Gone But the Legacy Continues

I knew Major General Kenneth Houghton, USMC, for about six months in late 1955 and into the spring of 1956. I never forgot him or what he taught me and a couple of hundred other, very young, earnest and eager second lieutenants attending Marine Corps officer training at Quantico, Virginia. We were 22 and 23 years old.

Last month the Times printed a few paragraphs about him in the Obituary section. Thats when I picked up the final report on Kenny Houghton. The short article said he died in late March of natural causes at the age of 85. The Kenny Houghton that I knew had nothing about him that was naturalhe was larger than life.

When I met him in the fall of 1955 he was about 35 years old with a chest full of medals earned in World War II and later in Korea. He was the real deal. He had an open face and a reasonably open mind. He w as in charge of the Tactics Department in our training. He was everywherealways teaching, coaching, challenging us, correcting us and boosting our confidence.

He was relentless in making sure we understood what our jobs were. He was hard nosed, but patient. He wanted to know what our thinking was during our practice missions. He dissected each move and asked about a million questions. Sometimes, after we received our assignment objectives, he would ask us what our plans were. He seldom commented in advance of the maneuvers but it wasnt difficult to read his body language. We had to learn the school book techniques and then the Kenny Houghton way of doing things. Believe me, he was something else.

He learned our first names as best he could. He called me Geno as did most of my friends. After one practice mission in which I was the company commander, we had a critique of the exercise, which was our usual routine. He began by asking me questions about the mission a nd if I understood the objectives. He carried on for about 10 minutes and finally said, Geno, I shouldnt be speaking to you because youve been dead since the first 30 seconds into the missionnot to mention the rest of your company who you managed to lead into an obvious trap! I got the message.

He made sure that all of us understood that our jobs werent just to lead enlisted men. We were charged with training them so that their chances of survival were high. He told us that everyone facing battle is scared. So be sure your troops are prepared to instinctively move when you, the lieutenant, give the order to get up and charge. There is no time to think and there is no place for hesitancy.

I dont know what Kenny would think of the generals who have recently been critical of the war effort in Iraq. I didnt know his politics. I never saw him again after we left Quantico in the spring of 1956. My guess is that he would have preferred that the generals kept quiet and not be outspoken. He knew it was the enlisted men that waged the wars along with the junior officers. In the Marines, the officers lines up for chow after all the enlisted men have been fed. I think this recognition of who is really important on the battlefield would have prompted Kenny Houghton to tell his general pals to keep quiet and not to undermine the spirit of the fighters facing a ruthless enemy.

My favorite Kenny Houghton story was about a company commander he had in Korea. Kenny told us that this commander insisted that his officers never use the word problem. Rather he ordered that the word opportunity be substituted in place of problem.

One day when Kenny was scouting the enemy, way in fr ont of his front line, he radioed to his CO as follow hello six, this is scout three. Do you copy? Yes, three, we copy. Whats your report? Six, we have spotted about 15,000 North Korean opportunities advancing toward our lines! Standing by for your orders, sir, as to how take advantage of these opportunities. Three out.

I have many more Kenny Houghton stories but space doesnt permit me to list them. I know that every person who served in the Military has insightful and meaningful experiences they could share. Im sure that my memories could be matched by many other former servicemen and women. But, I had to write these words about a genuine American hero. Our country owes these kinds of men and women great thanks.

I owe the Marine Corps more than I can ever repay. I became accountable and responsible. I got much more than I gave. E sprit de Corps, hard to describe in just a few words, was driven into us each hour of every day. We took care of each other. Long before the expression, Ive got your back became street popular we all had each others backand front as well.

Kenny drilled into me and my classmates, and no doubt thousands of other Marines, what our real jobs were once we were assigned commands: accomplish your assigned mission by killing the enemy, train and protect your enlisted people, always bring back your wounded and dead from the battlefield and never forget who has gone before you in our beloved Corps.

Thank you Major General Kenny Houghton. You taught us well. I will never forget you.

Semper Fi.

Gene Pepper Consulting Your Common-Sense Consultant http://www.genepepperconsulting.com

Gene has extensive experience in strategic busi ness planning, business coaching, turnarounds, and exit strategies. His common-sense approach leads to highly successful business transactions.

If you have a company that has one to one hundred customer service people in itI can help you convert what is now probably a big drain on your check bookto a profit making centerand I can help you achieve this seemingly impossible goal in 90 days or less. And while were at it we will get more business from your existing customers than you ever dreamed possibleand also while were at it we will help you attract and convert more new customers than you dreamed possible.

Author:: Gene Pepper
Keywords:: Military, Quantico, USMC, war memories, Inspiration, Marines, our troops,
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What Sets Chinese Painting Apart From Western Painting

Because of different instruments, materials and cultural background, Chinese Paintings have their own image and content in comparison to other types of Paintings. Unique appearance of Chinese Painting owes much to the use of the Chinese writing brush and the Chinese paper (rice and silk). There are four essential elements used in the creation of Chinese Painting, the brush, ink, paper, and the ink stone. Lacking any of them the job cannot be done.

