Friday

Good morning,

Quote of the day:

“Look...there is Jackson standing like a stonewall, rally around the Virginians.”

This was uttered by CSA Col. Bernard Bee, a South Carolinian. It was during the first minutes of the 1^st Battle of Manassas, Va. in July of 1861 at the beginning of the American Civil War. The Confederates were being nearly routed and were in a headlong retreat...except the Virginians commanded by General Thomas J. Jackson. They were standing their ground on Henry House Hill. When Bee and his South Carolinians and other units joined Jackson and the Virginians, the flow of the battle reversed and the Union army was soon literally running back toward Washington in a rout. The nickname “Stonewall” stuck.

I recently severely cut back on my Facebook experience. The reason being that it is no longer a “platform for social interaction” as designed by its founder Mark Zuckenburg. It has become a dumping ground for everything except social interaction. I did not realize that people form their lives around the most bogus and inane beliefs. It is their right to believe whatever they want no matter how uninformed and stupid. It is also my right to NOT look at and read whatever makes me sick to my stomach because of abject ignorance. There is advertising for gambling sites supposedly supported by some of my friends. I know for a fact that my friends knew nothing about it. This means that mine and your Facebook identity is for sale. There is also pure commercial ads...none of this is “social interaction”. I am paying for internet access and electricity to read this sludge...I don't think so.

This Date in History February 13

1776 On this date Patrick Henry joined the First Virginia Battalion and assigned the primary duty to protect the considerable stores of gunpowder in state from the British. Henry was a talented orator and had the ability to say the right words at the right time to stir men’s souls. It was before the Virginia House of Burgesses in St. John’s Church in Richmond that he made his most famous utterance. There had been debate about whether or not to take up arms against the advancing British troops with the majority against such action when Henry arose and said: “Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains or slavery? Forbid it Almighty God! I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!” Immediately after these words were heard the rest of the gathering shouted “To Arm! To Arms!” He was a gifted speaker.

The Royal Governor of Virginia Lord Dunsmore became more and more alarmed about the rebelliousness of his subjects and sent a military detachment to Williamsburg, Virginia to capture a known large cache of gunpowder there. The British militia stood eyeball to eyeball with Patrick Henry and his contingent over the store of gunpowder. A compromise was reached and bloodshed was avoided but there is not doubt in this writers mind that Henry would have ordered his troops to open fire if things had gone too far. After the Revolutionary war was over, Henry fought tooth and nail against the Constitution as being too in favor of the Federal government and he was instrumental in the addition of the Bill of Rights. He was a dedicated anti-federalist and favored Washington and Adams but not Madison. He died at his Red Hill Plantation, Virginia in 1799 at the age of 63. To those of you that are Civil War buffs, Patrick Henry’s sister was the grandmother of CSA General Joseph E. Johnston.

Here is more trivia. Henry’s second wife was the granddaughter of Virginia Governor Alexander Spotswood. It was Spotswood that sent out an assassination team to kill Edward Teach (sometimes spelled Thach), better known as Blackbeard the Pirate who had taken up residence in Albemarle Sound, North Carolina. The Governor of North Carolina guaranteed protection if Blackbeard would split his booty with him. Albemarle Sound is right next door to the Chesapeake Bay and Governor Spotswood knew that Blackbeard would be preying on all the shipping traveling in and out. The assassination team cornered Blackbeard near Ocracoke Inlet, North Carolina and with much difficulty, capped his ass. He was shot three times and suffered seven saber wounds but he was beheaded. There is no question that Blackbeard was one tough bastard.

1633 Incredible as this may seem, one of the most brilliant men in history, Galileo is called to Rome to be censured because he is teaching astrophysics that is adverse to what Pope Urban VIII and the Catholic Church believed. I am going to paraphrase that. He was subject to torture because he did not teach what the Church wanted to hear (This reminds me of the staff at Bob Jones University). His crime was that he read a thesis by a Polish astronomer named Copernicus who proved to Galileo’s satisfaction that the earth orbited the sun rather than the sun orbited the earth as the Catholic Church believed. Not only that Galileo had secured himself a telescope and did indeed prove to himself that Copernicus was correct. What we have here is the Catholic Church making policy in the scientific arena without making even one observation. Anyway, Galileo could not believe that God would give mankind the power of reasoning and then not allow him to use it. He continued to teach the Copernican theory until a member of the church hierarchy came by and threatened him with torture and told him that he had better get his ass to Rome because Pope Urban VIII was really pissed at his disobedience. Galileo went to Rome and was faced with a triumvirate of Catholic Church members who spared him from torture if he would recant his teachings and would accept being exiled to his villa in central Italy for the rest of his life. He took the exile but his thoughts and those of Copernicus prevail to this day. Galileo died on January 6, 1642 being part of an era of discovery never before equaled in history. By the way, it took the Catholic Church 300 years to admit that Copernicus and Galileo were right.

1945 One of the most controversial events in WWII began on this night. The combined forces of the United States and Great Britain had almost swept the skies clear of German fighters and bombed with impunity any target they chose. Tonight the English Air Force chose Dresden, Germany. Dresden had no military significance. There were no munitions plants close by, in fact there were no plants that manufactured the “tools of war” anywhere near Dresden. Dresden was a beautiful city dedicated to the arts and sciences. Some of the most architecturally beautiful buildings in the world were there. However on this night the English bombers showed up by the hundreds with a mixed load of high explosives and incendiaries. The next morning Dresden was a smoking pile of rubble. No one knows why Dresden was chosen except as revenge for the carpet bombing of Coventry, England by the Germans. Coventry was of no real military significance either. It is estimated that over 135,000 residences and soldiers in Dresden died on this night due to the firestorms created by the incendiaries. If the heat and poison gasses did not kill them, they suffocated due to the fires consumption of the oxygen. It was very similar to the firestorm that befell Hamburg, Germany. I am not sure that revenge is that sweet. After all, Germany was just two months before surrendering. However, if I had a loved one that was burned alive in Coventry, maybe it would be as sweet.

Born today:

1892 US Supreme Court justice Robert Jackson. He said “When the Supreme Court was moved to Washington in 1800, it was provided no books, which probably accounts for the high quality of early decisions.” There is such a thing as over-educated.

1892 US artist Grant Wood. He said “All good ideas I ever had came to me while I was milking a cow.” I ain’t going there.

It was Grant Wood that gave us the famous painting “American Gothic.” Y'all remember the painting it is of an elderly man and woman that is obviously on a farm and she standing beside a man with a pitchfork.

1923 US legendary test pilot Charles “Chuck” Yeager. He said “Rules are made for people who are not willing to make up their own.” Chuck was a US Army Air Force ace in WWII flying the immortal P-51 Mustang and a test pilot later on.

       Thanks for listening I can hardly wait until tomorrow