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March 15 Virginia Rest Stop Closing ProtestThe following is an excerpt of my protest of the proposed closure of rest stops along the interstate highways in the state of Virginia. It is very important that you make your feelings known to the Virginia Department of Transportation, as they are in a period of pubic comment. I have been around long enough to remember the creation of the interstate highways. Rest stops are just as important as seat belts and airbags. Drivers need places to periodically pull off rest and stretch their legs, so they can proceed safely. Here is my commentary:
I just heard about the folly of so called money saving closures of rest stops along the interstates that serve the state of Virginia. I am here to say that this is a false economy and totally foolish thinking.
1. Rest stops are more than just a place for a restroom break. Our rest areas are SAFETY stops. We are opening ourselves up to multi-million dollar lawsuits based on the lack of due diligence by the state of Virginia to provide adequate areas for weary travelers. What if two or three accidents happen along our interstate in the vicinity of a closed rest stop, caused by a driver that for whatever reason suffering from "highway hypnosis" and killed innocent fellow travelers. Or how about the person who is over 50 that needs to use the restroom and finds our rest stop closed. The danger caused by cars parked along the side of the road, while someone goes into the weeds to find a place to relieve themselves is dangerous and ignorant -however, when nature calls many people will do just that... leaving the possibility someone hitting that parked car. My guess is the lawsuits would run in the millions all by themselves. Then what happened to your savings, my friend??? Lost lives because of closed rest stops are horrible enough, but to have the heartache trebled by countless legal actions would affect our state's economy in a very negative way. Keep all of our rest stops open for Safety’s sake.
2. Rest stops are the beginning of a welcoming relationship to those who come through our state on vacation or business. Did your parents not teach you about the principle of "first impressions?" Do we really want the first impression to our state to be that "you are so not wanted here that we closed the rest stop - go pee in the median?" I see that the rest stops that are proposed to be left open are at the state borders. That is fine IF your travel started at the state border. How about those who fly in and rent vehicles? DUH! Many users of the interstate get on at other locations besides the interstate at the state border. Please re-think your logic here.
We want more people to feel welcome here, with nice, clean restrooms and information about local sites of interest. This is how business and vacation travel grows. If anything you need to find ways to add value to your current rest areas by creating premium retail areas for vendors to lease and provide food, fuel and other necessities. Then you are doing business and saving money, my friend. March 05 Paul Harvey TributeSad to hear of the passing of the master "word-crafter" Paul Harvey. Paul was the consummate communicator. If the word did not exist, he would create it, and annunciate it with such flair that it would become an unforgettable component of the American vocabulary.
Paul was gifted with a heaping-helping of common sense, and took it upon himself to educate us all as to what fairness and credibility were all about. Citadel-ABC is just another network without him. Paul will be a very hard act to follow.
One day the folly of the money chasers who invaded, raped and pillaged our industry of radio will be analyzed to find that you cannot sell a canvas until you have an artist to paint the picture.
The question will be asked, what about the starving artist of the radio age - why were they compensated so little for filling the ether canvas while those who owned and managed the medium took their unfair share. At least Paul got his fair share. He was paid well, yet never thought so much about the money. Paul Harvey truly did rise to that magical peak of the hierarchy of need and shined like a beacon for all to follow. February 20 My 2005 prediction became reality Say it ain't so! Well, for too long, too many lemmings have been dancing too close to the edge of the cliff. I predicted dire consequences in light of an alarming trend that has been brewing for the last 30 years. 1. Excessive compensation of corporate managers. In the 1970's a corporate head would make about 27 times the salary of a person working on the floor. Right now that same CEO is making on average over 400 times the salary. Yes you could run an entire small factory on what that one person is making. This kind of outrageous pay for a CEO is unconscionable and a ripoff to the shareholders. 2. The consistent loss of real buying power to the average American. In 1970, the minimum wage was $1.65 per hour. Todays minimum is $6.55. In 1970 a decent car with all the trimmings would cost $3,000. Today for a similar car $30,000. So, follow the logiic... The average American will respectfully require the average salary to increase to around $30 per hour, and the Minimum Wage to increase to $16.55 per hour.... or the price of everything will have to drop significantly to meet the reduced salary to generate buying power for the common american worker. Ask yourself honestly how can a person who is making $12 an hour afford to pay for a $250,000 mortgage? 3. The loss of our industrial base Our nation requires money to cycle at least 7 times through the economy. In a service based economy this is impossible. We have way too many people sitting idle because there is no way to harness their skills in the workplace. Granted many of them have limited education - which limits their opportunities, however some people are skilled with their hands in labor intensive jobs When people are confident that they have a solid job the can count on, they are more than willing to spend money more liberally through all sectors of society.. 4. The loss of our agricultural base. 5. The loss of interest revenue for passbook holders. During the 1960's and 70's, the average interest rate was about 4%. Today's accounts border on 0% interest. If the banks want to bail themselves out... instead of the last resort, the FED, Why are banks not offering attractive interest rates to potential investors? This is how the banks should be trying to generate dollars to to bail themselves out with. They should be borrowing the money from workers like me and you, and paying a fair return. 6. Misleading Unemployment numbers. After the unemployed lose their benefit checks, they are no longer considered unemployed. They are called discouraged workers. There are plenty of people that would love to have a job, however nothing exist with their skill set. Are there really only 7% unemployed here?. NOT ! Your comments are welcome! June 02 Stop the PERFORM Act NOW!!!Just in case you thought that you would forever have the "FAIR USE" as guaranteed by the copyright act to record radio broadcasts, and television broadcasts, someone is LURKING in the background trying to set a PRECEDENT!!! Remember the ROOT KIT I warned you about last year..... well, this is a new way that the recording industry wants to break and neuter your computer from ever being able to record music, or radio broadcasts forever!!! PLEASE read this following message carefully, and tell your congress representative and senators that you OPPOSE the PERFORM Act!!!
