Joined: Dec 05, 2007 Posts: 400 Location: Western NC
Posted: Thu Mar 06, 2008 5:41 pm Post subject:
More random thoughts and musings...
Between being busy as hell, sick as a dawg (dawgs get much sicker than dogs) and life in general I haven't had time to play here or read or do much of anything the past wk or so, but I did have a few stray thoughts cross the decrepit old noggin.
I'm Southern and damned glad and proud of my heritage. The CSA put some of the best fighting armies ever in the field. But having said that, can anyone think of a more adolescent acting bunch of adults than the CSA's officer corps? Outside of Congress, I mean.
Went back and re-read a essay in Gallagher's "Lee in War and Memory" to refresh my memory on something and it reminded me of how much I like having footnotes on the page it relates to. On the other hand I've always had a pet peeve of an author filling the notes with text. If you've got something more to say go ahead and say it in the body of the book. Hell, for the most part Coddington reads like two separate books and a lot of the time the notes are more interesting.
I've admittedly paid over $150 for a rare G'burg volume back when it was my job, but even though I've waited for years for someone to publish the Carman Papers I think I'm going to have to wait a while before parting with $95.
Speaking of new books there's another one coming out soon that I can't wait to read. More on that later.
Went back and watched THE MOVIE for the first time in a few years and it totally reinforced what I used to tell visitors to the field all the time; if you forget the title and view the movie as a good idea of what a CW battle in general was like, it isn't bad. But if you view the movie or the book as the Gospel of Gettysburg, you're going to be very disappointed if for no other reason than to find out that no, Joshua didn't fit the Battle of Gettysburg alone.
There was a thread recently over at GDG about favorite lines from the movie that I didn't weigh in on, but watching it reminded me of one of my favorites: "That's right, our own George Meade is now commanding the whole army, the latest in the line if you're keeping track of that sort of thing."
One more thought on the movie--wouldn't you love to see Spielberg/Hanks do a G'burg, or any other CW battle, movie?
I said it when it first came out and I haven't changed my mind-- Saving Private Ryan should be required viewing for every high school history class. For those high schools that still HAVE history classes, that is.
What ever happened to Civil War Journal? I thought that was pretty good series.
Whoops, the phone's ringing and the caller id says it's my house. Must be my nightly shopping list. <sigh> See y'all later.
Regards,
Keith
Joined: Feb 10, 2004 Posts: 2654 Location: I am here aint I?
Posted: Thu Mar 06, 2008 6:35 pm Post subject:
Hi Keith,
WOw a lot to ponder from your thoughts.
Here are a few that come to mind..
DA Movie as our own General likes to call it (Well we ALL call it that now, and it shows here is a scary thought how much we all think alike in this forum! YIKES ), well I tell folks to watch it to get a sense of how fericious CW battles WERE!!! And it plays DOWN the violence. But it does give a sense of the tactics, the frustration of the average soldier (Aint fit to fill a johnny detail nor pore pea from a boot even with the instructions written on the heel!). Its good in that it shows these men to be HUMAN in the middle of one of the darkest periods of US History (I would add a LOUD AMEN on Saving Private Ryan, and also add Band of Brothers to it as well).
We tend to forget that!!! Even the for the folks who say that well the Union was saved by Saint Joshua, it shows him to be HUMAN. And then even R.E.L.. Heck he was not a Saint! He had his weaknesses and yes he was quite obviously struggling with a major health issue by then. We do get a sense of that as well.
And yes, since we ALL love GB and I too play golf (Havent played down there yet!, besides my golf game is more of a FLOG!) I dont know how we havent met either.
Its funny now, since I am in my late 50s how when I tell folks that I have been studying and reading about the CW since I was 9!! Yes thats right NINE, that they get this expression like MAN YOU NEED TO GET A LIFE!! You are OBSESSED!!!! No.. Just had my being captured and drawn in by a "Vision place of souls!"...
