An Update of my week
As I write this the Yankees are just hours away from elimination from the post season. Last night Boston was booted after being swept by the White Sox. I call them a “fluke Champion” for a couple reason. First is my undisguised bias for the New York Yankees over anything else. Consider me like the White House spokesman for the Yankees. I will spin every to make us look good and play fast and loose with the facts. To me sports are a perfect place for that. I think a fans love of a sports team is one of the few areas of life where we can afford to be unfair and totally biased. So a “fluke Champion” is basically any team besides the Yanks that wins the World Series. In my mind the Yankees are the only team that belongs on the top of the hill and any other team that visits briefly (or once every 86 years) is a fluke.
Sports also hold some other uses besides letting your biased instincts loose. It is also the place to be irrational overall. Yell at the ump, curse out the manager, boo the players, throw a fit, scream and yell. I do all those things while watching sports. I become a child – a big baby who wants his way and will cry otherwise. I think that if more people did this only at sporting events and took a more rational view of the rest of the world we would be a lot better off.
When I was doing talk radio on a regular basis in Tallahassee I remember my last show at my first station. It was the Monday after Thanksgiving in 1995. Florida State University has just lost to the rival Florida Gators and while I usually talked about politics I could not resist trying to ruin the day of the very obnoxious Gator fans who regularly called in. After that program the station manager called me into his office. Flustered in his orange and blue Florida gator tie he told me that my services were no longer needed.
I did radio shows for many years after that and in all reality my comments about the boss’ football team had nothing to do with the change of formats at the station. Clearly a left-of-center talk show host in the Deep South during the Republican revolution has a limited shelf life. Although I was crushed at the time, looking back I can’t really hold any personal animosity towards anyone. The station manager, upon reflection, could have put up with the grief he was getting for having me on the air longer, but in reality he kept me around on the tiny station (giving him big headaches) much longer than most people would have.
These memories come to mind because of my return to the AM talk show airwaves earlier this week. An old friend, who I helped get into talked radio and he later returned the favor threefold, was guest hosting on a station in Pensacola, Florida. I was to be interviewed over the phone for one of the three hours he was on. My hour was at 6pm and I had a 500+ mile drive to get done by then. I left south Florida at about 8am and arrived home less than an hour before the show. By 6 I was tired and road weary but, sure enough, as soon it was my turn to talk I did so easily. That always happens.
I was on hold, waiting my turn, long enough to hear a couple calls from some surprisingly calm and kind listeners. Back in the day, callers (at least to me) were pretty partisan and nasty. These callers talked seriously about tax policy, gerry mandering and Ron Paul. I opened my comments by praising the Republican from Texas, Ron Paul, for his independence and early identification of the fascist tendencies of the neo-cons who have taken over the Republican Party. We both saw the same thing – me from the outside and him from the inside. I may have been gutsy saying it on a talk radio station in the South, but he showed real courage by defying his own party and making the speech from the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives.
For the second half of the program I was paired up, in a Crossfire type scenario, with a conservative friend of the host. He actually praised gerry mandering saying that the alternative was quotas. He argued that we should trust the Republican redistricting and that the “hands of nature” would assure that everyone was given equal representation. This was too easy. I reminded listeners that while gerry mandering has been around since the beginning of our country, the Republicans – the neo cons – were not waiting until the 10 year census takes place like everyone had in the past. No, they did it between censuses just so they could gain more power in Washington. I suggested that my colleague supported gerry mandering now only because it benefited him. I also explained that his suggestion that the only alternative to gerry mandering was quotas was ludicrous. I pointed out that this is a false choice – a habitual tactic used by Republicans to sell a poor argument. Finally, I expressed a lack of confidence in any mysterious hand of nature to make sure the Republican plans for redistricting did not adversely affect me.
Next he argued to the talk radio audience that third (political) parties were useless in America and that people should just wait for the Democrats to disband before even considering leaving the flock. I suggested that if any major political party was in danger of collapsing it is surely the GOP. Why? Because Democrats have always been disorganized and accepting of slow incremental change. Democrat are not only used to being disappointed, they accept it as part of the give-and-take of the political process.
The factions in the Republican Party, however, are much less flexible or forgiving. They became Republicans to get their narrow agendas fulfilled and they will not hesitate to leave if they don’t get it. For instance the Capitalist Republicans want fiscal responsibility from Washington. Social conservative want an end to abortion and gay rights. Many Southern republicans want their ‘Culture” preserved. This is the coalition that changed the Republicans from a minority party to a majority party.
