SKEET FOR PRESIDENT

SKEET FOR PREZ

www.arainbowinthedark.com

(The following needs to be read as satire, otherwise no one will get it)

Skeet Carney, a main real character in A Rainbow in the Dark, always asked three questions of people he had mentored. I can just imagine Skeet doing his nervous tic of pulling at his slack pants with his elbows and swiping a finger along his lip, and asking:
1. Are you saving money?
2. Are you going to church?
3. Do you have insurance?

Our country is in a world of hurt. The only person not worried about the $16,000,000,000,000
of debt is the white fat guy on Fox News at 5 PM EST. Otherwise, the rest of us are a bit concerned.
And what's even scarier than the number is the fact that no one with the right resume is willing to be POTUS (president of the United States) in the next four years. I submit that the current and at least the last three presidents are largely responsible for the huge debt the U.S. now carries. One guy thought we didn't know if his lips were moving for us to read he was lying, the next fella needed a new belt because he had trouble keeping his pants up, the "decider" couldn't decide to quit starting wars, the present gent doesn't know that you can't sling a dead sea turtle without hitting a pipeline across the fruited plains so one more big pipe is going to harm nothing. And no one in congress is innocent in this mess either.
Let's boil this down. If you were making $40,000 a year and it cost you $38,000 a year to support your family of five, how are you going to get out of a $100,000 debt ? You likely cannot cut enough spending to get the money to pay off the debt. You need to make more money. Back to the government. How does DC get out of debt? The simple answer is live on less than you make-- Skeet's question, are you saving money ? But how does DC make money ? This is accomplished by cutting spending and increasing revenue. It is doubtful the debt will be handled by cutting spending alone. So we need more money. Do we raise taxes? Or do we lower taxes allowing businesses to make more money therefore stimulate the economy and more dollars find their way to DC. What is the answer? I DO NOT KNOW!! I say let's lock 10 of the smartest people we have in a room without any influence of politics. They don't get to come out until they have solved this problem.
Back to my concern. All of the GOP men have a problems. I will not insult the character or intelligence of any of them. I will not insult the readers of this blog by blasting any of them. But, in my opinion, none are qualified for the job. There were three great presidents: Washington, Lincoln, and William Henry Harrison. Harrison makes my list because he didn't live long enough to mess anything up. He served 30 days, 12 hours, and 30 minutes. He died of pneumonia. He was too stupid to not give a long speech in the freezing rain the day he was sworn in!
So, we need two things. The first is to amend the constitution to force congress members to serve one term and then go home and get a real job. If they are found within fifty miles of the Capitol, they get arrested. And in this amendment, we move the U.S. Capitol to Liberal Kansas to make being in congress a service rather than a perky opportunity. Why Liberal you ask? Have you ever been to Liberal? Enough said. The second thing is to find a Skeet Carney to be president. His three simple natural laws of life would likely be the answer to all that ails us. NO ONE in my opinion running for president should be president. We need someone who understands how to lead us with a foundation based on truth, living on less than we make, and preparing for the worst case senecio. I therefore ask, WHERE ARE THE SKEET CARNEYS of our day. Maybe they are all gone. But God help us find him or her. If you want to know more about who Skeet Carney is you need to read A Rainbow in the Dark. (this has been a shameless plug from a scared citizen.)

This Don't Make No Sense

The title of this blog is from one of the best movies ever made in the history of the world, "Oh Brother Where Art Though?" There some things in this world that don't make sense, but they are--TRUE. I guess these things might make sense if we understood the natural way of things better, But they don't make sense to our instinct or experience.
Years ago, I planted a tree. Planting a tree is something that should be in everyone's bucket list. In northwestern Oklahoma City, the dirt is not like it is in Roger Mills County where I grew up. Here, it is a red clay that is more like rock than dirt. This means digging a hole turns in to work really fast. The first tree planting went so well though I decided to plant another one. I've heard the saying "call before you dig." But I reasoned, that in this whole yard what would be the chances of hitting any utility or pipe with a small hole for a tree. Well, evidently, the chances were better than I thought. Because about two feet down, I hit a pipe. Turns out, I'm pretty good at finding the sewer pipe even when not looking for it. Luckily, no damage was done.
I filled the hole in with the dirt I had taken out of the hole. But the oddest thing happened, There was not enough dirt to go back into the hole I just dug. Now, "This don't make no sense" I thought to myself. It will remain one of those things I just will never understand about life. Why does the dirt taken out of the hole not match the dirt placed in the hole.
There's something else that doesn't make any sense. Often when we spend money on ourselves, we just end up with less money in our pocket. But, when we give money away, somehow we seem to get money back. The prosperity preachers have taken advantage of this unusual fact and made an entire theology and a fortune out of it. I don't know how this works. I certainly don't know if God keeps account of things like this. I do know there is a "natural law" that seems to bring money back those who give.
In our book, A Rainbow in the Dark, Skeet Carney is shown as a giving man. He was more giving than anyone knows. As I have spoken with people, I believe now that Skeet Carney gave away as much money as he ever made, yet he never wanted for money. Skeet seemed to figure this odd secret out early in his life. A story that is not in the book, but actually happened involved Kirk's class ring. Kirk went to Skeet one day and asked for an advance in his pay. He needed $5 as a down payment of his class ring. Skeet asked "How much does the ring cost?" When Kirk told him "$36.10.", Skeet quietly went to his little office and wrote a check for the entire amount and told Kirk it was his gift.
This is not the only example of Skeet's giving. I met a man the other day that is a doctor from Atoka. When he read A Rainbow in the Dark, he wept. He wept because he knew Skeet well. He knew the Skeet we captured in the book was the Skeet he knew. This doctor told me when he graduated from High School in Atoka, Skeet came to his house with a card. In that card was a $100 bill. Who knows how many young people Skeet did this for. It seemed to be his way of telling young people, "I believe in you. I'm investing in you!" There is no doubt Skeet did this sort of thing for countless people. Yet, another one of his passions was saving money. He always asked young people if they were saving money for the future. Skeet was an odd little man. I think he was filled up with more of God than anyone I've ever heard of. Yet, no one ever mentions how Skeet told them about God. Everyone that knew him, seems to tell of how he showed them God. Now that is something that makes sense.

BOOK SITE: A RAINBOW IN THE DARK