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Transcript

Episode #52 "Election Day Is Just the Beginning" · The Kevin Stone Podcast

• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Some podcasts have experts. This is not one of those podcasts.
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: This is one guy, a microphone, a cup of coffee,
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: and absolutely no guarantee where any of this is going.
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  Speaker 1: From small town Arkansas to Washington, D.C. From politics and
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  Speaker 1: current events to history, space, faith, and whatever else happens
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  Speaker 1: to get under his skin. He'll ask the questions. He'll
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  Speaker 1: give you his opinion. And every once in a while,
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  Speaker 1: he might even know what he's talking about. No fancy degree,
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: no corporate talking points, just an ordinary guy trying to
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  Speaker 1: make sense of an increasingly strange world. Ladies and gentlemen,
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: this is the Kevin Stone Podcast.
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: Good morning, folks. Kevin Stone here, and welcome to the
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  Speaker 2: Kevin Stone Podcast. Well, today is Tuesday, November 3rd, Election
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  Speaker 2: Day here in Arkansas and across the country. And today,
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  Speaker 2: Americans are going to do something that millions of people
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  Speaker 2: around the world don't have the freedom to do. We're
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: choosing the people who represent us in our government. Now,
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  Speaker 2: if you've already voted, good for you. I voted early myself.
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  Speaker 2: But if you haven't voted, you've still got an opportunity today.
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  Speaker 2: I want to talk about something that I think is
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  Speaker 2: just as important as what happens at the ballot box.
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  Speaker 2: What happens after the election. Because tomorrow morning, whether your
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  Speaker 2: candidate wins or loses, whether that ballot issue passes or fails,
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  Speaker 2: we're still going to wake up right here in Franklin County.
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  Speaker 2: And we're still going to have a government. Now, I
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  Speaker 2: hear people say it all the time, my vote doesn't matter.
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  Speaker 2: They're all the same. Nothing ever changes. And look, I
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  Speaker 2: understand the frustration. I really do. But here's something to consider.
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  Speaker 2: The decisions made by our elected officials affect our lives
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  Speaker 2: every single day. The roads we drive on, the water
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  Speaker 2: coming out of our faucets, emergency services, our schools, how
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  Speaker 2: our tax dollars are spent. And right here in Ozark,
• 1:55
  Speaker 2: voters are making decisions that can affect this community for
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  Speaker 2: years to come. You don't have to be a political
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  Speaker 2: expert to participate. Heck, I didn't go to Harvard. And
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  Speaker 2: judging by some of the things I've said on this podcast,
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  Speaker 2: that's probably pretty obvious. But I can read, I can
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  Speaker 2: ask questions, I can research an issue, and I can
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  Speaker 2: make a decision. And so can you. You don't have
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  Speaker 2: to agree with me. You don't have to vote the
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  Speaker 2: way that I vote. What matters is that you take
• 2:19
  Speaker 2: the responsibility seriously. Learn what you can do and make
• 2:23
  Speaker 2: your own informed decision. Now here's where I really want
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  Speaker 2: to go with today's conversation. Tomorrow is November 4th. The
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  Speaker 2: campaign signs will start coming down. The political advertisements will
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  Speaker 2: finally stop. And thank goodness for that because if I
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  Speaker 2: have to watch one, One more political commercial. I may
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  Speaker 2: have to unplug the television and go sit on the
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  Speaker 2: front porch. But here's the thing. An election determines who
• 2:46
  Speaker 2: gets the job. It doesn't tell us how they're going
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: to do the job. That comes afterwards. And that's where we,
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  Speaker 2: the citizens, have another responsibility. We have to pay attention.
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  Speaker 2: We have to know what's happening at City Hall. We
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  Speaker 2: have to know what's happening at the courthouse. We need
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  Speaker 2: to understand how public money is being spent, what decisions
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  Speaker 2: are being made, and why those decisions are being made.
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  Speaker 2: I mean, that's our money right there. And I don't
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  Speaker 2: know about you, but it's hard for me to earn
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  Speaker 2: that money. And when something doesn't make sense, we need
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  Speaker 2: to ask questions. Not because we're looking for a fight.
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  Speaker 2: Not because we dislike somebody. But because government belongs to
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  Speaker 2: the people. And the people have every right to understand
• 3:22
  Speaker 2: what their government is doing. And that brings me to
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  Speaker 2: something I want to share with you about the Kevin
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  Speaker 2: Stone Podcast. Over the last several weeks, we've talked about elections, candidates,
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  Speaker 2: ballot issues, and decisions facing our communities. But starting tomorrow,
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  Speaker 2: we're going to shift our attention. We're moving from election
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  Speaker 2: coverage to governing coverage. And there's a difference. During an election,
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  Speaker 2: we ask candidates what they intend to do. After an election,
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  Speaker 2: we look at what our elected officials actually do. Are
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  Speaker 2: they keeping their commitments? Are they making decisions in the
• 3:53
  Speaker 2: public interest? Are they being transparent about how taxpayer money
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  Speaker 2: is being spent? Are they listening to the people that
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  Speaker 2: they're supposed to represent? Those are fair questions. And we're
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  Speaker 2: going to keep asking them. We have already started looking
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  Speaker 2: into issues involving county finances, emergency medical services, and public records.
