Effectual History

Why I Use Empire Avenue

noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 11:19:00 +0000

Discover the power of Empire Avenue in social networking today http://empireavenue.com/?t=t9f8d2x

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noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 19:30:00 +0000

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noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 19:29:00 +0000

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noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 19:29:00 +0000

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noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 19:29:00 +0000

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noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 19:27:00 +0000

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noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 19:12:00 +0000

RT @hhezi: Take a break, come play a game, maybe you will earn some money too: http://bit.ly/tube2success

Twitter Domination - How To Harvest Cash From Twitter - Unconventional Methods Revealed!!

noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 15:52:00 +0000

Host: Brad Gosse
Time: 07/22/2011 8:00 PM

Description: What can you learn from a guy with over 22,000 twitter followers?

Brad Gosse has used twitter to gain an audience of engaged followers who hire him, buy his products and promote him for free.

During his free webinar Brad will discuss the most important topics surrounding twitter including:

- How to position yourself as an expert DAY 1

- What to automate and what to NEVER automate

- How to earn an average of $1 per follower per month

- How to get speaking gigs from your twitter profile

- How to avoid the twitter SLAP

And much more.

Brad will even be taking your twitter questions. Take advantage of this. Brad gets $550 per hour for his time so bring your list of social media questions.

SEOGuy

PS: If above link is unvailable copy/paste the link below into your browser.

Description: What can you learn from a guy with over 22,000 twitter followers?
===> http://www.webinarswaps.com/r/13/737

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noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 01:45:00 +0000

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The Visible, Undiagnosed Malady

noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 18:50:00 +0000

by Rocky Wilson

Sit in on a meeting of mentally ill individuals, say those diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and a common theme from such folk, often indistinguishable from the “norm” once outside the meeting, is how they get no respect.

Though admittedly treated better than in past years, the mentally ill, in closed groups, often say, “Why can’t others look at us like people with diabetes or cancer instead of dipping their opinions of us to a lower level?”

But what about those with visible, undiagnosed maladies, such as men created by God with no butt?

* It doesn’t take long for men built in such a manner to find solace by cinching leather belts uncomfortably tight and, whenever possible, avoid the sport of bowling and the activity of taking photographs along sidelines at high school football games.

* Stomach pains and bruises often can be eliminated by loosening one’s leather belt, but that defeats the purpose of cinching it tight in the first place.

* Suspenders, if one can overcome the issue of vanity or cover the suspenders with a vest or jacket (admittedly a challenge on hot days,) can provide a viable option.

* Still, if one carries any more than minimal weight in their pants pockets, suspenders, over time, can tax shoulder muscles, especially those of the elderly.

* Possibly the best alternative for the butt-less man wanting to confront his deformity is to purchase and use a wide, stretch belt. It might take time to properly adjust the tension on the new belt, but the joy it can bring a man having fought the butt-less plague his entire life can be huge.

Don’t misunderstand, the introduction regarding the mentally ill wasn’t meant to draw parallels between that portion of society and those designed without butts. Instead, it was a journalistic trick to instruct the reader that everything is “fair game” when it comes to the Internet; even slanted humor with happy endings.

Small Towns and Churches

noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 18:26:00 +0000

by Rocky Wilson

Small towns and churches can have a lot in common. The social benefits of interacting with friends and peers from each environment have the potential to bond people together like nothing else.

Whether individuals are uniting their energies to develop a better small-school football team or cheerleading squad, or maybe playing drums to back up the church worship team, the received positive benefits can be awesome.

Possibly the key to whether small town and church experiences are pleasurable, certainly not givens, is one’s attitude. If you believe each day is an opportunity to share your best with the world, it will happen in small towns, churches, and elsewhere. If your thoughts are self-centered, long-lasting hope may be paled by a bleak future.

Ways to enhance a small-town experience:

* Smile

* Don’t be hesitant to express interest in the lives of others

* Honor, with discernment, thoughts spoken for your ears

* Avoid spreading gossip

* Practice godly love to the unlovable

Ways to enhance your church experience:

* Know your Bible, and practice its precepts

* Volunteer

* Let others know you care about them, their families, and their interests

* Be kind and gentle, yet strong in faith

* Pray, pray, pray

Writing Vs. Marketing

noreply@blogger.com (Body By Chocolates) — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:55:00 +0000

As a child, my goal in life was to become a published author. Once I achieved that goal in early 2009 when my first novel, Sharene Death: A Prerequisite for Life was published, I realized something was missing.

For I then discovered my aspirations for my craft didn’t end there, but that I wanted people to buy and read Sharene and subsequent books I’ve written, published, and plan to publish; including An Isle of Fancy (2010) and Treat Softly, which should be released soon.

