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Category: FiftyYearsaLiberal

Grover Cleveland Marries in the White House – June 2, 1886

Grover Cleveland’s Bride Frances Folsom is 27 years his junior!!

On June 2, 1886 Grover Cleveland became the first US president to be married in the White House and guess what it was kinda’ creepy! At the time of his marriage, Grover Cleveland was a forty-nine  year-old bachelor. The woman he married Francs Folsom was 22 year-old. She was the daughter of Cleveland’s late best friend and law partner Oscar Folsom. Frances, at the time of their marriage, had known Cleveland  from birth. In fact, she used to climb on his knee and call him “Uncle Cleve”. Frances’ father Oscar Folsom died when she was 11. Upon Oscar’s death, Cleveland became Frances legal guardian Cleveland  remained close friends with her mother to the point that many thought Cleveland  would marry her, but no! Instead Cleveland wed young Frances or Frank as Cleveland called her! Read More

Police Killings Out of Control? – Today's Reads

America is Number One in Police Killings – Western Democracies not even close!

So it’s been a long while since I’ve done a daily reads post, so here goes……before we start let me remind everyone that I am a liberal Democrat and have been since the 60s!
So one of the aspects of life in America that certainly has me pissed off recently is the number of  police killings over the last year or so. Certainly as a percentage of deaths and or arrests the rate is still fairly low – in other words what I’m trying to say is that the percentage of good policemen is still high. I just wish those cops could get the other cops over on their side!! I for one can’t  understand how with all the publicity surrounding these police killings that al of the policemen aren’t on their  best behavior everywhere.
These police killings certainly bring shame to our country and need to STOP!! The following post from AlterNet shows how bad things really are… Read More

Battle of Fairfax Court House – June 1, 1861

Battle of Fairfax Court House – First Battle of the Civil War?

So while the Battle of Manassas or Bull Run, depending on whether you are from the South or North, is considered the first major battle of the U.S. Civil War, there were two land engagement prior to that battle. The first land engagement of the war happened on June 1, 1861 at the Fairfax Court House in Fairfax, Virginia. . Read More

E.J. de Smedt Patents Asphalt Pavement

Edward J de Smedt Patented Asphalt Pavement – May 31, 1870

On May 31, 1870 Belgian immigrant Edward J de Smedt who was at Columbia University in New York City patented asphalt pavement. So we all know what asphalt is, as we all drive on it, and have all felt that heat rising off of it in the summer! But do you know how it is made? I didn’t until I started to deal with it at my job. From Wikipedia: Read More

What Then Must We Do? – Gar Alperovitz

What Then Must We Do? Straight Talk About the Next American Revolution        Gar Alperovitz

The Democracy Collaborative and The Next System Project

I think that few would argue that I country that was once a proud beacon for the world is in good shape. Our political system doesn’t seem to work any more, our economic system only helps the rich get richer  Thoughts of upward mobility among the lower and middle classes have been crushed and it seems that the only people doing well in this day and age are members of the upper upper class. To me it actually seems hopeless. Corporate lobbyists control Congress and the elite and Corporations now control our elections thanks to Citizens United!! And what really pisses me off is that they get all our hard earned money and then they don’t even pay and damn taxes and take away all our jobs to boot!!! It all seems so damn hopeless! But what if there was a better way! A few weeks ago I came across a website and program titled The Next System Project. From their website…. Read More

The Theremin,Ruth Rendell,and Star Wars Day

Monday Explorations: Ruth Rendell, Star Wars Day and the Theremin….

This morning as I was looking over the front page of Wikipedia to see what was new, I noted that author Ruth Rendell has passed away. One would think that as a lover of mystery books I would have read plenty of Ruth Rendell’s works, but somehow I have avoided them and I can’t give you one good reason why!! From Wikipedia: Read More

The Presidents' War – Chris DeRose

The Presidents’ War: Six American Presidents and the Civil War That Divided Them       Chris DeRose (Book 18 of 2015)

 
Through the years,I have read many books about the Civil War. Most of those books center around the battles and the Generals. Until I saw the book The Presidents’ War I never thought or knew about the former Presidents who were alive during the conflict. As a matter of fact, the book’s author Chris DeRose writes in the Acknowledgments of the book
….I had never known of the former presidents who lived to see the Civil War until a visit to Seattle in 2012 and a conversation with my friend.
It was that friend Rob Peck, who inspired the book! Anyway, the point is if Mr DeRose author of two previous Congressman Lincoln: The Making of America’s Greatest President(2013) and Founding Rivals: Madison vs. Monroe, the Bill of Rights, and the Election That Saved a Nation ( 2011) and  a visiting Assistant Professor of Law at Arizona Summit Law School, where he teaching Constitutional Law, International Law, and Election Law/Voting Rights hadn’t heard about the presidents alive during the Civil War until 2012, I don’t feel so bad about not thinking about them until after reading his book!!
The five living ex-President’s alive at the start of the Civil War were John Tyler, Martin Van Buren, Millard Filllmore, Franklin Pierce and James Buchanan.  Each of those Presidents faced the underlying causes of the War and did little to avoid the coming conflict. Here’s a little about each of those Presidents from DeRose’s website…. Read More