Riots in Chicago and Across the United States

Why do the media outlets continue to call what happened protests?  It  may have started that way, but what I saw on State Street in Chicago on TV last night was definitely NOT a protest.  It was a complete riot.  The police should be commended for not attacking the rioters and looters, especially after the names, taunts and items hurled at them.

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I know the reason for the initial protesting was the death of the man in Minneapolis at the hands of the police, but I went to the Hey Jackass Mayhem in Chicago site for an update on shootings in Chicago so far this year.  The numbers are sad.  And most of the victims are Blacks and have been shot by other Blacks.

S&W--  Shot and Wounded,  S&K-- Shot and Killed

This week so far (May 24-30):
21 S&K, 80 S&W

Month of May
60 S&K, 274 S&W

Year to date:

204 S&K, 904 S&W

Maybe, just maybe, there is a bigger issue than one man being killed by police.  And, just maybe a bigger issue than those Confederate statues.

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Of course, watching the footage of what happened at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill when the students committed the hate crime and tore down the Silent Sam statue sure reminded me of what I was seeing in Chicago and many other U.S. cities last night.

The radical left has gotten as badly out of control as the radical right.  And, it used to be that the left could at least be counted on to be sane, but not any more.  Just watching the two sides at Charlottesville it was hard to tell who was worse.

Hey, friends, last night was nothing but riots.  Wondering if what the rioters were breaking or spray painting was just vandalism as it is in the case of Confederate statues?  Or was it a hate crime.

I wish the media would stop calling it protests.

Call It Like It Is.  --Old Secesh

The Confederate Battle Flag's Divisive History-- Part 3: Used by Confederate Veteran Groups and College Football

Continued from October 11 and 22, 2019.

Over the past half century, John Coski, who wrote a book about it, said it has evolved into "a widely and carelessly used symbol of many things, including the South as a distinctive region, individual rebelliousness, a self conscious 'redneck' culture, and segregation and racism."

There are several key periods in the flag's divisive history:

**  Post Civil War:  For decades after the war, the flag was used largely by veterans' groups at parades and as a symbol of Southern heritage.  Especially used by the United Confederate Veterans which was the main group for them.

**  1940s:  The flag appears at Southern college and university football games and some other cultural events that were not directly related to the war.

--Old Secesh

Charlottesville to Begin Process of Getting Rid of Its Confederate Statues

From the May 24, 2020 Daily Progress "Charlottesville officials to start discussions on removal of Confederate  statues" by Nolan Stout.

There are two of them, statues of Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson.  And Charlottesville is chomping at the bit to get rid of them, especially now that the state law preventing them from doing it has been struck down by the Democrats who control the legislature and their Democratic governor.

They can't take them down before July 1, though, and are planning to start "so-called" 2-2-1 City Council meetings in June to "discuss" removal.

According to the newspaper, these meetings are used  to meet with less than a quorum of elected officials so that an OPEN MEETING IS NOT REQUIRED.

Sure smells like a bit of that old clandestine dark of the moon work is afoot.

--Old Secesh

President McKinley's Antietam Speech in 1900-- Part 4: "The Valor of Both Is the Common Heritage of Us All"

"The valor of the one or the other, the valor of both, is the common heritage of us all.  The achievements of that war, every one of them, are just as much the inheritance of those who failed as those who prevailed; and when we went to war two years ago (the Spanish-American War) the men of the South and the men of the North vied with each other in showing their devotion to the United States.

"The followers of the Confederate generals with the followers of Union of the Federal generals fought side by side in Cuba, Puerto Rico, and in the Philippines, and together in those far off islands are standing today fighting and dying for the flag that represents more than any other banner on the world the best hopes and aspirations for mankind."

President William McKinley

Again, Too Sad This Can't Be the Way Today.  --Old Secesh

President McKinley's Antietam Speech in 1900-- Part 3: "To the Valor, Heroism and Sacrifices of the Confederate and Union Armies"

"My countrymen, I am glad, and you are glad also, of that famous meeting between Grant and Lee at Appomattox Court House.  I am glad we were kept together, Aren't you?  Glad that the Union was saved by the honorable terms between Grant and Lee.

"There is one glorious fact that must be gratifying to all of us:  American soldiers never surrendered but to Americans!

"The past can never be undone.

"The new day brings its shining sun to light our duty now.    I am glad to preside over a nation of nearly eighty million people, more united than ever since the formation of the Federal Union.  I account it a great honor to participate in this occasion with the State of Maryland in its tribute to the valor, heroism and sacrifices of the Confederate and Union armies."

