Remember - today is a day of remembrance, Memorial Day.
Today I remember my grandfather, Captain Benjamin C. King, who served in the Army during both WWI and WWII. He served with the American Expeditionary Force in Europe during WWI. In fact he was serving overseas at the time my father was born , back in Oregon. He also served in WWII, both in the Coast Artillery on the Oregon Coast, and (I think) with the occupation forces in Korea after the war.
I remember my uncle, Ensign Philip C. Wright who served in the Navy during WWII, but prior to our formal entry into the war. He was a flight instructor who trained pilots to fly. He didn't get a chance to serve in combat because he was killed while on a training flight in Pasco ,Washington two months before Pearl Harbor.
I have visited both their graves - grandpa's at Willamette National Cemetery, south of Portland, and Uncle Phil's at Arlington National Cemetery, just outside of Washington DC. I am thankful for their service and for all others who served their country in uniform.
But I also remember others who couldn't serve, but love their country just as much. I remember my dad Royal C King, who was classified as 4-F due to very poor eyesight. He would have wanted to serve, especially with a father and brother in law serving while he was stuck at home. He loved his country, but was left to serve by working hard in the war-time economy , and raise a son and four daughters to love their country just as much. I know there were plenty others like him,
And speaking of daughters, we need to remember all the women who were left at home during wartime. They were largely prevented from service (at least in combat) while their fathers, brothers, husbands, and sons served. Who knows how many of them would have served if possible. They went through a hell of their own waiting to hear good news, longing to see their loved ones again, praying to not get a letter of condolence delivered by military messenger. It hasn't been until recently that women got the chance to serve - and have done it with honor.
And also remember those in the LGBTQ community who were denied an equal opportunity to serve, or served in secret , with equal fears of death and discovery. Don't forget their service and don't deny them the right to serve.
Remember all these today - give thanks - and then give a helping hand when you can to help to any in need.
Monday, May 27, 2019
Tuesday, May 21, 2019
slogans
Everywhere we go we see or hear slogans. Slogans for products, slogans for sports teams, slogans for political campaigns. And history is filled with slogans for wars. Yes, it is not enough to plan and execute military campaigns, we must have slogans to motivate people to support the actions our country takes. In the Revolution it was "give me liberty or give me death", after 9-11 it was "never forget", and in between there have been loads of others. I'd like to examine 3 briefly , and explain why we should be wary of slogans.
The first is 'Remember the Alamo". It was a battle cry in the war for Texas independence and it was very successful. The problem is people need to remember that the battles that were fought were all on Mexican soil, not American. The settlers of Texas were American southerners who took slaves into Mexico when they came. The Republic of Mexico had won its independence from Spain in 1821 and in 1829 outlawed slavery, but the settlers defied that and it led to the Alamo and other battles which ultimately led to an independent Texas Republic and later the admission of the State of Texas into the Union and later the secession of Texas as part of the establishment of the Confederacy. It is nothing to be celebrated.
The second is "Remember the Maine". The Maine was a US Navy ship that was sent to Havana Harbor to "protect US interests" in Cuba during the Cuban war for independence from Spain. It was sunk by an explosion and about three quarters of the crew died. The US blamed the Spanish, saying a mine blew it up, and response to it fed the flames of war. The US fought the overmatched Spanish , gaining control of Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the very far off Philippine Islands. We also ended up fighting the native Filipinos for decades and only gave them independence after WWII. In retrospect the explosion was most likely internal and not due to hostilities, but often truth loses to sloganeering.
Thirdly there is "Remember Pearl Harbor". Yes, I know that was used well to rally the people to support a very needed national defense and a true response to an attack on the country. But in the midst of that we also need to remember that we as a country were a little late to the battle. By the time we entered the war in December of 1941 Asia and Europe had been at war for over 2 years. Paris had fallen in June of 1940, France was occupied, Britain had suffered numerous bombing attacks, Korea was occupied, China attacked , and our "allies" had been pushed out of their colonies.All because we did not have a global outlook and put our head in the sand. We learned a hard lesson.
Slogans can prove useful, but our decision making needs to be built on well thought out and fully informed processes, not knee jerk reactions. Our minds must be engaged, and passion carefully used to support well developed efforts. And any look at history should look past the slogans to see what really happened.
