What's In A Name

 One of the most heavily debated topics when people discuss the War Between the States is the "correct" name for the conflict.  The most commonly used name (by most, not by me) is "The American Civil War," or just "The Civil War."  What I think is the second most commonly used name is the one I use, "The War Between the States."  Some of the other names I've heard used are "The War for Southern Independence," "The War of the Rebellion," and "The Second American Revolution." I'm sure there are more, but these are the ones I've heard.

I refuse to use "American Civil War" or "Civil War" for one reason - the conflict was not a 'civil war.'  For those of you who may not know what the definition of 'civil war' is, here it is right out of the Merriam-Webster Dictionary:

"Civil war (noun) - a war between opposing groups of citizens of the same country." 

Since the Southern states had seceded from the Union and formed their own country, what took place was a war between two separate countries (or nations); therefore, the conflict was NOT a 'civil war,' and I don't give a damn that Lincoln used that term in the Gettysburg Address, either.

And this brings us smack dab into the debate of whether or not secession was legal, a topic I'll save for a later date.  But I do have a question concerning that which I'll ask at the end of this post.

But back to the name - I use the WBTS because I think that's the most accurate description of what took place.  Sure, you could call it the "War for Southern Independence" and you wouldn't be wrong; you could also call it the "Second American Revolution" and you still wouldn't be wrong because after all, the Southerners were Americans, were they not?  Even "War of the Rebellion" wouldn't be wrong, but only if you looked at it from the Yankee's point of view.  

No, what took place was a war between two different nations, and since these nations were both composed of individual states, I use the term "War Between the States."  There are those who will claim that the Confederacy was not a 'sovereign' nation because it was never formally recognized by another nation such as Great Britain, and they wouldn't be wrong.  And that's one of the reasons I use the term that I do - you cannot deny that both the US and the CS were composed of individual states, and those states were at war with each other.

Now, about that question I mentioned earlier...

In his Gettysburg Address Lincoln referred to the conflict as "a great civil war," publicly affirming his opinion and the opinion of the Federal government that secession was illegal and that the Southern states were still a part of the United States.  After all, that was the reason for issuing the call for 75,000 troops in 1861 'to preserve the Union,' right?  

So if that was the case, then why did the Southern states have to be readmitted to the Union when the war was over? 

Good question, huh? 

Think about it.

Deo Vindice

IHC 

 

 

 

 

 

In case you haven't figured it out by now, I am fiercely proud of my Southern heritage.  I was born and raised in Richmond, Virginia, the Capitol of the Confederacy, and I spent my formulative years (between the ages of 7 and 15) in Highland Springs, a small town that was at that time around 9 miles southeast of Richmond.  This small town - small back then, anyway - was smack dab in the middle of the area of the Seven Day's Battles and was surrounded by battlefields.  Sandston, Mechanicsville, Cold Harbor, Beaver Dam Creek, Drewery's Bluffs, all of these were in the surrounding area, with Cold Harbor and Sandston being close enough to ride to on my bicycle.

 

Even the town itself was rich in Confederate history.  Highland Springs was founded in the 1890s as a streetcar suburb of Richmond on the Seven Pines Railway Company's electric street railway line between Richmond and the Seven Pines National Cemetery.  There were several major battles in that area, with a large number of both Union and Confederate dead being buried there.  The streetcar was the best way to provide transportation to the citizens of Richmond to the cemetery and back, and the town itself sprung up from there.  

 

When I lived in Highland Springs the town was unofficially divided up into the 'old' part of town and the 'new' part of town.  The town itself was laid out with the roads running in straight lines to the north and south of Nine Mile Road, and is as near-perfect a grid as you'll ever see.  All of the streets in the 'old' part of town, the part that was built in the 1890s and early 1900s, are all named after Confederate heroes.  Lee, Jackson, Johnson, AP Hill, Armistead, all of them have streets named after them in the old part of town.  Even the country club and the only apartment complex in town were named with Confederate heritage in mind - the country club was Confederate Hills, and the apartment complex was Confederate Heights.  (Both have had their names changed as of this date.)  

