Thursday 13

 This week I will list 13 things - in no particular order - for which I am thankful this week

1. The wood stove that keeps our house warm.

2. Mr who keeps the wood supplied in the garage saving me multiple trips to the woodpile outside.

3. The infinite supply of kindling we pick up in the yard daily.

4. My children who check in with me frequently.

5. My DIL, Yellow Rose, who is holding it all together at home while #1 is deployed.

6. Mini - she is a great sleep aid! She purrs me to sleep every night. 

7. My friends L and C who turned me on to this diet/eating plan. I start the maintenance portion next week. 33 lbs gone! 

8. Fingers that still work and allow me to crochet and create things with yarn.

9. My Yeti - it keeps my water cold and makes it taste better so I drink more. 

10. Modern appliances that make my life so much easier and thus giving me time to create things.

11. Phone calls from old friends.

12. Warmer weather... yes, I know that there’s a lot of winter left...

13. A sit down lunch with Mr every day. We laugh, we chat, we connect. We love that time together. 

Tuesday...

The nation is still nuts. 

My offspring both attended VMI - they both got an excellent education and over the 6 years we were there, we never saw racism of any kind. 

I read this and it made sense:

VMI Test Case for the Country

By Forrest L. Marion on Jan 7, 2021

In May of this year, George Floyd died; seven months later, the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) removed its statue of Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson from its prominent position at the nation’s oldest state-supported four-year military college. The two events – one in Minnesota’s largest city, the other in Virginia’s picturesque Shenandoah Valley – had nothing to do with one another. How did this happen; what are its implications?

In the wake of Floyd’s unfortunate death, a flurry not only of protests but also of writings on race ensued. In time, many of the latter took aim at VMI, a number of which asserted the school’s Confederate heritage had some connection with terms such as “structural” or “systemic” racism. Suddenly, the small but nationally-recognized military college, founded in 1839, was thrust into the limelight. One major problem with the charges – some of which have come from VMI graduates themselves – was that the published allegations fail to meet a traditional, objective definition of structural or systemic racism; in other words, racism that is part of the structure of the institution (school) itself. If such racism exists at VMI, it remains unsubstantiated as of this writing.    

A survey of the articles on VMI and racism in the last six months suggests the allegations of racially-inspired acts – nearly uniformly attributed on the internet or in print to structural or systemic racism – were, in fact, acts of individual poor judgment or an individual’s racism: 1) a second-year cadet’s unserious but equally foolish threat to “lynch” a black cadet during a fevered workout for first-year “Rats” (for which the upperclassman was suspended, a significant discipline given the nature of the event in which the Rats were to undergo intense adversities to prove themselves, an integral part of VMI’s well-known adversarial, successful, model)[1]; 2) a professor’s thoughtless, “wistful” comments in class on the entertaining parties enjoyed years ago by her father, a KKK member; or, 3) some stupid or racially derogatory comments on social media. In fact, those are the three primary anecdotes that have been repeated over and over in news articles since June: none were structural (systemic, institutional) in nature; all took place in an individual or small-group/classroom context with a single protagonist or on social media (highly individualistic by its nature). It is altogether possible that the first two incidents were one-time events that have morphed into different versions in the reporting.       

Certainly, individual acts of stupidity, poor judgment, or outright racism ought to be addressed (some, like the lynching threat, have been). Such incidents, however, are a much different thing than so-called structural (systemic, institutional)racism. Perhaps Virginia’s $1 million investigation of – in the governor’s words – a “clear and appalling culture of ongoing structural racism” [emphasis added] at VMI, will prove to be unfounded. Time will tell.

Before proceeding, a quick recap is in order. In July 2020, responding to allegations of racism at the school – including calls to remove the statue of Stonewall Jackson – VMI Superintendent J.H. Binford Peay III announced that the Institute was to shift focus from its first century’s record to its second century – in essence, devoting less attention to the school’s roots in the Confederacy but without disparaging those who served that government with honor and competence (for context, VMI men served the Confederacy for 4 years but the school has contributed military personnel to the U.S. armed forces for the vast majority of its 181 years). Retired U.S. Army General Peay directed a five-pillared approach, one of them “Education,” the core of which is a new American civics course, required for all second-year cadets. Further, VMI was to add course offerings in non-traditional, ethnic fields, including African history and the African-American experience – rational steps to increase inclusiveness.

