Aspen

Made a fast trip to Colorado Springs. Heather was in labor and so naturally grandma and grandpa packed the car in 15 minutes and were on the road. Aspen Mikayl Zimmerman was born about 10 pm, Dec. 15, just minutes after we got there. She is bright-eyed and bushy tailed and very alert lifting her head to see everything. What a great Christmas present. On Thursday, Mom, Dad and baby spent the day getting acquainted and learning breast feeding-- while all the darned nurses and friends and well-wishers came to see them. Came home Friday about lunch time. Aspen established rules during the night by keeping them up all night. So I came up to fix breakfast and there stands Mom and Dad with hair going every direction, looking utterly bummed out and consulting baby books. Ah, kids are an irrational number problem so you never have all the answer in perfect decimal.

And then as all this is going on, I am catching bits and pieces of the politics of the day on TV. Wow, the Dems canned their latest Porkulus Spending Bill! Here, I was getting all geared-up to learn about different porkbarrel projects. Now they are gone and I will never figure them out. What was "Beaver Management" for example? If you don't manage your beavers, do they play lots of loud heavy metal music and wake all the neighbors up? Do they go after the neighbors peach tree, two beavers work on the trunk while all the others stand around in awe holding their little paws up and going "Peaches!!!!" Or is Beaver management when you use that million dollars and buy a lot of 22 rifles and hand them out to Cajuns saying, "Well da boss is buying dinner. Go shoot you self a beaver." Beats me. Politics has been so interesting this week, but I have not the heart for it. I'd rather rock the baby.

I was reading Matthew and Luke's account of Christmas and every year I notice something new. Only a living God would trust His salvation to two peasants and their reaction to what we would call a Crisis Pregnancy today. That's a God willing to risk! Now they do studies on the science of beauty these days and have found some stunning things. There apparently is a universal standard for beauty. Blind tests of people looking at pictures in Africa, Japan, Scotland, and America find that they pick out the same pictures as handsome and beautiful. Densel Washington and Pamela Anderson are beautiful folks no matter where in the world you ask people. But that is only the beginning. What we do as humans is talk to each other and judgments on beauty are immediately overprinted by character traits. Men don't want whining women, Women like kind, honest men who have a good career. Finally, as people fall in love, thier impressions of beauty change radically. So the girl you thought was a 6 when you met is now your 9.5. And then since we are not all Barbie and Ken, humans lower their standards of beauty when they know they don't rate so high themselves.

Put these observations to Mary and Joseph. Joe is by Christian tradition about 40 and Mary 16. Joe is quite poor have the occupation of tecton or builder or carpenter. Landless but originally from Bethlehem, he has to save up for years to accumulate a dowry or bride price they paid in those days. Cost of a bride is about the cost of a house, say $100,000 in today's money. But Mary may not have been the most marriageable material either. Her cousin, Elizabeth was married to a priest, the richest of Jewish folks. Maybe Mary was homely and would only attract a carpenter in the arranged marriage. Or maybe they just fell in love. Whatever the case Joseph is kind like few other guys, that he would willingly forfeit his dowry and divorce Mary quitely, thinking only of her predicament. Maybe he didn't have much job but he must have gone up several points in Mary's eyes and set her determination to win him somehow someway. And then the accounts tell how she willing ly went along to Bethlehem although almost due to give birth. She needn't have gone according to Roman laws. And unless Joe had a buddy with a donkey, she didn't ride, she walked--our modern traditions of depicting Christmas are conjecture. 65 miles waking at 9 months brings on labor. Then she underwent what must have been almost cruel humiliation of delivery. Joseph must have been in wonder at how much of a noncomplaining trooper she was. Just the kind of wife I need as I work from project to project! And then I wonder about a detail recorded in both their dreams. "Say, Joe, have you thought anything about the name?" "It has to be Jesus!" Just imagine the meeting of the minds over that one. I would be very surprised if this couple didn't see each other with new eyes after that first Christmas. And beauty is in the eye of the beholder, is it not. What we know is that the gospels record that Jesus had 4 brothers (and possibly more sisters). A happy loving couple indeed. Read between the lines of Christmas and see a love story.

And so we hope Aspen can result in a love story for our son and daughter-in-law as well. Shirley and I call this stuff the "joys of parenthood" and still laugh about the trials today. What di they call this in Kansas? Ad astra per aspera--"To the stars though difficulties".