The first is 'Remember the Alamo". It was a battle cry in the war for Texas independence and it was very successful. The problem is people need to remember that the battles that were fought were all on Mexican soil, not American. The settlers of Texas were American southerners who took slaves into Mexico when they came. The Republic of Mexico had won its independence from Spain in 1821 and in 1829 outlawed slavery, but the settlers defied that and it led to the Alamo and other battles which ultimately led to an independent Texas Republic and later the admission of the State of Texas into the Union and later the secession of Texas as part of the establishment of the Confederacy. It is nothing to be celebrated.
The second is "Remember the Maine". The Maine was a US Navy ship that was sent to Havana Harbor to "protect US interests" in Cuba during the Cuban war for independence from Spain. It was sunk by an explosion and about three quarters of the crew died. The US blamed the Spanish, saying a mine blew it up, and response to it fed the flames of war. The US fought the overmatched Spanish , gaining control of Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the very far off Philippine Islands. We also ended up fighting the native Filipinos for decades and only gave them independence after WWII. In retrospect the explosion was most likely internal and not due to hostilities, but often truth loses to sloganeering.
Thirdly there is "Remember Pearl Harbor". Yes, I know that was used well to rally the people to support a very needed national defense and a true response to an attack on the country. But in the midst of that we also need to remember that we as a country were a little late to the battle. By the time we entered the war in December of 1941 Asia and Europe had been at war for over 2 years. Paris had fallen in June of 1940, France was occupied, Britain had suffered numerous bombing attacks, Korea was occupied, China attacked , and our "allies" had been pushed out of their colonies.All because we did not have a global outlook and put our head in the sand. We learned a hard lesson.
Slogans can prove useful, but our decision making needs to be built on well thought out and fully informed processes, not knee jerk reactions. Our minds must be engaged, and passion carefully used to support well developed efforts. And any look at history should look past the slogans to see what really happened.
Sunday, May 19, 2019
the importance of dates
Often people say that history is boring, especially memorizing dates, places, people. To each his or her own I say, and I would not say everyone should love history as I do. But I believe that we can learn much from history, including knowing dates and the interplay between events that one can see when they know the dates. I have two examples to share.
I remember growing up and hearing for example that the sinking of the Lusitania, a British ocean liner, precipitated the entry of the United States into World War I. The US had tried to remain neutral as Europe engaged in war since 1914. The only problem was that the Lusitania was sunk by a German U-boat on May 7th, 1915 and the reelection campaign of President Wilson in 1916 featured the prominent slogan "he kept us out of war".
Wilson was re-elected in November of 1916 and only several months later, on April 6,1917, did the US enter the war. It's not that the attacks by the German Navy didn't contribute to our entry into the war, but the specific case was not the 'tipping point along with the fact that the Lusitania, far from being just an ordinary passenger ship, was carrying 173 tons of war material and the Germans maintained that that made it a legitimate target.
The second example was the War of 1812, one of those often overlooked wars that the US has gotten into. The reason often cited was the interference with US shipping and the "impression" or forced "recruitment" of US sailors into foreign navies. France and Britain were at war, the Napoleonic wars, and each country had issued embargoes against all other countries engaging in trade with the other side. This affected US trade because we were involved with both. And there was still strong feeling against the British in the US over the Revolution,
But what also tipped the balance against the British and in favor of the French was a timing issue. Napoleon was planning on invading Russia and had no desire to split his military forces to cover war with the US, so he agreed to stop harassing our shipping. There was no comparable action by the British, so on June 18, 1812, the US declared war on the British. Perhaps if communication had been faster in those days we might have avoided the war altogether. At the end of the war, there were a couple of battles that were fought needlessly, due to communication slowness - notably the Battle of New Orleans which was fought on January 9, 1815, even though the peace Treaty of Ghent (ending the war) had been signed on Dec 24, 1814.
War is complicated and when we treat it simplistically we often miss important details and fail to learn the lessons that would help us avoid errors (and the accompanying loss of life) in present situations. Knowing dates helps us maintain a global perspective. My next post will examine another facet of oversimplification - slogans.
I remember growing up and hearing for example that the sinking of the Lusitania, a British ocean liner, precipitated the entry of the United States into World War I. The US had tried to remain neutral as Europe engaged in war since 1914. The only problem was that the Lusitania was sunk by a German U-boat on May 7th, 1915 and the reelection campaign of President Wilson in 1916 featured the prominent slogan "he kept us out of war".
Wilson was re-elected in November of 1916 and only several months later, on April 6,1917, did the US enter the war. It's not that the attacks by the German Navy didn't contribute to our entry into the war, but the specific case was not the 'tipping point along with the fact that the Lusitania, far from being just an ordinary passenger ship, was carrying 173 tons of war material and the Germans maintained that that made it a legitimate target.
