Category: Uncategorized

Are you in favor of eliminating the portion of your tax dollars spent on wasteful programs and fraudulent people? Were you glad the federal government shutdown was avoided on Friday?

You might be surprised to hear the strong views of some prominent folks in Washington. Names you know well (Schumer, Pelosi, Obama, Biden) all wanted to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse a few years ago. But now they want the fraudulent payments and wasteful spending to continue.

It seems that Republicans and Democrats have their own definitions. What’s trash to one is a treasure to the other. And they only want to toss out the trash if they get the credit.

Concerning government shutdowns, our top Democrats were always against them. But last week they were for it. Except Senator Schumer of New York who switched his vote. That made his Democrat colleagues mad. They are going so far, to such a calamitous conclusion, they want to replace him with Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. She is best known for a lack of economic common sense because she single-handedly kept Amazon from building in her district and offering high wages to 25,000 of her constituents.

So, the only part of government that shut down is what Elon Musk and President Trump have shut down or reduced. They are getting complaints for “cutting Social Security and Medicare.” What’s the complaint? They are canceling Social Security numbers for people who are 120 to 150 years old.

Anyone who is retired or close to it is well aware that both of these funds are at risk of running out of money in 10 to 15 years. If Elon Musk and his computer sleuths can eliminate, say, 10% of fraudulent payments, and streamline operations to reduce employees, these funds will last a few years longer.

Here is another vote in the House of Representatives that might upset you. Democrats voted for a tax increase of $4 Trillion. If it had passed, it would have increased the income tax for the average family more than $2000 a year.

Have you heard about former New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo? He was forced to resign after spending $60,000,000 in tax dollars for his defense, but now he is the leading candidate for Mayor of New York City. His decisions on Covid 19 were terrible. He sent patients with Covid to nursing homes to recover, which resulted in spreading the disease and killing hundreds of old folks.

And in California, Governor Newsom is running for President in 2028. He wants voters in the other 49 states to forget he flaunted his own rules during Covid, supported a state law that raised the price of pork and chicken for all of us, and insists that excess water in northern California flows into the ocean instead of piping it to southern CA where they need it to irrigate crops and fight fires.

Both Cuomo and Newsom are counting on the voters’ poor memory for their political future. As Will Rogers wrote, “Many a public man wishes there was a law to burn old records.” (DT #627, July 30, 1928)

Dust storms, tornadoes, high winds, and wildfires are causing havoc across the country. During the Dust Bowl in 1934 and 1935, blowing soil from tilled ground in the southern Great Plains reached Washington, DC. Last week, dust from tilled farm fields in New Mexico and Texas blew all the way to Ohio and Pennsylvania. On Friday, blowing topsoil along the Colorado-Kansas border caused 71 vehicles to crash on I-70, killing eight people. As Will Rogers wrote exactly 90 years ago, “(This dust is) a terrible thing, and it’s going to bring up some queer cases in law. If Colorado blows over and lights on top of Kansas, it looks kinder like Kansas ought to pay for the extra topsoil, but Kansas can sue ’em for covering up their crops.” (DT #2697, March 28, 1935) This time it might be victims of the I-70 crash that sue the farmers for plowing instead of leaving crop residue and/or planting winter wheat or a cover crop to prevent wind erosion.

Wildfires burned dozens of homes in Stillwater, Oklahoma. And tornadoes in eight states have killed at least 40.

Tomorrow, St. Patrick’s Day, is special for our family because my dad, W. Howard Reeder, was born on March 17, 1918. He celebrated 99 birthdays. Part of our family enjoyed the Irish Spring Festival in Ireland this week.

Ok, this Ireland is a small community in West Virginia, not the Ireland that Rosie O’Donell moved to.

Has common horse sense left the barn? Or only Washington, DC?

First, it’s Congress. We know those folks are skilled persuasive speakers. And they do a fair amount of listening to their voters, and especially to donors and lobbyists. But when it comes to entertaining…, they should hire a stand-in.

The Academy Awards were last Sunday and that must have inspired them to try out for a part in a movie. Have you seen the leaked video with 25 men and women in Congress? They must have brought in a famous Director to supervise.

