Monthly Archives: September 2011

Michael Milton (1794-1863) and Martha Elizabeth Clark (1807-?), Part III

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(Me-M-F-F-F-Them)

Military Pension Application

*Louisiana State Archives, War of 1812 Pension Applications, Cabinet 314, Drawer #7, Reel #4.

             

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The State of Louisiana >    6th Judicial Dist.
Parish of Livingston           Court Clerks Office

Personally appeared before me, clerk of the district and parish aforesaid Mrs. Martha E. Milton former wife of Michael Milton and now his widow, who lived and died in the Parish of Livingston and State of Louisiana. Who being duly sworn did depose and say on oath, that she is the widow of Michael Milton who was regularly in the military service of the United States – in the years 1814 and 1815 and in that capacity was at the siege of New Orleans in December 1814 and January 1815 – that the said Milton is now dead. That she knows the name of his Captain was Thompson – that she does not recollect the letter of his Company – nor does she recollect to what Regiment or Division he belonged. That he was honorably discharged from said service and that he obtained from the government of the United States a Bounty of Land Warrant No. 39213 for eighty acres of land.

her
Martha X E. Milton
mark

attest.
H. Davidson

Sworn to and subscribed before me
this 14th day of Augst 1869
Dan J. Settoon Clerk of Court

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The State of Louisiana >     6th Judicial Dist.
Parish of Livingston              Court Clerks Office

Personally appeared before me the undersigned Clerk of the aforesaid Court Mr. Ezra Hill and John Underwood. Who reside in the State and Parish aforesaid. Who being duly sworn did depose on oath that they were well acquainted with Michael Milton for more than twenty years. That he always had the reputation of having been at the siege of New Orleans and a veteran of 1814 and 1815 and that they are well acquainted for more than twenty years with the present applicant and know her to be the widow of the veteran Michael Milton – that the widow now and always has resided in the Parish of Livingston and State of Louisiana and since the death of Michael Milton she has always borne the reputation of being the widow of a man who had been regularly in the service of the United States and a veteran . Who had been present at the siege of New Orleans – in December 1814 and January 1815.

attest.                                                                                                     Ezra Hill
H. Davidson                                                                                     John J. Underwood

Sworn to and subscribed before me
this 14th day of Augst 1869
Dan J. Settoon Clerk of Court

I, Daniel J. Settoon Clerk of the aforesaid Court do hereby certify that I am well acquainted with the subscribing witnesses

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to the above affidavit and that I saw Mrs. Martha E. Milton, the applicant and the witnesses sign this application and affidavit and the warrants forwarded herewith and I […] then certify she is the person she represents herself to be and that she as well as the subscribing witnesses are persons of credibility. […] my hand and seal of office this 14th day of August AD 1869.

Dan J. Settoon Clerk

A Good Weekend – Football & Food

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What a good weekend! First, I worked on Saturday, allowing me to make a little money and further guaranteeing that I will be able to eat for the next two weeks. Also, I found out that I had lost 8-9 pounds, after 3 to 4 months being virtually the same weight. Being poor is the best diet I have ever been on. Later that night, I no doubt ruined it as I went to my dad’s to watch some football and eat grilled hamburgers. I think my dad finally has the hang of cooking burgers without burning them. Go old man!

But the game is more important. LSU 47 – WVU 21. Jarrett Lee was again rock solid. The two defense backs, Ware and Ford, were machines. Especially Ware, who was twisting and turning for extra yards the entire game. Everyone on offence played very well. The defense had some definite problems in that they were not able to put a whole lot of pressure on Gino Smith. Almost none at all. The defensive backs carried the defense with such exceptional players as Mathieu and Claiborne. The team was able to get 4 turnovers. The real MVP of the game should have been Wing, the Tiger’s Aussie punter. He put almost every punt within the 10 or 5 yard line. So what if Gino Smith had 463 yards passing, because WV had to start from their own end-zone on almost every series. I think I saw somewhere that the Mountaineers average starting spot was on their own 16 yard line while LSU’s was around the 48 or so. Field position wins games, baby, and this was how this one was won.

