Art Bell Quits Dark Matter

[UnscreenedCaller]

Twenty-three minutes ago I became Grandpa Uncle Duke for the first time.  Baby, my daughter, and son-in-law all well, Grandpa a little shaky.

Congrats Grandpa Uncle Duke!

[dan7800]

My lord, I so agree. Part of the reason I was excited for Art to come back is the professional standard Howard set by always staying on air, even through a lawsuit. I naively thought the contract between Art Bell and Sirius would be like concrete, and we were basically guaranteed two years of Dark Matter. I now realize it was Howard's loyalty to his fans and staff that kept him there, and not being pampered and coddled by Sirius. Say what you want about the man, he has a work ethic like no other. So sad Art Bell took such an archaic tactic to attempt to satisfy his demands. How could he not realize he would be breaking our hearts in the process?! In hindsight, 10 min then a drop, and another 10 min and a drop, or listening to him on demand would have been perfection compared to what we have now.

Agreed.


I cannot stand Howard though. All hail George Knapp.

Art came back largely for spite. He said it himself (it not so many words)

[Snowdoggie]

I see.  For another corporation to buy a product circling the drain, they would have to make wholesale changes to turn it around and make it profitable.  I'd think the exorbitant salary of Stern alone would scare off many potential buyers.

When Liberty Media bought them out Stern did get his salary cut a bit.

A bankruptcy reorganization could be used to cut his salary further if necessary or even push him out the door. All those agreements are up for review in a bankruptcy.

[Snowdoggie]

http://www.libertymedia.com/assets-siriusxm.aspx

Liberty Media is a cable company. They tend to want to fill up their channels with cheap programming and lots of commercials. And we all know about how dedicated they aren't to customer service.

That explains a lot about the current status of satellite radio. Not to mention the fact that the courts gave them a monopoly when they merged Sirius and XM.

[Falkie2013]

I wonder why Art doesn't talk to Howard. Howard probably has a lot more pull with Sirius than Art does and Howard might be able to talk them into releasing Art.
Howard was in radio and knows what its like.

[Textor]

Liberty Media is a cable company. They tend to want to fill up their channels with cheap programming and lots of commercials. And we all know about how dedicated they aren't to customer service.

That explains a lot about the current status of satellite radio. Not to mention the fact that the courts gave them a monopoly when they merged Sirius and XM.

Someone has also been posting on the SiriusXM facebook page that Liberty is essentially stripping SiriusXM for parts at this point-- they don't care about keeping it going, they just want to squeeze cash out of it so they can keep attempting to buy out Time Warner Cable.

Don't know if this guy has anything to his assertion, but it definitely could explain quite a few things.

[Boca Rider]

Greetings in the name of the Most High!!!  First time poster long time lurker.   Extreme thanks to the members of the most entertaining and thought provoking place on line for helping many through a dark time. 

the dark rider
"the crickets are silent tonight,  the sky hazy
no stars or moon glimmering in the nighttime sky
there are  babes deep asleep in the warm arms of their mothers
there are lonely people resting comfortably in the arm of strangers

music plays but too softly to make out the song
voices speak but too muffled to hear the words
decisions are made. lives are changed
and the dark rider  vanishes in the sunset." 

Boca Rider

[Queen]

So the thread end's as it began.  with no art

[dan7800]

I wonder why Art doesn't talk to Howard. Howard probably has a lot more pull with Sirius than Art does and Howard might be able to talk them into releasing Art.
Howard was in radio and knows what its like.

Why would Howard really care?

[Queen]

Why would Howard really care?

i heard Howard mention Art and acted like he didnt know him lol.   sounds like a typical thing in radio. never herd of rush limbaugh whos that lol.

[Queen]

I like the Idea of Art just going on to his stream and doing his show. who would he be compeating against? Is there another Streaming website?   What happend to freedom of speach?  If i or Art wants to talk why can't he? Why can't he go on his Ham and talk for 4 hours every night is there a NC with that too? Who else uses Ham.  Now with that said MV could broadcast the Ham and give it out for free and after 2 years art can go offical and have much of his listeners back!!!