Self-Evident Truths

Leaves falling. Thanksgiving soon. Football and pumpkins. The political season is over and a lot of folks are glad to turn the page. Even the President went on vacation. Soon it will be time to shop for Christmas. Yet it will be a slim holiday for some. Unemployment is high. Here in town the American Legion Children's Home is close to closing and both kids and staff are in limbo. Retail sales are not flush for businesses. Yet I am reminded of a friend's comment years ago after he lost much of his life savings. "Well, the dog still licks your hand and the grandkids still climb up in your lap." There is more to life than money and politics.

That is why I am conservative. There is more to life than government and security. The progressive left sees man as just a higher animal to be ruled by an elite, who in turn answer only to God(Nature/Science). That is the Old Order. Judeo-Christian thought upended this. The Almighty comes down to save His people and form a close relationship with them. Luther and then Locke thus argued that it was God over people over the government they would construct, not God over government over people. That became the American Experiment. And so it is that "We the People, in order to form a more perfect Union..." made a constitution that limits the government's powers and the government's help. Conservatives want public servants, not public dictators.

Is that risky? You bet it is. We risk failure, both individually and together. Yet we relish the opportunity that comes only with risk. Such willingness to risk comes only from knowing Providence looks after us. We still keep government safety nets, but don't wish them to become a trap for serfdom. Then, having achieved some success, we aid our neighbor as we surely will this holiday season. Tough times are not our shame or distress. They become our finest hour. Mark my words and mark your Thanksgiving. We shall see this during the holiday season. We are still the people of the Self-evident Truths.

Vaughan and Luttrell contrast

Last post before election. This is long.
First an essay by Steve on his thoughts about government. Second Ken Luttrell's votes and stands...

Steve Vaughan on Accountability

When I decided to run for office, I made my theme "accountability".

Nobody knows the future. These last few years have been tough for Kay and Osage. But if we are accountable to each other, we can make it work. Oklahoma has done it before. We were the center of the dust bowl. The federal government wanted us to abandon the land and become dependent. But we know we belong to the land. We taught each other to farm with less tilllage, and the dust stopped blowing. Now the land we belong to is grand.

The purpose of government is to ensure your freedom so you can dream and do. I know you have dreams that are bigger than government. The Dream is not just riches. You dream of being the kind of person God wants you to be. You dream of being successful in your own eyes. You dream of making family and friends from those you have. Government is not a lifestyle, it's a lender of last resort. DHS can't make your family. DOT can't fix your car. But government can be a safety net-- just not a nest. And we are all accountable for this American Dream.

Legislators don't bring businesses to town. If they did, that would just mean some other town lost a business. Instead, they should make sure the environment for business is good. Hold me accountable for that after this election. Government controls kill jobs. Sly mandates destroy business. Taxes take away success. Count on me to cut your taxes where possible and oppose the mandates of Obamacare wherever I can. The future of medical services and small business in Osage and Kay depends on it. Some of the executive orders set to come from Washington are absolutely loony. Dust emission fines, pasture burning moratoriums, and drilling restrictions will kill our local economy. It's time for you to vote. Stand up and be counted and accountable.

Our schools keep suffering. Isn't it time for some wise and selective de-regulation? Put the money in classrooms. Stop forcing local districts into government planning. State deficits and state worker pension plans are in trouble. I've spent 26 years helping people plan safe stable retirements and live within their means. This makes me angry. Our governor can't seem to estimate revenue within 20%. Isn't it time for an economist or two to be on the Tax Equalization Board? I've got an idea. Let's make these people accountable.

We have a lot of challenges, but I have faith in you. I want to be accountable to you and be your representative. If we are accountable to each other, we can make it work.