The next day I forgot to set my alarm so I missed church. While this stunk on my part, I was able to watch the Saints game while washing dishes. The Saints had a nail-biter against a rebuilt Texans team coming off a really crappy season last year. They really stunk but a lot has changed. It was back and forth until the very end. While the Texans maintained a lead for most of the game, Brees and Co. were able to put out their signature 4th quarter comeback to seize the win. The defense were the true heroes of this game. The Texans got to the red zone a great many times, but were held up to only a field goal. As one commentator stated, “Defeat, thy name is field goals.” So it was here, Saints 40 – Texans 33.

Finally, to finish the day off, I went to my brother John’s house for Pastalaya. I was hesitant, because I had never had it before. It turned out to be really delicious – as good as his Jambalaya. He is a pretty good cook. My dad and step-mother were there as well and after dinner we had a good conversation going. When I returned home, I was able to catch most of the new Jeff Dunham show on Comedy Central. All in all not a bad weekend – although I will try not to miss any more church.

Hate Crimes?

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This week in the US there were two executions of convicted murders. One was convicted of killing a police officer in Georgia and the other for a particularly brutal dragging murder in Texas. The man in Georgia was executed despite a lot of pressure from the public there to overturn the case. No one seemed to mourn the man in Texas. He and a few friends drug a black man to death behind his pickup. Putting the professions of innocence and the moral ramifications of the death penalty aside, I want to address something that has always bothered me – hate crime laws in the US. I don’t understand it.

Here is an imaginary example detailing my confusion. Say I am of a criminal persuasion and go into a 7-11. The cashier takes too long to give me the money and I, high on drugs, shoot him a couple of times. The cashier dies, I am on video and the cops come to arrest me a couple of days later after my mom rats me out so she can have my not-so-secret coke stash. I am found guilty and am sent to the electric chair.* Another tale – harboring a life-long hatred of Jews and other supposed sub-humans, I walk into my local Jewish deli and shoot the manager because I, like Mel Gibson, believe that Jews start all the wars. The local SWAT team raids my house hours later, finding me absentmindedly fondling my hoard of Nazi memorabilia. A ZOG controlled judge by the name of Goldstein sentences me to death by lethal injection. A decade later, after several appeals, I am executed by the state.±

The issue that I really have is over cause and effect. What difference does it make why a man was killed? I am not saying that intent should totally be eschewed, as that would totally throw out accidents, self-defense, and insanity. But a murder over racial or other equal motivations is no more heinous to me than one over money or anything else. A man (or woman) is still dead, leaving a hole in the victims family. All murders (by which I mean not of the three exceptions) should be processed to the harshest degree currently allowed. Allowing gradation in crime will in some sense create special social definitions where one person’s death is more horrific than another’s. Also, do we draw the same lines across all boundaries? Will a black man, if he is filled with hate towards “The Man,” then drive up and shoot me as I pick up the morning paper because of my skin color get the same treatment as an Aryan Brother pulling the same crime? I do not know. All of this current rush towards “fairness” leads me to believe not. I do not mean to just limit this to just murder either, but include rape, assault, etc. In any of these moments, no matter the reason, I am sure there is a lot of hate there.

*The first imaginary me could probably get a good lawyer and get it whittled down to just Manslaughter or Murder 2.

±The second imaginary me would probably try for an insanity plea. Pre-planned videos of me saluting “Heil Hitler” while watching Triumph of the Will, getting loaded on schnapps and repeated loops of Wagner on high volume would no doubt aid my cause.

Substituting

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This week I substituted in a class at a local high school. It was my second time with this class. To be honest, these were the only two times I have substituted before. It was in a class with severely handicapped students – both physically and mentally. Two were in wheelchairs. These two could barely speak and another one did not at all. There were only four students in the entire class.

When I came back the second time, the other teachers (there being 3 there at all times, rotating in and out with others to prevent burnout) asked me if I felt any trepidation in returning. They were surprised, it seemed, when I answered that I did not. Other substitutes had been driven off – no doubt by the spitting, hitting, and throwing stuff. I don’t know if I could handle that class every school day, but occasionally it is alright. I feel a great deal of respect for the people that interact with these kids. Even the main teacher that has been AWOL for the past 2 weeks and doesn’t answer her phone.