 

And just in case you were wondering, all of the streets in the 'new' part of town were named after bushes and trees.  Ivy, Juniper, Kalmia, Oak, Pine, and so on.  Except for my street, that is.  I lived on New Avenue, and I have no idea where THAT name came from!  And all of the streets, both old and new, were alphabetically arranged, which made them incredibly easy to find and navigate.

 

My fascination with the War Between the States (I refuse to call it the 'civil war' because it was a war between two governments, not between citizens and one government) began in 1964 when I was in the 4th grade.  I was assigned the Battle of Antietam as a history project, and up until then had never heard of the war.  But once I started researching the battle, that was it - I was bitten by the bug, and have spent the rest of my life studying the years between 1861 and 1865 and the events leading up to that tragic era.  I was more than pleased to discover that my town was located in a battlefield, and was elated when one of my friends told me that he actually had an old WBTS trench running through his back yard!

 

When my mother told me that her brother in law John had researched her family's history and discovered that we had not one but THREE ancestors who fought for the Confederacy, I immediately joined the SCV and the MOS&B.  Since I was in the Air Force at the time I had to be careful about what Confederate-related regalia I wore or Confederate-related insignia/flags/pins/patches I wore.  Every base at which I was stationed had a regulation specifically prohibiting the flying of the Confederate flag from any building on base, including base housing.  While I didn't agree with it I can understand it, and abided by the rule.  So for the years that I was in the service I didn't display anything with the Confederate flag on it, even though I was still on active duty when I joined the SCV in 1992.

 

All that changed when I retired.  When I moved up to New Jersey to be with Gina I flew the Stars and Stripes on the front of the house, but from the elevated back deck I flew a variety of Confederate flags, flying a different one as they wore out and needed to be replaced.  I flew the First National "Stars and Bars," the Third National, and Lee's Headquarters flag, but I never flew the Army of Northern Virginia Battle Flag (the one at the top of the page).  On the back of my denim motorcycle jacket I had two big flag patches - the US flag on top and the Battle Flag on the bottom.  I wore that jacket for 7 years through Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland, and never heard a peep about it from anyone.

 

When I moved to SC I transferred my SCV membership to a camp down here, and had SCV license tags on my Saturn and my Chevy truck.  The truck was adorned with many Confederate symbols and stickers, and once again I never heard anything from anyone about it that was negative.  But after a while I took all of the stickers off of the truck (but kept the license tag), and didn't replace them.  I had entered a stage of my life where I was a little more cognizant of the feelings of others around me, so I refrained from displaying anything Confederate to avoid causing problems for others.  This period of my life began on November 12, 2013 when I joined the Masonic fraternity.

 

But now all that's in the past.  I've reached a point in my life where I truly don't care what others think about what I say or do.  As I've said before, I won't go out of my way or intentionally do or say anything to insult or hurt anyone else, but at the same time I'm not watching my words or my actions as closely as I did before.  I fly two 6x9 inch flags from the luggage rack on my motorcycle, and one of them is the Battle Flag.   (The other is the American flag.)  If that offends you, then that's a YOU problem.  And I'm seriously considering bringing my old denim jacket with the two flags on it out of retirement now that I'm not in an MC anymore and don't have any colors to wear.

 

And if it ends up that I join the SCV Mechanized Cavalry, then I'll wear their colors with pride everywhere I go whenever I'm on the bike.  Their colors look like this:

 

So yeah, my pride in my Confederate heritage has undergone a resurgence, and I'm okay with that.  So is my wife, Gina.

 

And to me, that's all that matters.

 

Deo Vindice

IHC 

 

 

 

 

A Blinding Flash of the Obvious

So have you ever had one of these?  Something that is right there out in the open but that you never realized, never connected the dots, when all of a sudden - BAM!  It hits you right between the eyes, and you end up thinking, "Well, DUH!"

I just had one of those.  I was looking at the organizational logos depicted on my blog when I found myself wondering (not for the first time, I might add) why the Military Order of Stars and Bars used the Army of Northern Virginia Battle Flag for their logo instead of the First National Confederate Flag.  After all, the First National flag was also called "the Stars and Bars" for obvious reasons, right?  For those of you who don't know which flag I'm talking about, it's this one:

So you can see why it's called "the Stars and Bars," right?  So why not use this flag for the logo?

