This history does honor to those brave soldiers—may we make their memory a blessing that spurs us to use our talents to save the country that they fought so valiantly to save.
Augustus Saint-Gaudens long ago did a great bas-relief in tribute to the Massachusetts 54th.
You can see it atop the Boston Common.
You -- we, Mary -- can read reference to that sculpture, as well as wider reference in Robert Lowell's great, also fitting -- also still contemporary -- poem, "For the Union Dead."
". . . retags," Michele? Or as for Rex, above, "rethugs"?
How about Taliban MAGA?
With J. D. Vance joining their felon, U.S. Republicans have locked in to their cultism – such bitterness at America having turned diverse around them.
Dems? Panicked. Paralyzed – their Biden being infirm (all forgetting FDR).
Meanwhile two days ago Jon Stewart had old nemesis Bill O’Reilly as guest on The Daily Show. Both hugely enjoyed again sparring with each other. Insults. Caricatures. Hurling pet phrases from clear oppositions over the years. All in great humor as they also vied aptly to nab each other.
Key is, they knew and savored their differences. Unlike all of today’s MAGA with total cookie cutter conformity to, lemming-following cult leader.
Bill O’Reilly and Jon Stewart could toy with nuances, admit contradictions, tease complications because both prize humane literacy that accommodates the wider human: asides, digressions, exaggerations, puns, and hyperbole.
Most Americans revel in such wider humanity as can pair such opposites as Bill O’Reilly and Jon Stewart. Most abhor black hole Taliban MAGA – would love if our schools cherished that literacy and those humanities such as the moneyed and the single-minded aim to corrupt.
Why. Glad I missed it and can’t fathom why anybody would watch that blowhard. Spent too many years watching a family of smart, kind, and educated people bow to O’Reilly’s BS on Fox. He gladly, and with malice, fomented the division we have today. TIL he was called out for sexual assault. Piss on you Bill O and you Jon for giving that cretin a platform to amuse and abuse.
I could say a lot on this topic, but I'll limit it to one literacy pet peeve. How about we stop using the word "conservative" the way an alpha male chimp uses a tree branch in a dominance display. Specifically, how about insisting that the word be used with reference to its original meaning, which is that a "conservative" is skeptical and open minded about proposed changes to the status quo, except much more skeptical and much less open minded. Likewise, a "progressive" is skeptical and open minded about proposed changes, except much less skeptical and much more open minded.
And yet, it seems like the whole world has accepted the idea that if a person refers to themselves as a conservative, even if what they're doing is destroying the status quo, then "conservative" is what they're doing.
If we did the same thing to the word "science" we'd end up calling conspiracy theorists scientists.
For example, by my definition, there are three conservative SCOTUS justices, and they were all appointed by Democratic presidents.
A legitimate definition of "conservative" is a big tent covering a lot of territory, and the same is true for many words in common use such as progressive, science, democracy, freedom, and capitalism. But my point is that language matters, and if we forget that, then we'd be better off talking chimpanzee because it would make us more self-aware.
Bill O'Reilly is an authoritarian who hasn't figured out yet how essential dumbing down language is to the authoritarian cause. He obviously hasn't read George Orwell's 1984.
Well, Phil, I was about to go bed, so have no idea about retags. I may have meant rethugs. And I did because just now the damn autocorrect did change that to retags. I try to read before I post, but obviously didn't. I do love Rex's description of what they are actually worshipping. Pot metal works for me. Yesterday, there were a couple articles, one in the Atlantic, about the MAGA cultists. I also noted that some MAGAs are displeased because Vance has an Indian wife and a kid named Vivey if I am spelling it correctly. Horrors....not 100% lily white. As a former educator, I cherish all those things you mention. And I know several of my ex-students do as well.
Heroic Black Union soldiers were shot when captured by the racist rebel forces. They must have know this as they fought even harder. and took more casualties.
The monument was trying to be desecrated by white supremacists but the haunts of those wonderful soldiers revived it. What a world we live in, right, Ellie?
The abuse of the monument has been repeated over and over. Hate is hard to stamp out. Now it is loud and proud. A pseudo-Hitler rally is happening in our midst this week. What a world we live in, indeed?
"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 5:10.
Translation: The 1st century had the same problem as we do in the 21st century. Time for a change. A landslide D victory on November 5 would be a good start.
Lowell's poem rings with the truth of the struggle for freedom and doing what makes us free--both then, and now. Guts. Determination. Sacrifice. And that pun in the title tells us oceans about what's happening now. Can't let it happen.
A copy of that statue bas relief, and other magnificent works of art of his, are in a national park in New Hampshire. Out of the way, but worth going if you can. A monument to the beauty of courage is that bas relief. Lest we forget.
Last Friday, my daughter and I attended a Boston Red Sox game. It's been since before Covid-19 that I have had to drive in heavy traffic. Instead of driving into the city, we chose to take the commuter rail and subway to the Ball Park. I messed up and we took the orange line instead of the green line so we walked about a mile to the stadium. The good news was we walked through Boston Commons to get to Fenway. It is hard to not think about the role Boston played in both the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. Thank you Heather and others for reminding us of a piece of the history of the Civil War and the important role these warriors played.
Funny. I remember going to Baltimore the first time and learning that it's pronounced Ballmore, or Hanover, NH -- H'nover or Haverhill, MA -- Havrill, or Worchester, MA - Wooster, or Lancaster, PA - Lang-ka-ster.
Sorry about the Boson Common. I am very good at butchering the American pronunciation of things and I've had a lot of practice having been to every state except Alaska.
History repeats itself over and over. Tyranny, injustice and brutality in the long run will lose to truth, integrity and love. These are dark days where hate, racism and injustice are on the rise. If we learn from history, America can stand tall and truth, integrity and love WILL win the final victory.
Allow the sacred group of hero's to rest in peace together forever in harmony.
The magnificent bas-relief is a focal point for Boston. Col. Shaw, mounted on his horse, surmounts the scene, but the eye is drawn to the private soldiers lower down—almost at eye level with the viewer. You can see the pride and the weight of history in their faces and how they carry themselves. It is said that St. Gaudens did not use models, but when a veteran of the 54th came to the dedication, he was the spitting image of one of the figures depicted. The whole is an inspiring representation of what the nation is, and what it should be.
you can also see a copy of the bas-relief statue at St. Gaudens National Historic Park in Cornish, NH. This was the summer home of Augustus and Augusta "Gussy" as well as the Cornish Colony of artists. The serious expressions on the faces of the black soldiers is a memory to retain.
