On our first visit to Washington, D.C., in 25 years, my wife and I went to the Newseum, located at 6th Street and Constitution Avenue. Neither of us was sure what the Newseum would be like, but we paid our entry fee and began exploring the six levels of exhibits about newspapers, news reporting, and history.
It was a worthwhile visit, although the galleries and corridors and stairs could be a maze. Of particular interest to us were a video presentation of reporters talking about their response to 9/11. They were at work in Manhattan when the terrorists crashed airplanes into the World Trade Center. Watching the scenes and hearing the reporters' disbelief (like all of us) that this could be happening, took us back to that horrific day 16 years ago. Despite the life-risking dangers as the towers fell and thousands died, the reporters swallowed their personal feelings, fears and concerns for themselves, their friends and their families, and continued to report what was happening.
I couldn't help thinking that the current president of the United States called these self-sacrificing reporters "enemies of the people" and purveyors of "fake news." The close-up video of the second plane crashing into the World Trade Center was so terrifying and so clearly an airliner aimed directly at the building that I once again could not understand how anyone could deny that this tragedy was carried out by Islamic terrorists who hijacked four aircraft in a well-planned and malevolent plot against the United States. Yet some conspiracy theorists even today say the whole thing was carried out by the federal government.
Another exhibit in the Newseum examined the relationship of President John F. Kennedy with the press. Kennedy seemed to enjoy sparring with reporters at news conferences, and an interview video shows Kennedy saying that the adversarial relationship between the press and the government is a natural and healthy thing. Another exhibit celebrated JFK on the 100th anniversary of his birth. These exhibits gave me a flood of nostalgia. The grief I had felt in 1963 was renewed hearing this brilliant, articulate, inspiring and short-lived president. I could not avoid a comparison between this man, who wrote books and regularly read 15 newspapers a day, to the current president, who boasts that he never reads books and requires the White House staff to limit any briefing papers, no matter how complex the issue, to one page. How far we have fallen!
Another Newseum exhibit was a 50th anniversary look back at the civil rights era of the 1960s. The cruelty of segregation and the officials who responded to protesters with violence were exceeded only by the murders of many civil rights advocates and bystanders. It's an era worth remembering not only because of the illogical cruelty and oppression but also to be reminded of how far we have come.
The Newseum is a stop to include on your Washington trip. I only wish the museum had offered a discount if I showed my old press pass (I still have it).
First of all, let's give President Donald Trump credit for holding a long, wide-ranging news conference in which he answered questions from reporters. That used to be something that presidents did regularly, but times have changed. On Monday in the White House Rose Garden, Trump did what he should do more often, answering questions for about 45 minutes.
Unfortunately, one unnecessary and uncalled-for comment from the president overwhelmed the good vibes from the news conference. In answer to a question about the deaths of four Special Forces soldiers in Niger, Trump asserted that he had written letters to the families of the soldiers killed in an ambush and planned to call them next week. He said he likes to call grieving families "when it's appropriate" (whatever that means). Trump seemed to hedge on just what he had done to comfort families. He said he had written letters but had not mailed them yet. Huh? The ambush occurred two weeks ago.
From there, he claimed that he was doing something — comforting grieving families — that other presidents had not done, mentioning President Obama in particular but also berating other predecessors. Trump's remark, like many of his off-the-cuff comments, is provably false. There are news stories, photographs and video of President Obama greeting and speaking with grieving families of combat casualties. President George W. Bush also made it a point to extend condolences to the families of service members killed in action. Bush has extended his emotional connection to military members since he left the White House, hosting dinners at his Texas ranch for injured combat veterans and publishing a book of portraits he had painted of injured veterans.
This defamation of Obama and other presidents reminds Americans that narcissism is Trump's primary motivation for anything that comes out of his mouth. It is not enough for him to bolster his own image, no matter how false or misleading this effort might be (see inaugural crowds, Electoral College victory margin, legislative accomplishments in the first 30/90/100 days, and so forth). He also has to drag down others, dishonor their achievements and destroy their legacies.
