WARNOTES
Comment on this writing, an overview update by a non-historian, non-extremist. Comment is welcome!
Refreshing and refining my own data, thought to post it to share .
Our news has been filled with stories of Prisoner Crises and Abuse on both sides. There is no escaping human error, on small and horrendous scale, but I like to post attention to things being done to prevent such atrocities from recurring; things we can do to protect, and to honor those whose contributions exceeded the norm. One such story can be found at
OperationHiggins.org. I hope you will wish to visit the site and see how we handled one such complex incident. We are better than you might think.
Congressman Rob Simmons, (R-CT) is a favorite, partly because of his success in action for POW / MIA issues.
Nothing comes from nothing, and our nation is responsive, so get inspired, and get busy, if you have an issue or desire to help. Your won't be sorry!
"When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible but in the end, they always fall--Think of it, ALWAYS."
-- Mahatma Gandhi
MAJOR MILITARY CONFLICTS IN AMERICAN HISTORY: NOTES
THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE
- THE CIVIL WAR
- WORLD WAR I
- WORLD WAR II
- KOREA
- CUBA AND OTHER CRISES LATE '50'S to '70
- VIET NAM
- CONFLICTS '70'S TO '90
- THE GULF WAR ODS
- WAR WITH IRAQ AND THE TERRORISTS Y2K TO PRESENT,2003
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THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE~
So far, the U.S.History.Org link is the best source for information about Revolutionary War Times,
especially Pennsylvania, and the Liberty Bell....
It was just one of those times in the world...
the French Revolution, and similar upheavals sent highly qualified people running for their lives
to the Americas. They jumped for the chance to start a new government, using the best ideas form the
ones they'd left behind.....a chance to try again and do it better!
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THE CIVIL WAR
Having been underinformed in Civil War- related concepts, I have,recently, been making a study of it,
since Clara Barton, Civil War Angel, was also "startup angel" for the American Red Cross, a childhood icon,
and inspired my participation with the organization as an adult, through two wars and local service.
I believe the American Civil War remains the bloodiest war in history...as always, when we fight among ourselves,
when our humanity demands team play, and easy discussion and problem-solving among those we should love.
Just as I began this page, film presented "Gods and Generals", a Civil War Epic, and suppposedly accurate.
The following is an oline offering - a synopsis of the story:
Netscape Network
Saturday, February 22, 2003
Gods and Generals
Over the course of nearly four hours, Ronald F. Maxwell's Gods and
Generals takes an in-depth look at the legends of legacy of Antietam,
the Civil War battle that went down in history as the costliest day in
American history. To get history buffs and novices alike in the spirit
of the new epic reenactment from the man behind Gettysburg, we've
uncovered 10 surprising facts about Antietam and the heroes who risked
their lives on its fields.
By David Blend
1) General Stonewall Jackson, who led the Confederate troops under
Robert E. Lee at Antietam, was forced to fight on someone else's horse
when his faithful steed disappeared before the battle. When his horse
resurfaced, she was nagged by souvenir-hungry locals, who would
literally pluck out her hairs to get a Stonewall Jackson keepsake. After
the war, cadets took "Little Sorrell" to the Virginia Military
Institute. Her stuffed remains can still be found on campus.
2) General Lee had horse trouble of his own shortly before Antietam. Lee
was out of commission for several days after breaking a bone in his left
hand and severely spraining his right wrist. Seems the general stumbled
while reaching for the reins of his horse and injured his hands while
attempting to break his fall.
3) Considering that Northern troops outnumbered Confederate soldiers
two-to-one, some may wonder why Lee ordered his forces to invade the
North in the first place. From a military perspective, Lee felt he had
little choice. Further, beyond tactical considerations, victory might
have brought aid from France and Britain, who seemed ready to support
the South if they could demonstrate success.
4) Feeling a bit of communion with the Almighty was in order in the days
before the battle, Stonewall Jackson broke camp and attended the
Evangelical Reformed Church in Frederick, Maryland. The service that
night was delivered by a staunch Unionist preacher who, upon learning
Jackson was in the congregation, promptly issued a prayer on Lincoln's
behalf. Jackson didn't seem to mind, however, since he had fallen asleep
almost as soon as the sermon began.
5) At the outset of Antietam, a tyrannical General Jackson ordered two
of his three division commanders placed under arrest for what they
considered to be minor infractions. Ironically, one of these men, Powell
Hill, ended up saving what remained of the Confederate army when his
troops repelled a division led by General Ambrose Burnside, the
climactic event of the battle.
6) The war might have ended then and there had General George B.
McClellan followed up Hill's successful assault by ordering his troops
to regroup and pursue the rebels. Instead, McClellan overestimated the
remaining strength of the Southern army and allowed Lee to escape,
prompting Lincoln to hand McClellan's command over to Ambrose Burnside.
7) McClellan graduated second in the West Point class of '46, a group
that produced 20 Union and Confederate generals. While his battlefield
tentativeness cost him his military job, he was nominated for president
by the Democrats in 1864, and later served as governor of New Jersey
from 1878 until 1881.
