How Does Rural America Measure Up?

As the quote and link below indicate the researchers were surprised, they must have been overwhelmed by their own vast conventional education. People in rural America have been making due with far less than their urban counterparts since urban became a word.

For many people "rural" is synonymous with low incomes, limited economic opportunity, and poor schools. However, a recent study found that much of rural America is actually prosperous, particularly in the Midwest and Plains.

Researchers just had to look at things differently to see the prosperity.

The study - announced today and based on data from the year 2000 - analyzed unemployment rates, poverty rates, high school drop-out rates, and housing conditions to identify prospering communities. The result: One in five rural counties in the United States is prosperous, doing better than the nation as a whole on all these measures.
source: Rural America Surprisingly Prosperous, Study Finds

Sign of Things To Come?

Many people indicate the what happens in Europe in an indication what will be come to the U.S. in a generation. The exception I would make for the below linked article is that instead of the European Union we will continue down the path of the North American Union until we are full fledged members.

At midnight last night, the United Kingdom ceased to be a sovereign state

Slow Down or Stop

Texas Sheriff vs New York Lawyer

A lawyer runs a stop sign and gets pulled over by a sheriff's deputy.

He thinks that he is smarter than the deputy because he is a lawyer from New York

and is certain that he has a better education then any cop from Houston , TX .

He decides to prove this to himself and have some fun at the Texas deputy's expense.

The deputy says, "License and registration, please.."

"What for?" says the lawyer.

The deputy says, "You didn't come to a complete stop at the stop sign."

Then the lawyer says, "I slowed down, and no one was coming."

"You still didn't come to a complete stop," says the deputy. "License and registration, please."

The lawyer says, "What's the difference?"

"The difference is you have to come to complete stop, that's the law.

License and registration, please!" the Deputy repeats.

Lawyer says, "If you can show me the legal difference between slow down and stop,

I'll give you my license and registration; and you give me the ticket.

If not, you let me go and don't give me the ticket."

"That sounds fair. Please exit your vehicle, sir," the deputy says.

At this point, the deputy takes out his nightstick and starts beating the daylights out of the lawyer and says,

"Do you want me to stop, or just slow down?"

God Bless Texas

Drilling a Water Well Cheap

If you are a DIY type here is a good idea for drilling your own water well. Our water table it too deep here but I would try this in short order if we lived somewhere that had water closer to the surface.

An Inexpensive, Do-It-Yourself Water Well

Got Goat?

One of our goats demonstrating their constant curiosity.