Picayunish
Published Wednesday, October 20, 1999 in the Nevada County Picayune
Politics Spoken Here . . . During the morning, three or four shifts of coffee drinkers gather at Baker's Best Stop in Prescott for an early morning jolt of caffeine, breakfast or just general discussion of what is happening in Prescott or Nevada County. No topic is sacred and many of the coffee drinkers have no problems talking about politics or politicians with a remarkable amount of conservatism being discussed. The best thing about drinking coffee in an establishment such as Baker's is most everybody is willing to talk about a subject or somebody not only when they are absent, but also when they are present. A case point is local Senator, and congressional hopeful, Mike Ross. Ross jokingly reflects that the type of abuse he receives in the morning prepares for the day when he comes across the occasional detractor. Baker's is a hangout of sorts much like Harvey's over near Camden. Harvey's, if you have never stopped by for barbecue, is on Highway 24 on the right - just before you get to the Camden city limits. Politics are always spoken there and quite a few photos are hung on the walls displaying their many visitors and political friends.
Did You Notice? We noticed, while in the aforementioned coffee shop, that a couple of the communities beautification pots had been placed by the gas pumps. You probably have noticed the pots on the curbs near the streets of downtown merchants. It is thought, though not verified, that these pots were moved there after another downtown business closed. If those in front of the coffee shop are a lot like ours, many shins will be skinned on the pots in addition to countless cigarette butts that will blow out when the wind blows. We didn't know if anybody else had noticed.
Politics Make Strange . . . While politics come up for discussion quite a bit at the coffee shop I've noticed that many of the community's good Democrats are quite conservative in their thinking, while others embrace liberality with open arms. If you have ever paid attention to election results every two or four years when there are state and national contested races, you find that quite a number of Republicans get quite a few votes including the Presidential race, before Bill Clinton ran for office. While Clinton never did do well in certain parts of the county when he was running for governor, he did better as a Presidential candidate. President Ronald Reagan carried the county during his years as President as did President Bush the first time he ran. It goes to show that even Democrats recognized a good conservative candidate when they see one, it is just that most of the time the candidate is a Republican.
What Party? Now that you are not required to register as a member of the Democrat, Republican or Reform Party before you vote, many people cross lines in voting as they should. What party someone belongs to when they run for office is not near as important as how well the candidate will do once elected to the office. As a rule, I vote for the person more than the political party. And yes, I consider candidates that are more conservative over those that embrace liberal philosophies.
Clearing The Air . . . Last week's column was about religion and the Andy Griffith program (not Andy Griffin). I recognize that I made a mistake in not checking my facts, but I think I got the point(s) across. I'm not sure whether I did get my point across, because I'm not sure what point I was trying to end at. If you go back and look at the programs, common sense will tell that today's television programs are not as moral as those from years past. But despite the morality or lack of morality of programs on television, I will always deride any religious organization that attempts to teach the bible by using everything plus the bible or as most cases, everything but the bible. It is a freedom the constitution grants me as it is the same constitution that allows them to worship the way they want. I will always defend those freedoms even if I don't agree with them.
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