Ah yes.. The Civil War, the Second War of Independance, the War of Rebellion, the War Between the States, and the late unpleasantness (remind me to tell you the story of having diner one time in Columbia S.C. Oyyyyyy!)..
It riings, it still reasonates in the depths of my soul.
Thanks for the thoughts!
Jim _________________ "The Flag, THE FLAG, Oh THE FLAG! G.K. Warrens last words on his death bed, August 8,1882
There is many a boy here today who looks on war as all glory, but, boys, it is all hell. W.T. Sherman
Joined: Dec 05, 2007 Posts: 400 Location: Western NC
Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2008 3:50 pm Post subject:
Random Thoughts and Musings Ver. 3.0
I hope everyone is preparing for a blessed and peaceful Easter with family and friends. Just a couple of things that occurred to me recently...
Here we were a while back talking about how the History Channel didn't offer much history here lately and our very own Gen. W. decided to take up the challenge and lead a charge against the HC programmers. Well done, Gen. W! Rally, folks, rally to the General and join the bold charge!
It's amazing how little i know about what's out there on the 'net that would interest me, especially considering I've been on-line for at least 10 yrs now and have spent the last 7 yrs working with the 'net every day. For instance, how many of you knew Eric has a Rev War board also? What's that? ALL of you? Ah, geezzz...
Speaking of the net, for some reason a thought hit me the other day (I know, died of lonlieness, hahahaha) about what some so casually throw out there. Now, when I write a book or article, I expect my words to last so I pay attention to what I put to paper. Too often it seems like some, and I've been guilty myself, don't realize when you put something out on the net it has a practically infinite shelf life. As long as there's a hard drive with a connection left out there...
One last thought on the net. I'm discovering all kinds of bloggers out there. (Still don't know where the word came from-I know what it is, but not what it means) Let me tell y'all something right now, if I EVER start coming across as knowing it all--I mean I'm right and how dare you be so stupid as to not recognize I'm right kind of know it all--someone shoot me. right then and there. Go ahead, since this has the long shelf life we just talked about, you've got a built in defense.
I admit it, I watch Ghost Hunters on Sci-fi channel. Everyone knows I like a good ghost story (hint hint, I'm still collecting stories for the next volume) and I got hooked on the darned thing a couple years ago. In case y'all didn't know, next week's episode is on the Cashtown Inn.
I was born in the wrong century. Don't get me wrong, I love modern conveniences (don't ask me to go camping, for me roughing it is no espresso machine) but what I wouldn't give to have lived in the 1880's and 90's and have the interests I do now, to get first hand interviews with CW veterans. For that matter, I wish I'd started doing the same thing 25 or so years ago with WWII and Korean vets. Or for that matter, then or now with Vietnam and Gulf War vets. Why don't I? Easy, I only have x amount of time to devote to something these days that doesn't help support my family and y amount of disposable cash to travel. That brings up a disturbing thought. why do you think it is more popular historians haven't done narrative histories of Korea and Vietnam? Please, someone please tell me it isn't because we didn't "officially" win those two...
Joined: Feb 10, 2004 Posts: 2654 Location: I am here aint I?
Posted: Wed Apr 02, 2008 9:56 pm Post subject:
I like this thread and I as a result I am going to add some thoughts.
RE HC.. I have sent my own email to HC, and still after a week gotten no reply!!! Nothing surprised me anymore.
I was wondering Keith and others, have you ever been on the field at Gettysburg or even Antietam, been talking to a friend or friends , look up and see a group gathered around you? Never fails for me. It has happened with Base and even one time with Bev and another friend of mine..
With Bev, I was talking about GKW and we were discussing him and the next thing I know I hear some one clear their voice and say, well where did you learn that from ? My favorite responce, I READ!!! And that was down in the Valley of Death looking UP at LRT!
There are a whole stack of good books coming out shortly... And my bank account is going to take a pounding., In addition to Erics, Mikes and JDs new book there are bios on Rhodes, more on the confederate chain of command and a whole number of newbie.s. I cant wait!!!
