The first article that I read was the one about Edwin Edwards. Edwin was a four time governor and congressman for Louisiana. We went to jail for racketeering while being the governor. While he was in those positions people loved him and thought that he was doing everything right for their state. He started a fund for schools which now has over one billion dollars in it. He travels around the state with his 32 year old wife, he is 84, and talks with old friends and is always making new ones. He and his wife met while he was in prison. She heard about him and started to visit him and I guess that she is hot in a plan country kind of way. The people of Louisiana still think that he should be governor even though he is a felon. He had a certain swagger about him that made people feel safe and felt that he truly cared about them.
I can see why that people like him so much but I am not sure that he belongs in the governor position. Like that people feel that they can make a connection with him and be able to talk to him. I disagree with the way that he handles himself. I feel that he is too egocentric and only wants people’s attention. I do not like how he uses the government to get more money. I think that his morals are just different than mine.
The second article was about Gus and his restaurant Pete’s Famous Hot Dog. He has owned it since 1948 and has been working there every day, except for Christmas and Thanksgivings. But he recently just passed away and there is no one to take over the business since nobody knows his secret recipe for his sauce. There is now an organization called Southern Foodways Alliance that is trying to protect little businesses like Gus’s from dying. They do not want them to die just because the original owner, or someone that has been working there for a long time, passes away and does not pass down recipes.
I do think that it is a shame that Pete’s Famous will never be in business again. After reading the article I want to go and try a hot dog from that place. I think that the Southern Foodways Alliance is a great idea to have around. These small restaurants should be available to future generations so that they can know what things were like in the past.