Category: Uncategorized

COLUMBUS, Ohio: We got hit with the News that our Federal Debt is $40,000,000,000,000. Last week I mentioned that in 1925 our debt was $20,000,000,000. Is it possible our debt is 2000 times higher than 100 years ago? Both Republican and Democrat Parties share the blame.

If we treat this like a family debt, the question is, what are you willing to cut back on? It’s easy to name items that others are receiving, but what are YOU willing to reduce by 10 percent?

A water crisis in 7 Western states is raising a similar question. Severe, historic drought in the Colorado River basin means water usage must be curtailed or hydroelectric power generation will come to a halt at major dams.

While Congress can create money out of thin air (increasing the Debt), no one short of God Almighty can create more rain and snow in the Rockies. Few Americans remember a time when a hand pump was the fresh water source instead of simply turning a knob at the sink.

Meanwhile, here in the East we would eagerly share some of the excess rainfall from the last few weeks. Parts of West Virginia, Ohio, and other states suffered devastating floods. In two weeks, I emptied 10.5 inches out of my rain gauge.

President Trump is in a tariff dispute with Canada. Between good neighbors, there shouldn’t be any tariffs. And any tariffs the U.S. and Canada put on imports from other countries should be equal. It’s common horse sense for each of us to produce whatever we do best.

Canada’s got lumber, if they don’t let their forests burn. They have an abundance of water, quite a bit in the form of ice.

We have warm beaches and our farmers produce crops and livestock that don’t grow well up North. They have crude oil and we have refineries. They produce hockey players and we hire the best ones to play here.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

        “Everybody here is excited over the proposed dam at Boulder Canyon on the Colorado… California wants all the power and water. Arizona says, ‘Just half of it belongs to you, so if you want to, why dam up your own side of the river and use it, but don’t use any of our side.’ Utah says, ‘You are both cuckoo.’ WA #76, May 25, 1924

        “The dam is entirely between Nevada and Arizona. All California gets out of it is the water.” DT #1900, Sept. 6, 1932

COLUMBUS, Ohio: “Will Rogers” will be speaking at an annual event of the American Farm Bureau Federation this week. I am including some history here from a hundred years ago.

On December 7, 1925, President Coolidge addressed the American Farm Bureau Convention in Chicago with over 5000 farmers. (In comparison, my speech Tuesday evening will be in Columbus to about 50 farmers.)

The convention was at the historic Sherman House. Will Rogers was there and took notes. He wrote a Weekly Article, dissecting the speech. You folks probably do something similar. You hear promises and phrases in a speech by a politician, then you interpret in your own mind what he or she said. Here are a few examples I plan to share.

President Coolidge said, ‘The future of farming looks exceedingly secure.’  Will’s response, “Of course it’s secure. In fact, it’s SECURED, mostly by 2 mortgages.”

He tried to console the farmers by telling them, ‘There’s lots of people worse off than the farmers.’  “Well, I don’t know who could be worse off unless it’s the fellow who holds the mortgages on the farm.”

Coolidge said, ‘I want you to know the government is with you.’ “The Government IS with them. The government owes 20 Billion and the farmer owes all he’s got.”

He reminded them about generous farm Loans. ‘We have loaned out over one billion dollars to 350,000 farmers.’ “In other words, we can’t help you make any money, but we can show you where you can owe some more.”

[This is from Weekly Article #158, Dec. 20, 1925]

Keep in mind, this was in the middle of the Roaring Twenties. The economy was growing. The stock market was setting new records. Women in town were dancing the Charleston and wore flapper skirts with hems above the knee!

In case you’re wondering, Will liked President Coolidge. And the President liked Will. He invited Will and Betty to the White House and they stayed overnight. You may know that Coolidge campaigned on “Economy.” And he was economical; for supper they served fish hash. And the next morning, breakfast was leftover fish hash.

