#431, November 5, 2006
OKLAHOMA CITY: All I know is what I read in “The Oklahoman” or see as I fly over the old home state. Came in on Southwest by way of Kansas City and passed over 2 or 3 dry river beds. The drought is so bad there’s less water flowing in the rivers than you get out of a garden hose. I’ve joked plenty in the past about the government building dams, but if it weren’t for dams Oklahoma would have to lay a pipeline to St. Louis to get a drink.
Headline says, “$2 Billion in ad spending tops 2004”. Candidates for Congress are spending more to get elected than what was spent to elect a President and a Congress two years ago. And that don’t count the $25 Billion of our taxes they spent on pork to kinda fatten us up for the election. Just be glad you don’t get all the government you pay for. Only ones that come out ahead are the radio and television stockholders. If these stations were required to spend as much time interviewing candidates as their ads run for, we would get the real lowdown on ’em and none could ever get elected.
On the way to Claremore I saw gasoline in Tulsa for $1.95. Don’t spread that around because Oklahoma wants to keep it all for themselves. The Pocahontas Club put on a fine birthday remembrance at the Memorial. Those Cherokee ladies are just as gracious as their ancestors were who let us boys join with ’em when it was founded in 1899. Grand niece Doris “Coke” Meyer is one of ’em and just as spry as ever. More of the family was there, all three grandchildren. Bette came from California with her new husband, J.W. Coop. He’s a rodeo cowboy so you can’t help but like him. Chuck flew from Arizona and Kem drove from Tennessee.
At the ranch at Oologah, Kim Grazier rounded up over a hundred second graders to sing a few western songs at the birthday party. Teddy Roosevelt dropped in and reminded us that he had a hand in forming the new state of Oklahoma in 1907. You listen to him for ten minutes and you’re wishing he was still in the White House.
Saturday night I drove to Norman, gave a talk at a dinner for the folks supporting the Western History Collection at the University. Wonderful folks, and generous. Now the last time I was there was 1931 and I wrote about “Norman, Oklahoma, the Home of Oklahoma’s crack University”. I told ’em that today I would choose a different adjective to compliment ’em.
I also reminded ’em of something I wrote before the 1932 election, “Everything is changing in America. People are taking their comedians seriously, and the politicians as a joke, when it used to be the vice versa.” Today there’s a couple of comedians we wish would kinda keep their politics to themselves, and we can all name a prominent politician who should never, ever try to tell a joke.
They announced in Baghdad that Saddam Hussein is guilty as charged and is going to hang. That’s the best news out of Iraq since they pulled him out of a hole. If any lawyers get any ideas about endless appeals of the sentence, they should be the first ones to test the noose.
Happy birthday to Walter Cronkite at 90, and to Laura Bush. I won’t tell her age, but she’s younger than Walter by thirty years.
Historic quote from Will Rogers:
“No voter is going to do anything that a politician thinks he will do (this year). The way most people feel they would like to vote against all of ’em if it was possible.” DT #1797, April 27, 1932