She lined ‘em up and gave them the lines to memorize. She coached them, telling them which words to emphasize, proper gestures, and to speak emphatically, with harsh emotion. Frown, don’t dare smile. Here is the script: “Since day one of Donald Trump’s presidency, prices are up, not down. Inflation is getting worse, not better. Prices of groceries, gas, housing, rent, eggs – they’re all getting more expensive. Meanwhile, Donald Trump has done nothing to lower costs for you.”

Most did it marvelously in one take. They have been talking with that attitude for a few years so it comes natural to them. To see who succeeded, we’ll have to wait till the next Academy Awards, or the next election.

A few other Congressional Democrats tried singing. Oh my. They wouldn’t last ten seconds on “America’s Got Talent.” Or the “Gong Show.” Then a few of the women did videos pretending to fight like Mohamed Ali. Do you remember, “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee?”

Now, it may have been a reasonable goal for the Biden Administration to selectively hire to reflect the overall population. But when it comes to singing and dancing, we don’t want the “average” American. For singing, we prefer Larry Gatlin or Patti Page. For dancing, how about Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers (no relation to Will). And there’s only one Mohamed Ali.

That’s just my opinion. If you like your singing and dancing a little off kilter, that’s alright with me.

Speaking of off kilter, next we come to President Trump. Despite his popular speech to Congress, a lot of folks think his tariffs and Russia policy are plum nutty.

Trump claims the announced tariffs against Mexico and Canada are only to force them to keep fentanyl from crossing our borders. But many Americans are more concerned about the higher price of lumber and tomatoes that cross our borders.  And a lot of Canadians are mad they can’t buy Kentucky bourbon.

But then President Trump kinda turns around and says, “Tariffs will bring in Billions of dollars.” He also says tariffs will cause foreign manufacturers to move here and our own companies will bring all of their manufacturing and suppliers back to the states. Several companies have already announced the desired moves. Maybe eventually the net effect will be more taxes and a balanced budget. But it is frustrating to a lot of the country that’s concerned about the short term.

Is it smart to fire whole groups of federal employees and programs rather than pick off the ones that are wasting our tax dollars and running up the debt? Especially when you have to rehire the ones doing critical work.

Of course they will say, “Well, you tried picking one at a time for decades, and it never worked. This way, we got their attention.”

On another issue, do you think Will Rogers would have supported men in women’s sports? Will was a strong supporter of female athletes. For example, Babe Didrikson Zaharias in the 1932 Olympics (track and field) and golf; Gertrude Ederle, English Channel swimmer; and Annie Oakley, sharpshooter. Since 1972 females in high school and college have had their own sports. And now, Democrats in Congress want to allow biological males to compete, and usually win, against the girls and young women.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“You can’t legislate intelligence and common sense into people.” DT #2377, March 16, 1934

“Magnus Johnston says he is ‘going to use common sense in the Senate.’ That’s what they all say when they start in. But if nobody don’t understand you, why, you naturally have to switch.” WA # 59, Jan. 27, 1924

“Gertrude Ederle (swam the English Channel)… England is trying to get in on the credit of it. They claim they furnished the land for her to land on, otherwise she would never have made it.” DT #10, Aug. 8, 1926

My main interest in Ukraine, months before Putin invaded, was its prime farmland. Ukraine has soil equal to our best farms in Iowa and Illinois. The productivity of this great soil is the reason Ukraine has been known as the “Breadbasket of Europe.”

You know that not all farmland is the same. That’s why a farm in Iowa can sell for $20,000 an acre and a farm with rocky, less productive soil is worth only $2000 an acre.

When we consider only the very best prime farmland in the world, we have roughly 20% of it, and Ukraine and Russia each have about 20%. Here is my question about Putin’s attempt to take over Ukraine: Do we want to let Putin control 40% of the best farmland in the world?

That brings me down to the meeting in the White House on Friday. Your opinion of the kerfuffle between Trump and Zelenskyy in the few minutes at the end of a 40-minute press conference is probably influenced by which news outlet you watch or read. Totally opposite views. It’s like one person standing in front of a Palomino horse admiring its beautiful mane and disposition, while another person is focused on the opposite end of a donkey.

