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Daily Archives: April 10, 2012

War of 1812 Blandford style.

10 Tuesday Apr 2012

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This evening the Blandford Historical Society hosted a presentation given by Professor Nicholas Aieta on the subject of The War of 1812 Bicentennial and its relevance to Blandford. The professor gave an excellent brief distillation of a complicated subject matter, he was charming and funny. He reminded me that the War of 1812 produced our national anthem, “The Star Spangled Banner” by Francis Scott Key and that we, as a young nation, tried to invade and capture Canada. I find that to be so amusing. I don’t know why, but it tickles me.

He spoke about our two competing political parties at the time, the Federalists versus the Democratic Republicans. The Federalists were actually against the War and since Blandford was predominantly Federalist, thus didn’t support the War cause and didn’t support sending any militia’s either. Which surprised me simply because when I arrived at the Historical Society, I joked that Blandford was too busy bringing in the crops, tending the farm animals and starting the various industries that were to become important to its future development and prosperity, to be involved in war-time activities. Blandford started being settled in 1735 by hardcore Presbyterian church worshippers who came from Hopkinton near Worcester, MA. The country was very rough out here and between the wildlife, the rough mountainous terrain, and cold long winters, Blandfordites were more apt to be pacifists than war activists. They had enough on their plates and I’m sure, couldn’t understand how a naval war could be that politically necessary. Their lives were already difficult just carving out a future on their mountain.

What really struck my sense of history, was that basically the support or the anti-War sentiment predominantly rested on political party affiliation. The more things change the more they remain the same. The state of Massachusetts was politically divided over the War of 1812 as was the rest of our new country, makes me think of how divided we were over previous military engagements such as Vietnam or Iraq. According to the professor, we are much more polite and civil with each other in present day as opposed to political disagreements back in 1812. I had to suppress a small chuckle, but the professor seemed sincere so I squelched my chuckle. Apparently, a newspaper publisher from Baltimore, Maryland left his city to continue publishing his anti-war op-eds from the safety of Washington D.C. because the war supporters attacked his publishing house and it got very violent. Our bill of rights were still relatively new, so it was a big deal, the attacks on the publishing house were a direct attack on the freedom of the press, pretty big implications for a nascent democracy.

I really enjoyed the presentation and it was especially nice that it was held just 5 minutes walking distance from my house. Life in a small town, I really enjoy it.

Local libraries

10 Tuesday Apr 2012

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When was the last time you visited a library?

April 10, 2012

Last Library Visit

Blandford, Massachusetts

It was just last week that I dropped by my local library in Blandford. The library was set up and given its trust by a lovely lady Mrs. Porter. I believe that it happened in the early 1900’s. I’ll have to look into it because I think that it’s wonderful to have a public library in a small town.

Paul Ryan Accuses Obama Of ‘Verbal Tantrums’ On His Budget Plan (VIDEO)

10 Tuesday Apr 2012

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Ryan needs to brush up on his vocabulary and consult his dictionary. The President wasn’t being petulant, he was being populist, following the long traditions of great Presidents such as Teddy Roosevelt, who would be standing next to President Obama, backing him up his own fiery speeches.I am sure that congressman Ryan would be the subject of a few scathing put downs of which Teddy Roosevelt was famous for and he would be 100% correct in his assessment of Ryan being a lapdog to the wealthy and of betraying the office of congress by not putting the constituents first. President Obama was spot on with his description of Ryan’s budget as a “Trojan Horse” and Ryan, himself, is being petulant because President Obama simply demonstrated the fine sense that he has and called him on it.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Mitch McConnell: ‘War On Women’ Is A ‘Manufactured Issue’

10 Tuesday Apr 2012

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I think that Mtich needs a refresher course on anatomy. The difference between men and women is in their reproductive systems. The GOP on the state and federal level have sought to restrict women reproductive choices and the freedom that they have to make those choices. I haven’t seen or heard of a single piece of legislation that has spoken to men access to health care regarding Viagra or other medicines and why, because Viagra hasn’t anything to do really with reproduction as a choice, it has to do with sex. Obviously for women who bear most of the responsibility and consequences, sex and reproduction is so much more. Republican men are trying to assert control against women and that in my opinion validates the term “war against women”. Women are losing their power to make deeply personal decisions because republican lawmakers are taking it to the legislative branch and thus logically the judicial branch and what recourse do women have? Therein lies the problem and why “war” as a descriptive term, isn’t a hysterical response, it’s a valid one.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Why Obama’s JOBS Act Couldn’t Suck Worse

10 Tuesday Apr 2012

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The picture says a thousand words, the predatory smiles on the people surrounding President Obama, silently counting up their dollars and cents with the passage into law of this bill. The President’s furrowed brow, knowing that labor and many democrats are silently fuming at his signing, inwardly frustrated because he is trying to reach out to the business community and the GOP and knowing that while he is signing, he is taking a huge risk at unleashing tons of fraud that the Saone-Oxley Act protected investors from, and now he is signing its repeal.I have seen his other expressions at various bill signings, The confident, happy expressions at the Lilly-Ledbetter signing, the Affordable Patient Act signing, those were expressions of knowing that better laws were being put on the books. This expression I see here, is one that belies trepidation and worry that the private sector,Wall Street and the GOP will come to make him regret the faith he is putting in their corner.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Occupy’s Next Crossroads

10 Tuesday Apr 2012

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The Occupy organization has goals and strategies. They have an economic team that actually came up with a game plan as to what to do to break up the big banks, create better, stronger financial regulations and a transparent process for Wall Street. Their separate mini branches of the occupy brand such as occupy foreclosed homes, occupy Bank of America and last occupy the ports in CA keep the movement real and alive in America’s conscious. However I am sure that the occupy movement doesn’t want to go the way the tea party movement did, get elected officials to D.C and become a cog in the machinery that by the way only gummed up the works and became an embarrassment to themselves. The occupy movement is still a nascent one and with spring coming, I am excited to see where this is going to go, but from what I have read from newsletters, the occupiers haven’t given up, they are coordinated amongst themselves and we should be expecting a lot more from them, this upcoming general election season.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

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