Last Thursday on my radio show I began the program with a guest,
Drew Remenda, (of all people), the
San Jose Sharks terrific color analyst on cable, (
CSN California).
I mention, "of all people", because Remenda appeared on the program to talk hockey at about the time many thousands of mourners were gathering inside the HP Pavilion for a memorial service honoring the
two fallen Santa Cruz Police officers that were ambushed a few weeks back.
I had debated whether or not it was appropriate to have on a sports person in light of what was taking place in the very building where Drew did the interview. Talk about surreal. I finally relented and decided the interview would proceed. I'm glad we talked.
The first ten minutes were devoted to the memorial service; the tragic events that led to the officers' demise. Remenda talked about his kids asking him "what's going on there in, (San Jose)?", and how he broke the news that two police officers were shot and killed and were being memorialized.
Remenda is a Canadian. Outside of a few exceptions, there's not a lot of gun-related homicides in Canada. Knifes, yes, as he pointed out, but guns, not so much. I made it a point not to get bogged down in a gun-control discussion because it wasn't the time nor the place but Remenda, again, of all people, offered the idea of how difficult it is in our country to simply sit down and talk about a very serious issue. That the concept of a reasonable dialogue and national town-hall discussion(s) dealing with something so profound, so immensely on the mind and conscience of nearly all Americans was so difficult to take place.
I agree with Drew. Furthermore, the idea that collectively, we all are unwilling, or simply incapable of having a reasonable dialogue without any shouting, any ad-hominem attacks speaks volumes about our society as a whole. There's several reasons for this predicament we're in; part of it deals with the present polarization of the country; the
us vs. them mentality that has been cemented by the cable channels and reinforced by their amen corner. What is a decidedly gray area, (like gun-control), has been turned into a black and white issue with each side dug in and devoid of the prospect of a fairly ordinary, polite discussion. It's a shame we can't even agree to simply talk. And when we do talk, inevitably it gets so heated and personal we're unable or unwilling to respect the other side's feelings and opinions.
That's rather sad if you ask me.
NOTE:
415 Media is a largely reader-supported 24/7 media blog. Any
donations of any amount are always appreciated to make this site sustainable and
able to operate. Yes, time is money. If you can, give a buck or two or five by
clicking on the Paypal icon located on the right of the blog. Again, any dollar
amount is appreciated and you do not have to have a Paypal account to donate and
ALL donations are completely confidential. Thank you.
*Follow me on
Twitter
We welcome Cristina Rendon to the Bay Area.