The second example was the War of 1812, one of those often overlooked wars that the US has gotten into. The reason often cited was the interference with US shipping and the "impression" or forced "recruitment" of US sailors into foreign navies. France and Britain were at war, the Napoleonic wars, and each country had issued embargoes against all other countries engaging in trade with the other side. This affected US trade because we were involved with both. And there was still strong feeling against the British in the US over the Revolution,
But what also tipped the balance against the British and in favor of the French was a timing issue. Napoleon was planning on invading Russia and had no desire to split his military forces to cover war with the US, so he agreed to stop harassing our shipping. There was no comparable action by the British, so on June 18, 1812, the US declared war on the British. Perhaps if communication had been faster in those days we might have avoided the war altogether. At the end of the war, there were a couple of battles that were fought needlessly, due to communication slowness - notably the Battle of New Orleans which was fought on January 9, 1815, even though the peace Treaty of Ghent (ending the war) had been signed on Dec 24, 1814.
War is complicated and when we treat it simplistically we often miss important details and fail to learn the lessons that would help us avoid errors (and the accompanying loss of life) in present situations. Knowing dates helps us maintain a global perspective. My next post will examine another facet of oversimplification - slogans.
Thursday, May 16, 2019
Honor or just pride
Did you know that dueling was once a common practice in the U.S. Like the English common law we brought over to the New World that was the building blocks of our strong and humane legal tradition we also brought along the bad habits of fighting. The poor had street brawls , the rich had their pistols. They tried to make it seem more reasonable and governed by rules, but it was still just fighting often over damaged egos. Today we sue , back then they shot. Today we "flame" and have twitter wars. Less violent physically , yet words can damage often as much or more.
The dueling lasted into the middle 1800's. And often nobody died, they just took turns shooting at each other -colonial pistols were notorious for misfiring, However there were times when tragedy struck and families were deprived of a breadwinner - since it was almost exclusively male - women had more sense (and were prohibited).
There were 2 notable instances of dueling in US History, and both involved notable political leaders.Our seventh President, Andrew Jackson , before he was elected, had been a career military officer - fought in the War of 1812 and won the Battle of New Orleans, the last conflict of the war. He also had a fierce temper and pride and is reported to have participated in about 100 duels. In one notable duel he took a non-fatal shot in the chest, misfired and then quickly reloaded and killed his opponent with a second shot.
The most famous duel was between Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton in 1804. They had been bitter political rivals for years, representing opposing political philosophies. Both were veterans of the American Revolution and served in high office. Hamilton was the key writer of the Federalist Papers arguing for the ratification of the Constitution and also served as the first Secretary of the Treasury. Burr was elected to the US Senate, directed as president of the Senate the first impeachment trial - that of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase. He also was elected as the third Vice President of the U.S., serving under President Thomas Jefferson and was in office at the time of the duel.
Both men shot almost simultaneously. Hamilton missed, but Burr did not. Hamilton was fatally wounded by a shot that pierced his liver and spine. He died the next day. Both men's lives were ruined by the duel. Burr was charged with murder, but acquitted. He was left off the Presidential ticket when Jefferson ran again and won. He was charged with treason due to a land scheme that happened a few years later. He lived 32 years longer but in obscurity. And of course, Hamilton died, yet his legacy is secure -the Federalist Papers guarantee that.
Such a waste of talent. You have to wonder, was it honor , or just stupid stubborn pride?
The dueling lasted into the middle 1800's. And often nobody died, they just took turns shooting at each other -colonial pistols were notorious for misfiring, However there were times when tragedy struck and families were deprived of a breadwinner - since it was almost exclusively male - women had more sense (and were prohibited).
There were 2 notable instances of dueling in US History, and both involved notable political leaders.Our seventh President, Andrew Jackson , before he was elected, had been a career military officer - fought in the War of 1812 and won the Battle of New Orleans, the last conflict of the war. He also had a fierce temper and pride and is reported to have participated in about 100 duels. In one notable duel he took a non-fatal shot in the chest, misfired and then quickly reloaded and killed his opponent with a second shot.
The most famous duel was between Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton in 1804. They had been bitter political rivals for years, representing opposing political philosophies. Both were veterans of the American Revolution and served in high office. Hamilton was the key writer of the Federalist Papers arguing for the ratification of the Constitution and also served as the first Secretary of the Treasury. Burr was elected to the US Senate, directed as president of the Senate the first impeachment trial - that of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase. He also was elected as the third Vice President of the U.S., serving under President Thomas Jefferson and was in office at the time of the duel.
