MEMORIAL DAY

            Once known as “Decoration Day,” the United States Congress in 1971 renamed this holiday as “Memorial Day” to commemorate the death of those who died in service to our country.  But it was May 5, 1868 following the Civil War (more accurately better known as the War Between the States), that Union General John Logan designated the custom of decorating the graves of fallen comrades on May 30. However in 1971 the United States Congress changed the date of the celebration to the last Monday of May.

            But what sparked the celebration to take national hold came about shortly after the turn of the 20^th century.

            It was the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in the year 1918 when the guns of the First World War fell silent. After four years of horrendous fighting with the loss of over 37,466,904 souls on both side of the conflict, peace was declared. Germany and its allies surrendered to the forces of the United States, France and England and other European nations that were drawn into the conflict, in a small trolley car in Paris. Officially the war ended.

            The principal countries involved in the conflict were Germany, France and England. Some 12 nations were pulled into the war as allies but it wasn’t until 1917 that the United States became ensnarled thanks to the then president Woodrow Wilson.

Known as the “Great War,” it was believed mankind would never again subject itself to another senseless conflict. Peace was to be everlasting but it was only 21 years later when a   former German corporal of WWI, named Adolph Hitler, would again challenge the world. What caused the rise of this maniac were the sufferings of Germany at the conclusion of the

First World War.

The penalties and hardships imposed on the conquered enemy by the surrender nearly destroyed the German economy and any hope of recovery. Germany would be nothing but a third world country it was deemed by the victorious nations. The result was that inflation and unemployment rose to the point that it was joked one would have to take a wheelbarrow of money to the bakery to buy a loaf of bread. But Hitler changed all of that.

He was deemed a genius. But how he accomplished this remarkable recovery didn’t surface until the outbreak of what was to be the Second World War.

As part of the recovery Hitler set about first rebuilding his military—against the provisions of the articles Germany signed at the surrender following WWI. He enlisted the help of other men who had similar aspirations and went about building an army of unimaginable size for its time. To maintain order he assassinated rivals, commenced liquidating other “enemies of the state,” notably the Jews, and marched on smaller countries as Poland. While all of this was going on European countries as France, England and also across the Atlantic, the United States, sat back pacifically ignoring what was about to overtake the world.

Finally Hitler went too far and France and England declared war against Germany. And that was all Hitler needed. Storming through the Ardennes forest, German tanks outflanked the French entrenchments and in a matter of days France fell.

From there the German forces moved up to the northern countries as Sweden and Norway, the Netherlands and finally making his greatest mistake, Russia.

During this time the United States was tacitly helping the English furnishing goods which later developed into the famed “Lend Lease Program.”

Then came December 7, 1941.

On Sunday, at 7 a.m., Honolulu Hawaii time, Japanese airplanes swooshed down unleashing bombs and torpedoes on the United States naval fleet harbored at Pearl Harbor in a surprise attack that killed over 2,000 American sailors, soldiers and airmen. The attack came as a complete surprise and most of the navy ships were resting on the bottom of the harbor.

Then on December 11, Hitler declared war on the United States and for the next five years the world was ablaze. Now America was fighting a two front war—the Japanese and Germany.

Americans were not interested in fighting any wars. But it was President Franklin Roosevelt who pushed the Japanese to the point that it was a question of survival that they would strike. Roosevelt had cut off sending scrap iron and oil to the Japanese in opposition to their invasion of Manchuria and China. The military arm of Japan decided that they could defeat the United States and force America to sue for peace. But America being America it was folly idea. As a result Americans fought on both fronts and through courage and dedication of American youth both Japan and Germany were defeated. But defeat came at a horrendous price.

After dropping two atomic bombs the Japanese finally surrendered. Germany had been defeated a few months earlier and now it was time to rebuild a ravaged world.

In France there are many military cemeteries and like here in the United States, graves are showered with wreaths and flowers in memory of those who died. Their headstones glisten under the brightness of the sun. The sky in its beauty of blue expresses a comfort for those who slumber under the green grass of earth. For them there is no memory of home or family but only eternal peace.

