My Mother

Mary Ethel Orene Burgess Clifford came from Southern Illinois, to Gainesville, AR in a covered wagon with her Mother Florence Higdon Burgess and her Father James Oscar Burgess along with Brothers Gilbert and Gene, Sisters Frankie, Carrie, and Rena. Her Grandfather James had migrated from Ireland in 1860. He got off a ship in New York, (age 17 or 18) and having no source of income, walked across the street to a Union Recruiting booth and joined the Union Army as a water boy. Somewhere along the way he became familiar with the Navy and after the war found himself Captain and half owner of a Riverboat. His partner was a Riverboat Gambler. They sold the boat and built the first brick building in Greenville, MS. It was a hotel and a bar on the first floor with a house of ill repute on the second floor. The Gambler owed a debt of $5,000.00 and booked passage up North to pay off the debt, never returning.

I don’t know a lot about how James Jr. was born, but at some point, his father took him or at least left him in Southern Illinois with a woman and her daughter. The woman treated James well but the daughter was a tyrant, often beating James with a stick of firewood.

James was told by his father that on the event of his death James should come to Greenville and remove a stone from the fireplace where money or inheritance would be found. James did travel there on word of the death of his father. But when the Lawyers let him in the house, someone had already removed all the contents behind the stone, leaving James a long, hungry journey by foot back to Gainesville, AR.
Mary married Thomas Jewel (T.J. or Tom) Clifford. Their primary residence was a Duplex 2 storied house at 901 Rector Rd, built by Toms Mother Bertha B. Good Clifford. Bertha sold a pair of mules for the lumber to build the house. She then borrowed the mules to haul the lumber to the house site; paying two men to rough frame the house which she then finished roof and all. Tom, a Plumber/Master Pipefitter, his wife Mary and their son Jerry lived in one side of the duplex and Tom’s sister Zula Loften with sons Joe (Sonny) and Richard Loften in the other side. In time, Tom and Mary bought the other half of the duplex from the Loften’ s.
After the end of WWII Tom and Mary had a Baby Boom son named Larry, and two years later a daughter Nancy. Jerry had joined the Navy just after the Korean War ended and was quite surprised his parents started a second family.
Mary took a trip to Flint, Michigan to visit family working up there and her Mother’s Sister Rose. She came back to Paragould a day or two early and found Tom building a fishing boat in her kitchen. Piles of sawdust and debris greeted her. She of course threw a fit and told Tom if he could build a boat in the kitchen at least she could get a flour bin and nice cabinets built. She did that very week.

Mary was well known for her cooking and baking. As members of North End Mission, later Calvary Baptist Church, Mary always kept her table open for several different Pastors, Evangelists, Music Ministers and of course family. Guests would literally pass out after their Sunday meals and take naps much of the afternoons in the Clifford living room. There was a couch and chair, a recliner, a chase lounge, a rocking chair and of course a carpeted living room floor, and in the summer a hammock and porch swing out back. After naps, there were always plenty of leftovers before heading back to Church for the Evening Services.
Even as a kid I was amazed at the amount and variety of foods my Mom could produce in that little Kitchen. Before Daylight on Sunday Mom would start browning fried chicken. She’d have to break off cooking and drive our family car to pick up about a dozen or so ladies for Church, (Bertha Lloyd, Hattie Tucker, Shirley Latham, and many I can’t remember). The Church didn’t have a Church Bus so Mom supplied that service. She’d have to make two trips before Church, two trips after Church and then run home to finish getting the meal on the table. Sunday meals were a major operation. It took a 3-quart pressure cooker filled with potatoes to make enough mashed potatoes for the throng. There would be corn, green beans, and often sweet potatoes, rolls, at least two skillets of fried chicken, and white milk gravy. There was a little kids table, a breakfast bar, and the large dining room table. Even then some people had to take a plate to the living room. Many times, Mom would feed 25 people on Sunday.
Mom was famous in the neighborhood for all sorts of pies and cakes. There was always a plate of fried pies on the breakfast bar, along with leftover bacon, sausage, biscuits and white gravy from breakfast. As a boy I could walk by any time of the day and grab a snack. She made every kind of treat, cupcakes, cookies including vanilla and chocolate swirls, chocolate chip, sugar, and oatmeal, and even huge 4-5-inch cream puffs. Mom always kept wax paper rolls of cookie dough ready to slice off and bake in the refrigerator.
One of the families who were regular guests was the Tommy McDaniel Family with their son Gene McDaniel and his sister. Tommy was Music Minister at Calvary for quite some time. Mom always had a Folger’s Coffee Can filled with Sugar Cookies for Gene and one with Chocolate Chip Cookies for his sister.

