Friday, June 15, 2007 Got a question? Get an answer. Send an e-mail to Dear Mr. Mullings Dear Mr. Mullings: I know you don't consider MULLINGS to be a "blog." Are you ever going to start a blog? Rich Yes I am. Later this month, in fact. I have decided that I have so much to say, and I have such a clever way of saying it that I am denying myself ... Seriously. I am going to start a daily, hourly, whatever blog later this month. This will be in addition to, not instead of, the regular three-day-a-week MULLINGS which I consider to be an internet column in that it is of a standard column length (700-750 words) and is published on a regular schedule (Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays). A blog is published on an indeterminate schedule, more-or-less when the blogger thinks he/she has something to say. Look for the Mull-blog to begin in about a week. Dear Mr. Mullings: Which bureaucracy in Washington is the best run? I always thought it was the National Park Service. Michael Hertz. By far. Their Gold Service never misses. Oh, you mean a government bureaucracy. You know? For the most part government bureacracies work very well given the job they are charged with doing and the laws, rules, and regulations under which they have to do it. I understand that it is fun to chuckle (or grimace, or rage) at stories of Federal red tape, but I've lived in the Washington, DC area for the better part of 30 years and the people who draw a Federal paycheck are not much different than the people who work in your organization. Life is a series of bell curves. On the left-hand side of the curve of the geniuses, or saints. They are exceptional and everyone recognizes their qualities. On the right-hand edge are the scoundrels, slackers, and thieves. Everyone recognizes their qualities, too. At the top of the curve, in the middle are most of us: We go to work every day; try to do our jobs as best we can; care for our families; then go back and do it again. Any large organization - academic, commercial or non-profit - has people who match that pattern. Last one (because so many of you wrote in about the immigration bill which is morphing as we speak) Dear Mr. Mullings: I know you won't agree,but,I feel no one from the right should be a guest on biased left wing shows such as Matthews and Russert and CNN. They live on speculation and outright lies and most guests from the right are wimps and won't call them on it. Andy I don't think I'm a wimp, so you are correct: I don't agree with you. I think it is important to have a fair debate on an issue between two evenly matched people. I think I am evenly matched with Carville, Begala, Brazile or Beckel. I think I am not evenly matched with a number of lesser known people who are billed as "Democratic Strategists." I don't know who they are, but it only takes about 10 seconds to realize they have no idea what they are talking about. If they choose to come on with me - unmatched as we are - they have to suffer the consequences. Case in point. A week or so ago I was on Fox & Friends with a woman who is a "Democratic Strategist." We got into a discussion about how Edwards is polling among Democrats. I said he was bumping along at high single or low double digits. She said "I don't know when those polls were taken but ..." I broke in and said I had - remember this is about 7:15 in the morning - stopped at my office and printed these numbers from realclearpolitics.com on my way into the studio. If you're going to come on TV against me, you are well advised to be prepared. If I didn't go on CNN, their audience would only hear one point of view. With me on once or twice a week, they are forced to listen to another. See you next week. Rich Got a question? Get an answer. Send an e-mail to Dear Mr. Mullings                                     Click here to return to the Secret Decoder Ring page Copyright © 2007 Barrington Worldwide, LLC