Author: Randall Reeder

Are you fed up with all the negative campaign commercials? Our local paper in Columbus, The Dispatch, analyzes ads for accuracy and prints the results. All the commercials I’ve read about included lies and half-truths.

Most candidates have a hard enough time telling the truth about themselves. How can they possibly get the facts straight about an opponent they never met?

Have you got your Halloween costume yet? There are quite a few restrictions this year. You can go as “President Obama” but not as “Al Jolson.” A girl can dress up as “Snow White,” but any “Prince Charming” had better not try to kiss her if she’s asleep. If you go as a Holstein cow, you had better hope there’s no one at the party from PETA.

You could go as “Elizabeth Warren” but, by golly, don’t make her look like a Cherokee Princess. Of course, that’s just me and the Cherokee Nation. No one except another Indian would understand why we would be upset.

I’m heading to Arkansas and Oklahoma this week. They’ve got an Arkansas State University at Mountain Home in the Ozark Mountains and I’ll be there Thursday evening. They call it a “Gaston Lecture” but I’ll be doing a whole lot more entertaining than lecturing.

Then on to Oklahoma (Friday to Sunday) to celebrate a birthday at Claremore. Yes, it’s #139 for Will Rogers on November 4. They put up a huge “HOLLYWOOD” sign on the hill at the Museum to celebrate 100 years as a movie star. To be accurate, “my” first movie, in 1918, was filmed in Ft. Lee, New Jersey, but putting up those letters would confuse everyone, except maybe Thomas Edison.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“If you want to visit the most beautiful country in the United States, don’t overlook these Ozark Mountains. This is where I grabbed off my only wife [Betty Blake]. So you will pardon me for bragging on Arkansas.”  DT #178, Feb. 22, 1927

“Come pretty near having two holidays of equal importance in the same week: Halloween and Election, and of the two, Election provides the most fun. On Halloween they put pumpkins on their heads, and on Election they don’t have to.” DT #1334, Nov. 2, 1930

“If you ever injected truth into politics you have no politics” WA # 31, July 15, 1923

Senator Elizabeth Warren is a native of Oklahoma, but she is not, to use the current terminology, a Native American. You know her background so I won’t go into details about her as a Harvard professor, her entry into politics during the Obama Administration, then election as Senator in Massachusetts.

She is a Democrat and during the 2016 election campaign she somehow drew the ire of Republican candidate Donald Trump. Questions had been raised earlier about her claim at Harvard of being part Cherokee. Well, Trump didn’t like her political views, so, Trump being Trump, he found a nickname for her, as he had done with plenty of other political opponents.

Instead of ignoring Trump’s taunts, she took a DNA test which she hoped would prove she really is part Cherokee. I think she wanted to collect on the million dollars Trump promised to give her favorite charity if she proved to be an Indian. However, the test showed she is, at most 1/512 or 1/1024 North or South American native. Definitely no proof of being part Cherokee.

To be fair, I think Trump should pay up by writing a check for 1/512 of a million: $1953.13.

Here’s more of the story: Will Rogers was 5/16 Cherokee, and proud of it. In 1899, a group of Cherokee girls formed a fun, social club. It was for girls, but they made Will (age 19) an honorary member. Today, 119 years later, this club is thriving with Cherokee females of all ages! And one of their main activities is to honor Will Rogers’ birthday every year, Nov. 4. What’s the name of this group? Pocahontas Club. [In case you don’t know, Pocahontas was Powhatan, not Cherokee.]

Sears is bankrupt. Hard to imagine, isn’t it, for folks who grew up with a Sears-Roebuck catalog. Many small towns had a Sears store. You could buy almost anything from the catalog or store, kinda the Amazon of its time.

Before indoor plumbing, the old Sears-Roebuck catalog was “recycled” to the outhouse as soon as the latest catalog arrived. It was more than just reading material. The softer pages always got ripped out first, and if all the pages disappeared before the next Wish Book arrived in the mail, well, the next option was corn cobs.

