Author: Randall Reeder

The attack on Iran continues. Khamenei’s son has been selected (or condemned) as the next Supreme Leader of the radical Islamic government. It is questionable whether he was picked by Muslim leaders, or by Israeli spies. Bets are being taken on which day this week he will be taken out by an Israeli jet or missile.

Meanwhile, most Democrats in Congress voted to end the attacks immediately and let the Khamenei clan become a nuclear power and dominate the Middle East region. They were outnumbered by Republicans who support the war to wipe out the radical government and a succession of leaders.

I’m hearing plenty of arguments on both sides. It boils down to ones who favor the war, hoping to get a new pro-democracy government, and the ones who are anti-war, many just because they are also anti-Trump.

A logical question relates to what’s wrong with Iran getting a nuclear bomb when other nations, including Russia and China, already have hundreds. Yes, Russia and China have nuclear weapons and ICBMs that can strike the US.

What makes Iran different? For one, those Communist leaders have some semblance of civilization. They know an attack on us would also mean self-destruction. But the radical Muslim leaders in Iran are (or for 50 of ‘em, “were”) so determined to wipe out Western civilization they don’t care if they and all of their fellow Iranians die. For decades, their theme has been “Death to America!”

According to reports, the Iranian navy ships have all been sunk and most of their Air Force destroyed. Here’s the irony: while we have been focused on these “big” means of attack, the Iranians now have little swift boats in the Persian Gulf and drones. Thousands or millions of drones that can reach Israel, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and other nearby nations are causing havoc. For Iran, if one drone out of 500 gets through to a target, that’s success. And the swift boats can attack an oil tanker even if we have a Navy battleship protecting it. Still dangerous and risky.

For a while, we have to get used to paying more for gasoline and diesel. Oil hit $100 a barrel. And stock prices dropped 3% in a week. Those economic blows should end when the turmoil in Iran, Venezuela (and Cuba?) settles down.

But the loss of jobs the last few months, partly due to AI (Artificial Intelligence), is more concerning. AI is making a lot of jobs easier and quicker, while eliminating others. Optimistically, we’ll benefit from AI just as we have grown with mechanization, technology, and automation. Think of AI compared to computers and the internet; with AI, we still need HI (Human Intelligence).

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

     “They showed me where the next war is going to be fought. It’s going to be fought in the air. There won’t be any digging in with shovels and living in trenches.” (DT #1813, May 16, 1932)

Did anything happen while I was away?

Well, President Trump delivered a State of the Union address to Congress. It seems he has done so much in 13 months it took almost two hours to cover the accomplishments. The speech was so long it required a full page in the New York Times to list the lies and exaggerations.

One line from the speech got a lot of attention, “The first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens.” Surprisingly, not all American citizens agree, including almost half of Congress.

After I returned from Arizona, our old enemies in Iran, the radical Islamists, were attacked. Yesterday morning, Ayatollah Khomeini and most of their leaders were killed. Israeli Intelligence infiltrated the inner circle and knew that about 40 were together in a meeting. Boom! They were gone!

Any “next-in-line” Islamic leaders in Iran may be reluctant to claim the title; do they want to bet their life against Israel’s spies and technology?

You may remember that in 1979, the people of Iran were living a wonderful, “Western style” life. Then the radicals attacked the US Embassy and held 52 American men hostage for 444 days. Democrats and Republicans were united in condemning this act and the forced transition of Iranians to a Muslim Sharia law lifestyle. The hostages were released the day President Reagan was inaugurated. But that didn’t stop the acts of war. Iran funded radical Muslims who have killed over a thousand Americans, including 241 of our military by Hezbollah, in Lebanon in 1983. And of course, it was Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza who killed 1200 and took 250 hostages in Israel, Oct. 7, 2023. The dead included 31 American citizens.

