Besse Cooper, The World's Oldest Person, Turns 116 Today!!

Here's to Besse Cooper - the last surviving human being who was born in the year 1896. Bessie was born in Tennessee when Grover Cleveland was president. She now lives in Georgia.

Another important fact - Besse Cooper is the eighth oldest person of all time.

Today Begins The Bicentennial Of The War Of 1812 ... I Visited A War Of 1812 Memorial In Somers Point, New Jersey In Honor Of This Significant Occasion

The United States Congress and President James Madison declared War on this day 200 years ago. Ladies and gentlemen ... this is my War Of 1812 Bicentennial Observance. In honor of the 200th Anniversary of the start of the War Of 1812, I travelled to Somers Point, NJ. In the photographs below, you will see a Memorial. It was erected by the Daughters Of 1812 in 1923 and is in honor of the New Jersey Soldiers who were mobilized for the conflict against Great Britain. A Sand Fort was standing in this area during the War Of 1812. This is why the Daughters Of 1812 decided to place the Memorial at this location.







Here I am standing by the Memorial. I was not pleased seeing this sign so close to it.


I used Microsoft Paint to edit the jpeg and get rid of the sign. I am very happy with the result ... I was able to cover the sign with the appropriate colors for the sand, sky and clouds and I even managed to draw the plants and the bridge.






The next two photographs are close-ups of the plaque ...
 




Here is my video Tribute to this Memorial and the Troops whom the Memorial was erected in honor of:


Additional information can be found at this link:
http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM9GQ0_Somers_Point_1812_War_Memorial_Somers_Point_NJ
 
I hope to post many more blog entries for the 200th Anniversary of the War Of 1812.

The Three Year Anniversary Of The Disputed Presidential Election In Iran

Today is the three year anniversary of the disputed presidential election in Iran. To the Iranian People ... I have not forgotten. Azadi Baraye Iran.

Today Is The 40th Anniversary Of The Controversial Photograph Featuring Kim Phuc Running With Napalm On Her Body During The Vietnam War

My friends: Today, June 8, 2012, is the 40th Anniversary of a photograph. The photograph is one all of you know very well. It is of the nine-year-old girl who was running down a road with napalm on her body in Vietnam. It is one of the most well-known photos ever taken. Her name is Kim Phuc, and she is still alive today. I hope all of you will watch this extraordinary interview with the woman who 40 years ago was the little girl in that photograph. When you do watch it, I guarantee ... you will be richly blessed.


The url for the video above: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xhz2gCnhr-I

Here is a recent photograph of Kim:
http://www.ww2aircraft.net/forum/attachments/modern/45271d1299773278t-vietnamese-girl-napalm-photo-16phuc1_lg.jpg

Here is the url for Kim Phuc's website:
http://www.kimfoundation.com

2012 Ukraine Eurovision Winner Gaitana Faces Criticism Over Her Not Being Ukrainian Enough

Hello there everyone. This is Michael. It is a few minutes past midnight on May 23, 2012. This morning, I would like to discuss a controversial topic involving a singer from Ukraine named Gaitana. Her full name is Gaita-Lurdes Essami (Гайта-Лурдес Ессамі). She is half-Ukrainian and half-Congolese. The following embedded video is my vlog pertaining to this matter ...



Gaitana won the Ukraine's 2012 Eurovision entry contest. She will be competing in the larger event this week. The controversy stems from the fact that there are people who claim Gaitana is not truly Ukrainian because she is part African. I dispute that. She has a Ukrainian parent and was born on that soil so she is Ukrainian.

A number of people have criticized Gaitana's involvement in the contest since she, from their perspective, does not represent Ukraine properly. The truth is she has embraced the culture of Ukraine and is devoted to her country. I saw an interview she gave on the internet, and it is obvious that she loves the nation. A writer at the Kyivpost did not help matters, in my opinion, when Gaitana was referred to as a "black singer" in an article (in this link: http://www.kyivpost.com/content/ukraine/racist-comments-about-gaitana-stir-controversy-ang-122884.html). Referring to Gaitana as just "black" plays right into the hands of those who claim she is not Ukrainian and therefore not fit to represent the nation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Once again, she was born in the territory now known as Ukraine, and her mother is Ukrainian so she is Ukrainian. It is very easy to come to that conclusion. There are so many problems in the world that we all need to focus our attention on ... the question of Gaitana's genuine Ukrainianness should not be one of them.

