So this won’t create much of a ripple in the space/time continuum, but its passing deserves a few lines, I think.

One of the greatest inventions in the world after Saran Wrap (sorry - an old Mel Brooks/Carl Reiner 2,000 Year Old Man joke there) has been the creation of the used bookstore. And the Fayetteville Public Library, like most libraries in America, has a dandy used bookstore.

But . . .

“The Committee” - those responsible for the excellent little bookstore, have made a recent decision which sort of flies in the face of well, if not reason, than just treating your patrons nicely.

Of all the library used bookstores in Washington County, only Fayetteville and Winslow have had special sections devoted exclusively to science fiction and fantasy, so that readers would know right where to go to get their fix satisfied, to feed the Dalek on their back.

Now only Winslow offers a special SF/fantasy section.

In Fayetteville, those of us devoted to the genre now must look upon the various shelves, hoping against hope that there might be a book or two there, snuggled amongst the mysteries, true crime stories, westerns and romance novels. If anything, the SF/fantasy section in the Fayetteville Public Library used bookstore really needed another shelf devoted to it, rather than have whole kit-and-kaboodle pulled up.

Oh, it’s a small thing, Drake, and god bless, you whine about so damn much. Couldn’t you have found something a little more important to complain about today?

Well, Rampaging Reader, it may seem a small thing to those who only read “serious literature,” but for decades the science fiction section in bookstores has generally been put away from from the front door, away from the bestsellers, away from where they might corrupt the unsuspecting.

You know, closer to the bathroom.

A lot of the time, the SF shelves weren’t very big, and it seemed some stores had more soft-core porn than SF.

It wasn’t - and still isn’t in a lot of places - respected as literature, which is about as snobbish as you can get. Sturgeon’s Law - 90 percent of everything is crap - applies to science fiction as much as anything. But then, it also applies to mysteries, humor, westerns, or what-have-you.

But why even give science fiction its own shelf? Isn’t that kind of snobbish, Drake? Aren’t you applying your usual double-standard here?

Well yes I am, and thank you for noticing.

Science fiction got me through some tough times in my life; it took me away, and showed me another world. Sometimes better, sometimes worse. But always fascinating. When I was a kid, and even when I was an adult. In addition to stretching your imagination, it really can be good what ails you. And I’m not the only one, am I?

How many patrons of the Fayetteville Public Library used bookstore would head straight to the science fiction shelf, to see what might be waiting for them? So often the shelf would be overloaded, because there would be too many science fiction books for the shelf to hold. It’s not the sort of decision that seems to make sense, but I guess The Committee is happy with it. I wonder how many patrons of the bookstore they consulted before they embarked upon this course of action.

It’s sort of odd, when there are those who would Kindle-ize all of humanity, to write about books, but there you have it.

******

What? You've never heard of the 2,000 Year Old Man?

My elementary school teacher at Croughton Air Force Base played one of these albums for us so many years ago. The humor is still wonderful today.

Hey:

Mel Brooks.

Carl Reiner.

Need I say more?

*****

Dive! Dive! Dive!

My father was stationed in England in the mid-1960s, so I was already a big science fiction fan, courtesy of Fireball XL5 and Doctor Who. But when Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea began running, I really fell in love with the whole notion of Monster-of-the-Week shows.

The series was based on the movie of the same name, though I didn’t see the movie for many years afterward. It concerned the adventures of the futuristic research submarine Seaview, and its creator, Admiral Harriman Nelson (Richard Basehart - The Satan Bug). It was captained by Lee Crane (David Hedison - The Fly, The Lost World).

Every week the Seaview and her crew would face foreign spies, monsters from the depths and whatever other evils that producer Irwin Allen could find to throw at them. The first season, for those who keep track of such things, was the best of the four. Shot in black and white, the stories were often fairly gritty tales set in a cold-war background, along with the occasional science fiction elements. Later seasons were shot in color.

And what a submarine! It had transparent steel plating in the observation room, so that the crew - and TV viewers - could see what was happening outside the ship, and it came equipped with a diving bell and mini-sub for exploring.

Of course, later seasons saw the advent of the magnificent Flying Sub, a vehicle which operated in the air and under the sea. Sadly, though, later seasons of the program were marked by inferior writing, and Irwin Allen’s bizarre belief that if we did meet aliens, that they would somehow have skin that looked like it was spray-painted on.

It’s not Run Silent, Run Deep, but it is pretty good Saturday afternoon fare, especially for an Irwin Allen production. Allen seemed to start out strong on shows, and then sort of lose interest in their quality as time went on.

Too many irons in the fire, perhaps?

The show was able to use many of the props and footage from the movie, and from other Irwin Allen films. In fact, one episode, “Turn back the Clock,” is a silly mishmash of a minimal plot using scenes from The Lost World, in which Hedison also starred.

The extras are minimal, though amusing. The pilot episode, “Seven Days to Zero,” is shown in color, and there is a wonderful promo film that Irwin Allen made for ABC execs touting Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, showing scenes supposedly from the upcoming season.

But they aren’t. They are all from previous Irwin Allen films. I guess the executives just weren’t paying attention. Network executives not paying attention?

Gee, go figure.

Those interested in reading novels about the Seaview crew can find three novels. Two are simply called Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. The first, by Theodore Sturgeon, is a novelization of the film. The other, put out by Whitman Publishing Company, in their “Authorized TV Adventure” line, is written by Raymond F. Jones, of This Island Earth. This novel is not only the best that Whitman ever put out, but is superior to most of the episodes of the show.

If you can find this book, you are in for a real treat. It’s a book that both adults and young people can enjoy, even 40 years after it was first published. It’s hard to find, though.

The last book, City Beneath the Sea, is total garbage, written by a man who once wrote a novel called Rape is a No No, for The Man from O.R.G.Y. spy novel series.

In addition, for real junkies, Hermes Press has published a two volume edition of all of the Gold key comics from the 1960s/70s.

It’s just Saturday afternoon stuff, but you know what? It’s better than a lot of what passes for entertainment on the Sy Fy (what a stupid name) Channel these days. Sad to say, that’s kind of like my yardstick when I write about some of these shows.

Trivia note: Until Star Trek: The Next Generation, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea was the longest running American science fiction series with continuing characters, with 110 episodes.

****

Quote of the Day

An education is like a crumbling building that needs constant upkeep with repairs and additions. - Louis Dudek

rsdrake@cox.net

I have written about the passing of both Gaylord Willis and his restaurant, which lingered on for some time after his death. Uncle Gaylord’s was one of the “must-eat” locations for many of us here in Fayetteville.

They had a club sandwich that was so good that, while you may not have been willing to die for it, you certainly would have been willing to steal it off a stranger’s plate when they weren’t looking.

I pass by the building that used to be Gaylord’s several times a week, but Friday morning I finally got the hankering to go up and look in the windows of the closed establishment, something I hadn’t done since discovering that they were closed for the final time.

Like an ancient tomb which has been ransacked by thieves, nothing remains to remind us of once-what-was.

The tables, counters and shelves have all been removed, and the walls dividing the rooms have all been stripped away, the remaining walls themselves down to what looks like their cold sheet rock. It is just a dry husk of a building, ready to be turned into whatever the new tenant may wish it to be.

A restaurant?

A law office?

A mini-mall?

Before Gaylord opened his restaurant the building housed a hardware store - Acme (the very image of a cartoon store) was the name, I believe.

Or perhaps the building will simply lie fallow, a reminder of the stark times that we live in.

******

On the Air: Stop Arkansas Fracking

Sam Lane, the director of Stop Arkansas Fracking, will be the guest on my show this week. And hey, you can watch it online if you want to.

Stop Arkansas Fracking is urging a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing in Arkansas until all state and federal agencies do proper extensive environmental and human impact studies. Many communities and even states across the United States have set down temporary or even permanent moratoriums on fracking, which many feel is dangerous to both the environment and human health.

Since the next legislative session is not until March of 2013, it is left up to it is up to the Arkansas Oil & Gas Commission to develop regulations for the industry.