Then it hit me like a bolt out of the blue.  The rank insignia worn on the collars of Confederate officers consisted of horizontal bars for Lieutenant through Captain, and stars for Major and up. 

 

Stars and bars. 

Well, DUH! 

And while I'm sitting here proof-reading this post, I had another one.

The MOS&B changed its name several years ago, as in 20 or so.  The original name was "Military Order of The Stars and Bars," and the name change involved dropping the word "The" from the name.  I always wondered why they did this, and it just now hit me.

They dropped that word from the name because "THE Stars and Bars" refers to the First National Flag, and the organization is about Confederate officers and not the flag.  Dropping that word from the title clarifies that point.

Well, DUH! 

I'm gonna go sit in the corner for a while now.

Deo Vindice

IHC 

 

 

My New Focus

Most people may not know it, but I'm the kind of person that needs something to be involved in, something to focus my attentions and drive on.  I'm not the kind of person to sit around on my ass all day doing nothing - I have to be focused on something, be it an organization or something that involved riding my Harley. 

 And anyone who knows me - truly knows me - knows that when I get involved in something, I give it my complete attention and devotion.  I go at it whole hog, not holding anything back, and devote myself to it entirely.  If whatever organization I'm involved in is having an activity, then I'll be there no matter what.  I'll also be the first one there and the last one to leave when it's over.  Anyone who knows me from either the Lodge or the Shrine knows this having seen it first-hand.

Unfortunately, for the past 4 months I haven't had a focus and I've kind of felt like a ship without a rudder, just drifting with the tide with no real purpose.  I've tried to make my Harley my main focus, riding it as much as I can - and I've ridden it a LOT since I got it in October.  So far I've put 6K miles on it, which is more than I put on my Road King in the entire previous year.  But I still needed something else to focus my attention and my drive on, something that would take up more than just a few hours a week.

And two weeks ago I found it.  Or found it again, actually.  I rejoined the Sons of Confederate Veterans and the Military Order of Stars and Bars, two organizations that I was a part of previously but dropped out of when my work schedule wouldn't allow me the time I needed to participate.

So let me explain what those two organizations are, since I'm betting that most of you have never heard of them before.

The Sons of Confederate Veterans is just that - an organization made up of male descendants of men who fought for the Confederacy during the War for Southern Independence.   The organization was founded in 1896, and is the 'successor organization' of the United Confederate Veterans.  (That title is self-explanatory so I won't go further.)  The main purpose of the SCV is to preserve and retell the true history of the South and the Confederate soldier.  It's a never-ending task considering the enormous amount of Yankee history/half-truths/lies that are so prevalent these days, so the SCV has its work cut out for it.

The Military Order of Stars and Bars is made up of male descendants of Confederate officers, so it's a little more exclusive than the SCV.  (Once upon a time you had to be a member of the SCV before you could join the MOSB, but that requirement was dropped quite a while back.) 

I have three ancestors who fought for the Confederacy, and since one of them was Colonel William H. Burkett (a relative on my mothers' side) I qualify for membership in both organizations.  Right now I've renewed my membership in both organizations at the national level and am not assigned to a local camp.  I'm a little gun shy about joining a local camp for either organization thanks to the way my former Masonic Lodge treated me.  I may join a local chapter of the two organizations later on, but for now I'll just sit where I am at the "member at large" level.

Now all I have to do is find a group to ride with.  The SCV has a Mechanized Cavalry unit, which is made up of SCV members who ride bikes, so I'm going to check them out eventually.  The only thing there is that in order to join a Mechanized Cavalry unit you have to be assigned to a local chapter, and I'm not ready for that yet.  Time will tell.

So in the mean time I'm gonna check out the local H.O.G. (Harley Owner's Group) Chapter, but again, I'm not so sure I'm ready to trust people enough to do that yet.  We'll see, though.  Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

One thing's for sure, though - the next time I get involved in an organization with a local chapter of anything, hell will freeze over before I'll be in a position of authority or leadership again.  My days of telling other people what they can and can't do are over, thanks to my dealings with the Masonic lodge.

That's a wound I don't think will ever heal, but I'm damned sure not gonna let it stop me from living the best life I can.

