George Washington was born on Feb. 22, 1732. As Will Rogers wrote, “Washington was the most versatile President we ever had. He was a farmer, Civil engineer and gentleman. He made enough at Civil engineering [surveying] to indulge in both the other luxuries.” (WA #313, Dec. 23, 1928)
His birthday is so important in history that two great organizations celebrate all week.
Professional engineers celebrate National Engineers Week. This week is about celebrating past and present achievements and paving the way for a brighter future.
You know about the importance of “STEM” in education. The “E” stands for Engineering. Students who graduate with an engineering degree usually don’t have to worry about finding a job or repaying student debt. Engineers are in demand. (Personal note: I’m proud of a son who is an engineer and a granddaughter who will be one in 2025. A few years ago, I headed up a national 4-H program to encourage more young girls, minorities and rural youth to study engineering.)
This is also National FFA Week. You may have known “FFA” as Future Farmers of America. FFA prepares youth for a wide range of occupations in agriculture and food and fiber businesses. FFA is not limited to the 2% of the population on farms and ranches. My brother was in FFA and I have many friends who were state and national FFA officers. (See quote below.)
One person not celebrating is former President Donald Trump. The Attorney General of New York state and a Judge found the Trump family business guilty of fraud and fined them over $350,000,000. Recall that in 2018, the Attorney General campaigned on one promise: Bring down Trump.
You might be wondering who gets the money in this fraud case. Do the banks who were defrauded receive it because Trump over valued his real estate? NO. The banks didn’t lose money; they made millions in interest on loans. Do defrauded employees of the Trump business receive it? NO. They were paid in full, even during the COVID-19 shutdown. Oddly, this may be the first fraud case in history with no fraud.
Barring a successful appeal, I guess the state of New York treasury will receive the money. They need it to cover costs of illegal immigrants and organized crime in their sanctuary cities. The state may soon lose Billions as other New York businesses decide to fold up and leave for fear of being convicted of fraud.
Historic quote by Will Rogers:
“Last week when I was there [in Kansas City], there was 1700 young boys and girls brought there by that great Paper, the Kansas City Star, from over 30 states. They were taking vocational training [FFA] and had led their various districts back home in the studying of farming and stock raising.” WA #207, Nov. 28, 1926