THE MYSTERIOUS STAIRS

            Located at Santa Fe, New Mexico is a tiny church with a staircase that remains a mystery to this day. Housed in a small Catholic Church, which is now a museum operated under the auspices of the State, is a circular staircase which, under all engineering principles, should collapse under its own weight and design.

            This Gothic designed staircase is completely unsupported without use of a center pole to reinforce it. Originally there was no banister but two years after construction one was added. How the staircase remains standing is a mystery.

            The year was 1852 when Bishop Lamy asked a congregation of nuns from Kentucky to come west and start a school for the local children. At his request a small group of the Sisters of Loretto made the trip by paddle steamer, wagon and on foot to answer the Bishop’s request but found no provisions on arrival. First a convent was constructed to house them and in 1873 a small church was built. And this is when the mystery of the staircase came about.

            The tiny church was nearly completed when it was discovered there was no way to get to the choir loft. The architect forgot to include stairs in his design. The interior of the church was too small to construct conventional stairs and a ladder was out of order. Stymied the nuns resorted to prayer to their patron, Saint Joseph, the carpenter and foster father of Jesus.

Not long after an old man with a tool case containing basic carpenter tools attached to a donkey arrived and knocked at the door of the convent. He asked if he could be of assistance and Mother Magdalen who was head of the congregation asked if he was a carpenter. “Yes,” was the answer and she explained the problem of the choir loft and no way to build stairs. The stranger said he believed he could build something and the Mother Superior gratefully gave her consent to try.

            In eight months the project was complete. On examination a staircase was built without use of any nails; only wood pegs was used in construction and the entire staircase was built without any apparent support. But it worked!

When Mother Magdalen went to pay the carpenter for his work she discovered he had disappeared. He never asked for or been paid for his work. He simply vanished.

            According to Urban C. Weidner, a Santa Fe architect and wood expert, he had never seen a circular staircase without a supporting center pole. A total of 33 steps go from the floor to the loft. The wood used in construction is also unfamiliar and not indigenous to New Mexico. Railroad records of the time show no shipment of any of the materials used in building the stairs and no explanation has ever been is given on how the material arrived or where it came from.

            The staircase is a magnificent example of precision. The work of a superior craftsman is exemplified throughout. The splices, the fitting of joints and the exactness of fitting astound all experts who have examined its construction. Most baffling is how such an accomplishment could have been done with only the rudimentary tools used by the elderly man who built the staircase.

            The little church was in daily use by the Sisters of Loretto Academy until the State took over the property in the late 1960’s.

            Visitors to the chapel are awed by the beauty of the staircase. Under special permission wedding couples are permitted to stand on the stairs for wedding pictures but other than that people are prohibited to climb to the loft. Immediately adjacent to the now abandoned church is a visitor’s center, hotel and gift shop. Even though the church is no longer in use an overwhelming sense of serenity, holiness and silence permeates throughout the interior. Visitors unconsciously speak in whispered tones.

            Is the staircase the result of prayer and a miracle? Doubters can have their own explanation but for the experts who have examined the project all agree. It is something beyond their understanding of engineering.

MAYBE BULLYING DOES PAY OFF

               

                It appears the nomination for the presidency of the United States on the Republican side is settled. Billionaire Donald Trump seems to have the nomination locked up after excoriating, demeaning, embarrassing and bullying his opponents. They say he broke every rule in securing his nomination but perhaps such effort will prove more rewarding to the American people than one would think.

                Trump’s imaginative and unique method of knocking off the other 16 aspiring candidates for the Republication nomination proved successful in more than one way. Whether you like the man or not or his tactics is a personal decision. But one thing for sure Trump opened to the people what politics is really about and how little voters matter.

A few weeks ago on a national television broadcast it was revealed by one Republican congressman—to the chagrin of many political hacks--that “…The people don’t nominate a candidate the party does!” In addition the American people have been educated that both parties are not federal organizations but only private bodies that can run things anyway they want without public interference.

