Posted by ... on May 07, 2002 at 15:15:22:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: ALABAMA SYMPHONY posted by dp on May 07, 2002 at 13:09:48:
Dale (sigh) what is your deal with me?
Let us dissect his attitude here:
1. "We who have decent-paying jobs, after all, are the ones who support the arts with part of our paychecks!"
First of all, MANY who do not have a "decent-paying" job support the arts. MANY quite wealthy persons choose to support the arts not at all. That kind of elitist nonsense is out of line here and is just plain wrong.
Besides, this particular person's paycheck that allowed his very support came out of ALL of our pockets! His entire field is supported (and in large part DRIVEN) by huge government contracts paid for with TAXPAYER $$$. In fact, his particular gig is with a government agency! (Read as: 100% government subsidized) I was a Fedreally funded government employee for three years full time. I would never presumed to have an attitude like this guy.
Let us be crystal clear here: He is the one living off of MY (involuntary) support. NASA is funded by TAXPAYER DOLLARS! I GUARANTEE that a larger percentage of MY tax dollars go directly to NASA than that of HIS go to the National Endowment for the Arts.
What little he could contribute directly to the arts is very much appreciated by all of us. And I hope that he will continue to contribute despite my expressing MY feelings as vociferously as he has his.
(Funny, that. You know, my attitude towards him and his job can affect the bottom line of arts organisations in his hometown, but his attitude toward me and my job can have no effect at all. Hmmm...)
Supporting the arts does NOT give him a Bully Pulpit from which to lecture the artists he supports.
Example: If I support some non-profit organization, I am saying that I agree with what they stand for AS THEY ARE - no strings attached. If there ARE strings attached (or a philosophical disagreement between the recipients and myself) THEN I CAN CHOOSE TO GIVE TO ANOTHER CAUSE!! And most folks are smart enough not to try to try to dictate the practices of the American Cancer Society when they send in their check; even if they worked for them for a whole year and got burned out.
2. "... so readily would snap at the hands of those who (in part) feed them!"
EXCUSE ME??? I WORK for every damn cent that I EARN by playing the tuba!
This is a really remarkable attitude for someone to take if he supposedly had a gig for a whole year! One must suppose that his attitude regarding his post was formed on the "inside" of this field; I suppose that he, during his whole year in tubadom, just sat on his butt and never practiced or performed, but that he was FED by some rich guy, corporation, or the NEA with handouts? Yeah, man; he was GIVEN that cash; really. He never WORKED to earn it.
Where on earth did he play then? Maybe in the NASA Philharmonic? (Houston, we have a problem...)
BTW - NEA $$$ comprise 7% of my salary, the vast bulk coming from ticket sales in return for WORK, contracts with school systems in return for WORK, Town Councils that purchase "run outs" (aka WORK), and from private and corporate sponsorship of Masterworks, Chamber, and Pops concerts in return for WORK as well as EXPOSURE/ADVERTISING for the doner! And remember that FREE money GIVEN to us by the NEA? Yep, that is right, we EARNED it in exchange for WORK!!
Lets see...NASA...100% involuntary contributions from the people with no real opportunity to directly affect Agency-wide attitudes. Yeah, I could express my opinion through the vote (I do), but what NASA budgetary issues are ever placed before me to vote upon?
Additionally, he must have NEVER had to take garbage off of some idiot telling him that he was somehow worth less to the world because he played the tuba. That, because of his lower classification of species (tubist non retirementacus dollarus) that he somehow DESERVED a lower pay scale and social snubbing.
Please understand, Dale, that I make good enough money from my job by MY standards, if not by those of NASAman's.
I do NOT think that merely by buying tickets, making donations, or even volunteering in order to "show support" gives ANYONE the right to try to wrest control of peoples' attitudes regarding the functioning of their employer or of their own, personal day-to-day CAREERS.
Though we offhandedly refer to our CAREERS as "gigs" and our WORK as "playing" we all EARN EVERY CENT WE MAKE. We can't play on the internet or talk on the phone while we are on the clock as normal people do.
This guy is WAY out of line in this case.
Dale, I thank you for the that you spent in reading this post in full. I am not intending to offend anyone except for NASAman. As regards him, if he will create a yahoo mail account and post it here, I will be happy to thrust and parry with him as long as he likes so long as he does it on his personal computer and not his tax-funded one at work. Fair enough?
Regards...