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Folks, I wrote this a few hours after the attack. Note that I also reference an earlier Weekly Comments (in 1998) where I projected about Bin Laden.

Weekly Comments #197   September 11, 2001

COLUMBUS: This is not a time for comedy. Civilization was attacked today.

The targets were in New York and Washington, but we ALL got hit. Yes sir, not just Americans, but everybody around the world who believes in freedom and democracy and fair play.

I was not going to write a Weekly Comments tonight. But then I thought, maybe a few of you would like to know how Will Rogers reacted to tragedies and disasters. Although nothing as instantly catastrophic as today’s horror occurred between 1879 and 1935, there were disasters that he wrote about. (See Historic Quotes for some samples)

First, I will do something I can’t recall ever doing before in any of these Weekly Comments. That is to include one of my own ‘historic quotes’. Here is part of what I wrote in Weekly Comments #47 on August 20, 1998: “News is happening so fast it’s hard to believe it’s August…. We had bombs explode in Kenya and Tanzania and Ireland, Monica and Bill took shots at each other, and just today we sent missiles cruisin’ after some terrorists in Afghanistan and Sudan. You might not have heard of this Saudi Arabian billionaire named ‘Bin Laden’, but you’re likely to hear plenty from him now. He’s got more money than many countries, and a bigger army than at least half of ‘em.”

Historic Quotes by Will Rogers:

 “Well, all I know is just what I read in the papers.  This sea tragedy [sinking of the British luxury liner, The Vistrus] has just been about all we could see for the last 10 days, and it was awful hard to get your mind off it. Talk about stage plays and dramas, don’t they fade into nothing when a thing like this comes along! And the great part about it is nobody knows where, or who will bob up in the way of a hero.” WA #309, Nov. 25, 1928

“You read about the disaster in St. Louis and what the Red Cross did. No matter what happens, or where it goes to happen, they are the first there. That’s why everybody in America should belong to it.” DT #372, Sept. 30, 1927.

“I know you all read of the terrible movie theater disaster in Ireland yesterday. Well, I am going to Dublin on Wednesday to give a benefit for them. Cable over what you can, either to me at the Hotel Shelbourne or to President Cosgrave. It’s a real cause. Thanks.”  DT #35, Sept. 6, 1926 (from London)

“No nation ever had two better friends than we have. You know who they are? Well they are the Atlantic and Pacific ocean. There is a couple of boys that will stand by you. And you can always depend on ’em, three thousand miles wide and a mile deep.” WA 537, April 9, 1933 (their value dropped a bit on Sept. 11, 2001)

Hurricane Ida damaged Louisiana and Mississippi, but not as bad as Katrina did 16 years ago. The Billions spent on New Orleans levees prevented a repeat. But hundreds of thousands are still without electricity.

Ida got a lot more attention on Network News when it dumped several inches of rain on New Jersey and New York City. More than 25 people died. The subways were flooded. Senate Leader Schumer doubled down on his insistence that $10 Billion for a rail tunnel under the Hudson River be included in the $3.5 Trillion tax bill. You might be wondering, if New York can’t prevent flooding of subways, how can they expect to keep a tunnel under a river dry? They will probably request another Billion for pumps. Naturally the pumps must be solar powered. Yes, in a rainstorm.

Another question, since people are abandoning New York City by the thousands, and working from home, why do they need a newer, bigger, better way to get INTO New York? So far, New Yorkers have had no problem finding a way out of town.

In Afghanistan, another humiliation. Six planes loaded with Americans and our friends have been prevented from taking off… by the Taliban. Do you suppose they are demanding a payment? We all know that “hard power” is expensive. It was not cheap to maintain military control in Afghanistan. Now we’ll learn what it costs for “soft power.” President Biden aims to be the last of five Presidents dealing with radical Islamic terrorists there. Chances are he will be paying them millions, and maybe billions, in ransom to get our American hostages out over the next three and a half years. I may have to repeat Will’s quote every week, “Our foreign dealings [by diplomats] are an open book, generally a check book.”

I know we all hope 9/11/2021 passes without any radical Islamic terrorists using “hard power” against us or our European allies. (Later this week I’ll send out the Weekly Comments I wrote on 9/11/2001.)

