LETTER: ‘FOX’ missed mark on election results

To the Telegram:

It must have been painful for some folks who watched the talking heads on “FIX” NEWS election night and the nights shortly after. I could tell it was painful for the network’s on-air personalities, especially Bill O’Reilly.

Good old Bill seems to have figured out why the GOP took such a beating ... ready for this? It’s —according to Bill O. —because we American voters have become an entitlement society and “we want stuff” and “traditional America” has disappeared.

Let me address the “we want stuff” comment first.

When my wife and I were raising our three daughters we always tried to instill in them the difference between want and need, as we had limited financial means it was easy for them to learn that lesson and I think they’re passing it on to their kids. Everybody wants stuff. Corporations, big oil for instance want subsidies, wealthy folks want tax breaks. I want a new car. Need is something different — I don’t need a new car, the old one runs fine. Corporations don’t need to be subsidized, they’ll make a profit without it. Rich folks don’t need a tax break, even without it, they will still be rich. We as a nation need good public education, affordable health care, to repair our crumbling infrastructure. We need jobs, jobs that pay a living wage. We need to make sure the most vulnerable among us, our children, elderly and poor are cared for. That’s what this election was all about, and the majority of America has cast it’s ballot for those that are most likely to meet the nation’s needs.

I’m wondering what “traditional America” Mr. O’Reilly was referring to: Was it the mostly white America, that he seems to think is gone? Can’t be that the U.S. is still 78 percent white (or only 65 percent if you count Hispanics as non-white).

Maybe Bill means the traditional America of Ward and June, Wally and the Beaver? No it couldn’t be that, that was just a fantasy world on black and white TV. I think Bill is thinking about that world where women did what their men-folk told them, where blacks and other minorities knew their place, and those darned old gays stayed in the closet.

Sorry Bill, I’m afraid those days are gone forever and unless the Republican Party is ready to accept the world has moved on, they will be gone too.

George Richard,

New Richmond

Tags: opinion, letters