Marketing lessons I’ve learned include:

1) Writing an excellent book is not enough. Sharene won a Readers View 2010 award in their Spirituality/Inspiration category, but is not well read.

2) With so much competition for bookstore space, few writers beyond publishing company promoted authors John Grisham and Dan Brown are guaranteed in advance that new books will sell.

3) There are many Internet companies with great sounding names lined up to take one’s money with a promise to sell books for them. Be leery, as I learned the hard way.

4) An excellent resource to check the validity of many in the editing, publishing, and books promotions arena is the Web site preditorsandeditors.com.

5) For me, throwing a bunch of money into a pot so others will do the marketing for me hasn’t worked. Sales are far more important to me than to marketing “experts.”

6) Be patient, and don’t be afraid to launch slowly, even cautiously into the marketing arena where finding an honest, affordably ally might be a laborious task.

7) Take extensive notes, including contact information (preferably electronically,) about anyone who buys your book. Hopefully an ever-growing list, this should provide you with a core list of supporters when your next book is released.

Zorba the Greek is a Novel and Movie

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 01:10:00 +0000

Zorba the Greek is a novel and film based on the life of a fictitious character whose high-energy lifestyle not only impacted those he encountered through the literary genius of Cretan Nikos Kazantzakis, but has brought pleasure to millions of readers and movie goers since the book was published in 1946 and the film released in 1964.

The novel, written in Greek, was changed into a translated screenplay by fellow Cretan Michael Cacoyannis, who also directed the black & white film that starred Anthony Quinn as Zorba and Alan Bates as an English bookworm.

The two met in Pireaus, the port city of Athens, then embarked on a journey to Crete where the stodgy bookworm was transformed by Zorba’s uninhibited zest for life.

Facts about the novel and film, Zorba the Greek, and Nikos Kazantzakis:

* The quiet Englishman, Basil, is writing a biography about Buddha at story’s outset, and plans to leave for quiet Crete where he recently inherited a small cottage and a defunct coal mine

* Zorba joins him on the voyage and, in Crete, is part of two financial disasters for Basil

* Basil learns so much about how to live life with vitality similar to Zorba‘s that his lost fortunes suddenly carry little importance for him

* 1919-1927 Kazantzakis was director general of the Greek Ministry of Public Welfare, a period when he was credited with feeding and eventually rescuing 150,000 people of Greek descent caught up in the civil war then raging in the Caucasian region of the Soviet Union

* Cacoyannis was an acquaintance of Kazantzakis near the end of the latter’s life

* In 1957, the year Kazantzakis died, he was one vote short of winning the Nobel Prize for literature, losing to French author Albert Camus

Whether you enjoy reading or attending movies, Zorba the Greek is a powerful story about attitude and change where two characters, originally diametrically opposed, grow close and share a profound relationship.

By Rocky Wilson
Author Of Sharene - Death: A Prerequisite For Life
Blog writer for Body By Chocolates

A Fictitious Story About Zorba the Greek

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0000

What history tells us about Zorba the Greek is he was a fictional character out of the mind of prolific Cretan author Nikos Kazantzakis; loved music, women, and dance; was boisterous and often unkempt; and exhibited an infectious affinity for life.

Kazantzakis’ 1946 novel, originally written in Greek, was made into a highly successful film in 1964 with the same title. The movie starred Anthony Quinn in the title role, and Alan Bates as the story’s narrator, a young Englishman named Basil.

Many philosophers contend Kazantzakis purposely embodied the personages of the Greek gods Dionysus and Apollo in the two main characters. Dionysus, impetuous and passionate, unreflective and irrational, is said to be embodied in the character of Zorba, played by Quinn. Basil, in contrast, portrayed the rational, reflective, passive, restrained personality emblematic of Apollo.

Facts and observations about the novel and movie Zorba the Greek:

* Kazantzakis (1885-1957) wrote essays, poems, tragedies, travel books, and translations of classics such as Dante’s ‘The Divine Comedy,’ yet didn’t publish his first novel until age 51

* Although born on Crete and a resident of Greece during World War II, much of Kazantzakis’ life, other than the setting for many of his literary works, was spent abroad

* Zorba the Greek begins in Pireaus, where the bookworm Basil first meets Zorba and encourages Zorba to join him on a mining venture in Crete

* Zorba teaches Basil to regain the physical world, even having a role in Basil’s love relationship with a widow

* The mine venture fails, so Zorba talks Basil into investing the remaining bulk of his money in a timber sluice project that proves disastrous

* By now, Basil has caught the carefree spirit of Zorba and doesn’t care about the lost money

What one learns about Zorba the Greek is how much a strong, ebullient man can influence the life of an individual lacking in personal conviction and strength, yet who is willing to adjust and learn a new lifestyle.

