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    Jeff Kaley
February 5, 2012

Those ‘Rogers Riders Rules’ stand test of time

Jeff Kaley The Duncan Banner

DUNCAN — Since we’re all super-focused on the super activities of the superest non-official holiday in America, I’m warming up for the super game by whittling down some of the super-sized stack of sticky notes that serve as my memory:

Some time ago, I wrote a column about Roy Rogers being one of the many heroes of my childhood. That was back in the 1950s and early ’60s, an era my sons tell me “was before color was invented!” (Har-dee har har! They’re such comedians!)

Anyway, if you’re in my age bracket, you may recall the Roy Rogers Riders, who were members of Roy’s fan club; a group that felt it had a special connection to Roy and shared his ideals.

The other day, I discovered a yellowing postcard my mom sent many years ago. It had a picture of Roy on the front, and on the back were the “Rogers Riders Rules,” a code that could lead to “an honorable way of life.”

For all you aging Rogers Riders who can’t remember, here they are:

1. Be neat and clean.

2. Be courteous and polite.

3. Always obey your parents.

4. Protect the weak and help them.

5. Be brave but never take chances.

6. Study hard and learn all you can.

7. Be kind to animals and care for them.

8. Eat all your food and never waste any.

9. Love God and go to Sunday school regularly.

10. Always respect our flag and our county.

Over the years, some of we Rogers Riders have strayed from a few of those tenants. But you know, those simple rules stand the test of time of how you can build a foundation for personal dignity.

• Am leaning toward New England, but I don’t really have a horse running in today’s Super Bowl XLVI sweepstakes. So count me among those — and there are a lot of us in these parts — who are just hoping for a game that’s still interesting when the final two minutes roll around.

•  “You can’t kill your way to security, and you can’t lead through scaring people.” Bruce Springsteen said it.

•  No matter how good a friend is, they’re still going to hurt you once in a while. Forgiving them is a true test of friendship.

•  According to a survey by the education advocacy group Common Core, a quarter of modern high school students can’t identify Adolph Hitler.

•  The prime requisite for a talk show host is to giggle at his own cleverness.

•  If you’re considering taking up the writing dodge, here’s a golden rule: Half of writing is deciding what to leave out.

•  “Ability is a poor man’s wealth.” College hoops legend John Wooden said it.

•  February is the 10th national “Doing Business in Your Bathrobe Month.” If any of you celebrated at your workplace, let me know how that went.

•  If men ruled the world, the funniest guy would get to be CEO.

• There’s not much wrong with any of us that reincarnation wouldn’t cure.

•  Americans are among the most productive people on the planet. In general, we work long and hard, and our individual productivity sets us apart from many other societies.

It’s an admirable trait. And it’s actually kind of remarkable that we are so productive, when you consider how much time many of us spend telling others how to their jobs.

•  “Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us.” Former Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas said it.

•  What if you met yourself coming and going, and didn’t recognize yourself?

•  A great reason to apply to West Point: Few generals get killed by bayonets.

•  Took some of us longer than others to understand, but only a fool tests the water with more than one foot.

•  Pouring a little liquor on a scorpion will make it instantly go mad and sting itself to death. Same with some humans.

•  “All the problems we face in the United States today can be traced to an unenlightened immigration policy on the part of the American Indian.” So said the late Pat Paulsen, comedian and perpetual presidential candidate.



jeff.kaley@duncanbanner.com

580-255-5354, Ext. 172

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