Agreed! Quitting is not an option. The Shaw Memorial is an also in the National Gallery in Washington DC. Speaking of “quitting is not an option, here is the newest Biden-Harris ad for reproductive freedom: https://youtu.be/Cm9VdVkYCLw?feature=shared
Especially, Ned, the faces -- so many among whom the camera cuts:
little boys, the black troops, old civilian blacks, women young, women old, whites cheering, so many, many decently human faces invested in this war against enslavers, this war to keep humanity in some form of the democracy for all.
The line about the Confederates intending to dishonor Colonel Shaw by burying him in a mass grave with his men caught my eye and tugged at my heart. All the bs about race sickens and infuriates me. As a gardener, I know that plants of the same species may bloom in different colors. Human beings present in different shades and ways. Scientifically, they are the same species. Hate is never going to be satisfied with even great sacrifices like those of the Massachusetts regiment.
Wonderful column Professor. What our country needs now is for all of us who believe in her still, to do OUR service on November 5 and vote for our democracy.
Today is the last day of my subscription to The NY Times. Several people have commented here and in other posts they have given up on the Times as have I. This editorial in today's NYT does not diminish my disdain for the bias of the publisher but here it is for you to decide-
DONALD TRUMP IS UNFIT TO LEAD
BY THE EDITORIAL BOARD
The editorial board is a group of opinion journalists
whose views are informed by expertise,
research, debate and certain longstanding values.
It is separate from the newsroom.
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For the third time in eight years, Donald Trump will be nominated as the Republican Party’s candidate for president of the United States. A once great political party now serves the interests of one man, a man as demonstrably unsuited for the office of president as any to run in the long history of the Republic, a man whose values, temperament, ideas and language are directly opposed to so much of what has made this country great.
It is a chilling choice against this national moment. For more than two decades, large majorities of Americans have said they are dissatisfied with the direction of the country, and the post-Covid era of stubborn inflation, high interest rates, social division and political stagnation has left many voters even more frustrated and despondent.
The Republican Party once pursued electoral power in service to solutions for such problems, to building “the shining city on a hill,” as Ronald Reagan liked to say. Its vision of the United States — embodied in principled public servants like George H.W. Bush, John McCain and Mitt Romney — was rooted in the values of freedom, sacrifice, individual responsibility and the common good. The party’s conception of those values was reflected in its longstanding conservative policy agenda, and today many Republicans set aside their concerns about Mr. Trump because of his positions on immigration, trade and taxes. But the stakes of this election are not fundamentally about policy disagreements. The stakes are more foundational: what qualities matter most in America’s president and commander in chief.
Mr. Trump has shown a character unworthy of the responsibilities of the presidency. He has demonstrated an utter lack of respect for the Constitution, the rule of law and the American people. Instead of a cogent vision for the country’s future, Mr. Trump is animated by a thirst for political power: to use the levers of government to advance his interests, satisfy his impulses and exact retribution against those who he thinks have wronged him.
He is, quite simply, unfit to lead.
The Democrats are rightly engaged in their own debate about whether President Biden is the right person to carry the party’s nomination into the election, given widespread concerns among voters about his age-related fitness. This debate is so intense because of legitimate concerns that Mr. Trump may present a danger to the country, its strength, security and national character — and that a compelling Democratic alternative is the only thing that would prevent his return to power. It is a national tragedy that the Republicans have failed to have a similar debate about the manifest moral and temperamental unfitness of their standard-bearer, instead setting aside their longstanding values, closing ranks and choosing to overlook what those who worked most closely with the former president have described as his systematic dishonesty, corruption, cruelty and incompetence.
That task now falls to the American people. We urge voters to see the dangers of a second Trump term clearly and to reject it. The stakes and significance of the presidency demand a person who has essential qualities and values to earn our trust, and on each one, Donald Trump fails.
Election Day is less than four months away. The case against Mr. Trump is extensive, and this board urges Americans to perform a simple act of civic duty in an election year: Listen to what Mr. Trump is saying, pay attention to what he did as president and allow yourself to truly inhabit what he has promised to do if returned to office.
Voters frustrated by inflation and immigration or attracted by the force of Mr. Trump’s personality should pause and take note of his words and promises. They have little to do with unity and healing and a lot to do with making the divisions and anger in our society wider and more intense than they already are.
The Republican Party has made its choice; soon all Americans will be able to make their own choice. What would Mr. Trump do in a second term? He has told Americans who he is and shown them what kind of leader he would be.
When someone fails so many foundational tests, you don’t give him the most important job in the world.
Instead of making it a pure condemnation of TFG, the article had to go off topic and reference Biden. They could have made the case that the rethuglicans have no ability for self reflection without that. Too little, too late. I gave up on WAPO earlier this month. I am finding Substack contributors the only reliable source of valid news.
That was certainly typical of the NYT, putting glosses of morality and patriotism on all the Republicans who laid the way for Trump's ascendance and still taking a swipe at Biden.
NYT chose to adopt Bandy X. Lee's thesis without giving her credit. Nor was there any apology for a previous editorial attempt at discrediting that same thesis. Nor did they provide any rational for their 180 degree change. Either they lack self-awareness, or there is some much less charitable interpretation.
I have given up my subscription to NYT also. I started an introductory trial with Philadelphia Inquirer but am looking for something less regional. Would love to get recommendations from other HCR subscribers.
Paul, thanks for addressing Trump's demeaning reference to "Black jobs". The men of the Massachusetts 54th Volunteer Infantry fought and died to prove that they were the equal of white men. As you say, Black Americans have done so in every war since then, including in Vietnam: a conflict which the Great Leader avoided because of draft deferments — for bad feet and college. The white nationalism of the MAGA cult dishonors all persons of color who have died in the service of their country. Indeed, it dishonors all those who have given the "last full measure of devotion" in defense of the democracy that MAGA wants to tear down.
trump and MAGA embody the age-old power-mongering method of moving the goalpost when someone they dislike demonstrates merit, character, honor, and ability. trump formerly inhabited a “black job”. He failed and WE fired him.
Do you worry however when Biden speaks of promises to illegals who if there is a war that he will grant these illegals a path to citizenship? The majority of whom are not white. I find it offensive. Welcome to America, now go fight to prove you belong here as our own citizens want no part of military service.
Cadet 'Bone-Spurs'... No one in that Trump Dynasty has ever served in the U.S. Military.... I don't count Griffting off the Tax-Payers as 'Public-Service'...
There's a story, endorsed by Mary Trump, I believe, that Don Junior at one point was considering a career in the military, only to be told by BOTH his parents that he'd be disowned if he pursued it.
Interesting, DJ was a full throated barnburner (or rabble rouser if you prefer). I was touched how his daughter spoke last night, concerned how the values including falsehoods willy nilly "we" grow up into become internalized.
If you got shot at and took a bullet to the ear missing your head by millimeters do you think you’d jump right up or stay down and bear crawl to safety. You can call Trump a lot of names. Which is immature in itself, but somehow I don’t think coward is one of them.
