"We were about one third Tories, and one third timid, and one third true blue."
John Adams, 2nd President, 1797-1801- From a letter written to his friend, Benjamin Rush, on March 19, 1812. In 1812, as a second war with Great Britain was brewing, Adams briefly reflects on the beginnings of American Independence as he tells of the the first and second Continental Congresses in 1774 and 1775. Many were the events leading up to sentiment which lead to the eventual Declaration on Independence in 1776. One of which was the passing of the Stamp Act in 1765, which levied taxes on the colonies in an attempt to recoup revenue which the british government had spent "defending" the colonies in the French and Indian War. The colonists boycotted British goods in protest leading to the repeal of the Stamp Act, but further British measures resulted in more protests and a deterioration in the relationship between the colonists and Great Britain. Britain stated they had every to set laws and tax the colonists, who responded with the cry of "No taxation without representation." British troops were sent to the colonies eventually leading to the Boston "massacre" in 1770 and in 1773, the Boston Tea Party further fueled the animosity. The British, closed down Boston Harbor, demanded repayment, and restricted town meetings in the state to only one per year. Other colonies, believed that an attack or restriction on one colony was an attack on all colonies. In June, 1774, a resolution from a town meeting in Philadelphia "called for a congress with representatives from each of the
colonies to convene and discuss the matter further." ( http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/proc_in_pa_1774.asp) On September 5, 1774, 56 delegates from 12 colonies met and "reaffirmed the colonists’ rights as Englishmen—
including the protection of life, liberty, and property and the right to representation." (from "The Declaration and Resolves of the First Continental Congress, passed on October 14, 1774".) No official discussion of independence was brought to the table until later as each side became more determined. In this context, almost forty years later, Adams writes to Rush, a fellow delegate of the second Continental Congress and fellow signer of The Declaration Of Independence. "...I lament my dear friend, that you were not in the Congress in 1774 and 1775. A thousand things happened there that no man now living knows but myself...1774 was the most difficult and important year of all. We were about one third tories, one third timid, and one third true blue." (The color of the uniform of the Continental army.) "We had a code of fundamental laws to prepare for a whole continent of incongruous colonies. It was done; and the Declaration of Independence of 1776 was no more than a repetition the principles, the rights and wrongs asserted and adopted in 1774." (Old Family Letters: Copied from the Originals for Alexander Biddle...J.B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, 1892) Adams seems to not give much credit to Thomas Jefferson who wrote the Declaration of Independence. Adams and Jefferson had been at political odds with each other for over ten years but eventually reconciled and exchanged a large volume of correspondence to each other until they both passed away on the same day- July 4, 1826.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
October 6
"When we are sick, we want an uncommon doctor, when we have a construction job to do, we want an uncommon engineer, and when we are at war, we want an uncommon general. It is only when we get into politics that we are satisfied with the common man."
Herbert Hoover, 31st President, 1929-1933- Article Originally Published in the February 6, 1949
Issue of "This Week" Magazine, source found in http://hoover.nara.gov/index.html, the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, ADDRESSES UPON THE AMERICAN ROAD,BY HERBERT HOOVER 1955-1960,THE CAXTON PRINTERS, LTD., CALDWELL, IDAHO, 196, p 92 Hoover continued speaking and writing after his Presidency. Here he speaks about recovery after World War II. "In my opinion, we are in danger of developing a cult of the Common Man,
which means a cult of mediocrity. But there is at least one hopeful sign: I
have never been able to find out just who this Common Man is. In fact, most
Americans – especially women – will get mad and fight if you try calling
them common.
This is hopeful because it shows that most people are holding fast to an
essential fact in American life. We believe in equal opportunity for all, but
we know that this includes the opportunity to rise to leadership. In other
words – to be uncommon!
Let us remember that the great human advances have not been brought
about by mediocre men and women. They were brought about by distinctly
uncommon people with vital sparks of leadership. Many great leaders were
of humble origin, but that alone was not their greatness.
It is a curious fact that when you get sick you want an uncommon
doctor; if your car breaks down you want an uncommonly good mechanic;
when we get into war we want dreadfully an uncommon admiral and an
uncommon general." The idea appears to have originally been brought forth in a speech entitled "Moral and Spiritual Recovery from War", given at Wilson College, at Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, October 13, 1945. "...whoever this political common man is, I want him to have all the unique benefits of the American way of life including the opportunity to rise to leadership...to have leadership in government, in science, in education, in professions and in the home we must find and train some uncommon men and women...One of the great riches of American life is the vast reservoir of leadership in the people. But leaders are not found like queen bees...It is our educational system rooted in the whole people upon which we must depend to develop leaders."
