Troubled Times

I agree that all times are troubled times, maybe not all over, but there is always trouble going on someplace. What makes it seem worse nowadays is that we are made instantly aware of any trouble that happens anywhere, so we feel closer to it than we used to.

I agree that the Tea Party paved the way for the rise of Trump, although I don't know if either Trump or the Tea Party have publically endorsed each other. On the other hand, the Tea Party itself would probably not have been organized if Obama hadn't been elected president. We can also thank Obama for the fact that more people own guns in this country than ever before. I saw on the Bloomberg Channel the other day that Smith & Wesson stock goes up every time Obama makes a speech about gun control.

I remember Ross Perot. He was stone crazy but he got over 19% of the vote. Imagine what would happen if a rational regular guy had that kind of influence. You don't have to be rich to run for president, but it certainly helps. If you're as rich as Perot or Trump you don't have to kiss up to a bunch of people to raise campaign funds because money follows money. Being rich doesn't necessarily make you a bad guy, but it doesn't necessarily make you a good guy either. What this country needs is a good, rich, smart, brave, conservative regular guy who has the ability and the ambition to run for president, get elected, and then do a good job once he gets the job.

My rant about the wall and the camps was a little tongue in cheek, but not much. I was trying to point out that ridding this country of Mexicans, Muslims, or anybody else would be a lot more difficult than Trump supposes. I'm sure his message is attractive to a lot of people. I might go for it myself if I thought he would really do it if elected, or if it would even work if he tried. He is just telling people what they want to hear, which is what politicians do. Those undesirables should never have been allowed into the country in the first place, but they're here now, so the best we can do is stock up on ammunition and hide in the swamp.

The fishing in your neighborhood is probably as good as it is in mine. When I left Chicago that water was so polluted that only carp could live in it, but I understand it has been cleaned up over the years. Hunting is a different story. Shopping is not hunting. As I get older, hunting and fishing seems to be getting less important than it once was, but elbow room is more important than ever. I would never be happy living in crowded conditions like you do. I suppose a guy could get used to it, but I don't want to.