Those desiring more information about fracking can go the website of Stop Arkansas Fracking:

http://www.stoparkansasfracking.org/

Show days and times:

Monday - 6am/6pm
Wednesday - 6am/6pm
Friday - 6am/6pm

Fayetteville Public Access Television is shown on Channel 218 of the Cox Channel line-up in Fayetteville, and on Channel 99 of AT&T’s U-Verse, which reaches viewers from Bella Vista to Fort Smith.

Fayetteville Public Access TV can also be seen on line at: http://www.livestream.com/fayettevillepublicaccesstv

*****

Quote of the Day

I spent my youth worrying about corporate power. Now I worry about corporate incompetence. - John Kenneth Galbraith

rsdrake@cox.net

Wow.

Requiring every new business (no matter what sort of business it is) to have more bike racks is a thrilling idea.

As much as we may like and admire them as individuals in the the current city administration, it mustn’t be forgotten that this is also the administration that not only managed to let the decades old Coca-Cola sign on the Square (which many people would bring others to see) be painted over, but has also turned Block Street into an old-fashioned English Gothic Folly.

Comrade Jeremy Pate, Fayetteville’s development services director, is quoted in the Northwest Arkansas Times today as saying that the proposal is based on recommendations from the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals.

I don’t drive a car, and believe that more folks should use public transportation and bicycles when practical.

But a proposal like this?

Basing local legislation on the ideas of folks who don’t actually live here, without doing an exhaustive study of how the bike racks in Fayetteville are actually used is straight out of Plato’s Cloud Cookoo Land.

We do need more bike racks outside of apartment buildings, factories and certain businesses.

But all businesses?

Scott Berna, who put a bike rack in front of his business in 2003, says that no one has used it in the nine years since it as erected. Well, no one that anyone can see, anyway. It is a funeral home, after all . . .

It would be insulting to the people of Fayetteville if the City Council were to just pass this feel-good measure without more study, and actually talk to the folks involved.

Some existing businesses need more bike racks, and some - existing or new - will never need any more than the already required number.

But for crying out loud, talk to the people this touches in Fayetteville before you vote.

******

Do you guys actually know what a president does?

Watching the crowds hoop and holler every time one of the GOP candidates says that on “Day One” they will repeal the dreaded Obamacare, and a whole host of other actions, it leads one to wonder:

Do these folks actually know what presidents can and cannot do? Are they hoping for a dictator?

The candidates know, and shame on them for playing to the ignorance of the crowds.

*****

Quote of the Day

What we learn with pleasure we never forget. - Alfred Mercier

rsdrake@cox.net

In the interests of world peace, making friends and just because I have a perverse sense of humor, I have begun responding to some of the people who send me exciting new offers over the Internet.

No, I’m not going to send them any money; that would put our relationships on a purely shallow level, and I wouldn’t insult them like that.

Instead, I have been writing short notes in response to their intriguing emails.

True, in the past I’d respond to offers of smuggling Saddam Hussein’s gold out of Iraq with a typical - “Why are you sensing this to an FBI agent?” but, you know, you soon get tired of that.

I once made the mistake of pointing out to someone claiming to be a “Sargent” in the United States Army that I suspected that a real member of the military might be able to spell his rank correctly, and got an amazingly long letter about this poor man’s poor life and his Christian upbringing, but the fun sort of went out of it after I got to the end of the badly written email.

Speaking of religion, it’s amazing how many wish to play upon the faith of those getting their emails.

Basically, it goes like this:

Hi, I am the widow of ______ who managed to embezzle millions (millions, I say!) of dollars worth of his country’s treasury before his death from a terrible disease. But the embezzlement is okay, because he was, after all, stealing it from a brute of a dictator anyway.

So, I have been given your name - even though the email is not actually addressed to you - and I’d kinda like to know if, if the spirit of mutual Christianity, you’d like to help me commit several felonies and bring the money out of the country.

What if you are not Christian, but a member of another faith, or even an atheist who might like to commit a bit of larceny? Is your help turned away?

I wrote back to one such person, pointing out the problem here, but got no response.

I did get one nice letter a few weeks ago, when a young woman wrote a letter saying that she heard that I was a pretty nice guy, and maybe I’d like to perhaps enter into a relationship with her?

Well, who can turn down an offer like that?

Sadly for my love life - besides the fact that, like the second Mrs. Gingrich, my wife is also not into open marriages - “she” made the mistake of also including the rather lengthy list of pretty much everybody else she had made the same offer to. Suddenly, I didn’t so special.

I wrote back, saying, “I am tempted, but I fear you may not have much time for me, given your interest in all of these other people.”

This earned me another rare reply, with a photograph of a beautiful young African woman, and a short general , “this is my life story, wouldn’t you love to love me?” offer, but my heart just wasn’t in it.

I’m just a one-scammer man, I suppose. I can’t share.

Last week I got a nice one informing me that someone’s divorce case was having American problems, and that my firm had come highly recommended - could I help?

I thought it over and typed back, “ I’d love to help, but I’m just not sure how I can, since I am a plumber!”

I have not gotten a reply, which shows a certain lack of initiative on their part, I think.

My pen pal relationships with my new friends are all-too-brief, but they bring me a little happiness while they last. I’ll treasure them all.

******

Quote of the Day

October. This is one of the peculiarly dangerous months to speculate in. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, June, December, August, and February. - Mark Twain

rsdrake@cox.net

The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity. - Dorothy Parker

What makes a good interviewer?

Curiosity, and the willingness to let guests talk about the subjects close to their hearts. In this regard, Shannon X. Caine was probably one of the best interviewers that public public access television in Fayetteville has had for many years.

Her program, The Caine Interviews, has run for several years in Fayetteville, on what was once known as Community Access Television (CAT) and is now known as Fayetteville Public Access Television (FPAT - ah, well). The former radio DJ and author has won awards not only for her public access work, but also in creative writing, oratory and music.

From non-profits to the Fayetteville Freethinkers, Shannon Caine brought many to her studio, and they attracted the audience not only to her show, but to public access. It’s to people like Shannon Caine that public access television in Fayetteville today owes much of its success and popularity.

She was also involved with the long-running Abbey of the Lemur program, and several pieces featuring Shannon can be found on YouTube. She is edgy and she is smart, and it shows itself well in the clips.

One of her passions over the years has been obituaries, and headstones, and she has written several books on the subject, appearing on my own show to talk about the it. I have an entirely new appreciation for art of the obituary after my interviews with Shannon Caine.

This week Shannon and her husband left Arkansas for Florida. The cliched thing to do is to say “We wish them well in their future endeavors,” but maybe we should hold a mini-wake here in Northwest Arkansas, because yet another talented person has left the area.

In 2004 I interviewed the folks behind Abbey of the Lemur for the Little Rock Free Press, and posed the question to them that one critic ( echoing those who would like to turn the public access channel into an “arts” channel) posed at the time about so-called “controversial” programming” on public access Television:

“What if a young executive and his family were staying at the Radisson, and they saw this? What would they think of Fayetteville?”

Shannon Caine's response? “They might see there was art in this damn town! That argument has always struck me as blatantly bogus. What if somebody saw it? Well, they might think that gee, we're not a one horse cow town.”

.She went on to say about such critics, “They don't understand that not everybody has to watch shows suitable for five year olds.”

Thanks, Shannon.

You helped made the community a more interesting place to live in.

******

Fayetteville Public Access Television: Come and jump in the pool

Why, yes, now that you mention it, Rambunctious Reader, there are classes free to the public at Fayetteville Public Access Television. Why not not give them them a call at 444-3433, or drop in at 101 W. Rock and tell them the guy at the bus station told you about them?

*****

The Closing of Hull House

One of my heroes in elementary school was Jane Addams of Chicago, who founded Hull House, which was founded in 1889 to provide much-needed services to immigrants and the poor while at the same time helping them through education and recreation. This later morphed into citizenship classes, medical help and other services.

At one time, Hull House served more than 9,000 people a week.

Yesterday Hull House closed after more than 120 years. Due to shut down in the spring, the money simply ran out, leaving more than 300 people without jobs - and who knows how many people without the services they provided?

No good news there.