Historical quotes by Will Rogers:

“Sears Roebuck has opened up a store on every section line crossing. You can’t possibly live over six miles out of their clutches. They will sell you a Mowing Machine, Standard Oil stock, U. S. bonds, a Farm, Town lots, Ice Cream soda, a house all put together like blocks.

“If you want meat you don’t go to the Butcher. The Chain will sell it to you and throw in a Radio and mattress. Independent Druggists just as well pack up their unpaid charge accounts and their Asparin Tablets and Lettuce sandwiches and quit and join the Navy. For the chain will slice ham thinner than they ever could. They buy their Coca Cola in Oil Tankers. They can serve your wife a case of Gin, and you a Ford Tractor and deliver it over the counter with your Apple Pie…They even got the poor old Bootlegger on the run; they can sell Oklahoma City people Jamaica Ginger cheaper than the Bootlegger.” WA #378, March 23, 1930

The confirmation process for the new Supreme Court Justice has driven a wedge between folks. My friend Mark Sanborn wrote a thoughtful commentary about the divide on his Facebook page on October 8. He is one of America’s top speakers and authors on Leadership. (I’ve known Mark since he was a student at Ohio State University about 35 years ago.) Here is a small part of his commentary, followed by my reply on Facebook. Mark Sanborn wrote, “As a nation, when did we so easily and quickly go from disagreement and argument to public hatred and vitriol? When did we become so threatened by a different point of view or idea that it became necessary to denigrate and even destroy the person who holds it? When did we start channeling most of our energy into what we opposed rather than what we support? When did we start giving more attention to the problem than the solution? Personally, I believe that civil and constructive discourse between the diverse people and cultures of our country can move us forward and lack thereof will keep us mired in the dark negativity of the moment.” Mark’s post drew over 30 comments and was shared on Facebook by 59 people. Here is my reply, attempting to provide some historical perspective: “Please allow me to use ‘Liberal’ and ‘Conservative’ to represent the two sides. For Liberals still mad about the 2016 election, ‘losing’ the Supreme Court to a Conservative majority was the last straw. There is an excellent analysis by Aaron Blake in the Washington Post. He writes that this will be the ‘first reliably conservative Supreme Court since the New Deal era.’ (President Roosevelt appointed his first of 9 new Justices in 1937, and those FDR appointees switched the Court.) I like this analogy: suppose your favorite college football team has defeated an opponent EVERY year for 80 years. Then in 2018, your team loses. What is your reaction? Coming back to ‘Liberals vs. Conservatives,’ the Supreme Court leaned liberal for so long that Liberals assumed it was always supposed to be that way. In the football analogy, their team was NEVER supposed to lose to that rival. Also, having Republicans controlling both houses of Congress AND the Presidency (an extremely rare occurrence since 1930) has driven many folks stark-raving mad (I don’t mean that literally). The election next month is the real opportunity for voters to make their case. Then again in 2020. Let’s hope the losing ‘side’ will step back, and say, ‘Ok, we’ll get ’em next time.’” Historical quote by Will Rogers: [Here’s part of a longer quote I shared last week.] “if you can start arguing over something, and get enough publicity, and keep the argument going, you can divide our nation overnight” DT #1109, Feb. 13, 1930

In Washington, Robert Mueller put out information on two of the main culprits he is going after, Michael Cohen and Paul Manafort.  Are they guilty? More important, did they spill the beans on Donald Trump?

Suppose you went to a college football game between two rivals. The next day you read newspaper reports from the home cities of both teams. Amazingly, you wonder if the writers watched the same game.

Well, it’s the same with this “Mueller game.” Of course, President Trump claims there was no connection between the charges against those two and Russian influence in his election. Trump’s opponents claim the charges show a clear path to immediate impeachment.

Former FBI Director James Comey testified to Congress behind closed doors. Even though it was not public, he refused to answer a lot of interesting questions. The transcript of his answers was released, with whole sections blacked out. So we still don’t know his role (or President Obama’s role) in deciding who’s phones would be tapped during the Trump and Clinton campaigns in 2016.