Deo Vindice

IHC 

 

(P.S. - Deo Vindice means "Only God Can Judge," and happens to be the motto of the MOS&B.) 

 

 

It's The Budget, Stupid!

 

So unless you've been living under a rock for the past week, you've heard that Stephen Colbert's late night "comedy" show has been cancelled due to budget cuts at the network.  As soon as I heard this, I knew that liberal heads would be exploding all over the country, and I was right.  Libtard "celebrities" have been coming out of the woodwork, denouncing both the network and Trump for the cancellation of the show.  

Of course we should have expected this for two reasons:  first, libtard "celebrities" think their opinions actually matter and carry more weight than yours or mine simply because they're famous; and second, libtards will use any excuse to blame Trump for anything and everything.  Never mind the fact that the network made it very clear that they cancelled the show because it was losing money.

And it was - to the tune of $40 MILLION dollars a year.  This, on top of the massive settlement that the network just paid out to Donald Trump for their defamation and slander of him caused the demise of the show.  Of course the libtards will blame Trump as they do for everything, but the harsh reality of it is that the network bears 100% of the blame.  If they hadn't defamed and slandered Trump to begin with, there wouldn't have been a settlement to have to pay out.  So no, Trump isn't to blame for this one.  The network with its liberal policies was its own worst enemy.

And speaking of so-called "celebrities" who think their opinions matter more than ours, Colbert is a prime example of this.  When Trump made a negative comment about him, Colbert responded by saying 'the gloves are off!'  

Yeah, like Trump is scared of that shit.   

The truth is that Colbert is a no-talent, libtard shill who used what was supposed to be a 'comedy' show as his personal anti-Trump political platform.  (I'm still trying to figure out why he or anyone else thought that dancing syringes were funny.)  I never liked this asshole to begin with, and this is just more reasons not to like him.

The mood and temperment of this country is finally changing, and it's for the better.  The age of 'cancel culture' has passed, and libtards can no longer get away with all of the insulting, bigoted, racist shit they've been getting away with for the past 4 years.  There's a new sheriff in town, and he ain't playing that game.  Additionally, the conservatives in this country are finally speaking up, and the businesses out there like Target and Wal-Mart are abandoning their libtard programs such as DEI.  

And all of this has taken place in the first short seven months of a FOUR YEAR term.  I can't wait to see what's gonna happen by the time Trump's term is over!

Next up - NObama in handcuffs, charged with Conspiracy and Treason!  I can't wait!

Deo Vindice

IHC 

 

 

Like Watching Cockroaches Run From The Light

 If I said that I wasn't happy as hell at watching NObama and his minions scurrying around like cockroaches running away from the light now that the DNI has released all of the EVIDENCE of NObama's involvement in the Russian Collusion scandal that they tried to pin on Trump, I'd be lying my ass off.  Those of us with any amount of common sense knew that "Billary" Clinton was behind it from the start, and that NObama not only knew about it but assisted in carrying it out.  And now the information that Tulsi Gabbard has released verifies this - and the Demoncrats are in a panic.

 It never ceases to amaze me at just how stupid the Demoncrats think we are.  Every time they get caught with their hand in the cookie jar, they always do the same thing - lie their ass off, gaslighting everyone they can, and expect us to swallow it without question.  And when we don't do that, they label everything as "misinformation."

Coming from the Demoncrats in general and NObama in particular, this is really the pot calling the kettle black.  NObama and the Demoncrats are the masters of misinformation and gaslighting; they're just too stupid to realize that we're not buying it.

When NObama is led off in handcuffs after being arrested for either Conspiracy or Treason, maybe then they'll wake up.  I, for one, live for the day that this racist asshole is cuffed and taken on a perp walk - him and "Billary" Clinton both, plus all of his staff that was involved in the conspiracy.

Now all we have to do is wait for it to happen.  And, to be honest, cross our fingers and hope that it does, because so far our DOJ hasn't done shit as far as arresting the criminals in our government.  Hopefully this is their chance to break out of their doldrums and actually do something.

Time will tell.

Deo Vindice

IHC 

 

 

DO SOMETHING ALREADY!

