Friday OYSTERS

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Quote of the day:

After being elected Prime Minister at the start of WWII the recently elected Sir Winston Churchill stood before Parliament and said “As I have told this body and others joining this Government, I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat.”

Within the last few days the USS Tennessee was active in the western Pacific. The Tennessee is a “Boomer” meaning a nuclear powered submarine with nuclear tipped ballistic missiles aboard. In a training exercise the Tennessee launched two Trident missiles, presumably unarmed, at a target about 2,000 miles away. They arrived on target without a hitch. I personally do not think it was strictly a training exercise, I think it was a reminder to the Chinese that we are close by. By the way, the Trident missiles cost about $31 million each. This is another example of your tax dollars at work.

Robert L. Howard was born in 1939 and raised in Opelika, Alabama. He joined the army in 1956 at the age of 17. If there was ever a person that found their niche in life it was Robert L. Howard. Howard ended up in Vietnam at a Sergeant First Class in the MACV/SOG, better known as Special Ops. These guys pulled off some of the most hairy combat missions ever attempted. His under strength 60 man recon team was acknowledged to be one of the most decorated in United States history with five Medals of Honor, including Howard. In fact Howard had been nominated for the Medal of Honor three times during his five tours in Vietnam but Congress passed a law in 1917 that there could only be one Medal of Honor per person. All of his superiors and people under his command said that he deserved them all. It was his leadership in an attempt to rescue a fellow Green Beret that had been cut off in Cambodia that got him recommended for his third. He was promoted to 1^st Lieutenant from Sergeant First Class in 1969 and remained an outstanding and inspirational military leader throughout his entire 36 year career and was eventually promoted to full Colonel. Colonel Howard ended up with more medals that the immortal Audie Murphy in WWII. In short, it is Colonel Howard that is the most decorated soldier this country has ever produced. There was a United States Marine named Daniel Daly that fought during the Spanish-American War and the Boxer Rebellion that was awarded two Medals of Honor but the display of valor and courage by Colonel Howard is unequaled in United States military history. He was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Richard M. Nixon in 1971. The reason he is relatively unknown is because the Vietnam War was an unpopular one and many soldiers were not given the honor they deserved. In addition to the Medal of Honor Colonel Howard was awarded The Distinguished Service Medal, two Silver Stars, three Bronze Stars, eight Purple Hearts, I am going to repeat that, eight Purple Hearts and many, many other medals of occupation. 

 

This Date in History  November 13

1775 On this date Continental General Richard Montgomery captured Montreal, Canada without firing a shot. At the direction of General George Washington, Montgomery had been tasked with the capture of Montreal that was a marshaling place for the British army to get organized for forays into the Colonies. The British Governor/General Guy Carleton had escaped to Quebec City. Earlier a Continental army commanded by Ethan Allen had launched a fragmented and undermanned attack on Montreal that failed with Allen being captured by the British and sent to prison in Pendennis Castle in Cornwall, England. The upside was that the British Governor/General Carleton would not split his defensive units to counter the probe coming from Montgomery’s troops which allowed Montgomery to get into position unmolested. Once his position was established the British realized that they could not successfully defend Montreal and surrendered. The Continental’s next objective was Quebec. Montgomery decided that he would launch a two pronged attack with him leading one prong and the other led by Continental Colonel Benedict Arnold. The attack was launched during a blizzard and was well coordinated but British Governor/General Carleton had been made aware of the attack and was prepared and waiting. Carleton’s troops fired a devastating artillery and rifle barrage at Montgomery’s unit approaching from the west and Montgomery was killed early on and that attach was stalled. Carleton then turned his attention to Benedict Arnold’s troops attacking from the north and Arnold suffered a severe leg wound. Patriot Colonel Daniel Morgan immediately assumed command and the attack continued and the first line of defense was breached. At this point Morgan halted the attack to await reinforcements that were supposed to be on the way. The reinforcements were late and that allowed the British to re-group and Morgan’s attack was repulsed. The Patriot army retreated to the St. Lawrence River and crossed back in the Colonies. Benedict Arnold supervised the crossing, wounded leg and all, and after making sure that all of the troops were on their way, Arnold shot his horse and crossed the river in a canoe. Benedict Arnold was an enigma, y'all. He was a superior military field commander but his vanity and pride got in the way and he betrayed his country. His act of treason hurt his commander, George Washington, more than anyone.

Earlier a high school teacher in Indiana had refused to teach the legend of Robin Hood. She said the concept to robbing the rich and giving to the poor smacked of Communism. She also condemned the classic books Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo and Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck as having Communist leanings. As some of y'all may know, the main culprit in the legend of Robin Hood was the Sheriff of Nottingham along with King John. The very first mention of Robin Hood or a variation of the spelling thereof was found in literature dating back to 1229. The Sheriff of Nottingham, Robin of Loxley and several other characters are mentioned therein. When the current Sheriff of Nottingham heard about the turmoil in Indiana, he wrote the school board and assured them that Robin of Loxley was no Communist. It just goes to show you how insane censoring literature can get. We laugh about it now but then it was a serious matter. Reading any form of literature is optional and so is believing what it says. We must have freedom of thought and expression or we invite anarchy.

Births and deaths:

1929 US writer George Higgins is born. He described a date thusly “She had rouged her cheeks the color of a Pontiac Firebird and had a feathered appliance in her ears that resembled a surfcasting jig that is especially attractive to Striped Bass.” I think I know this woman.

Thanks for listening I can hardly wait until tomorrow