****

Quote of the Day

He who cannot change the very fabric of his thought will never be able to change reality. - Anwar El-Sadat

rsdrake@cox.net

I was fortunate to be able to sit down with the remarkable Lowell Grisham for this fascinating conversation some years back. Even though the interview was published in early January 2005, the issues are timeless. For many, even those who don’t share his faith, Grisham is one of the reasons that Fayetteville is a good place to hang your hat.

Lowell Grisham: Agent for Change
Fayetteville Priest addresses moral issues

If you are the “right” sort of Christian, 2004 may well be your year - this might even be your decade. If you believe that God may not especially approve of civil rights, and that only conservatives have the right to decide what moral questions should be at the forefront of a national debate, you may well be in hog heave.

But if you are on of those Christians who sees life as richly diverse and complex, where do you go? Is there a church where religious and moral discussions are not reduced to the intellectual level of a bumper sticker? In Fayetteville, those of the Episcopal faith may find their questions addressed by Lowell Grisham, rector of St. Paul’s Church, located just off Dickson Street.

In many ways, the Episcopal church is a microcosm of the United States, with congregations often split over social issues. Lowell Grisham himself has never been hesitant to speak his mind on social issues, and addresses them in his various newspaper columns that he writes.

For Lowell Grisham, Fayetteville is much like his boyhood home of Oxford, Mississippi, which translates into a great comfort for him. Previous to his seven years in Fayetteville, Grisham served for several years in Fort Smith.

Sitting down with the soft-spoken Grisham in his book-lined office at the church, one cannot fail to be impressed with the care with which he answers questions. This being an election year in which “moral issues” seemed to motivate many voters, it is only natural to ask if he feels that some moral issues have not been adequately addressed during the election.

“I think the question of this war was never asked in a way that I found at all satisfying before we went to war. Now that we are at war, there seems to be a pretty stifling attempt to quash the questioning why and how the war is being engaged.”

“From a Christian perspective, for instance, this is a war that did not come close to meeting the old, conservative, traditional doctrine of a just war. I think that is a moral issue. And it never got traction.”

Grisham also expressed some misgivings over the fact that so many moral and social issues have been virtually hijacked by right-wing Christians. Indeed, many casual observers may well wonder if the right-wing, evangelical point of view may be the only valid way to address such subjects.

“I’m troubled by that. I would like to rephrase the debate. I consider myself pro-life, and I think one of the central pro-life issues that needs to be at the forefront of debate is the horrible health care system in the United states. By every objective, measurable standard, we are very, very low in the quality and availability of our health care system compared to other developed countries. That seems to be a moral issue too.

“Healing is at the forefront of what Jesus’s ministry was about. I would think that as Christians, we ought to look at how we heal people. What has happened over the past few decades is that such a conservative movement has managed to get what seems total lock on moral issues.

“I think they had a better strategy. The evangelical fundamentalist’s message has always been focused, simple and one-voiced. When you attend an evangelical church, you’re probably attending an event of ‘group think.’ Everybody tends to ‘amen,’ and think alike. There is one theology, and it’s simple enough to be said over and over in sound bites. That’s not the experience of the boarder church tradition.

“That’s bot been the experience for me, of the wonder and mystery of God. God can not be reduced to sound-bites.”

In addressing the notion the Christian message may also have become a simplistic one, he says, “Certainly, and that’s dangerous. In traditional, Biblical language, that is a form of idolatry. Whenever you reduce mystery, or reality itself, you reduce God to something that is objective, holdable, and easy to grasp, controllable, all of those are functions of idolatry.”

So why today, in a world which is becoming increasingly complex, do people have a tendency to want to cling to such beliefs?

“I think all human beings have a hunger for certainty. This quest for certainty has been at the front of the western agenda since Descartes, when he began with his simplistic, I might say, ‘I think, therefore I am.’ He kicked off the quest for certainty in every field. It starts in philosophy and goes into math, with Newton and his certainties into sociological stuff with Locke, and it went into religion as well.

“That is essentially a nonreligious stance, because religion stands in awe and openness [Grisham extends his hands to make this point] in the presence of a name that is beyond understanding. The name of God in our tradition is just not translatable but what it means is that God is utterly and completely free.

“The tetragram for God’s name in English is YHWH, translated as ‘I am.’ Well, maybe it’s ‘I am,’ or ‘I will be what I will be,’ or ‘I am becoming what I am becoming.’ It means that you can’t grasp God, you can’t control God. God is a mystery. When you shrink wrap that, it is idolatry. But is a fearsome thing, to be in the presence of utter mystery.”

His feelings about homosexuality have evolved over the years. In fact, Grisham was an outspoken supporter of Fayetteville’s Human Dignity Resolution, which proposed to protect the job rights of gay city employees. After much heated public debate, the resolution was voted down in a public vote. But just how did this son of the South manage to change his views over the years?

“Well, I grew up in the South, and I just accepted the cultural views of my upbringing, which is what we do. The nice thing about growing up in Oxford is that I lived in a culture that was proved very wrong at something very important. I was in fifth-grade when James Meredith integrated Old Miss, and riots happened. Everybody in my class, and virtually everybody in my state, was certain that segregation was a good thing. They were wrong.

“So it’s nice to grow up in a culture where you have received norms that were questioned early, and were wrong. So it left me with an openness to being able to ask questions about received wisdom. When I was in my 20s, I met someone who I already knew as a human being before I knew he was gay. As a human being, I knew him to be one of the wisest, most mature, most holy, most admirable people I have ever met, and he was something of a hero and a role model.

“And when I learned that he was gay, that was an anomaly. It didn’t fit my perceived conventions..” He pauses and adds, “I think that anomaly is another word for grace. God breaks into our conventions and opens us up to something new.”

His reaction to discovering that his friend was gay? “My jaw dropped. And I turned to him and said,’you’re not?’ and he kind of grinned ear to ear and said, ‘Yeah, I am.’ He gave me the gift of allowing a straight guy from Mississippi to ask him every stupid question a straight guy from Mississippi would ever want to ask a gay guy. With candor, integrity and openness, he answered them.”

But it didn’t stop there. “It sent me on a quest to study some of own beliefs, to study some things about science, that I didn’t know, or hadn’t thought. And gradually, I changed my mind. And since changing my mind, it has changed the way I feel about scripture, and the way I experience reality in such a way that now at this point, it is like, how could I ever have thought otherwise?”

Some observers - both inside and outside the Episcopal Church - have predicted that the church would split itself apart in a violent schism over the gay issue. Indeed, some seem to wish that the church would experience such a schism, so that other churches may be less intrepid when dealing with a basic human rights issue. But does Grisham believe that the Episcopal Church will face a major split?

“Well, yes and no. It will cause some people to leave, but it will cause others to come in. The Christian Church has been doing this for centuries. In the New Testament, we read about the challenge of whether or not non-Jewish people who listened to the story of Jesus, believed and accepted it, could be incorporated into the Christian community. Or whether they would have to be circumcised and become Jewish and follow Jewish law, which is how the early church practiced.

Just as the gay issue has divided many in the church, the ordination of women into the priesthood, now so commonplace, enraged many traditional Episcopalians years ago. But is it possible to bring people back into the fold after they have left over such a divisive issue?

“I sure think so, because I have seen it. I saw in the 60s, in my own parish, where our priest was active in the civil rights movement and lots of people left. Then as they got more comfortable with integration, as society changed, and as people mellowed, many of them came back. The church that I inherited back in Jackson had fully one third of the congregation leave at some time over civil rights issues. They left because the church had established a policy of openness and welcome toward blacks.

“I haven’t seen a church that has been impacted that dramatically by the sexuality question.” Referring to the turbulent civil rights struggles, he says, “There were riots, and there were a lot of people killed, so this seems much milder, and so much more civilized, though nonetheless serious, and stressful.”

Addressing the questions that many Christians have with prayer, he put together a small pamphlet, “Handbook for Prayer,” which he distributes at St. Paul’s. “Prayer has been a particular passion and interest of mine. I think because I had such a hard time praying when I was younger. In Seminary, I read nearly everything I could get my hands on about spirituality and prayer.

