Tweety's still out

[PCIntern]

...the 'complications' from the diabetes must have been quite significant for him to miss this amount of airtime. They're not talking at MSNBC - at least I haven't heard anything. Any ideas or reports?

[mwb970]

1. I miss him.

Some say David Gregory or David Shuster is better as a host, but I miss my Tweety!

[PCIntern]

2. I agree....

I have the need to bash and it's unrequited!


Come back Tweety! Bring your spittoon!

[mwb970]

9. My favorite thing about Tweety...

is the way he will suddenly throw in a pop cultural reference to make a point - it just blows me away. He'll cite lyrics from an obscure Dylan song, or quote Lou Grant from "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" or something. I love it!

I also like it that the show is all politics, unlike Countdown, which veers off into celebrity gossip and other irrelevancies after about 20 minutes.


edit: add'l para

[Pirate Smile]

12. Me too.

[Berry Cool]

13. Countdown "veers off into celebrity gossip" after about 45 minutes, not 20.

It's true they have Oddball in the first half, but if you don't like that you can skip it. At least you won't miss the serious stories in the second half of the show. Believe it or not, there are some.

And nearly all of the Special Comments have been at the very end of the show.

[Pirate Smile]

24. I think you replied to the wrong person. I love Keith.

:)

My post replied to the first post which was only about missing Tweety, nothing about Countdown.

[CTyankee]

3. Is there a DU doc who can explain why these "complications"

are keeping him from working? I know diabetes is a serious disease but he is not an elderly person, which makes me think this is pretty serious.

I have a diabetic brother in law who is 77 years old. He has had low sugar episodes which he manages to treat at home when they happen and he is up and better by the next day. His wife, my s.i.l. also has diabetes; she is 62 and, altho she is obese, is very active. So my experience with people who are diabetic leads me to think that Tweety has a lot going on with his condition!

[PCIntern]

4. Well, speaking as a dentist...

he may be having severe circulation problems, vision problems, malignant hypertension due to his weight and other factors, infections including pancreatitis or other significant problems associated with his organs.

I will tell you that he has not looked too well for wome time and I was putting that down to exhaustion since I was not aware that he was diabetic.

Awful disease..

[Epiphany4z]

5. could be a lot of things

kidneys are a high risk area for Diabetics,also feet...and heart...just getting the flue can really add to you problems also.

[rainbow4321]

17. I work on a renal/diabetic floor

as a health care professional and I can tell you the list of potential complications can be very long. Hypertension, kidney problems (from minimal to needing dialysis 3 times a week), vision impairment, circulation problems <again from minimal to so bad that body parts are amputated), cardiac problems.
There is no telling what complications are involved here. Any assumptions will be just that, assumptions.

[Avalux]

22. His condition depends on a lot of factors.

First of all - do we know if this is an initial diagnosis or if Tweety's known he was diabetic? If he 'cratered' and had to be hospitalized because his blood sugar levels were out of control (happens sometimes to people who don't know they're diabetic) - then it may take awhile to get him stabilized and to a point where his diabetes is manageable. He may also have secondary health problems that comes with the disease. As others have pointed out - heart, kidney, eye and circulation problems; circulation problems can show up as foot ulcers requiring antibiotics and/or surgical intervention. Type II Diabetes is a very serious illness and can be fatal if left unchecked without medication to control blood sugar.

Here's a good resource of information:

http://www.diabetes.org/about-diabetes.jsp

I sincerely hope we see Chris Mathews back on the air soon (even though sometimes he really pisses me off).

[MyNameGoesHere]

6. Are we sure

it is diabetes or is he drying out?

[flordehinojos]

21. or might he be having a hypomanic episode?

}(

[maine_raptor]

7. David Gregory hosted Chris's weekend show (CNBC).

He did a nice job. He actually let people talk without throwing out another 20 questions while they were answering his first one.

Complications from diabetes can be quite severe and involve many different organs. Don't forget he had Malaria recently. Both are blood disorders and as such involve every organ in the body. I'm wondering if this combination is what is keeping him in the hospital.


As much as I detest his style, politics, etc I do miss the little scamp;

My nerf ball-throwing skill is suffering.

[Eurobabe]

8. How did he get malaria? At the Jersey Shore?

Just curious...

[maine_raptor]

14. He got it during his tour with the Peace Corps in the 60's.

He spent time in Africa in the PC (His version of TANG service).

[Eurobabe]

23. And it stays in your body that long??

Wow. As much as I think Tweety can be an arshole sometimes, I hope he recovers. Diabetes is a nasty disease.

Also read a story over the weekend that seemed to indicate that mosquitoes could transmit BSE/CWD between cattle and deer. Nice little critters those mosquitoes, wonder what else they can transmit?

[malaise]

27. Yep malaria stays with you forever

My hubby picked it up in Central America nearly 20 years ago and still has to be very careful.

[Critters2]

29. A friend served with the Franciscans in Tanzania and got malaria

It flares up every once in a while, and will his whole life.

[malaise]

30. We've been very lucky

one flare up in 21 years.

[Berry Cool]

10. I prefer one of the two Davids on Hardball

but that being said, I don't wish Tweety any ill, that's for sure. Hope he's able to get back on his feet soon.

[Catchawave]

11. MSNBC keeps running the College Tour promo

with Matthews and Edwards scheduled for tommorrow at UNC.

I'll be mad if there's another prissypants newsbunny filling in for Chris again.

[Berry Cool]

15. That's a real downside as far as Hardball is concerned.

Because the show is on the road, the two Davids are not free to host, so they end up getting some dork like Campbell Brown to host it instead.

[maine_raptor]

16. One of the O'Donnell's, I bet.

I wish they would give David Gregory more of a chance though. When his tour of the WH is done , I hope they give him his own show.

[Berry Cool]

18. Oh, they like using Nora O'Donnell too.

But they also use Campbell Brown.

[Skarbrowe]

19. I miss Chris too. It's that love/hate thing.

The man has made me so angry that I've asked my partner to keep me from watching his show. HA! I can't stay away from Chris Matthews. This hospital stint has me very worried. Like millions of other people, I am also living with diabetes. To be honest, I haven't been taking it as seriously as I should be. I know all the horrible things you have to know about this disease, but I haven't been living the way I should. Maybe this awful scare with Chris will help me get my act together.

Get back to good health and Hardball soon Chris!

[Kceres]

25. Not to scare you, but . . .

you really need to monitor and manage your diabetes. I had a friend who didn't take his diabetes seriously until he lost half his foot, then the rest of his foot. Just when he finally started to manage his disease, he suffered his last complication: a stroke He is terribly missed. So if you don't do it for yourself, do it for those who love you. OK?

I'm a stay-at-home mom and keep MSNBC on all day long. I disagree with Tweets half the time, but sure have missed his voice; my homeostasis is all out of whack without him. (sigh)

[npincus]

20. poor thing...

get well soon.

With love,

Rep from the left-wing lunatic fringe (for real)

[dogday]

26. Does anyone remember when he contracted Malaria?

He lost a great deal of weight.... I do hope he gets better....

[Cass]

28. I miss him and hope he is able to return soon.

I like to watch Hardball while I'm cooking dinner and its just not the same without him. Hope he feels better real soon. Diabetes can knock you on your ass if you're not careful.