What turn out to be the practice of both political parties are power, loyalty and money. These things play a more significant role than anyone thought. It is common belief that the voters select who they want to run for office. So much for “fantasy land.” But maybe Trump has upset the political applecart and the American people will finally be heard by the powerful office holders.

How else can anyone explain how old party leaders as Bob Dole who served as Republican Senate Majority Leader and presidential candidate in1996 got the nomination? The answer was: “his service to the party.” What is most astounding is everyone knew from the get go he didn’t have a chance in winning the presidency! And there is Senator John McCain from Arizona who got the party’s nomination in 2008. He lost in a landslide.

Both men are American heroes. Dole lost one arm as a result of combat in World War II and McCain suffered the horrors of a Vietnamese prison of war camp after his airplane was shot down over enemy territory. No one can say either one of these men is not a patriot and a hero. But when it comes to leading the United States a sense of patriotism isn’t enough. What the country is seeking is a statesman and neither party seems able to furnish one.

Public office shouldn’t be held out as a present for allegiance to a party. It is the values of the party that should come under examination and the principles they represent. What the Republican Party is today is exactly what the Democrat Party was 60 years or more ago. The only difference between the two is it is taking the Republicans a little longer to catch up.

For the most part America is made up of conservative thinking people. They don’t want more government intrusion into their lives or more laws restricting their freedom. The idea of “law makers” creating legislation and laws that slowly erode what once was thought as “liberty” has been replaced by “diversity,” tolerance,” “equal rights (especially as it relates to those of homosexual, bi-sexual individuals tendencies), and other instituted laws. Today a person can be arrested merely for their speech if that “speech” seems offensive to someone else.

As a result of all of this there appears to be a growing idea of a “Third Party.” This party, as expressed by some leading politicians as Mitt Romney, hits at the heart strings of many conservatives. These folks say there is no home for them in either party and there is much evidence to support their position.

There is no longer majority rule. Things have manifested to the point where three per cent of the population can ram through laws that endanger the rest of the population. This is particularly true in the area of homosexuality. Years past this activity was labeled as disordered—as it is. But then due to the efforts of liberal therapists and psychologists, the disorder was relabeled as normal behavior! And this isn’t the only thing that has happened to our society since the 1950’s. Any moral law today has been turned 180 degrees. What was once wrong is now right and what is right today is now considered wrong. And the heart of this nonsense revolves in the political world.

Morality has no place in politics as it has been adjudged by those in power. Neither belief that mankind has a responsibility to God who created every living thing—and His most prized creation MAN—is now fashionable. Laws are now enacted where the snuffing out of a human life in the womb is considered nothing more than eliminating a wart. Most recently the use of marijuana has been legalized in the majority of States and you find open shops proclaiming their product available for recreational users without stigma. A stoned population may be the best thing for politicians seeking more control.

                But if one thinks that things are better with the opposite party they have some thinking to do. The Democrats are actually the ones responsible for the mess American finds itself today since they had the power of congress and senate to enact such legislation for so many years. The liberal laws that have been enacted have consistently eroded the values and beliefs of which this nation was founded. When the framers created the Constitution which is supposed to be the guiding light for future generations, it was supposed to be set in stone. But today there is the belief that the Constitution of the United States is nothing but a living document and needs to be interpreted to meet modern thinking.

                And as long as the “good ol’ boy syndrome continues and party hacks decide who they want to run for the country’s highest position, then the votes of the American people has lost all value. But maybe, just maybe, there might be a big surprise come November in the name of Donald Trump.

FIFI, THE LAST OF HER BREED

            She is the last of her breed. “Fifi”, a four engine Boeing B-29 bomber is the last of her line certified as airworthy that now tours the United States attending air shows and other aviation sponsored events. Once considered “massive” the airplane is now dwarfed by commercial aircraft as the huge Boeing 747 and other planes. But once on the ground visitors have the opportunity to tour the interior and see for themselves how airmen of World War flew.

