Land of the Brave

My earliest European ancestor came to Maryland in 1660, settling on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. My most recent immigrant ancestor came to Pennsylvania in 1734. There might have been a Native American in there somewhere but it was so far back, we have no verifiable information.

My people were movers. Every generation the youngsters in the family moved on, settling in strange new territory. They were the pioneers—the ones who established new settlements, faced the dangers of wild animals, hostile tribes, and starvation and illness. They built small log homes, cleared land, and planted crops. They were the men who sat on juries, took their turns as the sheriff, and the women who reared children with little more than a washtub and an iron pot.

From the beginning, the men went off to war when they were called. Generation after generation they fought for the principles they believed in from before the Revolutionary War to the post 9/11 conflicts. According to the RW and CW pension records, they walked long distances, took part in battles, sometimes were wounded and received little recompense for their trouble.

In the early times in our country, there were no supply lines for the soldiers. Uniforms and weapons and food were provided by their family. Battles were fought on home soil in towns and across farmland where people lived. In the pension record for one ancestor, his actions are described. As a very young man (sixteen), he led British soldiers on a wild chase across the country-side so they wouldn't find the American soldiers sheltering in his barn overnight. They'd arrived the evening before to fetch fresh meat for their camp. If the British soldiers found them, they would also know his family was supporting the rebellion.

There is much talk today about soldiers and sailors, about our veterans who have kept our country safe. I just want to point out that courage doesn't always wear a uniform. Sometimes it wears a skirt or overalls. Without the families at home, keeping things going, there wouldn't be many veterans.

On this Veteran's Day, let us also remember the support team.

anny

Winds of Change

Today is our day of rest from the ever-changing saga with Louella, Jonas, and Sam. But don't let that prevent you from stopping by Kelly's blog at http://www.kkirch.blogspot.com/ to see who she quoted this week. And then roll on over to Amarinda's blog to get her take on online job applications at http://www.amarindajones.blogspot.com/


IMPROMPTU CONTEST FOR LABOR DAY! Leave a comment on either of my blogs or on my webpage at www.annycook.com with your favorite legal Scrabble word by midnight EST on Monday. I'll draw a name or two out of the hat and award a couple of prizes. And on Friday this week, I'll post the entire list. Maybe you'll find some new words for your next Scrabble game.




I'm an inveterate, nosy reader. Post an intriguing title and you have me snagged. This is especially true on the internet. This is why I spent time reading a long article on the congress returning to a lot of work.



Returning from where? Ohhhh. It seems that they had a month long vacation (with pay). I don't know about you, but I don't know anyone personally that gets a month long vacation. Actually, most of my acquaintances are lucky to get a three day weekend. The article was all about the difficulties of accomplishing their agendas now that they're back at work. Hmmmm. Maybe they should have skipped the vacation and worked on the agendas instead?



Coincidentally, last night I chatted with my neighbor about politics. This is not a normal conversation for us, but occassionally we get caught up in the ins and out of politics and government. We talked about how things needed to change and how unhappy we were with the way things are going. I said, "We need to fire them all and start over." She agreed, but pointed out that it wasn't likely to happen.



It could.



It would require the desire for change on the part of every voter. And this is how it would work. Don't vote for a party. Vote for the new guy/gal regardless of party. After all, what has the party system accomplished? N-O-T-H-I-N-G! There's a Scrabble word for you.



How long has your Representative or Senator been in Washington, D.C.? F-O-R-E-V-E-R! Well, don't you think it's time to retire him or her? Think about it. Some of our congressmen have been in Washington since before the majority of voters were born. That's right. Think about that.



This election, I don't plan to vote for any incumbent. If we voted out the incumbents every election, then there wouldn't really be any attraction to the office except the will to represent the constituents. Lobbyists would have to work with an entirely new group every election. Fat cat congressmen would have to find a new feeding trough.



Whoever ends up being President would have to work with the Congress instead of wasting our time and money fighting party battles that have nothing to do with governing and everything to do with territory and power.



Of course, everyone would have to vote. Everyone. My friends in Australia are amazed at the way Americans feel about voting. We're sort of wishy-washy about it, aren't we? What if we lost that right? It could happen, you know. Maybe the reason we have fat-cat congressmen is because we're too lazy and apathetic to do anything about it. Maybe.



So here's my challenge. Think about it. Think about how different things would be if we had a mostly new congress along with a new president. And think about what would happen if we actually fired them when they didn't work.



We have that right. They work for us. And if they're doing a lousy job and we continue to let them work for us, then that's our fault. Most of us live in a real world where incompetent workers are fired. I don't know about you but I'm ready for the winds of change.



Anny

A tale of two blogs...

After receiving numerous complaints from readers who couldn't post comments on my myspace blog, I've decided to post my blog in two places. This means that there will be NO excuses from the readers now. I want to see comments! Lots of comments, actually.

Today is the 4th of July. In America, we celebrate Independence Day, or as the kids say, this is our country's birthday. It's kind of funny to say that, you know. There are parts of the world with civilizations so old that a mere two hundred plus years sounds absurd. Perhaps the most important thing is what we've learned in that time.

Our country is a wild and lively mix of immigrants from all over the world. Because of that, we've learned to live with other races, colors, beliefs, and cultures. Our language reflects the contributions from other tongues. Our food and customs are enlivened by the contributions from other cultures. If you visit any major city in our country and travel through the neighborhoods, you will meet people from every where.

That doesn't mean that we don't have problems. It just means that we've mostly found a way to deal with them without bombs and wars. Hopefully, as we grow up and mature as a country, we'll find a way to solve our problems so our citizens can live in harmony.

Today as we celebrate, let us not forget that we are one people--Americans.

Anny