A Better REGION 8

Putting Satellite Rumors to Rest

About once a week someone contacts us asking when KAIT will be available on Satellite TV. I wish I had that answer. Rumors abound about why we are not on satellite. I hear some real humdingers every once in a while. Let’s put all the rumors to rest. The reason that KAIT is not available on satellite is very simple. At this time Dish and DirectTV have no plans to add local television stations. It is not a conspiracy on our end or theirs, it is simply their business decision. Thanks to that decision, 31 television markets across the country aren’t available on satellite. Thanks to Congressman Marion Berry and others, that could be changing soon. Congressman Berry has cosponsored HR 927,The Satellite Consumers Right to Local Channels Act in the US House of Representatives. The bill is currently before the House Energy and Commerce committee.  HR 927 is a bill which would require the satellite companies to carry ALL local television station signals. These companies made that promise years ago and have still failed to meet their obligation.  When the satellite companies don't carry local stations, they keep their customers in the dark. Local news and weather is unavailable. Consumers are prevented from getting severe weather updates, amber alerts, and other emergency information. Congressman Berry knows this is a problem and is working for you in Washington to get this fixed. For our Missouri viewers, you should know that so far Congresswoman Emerson has remained quiet on this issue. We need to let her know how important this is. If you live in Missouri’s eighth district contact her office and let her know that you want and need passage of HR 927. It will make Region 8 safer and better.

A Better REGION 8 - Putting Satellite Rumors to Rest

The Blue Catfish...SERIOUSLY!

Last week when I talked about the initiative in the Arkansas legislature to allow guns in church, I stated that “We live in serious times and we need our state officials to work on serious matters.” Some of you took issue with that statement and said that this was indeed a serious issue and that our legislators should be able to multitask.  Now I’m not going to address the guns in church issue again but I took time to investigate some of the other serious work that our legislature is tackling this session and I found several bills that raise an eyebrow.  I’d like to focus on one that I found quite interesting. You see,  Representative Gregg Reep of Warren took serious time away from the work of the house last week to work on a bill that would make the blue catfish the official fish of the State of Arkansas. The committee on state agencies and governmental affairs wasted serious time discussing the merits of the blue catfish versus other noteworthy fish such as the brown trout and the small mouth bass. Fortunately, the bill was tabled in committee and therefore won’t waste more time before the entire house. Unfortunately, we don’t  know  how much time it took to discuss the merits of all the various fish that can be found in Arkansas waters. What we do know is that whatever amount of time they used to discuss and vote on it was seriously wasted. Adding yet another Official Symbol of the State of Arkansas is not nearly as important as other issues that need to be addressed now. We already have 17 official symbols and that list includes the state’s official historic cooking vessel.  I will say it again, we live in serious times and we need our state officials to work on serious matters. We can expect nothing less if we want our state and Region 8 to be better.

A Better REGION 8: The Blue Catfish...SERIOUSLY!

Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammo II-Viewer Feedback

I was not surprised when my last commentary drew the ire of some folks and in the spirit of making this A Better Region 8 I thought it only fair to share their comments with you. Roy wrote in to say:

“I think your wrong about conceal carry weapons in church, it's not about the gun, it's about the church making their own decision I believe conceal carry weapons should be a matter of the church not our law makers. Frankly I'm sick of our government sticking their nose where it don't belong . if a person doesn't like conceal carry weapons in church they don't have to attend that church. That would be their decision.  “

JM chimed in and shared his opinion about my support of the second amendment. Here is what he had to say.

“Obviously, you're not as staunch a supporter of the 2nd Amendment as anyone or you wouldn't have said the things you said…Your doublespeak comments are ludicrous, not the bill to remove another infringement on the right to keep and bear arms. If you were a true supporter, you'd be applauding this effort as are all true supporters. The more we can step the government out of our lives and restore our inalienable rights, the better off we'll all be; I just don't understand why so many people can't see that…You may want to examine whether you truly believe in the right to bear arms or not; sounds to me like you're not really convinced.”

Now I will tell you, I believe in the second amendment. However, if my ideas that we shouldn’t rewind back to the old west where everyone packs a gun anywhere they please prevent me from being a true supporter, then so be it. I believe in the first amendment as well. Freedom of speech and freedom of the press allow me to stand here and spout my opinions. However, there are limitations to those freedoms. You can’t shout fire in a crowded theatre. And I still believe that guns have no place in church.

Now as I said earlier, I'm really not surprised that some disagree with my opinion. However, the whole purpose of these editorials is to get people thinking, to initiate debate and discussion, and to simply share a perspective. Thanks to these folks for sharing theirs and for keeping it civilized. . Participation in civilized debate is a lost art that we ought to relearn. We’ll all be better for it and so will Region 8.

A Better REGION 8: Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammo II-Viewer Feedback

Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammo

The story goes that during the attack on Pearl Harbor, a Navy chaplain was asked to pray for divine intervention. At that point he reportedly offered a short prayer…”Praise the lord and pass the ammunition” and then he proceeded to man a turret gun. Fast forward a half century and you hear several folks using that same phrase here in Arkansas, but for different reasons. Some members of our state legislature are spending serious amounts of time to change the concealed/carry law to allow folks to go to church packing more than just their bible. The whole notion is flat-out ridiculous. Now I’m as firm a believer in the right to keep and bear arms as anyone. But even with the church shooting incidents that made national headlines last year, putting concealed hand guns in places of worship is just plain wrong. We live in serious times and we need our state officials to work on serious matters. We have too many serious items that should be placed on the legislatures agenda to waste time on something as ludicrous as arming the faithful in places of worship. Let your representatives and senators know we need them to concentrate on serious matters of state. Putting handguns in church is a bad idea and this law will not make for a Better Region 8. Let ‘em know about it.