Here in the USA, farmers are being attacked by army worms. Not the farmers personally, but their crops, especially alfalfa and other grasses. But lawns, parks and ball fields are also being eaten overnight by voracious army worms. This “invasion” is not new. Will Rogers commented on the “army bugs” 92 years ago, “You know we always figured that the Lord and the elements and Congress was all on the side of the rich against the farmer. So, it was certainly gratifying to learn there is a bug that is eating up the greens on the golf courses. It’s called an army bug, for it comes in droves. That just shows you that the ‘worm is turning,’ and the leisure class is going to have their boll weevil, chinch bug and grasshopper, too. Won’t that be great to hear the golf player hollering for relief!” (DT #995, Oct. 3, 1929)

Tomorrow (Sept. 6) is Labor Day. Remarkably, anybody who wants a job can get one. ‘Help Wanted’ signs are everywhere. Also remarkable, millions of unemployed are at home because they have been receiving more for not working than for working. This may end soon. Of course, Covid has been a factor. A parent had to stay home because schools were offering online classes only.

Most adults know that work has value. On a farm a kid might start by feeding cattle, gathering eggs and shoveling manure. In town the first jobs might be babysitting, mowing lawns, or waiting tables. Learning the basics of work has more value than the income. A “learning wage” is more important than a “living wage.”

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

“Tomorrow is Labor Day. I suppose set by act of Congress. Everything we do nowadays is either by or against acts of Congress. How Congress knew anything about labor is beyond us, but any how tomorrow is Labor Day. It’s a day in the big cities when men march all day and work harder than they have in any other of the 365. Even the ones that ain’t working labor on Labor Day.” DT #967, Sept. 1, 1929

Last week I quoted President Biden who said, “A lot could still go wrong.”

Well, it did go wrong. Twelve Marines and one Navy medic were killed (so far) and several others were severely injured. An estimated 200 Afghans were also killed. This was the result of one suicide bomber the Taliban allowed to reach the gate into the Kabul airport.

Use any name you want for those evil, gutless men: ISIS-K, Al-Qaeda, Taliban. They are radical Islamic terrorists. They hate us. They hate Europeans. They hate anyone who does not follow Mohammad and the Quran. They fight among themselves and don’t mind killing other Muslims. Their goal is to destroy Western Civilization and replace it with Sharia Law. They don’t care if we are WOKE or practice Equity or are scared to death of global warming.

If you’re tired of battling Islamic terrorists since the 1990s, consider that they have been attacking Americans (and Europeans) for more than 200 years. President Thomas Jefferson, and later President James Madison, had our Navy and Marines attack the Barberry Pirates rather than paying tribute (bribes) so they would leave our commercial ships alone. The Marine hymn includes a reference to those battles along the coast of North Africa, “… to the shores of Tripoli.”

Soon after the terrible news was broadcast, Speaker Nancy Pelosi was on television touting National Women’s Day. (Did she mention that the 2 of the 12 Marines were WOMEN? Did she point out a main reason our military stayed in Afghanistan is to help women and girls have the same rights and opportunities Pelosi and other females enjoy in this country?)

Back to the Taliban. The spokesman for the Taliban made it clear; they want our military out by midnight August 31. But they want our diplomats to stay. Why? Well, the Taliban know that what Will Rogers said a hundred years ago is still true, “Our foreign dealings [by diplomats] are an open book, generally a check book.” WA #45, Oct. 21, 1923

Weekly Comments: Can Afghanistan Get Any Worse? Is There Hope?

#1075 Aug. 22, 2021

Columbus: Afghanistan was a disaster last week. President Biden said today, “A lot could still go wrong.”

Last week I incorrectly said that President Biden did not warn the Taliban against harming Americans. Actually, he did. He even said we would forcefully retaliate. But the Taliban have ignored him. We have seen plenty of reports of Americans being beaten up, in fear of their lives, and denied access to the airport. So far, no retaliation for those horrible actions. Is this any way to manage an evacuation? Who would vacate all of our Air Force bases and trust the Taliban to allow American civilians to fly out later?