Later, Will offered his own advice to farmers: “If you don’t raise anything you are fortunate. Because it costs you more to raise anything that you can sell it for, so the less you raise, the less you lose. And if you don’t raise anything, you’re ahead.” (WA #235, June 12, 1927)

With the ’26 election looming, the historic quotes below definitely apply.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

          “The Democrats have a lot of advantages over the Republicans. The Republicans have to stay in power and explain why they haven’t done what they promised to, while the Democrats can just set back and talk about what they WILL do if they get in. That’s why the Democrats can always make a better speech than the Republicans. Promises always sound better than explanations. The Republicans ran on their record, which was a brave thing to do. The Democrats ran on their promises, which was a natural thing to do.”  (from a Weekly Article, maybe after the 1924 election)

“There is one thing you can bet on this year. No voter is going to do anything that a politician thinks he will do. The way most people feel they would like to vote against all of ‘em if it was possible.” DT #1797, Apr. 27, 1932

COLUMBUS, Ohio: Are you interested in saving the Democrat Party from calamity? In Michigan, Democrats nominated a highly educated, slick talking Socialist-Communist as their nominee for the Senate.

This may be my last attempt.  You’ve heard “me” say often, “I’m not a member of any organized party. I’m a Democrat.” The token leaders are proclaiming proudly they are a “Big Tent” Party. Everybody is welcome.

A few decades, ago, the Democrat Party occupied a prominent site, built of steel, concrete and brick on a foundation of solid rock. Presidents such as
Roosevelt, Truman, Kennedy, and Clinton. Now they have traded a secure, paid-for, structure that has weathered many storms for a highly mortgaged tent. The “Big Tent” that Democrats are bragging about is made of canvas, supported by thin aluminum poles. The tie-down straps are wrapped around plastic posts driven six inches into pure sand. The flimsy walls sway with the breeze, which ever way the wind blows. Interlopers can easily get their nose under the flap and slip in.

Meanwhile, the hard-working middle class, proud flag-waving Americans who manufacture and build our economy have slipped out.

Who are the Democrats who voted for Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan? And earlier, Ocasio-Cortez and Mamdani in New York City?

A couple of analysts I’ve seen on television broke down support for Abdul El-Sayed this way: college towns, with highly educated, “downwardly mobile”, women supported him. Other areas of the state (including minorities) voted for two other candidates. Dr. El-Sayed has impressive medical degrees but never became licensed to practice medicine. He went directly into college teaching and government health administration without ever treating patients or doing surgeries.

Before I get into criticizing college degrees as a whole, let me exclude graduates in engineering, nursing, business, physics and other degrees that result in secure careers. The ones who blindly support Socialist principles chose easier courses at expensive universities and find themselves worse off financially than a high school classmate who became a plumber.

If you ask them, many of these folks agree with the economic principle of “from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.” Yes, take excess cash from millionaires and provide free housing, food and medical care to the downtrodden masses. Perhaps these folks were not taught that quote in history class. It is from the founder of Communism, Karl Marx, in 1875.

Voters, especially young ones, complain about affordability. It’s true that a single mom or dad with college loans, working at McDonald’s, can’t afford the mortgage on a $400,000 house. But they probably don’t realize that since the end of WWII, the percentage of our income spent on food, clothing and furniture has DECREASED.

Taxpayers already provide free food to 40,000,000. And most poor families receive Medicaid. More than 70% of federal income tax dollars come from the top 10% of wage earners.

Why do so many highly educated Democrats lack common sense? (Or as Will Rogers would say, common horse sense?) Did no one teach common sense principles of working hard, finishing the job to the best of your abilities, serving your community, and aspiring to a better life for yourself and your family?

Instead of common horse sense, were socialist principles pushed by school teachers and college professors? Did they reverse JFK’s famous comment to “Ask not what you can do for your country, ask what your country can do for you?” Are they claiming that any college degree is fine; don’t bother with tough courses?

Maybe, like Arizona State University is saying, get a degree in “Influencing.” Be a slick talker, attract a few million viewers on social media and you’re set for life. You might even get elected to Congress.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

        “America is a land of opportunity and don’t ever forget it… [Florence Hale] was elected to a very high office, president of the [National] Education Association [NEA], just a common sense woman. She is head of the rural schools in Maine.” DT #1541, July 1, 1931

       “If all politicians fished instead of speaking publicly, we would be at peace with the world.” DT #2251, Oct. 20, 1933

Thanks for letting me take a week off. I attended the annual conference of the National Speakers Association, called “Influence,” in Austin, Texas. Then, I flew to Arizona to relax as guests of wonderful friends (former NSA members) in Cave Creek.

