May your Holidays be Great Again…
N.B. I have been advised not to name the man who will never be named again in The Notes From The Room Of Wonder. Apparently, there are ‘Forces’ out there who seek ‘Key Words’, looking for mischief and the like. These ‘Forces’, if “They” suspect a writer does not like them…well, “They” shut them down. To be fair, ‘They” do what “They” do in in hopes of Making America Great Again.
A “One Question Quiz”: WHEN WAS AMERICA GREAT? (Suggested Answers below) …..Was it?:
- Before 2009: After that, in 2010, the Supreme Court Decided Corporations (were ‘people, too’) could put in as much money as they wanted to influence American politics. And it all went downhill from there.
- Before 1491: Before the White man discovered America and there were only Indians running around.
- 1863 and before: (If you were a White plantation owner.) The cotton was high and it sold for a lot of Confederate dollars. Romantic times, You could see the movie “Gone With The Wind” for more on this.
- During the 1920’s – up to 1929: Once again it helped if you were a White person, living in the North East, if you owned a Steel, Oil or Railroad business.
- 1927: When the New York Yankees were at the top of their Game …with Babe Ruth pitching and hitting Home runs and everybody listening to the game on the radio and eating peanuts and having a good time of it in our Great America. or…
- In the 1950’s-60’s: When you listened to baseball on the car radio and you heard “It’s a swing and a crack of the bat and it’s up, up and away for another home run” …and your father would honk his horn and you could hear horns honking in the hills. You can’t make that come back again, no matter how many You Know Who’s Bibles you sell, or Gold colored Sneakers …but maybe a little Presidential Vodka might help pass the time.
- 1945: When Oppenheimer first exploded an Atomic bomb and ushered in the ‘Nuclear War Age’. Shortly after the first explosion we dropped a bomb on Hiroshima and then (maybe by accident) one on Nagasaki. This taught foreigners not to poke us in the eye forever again…until now, maybe.
- From 1789 – to around 1868: When only White men could own property and vote and things were simpler…for some.
- 1954-1974: Our ‘involvement’ in Vietnam, where we went to stop the ‘Commies’ from coming to our shores. (Or similar international forays in: Iraq (2003-2011), or Afghanistan (2001-2021)
- 1950s’-1970s: When Elvis took to the stage, then came Dylan and the Beetles, Waylon & Willie and don’t forget Jonnie Cash…those were the best of times; but I don’t think you can make them come back.
- 1957-1965: People could watch Jim Brown (#32 for the Cleveland Browns) run over everybody on the football field…the Greatest of all time…and see it live for about five bucks. Some argue Broadway Joe Namath was the Greatest of the Great Times, as he invented the Forward Pass and beat the Colts in ’67 and brought the AFL into the NFL which eventually sent seat prices to the moon.
To be cont’d.
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A few quotes
- “He who can persuade you to believe absurdities can persuade you to commit atrocities.” – This is known as ‘Voltaire’s Warning’.
- “A chicken in every pot. And a car in every backyard, to boot.” – A 1928 campaign advertisement touting a period of “Republican prosperity” (Today, the Repubs are hoping to give us a lower priced egg.)
And “Goodnight” to Alice, wherever you are.
