Dogpatch buyer?

Anticipation is palpable in northern Arkansas as many in these parts are wondering who made the offer that took the 400-acre Dogpatch property along Arkansas Scenic 7 off the auction block.

The price for the former theme park, launched by cartoonist Al Capp in 1968 and closed in 1993 while awash in financial problems, also remains a mystery. Before the March 3 auction was called off, bidding was expected to start at $1 million. The new owner won’t be revealed until closing, set for the end of this month.

Should the pending sale come to pass, residents of Boone and Newton counties could soon be kicking up their heels and shouting “Boy Howdy!” OK, maybe I got a tad carried away. But the past

27 years certainly have brought a checkered ownership pattern of ups and downs surrounding these picturesque acres.

During its heyday, the family-fun Dogpatch provided enjoyable hours for hundreds of thousands each year. Hundreds more, mostly younger people, found summer jobs playing different characters from Capp’s popular Li’l Abner cartoon strip published in some 900 daily newspapers nationwide.

Here in Harrison, scores of residents now approaching retirement have fond memories of donning costumes during the 1970s to portray the likes of Daisy Mae, Li’l Abner, Mammy and Pappy Yokum, Moonbeam Mc Swine and Earthquake McGoon.

The property’s current mortgage owner, Stewart Nance, said he used a broker to manage the expected sale and was mum when asked about the buyer.

But the public announcement two weeks ago said that the buyer had adequate resources to complete his vision for this serene mountain property that features a large spring-fed pond and the dramatic Marble Falls. Word has it surveyors secured by the prospective buyer already have been on the site. Stand by.

Melee of madness

Good grief, people! A mob media frenzy brings out ugly, selfish overreactions in far too many adults today.

Staffers at an area hospital said since the covid-19 has triggered raging hysteria, they can no longer keep hand sanitizer or face masks readily available for an ailing public to be treated.

There are those who obviously believe a hospital’s entire bottle of hand sanitizer, rather than a simple squirt, is provided only for them. So the greedy have been stealing whole containers from counters.

And those paper masks to be worn by ailing patients upon registering also have been disappearing by the boxfull. Apparently those mask marauders believe 100 face coverings would help save them from this novel virus better than one, although the medical advice is not to wear one unless you are stricken.

As a result, both courtesy offerings have been moved behind a glass shield and are available only on request.

From the scenes we’ve witnessed on social media, it appears a significant portion of our population has lapsed into wild-eyed frenzies at the terrifying thought of running out of toilet paper. They’ve been emptying stores nationwide as if 500 rolls of two-ply somehow will be their salvation from suffering what experts say is an affliction that for most of its victims 60 or younger in relatively good health causes mild to no symptoms.

What role does this un-American, un-Christian pandemic of selfishness have to do with overcoming the covid-19 virus?

Greatest killers

Along with virtually every other news and opinion outlet today, I might as well toss in another four cents’ worth. While none of us likes uncertainty, it sometimes helps to pull way back from the ongoing toilet paper and sanitizer madness to gain a tad of perspective.

Covid-19 is a novel virus related to the common cold that, like all viruses, will run its course. We certainly have heard by now that the most susceptible to its most serious effects are those over 60 with compromised immune systems, especially those with existing respiratory ailments or other disease.

We all also know the standing drill to deter the tiny invader. Wash hands frequently, cough into your elbow, avoid crowds for a couple of weeks, and remain in your home should you develop a fever, shortness of breath and a dry cough. If symptoms worsen, seek medical attention.

Meanwhile, I discovered these numbers about the roughly 2.7 million Americans (7,500 daily) who die from all illnesses annually: Heart disease 647,000, cancer 599,000, respiratory illness including flu 215,000, stroke 140,000, Alzheimer’s 83,000, diabetes-related 253,000 and kidney disease 47,000.

As of Monday, 69 nationwide deaths from the covid-19 virus had been reported from about 3,700 reported infections, 29 of which were associated with one nursing home in Kirkland, Wash.

Now go out into the world and treat everyone you meet exactly like you want them to treat you.