Will Rogers was a professional speaker and author. If the National Speakers Association had existed back then, he would have received all of the top awards currently presented to outstanding speakers who are role models. Will understood effective communication.

He wrote this compliment a week after FDR was inaugurated: “Mr. Roosevelt stepped to the microphone last night and knocked another home run. His message was not only a great comfort to the people, but it pointed to a lesson to all radio announcers and public speakers what to do with a big vocabulary: leave it at home in the dictionary. Some people spend a lifetime juggling with words, with not an idea in a carload.” DT #2061, March 13, 1933

(The first “Historic quote” below reflects Will’s views on comedy and humor in speaking and writing.)

I was hoping that Congress and the President would wrap up a few important issues while I was ignoring them. But they disappointed me, and probably you too, because nothing changed in two weeks. Iran is still shooting at ships while pretending to have a cease fire. Congress can’t agree that only US citizens should vote in US elections. And Democrat leaders can’t conjure up enough nerve to denounce “Communist-leaning” candidates and anti-Jew hatred in their Party.

Meanwhile, President Trump is learning why politicians like to run on an issue, but never solve it. After the problem is solved, voters move on to another troubling issue, forgetting to give thanks for the one solved. You can probably name a few examples over the years. The current one is illegal immigration. Trump “solved” it, and now the voters have jumped to a “newer” issue, the cost of gasoline, electricity, and food. That one is harder to solve.

You may have heard that Dr. Fauci appeared at a Senate hearing. I say “appeared” because he refused to testify. He used the Fifth Amendment over 100 times in responding to questions from Republican Senators. His repetition reminded me of the old commercial, “Is it live, or is it Memorex?” He could have used a Memorex cassette tape, on continuous loop.

Dr. Fauci has many supporters. They credit him for making bold recommendations that saved millions of lives. Of course, his detractors blame him for shutting down the country, closing schools, destroying businesses, and separating families from terminally ill relatives. He claimed that vaccinations were essential to save lives and would assure you would not get Covid.

My questions relate to Dr. Fauci’s actions before we ever heard of him, or Wuhan, China. If Dr. Fauci believed that “gain-of-function” was important to create an extremely dangerous virus, why would he ever send millions of tax dollars to fund that research in a Chinese Communist location? Shouldn’t we do that here where we have reasonable controls? Did he believe the Chinese scientists were 100% loyal to the US?

Then after Covid “escaped” and one or more Chinese workers at Wuhan got sick and died, why did Dr. Fauci keep insisting that Covid had no connection to the Wuhan Lab research that he funded?

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

         “I am not going to tell you any jokes today, as jokes are not good for you to read every Sunday. You will have to look to the Washington (news stories) from Congress for your Humor this week. 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

        “There is quite a big communistic hold in certain parts of China. The influence is growing rapidly.” WA #520, Dec. 11, 1932

Weekly Comments: World Cup Winners: Spain (and USA). Canadian Smoke. Trust in America.

 #1319    July 19, 2026

          COLUMBUS, Ohio: In the World Cup, Spain beat Argentina 1-0. Most fans were pulling for Messi and his Argentina teammates, but Spain’s defense held them scoreless, just as it did all but one of their opponents. Wow!

The other winner was the USA. No other country can host an event this big, in multiple cities, with excellent security. Fans from around the world were surprised at our hospitality, amazing choices in food and places to shop. We take this for granted, but they had been fed a negative view of America and Americans. We learned the Viking row and they enjoyed singing “Country Roads.” These fans are going home and bragging about us! That makes us a winner.

As a person who enjoys sports with scoring, I’m not thrilled to watch a defensive masterpiece that goes almost two hours with no goals. With that in mind, the most exciting game of the World Cup was yesterday. England beat France for third place, 6 to 4. That is not a typo. Ten goals! The TV announcers were overjoyed. After broadcasting matches with only one or two goals, often after 30 minutes of overtime, they were as excited as Gus Johnson announcing a 36 to 35 Michigan-Ohio State football game.

Smoke from forest fires in Canada drifted across the border. This resulted in all kinds of “air quality alerts” south of the Great Lakes and on to the East Coast. Here in Columbus, it lasted a couple of days before the wind shifted.

