Tuesday, June 8, 2010

NPR RADIO -- FREE!

Read recently in the Tampa Tribune the results of an interview with Vivian Schiller, President and CEO of NPR. One of her "answers" was simply not true.

Ms. Schiller stated, "...It is at the heart of our mission that we will make our content available to people for free." That is false.

NPR was started years ago by the U.S. Federal Government, and it still subsidizes NPR. Our Federal Government does not have any money that it did not secure from taxpayers, in one way or another. Federal Government subsidies come from money so obtained. I am a taxpayer.

I like PBS, especially the "classical music," and have it on (radio) most all day, every day. For many years I donated substantial amounts of money to PBS yearly, but for several years now I have not. I believe PBS content is sufficiently good -- as their proponents keep telling us -- that PBS could now stand on its own without goverment subsidy.

When PBS "cuts this cord to mother," I will again donate to the cause yearly, not before.

D.B. Tuthill, M.D.

KEEPING A JOB

I read in the Tampa Tribune recently a list of "do's" in order to keep a job these days. The article I read was from Joyce E. A. Russell in a "special" to the Washington Post.

Among the recommendations were: Ask you manager for his/her goals; Work hard; Be a good "citizen"; Be on time. There were a couple more, but let these suffice.

Dumbfounding to this reader were: 1. That such a "special" could be sold to any newspaper for money. And, probably explaining, is 2. Why would anyone need such/em> obvious advice to "keep a job." What, pray, would a job-acceptor do otherwise to "keep a job"?

D. B. Tuthill, M.D.

The rubric over this article was, "Take the initiative to stand out at work" I knew things had deteriorated, but are we that bad off already?