I must be losing it these days because I find myself thinking good thoughts about government.
And as a journalist, that goes against the very core of my skeptical being.
Newspapers are regularly criticized for having too much negative news. And journalists usually fend off the criticism by pointing to stories about the athlete of the week or about some kid who found a bag of money and returned it.
But the truth is, the criticism is fair because of the basic definition of news, which is something you don’t expect to happen. Way back in the days when my father liked to refer to me as a “cub reporter” for our hometown newspaper, I already knew that if government did what it was supposed to do, it wasn’t much of a story.
But find a government worker with his hand in the till or government program that’s failed and you’ve got some real news.
The reason I think I may have gone a bit batty is I’m feeling pretty good about the National Do Not Call Registry – the government’s attempt to keep sales people from calling me all the time.
The program is celebrating its second anniversary and by my own definition, that’s not news.
Since I signed up, here’s what’s happened:
* My phone does not ring five or six times a night.
* I can eat dinner, read a book, watch television or have a conversation without interruption.
* People who call me are generally people I know.
In summary, there is joy in Mikeville, because the telephone solicitors have struck out.
The program has succeeded beyond my wildest expectations in helping me reclaim some nighttime serenity in my home.
I understand that my experience may be better than that of some people. A recent story in The Wall Street Journal cited a survey that indicated nearly half the people on the list are still getting sales calls.
Truth be told, I’ve gotten few calls in the past couple of years. Nonprofit groups are legally allowed to call me. And people with an existing business relationship with me can call for 18 months after the sale.
But they are so few and far between that I couldn’t be much happier with how things are going.
One thing I have noticed that I’d like to put a stop to is that I’m still getting calls where nobody is on the line.
I’m assuming those are computerized “sniffers” that call at different times to determine when you will answer your phone. Those calls, once common, are now rare. And they don’t seem to be followed up by a call from a real person, which is good.
If you never got around to signing up for the list, I highly recommend that you do it now.
Just visit www.donotcall.gov or call 888-382-1222.
If you already have signed up and continue to get calls, tell the caller to put you on the company’s do-not-call list.
Try it. Maybe you’ll also be lucky enough to have no news happen to you.
Safe mail
On a related note, I was pleased to see that the U.S. Postal Service is experimenting with a program in which it would keep certain items at the local station and send you a notice so you can come pick it up.
The idea is to protect expensive items from theft or things such as fruit baskets from exposure to extreme temperatures.
As a rural postal customer who’s had his share of theft, this sounds like a great idea to me.
A government agency doing what I want it to do probably doesn’t fit my definition of news.
But I can’t wait to try it out and write about it.
Mike Benbow: 425-339-3459; benbow@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