Zelenskyy was not well prepared to meet President Trump. Before a public meeting, Zelenskyy should have asked, in private, this question: “How much of my country are you willing to give to the invader Putin?”

I don’t know what answer Trump would give. But any answer above zero would be unacceptable to Ukrainians. Zelenskyy could have followed up with this plea, “Putin already stole Crimea in 2014. He can keep it. But he has to leave 100% of our country he has occupied in 3 years, and pay for a good chunk of the damages. And return all the children he stole in the early months of the invasion. I am eternally grateful for the tremendous support from all Americans in defending our freedom. And I humbly ask for your help in negotiating with Putin to achieve these goals.”

I would like to see Trump’s reaction to that. And Putin’s.

The Academy Awards are on ABC tonight. In 1934, the Master of Ceremonies for the big dinner celebration was Will Rogers. Based on his notes, here are three comments in the opening monologue:

“(These statuettes) are lovely things. They were originally designed for prizes at a nudist’s colony bazaar, but they didn’t take ‘em. It must be terribly artistic, for nobody has any idea what it is. It represents the triumph of nothingness over the stupendousness of zero…

There is great acting in this room tonight, greater than you will see on the screen. We all cheer when somebody gets a prize that everyone of us in the house knows should be ours. Yet we smile and take it. Boy that’s acting! ….

I have never seen any of these pictures. They don’t look at mine and why should I go see theirs.” (Note that by 1934, Will was the highest-paid and most popular actor in Hollywood, yet he was never nominated for an Oscar.)

Will messed up announcing the best Director award. He casually announced, “Come up and get it, Frank!” But there were two nominees named Frank.  Frank Capra started walking to the front when Will realized his mistake and clarified the winner was Frank Lloyd for Cavalcade, (which also was the Best Picture). There have been worse blunders in the 90 years since.

Trump has turned the “First 100 Days” into “First 30.” He has taken more actions than any recent President at the start of his term.

I disagree on a couple of critical announcements. President Trump is mistaken to claim that Zelinskyy started the war with Russia.  I’ll side with Zelinskyy. Did Trump expect him to give up a big chunk of eastern and southeastern Ukraine without a fight? After all, Putin wanted ALL of Ukraine. And he still wants it all, plus Poland, Romania, and the other countries that were under USSR Communist rule from 1946 until 1991. I’m disappointed that Trump did not propose the “Crimea for Russian farmland” deal I offered last week. Putin would have had to answer this question: Is Crimea worth more than an equal area of prime farmland?

Trump is wrong about eliminating income taxes, replaced by Tariffs. Income taxes total around $2.5 Trillion. There’s no way tariffs can offset income taxes.

Trump says that before the income tax was approved in 1913 that tariffs paid for most of our government expenses. But property taxes were a big chunk of total government receipts, affecting farmers and other land owners and businesses.

USAID has good programs. As I wrote before, it’s a shame when a few “bad apples” spoil the barrel. With new Department Secretaries and top officials approved by the Senate, let’s hope they will quickly investigate the expenses and reinstate the good ones. And rescind the firing of good, necessary employees. Trump already welcomed back military folks who were fired because they would not get the Covid vaccines, so they should take back essential employees, including ones recently hired. Emphasis on “essential.”

(Will Rogers wrote about different taxes and the size of government. See quotes below.)

I have friends working for the US Department of Agriculture. USDA researchers have provided much of the increase in crop yields and overall efficiency that keeps food prices low. Others in the Natural Resources Conservation Service have been tied to their computers completing forms when they should be out on the farms and ranches, one-on-one with farm families. I think common sense will prevail and we’ll have a more efficient, streamlined federal government workforce.