8) Ambrose Burnside, meanwhile, lent history the term "sideburns." The
general himself was known for his trademark mutton-chop hairstyle.
That's nothing compared to the legacy of Union general Joseph Hooker,
who was also at Antietam. Apparently, young professional women were
given to following Hooker's troops around. They soon came to be known as
"Hooker's Women," and... well, you can figure out the rest.
9) Ill-prepared for alleviating the human cost of war, Union battlefield
doctors were assisted immeasurably by Clara Barton, "The Angel of The
Battlefield," who had stockpiled wagonloads of medical equipment without
government assistance. Before Barton's arrival, surgeons were using
cornhusks instead of bandages to dress soldiers' wounds. After the war,
Barton went on to establish the American Red Cross.
10) Major General Abner Doubleday, who led a Union army division during
Antietam, is popularly held to have invented baseball in 1835. After the
war, Doubleday lived for a time in San Francisco, where he established
that city's first cable car company.
Copyright 1999-2003 Moviefone, Inc. America Online, Inc. All Rights
Reserved.
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QUOTATIONS ON WAR....PRO AND CON
If you are not expert at concepts of war and terrorism,
a new little book( call # 341.67) from Random House,
entitled "The Lessons of Terror" by Caleb Carr,
of Military History Quarterly is a fine choice for someone whose
background and focus are non-military,
and a good update, refresher and enrichment tool for the rest of us.
It encapsulates a comprehensive outline of Terrorism since the Dark Ages,
why it is resorted to,
repeatedly, in spite of the fact that it always fails
and fails
in the same way, with the same results;
and some suggestions
on how we could do better -
A quote from the book, to start:
Erasmus of Rotterdam in 1511 wrote:
"Dulce Bellum inexpertis"...
"War is sweet to those who know nothing of it."
...to express it quickly and effectively, but for clarity, he said:
"War is something so monstrous that it befits wild beasts rather than men,
so crazy that the poets even imagine that is let loose by the Furies,
so deadly that is sweeps like a plague through the world,
so unjust that it is best carried on by the worst type of bandit,
so impious that it is quite alien to Christ."...
He was commenting on the difficulty by both Church and State
to
civilize war rules so that when war was necessary,
total destruction of the population and all commerce was not the result...
but doubted that it could be easily achieved because of
the
foundations in primitive bloodthirsty and bellicose ways inherent to both Church and State.
(p.51)
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~VIET NAM~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Vietnam has been under siege mercilessly, by one country or other for centuries. America was called in to prevent the takeover of South Vietnam by Communist North Vietnam. When we had to leave, the Communists moved in and dominate today.
We lost 58,000 American Soldiers, including more than 2,000 POW/MIA
More than thirty years later,
the prisoners of war and missing in action are still the subject of devoted and often unappreciated search, to achieve some closure for their grieving loved ones, and with the co-operation won through diplomatic efforts, facts and remains are still being found and identified. Our local Congressman Rob Simmons (R-2nd District), once CIA, has been a quiet and unflinching champion of the cause. I am very proud of his work. Proud to be a constituent of his Congressional District.
NARA (National Archives & Records Administration) shares official data, and this page is a good starting point.
My own notes about Vietnam have been evasive because it was "our war"....our courage, our fears, our devastation at the un-American unpatriotic response our men often sufferred after such sacrifice. It is still a subject I approach with a lot of thought and focus or the writings dissolve inot meaningless chat. I promise to do better...I have been working on it. We did well, and I am finding it is not impossible....elle
A random note inspired by today's headlines, re: executions of p.o.w.s ,inserted here on 3-27-03,
to prevent me from forgetting to make a respectable writing on it, and soon....please forgive this blurb-esf" ...and from experience and observation of such atrocities and worse, to prevent them veering off with post-traumatic shock
and losing their post-war careers and our loves and marriages...some of it would curl your hair...not once did we bring it up
...this is the first time I dare mention such psychodramas, a banquet for our heros for their healing,
our job for our men, with no latitude for error in our cook and serve skills...I forgot...happily....
played out in dead earnest with a smile and a kiss, by millions of babyboomers like me...
most of us were NOT doing drugs, we were doing life, instantly developing
skills to be effective roleplayers in such times with the blessings of church and state,
"off the cuff", "just girls' games".
When your father did the "baby pool", making book on what hour your sister would be born, ...when we played such
games it was to demonstrate healing concerning things like the Russian Roulette the Viet Cong would play using
American prisoners...and similar....Peter, your Father, who later made digitalis and neosporin, opted for his Officer's spot with the Army Corps of Engineers, to be a good American,
and yet follow his conscience, re: his loathing of chemical warfare...insidious, he called it, with conviction.
The Geneva Conventions were in place then, as they are now. There was action to empower the United Nations then,
as there will be again, soon, to be more effective ...but always the cost..."
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.......
more as I develop on this....
