Wednesday

                        Musings and History

Quote of the day,

“When in the course of human events it become necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands that have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the Earth the separate and equal station that the laws of Nature and Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinion of mankind requires them to declare the causes that impel them to the separation.”

This is first paragraph of the Declaration of Independence written primarily by Thomas Jefferson but others were involved.

In my opinion this document is the most important one in the history of western man. It set forth a great experiment in freedom and liberty never seen before. In my humble opinion this great experiment is under attack. It is time for us to think about the price American Patriots, both past and present, paid for this great gift to us. This document is afloat on a sea of blood, sweat and tears that were shed by lovers of freedom from that day to this. Remember it.

Trivia question of the day:

What do Thomas Jefferson and John Adams deaths have in common.

This Date in History July 4

1776 A bunch of our ancestor was standing around in a room in Philadelphia looking at a document that essentially had been fomented by Thomas Jefferson. It is a document stating that the English colonies in North America are now free and independent. There are representative from all of the colonies present and are asked to sign this earth shaking announcement. They all signed, y'all, knowing that years of bloody turmoil are in the offing against the most powerful nation on the planet. They wanted to go ahead and get the job done so they can get the hell out of there because it is hot as hell and the room is like an oven. It is the signing of the Declaration of Independence making us the United States of America. The Revolutionary War had begun earlier with the Battles of Lexington and Concord, but now it was official and the war began in earnest. I can assure you that these men had no idea that this country would mature into what it is today, good, bad or indifferent. I read a story once where our ancestors gathered together to determine what form of government we would finally adopt and author a Constitution because the previous Articles of Federation was not working and everyone knew it. After all the meetings were finished, Benjamin Franklin walked out and a woman asked him what it would be. He said “Madam, it will be a republic, if we can hold it.” King George III wrote in his diary for this date “Nothing of importance happened on this day.” Little did this jackass know what was coming.

1826 Exactly 50 years to the day after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, two of the greatest patriots and molders of our nation are on their death beds. It is John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. These two had seen their country fight its way to independence twice in their lifetime. First with the Revolutionary War against the British and again in 1812 and again against the British. It is remarkable that God chose this date for them to die, apparently God is sentimental.

1863 After a two month siege the 28,000 Confederate army under CSA General John Pemberton surrender Vicksburg, Mississippi to the 75,000 man army of US General U.S. Grant. Grant had encircled the city on the land side and US Admiral David Porter had brought up a flotilla of warships up river from New Orleans and camped out adjacent to Vicksburg on the mighty Mississippi and shelled the city on a daily basis. Some of the residents of Vicksburg began living in caves to escape the shelling. The loss of Vicksburg spelled the beginning of the end because it split the Confederacy in two and denied them the use of the Mississippi. This, along with the disastrous loss at Gettysburg by the Army of Northern Virginia the day before, rang the death knell for the Confederacy. The city of Vicksburg did not celebrate the 4^th of July for 81 years. They were a hard-assed bunch.

1954 Marilyn Sheppard, the wife of Dr. Sam Sheppard of Cleveland, Ohio, is found beaten to death in her home. Dr. Sheppard testified that he had seen a bushy haired man running from the house when he arrived. The police found out that the good Doctor was having an affair and arrested him for the crime. During the trial the jury was not sequestered and even though they were instructed by the judge not to watch or read any news, many did see news report because the trial was covered heavily by the tabloids. Sheppard was convicted and he appealed the verdict all the way to the Supreme Court and sure enough, because of all the news coverage and the jury not being sequestered they ruled that the jury could have been unduly influenced and set aside the guilty verdict and Sheppard was freed. After Sheppard died, his son opened an investigation of his own it found that there indeed was the DNA of another man at the crime scene. His son sued the Cleveland PD for false arrest but lost. It was this crime that was the basis for the TV series “The Fugitive” where a doctor is falsely accused of killing his wife.

Births and deaths:

1954 French scientist Marie Curie died. She said “Nothing is to be feared, only understood.” Hey Marie, what about tsunamis, earthquakes, tornadoes and hurricanes, we understand them to a degree but they will kill your ass and deserve to be feared.

1997 US Journalist Charles Kuralt died. He said “The everyday kindnesses on the back roads more that offset the acts of greed in the headlines.” The TV show “On the road with Charles Kuralt” was one of my all time favorites.

2005 US professional football coach Hank Stramm died. He said “I have led a charmed life. I married the only woman I ever loved and had the only profession I ever loved.” It was Hank at the helm when the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl.

1954 TV host Geraldo Rivera is born. He said “Never take a job where the winter wind blows up your pants leg.” We all know what effect that has on the average male.

Quotable quotes:

“Great works are performed, not by strength, but by perseverance.”

Samuel Johnson

“Be thankful we are not getting all the government we are paying for”

Will Rogers

“I can’t understand why I failed American History. When I was a kid, there was so little of it.”

George Burns

On this Independence Day, keep in mind our military at home and abroad.

Answer to the trivia question:

Thomas Jefferson and John Adams both died on July 4, 1826.

Thanks for listening I can hardly wait until tomorrow