If you remember he also walked across the line into North Korea unprotected.
There is no way the Secret Service would allow him to stand up if there was still an active threat. He was grandstanding. I’m the same age as him, just different circumstances. Bone spurs? I lost classmates and friends and I proudly served for 4 years so I say he was and still is a coward.
You have zero proof the SS did their job properly. In fact most information coming out says they failed. You also seem to forget that as President he was commander in chief of the military, the highest ranking. Out ranking you. He spends all day every day knowing there are death threats both foreign and domestic, and yet he continues with speaking engagements and public appearances. Hate the man’s policies and politics, but calling him a coward just makes you seem like a bitter, jealous, emasculated old man.
To feel the ghost of blood in the floor, one must have entered intellectually the time of those whose spent blood was spilt. It takes an effort. Ghosts like that only appear to those who have earned the ability to see and appreciate them. Perhaps reading your Letters can be a part of our learning.
Well said, John. I believe that buildings can have souls, usually the souls of those who made/lived or worked in/ or defended them. In areas where deaths have occured, those "building souls" tend to be very strong.
Displaced First Nations, even dinosaurs. Every particle and every rolling moment came from somewhere; and carries a legacy. I think that some degree of awareness of that offers footholds for wisdom, and for empathy.
To have such intimations, I believe, requires an intellectual understanding of the time and place and people who were invested in the building. In the same way, to continue to maintain and care about and feel one's responsibility of citizenship in a democracy, founded by persons of the Enlightenment, requires some understanding of the historical conditions surrounding the founding and continued care for this Great Experiment of Democracy.
Our democratic form of government, and life, is a human structure, not unlike a house, requiring constant maintenance and love (our moral attachment to it). We do this by continually taking opportunities to discuss our history, to remind ourselves of our duties as citizens, to constantly re-dedicating ourselves to the historical continuity of the Great Idea.
I remember in high school, when the house-master was away for the w/e, we would sneak in late Saturday nights and occasionally watch Flash Gordon movies -- or their equivalents -- from the 1930s and 1940s; we would laugh at them. One night, I really tried to pretend that I was my father and tried to imagine what his world must have been like in those earlier times out in the Midwest to see if I could watch the flic from his perspective as a kid. The flics went from crap to cool very quiggily. 😊🚀😯
I was scrolling through the comments to see if anyone referenced the marvelous and moving “Glory.” Of course, it was you Phil!
I was in a restaurant in Atlanta while Denzel was filming that movie. He was having lunch with Gregory Hines who was touring in a show playing the Fox Theatre here. Early in his career, no one was recognizing Denzel. They were all asking for Gregory’s autograph. Being an acting and film buff, I immediately recognized him and got his autograph via a waiter. I would never approach a celebrity at a table! I think he was pleased though to get a little attention.
Thank you for sharing this enlightening story. To have gone thru all that, and generations later, be treated with the same contempt they had fought & died to end, is more than disheartening, it’s enough to bring righteous rage. And viewed against our current political backdrop, it’s really frightening that we’re back fighting what is essentially the same war all over again….. and then some!
I agree J L Graham. This is all a part of Steve Bannon’s “Flood The Zone With Shit” effort. It is to psychologically shut minds down out of disgust. Voter suppression at its most basic attack. A close friend of mine, who I always considered progressive and liberal, told me on our recent phone call that she just could listen to anything anymore. “What’s the point? Nothing matters.” It stopped me in my tracks. I realized in that moment, barraging her with facts and questions would only bounce off the emotion-protective wall she has put up to engage in anything remotely political. She is 65% of America right now. Checked out. She has a very low threshold for coping with outside divisiveness and turmoil. She doesn’t get activated by political injustice. She shuts down, as I suspect most people do, which is why Bannon identified this technique as so effective. I told her that I recognized that she was like many Americans right now. But to not vote, or vote third party out of disgust and protest is in fact a vote for trump this time around.
Yes we want to shut down, turn off the news, turn away. We are all exhausted from COVID, tRump, deaths and hardships but we MUST PERSVERE for all our children. Of every shape, size and ability. Every nationality. Exhausted we must fight on.
VOTE BLUE - finishing up 600 postcards for OHIO and ready to do more. I believe even a 10% response could turn the tides and secure our future.
It's this fusillade style of contrary political rhetoric that populations are so vulnerable to, regardless of the facts or nuances. So many Americans believe, falsely, that crime in the USA is rising (it has been falling), that inflation continues unabated (it is below 4% now and caused by Biden (it was worldwide) the criminal hoards are pouring "by the million" rapists et al across the southern border, when statistically legal and illegal immigrants have lower crime rates than Americans. Etc the Maga's disgorge this like an endless stream of vomit. All you had to do was watch the affirming of this stuff by everyday participants at the RNC to see how eagerly these lies are affirmed. Stolen Election too, of course, the biggest Big Lie, but not new in is GOP ancestry since the 90s.
I think our leaders need remind us all what voting means, as a duty toward the fate of our society and the individual that comprise it, as well as an expression of sentiment. No, a "protest vote" gains next to nothing, or effectively nothing. A withheld or exercised vote contributes to "government of the people, by the people, for the people" eroding from the earth. We need to do some things together or the don't get done, or worse, leave us vulnerable for tragedies to ensue. Why would some pledge their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor were there nothing to protect?
I am always moved by the bronze memorial to Col Shaw and the Massachusetts 54th at Boston Common, whenever I have the chance to visit it. It was sculpted by Augustus Saint Gaudens at his studio here in NH, which is also a lovely place to visit (and the only National Park in New Hampshire.)
Trump cares for Trump period. I'm not sure that even his affections for his family run very deep. Strange that so many find that messianic. It's happened before.
Say the magic words, "not suckers or losers" on social media sites to flip MAGAT voters, 4 million people on Facebook are veterans or active duty members. 12.5 million people on Facebook are family members of a veteran or an active duty member. 242 million people on Facebook are friends with one or more veterans or active duty members. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkAoO1VuCG4&list=PLaBB9aDDd44fj4VevvoUo96d1PW4F2D4a
As the officer of the day and communications officer for Patrol Squadron 48 on New Year's Day, 1959, it fell to me to inspect the wreckage of one or our P5M-2 Marlins that had crashed owing to an out-of-control onboard fire. Eight of the crew bailed out successfully. The co-pilot hit a ridge before his parachute could open. The pilot, having enabled his crew to escape certain death, was standing in the waist hatch (the only access to or from the plane) when the Marlin rolled on its side in the mountains East of San Diego. I remember seeing what was left of John Collier through a couple of hundred feet of boulders and Manzanita. I think of John and his co-pilot, Marsh Dickens, every day. I have lived a life they were denied, by their own commitment.