The information from Washington continues to be questionable. Consider a couple of claims: “All our NATO allies support our plan,” and “The Taliban will allow women to work and girls to attend school.” The State Department admitted they suffered a cyber-attack. Well, it appears from some official pronouncements by Secretary of State Blinken that the Taliban not only attacked, but have taken control of his computer. And maybe President Biden’s teleprompter, too.

Biden reported today that more than 28,000 have been evacuated from Kabul, including 11,000 Americans. But several thousand Americans remain and are desperate to escape. Also, about 50,000 Afghans who worked with us remain and face death if we leave them. He did not say what would happen to the Taliban if they harmed anyone trying to get to the airport. The President did not demand that the Taliban leave the Bagram Air Base so we can return and speed up the evacuations. He made no comment about sending in any troops, including Army Rangers and Navy Seals, to secure escape routes and protect Americans and Afghan friends from the Taliban and ISIS. Why not take these logical actions?

The Taliban took control of our modern military equipment worth Billions of dollars. Here’s a question: Did you know that new John Deere farm tractors have computer controls that allow the tractor to be shut off from Deere headquarters? If a tractor is stolen, for example, it can be disabled. Do our million-dollar helicopters, drones and Humvees have similar controls?

Speaking of agriculture, in a few weeks I hope to share positive insights about farming in Afghanistan. Last week I received information from a friend who worked in a high position with our government in Afghanistan. Here’s one fact you probably don’t know: the Afghanistan economy used to be 80 percent agriculture. Farmers grew food crops and livestock that supported Afghans and they exported products to Europe. With good government, Afghan farmers could return to prominence.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

“One of the evils of democracy is you have to put up with the man [or woman] you elect whether you want him or not.” DT #1953, Nov.  7, 1932

The stunning collapse of the Afghanistan government and their ‘highly trained’ military has interrupted my intended comments. Were they ‘highly trained’ by the French? (That’s an old World War II jab.) How is it possible that the Taliban soldiers seem to be better trained than the Afghan military? Did they receive training in Iran, Pakistan, or even China?

The Afghan leaders claimed their troops were ready to defend against the Taliban terrorists. The troops may have been well equipped and trained to use weapons. However, ingrained tribal culture prevented most from gaining a desire for freedom and democracy as we know it. A month ago, President Biden insisted the Taliban didn’t have a chance because they were outnumbered 300,000 to 75,000. Today it appears that Goliath was a paper tiger.

Our government and military made plenty of mistakes. Ignore the first 19 years since 9/11/2001 for a moment. Focus on our withdrawal. Why not keep one or two of the Air Bases instead of abandoning all seven? Support from our Air Force was the main advantage the Afghan soldiers had over Taliban soldiers. Why did we leave Humvees, drones, and other high-tech fighting equipment for the Taliban to use against us? The Taliban are slaughtering Afghans who worked with us, and their families. Why didn’t we get these trusted comrades out while we still had military in place?

We have abandoned women and girls. Did you see the hordes of men trying to get on our Air Force transport planes? No one was trying to put females on “lifeboats” first. Girls and young women are in imminent danger.

This is an international embarrassment for the United States of America.

I was disappointed in today’s speech that Biden did not warn the Taliban against harming Americans while the evacuation is occurring. He should have also demanded protection and safe passage for Afghans who helped us.

The President said he was committed to leaving because of Trump’s agreement. Ironically, this is the only one of Trump’s actions he has agreed with. Of course, Trump supporters say he would have listened to his military advisors and had an orderly withdrawal instead of a catastrophe.

Biden also said he did not want to saddle another President with Afghanistan. I guess we’ll have to wait, but I wouldn’t bet against another terrorist like “bin Ladin” organizing more attacks from Taliban territory.

I think I’ll stay off airplanes this September 11.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

“Somebody is always telling us how to prevent war. There is only one way in the world to prevent war, and that is, for every nation to tend to its own business. Trace any war that ever was and you will find some Nation was trying to tell some other Nation how to run their Business… There is a war in Morocco. They don’t want the French and Spanish in there… Why don’t we let the rest of the World act like it wants to?” WA #133, June 28, 1925

Will Rogers complimented at least 30 people by saying they had “common sense” among other adjectives. This included Henry Ford, Charles Lindbergh, and President Calvin Coolidge. In a similar vein, many people who knew Will Rogers complimented him for having “common sense.”  Will Rogers wrote, “You can’t legislate intelligence and common sense into people.”  (DT#2377, March 16, 1934)

Here are 17 current situations. For each one, do you think Will Rogers would declare it to be “common sense?”