“I tried to pray, but without much success. And so I think that part of my passion for writing a booklet about prayer is that I had a long pilgrimage in trying a lot of ways to pray, and being frustrated by that. I remember there was a time when I was on a retreat, and I had brought along two or three books about prayer, and it was almost like I heard a little voice that said, ‘You have read enough about prayer. Put the books down and try.’ And once I did that, it came. It happened.”

But has he reached a total comfort level with his ability to pray?

“There is always some evolution and stretch and dial tweaking when it comes to prayer, but I have found a rule of life, and a way of prayer that is very satisfying to me.”

Some in Fayetteville may only know Lowell Grisham through his support pf what are viewed as “liberal” causes, or his strong views on civil rights.

“One of the things I am proudest of this church is the major ministries of outreach that we have. We have the Community Clinic at St. Francis House, in Springdale. The Community Clinic is the area’s largest medical/dental clinic for folks without medical insurance or access to health care. Recently the clinic became a federal clinic.”

Grisham also cites the church’s work in creating the Seven Hills Homeless Shelter. He speaks about the outreach programs with obvious pride in his voice.

Those seeking simplistic answers may not appreciate Lowell Grisham. But those who seek eloquence and a passionate interest in the important questions facing all Americans may find a pleasant surprise in Fayetteville.

Little Rock Free Press - January, 2005

rsdrake@cox.net

Even though I have long passed the point in my addiction where I crave the boxed DVD set of all the GOP presidential debates from this television season, I am still unable to turn the channel when the Sirens call on the wind:

“Newt is here, come and frolic with us. Mitt, Paul and Santorum are all here to join in the fun . . .”

And so I sit in front of the tube, even though I wouldn’t vote for any of these guys for . . . well, anything, really. The phrase used to be, “I wouldn’t vote for this guy for dog catcher,” but just think about any of these guys running an animal shelter.

But enough of my chilling your bones; that’s their job.

As the debates grind on, and I watch Romney trying to sound trough, Newt refusing to answer questions and Santorum and Paul grateful for any at all questions that might fall through the grates and come their way, once again an inescapable thought comes to mind.

When the debates first began, there was an effort to include the great unwashed American public, by having questions from YouTube and other Internet sources. But then you get malcontents like that gay soldier, who brought forth the patriotic booing from the audience, and questions about times in the candidates’ lives when they faced real poverty - other than spiritual and intellectual poverty, that is.

Who are these people, asking these impertinent questions?

As the debates have gone on - and on and on - one can’t help but notice that the Internet folks no longer seem welcome at the party, and that the questions - the ones that candidates will even answer - all just seem drawn from the front pages of the daily newspapers.

Even though this is written for my blog, I’ll be posting the link on Facebook and on several listservs, where the level of debate can be a lot messier than the GOP debates, true, but also where the level of knowledge is often greater than that of the moderators, or so it seems from the questions they ask.

The debates I find on Facebook, with links to articles, are about subjects that the candidates never address, but should. Perhaps it is time they were?

I think it is time for a 100 per cent YouTube/Facebook/Yahoo/Twitter - hell, let’s even throw in My Space - debate, where none of the questions come from professional journalists, and all of the questions come from average American people, many of whom are very well-informed, thank you very much.

Now there is a debate I would record and watch over again in years to come.

Ain’t gonna happen, though.

******

Letting Newt be Newt

I was amused by one of the Newtsters key supporters whining on MSNBC that too much control was exerted over Monday night’s debate audience, and they couldn’t leap to their feet, applaud or even hoop and holler, I suppose like it was a county fair. He claimed it threw his candidate off his game.

And in truth, Comrade Gingrich did sort of look helpless up there at times, floundering around like a comedian drowning in flop sweat, imperiously refusing to discuss certain charges against him, but instead directing folks to his website, where the “truth” would be revealed the next day.

Yeah, that’s why I watch a debate, don’t you?

Maybe the next debate should be held at a county fair, where Newt could down corn dogs while the audience whoops it up as he tosses out one-liners?

*****

Quote of the Day

Science may never come up with a better office communication system than the coffee break. - Earl Wilson

rsdrake@cox.net

Okay, this is just sort of mean-spirited, but hey, how am I gonna earn some of that Sheridan Whiteside street cred if I don’t travel down these dark paths every once in a while?

Every so often - a whole lot, really - I see ads for a certain jewelry store op up on while I am indulging myself in my Liberal Paranoia, clutching my rifle and a copy of Saul Alinsky, enjoying the prime time offerings of that dreaded liberal cable network, MSNBC.

Just like clock work , the commercials appear, featuring former Jones TV host and television news anchor Carolyn Long, telling me that I can get rid of my not-so-timeless pieces of jewelry, and the good folks at this certain store will be glad to take them off my hands.

Okay, I know that the commercials are part of a package that are sold are seen on many stations, but I take a special joy in seeing Ms. Long appear during, say, the Rachel Maddow or the Ed Schultz programs.

And why might that be?

Ah, well, just too tiny little things - and that’s the problem with having a long memory.

The first goes back to the days of the failed Human Dignity Resolution in 1998, when Fayetteville made noble attempt to add gays and lesbians to the list of folks we don’t care to discriminate against here in what used to be referred to as “the Athens of the Ozarks.”

Citizen’s Aware, a group vehemently opposed to such shenanigans, managed to convince Fayetteville voters that should the HDR manage to stay in place, it would be a sign of some sort of apocalypse. One strange ad for the group read, “Keep Your Dignity - Vote Against Resolution 51-98.”

A less-than-charming television commercial featured former Channel 29 newscaster Carolyn Long, in which she told the folks at home, “Resolution 51-98 would tear down the tolerant climate that makes living in Fayetteville so enjoyable.” She went on to echo the phrase still uttered by so many in this country, “I believe in Equal Rights not Special Privileges based on sexual preference.”

Just that alone might one suspect that Comrade Long might be comfortable if any commercials featuring her only appeared on Fox, if on any news outlet at all.

Several years ago Long was a participant in one of the very popular round-table discussions (remember them?) on Fayetteville’s Government Channel. This one dealt with controversial programming on Community Access Television, as the access station was then known.

It was a fascinating and passionate discussion, with public access activists and writers basically facing some folks who had watched public access for ten minutes, if for that amount of time at all.

At one point Long made reference to the videos played on public access that demonstrated how to kill people.

I'm sorry? What?

Okay, it’s true. Public access television is produced by members of the community, and quality of production may often vary. Sometimes you may see or hear something that may make you want to go out and kill somebody - probably the guy who made the offending show, whether the subject be art, religion or politics.

But programs on how to kill people?

Well, I’ve only been watching public access for two decades; it’s possible something infamous slipped by and nobody knew about it.

Then again, on Jones TV, Bonanza (a show I love), one of their staples of programming - now there was a show which really showed folks how to kill people!

I really, really wish I had thought of that particular answer that night.

Anyway, like public access, I’m sure that MSNBC isn’t on the “favorites” list on Long’s channel guide. That’s okay, though.

She makes frequent guest appearances . . .

******

Quote of the Day

A man is but a product of his thoughts; what the thinks, that he becomes. - Mohandas Gandhi

rsdrake@cox.net

While we are still debating whether to teach - at any grade level - the skill (and art) of cursive handwriting, the state of Indiana no longer requires their public schools to teach such an archaic skill. Instead, students will become proficient in the use of the ever-dreaded/popular keyboard.

Oh, local schools can still teach it if they want to, but I’m sure that in the years to come, we’ll have to see how many schools actually do that.

This push to shove cursive to the background until it dies on the vine is the brainchild of intellectual technocrats, who destroy everything they touch.

Arkansas schools, like many across the country, are still debating the subject. I have been reading many articles over the past few days, with many reader comments strewn like wildfire across the bottom of the various websites.

Many of the ones who say that we should still teach cursive belong to the “What would the Founding Fathers think?” school of thought, imagining a world in which young people look upon the Declaration of Independence or other historical documents and need a translator.

Oh, screw the Declaration of Independence.

And I write that as a man who reveres the document and the very-human-men, with all of their human faults and foibles who came together to create this magnificent document.

But I have copies of the Declaration all over the place.