The most important factors for Chinese Painting are the special pedagogy, the close relationship with the painters personality and the unique Chinese philosophy. They are trained not only to convey the objects but also express the mood and the spirit of the subject. The Chinese also believe that the painting is the expression of the painters knowledge and temperament. In this way, Chinese Painting becomes something much more than Art.

The most essential philosophy of China is the unity of Heaven, EArth and Human Beings. What the Chinese Painters are trying to express is not what meets the eye, but their attitude to the Great Nature. The Chinese painter has a profound love and admiration for nature. It is pArt of their culture, religious practices and their need to depend on nature to survive.

In relationship to human and animal figures, the Chine se painter utilizes the forms he finds in nature, such as ovals, circles, and geometric lines which are found also found in Chinese calligraphy. Thus, all Chinese Paintings whether they are landscapes or the human figure are painted with the same movement, rhythm, and harmony that is used when drawing the forms of calligraphy. Calligraphy is a form of Art, even more revered and honored than all other painting.

In the same theme they may spend hours contemplating and drawing inspiration from the figures of nature such as humming birds with their fragile wings, the robust legs of the cricket, and the fascinating form of the praying mantis. From the minor or simple creatures that are chosen as subjects of Art work, we can see how they enjoy the nature and the love they devote to the most humble things.

The Chinese painter finds it offensive to contemplate and draw the human figure by itself. Human beings are pArt of the surrounding heavens and eArth. They are all together. That is why Chinese Paintings are simple in composition and full of harmony, overall balance and peace with all of creation. They are interested in the mood and spirit.

Copyright 2004 Ernesto Apomayta

Publishing guidelines: You may publish my Article in your newsletter, on your website, or in your print publication provided you include the resource box at the end. Notification would be appreciated but is not required.

About The Author

Ernesto Apomayta

Born and raised in Puno, Peru, Ernesto Apomayta was identified as an Artistic prodigy at the tender age of five. As a boy, Apomayta was first influenced and inspired by the natural marvels surrounding the humble home he shared with his family. In close proximity to shimmering Lake Titicaca, the striking beauty of the Andes and the awe-inspiring Incan ruins of his ancestors, Apomayta was spiritually compelled to express his wonder visually through his paintbru sh. A direct ancestor of the legendary photographer, MArtin Chambi, Apomayta derived inspiration from the same native influences and his legacy that encouraged Apomayta to fulfill his own Artistic destiny.

To view many of Ernesto Apomaytas pieces of Artwork please visit www.apomaytaArt.com for full information on Mr. Apomayta.

apomayta@hotmail.com

Author:: Ernesto Apomayta
Keywords:: Paintings,Art,chinese Art,chinese painting
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Literary Fiction Is it in Danger of Dying Out?

If Ernest Hemingway were alive today and publishing his first Novel at the infancy of the 21st century, would anyone care? Id have to say, probably not. This is of course, unfortunate. Whether you like his work or consider it overly macho and sexist, there is one undeniable fact: Hemingway redefined the way early 20th century American Literature was written. In his simple, yet amazingly realistic style, he was able to relate more to the common man, rather than appealing to ultra-elite society as the countless Victorian authors did before him. Not to say he was the first to write about average everyday people, but it was the way he wrote his Fiction that made the average everyday people want to read it. By scrapping the pretentious Victorian-style narrative and sticking to the actual guts of the story, his Novels became the everymans Novels, and this is what made him an international superstar in his day.

But today this would not be enough to get old Ernie that kind of attention. In fact, it may not even be enough to get him published. Today it takes a brand-able or franchise-able idea that has the potential to branch out into spin-off products and mega-movie deals to garner that kind of worldwide attention from a Novel. Examples include The Da Vinci Code and the Harry Potter series. They have that mega-million dollar potential that drives authors to the top of the bestseller lists for months at a time. But why is it that the bestseller lists are so often dominated by Genre Novels? What happened to the Literary Novels that used to rule the book world?

I dont want to offend anyone here, but I would like to take one mom ent to explain the difference between Literary Fiction and Genre Fiction (Genre meaning Mystery, Sci-Fi, Romance, etc.) Many people actually have no idea that there is a difference. In fact, when someone asked me once what Genre I wrote in, I said, I dont write in a Genre. I write Literary Fiction. They laughed and said, Isnt all Fiction Literary? Well maybe they were confusing the word Literary wit h Literature, but at any rate I will now explain the difference for those of you who dont know. I do want to say upfront that I am in no way putting down Genre Fiction, since it too has its merits and value. And many times Genre Fiction may even take on some aspects of Literary, and vice versa. However, the focus here is on whether or not Literary Fiction has completely fallen off the general publics proverbial radar screen . . . So, I continue.

The main difference between Genre and Literary Fiction is one thi ng: conflict. Conflict is that all-important element in Fiction, so important that without it you have no story to tell. Conflict is the problem the characters must solve, the obstacle they must overcome, the foe they must defeat, etc. And, there are two types of conflict: External and Internal. External is the type of conflict utilized by Genre writers. For example, in a murder mystery the conflict would be the murder that the detective is trying to solve. In science Fiction it might be that the alien hoards have just landed in Jersey and the Air Force is faced with destroying them. Whatev er it is, in Genre, the conflict is always external, i.e. aliens are an external force the Air Force pilots must defeat, the murder is an external problem the detective must solve. So the conflict depends more on these external forces, rather than the characters.