Mary Clifford has been gone for many years now, but many people still remember her name from the 30 years she worked in the Church Nursery.

Tucker Carlson is One Confused Puppy

      Tucker Carlson's recent Anti-Capitalist Rant has ruined my Opinion of him. I use to like him. Not any more. He is confused, and Satan is always the Author of Confusion.
      His Problem I believe is his personal definition of Elites. He fails to see there are Two entirely different Categories of Elites. There are Capitalist Elites upon whom America depends for Jobs, Job and Wage Growth, and Economic Advancement. And then there are Hollywood and/or Sports Elites, who don't contribute anything except playing a Role or Playing a Game. On the First we Americans depend for our daily and yearly welfare and wellbeing. From the latter we get only meaningless opinions on Social Media. 

      Hollywood and Sports Elites don't influence our Bank Accounts or Tax Returns but they sure do influence our behaviors, good and bad, but for the most part toward a Negative Result, (transgender Public Restrooms, legalizing Pot and other Drugs, homosexual perversion, rioting on the streets, anti-Church/Anti-Christian/Anti-Bible and Anti-Marriage prejudices). These are the type of things that harm and devalue our Western Society. 

       Clearly Capitalism is the Lifeblood of any thriving Economy and Socialism is the Enemy of Economic Prosperity. To attack Capitalism is to attack our livelihood, our Economic Health, our entire Future as a Nation. Any call for Socialism is a call for the Death of America. There is no room for Confusion, to be confused is to close your eyes to the Death of our Republic.
     I feel Sorry for Tucker. He was a good host. He was entertaining and thought provoking. Somewhere he got off the Rail. He lost his way. He got stuck in Muddy Anti-Capitalism and became Confused. He forgot what Built America in the first place.

Facts about a Wall

      Here is a List of Facts about a Wall to keep the bad guys out:

1. A Wall by any other Name is still a Wall. Government Agencies say we need a wall we can see through to access the threat that may be approaching, so steel slats fit that scenario.
2. Walls work and they do so without pay.
3. Walls don't go to sleep on duty, they don't get drunk on duty, or get distracted by a sports broadcast or a magazine. They work day or night, in all kinds of weather, even on Holidays.
4. Famous People swear by Walls. If you don't believe it here is a partial list: Barack Hussein Obama has a wall around his new home in Washington, Nancy Pelosi has a Wall, the Vatican has a Wall, Chinese Emperors built a wall across half a continent and it has lasted for centuries with little upkeep. Even Heaven has a Wall. Revelation 21:12 (KJV)
"And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:"
5. Walls don't go off line or quit working when the power goes out. Sensors are great but they fail at times.
6. Walls lead to organized entry, and organized always beats chaos.
  