The book on NJ at Gettysburg has slowed to a crawl. But I have picked up a partner in crime so to speak. Linda Guy from the GDG has volunteered to step up and help. Why? She had a relative who fought with the 11th NJ on day 2!!!
AH yes., THe American Civil War.. It just keeps pulling us in doesnt it!
JIM _________________ "The Flag, THE FLAG, Oh THE FLAG! G.K. Warrens last words on his death bed, August 8,1882
There is many a boy here today who looks on war as all glory, but, boys, it is all hell. W.T. Sherman
Joined: Mar 04, 2004 Posts: 4926 Location: Suburb of Philadelphia
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 8:17 am Post subject:
Quote:
...The Civil War, the Second War of Independance, the War of Rebellion, the War Between the States...
By All means, Jim do not forget The War of NORTHERN AGGRESSION! _________________ I Remain
Your Ob't Servant
Allan
Time sets all things right. Error lives but a day. Truth is eternal.
A Great Civilization is not Conquered from Without until It has Destroyed Itself from Within
Joined: Feb 10, 2004 Posts: 2654 Location: I am here aint I?
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 8:21 am Post subject:
Geezz Genl... Just because I forgot one or two doesnt mean you have to have a coronary!! Sigh
Jim _________________ "The Flag, THE FLAG, Oh THE FLAG! G.K. Warrens last words on his death bed, August 8,1882
There is many a boy here today who looks on war as all glory, but, boys, it is all hell. W.T. Sherman
What ever happened to Civil War Journal? I thought that was pretty good series.
Regards,
Keith
It seems like all of those episodes were made in 1993. I want to say that there are over 20 episodes. The channel formerly known as The History Channel still airs an episode at 7:00 EST every Tuesday morning.
You can purchase 8 of the episodes on DVD, but they haven't added any more for sale since. Danny "Friend of Hugo Chavez" Glover is the narrator. For some reason, his narration is not used on the "live" broadcasts. _________________ "Let us have faith that right makes might..."
- Abraham Lincoln
Joined: Mar 04, 2004 Posts: 4926 Location: Suburb of Philadelphia
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 8:33 am Post subject:
The "fuming" icon was not related to you (or more precisely - the fact that you forgot) but rather to the phrase itself. And as such (and any time I think of tDa Wah in these terms...and that would be continuously) - I DO get a coronary!!!
_________________ I Remain
Your Ob't Servant
Allan
Time sets all things right. Error lives but a day. Truth is eternal.
A Great Civilization is not Conquered from Without until It has Destroyed Itself from Within
Joined: Feb 10, 2004 Posts: 2654 Location: I am here aint I?
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 8:43 am Post subject:
To Allan and to all,
In the first book of the triology written by Bruce Catton, he discussed that issue. That viewpoint... Coming Fury..
And I think that title by the way explains the war and even its aftermath. Even some 150 years later. Coming Fury...
Now I would say Lasting Fury...
Jim _________________ "The Flag, THE FLAG, Oh THE FLAG! G.K. Warrens last words on his death bed, August 8,1882
There is many a boy here today who looks on war as all glory, but, boys, it is all hell. W.T. Sherman
Joined: Dec 05, 2007 Posts: 400 Location: Western NC
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 9:29 am Post subject:
Hi Jim,
Yeah, I know what you mean. It was a little different for me though since being a guide I was used to drawing a crowd. Used to surprise me at times though when I'd be on a different battlefield.
Regards,
Keith
Joined: Mar 04, 2004 Posts: 4926 Location: Suburb of Philadelphia
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 10:45 am Post subject:
Keith - what can I tell you? It's a curse and a cross we must bear
(I know Bad Lt just goes wild when the crowds gather round me.
Actually... I'm beginning to suspect that he sets it all up and sends them after me...just so he can have a good laugh afterwards ) _________________ I Remain
Your Ob't Servant
Allan
Time sets all things right. Error lives but a day. Truth is eternal.