President Trump threatened Canada with an increased tariff to cover the lost revenue. I’m not clear what that means. Is Canada “selling” us the smoke? What will Trump add a 50% tariff on? Lumber?

Meanwhile Canada is taking swift action. The Parliament passed a law forbidding lightning strikes on their 900,000,000 acres of forest land. From now on, lightning in Canada will only be allowed to hit tall buildings, parked farm machinery, and American boats on the Canadian half of Lake Erie.

The smoke reminded old folks of the air sixty years ago in steel mill towns such as Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Gary, Indiana. Many of us had relatives who lived through the Dust Bowl years of the 1930s.

Of course, Canada can’t ban lightning. And they can’t clear the underbrush from a Billion acres of forest. And Mother Nature is in charge of wind direction. Concerning dust from tilled farm ground, we can help our farmers prevent 90% of dust storms today.

As part of our celebration of 250 years, I heard a person list possible one-word answers to the question, “What is the key to our success as a nation?”  Of course, patriotism, liberty, and democracy were mentioned. Greg Gutfeld, mostly known for his comedy, said the word is “Trust.” We trust banks with our money. We trust Amazon and other businesses with our credit card, and that whatever we buy will satisfy us. We trust airlines to fly us to our destination safely, and usually on time. We trust our employer and we trust each other. Hand shake deals aren’t as common as they used to be, but you can’t get much more trusting than that.

My friend, David Horsager, wrote a book, “The Trust Edge.” He describes how to build trust, and how to keep it.

You can think of many examples where “trust” is taken for granted in the USA. We could name other countries where the key word would be “conniving” or “scheming” instead of trust.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

       “Flew [to Cleveland] from Washington, in one hour and thirty minutes, piloted by Dave Ingalls, Assistant Secretary of the Navy. I ‘thumbed’ my way here, so I think that’s a record for speed for a hitch-hiker. This Ingalls is a very remarkable young man in more ways than flying. In fact, he is the only Republican I would trust my life with.” DT #1736, Feb. 16, 1932

       “It’s surprising how little money we can get along on. Just everybody keep on trusting everybody else. Why it’s such a novelty to find that somebody will trust you that it’s changed our whole feeling toward human nature.” DT #2057, March 8, 1933

Affordability has been a main theme of the Socialist candidates winning elections in New York City, Maine, and other places.

Mayor Mamdani and the 3 new Socialist council members figured out the best solution to affordability. The raised their own salaries almost 20%. This reminds me of the Will Rogers quote, “It’s not what you pay a man [or woman], but what he costs you that counts.” (WA #119, March 22, 1925)

Everybody with common horse sense knows that increasing your income is the best way to make whatever you want to buy more affordable. Food. Electricity. Child care. A new car. A house.

While Mamdani and Socialist Party candidates promised to lower prices, they took the surefire way to make their own purchases affordable.

Have you seen the Platform of the Democrat Socialists of America? They want to tear up the Constitution! Eliminate the 3 co-equal branches of government (Legislative, Executive and Judicial). Abolish the Senate. Instead, the House of Representatives would control everything. The House would appoint a president and supreme court justices.

Illegal immigrants and all other immigrants here, or desiring to come here, would be granted amnesty and registered to vote. Funds for police and jails will be given instead to community organizers. Drastically reduce military spending (better learn to speak Chinese!). They issued a special warning to Israel, “You’re on your own. Yes, murderous Muslims outnumber you 100 to 1. We want all Jews in America to get out, go to Israel, and fight to the death.”

Now, if Republicans can’t win against candidates running on that platform, they deserve to go on the trash heap with the Know-Nothing Party, Bull Moose, and the Whigs.

Here’s a line I wrote exactly 10 years ago. ‘Hillary Clinton officially welcomes Socialists as an equal part of the Democrat Party.’ Today, most Democrat leaders are also welcoming Socialists into the “big tent.” What they seem to miss is that they are being shoved out of their own tent.

You probably know that the “Farm Bill” is about 80% for free food, called SNAP. SNAP stands for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The key word is “Nutrition.”

Are these foods and ingredients “nutritional?” Hamburger, milk, grapes, apples, flour, eggs, tomatoes, potatoes, beans, chicken legs? Definitely.

