Blog-IT-o ergo sum

	7/10/2003

Down home with Howard Coble

(Probably should have posted this last week right after it happened, but hey got carried away on other aspects of the Freedom fight.)

Invigorated by Howard Coble's Greensboro office staffer who whined that it would be much better to get names on a petition rather than on 50 separate letters, our local JBS chapter leader in High Point went right out and got another 30 names on a petition asking Congressman Coble to vote against funding US re-entry to UNESCO.

When a Greensboro heating and cooling plumbing contractor, curious about joining the JBS, asked me what kind of local efforts JBS members participate in, I used this current petition example. In passing I mentioned how I and the chapter leader would be returning to Coble's office to drop this new petition off. At this point the contractor interjected, "Heck, I'm going to be seeing Howard tomorrow morning when I go to his townhouse to turn on the air-conditioning. He's back now on summer break...This is the third year I've turned it on. Howard will remember me. I'll give him the petition myself!"

Well, you can't beat that for Providence, I figured. I jotted a brief cover note and gave him the petition to hand deliver to Congressman Coble. (Like Richard Nixon, when you need a bag man for a job, what better one than a plumber, right?) The next morning, sure enough, Howard remembered our JBS plumbing prospect and they had a friendly conversation on the evils of the UN while cranking up Howard's AC. Howard assured him that as he voted to de-fund US participation in the UN, he would also be voting to kill any funds slated to cover US re-entry to UNESCO. They also shared a good chuckle over how the JBS had infiltrated local businesses in order to embed ourselves with our elected officials.

See how easy it is to influence your US Representatives. Of course, while he certainly has some faults, Howard Coble admittedly has to be one of the most accessible US Congressman on record. His constituents (at least those that agree with him most of the time) see more of him in the district in a year than the whole State of North Carolina will probably see of Governor Easley in during his entire term.

Later in the day, while I was still marveling at this good fortune and wondering what kind of note I should drop Howard thanking him for his good humor and support, I popped my cell phone back on after a meeting. and discovered that I had a message waiting from good old Howard Coble himself. He got the pronunciation of my name perfect, thanked me for getting the information to him and assured me he would be voting against the UNESCO re-entry. I called him back immediately but alas, he was "on another call" and I had to settle for leaving a message with his staffer. I did get to say though, "Yes, I'm returning Howard's call."

Imagine my surprise though, when 10 minutes later, my phone rings and it is indeed Howard Coble. Just a regular guy on the phone I have to say. He remembered the name of our plumber and sounded genuine throughout the conversation. We talked a briefly on his support for keeping US out of UNESCO, how the other members of the NC delegation might vote, how he wished to pass on his thanks to all those who had signed their names to the letters and petition and how we looked forward to eventually meeting in the future.* A good first impression contact for both parties I think. How hard can politics really be, at least when you don't have to get through the Secret Service first.

*As it was off topic, I left the part out about my wife being Japanese, the upcoming protest at his office, etc. I thought this might be a better subject for contact #2.

10:28:24 PM

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