But there is another history that we are in danger of losing contact with, one much closer to each and every one of us.

Our own families.

All too soon we may have raised a generation which looks upon the love letters written by their parents and grandparents as one might look upon the Dead Sea Scrolls. Letters written in wartime, in peace, celebrating births, the telling of daily lives, or telling of the anguish of a death will all sit in unopened boxes because the people in the present will be unable to emotionally connect in any real way with those who came before them.

We will have pictures galore. We can go to Ancestry.com.

We can hold the letters in our hands, but they will tell us no more than a picture or a trinket or a vase or an old baby blanket. The eloquence of their lives will be lost to us, thanks to the “innovations” of bean-counters and technocrats.

******

My Ray Bradbury fantasy

I have always loved the end of Fahrenheit 451, when Montag is brought to the colony of folks who preserve the art of reading books, even it only means they have to memorize them and tell them to others.

Perhaps we’ll have rogue cults of “Cursives,” those whose handwriting is better than their use of a keyboard, and so will help keep our culture alive.

*****

Five Seconds to Air - Broadcast Journalism Behind the Scenes

Bob Losure's story of his time spent in broadcast journalism - both radio and television - opens with an exciting sequence during the beginning of 1991’s Persian Gulf War. Cable News Network (CNN) had worked diligently for some months, using its not inconsiderable clout, to convince Saddam Hussein to allow the installation of a four-wire telephone system in Baghdad’s Al-Rashid Hotel. Because of that effort, CNN was able to broadcast from “behind enemy lines,” and report on what was happening in Iraq when the American air strikes began.

In Five Seconds to Air - Broadcast Journalism Behind the Scenes, he tells the fascinating story behind all of that.

CNN was able to leave all other networks in the dust, and claim a place in broadcast history, as three CNN correspondents, in a city subjected to the power of the greatest air power in the world, told the world what they saw and heard.

Back home in Atlanta, Headline News (CNN’s sister network) producers and writers broke a long-standing rule and didn’t bother to send their messages across the large newsroom by computer - they literally shouted facts and updates across the room.

Across the globe, eyes were glued to CNN and Headline News for their information. To a large degree, it has been true ever since.

Anyone wishing to learn about the early days of the world’s first truly global news network will find Losure’s book fascinating. But it isn’t just a history of the public glories and off-camera dramas which propel this book. Rather, it is the story of a hard working, ambitious young man determined to make his mark on the world.

The account follows Losure from his early days at a country western music station, to radio traffic reporting to Tulsa’s KOTV, and finally, Headline News.

Losure recounts tales both tragic and comical, and there is nary a sign of any “aren’t I wonderful” blather so often encountered in other works by journalists.

In addition to his professional life, we become acquainted with his wives and friends over the years. Possibly the most affecting chapter has little to do with the news business, but his battle with testicular cancer in the mid 1980s.

He leads the reader though his various surgeries, and chemotherapy regimen, until his victory over the cancer.

t was while he was recuperating that he made the decision to leave Tulsa and head for another arena. Watching television, he couldn’t help but notice that his on-air replacements were doing good work at the station. Sources at the sation told him that they had signed contracts and wouldn’t be moved out of anchoring positions anytime soon.

Accordingly, Losure contacted his agent, who began a job search. CNN Headline News had an opening - would he be interested?

The rest, as they say, is history. Five Seconds to Air tells the story of what it was like, creating a network from the ground up. The book relates the days when Ted Turner, CNN’s owner who lived in the on the premises for a time, wandered the building in the mid-morning hours in his bathrobe.

Losure also gives his views on the state of modern television journalism, with its over-reliance on focus groups and consulting firms. Losure left Headline News in 1997, and now makes his living doing corporate videos and taking on speaking engagements.

He has some criticisms to make of the current direction CNN has found itself in, and his views can make us take just a little closer look at the news business.

****

Quote of the Day

Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen. —Winston Churchill

rsdrake@cox.net

Our ignorance of history causes us to slander our own times. - Gustave Flaubert

I don’t do this very often, but I’m going to turn over the last part of of my blog today to Marvin Hilton, former Cable Administrator for the city of Fayetteville. I will be printing a letter that he wrote to Mayor Lioneld Jordan and to the aldermen on the Fayetteville City Council.

Like many, Hilton is concerned about some of the proposed changes that are being suggested for the Telecommunications Board, which grew out of the old Cable Board.

Hilton, whose termination from the city in 2008 had the nasty smell of politics about it, isn’t just an ordinary men or woman off the street - though they should be treated with as every bit as much respect as him.

Actually, they should probably be treated with more respect than Hilton has gotten. As of 11:30 this morning, no elected official he had sent the letters to had seen fit to even acknowledge that they had received them.

The former Cable Administrator ( who served for eight years in his job) was also a former Telecom Board member, public access producer and earned his BGS in Communication at the University of Kansas 1979. No mere technocrat, Hilton spent his time studying communications law and maintained regular contact with other access centers across the United States, something long-considered vital in access.

This is not to say that the man who succeeded him is not a good, competent man. He is.

I’ll let Hilton speak for himself.

As the title of this piece indicates, there are questions that the Fayetteville City Council needs to satisfy itself on before it changes anything with regards to the Telecom Board.

Victor Hugo (how I wish I could shake your hand!) once wrote that we legislate not for today, but for tomorrow, and the “Tomorrow Test” should be stringently applied in this case.

Today, in 2012, we have a progressive city administration which hasn’t done too much irreparable harm to public access television (I’ve written about this before), and has the best interests of the people of Fayetteville at heart.

2012

There is an upset at the polls, and most of the progressives lose their seats, or at least by 2014. We have a city administration which is openly hostile not only to public access but to the Government Channel, as well. The Telecom Board, which has long set policy - despite some revisionist history - is made up of political lackeys and resume builders.

How might these changes affect our city? Has anyone even thought of that?

In the early 1990s there was one Fayetteville project in which literally thousands of people from all across our community were asked their hopes and dreams, and immediate goals.

The Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce wanted the television cameras taken out of City Hall.

******

And here, for your reading pleasure, Mister Marvin Hilton

This is the letter that Hilton wrote to Mayor Jordan, which he also sent to aldermen.

Dear Mayor Jordan,

In 2000 the City of Fayetteville recognized the rapidly expanding communication technology by changing the Cable Board to a Telecommunications Board. Again, in 2003 Fayetteville made progressive changes by broadening the scope of the Telecom Board to keep abreast of advancing technology.

This progressiveness will be reversed by the proposed changes to the Telecom Board, which are on the City Council Agenda, for January 17, 2012. Removing those definitions and duties that were added in 2003 will imply a more narrow view. Specifically the following are proposed to be removed:

• 33.205 (a) (4) The broad definition of “Telecommunications Infrastructure.”

• 33.210 (a) (6) “Funding for the development and maintenance of the City’s telecommunications infrastructure.”

• 33.210 (b) (6) “Identify telecommunications needs and solutions in the City and define innovative approaches to the use of expanding digital capacity.”

These changes will remove the broad view that could facilitate efficiency and integration across the specialties of the different city departments, such as the Television Center, Information Technology and Parking Enforcement and Telecommunications. A specific example would be to enable citizen participation
in meetings, via two-way video, from their living rooms. Unforeseen technological advances would also more likely be overlooked.

The City Attorney’s recommendations, in regard to the proposed changes, seem to be more in line with the broader view where he states: “With further advances and changes in this exploding technological area, we will probably learn of new forms of service and new names for future providers” He recommends adding to the
scope of the Board to include Internet Protocol (IP) television provider. Isn’t this in opposition to the three regressive changes noted above?

Why are we proposing these regressive changes? I urge you to retain the broad view of the three items noted above in the present Telecom Board Ordinance and keep Fayetteville progressive.

I am doing this because I want Fayetteville to be exemplary in communication. I am available to discuss this through email, my cell phone or in person. I hope to hear from you soon.