1. A few governors have ordered all public schools to require students to wear masks.
2. A few governors have banned schools from requiring masks or will leave decisions up to local school districts and parents.
3. President Biden extended the “free rent” for 2 more months despite admitting it is unconstitutional.
4. There are 9 million job openings, but 2 million renters say they can’t afford to pay for a place to live. For most, wouldn’t it be common sense to say, “Get a job.”
5. Current policy allows immigrants to flock across the southern border, contact Uber for a ride, eat in local restaurants, and sleep free in motels.
6. President Biden blames governors of Texas and Florida for increasing cases of Covid while allowing immigrants with Covid to freely cross the Southern border.
7. With overwhelming chaos at the border, the undermanned Border Patrol and state law enforcement agencies are prevented from decisive action.
8. Residents of Hispanic heritage on our southern border resent the Federal government and those crossing the border illegally in mass.
9. Construction on the 30-ft wall was stopped Jan. 21, yet we continue paying contractors billions to guard their equipment and supplies while immigrants pour through the gaps.
10. Millions of immigrants here illegally have been waiting months or years for a judicial hearing. Instead of hiring more Judges and Prosecutors to speed up the process for determining asylum, the Feds want to hire more defense lawyers to represent them.
11. Millions of people in other countries waiting to immigrate here legally look at our President with disdain for letting others “cut in line.”
12. In cities with high crime rates, elected officials say the best way to reduce crime is to defund the police, add social workers, and empty their jails. For protection, they hire their own body guards, with taxpayer money.
13. On the news, we see thousands breaking the law every day by illegally entering the U.S. They receive free housing, medical care, food and transportation.
14. Potential criminals living here see these illegal immigrants and 2020 rioters as a role model. They see no negative consequence to committing a crime. Carry an empty bag into a store, fill it with all you can carry, and walk out. Even if arrested (which is unlikely), you get out of jail immediately and can steal from a different store the next day.
15. California is “housing” homeless people on extremely valuable popular beaches including the Will Rogers State Beach at Pacific Palisades. Why not move them a few miles inland where there is plenty of open land.
16. Much of that land is “open” only because regulations on water made it more profitable for land owners to sell the water rights instead of growing food crops they could produce with that water.
17. Donald Trump continues to claim he won the 2020 election.

Ok, what do you think? Have our leaders lost their common sense?

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“Now of course [this disease] is a terrible serious thing, but the more serious a thing is, the more common sense would be used in handling it. They have gone so far in some cases that they are almost humorous, and in some cases have not gone far enough. You see it is the only disease that they know absolutely nothing about; still it has been in other states without all this hysteria.” (this disease? Foot and mouth disease, in cattle) WA #74, May 11, 1924

“There will never be any class of people in our country that can replace the old western cowman for common sense… and fine citizenship.”  DT#2606, Dec. 12, 1934

“There’s going to be a lot of spouting from the radio [and television] all summer. There’ll be more perspiration than common sense flowing, and the whole political thing has come now to a direct split in the parties.” Radio, June 9, 1935

You know all about the thousands crossing our southern border, illegally, every day and night. You may or may not care. Over a million since January and they’ve come from a hundred countries. There’s no let up in sight. No matter what the President and other officials say in English, when translated into native language, it means, “Come to America.” You also know that many of them are good people and given a chance will work hard and be successful. But there are plenty of dangerous gang members and criminals sneaking in, undetected.

While I was in Texas, I learned of one particular incident. Imagine you were this rancher living 40 miles from the border. Late one evening she and her daughter and their dog were walking on an unpaved road along the south side of the ranch. As they got near an open shed, she noticed a strange man inside. Concerned, she rushed back to the house and called law enforcement. Soon, Texas Highway Patrol officers showed up. By this time the man’s friend had already picked him up, but the officers caught up with ‘em in town. The man was a drug dealer. He had about 50 pounds of drugs and his old car had broken down near the ranch.

