The Yard Sign Test....

Every Sunday morning, I drive from our place east of Athens, to Lancaster, where I look after my mom while my brother goes to church.

I usually start out about 6:30am and I don't have to be there until 8am, which gives me a little extra time. I do this on purpose, because this is my personal time for "thinking", and I do my best thinking while I'm driving slowly through small towns and countrysides (Kinda my early Sunday afternoon drive -- so don't tailgate me, I'll drive even slower. I promise).

I go through Logan and take the back roads up through Hideaway Hills area, across Paradise Road (I love the name "Chicken Coop Road". How can you not?) and angle northwest so that I end up coming in on Duffy Road south of Lancaster. I take the small town and countryside route because I am a small town/country boy, and I love this country. It also keeps me rooted in what's important; for instance, when I see a house or a piece of land that somebody has done something special with, I relate it to me and mine, wondering if we could do THAT for our place and our family. The older I get, the more insular and family oriented I seem to get.

But, all I'm sayin' is that I keep "an eye out", and one of the things that I have noticed is the political yard sign biz.... So here's what's hap'nin' with that:

Eight years ago, in Southern Ohio, the Presidential Campaign yard signs ran 3-1 across the board for Bush/Cheney. Four years ago they ran 3-2 for the 'pubs.

This year the small towns are running for Obama, while the countryside/rural areas are running even. Bad (really bad) for McCain/Palin.

Even more amazing is the number of obviously 'pub households with ALL the 'pub candidate's yard signs EXCEPT for McCain/Palin. BUT, of all the Dem' yards with multiple signs, half of them did not have an Obama/Biden sign.

It is "beyond my pay grade" to figure out exactly what all this means, and statistical analysis needs a little more than an early morning drive, but it can't be good for the 'pubs.

Right now it looks worse than the end result of the Dole campaign....