Today, according to a quick poll, every demographic group in America favors the attack by Israel and the US, except one: white Democrats. While Iranians in the country and around the world are celebrating the liberation (or the beginning of it) from the death and torture of thousands by Khomeini, many Democrats are condemning the military action. I guess they favored allowing Khomeini to continue progress on building nuclear bombs and missiles that could reach our East Coast.

Diplomatic negotiations were going on to the last day. Clearly, Iran had no intention of negotiating away their goal of building nuclear bombs. They acted nice, trying to stretch out the discussions a few more weeks so Iran could put a nuclear bomb on an ICBM and land it on Washington, DC.

Let me give a sincere “Thank you” to my hosts for a week in Arizona, Bryan and Kelly Pavlovic and Jim Waters. Part business, part pleasure. They took me to the Coolidge Dam. (At the dedication in 1930, Calvin Coolidge was there with a hundred guests, including Will Rogers.) Paul Ramirez of Tucson took me to the Border where we met with rancher Dean Fish and inspected the new 30-foot wall. (Looking through the narrow gaps in the wall, I saw the old “barrier,” a 3-strand barbed wire fence.) My Ohio neighbor, Veronica Boysel and her husband, spend the winter in Wickenburg. She took me exploring some high-country desert rangeland on a 4-wheeler. We saw a lot more cactus than cattle. And my record-setting swimmer friend, Deborah Gardner, invited me to watch her and several friends swim in cold Lake Pleasant, then lunch the next day with her parents, Joedy and Ruth Ann Gardner in Peoria. My West Virginia friends will recognize Joedy as a former basketball player and coach at WVU. Memorabilia of Joedy’s time as a Marine fighter jet pilot in Vietnam are displayed at the Mountaineer Military Museum in Weston.

I’m sorry to report that Democrats in Congress are not having a good week.

Can you believe another government shutdown?  In the Senate, 51 Republicans and 1 Democrat voted to keep the DHS fully open and 47 Democrats voted to shut down DHS agencies which includes TSA, FEMA, and the Coast Guard. (Sixty votes, a super majority, are needed to pass this bill in the Senate.)

So, which Party wants to keep DHS functioning, and which one opposes it?

Democrats voted to shut down funding for TSA, FEMA, and the Coast Guard because they are mad at ICE.  ICE arrested and removed 4000 criminal immigrants out of Minnesota. ICE also found over 3000 “lost” immigrant children in Minnesota who were released without any follow up to keep track of them. Offsetting those 7000, two disobedient protesters got killed.

Meanwhile, ICE reached a deal with Mayor Frey. We know ICE is leaving Minneapolis. We don’t know how many of the 4000 immigrants that ICE arrested and deported will have to be returned. The mayor refers to these criminals as “neighbors.” I doubt if he wants any murderers or sex offenders living next door.

Democrats demanded that ICE agents wear body cameras. A day later they demanded they not wear cameras. They realized the cameras can identify “peaceful protesters” who are disobeying, spitting, punching, and driving over ICE agents. (Note that my comments are about Democrat leaders, not about immigrants.)

Democrats in Congress do not want to restrict voting to only people who can prove they are U.S. citizens. But ordinary Democrats and almost every other American want Photo IDs with proof of citizenship. It’s common horse sense.

The Democrat Party is not the same as Democrats of a hundred years ago. Or even fifty years ago. Upton Sinclair was a popular Socialist but he never got elected to any office. Senator Huey Long of Louisiana pushed some socialistic plans (Share the wealth!) but never got any adopted. But today, the mayor of New York City, the Virginia Governor, and several candidates are adopting or pushing socialistic policies.

Republicans have changed since Coolidge and Hoover, and we can discuss that at another time.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers: (on Socialism and Communism)

        “It’s absolutely impossible for any Socialist to say anything in a few words… If Socialists worked as much as they talked, they would be the most prosperous style of Government in the World.” (There’s Not a Bathing Suit in Russia, 1927)

         “Communism is like Prohibition. It’s a good idea but it won’t work.” (WA #254, Nov. 6, 1927)

       “The idea was that the fellow managing the bank was to get no more than the man that swept it out. Well, that talked well to a crowd, but (Russia’s) got no more of that than we do.” (Saturday Evening Post, Nov. 6, 1926)

(From Moscow), “You have heard of equality of the sexes in Russia. That’s not so. The women are doing all the work.” (DT #2516, Aug. 28, 1934)

(No Weekly Comments next week.)

