THE JACKASS ROPERS 2

dan martin was the newest member of the blm crew who was catching the wild donkeys off the public lands. that morning he had proved his worth by catching a donkey then following up with catching a maverick bull yearling. but he was haveing some misgiveings about this whole deal. he really needed this job, he had inherited a rough little ranch on the head waters of rock creek. a unckle who was a life long rough country rancher had passed with no heirs and dan was the closest family member. his aunt still lived, but aunt lizzy was in a full care facility . her mind was still sharp but her body of 92 years was fast failing. she wanted to return to the ranch to spend her final days and dan had agreed as long as she had a care giver. he had mouths to feed, but this donkey crew , while it paid better than day working just didnt feel right. as the crew was eating lunch they could see pete out there waveing his hands and spouting off to the tv reporter about all the jacckasses they would need to catch to clean this part of the country up. finally dan looked to the nearest puncher and asked" just how many donkeys are there here?" the puncher looked to the others and grinned" i guess no one told him." the rest of the crew grinned but kept eating. dan looked from one to the other. " whats that mean?" " it dont matter how many donkeys are here, pete will bring in enough to make it worth while. the dummys at the blm dont know, and they wont leave their office long enough to find out. pete just has them hauled in and we catch them and get paid. simple." the puncher explained. dan sat there stunned. the food on his place had lost its flavor. he laid his fork down and stared at the plate" its a steal, a fraud on the goverment?" " call it what you want but it pays better than anything else.the blm has the money laying around going to waste , gathering dust, we just as well have it. as long as theres donkeys in the corral at the end of the day the jackasses from the goverment dont care. they just write the check."the cowboy next to dan had kept eating. outside the tv crew was loading up in their truck. pete was leading his horse and comming to the cook wagon. when he got close he tied the horse to the back of the cook truck then stepped up and accepted a plate from cooky. inspite of his filthy personal habits he was a exceptional cook. pete looked around the crew" as soon as the blm counts the donkeys and leaves leo will be here with a trailer load and turn them up on the mountain. then he will haul these back. the blm is going to start putting a mark on what we catch so we wont be able to use the same ones each time. besides some of these are starting to lead to well, dont look very wild," he broke up laughing. dan s mind was whirling. he finally got something he always wanted and now he was knee deep in corruption of the goverment. plus the fact he couldnt afford to quit. between a rock and a hard place. DAMN was all he could think.