 

So we're well into the first year of Trump's second term as President, and this time we have a Republican-controlled Congress.  With a Republican President and a Republican majority in both houses of Congress, one would think that the Congress would jump at the chance to pass a whole bunch of conservative-based legislation to unfuck the things that the Biden administration fucked up, right?

But nooooooooo, these asshats have sat on their hands and done almost NOTHING since Trump took office.  The most significant thing - which may be the ONLY thing - they've done is pass the One Big Beautiful Bill, but even then it was close because a couple of RINOs went over to the libtard side and voted against it.  Other than this one bill, the Congress has taken NO action on ANYTHING and has accomplished exactly ZERO.  Except go on TWO breaks, that is.

At this point I'm wondering two things:  first, what the fuck are they waiting for?  And second, when is Trump going to kick them in the ass and get them moving?  One word from the White House and the Congress will start doing something, especially with the midterm elections less than 18 months away.   I know of several RINOs that are going to be out of a job after the midterms are over because WE THE PEOPLE are tired of their inaction.  And the one I hope is first to go is Mitch McConnell, followed closely by Lindsay Graham.

But in the mean time, we're still waiting for Congress to do something.  And it looks like it's gonna be a long wait.

IMHO Trump needs to kick some ass in his administration, starting with the Congress.  Then he needs to kick Patel's ass followed by Bongino's ass to get them moving and START ARRESTING PEOPLE.  DOGE uncovered so much fraud and so much waste, and the DNI has uncovered so much illegal activities on the part of the Biden Administration that there's no way they can defend against it - but so far NOBODY has ended up in handcuffs.

That needs to change, and soon.  And the Congress needs to get off their collective asses and start earning their pay for a change.

I see term limits in the future, especially if Trump has anything to do with it.

Time will tell.

Deo Vindice

IHC    

 

 

The Flip Side

 

This is the flip side I mentioned yesterday, and it's something I believe with all my heart.

Basically, what the meme is saying is once you've been screwed over by someone, be prepared for them to do it again - and actually, you should expect it.  I say that because most of the time, if someone screws you over they do it intentionally with malice aforethought, which means that given the chance they'll do it again.  And that's the person that you should NEVER - repeat, NEVER - trust again no matter what.  

Like I said, I believe this with all my heart.  Within the past 5 years I had someone who I considered one of my best friends intentionally screw me over, and it took me the better part of 3 years before I would even look his way.  We eventually made our way to being on speaking terms, but to this day I don't trust him no matter what he says or no matter how much he says "I've got your back."  Because his ACTIONS have proven that his WORDS are empty, said to make himself feel good and to get me to lower my guard.

As the old saying goes, "Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me."  And I won't be fooled twice, you can count on that.

The big difference between me and people like that is that I have never in my entire life nor will I ever for the rest of my life do something with the intent purpose of hurting another person physically, mentally, emotionally, or financially, even after they've intentionally done me wrong.  That's not justice, that's revenge, and I don't do revenge.  Revenge is a slippery road to nowhere, and that's one road I ain't taking.  My parents taught me better than that, teachings that were emphasized when I became a Mason.  (Yeah, I still believe in and try to follow the teaching of Freemasonry even thought I've left the lodge.  Like I said, I'm still a Mason at heart and I always will be.)

But I can guarantee you that if someone who has previously done me wrong intentionally ever comes asking for my help, chances are pretty damned good that the answer is going to be NO.   

Right now that list of people is short, with only 4 names on it.  One is a supervisor I had while I was in BMTS, and the second was the District Vice President for Macy*s that I worked under for the longest and most miserable 9 months of my life back in 2000.  These two assholes treated me so bad that if I ever see them face to face again, chances are pretty good that I'm going to break my rule about not intentionally hurting someone and end up in jail for Assault and Battery because I'm gonna knock the first one's teeth down his throat and I'm gonna kick the second one in the balls so hard he'll be wearing them for a hat.

The last two on the list were just added within the past 4 months, and that's a shame because I considered one of them to be one of my closest friends.  He has since proven to be anything but.  

As for the fourth and last one, I wouldn't piss on the bastard if he was on fire.

If all of this sounds a bit harsh and a bit cynical, then so be it.  Life has taught me some pretty hard lessons in the past 4 months or so, and I'm paying attention.  I've always been an apt pupil, and I'm not going to give life the chance to teach me these lessons again.  