....Ken Luttrell's votes and stances...
Sources--votes found at ok.gov Designated as (V-year)
Other--voteok.org,votesmart.com, okprosperity.com (W)
Jobs and Economic Development
-Research Institute for Economic Development (RIED) is non-profit, non-partisan, non-lobbying group that reates legislators by issues that relate to better job and business growth probizok.com Passing grade is 70. All but 6 of 149 legislators score greater than 30. Senator David Myers=100, Rep. Ken Luttrell=45
--voted NO on income tax cuts (V-07,W), eliminating franchise tax (V-07), against tax credit for stay-at-home parents(v-07), agaionst state sales tax holiday (V-07), against letting voters decide spending-level amendment (V-09)
--wants to mandate employers to provide child care and health care(W)
--wants to increase minimum wage(W)
--voted NO on workers comp reforms (V-07,09)
--voted YES to automatically recognize foreign court rulings against Oklahomans (V-08)
--voted NO on plaintiff-attorney contingency fee caps (V-09)
--believes in widely empowered eminent domain like the New London decision (W)
Health Care
--wants to mandate employers to provide health care, wants state to guarantee health care(W)
--voted NO on study of reducing health care premiums (V-09)
--walked the vote to improve autism provider network (V-09)
--voted for the Opt-Out of Obamacare referendum question after he voted against it. (V-10)
--voted NO to strike abortion coverage from federal insurance plans (V-10)
--Is pro-choice in the first 3 mopnths of pregnancy (W)
Education
--dislikes school choice, wants no vouchers, no new charter schools (W)
--voted NO on performance pay for teachers (V-08)
--voted NO for charter school opportunities for students of underperforming schools(V-07)
--voted NO on school spending transparency(V-10)
--voted NO to allow deregulation of well-performing schools (V-09)
--disapproves 3rd party oversight of standards testing (v-09)
--wants to raise college tuition, but increase financial aid to parents despit budget shortfall(W)
Immigration
--voted NO on letting voters decide Official English amendment (V-09)
--voted NO on requiring accounting of illegal's use of school resources (V-10)
--doesn't think public officials should report undocumented immigrants (W)
--voted NO on voter ID (V-10)
Tort Reform
--voted NO to reduce frivolous lawsuits, malpractice tort (V-09) to reduce med costs and doc shortages
--voted NO on workers comp reform (V-07,09)
--favors no atty. fee or punitive damagelimits (W)

Inhofe endorsement

Big day! Senator Inhofe came to visit Steve today. He and his staff study folks running and lend support to a few critical races around OK. Steve's is one of 'em. So we had lunch at Enrique's and Sen. Inhofe had many kind words for Steve in his endorsement. Then we were off to a radio interview at Team Radio with Bill and again Jim Inhofe repeated his strong endorsement. Finally he and Steve went out to the Buffalo Waller Ranch together.

But we weren't about to let such a big story go to waste. I took several snapshots of the gathering at Enriques and another photo at the studio. Rushed to get the pictures developed (yes, I know I am in the stone age with a 35mm camera) and took them to the PC News. Louise Abercrombe, News reporter had been there for eats but she was declining to write any story since it was about politics. With that disclaimer, it was up to us to put out an ad copy for pay. So Steve and I colloborated, checked our quotes of Sen. Inhofe on his website and that is what will appear in the Sunday paper(I hope). Picture of Steve and Jim at the microphones. Headline is "Inhofe endorses Vaughan." Here is the text...

Senator James Inhofe made an unannounced visit to Ponca City, Wednesday to endorse Steve Vaughan for the Oklahoma House. "I was first elected to the Oklahoma House when it was 7 Republicans and 94 Democrats," he recalled. "And we need a guy like Steve Vaughan who is true to his conservative ideals, who can help House Republicans override a veto of a potential Democrat Governor, and who thinks like I do." Inhofe and Vaughan did a joint radio interview and had lunch with supporters. Inhofe touted several agenda items on the national level which mesh with Vaughan's platform for the House. The EPA threatens Oklahoma jobs by stringent requirements on agricultural practices like a moratorium on pasture burning and atmospheric dust from farm roads. Cap and trade legislation would seriously harm Oklahoma's Oil and Gas industry. The Obama administration's extreme taxation is in the works which is a threat to small businesses. In each case, the need for Oklahoma representatives to stand in the gap against excessive federal controls and work with the US Senate for oversight was stressed. Vaughan pledged to support both Oklahoma Senators in their diligent defense of the state's economy.

Rodeo Rodeo

What a day it has been. It started with the 101 Ranch Wild West Rodeo Parade downtown this morning. It was a first parade for us, and knowing what we know now, would have done some things more effectively, but then serendipity happened. We had decorated Steve's big John Deere tractor with flags of USA and OK. On the front was a sign that said, "My J.D. works hard for me. I'll work hard for you. We had two escort 4 wheelers and 8 walkers who threw candy for the kids. The kids were thrilled but not half so much as a 67 year old kid. Friend Johnny Shaw has a retarded brother who is 67 who still lives with his mom. The family was there and waving. And we are not quite sure, we think it was Diana who made a special point to hand deliver a tootsie roll. Johnnie's mother was so impressed with that gesture that she talked about it all afternoon, Johnnie said. Among other things, I think we won a vote.

