LET'S TALK TURKEY

Where did we get the old saying, "He or she is a real turkey?" Could it have something to do with deceit, gullibility, fallibility, arrogance or similar nefarious traits?

What is the first thing a good turkey hunter does before going out in quest of that elusive Tom Turkey?

From my memories of hunting we called it camouflage. Not only would we camouflage ourselves so well that we resembled a tree or bush but we would also camouflage our immediate surroundings and even try to hide our alarming human smell. No Old Spice after-shave, no lavish deodorant, we even gave up our nasty tobacco so the smell wouldn't permeate the area. We also daubed evil smelling goo all over ourselves, stuff we assumed might smell good to Old Tom or at least make him think we were something harmless or sexy.

In effect, we were as unseen as the best of military snipers waiting patiently for the enemy to wander unknowingly into our private killing zone.

Even that extreme wasn't enough to satisfy some of us; we also used deceit and bait. A few well-placed ears of dried corn or chicken feed in an open field was the lure, but the deceit is what made the entire ritual sublimely pleasurable.

There are as many different kinds of turkey calls as there are people to invent them, but the premise is the same, to lure Old Tom close enough to our hidden sniper's nest so we can bag him for our cooking pot.

Once that awful skrrreeeing noise began, Old Tom's head would pop up, his feathers would ruffle and his beady eyes would bob from side to side seeking the source of the noise.

Because of the unknown quality of our turkey call, and since we couldn't talk turkey, we didn't know if Old Tom was agitated because he thought another Tom was in his chosen territory or if it sounded like a female hen calling him.

At any rate, Old Tom would invariably seek out the source of the noise and once he was in range of our shooting ability he was on his way to turkey heaven.

Maybe that's why they call some people "turkeys?" Perhaps they listen to the noises being broadcast by the hoard of human deceivers and fall prey to their false promises, gimmicks, and outright lies.

Unfortunately, our society is overflowing with these deceitful hunters and it is not relegated to adults. We are unknowingly drawn to our doom by lewd advertising, get rich quick schemes, political ploys, free money and a long list of well-camouflaged cons.

As for the turkey calls, they use our own human nature against us. We are urged to jump in, hook, line and sinker by slick ads, which repeatedly bombard and feed upon our natural and unnatural human desires. Not only that, they are brainwashing our children into being just as gullible as we are.

Have you noticed that the addictive pursuit of material comforts and fleshly pleasures has exploded into a national fervor? That deceit, greed and adultery are "almost acceptable" facets of our American society?

It seems as if the more we have the more we want and our wants far exceed our needs. Not only that, we continue to deceive ourselves with a thousand logical excuses.

Wake up America!

Before we become a nation of real turkeys.