Some Random Thoughts About Talking Media Heads

Posted below this entry is the transcript of my interview with Tucker Carlson. Watching the video and reading the transcript has brought to mind an imaginary scenario:

What if Tucker Carlson lost his job?

And I don't mean just lost his present job at MSNBC. What if his personal brand of antagonistic pseudo-journalism went out of style? If the crest of popularity he is currently riding changed to the dark valley that all conservative media talking heads fear more than holding hands with liberals and singing 'Kumbaya' : The taint and humiliation of lousy ratings?

All semblence of his already meager credibility gone, his sense of self headed to the confines of a cesspit. Imagine that his personal investment team, with Tucker's approval, has invested in high return /high risk ventures, with the end result, a fortune going up in a cloud of dust when those investments flop.

Like any good conservative, he doesn't believe in government healthcare assistance, so he has paid for his own premium healthcare policy out of his own pocket. But the money to pay that premium is gone. He was the breadwinner of the family, he 'brought home the bacon'. By God, he wasn't going to sponge off of a woman. No sir, a woman's place is in the home, the man's place is making money. To put it crudely, he believes in keeping a woman 'barefoot and knocked up'. His wife, of course, has the same opinion. So Tucker has the misfortune of going home to a wife that demands that he take a job, any job, just so they can get by.

But Tucker is not the only one who is down on his luck. Facing equally hard times are his buddies Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly. Every morning they meet at the local cafe for coffee. I wonder...what would their conversation be like?...

Tuck : Times are tough out there guys. For awhile I told myself that I wouldn't take a lesser paying job, but right now I'd take anything.

Bill: Don't do it, Tuck! We gave the best years of our lives, and we deserve more!

Tuck : I'm gonna have to do something. The wife's driving me nuts.

Bill: (as he shifts in his seat) Man, I've got a boil on my ass the size of a golf ball. Hurts like hell, but I can't afford to go to the doctor and get it taken care of.

Rush: Don't look at me. Since my perscription drug coverage ran out, I've gotta make my pain pills last. And I don't want to hear about your erectile dysfunction problem again either.

Bill: Wait a minute! Aren't you a compassionate conservative like me? Where's your compassion now, Mr. Selfish?

Rush: (Changing the subject) It's not fair, I tell ya. All the work, all the dedication. Now we're thrown out in the cold! And you know whose fault it is, don't ya?

Tuck and Bill together : The Liberals!

Rush : You got it. They milked the system so much that there's nothing left for us.

Tuck: Gotta go, guys. I've got an interview at McDonalds in 15 minutes. They need some burger flippers, and I sure hope I get the job. (He gets up and walks out of the cafe)

Rush: Fat chance of him getting that job. Just between you and me Bill, I already tried and they wouldn't hire me.

Bill: You want to be a burger flipper? What's wrong with you? Don't you have any pride?

Rush: Tuck's right. Times are tough, and I'd take just about anything. But I'm ready to give up.

Bill: Not me! Never! I'll starve first! And that's the truth! No spin on that, pal! This is the no spin zone! I'm Bill O'Reilly! I'm Bill O'Reilly!

Rush: (He shouts to a tall skinny waitress that is standing by the cash register, picking her nose) Waitress! Please! Give me a hand over here. Bill's lost it again! (she wipes her finger on her apron, and walks over to the table)

Bill: NO SPIN! NO SPIN! I'M BILL O'REILLY! I'M RILL O'BEILLY! (said while copious amounts of spittle fly about the room)

Waitress: Looks like he's really bad this time.

Rush: (As he tries to hold Bill down) You better get an ambulance, Ann. He's wigged out for sure.

Waitress : (Screaming as she pulls out her greasy bleached blonde hair) ANN? YOU DARE CALL ME BY THAT NAME? I TOLD YOU TO NEVER CALL ME BY THAT NAME AGAIN, YOU FAT GODLESS BASTARD! YOU AND YOUR FRIEND GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE BEFORE I CALL THE COPS!

So as Rush struggles to remove himself and Bill from the cafe, the sun sets on this imaginary scenario. So what is the moral of the story? Morals, actually.

* Choose wisely the myths you perpetuate, defend and promote.
* What goes up, must come down.
* No matter who you are, no matter your 'status', no matter how much money you make, what will you do if it all suddenly disappears?
* Those who live by lies, rudeness and excessive ego are the most selfish and fragile.

