75-05-A4
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Vacation Exchange
TranscriptHow would you like to swap houses with someone in a different city for a vacation? Some people who never expected to soon will. I'll be right back. You've heard me say some critical things on these broadcasts about government bureaucracies, about their tendency to be overprotective of incompetent and inefficient work. Their inexorable need to mushroom into empires, spreading the workload among more and more employees. And, of course, the threat they pose to the relationship between elected officials and the citizens by now demanding the right to strike for all public employees. Sometimes, though, there's another side to the coin and although it isn't likely I'll stop being critical of government bureaucrats and their empires I'd like to tell you about one example of a bureaucrat's ingenuity and compassion that I've just learned about. In late April the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare will begin an experiment it is called the Vacation Residence Program. Under it, a few dozen senior citizens living in public housing on small fixed incomes in three cities will swap their apartments for ten days with similar people in three other cities thus creating for all of them a sort of instant change of scene and vacation. And these are people who normally would not have the money to travel anywhere let alone to a distant city on a 10-day vacation. On the west coast, 20 senior citizens in public housing high-rise buildings in Portland, Oregon will swap with 20 others from Sacramento, California. When the visitors arrive in their exchange cities, they'll find their counterparts apartments fully furnished right down to the bedding. Both the senior citizens applying for the experimental program and the housing authorities involved are excited. One Portland official said, quote, "Why shouldn't elderly people in public housing have a vacation just like anyone else? These are people who've worked all their lives, paid their bills, paid their taxes, maybe put their kids through college now at age 65. Why shouldn't they be able to kick up their heels a little?" And why not? The participants will travel by airplane and train and a government grant will pay for the travel as well as for incidentals. That's one good investment of a little tax money, in my opinion. Housing officials in the six cities where the experiment will be conducted are talking with business service clubs and churches to put together tours, sightseeing outings and special luncheons for the visitors. Considering the American genius for rising to the occasion I'll bet those visiting senior citizens are going to have the time of their lives. So at a time when government seems to be making life overly complex, frustrating and very very costly, it's nice to know there's someone out there in the bureaucracy who knows that the milk of human kindness can go a long way to make people happy with an uncomplicated but high-spirited little program. My hat's off to the inventor of the Vacation Residence Exchange Program. May it be a big success. This is Ronald Reagan. Thanks for listening. |
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