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One doesn't expect to see this kind of programming on a network otherwise known for high quality. Most of those who love regular PBS programming are appalled by these programs and their deviation from the norm. As a result, loyal fans are lost, at least temporarily. And the people who are attracted to these misfits may cough up some money, but they may not be pleased when the drive is over and Suze heads south for another couple of months to be replaced by science shows, Brit dramas and how-to shows -- all of which inhabit a plateau totally dissimilar to shows that have the words "wheat belly" in the title. Then there are the pleasant special shows, usually performance-oriented, that should last an hour but usually take twice as long. (Steve Martin and Edie Brickell in a Great Performances pledge special, left.) Why? Because the allegedly brilliant minds that are responsible for shows like "Nova" and "American Masters" think punctuating a good program with endless pleading for money makes sense. Compare it to buying a car. You go into a showroom and either like what you see and think it's worth the cost or you don't. A salesperson may try to browbeat you into capitulation. He may disappear for inordinate amounts of time to check a fact with a manager and may forget to return your keys that they borrowed to appraise your car. But they don't want to give up. Such tactics might work on the dimwit characters of endless failed sitcoms, but they are insulting to the typical fan of the normal PBS quality level. It's an insult thrown regularly throughout each broadcast year at people who have proven their loyalty. These and other tasteless tactics of PBS pledge drives are as out-of-place and gauchely mistaken as a platter of White Castles on a Downton Abbey banquet table. That these judgment errors continue unchanged and unchallenged isn't easily forgiven. Public radio stations with which I'm familiar don't rely on stunts and bad manners to receive support. So why is the larger sibling so clueless? Going back to the top of this rant, there once was a time when smokers were welcomed almost everywhere, and no one thought of challenging such negative behavior. Today the smokers who persist not only are not welcomed, but they are also treated as the worst and most undesirable of creatures by many. Please, PBS, clean up your act, break the habit and treat your fans with the respect they deserve. Because right now you stink.