Note:  Be sure to read the Historic Quote at the end… although Will wrote this in 1925, it will remind all Americans of September 11, 2001, and December 7, 1941.

PLAIN CITY, Ohio: As I was driving here for a meeting this morning, at ten minutes till nine, on the radio they played “The Star Spangled Banner”. That was a fitting tribute in remembrance of the attack on Sept. 11. They played it everywhere across the country at the same time… in California it was ten till six… and around the world, every country played their own national anthem. The way they pulled that off, imagine what other important things we could perhaps accomplish in harmony around the globe.

I’m out here in Amish country for a farm meeting. Actually there was two of ’em at the same restaurant, and the audience for both were pleased to hear I was there to listen, and not to annoy. It was a refreshing change of pace for me, too, because you learn more when you’re listening.

In one room they had 200 conservation farmers learning how to grow crops more efficiently, with less cost and less erosion. Next door, about 50 members of the Farmers Union organization were discussing how best to protect and reward the family farmer and their local communities.

In both groups, (as with farm meetings all across the country this winter) they were working on providing a bountiful supply of food for the rest of us.

Of course they are all concerned about the Farm Bill debate in Congress, especially if they’re from a state without a Senator on the Ag Committee. Even that is no guarantee of prosperity.

You may have read in the paper where you can get on the internet and find out which farmers got farm payments from the government, and how much they have received. Well, it’s true, and a lot of farmers don’t like it. Now you can argue over whether it’s right or wrong, but the fact is we spend more for dog food in this country than we spend on this supplemental income to help our farmers stay in business.

I propose that if you show how much he got from Washington, they should also tell how much the farm produces. You know, list the pounds of grain, meat, milk, cotton, wool, potatoes, peanuts, fruit, and whatever… that way you can get a better idea if he deserves it, and you would know who to thank for the food in grocery stores and restaurants.

If you’re still disturbed about these payments, you could suggest those folks getting the big checks from the govt stop producing food for a year.

Walt Disney was born 100 years ago, December 5 (just one year before Strom Thurmond). You can bet the people at Disney World will be celebrating it all year. If this warm weather ever cools off here, a number of folks from the Midwest may go down to Florida to join in the fun.

And December 7 was an anniversary for the attack on Pearl Harbor. We’re hearing a lot about heros, and that day, and every day for four years after, spawned a whole generation of ’em. We’ve got to remember the fellows that fought in World War I. They were as heroic as the ones in WWII, it just didn’t take ’em near as long to win.

In Afghanistan Osama bin Ladin has been spotted riding a horse between caves. You may wonder with all those men wearing robes, how do they know it was him. When you’re 6′ 4″ and sit in the saddle as tall as John Wayne, it’s hard to hide. I just hope one of our sharpshooters can get close enough to pick him off without harming the horse.

Historic quote from Will Rogers:

“Heroing is one of the shortest lifed profession there is.

…And Policemen here in New York, where the impression of some out-of-town people seems to be that nobody in New York cares for anybody else! There is not a day that you don’t read of the wonderful things performed by them and the firemen to save human life. I tell you it does your heart good to read these things, even if we haven’t got the nerve to be in on it ourselves. We can at least admire it, and be proud that we have men like these, and thousands of women, if the opportunity presents itself.”

… the tough part about a hero. He has to eat. We take care of them with too much newspaper space and not enough permanent endowment. We have great fellows back from the war that can show you two medals for every sack of flour they have in the house. They got a foreign decoration for every American dollar they have.” WA #114, February 22,1925