Don't hold your breath waiting for government to change your life, or you'll turn blue

JFK was a role model when I was a kid, and I was devastated when he was killed. Years later as an adult, I learned he was a very flawed human being.

The first time you vote, you actually believe some of the campaign promises you hear. Then as you get older you learn that most of what is promised will die in Congress, simply because of party politics. Then, if you get into the news business, you get to meet some of these people and realize many are simply in it for themselves, and have little interest in helping the people. Most of them aren't any smarter than the rest of us.

Tuesday we will elect a new President. Both candidates have promised a great deal. Regardless of who wins, many of those promises will die in Congress.

When I was growing up one parent could work and support a whole family. Watching television didn't cost anything. A ticket to a ballgame was a buck. You could take a Sunday drive and not worry about breaking the budget. Man walked on the moon. You had the same telephone in your house for thirty years and it worked every time. I remember going to the 1964 Worlds Fair in New York and having my jaw drop at all the incredible inventions that would change our lives by the year 2000. Flying cars, matter transporters, you name it. Life would be lived in a Utopian society of peace and prosperity.

And none of it came true because government got in the way. We may have technology, but the quality of life in this country has gone steadily downhill. Most products are plastic, disposable, and basically junk. The bottom line is all that matters. And we still haven't gone past the moon.

Which brings me to my point. As media people we have an incredible amount of influence. We can do a simple consumer story that tells a mother how to find a scholarship for her kid, and change someone's future. We can save a life by broadcasting medical information. We can raise money for a good cause in no time.

We can change the world in ninety seconds while Congress can filibuster a good idea to death.

Information is the world's most important commodity, and we own it all.

Making the world a better place doesn't start from the top down, but from the bottom up. You can't wait for the government to save you, you have to save yourself... and as news people you have a responsibility to help others along the way.

Look for the stories that change people's lives. Some are simple tidbits of information, some are a major influence. Get out of the newsroom and get involved in the community. Don't just do the story about Habitat for Humanity building a house, pick up a hammer and help. Don't just cover the car wreck that was the result of a DUI... hold the justice system's feet to the fire and find out why this problem isn't going away. Don't look the other way when you see something wrong; do what you can to make it right.

You have an incredible amount of influence as a news person, and it is not meant to be used to tell people how to vote or think. It is a privilege that must be used to both inform and help.

You may never know how some of your stories affect lives, but that's not the reason to do them. If every reporter did even one story per week to make the world a better place, all those campaign promises wouldn't be necessary.