George H. W. Bush took a final train ride, from Houston to his final resting place at Texas A&M University. His family had a great history with railroads and he enjoyed train rides. In the week since his death, everyone, especially media folks, was heaping praise on him, as a gentleman, a warrior, and for his life time of public service.

I read an interesting statistic about media coverage during Bush’s 1992 campaign. Even though the economy was rapidly recovering from a downturn in1990, over 90 percent of stories on the economy were negative. Then miraculously, in the month after the election of Bill Clinton, almost 90 percent of similar stories were positive.

Here’s an interesting question about the Bush presidency. How might it have changed if Republicans had controlled Congress those four years? As it was, Democrats had solid control of both the House and Senate.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

“At the great San Diego World’s Fair yesterday [former president Herbert] Hoover received a tremendous ovation.

There is no country in the world where a person changes from a hero to a goat, and a goat to a hero, or vice versa, as they do with us. And all through no change in them. The change is always with us. It’s not our public men that you can’t put your finger on. It’s our public. We are the only fleas weighing over 100 pounds. We don’t know what we want, but are ready to bite somebody to get it.” DT #2768, June 19, 1935

I heard last week that by 2030 we will likely have a shortage of 50,000 medical doctors. Most of the shortage will be pediatricians and gynecologists. We still have time to reverse the decline, and here’s a way to do it:  increase funding for medical students.

Where would the money come from?   Take it from Law Schools.

Having 50,000 fewer lawyers won’t be a problem. It could even be a blessing if a couple of thousand had intended to become politicians. Granted, this is against my self-interest because doctors are not near as funny as lawyers and politicians.

In case you missed it, the Senate confirmed a new Supreme Court Justice October 6.  Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed 50-48.

During the years Will Rogers wrote syndicated newspaper columns, 1922-1935, six new Justices were appointed by Presidents Harding, Coolidge and Hoover. (Roosevelt appointed the first of his nine in 1937.) Four were confirmed by Acclimation, and one by a wide vote margin. The other, Charles Evans Hughes, faced a bit of controversy before being confirmed 52-26. (See quotes below.)

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“(Concerning the confirmation of Charles Evan Hughes, the Senate) was ready to vote (5 days ago). Senator Blease asked that it be left over till morning. It was just a formality; there was practically no opposition. If it had been voted on then, there would have been nothing to it, but now look at it? It just shows that if you can start arguing over something, and get enough publicity, and keep the argument going, you can divide our nation overnight as to whether spinach or broccoli are the most nutritious. We can get hot and bothered quicker over nothing, and cool off faster than any nation in the world.” DT #1109, Feb. 13, 1930

“‘Sons of wild jackasses’ (progressive Republican Senators), after six days of braying, were finally haltered by public opinion to the score of Hughes 52, jackasses 26. I hope Mr. Hughes don’t prove as mean as they insinuated. They say he is all for the rich, that if appointed he would take the liquor away from the poor and give it to the wealthy.” DT #1110, Feb. 14, 1930 [Note: the progressive Senators objected to Hughes’ conservative interpretation of the Constitution, his opposition to government control of oil production and transportation, and his generally strong support of the rights of property.]

“There must be something the matter with this fellow Judge (Owen J.) Roberts of the Supreme Court. The Senate passed him unanimously. He must be (peculiar), can’t be human.” DT #1192, May 21, 1930

“Did you see how many thousands of students just graduated all over the country in Law? Going to take an awful lot of crime to support that bunch.” DT #1527, June 15, 1931

Is it okay with you if I say nothing about the Supreme Court?

Thank you. (Early responses show that 99% of you folks agree.)

How about food and farming? Let me share a few random thoughts.

Food in America is cheap. On average, we spend about 5 percent of available income on food at home, leaving 95 percent to spend on everything else, including food in restaurants and pet food. Only 1 percent of Americans are farmers, producing food for the other 99 percent, plus exporting a lot to other countries. Most people don’t know a farmer, and never even met or talked to one.