Dealing with illegal immigrants is fairly common for these folks. Ranchers have put up security cameras. If an outsider is spotted, they alert neighbors. Widows are determined to stay on their ranches, but they live in fear.

Whatever happened to this idea that Will Rogers wrote about? “They got a bill in Congress to make a road from Brownsville, Texas, up along the Rio Grande to El Paso, then on out to San Diego along the Mexican boundary. It’s a good idea and should be built. It’s called in the bill a military highway.” (DT #449, Jan. 3, 1928). And a new 30-foot fence beside that road would solve a lot of problems today.

You probably live far away from the Mexican border. But you need to understand what folks near the border, especially in Texas and Arizona, have to put up with. Pay attention when you see Border Patrol Agents, local Sheriffs and Governors pleading with Washington for relief. And lately, in addition to drugs, guns and other illegal paraphernalia, many are arriving with Covid. If they are wearing masks, believe me, it’s not for Covid.

Meanwhile in Washington, Republican Senators agreed to spend One Trillion dollars on an Infrastructure bill. Oddly, these same Republicans offered $1.7 Trillion for Infrastructure a couple of years ago and the Democrats turned ‘em down. They still aren’t sure what’s in this current bill, and Chuck Schumer won’t tell ‘em. Meanwhile Speaker Pelosi already announced, “The House will pass the Trillion-dollar Infrastructure Bill, but it will cost you $4.5 Trillion.” Whoa!

Can you imagine agreeing to pay $250,000 for a house, then the real estate agent says, “Great. But it will cost you a total of $1,000,000?

After you pick yourself off the floor, you find the nerve to ask, “Will we get any benefits from that extra $750,000?”
“Well, of course! Plenty of new benefits for your community. And for your family, you’ll have free child care and free schooling through college.”

Still in a daze, you counter, “But our children are already grown. We paid for their education. They have no college debt.”
“Wow, that means we can do more for the poor, downtrodden, and unemployed. And, most important, to fight climate change we’ve got to build a million free charging stations for folks who drive a Tesla.”

Back to that “extra” $3.5 Trillion. You have heard Speaker Pelosi talk lovingly about her “Reconciliation Bill.” It is a so-called budget bill and she demands that it be passed along with the Infrastructure Bill. Reconciliation sounds marvelous. Such a nice word. Any good English teacher can tell you that synonyms include: Compromise, Understanding, Settlement.

But there was no “compromise.” It is a one-hundred-percent Democrat bill. For anyone who “understands” economics and has common sense the bill is ridiculous. It won’t help the economy and will keep adding to the federal debt. It won’t “settle” anything if it passes the Senate 51 to 50. A vote on such a huge, multi-year bill is supposed to require 60 votes to pass.

Even though it is advertised as only $3.5 Trillion, if it passes and you are still around in ten years, I bet it will balloon to double or triple that estimate. They also claim that our current inflation rate of 5% is temporary. “Temporary” implies that if the cost of a $1.00 item is now $1.05, next year it will go back down to $1.00. Not a chance. More likely you can bet on $1.10.

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

          “The trouble with inflation is you get it started and you can’t get it stopped.” Radio, May 26, 1935

Since I wrote about traveling in West Texas last week, I’ve had a few folks remind me I did not get to their town. You do know that Texas is BIG, right? Unlike Hank Snow’s country song, I’ve not been everywhere.

One is Muleshoe. We drove through Littlefield and Dimmit, but did not go a few miles farther west to Muleshoe. Will Rogers, at age 18, worked there a few months, on the Mashed-O Ranch (120,000 acres), which was originally part of the famous 3-million-acre XIT Ranch. Years later, Will returned three times. He wrote about two visits in his syndicated columns: “Down here at the Mashed-O, my old friends the Halsell’s ranch, branding thousands of calves. I have been roping at ’em all day and they just look around and say go on comedian and do your stuff on the stage, but don’t try a real cowboy’s racket. I’ll catch one of the little rascals yet if I have to bribe him.” (DT #1849, July 8, 1932)

And, “Flew all night just to get over here to the Mashed-O outfit to the calf branding. They are branding 5,000 calves, but the whole cattle country is mighty dry. The government is doing what they can to help ’em out, but even a Democrat can’t make it rain. But they are going to bring that up at the next Congress. There is no finer and more satisfying business in the world than the cow business when you get half a chance, but when the elements are agin’ you, you are just like a candidate that runs second.” (DT #2476, July 10, 1934)

