News about Air America

[Bill O'Neill]

Donna writes:

People seek out only those opinions with which they agree and they
> never even consider what the other side is saying.  I see most talk shows 
> only adding to this problem, not helping to solve it.

And that assumes that it is a problem.  People who are absolutist in their 
views bear the moniker of fundamentalist, among other things. The conundrum 
is that many maintain that if they know the "truth" on things political, 
personal, spiritual, and that all other views are not the truth, then giving 
a bit to the other POV is akin to walking off of something  of a core 
belief.

What I think has become perverted is not that more people are "absolutist" 
but that people are less accepting of others with a different POV.  There is 
a huge difference in that in terms of framing the problem. If the premise is 
changed to something like, "We all are locked into what we believe to be 
true, disagree with those who believe otherwise, but we still love the other 
enough to defend their right to believe that way."    Getting people to 
agree on things political, personal or spiritual is a waste of resources and 
misses the point, altogether.

Right wing or left wing radio has a vital place in the world but it need not 
be confused with the Fourth Estate. I'll not broad-brush radio talk as 
entertainment but it is more of a reflection of what people believe. How 
those with contrasting views work together to keep this train rolling such 
that we respect the passion in others (who are peaceable) defines our 
country and it's future.

Bill O'Neill