Happy 2012!
I thought that this trip post was already on line!
In bringing 2011 to a close, I visited friends and family. I doing so I touched on the following states: Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and just a bit of Tennessee. It included my first look at Saint Louis in a long time.
It has been good to travel in the US again. It is a bit insulating to travel on our great interstates, and it is amazing to see great cargo trucks traveling 80 mph and more on them!
I left the Clute/Lake Jackson area on Texas highway 35 going southwest along the Gulf coast to Corpus Christi(body of Christ). I had just had a great visit with my long time friend Dr. D. From Corpus I traveled north westish up interstate 37 to state 72 near Three Rivers, Texas. I passed through Fowlerton and Los Angeles on the way to Cotulla on interstate 35.
Many Texans are learning differences between frac-water and fresh water. Frac-water is sometimes called brine there. Still I haven't been able to find one one Texan who can tell me the recipe for Frac-water. I also have not found out why used frac-water is hidden away beneath the earth and not reused.
From Cotulla I somehow jogged over to federal highway 83 and drove north on it to interstate 10. Found the drive up 83 particularly as, by the way, I did the drive down state 35.
I took interstate 10 to Fort Stockton on U.S. federal highway 285. Fort Stockton was, I believe, one of those places from which Civil War veterans shot Indians for the good of the Republic. For Lancaster, a bit farther east, was another of those places. I believe that both of those forts were built along what had been majore Indian trade routes. We may have once called that route The Old Chihuahua Trail, a name that that probably came to us from the Spanish.
Took 285 to Roswell New Mexico. The only possible aliens I saw around Roswell were some Middle East looking guys in skull caps. The had run out of gas and some good Samaritans were helping them. Tourists might be a better name than aliens.
Drove federal highway from Roswell to Las Cruces and found it a very pleasant drive. Among other pleasant sights, it took me through my first pines with snow of this winter.
Las Cruces has grown enormously; not all that growth has been for the better. From Las Cruces I took interstate through Tucson, Arizona to the junction with interstate 8. Took 8 to Yuma and into California to 86, 62 and home. I passed through some parts of Yuma I had not seen in a long time. I detected an amount of drug and gang activity that, for some reason, surprised me. Still, I found the people kind and helpful, which surprised some people there.
It's good to be home. Joshua Tree and my little house here seem to have fared well in my absence.
Thank you to the people of each of the States I touched. Thank you too to Rex, Dennis, Gerry, Ron, Gloria, and Debra. A great 2012 to all, including the Maya.
Showing posts with label civil war. Show all posts
Showing posts with label civil war. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Write a Biography
If you ever what to write a biography for school, sale, fun, or ...., I suggest that you consider General Scicles of the Union Army.
You might begin by checking out the Excelsior Brigade of Dan Scicles.
You might also look at Scicles' career at Tammany Hall.
He killed the son of Francis Scott Key, Francis, Barton Key. Dan's young wife and Barton had gotten so involved as to exceed Scicles' forbearance. After his trial he forgave his wife. The fact that he did so upset others more than had his killing of Barton key.
His military career was not perfect, bu he was rightly considered a hero of the Union. Today his right is on display at Walter Reed Medical Center.
.
You might begin by checking out the Excelsior Brigade of Dan Scicles.
You might also look at Scicles' career at Tammany Hall.
He killed the son of Francis Scott Key, Francis, Barton Key. Dan's young wife and Barton had gotten so involved as to exceed Scicles' forbearance. After his trial he forgave his wife. The fact that he did so upset others more than had his killing of Barton key.
His military career was not perfect, bu he was rightly considered a hero of the Union. Today his right is on display at Walter Reed Medical Center.
.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
"Police Action"
I remember it being called a 'police action' because many of us still thought that, if the people had not declared the war through their representatives, the war was illegal. We did not call people in power criminals. My memory is not perfect and I may not have all this just right.
The winners of WWII, Russia and the US, divided Korea between us. Russian forces occupied the northern part and US forces the southern. I don't remember anyone consulting the Koreans. Powerful people in the US, fearful of the power of our ally, began calling parts of the world communist or non-communist. They told us that the norther part of Korea was bad, communist.
The Russians seemed to have had less interest in Korea than we did. They seemed more interested in consolidating their power closer to home and were a bit neglectful of their duties of occupation. Most of us were pretty busy at home too, catching our breath and beginning to feel the peace. But, we were told, Chinese were bad, communist, too.
Some Koreans wanted to be whole again. They felt divided and conquered. They were not pleased to be occupied. But we had a good reputation. They knew that as democrats we valued the people and justice for the people. In June of 1950 armed Koreans from the north crossed into the south in a bid to unite their country. Americans knew about uniting; they knew about civil war too.
But it seemed that some people in the US were not sympathetic. The US, with the help of the UN, got 17 countries(I just checked)to help stop the Koreans from uniting. Most of the leaders of those 17 counties were please not to be dominated by Japan or Germany, felt some loyalty to the US, if not the cause. Americans were the good guys. However, they were pleased when the US leaders said that the could get US personal to do most of the bleeding; that US citizens would agreed to be taxed for the costs of a 'police action.'
We did good and moved our troops across the north right up to the Chinese border and seemed ready to cross it. The Chinese, remembering that we had been calling them bad, asked us to back off. We had just won the greatest war and were not ready to 'back off' for anyone. China was sill suffering from their part in the war and were broke, still had something to fight with, including a lot of willing Chinese. They backed us out of China, across the north and back into what has come to be called South Korea.
Not completely up-beat, but better than The Black Death.
Home work: Why didn't Russia stop us from going into the north? Why did we give we give up our war powers? How ready should we be to have our young bleed even if we have made them pros?
The winners of WWII, Russia and the US, divided Korea between us. Russian forces occupied the northern part and US forces the southern. I don't remember anyone consulting the Koreans. Powerful people in the US, fearful of the power of our ally, began calling parts of the world communist or non-communist. They told us that the norther part of Korea was bad, communist.
The Russians seemed to have had less interest in Korea than we did. They seemed more interested in consolidating their power closer to home and were a bit neglectful of their duties of occupation. Most of us were pretty busy at home too, catching our breath and beginning to feel the peace. But, we were told, Chinese were bad, communist, too.
Some Koreans wanted to be whole again. They felt divided and conquered. They were not pleased to be occupied. But we had a good reputation. They knew that as democrats we valued the people and justice for the people. In June of 1950 armed Koreans from the north crossed into the south in a bid to unite their country. Americans knew about uniting; they knew about civil war too.
But it seemed that some people in the US were not sympathetic. The US, with the help of the UN, got 17 countries(I just checked)to help stop the Koreans from uniting. Most of the leaders of those 17 counties were please not to be dominated by Japan or Germany, felt some loyalty to the US, if not the cause. Americans were the good guys. However, they were pleased when the US leaders said that the could get US personal to do most of the bleeding; that US citizens would agreed to be taxed for the costs of a 'police action.'
We did good and moved our troops across the north right up to the Chinese border and seemed ready to cross it. The Chinese, remembering that we had been calling them bad, asked us to back off. We had just won the greatest war and were not ready to 'back off' for anyone. China was sill suffering from their part in the war and were broke, still had something to fight with, including a lot of willing Chinese. They backed us out of China, across the north and back into what has come to be called South Korea.
Not completely up-beat, but better than The Black Death.
Home work: Why didn't Russia stop us from going into the north? Why did we give we give up our war powers? How ready should we be to have our young bleed even if we have made them pros?
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