What;s Going on in the Stock Market

According to Reuters, this holiday shopping season has been the best in 6 years due to a robust economy. There is nothing at all wrong with the Stock Market. While it is a fact that this has been the biggest Christmas selloff since the 30's Depression, it has nothing to do, or at least very much, with tariffs, or China Trade, or certainly not Trump's Tweets. No, the two main reasons for the Stock Market dropping, are first of all; Computerized Algorithms based on the needs of Fearmongering Traders. These Algorithms are designed to make sure greedy traders never lose a penny and that all loses fall on every day Stock Holders and not on themselves. As soon as there is any bad news, any whatsoever, regarding the Stock Market these programs are designed to sell off quick at the first hint of trouble. The Programs themselves are the Trouble. They start a Landslide, Snowballing, Multi-day selloff when a simple correction is all that is called for. The Second Problem is the Fed overcorrecting and selling off assets from their own ledger. The Chairman could have avoided a selloff by a few carefully chosen words in his last report, but he chose not to. He chose instead not to say a word and let the Stock Market react negatively. He wanted to hurt Trump; to make him look bad; to get even for Trump Tweets he didn't like. Yes, Fat Cats are Always Greedy, the Fed is Greedy, big time Traders are Always Greedy. Artificial Intelligence, (eg. Algorithms), is never intelligent enough to do the right thing. Cold and Callous, all Computers know to do is make money for their owners, Damn the Stock Market, and innocent 401K Owners. Grab the Cash before someone else does. So quit listening to the Nay Sayers and the Leftist Media, (but then that's the same thing isn't it?). Nothing here is Trump's fault. That may be the way the Media and the DNC want to Twist it but Trump is doing a completely marvelous job. The only ones Squawking are the Swamp Creatures going down the Drain, and the Media who need Swamp Creature drama because they can't write a True Story and make it interesting. We all had a Wonderful Christmas because Trump has put our money back in our own pockets. Trump even thought enough of our Troops to make a Midnight Run to Iraq and visit them to build Moral. The Stock Market will Rebound, in fact it is doing so as I write this. America is in Good Hands. We Elected a Champion. Happy New Year!

Good Guys on the Battlefront

      Do you consider yourself a Good Guy? Me too! There are two related Battlefronts in America that we Good Guys maintain. One is Political. We occupy the ranks of the Patriotic Conservative. Our Enemy is every mind, and every thought, on the Left no matter how slightly left that might be. Fundamental Conservativism is the only way to protect our Country, our Morals, our Virtues. Everything else is tainted with Liberalism. Saying you are a Moderate is saying you will accept being infected and corrupted by Partial Liberalism. All Virtue: Capitalism, Our Constitution, Religious Freedom, Justice, in fact everything we value depends on a firm foundation of Conservatism. Without it Truth, Liberty, and Freedom are lost and meaningless.

       The Second Battlefront is Christianity, Believers are an Army. The only way any Person will ever see Heaven is through Jesus Christ. No Buddhist, or Muslim, or Hindu will find Heaven. Christ is the only Way, the only Door. Jesus is the Gate Keeper. Even our Catholic Friends are in Danger. So many Catholics have never been taught that they need a Personal Relationship with the Savior. They don't know they must be Born Again. Catholic Rituals, Relics, and Prayer Beads mean nothing. Priests can't forgive Sin. Only the Blood of Christ can accomplish that. Cults like Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, and others are also in Harm's Way. We are Commanded to carry the Gospel to every creature. 

Matthew 28:18-20 (KJV) ¹⁸  And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
¹⁹  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
²⁰  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
      It is a Solemn Charge we have been given. The Souls of Millions of sinners are in our hands. Those we do not reach will spend their eternities in Hell with Satan and his Demons. Many will look into our face, as they are cast into Hell, and say, "Why did you not tell me about Jesus?" Who is it you should be telling?
      Again, everything Left of Center is the Enemy no matter how slightly to the Left; and everything short of Pure Righteousness is Sin no matter how slight the Sin might seem it is still Sin. That is Satan's oldest ploy. Saying, "surely God didn't mean that." Well, God meant it. Sin is Sin, black is black, dark is dark, and only Light is Light.
      Christians cannot accept Sin in any form. They can't Vote for it in a Democrat Ballot, they can't vote for people who support it, they can't do it hypocritically on Tuesday and act differently on Sunday. The same on the Political Front. Patriots can't support anything Left of Center. No Lotteries (taxes on the poor and unknowing), Minimum Wages (again taxes on the poor and uninformed) Abortion (Premeditated Murder of Unborn Souls) Legalization of Drugs (Again this is a tax on the poor and uneducated. Drugs and Alcohol always hurt the weak.) and the Left's pet Sin, it seems, Sexual Perversion. God Created only two sexes, man and woman. God created Marriage between one man and one woman. God had it right but Satan and the Left are still trying to find a loophole.
       Does it begin to seem as if the two Battlefronts are one and the same. Yes they are. Satan is the foe and the Commander on both fronts. He invented Sin and he invented Communism, Fascism, Socialism, Progressivism, the Democrat Party, Antifa, Occupy, Resist, and the Nazi Party. They are pretty much all the same thing. Pushing Drugs, Pushing Sin, and Pushing Socialism are all pretty much equals for Satan. They all work to destroy everything good and Righteous.
      When you Vote, and you must Vote; every Vote must be based on your very best interpretation of the Bible and God's Will. Every person you Vote for MUST be a Christian, a Patriot, a Conservative and Trustworthy. That last trait is tricky. Legislators and other Elected Officials have power as they legislate. They are subject to Lobbying and bribes. Term Limits are needed to cut down on the temptation to accept bribes.
      So are you a Good Guy. Act like it. Vote like it. Stand Up Patriot. Stand in the Gap. Make a difference.