Unfortunately, Governor Ralph Northam (VMI 1981) was unwilling to allow time for these measures to be implemented and to take effect. Instead, in October he wrote of his “deep concerns” about the “appalling culture of ongoing structural racism” at his alma mater and directed an investigation of the structural (systemic, institutional) assertions which – by brief analysis of the above-described incidents – were not structural but individual or small-group in nature.  

A rational observer might question two things: 1) why the governor’s unwillingness to wait and observe the effects of General Peay’s measured reforms which already were underway; and, 2) why should the governor – in effect acting as both investigator-and-judge – charge VMI with an “appalling culture” concerning race – or anything else for that matter – prior to the discovery of the facts and context surrounding the allegations? Whatever the answer, it will not be to his credit. (Governor Northam may be grateful that he received far better treatment in 2019 when the news of his own youthful insensitivities regarding race came to light.)     

Without doubt, the most serious charge is one directed at the VMI honor system – the heart and soul of the school, widely renowned and long respected. That charge has not been highlighted in most of the news articles. In a few pieces it seems almost to have been tossed in for good measure. At least one individual with some connection to VMI has charged that the honor system has been applied to black cadets with partiality. To anyone familiar with VMI, such a claim is difficult to believe. It is the one charge – reported without any specifics whatsoever – that, if substantiated, rips out the core of the Institute and requires rebuilding from ground zero. Based on two years as an honor court member in my own day, I do not believe the charge has merit. It certainly did not between 1978 and 1980. As readers may recall, all too often in 21st-century America the mainstream media jumps on the first thing they hear that fits The Narrative; only later, after reputations are called into question or ruined, are the facts sorted through. Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s mistreatment was only one recent example. With VMI’s honor system, we shall see.     

The real question concerns the legitimacy of terms like “structural racism” or “systemic racism” as they apply to VMI in 2020. The real answer: at VMI, they are not legitimate in 2020.

There was a time, however. An outstanding historical example of authentic structural racism in Virginia may be found in the Virginia Revised Code of 1819, which stated in part:

That all meetings or assemblages of slaves, or free negroes or mulattoes mixing and associating with such slaves at any meeting-house or houses, &c., in the night; or at any SCHOOL OR SCHOOLS for teaching them READING or WRITING, either in the day or night, under whatsoever pretext, shall be deemed and considered an UNLAWFUL ASSEMBLY. . . .[2]

(On a side note, it was this statute that Thomas J. Jackson knowingly violated because of his Christian commitment to teaching the slaves in his neighborhood to read the Bible.)  

Sadly, a statewide code such as the above certainly fit the traditional definition of a structural, systemic, or institutional measure. Of course, it was only a half-century ago when other inequitable, structural measures regarding race were rectified in Virginia and throughout the nation, in connection with voting and other civil rights for all Americans.

Over the last half-century, VMI dealt one by one with structural (systemic, institutional) matters regarding race, although the term racism’s relevance was debatable. In the 1970s the band ceased playing Dixie (black cadets were admitted to VMI beginning in 1968). The President of VMI’s Class of 1979 was black. In 1982 the First Captain, the top position in the Corps of Cadets, was black – both men chosen not for the color of their skin but for their excellence and character as cadets. In the 1990s the Institute ceased using the Confederate flag. In 2015, the Rats stopped saluting Jackson’s statue for their saluting practice. Most likely, there is nothing that even approaches structural racism any longer at VMI, but that determination rests with Richmond.       

Today, errors in thinking regarding what constitutes racism are all the more dangerous because the definitions of racism have changed. Basically, as some writers express, there was an “Old Racism” that existed in Virginia and elsewhere (not only in the South), and that may still be found, unfortunately, on a case-by-case basis. Today, however, there is also a “New Racism,” with its roots in neo-Marxist ideology modified from a focus on class to race by some who are committed to an anti-Western, lawless agenda. According to its poisonous tenets – in accordance with Critical Race Theory (CRT), with which the New (structural) Racism is part and parcel – all human relationships, laws, institutions, and societies are inherently racist and are to be defined by “oppressors” and the “oppressed.”[3] The oppressors are white; the oppressed are non-white. No neutrality is permitted under CRT, thus ensuring unrest, divisiveness, and agitation among any organization it touches. According to one CRT scholar, “Racism is no longer about individual discrimination. It is about systems that allow for disparate outcomes among racial groups.” King David of Israel put it this way: “What I did not steal, I then have to restore.”[4]   

This New Racism, today most prominently espoused by Black Lives Matter (BLM), is the basis of the charges being leveled against VMI. Charges against VMI for its roots in the Confederacy, for example (including those made by one Virginia House delegate, VMI 2003) are code language for the New Racism – which itself, paradoxically, is highly racist. 