Now, back to reality. What is the likelihood of this happening to these people? About as much likelihood as them showing any compassion towards people who have already gone through it. But this is my imaginary scenario, my temporary altered reality. If mine doesn't match yours, by all means create your own.

The Tucker Carlson Interview

I went to Chicago for this?

CARLSON: Welcome back. Isn‘t a low-wage job better than no job at all? Well, not if you‘re one of the million of American men who‘ve been laid off and refuse to take jobs they view as demeaning or low paying. My next guest is one those men. He spends his days dabbling at hobbies at home. He stays up late, sleeps until 11:00 in the morning, all while living off his wife. Alan Beggerow lives in Rockfalls, Illinois. He joins me now from Chicago.
Mr. Beggerow, thanks for coming on.


ALAN BEGGEROW, UNEMPLOYED HUSBAND: You bet, Tucker. How are you doing?


CARLSON: I‘m doing great. I can‘t imagine how angry and contemptuous your wife must be at this point. I mean, she must just be really mad at you.


BEGGEROW: No, actually there‘s been some perceptions about that article that aren‘t quite the truth, like I‘m sponging off my wife. That‘s not really so.


CARLSON: OK. You‘re talking about a “New York Times” piece from earlier this week in which you were featured. And the piece explained that you are not working. You worked for 30 years for a company in Illinois, but you were laid off. You live on a small pension and your wife‘s disability. You are an able-bodied man who‘s clearly smart, but you‘re choosing not to work because, as you put it, quote, “ I have come to realize that my free time is worth a lot to me.” That‘s an attitude that I think most American men would be embarrassed to have.


BEGGEROW: That‘s probably true. I‘m not embarrassed to have it, though. Not embarrassed a bit.


CARLSON: Well, I mean, shouldn‘t you be working? I mean, the rest of us are working. We‘re paying to keep the roads clear and the nation defended from foreign invaders. I mean, we‘re keeping the system afloat, and you‘re dead weight. Don‘t you feel guilty?


BEGGEROW: Heavens, no. I‘m not dead weight. I‘m getting a reduced pension. By the way, I was not laid off. I took a forced retirement. The plant I used to work at shut down, and my wife and I bring in about the same amount of money every month.
I mean, we pay our bills, and we make enough money that we still pay taxes. So I have chosen not to work for various reasons. And we seem to be getting by, and that‘s cool with me.


CARLSON: Well, I bet it is cool with you. I bet a lot of people would be happy to do that, but they don‘t because they realize that our society would fall apart if people did that. And one of the reasons you have the luxury of sitting around and writing novels, and practicing the piano, and living this kind of fun, interesting, hobby-filled life is because everyone else chooses not to do that, chooses to get up and inconvenience themselves and go to work and make us a rich society so people like you can lie around. I mean, don‘t you see why people would resent that?


BEGGEROW: Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. I see why they would resent it. I could see where some of the resentment might be from jealousy, too, because they will not do what you need to be able to do what I‘ve done.


CARLSON: Well, how about—I mean, one of the reasons men work is to get self-respect, but also respect from other people, specifically, the women they live with. “I had a rough day at the office. You wouldn‘t believe what I‘ve been dealing with,” right?
And you come back, you know, into the cave after slaying the woolly mammoth, and you‘re the man. But if you never left the cave, if you‘re looming around the cave playing video games, you‘re not really the man anymore, are you?


BEGGEROW: That‘s the way some people perceive it. There‘s more to being a man, as you say, than just working at a job. I mean, there‘s more to life than working, period. I consider myself very fortunate to be able to do what I am doing.


CARLSON: Yes. How much sleep do you get at night?


BEGGEROW: It varies. Sometimes six hours, sometimes eight hours.
Sometimes more. Sometimes less.


CARLSON: Are you ever bored?


BEGGEROW: No, sir, I‘m not. No, there‘s plenty to keep my mind occupied. I am involved with charity work, with the peace groups, reading, you know, everything that was in the article. My life is very full now.


CARLSON: We appreciate you taking the time out of your schedule to join us. Alan Beggerow, thanks very much.


BEGGEROW: Thanks, Tucker.

Some Clarification About The NY Times Article

I've been surfing around the 'net just to see the reactions from folks about it. Just call me curious, for I've been called everything else. Let me say that the article represented what I said spot-on. Louis Uchitelle, the reporter that interviewed me is a professional all the way. As such, he only included information in the article that he deemed appropriate for the subject. There is much that went unsaid, so if I may be allowed to clarify:


* I do get a pension for my 30 years of labor in the steel mill. The PBGC took over the pension plan and my pension was reduced by 35%, but it beats having nothing at all.