As the parade was about to start, a young guy in fatigues ran up to Steve. He was supposed to be the color guard but there were no flags. Where were the flags? Maybe this guy on his tractor with so many flags would know. The announcer was already talking and clearly something had gone amiss that no color guard was in the front. Steve just said, "Climb aboard and you can be my color guard." So Alan Pierce, war hero and honoree jumped up on the fender of the tractor and we started down the street. Now this is ironic. Steve wanted to use his support of the military in his campaign early on, but we couldn't figure out how this would be important in a State House run. But there was Alan yelling out to the crowd, waving, saluting folks and they were saluting him back! Steve had unknowingly given a seat to a celebrity. So how did Alan know so many people? "Aw, I know everybody," he laughed good-naturedly. Well they certainly knew him.

For 3 straight nights, Steve and family and I and Nancy Mayfield have handed out cold bottles of water at the rodeo grounds. We had a truck and a trailer full of ice chests and gave out about 1300 bottles of water. Were the people happy? My goodness, the delight was palpable. But considering that it was 102-107 at 5 o'clock each evening, an icy bottle of water goes pretty well. How well? Mayor Homer Nicholson grinned and told us we were doing a real service to the community. And yes, we spotted the rival Democrats many bottles of water as they all worked around the front gate for their politicians. Steve was concerned that they weren't following the rules of staying away from the gate 50 feet. That is, until an old guy, perhaps on the organizing staff told Steve he was going to change his vote because Steve was obeying the rules. It always pays to do the right stuff.

Public events like this are often associated with campaigns even though in actual fact they build more goodwill than votes. Yet they are fun in the weirdest ways. I hardly notice the heat when I can stick my hands continually in a cold ice chest to fetch bottles. Steve gets intensely involved with about 10 people over the course of the evening and I know he is talking issues. Little kids think it is so cool to be given their own big jug. And remember to vote for Steve when you turn 18.

Steve's Watermelon Feed

Steve's Watermelon Feed at Kaw City/Kaw Lake's Christmas in July was a smash hit. Steve didn't know if he got a single vote but there sure are a lot of watermelon eaters on the beach. I thought it was great fun, although the temperature was 102. Didn't the Beatles have a song that goes, "When I get home at hundred and two, will you lock the door?" One of the major attractions was people sticking their arms in the 60 degree water of the stock tank we were cooling melons in and going "AHHH!"

Reminds me of Bill Clinton. I never thought I would say this but I actually feel for him. $3-5 million for Chelsea's nuptial gig! And then it turned out that the guests were mostly her friends, not A-list celebrities. So were those college kids who just purchased their first neck tie? 500 people. I asked Miss Shirley how many guests we invited to our wedding in 1976. 425. So how much did it cost? She thought about 1500 bucks. Maybe I could give Slick Willie some tips for cost containment. Our guests weren't A-list celebrities either. $800,000 for food and beverages. Must have been some super eats! Steve got his melons given or at extraordinarily low cost by supporters--Josh Clinton and his grandpa, Doug Klufa and some lady at the Waverly fruit stand who said they just wanted to support his campaign.

Speaking of Clinton jokes (Gosh I miss 'em!), we heard a good Obama joke from one of our booth patrons. It seems that Obama's relatives from Kenya sent him a lion skin. Barack got excited and had always wanted a lion skin coat. So he took the pelt to a coatmaker in DC. "There is only one problem," the coatmaker said sadly. "You don't have enough here to make a coat once I match the fur colors and use the mane for a collar." Dejected Obama went home. But the next day he was scheduled on a flight for Oklahoma so he took the lion skin with him. He had heard about an Okie in Tulsa whom it was said, could make a coat out of anything you could shoot--possum, squirrel, anything. So he stopped in to see the guy. "Well sir," the Okie said, "You've got enough fur here to make not only yourself a coat but also one for the missus and the two kids." Obama was astonished and he said, "But a famous furrier/coatmaker in Washington told me he didn't have enough." The Okie looked him in the eye and noted, "Well out here in Oklahoma, you ain't near as big as you are in Washington."

And if you give Steve Vaughan for State House a donation, we will let you dive into that cool tank along with the watermelons.

Watch

Attended both Republican and Brian Hermanson's Watch Party last night. He won Republican primary for Kay-Noble County DA. Congratulations, Brian. And Thanks, Mark Gibson, for the many years of service and all the sticky problems you solved for us with folks who wouldn't pay their hotel bills, etc. over the years.

