“Truth” or “Droppings?” – The public is wise enough to know the difference!

Seagull Musings Column for June 13, 2004

The Sunday June 20 edition of this paper contained a letter to the editor from local Santa Claus impersonator and Highway 265 resort owner Greg (Santa) Winters, containing comments and questions about the June 13 Seagull Musings column entitled “Look, up in the sky, it’s the ‘secret handshake clique’ – no wait, it’s the ‘Branafia!‘” For those readers who might have missed the column and to provide a perspective for this column, that column, and a hyperlink from it to the article “Did Ashcroft Take the Lowroad on the Highroad?,” published in the January 15, 2001 edition of “The Nation” magazine, can be found on line at “www.bransoncourier.com” under “Editorials.”

For whatever reason, a lot of Winters’ statements and questions appear to indicate a fixation on the Herschends and relate to the reality of what the column actually said about as much as “Santa Claus” relates to reality or the true meaning of Christmas. Interestingly enough, although he uses the words “crap,” “sewers,” “rat” and “droppings” in his letter to create the illusion that he wants to create not once did he cite an instance in the column where the information was not true but then “truth” is “truth,” “droppings” are “droppings,” and the public is wise enough to know the difference.

As Winters advises the Ole Seagull to “crawl back into the sewer where a rat belongs” he also advises him to “look at the bright side, all the riff-raff that follows the arrival of any casino would be in there to welcome you.” To paraphrase Forrest Gump, “Riffraff happens.”

Why, in addition to casinos, “riffraff happens” in connection with other local things such as the Highroad, Branson Landing, TIFs, what some call the “Chamber Tax, and the “Branafia” to mention a few. The Ole Seagull would bet that as one’s eyes adjusted to the darkness, after crawling into the sewer from the sunlight, and they met their fellow inhabitants that they would recognize more than a few “local faces. Why they might even hear a hearty “Ho! Ho! Ho!” coming from out of the depths of the darkness.

Winters asks, “What did the Herschend’s do to you to deserve these attacks, kick you off the pony ride??” The term “attack” is relative but the column did not refer to the “Herschends” just a “Herschend,” Peter Herschend. One such reference was necessary because he was “the agenda” for the June 1, meeting of the Hollister City Council cited in the column. Two other references were contained in quotes from the article “Did Ashcroft Take the Lowroad on the Highroad?” published in the January 15, 2001 edition of “The Nation” magazine.

Those quotes were used by the Ole Seagull because, in his opinion, they provided an outsider’s perspective, that illustrated what he meant by the term “Branafia.” The term was defined in the column as “those families, businesses, and individuals who appear to exert a disproportionate amount of influence and control over the affairs of the Branson area and the quality of life of its citizens all the while maintaining an innate ability and desire to have others ‘pay’ for the benefits that the Branafia receives.” As to the context and manner in which Peter F. Herschend was mentioned in the column, “truth” is “truth,” “droppings” are “droppings,” and the public is wise enough to know the difference.

Winters states “Mr. Seagull Dropping seems to think it’s OK to hurt my business as long as it hurts the Herschends!!!” ” Even the Ole Seagulls most ardent detractors would have to admit that it is highly unlikely that anyone, including Winters, with all his “Santa like powers,” could “seemingly” or otherwise knows what either the Ole Seagull or anyone else is “thinking.” Because there is nothing in the column that discusses hurting any business, Winters’, Herschend’s, or otherwise, one can only wonder whether or not his comment in that regard was a “Freudian Slip.”

Winters use of the word “dropping(s)” is kind of ironic because the “Ole Seagull” developed his brand from a speech given by Jim King, past National Transportation Board Chairman, when he described his position in the political hierarchy of the day as that of, “a lowly seagull walking along after the horse in the parade picking at the droppings.” Even as it gave Jim perspective at that time so too does it keep the Ole Seagull’s roll in perspective today although, it appears, he’ll be picking at “reindeer droppings” for a while.