Trump seems especially obsessed with belittling Obama, whom he claimed for years was unfit for the presidency because he was "born in Kenya" (despite documentary proof of his birth in Hawaii to a mother who was a natural-born citizen). He has attacked every achievement of the Obama administration, including the Iran nuclear deal, the Affordable Care Act, sentencing reform and clean air regulations. His determination to obliterate these actions makes it clear that he cares more about wiping away all that Obama has done than about achieving policy goals.
On Monday, Trump even had to lie about Obama's condolences to families of military casualties.
"Boy, pick up your feet! You're wearing out your shoes."
That warning from my father some 60 years ago came back to me recently as I realized I was tending to drag my feet as I walked. I heard the scraping sound as the heel of my shoe met the pavement before my foot was fully extended into my stride.
When I was little kid, the concern about my stride was that shoes were expensive, and there was no point in wearing them out prematurely. Today, the concern is that the aging process may have resulted in a neurological issue known as "foot drag." When I worked for the Red Cross, a volunteer underwent spinal surgery to correct his foot drag. That's not what I want for my future.
I'm not a candidate for surgery, but I have become more conscious of my heel dragging into the ground when I step. The condition also manifests itself when my toe snags on the tread of steps as I rush upstairs. I've caught myself with my hands numerous times to avoid a far worse face to the stairs result.
I'm trying to be more aware of lifting my knees when I walk so that my heel does not drag the ground as I step forward, wearing out my shoes and worrying my father, dead 11 years. I'm also trying to pay closer attention as I stride upstairs, which I tend to do at a running pace.
All those years ago, I didn't take Daddy's criticism well. I thought he was being picky. If I did wear out my shoes, I thought, it would mean I'd get new shoes. I never imagined that 60 years later, I'd find the wisdom in his advice.
In his first inaugural address, President Ronald Reagan famously said, "In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem." He and his followers sought to "starve the beast" by cutting taxes and forcing the federal government to die from lack of funding.
It's hard to believe, however, that Reagan really thought government, on the whole, is "the problem." Conservatives had long contended that governmental regulations and federal overreach made it difficult for private businesses to operate and for individuals to achieve. But that's not the same as saying "the government is the problem."
The federal government does many things well. We have the strongest military in the world, though sometimes military leaders (all human) make mistakes, as do civilian leaders. America is a land of opportunity, which is why so many foreigners want to come here and seek their fortunes. The recently announced Nobel prizes show that America is also the land of innovation and creative thinking. In many ways, the federal government encourages this innovation society and makes it possible for start-up companies to thrive in a competitive marketplace. Despite some screw-ups, such as the Hurricane Katrina response, the feds do disaster recovery remarkably well, whether it's the 9/11 attack or Hurricane Nate. The government ensures the safety of food, drugs, toys, travel, construction and workers. Although complaints about over-regulation are common and sometimes justifiable, America has the best worker safety and water and air safety record in the world. Our universities attract students from around the globe.
Even Ronald Reagan would not suggest eliminating the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Labor or FEMA, so the indiscriminate charge to "starve the beast" by eliminating taxes is foolhardy. Rather than the annual efforts to cut taxes at the federal and state levels, political parties should work toward a consensus about what is a reasonable level of taxation and what does the federal government realistically need to do its job. Cuts that cripple essential agencies or eliminate portals of opportunity such as education should be declared un-American.
Let budget debates begin not with a demand for tax cuts year after year but with an agreement that essential government services must be funded even as redundant or anachronistic or infringing agencies or regulations are deliberately defunded. The devil will still be in the details, but at least the debate could shift from tax cuts to funding services.
It seems to be true that nobody likes taxes. For nearly 40 years, the Republican Party has built its strategy and its appeal on promises of lower taxes and has largely succeeded with the tax-hating electorate.
But taxes, rather than a nefarious evil, are necessary. Without taxes, government on the local, state and federal level cannot function. Voter ire against taxes can easily be fired up over reports of fraud in federal contracts, bone-headed spending, such as the Internal Revenue Service's $7 million contract with Equifax to prevent hacking and fraud in IRS files. This no-bid contract came just weeks after a massive hacking of Equifax data that had endangered the financial security of millions of Americans.