Protect Innovation and Consumer Rights – Oppose the PERFORM Act The PERFORM Act is the latest “sky is falling” bill pushed by the recording industry. This bill would prevent satellite radio subscribers from recording and listening to programming that they have paid for, unless they pay an additional license “tax” to the record labels on a song by song basis (which, in addition to cost, would severely limit the repertory that could be offered to the public). This is yet another attempt by the record industry to deny consumers access to new technologies and content, and to eliminate the right to private, noncommercial home recording that Americans have enjoyed for decades. The RIAA is already being well compensated by the satellite radio industry . XMand Sirius already pay the record labels tens of millions of dollars in performance royalties. In addition, under the Audio Home Recording Act of 1992 (“AHRA”) satellite radio pays the record labels up to $8 for every digital radio recorder sold. RIAA’s demand to be paid a third time reflects either greed or their simple desire to shut down a new technology. The PERFORM Act has nothing to do with piracy, the internet or P2P . It is aimedexclusively at limiting in-home and private uses of satellite radio broadcasts thatAmericans paid for and have a right to enjoy at their convenience. The PERFORM Act even would prevent consumers from listening to individual songs recorded from satellite radio, except in the order they were broadcast. Digital satellite radio transmissions cannot be uploaded to the internet. Satelliteradio is a closed system. Transmissions are encrypted, and cannot be moved off the device in digital form. Satellite radio is nothing like iTunes or other download services. Satellite radiodoes not allow you to select or access songs on demand, burn your recordings to a CD, or transfer your recording to a different device. The PERFORM Act would put a tight straightjacket on innovation . The PERFORMAct would ban any recording based on songs, artists, genres, “other user preferences”. If such harsh restrictions were applied to video, products such as TiVO would be outlawed. It is simply wrong for the government to freeze innovation by banning new technologies and features that are desired by consumers. The PERFORM Act would wipe out noncommercial, “fair use” recording . The billrequires satellite broadcasters to prevent “automatic” recording, and indicates that (contrary to the AHRA) even this might be subject to copyright suit. It bans the sort of private, noncommercial time-shifting that Americans have engaged in for decades. The PERFORM Act gives record label rights societies a free ride . The PERFORMAct allows record label collecting societies to circumvent copy protection measures used by satellite radio companies. Remarkably, this is backed by the same groups who argue consumers should never be allowed to circumvent technological locks, even to engage in a fair use activity. Even more outrageous is that the bill would force satellite radio broadcasters to give these organizations a free license, saving them from the modest subscription charge that more than 11 million Americans gladly pay. The free market is already working without government interference . The satelliteradio and recording industries are in an ongoing dialogue on compensation. Recently, Sirius entered into an agreement with a number of record labels. The issue of appropriate performance royalty rates will be negotiated later this year. This bill is nothing more than the recording industry using Congress to gain leverage in private negotiations. The PERFORM ACT harms American consumers, the technology industry, and private, noncommercial recording rights. We urge you to oppose it. April 16 Ethanol is HOT and so is PEIXI think Ethanol is the next big thing. Sure there are some doubters, however:
1. Ethanol is a renewable resource. We are not beholden to foreign powers to create this fuel.
2. Ethanol is more environmentally friendly. It burns much cleaner than gasoline.
3. Ethanol is the only viable alternative fuel. All of the other alternative fuels are at least 10 years away from being anywhere close to being anything but an experiment. Hydorgen has no logistical delivery system inctact.... Ethanol DOES.
4. The united states has an installed base of millions of cars, trucks, motorcycles, and small airplanes that can run easily on ethanol. We could switch over to ethanol tomorrow, and we wouldn't miss a beat.
5. The two biggest plays in the stock market in ethanol are PEIX and ADM. They are poised to be the market leaders in this emerging clean renewable fuel resource.
6. I am voting with my money. I am backing this initiative.... and if you believe in America, you will too!
Show your American pride in being self sufficient. Buy stock in these great American pioneers of Ethanol. Clean, renewable, American... gotta be Ethanol!
Your comments are welcome! March 20 A Real Voice is bornToday marks the beginning of www.AREALVOICE.com
 We have the right voices for TV, RADIO, Industrial and Educational productions.
Contact us at 1-800-872-7898 March 05 Getting published.What a rush!
 I received an invitation on February 26th from radio legend Mr. Bill Hennes to write an article for http://www.allaboutcountry.com .I have admired Bill's work in broadcasting for many years. His site is a cutting edge journal on the country side of broadcasting media, and I strongly suggest that anyone who is even remotely interested in country music or radio to visit his website.
Response to the first article was very positive, so I wrote another article for Bill this week as well. |
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