One does not read very far on the official BLM website before encountering the term, “systemic racism.” BLM states, “The work is just beginning. We start by . . . holding the new president-elect . . . accountable to . . . campaign commitments of addressing systemic racism [emphasis added].” In another section of the website, BLM touts that “we disrupt the Western-prescribed nuclear family structure,” a traditional Marxist objective; thereby demonstrating BLM’s animus toward the West, including families, laws, and constitutions. So, when BLM or a BLM-informed entity speaks of systemic racism, one must conclude it refers to white-organized and -led institutions (the oppressors). Such institutions will always and forever be guilty of racism. It can be no accident that the terms systemic or structural racism used by BLM and other CRT/neo-Marxist based activists are the very ones that VMI’s antagonists are using.[5]

(If some readers view the terminology issue as no big deal, please be reminded that he who controls the language controls the culture; and that words mean things. In the history of U.S. military space, for example, the advance toward an independent space corps – now the U.S. Space Force – was hindered for years by the U.S. Air Force’s institutional use of the term and concept of “aerospace” as opposed to “air and space.”)  

The VMI community, Virginians – indeed, Americans who care about the survival of their institutions – must reject completely the pernicious and poisonous concept of structural (systemic, institutional) racism under a neo-Marxist based definition. Otherwise, do not be surprised one day to find that not only has Stonewall’s statue been taken away; other institutions will necessarily follow, among them families, schools, businesses, and churches. If one of the most staunchly meritocratic, honor-bound, and – for decades – color-blind institutions in the country, the Virginia Military Institute, can be made to implement fundamental changes demanded by advocates of a neo-Marxist based ideology, all institutions are at risk.

---

[1] Ian Shapira, “Northam calls for VMI investigation after Black cadets describe relentless racism,” Washington Post, Oct. 19, 2020.

[2] “Slavery and the Making of America,” Original Documents, Excerpt from Virginia Revised Code of 1819.

[3] Tommy Curry, “Critical race theory,” Encyclopaedia Britannica, no date. 

[4] Bari Weiss, “Stop Being Shocked,” Tablet Magazine, Oct. 14, 2020 [emphasis in original]; Quote from Psalm 69:4.

[5] “Join Black Lives Matter in Our Request for a Meeting with President-Elect Biden and Vice President-Elect Harris,” Black Lives Matter official website, Nov. 9, 2020. 

You can find the article here: https://www.abbevilleinstitute.org/blog/vmi-test-case-for-the-country/?fbclid=IwAR1ft17aIyNs-rQqKnGllW3nAOoD_eUADJ80P7xbvKG9Hg7hNl9SIAJjrnw

An article I read....

 So, the nation has gone crazy. Social media has decided that conservatives are simply not to be heard because we speak the truth, have common sense, and follow and support the law and those that enforce it. It seems that we are relegated to the blogosphere again (until they try to boot us out of there, too). 

I found this article and it says what I’ve been thinking all along... 