October 5- Birthdate of Chester Alan Arthur, 1829
"Good ballplayers make good citizens."
21st President, 1881-1885- Stated by Arthur as he welcomed the Cleveland Forest Citys Baseball, (some sources named them the Cleveland Blues) Club to the White House, April 13, 1883. Baseball grew in popularity in the United States in the late 1800's for many reasons. One such reason is that as people moved to the cities to work in factories as the Industrial Age created population shift, the pastoral and rural game of baseball became a popular spectator sport, reminding people of their roots. Presidents such as Lincoln, Andrew Johnson, and U.S. Grant would sometimes watch baseball games on what was called the White Lot, which extended south from the back of the White House towards the where the Washington Monument is located. Most of that area is now called the Ellipse, where the national Christmas tree is erected each year. Baseball also came to be touted as "America's Game" and a way to heal sectional divisions created by the Civil War. Baseball players came to be seen as celebrities and many Civil War veterans played on teams as leagues grew and clubs from different cities and regions began to compete. Besides the Cleveland team, there were the Cincinnati Red Legs, the Boston Nationals (at one time the Beaneaters, then Braves) and the Americans (Red Sox), the New York Nationals (Gothams, then Giants), the New York Americans (Yankees), the Chicago White Stockings, the Philadelphia Quakers and Phillies, the St. Louis Browns, the Kansas City Blues, Monarchs, and Royals, and others too numerous to mention here. Presidents naturally gravitated to the baseball's celebrities and popularity. In time the sport came to be seen as truly "American" and was introduced to other nations primarily through military teams. With world wide popularity, we see many foreign born players (up to 28%) now competing in the Major Leagues. Sources "Baseball: The Presidents' Game", By William B. Mead and Paul Dickson, 1993, Farragut Publishing; "The Empire Strikes Out: How Baseball Sold U.S. Foreign Policy and Promoted the American Way Abroad", By Robert Elias, 2010, The New Press.
21st President, 1881-1885- Stated by Arthur as he welcomed the Cleveland Forest Citys Baseball, (some sources named them the Cleveland Blues) Club to the White House, April 13, 1883. Baseball grew in popularity in the United States in the late 1800's for many reasons. One such reason is that as people moved to the cities to work in factories as the Industrial Age created population shift, the pastoral and rural game of baseball became a popular spectator sport, reminding people of their roots. Presidents such as Lincoln, Andrew Johnson, and U.S. Grant would sometimes watch baseball games on what was called the White Lot, which extended south from the back of the White House towards the where the Washington Monument is located. Most of that area is now called the Ellipse, where the national Christmas tree is erected each year. Baseball also came to be touted as "America's Game" and a way to heal sectional divisions created by the Civil War. Baseball players came to be seen as celebrities and many Civil War veterans played on teams as leagues grew and clubs from different cities and regions began to compete. Besides the Cleveland team, there were the Cincinnati Red Legs, the Boston Nationals (at one time the Beaneaters, then Braves) and the Americans (Red Sox), the New York Nationals (Gothams, then Giants), the New York Americans (Yankees), the Chicago White Stockings, the Philadelphia Quakers and Phillies, the St. Louis Browns, the Kansas City Blues, Monarchs, and Royals, and others too numerous to mention here. Presidents naturally gravitated to the baseball's celebrities and popularity. In time the sport came to be seen as truly "American" and was introduced to other nations primarily through military teams. With world wide popularity, we see many foreign born players (up to 28%) now competing in the Major Leagues. Sources "Baseball: The Presidents' Game", By William B. Mead and Paul Dickson, 1993, Farragut Publishing; "The Empire Strikes Out: How Baseball Sold U.S. Foreign Policy and Promoted the American Way Abroad", By Robert Elias, 2010, The New Press.
Monday, October 3, 2011
October 4- Birthdate of Rutherford B. Hayes- 1822
"Strikes and and boycotting are akin to war and can only be justified on grounds analogous to the those which justify war, viz., intolerable injustice and oppression."