Both men shot almost simultaneously. Hamilton missed, but Burr did not. Hamilton was fatally wounded by a shot that pierced his liver and spine. He died the next day. Both men's lives were ruined by the duel. Burr was charged with murder, but acquitted. He was left off the Presidential ticket when Jefferson ran again and won. He was charged with treason due to a land scheme that happened a few years later. He lived 32 years longer but in obscurity. And of course, Hamilton died, yet his legacy is secure -the Federalist Papers guarantee that.
Such a waste of talent. You have to wonder, was it honor , or just stupid stubborn pride?
Sunday, May 12, 2019
Radical
Are you a "radical"? Do you fear or flee that term, along with "progressive", "liberal" or "out of the mainstream". Many people react negatively to those terms. But a lot of things we hold dear today came about because of those who bore those labels and were not afraid. A hundred years ago if you believed in and campaigned for civil rights and equality for people of color, you were considered radical. If you advocated for worker's rights to a safer workplace, to collectively bargain for better working hours regulation, or compensation for injuries on the job, you were considered radical.And if you challenged the status quo treatment of women and believed that women should have an equal place in society - including the right to vote - you were considered very radical.
Women , and some men, had been advocating for the right of women to vote for decades during and after the Civil War and into the 1900's. Women were dismissed, derided, abused both physical and emotionally for having the "nerve" to think they should be treated as equals. Even when some other countries had given women the vote the US was resistant. Even though President Wilson said he believed the vote should be there in the states, he resisted the idea of a constitutional amendment to make it a national right.
In 1917 women began picketing the White House to pressure him to support women's right to vote.From January to August over 1000 women joined in the protests, 218 were arrested , charged with "obstructing the sidewalk". They were accused, after the April 6th entry of the US into WWI, of being unpatriotic. It came to a head on August 28th when 10 suffragists were arrested and sent to jails in Virginia and DC and were subject to inhumane cell conditions and mistreatment by prison guards.Some went on hungry strikes to protest the conditions but were force-fed.
Thinks like this had been happening for years, but this time word got out about their mistreatment and public opinion turned. The public outcry led to Wilson's eventual support of the 19th amendment in January of 1918 and the amendment was ratified August 18, 1920, giving women the right to vote.
All because of "radicals" who believed in a cause enough to put their lives and health on the line to advocate for it and were not afraid to be called "radical"
So ....don't flinch from doing what is right, just because someone might consider you "radical"
Women , and some men, had been advocating for the right of women to vote for decades during and after the Civil War and into the 1900's. Women were dismissed, derided, abused both physical and emotionally for having the "nerve" to think they should be treated as equals. Even when some other countries had given women the vote the US was resistant. Even though President Wilson said he believed the vote should be there in the states, he resisted the idea of a constitutional amendment to make it a national right.
In 1917 women began picketing the White House to pressure him to support women's right to vote.From January to August over 1000 women joined in the protests, 218 were arrested , charged with "obstructing the sidewalk". They were accused, after the April 6th entry of the US into WWI, of being unpatriotic. It came to a head on August 28th when 10 suffragists were arrested and sent to jails in Virginia and DC and were subject to inhumane cell conditions and mistreatment by prison guards.Some went on hungry strikes to protest the conditions but were force-fed.
Thinks like this had been happening for years, but this time word got out about their mistreatment and public opinion turned. The public outcry led to Wilson's eventual support of the 19th amendment in January of 1918 and the amendment was ratified August 18, 1920, giving women the right to vote.
All because of "radicals" who believed in a cause enough to put their lives and health on the line to advocate for it and were not afraid to be called "radical"
So ....don't flinch from doing what is right, just because someone might consider you "radical"
Thursday, May 9, 2019
V-E Day
I must admit that i have a fascination for dates. I can recall historical events that happened on a particular day that would not occur to others. Everybody remembers events like the Fourth of July or Pearl Harbor day , dates that are celebrated officially. But other days go unnoticed, especially as we get further away from the actual event.
Yesterday is such a day. May 8th 1945 was the official end of WWII in Europe. It was known as V-E Day, followed a few months later by V-J Day , Victory over Japan, which marked the end of the war in the Pacific, and the official end of hostilities world wide. On that May Day there was still a lot of fighting to be had , but for Europe it was a great relief after almost 6 years of constant fighting And both in Europe and the US there were celebrations over this milestone.