Democrats Were For Riots Before They Were Against Them

By Daniel Greenfield FrontPage Magazine

In 2018, the media was writing up glowing stories about the hundreds of Women’s March members who were engaging in "direct action” to disrupt the Senate’s Kavanaugh hearings. Hundreds of members from the radical leftist group had invaded the hearings and were arrested. Their travel expenses and bail for the disruptions were covered by the Women’s March. Radicals from the March and other leftist groups blocked hallways, shouted down Senate members, and draped protest banners from balconies. Democrats cheered them on. When a leftist mob assailed the Supreme Court, pounding on the doors, MSNBC called it an “extraordinary moment” and praised the crowd, “besieging the Supreme Court” and “confronting senators”. "If you see anybody from that Cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out and you create a crowd. And you push back on them," Rep. Maxine Waters had urged earlier that year. Later, the Democrat House member told MSNBC, "They’re going to absolutely harass them". In 2020, Black Lives Matter rioters vandalized the Lincoln Memorial and the WW2 Memorial, along with statues of Gandhi, General Kosciuszko, and Andrew Jackson. The racist thugs marched through the city starting fires, including at a historic church, and tried to besiege the White House. Attempts by federal law enforcement to fight BLM terrorism were falsely denounced as a brutal attack on “peaceful protesters”, and as “militarism” and “fascism”. Democrat House members took to proposing bills to protect the racist mobs from law enforcement. Meanwhile the BLM mob besieged the White House and battled Secret Service personnel, allegedly forcing the evacuation of President Trump and his family to a bunker. This was the new normal enthusiastically supported by Democrats and the media. A bail fund backed by Senator Kamala Harris and Biden campaign staffers focused on helping the rioters and looters get out of prison. Along with any other criminals along for the ride. Violent protests, including those targeting public officials and legislative bodies, had been championed and normalized by Democrats and their media over the last four years. That included the harassment of officials, property destruction, and assaulting law enforcement. Now, as the Democrats expect to take power, they suddenly decided that rioting is bad. Before the Save America protest even began, the same Washington D.C. authorities who had championed and protected the Black Lives Matter riots, prepared for a crackdown. “We want the military, we want troops from out of state out of Washington, D.C.,” Mayor Muriel Bowser had ranted when BLM was attacking national memorials and the White House. “We will not allow people to incite violence, intimidate our residents or cause destruction in our city,” Bowser now insisted, demanding that the National Guard come out to stop the protests. Unless they're Democrats, she failed to mention. D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine had responded to the Black Lives Matter assault by condemning law enforcement. He had issued a statement falsely accusing President Trump of "responding to nonviolent demonstration with war-like tactics". "We —the Mayor, the Council, OAG, and MPD—must commit to standing in between our community and the boot of tyranny. And we must act on this commitment. We must start by promising to defend our residents from harm while they engage in peaceful, nonviolent protest.” "My level of anxiety is high. My preparation is even more intense than that," Racine was telling the media before the pro-Trump Save America rally now. The double standard was obvious and blatant. The Democrats and media had cheered Black Lives Matter violent protests. They had colluded in previous invasions of Congress and the harassment of elected officials. But now they wanted a violent riot they could condemn. And such a riot would helpfully put to bed any further questions about a rigged election. After a massive peaceful rally by Save America protesters, who had been addressed by President Trump, a smaller group marched on Congress. The MPD however reacted very differently than it had to previous Black Lives Matter and four years of leftist rallies. In the resulting confrontation, a number of fringe elements, Neo-Nazis, Groypers, Boogaloo Bois, a leftist-libertarian anarchist group that collaborates with Antifa and Black Lives Matter, took the opportunity to cause damage and stage photo-ops for the media. Unfortunately some legitimate conservative protesters who had entered the building were caught in the violence. But the media stars of the confrontation were not conservatives and were anti-Trump. One photo showed Nick Fuentes, the alt-right Groyper leader whose antisemitic group had previously shut down a Turning Point USA event by booing Donald Trump Jr. off the stage, and Tim ‘Baked Alaska’ Gionet, a former Black Lives Matter supporter and BuzzFeed employee, who has a history of going back and forth between the alt-right and the Left. Another appeared to show Matthew Heimbach, formerly with the National Socialist Movement, an alleged Neo-Nazi leader, who had previously argued in court that his actions were President Trump’s fault and that Trump should be held legally liable. Much as in Charlottesville, marginal figures who were hostile to President Trump, to Republicans, and to conservatives, had taken center stage at the behest of the media. The purpose of the entire circus was to provide a propaganda opportunity for the Left. The outrage over the protests is a farce coming from a political movement that advocated terrorizing Republican elected officials, that aided invasions of Congress, and that supported the Black Lives Matter riots which, aside from terrorizing D.C., also wrecked much of the country. Why is broken glass on Capitol Hill so much more precious than the broken glass that ended the dreams of store owners in Kenosha? Where was all the outrage, the tears wept for our country when Black Lives Matter thugs were prying open shops around the country, looting them, and assaulting their owners on a scale so vast it racked up $2 billion in damages? “Please, show me where it says protesters are supposed to be polite and peaceful,” CNN’s Chris Cuomo had barked while his news network showed rioting and looting in New York. Riots are obviously wrong. Except that Democrats and the media decided that wasn’t true. Martin Luther King's infamous quote, "a riot is the language of the unheard", popped up in Time, USA Today, and on CNN. “Violence was critical to the success of the 1960s civil rights movement,” a Washington Post op-ed argued. The AP urged reporters to use "uprising" instead of "riot" to describe the violence, while suggesting that protests can be violent and that reporting should not focus on the "property destruction”, but instead on the “underlying grievance". A subsidiary of one of the big 5 publishers put out a book titled, "In Defense of Looting." You can’t normalize political violence and then expect it to be a one-sided affair. After months in which BLM mobs attacked a federal courthouse in Portland, throwing fireworks and shining lasers in the eyes of law enforcement personnel, toppled statues across the country, and injured hundreds of police officers, the Democrats and their media are suddenly outraged. How, in the midst of all this rioting, could anyone get the idea that rioting is okay? Laws only work when they apply to everyone. When violence is okay for some, but not for others, then a violent struggle ensues until a totalitarian monopoly on violence is achieved. Or until we come to our senses. There’s little question as to which side of the political spectrum has championed and mainstreamed violence for over a century. The very different fate of Kluxers and the Weathermen, trailer parks for the former and academic careers for the latter, show which side finds political violence not only acceptable, but praiseworthy. And this is no different. Contrary to the media’s spin, Republicans have never normalized violence. And Republican political power doesn’t depend on political terror and violence. Leftist power invariably does. The Left began a new age of political violence in 2016. It can turn it off anytime it wants to. The problem is that it won’t, and an illiberal partisan media and accompanying cultural establishment will never dare to suggest that maybe there should be fewer riots and threats. And that means the violence will escalate. Opportunists will seize the moment to play agent provocateurs, creating memorable images for media propagandists to justify a crackdown. The protesters in D.C. had a legitimate grievance. And they still do. The outrage over stolen elections won’t be suppressed this way. The mass movement in D.C. is the true resistance. There is a great deal of irony in quoting "a riot is the language of the unheard" to describe the race riots of a movement with unlimited political and corporate backing, whose message is heard all the time, but not to address a movement that is genuinely unheard. Before the fighting started, there was virtually no media coverage of President Trump’s speech and the rally. Press conferences that mention election fraud aren’t aired. Articles and videos questioning the election are censored. That is the true voice of the unheard who are more so than ever. Democrats and the media normalized violence when they were in the opposition and now want to normalize the suppression of political protests and speech as they expect to take power. But media spin isn’t real life. And it’s a lot easier to break a country than to put it back together.