It Is Too Bad This Is No Longer The Way It Is.  --Old Secesh

President McKinley's Speech at Antietam Battlefield in 1900-- Part 2: "With Affection and Respect For Each Other"

President McKinley composed a 358-word speech to deliver on Decoration Day 1900.  He fashioned it after Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, which was short, but yet poignant to the events of the Battle of Antietam which he was honoring.

I feel it is important in these current days of division about the Civil War, that these thoughts be taken into consideration.  Among the invited guests were General and Mrs. Longstreet of the Confederacy.

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THE SPEECH

"In this presence and on this memorable field I am glad to meet the followers of Lee and Jackson and Longstreet with the followers of Grant and McClellan and Sherman and Sheridan, greeting each other, not with arms in their hands or malice in their souls, but with affection and respect for each other in their hearts.

"Standing here today, one reflection only has crowded my mind, the difference between this scene and that of 38 years ago.  Then the men who wore the blue and the men who wore the gray greeted each other with shot and shell, and visited death upon their respective ranks.

"We meet after these intervening years, as friends, with a common sentiment that of loyalty to the government of the United States, love for our flag and our free institutions, and determined men of the North and men of the South, to make any sacrifice for the honor and perpetuity of the American Nation."

Too Bad This Can't Be the Sentiment of Today As I Watch What Charlottesville Is Preparing To Do.    --Old Secesh

President McKinley's Speech on Decoration Day 1900-- Part 1: Back When Confederates Were Considered Honorable

From the May 18, 2020, Tribune-Chronicle  "President McKinley gives the Antietam Address in 1900" by Mike Wilson.

President William McKinley was a resident of Niles, Ohio.  The Spanish-American War of 1898 had recently ended and many of the troops were back home with their families.  This was the first time that Northerners and Southerners had formed one military since the Civil War.

During the war, McKinley had appointed two supreme commanders of American forces, one was a former Union officer and the other a former Confederate officer.

With Decoration Day (now Memorial Day) fast approaching, McKinley wanted to bring the nation together even more to honor all of our military.  During past decoration Days, families of Union veterans and families of Confederate veterans had  decorated the graves of their fallen separately.

McKinley changed that in 1900 as he traveled to the Antietam Battlefield to give a speech.

There were two significant things about this particular battle:  one was that McKinley had fought there as a Union sergeant and been awarded for heroism, and, second, Maryland had recently  completed a large memorial at the site honoring the state veterans of both sides during the conflict.

--Old Secesh

Cobb County, Ga., Reaches Compromise on Park Name-- Part 3

Johnston's River Line along the Chattahoochee River  contains  a stretch of trenches and earthworks named for the Confederate general, who oversaw its construction  in 1864, to defend against the invasion of Union forces under General William T. Sherman.

Part of the labor force of the Line included slaves.

"Johnston's Line"  was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, but the name was never made official by Cobb County.

The parkland on which it is situated was acquired by the county in a settlement with a developer in  the early 1990s.    In 2016, it was included  on an approved list of SPLOST projects and a park master plan was created in 2018.

That plan includes a small parking lot, restroom, trails, and signage highlighting archaeological features.  That would be the Confederate fortifications and I am sure contextual wording would have to be on those signs.

--Old Secesh

Cobb County, Ga., Reaches Compromise on New Park Name-- Part 2:

The compromise was reached Tuesday and the 102-acre park will be named Discovery Park at the River Line.

My problem with the compromise name is that it doesn't say anything about the Civil War, which was the nod to River Line.  Perhaps calling it the Civil War River Line or Defensive River Line would have been better.

It is being developed by  using $1 million from a special one percent sales tax.

Residents of the area originally wanted it named Mapleton Discovery Park, after the surrounding area in Mapleton off Discovery Boulevard.  They said the name was inclusive of the diverse community in which the park is located.

But some historic preservationists wanted the name to include a reference to Johnston's River Line.  The River Line was a series of fortifications built partly by impressed slave labor.  If you remember the scene in "Gone With the Wind" when Scarlett saw some of Tara's slaves marching through Atlanta on their way to build defenses, this would be what it was about.

--Old Secesh

Cobb County, Ga., Reaches Compromise on New Park Name-- Part 1

From the May 12, 2020, Atlanta Journal-Constitution  "Cobb approves compromise name for park with Confederate earthworks" by Meris Lutz

Cobb County, outside Atlanta, has reached a compromise over the name of a park after two years of controversy.  The park, which looks to be a scenic as well as historic one is under construction along the Chattahoochee River in Mapleton and contains Civil War earthworks.