When I read Heather's story of these men whose names we will never know, I cannot escape the sense that they were men just like John and Marsh, skin color notwithstanding, who did what they thought was right and paid with their lives. Now, at the beginning of my tenth decade as an American, I anguish at the ways in which our heritage is so commonly attributed to false contributors. That makes Heather's history lesson this time so profoundly rewarding. It reminds us that our debt to men (and yes, women!) whose dedication to the Idea of America rose above their human inclination to preserve their own lives, must propel us to do what is necessary to sustain Our Great American Experiment. In 2024, that manifests in the challenge to insure that Donald J. Trump remains a past President. Current events are not encouraging. Neither were they for the men of the 54th Voluntary Infantry or John or Marsh or any the other almost 1.2 million Americans whose lives were cut short on our behalf--and that is just in our wars. The actual number is infinitely greater: those whose personal commitments shaped the Nation from which we now benefit.
Thank you, Heather, for reminding us. It helps to remember the stakes--and who paid for them.
The role of Tuskegee Airmen in WWII is also inspiring. Excluding people based on skin color or gender is just plain crazy. We need all of the talent in America to survive and thrive.
Great History, Professor. It makes me contemplate the potential battles in our future against the internal enemies of our form of democracy. Will there be enough heroes? Will each of them come out to vote or send in their ballot in November? If we do, we can all be heroes, just for one day!
It's a crucial day for sure, but we need to get better at self governance on an ongoing basis. We never should have allowed despotism to penetrate as far as it has. I think that we as a society need to reshuffle some priorities, so that some of the horrors of the past do not reoccur.
This history does honor to those brave soldiers—may we make their memory a blessing that spurs us to use our talents to save the country that they fought so valiantly to save.
Augustus Saint-Gaudens long ago did a great bas-relief in tribute to the Massachusetts 54th.
You can see it atop the Boston Common.
You -- we, Mary -- can read reference to that sculpture, as well as wider reference in Robert Lowell's great, also fitting -- also still contemporary -- poem, "For the Union Dead."
Yes Phil, injustice still sticks like a fishbone in our throat.
In the throats of decent people, yes. The throats of rethugs are, however, an entirely different matter.
Rex, The retags are busy wearing a bandage on their ear and worshipping the golden calf.
If it’s gold, it’s a weird alloy. More like spray-painted pot metal.
". . . retags," Michele? Or as for Rex, above, "rethugs"?
How about Taliban MAGA?
With J. D. Vance joining their felon, U.S. Republicans have locked in to their cultism – such bitterness at America having turned diverse around them.
Dems? Panicked. Paralyzed – their Biden being infirm (all forgetting FDR).
Meanwhile two days ago Jon Stewart had old nemesis Bill O’Reilly as guest on The Daily Show. Both hugely enjoyed again sparring with each other. Insults. Caricatures. Hurling pet phrases from clear oppositions over the years. All in great humor as they also vied aptly to nab each other.
Key is, they knew and savored their differences. Unlike all of today’s MAGA with total cookie cutter conformity to, lemming-following cult leader.
Bill O’Reilly and Jon Stewart could toy with nuances, admit contradictions, tease complications because both prize humane literacy that accommodates the wider human: asides, digressions, exaggerations, puns, and hyperbole.
Most Americans revel in such wider humanity as can pair such opposites as Bill O’Reilly and Jon Stewart. Most abhor black hole Taliban MAGA – would love if our schools cherished that literacy and those humanities such as the moneyed and the single-minded aim to corrupt.
Why. Glad I missed it and can’t fathom why anybody would watch that blowhard. Spent too many years watching a family of smart, kind, and educated people bow to O’Reilly’s BS on Fox. He gladly, and with malice, fomented the division we have today. TIL he was called out for sexual assault. Piss on you Bill O and you Jon for giving that cretin a platform to amuse and abuse.
I could say a lot on this topic, but I'll limit it to one literacy pet peeve. How about we stop using the word "conservative" the way an alpha male chimp uses a tree branch in a dominance display. Specifically, how about insisting that the word be used with reference to its original meaning, which is that a "conservative" is skeptical and open minded about proposed changes to the status quo, except much more skeptical and much less open minded. Likewise, a "progressive" is skeptical and open minded about proposed changes, except much less skeptical and much more open minded.
And yet, it seems like the whole world has accepted the idea that if a person refers to themselves as a conservative, even if what they're doing is destroying the status quo, then "conservative" is what they're doing.
If we did the same thing to the word "science" we'd end up calling conspiracy theorists scientists.
For example, by my definition, there are three conservative SCOTUS justices, and they were all appointed by Democratic presidents.
A legitimate definition of "conservative" is a big tent covering a lot of territory, and the same is true for many words in common use such as progressive, science, democracy, freedom, and capitalism. But my point is that language matters, and if we forget that, then we'd be better off talking chimpanzee because it would make us more self-aware.
Bill O'Reilly is an authoritarian who hasn't figured out yet how essential dumbing down language is to the authoritarian cause. He obviously hasn't read George Orwell's 1984.
Well, Phil, I was about to go bed, so have no idea about retags. I may have meant rethugs. And I did because just now the damn autocorrect did change that to retags. I try to read before I post, but obviously didn't. I do love Rex's description of what they are actually worshipping. Pot metal works for me. Yesterday, there were a couple articles, one in the Atlantic, about the MAGA cultists. I also noted that some MAGAs are displeased because Vance has an Indian wife and a kid named Vivey if I am spelling it correctly. Horrors....not 100% lily white. As a former educator, I cherish all those things you mention. And I know several of my ex-students do as well.
True!
"The whole country was watching ... and the soldiers knew it."
The whole country did not ignore their sacrifice, but many to this day do ... and the soldiers knew it.
Heroic Black Union soldiers were shot when captured by the racist rebel forces. They must have know this as they fought even harder. and took more casualties.
They did know it and were given the opportunity to leave their unit - but Didn’t.
Lynn, prejudice sticks like a fishbone in our throats. (love the analogy)
Thank Robert Lowell too.
Well said!
The Shaw Memorial in Boston:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Gould_Shaw_Memorial
The monument was trying to be desecrated by white supremacists but the haunts of those wonderful soldiers revived it. What a world we live in, right, Ellie?
The abuse of the monument has been repeated over and over. Hate is hard to stamp out. Now it is loud and proud. A pseudo-Hitler rally is happening in our midst this week. What a world we live in, indeed?
"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 5:10.
Translation: The 1st century had the same problem as we do in the 21st century. Time for a change. A landslide D victory on November 5 would be a good start.
Some who claim to be persecuted turn out to be the persecutors. Who knew
That is so sad...
