Designer Masks
Rodeo
Seeking likeminded
Brothers and Sisters
By Stephen L. Wilmeth
The
question is where to start.
Is the
quest to record the bad news or is the quest to find something other than bad
news to write about? The hinterland folks in this neck of the woods are weary
as in spelling that word in capital letters. A stop by Mesilla’s famed La Posta
Friday to get a much needed infusion of Katy Griggs’ secret recipe red chile is
a recent case example.
Owner and
friend, Tom, stopped by the table to visit and thank us for the patronage in this
pandemic ravaged assault on our lives. Even with his Naval Academy education,
he found it hard to express what the masked world of politics is doing to his
business. The words and any expression of meaning are just harder and harder to
find.
Somehow
politicians must learn their center of gravity is not synonymous with the
center of the universe. Two real world examples are looming with little
consideration of consequence.
The
continuing theme of deficit spending is one. Other than making a schoolteacher or
government official adopt a restaurant worker in order to cover his or her monthly
expenses until this nonsense is over, how else can the suggestion we are all in
this together be qualified. Likewise, the notion that government spending can
buy the path to resolution is insane. Extracting wealth or borrowing are
bridges to nowhere.
Food
inflation is also on the verge of exploding. It is the second of sheer cliff implications.
Watching
the food price index may not be akin to reading the morning sports, but farmers
and ranchers look at such stuff. It gives us an inkling how our businesses are
going to be buffeted by the next wave of political tomfoolery.
Insight
into the problem are the November results. Food came in at 105 points on the
index of inflationary trends. That is 6.4 points over last November. It was the largest month over month increase
since 2012. Cereals were up 2.7, dairy and meats were up .9, sugar was up 2.9,
and vegetable oils were up a whopping 15.4 points.
You wanta’
know who is watching this on a national level? China is watching this, and they
are putting policy in place to respond.
As for the
United States and the lesser and unequal state of New Mexico, the greater theme
seems to be whether or not designer masks are going to a permanent feature of
future attire.
Rodeo
Of course,
this is why Thursday night was so special!
The 2020
version of the National Finals Rodeo (NFR) was unveiled in patriotic fashion in
Globe Life Park, the new home of baseball’s Texas Rangers, in Arlington, Texas.
With Hadley Barrett gone from us, it was the magnificence of Bob Tallman’s melodic
baritone voice that brought us home to Texas to escape the rest of the crazy
world for the next ten days.
The whole
thing was grand Americana, Texas style.
If you have
never witnessed an opening ceremony of an NFR go-round, it should be added to
your bucket list and this one was no exception. It is an exposé of broke horses
and patriotism. It is a play on light and contrast starting with a prayer to
our Lord and Savior and followed by our national anthem.
If you
don’t know when, where, and why to take your hat off, you are not welcome.
What plays
out afterwards is a recapitulation of the defining events of American history.
No, it is not just Western although that is largely the cast of participants.
It is microcosm of what created this model we still reference as America when
it is mentioned by involuntary reflex. The emphasis of youth with proud elder
support, the danger, the promise, the excitement, the disappointment, the
antagonists, the partnerships, the suspense, the skirmish with unknowns, the
mission, the union of souls, the paths to success, the sorrow, the joys, the
rewards, and the ultimate creation of continuing heritage are all components of
the process.
It is ours,
and … Texas is the best stage in the world to present and maintain it.
Seeking likeminded
Brothers and Sisters
Through the
first two performances, two governors added words and appearances to the
festivities. First, Governor Greg Abbott welcomed the event back to hallowed
ground after 59 years of absence, and, then the second night, South Dakota
governor, Kristi Noem, presented the colors horseback.
Both wore hats and they wore them
with esoteric confidence.
It was
Noem, though, that proved without a doubt she is a horseman. Wearing full
regalia including chaps embossed with the South Dakota seal and her family
ranch brand, she appeared out the darkness riding a collected horse and
carrying the flag. She remained at arena center in the spotlight as the
national anthem was sung. As the song played out, the horse began to fidget,
but the governor held things in order until her cue to depart was signaled. Wheeling
off leg pressure, she and her partner loped out of the arena.
The soon to
be grandmother is a cowgirl.
She and her
Texas counterpart also revealed another reason why rodeo is a bastion of
culture that is vital to the health of our country. The lesson is learned from
scripture. I Peter 3:8 reminds us the importance of seeking likeminded brothers
and sisters.
Finally,
all of you should be of one mind. Be sympathetic, love one another like
brothers and sisters and be compassionate and humble.
Rodeo does
that. It has forever been the most color blind and inclusive sport. It is not
who you are, but, rather, what you are. In every aspect, it demands the intricacies
of harmony like no other endeavor.
Isn’t that what
America should be?
Stephen L.
Wilmeth is a rancher from southern New Mexico. “Open up the ceiling and play
Bob Wills music concluding the last performance, and … dance under a big Texas
sky.”
*****************************
Wilmeth was looking for a place to start. He found it and then proceeds to produce another timely and thoughtful column.
He mentions deficit spending and food inflation. I would add to those something more surreptitious that will devalue our currency and lead to widespread inflation. If you haven't seen it, take a gander at this chart showing what they have done to our money supply. It should scare the bejesus out of everyone...Frank DuBois
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