This is a big thing for Civil War remnants around Atlanta because this, of course was a huge battle and big turning point of the war when it fell to Union forces.  Unfortunately, after the war, city growth has destroyed so much of these historic sites and fortifications.

Having a new scenic and historic park was not the bone of contention.  Of course, it was that those fortifications were built by Confederates in the defense of Atlanta.  And, you know that there are some people who are dearly trying to erase any and all mention of the "C" word.  And, in this instance the word Confederate was not even in play.

But, the name of the Confederate general, Joseph E. Johnston, was and there were those who wanted the park named Johnston's River Line Park.  Of course, this would be bringing up that Confederate thing and some people are offended by it.

You Sure Couldn't Call It Confederate Park or Johnston Park.  Way Too "C" Word for the Easily Offended.  --Old Secesh

About That Memphis Thing With Gen. Forrest-- Part 3

The president of Greenspace, Van Turner, a black man, said that costs to remove the remains and pedestal from the park could come to $200,000.  He further noted that no public money will be used.  All funds are coming from private sources.

Lee Millar of the Sons of Confederate Veterans Nathan Bedford Forrest Camp said the process could take months with specialized engineers to dismantle the granite and archaeologists to remove the bodies.  The general and his wife were buried in solid metal caskets.

Turner said that once removed, the site will be grassed over  and park benches placed.  He expects the whole thing to be done by fall depending on the coronavirus.

Again, that ploy Memphis used to get around the Confederate statue protection law was one classic bit of chicanery on the part of Blacks and the Memphis city leaders.  This is a reason why I will not be going to that city anytime soon, even when the coronavirus thing ends.  And, they have a lot of the things I really like, but, this is my little old boycott (like I also have with St. Louis, Louisville and New Orleans and any city that has removed or is threatening to remove Confederate statues).

Sayonara Memphis!   No Beale Street or Peabody for Me.  --Old Secesh

About That Memphis Thing and Nathan Bedford Forrest-- Part 2: A Slick Move on Their Part

The somewhat contentious debate over the remains of the general and his wife ended Monday when his family and the Sons of Confederate Veterans dropped their lawsuit to keep him in Health Services Park (the former Forrest Park).  He will be moved to the headquarters of the Sons of Confederate Veterans in Tennessee.  Hopefully the city of Memphis will foot the bill for this since this is their doing.

Forrest's remains were the topic of almost weekly protests until Memphis came up with a questionable plan to get around the state protection laws for monuments by "selling" the city-owned park to a quickly formed non-profit group called Greenspace, Incorporated.  One of the slickest bits of chicanery ever fostered on history.

That got the park name changed and put the general's grave in jeopardy.

That Was One Really Sneaky, Questionable Move on the Part of Memphis.  --Old Secesh

About That Memphis Thing With Nathan Bedford Forrest-- Part 1

From the May 12, 2020, Fox 13 News (Memphis, Tn.)  Remains of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest to be removed from Health Sciences Park" by Greg Coy.

Surprisingly, the news segment just said he was a Confederate general and that he was a former slave trader.  Probably the first time I've ever seen a news article not mentioning that he was a founder of the KKK.  I was shocked.

The remains if Confederate general and former slave trader Nathan Bedford Forrest  and his wife will leave Memphis for good.  Exactly when is not known because of the COVID-19 situation.

His family and supporters and the group that operates the park have reached an agreement.  The lawsuit about his remains is over.  A spokesman for Forrest's family has told Fox News that the bodies will be taken to a place near to where the general was born.

This argument in Memphis has been extremely divisive.

His remains and those of his wife were buried in what is now known as Health Sciences Park in 1904, not in the cemetery as was directed by his will.  The park was known as Forrest Park until recently.

--Old Secesh

SPLC Shows Its Racist Tendencies-- Part 3: And About Those Southern "Confederate" Holidays

Of course, the SPLC is against the Southern states commemorating their heritage with special months and days to honor the Confederacy.    "But pretending that these state holidays are about preserving Southern history is an insult to the residents of these states," according to them.

This does not insult me, even though I don't live in a Southern state.  Perhaps it insults Blacks or their white minions, but not me.  If you don't like it, ignore it as much as you can, like I do with a lot of Rap music and Hip Hop where there is a whole lot in some songs that really insult me, especially language and the use of the "N" word as well as the "F' word and "M-F words."