            The history of the B-29 can be traced back to 1938 when designers came up with an idea to replace the famed Boeing B-17. It was the B-17 that carried the major part of the air war against Germany. But the difference between the airplanes was remarkable for its day.

            Where the B-17 was hampered by the lack of pressurization the B-29 crews flew in comfort at altitudes above 30,000 feet. Those crewing the B-17’s had to wear heavy flight suits with plug in electric connections (which often failed at high altitude) merely to survive the below zero weather.

            Gunners in the B-17 “Flying Fortress’s” also were further hampered by having to remove their gloves in order to fire their 50-calliber machine guns at enemy fighters. Many of these men suffered frost bite and some even had to suffer amputation of frozen fingers.

            But this was not the case of the B-29s. Flying in reasonable comfort the airmen could strip down to their t-shirts even at altitudes above 30,000 feet. But when they entered enemy airspace they were prudent enough to put on heavier clothing and have an oxygen mask handy. A single bullet through the aluminum skin would depressurize the plane in seconds.

            Leading into the Second World War the United States found itself in a situation where a long-range heavy duty bomber was needed. Finally when the B-29 became operational it was first based in China where it could reach mainland Japan. Hampered by engine failures the success of the first Incorporation of the airplane proved ineffective.  But as time went on engineers were able to work out the “bugs” of engine performance allowing more dependable performance.

            Finally when the Americans captured the Mariana Islands the massive bomber was situated at Tinian and Saipan. But it is Saipan that remains in history. It was from this airfield that the B-29 “Enola Gay,” named after Col. Paul Tibbets’ mother who was the pilot of this unprecedented mission, took off to deliver the first atomic bomb in history on Hiroshima Japan.

            At the end of World War II the B-29’s were used sparingly but was pressed into active service at the outbreak of the Korean War. But during this time propeller aircraft were being replaced with jet fighters and bombers. Soon the B-29’s were mothballed only to succumb to weather and disuse. Of the thousands of the “Super fortresses,” only one remains in flying condition. Scattered across the nation a few of these planes are used as static displays but unfortunately their flying days are over. The Smithsonian Aviation and Space Museum at Washington, D.C, now hosts the “Enola Gay” and the Museum of Flight at Boeing Field, Seattle has a restored B-29 on display.

            But if it were not for the Commemorative Air force (formally known as the “Confederate Air Force but changed its name for political correctness reasons), none of these historic airplanes would be flying today.

            This organization specializes in restoring vintage airplanes—especially World War II planes, to flying condition. Their prize however is “Fifi.”

            In 1971 the group scoured the world looking for a B-29 that could be reconditioned and made airworthy. Since the airplane was technically government property it would be necessary to change ownership and acquire Federal Aviation Administration certification for civilian use. The hunt was on.

            In 1971 a mothballed B-29 was found in the California desert near China Lake. It had been stored at the location for the past 17 years and had suffered from the heat, sand disuse and was slowly degenerating. Not giving up the CAF contacted the Navy (who had ownership of the plane) and negotiated a deal where the organization was able to take possession. On March 23, 1971, ownership and registration was transferred and the process of restoring began.

            It took only nine weeks for CAF volunteers to get the plane ready for flight. They replaced engines, instruments, window bubbles and controls and readying the airplane for a “ferry flight” to the organization’s home base at Harlington, Texas. After a 1,250 mile flight the plane landed at the home field and then spent the next three years and over $3,000,000 undergoing a complete restoration.

            The airplane is now based out of the CAF new base at Addison, Texas at the Jim Cavanaugh Flight Museum. Cavanaugh was a major contributor funding the restoration of Fifi.

            As a result of this dedicated work millions of people can again hear the thunderous melodic sound of the four powerful engines propelling this beautiful shinny relic across the sky.

            She is the last, and most likely no other, to grace the blue heavens reminding all of a world gone by.