{"id":5113,"date":"2004-11-05T09:58:09","date_gmt":"2004-11-05T13:58:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/formerlyknownas\/2004\/11\/05\/will-rogers-part-ii-in-the-ri"},"modified":"2011-08-05T14:58:16","modified_gmt":"2011-08-05T18:58:16","slug":"will-rogers-part-ii-in-the-risk-pool-with-the-riskprof","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/2004\/11\/05\/will-rogers-part-ii-in-the-risk-pool-with-the-riskprof\/","title":{"rendered":"Will Rogers Part II: In the Risk Pool with the RiskProf"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a><\/p>\n

Under the banner of his <\/span>renamed<\/span><\/a> weblog, RiskProf<\/em> <\/span>Martin Grace mused<\/span><\/a> yesterday that <\/span><\/span>Will Rogers “probably never said anything funny about insurance or risk management <\/span>as he knew that someone like me would come along.”\u00a0 (see our first Rogers posting<\/span><\/a>) That spurred me to ascertain <\/span>whether America’s beloved comboy-humorist had ever aimed his lasso at the sometimes <\/span>unpopular insurance <\/span>industry.<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
\"dice\" Although leaving me exhausted, my non-exhaustive research came up with only one <\/span>insurance-related quip from Rogers:<\/span><\/div>\n

“The man who dies without adequate life insurance should have to come <\/span>back and see the mess he’s created.” <\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The source for that quote is a Life Insurance quotation <\/span>service<\/span><\/a>, so I’m not vouching for its <\/span><\/span>pedigree.\u00a0 It seems a little strange that Will didn’t<\/span> have something a little more Rogerian <\/span>to say about insurers or their sales force.\u00a0 The consumer advocate within me notes, however, <\/span>that I located the following business in Oklahoma: the <\/span>Will Rogers Insurance Agency<\/span><\/a>.<\/span> Hmmm. <\/span>Conflict of interest?<\/span><\/div>\n
I also discovered an article written by one Linda Williams, RN, “a long-term care risk manager with The GuideOne Center for Risk Management,”\u00a0West Des Moines, Iowa.\u00a0 In the article, Let Will Rogers be your guide<\/a>, Ms. Williams writes: <\/span><\/div>\n
\n
“Never before has the [long-term care] industry received so much bad press over the problems of so few facilities. If the great journalist-philosopher Will Rogers * were alive today, I’m sure he could offer a few bits of wisdom to help this hurting industry cope with its problems. Let’s see how 10 of his famous quotes might apply to liability (and headline) avoidance.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\"crystal You can click through to see her explanation of the quotes, but here are a few that suggest Rogers knew how to avoid a risk or two:<\/span><\/div>\n
\n

2. “Always drink upstream from the herd.” <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>3. “Lettin’ the cat outta the bag is a whole lot easier ‘n puttin’ it back in.”<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>5. “It doesn’t take a genius to spot a goat in a flock of sheep.” <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>8. “Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>9. “Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment.” <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>10. “If you’re ridin’ ahead of the herd, take a look back every now and then to make sure it’s still there.” <\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n

A bunch of these quotes can also be found in the <\/span>Cowboy Code of Ethics<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0 (It’s off topic, but I also discovered the <\/span>UFO Abduction Insurance webpage<\/span><\/a>, which you might want to\u00a0explore\u00a0for a chuckle.)<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
This second visit to Will Rogers brought me to the <\/span>Quotes Exchange<\/span><\/a>,<\/span> where I found the following Rogers quotations, which made me smile:<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
\n
– If stupidity got us into this mess, then why can’t it get us out? <\/em><\/span><\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

– The American people are very generous people and will forgive almost any weakness, with the possible exception of stupidity. <\/em><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n


\n<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

– The minute that you read something that you can’t understand, you can almost be sure it was drawn up by a lawyer.<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\"will<\/span> The first two quips confirm that Rogers did not survive to see the 2004 Elections.<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Some\u00a0closing thoughts:\u00a0 Both Martin Grace and George M. Wallace<\/span><\/a> let me know how much they have always enjoyed Will Rogers.\u00a0 I sure hope that you don’t have to be over 40 to know about and appreciate Rogers’ legacy to American political wit and wisdom.<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
Will Rogers actually ran a “favorite son” campaign for the Presidency in 1928, with his Anti-Bunk Party<\/a>.\u00a0 His sole campaign plank: “If elected, I will resign.”\u00a0 [the image<\/span><\/a> here is from the cover of Life Magazine<\/em>, May 31, 1928, announcing Rogers’ candidacy.]<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Finally, my Googling about Rogers led me to an article called “Will Rogers is Running for President<\/span><\/a>,” which covered the Presidential campaign in 1974 of Arizona Senator Morris K. Udall<\/a><\/span>.\u00a0(by Aaron Latham, New York Magazine<\/em>, Dec. 1974)\u00a0The author explains that “if Will Rogers\u00a0had run for president, this is how he would have done it.” <\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

Udall was well-known for his own gentle but insightful wit.\u00a0 Seeing the article reminded me that Mo Udall was the first and only Presidential\u00a0candidate for whom I have sat at a telephone trying to raise money.\u00a0 I\u00a0was in my first year of law school and went to Udall’s office in downtown Boston.\u00a0 I respected Mo Udall a lot, but the impetus for manning a phone bank was the fact that my college friend, Jack Quinn, was Udall’s campaign\u00a0manager at the age of 24.\u00a0 Jack went on to become a distinguished lawyer at\u00a0Arnold & Porter, and then White House Counsel to Bill Clinton.\u00a0 (And, yes, he became somewhat infamous for Pardongate<\/span><\/a>, the Marc RIch affair.)\u00a0\u00a0 I may never have remembered this little piece of my life, were it not for starting down the trail suggested by the RiskProf.\u00a0 Serendipity can be swell.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Update <\/span><\/strong><\/em>(Nov. 8, 2004):\u00a0 If you’ve read this far, you\u00a0deserve a few Mo Udall quotes<\/a> (from BrainyQuotes):<\/span><\/p>\n