Peace....peace works....Power for Peace is my prayer...
I like Woodrow Wilson for more
than his namesake first wife and her famous rosegarden works...
he made lots of mistakes, but that was to be expected
since creating active machinery for world piece was fairly new,
and brave and so fairly messy at first.
but at least he and Versailles broke ground on a new promised land...a dream begun...
Mr.Carr likens US/AlQaeda with UK/IRA....
...refused to acknowledge this state of war....immaterial...foolish...Not unlike the American respnse to the Al Qaeda organization over the last decade, it substitued moral outrage for effective response."
(p.202)
He re-iterates throughout the book that we are making a major error in our disrespect for terrorists as a military enemy, rather than
a large scale prankster, or police-case.
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war is
- not easy - war means gain in some respects, but,oh! the instant awareness of the losses!
- seldom fast - one of the reasons why we are going through conflicts with some embarassment,
since the
development of a war scenario can be "seen a mile off", in these majormedia days...."it didn't have to happen".
Our powers for peace are still "sophomoric", translation"wise fools"...we really can't quite get there...but we will.
- not fun, but cheered through the moment when we must be the best and win or die.
I hate war, but cheered
my men on through theirs with all my heart, and would do it again.
The happiest day of my life remains the day
I met my late husband at the airport, home from war,
with "all ten fingers, all ten toes" and our love stronger than ever.
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WAR WITH IRAQ ~OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM~ AND THE TERRORISTS Y2K TO PRESENT,2003
For Immediate Release
br>March 27, 2003
Coalition Members
Who are the current coalition members?
President Bush has assembled a Coalition that has already begun military operations to disarm Iraq of its weapons of mass destruction, and enforce 17 United Nations Security Council resolutions.
The Coalition will also liberate the Iraqi people from one of the worst tyrants and most brutal regimes on earth.
Contributions from Coalition member nations range from: direct military participation, logistical and intelligence support, specialized chemical/biological response teams, over-flight rights, humanitarian and reconstruction aid, to political support.
This number is still growing, and it is no accident that many member nations of the Coalition recently escaped from the boot of a tyrant or have felt the scourge of terrorism. All Coalition member nations understand the threat Saddam Hussein's weapons pose to the world and the devastation his regime has wreaked on the Iraqi people.
The population of Coalition countries is approximately 1.23 billion people.
Coalition countries have a combined GDP of approximately $22 trillion.
Every major race, religion, ethnicity in the world is represented.
"Peace is not made by treaties, or at council tables,
but in the hearts of men."
......Herbert Hoover
The Coalition Countries March 2003
Forty-nine countries are publicly committed to the Coalition, including:
Afghanistan
Albania
Angola
Australia
Azerbaijan
Bulgaria
Colombia
Costa Rica
Czech Republic
Denmark
Dominican Republic
El Salvador
Eritrea
Estonia
Ethiopia
Georgia
Honduras
Hungary
Iceland
Italy
Japan
Kuwait
Latvia
Lithuania
Macedonia
Marshall Islands
Micronesia
Mongolia
Netherlands
Nicaragua
Palau
Panama
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Rwanda
Singapore
Slovakia
Solomon Islands
South Korea
Spain
Tonga
Turkey
Uganda
Ukraine
United Kingdom
United States
Uzbekistan
This numberisgrowing=1.23billionpeople
"Peace is not made by treaties, or at council tables,
but in the hearts of men."
......Herbert Hoover
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====================
Secretary Ridge Holds Press Briefing on Operaton Liberty Shield
a unified operation to increase security and readinesss in the United States...
March 18,2003
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2003/03/20030318-6.html
ON THE SUBJECT OF OUR SPLIT WITH FRANCE AT THE OPENING OF THE GULF WAR 2003:
if we took up a "one dollar from each american special collection" for france,
to compensate them for their $$$losses from Iraq's collapse,
france would have come over with us too...
a comment:
I am an artist...so I think it's all about art...
Since the huge Guggenheim Bilbao Museum in Spain was built,
there has been acuteness in the France/Spain artscool game ...
right now Spain is what it is about...
so when spain and france are flipsides in a controversy, spain wins...
this means that even if we lose we look artful doing it...
How I am I doing?
I am trying not to cry as we get ready to attack...
I know we will win, but there will be losses...
not too many via gunfire, but more of the
insidious "Gulf War Syndrome"-type ones...
and possibly more of them...and the symptoms are
often delayed in appearing , so that whole battalions
can fly into it and bathe in it without knowing the
deadly nature of their position...
I hope there has been improvement in detection and
avoidance options for the "bad stuff", chemically speaking
a passion banner since viet nam and my late husband's
brave service but NOT in chem warfare....he opted
for Corps of Engineers..to do something constructive in Viet Nam...
b.s. in chemistry or not........
such things bother me more, not less, since he died...
The mustard gas they tallied to Hussein and a few of the others
I observed in those days...saw their effects......very bad stuff...
God Bless America!
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Email: esfagan@ellefagan.com
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