How would I know Custer’s words? The battle between the US 7th Cavalry and the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes took place 140 years ago. I was born 140 years late to hear what if anything he might have said, had I been there. Additionally only Indians walked away from that fight alive. …
Twenty four hours ago I was horribly ill. Four or five sessions of throwing up, and then came the fever. At some point the thought occurred to me, –so this is how we die. I did not dwell on the thought. The coming of dawn always makes everything better. I had several emails and…
A few years ago I fed my interest in the American Civil War by a lot of reading, and by visiting a number battlefields. I have more than a shelf of books. I’ve spent time at Gettysburg, Petersburg, and Fort Fisher. In that day the preparation for battle meant forming a “line of battle,”…
Four days after the election, protest of the results continued last night in a number of cities. Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Denver, Minneapolis, Dallas, Oakland, were included in the CNN report. The photos supported my assumption that the demonstrations were likely to include many in their twenties, young adults seeking adult entree into society. I…
I drove past my local polling place this morning. The parking lot was full. Campaign signs crowded the lawn on both sides of the drive way. Now, at Starbucks customers come in with the conventional hint of a smile on their faces. If they are like me they carry a suppressed sense of foreboding…
Today is the day before the ballots are cast, the vote tallied and the results announced. My cynical self says, “so what.” The one candidate is a life long uber predator, property developer, and pitch man for all manner of dodgy, shell game offers: Trump University, Trump Steaks, apparel, etc. The other candidate offers…
It is perfectly clear that political parties across the spectrum today are unquestioningly committed to maintain the capitalist growth economy, seemingly oblivious to the catastrophe that this out-dated development agenda holds in store for people and the planet – a catastrophe that, in some respects, has already arrived. In short, a universal ‘growth fetish’…
Last night I attended a production of The Addams Family musical play at the Vernon Hills High School auditorium. The play was a clever, contemporary rendition of the old Addams family ABC sitcom which I barely remember seeing in the 1960s. The concept of a dysfunctional typical American family was created by cartoonist Charles…
Today is Friday, do I dare call it “Good Friday?” The election is scheduled for Tuesday. From the vitriol, the accusations that have filled electronic media, and particularly the breathless panic with which the network anchorman “reports” the latest outrageous incrimination,—this feels a lot like a gathering mob to me. I just don’t know…
One Tin Soldier is a 1960’s era protest song written by Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter. It was first recorded by the Canadian group The Original Castle in 1969. It was recorded in 1971 by The American group Coven and it reached number 26 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was featured in the…