By Rocky Wilson
Author Of Sharene - Death: A Prerequisite For Life
Blog writer for Body By Chocolates

The History of Palestine is Mired in Conflict

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 17:07:00 +0000

From the earliest days when Philistine ancestors from Asia Minor and Greece landed on the southern Mediterranean coast of what’s now Israel and had unwelcome confrontations with Biblical leaders Abraham, Isaac, and Ishmael, from then until today the history of Palestine is filled with anger and distrust.

Why these people groups always have been in mortal strife goes to the core of human existence, with the ongoing battle of good and evil caught in the balance.

Many lives have been lost through the centuries because people from what’s now known as Israel and Palestine never have reached neutral ground about religious and cultural values.

Some pertinent data regarding the Israeli/Palestine conflict include:

* First Philistines settled south of Beersheba, in Gerar, and soon were in conflict with early Biblical leaders

* Second group of Philistines, from Crete, settled Gaza, Ashdod, and three other cities

* Through the centuries, Palestine generally became known as area stretching E-W from the Mediterranean to the Jordan Valley, and N-S from the Sea of Galilee to the southern Negev Desert

* In “Song of Moses,” Exodus 15:14, (Exodus being the book of redemption characterized as being from God, delivered by a person, delivered through blood, and delivered by power,) it’s stated, “The people shall hear, and be afraid: sorrow shall take hold on the inhabitants of Palestina.”

* Through thousands of years, Palestine primarily was ruled by Muslim Arabs, and later by non-Arab Muslims from Ottoman Empire

* 1917 British liberate Palestine and, in British Mandate, state Palestine will become a home for Jews without infringing on religious and cultural rights of people already living there, most of them Arab Muslims

* 1920 British have role in naming Muhammad Amin al Husseini president of newly formed Supreme Muslim Council, basically making him religions and political leader of Arabs in Palestine … Husseini, known as Grand Mufti, later becomes friend of Hitler and actively pursues annihilation of Jews

* 1939-1945 British, enforcing McDonald White Papers which removes many Jewish rights in British Mandate, block many ships filled with Jewish refugees heading to Palestine filled with Jews beyond established quota who are trying to escape Hitler … many of those ships are torpedoed, killing thousands

* 1940-1945 McDonald White Papers backfires as Arabs don’t think paper goes far enough … Iraq joins Axis and most other Arab nations refuse to help Allies

* November 29, 1947 United Nations proposes nation of Israel … Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen storm from meeting threatening war

* May 14, 1948 Israel declares independence as nation

* 1948-1949 War of Independence

* June 5-10, 1967 Six Day War allows Israel to seize control of Gaza Strip, West Bank, eastern section of Jerusalem, Golan Heights

Yes, the history of Palestine is filled with complexities, misunderstandings, and death. And, though many nations, including the United States, actively are engaged in efforts to supply relief and hope to the strife-torn region, it may be a conflict beyond human-applied healing.

By Rocky Wilson
Author Of Sharene - Death: A Prerequisite For Life
Blog writer for Body By Chocolates

Both Israel and Palestine Are Intricately Entwined

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 06:25:00 +0000

The histories of both Israel and Palestine are fraught with tensions that began centuries and centuries ago, and are continuing today.

Unrest that began when early Philistines, related to Greeks from Asia Minor and Greece, first came to settle on the southern coast of what’s now Israel and immediately came in conflict with Biblical leaders Abraham, Isaac, and Ishmael never has been resolved.

Although Palestinian beliefs and cultures have been altered through the centuries by conquests, outside rule, and political expediency, their aversion for the Jewish race, especially the Jewish nation of Israel created in 1948, has, as a whole, been a constant.

Some historical facts regarding the ongoing Israeli/Palestinian conflict include:

* Pre-patriarchal Philistines came to Israeli coast in waves from places like Asia Minor, Greece, and Crete

* 135 AD Roman Emperor Hadrian, after quelling second major Jewish revolt named Ben Kochba, forms Provincia Syria Palaestini, later known as Palestine

* About 400-633 AD Split into First, Second, and Third Palestine

* Between 633 AD-652 AD Muslim Arabs conquer Palestine

* 1517-1917 Ottoman Turks, non-Arabs but religious Muslims, conquer, then rule Palestine from Istanbul

* World War I British liberate Palestine … preamble to British Mandate establishing Palestine says, “ … in favor of the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, it being clearly understood that nothing should be done which might prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine.”