With the kidnapping of Savannah Guthrie’s 84-year-old mother in Tucson, several commentators have mentioned previous kidnappings of prominent people. Will Rogers had a close connection with Charles Lindbergh’s baby. He also was friends with the grandfather of Patty Hearst.

Charles Lindbergh, Jr., 20 months old, was kidnapped on March 1, 1932 from the home of Ann Morrow Lindbergh’s mother in New Jersey. Here’s Will Rogers the next day, “Why don’t lynching parties widen their scope and take in kidnappings? They are ten times more premeditated and performed by more normal people… What a shock to everybody…Two weeks ago Sunday Mrs. Rogers and I spent the day with them. The whole family interest centered around him. He had his father’s blonde curly hair… His face is more of his mother’s. He has her eyes exactly…He crawled up in the back of the Morrow automobile that was going to take us home, and he howled like an Indian when they dragged him out. I wish we had taken him home with us and kept him.” (DT #1749, March 2, 1932)

Five days later, “Remember it was (Lindbergh’s) judgement that first suggested ‘get the baby back at any cost,’ and then start worrying what the punishment would be if they caught ‘em.” (DT #1753, March 7, 1932)

Will wrote in a Weekly Article, “This young Bill Hearst, Jr. is a mighty promising young fellow, and looks like he is going to pick up W. R.’s [William Randolph Hearst] trail and keep the ink smearing over half the pulp wood of Canada. Then when he says, ‘The Lindbergh baby has been kidnapped,’ well, that put a different complexion on life… It was then five-thirty in the morning in New York, and he said they had been up all night working on the case. He said that [Arthur] Brisbane wanted him to get me, that I was the last newspaper man to have seen the child… So I told him what little I knew over the phone, which didn’t take me long. It’s as I have told you in my little daily blurb, we had spent the day out there.” (WA #482, March 20, 1932)

The body of the Lindbergh baby was found May 12, after a $50,000 ransom had been paid. Bruno Richard Hauptmann was tried and convicted in 1935 and executed by electric chair in 1936. During that trial Will and Betty had the Lindbergh’s stay at their Pacific Palisades ranch home where they could escape from the media.

Back to the Hearst family… “Up here at Mr. Hearst’s ranch [at San Simeon, CA]… If you have missed anybody from any part of the United States and can’t find ‘em, they are guests of this ranch.” (DT #1746, Feb. 28, 1932) (When Will was invited to a huge event, he spent the afternoon on horseback with the ranch foreman checking on the Hereford cattle instead of hobnobbing with other guests.)

Patty Hearst was kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army in 1974. In a weird turn of events, she was brainwashed and coerced and joined her captors in robbing a San Francisco bank. She served almost 2 years in prison and was fully pardoned by President Clinton.

Now, the kidnapping of Nancy Guthrie, has dominated the News all week. Officials are not sure the untraceable messages about her, one demanding $6,000,000 in Bitcoin by tomorrow, are even from the person’s who took her from her house in the middle of the night. There is no proof she is still alive. Pure agony for Savannah Guthrie of NBC News, and her brother and sister.

I’ll make one comment about the “ransom demands.” The person who sent the messages knows a lot about how to hide his identity and receive money in an untraceable way. But he needs to be reminded that our FBI and CIA just found and brought to Washington a man who helped murder four Americans at Benghazi, Libya, 14 years ago.

While we join the family in praying for Nancy Guthrie’s return home, we are confident the perpetrators will be caught. They should meet the same fate as Bruno Richard Hauptmann.