Rutherford B Hayes, 19th President, 1877-1881, from his diary April 6, Volume04, Chapter44, http://ww2.ohiohistory.org/onlinedoc/hayes/ Hayes, from Ohio, was a lawyer by trade before he entered politics and was no stranger to tumultuous times before and after the Civil War in the mid 1800's. As President, one of the first (of many) crises Hayes faced was the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. After the war, railroads expanded partly with subsidies from the federal government. The railroads became the largest employer outside of agriculture in the United States. Thirty three thousand miles of track were laid and warehouses and factories were built to service the growth. Unfortunately, there was too much growth and with no immediate return on the investments, employee's wages were cut several times in 1877. Subsequently, workers organized strikes and protests first in Baltimore, Maryland, then workers from the New York Central, Erie, and Pennsylvania railroads also went on strike. Hayes called out Federal troops in an attempt to prevent riots. Strikes continued to spread to Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and Chicago. No one was killed by Federal troops but but many people died in clashes between the public and state militias and police. Eventually the confrontations ended and workers returned to their jobs, but the railroads were blamed for the strikes and violence. By necessity they improved working conditions and for the most part, stopped cutting wages. The immediate catastrophe had ended but Hayes was concerned about the great disparity of the workmen's wages and the great wealth of the railway owners. Not only did he write in his diary, Strikes and and boycotting are akin to war and can only be justified on grounds analogous to the those which justify war, viz., intolerable injustice and oppression., he also saw the other side of the situation. At a different time he wrote, "The strikes have been put down by force; but now for the real remedy. Can't something [be] done by education of strikers, by judicious control of capitalists, by wise general policy to end or diminish the evil? The railroad strikers, as a rule, are good men, sober, intelligent, and industrious.", and " The real difficulty is with the vast wealth and power in the hands of the few...who represent or control capital...Hundreds of laws of Congress and the state legislatures are in favor of these men and against the interests of the workingmen."- from "Rutherford B. Hayes: the American Presidents Series", by Hans Trefousse, 2002, Times Books, Henry Holt and Company, New York, New York.
Rutherford B Hayes, 19th President, 1877-1881, from his diary April 6, Volume04, Chapter44, http://ww2.ohiohistory.org/onlinedoc/hayes/ Hayes, from Ohio, was a lawyer by trade before he entered politics and was no stranger to tumultuous times before and after the Civil War in the mid 1800's. As President, one of the first (of many) crises Hayes faced was the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. After the war, railroads expanded partly with subsidies from the federal government. The railroads became the largest employer outside of agriculture in the United States. Thirty three thousand miles of track were laid and warehouses and factories were built to service the growth. Unfortunately, there was too much growth and with no immediate return on the investments, employee's wages were cut several times in 1877. Subsequently, workers organized strikes and protests first in Baltimore, Maryland, then workers from the New York Central, Erie, and Pennsylvania railroads also went on strike. Hayes called out Federal troops in an attempt to prevent riots. Strikes continued to spread to Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and Chicago. No one was killed by Federal troops but but many people died in clashes between the public and state militias and police. Eventually the confrontations ended and workers returned to their jobs, but the railroads were blamed for the strikes and violence. By necessity they improved working conditions and for the most part, stopped cutting wages. The immediate catastrophe had ended but Hayes was concerned about the great disparity of the workmen's wages and the great wealth of the railway owners. Not only did he write in his diary, Strikes and and boycotting are akin to war and can only be justified on grounds analogous to the those which justify war, viz., intolerable injustice and oppression., he also saw the other side of the situation. At a different time he wrote, "The strikes have been put down by force; but now for the real remedy. Can't something [be] done by education of strikers, by judicious control of capitalists, by wise general policy to end or diminish the evil? The railroad strikers, as a rule, are good men, sober, intelligent, and industrious.", and " The real difficulty is with the vast wealth and power in the hands of the few...who represent or control capital...Hundreds of laws of Congress and the state legislatures are in favor of these men and against the interests of the workingmen."- from "Rutherford B. Hayes: the American Presidents Series", by Hans Trefousse, 2002, Times Books, Henry Holt and Company, New York, New York.
October 3
"We all declare for liberty...but we do not all mean the same thing. With some...the word may mean for each man to do as he pleases with himself and the product of his labor; while with others the same word may mean for some men to do as they please with other men and the product of other men's labor- different and incompatible- liberty and tyranny."
