Dave's Column

Dave Richards for April 22nd….…………

--So, did you receive your $1,200 stimulus money from the federal government yet?  Those who had earlier arranged for direct deposit of their federal income tax refunds were the first to get theirs.  The Fabulous Denise and I never did that.  We let Uncle Sam send it to us in the mail, so we will wait.  I heard there was a backup at the White House because the President himself wanted to endorse those checks so you’d know where they came from. 

  Have you noticed how unreliable the Internet has been getting recently?  If you go to the government website to find out why you haven’t received your stimulus check, you generally don’t get an answer you can use.  The computer equivalent of “Darned if I Know” comes back.  Virtual public meetings suffer from squeaks and squawks and chirps and now and again a participant drops off.  In my own world, getting a 2 megabit audio stream a quarter mile away on a 50 megabit circuit is impossible for at least 8 hours a day.

  Yes, the mind boggling abilities of the Information Superhighway are being put to the test these days.  Because I am technically minded, I can tell you it would likely cross your eyes to realize just how much Internet resources it takes to simply watch a high definition TV show from Netflix or Hulu on your ‘smart’ TV.  But when you multiply that by thousands of people doing it and add in the sizable demand for bandwidth that video conferencing puts on the system, it is easy to understand the failures.

  It could be worse.  I have a friend in northern Nevada whose kids are in jeopardy of not finishing school this year because the Internet in that area is just not capable of delivering the lessons via Internet to all the students of that rural school district at any price.  I suppose we here in Rhode Island can just thank our lucky stars we don’t have to deal with that problem.

  Come to think of it, about the only thing which is working better than usual on the Internet these days are the vile and malicious email attacks.  Boy, they’re getting good at them, I’ll tell ya.  Here’s a reminder to don’t click on any link in any email, even if it comes from a friend unless you were told to expect it by the sender in a non-email communication.  I know that sounds a bit ‘over-the-top’ in the careful department, but I don’t think it is and here’s why.

  As well as I know that rule, I almost fell for a malicious email last week which looked for all the world like it came from a close friend who lives in Wisconsin.  It even had a previous email I had sent him (I recognized it) pasted at the bottom, that’s how authentic it looked. 

  Obviously some creeps had gotten into his email account and had all this data at their disposal.  And obviously the old adage “idle hands are the Devil’s tools” rang true as the new idle time available to these creeps was put to the Devil’s use. 

  Anyway, a small amount of caution is just not enough these days.  Be extra careful out there…….

--I will leave you this week with this cheery thought.  No matter how bad it seems we have it, somebody else has it worse.  Let’s all have consideration for those of good heart who are tested these days.  I know that smiling at one another is problematic with a mask on your face, but a kind word or gesture will do the same good work. 

  Case in point.  I met a good soul the other day when I went to pick up a prescription.  The clerk was clearly overwhelmed with work and I could have easily understood if she had been short with me.  But while she clerked-out my sale she made a funny face at the price.  I knew what the price would be and I was content to pay it.  But she took extra time to go to another computer terminal and look up a discount coupon for me which cut the price in half.  Now, if that isn’t a shining example of good Christian love and caring I don’t know what it is.  I said a special prayer for her that night.

  Lets of us all take her example and take the time to care about and help others in all our daily lives.   

--That's what I think. What do you think? Comments to: dave@onworldwide.com or postal mail to Dave Richards, WOON Radio, 985 Park Avenue, Woonsocket, RI 02895-6332.  Thanks for reading.

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Dave Richards for April 15th….…………

--Today is April 15^th, commonly called “Income Tax Day” in the U.S. because it was selected by the Internal Revenue Service as the date all citizens must file with them for their tax obligations for the previous calendar year.  We don’t know why April 15^th was chosen, but the irony of it being the day that President Abraham Lincoln died after being shot the night before by John Wilkes Booth has always intrigued me. 

  The tie-in between Mr. Lincoln and the federal income tax is not known to many, I think.  It was in 1861, in the first year of President Lincoln’s term that the Income Tax was first instituted.  It was a way to raise money to finance the Union’s expenses in The Civil War.