May their memories always be a blessing 🌺 🌿
Desecration of the "Others' Sacred"... that's the endless name of the game, Marlene.
Thank you for the photos!
Lowell's poem rings with the truth of the struggle for freedom and doing what makes us free--both then, and now. Guts. Determination. Sacrifice. And that pun in the title tells us oceans about what's happening now. Can't let it happen.
The poem: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/57035/for-the-union-dead
CSNY Song... 'Cost Of Freedom'....
.... Mother Earth will swallow you, lay your body down
A copy of that statue bas relief, and other magnificent works of art of his, are in a national park in New Hampshire. Out of the way, but worth going if you can. A monument to the beauty of courage is that bas relief. Lest we forget.
I was struck by this:
"Confederates intended to dishonor Colonel Shaw when they buried him in a mass grave with his men; instead, his family found it fitting."
That bedrock inclusivity is crucial to maintaining the better angels of our nation's nature, and Shaw's family saw the honor in it.
Last Friday, my daughter and I attended a Boston Red Sox game. It's been since before Covid-19 that I have had to drive in heavy traffic. Instead of driving into the city, we chose to take the commuter rail and subway to the Ball Park. I messed up and we took the orange line instead of the green line so we walked about a mile to the stadium. The good news was we walked through Boston Commons to get to Fenway. It is hard to not think about the role Boston played in both the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. Thank you Heather and others for reminding us of a piece of the history of the Civil War and the important role these warriors played.
Psst: It’s the Common, not the Commons, and the space adjoining is the Public Garden, not Gardens, We in Boston are sensitive about such things.
Funny. I remember going to Baltimore the first time and learning that it's pronounced Ballmore, or Hanover, NH -- H'nover or Haverhill, MA -- Havrill, or Worchester, MA - Wooster, or Lancaster, PA - Lang-ka-ster.
Sorry about the Boson Common. I am very good at butchering the American pronunciation of things and I've had a lot of practice having been to every state except Alaska.
Why do you suppose some make plural our common and garden in Boston Jon?
History repeats itself over and over. Tyranny, injustice and brutality in the long run will lose to truth, integrity and love. These are dark days where hate, racism and injustice are on the rise. If we learn from history, America can stand tall and truth, integrity and love WILL win the final victory.
Allow the sacred group of hero's to rest in peace together forever in harmony.
HCR says history does not repeat itself- rather history rhymes.
Interestingly, Matthew Broderick in 'Glory' resembles Robert Gould Shaw on the Boston Common.
Quite the movie, 1989. Denzel Washington, Morgan Freeman were so young then!
so were we!
35 years ago! was in my 40s i recollect, though saw it much later on Netflix most likely. It can be rented on Prime for $5 or less.
The magnificent bas-relief is a focal point for Boston. Col. Shaw, mounted on his horse, surmounts the scene, but the eye is drawn to the private soldiers lower down—almost at eye level with the viewer. You can see the pride and the weight of history in their faces and how they carry themselves. It is said that St. Gaudens did not use models, but when a veteran of the 54th came to the dedication, he was the spitting image of one of the figures depicted. The whole is an inspiring representation of what the nation is, and what it should be.
you can also see a copy of the bas-relief statue at St. Gaudens National Historic Park in Cornish, NH. This was the summer home of Augustus and Augusta "Gussy" as well as the Cornish Colony of artists. The serious expressions on the faces of the black soldiers is a memory to retain.
Thank you for the reference - never read that before.
My father took me to see this when I was very young. He just let me look at it as long as I wanted.
Ooh, I must look for the bas-relief at the Common! THX!
Indeed. Quitting is not an option for us, either. Thank you for your eloquent words.
Agreed! Quitting is not an option. The Shaw Memorial is an also in the National Gallery in Washington DC. Speaking of “quitting is not an option, here is the newest Biden-Harris ad for reproductive freedom: https://youtu.be/Cm9VdVkYCLw?feature=shared
Mary, and that we still love dearly. Dr Cox Richardson certainly penned a beautiful -- and dutiful -- salute to the Massachusetts Fifty-fourth.
🤝
https://www.facebook.com/HowdyHistory/videos/give-em-hell-54thscene-from-glory-1989july-18-1863-the-second-battle-of-fort-wag/2692748310993277/
🗽
Yes, the film 'Glory' is one of my top-five faves.
🖖
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWjNsIKSUKg
⚖️
These three scenes still bring a tear to my eye a generation later.
✌️
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22AVWP9e6tM
Especially, Ned, the faces -- so many among whom the camera cuts:
little boys, the black troops, old civilian blacks, women young, women old, whites cheering, so many, many decently human faces invested in this war against enslavers, this war to keep humanity in some form of the democracy for all.
The line about the Confederates intending to dishonor Colonel Shaw by burying him in a mass grave with his men caught my eye and tugged at my heart. All the bs about race sickens and infuriates me. As a gardener, I know that plants of the same species may bloom in different colors. Human beings present in different shades and ways. Scientifically, they are the same species. Hate is never going to be satisfied with even great sacrifices like those of the Massachusetts regiment.
WOWerful statement, Phil; I thank you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPf-cPrMQTA
Thanks for sharing,Daniel, this short(less than 2 min video) 📣
“Generations of Black patriots have fought in every battle. In every war.
They fought when that freedom didn’t include them.
While progress has been made, there’s more to be done.
Black History is American History.”
“ ….may we make their memory a blessing…”
If the GOP extremists have it their way those brave soldiers and any memory of them will be wiped clean from the history books.
Let it be so, Amen💞
This was the battle they made movie of in 1989, Glory, with Denzel Washington, Morgan Freeman in .
Wonderful column Professor. What our country needs now is for all of us who believe in her still, to do OUR service on November 5 and vote for our democracy.
Yes. We must.
Today is the last day of my subscription to The NY Times. Several people have commented here and in other posts they have given up on the Times as have I. This editorial in today's NYT does not diminish my disdain for the bias of the publisher but here it is for you to decide-
DONALD TRUMP IS UNFIT TO LEAD
BY THE EDITORIAL BOARD
The editorial board is a group of opinion journalists
whose views are informed by expertise,
research, debate and certain longstanding values.
It is separate from the newsroom.
Share full article
For the third time in eight years, Donald Trump will be nominated as the Republican Party’s candidate for president of the United States. A once great political party now serves the interests of one man, a man as demonstrably unsuited for the office of president as any to run in the long history of the Republic, a man whose values, temperament, ideas and language are directly opposed to so much of what has made this country great.
It is a chilling choice against this national moment. For more than two decades, large majorities of Americans have said they are dissatisfied with the direction of the country, and the post-Covid era of stubborn inflation, high interest rates, social division and political stagnation has left many voters even more frustrated and despondent.
