My Interview with Glenn Beck

See my discussion with Glenn Beck of my proposal to keep Arizona state parks open on my park privatization blog here or at Beck's site here.   My first TV interview, and I guess I jumped in the deep end.

I answered questions about the interview mechanics here, but one other thing people asked about - I don't know Mr. Beck nor have I had any contact with him until his staff called me out of the blue for an interview.  With the exception of Terry Gilberg at KFYI, I haven't even been interviewed by any of the local media so it was odd, and exhilarating, to jump right to a national stage.

17 Comments

  1. Evil Red Scandi:

    Congrats on the Interview! Looks like there was some communications lag, but it wasn’t horribly disruptive. Having been involved in a few things like this, I realize that just getting your thoughts in edgewise during an interview can be a challenge. I thought you came off well!

    Congratulations again!

    Also, here’s a better link: http://www.foxnews.com/search-results/m/29183885/time-to-privatize-national-parks.htm

  2. Stan:

    Congrats! Soon you'll be drafted for high office!

  3. Street Fights:

    The median house price should track median household incomes. What we’ve seen in the last decade is a

    debt-fueled aberation. Its hard to see the debt driven increase happening again (although who knows – we

    can always try).

    You need to consider that the median house will be different in 21 years. It (probably) won’t be a 3

    bedroom house in Mt Roskill. It might not even be a single family house (although I’d expect it will be). If

    population increases that far you’d expect either:

    a) a commensurate increase in the number of dwellings (with people per dwelling staying the same); or

    b) a less than commensurate increase in dwellings, with increasing numbers of people per dwelling (this

    would potentially lead to higher household incomes, and more rapid median price growth).

    *****************************
    jacky

  4. Leatherneck:

    You came across well, although because of Mr. Beck's unique style, he seemed somewhat disconnected and befuddled. Maybe he was just looking for sound bites. He is an entertainer, after all.

    I have great empathy for your position, offering to keep parks open at no cost to the state except for the bureaucrats' egos.

    TC

  5. gn:

    Great interview!

    I was hoping at some point you'd squeeze in the idea that "brinksmanship" is one of the tactics involved..

  6. J. Wilson:

    Congratulations and well done!

  7. Richard:

    Congratulations!
    I compare you with FedEx vs. Post Office!
    Richard H.

  8. Sameer Parekh:

    Great job! You really came across well, and were very clear. A couple points:

    1) You looked right into the camera when listening to Beck, but not when speaking. Look deep and direct into the camera, so that people think you are making eye contact with them. I know it's creepy.

    2) You were kind of shaking a bit. Try to calm the unnecessary body movements.

    All in all, I think you did a great job. Here's to keeping the Arizona parks open!

  9. Dave:

    Excellent job and congratulations!

  10. Elliot:

    Good job in the interview.

    I've only recently seen Glen Beck a handful of times after years of seeing Democrats and their ilk shrieking his name on the net, along with other "right-wing extremist" talk-show hosts. I expected some bombastic Republican cheerleader, but the guy actually showed quite a bit of critical thinking (relative to O'Reilly and most everyone in the MSM) and more independence from the GOP than Hannity, Rush, et al.. Like Neal Boortz (who favors the "Fair Tax" which would put everyone at the mercy of receiving a government "rebate" each month), I find his libertarian tendencies to run a bit shallow. While the Founders had quite a bit to offer in the way of revolutionary thought, they were anything but perfect, and using the US Constitution as holy writ is ultimately a dead end, even if better by comparison to 99% of what goes on in politics today.

    I thought he handled you fairly. I'd love to see him pick up on some of your climate stuff.

  11. Mark:

    It was a good interview. The ear bud problem was quite noticeable though. I guess you gotta figure out how to make sure the equipment is working before the interview starts.

  12. Mark:

    Elliot:

    Glen is at the forefront of climate fraud. When he was still on the CNN affiliate, he did an hour (maybe two hour show) debunking point for point all the misstatements Gore made in his movie.

    I can not find his original show, but on youtube you can see his numerous Fox AGW exchanges.

    http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=glen+beck+climate+change&search_type=&aq=0&oq=glen+beck+climat

  13. Steve Jean:

    I've read mixed reports of Glenn Beck's climate position, though I'm a bit skeptical of anything I read about him, pro or con. He's a lightning rod for attacks. Such people are rarely portrayed accurately.

    LRC had a recent article citing his supposed "support" of the "global warming" crowd.

    Over the years, I've seen LRC authors post shrill nonsense at times, like calling Beck "the Number One media shill for the One World Government/New World Order gang." That's a shame, because such idiocy severely tarnishes their credibility. From their AnCap point of view, most everyone on TV is part of the Establishment, but this guy is on the fringe, about as far away from being "Number One" as you could get.

    In this case, I think they are falling for what I greatly suspect is USA Weekend's spin (based upon cherry-picked remarks). Most skeptics who look to science will agree that there has been warming and some of it is likely caused by people, but then go on to dispute the "catastrophic" and "run-away" hysteria. If USA Weekend knew that he qualified his position as such, they hid that. Such dishonesty is par for the course for news organizations like them.

    Do you recall if Glenn Beck expounded on such things in what you've seen?

  14. Mark:

    Hey Steve:

    The article was about his house being fairly green. It is interesting that many conservative types, do not believe in AGW but have relatively efficient houses. I think this is because while people on the pro side tend to talk the talk, they really want the government to mandate things for them.

    On the Conservative side, we tend to make our houses more efficient, because it saves money, and because many conservatives do not believe in waste. My house is the same, I have the CFLs keep the thermostat down, etc. It is to save money, and I do not believe in unnecessarily wasting natural resources when there are cost effective ways to reduce the use. I actually believe it is sinful.

  15. William J McKibbin:

    Your interview and commentary with Glenn Beck does make a good case for privatizing the national park system. If you are able to make money and provide revenue to the state, that what's the downside to privatization (?). Good luck with your efforts to expand your operations in our national parks -- it looks like a great idea that has the potential to work for society as a whole.

  16. Bonafide View:

    Dear Coyote,
    Your run the state parks for the public by private companies message on Glen Beck was right on target. Don't give up. There is a need and want for these parks and a private company would finally keep them stable and open for all. As a present Californian, I am tired of the political football of the threat of closure constantly thrown at our state parks. It has happened every year for many years (even in good economic times) since our state government does not know how to manage itself. You are in a position to help us all. With your proven experience running parks, accessible manner and clarity of thought, you provide a practical solution. You can help save the parks for public access and I support your quest.

  17. TakeFive:

    Well done. You communicated your point very well. The technical and performances issues were not anything unusual, so don't hesitate to appear again.