Thanks, South Carolina, for Clarifying That

150 years ago today, South Carolina seceded from the United States of America. Over the next few months, 6 additional southern states joined it prior to the firing on Fort Sumter (4 more states seceded after that). The Civil War was on. Over 600,000 Americans would be dead by April 1865. Today we hear a … Continue reading Thanks, South Carolina, for Clarifying That →

On Pearl Harbor Day

December 7, 2010– Yesterday, December 7, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan. President Franklin Roosevelt’s stirring words 69 years ago (tomorrow) called America to war against the empire of Japan. But as I wrote on … Continue reading On Pearl Harbor Day →

On Memorial Day, Thanks for the Sacrifice

It’s said that “freedom isn’t free,” but on Memorial Day weekend, it often feels like it. Memorial Day in America is a day of solemn commemoration entangled with the banalities of a three-day party, the summer-season opener. Since 1865, when former slaves in South Carolina visited Union cemeteries to honor the sacrifice the men in … Continue reading On Memorial Day, Thanks for the Sacrifice →