In the Super Bowl tonight, the Seattle Seahawks defense dominated the New England Patriots even more than the final score indicated, 29-13.

Are there words you are tired of hearing? They’re repeated over and over, non-stop. Your list may be different than mine, and that’s ok. In America we’re allowed to have our own opinions, in fact it’s encouraged.

Here are mine, based on newscasts the last few months: Nazi. Gestapo. Fascist. Impeachment. Sanctuary. Shutdown.

Maybe the words you dislike hearing are: Communist. Socialist. ICE. MAGA. Trump.

Several weeks ago I pleaded with Democrats to stop referring to our law enforcement officers as Gestapo and Nazis. They are showing complete ignorance of Hitler’s “officers” who captured and killed 6,000,000 people who were living in their own country, obeying the laws. Mussolini in Italy is the most prominent Fascist known to us old folks. He joined with Hitler in World War II.

Impeachment. For Democrats in Congress, it’s “who do we want to impeach this month?” Currently it’s the Secretary of Homeland Security. Kristi Noem’s job is to keep the homeland secure. Part of that job is to stop illegal immigration and kick out ones who previously sneaked in.

Suppose you hire a maid. After some time, you notice your house is overrun with mice, cockroaches, and bedbugs. She also brought in a dozen parakeets, 20 goldfish and a couple of cute puppies. She leaves and is replaced by another maid who quickly cleans house. No more mice, cockroaches or bedbugs. Half the parakeets fly away, some goldfish die, and one puppy finds a new home.

Which maid do you prefer? Are you mad at the new maid because she lost some parakeets and goldfish, and one of your precious puppies?

A few readers have suggested Will Rogers would have a more compassionate view, accepting everyone who desires to cross our border. Later this week I’ll share a story that indicates the opposite view. Here’s a hint: The Rogers family lost a 60,000-acre ranch as a result of illegal immigration that was supported by the federal government.

And another Shutdown. Yes, it’s a “partial” Shutdown, only the Department of Homeland Security. Senate Democrat Leader Chuck Schumer wants to keep criminal illegal aliens free and roaming the streets, especially the ones in Minnesota. Sanctuary is one of his favorite words. If Mr. Schumer shuts down DHS, that includes TSA at our airports, the Coast Guard, Cybersecurity, FEMA, Border Patrol and Secret Service protection for the President. Perhaps fortunately, DHS may be allowed to continue uninhibited for two more weeks.

The main sticking point in Minnesota boils down to this: Tom Homan will remove about 90% of his ICE agents if the local police will turn over 1500 jailed illegal aliens to ICE instead of releasing them into the neighborhood. But Gov. Walz not only rejects that idea, but insists that Homan take out 100% of ICE agents, plus return to Minneapolis 3000 of the criminal illegal aliens already removed and deported.

To anyone with common horse sense, that Walz demand seems wacky. But thousands of the protesters agree with him and Mayor Frey. They want their next-door neighbor returned, even if he is a child molester who killed a young boy several years ago.

That’s all from me on illegal immigration. There will be no more mentions, pro or con, in Weekly Comments. You folks battle it out and live with the result.

Speaking of results… after one month in office the new mayor of New York City has already run out of other people’s money. He is setting up a Go Fund Me account that only millionaires are encouraged to give to.

Back to the topic at the top. I’m ready to listen as you expound on the words you are tired of hearing.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

        “Right here in Memphis today over twenty-five policemen went to a hospital and volunteered to give blood transfusions to a kid that was near death. I know that I am out of order in speaking of the good things that cops do, but I am one of the old-fashioned people who believe if somebody pounced on me, I could holler for one and he would come and help me out without me having to pay him anything.” (DT #497, Feb. 29, 1929)

COLUMBUS, Ohio: Snow, sleet, ice and football are dominating the News today. (Except in Minnesota.)  We got about a foot of snow here, the most at any time in a few years. And temperatures are dropping to zero.

