Riff Raff: Observations, good whisky and hipster logos

A lot of stuff rolls through the days and weeks and hyperactive impulsive minds of us enemies of the American people who daily and deftly deliver dishonesty. What follows is a collection of some of that rolling stuff. Honestly.

• The first thought on seeing the new Tyson Foods corporate logo was not positive. “This thing looks like a bad prison tattoo. Or a good prison tattoo. Not sure if a prison tattoo is good or bad depending on if it is good or bad.” But I’m a low-brow farm boy redneck from Johnson County. One could fill the Grand Canyon with what I don’t know about fancy corporate logo DEE-sign.

You folks in Northwest Arkansas don’t know anything about good design, either. Tyson Foods worked with New York City-based Brand Union to develop the new corporate look. Takes big city talent to put a letter in a circle with an arrow or a weather vane or whatever the hell that thing is.

Social media thoughts about the new logo suggested it was “something they found for free on pinterest.” Or that if you have to explain the logo “that’s not good.” Another noted that it appeared as if Tyson Foods is now “wanting to sell designer handbags.” And my favorite: “It looks like they got it from a hipster logo generator. Eww.”

• Speaking of Tyson Foods, a company that still derives an overwhelming majority of its revenue – cash flow, operating capital – from what is still a majority commodity operation has placed in charge of the levers folks who have limited commodity market experience. Gonna be interesting to watch CEO Hayes and his Hillshire friends maintain and maximize the positive momentum of this newly logo’d corporation. A lot of things can go wrong pretty darn quick in the collecting, killing, cutting up and cashing in on beef, chicken and pork.

• Ever notice how an infant’s cough sounds the same no matter the race or gender?

• It’s called an acceleration lane. That stretch of concrete that delivers you to the interstate. Accelerate. What follows is from a manual produced by Louisiana State University: “You get on the interstate highway by using an entrance ramp that leads to an acceleration lane. Begin checking traffic while on the entrance ramp. Do not move slowly to the end of the entrance ramp and stop. Start your turn signal to warn other drivers. Look for a gap in the approaching traffic Then, adjust your speed to meet that gap. As you merge, make sure you are traveling the same speed as other traffic.”

Adjust your speed. Make sure you are traveling the same speed as other traffic. The. Same. Speed.

Jesus, people, if the folks at LSU have this figured it, it shouldn’t be that hard for the rest of us.

• Speaking of interstates, was recently stopped on a section of Interstate 49 in Northwest Arkansas. It happens. Often. A lot of construction on this two-county stretch. Stopped twice on this same trip. Noticed the road crews at each stop. Immediately wondered how quickly all the road work would come to a stop if President Trump was more aggressive with his promise of massive Hispanic deportation.

• Some folks say you can learn a lot about a person based on if they like dogs. I feel the same way about Maker’s Mark.

• Guns on campus could bring a whole new level of excitement to Razorback tailgating.

• It’s painful and necessary to have reminders of how race relations still impact our politics. We recently had 11 Arkansas Senators vote “present” on a bill seeking to separate the Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert E. Lee holiday. Arkansas is now one of just three states – Alabama and Mississippi being the other two – to combine the holidays.

Fortunately, 24 Senators voted for the measure.

The 11 senators who took the politically expedient way out by voting “Present” were: Sens. Cecile Bledsoe, R-Rogers; Ronald Caldwell, R-Wynne; Alan Clark, R-Lonsdale; Linda Collins-Smith, R-Pocahontas; Scott Flippo, R-Bull Shoals; Missy Irvin, R-Mountain View; Blake Johnson, R-Corning; Bryan King, R-Green Forest; Terry Rice, R-Waldron; Greg Standridge, R-Russellville; and Gary Stubblefield, R-Branch.

And by politically expedient, I mean spineless.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson has lobbied for the holiday separation, noting that celebrating the two men together “diminishes the contributions of Dr. King.” However, most Capitol watchers say the measure might not survive the 100-member Arkansas House.

Let’s hope House members have some measure of the courage possessed by folks who once walked through southern cities toward water cannons, attack dogs and law enforcement officers enforcing Jim Crow laws.