I haven’t been on the air for a while now.
Those of you who know me as a broadcaster probably also know that, late last year, I became a casualty of a commercial radio industry that is largely in disarray, jumping from this solution to that fix in order to come up with some magic bullet that will solve the problem of listeners who are abandoning them in droves, either to satellite radio, internet radio or just plain old Ipod enjoyment while trying to console and placate advertisers who are spending their budgets elsewhere.
I was known to suggest, from time to time, that maybe the reason those listeners were jumping ship was they were tired of not getting anything fed to them on the commercial airwaves except the same “expert advised”, crotch and boob humor coated, same ten songs in a row crap that everyone seems to be trying to run with these days.
As for me, I just tried to bring some fresh air to the airwaves by treating my listeners with respect, trying to find humor and irony in the events of the day without having to talk about Britney’s lack of panties or Paris’ little black book , playing the play list as required, but betting that listeners were intelligent and sophisticated enough to hear an occasional song from the “wow…it’s great to hear that after such a long time” folder.
The result was my listeners emailed and phoned often with their appreciation and sent my show to number two in the ratings in my market area.
Well, hell, no wonder I got fired.
And this isn’t my personal persecution pity party…there are a lot of talented people being shown the door every day in much the same “makes no sense but that’s the biz” way.
Now, almost three months later, I am still looking for a home for my broadcasting chops. And getting beyond the weariness of having been out of work for this long and the fears built into the scenario of being a middle aged man trying to find a job in this economy, I miss being on the air because I miss the chance to talk and share with so many quick, smart, bright, intelligent, articulate, loving, caring, patriotic people.
People like you.
And my friend Debbie.
Who, knowing my work and being fairly simpatico philosophically, drops in now and then with an item that she suspects I would be running with on the air.
If I was, you know, running anywhere on the air.
And she’s right.
If I was, I would be.
Debbie emailed me this piece, written, credit where it’s due, by a man named Charley Reese.
Give it a read and then stay tuned for two cents to follow.
THE 545 PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE FOR AMERICA'S WOES
BY CHARLEY REESE
Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.
Have you ever wondered why, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, we have deficits? Have you ever wondered why, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, we have inflation and high taxes?
You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does.
You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does.
You and I don't write the tax code. Congress does.
You and I don't set fiscal policy. Congress does.
You and I don't control monetary policy. The Federal Reserve Bank does.
One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president and nine Supreme Court justices - 545 human beings out of the 300 million - are directly, legally, morally and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.
I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered but private central bank.
I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a
congressman or a president to do one cotton- picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the
power to accept or reject it.
No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes.
A CONFIDENCE CONSPIRACY
Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.
What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a SPEAKER, who stood up and criticized G.W. BUSH for creating deficits.
The president can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it. The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives
sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes.
Who is the speaker of the House? She is the leader of the majority party. She and fellow Democrats, not the president, can approve any budget they
want. If the president vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto.
REPLACE THE SCOUNDRELS
It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts - of incompetence and
irresponsibility.
I can't think of a single domestic problem, from an unfair tax code to defense overruns, that is not traceable directly to those 545 people.
When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want
to exist.
If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair. If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red. If the Marines are in
IRAQ, it's because they want them in IRAQ.
There are no insoluble government problems. Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can
abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power.
Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exist disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation" or "politics"
that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.
Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible. They, and they alone, have the power. They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the
people who are their bosses - provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees. We should vote all of them out of office and
clean up their mess.
Thanks to Debbie for sending me this and thanks to Charley for his thoughts.
Here are mine.
There’s a 546th person we have to look to for responsibility in all of this.
Each and any one of us who doesn’t take action whenever and wherever possible to help effect change in the way we elect those politicians to office and what standards we insist on holding them accountable to once they are elected.
Because while I appreciate and share in Charley’s frustration, the simple fact is that “voting them all out of office and cleaning up their mess” isn’t going to fix anything.
The system is what needs to be overhauled.
Not those who inhabit it.
Putting fresh oil into a failing engine isn’t going to get us any farther down the road.
We could vote all 545 out of office any day of the week.
There will always be another 545 ready to take their place.
And ready to take us down the same old road.
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