Bread, Butter, Bacon, and Beans
May 20, 2007 9:51 AM   Subscribe

The comic-opera Huey Long: Journalist, teacher, legal advisor to the abortive American-Indian-run state of Sequoyah, ‘Alfalfa Bill’ Murray (wiki) ran Dust Bowl Oklahoma with an iron fist - calling out the National Guard forty-seven times in four years and setting off a three-day armed standoff with the state of Texas. In 1932, his “Bread, Butter, Bacon, and Beans” Presidential platform was so badly eclipsed by The New Deal, his delegates officially threw their votes to a joke candidate (balloting). Unlike his fellow Depression-era populists, Murray continued as a public figure post-war, campaigning for worker’s rights, the United Nations, segregation, exporting the Jews to Madagascar, and winning the Cold War by putting ethnic Russians in internment camps. Seventy-five years on, he was honored by the Oklahoma legislature for the only bit that actually mattered, aretheyrite?
posted by ormondsacker (7 comments total) 4 users marked this as a favorite
 
Incidentally, 4alfalfa dot com would like you to know that 'Alfalfa Bill' Murray is no relation to the awesomeness that is the real Alfalfa.
posted by ormondsacker at 9:52 AM on May 20, 2007


That was interesting. And also interesting that Oklahoma recently honored Murray for his defense of States' Rights.
posted by CCBC at 11:38 AM on May 20, 2007


Anyone who's lived in Oklahoma can tell you that Okies completely distrust politicians, which is why they tend to elect independent, cantankerous types with insane political beliefs and a penchant for demagoguery. They just figure it's better they're in political office than some place where they can be dangerous, like grocery store clerk.

Tom "There's rampant lesbianism in Colgate I SWEAR!" Coburn is the state's SANE senator. Jim Inhofe, between his "those Iraqis deserved it" moment in the Abu Gharib hearings and his grandstanding with global warming, is pretty clearly non compos mentis. And yet, he'll probably get another term in 2008.
posted by dw at 1:31 PM on May 20, 2007


Basically, Okies are types who would vote for the straight-talking outsider. Thus their heavy support for Perot and their likely stronger than average support for Ron Paul.
posted by dw at 2:10 PM on May 20, 2007


That "three-day armed standoff" link was fantastic.
posted by grouse at 2:41 PM on May 20, 2007


That "three-day armed standoff" link was fantastic.

First: I think it's hilarious that something like that could happen in twentieth century America, and even more hilarious that Texas was involved.

Second: I really, really miss that 30's-Time-Magazine style of news reporting, which didn't bother with that "objectivity" nonsense, or neutral points of view--they straight out called the Governor of Texas fat. And that's awesome. Henry Luce would be having such a field day with (a) the current administration and (b) the current state of the news media, it's a shame he's dead.
posted by thecaddy at 4:19 PM on May 20, 2007


Great post!
posted by orthogonality at 9:20 PM on May 22, 2007


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