A Great Civilization is not Conquered from Without until It has Destroyed Itself from Within
Joined: Dec 05, 2007 Posts: 400 Location: Western NC
Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 11:38 am Post subject:
A few more Random Thoughts and Musings...
Today is the true first day of Spring--the Masters begins. I'm not going to get into a discussion on global warming, at this point its kind of like the moon landing, you either believe it or you don't and nothing's going to change your mind. But, for decades for every southerner who plays golf the Masters marked the true first of Spring regardless of what the calendar says. These days though, it's hard to ignore already cutting grass and trees and flowers well along in bloom even up here in NC....
Good news out of Perryville that a basically pristine site will remain that way at least for the forseeable future. Thanks to all who took the time to weigh in on this issue...
I debated whether to put this in a separate thread, but I'm already here so here goes. At what point do errors in a book make you start to question the book's veracity? I'll give a couple of examples of what I mean. A well respected and reviewed G'burg book has a glaring mistake about Jackson (the date of his death) very early on. Now, with something like this, to me I can keep going but I'm shaken enough to keep a very wary eye for quite some time if not all the way through the rest of the book and it honestly impedes on the enjoyment for me. Even worse is another example, this one a book on the War of 1812, where I'm more than halfway through and come across an error so bad (placing a Rev War battle not only in the wrong place, state, and year--in fact the year given is before the freakin' war even begins) that I can't help but start to question what else is wrong. In fact its hard for me to even finish the book. Am I alone in this? Do I over-react? Is there some sort of sliding scale that others use based on how many errors and how blatant?
Hate to get into a negative subject, but how will fuel prices affect your battlefield visits this year? I know for myself it will definitely be harder to get to as many fields as I would like and as often. Where's the outrage from the average American over this?
There was a lot of talk about the Ghosthunters episode at the Cashtown--for me it was great to watch for the scenes in the bar if nothing else. Man, what memories! At one point I started staggering out the door just out of muscle memory and Jill had to remind me I couldn't walk home any more...
Speaking of Spring ( I was somewhere, wasn't I?) I really start to miss the battlefield this time of year. Spring was always my favorite season. The redbud blooming, the green re-appearing in the viewshed from LRT, the dogwoods, the constant stream of yellow from the yellow greyhounds (school buses)--what memories...
It's going to be interesting what my first impressions will be when I walk in the new VC at G'burg. While the amount of time I spent in the building vs. on the field in the old VC was miniscule, still a large chunk of my life revolved around the old darling. I'll look forward to hearing from others their thoughts when they make the first visit...
A quick bit of shameless self promotion. For anyone who might be interested, I got a call from Thomas Publications yesterday that Battlefield Ghosts will be in stock again as of Monday...
And a bit of shameless promotion for our host; I for one was excited not only because May and the release of One Continuous Fight is right around the corner but also the news that Gettysburg's Forgotten Cavalry Actions will soon be once again available. I'll be waiting eagerly in line with my rubber, I mean hot, I mean over-active credit card in hand...
Great discussion not long ago on Eric's blog about Springsteen--this past wknd doing a down and back trip to Fla. went a helluva faster and more fun with a constant rotation of the Boss, Buffett, James McMurtry and the Eagles...
Every time I log on I see tons of visitors listed--let's be sure and make those folks welcome. Come on folks, jump in and join the fun! It's a great group around here and all are welcome...
Ran across something the other day that brought back an argument I used to make about Early which I'll get into in another thread. But the point is...I know I had a point...I was going somewhere...oh yeah, the point is, it's amazing how quickly things that you used to talk about practically every day slip through the cracks of the mind when you don't think about them for a while. Of course, with some us the cracks are more like gaping canyons...
Regards,
Keith
RickAllen Official Chronicler of Gettysburg Tours!
Joined: Feb 13, 2004 Posts: 4286 Location: Baltimore, Maryland
Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 2:37 pm Post subject:
Okey dokey, I'll try chipping in point by point Keith!
Spring! Winter's been hanging on up here, we are still having a few nights of frost next week even though as I write this, it's sunny and 72. I think Augusta is a good indication of Spring , I dont golf, but I'd love to take some choice hallucinogens and wander the back nine. I'm a man of simple pleasures.
