On page 186 of President Nixon: Alone in the White House,
Richard Reeves talks about a slight disagreement that President Richard
Nixon had with his aide, H.R. Haldeman. Nixon's approval rating had
dropped, and Haldeman suggested that Nixon go on television more so that
people would see that Nixon was in charge. But Nixon did not think
that he should go on television when he did not have much to say, but
rather that he should show leadership during prominent events.
When I read this, I thought of Jerry Voorhis' complaint in his anti-Nixon book, The Strange Case of Richard Milhous Nixon, that Nixon was on TV too much. Maybe Nixon was taking Haldeman's advice, at some point, notwithstanding his own reservations!
I
also thought about the pressure on people to talk to get noticed. For a
lot of people, this is not pressure, since they love to talk. I, on
the other hand, do not always have things to say, and I do not like
feeling pressured to talk to get noticed. Moreover, as I've complained
more than once on this blog, even when I do talk----and (in my mind)
talk a great deal----I'm still seen as someone who doesn't talk much, or
I get ignored. So what can I do?
I also thought about the issue
of blogging. Before I started blogging, I was hungering for some way to
express myself. I had read books and had thoughts about them. The
same goes for TV series and movies. I had political opinions, and I was
seeking an outlet for those through letters to the editor, some of
which were published, and some of which were not. Now, six years into
blogging, I don't particularly feel like commenting on everything under
the sun, or even having an opinion about everything under the sun.
Moreover, there are times when I may have something to say, but who
really cares? I can write and be alone in my opinion, so what's the
point in expressing it?
Anyway, those are my insights, mixed with
my self-pity! I'll be turning off the comments because I don't want to
read people's snark.