In Literary Fiction, the conflict is much different, its internal, which means it is character driven. It focuses less on the external forces the characters must overcome, and more on the internal forces the characters must face within themselves. For example, it may be a story about a man who has cheated on his wife an d his conflict is whether or not he should tell her. Or (and this is where the mixing of Genre and Literary comes in) the alien hoards have landed in Jersey, once again, and the Air Force pilots must decide if they believe it morally correct to blow them to kingdom come. Thats the beauty of Literary Fiction, there is a much deeper revealing of the characters in that it explores what we as human beings would do in these situations, rather than what an ideali zed character may do. Like us all, they are not purely black or white. They are instead gray characters, sharing both good and bad qualities. This is what Literary Fiction does; it explores the true nature of, well, human nature.

So, is Literary Fiction falling through the cracks of mainstream society? If so its not because it isnt being written. On the contrary, there are plenty of contemporary Literary writers in America today who are all worth the accolades and awards they have received. But have you ever heard of Marilynne Robinson or Jeffrey Eugenides, two fairly recent and award winning Literary Novelists? You may have, but how about Richard Bausch? He was once called one of our greatest short story writers whose Literary stories deserve inclusion among the best American stories of the past 20 years. It could be said that Bausch is near the top of the modern Literary strata as far as talent goes, but have you ever heard of him? Is his name as recognizable as Dan Brown or J.K. Rowling? Indeed, not. So why is that? In 2004, Genre Fiction made up about 75% of all Fiction sold, while general Fiction made up about 25% (this is according to Romance Writers of America, Inc., who of course noted that the Genre of Romance had the largest share at over 33%).

In general, sales for all Books have been declining in recent years. This may be attributed to many factors, one in particular I like to call, the MTV factor. I mean, why waste your time reading a book about twenty-year-olds having sex in a hot tub when you can watch it on cable television, right? MTV, however, is not the cause of this problem, but just another symptom of what has been coined by the talking head as, the dumbing down of America. If this phenomenon exists it is something we must all live with, but is it the reason less Literary < a href='http://www.amazon.com/rss/tag/Novel/new?tag=day2soft-20'title= 'Novel: Newly tagged products at Amazon.com'>Novels are being read today? After all, it doesnt take a genius to enjoy Literary Fiction. I enjoy Literary Fiction, and I am certainly no genius. So could it be the publishers? Are they to blame for the slow demise of this once sought-after art form? Well, they certainly contribute to it, since a book about a teenage wizard doe s mean a bigger profit margin than say, a Novel about a dieing preacher writing an account of his life for his seven-year-old son (Gilead, Marilynne Robinson). But whether or not the mega-conglomerate publishers bare the bulk of the responsibility for the impending death of Literary Fiction is unclear. What does seem to be painfully clear is, whatever the reason, Literary Fiction is no longer craved and devoured by the masses as it once was. In fact, most Americans will only read Literary Fiction in grade school. But what turns out to be an even scarier statistic is that after high school, the majority of them will never pick up a book, of any kind, for the rest of their natural lives; a sad sign that we are doomed as a Literary society. So I suppose in the end, we should be happy that those that do read are reading at all, no matter what kind of Fiction it is.

2005 by David Tucholski
This article comes with reprint rights providing no changes are made and the resource box below accompanies it.

David Tucholski is the author of the Novel, The Good I Stand On (an iUniverse Editors Choice pick), available at Amazon, as well as several other works that can be found on his website: http://www.davidtucholski.com

Visit http://www.thegoodistandon.com for more about his debut Novel.

Author:: David Tucholski
Keywords:: Lit erary, Fiction, Classics, Genre, Books, Novels, Literature, B estsellers, Novel
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Heat Waves Expected to Kill Thousands This Summer

Did you know massive heat waves across the Globe and around the Planet are Expected this Summer, which could Kill tens of Thousands of humans? In fact one scientist has said that; Heat Waves are Expected this Summer all over the World, in fact they have already started. In fact recently the Death Toll was 47 in a huge Heat Wave in India;

http://www.terradaily.com/2006/060508072647.fyrftp7w.html

But this could be only the beginning you see? In the United States many illegal alien crossers into the State of Arizona from Mexico have already died tried to cross a stretch of 90 miles of desert. So far 35 illegal aliens have also died trying to cross the Arizona-Mexico Desert and it is not even that hot yet, as Summer temps in that part of the desert can reach 120 degrees and a person would need to carry 3-gallons of water to make it across and that is about 24 lbs of water, which makes things even more difficult you see?

Some Border Patrol authorities are already saying that this could be a very deadly year indeed and they expe ct up to 500 or more this year. Meanwhile Hurricane Season is coming soon and the ocean surface temps are also already heating up and Hurricane Season is less than 3-weeks away. Unfortunately remember that last year the Hurricane Season started two-weeks early and that means the Hurricane Season could start in 10-days or less from today.

Many believe that this Summer is going to be one of the hottest on record and the Heat Wave is coming to Planet Earth. Scientists have noted that they have seen a Solar Sun Spot and expect these solar flares to continue. There is not much we can do about the heat, but if you want to try, well think cool. Consider all this in 2006.