* My wife is on SS disability due to a near-fatal car accident in 2001. She was not able to return to the factory work she once did for 25 years. She has no vested pension. My pension and her disability are roughly the same amount of money per month.


* The jobs my wife does includes charity work for the church and the local hospital. She does do seamstress work and baking, but only sporadically. She has also made a trip to Mississippi in Feb. to help with the aftermath of Katrina. She is not able to do much physical work, but she's a hell of a cook! She's trying to get a part-time job for some extra money, but mostly she's the type that wants to stay busy.


* I have never had anything handed to me. I come from a steel-working family of 7 kids. My father worked the mill for 41 years, and I was raised with a strong work ethic. I was taught that if you work hard and save, you can retire in relative comfort. Some people don't realize how this work ethic has changed.
I agree that Gen-Xr's have it tough. But every generation does, in one way or another.


* When the mill closed I was eligible for unemployment, but chose to retire instead. I have not collected one dime of unemployment since retiring.


* When the mill closed I was eligible for retraining money. I chose to retire instead.


* The article states I have taught at the local community college. That is not quite accurate. I work for the community development department of the college as an industrial trainer. I hold no degrees, except from the school of hard knocks. The college gave me an opportunity to train in an industrial setting based on my practical experience. This experience includes math. I am not qualified to teach accredited college courses, but everytime I get a training assignment I am evaluated. Trust me, if my evaluations weren't up to snuff, the college wouldn't hire me.


* I do most of the housework, as my wife is physically unable to do so. I'm also a hell of a cook!


* I did try for two years after the mill shut down, and did work part-time for a year as a representative for a home care business. I am at a point in my life where I am not able to do the physical labor that I used to. After 30 years in the mill, there are parts of me that are worn out. Employers looked at my age, and my former membership in a union, and said no thanks.


* I paid off my house years ago. We took out a second mortgage to assist in the payment of medical bills not covered by insurance after my wife's accident and to purchase another vehicle, as hers was totalled in the accident.


* There is so much more to life than bustin' your butt, my friends. Money is a necessity, but you would be surprised how much you can get by on if you have to, and if you want to. I got to the point where I no longer owned my possessions. They owned me. The material side of life no longer has the spell on me it once had. Even with things getting tighter financially, I know we will get by with the basics that we need. Our life is frugal, but good.


* I tried to get others in my age group to participate with the interviews, but most declined. After five years, there is still much bitterness, and some just refuse to talk about it any more. That is why I more or less volunteered to participate. Trust me, I did not agree to be interviewed to try and garner any sympathy. I know many in my area that are a hell of a lot worse off.


* I have seen the effects of the present thinking about wages and the worth of labor. All labor, blue and white collar. The notion that wealth creates jobs to my mind is putting the cart before the horse. Without labor to do the actual work, there would be no wealth. Wealth and labor should be regarded equally as valuable. The notion that you get paid what you are worth used to mean the harder you work the more you earn. Now it seems to mean whoever sets your wage is also setting your value as a human being. And especially if you can't find a good paying job that somehow it is your fault. Such is not always the case.

I have no regrets about the article. I'm glad I could be a part of bringing this issue to light. and I'm glad to see that there are some commentaries about this article that are above hastily reached judgemental conclusions. I will always be a 'working man' in my heart, and the plight of the ones that create the wealth in this country will always be first in my book.

So for the ones that choose to try and understand, I thank you. For the ones that do not, I hope you never have to go throught it. I wouldn't wish that on anyone.

How Do We Come To Believe What We Believe?

"Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders" Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha)At first glance, this advice from Buddha may prompt the question, "If I should not believe something simply for these reasons, how am I able to believe anything?"

But look deeper into what is being said. If you should not believe in anything simply because you heard it, because it is spoken or rumored, because it is found in religious books or on authority of elders and teachers, what is left? Critical thinking.

What Buddha's words mean to me, is no matter what the belief, question it. Question the source, for whatever is being presented has been concluded by humans through their own world view and frame of reference. Question the belief in and of itself. What if it is true? What if it is false? What are the consequences of believing it or not? Only after a person does that are they ready to form their own beliefs. Anything less will result in a belief in someone else's belief.

By all means be exposed to as many different beliefs of others as possible. But don't take them on authority. You are, in the end, as responsible for your thoughts and beliefs as for your actions. So make them your own thoughts and beliefs and not someone else's.