Meanwhile in Utah and other Rocky Mountain states where they need snow, it’s been sunny and dry. That’s bad enough for anyone who likes to ski. But the bigger problem will be this summer when rivers run dry.

The U.S. murder rate dropped dramatically in 2025. Meanwhile 250,000 criminal illegal aliens were deported and 2,000,000 other illegal aliens self-deported. And instead of 3,000,000 more entering, without vetting, the border is pretty much shut down. Fewer illegal drugs are getting across our borders. Drug boats are being blown out of the water in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. Is it possible there’s a connection between fewer murders and more deportations?

Congress might shut down the government next weekend. We didn’t like it when they shut down for 40 days in October-November. Will a shutdown be more popular in February-March? Last fall, the argument was over health insurance subsidies. Now, it seems to be over protection of wanted criminals.

Can you imagine, in 1930, leaders in Congress demanding that Al Capone not be hunted down and arrested? Would a Congressman from Chicago demand, “Mr. Capone has meant so much to the reputation of our bustling city. It’s not fair to want to capture and hang him for murder. Leave him alone!”

Do you recognize this name: Jose Huerta-Chuma? How about Alex Pretti? You probably know about Alex. He was shot yesterday by a federal law officer. Alex was trying to prevent federal officers from arresting Jose. Were Alex and Jose related? Or work together at the VA? No, they never even met. Alex put his life on the line for a man who is wanted for beating up his wife. Jose is also an illegal alien. And thanks to Alex and a thousand other protesters, Jose is still roaming free on the streets of Minneapolis.

Now, I realize half of my readers may be violently upset at my description of Jose and Alex. The shooting of Alex Pretti will be thoroughly investigated. Alex had a legal right to own and carry a gun. Why did he choose to take his gun and extra ammunition to a protest against well-armed officers? But he forgot to take his billfold with driver’s license, credit cards and cash? He had no identification on him at the protest. The saga of Alex Pretti reminds me of the Johnny Cash song, “Don’t take your guns to town, son. Leave your guns at home.”

A bigger question is, why were there no city or state police officers onsite to keep protesters a safe distance from federal officers trying to do their job? That question is for Gov. Walz and Mayor Frey. Their priority seems to be providing safe sanctuary for any and all illegal immigrants, including criminals, who can get to Minneapolis. Maybe they should have been focused on stopping the fraudsters who managed to steal $9,000,000,000 tax dollars and sent a lot of it to Somalia Islamic radicals. A few million may have ended up in the bank account of Congresswoman Ilhan Omar.

The Super Bowl is set for the NFL championship. The Seattle Seahawks will play the New England Patriots on Feb. 8. A hundred million of us will watch the game. A different hundred million will watch commercials and the half-time show.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

         “You can’t legislate intelligence and common sense into people. (DT #2377, March 17, 1934)

        “Corruption has supplanted Tariff as a National issue. But it’s awful hard to get people interested in corruption unless they can get some of it… The Republicans have always been the party of big business, and the Democrats of small business, so you just take your pick. The Democrats had their eye on a dime, and the Republicans on a dollar.” (WA #278, Apr. 22, 1928)

President Trump is in a heap of trouble in Greenland. Denmark and most of Europe don’t like that he is bribing all 58,000 citizens by offering ‘em $500,000 if they secede. And Greenlanders are holding out for more, at least $750,000 each. Knowing negotiations will take at least a year, the birth rate is expected to accelerate.

Meanwhile, thousands of Americans have rushed to the Greenland embassy in DC, not to protest, but to apply for citizenship.

A hundred years ago Will Rogers was proud to say, “I’m not a member of any organized political party… I’m a Democrat.” In my programs as “Will Rogers” that line always gets a laugh.

Will Rogers was a Democrat, no kidding. He was kind and respectful of all presidents, including Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover. In 1932, he was totally for Franklin D. Roosevelt, including introducing him at a massive campaign rally in Los Angeles, “This introduction tonight is not flowery or ostentatious, because I am wasting no oratory on just a prospect. Now after you’re elected, I’ll do right by you.”