A note to Elon Musk… As “Will Rogers” I pretend to be 145 years old (born Nov. 4, 1879). For the record, I am not receiving any Social Security checks in his name. And neither is his great granddaughter, Jennifer.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“This land is taxed at $60 an acre, same as it was taxed when wheat was $2.50 a Bushel. Now wheat is (25 cents) and it’s still taxed at $60. When they going to do like the City folks do, pay on your income. If you don’t earn anything you don’t pay anything. And if there ain’t the old Banker who had a mortgage on my crop. Paid him 8% and a bonus to get the loan. Reading where money was loaning in the City for as low as 1%. Well, that’s what you get for living in the Country I guess. Wish all the Farmers would move to town one year that’s the only way I know to clear the thing up.” WA #452, Aug. 23, 1931

“All taxes should be on income, and where there is no income either personally, or on your property, why you shouldn’t pay anything. You should pay on things that you buy outside of bare necessities. I think this sales tax is the best tax we have had in years… Oh, but the tough part of our whole system is the amount of money they are spending. Hundreds, thousands, practically millions that are working for the state, the city, the federal government. There is hundreds of different branches, and bureaus, that everybody knows is not essential… Lord, the money we do spend on government. And it’s not a bit better government that we got for one-third the money twenty years ago.” WA#483, March 27, 1932

 

Today, I’m offering a solution to end the war that started when Putin’s armed forces invaded Ukraine in February 2022. You’ll remember that Putin already stole Crimea in 2014. Pro-Russian Communists in the eastern edge of Ukraine also took control of the Donbas region.

Have you noticed how hard it is to keep a country together when you have loud opponents, often speaking the language of the enemy?

Russian attacks have killed or injured hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians.      Over 10,000,000 have been displaced, including almost 7,000,000 who fled the country. The cost to replace destroyed buildings and damaged farm land could top a Trillion.

Here’s my plan. Putin gets to keep Crimea. Ukraine has gotten used to doing without it for ten years. Crimea has an area of 10,400 square miles. But Putin has to pull out of all the area taken since he invaded three years ago. Any of the pro-Russian residents are free to leave with the Russian soldiers. Good riddance.

There’s more. Since Putin keeps Crimea, he has to give Ukraine an equal amount of Russian land along the border. Doesn’t that seem fair to you? Russia gets Crimea, with 1500 miles of beautiful coastline, and Ukraine adds 6,600,000 acres of prime farmland.

Ukraine has been called the “Breadbasket of Europe.” With this deal, they will provide even more “bread” to Europe, and also to Africa and Southeast Asia.

I’m going to stop without getting into all the mischief Trump has stirred up. Democrats in Congress are so frustrated and bewildered all they can do is yell and scream and sing off key. Even women in Congress are using cuss words their mothers would be shocked by.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“No matter what a President does, he is wrong according to some people.” WA #352, Sept. 22, 1929

“Wars are not fought for Democracy’s sake; they are fought for land’s sake.” Radio, Nov. 4, 1934

“I am a peace man. I haven’t got any use for wars and there is no more humor in ’em than there is reason for ’em.” DT #1674, Dec. 4, 1931

Here’s a question: why isn’t the Gaza Strip, with 25 miles of beachfront property on the Mediterranean, a wealthy country? Compare it to 25 miles of beachfront in South Florida.

I wrote that paragraph in Weekly Comments on Oct. 8, 2023, the day after Hamas terrorists invaded Israel.

President Trump had the same thought. On Tuesday he announced that the U.S. would take over Gaza and turn it into “The Riviera of the Middle East.” Of course, there are plenty of obstacles facing such a transition of war-torn land. Persuading neighboring Arab countries to accept more than a million Gaza Palestinians won’t be easy. Nobody wants them because they support terrorism.

If miraculously, the Gaza Strip ever resembles the Vegas Strip, the temporarily displaced Palestinians can return and have plenty of jobs. And no tax on tips.

California Governor Newsom proudly announced he has $50 million to pay lawyers to fight Trump directives, including one to keep boys out of girls’ sports and locker rooms. Then he flew to Washington to beg Trump for money to help victims of the fires in Pacific Palisades and other areas around Los Angeles.