The Middle East

The recent hostilities between Israel and Lebanon is a dangerous circumstance. Not just for the two nations involved, but for the entire world. This is not the time for nations to line up on one side or the other. It is the time for the nations of the world to do what they can to help defuse the crisis. In the past, the U.S. has lead the way in striving for peace in the middle east. This administration's response shows that the policy of peace is no longer a priority.

For the U.S. to condemn one side and encourage the other adds fuel to an already volatile fire. This is not the time for this administration's militaristic, arrogant swagger with saber in hand. This is the time for the U.S. to be a true ally to Israel by using every diplomatic avenue available to help bring about a ceasefire.

There are no clean hands in the middle east conflict. It's gotten to the point where no one can point the finger and honestly say who started what. The word 'terrorist' is thrown about, but how does a person define someone as a terrorist? A terrorist is someone that doesn't agree with you, it seems. But terrorist tactics are used by all concerned. Any time an attack results in so much loss of civilian life it can be called terrorism, no matter who does it.

This administration's 'war on terror' will only lead to a continued 'war of errors'. To continue the occupation of Iraq is an error, the cheerleading of Israel is an error. Both actions increase the willingness of nations to support terrorism. The possibility of the middle east crisis erupting into a global conflict is real. The death and destruction brought about by such a conflict will make the death and destruction of the previous world wars pale in comparison, for the threat of nuclear war is no longer just a threat. With extremist idealogues on both sides, there is no doubt that one of them would have no hesitation using nuclear weapons.

With so much riding on the outcome, diplomacy should be given every effort and possibility.

A Free Market Economy

Much has been made within conservative and libertarian economic philosophies about free markets. That if all regulations of commerce, goods and services are done away with, that the economy will regulate itself. That not only the cost of goods and services will be determined by demand, but also wages will be determined by demand. That somehow all of this self-regulation will result in a more stable economy, true competition, lower consumer costs and realistic wages.

As with much conservative thought, the past is looked upon as a guide for the future. A return to the economic past is a panacea for the economic ills of the present. Perhaps if there was an historical example of a true free market, I could agree. But as there isn't, I must conclude that the free market idea is but a theory.

If we go by the economic past, what passes for a free market always involved actions by business to gain exclusive control over goods and services. Three industries in the 19th century, steel, railroads and petroleum were controlled by three men; Morgan, Carnegie and Rockefeller. This was an age of no government regulations, no safety regulations, long workdays at low pay, no worker's compensation, very little job security. Are these the good ol' days and the type of free market this country wants to go back to? Where a handful of the rich control every aspect of a commodity or service, that stifles competition and has no regard for the consumer or the worker?

That is what will happen in a 'free market'. Not a free market as conservatives think of it, for that is but a pipedream. Without any controls or regulations in the marketplace the inequality of the haves versus the have nots will increase. Capitalism itself guarantees that. When earning the greatest profit by any means remains the sole criterion of capitalism, there must be some sort of regulation to even come close to a market that is not 'free', but that is 'fair'.

Some New Words

The Washington Post's Mensa Invitational once again asked readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting, or changing one letter, and supply a new definition. Here are this year's winners:

1. Intaxication: Euphoria at getting a tax refund, which lasts until you realize it was your money to start with.

2. Reintarnation: Coming back to life as a hillbilly.

3. Bozone (n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating. The bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.

4. Foreploy: Any misrepresentation about yourself for the purpose of getting laid.

5. Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period.

6. Giraffiti: Vandalism spray-painted very, very high.

7. Sarchasm: The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn't get it.

8. Inoculatte: To take coffee intravenously when you are running late.

9. Hipatitis: Terminal coolness.

10. Osteopornosis: A degenerate's disease. (This one got extra credit.)

11. Karmageddon: It's like, when everybody is sending off all these really bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth explodes and it's like, a serious bummer.

12. Decafalon (n.): The grueling event of getting through the day consuming only things that are good for you.

13. Glibido: All talk and no action.

14. Dopeler effect: The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly.

15. Arachnoleptic fit (n.): The frantic dance performed just after you've accidentally walked through a spider web.

16. Beelzebug (n.): Satan in the form of a mosquito, that gets into your bedroom at three in the morning and cannot be cast out.

17. Caterpallor (n.): The color you turn after finding half a worm in the fruit you're eating.

And the pick of the literature:

18. Ignoranus: A person who's both stupid and an asshole