Sincerely,

Marvin Hilton
Former Cable Administrator 1994-2008
Former Telecom Board Member 2008-2010
Public Access Television Producer of the Year 1989
Fayetteville Resident for 20 years
BGS in Communication University of Kansas 1979

*****

Quote of the Day

We are all living a life sentence in the dungeon of self. - Cyril Connolly

rsdrake@cox.net

To be begin with, it should be understood that I am the sort of person who considers the act of a doctor looking up his nose to be an invasive procedure.

It was with this in mind - and the fact that I had already had one one hernia surgery, back in 1991 - that I was less than overjoyed with the prospect of having to be opened up yet again.

I asked my doctor, “I don’t want to go to the hospital. Can’t we both just get real drunk and you can do it right here in the office with a big knife?”

He laughed, but didn’t think it was an especially good idea.

So it’s off to the surgeon I go for an appointment, whining all the way. And guess what? My gall bladder needs to come out! Oh, yeah, it does. You know how how a cartoon cat sticks its claw into a light socket and turns into a glowing skeleton? Well, that’s sort of how I was when he probed the gall bladder area.

Cool.

Two surgeries for the price of . . . two surgeries.

Having both surgeries in one day appealed to my sense of physical economy, but not any sort of common sense. I won’t entertain you with tales of pain. Those who know me and don’t like me will only enjoy them too much, and besides, we all have our own hospital stories to tell.

Anyone who has ever lived with me knows how much I like to sleep, and this week was no exception, as the doctors were just a little concerned about me coming out of the anesthesia in a decent amount of time.

Tracy, who has borne up magnificently under the strain of her own breast cancer, my ICU adventure some years ago, her sister’s lingering death in Dallas and her mother’s death from cancer, found her nerves stretched to the very limits this time. She went to the WRMC cafeteria and tried to buy some milk but they don’t take credit cards.

This was the last emotional straw for Tracy, who had no cash on her.

It was all right, she was assured by a man in line next to her. He would take care of it, just asking her to “pay it forward.”

I’ve made fun of the movie this phrase comes from in the past, but never again.

Nobody really knows where you go during anesthesia, but I’m sort of assuming that I actually did wake up. If not, and the last few days are what passes for the After Life, it leaves me with a sense of deep foreboding for the rest of Eternity.

You always tell yourself, “Oh, when I’m recuperating I’ll be able to catch up on the writing I’m behind on.”

Yeah. Let me know how that works out for you sometime.

******

Dedicated to my former boss at Mexican Original

In 1991, while working at Mexican Original in Fayetteville (very few of us who worked at MO before Tyson took over ever referred to it as Tyson’s Mexican Original) I took several weeks off to recuperate after my first hernia surgery.

Company policy dictated that those of us on sick leave got 50 percent of our paychecks while we were off, but my boss didn’t pay attention to that, and so I didn’t have to explain to creditors why payments would be late that month.

There are still some decent bosses left in the universe.

*****

And, oh, yeah, and also to the good folks at Fayetteville’s late Mountain Street Laundry

At the time I had my first surgery I was living in the townhouses behind Uncle Gaylord’s Restaurant. My friends who ran the laundry came to my home, picked up my laundry and brought it back to my home - all free of charge - during my convalescence.

Here’s to good people everywhere.

****

Quote of the Day

Another nation is made out to be utterly depraved and fiendish, while one's own nation stands for everything that is good and noble. Every action of the enemy is judged by one standard - every action of oneself by another. Even good deeds by the enemy are considered a sign of particular devilishness, meant to deceive us and the world, while our bad deeds are necessary and justified by our noble goals, which they serve. - Eric Fromm

rsdrake@cox.net

It seems I can’t turn on the television without seeing a commercial for Halls Cough Drops, featuring a sick young woman hacking her lungs out while she is at work. A tough drill sergeant appears before her and demands to know what is wrong.

“I’m sick, sir,” she croaks.

The drill sergeant then proceeds to pretty much ream her out, because, well, here in America we expect sick workers to show up for work.

She pops a Hall’s Cough Drop - or two - and feels good enough to go back to work. Because, after all, as the announcer tells us, with Halls:

“There is Pep Talk in every Drop.”

And where is she working? In the freezer aisle of a supermarket. And I’m sorry, but that blue smock she has on always makes me think of a certain retail behemoth based out of Arkansas.

But yeah, she is working around food. And she is probably also working around other people who work around food, who also have contact with customers.

Circle of life, baby. It’s a beautiful thing.

When I was still punching a time clock, we were told that one of the reasons companies did not offer sick days was because employees would “abuse” them. This may seem laughable to you, but it might not seem so if you knew how many hourly workers also took up this refrain, and agreed with the company, arguing against their own best interests.

So it’s best if employees come to work and infect other workers with what they have.

Along with the “Employees must wash their hands before hands before returning to work” sign one so often finds in restrooms, perhaps supermarkets should also have signs advising folks to clean their food with sanitizer once they get it home, because some of their employees couldn’t afford to take the day off.

******

The Manly Men of the GOP

One of the last questions in Saturday night’s GOP Presidential debate was to ask what each of the candidates might be doing on a Saturday night if they weren’t trying to rip apart people they claim to be friend with.

Rick Perry, leading the pack, declared that he would probably be at the shooting range.

Others would be watching basketball games, while Ron Paul would be snuggling up with an economics book.

The only family-oriented answer came from Jon Huntsman, who said that he would probably he on the phone with his sons in the United States Navy.

Because none of these guys, you know, have family here. And god forbid anyone should say, “Well, my wife bought me season one of Bonanza for Christmas, and I hope to catch up on a few episodes.”

The shooting range? Why not just tell us you are reading Water-boarding for Dummies?

*****

How can you you tell when Mitt Romney is upset?

Watching the ever-smarmy Mitt Romney in the GOP debates is fascinating. On one hand, he seems so assured of the nomination that that he just stands there with that supercilious expression on his face, taking it all in stride.

But sometimes . . .

Sometimes the attacks of his GOP rivals get through, and he responds. The best way to tell if the slings and arrows have gotten through?

His voice rises, and he he begins to talk really, really fast.

****

Quote of the Day

If you reveal your secrets to the to the wind you should not blame the wind for revealing them to the trees. - Kahlil Gibran

rsdrake@cox.net

For almost 30 years, viewers outside the city of Fayetteville were able to see the offerings of the city’s public access channel,. Indeed, before the current city administration saw fit to deem them unworthy, men and women from all over the county came down to public access, and shared their passion and creativity with the rest of us - and took workshops on how to use equipment.

The now-defunct Jones Television was offered county-wide.

The Inconvenience of Free Speech

Devotees of public access take a hit in Washington County

For many, it was the first inkling that anything was amiss. On January 14, producers and allies of Fayetteville’s Community Access Television received an alarming E-mail from the C.A.T. Staff.

“You may or may not be aware of an important issue that affects the future of CAT in Washington County. Recently, both the City of Fayetteville and Washington County separately renegotiated their Cox Cost Contract with Cox Cable. Though Fayetteville decided to ask for many benefits for CAT on the Fayetteville contract, Washington County decided to allow their old contract to stand. However, Cox entered a provision into their contract with Washington County which means that after January 26th 2005, CAT will not air in the following cities:

Beaverama

Farmington.

“There has been proposal that in those cities, CAT may be replaced with the Jones Center's channel. Needless to say, CAT has many viewers and producers who are residents of the above-mentioned cities. One obvious matter for concern is that these producers, and their friends, families, and organizations deserve to be able to see the programming they produce! Another concern is that for residents of smaller towns, CAT may be the only forum available to create and air video. Certainly, many nonprofit organizations and schools in those towns look to CAT for their media needs.”

And so began what is only the most recent public debate over public access television in Northwest Arkansas. Celebrating 25 years of serving the community on April 1, public access has long been a lightning rod for those who find that free speech is far better in the abstract than in reality.

At this point I need to tell you that I am president of the board of directors of Community Access Television, and have been producing programs for almost 15 years.

There has been a lot of thought given to exactly what the motivation of Cox Cable might be in this matter. The specter of media consolidation has been suggested, as well as the oft-proposed regional arts channel, which some have hoped might replace the nuisance of public access.

And a few are referring to the “Culture Wars” which now threaten everything from cartoons to music. And, given the frank comments by at least one representative of Cox, freedom of speech is also very much at stake in this instance.