This is a woman who has a degree in Economics, she sings songs in various languages and she composes her own material. She writes her own lyrics and writes her own music. As a matter of fact, the song she will be performing in the 2012 Eurovision contest is titled "Be My Guest". Gaitana wrote the lyrics and the music for that piece.

In no way should Gaitana be criticized for being mixed. She had absolutely no choice in the matter. The criticism and attacks that she has endured are very improper. That is my view and my contribution to the topic. I thank all of you for watching and/or reading and good luck to you Gaitana. Good bye.

Marion Monohann And D.S. Hunter G.A.R. Union Civil War Parade Press Photograph From 1934

My Sesquicentennial Observance of the American Civil War continues. In this blog entry, I am going to focus on an old press photograph from 1934. It features two members of the Union Army and the Grand Army Of The Republic: Marion Monohann and D.S. Hunter. It is dated September 2, 1934.

 The photo can be seen in this embedded video:

If the video does not embed properly, here is the url:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUm2Wad7KI4

Here are some jpegs of the old press photograph ...





The reverse:

Jacob M. Dickinson Autographed Photo Signed For Johnson Hagood

Here is a very nice photograph of former Confederate Jacob M. Dickinson. It has been autographed for Johnson Hagood. Jacob lived from 1851 until 1928. He enlisted with the Confederate Army at the age of 14 and was a Private in the Confederate Army Cavalry. Later in life, he held a cabinet position as Secretary Of War in the William Taft Administration. Johnson Hagood was a Veteran of the Spanish-American War and World War I. He eventually rose to the rank of Major General. This photograph was once part of Johnson Hagood's collection. A number of his items have made it to the market from time to time.

This is part of the continuing Sesquicentennial Observance of the American Civil War. The 150th Anniversary of the War Between The States began last year and will end in the year 2015.

Here is the autographed photo:


The personalization:


To Captain Johnson Hagood
With best wishes of JM Dickinson
June 16th 1910

The reverse with a stamped signature of Johnson Hagood:


Here is a video of the photo and my brief discussion about it:

If the video does not load properly, here is the url:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7uNUKcdO4o

UPDATE: On May 16, 2012, I decided to take a photograph of myself holding the signed item. I am going to be shaving the beard off soon so I wanted to take as many photos as I could while I still had it. This is a good reason to take a photograph with the beard while being dressed as a Confederate ... it all fits in with the Civil War 150 theme. Here it is:

War Of 1812 Bicentennial Event And Encampment Held In Havre De Grace On May 5, 2012

War Of 1812 events are very uncommon so I was elated to see the Susquehanna Museum At The Lock House in Havre De Grace, Maryland hold this encampment. As all of you know, 2012 marks the 200th Anniversary of the start of the conflict. This was a very fine event, and the Museum only charged three dollars to attend.

Here is a video from the reenactment (it features: 1. The Introduction 2. The Camps 3. Music 4. A Cannon Demonstration 5. Independent Company Firing):

If the video does not embed properly, here is the url: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1crnEXIA2c

Photographs from the event ...















This is how I would have looked 200 years ago:












Replica uniforms inside of the Museum ...







Unfortunately, this description card is blurry:


Cannon Demonstration:










Independent Company Firing ...



This shot is reminiscent of the Old Frontier:




















This photo was from the Star-Spangled Banner Ceremony:









 
A painting of the Goddess Liberty on the side of the cannon:


I purchased this War Of 1812 Word Search Book inside of the Museum:


The day's itinerary:




Many, many more photos of the day can be found at this link: http://s169.photobucket.com/albums/u213/portaltothepast/Reenactments/War%20Of%201812/War%20Of%201812%20Bicentennial%20Event%20Maryland%205-5-2012/?start=all

Here is the Museum's website: http://www.thelockhousemuseum.org

I found out about this event by looking at the schedule on a War Of 1812 reenactors' website. I would be remiss if I did not point this out. Here is the Regiment's website link (it includes upcoming events): http://www.the-black-watch-lha.org/1815