Russians predict demise of United States

by Grant Martin on

You had no idea, but the United States is on the verge of civil war. At least that’s what Igor Panarin, a Russian professor and “expert” on American relations is saying. He’s been saying it for years, actually, but just in these past weeks Russian media (and the Kremlin) has picked up his story and is running wild with it.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Panarin’s theory is that “mass immigration, economic decline, and moral degradation will trigger a civil war next fall and the collapse of the dollar. Around the end of June 2010, or early July, he says, the U.S. will break into six pieces — with Alaska reverting to Russian control.”

Glad you’ve got that schedule down to weeks.

In the end, you skinny-leg jean people out on the east coast will end up joining the European Union, everyone in the south goes to Texas (?!), the west goes to CHINA and everyone in the North? Oh they just fade into Canada.

It’s sad to me that Panarin can not only get away with publishing this theory in Russia but that the state, knowing full well what complete rubbish it is, will let it propigate. But we’re also talking about the country where Dimitry Medvedev is the “President,” people have “rights” and the government isn’t a tyrannical oligarchy, right?

Civil War driving tour in North Carolina: A trip on the Blue-Gray Scenic Byway

by Jamie Rhein on

A month ago, I wrote about a Civil War driving tour in Tennessee. Here’s another one I found out about in an engaging article by Jodi Helmer in the November/December issue of AAA’s Home and Away magazine.

Helmer followed North Carolina’s Blue-Gray Scenic Byway on a quest to find historic sites connected to the Civil War. The journey was a hunt and ask venture that wound through small towns and tobacco fields. As she found out, even a nondescript field where a battle took place has significance. Such was the case when she went into the Harper House, the now museum, but once farmhouse that was turned into a hospital during the war in order to treat soldiers who were wounded.

Other points of interest along the way were the Cliffs of Neuse State Park, the remnants of CSS Neuse–a ship used by the Confederate Navy, and small towns like Dudley, Seven Springs and Deep Run.

People in these towns pointed Helmer in the direction of terrific barbecue. She suggests Wilber’s Barbecue in Goldsboro.

Reading Helmer’s article reminded me of the importance of pulling off the road once in awhile to read those brown historic markers and asking the locals, “Where would you eat and what’s worth seeing here?”

For more information about the Blue-Gray Scenic Byway, click here. One thing to keep in mind, many places are closed on Sundays. Here is a down-loadable brochure of the Civil War Trail another tour option.

Are looters saving Civil War history or destroying it?

by Jamie Rhein on

“This button is from the coat of a Confederate soldier–or a Union soldier” is something one might hear at a Civil War relic trade show and sale.

Or perhaps you might hear this at county historical society museum. Civil War relics are often among those items passed down through generations. At a museum, they are displayed in a case for everyone to enjoy instead of being tucked in a box in a bedroom closet.

Guns, cannonballs, swords, bullets, uniforms–if it’s from the Civil War, and you have it, someone wants it. Increasingly, that’s what the U.S. National Park Service is finding out. Yesterday there was a story on NPR about the looting problem in National Parks. People loot the parks then sell their catch to collectors.

Here’s a case in point. At the Fredericksburgh & Spotsylvania National Military Park, a ranger found 467 holes dug in the ground where a battle took place when the Union soldiers led by Grant tried to flank the Confederates.

When the guys who were doing the looting were caught, they had 200 relics with them. Naughty guys.

Although digging holes in national property to steal loot seems like an obvious wrong, there are some who think, dig away. I’m pretty sure those who are pro digging think that digging should be more methodically conducted than destroying the land. They don’t think that relics should be left underground to rot away forever.

Those who say dig it up believe that if the relics are removed, they can be displayed and preserved for everyone to learn from and enjoy. The National Park Service, at least the ranger interviewed in the story, disagrees with the dig it up mentality. He believes the relics belong where they are since they are part of the battlefield, thus part of history as is.

Regardless of the ranger’s desires, it is hard to stop looters in National Parks because there is only one ranger per every 56,000 acres. This means that treasures like petroglyphs, plants and other relics are also in danger of being taken.

Personally, I’m intrigued that under the ground of Civil War battlefields there are still buttons that soldiers once wore. It makes their presence seem more real. [To listen to NPR story, click here.]

By the way, all relics you see are not stolen. This is a problem with some relics.

Helen Keller: Women’s history that shouldn’t fade

by Jamie Rhein on

There’s a story out about a rare and, perhaps, one of the best photographs of Helen Keller as a child with her teacher Anne Sullivan. As with many treasured photos, it was tucked in another family’s album. The photograph is now in the care of the New England Historic Genealogical Society, a place for pouring over old documents, photographs and microfiche. Perhaps, you can see Helen’s photo if you ever go there.

Not long ago, I read that Helen Keller is becoming one of those people who those under a certain age don’t know about. Not because she’s not important, but because of how quickly time passes. Other people who are more recent start taking their place. If people do know about Helen, it’s the sound bite version. “Oh, she was the blind and deaf girl who learned to finger spell water.” This is a reminder about the need for history months. It gets us to dust off the stories, and point out the places of interest where we can wander around in the lives of truely remarkable people who lived before us.

To wander around in Helen’s life, one place to head is Helen Keller’s birthplace, Ivy Green in Tuscumbia, Alabama. The house and grounds are still there to visit. As an interesting point, the house was not harmed by the damages of the Civil War and looks today as it did back then. Included in the tour are several of Helen’s belongings.

The fact that Helen was deaf and blind is remarkable, of course, but her life was much more than that. She also blazed trails for women’s education and voice in public life. Plus, she gave voice to the goodness and hope in people. A timeless message, perhaps?

Here’s a quote from Helen that fits the traveler’s life: Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. Security does not exist in nature nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger in the long run is no safer than exposure.

Memorial Day Type Place: Gettysburg

by Jamie Rhein on

If you live anywhere near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania perhaps you were one of those kids I saw on a field trip when I was on my own fifth grade outing. Here, on what now is pristine rolling hills and wooded countryside, 50,000 people died in three days during the American Civil War. A friend of mine, a Civil War buff, considers Gettysburg his most favorite place on the planet. He swears the place has some sort of vibe he can feel.

It’s been awhile since I was in the 5th grade but I still have the blurry photos I took and clearly remember the Electric Map (at the Gettysburg National Military Park Visitors Center), the wax museum, and the site where Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address. The Electric Map, still part of the visitors’ center, shows the movements of the northern and southern armies with colored lights that represent each side.

The wax museum, now called American Civil War Museum doesn’t seem like it’s changed much from its Web site description. I remember one exhibit scene had a wax soldier whose chest moved in and out with his breathing. Another scene I remember, Jennie Wade baking bread in her sister’s kitchen where she was shot and died, is also there. I forgot about her until I read the Web site for the museum.

Hovering somewhere between history and kitch, Gettysburg knows what people like to see. In a world where many places don’t stay the same from one year to the next, it’s comforting to know that in some corners things are like we remember. Here’s a read from The Washington Post about traveling to Gettysburg with some well-put commentaries.