CHESTER, VA., Nov. 26, 2006
Finding The Good News
So Often, Mainstream Media Focuses On What Is Going Wrong, But Here Are Some Small Things Going Right
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Principal Barbara Adderley works with a student at Stanton elementary school in North Philadelphia. (CBS)
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Meanwhile, in Long Island, New York, a group of elderly men in their 80s and 90s has been meeting at the Shelter Rock Tennis Club most everyday for about seven years. They have known each other for 47 years. The group calls themselves the Romeos for "Retired Old Men Eating Out."
During lunch, they tease each other with what they call zingers. The truth is, the Romeos' antics may be a recipe-for-success when it comes to aging. Because to them, getting zinged means getting attention.
"Tt makes you feel important if somebody gives you a zinger, that you're noticed," one man said.
For many elderly Americans getting noticed isn't easy. Older men, especially, are more likely to become isolated, leading to loneliness and depression. Groups of Romeos exist all over the country to help overcome these issues, but that doesn't mean they're touchy-feely. They say they don't really deal with each other's problems, but just acknowledge them and move on.
"We don't handle it," one member said. "We talk about it for two or three minutes to find out what the latest news is and then we go on to things."
"The important things: like politics, who's buying drinks today, things like that," another member said.
It may not sound like much, but the Romeos' camaraderie and banter all contribute to lifted spirits, stimulated minds, and a little bit of old-fashioned male bonding, and that can be especially important for the widowers in the group.
"There's a loneliness which is attached to the position I'm in, and when you're with friends and people who care for you and you care for them, that's very consoling, very helpful," a member named Stan said.
So although some news may appear bleak, there are good things happening all over the country.
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Michelle Obama tells how her role as the First Lady has changed her perspective.
Cortez Simpson
I taught at Stanton School 37 yrs. ago and last year I watched the movie I Am A Promise. I cried to know that in all these years, things hadn't changed all that much until your segment today. What a joy to see the improvements in educational standards, test scores and children who are excited to learn. Maybe all schools in poorer neighborhoods can learn a lesson from Principal Barbara Adderly! What ever the formula, she is giving the children a chance to develop all that they have been given and now they are the promise!
Quoting the segment, %u201CE.P.A. had warned that coal-fired power companies had to decrease the amount of pollutants released into the air or face penalties. Other companies fought it, but not Dominion; the company voluntarily made changes before the E.P.A. made it.%u201D
The segment neglects to mention that Dominion has fought against Clean Air requirements at their Possum Point station (approx. 30 miles outside of DC) and were finally forced by court order to upgrade from coal to natural gas in 2003-4.
Since passage of the Clean Air Act, Dominion has had almost 20 years to begin some process of cleaning the dirtiest of their %u201Cgrandfathered%u201D plants (power plants originally exempted from Clean Air requirements) or to phase them out of operation permanently.
That they have only now begun upgrading, and only in one of their seven major power plants in the area, may pass for good news today given the state of the nation and the world, but you do a disservice to your viewers when %u201Cgood news%u201D segments act less to provide thorough information and act more as corporate spin to improve the image of an archaic industry stuck in the past.
Please do not praise these companies for taking baby steps to finally address their legal responsibilities - responsibilities which they have fought tooth-and-nail against for decades. Thanks for your time!
Here is my email address:
bearsandraggedys@yahoo.com
Phyllis
The world needs more people like Tom Farrell who rose above legal advice that could have indefinitely postponed costly compliance with federal guidelines and simply did what is right by acting for the public good rather than the self-interest of short term political or fiscal expediency. Mr. Farrell's committment to protect the public from the serious, if seldom acknowledged, invisible threat to public health from coal-fired energy plants is nothing short of heroic.
I would like to see a lot more Good News if this week's segments set the template for future stories!
USAF MSgt Retired.
If only the terrorist could realise how we see ourselves as blessed, they might be able to see past our governments sometimes fairly earned preception of arrogance and understand the true ambitions of our good people. We are a people of givers and doers and enjoy the benefits of freedom. I enjoyed your three stories of the postive in all corners of our country.
Our cup is way more than half full....Please share more Positive pieces.
Thank You!
John
Please make this a prominent feature of your Sunday morning show and all your other broadcasts. We owe it to ourselves and our children. Thanks so much!
- by stop20 November 26, 2006 12:56 PM EST
- Thank you! Finally someone has figured out that there is not enough GOOD NEWS reported. Now, any way you can start a trend in reporting GOOD NEWS? Great stories!
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