I’m guessing President Trump might respond to Newsom’s plea like this, “I feel for the thousands who lost homes, businesses, schools and churches. So I’ll get $500,000,000 for the victims.” (Newsom smiles broadly.) Trump continues, “Now, since you found $50 million to waste on shyster lawyers to fight my decisions, you can stop and redirect those millions to the fire victims. And you’re so shrewd I’m sure you can dig up another $50 million from the Legislature. So, I only need to take $400 million from taxpayers in the other states, not $500 million.”

Whether you like President Trump or not, he is taking decisive actions so rapidly the Democrats can’t keep up. Senator Schumer and others are harping about something Trump did yesterday while Trump is on TV announcing today’s big decision. And he’ll have another shocker tomorrow.

Will Rogers said, “I don’t belong to any organized political party… I’m a Democrat.” Even prominent Democrats agree they are disorganized. Every politician has campaigned against waste, fraud and abuse. But they never seem to find any after they get to Washington. Yet, in a few days Elon Musk and a handful of computer whiz kids have uncovered Billions. Instead of celebrating the exposure of hidden wasteful expenses, Democrats are yelling at Musk, claiming his actions are a “Constitutional crisis”.

The President seems to assign Elon Musk a different department or agency every day to dig into. Once Musk works his way through every nook and cranny in the Executive Branch, can you imagine the waste he could uncover in Congress? Of course, I’m joking because 535 Representatives and 100 Senators would never allow an outsider to look through their spending. Back in 1932, Will Rogers suggested, “(in Washington) One man could do what 10 of ’em do. There could be a quarter or third as many Congressmen or Senators, and we would pick better ones then.” Naturally, Will added a lighthearted comment, “But they are all likable cusses. You can’t help but like ’em.” (WA #506, Sept. 4, 1932)

The Philadelphia Eagles clobbered the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. They led 24-0 at the half and continued to dominate, winning 40-22.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

“Our Constitution protects aliens, drunks and United States Senators.” DT #2678, March 6, 1935

COLUMBUS, Ohio: It’s Groundhog Day in Punxsuntawney, Pennsylvania. The town is known for a groundhog named Phil. Phil is over a hundred years old and still wakes up from hibernation long enough to crawl out of his hole every year on February 2.

Television reporters say Phil saw his shadow this morning. But the sun seldom shows up on a blustery winter morning in Pennsylvania. So the local Chamber of Commerce sometimes uses an LED spotlight to trick Phil into thinking he saw a shadow. If the TV weather folks in Pittsburgh, Erie, and Philadelphia can agree on a specific week that Spring will arrive, they coordinate with Phil’s handlers on whether or not a shadow will be witnessed by the crowd of 20,000.

Meanwhile, across the Mason Dixon Line in West Virginia, another groundhog, French Creek Freddie, has horned in (or dug in) on the action to do his own predictions.  West Virginia does not trust Pennsylvania to tell ‘em when it will be warm enough to discard their flannel shirts and start digging ramps.

And Ohio decided they needed their own groundhog. They named him Buckeye Chuck (after the Ohio State football team). Marion was the home of Buckeye Chuck until two years ago when the mayor decided Marion prefers to be known as the home of President Warren G. Harding. So, the mayor hauled Buckeye Chuck to Cleveland which gave him a new home in the Cleveland Museum. Yes, Chuck has dug under ancient artifacts including Hopewell spear points, ceramic pots, dinosaur bones, and the last championship trophies won by the Browns and Indians. Kinda like those two teams, for the past 20 years the groundhog has had a losing record.

In financial news, the “temporary freeze” announced by Trump has been an eyeopener for taxpayers. Howls went up from a lot of organizations we never even heard of, much less realized we’re financing their existence. The temporary freeze affects plenty of legitimate uses of our money. But it also exposes a lot of others, especially NGOs. I bet that when most of us hear about a Non-Governmental Organization doing charity work, we assume it is funded by generous wealthy donors and other contributors. But we have learned that many are funded almost entirely by government grants. And their activities are opposed by most of us.

You probably know that NGOs have been providing housing, food, transportation and other “free” benefits to people who crossed our border illegally. I bet you didn’t know they are also way down in Mexico, helping and encouraging these migrants to come to the border and cross it. And we’re paying for it! And the politically connected NGO leaders are making huge salaries.