* 1936-1939 Arab Revolt … violence erupts when Arabs demand end of Jewish immigration and land- ownership transfers to Jews

* McDonald White Paper of 1939 … British rescind much of British Mandate in concessions to Arabs, leaving many European Jews, trying to escape Hitler’s carnage, with nowhere to go

* 1940 Italy enters World War II and British leader Churchill, though sympathetic to Jews, keeps McDonald White Paper in force to placate Arabs

* May 15, 1948 State of Israel declares its independence … U.S., Soviet Union, most U.N. member nations recognize Israel

* June 5-10, 1967 Israel, in preemptive strike against Arab countries amassing on its borders, seizes Gaza Strip from Egypt; West Bank and eastern section of Jerusalem from Jordan; and Golan Heights from Syria

Both Israel and Palestine are entwined in a conflict where truces formed through the centuries have, at best, been temporary.

By Rocky Wilson
Author Of Sharene - Death: A Prerequisite For Life
Blog writer for Body By Chocolates

Learn More About Bob Dylan

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 01:02:00 +0000

Learn More About Bob Dylan

Learning more about Bob Dylan, often described as the poet laureate of the rock ‘n roll era, only can enhance one’s appreciation of the 68-year-old singer, harmonica player, and guitarist who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 and, in 2008, became the first popular musician ever to be awarded a Pulitzer Prize.

Although ‘Mr. Tambourine Man,’ recorded by The Byrds in 1965, was the only #1 single ever written by Dylan, he holds the distinction of having the longest span of time elapse between two #1 albums recorded by a living artist--’Desire,’ in 1976; and ‘Modern Times,’ in 2006.

During Dylan’s lengthy career he’s performed with such legends as John Lee Hooker, Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, George Harrison, Elton John, Eric Clapton, Tom Petty, John Mellencamp, Stevie Wonder, and countless others.

A chronology of the life of Bob Dylan includes:

* May 24, 1941 Born Robert Allen Zimmerman in Duluth, Minnesota

* October 1959 Using stage name Bob Dylan, debuts as folksinger in Minneapolis coffeehouse

* 1961 Moves to Greenwich Village, New York City

* 1962 Releases first album, single ‘Song for Woody’ (Guthrie) included

* 1964 Meets The Beatles in New York hotel room … Paul McCartney is reported to have said Dylan introduced the Brits to marijuana at that time

* 1966 Dylan injured in motorcycle accident … in recovery for more than a year

* 1979 Releases first of three Christian-themed albums

* 1988 Presenter Bruce Springsteen, of Dylan at Hall of Fame induction, “Bob freed your mind like Elvis freed your body. To this day, wherever great rock music is being made, there is the shadow of Bob Dylan.”

Other memorable songs written by Bob Dylan include ‘Like a Rolling Stone,’ ‘Blowin’ in the Wind,’ ‘Highway 61 Revisited,’ and ‘Rainy Day Women.’

While learning more about Bob Dylan, it’s healthy to remember his quote, “A song is anything that can walk by itself.”

By Rocky Wilson
Assocate of Body By Chocolates healthy chocolate

Bob Dylan is the Man, Past and Present

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 00:56:00 +0000

Bob Dylan is the Man, Past and Present

Bob Dylan is the man who launched his professional singing career in 1959 and continues to perform 50 years later. Vacillating between acoustic and electric guitars, keyboards, and his trusty harmonica, Dylan has entertained millions worldwide with his “ … rare ability to reach and affect listeners with thoughtful, sophisticated lyrics.”

He’s lived the essence of a quote he once made: “A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and gets to bed at night, and in between he does what he wants to do.”

Bob Dylan is the only popular musician yet to receive a Pulitzer Prize, for his “ … profound impact on popular music and American culture, marked by lyrical compositions of extraordinary poetic power.”

Miscellaneous facts about Bob Dylan include:

* Dylan idolized Woody Guthrie, both the man and his music … Dylan’s first album included the single ’Song for Woody,’ and he concluded his first major solo concert, at New York City’s Town Hall, in 1963, with the poem, ’Last Thoughts on Woody Guthrie.’

* Early 1961, Dylan moves to Greenwich Village, New York City, and meets Guthrie in nearby New Jersey, when Guthrie is suffering in the latter stages of degenerative Huntington’s Chorea, of which he dies in 1967 at age 55

* Dylan once said, “He not busy being born is busy dying.”

* Dylan is credited with bridging the worlds between rock ‘n roll and country in the late 1960s

* 1965 Dylan booed offstage at Newport Festival when he plays an electric guitar instead of the expected acoustic

* Only weeks after Newport debacle, Dylan releases first major hit, ‘Like a Rolling Stone.’

Bob Dylan is the man who put cohesiveness in the music worlds of rock ‘n roll, folk, and country. And he’s still doing so today.