[kennedymaure]

Someone has also been posting on the SiriusXM facebook page that Liberty is essentially stripping SiriusXM for parts at this point-- they don't care about keeping it going, they just want to squeeze cash out of it so they can keep attempting to buy out Time Warner Cable.

Don't know if this guy has anything to his assertion, but it definitely could explain quite a few things.

OK, that makes sense and that could shut Art up instantly.... think about it for a second. (Pure speculation on my part) They wont let him out of his non compete, they see all of us raising hell. They want to buy another broadcasting company with bigger reach than God himself. Time Warner (owning Art Bell) could push him out into the mainstream and make gazillions of dollars off of him as opposed to what they could gain from this now. The underworld of people like us who wont watch Wolf Blitzer is where the trends are going. Like I said, pure speculation but this could be a card in a merger they are waiting to play later.

[hanhepi wi]

Hi there everybody. Well it is a sad day for me indeed. I got a call from the Manager I have been working
with since the start of all this and the answer was NO. The further answer was they do intend to hold me
to a NC. This Manager is a good guy and what decisions that were made, were made above his head.

I did contact a Lawyer who I will not identify unless he wants to be known but I can proudly tell you he is
one of you! He was willing to proceed and felt we had a good chance to win BUT it is expensive and as any
of you know who have ever gone down that road know, it takes a long time. So if my health holds I will see
you in less than two Years.

Below is a copy of my last email to Sirius/XM minus the name of the Manager to who it was sent:

First, you may recall I said to you that I thought you would not get much of a bump from putting Coast on, was I right?
Have you actually listened to that show? Have you REALLY listened? You put him on 104 which was I guess a nice way
to get back at me, but that guy is a joke. How many people rushed to put any money down to listen to Coast on 104? I
bet nobody, all this plus they are doing what I asked for and more!

1. I said what I would like is to be back on but wanted to stream for free, but leave the value added stuff to Sirius/XM
   you said no. As it stands now I presume the streaming still does not work properly and will not, till at best August or
   so. You said this was a good idea for me but not Sirius. I disagree, if we develop millions of listener's, in what World
   is that bad for Sirius in any way? If you can charge BIG bucks per commercial minute.....Broadcasting 101, it's a good thing.

2. We talked about one day with streaming, I asked about other days, you said we could talk about that, we never did.

3. As it stands now people MUST pay about $180.00 a Year if they want to hear Art Bell, why not allow listeners the option of JUST
    streaming my show for a lesser fee? It could be pro rated, IF it just worked properly.

4. I said I would be willing to buy the Studio gear for whatever you paid if I could be released from my Non Compete, I have not yet
    heard a answer to that one, though you did once say you would not let me go, you sent me a reply saying you would consider it.

5. I can wait out the remaining time, then stream, which it looks like I will be doing at 70 Years of age.

I just for the life of me can not see why everything with Sirius/XM has to be lumped together in a Business model that works for non
  commercial music just fine, but lumps Talk Radio in with it. I understand why it works for Howard, he had little choice unless he
  wanted to keep paying fines. I don't know about Dr. Laura.

Two things I can tell you about me, every time I crack the mike I put 110% into it, it takes a lot of work and I am willing to give my time
and energy happily but not if I have no way to grow the audience. I have millions of people waiting for a way to hear me and they would pay
something to do so, but asking them to become subs for $180.00 bucks a Year with a service that does not work well will not get them there.

The other thing is Coast, I will not share time with them. I thought hard about that, and there is no way I would rejoin under any conditions
while you carry them. The reason I came back on is because that show is a insult to the entire field, not to mention at least 45% of it is
commercial or breaks of some sort while the rest is just plain bad Radio.

I truly enjoyed working with you and everybody else at Sirius/XM and wish there was a way to work this out. I understand you think the way
forward is exclusive content and perhaps you are right but in my opinion the World will pass you very shortly while trying to hold on to this
model. It really already is. Nobody tried to stop all the Pirates, every one of my shows was and is available for download the next day, great
for the guy who doesn't want to pay but not so great for the Talk Host who wants the live calls, how does this make sense???

