This Wednesday, October 31, my new radio broadcast, “Talking To Animals,” returns for the fourth time. The first week, I got a steady stream of callers, the second show there was one caller, the third show was flooded with so many calls most people couldn’t get through. Our favorite call was from Trieste in Italy.

I guess you just never know.

The miracle of live steaming means every show, even mine, can go national, and that seems to be what is happening to “Talking To Animals.”  You just go to the station website – wbtnam.org – and click on live.

We got calls from Italy, California, Kentucky, Virginia and a bunch of other places.

If you wish to talk to me live, and I hope you do, please try to call in: If you live in the listening area, you can call 802 442-1010. If you live anywhere else int the country or overseas, you can call 866 406-9286. 

The station has no phone system that can hold callers, so it either rings or doesn’t. One at a time.

I want the show to be what it was last week, a thoughtful exchange about animals and their care and training. We need calls to do that. Buy I am happy reading questions if that works, the e-mailed questions are thoughtful and useful. I have a good size stack of questions to read.

We are hearing from people all over the country, and some of the world, as well as from Bennington, Vt, where the radio station is located.

The show is broadcast from one to 3 p.m. You can also go the Apple App store and to Radio Apps and download  Try MyTunerRadioPro or SimpleRadio or any of the scores of radio apps. Just type in WBTNAM1370 and you can heard the station loud and clear.

There is now a podcast of my shows by date – go to WBTNAM.US – scroll down to “Talking To Animals” and pick the show date you want to hear.

Lots of people tried to call judging by my e-mails, lots got through, many didn’t. I understand the frustration, but the station’s equipment is ancient and they are working on making this easier, but I’m not sure it will get easy in the near future.

We are offering many different ways to listen and communicate and interact with the broadcast.

This project will not be simple and easy, it will require patience and creativity to get this station to where it belongs. I think it will be worth it, both in terms of the broadcast and also the future of community radio in the Corporate Nation.

Animals deserve a thoughtful and civil broadcast. I aim to do my part.

I’ve always wanted to do a thoughtful and useful broadcast about animals and people, and last week came pretty damn close to my dream. I’m not  getting paid, this is for love and the future of media. And love of animals, of course.

There is only one phone line, and I can’t call out because there is no one else but Thomas and me to  run the broadcast and screen calls, etc.

If you don’t wish to call, you can also email me  your questions – [email protected] – and I will read  your questions and answer them on the air. Some people do that in real time, it’s a way to get your question through.

I have my phone opened right next to where I sit on the microphone, and I will check it regularly: [email protected].

We were all thrilled with the broadcast last week, there were good and thoughtful callers, we had good and very civil discussions, we were all good to one another, which is a big part of the idea.

As a community radio program, we are eager to be a counterpart to the disturbing and enraged formats of cable news.

I’ve encouraged WBTN to put up an Amazon  WBTN Wish List, Monday night they  completed their effort to get a new production computer, monitor and hard drive, this new  computer  will run all of the computers at the station and bring WBTN into the modern world.

The Wish List is empty at the moment, everything on it purchased.

This is the third Wish List the Army Of Good has cleaned out in two weeks. Thank you.

Community radio is essential in this time and era.  Just look at what the alternative has done to our democracy.

I hope I can help the station re-build itself and preserve access to radio for real human beings, not the creatures you see on cable news.