Tonight on NPR’s “Philosophy Talk” I heard this declaration referring to death: “The world as I know it will cease to exist,” and then there will be nothing.
When I heard this somber reminder of what everyone fears, I was in the car on the way home. I had been drinking wine at a downtown hotel with my youngest brother and his wife, in Portland from Florida for a criminal justice conference.
They talked of a friend, also at the conference, who had miraculously survived kidney and brain cancer during the last dozen years. They described how battling the disease had changed his outlook on life — for the better. Read More
It’s hard to imagine not having NPR on most of the time during the week. I don’t watch TV news, unless a huge news event occurs — 9/11, Katrina, and so forth. NPR‘s news is generally even-handed and not as entertainment-driven as most broadcast media have become. I like the interviews, like hearing music I might otherwise never hear, and like the sound of it from afar — a reassuring background noise.
That said, NPR recently has become a Clinton lovefest. Yes, I’m biased in favor of Barack Obama and therefore sensitive to even a change in an anchor’s tone of voice when discussing the Democratic candidates.
Two weeks ago I emailed NPR to complain about Cokie Roberts‘ report on Obama’s so-called “bitter” comment. She said he was “disparaging” voters. I contend he wasn’t. All I got back were an automated response that my email was received and several days later a perfunctory form letter than didn’t address my specific complaint.
But this morning I wanted to throw the radio in the garbage. Read More