C.A.T. Manager Sky Blaylock says, “The Cox representative, James Anderson, spoke before the Elkins city council, and actually stated that there had been complaints about C.A.T. programming having the F-word and nudity while children could watch during the day. We have found nothing in any of our records since 2003 [when Blaylock became manager] that there has ever been a complaint about day-time programming.”

Nevertheless, the canard that C.A.T. regularly schedules such programming in the day or during evening “prime time” hours is trotted out all too often by those with no evidence to back up what they are saying. Daily newspapers will often print the charges verbatim, without any checking up to verify the accusations.

The point could also be made that Cox regularly offers channels which might also offend viewers. Those channels, however, are profitable for a cable company; public access channels bring no revenue to a cable outfit.

And Fayetteville is far from alone in its struggles; many access stations across the United States face similar situations.

“The point needs to be made that this is the old switcheroo, “ C.A.T. board member Colleen Pancake claimed at the Government Channel roundtable discussion. “They are trying to switch out a channel, and say it’s the same, but they are not the same. I can not stress this enough. Freedom of speech is the corner stone of our democracy. To switch it out for a channel that doesn’t have that as its most important point - it is at their discretion whether or not they choose to air a program.

“At C.A.T. we don’t have that. We support freedom of speech, which means that everyone has access. That [Jones TV] is not an access channel.”

Public access stations do not have the right to turn programming away, nor would most want that right. Blaylock says, “The only thing we can not air is something that is illegal. But if someone has something that legally they want to put out to the community, we have to put it on the air. There is nothing that we can censor, unless something is illegal.

“The people who submit programming to the channel accept responsibility for their programs. They sign a statement of compliance saying that everything in their program is legal.”

The battles have covered a far-ranging field over the past quarter of a century. From its birth as Fayetteville Open Channel on Dickson Street, to its current home as Community Access Television (located on Rock Street), public access has been both praised and condemned over the years.

Through all of the battles over the years, public access has served as a tapestry of Fayetteville and the smaller towns around, serving a combination religious, art, political, and music channel - plus scores of other subjects too numerous to mention. The programs range from mainstream to edgy and avant garde; one thing public access has never been accused of is being “bland.” As most programs are produced by members of the community, it is “public access” in the truest sense.

But if Cox Cable succeeds in having their way, blandness may be the wave of the future for many viewers in Northwest Arkansas.

Beginning in late January, public access will confined to the Fayetteville area. Instead of access, viewers will now have Jones TV, which is a service of the Jones Center for families in Springdale. Since Jones TV is what is known as “leased access,” content can be controlled by the channel operators. Fayetteville’s public access channel is part of a larger system known as PEG, which stands for Public, Education and Government. As a result of the decision by Cox, no one outside Fayetteville will be able to see the Government Channel or the Educational Channel, run by the University of Arkansas.

Other than programs informing the community about access television, and a feature known as “Short Takes,” in which local citizens can use the airwaves to speak about any subject they wish, the station merely serves as a conduit by which local producers may show programs of their own making. To that end, public access offers classes in television production, so that members of the community may become adept at making their own shows.

So while Community Access Television makes no decisions about content, Jones TV can and does. And, by extension, so does Cox Cable. James Anderson, the director of public relations and government affairs for this part of the state, was quoted in the Northwest Arkansas Times as saying with regard to the programming on Jones TV, “We thought their programming good enough to provide everywhere.”

The situation is especially irksome for Sky Blaylock. . “This is a particularly bad time for us to be taken off in all the small towns in the Washington County area, since it is the eve of our 25th anniversary, “ she explained at a recent Roundtable discussion held on the Government Channel.

At the same roundtable, Jim Bemis, who has documented the able struggles in Fayetteville for close to decade, said, “There was no announcement of what was going to happen until Cox put it in a newspaper ad.’

Bemis claims that Cox has been less than forthcoming when it comes to negotiation with various civic bodies in Northwest Arkansas.

Relations between Cox Cable and Fayetteville’s public access provider have been rocky for some time. Several years ago, Cox made the decision to move C.A.T. from its position on channel 8, to channel 18, a move known as “slamming” in the public access community. In some cities, cable companies have moved access stations to as high as channel 99.

Since that time, representatives of C.A.T. have sought financial redress from Cox, in order to pay for the expense of new logos, and advertising. Though Cox has thus far balked, several cities across the United States have gotten remuneration from cable companies after they have been slammed.

Recently Fayetteville’s Telecommunication Board recommended that Cox be dunned late fees for not paying the slam budget in a timely manner. This move is unlikely to impress Cox, however, which seems to have an almost cavalier attitude concerning its relations with the city of Fayetteville.

As of late January, Fayetteville residents are able to watch both C.A.T. and Jones TV. In a perfect world, that would seem a rather elegant solution, both for Fayetteville and for those areas no longer able to view C.A.T. But here are those who suspect that Jones may attempt to bid for the public access contract. There are those who worry, however, that a station emanating from an organization which has as one of its stated goals, “to glorify God,” would be willing to run programs which run counter to their philosophy.

In 2004, C.A.T. Producer Bob Emenegger took a program he had made at C.A.T. with Arkansas Democrat-Gazette columnist Mike Masterson. After it had been there for some time, Emenegger attempted to see what the status of the program was.

Emenegger says, “It was frustration trying to get a response. Finally I went to the Jones Center and was told ‘perhaps with some editing it might be ok.’ What? Editing? I picked up my copy and left. Never heard from them again.”

Emenegger says that the show was about either UFO's or death . He wonders if the subject matter is what made Jones TV reluctant to show his program.

Jones TV director Beth Mack takes issue with this, claiming that there were audio problems in the program that were responsible for it being rejected. To date, Bob Emenegger has been the only C.A.T. producer to take programming up to Jones TV, though that situation is bound to change.

It is difficult to determine exactly what the guidelines for programming at Jones might be, since they are not posted on their website. However, Mack said in a telephone interview that the guidelines would be in line with the stated purpose of the Jones Center, which is to, “Strengthen families, build community, and glorify God.”

It might be difficult to imagine that programming by the Fayetteville Free Thinkers, a local group who challenge religious dogma, - which has been featured on C.A.T. - might be allowed on Jones TV.

Some elected officials feel that they were not presented with all of the facts before signing off on the agreement with Cox. At least one Washington County JP called Don Bright’s radio talk show on KOFC, claiming that he believed that Cox had not been entirely forthcoming concerning the schedule and the seven year contract with the county signed with the cable company.

Another claimed that the cable changes had come in “under the radar.” If elected officials are left feeling sand-bagged by Cox, how might regular citizens feel?

C.A.T. Producer Bemis, an activist who has also performed yeoman’s work in documenting the cable situation on a website (www.telecomWatch.us), says, “Cox is big enough to bully, and they do. They do what they can get away with.” He also points to the fact that six major corporations in the United States control most of the media.

“They control what we see,” he adds. “You may think you are controlling it by clicking at home, but they have already clicked what you are going to see.”

In Elkins, alderman Tim Martens took issue with Cox over their decision. He said that he was concerned because Fayetteville and Elkins have strong ties, and people in Elkins would no longer be able to watch Fayetteville Government meetings.

rather than apologizing, Cox representative Anderson answered that Fayetteville’s PEG channels should never have gone beyond Fayetteville. He also made the claim (without providing any evidence) that Cox receives more complaints about prime time programming on C.A.T. than about any other channel. Anderson also made the claim that people complain about nudity and profanity on the prime time schedule, a charge the staff at C.A.T. contest. “Adult” programming is shown after midnight, which doesn’t seem to fit even a liberal definition of “prime time.”

This has prompted one member of the telecommunications Board to request documentation concerning this accusation.

And Marvin Hilton, Cable Administrator for the city of Fayetteville, has said that the actions of Cox are tantamount to a desire on the part of the cable company to control the content of what county viewers may see.

For their part, it may be that Jones TV is unaware of what C.A.T. actually does. Jones TV Executive Director Mack, in an interview with the Northwest Arkansas Times, touted Fayetteville oriented programming, and a community message board - both of which have been on Fayetteville’s public access for 25 years.