                                                                                                                                              Art

So, there it is. From the bottom of my heart I want to thank all of you for so much support. I wish it had worked out
in some way but there were forces at work that I never thought about, I am just a talking head........

Dear Art Bell,

The happenings of the Baby Boomer generation were a mix of exciting and melancholy times. The number of historic events which took place in the last 60 years is unprecedented.  Like Art Bell, I am a part of the happenings over the years, including signing onto AOL and going into the chat room of the Grassy Knoll.  Prior to the birth of the baby boomers, a radio was in the homes for entertainment and news. ReginaldFessenden recognized as the "father" of radio and as the first to actually transmit the sound of the human voice without wires (Christmas Eve 1906 Radio Show).

55.7% of USA citizens had one television in the home by 1954.  On June 25, 1950, the Korean War began and ended in July of 1953.  Bandstand premiered late September 1952 on a Philadelphia television station..  On  November 22, 1963, my mother was watching TV and learned that President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas.  Mother remembered the reporters noting the grassy knoll and a shooter.  On February 9th, 1964, the Beatles played on the Ed Sullivan Show.  Regular U.S. combat units were deployed beginning in Vietnam in 1965--"Eve of Destruction" is a protest song written by P. F. Sloan in 1965.  On July 20 1969.  Apollo 11 lands on the moon. On  June 17, 1972  there is a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C.  The Vietnam War ends on August 15, 1973.

On September 30, 1975, HBO became the first television network to continuously deliver its signal via satellite when it broadcast the "Thrilla in Manila" boxing match between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier.  On August 16, 1977, Elvis-The King- Presley dies.   In October 1980, Pac-Man was released in the USA. .John Lennon is assassinated on December 8, 1980.   In 1983, Microsoft announced the development of Windows.  On the 26th of  April 1986, the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine exposes.  Prozac was first introduced to the US market in January 1988.  Also in 1988, The Rush Limbaugh Show was nationally syndicated on the radio. When Apple pulled out of the AppleLink program in 1989, the project was renamed and America Online was born.

In 1989,  the 50,000-watt KDWN in Las Vegas, Nevada offered Art Bell a five-hour time slot in the middle of the night. The World Trade Center bombing occurred on February 26, 1993.  During 1993, syndication of Art Bell's radio program to other radio stations.  In 1996, J.C. Webster III, or "J.C."  began calling to the Art Bell radio show.  Y2K fears unfounded.  Four coordinated terrorist attacks launched by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda upon the United States in New York City and the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area on Tuesday, September 11, 2001.

For those of us who are 50 years old or older, we have witnessed the QUICKENING of our personal world and the outside world. We have lost and/or bury many loved ones. We know about the ending of a marriage. The joy and heartache of having children.  We know things can change in a heart beat. We continue to re think the meaning of life...and in the end we know--love is all.

Listening to Art Bell on the radio was a personal thing for me. And all I can say is, I am a "Forever Art Bell Fan". Listening to Art Bell on the radio, was fun for me.  We shared the same strange world-- I remember watching JFK's funeral on our black and white TV, my family going to Vietnam for the War, my father working at RCA and being apart of the the Apollo 11 mission, the first time I signed on a computer and logging on to AOL's Grassy Knoll Chat Room looking for Art Bell.

Kind regards, Mr Art Bell.

a Forever Art Bell Fan,

ps/ I always loved your bumper music.

[kennedymaure]

Dear Mr. Bell,
I am very sorry to see you leave after only 6 weeks back in the seat. I truly missed you during your hiatus from radio, and was thrilled to see you back.
However, I wonder if your head is trapped in a time warp back in the late 90s? There are a few things that have changed.
Back then, you had a massive audience. But 10-13 years out of the limelight, can adversely affect your popularity. Tons of people these days have never even heard of you.
People these days, because of social media, have greatly reduced attention spans. I really doubt many "new people" have the wherewithal to focus for 3 hrs.
Although I'm crazy for the paranormal, I think as a genre, it peaked in 2000, and has been in a serious decline, as sad as that is.
Lastly, I'd like to point out the country is in a serious economic contraction, and the masses that make up your audience, are becoming increasingly poor. Having spent the last 3 days on this forum, I've been shocked at how broke the average poster here is. I haven't been back to the states more than 3 vacations since 99, so this is quite a surprise. I realized you are very well off, after pricing some of those condos in makati last summer. They are higher than shanghai. So, I can't imagine you have any idea of the plight of your average long time fans.
I think you should have been a little patient, and not expected to be stepping back into 1997. I also feel for all your broke assed fans who went out and bought those radios and subscriptions with their beleaguered expendable incomes.
I hope to hear from you again in a couple years, but next time please don't be such a flake. Especially, as you have stated, since its for the love of your trade.
Best regards.