--Some of you may not realize this, but sometimes I hear things over the radio that make me just shake my head and wonder about my fellow broadcasters.   It happened again this past weekend when I heard a national news network announce, as if it were the biggest story they’ve every reported……”The United States has taken first place in the world in COVID-19 deaths!”  Yes, the number of people who had died had exceeded the total number in Italy on Saturday, certainly an important story.  But as it is with so many things, it’s not so much what you say as it is how you say it, and I felt it was being sensationalized to the point of being dishonest with the audience.

  The using of numbers to mislead people is still lying.  The truth is Italy, the country with the highest number of deaths up until last Saturday, has a population of about 60 million people.  The U.S. has a population of about 327 million.  If you do the math, 26,000 deaths in Italy is 0.433 percent of the total population, or just under one half a one percent.  The same 26,000 deaths is only 0.00795 percent of the U.S. population.  The story, which was clearly trying to give the listener the impression that the U.S. was the “sickest of the sick” was quite literally ‘fake news’.  We have it bad here, but not that bad.

  Yesterday we broadcast an obituary for a Woonsocket man who died of complications to COVID-19.  It’s the first such obituary we have knowingly aired.  I have a dear friend in Milford who is stricken.  Like so many, I can’t even visit him in the hospital.  Here’s my point.  Things are bad enough without exaggerating.

--President Trumps re-election committee has sued a Wisconsin TV station for continuing to broadcast a Political Action Committee’s ad which was critical of the President.  But that’s not the whole story.  It seems the ad was electronically altered and edited to make Mr. Trump say something he never said, taking two different statements and cutting them together to make the man look like a fool.  While this sort of thing may be amusing on social media, it is serious business when broadcast on TV. 

  Please understand that Political Action Committees, known by the acronym PACs, are not the candidate speaking.  Therefore, messages from PACs must be looked at by the viewer with more scrutiny as to their truthfulness than those from candidates.  There is no government organization out there making sure that false and misleading statements are not being made.

  I know it’s not supposed to be that way.  I know it’s not fair.  But neither is not being able to see your loved one in a nursing home on Easter Sunday.  It’s just the way it is and we have to learn to live with it.

--Let me leave you with a bit of good news.  My daughter told me $1,200 mysteriously appeared in her checking account yesterday.  Thank you Mr. Trump and Congress.  I no longer need to worry about her for a while.        

--That's what I think. What do you think? Comments to: dave@onworldwide.com or postal mail to Dave Richards, WOON Radio, 985 Park Avenue, Woonsocket, RI 02895-6332.  Thanks for reading.

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Dave Richards for April 8th….…………

--This will be the toughest next two weeks here in Rhode Island, I am told.  According to stories my grandparents and parents told me about how life in America was during World War Two, those war years were the last time America was as affected so harshly and completely by a single event as it is by this pandemic.  Yes, 9/11 was bad, but for shear social impact, COVID-19 has it beat.

  Back during the war, people were dying.  Lots of people were dying.  Everyone was affected.  Nobody was spared.  But as serious as it all was, people did take time to seek entertainment and get their problems off their minds temporarily. 

  We air an old time radio show daily on our station.  Many times the shows are recordings of broadcasts which took place during The War.  Comedies were very popular then.  And even though hearts were heavy with the burdens of shortages and blackouts and death, people did laugh.

  So, it was no surprise that you don’t need to go far these days to find something amusing to take your mind off your present problems.  I received an email from a rather creative guy yesterday who told me he had taken a once popular song and changed the words to it.  They call it a parody.  He provided a link to take my computer to YouTube to listen to it.  Well, not only was it funny, but while I listened other “crisis parodies” popped up on my screen urging me to listen to them, too.

  One was sung to the tune of the popular Beatles song ‘Yesterday’, and lamented how yesterday was so much simpler without travel restrictions, social distancing, and shortages of toilet paper.  Another was sung to the popular Bee Gees hit ‘Stayin’ Alive’ where the words where changed to ‘Stayin’ Inside’.  You get the idea.

  I look at each of these creative endeavors and the dozens more I didn’t mention specifically as gifts from God.  It is a mercy to be able to rest and refresh your brain now and again.

--Speaking of God and mercy.  Although it doesn’t feel like it, this is Holy Week.  Friday is Good Friday.  Sunday is Easter.

  For all the notice and celebration Christmas brings in our society it is Easter which is the more Holy of Holidays.  Yes, for hundreds of years our society has celebrated birthdays as a way to focus our gratitude that someone has joined us on planet Earth.  For Christians, however, it is the miracle of the resurrection which distinguishes Jesus Christ from all others who were born.  And Easter is the Holiday which celebrates this event.

