episodes of Netflix's Daredevil. Shawn has watched time pass by in episodes of House of Cards. We both go back to different Star Trek series.

Technology has changed the way people watch television, and with that, television itself has changed...and even changed us. Ongoing storylines hook people, bringing them back and keeping them talking about TV more than ever. That's what we're talking about this week.

We begin by talking about the first series television shows we remember seeing, and then we jump to the biggest draw of ongoing storylines. After that, we talk about what kinds of stories seem more suited for series TV than others.

Sometimes, shows move along great and then...fall apart. We talk about some of the problems series shows can face, and then we talk not only about our all-time favorite (and current favorite) series shows, but why we like them so much. After that, we discuss how cable TV and Netflix/Amazon have changed series television.

Salman Rushdie has praised series TV. Other big writers are just as hooked. Some of these writers have stated that if they were starting out writing now, they've go straight to series television. We talk about how series television has affected novels, and then talk about the effect series TV has had on other media.

Being the geeks that we are, we devote some time to talking about things we'd love to see turned into ongoing television shows -- and then we talk about things we've written that we'd like to see as a series. (We even share loglines and the dreaded "It's Weekend at Bernies meets On Golden Pond" mash-up line we'd use to describe our show.)

We close out the episode talking about the future of series television...and how we'll view shows in the coming years.

As always, feel free to share your feelings about this week's topic in the comments below...

Direct download: migs115.mp3
Category:Pop Culture -- posted at: 12:02pm CDT

Men in Gorilla Suits Ep. 114: Last Seen…Being Political

Vote Kupfer and Gronlund sign - Men in Gorilla Suits Ep. 114: Last Seen…Being PoliticalIt's still a long way off until the next American Presidential election, and already, wooden [and balls-out stupid] people [at least one from Texas] are standing up and proclaiming their intentions to run for office.

Politics!

We're told politics and religion are things we shouldn't discuss, but why is that? Why not discuss very broken things in the open, for all to see? That's what we're doing on this week's episode!

We begin by talking about the first time we became aware of politics, followed by what political party -- if any -- we align ourselves with.

Find out the first election we voted in...and who we voted for. After that, we discuss whether or not we've ever volunteered to work for a political campaign (and if we've ever given money to any campaigns).

For many, political views are first formed by one's parents. Find out if we followed our parents' political views...and how we decide to vote for a candidate (if we decide to vote at all).

After that, we talk about the current political system in America (the Electoral College, campaigning, and all that other good stuff). Find out if we think it works, or if it can stand some improvements. (And, because we're muthafuckin' Americans and it's our prerogative: what we'd do to improve American politics.)

Have we ever not voted in an election...and, if so: why? Find out! After that, we talk about how involved with politics we are compared to our younger selves. And we wrap it all up talking about the future of politics in America.

So step into the comments' booth and be heard below!

Direct download: migs114.mp3
Category:Pop Culture -- posted at: 8:35pm CDT

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