Now, hardly anyone outside of history buffs like me, or military veterans and their families, remember it. It isn't remembered like Memorial Day or Veterans Day. for instance. And yet it was very significant at the time. And we need to remember more of the significant days in our past and learn from them. Lots of people sacrificed their lives so that we could have the lives and freedoms that we have today.
Yesterday is such a day. May 8th 1945 was the official end of WWII in Europe. It was known as V-E Day, followed a few months later by V-J Day , Victory over Japan, which marked the end of the war in the Pacific, and the official end of hostilities world wide. On that May Day there was still a lot of fighting to be had , but for Europe it was a great relief after almost 6 years of constant fighting And both in Europe and the US there were celebrations over this milestone.
Now, hardly anyone outside of history buffs like me, or military veterans and their families, remember it. It isn't remembered like Memorial Day or Veterans Day. for instance. And yet it was very significant at the time. And we need to remember more of the significant days in our past and learn from them. Lots of people sacrificed their lives so that we could have the lives and freedoms that we have today.
Thursday, May 2, 2019
beating on the Senate floor
Did you know that a U.S. Senator was beaten unconscious and almost died on the Senate floor?
And that his attacker was a fellow Congressman, a US Representative from the state of South Carolina? Such was the level of debate over slavery in the first half of our country's existence.
Harsh were the arguments for and against. Rare were the compromises. And there were powerful speakers on both sides who often went beyond logic and reasoning to throw in personal attacks and accuse their opponents of the vilest motives and actions. In the state of Kansas people on both sides became violent in their "support" or "opposition" that brawls and battles broke out over the issue - it was not called "Bloody Kansas" for no reason.
And on May 20th, 1856 Charles Sumner, a senator from Massachusetts gave a speech criticizing in blazing vulgar terms a recent piece of legislation, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and its sponsors, one of whom had a cousin serving in the US House of Representatives. That cousin, Representative Preston Brooks, from South Carolina, was so incensed that he first considered challenging Sumner to a duel.
But he considered dueling to be among equals, and he did not consider Sumner to be an equal. So on May 22nd he went to the Senate and using a walking cane beat Sumner senseless - almost killing him.
Ironically Preston Brooks died just a year later and did not see the Civil War break out of the contentious debate. Sumner survived and was a leader of the Radical Republicans who after the North won, supported a harsh occupation of the South and an aggressive push for former slaves to not only vote but also to hold office. Their motives were partially good - pushing for former slaves to have an active part in the governing of their lands. But the use of force became odious to everyone else.
As a result when the occupation was lifted the South switched back to such discrimination that the legacy of Sumner turned into Jim Crow and the after-effects were felt for almost another century.
Fiery words can burn, though our country has grown out of it. let us be glad that we are not in the place of the 1800's rhetoric and violence, but it is wise to watch our words.
And that his attacker was a fellow Congressman, a US Representative from the state of South Carolina? Such was the level of debate over slavery in the first half of our country's existence.
Harsh were the arguments for and against. Rare were the compromises. And there were powerful speakers on both sides who often went beyond logic and reasoning to throw in personal attacks and accuse their opponents of the vilest motives and actions. In the state of Kansas people on both sides became violent in their "support" or "opposition" that brawls and battles broke out over the issue - it was not called "Bloody Kansas" for no reason.
And on May 20th, 1856 Charles Sumner, a senator from Massachusetts gave a speech criticizing in blazing vulgar terms a recent piece of legislation, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and its sponsors, one of whom had a cousin serving in the US House of Representatives. That cousin, Representative Preston Brooks, from South Carolina, was so incensed that he first considered challenging Sumner to a duel.
But he considered dueling to be among equals, and he did not consider Sumner to be an equal. So on May 22nd he went to the Senate and using a walking cane beat Sumner senseless - almost killing him.
Ironically Preston Brooks died just a year later and did not see the Civil War break out of the contentious debate. Sumner survived and was a leader of the Radical Republicans who after the North won, supported a harsh occupation of the South and an aggressive push for former slaves to not only vote but also to hold office. Their motives were partially good - pushing for former slaves to have an active part in the governing of their lands. But the use of force became odious to everyone else.
As a result when the occupation was lifted the South switched back to such discrimination that the legacy of Sumner turned into Jim Crow and the after-effects were felt for almost another century.
Fiery words can burn, though our country has grown out of it. let us be glad that we are not in the place of the 1800's rhetoric and violence, but it is wise to watch our words.
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