But through 11 years of Republican rule in congress and 5 in the White House what have they seen? Fiscal irresponsibility, greed and pork on the financial side. Abortions are up and there is no progress toward overturning Roe v. Wade. Immigration is out of control angering the pick up truck crowd. I argued to my co-guest that while Democrats accept not getting what they want all the time - Republicans are less likely to compromise or accept any middle ground. If these folks, who made the Republican Party so powerful over the past 10-15 years, are as principled as they claim to be - they will run, not walk, from the GOP. He didn’t like that at all. In fact I think it seemed like it was the first time he had ever heard the facts laid out before him like that. The hour went by much too quickly. It was great fun.
The Harriet Miers battle really is illustrating my point about the inflexibility of today’s Republicans. If you listen to conservatives you see that they feel betrayed. That is they supported this president and this party precisely so they would benefit from cronyism – not be a victim of it. They had no problem with an underachieving, unimaginative President as long as he did what they wanted. On the other hand, a Democrat would be thrilled to have control of Congress, the White House and so many states. They would be happy about having a majority of the Supreme Court and the recent appointment of a Chief Justice that was a strong advocate of their positions. But with radicals, including today’s conservatives, anything short of everything is not enough. Again those pesky fascist tendencies, hidden for the past 5 years from most, rears it ugly head. Listen to them and tell me they wouldn’t fly the GOP coop if they think they can get what they want from somebody else.
I have been watching a lot of the C SPAN 25th Anniversary of Call Ins this weekend. I really love that stuff. Phil Donahue was on last night and blasted the Bush administration. Pat Buchanan was on next and did the same. All night long they have been having the talk show. If the Yankee game this afternoon goes south than I will be back on C SPAN, watching the talking heads. The call in shows continue until 9pm EST.
In two weeks I will be in New York. I have reserved the U Haul, arranged for a travel buddy, packed most of my stuff and dug out the winter coats. I will miss Tallahassee so much but this relocation to New York City is one that I have wanted to do for a very long time. I have always wanted to live in New York. I had almost given up on the dream but wonderful circumstances have made it not only possible but about as easy as could ever be expected. I have a lead on a couple jobs, a place to stay and my favorite person in the world to stay with. I know I should feel lucky that I leave with sadness rather than relief. But I will visit Tallahassee often - and will have plenty of people from here come up to see me (oh yeah and the City). Get ready Sarah, it’s not only me coming up there, it is half of my friends too.
Sports also hold some other uses besides letting your biased instincts loose. It is also the place to be irrational overall. Yell at the ump, curse out the manager, boo the players, throw a fit, scream and yell. I do all those things while watching sports. I become a child – a big baby who wants his way and will cry otherwise. I think that if more people did this only at sporting events and took a more rational view of the rest of the world we would be a lot better off.
When I was doing talk radio on a regular basis in Tallahassee I remember my last show at my first station. It was the Monday after Thanksgiving in 1995. Florida State University has just lost to the rival Florida Gators and while I usually talked about politics I could not resist trying to ruin the day of the very obnoxious Gator fans who regularly called in. After that program the station manager called me into his office. Flustered in his orange and blue Florida gator tie he told me that my services were no longer needed.
I did radio shows for many years after that and in all reality my comments about the boss’ football team had nothing to do with the change of formats at the station. Clearly a left-of-center talk show host in the Deep South during the Republican revolution has a limited shelf life. Although I was crushed at the time, looking back I can’t really hold any personal animosity towards anyone. The station manager, upon reflection, could have put up with the grief he was getting for having me on the air longer, but in reality he kept me around on the tiny station (giving him big headaches) much longer than most people would have.
These memories come to mind because of my return to the AM talk show airwaves earlier this week. An old friend, who I helped get into talked radio and he later returned the favor threefold, was guest hosting on a station in Pensacola, Florida. I was to be interviewed over the phone for one of the three hours he was on. My hour was at 6pm and I had a 500+ mile drive to get done by then. I left south Florida at about 8am and arrived home less than an hour before the show. By 6 I was tired and road weary but, sure enough, as soon it was my turn to talk I did so easily. That always happens.
