Maine Forest Cafe

Time, Space & Place. Saturday, July 4, 2009 in Freeport, Maine for a small town’s celebration of America’s Independence Day.

The Letter P on Flickr.

Son & I brought along (of course) our cameras and settled into a letter P theme. This is applied Street Photography – capturing collectively shared experiences and remembrances.

Without much effort, I captured fourteen P’s. I hope you like them. I would appreciate hearing your thoughts.

PETA to artist Indiana: EAT vegetarian

PORTLAND — Artist Robert Indiana isn’t too keen on adding the word “vegetarian” to his famous EAT sign that went on public display for the first time in 44 years last month.

Wouldn’t it be a whole lot easier to add one “M” and change the sign to EAT MEAT?

I’m just saying.

On this day in history, Mainer Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain gave the command to fix bayonets.
In his words:

“At that crises, I ordered the bayonet. The word was enough. It ran like fire along the line, from man to man, and rose into a shout, with which they sprang forward on the enemy, now not 30 yards away. The effect was surprising; many of the enemy’s first line threw down their arms and surrendered. An officer fired his pistol at my head with one hand, while he handed me his sword with the other. Holding fast by our right, and swinging forward our left, we made an extended “right wheel,” before which the enemy’s second line broke and fell back, fighting from tree to tree, many being captured, until we had swept the valley and cleared the front of nearly our entire brigade.”

http://schwartz.eng.auburn.edu/ACW/lrtmap.docs/chamberlain.html

For this action, he was later awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. His citation reads:

Daring heroism and great tenacity in holding his position on the Little Round Top against repeated assaults, and carrying the advance position on the Great Round Top.

For a good read on JLC’s Civil War activities, I recommend Killer Angels by Michael Shaara. This book was the source for the PBS movie on the The Civil War. Shaara takes the reader from before, then during, then after that epic three day battle. This book became the foundation of the Shaara family trilogy on JLC’s civil war career, starting with Of Gods and Generals and finishing with Last Full Measure. Read these three books for a full appreciation of how our country transitioned to We The People.

Killer Angels was mandatory professional reading when I taught at the Air Force Senior NCO Academy. The book piqued my interest into the Civil War and introduced me to a heroic Mainer – Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. Since then, I have walked the hallowed ground of the Round Tops, read the Gettysburg Address at the National Cemetery in Gettysburg, and now, frequently drive by his statute at Bowdoin College.

History lives on when we remember.

The Common Law, originally uploaded by Zeus Ocean Storm.

In several short days, American’s will be celebrating the 233rd birthday of our greatest country on earth. That always brings The Declaration of Independence to mind. Recently I have been to Williamsburg, VA – a true patriotic pilgrimmage if there ever was on.

This has followed up with a renewed interest in our founding fathers. So far, I have read the American Sphinx : The Character of Thomas Jefferson by Joseph Ellis (worthy of another post currently in draft). A Son of Thunder: Patrick Henry and the American Republic by Henry Mayer is next. And know that the third in this historic trilogy will be a reading of John Adams by David McCullough.

But I digress. This picture was taken in Jamestown – inside the first church in America. English Common Law is the law of our land, however, I remain intrigued by the parrallel Scottish Law concept. Common law is fully based on prior decisions which results in the rigid automation of precedence. Scottish law is more flexible, implemented to find the truth first, then do what is right under the circumstances. Then this plaque appears in the first surviving English settlement. Setting and settling once and for all the law of the land. But all laws have prior precedence.

Now the purpose of this post – some of the more and most remarkable precedences that come to mind. Can you recognize their source.

Thou shalt not….

Know that before God,

We whose names are underwritten, This one is personally significant as I am a direct descendent of one of the signers.

When in the course of human events……

We the People of the United States

THE Conventions of a number of the States

And we are today, a nation of laws. Thomas Jefferson would chafe at the size of the federal government. In fact, for Thomas Jefferson, all federalist were evil. But here we are today, the republic to which we stand, with an ever more pure federalist government. Laws are needed. They are the boundaries that protect and preserve our lifes, our liberties, and our pursuit of happiness.

But then again, perhaps it’s time for a restorative resetting revolt.

We The People will celebrate our Independence Day.