Lance Winslow

Author:: Lance Winslow
Keywords:: Heat Waves, Expected, Thousands, Summer, Kill
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Bohemian Grove

Bohemian Grove is the greatest men's party on Earth, according to once-regular attendee Herbert Hoover. A secret little getaway for America's male upper crust, the 2-week long annual retreat in Monte Rio, California, has all the luxuries you'd expect of an elitist clique: outdoor plays, an orchestra, delicious food and beverages, public urination, streaking, and human sacrifices, to name a few. Nestled in beautiful redwood forests, every Republican president since Coolidge has partaken in the gala, as well as a host of other huge names in business and politics. Many of the discussions in the two week festival end up becoming the tenets upon which the bureaucracy and media begin to act.

Little is known about its origins. The Bohemian Club was founded, according to its PR people, in 1872 by five newspapermen, a Shakespearean actor, a vintner and a local merchant from San Francisco. The male bonding funfest at the Grove itself began in 1879, near the Russian River. It w asn't long before this yearly custom became an annual tradition which has continued for over 120 years. Members enjoy opera, literature, and music. (1)

Perhaps the human sacrifices are just mock shows or theatre macabre in the style of Masonic rituals like the killing of Hiram Abiff but there are people who have escaped who say otherwise. Churchill was made a Druid in a well known presentation at Blenheim Palace and Thomas Paine correctly notes that the Masons derive their system from the Druids. This is true for all Luciferians or Heliopolitans who like to trace their history to the early shamanistic scientists and subsequent Chaos Scientists. There is little likelihood that any of these so-called Druids are anyt hing like the Druids who formed the beneficent leadership of the Brotherhood on Earth in the time before Empire. People who like my research and who have sought to spread my message have taken umbrage when I tell them this if they consider themselves Druids or other neo-New Age cults.

Author of Diverse Druids, Columnist for The ES Press Magazine, Guest writer at World-Mysteries.com

Author:: Robert Baird
Keywords:: Bohemian Grove, Druids, Synarchy
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Slavery Reparations: Past Overdue

The annals of history are stained by an undeniable era of darkness; though the genocide remains unspoken, trivialized and sanitized Africans and persons of color were the victims of an unimaginable Holocaust that spanned 400 years costing between 50 and 100 million lives.

Cities and villages were burned and razed, cultural treasures and technological contributions were ravaged and destroyed; a continent was raped her youth and potential stolen, her resources exploited, a history was erased and a people denied their purpose and worth.

Born royalty, princes and princesses were stripped of their birthright, and they with their people robbed of Gods priceless gifts of freedom, dreams and aspirations.

With their dignity stripped, their beauty and worth denied, and families cruelly torn apart, a proud people were made outcasts in hostile, foreign lands and reduced to material property to labor and toil by an unenlightened society. Bound in chains, an innocen t people were stuffed in squalid ship holes to die of hunger and sickness, to drown in ferocious storms or to survive to live an existence of degradation and hell[1

When Union forces captured the South in 1865 and put a formal end to Slavery and its cruel and degrading practices, President Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) and the federal government focused on restitution and reconstruction. The earliest Reparations plan offered each freed slave 40 acres of land and a mule to work this land.

Under the auspices of this plan, General William Sherman (1820-1891) set aside tracts of land in the sea islands around Charleston, SC[2 exclusively for freed slaves. Within a short time, about 40,000 freed slaves [had been settled on 400,000 acres in Georgia and South Carolina.[3

However, when President Lincoln was assassinated, his successor, Andrew Johnson (1808-1875), a southerner from North Carolina, rescinded the federal governments promise and reversed the Reparation s program. Former slaves were then evicted from their new lands that reverted back to white ownership. Despite Johnsons opposition, Congressman Thaddeus Stevens (1792-1868) made a feeble attempt in 1867 proposing an unsuccessful bill that again called for distributing land to freed slaves.

Ten years later, when reconstruction ended followed by the passage of repressive, restrictive laws (e.g. Jim Crow) and the formation of white terrorist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) in the south, plans to address the atrocities of Slavery and compensate its victims were forgotten. Afterwards, African-Americans saw little justice, were denied their constitutional rights, and subjected to terrorism (e.g. the entire town of Rosewood, FL was destroyed in January 1923 by white mobs while local officials sworn to uphold the law watched and even participated, leaving up to 80 black men, women, and children dead) and illegal lynching for nearly 100 years until the Civil Rights mov ement of the 1950s and 1960s finally liberated them.

By the time Lincolns Emancipation Proclamation was implemented through force, four million Africans and their descendants had been enslaved in the U.S. and its colonies from 1619 to 1865, which played an integral role in leading to and accelerating Americas rise in becoming the most prosperous country. With this fact, the original promise implemented by General Sherman, calculations of the sum total of the worth of all the Black labor stolen through means of Slavery, segregation, and contemporary discrimination ranging from $5 to $24 trillion, and estimates of the original plots given to and then stolen from freed slaves being valued at about $1.5 million each,[4 the time for slave Reparations is past overdue when the concept of unjust enrichment is pursued as advocated by Randall Robinson, the author of The Debt: What America Owes to Blacks.