A Better REGION 8: Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammo

Keep Your Job Off The Chopping Block

626-thousand.  That’s the staggering number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits in just one week, the last week of January. The number of unemployed Americans is now at an all-time high, and experts say it’s could get worse. That should be a wake-up call for those of us lucky enough to have a job. Our jobs may not be safe either, and we should be doing all we can to keep them. Think about it.  Are there improvements you can make in your job performance, to have the best chance of surviving a lay-off? None of us are guaranteed that we’ll have a job tomorrow, but here is some advice that might keep your job off the chopping block:

 

Find positive ways to stand out from your co-workers

 

Show up on time,  be well dressed, ready to give your all every day.

 

Don’t complain about details, be seen as a team builder, or a team leader

 

Accept any offer to cross-train, or to learn a new job

 

And finally, look for new ways to help your business succeed.

 

If you’re unemployed right now, you have our sympathy. It can’t be easy and we wish you the best as you find work. If you are employed, take your job seriously.  Because if you’re not committed to your job, there are plenty of people out there who want to work, and will take it seriously. If any good can come from our nation’s current economic crisis, maybe it could be an improvement in our collective work ethic. That will makes us a stronger nation and it will make this a Better Region 8.

 

A Better REGION 8: Keep Your Job Off The Chopping Block

Postponing the Big Switch

I’m sure you’ve seen the many commercials and announcements crawling across the bottom of your screen regarding the Big Switch. For over 18 months KAIT along with every other television station in the country has been telling you about the shutdown of analog television broadcasting on February 17^th. Well, that has changed. Citing troubles with the execution of the government’s converter box coupon program and an recent estimate that 5.7% of Americans are completely unprepared for the transition, your government has now moved the transition date to no later than June 12.  From the beginning, the government was taking a guess by trying to project the number of coupons needed. Unfortunately, they guessed poorly.  As of last week, 3.7 million requests for converter box coupons were still on a waiting list because the coupon program ran out of money. Add the 6 week delivery time to process a coupon and that means if they approved the money today, you would still be waiting until the 1^st of April to get one. That’s the business end of the problem. But when you add in the political ramifications for a new president and  congress, it gets a little muddier. If there had been difficulties with the Big Switch, Democrats would have taken the heat. President Obama and the Democrats simply had everything to lose by proceeding with the February switch. So, the switch has been postponed. Where do we go from here? That’s easy. We have a little more time to face the inevitable. Analog television is going away. The sooner you are prepared, the better off you will be. Getting the job done now instead of putting it off until June will put you ahead of the curve and will make for a Better Region 8.

A Better REGION 8: Postponing the Big Switch

There Ought to be a Law

When faced with a crisis it is in man’s nature to do one of three things, respond well, respond poorly, or simply not respond at all. As we have faced this winter crisis here in Region 8 we’ve all felt good when seeing the stories about those who responded well: Those people who found it within themselves to provide shelter and assistance, Those folks that have worked endless hours to take care of their neighbors, Those men and women who are still  working right now to restore power and to reach out to those who need help most. We should all give thanks for those who have chosen to respond well.  But I want to take a minute to address those who have responded poorly. Now I can understand someone being frustrated and crossing a line when faced with this much adversity.  However, some folks have done much more than cross the line. For instance, It is ridiculous that some area power companies were forced to request armed police officers to protect the workers in their offices because people just couldn’t act right. It is appalling that  the state police have had to dispatch additional troopers to cities and counties in Region 8  to confront the problem of thefts and burglaries. It is down-right ridiculous that someone got so angry that they fired shots into an area Mayor’s car. A Mayor  who, by the way, took her own generator from her own home and used it to power her city’s shelter. Something has got to be done. Our legislature is currently in session and I believe they are just the ones to do it. Folks, we need a law. We need a  law that tacks on mandatory sentences for crimes committed during a disaster. A law that will deter those who respond poorly or make them pay dearly for it when caught. We need our elected officials to create a law that will protect all our citizens in a crisis and make this A Better Region 8. Call your Legislator today!

A Better REGION 8: There Ought to be a Law

Enduring the Winter Blast

This past week has been difficult for most everyone in Region 8. When the power went out we all huddled together, shifted from home to home and shelter to shelter, and did our best to stay warm and endure.  As I started the clean up at my house this weekend, I paused for a moment and looked up at this one large old broken oak tree. I couldn’t help thinking that it will forever bear the scars of this winter blast. But then I looked a little closer. It already had scars from previous winters. And…it had endured. It was resilient. It had grown past those old broken branches, those memories of winters past,  and had become the large oak tree that it is today. Firmly rooted in region 8 soil. And that made me think about the people of our region.  Unfortunately some of us will suffer a while longer as crews work to restore power, but they too, will endure. Like that old oak, the people of region 8 are resilient. While we will forever bear the scars of the winter of ’09, we have some good memories to carry us forward. People all over Region 8 have thrown together makeshift shelters to provide for their neighbors.  People in those shelters have shared how they enjoyed getting to know others in their community. Moms and Dads are getting quality time with their kids, playing games and sharing stories because we were thrust back to a simpler time before Xbox and ipods.  And we have tried hard to make the best of a bad situation.  With our roots firmly planted in Region 8 soil, we will endure. We will rebound. We will be resilient. And that will make this A Better Region 8.

A Better REGION 8: Enduring the Winter Blast