Two other towns we missed are Dalhart and Higgins. In our drive we stopped in Hereford and Amarillo, but did not go farther northwest to Dalhart (Headquarters of the XIT), or northeast to Higgins on the Oklahoma border. In 1898 Will quit school and wound up at Higgins, “I not only left (Kemper Military School) during a dark night, but I quit the entire school business for life. Not wanting to face my father, I landed in Higgins and Mr. Ewing gave me a job on his ranch. His son Frank, about my age, really run the outfit. We took a trail herd to Kansas and I worked with him for some time. I got enough to buy me an old horse, and I went out to Amarillo, Texas. I rode in there in the summer of ’98. Got a job with another big trail Herd going away out in Western Kansas.” (WA#169, March 7, 1926)

Another place we did not get to was Stamford. During a popular cowboy event, Will flew in from California and showed up, unannounced. When he walked in, of course everybody recognized him. They wouldn’t let him sit in the stands; they got him on a horse and sent him out into the arena with the other cowboys. “Cowboy sports and contests are about the most popular thing there is, especially where they know what it’s all about. I had often heard of the great time this little city (Stamford) holds every year. It’s called a cowboy reunion and it is. It’s put on by real ranch hands. This is the heart of the old Texas ranch country. The outfits send in their chuck wagons and they have a great time. Lots of good horses and lots of good ropers. Grass is high and cattle are a good price and everybody feeling fine.” (DT #2780, July 3, 1935)

I did not tell you much about Lubbock, other than Buddy Holly. I mentioned talented song writers in that area. A current one is my young cousin, Charlie Stout, nephew of my host on this trip, retired TTU Prof. Betty Stout. He wrote “West Texas in My Eye,” recorded by The Panhandlers. It’s easy to find on YouTube. Key lines: “Lately I’ve been thinking, I could leave this town…I ain’t crying, that’s West Texas in my eye.”

The statue of Will Rogers on Soapsuds (called “Riding into the Sunset”) at the main entry to the Texas Tech University campus was funded by Will’s good friend, Amon Carter. Amon was the creator and publisher of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and was famous for saying, “Fort Worth is where the West begins, and Dallas is where the East peters out.”

Amon Carter was a fascinating, prominent person, and not just in Texas. My friend, Dave Lieber, wrote a book, “Amon! The Ultimate Texan,” and a one-man play that stars Kevin Delk. Dave was a columnist for many years for the Star-Telegram. Now he writes the “Watch Dog” column for the paper in a little town east of Fort Worth. Yes, it’s Da _ _ _s.

Amon graduated from Texas Technological College (now Texas Tech University), and served as the first chairman of the Board of Directors for TTU.

Will Rogers entertained in Lubbock in 1926. He donated $1500 for uniforms for the new TTC band, matched by $1500 donated by Amon Carter.

The Will Rogers statue is one of four identical ones sculpted by Electra Waggoner Biggs. She was the granddaughter of another one of Will’s friends, W.T. Waggoner, owner of the famous Waggoner Ranch at Vernon, Texas (another town I need to visit). Will wrote, “I am on 600,000 acres, belonging to W. T. Waggoner, with 25,000 cattle and some of the best horses in any State. He is one cowman that was smart enough to solve the low prices of cattle and make ranches pay. Every cow has got her own oil well.” (DT #1847, July 6, 1932)

In every “Will Rogers” presentation, I use that W. T. Waggoner story. The last line always gets a big laugh.

Next time I get to Texas, I had better plan on staying more than a week. There’s so much to see. As Will wrote, “I been flying, train riding, automobiling, horseback riding and buggy riding over Texas for thirty-three years and I’ve never seen a tenth of it.” (DT #1926, Oct. 6, 1932)

Historic quote by Will Rogers:

LUBBOCK, Tex.: “They say it’s wrong to buy votes, but you notice from the election returns that the fellows in Pennsylvania and Illinois that bought the most, got elected. A bought vote is better than no votes at all. The counters can’t tell whether they are bought or just bargained for.” DT #73, Nov. 4, 1926

Do you think it’s hot where you live? For the past week I was in Las Vegas (115 F) for the National Speakers Association (NSA) convention, then to West Texas (95 F) to check out crops, cattle, canyons, and a stretch of Will Rogers Highway.