In her telephone interview, Mack told me that she “absolutely” has no problem with Jones TV and C.A.T. being on the same channel line-up, as it is in Fayetteville.

But when pressed for how she might feel about Jones and C.A.T. being on the same channel line-up in Washington County, she said that she would have to defer that question to Cox representative James Anderson, who has already both praised Jones TV, and said that Cox had complaints about C.A.T. programming. It might lead one to question just how much autonomy Jones TV has if the director is hesitant about expressing an opinion about something of this nature.

In truth, complaints about programming on C.A.T. are far and few between, though, as if by magic, they always seem to appear when public access is in the news. One long-time critic (and former C.A.T. employee) is particularly incensed because Free Speech TV - downloaded from satellite - runs on C.A.T. from 3am to 6am.

Claiming (in a complaint he recently made to City Hall) that he programs his DVR to record the block of programming each night, and then scans the program so that he can find anything which he might find objectionable. He had much to say about gay oriented programming at FSTV, some of which he claims is explicit.

In an E-mail that he requested to passed along to the Telecomm Board, he wrote, “Nearly every show liberally uses the "F" word. It is *never* bleeped out..This type of thing airs almost every night on FSTV. CAT claims this block of programming is 'sponsored' and therefore no responsible for its content. Other feeds are available on Dish Network to play other programming, but CAT devotes the entire overnight slot to ONLY FSTV and no one else.

“But not only is the content questionable, but the very fact CAT reserves such a huge block of time to such a biased and politically slanted channel like FSTV is highly objectionable. The ultra left-wing FSTV is enjoying free air play in our city...at our expense!”

There are a small programs on C.A.T. which are downloaded from satellite feed, such as Amy Goodman’s Democracy Now. Far from being controlled by a left-wing conspiracy, however, conservatives have also used C.A.T. to great advantage - both with locally produced programs and imported programs made elsewhere.

During prime time, however, locally produced programming is given priority.

At times, the C.A.T. staff is almost accused of exerting powerful mental control over many viewers. A recent telephone complaint by a man who said he “had to watch” a program (at 12:30am) featuring the liberal use of profanity, as well as a “fat guy in a g-string” thanking local governments for providing the channel.

The caller further said that such programming should be illegal, and requested a copy of the show, so that he could show it to local churches, in order to gather support in stopping programs of a similar nature. “Good people aren’t going to sit back and appreciate this crap,” he told the person who took his call.

There seems to be something almost mesmerizing about adult programming; many of those filing complaints report that they watch an entire program, keeping a record of everything they claim offends them.

Several of those who have complained over the years decry the use of their tax dollars to pay for programming they find objectionable. However, Cox pays a franchise fee to the city, and C.A.T.’s funds are derived from that.

It should also be pointed out that only a small percentage of C.A.T. programming is of an adult nature. Since programming is provided by the community, it ranges from religious programming to political discourse, and everything in between.

But it’s always easier to find criticism than praise. Yet whenever public access is threatened in Fayetteville, people emerge from all parts of the community, ready to stand between power brokers and a channel dedicated to freedom of speech.

Since the channel change, C.A.T. has received several calls from those in the county viewing area, upset that they no longer receive public access.

Some in city government may prefer Jones TV for the same reason that a regional arts channel was touted over public access - it is attractive and noncontroversial. That such a channel may ultimately bore people who are used to local issues discussed on C.A.T. may not matter to those in power.

As I wrote before, in a perfect world, Community Access Television and Jones TV could exist on the same channel line-up, and viewers could watch both. But only in Fayetteville is that likely to happen. The rest of Washington County will only be able to watch a channel which is as bland as it is pretty.

The Jones TV schedule is is broken into blocks of programming. “Classic Arts” are shown nationally, and features musical performances - many as much as 40 years old. According to their website, Jones TV airs them “to tempt the viewer to go out and take advantage of the variety of arts available in our local community.

There are also programs on pets, money management, yoga and health, as well as educational programming from the Annenberg/CPB Channel.

These are all fine programs, but viewers used to seeing local issues discussed at length, or alternative points of view presented may soon be noticing the spice missing from their local programming.

Of course, for others, this will be perfect. If we could keep gays or peace activists (for example) off local television, they say, they would be glad to support C.A.T. Not to mention the late night shows where a fake penis might be in full view.

Sky Blaylock says, “What you’ll notice when public access is gone, is that everything is going to look the same. Just like the broadcast networks do now. They all look the same. The reason that access stands out is that it looks different. The programming on here is produced by the community members.

“Television could have been the most wonderful thing for our world. For social change, for education, communication. But instead it is used to sell products. And that is what we are looking at now, which is why we have involved media literacy into our training program, to teach people about how commercials affect them. And how they can think for themselves.”

It’s possible that viewers have been spoiled by having a channel n their midst on which so many viewpoints have free access. And bitter experience has taught us all that its easy to deny access to people and ideas that are not in line with “mainstream” thinking.

And when restrictions are placed on who or what can be shown on TV, the list never shrinks; it only grows larger with time.

Little Rock Free Press - 2006

rsdrake@cox.net

“The people of Iowa have spoken,” intoned one somber news anchor after another yesterday, informing viewers of the Republican caucus held in that state on Tuesday.

Did I miss something? Was a national election somehow held in Iowa this week, months before the rest of the country got a chance? What made them the boss of us?

And given the abysmal record of Iowans predicting presidents through their caucuses, it just seems extraordinarily silly to waste all of this television and newspaper time on that particular state.

As I was looking over the results, though, I found myself wondering how long it would take Mitt Romney to try and compete with Rick Santorum for the votes of the hard-right, the most intolerant of the party?

I am sure the lurching right-ward has already begun.

******

The Scowling One versus the Athens of the Ozarks

Honestly, if Congressman Steve Womack was just just going to regurgitate GOP cliches and talking points, maybe he should have tried it on a less informed audience.

I’m still betting this is the last one he does in Fayetteville for a long, long time . . .

*****

Apartments for “students”

Okay, maybe it’s reverse snobbery on my part, but it always gets my back up when folks build new apartment buildings with “students” in mind..

Because those who punch a time clock should live in nasty old apartments? Or trailer parks?

Yes, I know we are a typical college town, and I should be used to it by now.

But I’m not, and I hope I never am.

****

Quote of the Day

I am the enemy of long explanations; they deceive either the maker or the hearer, or both. - Goethe

rsdrake@cox.net

Once upon a time, way back in the wild and woolly days of the 20th Century, one of the arguments against the building of large structures on or near Dickson Street was that they would block the public’s view of UA’s Old Main. This, of course, is one of the most famous sites in Fayetteville, and even folks who have never taken a class at the university take their out-of-town visitors to see this landmark.

Well, once that particular dam sprung a leak, blocking the view of Old Main has seemed almost a competition among developers. That so very many of the buildings which now dot the Dickson skyline seem not to be, say, filled to capacity should not bother us at all.

It’s the thought that counts.

So let’s build ourselves yet another hotel/parking deck/multi-story skating rink around Dickson Street.

Because, after all, developers know best . . .

******

This might be the last time Congressman Steve Womack holds a public meeting in Fayetteville

Now that The Scowling One has announced that he will hold his town hall meeting tonight in Fayetteville (5:30-6:30pm) at Happy Hollow Elementary School, this is the perfect chance for the informed voter to ask him detailed questions concerning his views, votes and anything else that might come to mind.

This is the perfect opportunity for folks in Fayetteville to once again prove how informed they are - especially when faced with an elected official who does nothing but toe the party line.

Once again, it is a chance for our community to shine.

I also hope that enterprising individuals tape TSO’s performance, so that his answers can be shown on public access television and YouTube.

*****

Don’t take the working class vote for granted in 2012

2012 is already shaping up to be an exciting year. Any political party or group worth its salt will be making plans to aggressively reach out to the working men and women of Northwest Arkansas, to not only get their message out, but to to hear the concerns of those in our midst.

****

Quote of the Day

Never trust someone who has to change his tone to ask something of the Lord. - Roberta A. Everett

rsdrake@cox.net