  This Easter there will be no Easter Parade of fashion.  I’ve never been much into clothing, so I won’t miss that part.  But Easter services and a dinner with the family and relatives will be another casualty of the times, and that I will miss.

  I am happy to report that a number of restaurants in our area are stepping up to cook dinners for take-out, that’s nice.  It shows me the indomitable spirit of the small business owner.  “Don’t bother me with what I cannot do, tell me what I CAN do.”, that’s what they say.  I predict these businesses will prevail because they are being aggressive and marketing their strengths in spite of the present restrictions.  I hope you will all reward them with your purchases. 

--That's what I think. What do you think? Comments to: dave@onworldwide.com or postal mail to Dave Richards, WOON Radio, 985 Park Avenue, Woonsocket, RI 02895-6332.  Thanks for reading.

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Dave Richards for April 1st….…………

--I don’t know how the folks here at the newspaper do it day after day, but I can tell you it’s not easy coming up with something to write about that won’t depress everyone, including the writer.

  I’m sure you don’t want to read another column about these “unchartered waters” or “unprecedented happenings”.  Those phrases and others like them are quickly becoming cliché’ these days.   But, as with anything big and bad as this is, it tends to bring out the best and the worst in people.  Yes, the news wires are full of people mis-behaving, but the vast majority of people are quietly taking this disaster as it comes and complying with the restrictions imposed by our governments.  I can tell this.

  When I look at the news wire, I do see the stories about dum-dums like the preacher who was arrested by the county sheriff for conducting church services as a group.  But I can also tell you that the pages of anti-social behavior are shorter than usual.  Seriously.  Story count is down 30% to 40%.  Even in this world where it seems that anything out-of-the-ordinary becomes national news, where I might have two printed pages of novelty stories, I have recently been seeing less than a full page.  That tells me something.

  It tells me that we have just as many fools in the world today as we have always had.  And it proves to my satisfaction that there are far more good people in the world than bad. 

  The majority of families see to it that their children learn a new discipline inside the house and tend to their virtual class assignments.  The school departments and even the governor herself have all said they were prepared for less cooperation than they have received and they are delighted with the efforts of students and parents alike to make this new project work.

  Are there grumbles?  Yes.  It’s only natural that one might express displeasure with unwanted and uncomfortable change.  But the vast majority of people today are doing what they need to do to get through it with dignity and a smile if they can muster it. 

--There are those saying now that the real test will be a month from now when restrictions are still in place and the cheerful dispositions fade.  That may be so, but I feel confident that the vast majority will take a deep breath, breath a gentle sigh, and get back to what must be done.  I really believe that.

  Here’s something to look forward to.  Among the thousands of events which are being cancelled is this Saturday’s scheduled Children’s Easter Egg Hunt in Woonsocket.  I spoke this week with our Park & Rec Director, Liz Kerrigan, by telephone (of course), to see what her thoughts were regarding a reschedule of this very popular event.  She told me it’s just too early to pick a new date now.  Until you know when restrictions will be lifted you can’t even guess, she said.

  We both agreed, though, on one thing.  When our government leaders sound the ‘all clear’ and allow us to once again gather outside our homes, there will be a time of public rejoicing unlike anything seen in this century.

  Liz told me she’s planning on a BIG Independence Day celebration.

  Me too.

 --That's what I think. What do you think? Comments to: dave@onworldwide.com or postal mail to Dave Richards, WOON Radio, 985 Park Avenue, Woonsocket, RI 02895-6332.  Thanks for reading.

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Dave Richards for March 18th….…………

--Well, well, well, things have certainly ‘gone south’ since we last met on these pages, dear friend.   It wasn’t totally unexpected, but it is disappointing.

  According to Governor Gina Raimondo, the number of people applying for unemployment benefits has “skyrocketed”.  Duh.  Unionized teachers who elected to be paid over 52 weeks will still have a check coming in, but private school teachers, school bus drivers and monitors, wait-service staff at restaurants, bars, and coffee shops are thrown out of work with no pay.  And the members of the above occupations are just a small example, space restrictions prohibit me from posting a complete list, even if I could.

