The Good 'ol Days

Dear old "blogless" Dad shared this recently:

In perspective of our 'laser focus' on the here and the now this is almost unbelievable.

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Harry Truman after the presidency:

Harry Truman, from Missouri, was a different kind of
President. He probably made as many important decisions
regarding our nation's history as any of the other 42
Presidents. However, a measure of his greatness may rest
on what he did after he left the White House.

Historians have written the only asset he had when he died
was the house he lived in, which was in Independence
Missouri . On top of that, his wife inherited the house
from her Mother.

When he retired from office in 1952, his income was a U.S
Army pension reported to have been $13,507.72 a year.
Congress, noting that he was paying for his stamps and
personally licking them, granted him an 'allowance' and,
later, a retroactive pension of $25,000 per year.

After President Eisenhower was inaugurated, Harry and Bess
drove home to Missouri by themselves. There were no
Secret Service following them.

When offered corporate positions at large salaries, he
declined, stating, 'You don't want me. You want the
office of the President, and that doesn't belong to me.
It belongs to the American people and it's not for sale.'

Even later, on May 6, 1971, when Congress was preparing to
award him the Medal of Honor on his 87th birthday, he
refused to accept it, writing, 'I don't consider that I
have done anything which should be the reason for any
award, Congressional or otherwise.'

He never owned his own home and as president he paid for
all of his own travel expenses and food..

Modern politicians have found a new level of success in
cashing in on the Presidency, resulting in untold wealth.
Today, many in Congress also have found a way to become
quite wealthy while enjoying the fruits of their offices.
Political offices are now for sale.
Good old Harry Truman was correct when he observed, 'My
choices early in life were either to be a piano player in
a whore house or a politician. And to tell the truth,
there's hardly any difference.

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footnote: What I remember best is one of his favorite sayings - "The buck stops here."