Government and The Arts
By Ken Davies
Ken Davies, composer
In the recent months since the Wall Street melt-down and subsequent bank bailouts, we saw a most surprising and refreshing public response involving the $50 million arts package part of the federal economic stimulus proposal. When the arts money appeared to have been eliminated from the stimulus, 85,000 people responded to the Americans For The Arts call to write to senators and congresspersons. Showing the significance of one aspect of American government, that it actually will respond to noise in great numbers, the arts package was put back into the stimulus.
Yet, a large part of this drama revolved around the wide-spread scapegoating of the arts and the people who make them. There were anti-arts hate statements like one from Representative Jack Kingston (R-GA), “We have real people out of work right now and putting $50 million in the NEA and pretending that’s going to save jobs as opposed to putting $50 million in a road project is disingenuous.” Congressman Mike Pence (R-IN) asked “What does $50 million to the National Endowment for the Arts have to do with creating jobs?” In further prejudice against artists by “respected” leaders, we’ve seen lawyer and House Republican Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) steal an Aerosmith song (about a cowboy and a prostitute) to underscore a political video ad to suggest that Republicans were “Back In The Saddle.” Later, on the March night of President Obama’s first major televised press conference, Cantor was in the audience of a Britney Spears show. (I guess no cultural comment is needed on that one.) In his bid for President, John McCain (R-AZ) stole several songs for use in his campaign including Jackson Browne’s “Running On Empty.” This resulted in a lawsuit against McCain that the court has refused to dismiss at McCain’s request and is still pending. See the lawyers’ blog at www.kwikablog.com to follow this one.
It is common to hear, from some types, the statement that if one’s art is good enough, it will sell on its own and does not need to be subsidized. Arts educators have a hard enough time working to raise the redneck level above the lowest common denominator without having to argue this stupidity. And it certainly sends a message when our own government officials demean the work of those who did not receive subsidy by just stealing it without a thought or fear of repercussion. A publicized Browne victory against McCain would convey an important message. Removing McCain from the Senate for this act would convey an even more important message. Yet subsidies play a large role in government, not just the laughably tiny amount given to the arts.
All governments subsidize those activities which they want to increase and they reduce or eliminate funding from those activities which they want to diminish. It all comes down to who gets favored and who doesn’t. What government subsidizes (with your tax money) are called “economic social goods and services” which are deemed good for all society. These include schools, fire departments, police departments, militaries, government officials, and - in some European countries - the arts and music. Here are some comparative arts subsidies between various nations’ 2008 budgets: USA (National Endowment for the Arts) $144 million, Israel $114 million, Canada $164 million, Germany $1.4 Billion, France $3.8 Billion. Even “little” Norway budgeted $216 million back in 1989.
As for American subsidies, consider the following:
• 100 senators and 435 congressmen salaries of $175,000 each = $93 million
(and each has an additional staff budget of 1-2 million)
• U.S. national debt of $9.5 trillion = $1.5 billion interest every day mostly to China.
• Bailing out banks and wall street = $700 billion and more
• Pentagon war budget = $711 billion (2009)
• Iraq war = $120 billion year ($10 billion per month)
• USA foreign aid to Israel military = $3 billion
• Babylon, Iraq tourist destination = $700,000 from US Dept of State
• USA Farm subsidy = $286 billion (2008)
• About 2 million farmers and farm entities receive about $16 billion per year in programs designed to help stabilize incomes when prices fall or to help protect sensitive land.
• NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration=$16.2 billion a year
• Education funding - just NCLB (no child left behind) = $14 billion
• Corn ethanol subsidies = $7 billion
• Army Corps of Engineers - $5 billion annually for dams and water projects
• Abstinence-only sex education = $176 million (2008)
• Anti-drug advertising campaign fund = $130 million (2008)
These subsidies “create jobs” just like the NEA through their state agencies like Mississippi Arts Commission and Colorado Council for the Arts does. If the arts opportunities are to grow, it’s important to find out who the anti-arts legislators in your state and nation are and campaign against them. More noise has to be made to help support the political actions of groups like Americans for the Arts and the American Federation of Musicians. The noise making cannot be left to “political leaders” like Rush Limbaugh and Joe the Plumber.
When you strip away all the talk of left-wing vs right-wing, conservative vs liberal, republican vs democrat, free market capitalist vs socialist, etc., it comes down to this; there are two kinds of politicians: 1) those who support the arts and 2) the other kind.
Right on, Brother Ken Davies! Well studied, and thanks for putting it there for all to see!
We miss you here in Colorado!