I have told 3 people who never heard of Art Bell who are now listening to youtube videos of him from XM and they love him. If he comes back, it would spread quickly.

[hanhepi wi]

I just love your positive thinking.  I enjoy learning that the younger people in this strange world appreciate our Art Bell and his Art of Talk.

[HorrorRetro]

Finally home, long day.  Thanks for all the congrats on my granddaughter. Looking forward to teaching her how to handicap football games.

I missed your earlier post announcing the birth, so congrats!  I became a first-time gammy 3 weeks ago today. It puts all of this into perspective when you look into that tiny face. It's a big disappointment, but it's just a radio show.

[SillyFruit]

I might have to email him... Any idea if Knapp would be willing to do a once weekly podcast?  I doubt he does Coast for the money (day job and all that jazz) and he could set his own hours.  I do not know what his NC clause would look like, but I really want a Knapp / Bell team and we could get an amazing headstart.

*** Please, please, please???  Please

Bell, Knapp podcast? Perfect hosts! Don't think Knapp would leave C2C, though, and bet he's under a contract.

[urbie88]

Omg...it's the Trollnado.

That seriously needs to be made.

[Pinoybipedalurinal]

I have told 3 people who never heard of Art Bell who are now listening to youtube videos of him from XM and they love him. If he comes back, it would spread quickly.

I'm sure they did. It's the only thing about radio I've ever loved. However, Sirius isn't free. Back in the 90s a shitload of people were listening to him for free. I've been reading that heaps of people are losing their jobs, and cutting nonessentials like cable and satellite tv. I'm just guessing it would be impossible for mr. Bell to pull in the numbers like before. And to be honest, I think at least 50% of his love of his job came from raking in big cash. There's nothing wrong with that. Everyone's career goal should include maximizing their earnings for life energy expended. That's common sense.
When I heard that he had consulted with Charlie Crane before quitting this gig, it seemed so obvious that money was what was at issue, primarily. Like I said, making as much money as possible is a good thing, but I get the feeling it was the main thing. How many of us here would have bitched about the problems he mentioned? Very few I think, cuz we were just happy to have him back, as well as his guests. He though, tried to seem like one of the little people, and fighting for shit for us. I feel it was paternizing and insulting. How many people signed up for Sirius, and bought those radios? How many bought the radios from C. Crane? Obviously not enough.
For those of you who are racking your brains trying to find a way for mr. Bell to work for free on the Internet, to get around his NC, I think you're spinning your wheels. He dumped this gig, and a lot of you people with worthless shit, which many of you could ill afford to purchase, cuz the big bucks weren't forthcoming. This is just my ill informed opinion, but I bet I'm right, sadly. Anyway, I'm not waiting around for 2 years.

[Upgreyed]

...Now for something completely different.

50 years ago today this Republic was changed forever.

Rest in Peace JFK.

[kennedymaure]

Dear Art Bell,

The happenings of the Baby Boomer generation were a mix of exciting and melancholy times. The number of historic events which took place in the last 60 years is unprecedented.  Like Art Bell, I am a part of the happenings over the years, including signing onto AOL and going into the chat room of the Grassy Knoll.  Prior to the birth of the baby boomers, a radio was in the homes for entertainment and news. ReginaldFessenden recognized as the "father" of radio and as the first to actually transmit the sound of the human voice without wires (Christmas Eve 1906 Radio Show).