How about these? Mountain Dew, candy bars, donuts, chocolate cake, Doritos, Gatorade? No! They’re tasty, but not nutritious.

According to USDA, SNAP recipients spend about $20,000,000,000 on these non-nutritious items per year. Perhaps by coincidence, Democrats in Congress are up in arms at the proposed cut of $20,000,000,000 in SNAP funding.

West Virginia and a few other states have already eliminated “non-nutritional” items from SNAP. It should be national. SNAP recipients should not be spending about 19% of our taxpayer money on junk food. This change might even help reduce obesity.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

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

I hope you enjoyed all the celebrations of our 250^th birthday as much as I did.

The parades, festivities and fireworks across the country, including a few speeches, were proof of an observation by Will Rogers, “America is the land of opportunity and don’t ever forget it.” (DT#1541, July 1, 1931)

Will Rogers loved America. “I was always proud in America to own that I was a Cherokee and I find on leaving there that I am equally as proud to own that I am an American.” (Letter to his father Clem, Sept. 28, 1903)

But Will reminded us a few times about our sad treatment of Cherokees and other Indians, including cheating on treaties, forced evacuation from home territories, discrimination against individuals, and lack of respect for accomplishments by Indians. He did all he could to promote and build up individual Indians and African-Americans in movies and newspaper articles.

(In case you are wondering, Will was in Europe the summer of 1926, so he missed our 150^th year celebration on July 4. He wrote nothing about it.)

         “The American people are a very generous people and will forgive almost any weakness, with the possible exception of stupidity.” (WA #63, Feb. 24, 1924) Now, I don’t mean to complain about the festivities last night in Washington. If you watched, you know that President Trump gave a speech followed by fireworks.

Here’s my complaint, solely on behalf of four singers from the military. Imagine this conversation a month ago: the Organizer, to the singers, “We’re delighted to have your beautiful voices entertain millions on July 4 along with the President’s speech and the largest, loudest fireworks in U.S. history.” The singers asked, “We’re honored. Will we be singing before or after the Fireworks?” Organizer, “During.”

What?? Sing for 45 minutes DURING the Fireworks? With 850,000 shells exploding at 150 decibels?

I’ll credit the singers, and the military band. Concentration and ear plugs got them through the torturous setting. Young folks in the front rows could hear them sing, and often sang and danced along with them, oblivious to the largest Fireworks ever.

The highlight of President Trump’s speech was recognition of historic flags displayed and introducing Veterans, as old as 107, on stage to salute those flags. He also reminded us that our rights do not come from government, they come from God. And our best days are ahead of us!

This positive, optimistic message was the opposite of a couple of prominent speeches and attitudes of too many Americans who let day-to-day politics determine their level of patriotism. For those who claimed they are not patriotic this 250^th year, I would ask, Were you patriotic in our 247^th year? Or 237^th?

Love of our country should not change by the month or year. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution a few years later provide a rock-solid foundation for our Republic to endure and keep improving. Our freedom of speech allows anyone to offer crackpot ideas. Some of ‘em even get elected.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

        “When those Boys that blue-printed the first Constitution decided that a man can believe what he likes in regard to religion, that’s one line that is going to stay put.” WA #136, July 19, 1925

          COLUMBUS, Ohio: We are in the middle of celebrating our 250^th birthday.

Oddly, we have a lot of Americans who are not celebrating. Their lack of enthusiasm is offset by the wild applause from visiting soccer fans. Why do soccer fans from Europe and around the world love America?

If these disgruntled Americans visited a few other countries for a month, they might come home with more appreciation for the blessings offered here. They would likely experience expensive food and fuel, fewer choices in stores, higher taxes, less or no freedom of speech or religion, and no opportunity to protect yourself with a gun. And during a heat wave in Europe, no air-conditioning.

Socialists are trying to take over the Democrat Party, ignoring the effect if they eliminate Capitalism. I heard a suggestion that we split the country. Half would be a Socialist “country” and the other half Capitalist.

Well, Will Rogers had a somewhat similar suggestion on his radio show, June 9, 1935. Will spent about 10 minutes humorously describing how it could be done, with Democrats splitting the country with Republicans. Allow me to shorten and paraphrase that idea, with “Socialists” replacing Democrats. This is a mix of authentic quotes and my paraphrasing. “We ought to split this country up.” Socialists get New York, California, and several other states; Republicans get the other half. The Socialist half would be led by Mandani; the Republicans would run their half “with a board of directors.” “The Republicans would have all the money, but the Socialists would have all the fun.”

