During WW2, a man named Paul Harvey began adding human interest stories to his newscast. ABC later picked up his radio program "The Rest of the Story". What a wonderful man! I loved this storyteller who liked to carry his audience to a surprise ending. I was one of his listeners who enjoyed being carried along. In this 2002 picture, Mr. Harvey is presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Here is a link to a few of his choice comments:
Mr. Harvey worked until the week before he died (in 2009 at the age of 90), but I can still hear the sound of his voice and feel comfortable as I wait for those predictable words..."and now you know the REST of the story"!
Children must have felt a similar level of soothing when Fred Rogers zipped his cardigan and sang about his neighborhood. Each of Mr. Rogers' episodes was predictable, starting the very same way. The children could relax during Mr. Rogers' program. I can still hear this Presbyterian minister singing about how beautiful it was in his neighborhood.
Fred McFeely Rogers was presented a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002 for his wonderful way he led children to learn. "It is impossible to count the number of lives you have touched," President Bush told Rogers, "but you've made a huge impact on thousands and thousands of children. And there are thousands and thousands of parents and Americans who are grateful for your service to the country."
Doesn't it seem these days that we really could use a Paul Harvey or a Fred Rogers in the media? We are hungry for personalities of integrity that we can trust for truth. We need to know we are getting ALL of the story because sometimes we only hear page one of a three page story...
Congress took a vote last summer on funding for extending unemployment benefits. Democrats pushed benefits while those mean ole Republicans were the "agin'-ers". Or that was what the media reported. That was page one, but here is page two. The Republicans had voted in favor of extending the benefits when it was voted on the first time. But their stipulation was to fund with money cut elsewhere in the budget. The President agreed and it was done. But the second time the vote came up, funding was again the sticking point. The President wanted to spend negative dollars. Because the Republicans wouldn't agree, they are the adults in this issue. It was a deficit-spending issue, not a heartless issue. At some point, the deficit swamps everything else and no one will be funded.
Similarly, the funding for the 9/11 First Responders has been in the news. The Dems have been kicking that can down the road for 3.5 years. They ARE the majority and they've HAD the numbers to pass whatever they wanted. But nothing happened until all of a sudden back in February, Rep. Anthony Weiner staged a toddler meltdown on the House floor. He hollered about the awful Republicans who don't want to support our heroes. Is that right? That's what you would have thought. But something stinks if fellow Dems would not go down on paper for the proposition. That's curious...wonder why? The rest of the story involves the pork they tacked onto the hero-funding. How cheesy is that?
Today it is 21 days until the midterms. Most are battening down the hatches because the election barrage has already gotten ugly. Tell me who would want to run for office these days? Who needs that aggravation?
No wonder people are pulling out their hair. No one trusts politicians OR the media for good reason. We are desperate for honesty and integrity. We want someone who will tell us THE REST OF THE STORY.
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