55.7% of USA citizens had one television in the home by 1954.  On June 25, 1950, the Korean War began and ended in July of 1953.  Bandstand premiered late September 1952 on a Philadelphia television station..  On  November 22, 1963, my mother was watching TV and learned that President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas.  Mother remembered the reporters noting the grassy knoll and a shooter.  On February 9th, 1964, the Beatles played on the Ed Sullivan Show.  Regular U.S. combat units were deployed beginning in Vietnam in 1965--"Eve of Destruction" is a protest song written by P. F. Sloan in 1965.  On July 20 1969.  Apollo 11 lands on the moon. On  June 17, 1972  there is a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C.  The Vietnam War ends on August 15, 1973.

On September 30, 1975, HBO became the first television network to continuously deliver its signal via satellite when it broadcast the "Thrilla in Manila" boxing match between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier.  On August 16, 1977, Elvis-The King- Presley dies.   In October 1980, Pac-Man was released in the USA. .John Lennon is assassinated on December 8, 1980.   In 1983, Microsoft announced the development of Windows.  On the 26th of  April 1986, the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine exposes.  Prozac was first introduced to the US market in January 1988.  Also in 1988, The Rush Limbaugh Show was nationally syndicated on the radio. When Apple pulled out of the AppleLink program in 1989, the project was renamed and America Online was born.

In 1989,  the 50,000-watt KDWN in Las Vegas, Nevada offered Art Bell a five-hour time slot in the middle of the night. The World Trade Center bombing occurred on February 26, 1993.  During 1993, syndication of Art Bell's radio program to other radio stations.  In 1996, J.C. Webster III, or "J.C."  began calling to the Art Bell radio show.  Y2K fears unfounded.  Four coordinated terrorist attacks launched by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda upon the United States in New York City and the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area on Tuesday, September 11, 2001.

For those of us who are 50 years old or older, we have witnessed the QUICKENING of our personal world and the outside world. We have lost and/or bury many loved ones. We know about the ending of a marriage. The joy and heartache of having children.  We know things can change in a heart beat. We continue to re think the meaning of life...and in the end we know--love is all.

Listening to Art Bell on the radio was a personal thing for me. And all I can say is, I am a "Forever Art Bell Fan". Listening to Art Bell on the radio, was fun for me.  We shared the same strange world-- I remember watching JFK's funeral on our black and white TV, my family going to Vietnam for the War, my father working at RCA and being apart of the the Apollo 11 mission, the first time I signed on a computer and logging on to AOL's Grassy Knoll Chat Room looking for Art Bell.

Kind regards, Mr Art Bell.

a Forever Art Bell Fan,

ps/ I always loved your bumper music.

Very well put, thank you. The exact sentiment I couldn't have articulated. The quickening you speak of in my opinion is due to wanton 1% greed. If you throw in all the blood of the innocents since 9 11 - you have a lot of negative energy and a whole new social system emerging with poverty being an 8 thousand pound gorilla, instead of just an 800 pound one.

At my age witnessing this transformation (in disbelief for the sake of my children) I have watched it wondering how it will end for me in this life. I don't see the Prepper mentality as being anything more than a marketing scheme feeding on and profiting from the fears of the paranoid that listen to the Alex Jones, some C2C folks and Glenny Beck.

I do think a "lack" of Art being on the air has driven some people to listen to those negative alternatives. (it did me for a while until I realized the negative resonance no matter how entertaining or silly it was )

Hearing Art broadcasting again was one of those cool things in life where you go "wow... that's awesome... what a cool thing to look forward to!" so I'm disappointed and pissed off - which neither are good.

There's actually a ton of responsibility in being a guy like Art Bell. We are all talking about him and sending him messages and seeing this stuff and it's an energy pulling on his soul. When I think about it - who the hell are we to expect him to fight a war with a corporation for the sake of our entertainment? 

If you read Art's history, he's been through a lot of crap.  (I have seen some of the same)

He gets nothing from me but well wishes and thanks for the show. I hope he comes back on air but this soul isn't going to burden the man with any expectations.

.....Now all you little arrogant mean Bell Gabbers can take your shots at me for being emotional... Fire away biiitches!