The low cost of food allows us to be choosy. In a large grocery store we have almost as many choices of dry cereal as we do of dog and cat food. If you have a question about a choice, do you ask a farmer or do you follow the advice of a stranger on social media?

Do you prefer Non-GMO food?  Well, you’re in luck because only a handful of our food has been genetically modified. Soybeans, canola, corn (including sweet corn), sugar beets, paypaya and squash. That’s all. Farmers do not grow any GMO oats, GMO wheat, or GMO tomatoes. There are no GMO cows, hogs or chickens.

You have probably seen many packaged foods claiming to be non-GMO. The packages are correct, except there are usually no versions of similar food that are GMO. All cereals of oats or wheat are non-GMO. Milk products are non-GMO.

If you prefer non-GMO foods because you don’t want farmers to use a lot of chemicals to reduce damage from insects, disease or weeds, then you are in for a surprise. The main purpose of genetic changes is so fewer chemicals are needed to grow a crop.

Do you know that many farmers grow crops (such as corn, soybeans and cotton) without plowing? In most of the country we call that “no-till farming.” No-till improves water quality in streams and lakes, reduces the barrels of oil needed for fuel, and with the help of cover crops grown after the cash crop has been harvested, reduces the need for chemicals to manage weeds and provides nutrients for the following crop.

Do you like meat? Most of us do, whether it’s bacon, steak, salmon or a turkey leg. Even vegetarians apparently like meat because fake “meat” is popular in grocery stores. And nut juice is in the dairy case with a fake name “almond milk.” If it’s not meat and it’s not milk how should it be labeled?

We could talk about organic farming (which often uses more chemicals and diesel fuel than no-till), locally grown (delicious in summer), and free-range chickens (raccoons love ‘em).

The great news is that American food is so cheap a consumer is free to choose any source, even if it costs two or three times as much. And American farmers are happy to produce it.

National Farmer’s Day is Oct. 12. Yes, it’s good to give them a Day, but don’t farmers deserve a Week, or maybe a Month?

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“We always have good things to eat at my sister’s (Sallie McSpadden) in Chelsea (Oklahoma)… Beans, kinder soupy navy beans cooked with plenty of real fat meat. And then fried ham; they cure their own ham…They got their own cows and real cream. Ham gravy is just about the last word in gravys…Beans, cornbread, country ham, and gravy, and then just raw onions… Then for desert? Don’t have room for any desert. Had any more room would eat some more beans.” WA #449, August 2, 1931

“Cattle are so cheap that cowboys are eating beef for the first time in years.” DT #1751, March 4, 1932

Who is the worst president of the US? I read today about a survey of a hundred historians taken in February. After one year in office President Trump was rated as the worst ever. The next worst was James Buchanan who, in four years, failed to attack the conditions that led to the Civil War. And the third worst was William Henry Harrison who somehow earned that low ranking while serving only one month. I’m no historian but it seems unfair to rate a poor fellow who dies before having a fair chance to make a good impression. At least Buchanan had four years.

If you’re wondering, the top rated President was Lincoln. No surprise there. But where do you suppose Lincoln ranked after just one month, or twelve months?

I have my doubts that Trump can pull ahead of any of these old-time low-rated presidents in the next three years.  Since February, Robert Mueller has investigated and charged a bunch of folks who know Trump. A famous journalist wrote a book about how scary he is. And last week a prominent newspaper credited Trump with heating up the Atlantic Ocean, causing Hurricane Florence.

Give Mueller credit. Republicans have complained that his investigation has cost $20 million, and Mueller got Paul Manafort to donate $22 million, so the taxpayer may come out ahead. Of course if Mueller sends too many of them to prison the per diem cost could eat up all our profits. That won’t even be a question if Mueller gets the man he really, down deep, wants to send to the Big House. Why, he might confiscate a trillion or two of Trump assets.

Back to Hurricane Florence. I doubt the rainfall would have been any less (or any cooler) if Secretary Clinton had been elected. Back in 1954 Hurricane Hazel also struck the Carolinas and I don’t remember any newspaper blaming Eisenhower. That storm dumped rain all the way up into Canada. I remember the rain and flooding in West Virginia, where we had about 9 inches.