  So, before you start griping about not being able to dine out in one of our great local eateries, think for a moment about the restaurant staff who are concerned about paying their rent or mortgage.  Compared to that, we have no problems.

  And thinking also of the owners of our local businesses who are forced to close to the public.  Imagine not being able to pay your taxes or rent or mortgage for both your family AND your family business.  Most of them are making the best of a bad situation and opening on a limited basis for take-out or drive through orders only.  Unemployment Insurance is not going to solve their problems.  If you truly want to do something to help, eat out more frequently than you normally would and take those meals home to eat them.  Perhaps with increased volume we can help make up the difference and these fine hard-working people will survive the crisis.

--Speaking of increased take-out volume…..they couldn’t keep up with the take-out volume last Sunday at the St. Ann Arts & Cultural Center “Luck of the Irish” corned-beef and cabbage dinner.  They were forced to cancel the Irish band and set up a table up in the parking lot for take-out.  Well, 150 pounds of corned beef was gone in the first hour of a three hour event.  Talk about volume!   A quick run out to the store to get some sliced ham was the best they could do for folks like The Fabulous Denise and me who arrived an hour and a half into the event.  Congratulations!

--It’s hard to think of any topic which isn’t affected by the COVID-19 virus restrictions.  But I’m sure we’d all welcome discussion of another variety for a change.  One such topic popped up on my computer screen yesterday.

  It’s from a young man called Derek Brennan who heads the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University Law.  I’ve never heard of the place, it could be made up.  But the idea he brings up is not a new idea.

  It’s the idea that if 40 percent of the population are “people of color”, as he puts it, then 40 percent of the police, fire, government administration, elected officials, and judges must also be “people of color”. 

  It’s not a new idea. 

  At the risk of stirring up the ire of people who think like this, I will put forth my opinion because this is an opinion column. 

  I respect their idea.  I think it is a great idea.  But in my experiences in life I have come to believe we can do better than that.  I think ‘proportionality’ only addresses part of the problem and causes other problems.  It’s good, but it doesn’t go far enough. 

  I believe if you really want change, ‘quotas’ will only slow the process of social change and the perfection of social justice.  I believe that only when we train ourselves and our children to see only the similarities in the people we share this planet with and reject seeing the differences among us that we will truly make a lasting progress. 

  Don’t you see? If you don’t see the differences, it is materially impossible to discriminate!  That should be our goal, I say, because ‘quotas’ REQUIRE us to see the differences.  ‘Quotas’ force us to deny one person an opportunity because they are not the same color or whatever you’re comparing.  And two ‘wrongs’ never have and never will make a ‘right’.

  If I seem like a ‘hippy’ of the 1960s or 70s to you with that point of view, I’ll accept that.  But I wasn’t.  A ‘hippy’, that is.  But I did see a lot of people get hired for only the reason that they were a member of a group which was ‘underrepresented’.  What happens next is human nature.  People resent being discriminated against.  Even if it is to give someone else a chance.  It hurts.  And it is the second ‘wrong’.

  Then, when the inevitable happens and a person with less talent or qualifications gets preferential treatment the resentment grows into bad attitudes, pushback, and more ‘revenge discrimination’ in the future. 

  It has to stop.  And I believe the only true way to stop it is to stop trying to legislate morality and treat everyone with respect, with regard only for a person’s ability and the content of their character.

  With the retirement on June 30^th of Rhode Island Supreme Court Justice Gilbert Indeglia causing a vacancy on that high bench, I hope you’ll agree that we need the best and wisest judge we can possibly find, regardless of their color, sex, or any other differentiation.

  See the similarities.  Change the world for the better without hurting more people along the way.

--That's what I think. What do you think? Comments to: dave@onworldwide.com or postal mail to Dave Richards, WOON Radio, 985 Park Avenue, Woonsocket, RI 02895-6332.  Thanks for reading.

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Dave Richards for March 11th….…………

--First, I want to thank all of you for your kind comments on last week’s column.  I wasn’t sure my words of caution would resonate, but they did and I think that says a lot about you, the reader. 

  So, one week later, the situation is worse.  There’s not a newscast which goes by without a story on how the coronavirus is impacting people’s lives.  Still, in the U.S. we are still counting the number of people who ‘might’ have come in contact with the virus, and the number of people who are confirmed to have it is still encouragingly low.