[kennedymaure]

I'm sure they did. It's the only thing about radio I've ever loved. However, Sirius isn't free. Back in the 90s a shitload of people were listening to him for free. I've been reading that heaps of people are losing their jobs, and cutting nonessentials like cable and satellite tv. I'm just guessing it would be impossible for mr. Bell to pull in the numbers like before. And to be honest, I think at least 50% of his love of his job came from raking in big cash. There's nothing wrong with that. Everyone's career goal should include maximizing their earnings for life energy expended. That's common sense.
When I heard that he had consulted with Charlie Crane before quitting this gig, it seemed so obvious that money was what was at issue, primarily. Like I said, making as much money as possible is a good thing, but I get the feeling it was the main thing. How many of us here would have bitched about the problems he mentioned? Very few I think, cuz we were just happy to have him back, as well as his guests. He though, tried to seem like one of the little people, and fighting for shit for us. I feel it was paternizing and insulting. How many people signed up for Sirius, and bought those radios? How many bought the radios from C. Crane? Obviously not enough.
For those of you who are racking your brains trying to find a way for mr. Bell to work for free on the Internet, to get around his NC, I think you're spinning your wheels. He dumped this gig, and a lot of you people with worthless shit, which many of you could ill afford to purchase, cuz the big bucks weren't forthcoming. This is just my ill informed opinion, but I bet I'm right, sadly. Anyway, I'm not waiting around for 2 years.

I don't blame you, I don't disagree with most of your thought process but I have to say I'm not sure. I think you are a logical real world person and the cool thing about what's happening here and on facebook is it gauges what Art can expect for the amount of work he will have to put out. I know when I work a contract I do the math to see if what I'm embarking on will make money before I agree to it and he and his handlers are learning a lot. 

[Pinoybipedalurinal]

Very well put, thank you. The exact sentiment I couldn't have articulated. The quickening you speak of in my opinion is due to wanton 1% greed. If you throw in all the blood of the innocents since 9 11 - you have a lot of negative energy and a whole new social system emerging with poverty being an 8 thousand pound gorilla, instead of just an 800 pound one.

At my age witnessing this transformation (in disbelief for the sake of my children) I have watched it wondering how it will end for me in this life. I don't see the Prepper mentality as being anything more than a marketing scheme feeding on and profiting from the fears of the paranoid that listen to the Alex Jones, some C2C folks and Glenny Beck.

I do think a "lack" of Art being on the air has driven some people to listen to those negative alternatives. (it did me for a while until I realized the negative resonance no matter how entertaining or silly it was )

Hearing Art broadcasting again was one of those cool things in life where you go "wow... that's awesome... what a cool thing to look forward to!" so I'm disappointed and pissed off - which neither are good.

There's actually a ton of responsibility in being a guy like Art Bell. We are all talking about him and sending him messages and seeing this stuff and it's an energy pulling on his soul. When I think about it - who the hell are we to expect him to fight a war with a corporation for the sake of our entertainment? 

If you read Art's history, he's been through a lot of crap.  (I have seen some of the same)

He gets nothing from me but well wishes and thanks for the show. I hope he comes back on air but this soul isn't going to burden the man with any expectations.

.....Now all you little arrogant mean Bell Gabbers can take your shots at me for being emotional... Fire away biiitches!

I agree.
But, Actually people bitch that noory has been jumping on the political conspiracy bandwagon, but to be honest, compared to mr. Bells heyday, America has gone through some radical change in short order. Citizens have lost so many rights, and gone from living in a laid back country, to a police state in a little over a decade. Perhaps with reality having become so fucking bizarre, ufos, chupacabra, and Nessie, have taken a backseat in America's consciousness. He may suck, (gn) and I will agree with that, but I don't think we'll be seeing the numbers that the paranormal got in the 90s, ever again.

[kennedymaure]

I agree.
But, Actually people bitch that noory has been jumping on the political conspiracy bandwagon, but to be honest, compared to mr. Bells heyday, America has gone through some radical change in short order. Citizens have lost so many rights, and gone from living in a laid back country, to a police state in a little over a decade. Perhaps with reality having become so fucking bizarre, ufos, chupacabra, and Nessie, have taken a backseat in America's consciousness. He may suck, (gn) and I will agree with that, but I don't think we'll be seeing the numbers that the paranormal got in the 90s, ever again.