Abraham Lincoln, 16th President, 1861-1865- From an Address at a Sanitary Fair, Baltimore, Maryland, April 18, 1864- Lincoln makes a short speech in Baltimore a just about a year before the War ended on April 9, 1865. He speaks at what became known as a Sanitary Fair. When it became evident that the Federal government was unable to provide for the needs of its army, expositions were organized by private citizens in many cities to raise funds to improve the living conditions of Union soldiers in the field and to help supply hospitals. The largest one of its kind may have been the Philadelphia Fair which ran from June 7, 1864 to June 28, 1864. http://philadelphiaencyclopedia.org/archive/civil-war-sanitary-fairs/ In Lincoln's Baltimore address, he remarks on the changes the nation and the city of Baltimore had undergone in the past three years of the war. Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863 and now freed and escaped slaves were fighting for the Union Army. In Lincoln's eyes, the war was originally and primarily fought to keep the Union together. The issue of slavery had been a point of dispute and contention from the very beginning of the revolution and inception of the nation. Lincoln opposed slavery and had finally found a way gain widespread political approval to abolish the institution. Here he speaks of Liberty: "The world has never had a good definition of the word liberty, and the American people, just now, are much in want of one. We all declare for liberty; but in using the same word we do not all mean the same thing. With some the word liberty may mean for each man to do as he pleases with himself, and the product of his labor; while with others the same word may mean for some men to do as they please with other men, and the product of other men’s labor. Here are two, not only different, but incompatible things, called by the same name—liberty. And it follows that each of the things is, by the respective parties, called by two different and incompatible names—liberty and tyranny. The shepherd drives the wolf from the sheep’s throat, for which the sheep thanks the shepherd as a liberator, while the wolf denounces him for the same act as the destroyer of liberty, especially as the sheep was a black one. Plainly the sheep and the wolf are not agreed upon a definition of the word liberty; and precisely the same difference prevails to-day among us human creatures, even in the North, and all professing to love liberty. Hence we behold the processes by which thousands are daily passing from under the yoke of bondage, hailed by some as the advance of liberty, and bewailed by others as the destruction of all liberty. Recently, as it seems, the people of Maryland have been doing something to define liberty; and thanks to them that, in what they have done, the wolf’s dictionary, has been repudiated." http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/address-at-a-sanitary-fair/
Abraham Lincoln, 16th President, 1861-1865- From an Address at a Sanitary Fair, Baltimore, Maryland, April 18, 1864- Lincoln makes a short speech in Baltimore a just about a year before the War ended on April 9, 1865. He speaks at what became known as a Sanitary Fair. When it became evident that the Federal government was unable to provide for the needs of its army, expositions were organized by private citizens in many cities to raise funds to improve the living conditions of Union soldiers in the field and to help supply hospitals. The largest one of its kind may have been the Philadelphia Fair which ran from June 7, 1864 to June 28, 1864. http://philadelphiaencyclopedia.org/archive/civil-war-sanitary-fairs/ In Lincoln's Baltimore address, he remarks on the changes the nation and the city of Baltimore had undergone in the past three years of the war. Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863 and now freed and escaped slaves were fighting for the Union Army. In Lincoln's eyes, the war was originally and primarily fought to keep the Union together. The issue of slavery had been a point of dispute and contention from the very beginning of the revolution and inception of the nation. Lincoln opposed slavery and had finally found a way gain widespread political approval to abolish the institution. Here he speaks of Liberty: "The world has never had a good definition of the word liberty, and the American people, just now, are much in want of one. We all declare for liberty; but in using the same word we do not all mean the same thing. With some the word liberty may mean for each man to do as he pleases with himself, and the product of his labor; while with others the same word may mean for some men to do as they please with other men, and the product of other men’s labor. Here are two, not only different, but incompatible things, called by the same name—liberty. And it follows that each of the things is, by the respective parties, called by two different and incompatible names—liberty and tyranny. The shepherd drives the wolf from the sheep’s throat, for which the sheep thanks the shepherd as a liberator, while the wolf denounces him for the same act as the destroyer of liberty, especially as the sheep was a black one. Plainly the sheep and the wolf are not agreed upon a definition of the word liberty; and precisely the same difference prevails to-day among us human creatures, even in the North, and all professing to love liberty. Hence we behold the processes by which thousands are daily passing from under the yoke of bondage, hailed by some as the advance of liberty, and bewailed by others as the destruction of all liberty. Recently, as it seems, the people of Maryland have been doing something to define liberty; and thanks to them that, in what they have done, the wolf’s dictionary, has been repudiated." http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/address-at-a-sanitary-fair/
October 2
"Democracy is the most vile form of government...democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention...and in general been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths."