Today, I’m got my doubts. In 2028, I can’t see Will proudly standing in front of a huge rally for one of the apparent Democrat candidates and heaping praise on him or her. If Will was invited to speak at the Democratic Convention, like in 1932 in Chicago, I’m pretty sure he would not repeat his comments when he implored the delegates, no matter which candidate they favored, to go home and support the nominee, “Don’t say he’s the weakest man… don’t say he can’t win… I don’t see how he could ever be weak enough not to win. If he lives until November, he’s in!” (Convention Articles, June 27, 1932)

Last week, I asked a lot of questions. Today, I have a couple of observations. Congress voted on keeping Title IX support for women’s sports. The vast majority of Democrats voted against continuing to keep these sports teams, and their locker rooms, only for girls and women. An expert gynecologist testifying in the Senate was asked, “Can a man get pregnant?” Even after years of helping with hundreds of births, not one from a man, she refused to answer that simple question. When given a choice, Democrats usually ignore victims and favor the illegal immigrants who committed the crime.

        “Us Democrats just seem to have an uncanny premonition of sizing up a question and guessing wrong on it. It almost makes you think sometimes it is done purposely.” (Saturday Evening Post, Jan. 19, 1929)

Gov. Tim Walz, supported by mayor Jacob Frey, is reading up on Jefferson Davis as he maps out a plan for Minnesota to secede from the Union. Listening to Congresswoman Omar’s list of atrocities, who can blame him, “ICE is a paramilitary force, terrorizing families, escalating enforcement, killing a U.S. citizen, detaining individuals because of their color without warrants, without access to counsel, including my own son. They force car accidents where they smash windows, cut seat belts, and carry people away.”

To help tamp down animosity on the streets, Gov. Walz decided to call up the National Guard. The big decision for the Guard is, are we fighting against the criminals and protesters, or against ICE?

With Walz’s application to secede from the United States, the former Democrat V-P candidate is demanding the return of the 300 hardened criminal immigrants recently hauled away by ICE. “These are our neighbors. The women protesting, including mothers and grandmothers, are missing their affordable supply of cocaine and fentanyl.” There is some question whether those gang members, rapists and murderers will want to return to Minnesota. Without easy access to billions in free money from the U.S. taxpayers, why go back to frigid Minneapolis?

On a serious note, Martin Luther King is honored tomorrow. Will Rogers did as much as he could to end discrimination against Blacks and Indians. For example, after Will became a movie star, he had the freedom to change scripts. He used that freedom to promote the growth of fellow actors, including Lincoln Perry, known as Stepin’ Fetchit, Bill Robinson, known as Bojangles, and Hattie McDaniels. Will Rogers created situations where these three actors could grow beyond what was expected of them. Also, a Cherokee woman was a candidate for President of the Women’s Federation of Clubs in 1935. Will supported her, “I hate to see her kicked out because she’s an Indian. She’s a wonderful woman. So, any of you women who are going to (the convention), don’t you vote my Indian out, or I’ll be on you from now on.” (Radio, June 2, 1935) (Yes, she won.)

Instead of giving you my comments on current issues, I’m going to ask questions and let you answer. It’s not a quiz. No grades will be published.

If a Deputy Sheriff stops a person for going 80 mph in a 55-mph zone, should the driver obey her request to check license and registration?

If that speeder ignores the request and roars off, should the Deputy quickly follow, or let her go?

If an illegal immigrant sexual predator has been living in your state for 5 years, should he be arrested by I.C.E. and deported?

If an illegal immigrant sexual predator moves in next door, should he be arrested by I.C.E. and deported?

If a sanctuary state orders federal law enforcement to leave, should the President agree? And also stop all federal funding?

What percent of total federal income taxes should the top 10 percent of wage earners pay: 50%; 75%; 85%; or 95%?

