Riding up the road this morning on the tractor, I'm no Republican

[1-Old-Man]

When you see someone like me driving a tractor up the road at about 10 mph (if its a fast one) I'll bet you wouldn't guess the old fart driving it was thinking about a thing in the world. But you'd be wrong. Tractor seats are a hot-bed of progressive thought.

I was on the County Road that runs in front of our house. There wasn't much chance of traffic and in fact I saw none. We own the property on both sides of the road and that is what was on my mind as the old diesel thumped along. What occured to me was this: A Democrat would say "there is the road and I own the property on each side of it", but a Republican would say "I own this property and the road runs through it". It is a fundamental differene in the mindsets of Republicans and Democrats. They think they own the world and the Government ('s right of way in this case) is an intrusion into it. We Democrats, by contrast, recognize a world in which both public and private interests coexist. Big difference.

See, I told you tractor seats were a hot-bed of progressive thought.


Edited many times to fix many typeOs and gramatical mistakes.
PS, though I appreceiate the thought I am no farmer, we use the machine to move heavy stuff and to dig.

[leveymg]

1. Don't judge a farmer by his hat.

As far as I've seen, a free hat gets worn until it wears out, not to make a fashion statement.

In my next life, I hope I'm a farmer.

[hootinholler]

6. I had a Massey Ferguson hat in high school

It was black with a big red MF on the front.

I loved that hat.

[Gregorian]

2. Ha! I'm a tractor driving Dem too. I also own on both sides of the road.

And I too have always thought of it being my property on both sides. There have been brief moments when I envisioned my title report, and greedily thought that these people are all driving through MY property. But I realize quickly that these are mad and angry thoughts that serve to divide.

I'm glad I live in one of the most liberal towns in the country.

[Scuba]

3. Thanks for feeding the rest of us.

[phantom power]

4. qotd: "Tractor seats are a hot-bed of progressive thought."

[leveymg]

9. Does that apply also to the ones that aren't made of pressed sheet metal?

Somehow, these things make a statement about the tough backsides of farmers.

[SnowCritter]

19. Back in the day they were just "hot"

damn hot! Burn ya' right through your Levi's!

[hollysmom]

5. The farmers were the first populists.

Why would i ever assume they were republican? Yes, I actually have no farmer friends, just a proximity issue here in urban land.

[reusrename]

7. Well done!

I was skeptical, but you convinced me pretty handily. Tractor seats are a hotbed alright.

[KT2000]

8. Yay for tractors,

hay balers, mowers, cultivators, and flat-bed trucks that are stored in hay fields and always seem to start up when asked, and all the other orange triangle vehicles!!

[freshwest]

10. Well said.

[obxhead]

11. i run large mowers all day at a golf course.

All that seat time gives me lots of time to think, sometimes too much.

[Jackpine Radical]

12. I used to skid logs with crawlers in the woods when I was a kid,

before the era of the big commercial skidders. There's something about the unstoppability of even a small Cat…

Then I was away from anything bigger than a lawn tractor for many years.

About 20 years ago, after we moved onto some country acreage I bought an old Case SC, which I loved, but the narrow front end & lack of a decent hydraulic bucket limited what I could do with it.

Then an International 706 with a big-assed Schwartz loader. That tractor was a pain in the ass. I could never get the transmission to work right, the electrical system was weird, etc.

Now for the past 5 or 6 years I've had a JD 790 4WD with a 5' bucket, and I think I've finally found the right tractor. I use it for everything from snowplowing to running a wood chipper on the PTO.

All of that is a long way of getting around to saying I've put a few hours in on those machines too, and I know what you mean about contemplation. For me, the most hypnotic times are probably plowing snow with the bucket & a back blade.

[quinnox]

13. very nice, k&r

[Skittles]

14. tractors

they always remind me of my step-grandfather Orville in Minnesota - he was a bachelor until he married my widowed grandmother and inherited a slew of grandkids - I adored him and as a toddler would follow him around and cry to be picked up - I ended up on his lap while he played cards with his friends or while he plowed the fields - what a pain I must have been but I know he adored me too

[beemer27]

15. Farm boys have know this for a long time.

Driving a tractor makes you smarter. Farm boys have know this for years, and few others have even suspected it. If people would have asked, we would have told them. Now the whole world knows.

[matt819]

16. Hmmm

It looks like the tractor is more conducive to profound thoughts than a ride-on mower. Or maybe I just zone out more easily.

Interesting observation on how we view the world in contrast to how conservatives view the world.

Sounds like the beginnings of a book.

[MisterP]

17. tractor!

[cry baby]

18. Great analogy! nt

[Spitfire of ATJ]

20. Libertarians would complain that people are using that road without paying them a toll.

[1-Old-Man]

21. And Republicans would put up a toll booth then sell the road to a friend

and then convince people they will now have a better road as the friend reaps every dime of profit that can be extracted from the taxpayer built road. And when the road wears out they will abandon it back to the taxpayers to repair.

Sound familiar?

[Spitfire of ATJ]

22. Then the friend would offer the Republican a job afterwards to do it nationally.