“What’s Right Is Right, and What’s Wrong Is Wrong. It Doesn’t Matter Who You Are.” Sorta.

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Way back in 2019 I went on one of my jaunts to western Tennessee. While there, one of my stops was in Adamsville to see the Buford Pusser Museum. For those of you who are young, let me give you a little history lesson, times two. First, Buford Pusser was a former Marine and wrestler who ran for sheriff in McNairy County, Tennessee in the 60s. He went to war with the so-called “State Line Mob” over bootlegging, gambling, and other illegal activities. He was quite the hero, too, so much so that lesson #2 came about. In 1973 Hollywood made a movie about Pusser, called Walking Tall. Joe Don Baker played Pusser. Along with the other “vigilante good guys” of the era, like Dirty Harry Callahan and Billy Jack (and others, like Death Wish [released the next year] and Mad Max at the end of the decade), Walking Tall was very successful. It was better because Pusser was a REAL “good guy,” not a fictional one like Callahan or Billy Jack. Pusser was killed in a car wreck in 1974, shortly after returning home after signing a contract to play himself in a Walking Tall sequel. He died a hero, not only in McNairy Country but nationally (thanks to the movie and the outcry against criminals in the 70s). He was 36. At the museum (which was Pusser’s home) there are countless things on display. It’s gaudy, in that it looks like you step inside and back to the 1970s. Also on display are the Corvette in which he died and the “big stick” he carried (both the real one and the props from the movies). And, of course, there’s merchandise, many carrying a quote from him: What’s right is right, and what’s wrong is wrong. It doesn’t matter who you are. Well, hold the phone. ANOTHER one of those vigilante films, Billy Jack, had another good quote that’s quite pertinent right now. When encountering a crooked deputy, Billy Jack said, “When lawmen break the law, then there isn’t any law. Only a fight for survival.” Late last week the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation announced that there was enough evidence to charge Buford Pusser, beloved and revered hero and lawman, with the 1967 murder of his wife, Pauline, if he were still alive. In August 1967, Pusser stated that he was ambushed after receiving a late-night call for help. Pauline, his wife, went with him. According to what Pusser said, and what was portrayed in the movie, the Pussers were ambushed on a road by “unknown assailants” (although Pusser believed them to be members of the State Line Mob). Pauline was killed, and Pusser had part of his chin blown off by gunfire. Now, proclamations that this wasn’t the truth are not new. There have been stories circulating for years about “the other story,” claiming that Pusser made up the story about the ambush, killed his wife, then shot himself to make it look like his story was true. However, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation now sides with those who say that Pusser was NOT the “law-and-order” person that the movies and history have made him out to be. My brother and I were talking about this the other day, and he wondered if the museum would stay open. My guess is yes, because there are people who believe the story…just as people who don’t believe it. Either way, I guess it does matter who you are regarding “what’s right is right, and what’s wrong is wrong.” Here’s a news article about the recent announcement from the TBI: