daily history

Good morning,


Quote of the day:

“We get neither better nor worse as we age; we simply become our true selves.”

                                    Rebecca West

That oil well that exploded and sank in the Gulf of Mexico and was leaking has begun to increase the leakage volume. It is really strange that this disaster occurred within weeks after the President signed legislation allowing oil exploration in the Gulf of Mexico and off the US eastern seaboard. I cannot remember but one oil exploring/drilling platform exploring. There have been a lot of fires but explosions are a rarity. In order for there to be an explosion there has to be an accumulation of explosive material in one place. As some of you may or may not know natural gas as it comes out of the ground is invisible and scentless and it is lighter than air. The only thing I can think of is there was a leak in the drill pipe and natural gas leaked out and gathered under the platform into a very large bubble. Then a spark of some kind lit it off which might have widened the leak and the resulting fire increased exponentially. There have been “experts” that have been assigned to monitor the escaping oil. They say the oil slick is not headed towards land but remember that the Gulf of Mexico is almost a bowl and that oil slick will eventually make landfall somewhere. I don’t know what effect this disaster will have on drilling for oil off the coast of Hilton Head, SC and other such places but the opponents will have plenty of ammunition.

Here in my home town area there had been a small railroad that serviced the northern part of our county down into the south central area. This railroad was known affectionately as “The Swamp Rabbit” and went out of business several years ago. The railroad bed caught the eye of several Greenville community groups to be used as a jogging/bicycle trail. The bed was cleared of rails and railroad ties and a clear trail about 25 miles long was created. It was a coup for the environmentalists and exercise fans at very little cost or chaos. This creation should spark interests in other communities.

Here is a Medal of Honor citation lest we forget. This particular Medal of Honor winner had a son that eventually became a Federal judge. One of my favorite people in the world works for this judge.



                                      Medal of Honor


DAVIS, RAYMOND G.

Rank and organization: Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Marine Corps commanding officer, 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division (Rein.). Place and date: Vicinity Hagaru-ri, Korea, 1 through 4 December 1950. Entered service at: Atlanta, Ga. Born: 13 January 1915, Fitzgerald, Ga.



Citation:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as commanding officer of the 1st Battalion, in action against enemy aggressor forces. Although keenly aware that the operation involved breaking through a surrounding enemy and advancing 8 miles along primitive icy trails in the bitter cold with every passage disputed by a savage and determined foe, Lt. Col. Davis boldly led his battalion into the attack in a daring attempt to relieve a beleaguered rifle company and to seize, hold, and defend a vital mountain pass controlling the only route available for 2 marine regiments in danger of being cut off by numerically superior hostile forces during their re-deployment to the port of Hungnam. When the battalion immediately encountered strong opposition from entrenched enemy forces commanding high ground in the path of the advance, he promptly spearheaded his unit in a fierce attack up the steep, ice-covered slopes in the face of withering fire and, personally leading the assault groups in a hand-to-hand encounter, drove the hostile troops from their positions, rested his men, and reconnoitered the area under enemy fire to determine the best route for continuing the mission. Always in the thick of the fighting Lt. Col. Davis led his battalion over 3 successive ridges in the deep snow in continuous attacks against the enemy and, constantly inspiring and encouraging his men throughout the night, brought his unit to a point within 1,500 yards of the surrounded rifle company by daybreak. Although knocked to the ground when a shell fragment struck his helmet and 2 bullets pierced his clothing, he arose and fought his way forward at the head of his men until he reached the isolated marines. On the following morning, he bravely led his battalion in securing the vital mountain pass from a strongly entrenched and numerically superior hostile force, carrying all his wounded with him, including 22 litter cases and numerous ambulatory patients. Despite repeated savage and heavy assaults by the enemy, he stubbornly held the vital terrain until the 2 regiments of the division had deployed through the pass and, on the morning of 4 December, led his battalion into Hagaru-ri intact. By his superb leadership, outstanding courage, and brilliant tactical ability, Lt. Col. Davis was directly instrumental in saving the beleaguered rifle company from complete annihilation and enabled the 2 marine regiments to escape possible destruction. His valiant devotion to duty and unyielding fighting spirit in the face of almost insurmountable odds enhance and sustain the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. By the way, Colonel Davis led his men into the safety of American lines singing the Marine Corps Hymn.