By Rocky Wilson
Assocate of Body By Chocolates healthy chocolate

Learn More About Kazakhstan; Its Only President

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 05:41:00 +0000

Learn More About Kazakhstan; Its Only President

While one learns more and more about Kazakhstan and its emerging role in the world, one thing never changes. And that’s its president, Nursultan A. Nazarbayev, who’s been ensconced in that position since the nation was birthed in 1991 at the collapse of the Soviet Union, and two years prior to that as head of the Kazakh Communist Party.

Nazarbayev, 69, has been vigilant in extending his powers since gaining control of the nation’s highest office. Already commander in chief of the armed forces, in 1995 a referendum was passed giving Nazarbayev sole authority to initiate constitutional amendments, dissolve Parliament, and extended powers to appoint and dismiss government officials.

In 2007, the year Nazarbayev’s Nur Otan political party won every contested parliamentary seat, Parliament voted to eliminate term limits for the presidency, giving Nazarbayev lifelong status if he chooses.

Facts about the Republic of Kazakhstan:

* Population 15.6 million … 14.5 people per square mile compared to U.S. density of about 80 people per square mile

* 1.05 million square miles … ninth largest nation in world

* Religion … 47 percent Sunni Muslim, 44 percent Russian Orthodox

* Capital … Astana

* Largest city … Almaty, 1.3 million people

* Ethnic groups … Kazakhs 56 percent, Russian 28 percent, Ukranian 3 percent

* Bordered by Russia, China, Uzbekistan, Kyrgystan, Turkmenistan

* Terrain … vast flat steppes, plateaus, desert

* Natural resources … major deposits of petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, etc. … 2000 discovered one of world’s largest oil deposits bottom of Kazakhstan-controlled portion of Caspian Sea

* 2000 Became first of former Soviet republics to repay entire debt to International Monetary Fund

Not surprisingly, Kazakhstanis know more about Khazakhstan than anyone else, as their literacy rate is an astounding 99.5 percent.

By Rocky Wilson
Also Read: Historical Facts About The Nation Of Kazakhstan.
Also Visit: My Healthy Chocolate Blog.

Historical Facts About the Nation of Kazakhstan

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:16:00 +0000

The nation of Kazakhstan is located in north-central Asia, includes nearly four times the land mass of the state of Texas, and achieved independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

Although this large expanse of land directly south of Russia has been populated to some extent as far back as the Stone Age, there were a number of unassociated nomadic tribes who occupied the land for about 900 years before they were conquered and put under the rule of Mongols in the early 13th century.

From 1465 until 1731 a loosely governed state called the Kazakh Khanate ruled what’s now Kazakhstan. But that body, hit by political disunity and tribal competition, gradually eroded away and was annexed by Russia. Rich in natural resources, Kazakhstan became a Soviet Republic in 1936.

Bullets about Kazakhstan include:

* Early 1600s Kazakh Khanate separates into three major hordes, or confederations, based on extended family networks

* 1730s, 1740s Two hordes sign treaties of protection with Russia

* 1731-1840 Russia promotes colonization in what’s now Kazakhstan, gains control of two hordes it’s protecting

* 1860 Russia seizes land of third, largest horde

* 1916 Kazakhs, unhappy with Russia’s interference with their nomadic lifestyle, heavy taxes, and military conscription, stage unsuccessful revolt

* 1917 80,000 Kazakhs slaughtered by colonists when returning home following revolt

* 1921-1922 One million Kazakhs die from famine

* 1925 Named Kazakh Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (Kazakh ASSR)

* 1953 Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev initiates “Virgin Land” program to change northern pasturelands in Kazakhstan into grain-producing area

* December 16, 1991 Independence Day for Kazakhstan

Because of those years when what’s become the nation of Kazakhstan was colonized by the Soviets, native Kazakhs, many with Turkish roots, have a scant majority among the nation’s populace.

By Rocky Wilson
Also Read: Learn More About Kazakhstan; It's Only President
Also Visit: My Healthy Chocolate Blog.

1863 Battle of Gettysburg Could Have Ended War Sooner

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 22:27:00 +0000

1863 Battle of Gettysburg Could Have Ended War Sooner

A bitter letter from President Abraham Lincoln to Union commander General George G. Meade claiming the Civil War could have ended following the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg had Meade pursued Confederate General Robert E. Lee on his retreat to Virginia after Gettysburg was never delivered.

And the bloody Civil War, where as many as 700,000 Americans died (an estimated 10,000 at Gettysburg, plus 40,000 wounded,) lasted another two years.

It was near the tiny town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where General Lee’s only foray into the North was turned back following a brutal three-day battle under hot, July skies. Other battles on Northern soil, in Maryland and Kentucky in the fall of 1862, were engaged by Confederate forces, yet achieved similar results.