I don't disagree with that, but what is viewed as entertainment morphs. In my opinion the world we are living in at the present time for many has become paranormal. The stuff my 20 year old son does and the things they talk about sounds like and alien half the time to me. Their damn heads are stuck down on their Captain Kirk communicator (Iphone) where they walk into poles and a robot (siri) tells them where to find a place to eat or a bus ride.

[Pinoybipedalurinal]

I don't disagree with that, but what is viewed as entertainment morphs. In my opinion the world we are living in at the present time for many has become paranormal. The stuff my 20 year old son does and the things they talk about sounds like and alien half the time to me. Their damn heads are stuck down on their Captain Kirk communicator (Iphone) where they walk into poles and a robot (siri) tells them where to find a place to eat or a bus ride.

That too of course. Times change.

[kennedymaure]

...Now for something completely different.

50 years ago today this Republic was changed forever.

Rest in Peace JFK.

It was, because our generation and our children will never trust anyone with any kind of power in Government again... and they shouldn't. The truth is no one should have trusted them before that. Printed Media, Television and Radio saved their ass from the wrath of the people in this country and it is still doing that very thing. We are conditioned to wake up in the morning and check the weather and news and our lives revolve around what they preach with a first cup of coffee.

You think watching a beloved leader getting his head blown apart on live television didn't scare the complete crap out of most people?

The message is fear, lack of control of the masses to change their destiny. They tell us so lovingly every morning in the news and in between the lines we are cockroaches and they are the masters.

They try to bend our opinion by telling us what 60% of "all of us think" in opinion polls that are lies so we are defeated before we leave the house in the morning.

I think that's why Art was so precious, he didn't try to bend minds, or at least that was my perception :-)

[Textor]

OK, that makes sense and that could shut Art up instantly.... think about it for a second. (Pure speculation on my part) They wont let him out of his non compete, they see all of us raising hell. They want to buy another broadcasting company with bigger reach than God himself. Time Warner (owning Art Bell) could push him out into the mainstream and make gazillions of dollars off of him as opposed to what they could gain from this now. The underworld of people like us who wont watch Wolf Blitzer is where the trends are going. Like I said, pure speculation but this could be a card in a merger they are waiting to play later.

Seems like a good way to make your talent go elsewhere... If they really wanted him to expand into other media, they would have kept him happy and worked with him. Right now, they will simply have tthe NC over his head, and offering him a a TV show likely will go nowhere because his passion is radio, and I doubt he wants a TV show.

[klaatu]

To Art and Paul - Thanks much for your posts here and hope you'll continue to fight on, rage on.  Art, you're a valuable and unique voice on air and hope you'll return and sooner than 2 years.

Paul, thanks too for your efforts and keeping us informed here.

Thanks to Keith as well.

A sample graphic I made up but held off posting until now...



Good luck, all!

[kennedymaure]

Seems like a good way to make your talent go elsewhere... If they really wanted him to expand into other media, they would have kept him happy and worked with him. Right now, they will simply have tthe NC over his head, and offering him a a TV show likely will go nowhere because his passion is radio, and I doubt he wants a TV show.

Time Warner could put him anywhere they want, if he went along with it... I used to work for a phone company/ internet company they bought.... they could set him up with a lot of bandwidth which seems like what he wants anyway, right? He doesn't want to do AM and I've never heard him talk about TV but he's a valuable pawn in a game like that.

[Textor]

Time Warner could put him anywhere they want, if he went along with it... I used to work for a phone company/ internet company they bought.... they could set him up with a lot of bandwidth which seems like what he wants anyway, right? He doesn't want to do AM and I've never heard him talk about TV but he's a valuable pawn in a game like that.

Everything I've ever seen about him says radio is his passion in life... Off the air, he is on ham radio, chatting with people everywhere. He has huge antennas on his property because of his passion for radio. Unless the TV show was broadcasting him sitting in his studio doing Dark Matter, I doubt he will go for it. Since the NC is the only thing sirius/liberty has over him, they can't compel him to do anything he doesn't want to do.