It's the 50's Calling!

Hi, This is the 1950's calling!

You know, with the imminent nuclear holocaust, Joseph Stalin, the Iron Curtain, the Korean War, Joseph McCarthy, blacklisting, the genesis of the Vietnam War, measles, mumps, polio, Jim Crow, lynchings, segregation, people being put in institutions because of their sexuality, the objectification of women, and second class citizenship for people of color and women, things weren't all that great. Anybody who wasn't part of the norm, anybody who seemed to deviate from standard practices of acceptability was made an outsider...a part of the other. Diversity was not valued. 

I suggest we all look forward rather than back, an Make American Better. 

Fund Drive Burn Out

It's nothing personal

When you hold a fund drive every two months, I tend to get annoyed. I stop listening. I go to other public media outlets. I get what I need there. I'm still loyal, just not right now. I'll be back when you're done. I promise.

Meanwhile...can you think of ways to really shorten the drives and hold fewer of them? I'm not the only one tuning out.

The Right's Stranglehold on Religion

There's a Broader Discussion

Most people in this country don't realize there's a long-standing tradition of progressivism in Christian religion, and it is finally beginning to reemerge. That progressive movement is about love and acceptance and valuing people for who they are. There is not second class Christian. Conservative Christians claim to love the marginalized and then tell them to sit still in the pew and not speak up or participate. Without Progressive Christians there would not have been an end to slavery in this country, the civil rights movement, child labor laws and a myriad of other changes that that advance humanity.

Christian conservatives and their Republican allies would rather the narrative of social justice be squashed.

'I hope that teachings about inclusion and love win out over what I personally consider to be a handful of scriptures that reflect the moral expectations of the era in which they were recorded.' —@PeteButtigieg

Read Jim Wallis' article in Sojourners. It is time to take our faith back.

Can a Gay Millennial Midwestern Mayor Help Break the Right's 'Monopoly on Faith'?

Reaching Across the Divide

Building Bridges not Barriers

In a discussion with a group interested in reaching across the political divide, I questioned, "How do you reach somebody who refuses to participate."

Recently, at Thanksgiving dinner, we were going around the table sharing things we're thankful for. Most of us talked about our family, pets and friends. One person decided to insert politics despite and agreement not to talk about partisan politics at the gathering. He boldly stated, "I'm thankful we have someone as president who is making America great again." The table went stone silent until his wife reminded him forcefully, "No politics!"  

Prior to that, talk around the table had been amicable with broad ranging discussions on a variety of topics including the environment, presidents past and present, food, movies and work. Fortunately, order was restored, and friendship prevailed despite obvious political differences.

I was reminded of an anonymous quote I ran across 30 years ago, "There's my informed and intelligent opinion, and anybody who disagrees is a brain dead zealot."

And then today, I saw this...

There needs to be a change. That change needs to come from us, because it's not likely to come from the top. There are wise words to follow from people much smarter than I.


You cannot reap what you have not sown. How are we going to reap love in our community if we only sow hate?
- Saint Óscar Romero


Now, this country is going to be transformed. It will not be transformed by an act of God, but by all of us, by you and me. I don’t believe any longer that we can afford to say that it is entirely out of our hands. We made the world we’re living in and we have to make it over.
- James Baldwin

People on opposite sides are going to need to to start talking with each other. Maybe that means listening to each other first. There's a book I've been reading, "Soul Force." The authors, Reesheda Graham-Washington and Shawn Casselberry, offer seven pivot points toward courage, community, and change.

The pivot points are:

1. From Fear to Freedom
2. From Barriers to Bridge Building
3. From Self-Centeredness to Solidarity
4. From Hurt to Hope
5. From Consuming to Creating
6. From Charity to Change
7. From Maintenance to Moving 

To me, it looks like the antidote to everything the Trumpians seem to stand for, but by saying this am falling into the same trap?

Be Heard - Vote

As I read, I move from moments of hopefulness to, "Oh, what's the use." I'm reminded of some of the great civil movements. It is not hopeless. Martin Luther King, Jr. responded to the idea that legislation could not be used to change hearts.  

"It may be true that the law cannot change the heart but it can restrain the heartless.
It may be true that the law cannot make a man love me but it can keep him from lynching me and I think that is pretty important, also.
So there is a need for executive orders. There is a need for judicial decrees. There is a need for civil rights legislation on the local scale within states and on the national scale from the federal government."

