THE BOOB TUBE AND GOVERNMENT

We Americans often don’t take the time to read newspapers and books to get current information about issues that can affect our lives. I have often heard individuals comment on reading a book; often they will say, “I will just wait for the movie to come out”. The television has become such a fixture in our lives that many televisions are turned on and are rarely turned off. The TV can be a great source of information; it is easy to keep up on current events with very little effort on our part. There is a bill filed in the upcoming session of the state legislature that could help the average citizen stay more informed about the way our government works.

Representative Jason Murphey (R-Guthrie) has authored House Bill 1039, which requires the creation of C-SPAN style televised content of legislative floor and committee meetings, state executive board meetings and supreme court proceedings.  The legislative process would be available to all Oklahomans by just turning on their television sets. This legislation is based on what other states have done to broadcast government proceedings. In other parts of the country where this has been tried, people become empowered with the knowledge of what is going on.

Representative Murphey brought up an interesting point. We all have seen the huge lists of Supreme Court justices on the ballot. We are asked to vote to retain or not to retain those justices. I would venture to say that maybe one person in 100 knows anything about those justices. In my opinion, it is next to impossible to make a logical decision on the judge issue. If this bill passes we would be able to see these people in action and know their views. With very little effort we would be able to make a more informed decision.

If there is an issue that we are concerned about in the state house or senate we could find our when that issue would be debated and we could tune in and watch our elected officials in action. I also believe that it would be an excellent teaching aid for the young people of our state. All of us need to have a better understanding of how our government works. Sadly, many people have little interest in government, but I can assure you that government has a huge interest in you or at least your pocketbook.