         “If the country split that would naturally do away with the national debt. The Republicans would perhaps continue the same way, but the Socialists wouldn’t take long to dig up a deficit.” “I doubt if the plan will ever get very far because this is not a time for common sense.”

Here’s a quote from 10 years earlier, “Half the people in the United States would rather collect one dollar from the Government than get $10 from an individual [meaning business].” WA #119, March 22, 1925

The Great American State Fair is underway on the National Mall. Each state has a booth. Our Governor, Mike DeWine, welcomed folks to the Ohio booth. There you’ll see a map with industries and attractions represented. But, to see the butter cow and enjoy ice cream treats, you need to visit the real Ohio State Fair, starting July 29 in Columbus. (The Iowa State Fair also has a butter cow.)

West Virginia has FFA students showcasing pigs, chickens and other livestock that is a main attraction at most state and county fairs across the country.

The Oklahoma booth includes cowboy culture, small-town life, and famous natives including Will Rogers. Note: Will starred in the 1933 movie, “State Fair.”

The Supreme Court has been busy. For two decisions, they had to explain the meaning of “temporary” (as in, nowhere near 15 years) and “in” (meaning not close by). Tomorrow they may explain the meaning of a complex phrase, “subject to the jurisdiction thereof.”

For my farmer friends and anyone who likes nutritious food, the USDA announced a plan to support soil health that is backwards. Taxpayers will be rewarding corn and soybean producers for improving their soil health to grow crops for FUEL. Instead, we should be rewarding farmers who improve their soil health to produce healthier FOOD. (The nutrient density of food from healthier soil is greater, and better for us.) Only a third of our corn goes into ethanol fuel; most of the rest feeds animals, which we then enjoy eating.

Historic quote from Will Rogers: (after an around-the-world trip)

“Oh, boy. I was glad to set my old big feet on American soil, even if it has got a second mortgage on it. Had the greatest trip I ever had in my life and I believe if everybody made it, they might come back poorer but better off in the feeling toward our country.” DT #1730, Feb. 9, 1932

You may wonder why I’m concerned about Democrats. After all, a well-known quote is, “I’m not a member of any organized political party… I’m a Democrat.”

It’s not Democrats that concern me, it’s Socialists. Socialists have been a minority party for decades. Eugene Debs ran for President in 1900 and four more times. You probably don’t know him because he never got any serious votes.

Socialists realized they weren’t getting anywhere as socialists. So, starting with Sen. Bernie Sanders, they are horning in on the Democrat Party. The mayors of New York and Seattle got elected on Socialist promises. Candidates, including Senators in Maine, Michigan and Texas, and candidates for Congress and city council are running as Democrat-Socialists.

Who votes for these Socialists in a Democrat Primary and/or General Election? Mainly people who are ignorant of common sense, and government union members. They like the persuasive campaign promises of more services without paying for them. They believe the high-income wealthy will gladly “share the wealth” (a phrase made popular by Sen. Huey Long of Louisiana). We’re at high risk as a society when the voters who are “on the dole” or working for a government check outnumber the voters who are manufacturing products such as cellphones, cars and life-saving drugs (and growing our food).

Here is a key fact these folks ignore: Socialism is only possible in a capitalist society. Otherwise, they “run out of other people’s money” (quoting Margaret Thatcher).

Journalists and Democrat leaders need to ask these candidates, “How has socialism worked in Cuba and Venezuela after the capitalist economy was eliminated?” And the follow up question, “How do you keep the capitalists from leaving your city or state or country?”

As we celebrate 250 years since July 4, 1776, we have had plenty of Presidents, from George Washington to Donald Trump. A few were unpopular. But I don’t recall a time when political opponents decided a good way to express their hatred of a President was to vandalize the National Mall. A few weeks ago, vandals sprayed Roundup on the grass to write a threatening message. Now the refurbished Reflecting Pool is getting a lot of attention from the media. Not sure if vandalism is involved or just bad luck with the paint and algae.

