16 MAY 06: THE VALUES MENU
Cathy Cox unveiled her first television campaign commercial in the Georgia Governor's race Monday night. I have to say it was shocking - because Cox actually spoke for herself.
(Of course, if she REALLY wants to be Governor, Cathy Cox should note what Sonny Perdue did at the mansion the other night - and challenge him to a karaoke contest.)
But another campaign ad has been on my mind, as we reach three weeks before the Alabama Primary. It's the one for State Senate candidate Kim Benefield of Randolph County. First of all, I didn't realize men like her husband wore cowboy hats so close to the Georgia state line....
Kim Benefield's commercial lists several "values," which supposedly make her worth your vote. And "list" is the key word, because she actually tells you what the values are. For many Republican candidates, "values" automatically is understood to mean Ten Commandments and a tax cut.
But Kim Benefield is a Democrat - so maybe that's why she specifically names the values she's for. Her commercial has two lists of four, with one value mentioned twice: "hard work." It's what people like in "our part of Alabama" - as opposed to those lazy bums in Birmingham and Mobile.
According to Kim Benefield, "our part of Alabama" also likes the value of community. Maybe so, but remember what Bill Cosby told the senior class at Spelman College in Atlanta the other day: there are prostitutes and criminals in the village, too.
You'll be relieved to know Kim Benefield's part of Alabama also embraces "doing what's right." To find the part of the state that prefers to do what's wrong, visit the Don Siegelman trial.
At the end of her television ad, Kim Benefield lists more "values of a real Alabama Democrat." In addition to hard work, she mentions "fairness, family, faith." Hey, wasn't F the grade Alabama voters gave a lot of Democrats in the last election?
I'm struck by these six distinctive values because - well, because I'm not so sure they're distinctive at all. Is there really any place where people are AGAINST hard work, community, doing what's right, fairness, family and faith? Even if you're an unmarried criminal who steals big-money lottery tickets, you still have faith that you'll win.
Perhaps the great debate in U.S. politics really isn't about what the values are. It may be about how we define them....
+ Republicans say it's only fair for hard workers to keep their income. Democrats say sharing the money with the community is doing what's right - and so far, we still have income taxes.
+ Democrats have "faith" in the government to solve our problems. Republicans have more faith in families - as long as you agree with them on what a family is.
+ Republicans say the right-wing does what's right. Democrats say the right-wingers are wrong. And the truth may be somewhere in the middle - but Independents don't win elections that often.
E-MAIL UPDATE: Since we're talking politics, let's start with Monday night's big Presidential address - well, sort of:
Burkard,
I know you're a Producer over there in ABC/FOX land, so I want to ask you a question: should the Commander of Blubbering's speech cut into valuable "24" time, will FOX re-air tonight's episode? Thanks for your help!
AR
Hey, wait a minute - Commander of WHAT?!?! With the cancellation of "The West Wing" and "Commander in Chief," he's about the only national leader we have left.
It turned out Fox moved back its Monday night lineup to accommodate the Presidential speech. So "24" appeared for the entire hour, about 20 minutes later than usual. But how many women were in mourning, because they have to wait another entire week for Oprah Winfrey's Legends Ball?
The show which WXTX wound up sacrificing was "The Insider" - which was "joined in progress" 19 minutes late, after the 10:00 news. Of all the nerve! There could have been an 11th day of screaming and yelling, in the Amy Fisher special event.
As for the President's immigration speech: I was out running when he gave it - and I didn't notice any National Guard troops along the Riverwalk, guarding against invading hoards from Alabama.
Regular TV programming resumed after I finished running - and when I turned on NBC-38, I thought of Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions. After all, the President's immigration proposals have him saying "No Deal."
Speaking of TV, we heard again from the e-mailer who criticized last week's severe weather coverage [14 Sun]:
Channel 3 did do a better job than 9,, longer coverage, more in-depth to start the 5 pm news
Channel 9 I believe had the purple on top of the red area's on the radar indicating something severe.
This is where comments come in..When severe, why not stay with it in the corner or part of the screen. It did come across like because it was still some 20 to 30 minutes away from Columbus that only a mention here and there was needed..
I remember the "Bow and Arrow" <g>
This writer may not realize how territorial some television viewers around here can be. When severe weather threatens Alabama, some viewers on the Georgia side can't stand having their favorite programs interrupted for updates. For them, "One Columbus" can't possibly include Phenix City or Lanett.
If there's one valuable lesson to be learned from last week's storm, it's this - purple is very bad. Of course, I learned this when I was young. I chose to attend the University of Kansas, not big bad Kansas State....
Our last e-mail combines several items into one:
I know I'm getting older so my memory might be failing me but I recall Bobby Peters serving as a Deputy Sheriff rather than as a member of the Columbus Police Dept. By the way at 5 p.m. ET in Smiths Station on Wed. we had hail, very dark skies and enough wind to blow down many large trees. At my house we had hail again Sat. night. By the way I have relatives in Kansas City. What station did you work for there? Barbara Jordan
Oops - your memory is actually quite good, Barbara. A double-check of the Bobby Peters web site shows he actually was a Deputy Sheriff years ago. But he directed the Columbus Police Academy for a while. Why Charlie's Angels spurned him back then is a mystery to me....
So Smiths Station has had hailstorms twice in the last seven days. Did anyone sing the second time, "Hail! Hail! Rocks that roll"?!
It's been 25 years since I worked for Kansas City radio station KJLA-AM [31 Mar]. I joined that station as it was moving away from an "all-disco music" format - including dance music playing during the newscasts. There's nothing quite like
reporting on a plane crash to the beat of a drum.
We thank all of you who write and comment - and now let's see if Monday's news inspires you further:
+ The Muscogee County School Board approved a five-year plan for acquiring new technology. You hopefully won't mind if some classrooms have high-definition flat-screen TV's before you do....
+ Talk show host Doug Kellett returned to Columbus radio. His first day on WRCG included an interview with a longtime buddy, Councilor Red McDaniel. We'll see if Councilor Nathan Suber shows Kellett any mercy, and does the same thing.
+ The late-night news revealed there have been "Bigfoot" sightings over the years in Lee and Russell Counties. Was it really a mysterious monster - or simply a heavy hunter, using up his last week of vacation?
+ A luncheon was held for the nine contestants in this year's "Miss Columbus Senior" pageant. All of them are at least 60 years old - and I imagine at least one of them has a "platform' with a built-in wheelchair ramp.
+ Fort Valley State University announced its head football coach has been fired. Your blog has learned Fort Valley athletic director Gwendolyn Reeves is spending the week in Kansas - so the coach can't complain, because the Kansas state song says "seldom is heard a discouraging word."
+ Instant Message to Atlanta first baseman Adam Laroche: So that slow-footed fielding play may be partly because you have attention deficit disorder?! I wish I'd thought of that excuse years ago - when I was afraid to catch hard line drives.
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