These kids are not bad kids. They are just like little tykes trapped into adult bodies. They have taught me quite a bit over the last 2 times with them. Patience. I am not known for my patience, but it is required with them. Your anger has no meaning for them and thus little value. But they must be instructed in social norms as best as possible, so it interesting to work with them. Kindness. They have taught me that kindness is not just a verbal expression, but something that can transcend language. I need to do more of it, especially smile. I do not do it enough.

Why do these 2 lessons seem important to me? It may be because at the end of the day, they will not have one thousandths of the opportunities that I have had or will have. Sometimes I feel like a man with a target on his back, handing out free rocks for the public stoning. I have suffered through depression and had “woe is me” blabberings. Yet, nothing I go through will compare to them. Being with them has taught me that they deserve at least patience and kindness – even with the spitting, hitting and throwing stuff.

Hmm. It seems that it was I who was the student.

Great Article on George W. Bush

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Today I read a great article on President George W. Bush by a long time friend and sometime confidant. In it, he describes the intelligence of the 43rd president and his understanding of past and current events. He also details Bush’s voracious appetite for books and the knowledge that he gained from them. In this, I feel a little vindicated because I have tirelessly defended George W. Bush’s intelligence from those who would launch ad hominid attacks. I, like the former president, stutter and am tongue-tied in front of an audience. This does not mean that I am any less intelligent for having this problem. The author, Walt Harrington, succinctly sums up our perhaps most debilitating political issue when he writes, “It baffles me that grown people must convince themselves that those with whom they disagree are stupid or malevolent.”

In moments of weakness, I have chosen poor words describing our current president. This is not over the belief that he is an idiot or evil. I believe that we see the world in different spectra of light. I in red and he in blue. The pun was intended. Joking aside, I need to work on how I voice my dissent and not fall in the same trap that has befallen those I opposed.

Some Friends Depart

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A couple of months ago, I made the acquaintance of two girls from China that had come over to work and travel here in the U.S. They were in a pretty bad spot because they were plunked down in Watson, LA, the community where I work. There is not much to do there and life is pretty much impossible without having your own vehicle. We have no public transportation and they were unable to go anywhere until they procured some bicycles at Walmart. It is about a 3 and 1/2 mile walk.

In addition, their work condition was not very good. Their boss at Church’s Chicken was quite harsh to them and the Turkish guys who lived with them. I am boycotting that particular establishment for life over this issue. They were not provided with enough work hours so they went to get a second job at McDonald’s. They worked around 70 hours a week each. Yesterday, their boss at Church’s had the temerity to state that they were not hard workers and she did not like them. Well, to hell with that. They are great people and work harder than that person ever will in her life.

I initially helped them because of the warmth and welcome that I had received in their homeland. Upon getting to know them, I came to believe they are outstanding people with good hearts. I wish that I had been more capable of helping them get established and see some of the sights that I am proud of in my home state. Alas, a couple of days ago, I bid one of them goodbye as she was leaving for New York City. Today, the other one left for Washington, D.C. and other parts. I wish them both well and happy journeys. Be safe. And if my countrymen run into Serena Chen from Hangzhou and Anna Jiang from Wenzhou, be kind to them and watch over them. Thank you.

       

LSU 19, MSST 6

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Ah, tonight’s game was a great game. I was unable to see the first half of the game due to work, but I got the gist of it from the announcers. Jarrett Lee played great. He had 27 attempts for 21 completions, with 1 interception. The one mistake when he was pressured quite a bit and threw it into a well played zone coverage. The two RB’s, Ware and Ford, are just machines.

Defensively, the Tigers are almost too scary. In the half that I saw, they were getting really deep penetration to the QB. The Miss. St. QB was sacked something like 3 times and the offense had over 13 plays for loss. Claiborne had 2 interceptions. One was just a beauty. In the 2nd half. Like I said, scary.

The only problem that I really had was during the 3rd quarter when both LSU’s offense and defense were becoming penalty prone. It was one after another. Roughing the passer, offsides, holding, etc. The team needs to build a little more discipline and cohesion. Or, Miles needs to chew the hell out of them. Both of these options may work.

