Mike McFeely radio show (WDAY) calls out Taco Bell

(Grand Forks Herald image)

There's a saying about how you know you're getting old when you no longer know what time Taco Bell closes. It came to mind as I listened to the Mike McFeely radio show last week. McFeely vented about how he and others had encountered problems at Taco Bell, particularly one located close to the Moorhead State University campus. OK it's "Minnesota State University Moorhead" now. There was a time when it was "Moorhead State College."
McFeely has a three-hour morning show on WDAY Radio, from 9 a.m. to noon. He used to be heard in the afternoon on KFGO. He dares to be a political progressive on the radio dial. He has had an on-and-off association with Forum Communications in his career. Right now it's on because WDAY is owned by the Forum. I hate to give Forum Communications credit but these days I prefer WDAY over KFGO.
A political progressive on radio can tread rough water. Radio nationwide can be a big swamp where those of the tea party ilk can rule. These days with my new laptop I can listen to live stream radio with no issues regarding signal quality. What a fantastic new world we're in. Within a few days after getting the laptop (from a genial Tucker McCannon), I started to wonder if I even needed cable TV anymore. Right now I have a cable TV package through Mediacom that costs too much. I'd cancel now and go to Federated, except I hate the hassle of changing services.
I changed phone services and got a bill for a nominal amount from the previous provider about three months after I thought I was done with them. With Mediacom I'd have to return some equipment. A Mediacom employee who came to our house about a year ago said his company was "trying to get rid of those (cable) boxes." Federated informs me that if I switch to them, there would be no box needed. I'd only want the minimal cable TV package for about half of what I'm paying now. That modest package now includes MSNBC which is the only channel I'm interested in. As with McFeely, that channel has a progressive political stance.
 
Speaking of political stance
As for conservative TV, why has Fox News become so poisonous and toxic? It is blatant propaganda for Donald Trump and his following. About 35 percent of Americans will support Trump no matter what he does. Remember Trump's "joke" about how people would support him even if he shot someone in broad daylight? What kind of country are we living in now? I'm glad I'm not a parent who has to explain to my kids who Stormy Daniels is.
Advertisers have finally bailed on Laura Ingraham's Fox News program. I could see that coming because Ingraham has tendencies that are clearly in the bomb-throwing direction. When I was a kid, such incendiary and reactionary voices were marginalized. You'd see this stuff on obscure pamphlets that wacko types would pass out. Ingraham went over the edge on anti-gun control.
I feel sorry for the local people who tried to get answers from Jeff Backer and Torrey Westrom on gun control. Don't be naive about this: conservative Republicans are not going to see the light on this anytime soon. Heck, never. In response, did they really talk about pornography demeaning women?
 
Economy doesn't always serve us
McFeely's rants about Taco Bell, which many of us could greet with laughter, reflect a mounting frustration many of us feel with corporate America. Corporations are run by people in distant offices who are cold and detached, making judgments solely on maximizing profit. Profit is always important, but companies are run in a more customer-friendly way when the owners are the local people you see in church on Sunday. At a certain point they are made to realize they have to serve the people. Not like the Wells Fargo banking system that was eventually exposed to be something like a full-fledged criminal operation.
In Morris we have Bank of the West, about which my feelings aren't too much better. So Bank of the West now pays one percent interest on a five-year certificate of deposit. Remember that letter that Ralph Nader sent to the Federal Reserve chairman about how people across the U.S. living on fixed income needed more generous interest? Do we really need to turn to companies like Edward Jones just to get decent interest on savings? I don't want to go through the hassle of making that switch. My checking account at Bank of the West was started at the old (ancient) Citizens Bank. How quaint. Those were the days when local bank presidents were iconic local leaders. Today banks are run by local managers who do what they're instructed to do, just like the Morris newspaper of today. Or Thrifty White Drug.
Thrifty White deserted main street and downsized its service to the public. I used to get my bird feed there. Do you really prefer this new world we're in?

Taco Bell is owned by Yum! Brands which also owns Pizza Hut. Pizza Hut has a restaurant in Morris.
Listening to McFeely's rants made me feel a little better because I know I'm not alone - I'm not alone as a customer having gotten lousy service because of the company's drive to keep overhead low. In other words, they don't pay enough. I used to visit our Morris Pizza Hut restaurant 5-6 times a year, i.e. not a lot, and it was surprising how many lousy experiences I had. When finally there was the opportunity to supply customer feedback online, I "flamed" them. It's too bad because I like the atmosphere at Pizza Hut. It seems real relaxing. More than one server there was amused - I enjoyed this - by how I'd bring an old Civil War magazine to read while waiting for my order.
Pizza Hut must rely on orders to send out pizza. The dine-in clientele seems almost nonexistent at times. I get the impression that Morris people prefer the busier Pizza Ranch with its buffet. Frankly I prefer Pizza Hut if I can just get decent service. I don't like it when a waiter comes up to me and says "we're real busy tonight." Once a waitress came up after I'd waited too long and explained that "a couple employees didn't show up for work." McFeely talked about Taco Bell restaurants that would literally be closed because they couldn't find employees to work. It's discouraging.
There is a Taco Bell in Alexandria. I dined there once with Bev Lucken. The experience was OK. I guess Taco Bell has sort of a "bar rush" reputation. The bar rush is a rapidly fading American custom. I remember when Atlantic Avenue Restaurant in Morris (DeToy's now) was open 24 hours - yes it's true - and would attract stumbling drunks. That whole scene is so gone with the wind thanks to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, which incidentally is no longer run by mothers, it's run by lawyers. I suppose we're better off.
I'll close here with a "plug" for the Mike McFeely radio show on WDAY, 9 a.m. to noon. He calls out the tea party types. I don't know why he left KFGO. Maybe he's an easier "sell" in the morning than in the prime afternoon hours. North Dakota is a red state. But Forum Communications is a quite Republican-oriented company. I'm glad they make allowances for McFeely.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com