Facts, events, and people involved with the Battle of Gettysburg include:

* May 6, 1863 Lee wins Battle at Chancellorsville, Spotsylvania County, Virginia … gets Confederacy approval to invade North

* June 3 General Joseph Hooker leads 95,000 Union soldiers, General Lee 75,000 Confederate soldiers in area

* June 9 Largest cavalry battle of war, Brandy Station, Virginia … First lieutenant J.E.B. Stuart leading Confederate soldiers, General Alfred Pleasonton Union soldiers … total of 22,000 combatants, 1,100 casualties

* June 14-15 Confederate Lieutenant General Richard S. Ewell captures 9,000-strong Union garrison, Winchester, Virginia

* June 26 With little resistance, Lee occupies Cumberland Valley, Pennsylvania … sends soldiers to reconnoiter for supplies, including Gettysburg, population 2,400

* June 28 Hooker replaced by Meade … Lee decides to bring entire force to meet Union army at Gettysburg

* July 1 Confederacy wins day one of battle … Union loses 9,000, including 3,000 captured … Confederate loses 6,000

* July 2 Long day of musket and cannon fighting leaves each side with about 9,000 casualties …Confederates gain little ground

* July 3 Lee makes bold, secondary decision to engage Union soldiers in the center of their defense line, on Cemetery Ridge … “Pickett’s Charge” sends 18,000 Confederate soldiers across open field in midday and, though casualties high on both sides, tips the Battle of Gettysburg to Union

* November 19 President Lincoln delivers Gettysburg Address

* April 8, 1865 Civil War ends when Lee surrenders to Union General Ulysses S. Grant, Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia

The Battle of Gettysburg was peculiar in the number of tactical mistakes on both sides that could have altered the outcome of the battle many historians view as the turning point of the war; such as Confederate General James Longstreet‘s misunderstanding of Lee‘s July 3 plan that led Lee to change tactics and attack the Union in the middle of its defenses, and Union Major General Daniel Sickles’ ill-advised decision, without orders, to advance to indefensible ground in the “Peach Orchards.”

Another key side note was Longstreet’s ongoing pleas to General Lee not to risk all against the Union’s entrenched army.

Yes, the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg marked a turning point in the Civil War, and in U.S. history.

Walt Whitman Was the Poet We Know, the Man We Didn't

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 02:48:00 +0000

Walt Whitman Was the Poet We Know, the Man We Don’t

Walt Whitman (1819-1892) is remembered as being one of, if not the finest all-time American poet. Still, Walt Whitman was the epitome of a struggling artist who found his personal niche, of all places, volunteering for thousands and thousands of Civil War casualties confined to hospitals.

Whitman’s masterpiece, Leaves Of Grass, initially published in 1855 with 12 untitled poems, grew during each of seven additional printings, only concluding when the final draft was released in 1891, one year before his death.

Unlike contemporaries Keats, Byron, Wordsworth, Coleridge, and Bryant who began writing at earlier ages, Whitman’s career as a poet began at age 36. He quit school at age 11, then became a journeyman printer, schoolteacher, newspaper publisher, and writer of fiction before writing poetry.

Facts, dates, and comments about Walt Whitman include:

* Born May 31, 1819, Long Island, New York

* 1830 Quits school, becomes voracious reader of Sir Walter Scott, James Fenimore Cooper, and enjoys Shakespearean plays

* 1833 Other eight members of family move away … Whitman stays in New York, works in print shop

* 1835-1840 Works as schoolteacher, at times teaching classes of 80 students ages five to 15 … hates the job

* 1838 Unsuccessful venture to launch newspaper

* 1840-1845 Freelance newspaper, magazine writer … novel ‘Franklin Evans; or The Inebriate’ sells 20,000 copies, more than any other of his works during Whitman’s lifetime

* 1846 Makes three-month trip to New Orleans, sees slave auctions

* 1855 Self publishes 795 copies of Leaves of Grass … poor sales … resounding endorsement by Emerson

* 1856 Adds 20 new poems, names all 32 in second release of Leaves of Grass … sales worse than first edition

* About 1859 A former proponent of temperance, Whitman begins frequenting a popular bar attended by artists and joins “Fred Gray Association,” a men’s homosexual group

* 1861 Friendly Boston publishers of latest Leaves of Grass go bankrupt, sell printing plates to another publisher who floods market with pirated copies … Civil War begins

* 1863-1865 Too old to enlist, now living in Washington D.C., Whitman, seen by some as Santa Claus and others as a father figure, is estimated to have nursed and visited tens of thousands of wounded and sick soldiers … many future poems, including his Drum Taps collection (1865) based on stories told by wounded soldiers

* 1865 Civil War ends, President Lincoln assassinated … Whitman writes “O Captain! My Captain!,” tribute to Lincoln

* 1873 Suffers stroke, partial paralysis, continues writing poetry

* Late 1870s Becomes traveling lecturer on Lincoln, Civil War

* 1882 Leaves of Grass banned from Boston because of sexual content

* March 26, 1892 Dies of tuberculosis

Walt Whitman was the great, innovative poet we remember, a chronicler of early Americana. Oscar Wilde, a friend, poet, and playwright, paid high tribute to Whitman when he said there was no one in America he more loved and honored.