  It is harder to keep a clear perspective when you get closer to the trouble, so from here on it may become harder to know who is trying to scare you and who is trying to help.  I admit I had that question in my mind this morning when I heard on a national news broadcast that none other organization than the National Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, the usually trustworthy CDC, announced their recommendation that everyone in the country over the age of 60 should buy up a lot of supplies and hunker down in their homes, not going outside, until further notice.  You know, you used to be able to trust the CDC for careful and non-sensational comments on matters of public health.  But this one came disturbingly close to sounding like they are “pushing the panic button”.  Or maybe they are just choosing to protect themselves by agreeing with the sensationalists?  Maybe they figure, “it couldn’t hurt, so why not?”  I don’t know, but I have decided to cautiously continue with my life.  If they mean it they will say it again.

  There is some sane talk among all this.  Some people in our government do “get it” that it’s easy to tell someone to ‘self-quarantine’, but how do they go to work and pay their bills?  Unemployment insurance will be needed for them to survive, and that is being worked on by the government. 

  Certainly some jobs could be done by remote connection.  But most can’t.  Police officers.  Fire fighters.  Paramedics.  Doctors and nurses.  They cannot “phone it in”.  But these people come in contact with many other people in the course of their work.  They are at risk of contracting the illness themselves, and possible spreading it to others without knowing it. 

  No plan is perfect.  But I think overall we are taking a path of compromise to address the situation.  I mean, we certainly cannot tell over 350 million people to all stay home, can we?  I know they tried to do that in Italy, but it was already too late when they took that step.

  So keep washing those hands, gang.  Take other considerate measure to protect yourself and others.  And for Pete’s sake, if you’re feeling unwell, that’s the time to stay home!  It is true this virus spreads between people even if they are feeling well, but even more so among those who are ill. 

  And consider this.  Even if you have a simple cold or case of the common variety of flu that’s going around, that puts YOU in an especially vulnerable position to fall victim to and be unprepared to fight an even more virile illness which can put you down for a long time…..or more.

 --Keep a level head.  Take care.  We’ll get through this one.  Hey, with the advent of Daylight Saving Time last weekend, it’s easy to imagine the good weather we’ve been enjoying over the last few days coming back for good.  And there is a theory about this coronavirus that, like the regular flu, it generally goes away with the warmer weather.  That’s why countries in South America and Africa, where it is now summer, aren’t as badly hit with it. 

  Let’s hope they are right.

--That's what I think. What do you think? Comments to: dave@onworldwide.com or postal mail to Dave Richards, WOON Radio, 985 Park Avenue, Woonsocket, RI 02895-6332.  Thanks for reading.

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Dave Richards for March 4th….…………

--Today is March 4^th.  It is the only day of the year which is not only one of the 366 consecutive dates of the calendar, but can also be used as a command.

  Locally we have used it to point out the positive and constructive things people do.  You see, ordinary people do extraordinary things, sometimes.

  Like the two paramedics recently commended by the Woonsocket City Council.  You never know when something will happen and somebody will rise to the occasion.  History is full of these stories. 

  Dad said it best when he told a very young me, “most of life is showing up and trying, Dave.  Opportunities are lost while you decide if you want to take them, so step up to the plate and swing the bat.  The worst you can do is strike out.  And don't worry about striking out.  It’s been done before, and by greater people than you.  Live life.  Try and fail bravely.  Try and win triumphantly.  Fear is your enemy.  In fact the only thing fear is good for is for making you brave.  You cannot be brave if you weren’t afraid first and then did what needed to be done in spite of the fear.”

  Dad had a lot of sage advice like that.  And since my dad is no longer with us, let me take the chance to remind you all to avoid those whose selfish purpose is to frighten you.  Yes, I’m going to talk about the coronavirus matter again.

--I have mentioned before in these pages my concerns over the decisions made by others in my profession.  Many of them are well-meaning people who don’t think about the effect their news stories have on the average person.  Sadly, a few do think about it and stir up fear anyway because they like doing it.

  In an episode reminiscent of global warming, there are people who just cannot control themselves and will seize any real situation and exploit it for their own political purposes.  First, we are told to pay attention to government advisories regarding the spread of coronavirus.  Then, people who work for the government or support an elected official tell you that coronavirus is caused by other people in the government the first group doesn’t like.  We know better than this, so we don’t buy that foolishness and we stop listening to it.  When we stop listening to them, they scream a little louder and make up stories to get our attention again.  Then they add numbers to the story which no one can really verify. 