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  Speaker 2: And we're going to continue following those matters carefully. We're
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  Speaker 2: going to request documents when we need them. And we're
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  Speaker 2: going to contact public officials and give them an opportunity
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  Speaker 2: to explain their decisions. And we're going to do our
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  Speaker 2: best to separate facts from rumors. Because I don't want
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  Speaker 2: this podcast to become another place where people just complain
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  Speaker 2: about everything. Lord knows we already have plenty of that
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  Speaker 2: on Facebook. I want this podcast to be a place
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  Speaker 2: where people can learn what's happening in their community. And
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  Speaker 2: we're going to recognize the good things too. And when
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  Speaker 2: our local government does something right, I want to talk
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  Speaker 2: about that. When somebody steps up and helps their neighbor,
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  Speaker 2: I want to share that story. When a local business
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  Speaker 2: opens and a community organization accomplishes something worthwhile, or when
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  Speaker 2: ordinary people do extraordinary things, those stories deserve attention. Accountability
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  Speaker 2: isn't just about pointing out problems. It's also about recognizing progress.
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  Speaker 2: There's something I think we sometimes forget. Our elected officials
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  Speaker 2: aren't royalty. They're not above the people they represent. They're
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  Speaker 2: public servants. And that doesn't mean we should disrespect them.
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  Speaker 2: Quite the opposite. We should treat the people with respect
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  Speaker 2: even when we disagree with their decisions. But respect doesn't
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  Speaker 2: mean silence. And asking questions doesn't mean you're attacking somebody.
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  Speaker 2: If the city spends a million dollars, it's reasonable to
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  Speaker 2: ask where that money went. If the county makes changes
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  Speaker 2: to emergency services, it's reasonable to ask how those changes
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  Speaker 2: affect the people who depend on them. If we request
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  Speaker 2: public records, it's reasonable to expect the government to follow
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  Speaker 2: the law. Those aren't partisan questions. They're questions of responsible government.
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  Speaker 2: And whether somebody has an R or a D or
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  Speaker 2: anything else beside their name, the standard ought to be
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  Speaker 2: the same. Because the Constitution doesn't belong to a political party.
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  Speaker 2: And neither does our government. So here's my challenge to
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  Speaker 2: everybody listening. If you voted, don't just go home and
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  Speaker 2: forget about government until the next election. Pay attention. Attend
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  Speaker 2: a city council meeting sometimes. Find out what your quorum
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  Speaker 2: court is discussing. Read about an issue before sharing something
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  Speaker 2: you saw on social media. And if you have a question,
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  Speaker 2: ask it. You might not always like the answer, but
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  Speaker 2: at least you're participating. And folks, participation is what keeps
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  Speaker 2: representative government working. The ballot box gives us a voice
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  Speaker 2: in choosing our leaders. What we do between elections helps
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  Speaker 2: determine whether those leaders remain accountable. Tomorrow morning, somebody's going
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  Speaker 2: to be celebrating. Somebody else is going to be disappointed.
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  Speaker 2: And that's how elections work. But no matter who wins,
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  Speaker 2: we're still neighbors. We're still part of the same community.
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  Speaker 2: And we've still got work to do. Here at the
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  Speaker 2: Kevin Stone Podcast, we're going to keep watching. We're going
• 6:45
  Speaker 2: to keep asking questions. Keep checking the facts. And keep
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  Speaker 2: telling the stories that matter to the people of Ozark,
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  Speaker 2: Franklin County, and the Arkansas River Valley. We're not going
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  Speaker 2: to get everything right every time. And when we get
• 6:57
  Speaker 2: something wrong, we'll correct it. But we're going to make
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  Speaker 2: an honest effort to bring you useful information without turning
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  Speaker 2: everything into a political shouting match. Because this community deserves that.
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  Speaker 2: So if you haven't voted yet, the polls here in
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  Speaker 2: Arkansas are open today from 7.30 this morning until 7.30 tonight.
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  Speaker 2: Get out there and make your voice heard. And tomorrow?
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  Speaker 2: Tomorrow the campaign ends. The governing continues. And so does
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  Speaker 2: our responsibility to pay attention. I'm Kevin Stone, and this
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  Speaker 2: is the Kevin Stone Podcast. You can find us on Spreaker, Spotify,
• 7:27
  Speaker 2: Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, and YouTube. And if you
• 7:32
  Speaker 2: appreciate what we're trying to build here, share the podcast
• 7:35
  Speaker 2: with a friend or neighbor. Until next time, take care
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  Speaker 2: of yourselves, take care of one another, and God bless.
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  Speaker 2: We'll talk again soon. Thank you.