The Republican Party once pursued electoral power in service to solutions for such problems, to building “the shining city on a hill,” as Ronald Reagan liked to say. Its vision of the United States — embodied in principled public servants like George H.W. Bush, John McCain and Mitt Romney — was rooted in the values of freedom, sacrifice, individual responsibility and the common good. The party’s conception of those values was reflected in its longstanding conservative policy agenda, and today many Republicans set aside their concerns about Mr. Trump because of his positions on immigration, trade and taxes. But the stakes of this election are not fundamentally about policy disagreements. The stakes are more foundational: what qualities matter most in America’s president and commander in chief.
Mr. Trump has shown a character unworthy of the responsibilities of the presidency. He has demonstrated an utter lack of respect for the Constitution, the rule of law and the American people. Instead of a cogent vision for the country’s future, Mr. Trump is animated by a thirst for political power: to use the levers of government to advance his interests, satisfy his impulses and exact retribution against those who he thinks have wronged him.
He is, quite simply, unfit to lead.
The Democrats are rightly engaged in their own debate about whether President Biden is the right person to carry the party’s nomination into the election, given widespread concerns among voters about his age-related fitness. This debate is so intense because of legitimate concerns that Mr. Trump may present a danger to the country, its strength, security and national character — and that a compelling Democratic alternative is the only thing that would prevent his return to power. It is a national tragedy that the Republicans have failed to have a similar debate about the manifest moral and temperamental unfitness of their standard-bearer, instead setting aside their longstanding values, closing ranks and choosing to overlook what those who worked most closely with the former president have described as his systematic dishonesty, corruption, cruelty and incompetence.
That task now falls to the American people. We urge voters to see the dangers of a second Trump term clearly and to reject it. The stakes and significance of the presidency demand a person who has essential qualities and values to earn our trust, and on each one, Donald Trump fails.
Election Day is less than four months away. The case against Mr. Trump is extensive, and this board urges Americans to perform a simple act of civic duty in an election year: Listen to what Mr. Trump is saying, pay attention to what he did as president and allow yourself to truly inhabit what he has promised to do if returned to office.
Voters frustrated by inflation and immigration or attracted by the force of Mr. Trump’s personality should pause and take note of his words and promises. They have little to do with unity and healing and a lot to do with making the divisions and anger in our society wider and more intense than they already are.
The Republican Party has made its choice; soon all Americans will be able to make their own choice. What would Mr. Trump do in a second term? He has told Americans who he is and shown them what kind of leader he would be.
When someone fails so many foundational tests, you don’t give him the most important job in the world.
Instead of making it a pure condemnation of TFG, the article had to go off topic and reference Biden. They could have made the case that the rethuglicans have no ability for self reflection without that. Too little, too late. I gave up on WAPO earlier this month. I am finding Substack contributors the only reliable source of valid news.
Me too Mark!
Precisely Mark& Marj.
And Frank, my hair’s on fire concerning the Democract-division.
At this late date? I’ve begun to wonder what party they’re at or on!
"I don't belong to an organized political party. I'm a Democrat."
Will Rogers
Sadly, there is a real division among the Dems, both Dem leaders of Congress yesterday apparently have urged Biden to step down. ...
It does not matter who the nominee is; this is not about Trump and Biden. It is about democracy and fascism.
That was certainly typical of the NYT, putting glosses of morality and patriotism on all the Republicans who laid the way for Trump's ascendance and still taking a swipe at Biden.
NYT chose to adopt Bandy X. Lee's thesis without giving her credit. Nor was there any apology for a previous editorial attempt at discrediting that same thesis. Nor did they provide any rational for their 180 degree change. Either they lack self-awareness, or there is some much less charitable interpretation.
I have given up my subscription to NYT also. I started an introductory trial with Philadelphia Inquirer but am looking for something less regional. Would love to get recommendations from other HCR subscribers.
I have given up on all Republican owned media bc I know these outlets are in business for one reason only and this is to make money.
The amount of money spent on politcal BS is upsetting to me.
I have my fave substack writers and I can glance for free at politico or a number of free news reports and decide if what I am reading is true or not.
I have the whole world at my finger tips to do deeper dives for the topics of interest to me.
Dadgum, you might try The Guardian. Far more independent, and British & covers the world.
Tell Trump that’s an actual description of a “Black Job”, fighting for our country. As Black Americans have done in every war.
Something Trump feigned injury to avoid: service.
Paul, thanks for addressing Trump's demeaning reference to "Black jobs". The men of the Massachusetts 54th Volunteer Infantry fought and died to prove that they were the equal of white men. As you say, Black Americans have done so in every war since then, including in Vietnam: a conflict which the Great Leader avoided because of draft deferments — for bad feet and college. The white nationalism of the MAGA cult dishonors all persons of color who have died in the service of their country. Indeed, it dishonors all those who have given the "last full measure of devotion" in defense of the democracy that MAGA wants to tear down.
Mark-You’re so right-The MAGA cult actually dishonors America’s ideals-period.
trump and MAGA embody the age-old power-mongering method of moving the goalpost when someone they dislike demonstrates merit, character, honor, and ability. trump formerly inhabited a “black job”. He failed and WE fired him.
Do you worry however when Biden speaks of promises to illegals who if there is a war that he will grant these illegals a path to citizenship? The majority of whom are not white. I find it offensive. Welcome to America, now go fight to prove you belong here as our own citizens want no part of military service.
Cadet 'Bone-Spurs'... No one in that Trump Dynasty has ever served in the U.S. Military.... I don't count Griffting off the Tax-Payers as 'Public-Service'...
There's a story, endorsed by Mary Trump, I believe, that Don Junior at one point was considering a career in the military, only to be told by BOTH his parents that he'd be disowned if he pursued it.
So now Don Jr Trophy Hunts defenseless Endangered Animals... Manly, NOT...
Interesting, DJ was a full throated barnburner (or rabble rouser if you prefer). I was touched how his daughter spoke last night, concerned how the values including falsehoods willy nilly "we" grow up into become internalized.
Granddaughter. I just watched that and it made them seem almost human. I am not buying any of it.
You have at least recognize Trump supports and recognizes all his grandchildren. Sadly Joe and Jill do not.
Trumps don’t serve America, they serve themselves. Trump has no idea what duty and honor are. His only forte is cowardice and bullying.
Trump was and remains a coward.
If you got shot at and took a bullet to the ear missing your head by millimeters do you think you’d jump right up or stay down and bear crawl to safety. You can call Trump a lot of names. Which is immature in itself, but somehow I don’t think coward is one of them.
If you remember he also walked across the line into North Korea unprotected.
Coward?
There is no way the Secret Service would allow him to stand up if there was still an active threat. He was grandstanding. I’m the same age as him, just different circumstances. Bone spurs? I lost classmates and friends and I proudly served for 4 years so I say he was and still is a coward.