  Oh my goodness.  A ‘death toll’.  This must be really serious or they wouldn’t be counting the dead, we think.  Then the stories hit, somebody “might” have it and they live near us! 

  I am ashamed at the alarmist stories being pushed on us by some members of my chosen profession.  And I wish you all will think about what is really happening here.

  Fact:  There really is a very serious illness out there.  It responds reasonably well to medical treatment available here in the U.S., if treated early.  They don’t have the same medical treatments available in Communist China, Iran, or apparently, in Italy.

  Another Fact:  The people of the world travel more today than at any time in history.  This provides an easy route from areas of widespread infection to other areas of the planet.  Because of this we all need to be mindful of how to avoid catching this virus and also mindful of how to help others from catching or spreading it. 

  Conclusion:  We really are all gonna die.  But not today.  And not from this coronavirus.  Avoid fear.  Take appropriate precautions, calmly and deliberately.  Help others you care about to do the same.  Brush your teeth and say your prayers.  But step up to the plate every day and live your life.  Do not let fear stop you from living.

  God Bless.

--That's what I think. What do you think? Comments to: dave@onworldwide.com or postal mail to Dave Richards, WOON Radio, 985 Park Avenue, Woonsocket, RI 02895-6332.  Thanks for reading.

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--Today is Ash Wednesday, the start of the Lenten season for those who observe.  You know what that means, of course, yesterday was Fat Tuesday or the actual Mardi Gras Day.  Our Woonsocket Mardi Gras Ball last Saturday was the best I’ve seen, and I’ve seen them all except for the ones the Jaycees put on in the 1950s.  Congratulations to the Northern Rhode Island Council of the Arts for a really fun time.

  Down in the city where Mardi Gras is best known, New Orleans, the crowds were huge, as expected.  The French Quarter parties were non-stop, and a few blocks away the parades drew capacity crowds. 

  I was disturbed by the news that the Mayor of New Orleans banned all tandem parade floats after two spectators died.  For the uninitiated, a tandem float is one which is so large it is divided onto two flatbed trailers which are hooked together like train cars and pulled by one truck.  Well, first a woman last Thursday and then a man on Saturday tried to cross the street while the parade was passing by trying to jump between the two floats, tripping, and being run over by the second trailer.

  I don’t know if the victims had been drinking.  Of course a lot of that goes on in The Big Easy during the Mardi Gras celebration, so it wouldn’t surprise me.  Regardless, it’s a horrible way to go.

--Some say I’m tempting fate by even discussing this out in the open, but I just can’t get over how lucky we’ve been here in the Blackstone Valley this winter.  Today and tomorrow the folks up north of us are getting a whopper of a snow storm and we’re only getting grazed by the southern edge and it’s all rain. 

  Global warming?  Probably.  But I’m not getting into the political guilt game.  I will point out that although we sometimes get clobbered by bad weather here in the Blackstone Valley, more often than not Mother Nature give us here an easy pass.

--Speaking of Easy Pass.  It was recently announced that Governor Raimondo’s plan to charge a toll on all big trucks just isn’t bringing in the dough she promised the general assembly it would when they voted to back her on the proposal.  When you deduct the legal fees she’s had to pay to defend her plan, that’s probably even less money raised to plug the budget deficits. 

  Okay, it happens.  Sometimes plans just don’t work out.  But it seems to be happening regularly.  Like when they put sports betting into Twin River and the revenue just didn’t match what they said we’d take in. 

  If I were a member of the legislature, I’d never believe the income estimates proponents of new revenue plans offer.  Better to be surprised if it happens than to be disappointed (and responsible to make up the difference) when it doesn’t.

  Getting back to the tolls.  The way I understand it, this whole plan to toll the truckers is going so poorly, and the money being taken in is so far below estimates that they are making a change.  Well, that makes sense, if a plan isn’t working, I think we should make a change.  But they change they’re making just doesn’t make sense to me.  They’ve built only about half the gantries which will charge the tolls.  But instead of making efforts to build the rest of the planned gantries quickly so they can go online and get the money rolling in, they’re going to cancel building them at all to “save money”. 