On this date in history April 28

1789 Earlier the Government of England has tasked ship Captain William Bligh to sail into the South Pacific with a ship load of breadfruit saplings. The idea was to plant the breadfruit sapling and see if the fruit grew in sufficient quantity to feed the slaves that were gong to be used in the area later on. The ship he was commanding was the HMS Bounty. The ship arrived in Tahiti in October of 1788 and remained five months doing research. But the Captain and his botanist was not the only people aboard doing research and planting. The ships crew had fallen for the warm weather, laid-back life style not to mention the beautiful and receptive Polynesian women. To make it worse, Captain Bligh was a notorious hard-ass and was unmerciful in the dispensing of his form of discipline, many unfair floggings included. Anyway, after leaving Tahiti the ship went to Tonga to plant some more saplings. It was during this trip that the shit hit the fan. The majority of the crew persuaded the second in command, Lieutenant Fletcher Christian, to take over the ship and stop this brutal treatment by Captain Bligh. On this date, the majority of the crew led by Fletcher Christian did indeed mutiny and took control of the ship. Christian chose to put Bligh and 18 of his loyal crew men adrift in a 25 foot sailboat and sailed away. In a superb show of seamanship, Bligh was able to navigate the boat using the stars alone to Timor Island, a distance of 3,600 mile and he made it there on June 24, 1789. After a brief stop at Tubuai Island looking for a place to settle, the crew of the Bounty set sail for the ever loving arms of Tahiti. After arriving at Tahiti Christian had second thoughts knowing the British Navy would be there soon looking for the Bounty because that was on Bligh’s pre-sailing log. So he gave his crew the choice of going with him to find another settlement or to stay here in Tahiti and risk the wrath on the British Navy. 16 of the crew chose to stay in Tahiti, the British Navy be damned. Fletcher Christian sailed off with eight of the crewmen, six Tahitian men and 12 Tahitian women looking for a remote island to settle. They chose Pitcairn Island about 1,000 miles north of Tahiti. After stripping the Bounty, Christian ordered it burned. The British navy never looked for them there but they were discovered in 1806 by a whaling vessel that saw smoke from a cooking fire. In 1825 a British ship finally arrived at tiny Pitcairn and those remaining crewmembers were granted amnesty and were taken to Tahiti. After a few year they decided that they had rather be at Pitcairn and went back home. To this day there are about 40 people on Pitcairn all of which can trace their ancestry to the British crewman of the Bounty. By the way, this was not the only mutiny Bligh had to endure, this one was the third. What a great leader.

1945    On the date the Fascist Leader of Italy, Benito Mussolini was caught trying to cross the Italian border into Switzerland with his mistress Clara Petacci and both were shot to death by Italian troops. This jackass had sided with Hitler early on and was hoping to bring Italy back to the glory of ancient Rome. The only problem here was that the present day Italian infantry were the worst fighter on the planet and Hitler was constantly having to bail them out an the smallest conflict. After the Allies landed on Sicily and Italy soon after and met with success against the defending Germans, although it was a bloody one, Mussolini saw that his days were numbered. It was then that he gathered up his girl friend and split for Switzerland. Mussolini had a wife and 6 children and apparently he just abandoned then to whatever the Allies chose to do with them. What a great husband and father. Anyway, after Mussolini and Petracci were killed they were transported to the town square of Milan and hanged upside down for all to see, spit upon and throw rocks at, etc. He was an arrogant bastard.

1955    On this date little Stephanie Bryan disappears from her neighborhood in Berkeley, California. The police were about to write this one off when something peculiar happened. The wife of one Burton Abbot found a strange pocketbook in their garage. After looking inside she found Stephanie’s student identification card and knowing the cops were looking for her gave them a call. The cops swarmed down on the garage and found a bra that same size and type of that worn by Stephanie. They interviewed Burton extensively but he denied everything and said that his garage had been used as a polling place in the past and that is where the evidence came from. The police were about to buy Abbot’s story then a radio news reporter hired a detective and a bloodhound and went to the Abbot’s mountain cabin and found the corpse of little Stephanie. Abbot was tried and convicted of murder and was sentenced to death. Abbot appealed his death penalty unsuccessfully several time but he was one too short when he was sitting in a chair when some pellets were dropped into a pan of acid under his seat and he was dead in four minutes. Two minutes later the Governor called and tried to issue a stop execution order. Too bad.

Born today:

1758    US President James Monroe. He said “A little flattery will support a man over great fatigue.” Women too.

1874    Austrian writer Karl Kraus. He said “The devil is an optimist if he thinks he can make people worse that they are already.” Sound wisdom there, Karl.

1930    US statesman James Baker. When speaking of Michael Dukakis he said “He is the only man that can look at the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue and complain that the swimsuits are not fire retardant.”

1934    US writer Diane Johnson. She said “Men are normally better law abiders than women and that comes from the women not having any say so in enacting the laws.” Not any longer, Diane. There are Nancy Pelosi, Hilary Clinton, Barbara Boxer, Diane Feinstein, etc. Even though they should stay home and bake pies, they are out there making laws. Just joking

1950    US comic Jay Leno. He said “You can say want you want but when Dan Quayle was in the National Guard, not one Viet Cong got past Muncie, Indiana.”

1945    Italian leader Benito Mussolini. He said “Basically the history of saints is the history of insane people.” Don’t we have a pot and a kettle here, Benito?

Thanks for listening I can hardly wait until tomorrow