Taxes need to be cut from time to time. Tax cuts can spur spending and help speed recovery from a recession. Fast-rising wages and salaries can result in surpluses in the federal treasury (but that is rare). John F. Kennedy bucked his own party to pass a massive tax reduction in 1963. Ronald Reagan's tax cuts 30-plus years ago spurred economic growth but also ballooned the budget deficit (because he didn't get the spending cuts that should have accompanied the tax cuts). Since Reagan, every GOP presidential candidate and most GOP candidates for lesser offices have touted tax cuts for whatever ailed the country.
Tax-cutting continues to be the signature policy of nearly all GOP candidates, and Democrats have learned that opposition to popular tax cuts can be politically suicidal. Like nearly all Americans, I wince each time I write a check to the IRS or look at the withholding in my paycheck, but I have to admit that I want those government services my taxes pay for. While tax cuts sound great, consider what things federal taxes pay for:
° National Defense. The United States has by far the largest military budget on Earth, but few taxpayers want to cut the military.
° Medical and health initiatives. Annual flu shots, research into causes of cancer and other diseases, epidemic controls, standards for medical professionals and facilities.
° Highways, airline safety, passenger trains, and other transportation initiatives. Without federal gasoline taxes, modern highways would not exist.
° Food safety. Federal inspectors assure that meat, vegetables and other food items are safe to eat and are properly labeled for buyer safety.
° Drug safety. Federal testing and inspections keep dangerous or bogus drugs off the market.
° Interstate commerce. Regulation of long-haul trucking, shipping, water-borne navigation and port safety are all paid for by taxes and save lives every year.
° Communications. Federal regulations provide the basis for modern communications from telephone wires to WiFi to the internet itself. Without federal rule-setting, these tools we depend upon would never have developed.
State and local taxes go to even more popular and essential services, including:
° Garbage pickup and recycling services.
° Streets, sidewalks, bikeways, hiking trails and parks.
° Regulation of development and construction to prevent annoyances such as a pig sty next door to a residence or disasters, such as a building collapse.
° Public education, paid for locally and statewide, to ensure an educated workforce and a knowledgeable citizenry who can make democracy work effectively.
° Police departments to protect individuals and property.
° Fire departments to prevent and put out devastating fires.
° Emergency medical services that improve chances for victims of accidents, heart attacks and other medical emergencies.
° Colleges and universities that open bright futures for young people, increase upward mobility and improve economic opportunities for the entire state.
Unfortunately, tax-cut fervor at the state level has led to sharp cuts in K-12 and higher education. Damage from these cuts might not be apparent for a generation but could be disastrous.
A quarter-cent decrease in the sales tax or a 0.2 percent cut in the personal income tax will hardly be noticed an individual taxpayer but can make a huge difference in the state's ability to provide services needed and wanted by taxpayers. The cumulative effect of a fraction of a tax can help all residents, including those who are not directly affected in particular government services. All benefit when services help build a caring, upwardly mobile society.
Before I went to my 50th high school reunion three weeks ago, I had composed in my mind what I would say to my classmates when the microphone was passed to me in our traditional individual updates. Because I left early in order to get home to my wife, who was convalescing from a broken shoulder, I used my moment with the mic to explain why I wasn't hanging around.
Here is what I would have said if I'd had the time:
At the last several of our reunions, I bemoaned the fact that, unlike a great many of you, I had not yet retired. I blamed my poor career choices made almost 50 years ago. If I had remained in military service or if I had chosen to teach in public schools, I could have retired with a generous pension as many of you have.
Well, now i have joined the rest of you in being retired as of about 40 days ago, and that makes me think back to the best college graduation speech I ever heard. My oldest daughter was graduating from Appalachian State University in 1993, and the speaker was Orson Scott Card, the science fiction writer. He made a few remarks about careers and jobs, as nearly all graduation speakers do. But then he cautioned the graduates not to put everything into their work lives. "If your job is what you are," he said, "what are you when you no longer have that job?"
For 33 years I was the editor. When that job ended, I became the executive director of two nonprofits. Now I am no longer the editor or the executive director. My titles now are more important than those past titles. I am now known as husband, father, grandfather, citizen, child of God. I am not so much retired as taking on more important work.
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