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acptulsa
07-24-2010, 08:47 AM
On the Ides of August, 1935, Wiley Post attempted to take off from a remote Inuit settlement not far from Pt. Barrow, Alaska. He climbed sharply, apparently starving the engine of his homebuilt aircraft for fuel. The plane crashed, and both he and Will Rogers died.

As Post was, at the time, as celebrated as Lindberg and Earhardt (and with good reason) and Rogers was the top box office draw Hollywood had, the result was electric. The news was heard around the world, and unprecedented crowds came to view the bodies as they lay in state. For more about Wiley Post, check here:

http://www.centennialofflight.gov/essay/Explorers_Record_Setters_and_Daredevils/Wiley_Post/EX27.htm

Well, folks, in about three weeks, on 8/15/2010, it will be the seventy-fifth anniversary of that tragedy. And, to no one's surprise, the Powers That Be still seem to want us to forget that the inestimable Will Rogers, the one American who can hold a candle to Mark Twain, ever opened his big mouth.

I say we trump their asses on this subject. Rogers said, 'A comedian can only last 'till he either takes himself serious or his audience takes him serious, and I don't want either one of those to happen to me 'till I am dead.' Well, friends, he's been dead seventy-five years and I say it's way, way past time we took Will Rogers seriously, indeed.

And as an added bonus, we can at the same time embarass the hell out of the MSM for underestimating us.

Here's some useful stuff for the purpose, which I have been working on for a couple of years now and am continuing to fatten up:

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?t=130543

It's a long thread, but painless. And what's more, you will find it contains useful ammo for any number of current topics. So, I have a suggestion. Why not let Will do our arguing for us for a few weeks? Shall we find useful quotes from the man (he spouted a million of 'em) and say, in your internet battles, something like this:

In honor of the roundly ignored diamond anniversary of his death, I think I'll just let Will Rogers argue with you:

[Insert quote]

Just a thought. But I do strongly believe that we have a rare opportunity to strike blows for his memory, ourselves, and all the downtrodden 'common men' in all of the U.S. in this 'forgotten' anniversary.

For those able to travel this summer, I plan to be at the Will Rogers Memorial in Claremore, Ok. on Sunday afternoon, August 15th, for as long as I can stand the sauna (sorry, but our August weather is seldom to never pleasant, but I'll be there). If anyone would care to join me there, I should be very happy to see you. My ETA will be about two in the afternoon.

This 'forgotten' anniversary serves our purposes in so many vital ways that I sincerely hope you will join me in celebrating it--loudly, joyfully, and with abandon!

P.S. Please bump this thread at Will (naw, I dident intend that pun), and if you find I've missed one of your favorite Rogersisms, please please add it to that other thread! Many thanks!

acptulsa
07-24-2010, 09:15 AM
Oh, and for those who don't think Rogers could possibly be topical today, a little treat:

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showpost.php?p=2807561&postcount=176

BuddyRey
07-24-2010, 11:49 AM
I was only very recently introduced to the witty aphorisms of Will Rogers, but what little I've read has been golden. I don't know quite how he managed to escape this plane of existence without equaling in fame to that other great social humorist of the era, H.L. Mencken - but his legacy most certainly deserves a modern resurgence.

acptulsa
07-26-2010, 09:44 AM
I was only very recently introduced to the witty aphorisms of Will Rogers, but what little I've read has been golden. I don't know quite how he managed to escape this plane of existence without equaling in fame to that other great social humorist of the era, H.L. Mencken - but his legacy most certainly deserves a modern resurgence.

He was more famous than Mencken. The latter was mainly known around Baltimore, Will Rogers was a nationwide sensation. He was the biggest box office draw of 1934.

It is in the seventy-five years since his death that he has been buried.

Cowlesy
07-26-2010, 10:13 AM
I have a book about Will Rogers somewhere --- I'll have to find it and read it

acptulsa
07-26-2010, 10:29 AM
Carl Sandburg thought he should be taught in the schools.

He isn't--not even here in Oklahoma.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt said he would be remembered forever. He spoke at Roosevelt's nominating convention, and I don't believe his words have been heard at a Democratic convention since.

Clearly, his memory is in our hands.

acptulsa
08-06-2010, 01:08 PM
It looks like Claremore won't be the only commemoration. Just among the very few, unfortunately.

http://www.willrogers.com/new/articles/2010-Fly-In/4-state.html

acptulsa
08-06-2010, 02:56 PM
I really like this idea of using his words to make our arguments, and I like it for three reasons.

One, he said, practiced, and really understood that illustration teaches better than lectures. And that's something we all need to practice.

Two, Oscar Wilde said if you tell them the truth, you had better make them laugh or they'll kill you. This was another of his strengths.

Three, he died seventy-five years ago. I can't think of a better way to illustrate the timelessness of the truths we espouse than to show how little things have improved since his time.