Christmas 2020

 Hello! 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! 

I thought I’d fill you in on our family life - 2020 has been a different kind of year, but blessings abound.

#1 and Yellow Rose are still in Texas, but at the moment #1 is away doing whatever the Army tells him to do. Yellow Rose and the dog, Abby, miss him, but are handling things just fine. They came for a visit this fall (before #1’s departure) and we had a wonderful time with them. Yellow Rose keeps busy managing two Orange Theory studios and taking online graduate classes. I honestly don’t know how she does it all, but she does it with grace and a smile. We miss them terribly, and look forward to #1’s return and some time with them afterwards. 

LLB is still stationed here, in DC. She is working hard, completed her Masters in Mechanical Engineering this fall, just finished overseeing both of her bathroom’s renovations, and continues to rock climb in her local rock climbing gym. She keeps busy! She is hoping to be able to ski a bit this year - we shall see what the weather brings and if the ski areas open. 

This spring, when the world shut down, Mr and I decided that we had a lot of chores that needed doing and got to it. We cleaned out barns, closets, attics, and garages. We took copious trips to the dump - it got to be that they knew the car and just waved us through. We cut and split firewood (I do love that wood splitter!), we spent time, we laughed, and basically enjoyed each other’s company. We spent the summer by the pool - he working and me reading or crocheting. 

