An African-American will never govern me!

Several years ago there was a somewhat controversial sheriff , TR,who ran for governor of my state much to the chagrin of several of the local pundits. As his campaign began to gain steam, there arose a backlash of non-support that adopted the theme " TR WILL NEVER GOVERN ME".

Just a few days ago I was at a golf course and overheard some of the members espousing their gloom and doom about the election and spicing up their comments with some most offensive and ignorant slurs. I started to join the discussion and expose their stupidity but remembered something about not answering a fool and one of them was holding a five-iron and did not appear to be afraid to use it.

As President-elect Obama visited the White House and President Bush yesterday, the press could not keep from falling all over themselves about "this historic moment" and "how proud America should be that we now had an African-American President-elect". As they viewed the photo ops, they struggled and strained to remain politically correct while acknowledging the significance of our country's growth in race relations. As a student of history, I am certainly appreciative of the progress this signifies. If you aren't, rent Ken Burns' series, "Eyes on the Prize" and see if you think Sheriff Jim Clark would have been chanting "Yes, we can!" But I am hoping we have the ability to move even further--and I think I have.

The town I grew up in had three junior highs that funneled into a single high school. In junior high we were extremely competitive with each other athletically and could not wait to beat the other two. We desperately wanted to be the best. A funny thing happened when we moved into high school, however. We still wanted to be the best, but that meant that some of "their" players would have to play and some of "ours" would have to be backups. But we did not think of our new tailback--who would later play at a D-I school--as our "black" tailback, he was now just "our" tailback and a darned good one that we were happy to have carrying the ball for us. Our new teammates did not view our quarterback--who also played D-I football--as their "white" quarterback, just the quarterback.

While I bemoan the significance that the human drama of athletic competition has garnered in our society--alas, the topic of a future blog I am sure--it sure taught us all a simple lesson that I hope has stuck with me. If you are striving for excellence, you go after excellence no matter where it comes from. The coach's daughter may get to play in little league, but if she is not the best, everyone knows it--including the coach and his daughter. In high school, the coach will want the best, no matter who's daughter she is and no matter what her pigmentation might be.

While I am proud that we as a country have made great strides in this area, I hope we can use this moment as a learning opportunity to take even greater ones. That we can see each other as one of God's creations, made in His image. That we can be doers of the words "All men are created equal" and not just hearers of them. That we can get beyond political correctness--which has been needed and useful in its day--and strive together for the excellence of which we are all capable.

Please understand that when I say "an African-American will never govern me!" I am also saying that a Hispanic-American will not, a Chinese-American will not, an Italian-American will not and, yes, even a Caucasian-American will not! President Obama will be my American President and I am proud to be of whatever small assistance I can be to him--just as I was and am for my American President Bush--to help us all make this great country even greater. May God Bless President Bush, President-elect Obama and these United States.

Upcoming Headline: "Arkansas to Allow Idiots to Vote"

As a small town practitioner of the forensic arts, I am rarely taken aback by the machinations of the political system, but I must admit that this year's election has one issue on the ballot that has me shaking my head. We get several of the California channels on the satellite, so I am used to seeing ads for or against this proposition or that initiated act on some of the most outrageous matters, but I normally just pass that off as being something that the folks out in California do and that is just their way. I think we have not only a contender but a winner with this year's proposed constitutional amendment No. 1 here in the great State of Arkansas.

While the proposed amendment has some other purposes--don't they all--the one that caught my attention was it's proposal to do away with the ban on idiots voting here in the Natural State. Yep, you read that right, we are voting on whether or not idiots should be allowed to vote. Now before you go getting all high and mighty on me, I know full well the historical and medical connotations of the word and that its use in the Arkansas constitution is outmoded and more than disrespectful as applied to certain persons. What piqued my interest, however, is the modern use of the word and its application to the voting process.

In that vein, I personally know of certain local citizens that have been described if not defined by the word and none of them have been disenfranchised to this point, so the prohibition is rarely, if ever, enforced. Certainly if it was there are several of my acquaintances who would insist that I not be allowed to vote. In fact, one of my favorite golfers used the word to describe himself after the final round of a major tournament in which his decision making processes were less than wise. And, a once popular prime time sitcom, which now plays nearly around the clock in what I call reruns and others call syndication, has a character that describes himself as "Lord of the Idiots". The use of the word has certainly morphed into a less medical/less technical adjective than its original use, but I am not sure that transition will be appreciated by all.

Nonetheless, I am intent on voting for the amendment just in case they decide to enforce it and someone with a different persuasion than mine tries to keep me from voting. . .now if we can just get a constitutional amendment to keep idiots-- as the word is presently used--from running for office.

Investment Tip--Chinchillas

In these uncertain economic times, I have a word of advice for all of you who are wondering what to do with your savings--Chinchillas.

When I was a kid, one of my friend's dad was apparently looking for a way to supplement their family budget and undertook the ambitious project of raising chinchillas. They added a room onto their house and quickly constructed the necessary habitats while eagerly awaiting the arrival of their stock. Visions of new cars, fine vacations and fur coats danced excitedly through theirs heads. My friend was quick to point out that once the operation got up and running that he would probably have to move since they would have a big, fine house and, of course, the chinchilla operation would have to be expanded. The first and second lots arrived, were raised and shipped off without problem and the financial rewards began to roll in. The profits were great enough that my friend was able to persuade his father to spring for a basketball goal which was quite the luxury in the day. Flush with cash and our carpentry skills, we purchased the necessary hoops equipment and set out to build our answer to Madison Square Gardens while his dad was out of town--at a chinchilla convention I suppose. Boy, would he be surprised.

As we surveyed their house, there was only one place that had the requisite roof line and concrete flooring for a court worthy of our abilities and that was the side of the chinchilla addition. With hammers in hand, we sawed the two by fours into perfect sections and nailed them together making a backboard smoother than that new see through stuff they called fiberglass. After attaching the goal itself--complete with a metal net that was guaranteed to last longer--we mounted the monstrosity to the top of the addition, oblivious to all of the chirping and squawking going on inside. And, as they say in the Olympics, we let the games begin. With the porch light on we could not only play all day, but well into the night and play we did. Funny thing though, after a while, the chinchillas got used to all the noise and didn't squeak and squawk so much.

When my friend's dad arrived home from the convention, we could tell he was excited about our little project because he began screaming my friend's name at the top of his lungs as soon as he went to the chinchilla addition. We all sprinted back to our Taj Mahal of Basketball, but slowed our pace upon seeing his dad's face. Apparently our non-stop bouncing, dribbling, shooting, and shouting had turned the little chinchillas into some sort of nerve cases and they began molting, their fur falling out faster than my dad's had. (I don't know if it was some kind of curse but I was to later suffer the same fate myself) With the loss of a whole herd--or whatever it is you call a bunch of the little creatures--my friend's dad had to shut down the operation and turned the space into a nice wood-working shop. He would often come outside and watch us play after that and commented that at least "the boys got a nice place to play."

So, even if things aren't going as you had planned with your investments, try and remember the things that are really important and it won't be so bad--after all, you can always enjoy the simple pleasure of children at play.

P.S. I neither endorse nor discourage investment in the Chinchilla business. They are fine little critters that don't like too much noise.