You have zero proof the SS did their job properly. In fact most information coming out says they failed. You also seem to forget that as President he was commander in chief of the military, the highest ranking. Out ranking you. He spends all day every day knowing there are death threats both foreign and domestic, and yet he continues with speaking engagements and public appearances. Hate the man’s policies and politics, but calling him a coward just makes you seem like a bitter, jealous, emasculated old man.
To feel the ghost of blood in the floor, one must have entered intellectually the time of those whose spent blood was spilt. It takes an effort. Ghosts like that only appear to those who have earned the ability to see and appreciate them. Perhaps reading your Letters can be a part of our learning.
Like a ghost, we cannot touch the past, and yet is is always with us; whether we know it or not.
Shakespeare said: “Same play. Different actors”
It is indeed.
I felt the same as a high schooler on a field trip to Mont Saint Michel. I could feel the Benedictine monks raking away in the inner yards.
John, excellent post. Thank you.
Well said, John. I believe that buildings can have souls, usually the souls of those who made/lived or worked in/ or defended them. In areas where deaths have occured, those "building souls" tend to be very strong.
Not just buildings.......battlefields count. Stand at Gettysburg.
Displaced First Nations, even dinosaurs. Every particle and every rolling moment came from somewhere; and carries a legacy. I think that some degree of awareness of that offers footholds for wisdom, and for empathy.
Agreed. I’m looking forward to my first trip to Normandy.
I had a profound reaction to an ancient battlefield site in Scotland 10 years ago.
To have such intimations, I believe, requires an intellectual understanding of the time and place and people who were invested in the building. In the same way, to continue to maintain and care about and feel one's responsibility of citizenship in a democracy, founded by persons of the Enlightenment, requires some understanding of the historical conditions surrounding the founding and continued care for this Great Experiment of Democracy.
Our democratic form of government, and life, is a human structure, not unlike a house, requiring constant maintenance and love (our moral attachment to it). We do this by continually taking opportunities to discuss our history, to remind ourselves of our duties as citizens, to constantly re-dedicating ourselves to the historical continuity of the Great Idea.
John,
". . . . one must have entered intellectually the time of those whose spent blood was spilt. It takes an effort."
https://nedmcdletters.blogspot.com/2017/04/letter-142-water-of-time.html
I remember in high school, when the house-master was away for the w/e, we would sneak in late Saturday nights and occasionally watch Flash Gordon movies -- or their equivalents -- from the 1930s and 1940s; we would laugh at them. One night, I really tried to pretend that I was my father and tried to imagine what his world must have been like in those earlier times out in the Midwest to see if I could watch the flic from his perspective as a kid. The flics went from crap to cool very quiggily. 😊🚀😯
Beautiful and inspiration, they gave their lives, they are asking us to give our votes!
The movie version, "Glory," bears watching -- and repeated watching.
Great acting. Great fidelity to historical fact. The human story in it as immediate and convincing as Heather's fitting testimony today, too.
I was scrolling through the comments to see if anyone referenced the marvelous and moving “Glory.” Of course, it was you Phil!
I was in a restaurant in Atlanta while Denzel was filming that movie. He was having lunch with Gregory Hines who was touring in a show playing the Fox Theatre here. Early in his career, no one was recognizing Denzel. They were all asking for Gregory’s autograph. Being an acting and film buff, I immediately recognized him and got his autograph via a waiter. I would never approach a celebrity at a table! I think he was pleased though to get a little attention.
Makes me proud to be a Shaw! Thank you Professor for this history lesson.
Thank you for sharing this enlightening story. To have gone thru all that, and generations later, be treated with the same contempt they had fought & died to end, is more than disheartening, it’s enough to bring righteous rage. And viewed against our current political backdrop, it’s really frightening that we’re back fighting what is essentially the same war all over again….. and then some!
I believe there has been a very deliberate reopening of old wounds, for sociopathic, manipulative purposes. Anything to divide and conquer.
I agree J L Graham. This is all a part of Steve Bannon’s “Flood The Zone With Shit” effort. It is to psychologically shut minds down out of disgust. Voter suppression at its most basic attack. A close friend of mine, who I always considered progressive and liberal, told me on our recent phone call that she just could listen to anything anymore. “What’s the point? Nothing matters.” It stopped me in my tracks. I realized in that moment, barraging her with facts and questions would only bounce off the emotion-protective wall she has put up to engage in anything remotely political. She is 65% of America right now. Checked out. She has a very low threshold for coping with outside divisiveness and turmoil. She doesn’t get activated by political injustice. She shuts down, as I suspect most people do, which is why Bannon identified this technique as so effective. I told her that I recognized that she was like many Americans right now. But to not vote, or vote third party out of disgust and protest is in fact a vote for trump this time around.
Yes we want to shut down, turn off the news, turn away. We are all exhausted from COVID, tRump, deaths and hardships but we MUST PERSVERE for all our children. Of every shape, size and ability. Every nationality. Exhausted we must fight on.
VOTE BLUE - finishing up 600 postcards for OHIO and ready to do more. I believe even a 10% response could turn the tides and secure our future.
To secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity,
It's this fusillade style of contrary political rhetoric that populations are so vulnerable to, regardless of the facts or nuances. So many Americans believe, falsely, that crime in the USA is rising (it has been falling), that inflation continues unabated (it is below 4% now and caused by Biden (it was worldwide) the criminal hoards are pouring "by the million" rapists et al across the southern border, when statistically legal and illegal immigrants have lower crime rates than Americans. Etc the Maga's disgorge this like an endless stream of vomit. All you had to do was watch the affirming of this stuff by everyday participants at the RNC to see how eagerly these lies are affirmed. Stolen Election too, of course, the biggest Big Lie, but not new in is GOP ancestry since the 90s.
I think our leaders need remind us all what voting means, as a duty toward the fate of our society and the individual that comprise it, as well as an expression of sentiment. No, a "protest vote" gains next to nothing, or effectively nothing. A withheld or exercised vote contributes to "government of the people, by the people, for the people" eroding from the earth. We need to do some things together or the don't get done, or worse, leave us vulnerable for tragedies to ensue. Why would some pledge their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor were there nothing to protect?
I pray the 200 postcards I ordered get here before I reach the point of no return.
I am resentful at Joe Biden for not honoring his words about being a bridge president.
How has Biden not honored his words?
The same war, over and over.
"Be angry, but do not let the sun go down on your anger." Ephesians 4:26.
Translation: Righteous rage comes to us because it is such a powerful tool, but only if it is used thoughtfully.
Thank you, Professor. Very powerful. Peace and love everybody.