Accordingly, despite many obstacles, including legal and low suppor t among whites, the Slavery Reparations movement has been revived and is gaining momentum.[5 In 1989, Congressman John Conyers (b. 1929) introduced H.R. 40 to examine the effects [that Slavery and its remnants Jim Crow have had on African-Americans since emancipation,[6 which to date lacks the necessary support required for passage. Next in 2000, based on careful research by Deadria Farmer-Paellmann (b. 1965), an Adjunct Professor of Law at Southern New England School of Law, who discovered evidence that Aetna wrote policies on the lives of enslaved Africans with slave owners as the beneficiaries, the company issued an unprecedented apology giving birth to the corporate restitution movement.[7

By 2002, nine lawsuits had been filed, the most notable in the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, NY against FleetBoston Financial, CSX (a major railways firm) and Aetna for direct involvement in the slave trade. Currently cases are pending against 20 companies from the banking, insurance, textile, railroad, and tobacco industries. At the same time, California and twelve other states have enacted disclosure laws requiring insurance companies doing business within their boundaries to reveal their role in Slavery, while boycotts are being staged against firms named in the Farmer-Paellmann litigation that are challenging restitution demands.[8

Despite critics, the case for Slavery Reparations is convincing and strong:

The disparity between African Americans and Whites ($6000 vs. $88,000 net worth) would have been significantly smaller had President Johnson not rescinded Lincolns original promise or if the 1867 Reparations bill would have passed giving freed slaves an economic foothold before waves of European immigrants poured into the U.S. during the latter decades of the 1800s.[9

The United States has already given land away in its 230-year history. Approximately 246 million acres of productive land was given to about 1.5 mi llion people through the Homestead Act. Ironically out of the 1.5 million beneficiaries that included many white immigrants, there were only 4000 native African Americans.

Internationally, land has also been awarded to compensate victims of injustices. The most notable example is the creation of Israel, which has benefited countless Holocaust (1938-1945) victims and their families.

Precedents also exist for monetary payments to victims of injustices. Since 1952, the German government and corporations (along with those of Austria and Switzerland, to name others) have paid more than $120 billion to fund early Israeli projects and compensate Holocaust survivors. Presently about 120,000 Holocaust survivors (once about 275,000) are still receiving lifetime reparation payments. At the same time, Japanese-Americans interned during World War II are receiving reparation for their loss of property and liberty during that period after filing a lawsuit under the F ederal Tort Claims Act, which waives the governments sovereign immunity in some situations,[10 and American Indian tribes have and continue to receive compensation for lands ceded to the U.S. by them in various treaties.[11

Many ask, Would Reparations for Slavery be just?[12 arguing that the practice was originally legal, [not a single person directly affected by Slavery remains alive,[13 the cost of tracing lineages to slaves would be unbearable, the process next to impossible, no one alive today owned slaves, and that payments based on Race alone would be perceived as a monstrous injustice setting back Race relations[14 without healing the ills of the black community.[15

Considering that, while every slave and his/her direct family are deceased, African Americans continued to suffer disproportionately from segregation, discrimination, and barbaric attacks into the late 20th century, and at times continue to be the victims of bias (e.g. racial profiling when it comes to jobs, shopping, law enforcement and voting despite equal opportunity and equal protection laws and the 1964 Civil Rights Act), remain disproportionately disenfranchised when it comes to net worth and home ownership and still suffer from a sense of a lack of self-worth versus todays black immigrants, Slavery Reparations are not only just but necessary.

Holocaust Reparations continue to be paid even though the genocide that murdered more than 7 million, predominantly Jews along with opponents of Adolf Hitlers (1889-1945) regime and other non-Aryans (persons with fair-skin, light hair, and blue eyes), was legal under the democratic ally elected Third Reich (1933-1945) government. Thus arguments that corporations should not be punished for legal acts are baseless. In reality, Slavery was as morally repugnant as the Holocaust and corporations that benefited from staling people, from stealing labor, from forced breeding, from torture, from committing numerous horrendous acts, in the words of Farmer-Paellmann should [not be able to hold onto assets they acquired through such horrendous acts.[16

Back in 1999, more than 50 years after the end of the Holocaust, Jewish groups seeking at least $20 billion in new Reparations called a $3.3 billion offer made by a German delegation representing the countrys government and corporations disgusting. They later agreed on a $5.2 billion Nazi slave [compensation fund that was approved by the German Parliament in 2000. However, while these negotiations were being held, the World Council of Orthodox Jewish Communities filed a[nother lawsuit in the U.S. against D eutsche Bank, Germanys second-largest bank, alleging that it funded and profited from Nazi atrocities.[17

Based on these two cases alone, the passage of time and existing legalities of the prevailing era, are irrelevant when it comes to redressing inhuman acts like the Holocaust and Slavery if justice is to be served. Slavery harmed slaves and thus, indirectly, their descendants.[18 Furthermore, as there is no statute of limitations when it comes to the Holocaust, it can also be argued that none should exist when it comes to Slavery especially since African Americans were not allowed access to the courts in any meaningful way even long after the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing Slavery was passed [in December 1865. Also, consistent with Californias legislation that revised existing statutes of limitations to ensure that certain Holocaust suits would not be time-barred,[19 legislation can also provide extensions to African Americans so as not to perpetuate past injus tices that were every bit as evil as those committed by the Third Reich.

