I listen to talk radio, and for the most part I enjoy it. It's informative, it's entertaining, and it's a good source of news material that the mainstream markets refuse to utilize. (The news media tilts to the left these days? No--they can't be serious!) It's interesting to listen to the people who call in and share their concerns and opinions. Recently I noticed a disturbing trend, however. It seems to me that more and more callers are calling to gripe and complain about everything from politics to economics to social issues, but offering not much else. Even the hosts of the various shows, both national and local, spend an increasing amount of time berating whoever is in (or not in) the media limelight.
If we have so many problems, where are the solutions?
I've known several people in my life who love nothing better than to groan and moan gloom and doom about every little thing that affects their lives. (Notice the present tense. Some of them are still around.) They're not happy unless they're miserable, and they can't stand not sharing their depression with anyone who crosses their path. I've observed that when this type of person starts off on a rant about a particular issue, and I offer a potential solution to resolve the problem, I get inundated by angry and irritated comments to the effect that "that won't work, this can't be fixed." If I suggest a different option, same thing. By the third offering, the irate person either ends the conversation (rarely) or changes to another topic (much more likely) in the hopes that I'll help contribute to the pity party. The conversation continues awhile in this loop, with me recommending possible solutions and the person switching topics. Finally one of us gets frustrated enough to terminate the discussion--and more often than not, it isn't me. The point I'm trying to make is these people do not want their problems solved. It's not a matter of being too lazy to work to correct a particular issue. These individuals don't even want somebody else to come in and fix the problem for them because it would take away the joy they experience from being persecuted (in their minds, at least). They actually enjoy wallowing in their misery and want everybody else to join in with them.
Which brings me back to talk radio. Increasingly I'm hearing more callers of this type venting their frustrations about the topic at hand, suggesting the latest conspiracy theory, and generally voicing the idea that "there's nothing we can do about it." Many times the radio host simply agrees with the caller and jumps on his complaining bandwagon. In those instances when the host asks the caller if he has tried doing something to be a part of the solution, or suggests making a change, the caller vehemently responds in a vein that makes it crystal clear he believes nothing he can do will change the situation.
I'm not knocking those who listen to talk radio (I'd be beating up myself if I were), those who call in to participate, or the people who work hard to put together these programs. I am, however, curious. With all the complaints and gripes being aired, the listener gets the idea that there are a lot of problems to be fixed. So who's to do the fixing? This isn't an issue of "put up or shut up", because everybody needs to share their frustrations once in awhile to keep from going mental. This has to do with who's going to make a change if all people want to do is whine?
I know I can't stop global warming (if it exists) all by myself (and neither can Al Gore). I'm not in control of the planet (again, neither is Al Gore). But I CAN choose to make changes in the areas I DO have control over. I can choose to make one less trip to the grocery store twice a week. It doesn't seem like much, until one hundred, or one thousand, or several million people all choose to do something similar. Little changes that we can control add up to big changes that we can control. I like it.
So why don't we hear anybody saying this?
I have no idea.
Maybe I should complain to somebody about it.