Privileged Kid

      For a Pipefitter's Kid from a small town in Arkansas, I was a very privileged kid. We had the very first TV in the North End of Paragould. Since Dad was a plumber we had the first indoor toilet too, and Oil Heat which was a lot easier than splitting firewood. Mom had a brand new Electrolux, a G.E. Electric Range, and kitchen cabinets with a tilt down Flour Bin, and she made good use of it. She was the best cook and baker ever. We had the Preacher and visiting Evangelists over every Sunday and cranked Ice Cream Sunday Afternoon all Summer.
      I remember when Dad and his friends put up our 80 foot TV antenna. It took about 6 strong men on guy wires to hoist the steel pole which Dad made of pipe. We got our TV, a cabinet model, in spring of 1950. Speck Rhoades was playing as the delivery man hooked up the new antenna wire. He was impressed with the quality of the picture, no messing with rabbit ears. I was just impressed. Speck Rhoades and Bill Killebrew right in our living room. Later that year I saw Bill Killebrew visit Gene Stimpson's Grocery Store on the corner of Highland and Pruett. He was just about the biggest Star in Memphis at that time. 

      Dad's Friends, Tuff Baker, Roy Boggs, and Ed Stanton, would come over with their wives every Friday Night and watch the Friday Night Fights. Mom and the other wives would talk in the kitchen and watch my little sister Nancy or play Pinochle. I watched the early rounds with the men before they put me in bed, then I'd sneak out and crawl into the hall and watch the later rounds from behind the door way. Wrestling was better received and on a more equal footing in those days with boxing. I really enjoyed a wrestler named Gorgeous George, he had long curly hair and threw golden bobby pins out to the crowd.
      I enjoyed everything on TV including the News. That summer I watched every morning as the Indian in Headdress test screen went off and programming came on. Channel 5 had the Today Show with Dave Garroway host, Frank Blair news anchor, Jack Lescoulie sports, and J. Fred Muggs the chimpanzee Co Host. Later in the morning I usually switched to Radio Variety Shows. I liked Arthur Godfrey, Jack Benny, Lonesome George Goble, and Garry Moore.
      There was also some great music on the Radio in those days. I liked Hey Good Lookin by Hank Williams when mom wasn't listening. She liked stuff like How Much is that Doggie in the Window, Mocking Bird Hill, and Tennessee Ernie Ford.
      When the Evening News came on I was watching again. I saw the refugee camps filling up in the Middle East and the Tanks rolling by. It worried me back then and homeless people pushed into tent cities or living under a piece of roofing tin still bothers me. But one thing related to today's issues I remember is that there were no Palestinians. They were never called that. I actually watched as the Refugees came from Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt. They were simply called Arabs. I wondered why other Arabs would force them out of their own Country where they wanted to live with their brother Arabs? Still doesn't make sense to me. But my research has shown me there was never a Country named Palestine which is a Roman misspelling of Philistine. Philistines were Greek and they are all gone now, centuries ago. 