I guess we are getting out of business at the right time. According to http://www.foxbusiness.com/ the new Financial Reform Act is going to make all venders subject to 1099's on next year's taxes. I suppose for somebody who has never run his own business, this is foggy information. Well up to now, only contractors who perform services for over $600 have been required to recieve 1099 statements. Now any vendor, like the business your hotel buys toilet paper from, or the parts suppliers a repair business buys from must be 1099'd. So a typical small business run by a friend of mine estimates the number of 1099's his accountant sends out might go from 10 to 200. Oh, but there's more! When someone receives a 1099 they check to make sure the amount is precisely what they received, else you are in trouble in an IRS audit. How you account revenue (dividing it into goods and services) might not match how your payer thinks it might alot and you will both have to agree on the precise amount. What we have in the new law is a phenomenal headache for businesses. So much so, that Wall Street Journal doubts that the IRS could force compliance! And the heaviest burden will be with small businesses, like a guy working out of his pickup truck, who can't afford an entire department to check the numbers.

Also in another article by Fox Business, the SEC will no longer have to comply with Freedom Of Information Act. I guess they don't want any more stories about bureaucrats looking at porn on federal computers. But the serious part is that lack of disclosure in financial regulation is precisely how dictators take over their country's economies. Skullduggery is hidden.

The destruction of small business with the intent to consolidate the economy into large unionized firms, the takeover of business (GM and Chrysler) by stiff-arming the rightful creditors, the aim to bring about partial socialism that can be controlled by a central bureaucracy--these are primary techniques of fascism ( or union-ism, Italian -- Mussolini). I have to admit that the historian in me is sometimes just sick over oblivious Americans who don't have European or Latin American experience and don't think USA could ever be taken over by dictatorship. We shall see. Certainly if Obama is merely a do-gooding leftist, he is setting us up for the dictator to come. And yet I am heartened that so many like me are expressing dire concerns over the turn of events these last two years. How many times has someone said to me, "If we don't do something this fall, this may be America's last free election." Maybe it is time, if you have never been involved, to get active in politics. Otherwise you just have to watch.

Editorial for Newspaper

I wrote this for our newspaper. They publish about half of what I write...

It was a plumber who submitted the idea to cap BP's blowout. And an engineering firm determined a way to sever the mangled pipes and valves a mile deep under the sea. All across America there are people who fix things. Your refrigerator doesn't work? There's a guy you can call. There's a raccoon inn your attic? There are people who can fix even oddball things. We are a nation that fixes.

The government couldn't fix any part of the oil spill. First we watched a sad news conference given by a deer-in-the-headlights Admiral. With no training in petroleum engineering he could only give vague assurances. There were fire booms not purchased even though Congress had authorized money. Skimmers were waiting while regulators wouldn't approve. Our President got angry at BP but did little except try to shut down the entire deepwater drilling industry.

The same inability to fix seems to plague state governments. California may be the next Greece if they can't bear to fix their fiscal incontinence. Oklahoma's Tax Equalization Board couldn't predict the shortfall of revenue by a whopping 20% even though they could observe the recession that swept the rest of the country a year earlier. Educrats can only postulate a fix of our schools by demanding we spend more, like Texas and Kansas. Wouldn't "fix" be defined as spending less yet getting a better product?

Some plumber needs to figure out a way to fix government. It is coming. Our nation's founders fixed the problem of government that saw itself as a divine right entity with a mission to order every aspect of lives. But the founders saw a nation of men who believed in God who wanted them free. Government would be limited, not a master, but a servant. Have you ever looked at the list of signatures of those who signed the Declaration of Independence? I can't identify most of them. That is how it is meant to be. America was not meant to be a nation of professional politicians, but of folks who fixed freedom and then went back to their homes to live as ordinary, free preople. The struggle continues. We are those founders. Our job is to get involved politically and fix our government. We seek no name. We will work the job and go home free.

Free signs, free thoughts

Ha!! Since I have relatives who are in KS politics, they bequeath me signs! Friday I am off to fetch a couple dozen plywood signs from brother-in-law. (Thanks, Garry!) Of course they say BERGES for SHERIFF right now but we can overpaint them. On second thought, does our ever-popular Republican Sheriff Everette Van Hoessen have anybody running against him this year? I bet not. You know, what a fella could do is get his neighbors to post a whole bunch of these signs 'as is' all over their yards until the primary election. Ev could come out of his house in the morning and choke on his coffee. "What?! Who didn't tell me I had an opponent?!"

