A WORD OF INTRODUCTION: The death of President Jimmy Carter prompts me to share this previously unpublished social commentary. Jimmy Carter was different. He wasn’t into cockfights. He was a rooster who ruled the roost for four years without drawing attention to himself. He didn’t strut. He didn’t crow. He returned home to his small town in rural Georgia to resume his long-standing practice of teaching Sunday School. He picked up a hammer and saw to built houses with Habitat for Humanity.
Cockfighting in 2024
Cockfighting is illegal in most places, but whether a cockfight is legitimate or illegitimate makes no difference to the roosters or their handlers. A rooster rules the roost. He struts and crows – all roosters do — to mark his turf, secure his harem, and brag about the size of his hen house. A cockfight is a battle of the pecking order. One wins; the other loses. God help the smaller rooster who walks into the wrong hen house!
Anticipating a Cockfight
Watching Donald Trump and Elon Musk, I see a cockfight waiting to happen. Roosters in a cockfight strut and crow, surrounded by rooster handlers and on-lookers who’ve come to see the feathers. Soon Donald will again take his place as the most powerful man in the world, and Elon will still be the richest man in the world. Donald is proud that Elon has come into his yard; Elon is proud to have been appointed to a powerful position in the most powerful man’s barnyard. Elon ionly boundary is Donald’s will and ego.
True Story
Years ago an acquaintance stole all his father’s roosters. When his father, exhausted by the roosters waking him at sunrise, and decided to exercise his right to capitol punishment, his 30-something year-old son rescued all the roosters in the middle of the night. For the next few weeks, the son took pride in having saved the roosters. The roosters freely roamed the son’s barnyard and hen house, and. But after six weeks of waking at sunrise to the crowing of the cocks, he shot them all to stop the crowing.
America in 2024
In America two roosters crow every morning. They strut all day in front of the crowd. One rooster crows that he’s legitimate; the other doesn’t seem to care. The smaller roosters are running around Congress like chickens with their heads cut off. They’re scared. They have a lethal stake in the game. They’re clucking up a storm, laying their bets on who to trust to save their heads from the chopping block.
Gordon C. Stewart, host of Views from the Edge, pastor and former MPR guest commentator on All Things Considered, author of Be Still! Departure from Collective Madness (2017 Wipf and Stock), writing from Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, December 21, 2024.
Views from the Edge 
Thank you so much for this. It’s an excellent analogy for the coming days and is made even more powerful juxtaposed with the death of President Jimmy Carter – a man who spent his life dedicated to justice and love.
You can bet that there were no cockfights on that simple peanut farm in Plains, Georgia.
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Thank you for this excellent analogy. It is made even more powerful by its juxtaposition with the story of President Carter’s death; a man who spent his life in the service of justice and love.
You can bet that there weren’t any cockfights on that simple peanut farm in Plains, Georgia.
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Thank you for this. The analogy and timing are excellent and made even more powerful by the juxtaposition of the post with President Carter’s death and his lifelong dedication to justice and love.
You can bet that there were no cockfights on that peanut farm in Plains, Georgia.
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I’m equally certain there were none. You might find interest in the Views commentary, “The Epiphany of Treason,” posted this morning.
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