You know, I’ve reported before on the annual NSA convention. I’ve attended most since 1995. Last year it had to be virtual. Last week we had about a third of our usual attendance. For most it was our first in-person conference since March 2020. Being a convention of professional speakers, naturally we have great speakers on the main stage. All had great tips for us to improve our speaking business. One tip always makes me chuckle. Here I am, impersonating the great Will Rogers, and I’m told to “Be yourself, be authentic.”

Since the Pandemic hit, Caesar’s Palace had hosted only one convention before ours. A waiter told me he was working there 16 months ago. The staff had served lunch to 5000 people and were setting up for their evening banquet. The manager said, “Stop. We’re shut down.” Can you imagine being one of those employees? Or one of the 5000 attendees from around the world? How will everyone get rescheduled flights out of Vegas? Do you remember, we were told to stay home for just two weeks to flatten the curve?  Sure.

Sixty-five weeks later, Las Vegas is just now opening up. But they opened with a flourish. Airplanes arriving are full. Every seat at the gambling tables at Harrah’s was occupied. Restaurants had a 45-minute wait for a table.

On Tuesday I flew to Lubbock, Texas, to visit a cousin, who is a retired Faculty member at Texas Tech University. I spent some time on the campus visiting “my” statue (see photo). Of course, I stopped at the Buddy Holly Museum. You wouldn’t believe how many country singers and music writers are from West Texas.

But mostly we drove around West Texas. Visited Post, Shallowater, Tulia, Happy, Hart, Hereford, Idalou, Floydada, Plainview, Dimmitt, the Palo Duro Canyon and Amarillo. Did you know historic U.S. Route 66 goes through Amarillo? Route 66 runs from Chicago through St. Louis, Claremore, OK, Flagstaff, AZ, and ends at the Pacific Coast near Santa Monica. Partly because it ran through Claremore (Will Rogers’ home area) and ended near his California 180-acre ranch, Rt. 66 was also known as the Will Rogers Highway. Also known as the Mother Road, it opened in 1926 and was decommissioned in 1985 because Interstates and other modern highways are safer and faster. About 85 percent of the historic route is still drivable.

Hereford, Texas, proclaims itself the “Beef Capital of the World.” When it comes to beef cows, calves, feedlots and anything related to cattle, Texas is the #1 state. West Texas produces about a fourth of all the cotton in the country. (Other major crops include corn, milo, alfalfa and wheat.) You may be surprised to know that the waste product from ginning cotton and cotton seed are great feed for cattle. Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin, but the person who figured out that “gin trash” and cotton seed are nutritious for cattle ranks right up there with the woman in Buffalo who discovered how to get people to pay for (almost) worthless chicken wings.

In this flat country, I saw more wind turbines than ever in my life. And in the same fields, dozens of oilwell pumpjacks operating. Imagine that. Old dependable fossil fuel and new energy from the same acres. But it was odd; even with a strong breeze, most of those modern windmills were barely turning. With everybody running air-conditioners they should have been going full speed.

A lot of people are moving to Texas, especially from California. About the only ones who have left the state are the Democrat Legislators. Now I would never pretend to advise a legislator. But flying to Washington on a party plane might not be the best choice. Suppose instead, they had driven to the Mexican border. They could have spread out from Brownsville to El Paso (of course only where there are gaps in the 30-foot wall), and crossed the Rio Grande to be safely in Mexico. They could have partnered with the cartels to get introduced to the hordes of immigrants before they crossed the river, and given each one a photo ID and a voter registration card. With 50,000 immigrants a week, that should get ‘em more voters than extending early voting by a few days. And getting more voters is why they left Texas in the first place.

Remember what Speaker Pelosi said about Obamacare, in 2010, “We have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it.” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer topped her this weekend. He announced (paraphrased), “On Wednesday we’ll vote on Infrastructure. We have to pass the bill, then we’ll write it.”