  I hate to be negative, but the whole idea just smells to me.  Everybody makes mistakes.  When you get caught in one, at least be honest about it, admit it, apologize, and try to make it right.  This whole thing hasn’t seemed honest from the start.

  But I’m not complaining.  With fewer toll gantries, when they finally decide to toll other types of vehicles, it will be easier to dodge them.

--That's what I think. What do you think? Comments to: dave@onworldwide.com or postal mail to Dave Richards, WOON Radio, 985 Park Avenue, Woonsocket, RI 02895-6332.  Thanks for reading.

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Dave Richards for February 19th….…………

--We’ll start with a quick reminder to you and a hearty congratulations to King Jace XXVI, Dominique Doiron, his Queen Lori Thuot, and Princesses Tabitha Westerhuis and Ashley Robitaille, the Royal Court for this Saturday’s Woonsocket Mardi Gras Ball to prepare for a Great Party. 

  Great food, Great music, Great memories!

  Thanks to the Northern Rhode Island Council of the Arts for continuing this yearly event and great tradition!  We’ll see you at the Mardi Gras!

--Last week I commented on my hopes that the race for the presidential endorsement by the major political parties might be getting a bit more serious-minded.  No sooner had these thoughts been put to paper and then to print did I receive unsolicited emails from Democrats and Republicans alike which were rude and pushy.  One was even accusatory.  It claimed I was standing by and doing nothing while President Trump personally marked her for defeat at the hands of her Republican opponent.

  Firstly, I don’t contribute to political campaigns.  In my position, it just is too complicated a matter.  So the question gets to be, “how did these people get my email address?”  I’ll give you three guesses and the first two don’t count. 

  Secondly, if I were asking a stranger for financial help, would I send an email with these words (all CAPS) in the Subject Line?.....“FINAL NOTICE”

  The message in that email didn’t impress me much, either.  I’ve redacted response email addresses and “click to donate” buttons.  Otherwise, these words are copied directly from the email sent to me……..

"This is your final notice to activate your membership to show Speaker Pelosi and our women candidates in tough races support by contributing to our Spread the Love Fund. We haven’t seen your donation come through yet.

Speaker Pelosi is counting on you to help her defend her majority this year.

we’re running out of time.

Our deadline for the Spread the Love Fund is at MIDNIGHT.

  End quote.  I spared you the long list of politically-charged accusations against the president which ended the email.”

  Not to be outdone by the Democrats, I received this email purporting to be from Republican Whip Steve Scalise…………..again, I quote.

“Sorry to be so blunt, but I’m disappointed. I emailed you last week. I emailed you over the weekend. I emailed you yesterday. We’re short of our mid-month goal and House Democrats raised a ground shaking $137,6OO,OOO this cycle AND just broke another fundraising record...

Sorry to be so blunt, but I’m disappointed, Friend.

I emailed you last week. I emailed you over the weekend. I emailed you yesterday.

I’m asking you personally to contribute before midnight -- if you help in the next 2 hours, I’ll even guarantee that it’s 5OO% matched: Believe me, I wouldn’t be coming to you for a FOURTH AND FINAL time unless it was absolutely critical.”

  End Quote.  As you can see, both sides are acting like they are at war.  Besides politeness, I can’t help but feel that honesty is also a casualty of this ‘war’.  And it is in this attitude I find fault on both sides.

  We are not at war.  We are in the peaceful process of selecting a temporary occupant of a very powerful government office.  We should not be acting like little children at play, pretending the fate of all the world hangs on the success or failure of our mission. 

  Only grown-ups can vote in this election.  That is because it is presumed that grown-ups will, unlike children at play, treat a situation with the seriousness and respect for reality it truly deserves, and not, like children at play, make believe that we must win at all costs, just for the thrill and entertainment of it.

  Is there any question why the presidential candidates themselves sometimes act like children at play when party operatives act just that way?

--On a far more serious subject, today is the 38^th anniversary of the murder of Doreen Picard and the brutal beating of Susan Laferte in the laundry room of their home on Front Street in Woonsocket.  Few of us who were alive and in Woonsocket at that time will forget the emotions and frustration resulting from this horrible crime.

  I think about this dark time in our city now and then and I wonder.  This kind of event always makes people wonder, and I’m no different.  The “what-ifs”, and the threats over the telephone.  I know members Doreen’s family say they were threatened and I believe it because even I was threatened over news coverage our station broadcast….and also what we refused to broadcast. 