Therefore, arguments that Slavery Reparations are illogical and that tax dollars [and corporate holdings should not be used for [this compensation[20 are equally as disgusting. Per Dr. Martin Luther King (1929-1968), the only practical route is for all citizens [to engage as full participants in a dialogue examining what is the cost of repairing our society to make it equally accessible to everyone[21 rather than dismissing and denying the need for past due Reparations to the African American community.

In addition, the commentary offered during the 1999 Holocaust compensation fight regarding monetary payments is as appropriate to Slavery Reparations as it was during these negotiations when it was stated, how to quantify this in financial terms is a difficult question Money itself cannot bring back the dead, nor can it erase the memory of years of forced labor, but those seeking compensati on say it may be the best system there is.[22 While no amount of money nor steps can redress the sins of Slavery, such Reparations with a formal national condemnation of and apology for the practice can bring justice and healing, boost the self-esteem of African Americans, reduce current racial net worth and private property ownership gaps, improve standards of life for black Americans, and provide them with new opportunities that might otherwise remain unattainable for generations to come.

Although it may be impossible to give direct compensation to most slave descendants, every effort should be made to locate and compensate those with confirmed direct lineages and to African Americans who had suffered under segregation. In addition, Slavery Reparations funds should contribute to black foundations, black scholarships, and black community projects aimed at improving infrastructure and standards of life, especially since precedents already exist for the latter. When Germany began Holocaust Reparations payments, Bonn funded about a third of the total investment in Israels electrical system and nearly half the total investment in [Israels railways, [consisting of diesel engines, cars, tracks, and signaling equipment [along with equipment for [agriculture, construction, expanding the countrys water supply, for oil drilling, and for operating the [countrys copper mines.[23

Based on the examples of national corporate and government contributions to Holocaust Reparations funds, it is not impractical, nor unfeasible for the governments and corporations of the United States, United Kingdom and other European states that benefited from Slavery to make payments to Slavery Reparations funds. When the United States is considered, many of the named firms that have directly and/or indirectly benefited from Slavery have sufficient assets and annual profits while the national government has millions of acres of federal land and holdings to utili ze for Slavery Reparations.

Furthermore, the federal government could add a line underneath the Presidential Election Campaign section that reads Slavery and Civil Rights Reparations Check here if you, or your spouse if filing jointly, want $3 to go to this fund on every federal tax return while states, especially those in the south that benefited the most from the slave trade and labor, most of which already have contribution lines for causes ranging from breast cancer research to wildlife, could also add such a line.

In conclusion, the African American community and advocates for justice must stand united and demand Slavery Reparations as stridently as the Jewish community and advocates for justice have for Holocaust compensation. Both abominations require Reparations and redress since they share great similarities morally repugnant brutal treatment and forced labor considered legal in their respective times under ruling governments that perpetrated and enco uraged them, and each has cost millions of lives. As the BBC states in The long fight for Holocaust compensation Reparations are particularly pertinent for a generation that has little direct memory of the Holocaust [since these financial payments are akin to acknowledging the horrors of the past and the responsibility of the present generation for ensuring that it does not happen again such payments are equally applicable for the past practice of Slavery.

In the accurate and eloquent words of Kimberley Jane Wilson, American Slavery was a sin The principles of liberty, justice and equality didnt apply to the millions of Africans brought to America against their will. Our history is full of racial ironies. When Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) wrote, All men are created equal, he owned 187 slaves. Patrick Henry (1736-1799) owned over 90 slaves when he shouted the famous words, Give me liberty or give me death! Union General Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885) fought the Conf ederacy, but didnt free his own slaves until Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Even after Slavery ended, America the beacon of freedom to people all over the world still treated black Americans with indignity and, on occasion, savage cruelty.[24

Accordingly the long wait and many denials must end so that accruing damages can be mitigated and healing can begin. Slavery Reparations must be made as soon as possible to establish greater unity with improved standards of life for all, including African Americans. Only then can racism, even if predominantly de facto in nature, be extinguished for once and for all.

[1 William Sutherland. The Unspoken Holocaust. The International Whos Who In Poetry. (The International Library of Poetry. Owings Mills, MD 2004) 3.