The Biden Administration invited the United Nations to investigate racial policies in America. In their usual wisdom, the UN will send investigators from China, Venezuela and Russia. We already know what their report will say: It’s a terrible place to work and live for anyone who is not white. President Biden will skim over the report and ask his staff, “Haven’t we had over a million people come across our southern border in six months? We need to double that rate. And if they find out how racist we are, they’ll stop coming. We must keep that report secret!”

Now don’t be surprised if those UN investigators ask for asylum and to be sent to Texas.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

“If they just get more folks to working, there is no way to stop this country. Just quit listening to the politicians… Roosevelt ain’t going to ruin the country. The Constitution will remain as is.” WA #655, July 14, 1935

“Every gag I tell must be based on truth. No matter how much I may exaggerate it, it must have a certain amount of truth.” WA #65, March 9, 1924

“(Headed to) Las Vegas and the Boulder Dam. Water costs more than gold in this West.” DT #1899, Sept. 5, 1932

“(I’m) on board the train at Amarillo, Texas, where the biggest oil fields in the World are.” DT #77, Nov. 8, 1926

America is celebrating our 245^th year since the Declaration of Independence. Parades, concerts, flags, fireworks, and family picnics have us back close to a normal celebration.

The Biden Administration got in a pickle when they bragged that a picnic for 10 people would be 16 cents cheaper this year than in 2020. Maybe we should ignore the fact that last year Covid-19 kept us from even having a picnic. Saving 1.6 cents per person is a drop in the bucket compared to the higher cost of driving to the picnic.

By the way, our 2021 Fourth of July picnic for 10 is about $5 higher than in 2019. What Americans ought to be celebrating it that the entire meal costs less than $6 a person. Every year the American Farm Bureau calculates the cost. This picnic includes real meat (cheeseburgers, pork chops, chicken breasts). And potato salad, beans, strawberries, and fresh-squeezed lemonade. For dessert, ice cream and chocolate chip cookies. (I’m getting hungry just writing about it.)

This might be a good time to suggest that all current 2021 economic comparisons be made to two years ago. Life was “normal” in 2019. High employment, good wages, no shortages of food or toilet paper, and plenty to celebrate on the Fourth of July.

Back to our Independence Day. We celebrate. But no one forces us to celebrate. A mediocre athlete can steal the spotlight from the best two in her sport by dishonoring our flag and national anthem. A hundred people can come together to complain about unfair police actions, while being protected from those who disagree… by police.

While celebrating, we also argue and debate. The President is a Democrat and Congress is led by Democrats. Does that mean Republicans have to remain quiet for two years? Shucks, not even for two minutes.

China, meanwhile, is “celebrating” 100 years of Communism.

You won’t see anyone in China turning their back on their flag or wearing a shirt that says, ‘Impeach Xi Jinping.’ In China, like Russia, your criticism is your epitaph.

The Communist Dictator Xi Jinping announced in his “celebratory” speech that China will become #1 in the World and anyone who disagrees will suffer “broken heads and bloodshed.” If you believe this is just bluster and political jabbering, ask the Uighurs. And ask people in Taiwan and Hong Kong. Those two are “free” and produce 3 or 4 times as much per capita as does Communist China. But Xi is determined to bring them under his Communist rule, along with most of Africa.

If you don’t believe the part about busted heads and blood, you may not believe this either. In 100 years, the Communist Party in China has killed 40,000,000 to 80,000,000 of their own citizens. Mass starvation, being gunned down, poison, and diseases, including Covid. While we have lost 600,000 with Covid-19, China claims to have 4,636 deaths. In the country that created Covid and let it spread around the world. Sure.

So, if 95% of Chinese people are NOT Communists, why don’t they take back their country from the 5%? Well, unlike our colonists in 1776, those Chinese do not have muskets. No Colt 45s or AR-15s either.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

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

“The Chinese have the reputation, even among their friends, for being the most cruel nation in the world, even to their own people. If one is only going to get his head chopped off, he is tickled to death. That he (would be) unmercifully tortured before death is his fear.” WA #488, May 1, 1932

“And the speeches (on the Fourth)? Did you read them? Never was as much politics indulged in under the guise ‘freedom and liberty.’ There was 5 percent what George Washington did, and 95 percent what the speaker intended to do.” DT #2782, July 5, 1935