What percent of total federal income taxes should the bottom half of wage earners pay? 1%; 3%; 10%; or 25%?

Who deserves the most support, the victim of a crime or the perpetrator?

If the victim of a major crime is a person you don’t like, do you favor a light sentence for the perpetrator?

Which organization is known to arrest citizens of its own country, send them to concentration camps and kill thousands: I.C.E.; FBI; or Gestapo?

Which type of government is most likely to provide plenty of good food at a reasonable price to poor people: Socialist or Capitalist?

Which type of government is most likely to provide opportunities for an average person to increase income and prosper: Socialist or Capitalist?

Of the two main groups of protesters, those for freedom in Iran, or those against I.C.E, which has had the most shot and killed by officials?

If a paid protester throws a brick through the windshield of an I.C.E. vehicle, is that considered freedom of speech?

If protesters commit a crime, should the persons who paid and trained the protesters be charged also?

If legal immigrants are defrauding the state or federal government, should they be deported?

If elected officials (Governor, Attorney General, Legislators, etc.) know about and ignore major fraud, should they be tried and sent to prison?

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

“An Indian (says) the reason a white man always got lost and an Indian didn’t was because an Indian always looked back after he passed anything so he got a view of it from both sides. You see the white man just figures that all sides of a thing are the same. That’s like a dumb guy with an argument, he don’t think there can be any other side only his. That’s what you call politicians.

You can learn a lot from what that Indian (said) besides just how not to get lost. You must never disagree with a man while you are facing him. Go around behind him and look the same way they do when you are facing him. Look over his shoulder and get his viewpoint, then go back and face him and you will have a different idea.” WA#514, October30, 1932

What a way to start the celebration of our 250^th year!

Nicolas Maduro, a narcotics kingpin with a $25 Million bounty on his head, was arrested in Venezuela on Saturday. Venezuelans around the world are celebrating. Wow!

If that was all you knew about this big News, probably everyone in the U.S. would be celebrating with the Venezuelans (except the Venezuelan drug gangs).

But because President Trump ordered our Armed Forces to make the arrest, and without alerting 535 members of Congress a week ahead about the top-secret mission, plenty of people are criticizing and protesting Maduro’s removal.

New York City has a new mayor, Zohran Mamdani. At his inauguration he declared an end to individualism, to be replaced by collectivism. Collectivism sounds familiar to anyone who knows the history of the old USSR. It is still practiced in Cuba and North Korea.

Mayor Mamdani was cheered wildly by his supporters as he was sworn in by a U.S. Senator. It wasn’t a Senator from New York, but Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, a fellow Democrat-Socialist who splits his time among three houses. Since none are in New York City, Senator Sanders is in no danger of losing two of them in the name of collectivism.

It’s no surprise that the protest in New York City about Maduro’s arrest was led by the young folks who swept Mamdani into office. They hate to see a fellow Democrat-Socialist lose power. They are too young and uninformed to know that in the 1990s Venezuela was the third strongest economy in the Western Hemisphere. That all began a slow decline 25 years ago when a new president was elected on the promise to “eliminate income inequality.”

Minnesota Governor Walz is thrilled to be off the front page for a few days. But the fraud by the Somalis that he ignored cost us Billions. I read that in Somalia bribery and fraud is ordinary practice. It’s a way of life. So, it should be no surprise that several would continue the same lifestyle in Minneapolis.

By the way, the bounty on Maduro’s head was increased to $25 million by President Biden. Also, in the last 8 years, about 8 million Venezuelans left the country. If Mamdani is in office for 8 years, do you think an equivalent number may leave New York City?

I’m optimistic about 2026. Regardless of politics, we are optimistic folks. The sun will come up in the morning. The economy will keep growing. For those who, unfortunately, may not benefit, the second Will Rogers quote below gives hope. We are generous to those in “actual need throughout the country.”

