Listening

Here's an interesting topic: Talk show hosts on the radio who take calls from listeners—and then don’t let the listeners speak. They talk all day and we listen—they can’t just let someone else speak for the one or two minutes they’re on the air? They took the person’s call, for Pete’s sake! Why do they bother taking calls if they’re just going to shoot down what the person says and reiterate their own view? It seems pretty pointless to me. A discussion would be far better. I understand that these hosts are passionate about the topics on which they speak, and I respect that. But passionate and close-minded need not be one and the same. I’d like to host a talk show. But I would let the listeners speak. Sometimes it’s funny what people say. A lot of times, in fact. If people listened more, they’d get more laughs out of it and maybe have more stories to tell. But it really is true that so many people don’t really listen—they just wait for their turn to speak. Have you noticed this? I’m sure you have. The point was brought up in the movie “Fight Club,” and I thought it was a brilliant observation about humanity. Why don’t we listen more? Why aren’t we more patient? Our culture demands instant gratification, so that’s what we’re conditioned to want and seek. Imagine how much more productive and helpful we could be to each other if we just listened more! Hopefully, someday, more people will begin to realize this.