I was on hold, waiting my turn, long enough to hear a couple calls from some surprisingly calm and kind listeners. Back in the day, callers (at least to me) were pretty partisan and nasty. These callers talked seriously about tax policy, gerry mandering and Ron Paul. I opened my comments by praising the Republican from Texas, Ron Paul, for his independence and early identification of the fascist tendencies of the neo-cons who have taken over the Republican Party. We both saw the same thing – me from the outside and him from the inside. I may have been gutsy saying it on a talk radio station in the South, but he showed real courage by defying his own party and making the speech from the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives.
For the second half of the program I was paired up, in a Crossfire type scenario, with a conservative friend of the host. He actually praised gerry mandering saying that the alternative was quotas. He argued that we should trust the Republican redistricting and that the “hands of nature” would assure that everyone was given equal representation. This was too easy. I reminded listeners that while gerry mandering has been around since the beginning of our country, the Republicans – the neo cons – were not waiting until the 10 year census takes place like everyone had in the past. No, they did it between censuses just so they could gain more power in Washington. I suggested that my colleague supported gerry mandering now only because it benefited him. I also explained that his suggestion that the only alternative to gerry mandering was quotas was ludicrous. I pointed out that this is a false choice – a habitual tactic used by Republicans to sell a poor argument. Finally, I expressed a lack of confidence in any mysterious hand of nature to make sure the Republican plans for redistricting did not adversely affect me.
Next he argued to the talk radio audience that third (political) parties were useless in America and that people should just wait for the Democrats to disband before even considering leaving the flock. I suggested that if any major political party was in danger of collapsing it is surely the GOP. Why? Because Democrats have always been disorganized and accepting of slow incremental change. Democrat are not only used to being disappointed, they accept it as part of the give-and-take of the political process.
The factions in the Republican Party, however, are much less flexible or forgiving. They became Republicans to get their narrow agendas fulfilled and they will not hesitate to leave if they don’t get it. For instance the Capitalist Republicans want fiscal responsibility from Washington. Social conservative want an end to abortion and gay rights. Many Southern republicans want their ‘Culture” preserved. This is the coalition that changed the Republicans from a minority party to a majority party.
But through 11 years of Republican rule in congress and 5 in the White House what have they seen? Fiscal irresponsibility, greed and pork on the financial side. Abortions are up and there is no progress toward overturning Roe v. Wade. Immigration is out of control angering the pick up truck crowd. I argued to my co-guest that while Democrats accept not getting what they want all the time - Republicans are less likely to compromise or accept any middle ground. If these folks, who made the Republican Party so powerful over the past 10-15 years, are as principled as they claim to be - they will run, not walk, from the GOP. He didn’t like that at all. In fact I think it seemed like it was the first time he had ever heard the facts laid out before him like that. The hour went by much too quickly. It was great fun.
The Harriet Miers battle really is illustrating my point about the inflexibility of today’s Republicans. If you listen to conservatives you see that they feel betrayed. That is they supported this president and this party precisely so they would benefit from cronyism – not be a victim of it. They had no problem with an underachieving, unimaginative President as long as he did what they wanted. On the other hand, a Democrat would be thrilled to have control of Congress, the White House and so many states. They would be happy about having a majority of the Supreme Court and the recent appointment of a Chief Justice that was a strong advocate of their positions. But with radicals, including today’s conservatives, anything short of everything is not enough. Again those pesky fascist tendencies, hidden for the past 5 years from most, rears it ugly head. Listen to them and tell me they wouldn’t fly the GOP coop if they think they can get what they want from somebody else.
I have been watching a lot of the C SPAN 25th Anniversary of Call Ins this weekend. I really love that stuff. Phil Donahue was on last night and blasted the Bush administration. Pat Buchanan was on next and did the same. All night long they have been having the talk show. If the Yankee game this afternoon goes south than I will be back on C SPAN, watching the talking heads. The call in shows continue until 9pm EST.
In two weeks I will be in New York. I have reserved the U Haul, arranged for a travel buddy, packed most of my stuff and dug out the winter coats. I will miss Tallahassee so much but this relocation to New York City is one that I have wanted to do for a very long time. I have always wanted to live in New York. I had almost given up on the dream but wonderful circumstances have made it not only possible but about as easy as could ever be expected. I have a lead on a couple jobs, a place to stay and my favorite person in the world to stay with. I know I should feel lucky that I leave with sadness rather than relief. But I will visit Tallahassee often - and will have plenty of people from here come up to see me (oh yeah and the City). Get ready Sarah, it’s not only me coming up there, it is half of my friends too.
posted by MQA @ 10/08/2005 01:36:00 PM
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