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“A conservative [Republican] is a man who has plenty of money and doesn’t see any reason why he shouldn’t always have plenty of money. A Democrat is a fellow who never had any, but doesn’t see any reason why he shouldn’t have some.” WA #535, March 26, 1935

“Well, Christmas has passed. I was just thinking if there was some way to make the Christmas spirit continue during the other days of the year, why we would be the most happy and wonderful Nation on Earth. Gosh, if all of us that was able would just feed and do things for folks without waiting till Christmas. I think we mean well, but we just sorter got in our heads that about one day a year pays our obligations off, then we swell up and hide our Conscience till the next gift day comes along. With all of our fact-finding departments in our Government, and all our statistics gatherers, I believe you could increase generosity 100 to 1000-fold if there was some way of finding out just exactly the people that were in actual need throughout the country.”  WA #628, Jan. 6, 1935

How has 2025 been for you? For many, it has been a mix of both good and sad news, high expectations and disappointing results.

The year had a crushing start for Will Rogers fans and family. On Jan. 7, the Pacific Palisades fire in California destroyed the house and barn at the Will Rogers State Historic Park.

I won’t go into details of policies and politics that contributed to the tragic loss of over 6000 structures. Unfortunately, hardly any new construction has been started to rebuild Pacific Palisades and other LA suburbs destroyed by the fires.

Of course, the election of Donald Trump and a Republican Congress has had the most impact on 2025. This is probably the most sudden impact for any new President since Franklin Roosevelt in 1933. The country is divided on whether that impact is good or bad.

On the economy, Sen. Schumer gave President Trump an F. However, most Republicans are pleased with low inflation, lower gasoline prices, slightly lower interest rates, and the S&P 500 is up 18%. And Trump emphasizes the changes in taxes that will take effect in 2026.

The contrast of illegal immigration under President Biden and President Trump is the most dramatic, from 10,000,000 to near 0. The Dept. of Homeland Security (I.C.E.) has arrested and deported 600,000 criminal immigrants and 2,000,000 have self-deported.

Oddly, a lot of Americans protest the removal of murderers, rapists, drug dealers and other illegal aliens who committed serious crimes. They are led by a few Governors and Mayors who seem to favor criminals over their own citizens and victims of those criminals.

Internationally, Trump’s success at negotiating peace settlements, including Radical Islamists vs. Israel, has hit a road block in Ukraine. Putin of Russia does not negotiate. Unlike other national leaders, Putin has no soul, no concern for human life except his own. For Putin, capturing Ukraine is simply the first step to overrun eastern Europe and restore the former USSR.

A couple of personal notes: I recovered quickly from open-heart surgery in July. Only missed a couple of events and was back to full strength by September. Jennifer Rogers, Will’s great-granddaughter, and I finished our little book, “Common Horse Sense from Will Rogers: Seven Timeless Tips for Leaders (and Everyone Else).” And I announced that I am transitioning out as the main organizer for the annual Conservation Tillage and Technology Conference after 39 years.

Looking forward to the new year… I’m continuing as Executive Director of the Ohio No-Till Council. I’ll be speaking at the National No-Till Conference in St. Louis, Jan. 6-9. Jennifer Rogers and I are working on an expanded version of our “Common Horse Sense” book and preparing for presentations across the country as the USA celebrates 250 years. Plus, Historic Route 66, from Chicago to Santa Monica (and going through Claremore, Oklahoma) is celebrating 100 years.

I hope you have plenty of reasons to anticipate a Happy New Year.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

       “If I wanted to start an insane asylum that would be 100 percent cuckoo, I would just admit applicants that thought they knew something about Russia.” DT #1291, Sept. 14, 1934

      “I know common sense when I see it, and the commoner the better I know it.” WA #202, Oct. 24, 1926

      “A comedian is not supposed to be serious nor to know much. As long as he is silly enough to get laughs, why, people let it go at that. But I claim you have to have a serious streak in you or you can’t see the funny side in the other fellow.” WA #13, March 11, 1923