But Florence is historic with 20 to 25 inches across much of the Carolinas, and the rain is spreading north. All these folks need help for flood relief and they’re going to get it. I heard that 18 have died, and we will likely have a few more.  But don’t expect to see a thousand added to that total over the next year.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

“I read that (German) submarines could not operate in the warm (Atlantic Ocean)–so I said: ‘If we can only heat the ocean we will have them licked.’ That didn’t get much of a laugh and I was kinda stuck–but I happened to add, ‘Of course, that is only a rough idea. I haven’t worked it out yet.’” How to Be Funny, July 1917 [Note: Will did not expect President Wilson to know how to heat the Atlantic either.]

Senator John McCain died yesterday. Newspapers and television news programs are providing well-earned tributes across the country and around the world.

In Vietnam he flew 22 successful sorties before being shot down and winding up as a prisoner of war for more than 5 years. I wonder how his life would have turned out if he had continued successful bombing runs and left the Navy as an aviation hero without enduring the physical and mental torture as a POW.

When he ran for President in 2008, he was admired by the press for his “straight talk,” openness, fairness, honesty and humor. They loved him as a candidate. But in the 2008 election a large majority of these same journalists and commentators voted for the other guy (Obama).

Although defeated, McCain was still a Senator and those same journalists continued to admire him, partly because he was known as a maverick who refused to follow the mandates of his fellow Republicans.

It may seem odd that Democrats are proposing to change the name of the Richard Russell Senate Office Building to honor John McCain. They not only liked Sen. McCain for his “middle-of-the-road” votes, but for Democrats today, Senator Russell of Georgia, who served from 1933 until his death in 1971, was far too conservative to be aligned with current Democrat policies. Removing his name may not be the same as tearing down a Robert E. Lee statue, but it’s pretty close. Honoring Senator McCain by renaming the building for him would be a well-deserved gesture, but don’t be surprised if Georgia opposes the change.

The Mueller investigation of Trump/Russia continues and they caught a couple of big fish this week. At least seven Americans and 25 Russians have pleaded guilty or been charged. Mueller is tight-lipped about progress of the investigation, but a syndicated columnist in “The Columbus Dispatch” today stated, “We know without a doubt Russia did interfere.” Maybe Mueller should interview this columnist, who also stated, “It is illegal for candidates to accept help from foreign governments.” Yes, but which candidate?

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“The trouble with Senators is that the ones that ought to get out, don’t.” WA #323, March 3, 1929

“All we got to do in this country to find out anything is wrong is just to investigate it.” DT #1577, Aug. 12, 1931

“Our investigations have always contributed more to amusement than they have to knowledge.” DT #1878, Aug. 11, 1932

Socialism is gaining popularity, at least among Democrats. A poll showed that 57% of Democrats are favorable to living under Socialism, and only 47% are favorable to Capitalism. For that Democrat majority, they likely point to a few successful “socialistic” programs we have in this country and figure it can work on everything else. But what they forget, or never learned in school, is that our socialistic programs depend on Capitalism to pay for ‘em.

Young folks think that because public schools are free, so should college. And everybody should get at least $15 an hour, even if they aren’t working. Ask ‘em who will pay for free college and free health care and they will tell you, “The rich. And big corporations.” Well, they’re in for a shock. On that $15 an hour minimum wage they would pay half in taxes. And if they somehow rose to a high salary, they might pay 80 or 90 percent.

I’m a few days late but I want to join with the 400 newspapers who wrote editorials on Thursday proclaiming their right to stand up to government officials and defend democracy, civilization and the First Amendment. I may be the only one who admits that much of what I write is fake news. And it’s “free speech,” even freer than theirs, because I don’t get a dime for it.

