Daily history

Good morning,


Quote of the day:

“Life is like riding a bicycle, to maintain your balance you must keep moving.”

                                    Albert Einstein

I had a very enjoyable weekend in Charlotte, NC thanks to the gracious hospitality of my friends, thank you Jo, Pat and Larry. I will try to make my visits more frequent. Yesterday was Mother’s Day. My mother has not been with us for several years but I speak frequently with her along with several other family members that are no longer with us. All you have to do is close your eyes and imagine…they will respond.

My ageless Maxima ran flawlessly. It is just as fast, quick and agile as the first day I had it. I guess a tank full of Amoco 92 octane fuel had an effect, but it was $2.89/gal. That hurts.

It looks like the “dome” that BP tried to use on the leaking oil well in the Gulf of Mexico has failed. The CEO of BP stated that it was a gamble and to have no expectations, he was right. The only other way I know of that can stop that leak is to slant drill a new well. This means that a new well will be drilled at an angle into the leaking well below the ocean bottom and then start pumping mud. The mud will be sent down hole at a pressure higher than what the leak pressure is. Eventually the mud will clog up the well and the leak will stop. The down side is that it will take 2 to 3 months to get that done. In the mean time the leak will continue to contaminate the Gulf to the tune of 200,000 gallons of crude per day. The only opportunities for containment now is the use of dispersants and rounding up pools of floating crude and light it off. Any scenario is a frightening one at best.

At Sonny’s Café over in Gaffney, SC four teenagers as young as 16 walked in and tried to stick up the joint at about 3:30a Saturday morning. Little did the robbers know that Sonny’s had been robbed three days before and that all of the restaurant employees were armed. The employees opened fire and all of the robbers were hit including one fatally. Where are these kid’s parents? It is too late to worry about it now.

This date in history May 10

1869    On this date the tracklayers from the Union Pacific railroad meet the tracklayers from the Central Pacific railroad at Promontory, Utah completing a railroad that went from the American east coast to the west coast. This last section began heading toward each other from Omaha, Nebraska and Sacramento, California. Since 1832 American legislators realized that a continental railroad would be necessary for western expansion but it was not until 1856 that money was appropriated for the completion of the last leg. The tension between the northern and Southern states got into the way for a few years but both sides knew the importance of this railroad. The railroad workers working west from Omaha were primarily Irish immigrants and the workers coming east from Sacramento were primarily Chinese immigrants. The workers that crossed the Great Plains from Omaha encountered the savage plains tribes who were pissed and mystified by this great “Iron Horse” crossing their land and attacked often, not to mention the blistering heat in the summer and the blizzards in the winter. The Chinese coolies had the unenviable task of crossing the Sierra Nevada Mountains. At times entire crews were wiped out in avalanches and inopportune dynamite blasts. Once they reached the eastern slope of the Rockies they suffered from the hostile Indian tribes and the weather also. But in spite of all that hardship, the railroad was completed on time and under budget. It was a tribute to the will of man to overcome the wilderness. Now pioneers could reach California and Oregon in a matter of days rather than by ox-cart and several months or the 22,000 miles by ship that included a harrowing trip around Cape Horn on the southern tip of South America. With the completion of this link between east and west our country grew exponentially and made some railroad owners mighty wealthy.

1865    In early April CSA General Robert E. Lee warned the Confederate Government in Richmond that it was unlikely he could protect that city for much longer and it would be wise for them to reestablish the Confederacy at another location. Soon after that, the President of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis left Richmond with several of his staff and moved temporarily to Danville, Virginia. Davis was extremely upset at the failure of the Confederacy and began to try to establish diplomatic relations with England and France In the hopes of saving the Confederacy. He left Danville and headed on down into Georgia and was captured by US General James Wilson and the 4th Michigan Cavalry near Irwinville, Georgia. Davis was brought back to Fort Monroe, Virginia where he was imprisoned for two years and charged with treason but was never tried. The reason was the US Government was afraid that Davis could prove to a court that the Southern secession was legal under Federal Law. Finally Davis was released on bail with the help of several wealthy northern businessmen. Davis tried several business ventures but eventually said to hell with it and retired to his mansion “Beavoir” in Biloxi, Mississippi and began writing his two volume book The Rise and Fall of the Confederacy. He died in 1889 and was buried in New Orleans. Four years later he was disinterred and buried in Richmond, Virginia where he spent his most turbulent and memorable years.

1863    On this date one of the finest military officers this country has ever produced died of pneumonia near Guinea Station, Virginia. CSA General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson was delirious with fever and his last words were “Let us cross over the river and rest under the trees.” Jackson was born near Clarksburg, West Virginia and was raised by his uncles and grandparents and had a very lonely childhood. He had only a rudimentary education but was able to secure a selection to the United States Military Academy at West Point. He studied hard and was able to graduate 17th in a class of 59. As with most of his classmates he went into the Mexican War almost immediately after graduating. Jackson proved to be a superior officer and was acknowledged many times. After the Mexican War he resigned and became an instructor at Virginia Military Institute and at the outbreak of the Civil War he offered his services to the Confederacy. Jackson got his nickname of “Stonewall” at the Battle of 1st Manassas when the Confederates were being driven back and CSA General Bernard Bee of South Carolina saw that Jackson and his division were not retreating and yelled “Look, there is Jackson stand like a stone wall, rally around the Virginians!” And rally they did and turned the battle around from a retreat to a complete rout of the Union Army. I am not going into detail about the many exploits of this great leader hoping that just this taste of his leadership ability will inspire ya’ll to look into it for yourselves.

1996    On this date eight members of the same climbing expedition die in a storm Mount Everest. In fact, between 1980 and 2002, 91 people have died trying to conquer this mountain. It was in 1953 that English mountain climber Sir Edmund Hillary and his Nepalese guide Tensing Norgay were the first to reach the summit. But since then the climbing equipment has improved to where even an intermediate climber has the capability to make the trek. Therein lays the rub. Many people that do not have the right experience think they can climb Mount Everest counting on their superior equipment alone. You can’t fool the mountain; the mountain has its own ways.

Born today:

1899    US dancer Fred Astaire. He said “The hardest problem facing kids today is trying to learn good manners without ever seeing any.” I concur, Fred.

1960    Irish singer for the group U2 Paul “Bono” Hewson. He said “I am very secure with the fact that I am not black.”

1965    Canadian supermodel Linda Evangelista. She said “I don’t get out of bed for less that $10,000 a day.” Do it now Linda. Beauty is fleeting, ugly is forever.

Died today:

1863    CSA General Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson. He said “Always try to mystify, mislead and surprise your enemy if possible.” Sounds like my last marriage.

Thanks for listening I can hardly wait until tomorrow