[2 Reparations for Slavery. Wikipedia. 4 September 2006. 16 September 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ReparationsforSlavery

[3 Reparations for Slavery. Wikipedia. 4 September 2006. 16 September 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ReparationsforSlavery

[4 William Reed. Blacks worth $6k; whites $88k. Insight News. 12 September 2006. 16 September 2006. http://www.insightnews.com/business.asp?mode=display&articleID=2617

[5 Making Amends: Debate Continues Over Reparations for U.S. Slavery. NPR. 12 September 2006. 16 September 2006. http://www.npr.org/programs/specials/racism/010827.Reparations.html

[6 William Reed. Blacks worth $6k; whites $88k. Insight News. 12 September 2006. 16 September 2006. http://www.insightnews.com/business.asp?mode=display&articleID=2617

[7 Reparations for Slavery. Wikipedia. 4 September 2006. 16 September 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ReparationsforSlavery

[8 Reparations for Slavery. Wikipedia. 4 September 2006. 16 September 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ReparationsforSlavery

[9 William Reed. Blacks worth $6k; whites $88k. Insight News. 12 Sep tember 2006. 16 September 2006. http://www.insightnews.com/business.asp?mode=display&articleID=2617

[10 Anthony J. Sebok. Should Claims Based On African-American Slavery Be Litigated In The Courts? And If So, How? FindLaw. 4 December 2000. 16 September 2006. http://writ.corporate.findlaw.com/sebok/20001204.html

[11 Reparations for Slavery. Wikipedia. 4 September 2006. 16 September 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ReparationsforSlavery

[12 Would Reparations for Slavery be Just? The Claremont Institute. 5 May 2002. 12 September 2006. http://www.claremont.org/writings/020505erler.html

[13 Even if Millions Rally on the Mall, Reparations Wont Heal Black America. Project 21 Press Release. 15 August 2002. 12 September 2006. http://www.nationalcenter.org/P21PRReparations802.html

[14 Civil Rights: Should Black Americans Receive Reparations Payments Because of Slavery? The National Center For Public Policy Research. 23 August 2004 . 12 September 2006. http://www.nationalcenter.org/P21PRReparations802.html

[15 Even if Millions Rally on the Mall, Reparations Wont Heal Black America. Project 21 Press Release. 15 August 2002. 12 September 2006. http://www.nationalcenter.org/P21PRReparations802.html

[16 Peter Viles. Suit seeks billions in slave Reparations. CNN.com. 27 March 2002. 16 September 2006. http://archives.cnn.com/2002/LAW/03/26/Slavery.Reparations

[17 World: Europe Nazi slave offer disgusting. BBC News. 7 October 1999. 12 September 2006. http://nws.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/468248.stm

[18 Civil Rights: Should Black Americans Receive Reparations Payments Because of Slavery? The National Center For Public Policy Research. 23 August 2004. 12 September 2006. http://www.nationalcenter.org/P21PRReparations802.html

[19 Anthony J. Sebok. Should Claims Based On African-American Slavery Be Litigated In The Courts? And If So, How? FindLaw. 4 December 2000. 16 September 2006. http://writ.corporate.findlaw.com/sebok/20001204.html

[20 Making Amends: Debate Continues Over Reparations for U.S. Slavery. NPR. 12 September 2006. 16 September 2006. http://www.npr.org/programs/specials/racism/010827.Reparations.html

[21 Civil Rights: Should Black Americans Receive Reparations Payments Because of Slavery? The National Center For Public Policy Research. 23 August 2004. 12 September 2006. http://www.nationalcenter.org/P21PRReparations802.html

[22 The long fight for Holocaust compensation. BBC News. 26 January 2000. 12 September 2006. http://nws.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/619896.stm

[23 Norman G. Finkelstein. Lessons of Holocaust Compensation. 2001. 12 September 2006. http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/article.php?pg=4&ar=14

[24 Kimberley Jane Wilson. Reparations, Anyone? Project 21 New Visions Commentary. August 2001. 12 September 2006. http://www.nationalcenter.org/P21NVWilsonReparations801.h tml

Additional Sources:

$5bn Nazi slave fund agreed. BBC News. 14 December 1999. 12 September 2006. http://nws.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/565116.stm

Anthony J. Sebok. A New Dream Team Intends To Seek Reparations For Slavery Part I FindLaw. 20 November 2000. 16 September 2006. http://writ.corporate.findlaw.com/sebok/20001120.html

German Parliament Passes Nazi Holocaust Compensation Bill. Peoples Daily. 7 July 2000. 12 September 2006. http://english.people.com.cn/english/200007/07/eng2000070744925.html

Holocaust Reparations. Wikipedia. 25 May 2006. 16 September 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HolocaustReparations

Sara R. Parsowith. Austria begins Holocaust compensation process. Jurist. 16 December 2005. 16 September 2006. http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/paperchase/2005/12/austria-begins-Holocaust-compensation.php

William Sutherland is a published poet and writer. He is the author of three books, Poetry, Prayers & Haiku (1999), Russian Spring (2003) and Aaliyah Remembered: Her Life & The Person behind the Mystique (2005) and has been published in poetry anthologies around the world. He has been featured in Who's Who in New Poets (1996), The International Who's Who in Poetry (2004), and is a member of the International Poetry Hall of Fame. He is also a contributor to Wikipedia, the number one online encyclopedia.

Author:: William Sutherland
Keywords:: Slavery, Reparations, Holocaust, Black History, African American Society, Politics, Race
Post by History of the Computer | Computer safety tips

Stagecoach Drivers and Their Whips

Not everyone could manage a stagecoach. The stagecoach driver was held in higher esteem when on the summit of the Sierra than was the millionaire statesman who might be riding beside him.

While most stage drivers were sober, at least while on duty, nearly all were fond of an occasional eye opener. A good driver was the captain of his craft. He was feared by his timid passengers, awed by stable boys, and was the trusty agent of his employer.