Our Department of Homeland Security has its hands full protecting fans at World Cup games and, incidentally, stopping an organized attack on the White House grounds on June 14. They should not have to send dozens of armed guards to protect the entire area from the Lincoln Memorial to the Capitol.

The World Cup is drawing huge crowds and compliments from foreign fans. They like us! They like our food! Even Waffle House. Scots in Boston drank all the beer in town and joyously sang, not a hit song from Scotland, but one of my favorites, “Country Roads, take me Home.” The Japanese cleaned up the trash in their section of the stadium. Meanwhile our own NY Knick fans trashed their city.

I watched part of a game today, Belgium vs. Iran. After 90+ minutes the match ended, 0 to 0. The Ayatollah praised the team for a huge win over Infidels.

As a soccer outsider, I offer a few tongue-in-cheek ways to add excitement and reduce the number of games ending 1-0, 2-1 or 0-0. Increase the width of the goal by 3 meters (that’s 10 feet here). Add a shot clock. Games can go 10 or 20 minutes with no one taking a shot. Count turnovers. That could give the clock operator something to do between starting the clock and stopping it 45 minutes later. Keeping track of 200 to 300 turnovers in 90+ minutes could improve the kicking. What player would want to be reminded, “You had 47 turnovers.” He would be encouraged to get that down to a league average of 22.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

On a Mother’s Day tribute, 1935, Will added, “Father had a day, but you can’t find anybody who remembers when it was…  It’s been so confused with April the first.”

          COLUMBUS, Ohio: Los Angeles will have two nearly identical Democrats running for Mayor in November. The outsider, Spencer Pratt, was in second place behind Mayor Bass from election day until a week later. They kept the voting open until enough additional ballots arrived to knock out Pratt. Then they quit counting.

In Sacramento, they tried the same strategy but finally gave up when Tom Steyer could not buy enough extra votes to move ahead of Steve Hilton in the race for Governor.

Keep in mind there is no evidence the above “speculations” are true. But the California voting system is so messed up that this scenario seems logical. Democrats already have 85% of registered voters and they seem determined to drive out the other 15%. They are jealous of Putin who gets 98% of the vote.

You may disagree, but Democrats in a few races across the country have gone over the edge into socialism, bordering on communism. Platner in Maine and candidates in New Jersey, New York and Michigan are prime examples.

The New York Knicks won the NBA championship, repeatedly coming from behind to defeat San Antonio. In one game they were down by 29.  You won’t see that in any of the games for the World Cup.

New York is celebrating after going 55 years without a Knicks’ championship. Being New York, the “celebration” included burning busses and cars, fights, and dozens of arrests.

Maybe next we can all get behind the Cleveland Browns; in 60 years they have never been to the Super Bowl. We’ll take a chance on any unruly celebrations.

You’ve probably heard about a fly called the New World Screwworm. Despite a billion-dollar effort to keep it from crossing the Rio Grande, Screwworms have grabbed onto healthy calves and other animals in Texas and New Mexico. There’s no safety concern about beef and other meat. But unless the infestation is discovered on an animal and treated, it will die.

To keep the Screwworm out, the border wall should have been covered with screen wire. Of course, the screen wall would need to reach a couple of hundred feet high to stop the flies. The real effort has been to breed millions and millions of sterile male flies to overwhelm the number of “normal” Screwworm males. The problem is that some of the female flies have gotten smart and avoid “sexual advances” by the sterile males. (With that, I have far exceeded my knowledge of entomology.)

Today is Flag Day. It commemorates June 14, 1777, when the Continental Congress officially adopted the design of the first American flag, as sewed by Betsy Ross. By chance, today is also the 80^th birthday for President Trump.

President Trump just announced a deal with Iran. Will the Strait of Hormuz really be opened? Will Iran give up all access to nuclear weapon material? And did he get this deal without giving them a boatload of money?

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“Elections are really a good deal like marriages; there’s no accounting for anyone’s taste. Every time you see a bridegroom, we wonder why she picked him, and it’s the same with public officials.” WA #126, May 10, 1925

“If I was running for office, I would rather have two friends in the counting room than a Republican slush fund behind me. More candidates have been defeated after 6 o’clock in the evening than were ever defeated during election day.” WA #100, Nov. 9, 1924