Since President Trump changed the name of the Gulf of Mexico, our Ohio Governor DeWine should immediately declare, “From now on, the Lake on our northern border will be Lake Ohio.” How it ever got connected with Erie, PA, we’ll never know. Erie has only a couple of miles of lakefront. Any boat on Lake Erie has about a one percent chance of docking in Erie. Ohio has 260 miles of shoreline, far more than PA and NY on this miss-named Lake Erie. Now, Canada has more miles on the lake than all 3 states combined, but they already have Lake Ontario.

You might say, Ohio already has a river, why do they need a lake. Well, a little-known fact is the Ohio River is Ohio’s in name only. West Virginia and Kentucky own it. If Ohio wants to dip their big toe in the water, they have to ask permission. If Ohio catches fish in the Ohio River, they have to toss half of them to the opposite shore. Except carp. Ohio is encouraged to keep all the carp they catch.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

       “Most people and actors appearing on the stage have some writer to write their material . . . Congress is good enough for me. They have been writing my material for years… Besides, nothing is so funny as something done in all seriousness.” WA #78, June 8, 1924

“Say, this Trump is a fast worker. Even on a Monday Holiday… this President called Congress in extra session, and that’s not all he is going to call ’em either if they don’t get something done.”

That quote (with a couple of substitutions) was written by Will Rogers right after Franklin D. Roosevelt was inaugurated in 1933 (DT #2055, March 6).

We talk about the first 100 days of a presidency. For Trump, it’s more like 100 hours. Pardons, deporting dangerous illegal immigrants, changing names on maps, tariffs, eliminating DEI, AI infrastructure, visits to North Carolina and Los Angeles, and at least 100 of other Executive orders.

Speaking of pardons, both Biden and Trump are getting hammered. Biden pardoned his whole family, apparently including 6 (or 7) grandchildren, plus a few murderers. His “pre-pardon” of a few other politicians has people wondering what they are guilty of and if we need some restrictions on presidential pardons.

Trump quickly pardoned everyone convicted in the January 6, 2021, charge into the Capitol, and a lot of old folks who were jailed for protesting at abortion clinics. I think he should have been more selective with the J-6 riot leaders; a few probably deserved to still be in jail. My advice to everyone who has received a “controversial pardon” is to go home, be thankful, and stay quiet.

I got an update from my friend with the four fancy gowns and patriotic boots. She got to wear three of the gowns as she and her husband danced at the All-American Ball on Saturday night, the Texas Ball on Sunday, and the Military Ball with Rally4Vets after the Inauguration on Monday night. The Texas Ball drew 6000 and she said, “The sparkling cowboy boots fit right in with the sparkle and shine and the patriotic theme. It was a night where Democrats and Republicans celebrated ‘Patriotism before Politics.’” Say, that’s a good theme for all of us.

Fires are still burning in California. And the ears of a few political leaders are burning after being grilled by President Trump. To paraphrase an exchange, Mayor Bass said, Red tape has been cut, and residents in Pacific Palisades can start to clean up their house sites in a week. Trump replied, A week? Let ‘em start tomorrow! (See the two quotes below about California water and calamities.)

The Kansas City Chiefs will play in the Super Bowl for the third straight time, on Feb. 9. Their opponent is the Philadelphia Eagles (or as the Mayor spells it, E-G-S-E-S).

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“We’re up here taking scenes on the river [for the movie, Steamboat Round the Bend].  We’re working on the Sacramento River.  And we could have worked on the Los Angeles River, but they’d have had to haul the water too far.” Radio, May 19, 1935

“We had an earthquake… You see the Lord in his justice works everything on a handicap basis. California having the best of everything else must take a slice of the calamities. Even my native Oklahoma — the Garden of Eden of the West — has a cyclone… New York with its splendors has its Wall Street, and Washington, the world’s most beautiful city, has a lobbyist crawling out to attack you from every manhole. So every human and every place is equal after all.” DT #2060, March 12, 1933

COLUMBUS, Ohio: Could we pack any more events and activities into tomorrow, Jan. 20, 2025? Martin Luther King Day all day. At noon we’ll have a new (former) President Donald Trump. The National NCAA football championship, Notre Dame vs. Ohio State starts at 7:30.

