Here is my dad's fourth monthly column of those I was able to save:
Thoughts from the Country by Rusty RuckerIf you like this one, Rusty Rucker No. 1 is here, Rusty Rucker No. 2 is here, Rusty Rucker No. 3 is here, and the assorted poems I recovered are here. Posted by Tiger at July 19, 2003 01:23 PM | TrackBackOld Rusty lives way back in the boonies with a couple of hound dogs and one lazy ole mule. With nothing to do all day except whittle and listen to the radio, he gets some off-the-wall ideas about our political structure and its impact on our daily lives. Maybe you will get a chuckle out of some of the stuff he has come up with, and who knows, you may even agree with parts of it.
November, 1998 Updated regularly -- Totally new first of every month.Now here is a touchy subject -- or to be more precise, an untouchy subject. When I was a lad in school my teacher was like a second mother. Since I wasn't blessed with a real mother past my third birthday because of divorce, she was a very important roll model in my early years. Then there was Mrs. Sutter, where I stopped almost every day to talk and maybe get a cookie or piece of fruit.
"What am I getting at?" you ask. Well, I'll tell you. We are over protective of our children. Sure they need to be taught not to get into cars with strangers and to immediately report any inappropriate conduct to a person of authority, but they shouldn't be taught that all friendly people are out to molest them.
Some little kids are so starved for affection they will take unnecessary risks to get what should be readily available from a teacher. The hugs kids used to get from their teachers were often the only show of tenderness they got all day.
There are Big Brother and Big Sister programs who solicit volunteers to be mentors to our youths. How ridiculous to forbid a teacher from hugging (or even touching) a child in his/her classroom when we are perfectly willing for the same youngster to spend private time with another person who has no higher credentials. Devilment can pop out from anywhere and we should all be alert to any potential danger. It really does take an entire cummunity to raise a child.
The sun can possibly cause skin cancer because it touches our skin, but we cover ourselves with lotion and play in it anyway. The comfort and joy derived form it's warmth makes us ready to take the risk.
Yes, there are perverts our there...always have been...always will be... But, there are also those who are just nice, good, friendly people that love kids and would die to protect one from harm. The second being more often than not. Undue fear is a negative energy that serves no positive purpose.
What y'all think about taking arms and legs and hearts and kidneys from the dead and giving them to the living? Seems like a good idea to me. A fatality comes only once in a lifetime and it's the last chance a person has to contribute to society and make death count for something worthwhile.
NEVER FORGET -- Big Brother is ALWAYS WATCHING!