The seat next to the driver, weather permitting, was the preferred seat of the men passengers. But this was one seat that was reserved, and it was not gotten by simply being the first to hop on the left front wheel rim and climbing into the box.

If the driver didnt want the person who took the seat there, he would firmly order him down, and then enjoy the passengers discomfiture for the next ten miles.

To sit in the drivers seat, one proceeded very much in the manner of securing an appointment to a high offic e. He went to the source of authorityabove the driver himselfto the superintendent and even to the president of the company.

Charlie Parkhurst was one of the more skillful stagecoach drivers, not only in California, but throughout the west. He was variously called One-eyed or Cockeyed Charlie, because he had lost an eye when kicked by a horse. For 20 years, he drove stagecoach in California. Twice Charlie was held up. The first time, he was forced to throw down his strongbox because he was unarmed. The second time, he was prepared.

When a road agent ordered the stage to stop and commanded Charlie to throw down its strongbox, Parkhurst leveled a shotgun blast into the chest of the outlaw, whipped his horses into a full gallop, and left the bandit in the road.

One-eyed Charlie was known as one of the toughest, roughest, and the most daring of stagecoach drivers. Like most drivers, he was proud of his skill in the extremely difficult job as whip. Proper handling of the horses and the great coaches was an art that required much practice, experience, and not the least, courage.

Whips received high salaries for the times, sometimes as much as $125 a month, plus room and board.

How in the world can you see your way through this dust? one passenger asked Charlie.

Smell it. Fact is, Charlie replied, Ive traveled over these mountains so often I can tell where the road is by the sound of the wheels. When they rattle, Im on hard ground; when they dont rattle I genrlly look over the side to see where shes agoing.

Yet, little was really known about Charlie Parkhurst before or after he came to California. It wasnt until his body was prepared for burial that his true secret was discovered.

Charlotte Charlie Parkhurst was a woman. One doctor claimed that at some point in her life, she had been a mother.

Unknowingly, Parkhurst could claim a national first. After voting on Election Day, November 3, 1868, Charlie was probably the first woman to cast a ballot in any election. It wasnt until 52 years later that the right to vote was guaranteed to women by the nineteenth amendment.

All stagecoach drivers, including Charlie, considered their whips worth their weight in gold. Drivers considered their whips a badge of honor.

Some drivers would as soon be caught without their pants as without their whips. Many of the whips used by the stage drivers were fine works of art, generally ornamented with handcrafted silver ferules girdling a handle made of hickory. Many of these whips are prized museum pieces today.

Whips were never sold, loaned, borrowed, or traded. In his book, Stagecoach Days in Santa Barbara County, Walker A. Tompkins wrote, Whips were considered a part of the driver, who kept the lashes well-oiled and as pliable as a snake in the sun.

Most stagecoach whips had buckskin lashes, usually from 11 to 12 feet in length, attached to a five-f oot hickory shaft. The lashes were 10 feet too short to reach the lead team, which was controlled by reining.

Some rare drivers did carry a six-horse whip with a 22-foot lash, but these were mainly for circus and rodeo appearances, and considered too unwieldy for practical use.

The driver took his whip with him when off duty, and always hung it up. He never rested it in a corner for fear of warping the stock. Neither did he wrap the lash around the handle for fear of curling the thongs.

Stagecoach drivers were scornful of the way they were depicted in the movies. The top-grade stagecoach drivers used cracking of the whip sparingly. These drivers were concerned that the pistol-shot sounds made by the whips would only startle their passengers out of their naps or, worse yet, spook their teams.

Roads had to be built at public expense before stagecoaches were given a route. Some were little more than ox-cart tracks linking the various ranchos. Even the El Camino Real, the storied Kings Highway, was little more than a foot trail.

A tale is told about stage driver Whispering George Cooper. He got his name because of his loud bellow, which was said could be heard for miles, even against a wind, while he pushed his team up a treacherous pass.

At one point, Whispering George needed to repair a broken single tree that had developed a bad split. He scoured the stage for a bit of rope or a scrap of baling wire, to make the repair.

At that moment, a rattlesnake slithering across the road in front of them spooked his team. George killed the snake, which measured five feet or more in length. A passenger commented how much the snake resembled a rope.

By gawd, thats what Ill use it for! exclaimed George. He wrapped the dead snake around the single tree and knotted it into place. It worked, holding the damaged single tree together until it reached a relay station.

The term stagecoach came about in medieval Europe, when public coach travel was the only way one could get from one point to another without walking.

Trips were generally made in easy stages because of bad roads and the lack of overnight lodgings along the way. Hence, the term stage coach.

Alton Pryor has been a writer for magazines, newspapers, and wire services. He worked for United Press International in their Sacramento Bureau, handling both printed press as well as radio news. He traveled the state as a field editor for California Farmer Magazine for 27 years. He is now the author of 10 books, primarily on California and western history. His books can be seen at www.stagecoachPublishing.com Readers can Email him at stagecoach@surewest.net.

Author:: Alton Pryor
Keywords:: article submission, Articles, Writer s, Writing, Publishing, Ezine, Email marketing, Email newsletter, Email
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