And Inaugural Balls all over Washington, DC. A good friend is flying there with her husband. I think his main job is to lug all the suitcases. She is packing four fancy evening gowns. (No woman can show up and dance at different balls wearing the same outfit.) And boots. Only one pair, but what a pair. Red, white and blue pattern with 16,000 sequins. With her in the saddle wearing those patriotic boots glistening in the sun, any horse would high-step mighty proud down Pennsylvania Avenue.

Ohio State is favored to beat Notre Dame tomorrow night. Thanks to a recent change allowing college football players to be paid for NIL (name, image and likeness) these two teams are among the most highly compensated.

But the idea is not new. Will Rogers suggested this in 1929: “Mr. Hoover has had all the financiers of the country gathered and made ’em sign a pledge to spend some money for the general prosperity of the country. So next week he is really going into big business: he is calling the coaches of the various football teams together and get them to promise to build bigger grandstands, make longer trips and pay more for promising high school talent… That’s what’s the matter with this country… a lot of cheap colleges won’t go out and spend the dough. Bigger grandstands! Look at Chicago with Soldiers Field [hosting games with] Army and Navy and Notre Dame! Why, that’s brought ’em more publicity than Al Capone and machine guns combined.” (DT#1044, Nov. 29, 1929)

The news from Los Angeles keeps getting worse. With fires still burning, and more expected, we’re learning about solid, scientific advice that politicians have ignored for years.

Stephen Pyne, a retired professor at Arizona State University, is an internationally recognized expert on fires. He warned that building houses among the natural landscape around Los Angeles is “guaranteed to compromise fire prevention.” So, what’s his solution? Build houses with roofs that won’t catch fire when wind-blown embers land on them. And, equally important, have open space around the house. No bushes or trees within several feet of the house. And the entire region has to do this, no exceptions.

Wow, will the Governor and Legislature follow Prof. Pyne’s advice and pass laws that put fire prevention above environmentalists’ demands that no trees or brush ever be removed? How about metal roofs?

          The historic Will Rogers house was not the only “prominent” house to burn in Pacific Palisades. Several well-known actors, musicians, and others you see on television lost homes. For them, and everyone else in the region, the Will Rogers State Historic Park was a place to go and get away, kind of like Central Park is for New York City.

Will’s great granddaughter, Jennifer Rogers Etcheverry, knew at least 40 people who lost homes there, including nine who volunteered or worked at the Park. As I mentioned last week, to help those connected with the park, if you want to donate, go to: WillRogersRanchFoundtion.org, and click on “Join us in Rebuilding Lives.”

The historic quote gives another example of Will’s compassion, generosity and comfort, this time in Ireland.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

       “I had heard about that terrible Movie Disaster in the little Town of Drumcolloger [in Ireland; a fire in a theater killed 46] and by a coincidence I had passed through there when over here before. And it was such a quiet, peaceful little place and to have all this terrible trouble was certainly not deserved. So when I read about it and as I had finished playing in London, why I wired President Cosgrove of Ireland that I would come right over and for him to get me a Theatre and I would give a benefit. Well, they only had two days to do it in, but they did it, and they took over a big fine Theatre — the man donated it — and we had our show. They put on their wonderful Military Band and a Lady Singer and I want to tell you I have been mixed up in all kinds of shows but this one last night was the greatest one I ever was in. You talk about an audience! They were packed in! And you talk about “Getting” your stuff! Say, you leave it to these Irish. They get you and they get you good. If there is a speck of humor or fun in anything you say or do, they will dig it out, and they won’t be all day digging. They were without a doubt the most appreciative audience I ever saw in my life, and at moderate prices we got their fund about four thousand dollars. And then from New York come donations to me from Brandon Tynan, the best Irish Actor that ever started an argument, a Mr. Pandem of New York, and Mr. Frank Sogan, and Miss Lois Wilson the Movie Actress, and I want to hereby thank them and if they could have heard the applause their names got for thinking of those poor people away over there it would have done their hearts good. Had President Cosgrove in the Box and introduced him. He is doing a lot for Ireland.”  WA #198, Sept. 26, 1926

Will Rogers was a comforter.