On to a personal issue that I wish to address. I am a bad sport, by which I mean that I like to gloat. In Conan the Barbarian, Conan is asked by a nomad leader, “What is best in life?” He gives the ultimate response: “To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their women.” I cannot describe the joy that I feel when I see the tears and despair on the faces of a crowd whose team is about to be beaten by LSU. This is especially true of Alabama, Auburn and Florida. Mississippi State, Old Miss and Arkansas also warm the cockles. I know this gloating is not the best response because I have felt the same emotions they feel in years pass and will feel them again when LSU eventually loses. Yet, is it really a bad thing?

PTR – Dakota Meyer, Sgt., USMC, MOH

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Amazing story of bravery here at Stars and Stripes. Sgt. (then Cpl.) Dakota Meyer, was awarded the Medal of Honor for bravery during the 2009 Battle of Ganjgal Village in Afghanistan. Five times he and another Marine, then-Staff Sgt. Juan Rodriguez-Chavez, waded through an enemy ambush in a Humvee to rescue pin-down Marines. In doing so, he would rescue 13 Marines and 23 Afghan soldiers. On the fifth trip, he found 4 of his slain comrades. Another would perish later. He is the first Marine to be awarded the MOH since Vietnam.

Along with his bravery, the battle pinpointed problems the military is having with air and artillery support. The rules to protect civilian lives are in some cases needlessly extreme and may become detrimental to the survival of our servicemen. The original McClatchy story, filed just after the battle, detailing these events are here.

The Mustache for President

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In today’s National Review Online, John Bolton, a former U.S. representative to the United Nations, delivers a stinging condemnation on what he describes as President Obama’s foreign non-policy worldview and feeble attempts at international relations. In gamer’s parlance, he calls him a n00b. It is an interesting read.

Hellhole – Kevin Anderson & Brian Herbert

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*spoiler alert
I just finished reading Hellhole, by Kevin Anderson and Brian Herbert. My reaction to the book: Meh. It is supposedly the start to a new space opera epic and I was quite frankly disappointed. Based on the ravaged and dangerous planet of Hallholme, nicknamed Hellhole, it describes the actions of the oh so noble General Tiber Maximilian Adolphus as he plots to overthrow the evil rule of the dowager Diadem Michella Duchenet. He had already been defeated once. These new plots are reasonably successful and Adolphus is able to craft an alliance out of the frontier planets to which he had been exiled. This story arc is slightly interrupted by the emergence of a beneficent symbiotic alien race that wants to merge with humans in order to seek the renewal of their dead race. This exceptionally intriguing plot aside, the book stalls in both setting description and characters.

In setting, the description of Hellhole seems understated as a planet ravaged by an asteroid a half millennium ago. The authors seemed to want to imply that it was a backwater dumping grounds for misfits on a severe life-threatening scale, à la Star Trek’s Nimbus III. The authors were unable to sell it for me. The characters, all decent enough folk, seem to work together for the common good. Nature, while deadly, is maintainable. Power for equipment is available, nobody seems to be starving, and the single killing that takes place shocks all who learn about it. This is not a place that shapes the human soul through suffering. From veteran writers who worked on the Dune series, I expected better. If you want a truly deadly environment, whether from nature or just killing each other, turn to Godwin’s The Survivors or Pournelle’s War World series. To be honest, a good day in Mogadishu sounds worse than Hellhole.

The characters are not much better. The leads, Adolphus and Duchenet, are extremely one dimensional. Adolphus is honorable and believes that the ends do not justify the means. This is made evident when he refuses to attack the enemy fleet, losing the battle and his own fleet, because the enemy has taken hostages from among his peoples’ families. This sucks for him as his opponent is the exact opposite in nature. She is cruel and malicious. She killed her brother who was before her in the line of succession and imprisoned her sister who witnessed it. There was no hesitation about ordering the arrest and execution of her daughter’s lover. She has ordered a great many deaths, yet she was hesitant to order the execution of Adolphus when he was captured. So, to foil the creation of a martyr, she exiles him to a really bad planet where he is expected to die but doesn’t. This one suspect act of benevolence starts the ball rolling.

The most disappointing aspect of this new series start is that it was written by two such veteran sci-fi authors. I have read several books that they have put out and have been generally impressed with their writing. The one redeeming aspect of this book is that it will set up what may be some spectacular space battles in the next two books. Or, at least I hope so if the aliens crap doesn’t piss me off too much when I read them.