It is a huge Veterans Day down at the farm. Thanks for your service, Vets. You, and the long line of citizen soldiers have kept us free: Marines, Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard, have kept us free.

Not that one Vet didn’t tweak me first thing, but I will get to that in a minute.

I had been shooting for the big erection by this holiday. No, no, not that. I felt it was time for Refuge Farm to stand up and be counted. In order to do so, I got a quote from Don-The-Builder and commissioned the planting of a flagpole at the front end of the driveway.

Here is how it looked last week:

(A good solid base, two feet deep with partly cured concrete. Photo Socotra.)

I was hoping the storms and all that rain would not preclude a good set to the gray mud, since the pole itself was no flimsy tube. This one is a hefty industrial grade pole:

(The pole rests on blocks in the garage. It is similar to the way the 16” replacement barrels for the guns on the Iowa-class Battleships were stored in rows at Subic Bay in the RP. Photo Socotra.)

When I wheeled the Panzer in off the county road, I saw that Don’s guys had completed the job, and the pole was ready to fly Old Glory, the 5x8FT trophy flag I bought at Hillary Clinton’s former campaign HQ in Arlington when she quit the race against President Obama in 2007.

There was quite a ceremony in honor of the day. I found the clips on the rope, attached the top one to the grommet on the blue field with stars, and wrapped the foot of the banner around my shoulder to ensure it did not touch the ground. I raised it enough to get the lower grommet attached, and made an adjustment to the span between them on the main sheet.

Then, up she went.

(Hillary’s Flag is a little large for the 18Ft of pole, but it radiates serenity.)

I stepped back and looked at the physical manifestation of devotion to country and service as it tossed limply in the nearly still air and country quiet. Then I went and got a glass of wine.

Sure, sure, I know there are deficiencies. For the present, I will have to have an evening retreat since I have not figured out how to illuminate it for night-time display. But I will get around to it.

Anyway, the formal retreat happened sometime around cocktail hour, and the Russians were over in augmented numbers with one of the daughters, a neat kid, and there was plenty of local food cooked by an almost local, and plenty of laughter.

The flag went back up at the Dawn’s Early Light in honor of the day and then I cruised through the mail that had piled up over night.

The first one I saw was a brain-teaser and I had not consumed enough coffee to be poked like that. Here it is, see if you can identify these familiar concepts:

Subject: Who’s platform/concept is this?

“The key planks of the Share The Wealth platform included:

No person would be allowed to accumulate a personal net worth of more than 300 times the average family fortune, which would limit personal assets to between $5 million and $8 million.

A graduated capital levy tax would be assessed on all persons with a net worth exceeding $1 million.

Annual incomes would be limited to $1 million and inheritances would be capped at $5 million.

Every family was to be furnished with a homestead allowance of not less than one-third the average family wealth of the country. Every family was to be guaranteed an annual family income of at least $2,000 to $2,500, or not less than one-third of the average annual family income in the United States. Yearly income, however, cannot exceed more than 300 times the size of the average family income.

An old-age pension would be made available for all persons over 60.

To balance agricultural production, the government would preserve/store surplus goods, abolishing the practice of destroying surplus food and other necessities due to lack of purchasing power.

Veterans would be paid what they were owed (a pension and healthcare benefits).

Free education and training for all students to have equal opportunities in all schools, colleges, universities, and other institutions for training in the professions and vocations of life.

The raising of revenue and taxes for the support of this program was to come from the reduction of swollen fortunes from the top, as well as for the support of public works to give employment whenever there may be any slackening necessary in private enterprise.”

Like I said, I was in no mood to be trifled with, so I copied the name of the platform and Googled it. You will not be surprised to see that it was the campaign plan of Huey “My Man” Long, the Original Kingfish.
He was a chicken in every pot sort of guy, the legendary Louisiana Popullist Governor was. He was going to run for President against FDR on this plan, but was gunned down in 1935 at the age of 42. I sent the answer back over the airwaves via the satellite and moved on.

(The Kingfish on the stump in 1935. Photo Bettman Archives.)

Forty-two. Damn, I thought. Such a short time to be on the planet.

The numbers alone should have been a dead giveaway, dating it to the Great Depression.  The clause that specified “Every family to be guaranteed an annual family income of at least $2,000 to $2,500” should have precluded the need to aid my failing memory with the search engine.

Imagine $2,500 smackers of 1934 dollars as a base income, adjusted in constant dollars. According to my CPI calculator, which works even down on the farm, one greenback in 1934 had the equivalent buying power of $17.27 today- and God knows what it will be worth in a couple minutes when Ben Bernanke gets done printing off this weekend’s new $40B backed by nothing but happy thoughts and unicorns.

That is around $43,000 bucks, today for that promised government pension, or just about dead on the American average income of $45,000 to sit around on your fat butt.

Which I have to say, given the times and my failing faculties, I think I would. Or will.

Anyway, I thank my dyspeptic pal for sending it along. It is great to see all the progress we have made in eighty years. Forward!

Or something. I am happy to be at the farm, where now Old Glory flies, and long may she wave.

Happy Veterans Day.

Copyright 2012 Vic Socotra
www.vicsocotra.com