No Static AT All. . .

(No Static At All. . .)

A quick word about the Durham Report. In a word, the report, while scathing to the FBI and the Justice Department, what is lost is the reason for the indicted behavior. Durham revealed that, going all the way back to the Clinton Campaign, measures were introduced to tie the Trump Campaign and then his Administration with the intention of hobbling it by exposing Trump ties to Russia. The infamous Steele dossier was composed for just such a purpose. The participants named this group of activities "Crossfire Hurricane," a lyric from the Rolling Stones classic "Jumpin' Jack Flash." That being said, there was no truth in the Trump collusion story and no one really believed it to begin with. But a narrative had to be crafted that could damage the man who would be President. That man is no longer President in no short contribution from the FBI, who had their orders, from the Clinton Campaign.

Anyhow and speaking of Rolling Stones. the Magazine, labeled the band Steely Dan, Donald Fagin and Walter Becker, as "rocks anti-heroes of the seventies." In the album, "Can't Buy a Thrill," there is a track called FM (no static at all). "FM" stands for "frequency modulation," and when used over commercial airwaves, the sound is crisp and, as the Steely Dan song says, "no static at all." You can play Steely Dan on an FM radio station. You can play Jumpin Jack Flash on an FM station.

The other option are AM (amplitude modulation) frequencies. Music played across this band are not as clear as it sounds in the FM range. AM, however, is, better suited for talk radio. Rush Limbaugh spent his entire career on an AM station. Sean Hannity has his radio show on an AM channel. And, truth be told, all so-called conservative radio hosts can generally be found AM channels. Now, however, there are attempts to dis-continue the AM band entirely.

It is true that amplitude modulation is older than its FM counterpart. Original radio sets could only receive AM transmissions. Frequency modulation was a newer band and its advantages to sound quality are known. The question to be asked, however, is whether AM is being retired because it is obsolete, or whether this would be an attempt to silence conservative thought ? And, it must also be considered that weather forecasts are AM transmissions. Emergency alerts also come over AM airwaves and there other uses as well.

Free, over the air, radio signals, both amplitude and frequency modulated. are staples of Americana. They both have their uses and both have their best programming. The potential loss of the AM band, however, will have consequences when a void is created. As Jumpin Jack Flash could put it, its a "gas, gas, gas !"