But despite it all, despite the lies, the backstabbing, and the betrayals of trust, I still look forward to each day.  I get up out of bed looking forward to the day that God has given me, and I make the best use of it that I can.  Every day on this side of the dirt is a gift; that's why it's called 'the present.'

Because it is.  I appreciate God's present to me, and plan to make the best use of it I can.

As should we all.

Deo Vindice

IHC 

 

 

This Is Me

 

This is me to a 'T.'  I was raised by my parents to treat people as I would have them treat me, and I was specifically taught by my father NOT to judge people by their skin color.  So yeah, this meme is me.  And anyone who knows me - TRULY knows me - knows this to be true.

We'll talk about the flip side of this tomorrow.

Deo Vindice

IHC 

 

 

I'm Gonna Just Let This Sit Here

 

Deo Vindice

IHC 

 

 

Pretty Much, Yeah...

 

Deo Vindice

IHC

 

 

'Nuff Said.

 

Deo Vindice

IHC 

 

So Lemme Tell Ya...

 

Cabo was FANTASTIC!

We stayed at a resort called The LeBlanc, and everything about the place was just great!  The staff was efficient and VERY friendly, the room was big, modern, and spotless with a balcony overlooking the resort and the ocean, the weather was great, the drinks were equally great, and the food - oh, man, the food was the best! When we first got their one of the two butlers who were assigned to us - that's right, BUTLERS! - told us that in his opinion the best place to have breakfast was at The Ocean Restaurant, which is off to the right in this picture and sits on the oceanfront.  

And man, he wasn't wrong!  The first morning there I had an omelette which was perfect, and the next morning I figured I'd try the French Toast.  When the waiter brought it to me, this is what he brought:

Have you EVER seen French Toast that looked like that?  It was covered with a mixture of sugar and cinammon, was light as a feather on the inside, and the fruit/cream mixture was just heavenly!  It was so good I had it the next morning as well!

As you can see from the first picture, the resort has 4 pools, 2 of which have a swim-up bar attached.  But there was no need to go get your own drinks because each pool had at least two staff members there who would bring you anything you wanted whenever you wanted it!  Food, drink, water, suntan lotion, whatever you wanted, they'd bring it!  And they were the friendliest people I'd seen since our vacation in Cancun last year.  

But without a doubt, to me the best thing about the resort was the food.  To be honest, I wasn't all that impressed with the food at the resort in Cancun last year, but the resort this year made up for it!  We had a pizza at the pizza restaurant that was easily one of the best pizzas I've ever had, and that includes the ones I had when I lived in New Jersey.  The burgers from room service were absolutely delicious, the fries were just as good, and the lobster we had on our next to last night there was out of this world!

But I gotta warn you, though, the Mexicans have an entirely different definition of 'hot' when it comes to peppers and sauces!  Now I love hot stuff and can't get enough of it, so when the pizza came and the waitress brought the small container of ground-up pepper like they usually do, I figured that this stuff would be about as lame as the ground up pepper you get at Pizza Hut.  So I ladled that shit on, took a bite, and holy shit!  I have three standards for hotness - for something to be considered hot it's got to make your nose run, your eyes water, and make you sweat.  I have very rarely encountered this in most of the hot sauces I've tasted here in the states.

I hit all three within 30 seconds with that ground up pepper in Mexico!  And you'd think I would have learned my lesson the next day when I went to get some soft tacos from the poolside stand, ladling on the hot sauce like it was nothing.

Wrongo!  I hit all three again in just about the same time period!  So if you ever go to Mexico and want to have their hot sauce or hot peppers, you've been warned!

So for five days Gina and I spent the day sunning and swimming, drinking pina coladas, rum and cokes, spicy margaritas (and yes, it was!), and banana daiquiris, just relaxing and taking it easy.  Neither of us wanted to leave, but all good things have to come to an end, and this was no different.

Last year it was Cancun, this year it was Cabo.  And next year?

ARUBA.

I can't wait!

Deo Vindice

IHC 

 

Vacation Time!

 

Off to Cabo!  See you in a week!

Deo Vindice

IHC