      One of my favorite late afternoon TV shows (as a little kid) was Winky Dink and the Adventures of Mighty Manfred. They sold a plastic sheet that stuck on the TV Screen, you trimmed it with scissors to fit your particular screen. The basic screen came with 4 big crayons yellow, red, blue, and green. You could then draw on the plastic screen cover. When Winky Dink or Mighty Manfred got in trouble and needed a bridge for instance, you could draw in a big yellow bridge and they were safe. If you left the plastic on the screen it also made the grass look green. (no color TV in those days) Of course so did the sky and the clouds and Perry Mason, but…… Well you just had to use your imagination a little. 

      We all watched TV together in the Evenings. Families spent time together in those days and it was easier with only one TV and 3 channels. I watched the Evening News again and the Tanks were still rolling. I was glad I lived in America. Sometimes I'd sneak in after bedtime, turn the sound down and watch a movie or the Late Show. Then the Test Screen came on again with the same Indian in headdress. I'd watch that a few minutes and sneak back into bed. I was an adventurous sort. Goodnight.

A Little Golden Wire in Our Constitution

      Our Constitution is a Complicated Document. It is not just a bunch of words. It contains all the Dreams, Hopes, and Aspirations of not only Our Founding Fathers who wrote it, but also the Dreams of those who lost their lives fighting for it in the Revolution. It Contains Biblical Principles and Precepts, and most importantly it was Guided by God in His Answer to the Prayers of the Founders. Do you know the Story? It isn't taught in School anymore.

      The Constitutional Convention was in turmoil. Hour after hour had gone by and not one Word or Idea had been written down. Founders were grumpy, arguing, discouraged, about to give up. Ben Franklin knew they were trying to do it all without God's Blessing. He asked for Prayer. Sincerely the Founders did so, and the Constitution began to roll off the pens of the Delegates. Don't ever let any atheist rogue tell you God was not in the U.S. Constitution.

      But there is also a little Golden Wire Called Freedom, Liberty and Justice for All, that runs from one Paragraph to the others in the Constitution, a Golden Thread if you will. It runs not only from Precept to Precept, but it reaches out to the Hearts of the Founders themselves, and it is linked to every Patriot, Living and Dead; It is Linked to you if you Love America. You can't see it, but it is there. Gold you see is our best conductor of Energy used for Communication. Each tiny wire Links People in Atlanta to those in Florida, Texas, Minnesota, Alaska, and Even New York and California, as hard as many Liberals there are trying to escape it's reach, but the Constitution, Like the Bible, is a Living Document, it cries out.

      That Link is Patriotism, it is Love of Country and Flag, it is Pride in our Great Country. It leads to the vestiges of common sense and Bipartisanism. These ideas are not dead but they are sure hard to find within Liberals in today's Political Climate. Democrats, Socialists, Antifa, most Muslims, (also a Political Party not a religion), and all Communists hate Our Constitution, they are Vowing to Resist it at every turn. Make no mistake that is what they are doing when they Resist and Protest Donald J. Trump.

      President Trump has done something Wonderful for our Constitution, not just supporting it, which he does; but more he has Appointed Brett Kavanaugh, an Originalist, for the Supreme Court. As an Originalist Kavanaugh supports not only the entire Constitution, but the Original Intent of the Founders who Wrote it. This is Exactly what all Justices should strive to do with every Fiber of their Being. Our Supreme Court was in Danger from Liberal Justices foolishly Appointed by previous administrations. Our Constitution is a Conservative Document, Fiscally, Prospectively, and Morally. Liberals don't even understand it, and certainly don't Respect it. Kavanaugh is an Answer to many Prayers as we get our Country back to its Founding Principles. Thank God our President has appointed such a Superior Candidate.

      If you have a Midterm Election coming up, go Vote, Support the Candidates that best support Trump. True Christians can never vote a Democrat Ticket in good Conscience. Killing Babies, Homosexual Perversion, and Resisting God and the Constitution are not Options for Christians. Ever. We are in a Battle to Preserve our Country. Do your part and Vote Conservatively and Vote the Bible.