This week, in his own way, Will Rogers is still providing comfort. Hundreds of neighbors of the Will Rogers State Park in Pacific Palisades, California, have lost their homes to the wind-driven fires.

The house that Will and Betty built and lived in for the last ten years of his life was burned to the ground. The Will Rogers house (on the National Register of Historic Places) was the centerpiece of the 186-acre state park.

On losing the house, Will would probably say, “It’s just a house. It can be replaced. The lives lost, the memories that burned; those are priceless.”

The Will Rogers legacy as a comforter is in good hands. For the last 15 years, his great granddaughter, Jennifer Rogers-Etcheverry, has gladly accepted the role. Since Wednesday, she has received hundreds of text messages. Many are yearning for comfort from Will Rogers, and Jennifer is responding. She is giving comfort to those who have lost homes and families who lost loved ones.

Jennifer has been interviewed on California stations, Fox News, Newsmax, and even international news outlets. The love for Will Rogers is still there, almost 90 years after his death. “Will would be the first one on a plane to travel and raise funds for natural disasters. If he was alive today, he would be right there in the middle of it, seeing what he could do to help.”

Yes, Will offered support for so many suffering from disasters, including the Dust Bowl and a major fire in an Ireland movie theater while he was visiting the country. (See 3 more examples in the Historic quotes below.)

Among those who need help today are the people who work or volunteer at the park. Several lost their own homes!  Jennifer announced, “Our Will Rogers Ranch Foundation is accepting donations to help those people that were part of our community with Will Rogers State Historic Park. We’re going to help with transportation costs, help with housing, help with just the basic necessities.”

To join me in donating, go to: WillRogersRanchFoundtion.org, and click on “Join us in Rebuilding Lives.” Mail a check or donate by credit card. Thanks.

And while Los Angeles is in the spotlight, don’t forget about victims of Hurricane Helene, which killed over 100. There were no $25,000,000 houses lost in Chimney Rock, North Carolina, but that does not reduce the needs of those folks for compassion and comfort.

I’ll write more next week. The fires are still burning. High winds are predicted through Wednesday.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

       “I don’t believe our people that have never been around a flood area realize the tremendous need of these sufferers down on the Mississippi. It’s by far the worst thing that has happened in this country in years… Now we have a chance to help the poorest people we have in America, and that is the renter farmer. Mr. Ziegfeld has generously given me his wonderful new theatre in New York City, and I am going to put on my little one-man [show] for this great cause next Sunday night. So even if you don’t like cowboy gum chewers on the stage, come anyway and help out a real cause. They will get every cent that comes in, even if there is nobody there but my wife—who will have to pay to get in.” DT #236, Apr. 25, 1927

      “These people in the drought-stricken country ain’t waiting for the government to relieve ’em. Their well-to-do are helping their less fortunate themselves. At a matinee today in Wichita Falls, we [raised] $9,100. At Fort Worth tonight, the cowman’s paradise, we played to $18,000. At my breakfast matinee yesterday morning at Abilene at 10 o’clock, got $6,500, and every cent of that is net. People in America have got the money and will give if they know the need is there, and these people know it is.” DT #1411, Jan. 30, 1931

       “Well, here we are at Managua, Nicaragua… Eight days after [the earthquake] there is from one to three hundred bodies still under those ruins. Naturally what they need is money. The government or the people haven’t got a cent. The Red Cross combined with the relief organization here has done great work as usual and still is. They are feeding about 8,000… If through the Red Cross and public donations from up home they could get $250,000, it would relieve the situation as to food and get some roofs to cover these people… Goodness knows, you generous folks have been asked till you are ragged, but honest, if you saw it, you would dig again… It just falls where everything else does, on the generosity and goodness of the American people. If you saw, as I did this morning, 2,500 mothers with babies in their arms go by and get their ration of milk you would say there was some poor devil that needed it worse than you do.” WA #1469, Apr.8, 1931 (Will Rogers donated $5000 himself)