Listen closely. You do not flush out a product or a business plan or an idea. You flesh it out.

You flush crap. So please flush the mixing up of flush and flesh.

There are always a few buzz words and phrases you hear during different web eras (long tail, anyone?) – but I hear this constantly. I mean like once every three meetings. Someone says flush out instead of flesh out.

Please, stop.

And while we’re on the topic, unless you are an algebra teacher, it’s probably not entirely necessary to use the word orthogonal more than once or twice a week (or even a year for that matter). If you find you’re doing so more than once or twice a day, flush it, flesh it, do whatever you gotta do.

Is anyone else finding it impossible to concentrate on anything else now that the whole Denise Richards, Charlie Sheen, Heather Locklear thing is in full swing?

A recent study indicates that the richest Americans enjoy levels of health that are lower than the poorest folks in England. Especially in categories like heart disease and diabetes (12.5% of American adults suffer from it), the sickness of Americans is shocking.

Forget the maintenance of the military machine and the economic firepower. Are we eating ourselves right out of the empire business?

I just don’t think there’s a whole lot of room for parody on this one.

Church officials recently confirmed that Pope Benedict XVI had requested a report on whether it might be acceptable for Catholics to use condoms in one narrow circumstance: to protect life inside a marriage when one partner is infected with H.I.V. or is sick with AIDS.

Did Stephen Colbert cross some imaginary line during his roast at the White House Correspondents Dinner?

Or was it just sort of unfunny for the most part?

Maybe both. Maybe it was just sort of funny but really cool in terms of how far Colbert pushed it. Those of use who watch the Comedy Central line-up regularly have probably grown desensitized to this type of humor, but believe me folks, this wasn’t Leno.

I watched the whole thing. I didn’t really laugh, although I nodded a lot. There were good lines, yes, but not really laugh out loud good lines. Take a look for yourself.

There was a lengthy video bit that flopped hardcore. How can a video piece flop when it’s produced by folks who do funny television and have plenty of time to produce it?

Maybe I’ve just been spoiled by the Friar’s Club. I kept waiting for someone to make reference to Bea Arthur’s dick and it never happened…

Tim Goodman on “Action”:

Not long ago in a discussion about great television comedies, a group of a people, one right after the other, said they hadn’t bought the DVD set of “Action.” Worse, some had never seen it when the poisonously funny series aired on Fox.

Not only was this a stunning revelation, it’s flat-out unacceptable. There are precious few absolutely indispensable, must-collect, must-cherish DVDs from television sitcoms. This is one of them. Not having “Action” on DVD is like not having “The Godfather” on DVD.

The show was originally slated for HBO. What a difference that would have made…