Tuesday

Good morning,

Quote of the day:

“Go for it today. The future is promised to no one.”

William Dyer

Monday I wrote that when it came to the Confederate flag I was only interested in the military aspect plus what resulted, what was the cost and what did we learn. Here is my answers:

The result was a UNITED States sealed with blood. The cost was about 460,000 AMERICANS which is more that all other wars America has been involved in combined. Militarily we learned that an army with superior leadership can be defeated by logistics. We learned that the President can suspend the Bill of Rights. We learned that a the president can issue a directive that applies to one section of the nation and not others. The Emancipation Proclamation freed the slaves in the “states in rebellion”. There were 4 slave states that were not part of the “rebellion” and this proclamation did not apply to them and they remained slave holding until the end of the war. Americans have proven time and again that we squabble amongst ourselves but when real danger arises we respond together. I think my outlook on the flag in question is more gratifying than believing it is hatred and racism. By the way, Governor Nikki Haley has decreed that the Confederate flag on the South Carolina state grounds be moved to a museum. There is still a tall monument to those South Carolinians killed in that tragic war on the state capitol grounds. What happens to it?

Yesterday Ben Carson was being interviewed and was asked about the Confederate flag and he said “The flag is of no consequence, it is the hearts and minds that count.” We must be aware that the media thrives on controversy and if there is none, they will invent some. Remember the souls lost in Mother Emanuel AME church in Charleston plus the march over the Ravenal bridge on Sunday, June 21 by Charlestonians and others of all creeds and ignore the pot-stirring media. They do not want peace and understanding...hatred sells air time, advertising and newspapers.

Here is something to contemplate. Assume you are an alien along with thousands of others in a vessel on your way from another solar system to visit Earth for the first time. You have established contact with people on Earth and they know you are coming. Knowing what you know about the history of mankind, where would you choose to land today to expect the least hostility? Keep in mind that ever since the beginning of recorded history there has always been turmoil somewhere on the planet.

Along the same lines...How would you as a resident of Earth feel about the arrival of such a vessel?

The past revisited:

That gadabout Governor of South Carolina Mark Sanford has once again gone on vacation without informing Lieutenant Governor Andre Bauer. It has been confirmed that he spent two days with his four sons over Father’s Day on Sullivan’s Island, SC. The Governor was back in his office a day late. His staff claimed that he was never out of touch with his office. There was a small change this time. He was accompanied by a couple of SLED agents at the behest of SLED Commander Reggie Lloyd. To those that are unaware, SLED is the law enforcement arm of the Attorney General of South Carolina. The latest rumor on the street is that the reason the Governor went to Argentina come hell or high water was that his “soul mate” was delivering their child that week. A continuation of this saga is that Sanford moved his “soul mate” and their child to the vicinity of Columbia, South Carolina as soon as the child was old enough. Like I say, this is just rumor but it would explain a lot of things. By the way, on this last vacation the Governor’s location other than Sullivan’s Island to see his son’s, is unknown…except to the SLED agents. Later on it was confirmed that the Governor's mistress and child did indeed move to the Columbia, SC area.

Recently the ex-mayor of North Charleston, South Carolina Bobby Kinard had convinced himself that his wife was cheating on him. He retrieved a firearm and went to her apartment. The man that Bobby thought was his wife’s paramour was there and Bobby shot him. The man was just wounded but when a police car pulled up outside Bobby blew his own brains out. His wife said that he had been suffering from post traumatic stress disorder from his days as a helicopter door gunner in Nam. His depression was so severe lately that he was seeing a psychiatrist and taking powerful anti-depressants. He talked frequently about being in combat but to make matters worse, his son was in a combat unit in Afghanistan. His wife claimed that the man Bobby wounded was just her friend. At one point in my life I was accused by a very jealous husband of being the lover of his wife. They were going through a very bitter divorce at the time. I was not even a friend of this woman much less a lover but I could have ended up very dead. I just kept a lot of space between me and that man and woman until everything calmed down. No, I did not pursue her even then; I was not going to take a chance.

There is a restaurant in Gulf Shores, Alabama named “Lulu’s”. The owner is Lucy Buffett who has a famous brother named Jimmy. A while back Lucy announced that she was working up a free concert on the beach starring Jimmy Buffet and the Coral Reefers Band, Kenny Chesney and the Zac Brown Band. The tourist industry in Gulf Shores was suffering because of the oil spill and Lucy and her brother want to encourage people to come anyway. Jimmy and Lucy are Mobile, Alabama natives but spent many, many hours on the beach at Gulf Shores and the Flora-Bama Lounge in particular. I wonder how long those tickets lasted.

This Date in History June 23

1996 On this date John Gotti, better known as the “The Teflon Don”, is sentenced to life without parole on a RICO charge. A RICO charge is about racketeering but Gotti was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder and extortion. He had been arrested and put on trial and had been acquitted many times thus the nickname “Teflon Don”. Gotti was raised on the mean streets of Brooklyn, New York and became a member on organized crime at an early age. He was an enforcer or one who collected money due the organization by what ever means it took, including murder. He worked his way up to a “capo” or a captain which was third in line to the “Don” or the head of the organization. Gotti was an ambitious devil and decided that the wanted to be the head of his organization which was a branch of the Gambino crime family. The leader of Gotti’s group was Paul “Big Paul” Castellano. Castellano was a tall man with salt and pepper wavy hair. After a while Gotti decided that he had reached a point where he needed to take over the leadership so he did the honorable thing. He sent three assassins to Sparks Steak House in Brooklyn and awaited the arrival of Big Paul who was known to be coming there for supper. Sure enough Big Paul and the driver of his limo Anthony “Fat Tony” Bilotti arrived and the assassins open up with a hailstorm of automatic gunfire and Big Paul and Fat Tony are dead before they hit the sidewalk. The next day began the reign of John Gotti. Gotti died a horrible death in prison from cancer of the throat. God works in mysterious ways.

Born today:

1876 US writer Irving Cobb. Upon hearing that his boss was sick he said “My God, I hope it is nothing trivial.”

1925 NFL team owner Art Modell. He said “The power and presence of a professional football team in a town is far more important that 30 libraries.”
Shut up Art, you dumb-ass.

Thanks for listening I can hardly wait until tomorrow