My life slowed down for a bit until I thought it would be a good idea to participate in a Pop-Up Market sponsored by our church. I spent a few crazy weeks this fall making mittens, table runners, masks, and more. My handbell choirs have combined and shrunk to field one very good combined choir. I look forward to the churches opening up and getting back to ringing - maybe next fall??

Mr is still working at MITRE as a software engineer. He shifted his hours and goes in for the afternoon after working at home in the morning. I guess he never got the memo that senior citizens should not write code! H thoroughly enjoys the fast-paced environment and competing with millennials less than half his age. His time off the laptop is spent playing handbells in my choir and taming Mother Nature on our ten acres with his chainsaw, mower, and a wide assortment of lawn tools. 

If you’re ever in VA or passing through, shoot us an email. We’d love to see you! 

Merry Christmas! 

So many blessings!

LLB is home! I’ve finished playing at the 1pm, and listening at the 4pm. They were both lovely services! Everyone is asleep... the last load of dishes has been unloaded and put away. The breakfast casserole is cooking and the dishes have been laid out. It’s the calm before the wonderful chaos that is Christmas! I have turned off the lights, kissed my cat, and crawled into bed. 

My soldier is healthy and safe,  and his wife is with her family. 

Life is so very very good and we are so blessed. 

Merry Christmas Eve! 

Practice makes....

 I’ve been practicing my bell tree music for Christmas Eve. I’ve got 2 out of 3 pieces memorized. Sometimes I struggle and sometimes it just comes naturally. I’ll have the music with me just in case my nerves try to get the best of me. 

Needless to say, I’ll get there.

Ding dong ding...

Cruising into Christmas

 Wow! Time sure does fly. I can’t tell you have many times I thought to myself, “I should do a blog post”... and yet... here we are... mid-December! 

We had a busy fall. We got the bells out and fielded a combined choir - that was really fun! We played for a virtual service last week and it was fantastic! The church decided to try to have a pop-up market, so I thought I’d try to scramble and put a booth together. I did pretty well. I made the money back that it cost me to make everything, so I have no complaints! I made some table runners, mittens, masks, and hand lotion. Would I do it again? Ummm... maybe if it were closer to Christmas.

The tree is up. The presents have been ordered. Anything that’s here had been wrapped. Some gifts are in transit... let’s hope they get here... I ordered a bunch of special things before Thanksgiving... and here we are... still waiting. It is what it is. If they come, great... if not, I’ll wrap a picture. Life is too short to sweat the small stuff. 

I wrote a Christmas letter this year. I’ll post it separately - because it gives me a quick and easy blog post! Hey - it’s called “Using Your Resources”! 🤣🤣

Today is the first snow of the season. Mr is upstairs working and Mini is here being a bother. She is wondering when I’m going to break down and give her some treats. (DYI: not happening. She is on a diet and so am I... no treats for anyone!). I’m currently sitting by the fire, enjoying a cup of tea, watching Tv, and typing away. Actually, I’m supposed to be practicing bell tree music for Christmas Eve. Instead, I’m procrastinating. In my defense, I’ve got most of it down, and I’m in the process of memorizing it. Since masks are currently required and my glasses often fog when I breathe, I need to KNOW the music just in case I can’t see it. “Covid problems!” 

LLB is is off skiing with friends this week. It’s so good to see her enjoying herself. She works hard, is very dedicated and responsible, and definitely deserves to play! I look forward to having her home for Christmas and hearing stories of her adventure. This fall she had both of her bathrooms remodeled. It became obvious that they just needed updating... so she bit the bullet and spent the money. They are updated, gorgeous, and fully functioning! All that’s left to update is the kitchen, and she will get to that after she saves up. 

#1 is deployed. He is handling it well but is currently back in quarantine because 2 people who work near him tested positive for the dreaded Covid.  He’s calling it Christmas in Quarantine 2020. I’m really glad I sent him a wee tree and a good book for Christmas! He was looking forward to the Christmas Eve services in camp, but will see them virtually instead. (He might even tune in to see our service and  me play if I remind him!) Yellow Rose is home with the dog keeping things running and doing it well. She is managing two studios and taking graduate classes. She is a go getter for sure!  We would have loved to have her here for Christmas, but she is spending it with her family - we completely understand, but we miss her anyway. Maybe we can have both of them here next year! 

So, I guess I’ve caught you up on life here at The Crossing. Life is good. We are so blessed!