Musings
and History
Quote
of the day:
“There
is nothing but sex and violence in the media. You turn on the TV and
that is nearly all there is...but sometimes you have to hunt around.”
Dave
Barry
I
am on vacation here in paradise known as Pensacola Beach, Florida for
the month of April. My blog will not include any political
observations or comments...simply because I am not going to read or
listen to any political propaganda. I will rest my brain in addition
to my body and spirit. Everyone should consider doing this once in a
while and focus only on what makes you happy.
A
few days ago someone told me that I needed a proof reader, I had too
many typos. I todl thme thye wrer worng.
When
I was in the USAF I was transferred to work in the control tower at
Eielson AFB, about 20 mile south of Fairbanks, Alaska. I have
written about Eielson before. At one time it had the longest paved
runway in the world, over 13,000 feet. This meant that any existing
aircraft could land or takeoff from there.
We
found out that there was going to be Strategic Air Command exercise
simulating an actual wartime scenario and Eielson was going to be the
recovery base.
As
I remember it a string of B-52's departed Air Force bases in Kansas
and Nebraska and rendezvous with a string of KC-135 tankers coming up
from Texas and California. The rendezvous point was over Vancouver
Island, Canada. The bombers were to be refueled and they would
simulate heading for Russia. All of those aircraft arrived over
Vancouver along with one of the fiercest storms in 30 years. There
was only two actual rendezvous and refueling.
Sure
enough later on there were B-52's and KC-135's to the horizon lined
up for the runway. They all landed and not long thereafter the
commander of SAC, General Thomas Powers arrived from Offutt AFB,
Nebraska. I don't know what happened at the meeting of the pilots
and crews with the General but I can assure you that it wasn't
pretty. That was Operation Play Ball...a few months later came
Operation Play Back...it went a lot better.
This
Date in History April 4
1776 On this date
General George Washington, after running the British out of Boston,
gathered his army from their encampment in Cambridge, Massachusetts
and headed to New York to free that area of the hated Redcoats.
Washington is distressed by the Continental Congress failing to pay
or provide for his troops. He wrote the Congress requesting that
enough money be left in New York City to resolve all of the unpaid
debts and allow him to replenish his army’s supplies. The money
was not there but the Continental army continued fighting. It was
the failure of Congress to pay its obligations that doomed the
present Articles of Federation which was essentially a document
verifying the sovereignty of each state with little if any
centralized government that could act in behalf of all. After
kicking the Brits out anyway, the Continental Congress recognized its
shortcomings and began constructing a different form of government
which was a Republic. They came up with the present day Constitution
and its amendments making a Government with three branches with
checks and balances to prevent either branch to overpower the other.
But it did allow the nation to pay its debts from one source, the
United States Treasury. The bad part was that they originated the
Bank of the United States. This allowed the Federal Government to
control the economy down to the smallest level. This essentially
eliminated competition and could not be good for the country. This
concept was eliminated during Andrew Jackson’s (a South Carolinian)
administration and our economy began its rise.
1968 Earlier on
March 28 Reverend Martin Luther King came to Memphis, Tennessee to
help in a demonstration for the reported ill-treatment of the city
sanitation workers. After making a speech, a black teenager was
killed during a riot. King had to leave but swore he would come back
and come back he did. On this date King made a speech and then went
to the Lorraine Motel to change clothes for dinner. After changing
clothes he stepped out onto the balcony along with a few of his staff
and supporters including Ralph Abernathy and Jesse Jackson. Soon
after a shot rang out and King dropped to the floor mortally wounded.
The shot had penetrated his jaw and severed his spine. Everyone on
the balcony pointed to the same spot in a boarding house a block
away. King was buried in his home town of Atlanta, Georgia on April
9th
but not before rioting occurred in Memphis and Washington, DC. The
Shelby County Sheriffs department found a 30/06 scoped rifle wrapped
in a tarp on the next street over from the Lorraine Motel. The
Sheriff’s department along with the FBI found palm and fingerprints
on the rifle belonging to a two-bit thief named James Earl Ray. It
was found out that Ray had somehow had obtained a passport and a
world wide alert was broadcast. The London Police arrested Ray at
the Heathrow airport and he was extradited back to the US. Ray went
on trial for the murder and in return for the death penalty being
taken off the table he would confess. The deal was accepted and Ray
was sentenced to 99 years. After that Ray insisted that he was just
part of a huge conspiracy. A lot of people thought this idea had
merit because King was a hated man by many people especially FBI
director J. Edgar Hoover. I think that King had a premonition of
what was coming because in his speech that day he said in part...”I
have seen the promised land...but I may not get there with you”.
He was dead three hours later. James Earl Ray died in 1998 taking
his secrets with him. Pretty spooky, y'all.
1812 On this date
President James Monroe issued a 90 day embargo on British ships
coming into America. This meant there will be no trade with Great
Britain for 90 days. Monroe as fed up with American trade vessels
being preyed upon by British ships on the high seas. Monroe knew
that this act would probably mean war with England and had warned the
Congress to “gird for war”. Sure enough, Great Britain declared
war but the difference here is United States was much stronger
militarily that it was during the Revolution. This war did not last
very long and again the Brits again had their asses handed to them by
the United States. Monroe realized that the United States could not
allow an interference with its world commerce, England included.
1841 The recently
elected William Henry Harrison stood on the Capitol steps and
delivered a two and one half hour inauguration speech. The weather
was cold as hell and very windy. Harrison refused a jacket and
attended three inaugural balls after the speech. As you might
expect, Harrison developed a cold that quickly turned into pneumonia.
Thirty-one days later Harrison died. This was the shortest
presidency in American history. He should have worn a coat and not
been so mouthy.
Born today:
1858 French writer
Rene Gourmant. He said “Of all the sexual aberrations the most
peculiar is chastity.” I don’t know Rene, I can think of a lot
of things.
1915 Blues star
Muddy Waters” He said of Mick Jagger “He took my music but gave
me fame.” Muddy is my all time favorite blues master.
Thanks
for listening I can hardly wait until tomorrow
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