  This case divided the Woonsocket Police Department into two factions at a time we needed them most.  It was not a good time to be on the force for anyone.  The WPD is no longer divided.  I have to believe that if this murder took place today that a lot of bad things which happened after the murder wouldn’t happen now.  I hold on to that one bit of positivity very tightly.

  There is much more I could say, but I won’t.  Re-living it won’t help anyone.  I do, however, want to say this, hoping it may help.  If Susan or Nicole or the rest of Doreen’s family read these words, I pray you have found peace in your hearts and I want you to know that I have not forgotten the terrible injustices you have suffered. 

--That's what I think. What do you think? Comments to: dave@onworldwide.com or postal mail to Dave Richards, WOON Radio, 985 Park Avenue, Woonsocket, RI 02895-6332.  Thanks for reading.

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Dave Richards for February 13th….…………

--I am forming a new opinion of how this country is changing.  Looking back at the recent presidential preference voting, I continue to see the battle between young and old developing.  And between those who act sensibly and those who do not.

  I have the distinct impression after seeing the results of the New Hampshire primary that quiet, sensible people are coming back into fashion, while loud and ‘entertaining’ people may be going out of style. 

  Look at the strong showings of Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar.  Now look at the less-than-expected results for Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.  Conventional wisdom would have indicated that Bernie and Liz should walk away with very strong showings in New Hampshire since they  both come from the states which border The Granite State.  Yet, Liz just didn’t appeal to them, and Bernie’s early appeal is flagging. 

  Is it possible that people who don’t yell and pound the table and call their political adversaries names are a breath of fresh air?  Maybe.  But, of course it is too early to tell.  I can hope, can’t I?

  If it turns out to be a trend, then won’t Mr. Trump be at a disadvantage in the fall?  Could be.  But I still haven’t changed my mind that if Trump behaves like a president, he will be re-elected.  That, however, is a tall order for this president.

--You may recall my observations in past writings that the great civil unrest we see today reminds me of a similar condition in the 1960s.  I’ve done some further studying of the history books.  For those who subscribe to the notion that social sentiment is cyclical, as I do, I offer this observation.

  About every 50 to 60 years a wave of ‘hyper-liberalism’ seems to occur.  This intense craving for ‘change’ of any kind can be seen today.  We also saw it in the 1960s.  Searching further back, the years immediately before the turn of the 20^th century were the same.  That general era brought the downfall of the trusts and the establishment of the middle class.  You know, many people don’t remember President Theodore Roosevelt as a ‘flaming liberal’, but he was just that in his day, and for his entire political career going all the way back to his early days as a Customs Collector in New York City.

  50 to 60 years before that there was the great tumult regarding slavery and State’s Rights.  The result was the U.S. Civil War, touched off by the election of another man we don’t generally think of as a liberal, Abraham Lincoln.  But he was a political liberal, have no doubt about it, and his newly-minted Republican Party was the party of ‘change’ in the mid-19^th Century. 

  60 or so years before Mr. Lincoln there was the American Revolution, and the establishing of our Republic.  If you don’t think the founding fathers were liberal thinkers and people of ‘change’, you’d better take another look at them.

  So, in light of this observation, and in further light observing the men and women of today at the local, state, and federal levels of government who also crave ‘change’, what comfort can conservatives and moderates take in the upcoming election?  Perhaps only that as surely as these cycles have repeated in history, this cycle will also pass. 

--There’s a song I play on the radio in which an old man sings to a young man,  “I know what it’s like to be young……..but you don’t what it’s like to be old.”  It’s the age old battle between youthful exuberance and mature experience.   The last time this cycle came around I was a young man who wanted to change the world.  This time I am a man of experience who cautions the young, as I was once cautioned, to subdue their passions and push on into the future with measured steps and a concern for avoiding unintended consequences. 

  I think I’m in for as rough a ride as I gave the elders of my day. 

  But if we all play our roles sincerely and with conviction, we will all have done our best work on this earth.

--That's what I think. What do you think? Comments to: dave@onworldwide.com or postal mail to Dave Richards, WOON Radio, 985 Park Avenue, Woonsocket, RI 02895-6332.  Thanks for reading.

--30--