National liberal radio talk show host Ed Shultz has been one of my heros. A voice of logic and reason with a liberal heart and a conservative edge, I usually laud Ed’s positions. I live within earshot of KFGO, Ed’s home radio station in Fargo, ND, where he hosts a local radio talk show from 8:30 to 10:30 am, before his national show at 11:00 am central time.
For all his liberal leanings and humanity, a local “not in my backyard” issue has brought out Ed’s ugly side, at least locally. Listeners to the national show would probably never suspect that Ed is a social conservative when it comes to the homeless.
After homeless people were found frozen to death in the harsh North Dakota winter, the city decided to work with a group of local professionals to address the issue. To its credit the City of Fargo, ND has launched an initiative to help homeless alchololics, a forgotten vulnerable population in this city of nearly 100,000. There are existing shelters in the city, but they are usually at capacity. Neither do existig shelters have the training, facilities or staffing necessary to acommodate homeless alcoholics, and therefore they do not admit them.
A shelter for Fargo’s alcoholic homeless is a great idea, and will provide a safe place where they can “detox,” and get some food and help.
As you can expect, there a strong “not in my backyard” reaction from neighbors, as there is virtually any time a homeless shelter tries to organize or make a move. Because of this resistance, the city formed a committee of concerned citizens and professionals and delayed a decision by a month to provide time to study alternative locations. That process completed without the commitee providing a recommendation. The city council receive the reports and has decided that the original location for the facility would be best meet the needs of the program.
On local radio, Ed Shultz has vehemently resisted the facility and sided with the vocal dissenters. While barely conceeding the need for the facility with contempt that is hardly masked, Ed delights in stoking dissenting callers to his local radio show. Despite facts presented by people who know better, who live near similar facilities in other towns, despite experiences with other local homeless shelters that suggest the facility will not degrade the neighborhood, Ed is no friend of the proposed shelter, ostensibly because the neighborhood signed a petition stating their opposition to the facility. Ed Shultz apparently thinks that anytime there’s opposition to anything, no matter how beneficial to the community, that local government should automatically cave in to the opposition.
Ed Shultz routinely calls the detox facility a “drunk tank,” a crude and false analogy that fuels the emotions. He calls the chronic homeless alcoholics, who so desperately need help (many of them veterans of U.S. wars), “drunks,” and “those people” who are “stumblin’, fumblin’ drunk (his comment at 5/8/07 at 9:52 am)
Ed, you make me so proud most of the time. But on this issue, your conservative biggotry and fear mongering is not doing justice to the liberal cause. On the issue of homelessness, Ed Shultz, you have done little to nothing to enlighten your audience to the need and the solution. On this issue, Ed Shultz, you should be ashamed.
Congratulation to the Fargo City Commission and the many people of Fargo, ND and neighboring Moorhead, MN, who have stood firm in the face of the opposition to do what is right and nobel.