The time is right to listen, find common ground, and build coalitions that will bring about change. Maybe part of resisting is to resist the forces that would divide us. 

When AI Takes Over (This is America)

Are we headed toward a dystopian future? 

On a recent trip to a medical lab, I was greeted by AI at check-in. What happened to the receptionists? Are all of us awaiting their fate? If we are replaced by AI, where will we get the income to buy food, housing and medical care? There are a lot of questions with no easy answers.

We were actually kicking around ideas about this future in science class in the high school a few decades back. The thought then was that our society would gather the resources needed to create a society with safety nets including educational opportunities, medical coverage, housing and guaranteed incomes. Sound familiar? Is it socialism? Will Corporate American take the lead on this? Probably not. What then? The government? 

So what's the big deal? If nobody is able to buy your goods and services, the system collapses.

Why People Give

Listening to my local public radio station make appeals for funding on-air leads me to question again: 

Why Do People Give?

The local talent is telling me all about mugs, t-shirts and socks. I can even get flowers to send to a loved one.

But...is that the reason I would want to give them money? No, not really. 

Maybe it's just me. Maybe I've become jaded because of my 31 years sitting in that chair trying to motivate people to make that phone call. 

I think it's all about the listener and why they come to the station for their news and information. The listener is first. I'm not sure public TV can raise money that way. Fundraising around regular programming is slow going. So they produce specials that have little to do with their mission. They focus on cassettes, DVD's and CD's. They help the presenter hawk his or her products. For the most part it doesn't work that way for public radio.

I went to an out side source to find out what motivates people to give. I went to the Network for Good. This is what they came up with.

1. Donors come to your nonprofit because they believe in your mission.
2. Donating to charity feels good.
3. For many donors, charitable giving is a family tradition.
4. Donating is an emotional act, and people connect more to personal stories than statistics or broad statements. 
5. Religion - Every major religion teaches good will, caring for others, and charitable giving.
6. The power of social media combined with the ease of online giving has contributed to the rise in popularity of peer-to-peer giving. The more people see their peers involved in a cause, the more likely they are to participate and donate. 
7. Tax benefits - Nonprofits are watching how the standard deduction increase and elimination of personal exemptions will affect charitable giving.

People stop giving when they stop believing in you.

I don't see thank you gifts or premiums anywhere in there. Why would you lead off your pitch with socks or a t-shirt?. For that matter, why would you lead off with a hand-ringing appeal about what you need?

It's not about you. It's about your audience. Change your perspective. It will change your approach.   

A little thought before opening the mic will go a long way. 

A Human Economy (This is America)

Billionaire's Club

According to a report from CBS News, a new billionaire is minted every two minutes. this growth of the elite is coming at a cost to the middle class and the poor. 

According to Oxfam, the world's wealth is not creating more opportunities for the vast majority of people.  The distribution of wealth is top heavy. The shift of wealth began growing with the tax cuts for the wealthy during the Reagan administration. It has only become worse during the Trump administration.  In 2017, President Trump reduced tax rates for individuals and corporations, a decrease that favors the rich and businesses.

Oxfam is calling for a new approach, A Human Economy.

Trickle down and all boats rise is not working. Oxfam is calling for new policies. Paul O'Brien is vice president for policy and advocacy at Oxfam America.

 "Fundamentally the human economy is built from different principals than the growth economy," O'Brien said. "For years, the consensus was, 'Growth solves everything.' But that has fallen apart. Our planet has limited boundaries. We can't burn more, use more, and break through ecological boundaries that are essential for sustaining human life."

O'Brien says, the "human economy" would provide health care, education and gender equality to people across the globe, he said. "All the data show that educating your children is the best way to build a healthy economy and create genuine shared wealth. We need to get kids into quality schools, and get rid of these legal and cultural barriers to women being treated unfairly in the workplace, being burdened and discounted."

Raising taxes on the world's richest people and corporations would help fund those programs, with Oxfam calculating that boosting taxes on the richest by 0.5 percent would raise enough money to educate the 262 million children who currently don't receive an education and provide healthcare that would save 3.3 million people from preventable deaths.

In the past, unequal distribution of wealth has led to unequal opportunity, slowed economic growth, lowered expectations, social unrest and revolution. It matters.