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I like John Stossel, a broadcast journalist who was formerly with ABC News and is now with Fox. He’s a no-nonsense kind of guy. He recently aired a program called What’s Great About America. There are many things. But he pointed out the facts, despite what some critics in our country and many abroad may say about America and Americans.

Stossel noted, “Americans are the most generous people in the world. We volunteer billions of hours of our time, and we donate more money to chari-ty and foreign aid than people in any other nation.” He also added, “Ameri-cans adopt more needy kids and orphans from overseas than people in all the rest of the world’s countries.” Amazing. [Don’t sound like heartless infidels or greedy capitalists to me.]

He pointed out who was there to help after disasters in foreign lands like the Asian tsunami of 2004 or the recent earthquake in Haiti. He says it’s a natural response for Americans to give.

And they give twice as much as Canadians and 10 times as much as the French.

Despite that, you have people like Bono and Angelina Jolie who criticize our government and say we don’t give enough. Stossel says, “Not true.” He points out that, while the U.S. government might give a smaller percentage of GNP than other countries do, Americia is the leader in total dollars and donors. Millions of adults and children would be suffering around the globe without this country and its generous people. That’s a fact.

Stossel also looked at other areas where America exhibits greatness. They include:

• The American entrepreneurial spirit. He noted the examples of Edison, Ford, Gates, Jobs, Dell and Oprah, but the list goes on.

• Race. What? Well, Stossel points out that we had the KKK and George Wallace saying “segregation forever” less than 50 years ago. We had Jim Crow laws. Stossel says a survey of Americans shows 80% have a good friend of another race. He notes that America moved in two generations from segregation to a black president. Interracial marriage is up 20%. And while there are still issues with race and incidents of discrimination, he notes that other countries are having riots over race.

• Freedom of speech. Even offensive speech. According to Stossel, Canada made it illegal to cause hurt feelings. America has the best constitution. News organizations report what they want. No government censors. Chinese students speak out and get killed. Venezuela shuts down TV stations. But here, a citizen journalist busted ACORN. And tea party members can confront politicians. Bloggers are free to share their opinions on the Internet. That’s freedom.

Stossel emphasized that America is the country everyone wants to come to. Over the decades, Irish, Italians, Jews, Indians, Chinese and others have come. He reminds us that, in America, major decisions about your life are made by you. You can express yourself.

He showed an immigrant who has a family and a business. Stossel says the man makes a living doing what he likes to do. America offers him opportunity that he could not find before in his own country. The man is free to speak and start a new business and innovate.

What’s great about America? As Stossel concluded, “We get to write the scripts for our own lives, whatever that may be.” Amen, John.

A rare example of service

These days it seems rare to get great customer service. The worst service may be from the airlines. They are almost always delayed, seldom friendly and don’t apologize when they inconvenience their customers—who are paying them hundreds of dollars for a flight. My last trip was on Delta. They were delayed leaving Washington, D.C. [despite good weather], so I missed the last connection in Memphis coming to Baton Rouge. I had to stay overnight, and they gave me a $6 voucher for dinner. How nice. The Delta staff never once apologized for the problems. I didn’t get back to work until around noon the next day, losing an extra half day. Now, I wonder how the airline will compensate me for that loss, which was their fault. Most airlines leave much to be desired in customer service.

In contrast, recently I was a bit stunned by obliging assistance at myPhoneMD. It’s a local company, with five stores in Louisiana, that repairs iPhones, BlackBerrys and other cell phones. As I pulled up to one Baton Rouge store before opening time, the manager, Scott, saw me and opened early. He greeted me with a smile and said he would try to have the phone fixed while I waited on the couch. What? Instant service on the spot? Then, as I sat down he offered me a Diet Coke. What? Treating his customer like a guest in his home? Amazing. He told me he needed a part and asked if he could keep the phone. Scott informed me he would go get the part and call me when the repair was done. He called two hours later to say it was ready to be picked up.

I was stunned. That was “wow service.” I had meetings all afternoon, so I couldn’t get free until late. But myPhoneMD stays open until 7 p.m., so I was able to go by after work to pick it up at my convenience. I met one of the owners, Conrad Green, when I picked up my phone, and I shared how impressed I was with Scott’s service and his company. We all complain when things go wrong, but we also need to let folks know when they get it right. myPhoneMD got it right.

School board challengers

Qualifying is closed and two incumbents will be back in two of the 11 seats on the new school board. A newcomer, David Tatman, won the seat in District 1, unopposed. Two of the other seats have no incumbent, meaning two more new faces are guaranteed. And six incumbents have challengers. If at least half of those lose, that will mean six of 11 seats on the school board—a majority—will be new. But if all six incumbents get beat, and that is my hope, then nine of 11 faces, or about 80%, would be new. Not bad.

You can help by supporting the challengers as voters, volunteers and donors. Carefully check out those who took on the status quo and are challenging incumbents and offering to serve. They are a phone call away. If you don’t get involved, don’t complain.

District 2: Michael Self, 235-4551. District 3: Kenyetta Nelson-Smith, 505-8779. District 6: Craig Freeman, 229-3613. District 7: Barbara Reich Freiberg, 766-1711. District 9: Marston Fowler, 266-1925; and Brett Jackson, 610-9976. District 11: Raymond Allmon, 803-4520; and Brenda B. Carter, 252-1715.

Mark your calendar now

The dates are set for this year’s BizTech Expo at the River Center: Oct. 6-7. This is the 28th annual show and the largest business-to-business show in the state, displaying the latest technology—which is changing rapidly these days. Mark your calendar and go online now to get your tickets at businessreportexpo.com. You can also find out there how your business can exhibit at this year’s BizTech Expo.

My error

Last issue I wrote about Gov. Bobby Jindal signing the Red Tape Reduction and Local Empowerment Act. I also said, “But before the ink from the governor’s pen could even dry, the unions had filed suit to block the new law,” referring to the teacher unions. I erred in not being more specific and saying, “the Louisiana Federation of Teachers union filed suit ... ” I received a letter from the new executive director of the Louisiana Association of Educators [see page 152], who stated, “LAE has not filed any suit as yet against the new law.” I want to set the record straight, and I regret the error. My apologies to the LAE.