I think we’ve all had the experience of opening a cell phone and flashing on some Star Trek episode or line. Or maybe we all haven’t, but I sure have. The Star Trek flip-open communicator’s resemblance to a modern cell phone is downright uncanny. So it is fitting that this clip begins with a discussion of cell phone coverage in Vermont, and ends with Doug Racine taking an unequivocally pro-Star Trek position on perhaps the most controversial nerd question of our times. Note his near-poetic capturing of the geewhiz New Frontier optimism the show represents.  

I wanted to make sure I got at least one question that spoke to character, a question that could not be answered with a canned policy regurgitation, a question that riffed on John Hodgman’s roasting of the President at the 2009 Correspondent’s Dinner (VIDEO HERE).  But rather than quiz a candidate on the esoterica of nerdaphernalia, I thought why not boldly go where no one has gone before, a galaxy far far away?

After the interview, the discussion continued and I was impressed with how Mr. Racine reflected on how, particularly in earlier episodes, the women were pretty much reduced to serving coffee in go-go boots. He also mentioned recently re-seeing the movie M*A*S*H. The movie he remembered liking when it first came out now looked to him like mean-spirited humiliation of a strong woman. Having a Governor who can evaluate evolving gender politics in popular culture could take some getting used to.

Part 1 HERE

Part 2 HERE

[Note: No endorsement implied. Just continuing the VTblogosphereTV tradition of showcasing the qualities of the guest.]

Doug Racine’s website

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