If It Offends You, Ignore It As Much As You Can.  --Old Secesh

SPLC Shows Its Racist Tendencies-- Part 2: About Confederate Removal

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), rightfully dates these Confederate-hatred campaign from the horrible attacks on the black congregation at the church in Charleston, S.C., as the June 17, 2015.  That white racist murderer (I won't use his name as I don't use names of any mass murderers) was pictured once holding a Confederate flag.  This caused an uproar that has only recently slowed down because of the virus.

At first, the main objective were Confederate flags, but has since morphed to statues and monuments.  However, I date the big attack to the events leading up to the commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the Civil War back to 2010.

According to the SPLC, since then, 138 Confederate symbols, including 58 monuments have been removed from public places across the country.  In addition, they have a master list of nearly 1,800 Confederate symbols across the country.

In 2019, eight Confederate symbols in the U.S., including four monuments, were removed from public spaces.    And five more are in the process of removal.  In addition, five memorials to Confederates were renamed last year.

The SPLC Is Sure Doing Some Gloating.  But, They Need to Know the Hurt It Causes Me When They Do That.  --Old Secesh

SPLC Shows Its Racist Tendencies Over Statue Removal-- Part 1

From the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) May 2, 2020, post "Weekend Read:  Even as Southern states continue honoring Confederate holidays, monuments are being removed" by Brad Bennett.

This group is right up there with the NAACP in its tendency to be hateful of any and all things Confederate.  In other words, reverse racism?

They are upset that some Southern states continue to honor their Confederate heritage but the recent signing of the bill in Virginia to remove "White Supremacy" monuments and they are extremely happy about this.  The overall plan is to remove any and all things Confederate.

Those statues and monuments have never mean racism to me nor does it to many whose ancestors fought for the Confederacy.  By the SPLC's definition, I must be a white supremacist and I sure was unaware of that.

The organization has spent a lot of time and money compiling an exhaustive list of all things Confederate and they want them all gone.

--Old Secesh

Charlottesville's Further Confederate Statue "Vandalism"

And, I put quotation marks around "vandalism" because it is NOT vandalism, but a Hate Crime.

From the May 1, 2020, Washington Times.

The words "The Pandemic" were spray-painted on the bases of both the statue honoring Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson.  Arrows directed up from the words to the statue.

Last year the Lee statue was  also "vandalized" twice.  Once with the words "Impeach Trump" and the other with "This Is Racist."

So now, they're blaming the coronavirus on Confederates.

I Tell You, We Can't Get No Respect.  --Old Secesh

Black Woman Offended by Confederate Flag Face Mask in Utah

From ABC 4 Utah ABC  "Walmart responds after customer raises concern about employee wearing face mask with confederate flag" by Rosie Nguyen.  (Hey, ABC, it's Confederate, not confederate.)

And now, another Confederate flag face mask story, this time in Harrisville, Utah.  A black woman was offended.  This after the Michigan legislator also wore one that caused a ruckus.

Evidently, those Confederate-haters have now taken the battle from the flags, to the statues and memorials to face masks in these "V" Days.

Of course, the employee was made to change the face mask.  No word as to their being fired for the affront.

Can't Even be Safe These Days Without Fear of Offending Someone.  --Old SecNoFaceMask

Both Sides of the Story

From May 1, 2020, Forward Kentucky  "Confederate flag, meet Unity Water Tower" by Berry Craig.

The huge Confederate flag flying by the Pudacah, Ky., I-24 Interstate is about to have competition.

Plans call for a water tower to be constructed near it with the words "United We Stand" with the arms and hands of a black and a white person shaking hands superimposed on an American flag.

I have no problem with this as I believe everyone should be able to get their thoughts across as long as it is done peacefully.

Hopefully this new water tower with its message will be privately funded as is the Confederate flag.

--Old Secesh

About Those Protesters At the Michigan State Capitol

While watching video from last night and pictures taken yesterday, I would say there just might be a bigger problem at the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing than some guy wearing a Confederate face mask.

You just have to wonder about those legislators there who have proposed a bill to ban any Confederate items (even if they might be considered a life-saving thing like a face mask in these days) of you-know-what).

Some of the protesters even had guns, far more likely to cause bodily harm than a face mask, even if it is part of a Confederate flag.  I was happy to see that there were no Confederate flags out there, however.  Wouldn't want to send those anti-Confederate folks into any kind of life-threatening shock.

Not to mention that at least half of the protesters were not practicing social distancing nor were they wearing face masks.

And, even if there was a Confederate flag out there, I don't think it would be so much as a racist statement, but much the same as the American Revolution "Don't Tread On Me" flags denoting people in rebellion.  I saw many of those.

Though, I Am Sure There Will Be at Least One Confederate Flag Out There.  --Old Secesh