Great news indeed out of Perryville! I've never been anywhere remotely near the place, but from what I hear it's quite undisturbed and of course I think it's wonderful that for now, things will stay that way.
At what point do errors in a book bother me? Pretty early. If I find the wrong kind of things wrong, it really blows my faith in the author and I have a hard time trusting them for anything else after that. Case in point would be Brigades Of Gettysburg by Brad Gottfried. It's a handy book and I dont regret buying it, but there are SO many errors in that book, anything else the man may ever write (and he writes a book a week)....will always be suspect to me. That might not be fair, but that's the way it is. I have his Maps of Gettysburg and I'll pick up his Artillery at Gettysburg at some point, but he's already ruined in my mind and cannot be trusted implicitly.
Fuel prices likely won't effect my battlefield travel much, because I really dont take any LONG drives to battlefields. If I did, it would probably have a much larger impact. Dont get me wrong, it's not going to help my battlefield travel any......but it won't really detract from it either. At least not yet. It is a concern though and it sure doesnt help the wallet.
The Cashtown Inn is a neat place and I really enjoyed the Ghost Hunters episode. So much so, that I've taken the place over for a weekend late this year.......booked every room in it..........and if things go right, we may just have a paranormal investigation of our own with a special guest visitor from across the Atlantic. (More updates on that, when and if, things come to pass)
Spring is a lovely time of year at the Burg. I'm supposed to be stomping around the Lady farm this weekend, and even though it is supposed to rain, I am looking forward to it. The flora of Spring is truly spectacular in the Park!! Even as partial as I am to Winter in the Park, I have to admit that Spring has a vibe all it's own.
Good news on your book Keith! As I said, I have a copy right here on my shelf. When we hook up, I'll bring it to the bar and you can sign it for me if you'd be so kind?
I did enjoy Erics Springsteen blog................you can tell how much he admires him and how deeply he loves the music just by reading it. I'm not a SpringHead myself, but I dont hate him or anything........I have a ton of respect for the guy and I know full well what an awesome band he has assembled to back him. Reading Eric post about Springsteen reminds of the passion I used to have for going to see the Dead............what fun those days were!
And yes, to all you "Visitors" out there........why not chime in? Start a thread..........or just say hello within one. Very few of us bite and only then when nicely asked, so log on in and join the party!
Regards,
Rick _________________ " Do you like French fries, Wyatt Earp?"
I likewise always appreciate Keith's random musings. I think he's usually right on point.
Thanks for the kind words about my work, guys. I'm pumped that GFCA will be back in print; it really chapped my ass when Thomas allowed it go out of print, and I wrestled for a long time what to do about it--re-do the book, let it go out of print, or bring it back as originally published. I ultimately decided to bring it back as originally published, as the three-volume set on cavalry operations in the Gettysburg Campaign that J. D. and I intend to do will reflect the many new discoveries that have come down the pike in the ten years since GFCA was published.
And as for Bruce, what can I say? We have three more old geezer band concerts yet to go this spring...Billy Joel, Van Halen, and The Police with Elvis Costello and the Impostors. Other than 16-year-old Wolfgang Van Halen, these guys are all over the age of 50, and some close to 60. Billy Joel is 59 and hasn't released a new album of pop music in twenty years, but he still packs 'em in. Why? It's a great show.
Eric _________________ "If you want to have some fun, jine the cav'ry!"
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
Forum FAQ
Search
Usergroups
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
), well I tell folks to watch it to get a sense of how fericious CW battles WERE!!! And it plays DOWN the violence. But it does give a sense of the tactics, the frustration of the average soldier (Aint fit to fill a johnny detail nor pore pea from a boot even with the instructions written on the heel!). Its good in that it shows these men to be HUMAN in the middle of one of the darkest periods of US History (I would add a LOUD AMEN on Saving Private Ryan, and also add Band of Brothers to it as well).
)