For most readers, these editorials were seen as a rebuttal to President Trump because he constantly criticizes them for only publishing “fake news” about his Administration. Well, even if 90% of the stories about the President are negative, they can’t all be fake. So here’s my suggestion to those 400 papers. Next Thursday, publish a list of their Top Ten national or international stories since Trump’s election Nov. 8, 2016. Do this independently, no colluding. Then let their readers decide if they agree with the list and the ranking.

Speaking of the First Amendment and Freedom of Speech, did you know that over a million former government officials have “Security Clearance?”  It surprised me to find out those folks continue to have access to the same Top Secret materials as when they were working for us. Here is a shocker: those same former employees claim that if we don’t give them access to top secrets, it eliminates their freedom of speech. Well, my speech has been free for years, and I never had even a hint of security clearance. So, here’s to free speech, but not with our top secrets.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“We got a Socialist out here [in California] running, Upton Sinclair, darn nice fellow, and just plain smart, and if he could deliver some of the things he promises, should not only be  governor of one state , but president of all of  ‘em. Upton has got some sort of scheme where us old boys over 45 retire and get a couple of thousand a year.” WA #603, July 15, 1934

“If Socialists worked as much as they talked, they would have the most prosperous style of government in the world.” There’s Not a Bathing Suit in Russia, Chapter 5. 1927

 “The [American] Communist teaches his doctrines, but he wants to do it where he is enjoying the blessings of Capitalistic surroundings. He preaches against the pie, but he sure eats it.” WA #420, Jan. 11, 1931

“Every day just shows us what a lucky country we are… [Our newspaper press is free, so] you can write whatever you want to. The only trouble is getting somebody that will read it.” DT #2091, April 17, 1933

California is still on fire. The fires have burned more acres and destroyed more houses than in any previous year. Governor Brown and The Washington Post agree on the cause: global warming.

It is always easier to blame something out of your direct control instead of policy decisions that created the fire-prone situation. Droughts and fires were just as common a hundred years ago as today. But with a population one-tenth of todays, they were less likely to build rows of luxury houses on steep, brushy hillsides.

A lot of folks thought they were protecting the environment several years ago when they outlawed timber cutting and grazing by cattle or sheep on public land. Dead trees remain in the woods, and the underbrush grows unchecked. No wonder fires spread rapidly.

As long as we have arsonists and others who are careless or plain stupid, there will be fires. But with good policy and good management those fires are usually small and put out before they become gigantic and out of control. Environmentalists can be nutty; their heart may be in the right place, but protection for the Spotted Owl in Oregon and the snail darter in California created unintended consequences.

By the way, there’s no lack of water to fight fires. President Trump is wrong on that one. He is correct that California requires that 25 percent of river flow be allowed to run unimpeded to the ocean.  Regardless of drought and desperate needs for crops, industry and a morning shower, that 25 percent cannot be touched.

I have always claimed “I don’t belong to any organized political party… I’m a Democrat.” But it’s not just the Democrats that are unorganized; so are the Republicans. Instead of two parties we are looking at four. And that’s not even counting the Greens and folks registered Independent.

The young woman, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, got only 16,000 votes in her New York City Congressional District, yet she won the nomination. Not only won, but she’s the new face of the Socialist wing of the Democratic Party. (Bernie Sanders is the old face.) The other wing is Liberal or Progressive, and Nancy Pelosi says her face belongs up front on that one.

The split for the Republicans is harder to define. They have pro-Trump and not-so-hot on Trump.  Or maybe Conservative and moderately Conservative. And like the Democrats they find plenty to argue over.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

          “We need rain [in California]. I will make it a motion, that it be called a prayer… It hasn’t rained here since Noah took two of every kind of moving picture actor and actress into the Ark with him… This is mighty dry humor, but, friends we would welcome the Johnstown flood right now.”  DT #1074, Jan. 3, 1930

“California is happy today. It’s raining! It’s raining! When you haven’t seen a drop of water that hasn’t come through a faucet in ten months, why rain looks like a miracle from the Democrats.” DT #2013, Jan. 16, 1933

“It’s getting so if a man wants to stand well socially, he can’t afford to be seen with either the Democrats or Republicans.” How To Be Funny, Sept. 1929