Now just a few random thoughts. Byrd died. Perhaps I can now get over this weird mental affliction that plagues me. Whenever I would see this guy on TV my brain, for some inexplicable reason would always think, 'term limits'. Isn't that odd? Second thing, I see where Hispanic voters in Colorado like the AZ law by 62-32%. Back in 2000 when we had an Hispanic foster daughter, Tony Conchos took us under his Hispanic Culture wing and there I first heard how controversial illegals are with Mex-Americans. Some see cousin Pedro; others, a lousy illegal giving them all a bad name. So I don't think Obama's ploy of suing AZ is going to win him that many votes. Now I often wondered why ordinary citizens near the border, with the help of a deep-pockets, couldn't control the flow. Say we put up a line of tazers that automatically intercept anything that moves through the back yard. Then call border security. Cruel? Well police in El Reno, OK are defending their tazing of an 86-yr-old woman last week. And just think a line of tazers would also be good for stopping Dems trying to get across the border going south after the November election.

Probably like me, you have for many weeks watched pictures of that converted supertanker-skimmer called the A Whale in it's dock. So why it hasn't been used? Sen. Jim Inhofe says that the Obama administration is holding up usage because there is a law that says no tainted seawater can be dumped in the Gulf. Since the A Whale skims oil and water, then dumps the water--ah, but wait, the return water is only 99.44% pure and can contain a thin film of oil--it returns a tiny amount of oil back into the sea. Thus it has had certification held up.

Growing up a deaf kid, I played drums in 3 bands. I couldn't understand the lyrics so I would do what deaf people always do. I made up words in attempt to construct the sentences. Maybe that is why Rush Limbaugh has ruined me with his hilarious parody songs. I can't listen to the real words without thinking the parody. My favorite was all the Democrat voices (Clinton, Kennedy, Obama, etc.) singing that Greenwood song, Proud to be an American. I laughed so hard at Limbaugh, I nearly wrecked my truck when they all started singing,
I'd be proud to be a Canadian/ 'Cause at least their health care's free.
And I'd rather be an Iranian/ 'Cause they all hate Bush like me.
And I'm gonna stand up!! / For illegals, and defend them to the day
'Cause there ain't no doubt I hate this land/ I hate the USA!!

Signs of the Campaign

A test if you are a true Okie is if you can draw the state on a piece of plywood freehand. "Man, that looks like Nebraska!" Steve told me. We were making road signs for his campaign for House District #37. "Yeah, but if we make the panhandle long and skinny it will blow off in the Oklahoma wind. Besides, you aren't running out there."

When you don't have much money in the campaign coffer, eye-catching signs are the need. And the voters may not realize it but the Republican House Rep they are going to vote for is an accomplished carpenter--and of course he runs a game preserve. "They will turn into duck blinds after the campaign," he avows. Do the birds mind red, white, and blue? The associate at Lowes didn't mind at all. She got quite a kick out of the two zany guys who were making campaign signs and ordering paint. Steve magically turned her into a Republican from an independent in 30 seconds. You could see it in her eyes. 'I am going to vote for this guy. He's smart, approachable, funny, and umm, git'r dun kind of guy."

Former state chairman, Gary Jones sent us a picture of his parade wagon. He took a flatbed trailer, built sides, then made some hoops and stretched a canvas over the top so it looks like a Conestoga wagon with his name emblazoned on the canvas top. He is running for State Auditor. This is what we need, a Republican state auditor to investigate how 100 years of Democrats have spent our money. But, Gary, if you come up north to OSU country, don't use the red canvas top. It looks like you-know-who. Bring the blue one.

Gary got his wagon stolen by rivals at one point. Trashing and stealing campaign stuff is serious business since it violates someone's right to free speech and can ultimately be prosecuted as a federal crime. Don't even think about it. But in practice it happens. Bill Jennings of Pawnee was telling me how one year all their signs were getting trashed. So they put them up in trees. "What you do, is you bet a 10 yr. old boy that he can't climb that tree and post the sign," Bill explained. "Then he goes home and brags, pointing out the sign to all the neighbors and telling how nice the guy was who got him to do it."

Back to Mr. Vaughan and his campaign--he got an offer from a supporter to cut our stencils with a steel plasma cutter. Wow! That's really highbrow and professional, like Steve's campaign agenda.