Some History About the Country of Paraguay

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 20:31:00 +0000

Some History About the Country of Paraguay

The country of Paraguay, one of only two landlocked nations in South America along with neighboring Bolivia, has had much of its history shaped by a series of dictatorial leaders.

About the size of the state of California, Paraguay is bordered by Bolivia, Brazil, and Argentina, and has most of its predominantly Mestizo (mixed Spanish and Indian descent,) population living within a 100-mile radius of Asuncion. Asuncion, the capital and largest city, is located east of the Paraguay River where temperate grassy plains, wooded hills, and tropical forests abound.

The western segment of Paraguay, the low, flat, marshy plain called the Chaco, accounts for about 60 percent of the Republic of Paraguay’s land mass, but is home to less than two percent of the nation’s people.

Facts, events, and people who’ve shaped the history of Paraguay include:

* Earliest settlers were fierce Indian tribes, including the Guarani

* 1516 Juan Diaz de Solis, of Spain, first European in Paraguay, dies same year with 69 of his 70 men at hands of Charrua Indians

* 1527 Sabastian Cabot, of Spain, explores Paraguay River

* 1537 Juan de Salazar, of Spain, founds Acuncion

* 1617 Largely through efforts of Rio de la Plata’s provincial governor, Hernandarias, administrations of Argentina and Paraguay split

* 1617 (est.)-1767 Period of strong, progressive Jesuit influence, ending when Spain becomes fearful of Jesuit power

* 1811 Paraguay declares independence from Spain

* 1862-1865 Paraguay loses War of the Triple Alliance against Bolivia, Argentina, and Uruguay … possibly bloodiest war in Latin American history where Paraguay, fighting with children as young as 12 years old, loses more than half its population, quarter of its territory

* 1932-1935 Paraguay fights Chaco War against Bolivia, wins pyrrhic victory

* 1935-1954 Civil war, dictatorships, extreme political instability

* 1954-1989 General Alfredo Stroesssner maintains power with iron fist, military backing, and persecution of opposition

* 1989 General Andres Rodrigues assumes power following successful military coup

* 1993 Juan Carlos Wasmosy first civilian-elected Paraguayan president in 40 years

* 1996-2008 General Lino Oviedo unsuccessfully tries to oust Wasmosy; allegedly behind assassination of new vice president Luis Maria Argana in 1999; exiled to Brazil; returns, imprisoned for 1996 coup attempt; imprisonment overturned by Supreme Court; loses 2008 election

* 2008 Former Roman Catholic bishop Fernando Lugo elected president

Although Paraguay’s economy is agriculture-driven with soybeans, cotton, grains, cattle, and sugar its most important crops, in 1991 the nation completed a joint project with Brazil on the Parana River to build one of the largest hydroelectric facilities in the world, Itaipu Dam, which makes electrical power a major source of exporting revenue.

The country of Paraguay, known for its extreme beauty, is a novelty in the Americas because it’s the only country that has an indigenous language, Guarani from the Guarani Indians, as an official language, along with Spanish. About 95 percent of the people are of Mestizo descent, and Roman Catholic is Paraguay’s dominant religion.

1945 Battle of Iwo Jima; Like No Other

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 21:42:00 +0000

1945 Battle of Iwo Jima; Like No Other

The 1945 battle of Iwo Jima, on a tiny eight- square-mile volcanic island about 650 miles south of Tokyo, was of vast significance; most importantly the contribution the capture of that island had in regards to the conclusion of World War II.

Not coincidentally or separately, Germany surrendered to the Allies on the Western Front less than two months after the 36-day U.S. Marine conquest of Iwo Jima, March 26, 1945. And the subsequent Japanese surrender August 14, just days after atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, was precipitated in part by the resolution of the same battle.

Iwo Jima was unique because 22,000 Japanese soldiers fought the entire battle from 1,500 underground rooms connected by 16 miles of tunnels; and U.S. soldiers fought above ground, rarely if ever seeing the enemy.