James Madison, 4th President, 1809-1817. From The Federalist Papers, #10.The American Revolutionary War ended in 1781 and in 1788, we are still figuring out what our best form of government would be. One portion of the the debate was whether we should have strong state governments or a strong central government. Another part of the debate was whether we should have democracy and pure majority rule or a variation. Madison suggests a republic form of government would be better. "...it may be concluded that a pure democracy, by which I mean a society consisting of a small number of citizens, who assemble and administer the government in person, can admit of no cure for the mischiefs of faction. A common passion or interest will, in almost every case, be felt by a majority of the whole; a communication and concert result from the form of government itself; and there is nothing to check the inducements to sacrifice the weaker party or an obnoxious individual. Hence it is that such democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been found incompatible with personal security or the rights of property; and have in general been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths. Theoretic politicians, who have patronized this species of government, have erroneously supposed that by reducing mankind to a perfect equality in their political rights, they would, at the same time, be perfectly equalized and assimilated in their possessions, their opinions, and their passions. A republic, by which I mean a government in which the scheme of representation takes place, opens a different prospect, and promises the cure for which we are seeking. Let us examine the points in which it varies from pure democracy, and we shall comprehend both the nature of the cure and the efficacy which it must derive from the Union..."
James Madison, 4th President, 1809-1817. From The Federalist Papers, #10.The American Revolutionary War ended in 1781 and in 1788, we are still figuring out what our best form of government would be. One portion of the the debate was whether we should have strong state governments or a strong central government. Another part of the debate was whether we should have democracy and pure majority rule or a variation. Madison suggests a republic form of government would be better. "...it may be concluded that a pure democracy, by which I mean a society consisting of a small number of citizens, who assemble and administer the government in person, can admit of no cure for the mischiefs of faction. A common passion or interest will, in almost every case, be felt by a majority of the whole; a communication and concert result from the form of government itself; and there is nothing to check the inducements to sacrifice the weaker party or an obnoxious individual. Hence it is that such democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been found incompatible with personal security or the rights of property; and have in general been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths. Theoretic politicians, who have patronized this species of government, have erroneously supposed that by reducing mankind to a perfect equality in their political rights, they would, at the same time, be perfectly equalized and assimilated in their possessions, their opinions, and their passions. A republic, by which I mean a government in which the scheme of representation takes place, opens a different prospect, and promises the cure for which we are seeking. Let us examine the points in which it varies from pure democracy, and we shall comprehend both the nature of the cure and the efficacy which it must derive from the Union..."
October-The Dark Side (of Politics)
October 1- Birthdate of James Earl Carter- 1924
"America did not invent human rights. In a very real sense, it ts the other way around. Human rights invented America."
Jimmy Carter, 39th President, 1977-1981-From President Jimmy Carter's Farewell Address, January 14, 1981. As Carter spoke, Americans were held hostage in Iran and Ronald Reagan awaited to be inaugurated as America's next President. "...One of those constructive forces is enhancement of individual human freedoms through the strengthening of democracy, and the fight against deprivation, torture, terrorism and the persecution of people throughout the world. The struggle for human rights overrides all differences of color, nation or language. Those who hunger for freedom, who thirst for human dignity, and who suffer for the sake of justice -- they are the patriots of this cause. I believe with all my heart that America must always stand for these basic human rights -- at home and abroad. That is both our history and our destiny. America did not invent human rights. In a very real sense, it is the other way round. Human rights invented America. Ours was the first nation in the history of the world to be founded explicitly on such an idea. Our social and political progress has been based on one fundamental principle -- the value and importance of the individual...The battle for human rights -- at home and abroad -- is far from over...If we are to serve as a beacon for human rights, we must continue to perfect here at home the rights and values which we espouse around the world: A decent education for our children, adequate medical care for all Americans, an end to discrimination against minorities and women, a job for all those able to work, and freedom from injustice and religious intolerance.
"America did not invent human rights. In a very real sense, it ts the other way around. Human rights invented America."
Jimmy Carter, 39th President, 1977-1981-From President Jimmy Carter's Farewell Address, January 14, 1981. As Carter spoke, Americans were held hostage in Iran and Ronald Reagan awaited to be inaugurated as America's next President. "...One of those constructive forces is enhancement of individual human freedoms through the strengthening of democracy, and the fight against deprivation, torture, terrorism and the persecution of people throughout the world. The struggle for human rights overrides all differences of color, nation or language. Those who hunger for freedom, who thirst for human dignity, and who suffer for the sake of justice -- they are the patriots of this cause. I believe with all my heart that America must always stand for these basic human rights -- at home and abroad. That is both our history and our destiny. America did not invent human rights. In a very real sense, it is the other way round. Human rights invented America. Ours was the first nation in the history of the world to be founded explicitly on such an idea. Our social and political progress has been based on one fundamental principle -- the value and importance of the individual...The battle for human rights -- at home and abroad -- is far from over...If we are to serve as a beacon for human rights, we must continue to perfect here at home the rights and values which we espouse around the world: A decent education for our children, adequate medical care for all Americans, an end to discrimination against minorities and women, a job for all those able to work, and freedom from injustice and religious intolerance.
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