I am always moved by the bronze memorial to Col Shaw and the Massachusetts 54th at Boston Common, whenever I have the chance to visit it. It was sculpted by Augustus Saint Gaudens at his studio here in NH, which is also a lovely place to visit (and the only National Park in New Hampshire.)
We were just there. I agree. Very moving sculpture
Where in the common is this sculpture please? I need to check it out.
Men of courage, honor and resolve. What was it Trump calls them? Suckers and losers?
Trump cares for Trump period. I'm not sure that even his affections for his family run very deep. Strange that so many find that messianic. It's happened before.
His family is occasionally useful.
You think DJ is trying make himself a wave in his own right? He certainly threw himself and the usual lies at the the RNC last night.
Indeed he is, nothing like a “mosquito bite” to parlay his “injury” into a crucifixion
Say the magic words, "not suckers or losers" on social media sites to flip MAGAT voters, 4 million people on Facebook are veterans or active duty members. 12.5 million people on Facebook are family members of a veteran or an active duty member. 242 million people on Facebook are friends with one or more veterans or active duty members. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkAoO1VuCG4&list=PLaBB9aDDd44fj4VevvoUo96d1PW4F2D4a
Project 2025 on disabled veterans. https://project2025istheocracy.substack.com/p/project-2025-how-it-limits-disability?r=fqsxl&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email&triedRedirect=true
When he says that, he is projecting how he actually feels about himself. Consciously or subconsciously he knows it.
😢
kinda
As the officer of the day and communications officer for Patrol Squadron 48 on New Year's Day, 1959, it fell to me to inspect the wreckage of one or our P5M-2 Marlins that had crashed owing to an out-of-control onboard fire. Eight of the crew bailed out successfully. The co-pilot hit a ridge before his parachute could open. The pilot, having enabled his crew to escape certain death, was standing in the waist hatch (the only access to or from the plane) when the Marlin rolled on its side in the mountains East of San Diego. I remember seeing what was left of John Collier through a couple of hundred feet of boulders and Manzanita. I think of John and his co-pilot, Marsh Dickens, every day. I have lived a life they were denied, by their own commitment.
When I read Heather's story of these men whose names we will never know, I cannot escape the sense that they were men just like John and Marsh, skin color notwithstanding, who did what they thought was right and paid with their lives. Now, at the beginning of my tenth decade as an American, I anguish at the ways in which our heritage is so commonly attributed to false contributors. That makes Heather's history lesson this time so profoundly rewarding. It reminds us that our debt to men (and yes, women!) whose dedication to the Idea of America rose above their human inclination to preserve their own lives, must propel us to do what is necessary to sustain Our Great American Experiment. In 2024, that manifests in the challenge to insure that Donald J. Trump remains a past President. Current events are not encouraging. Neither were they for the men of the 54th Voluntary Infantry or John or Marsh or any the other almost 1.2 million Americans whose lives were cut short on our behalf--and that is just in our wars. The actual number is infinitely greater: those whose personal commitments shaped the Nation from which we now benefit.
Thank you, Heather, for reminding us. It helps to remember the stakes--and who paid for them.
And what that compels us to do.
The role of Tuskegee Airmen in WWII is also inspiring. Excluding people based on skin color or gender is just plain crazy. We need all of the talent in America to survive and thrive.
Thank you, Sir, for your service and beautiful words here.☮️💟
Thank you for this report, sir. Your last long paragraph says so much. Hooyah.
Great History, Professor. It makes me contemplate the potential battles in our future against the internal enemies of our form of democracy. Will there be enough heroes? Will each of them come out to vote or send in their ballot in November? If we do, we can all be heroes, just for one day!
It's a crucial day for sure, but we need to get better at self governance on an ongoing basis. We never should have allowed despotism to penetrate as far as it has. I think that we as a society need to reshuffle some priorities, so that some of the horrors of the past do not reoccur.
This is truly a moment of “Ask not what democracy can do for you, ask what you can do for democracy”
Mitch McConnell, architect of destruction.
We have a lot of work to do!
bruce klassen, yes heroes, aka patriots.
If you are in the Boston area, please check out the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Gould_Shaw_Memorial). There is also a replica of the winged figure from the Memorial at the Brooklyn Museum (https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/262), and probably also in other locations. May we not have to defend our country in such a horrific way again.
For the Union Dead
BY ROBERT LOWELL
The old South Boston Aquarium stands
in a Sahara of snow now. Its broken windows are boarded.
The bronze weathervane cod has lost half its scales.
The airy tanks are dry.
Once my nose crawled like a snail on the glass;
my hand tingled
to burst the bubbles
drifting from the noses of the cowed, compliant fish.
My hand draws back. I often sigh still
for the dark downward and vegetating kingdom
of the fish and reptile. One morning last March,
I pressed against the new barbed and galvanized
fence on the Boston Common. Behind their cage,
yellow dinosaur steamshovels were grunting
as they cropped up tons of mush and grass
to gouge their underworld garage.
Parking spaces luxuriate like civic
sandpiles in the heart of Boston.
A girdle of orange, Puritan-pumpkin colored girders
braces the tingling Statehouse,
shaking over the excavations, as it faces Colonel Shaw
and his bell-cheeked Negro infantry
on St. Gaudens' shaking Civil War relief,
propped by a plank splint against the garage's earthquake.
Two months after marching through Boston,
half the regiment was dead;
at the dedication,
William James could almost hear the bronze Negroes breathe.
Their monument sticks like a fishbone
in the city's throat.
Its Colonel is as lean
as a compass-needle.
He has an angry wrenlike vigilance,
a greyhound's gentle tautness;
he seems to wince at pleasure,
and suffocate for privacy.
He is out of bounds now. He rejoices in man's lovely,
peculiar power to choose life and die—
when he leads his black soldiers to death,
he cannot bend his back.
On a thousand small town New England greens,
the old white churches hold their air
of sparse, sincere rebellion; frayed flags
quilt the graveyards of the Grand Army of the Republic.
The stone statues of the abstract Union Soldier
grow slimmer and younger each year—
wasp-waisted, they doze over muskets
and muse through their sideburns . . .
Shaw's father wanted no monument
except the ditch,
where his son's body was thrown
and lost with his "niggers."
The ditch is nearer.
There are no statues for the last war here;
on Boylston Street, a commercial photograph
shows Hiroshima boiling
over a Mosler Safe, the "Rock of Ages"
that survived the blast. Space is nearer.
When I crouch to my television set,
the drained faces of Negro school-children rise like balloons.
Colonel Shaw
is riding on his bubble,
he waits
for the blessèd break.
The Aquarium is gone. Everywhere,
giant finned cars nose forward like fish;
a savage servility
slides by on grease.
Heart wrenching!
Thank you.
Wow. Just, wow.
If you want to see the movie, it’s called “Glory”