Historical facts, figures, and footnotes about the battle of Iwo Jima include:

* Until that conquest, no foreign army successfully had trod on Japanese soil throughout Japan’s 5,000-year history

* Japan’s military strategy, led by Canadian-educated General Kuribayashi, didn’t include provision for Japanese soldier survival, but instead to die nobly for country and kill at least 10 Americans each in the process

* The U.S. coveted control of Iwo Jima because of its three airstrips and location … halfway between bomber bases on the Mariana Islands and Japan; a site where the U.S. could launch smaller escort planes to protect long-range B-29 bombers

* Although the U.S. bombed Iwo Jima from planes and naval vessels heavily prior to the February 19 ground assault, those strikes had little impact on the underground Japanese soldiers

* Within a span of 40 days, the U.S. sent an armada of 880 ships to confront the Japanese there

* Iwo Jima was the only World War II Marine battle where U.S. casualties (about 26,000,) exceeded enemy casualties (most of their 22,000 total)

* 70,000 U.S. Marines fought on Iwo Jima and nearly 7,000 died
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* More Medal of Honor medals were awarded to U.S. Marines who fought on Iwo Jima than for any other single battle in U.S. history

Once captured, Iwo Jima immediately became a key link to U.S. bomber success in the South Pacific. From the capture date of March 26 to war’s end, a little more than 100 days, some 2,400 B-29 bombers carrying about 27,000 crewmen landed there.

The famous photograph of the U.S. flag being raised on Iwo Jima after the bloody attack where Marines--always visible to Japanese soldiers--used liquid gas, napalm, and hand grenades to kill unseen enemy soldiers, provides Americans with a mental image of sacrifice and courage.

Those who survived the 1945 battle of Iwo Jima and return to the Pacific island on memorial or historical trips describe the carnage those days in different ways. While one returning officer says, “The Japanese were not on Iwo Jima, they were in it,” another remembers friends dying by his side while he, wounded, crawled to safety.

Complexity: The Essence of Lee Harvey Oswald's Life

noreply@blogger.com (Rw) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 23:33:00 +0000

Complexity: The Essence of Lee Harvey Oswald’s Life

A study of Lee Harvey Oswald’s life generates many more questions than answers, and the truth of his role in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy likely won’t be learned in this lifetime.

Did he kill JFK November 22, 1963? Did he work alone, or with others? Was the murder of Lee Harvey Oswald two days after the assassination of President Kennedy part of a complex cover-up? What impact did the two -and-a-half years Oswald lived in Russia, 1959-1962, have on the assassination?

Facts about Lee Harvey Oswald’s life include the following:

* Born October 18, 1939 in New Orleans

* 1940-1956 Father having died before his birth, Oswald lives with his mother and in children’s homes at total of 21 different addresses, attending 12 different schools in Texas, Louisiana, and New York

* 1955 Reads works of Karl Marx, proclaims himself a Marxist

* October 26, 1956 Joins Marine Corps underage, using false affidavit signed by his mother

* September 1957 Deployed as aviation electronics operator to Atsugi Air Base, Japan: home of U-2 spy plane, CIA operations site for espionage in China

* June 27, 1958 Jailed second time at Atsugi; first for possession of unregistered weapon, second time for fight with sergeant

* 1958 Becomes outspoken supporter of Fidel Castro, Cuba

* September 11, 1959 Released from Marine Corps

* Within days, goes to Helsinki, Finland, acquires six-day pass to Russia, then journeys to Moscow and applies for political asylum

* Request denied, he cuts his hand deeply in apparent suicide attempt, is hospitalized six days, then has Russian stay extended

* 1960-1962 Watched continuously by Russian KGB

* April 30, 1961 Marries Marina Pruskova, niece of an intelligence officer for Russia’s Minister of Interior, after knowing her only six weeks

* May 1962 Oswalds, who eventually have total of two children, return to U.S. and live in Fort Worth, then Dallas where they live with organized crime leader Charles Murret

* April 10, 1963 Allegedly attempts to assassinate General Edwin Walker, prominent member of John Birch Society; attempt fails because bullet is deflected by window; police don’t find assailant

* August 9, 1963 Jailed for fight over pro-Castro leaflets he’s distributing, Oswald asks for, receives visit from FBI operative; quickly released with $10 fine, and within five days participates in Castro debate on Dallas radio station

* November 22, 1963 JFK assassinated in Dallas

* November 24, 1963 Jack Ruby murders Oswald

The KGB, which daily monitored Oswald’s activities during his stay in Russia, claims in a report released to the public in 1992 that Lee Harvey Oswald didn’t possess the skills to kill President Kennedy on his own.

Yet, even the mysteries of his life in Russia are mind-boggling. Receiving housing, work, and even gaining a marriage license as quickly as Oswald did during his brief stay in that country were extraordinary events.

No, Lee Harvey Oswald’s life story is, and likely will remain a mystery.