Tony Alan Grayson's Blog
November 26, 2014
Short Stories
Goodreads Readers,
As a thank you for being so kind to me in my debut as a writer, you are invited to have four recently released e-book short stories for free at Smashwords.com.
You can get to the home page at https://www.smashwords.com/. It is easy to download to your kindle, nook, or other e-reader device. Tony Alan GraysonSearch any or all of these short story titles to obtain the following stories for free:
Pondicherry
Paige
Sharon Ann
The 21st Century Warrior, Writer, and Publisher.
I hope you enjoy them. Best - Tony
As a thank you for being so kind to me in my debut as a writer, you are invited to have four recently released e-book short stories for free at Smashwords.com.
You can get to the home page at https://www.smashwords.com/. It is easy to download to your kindle, nook, or other e-reader device. Tony Alan GraysonSearch any or all of these short story titles to obtain the following stories for free:
Pondicherry
Paige
Sharon Ann
The 21st Century Warrior, Writer, and Publisher.
I hope you enjoy them. Best - Tony
August 16, 2014
Pondicherry, India
Summary
Pondicherry, India is a destination to the past as well as the present. Located on India's Coromandel Coast, Pondicherry celebrates its French Colonial history, blends it with the local Tamil culture, and fills the senses of visitors with a rich and varied heritage blended with grace and hospitality. Such a place tempts the theme traveler. The theme: Find traces of the French East India Company.
An Excerpt from "The Star of India"
The Dupons beheld a recently established botanical garden in the French Quarter about two blocks west of a magnificent palm tree-fringed promenade. Romantics walked there to enjoy the warm sea breezes. There, spectacular red sunsets were framed by the gentle sea of the Bay of Bengal. The town was in harmony with nature and its heavenly bodies. The name of every street began with the word rue. Dumas kept the Dutch-designed grid. The streets intersected at right angles. The current governor did add his hand to the local engineering when he encircled the entire French Quarter with a spectacular boulevard. Now, the French portion of Pondicherry was softened into the shape of an oval.
The carriage stopped at a colonial house with large windows. The shudders were constructed of teak, and teak doors, twice the size of average house doors, hung in their traces. This house featured a spectacular veranda on Rue Romain Rolland. The veranda was adorned with wicker furniture. The Dupons were provided with a pair of rooms in that expansive place, including one with a small private balcony that offered a view of the Bay of Bengal.
A light wind caught the high fronds atop the tall thin trunks of Pondicherry palm trees, to rock them gently like babes in their mother's arms. The same breeze carried delicious fragrances of food that tempted the nostrils of Ignacio and his teenage son. They walked down well-engineered and remarkably straight Mahe De La Bourdonnais Street, in the French Quarter. They walked toward the Bay of Bengal. The Dupons had come out to socialize and find dinner. It was their game not to plan such outings. Instead, they preferred chance encounters and clues to steer them where they were supposed to dine. Ignacio thought they both liked that because so much of their lives had become structured. The evening time was their time for élan...to enjoy. Jean-Louis simply thought it fun to try new things, and he relished this daily time with his father. It seemed to him that they had become closer now that the father believed that his ambition for his child would be realized.
"What food is that?" Ignacio asked as he lifted his head slightly to catch with his nose more of some delicious sweet-scented aroma that wafted by. Jean-Louis decided that it was a crepe that his father smelled for he knew that Ignacio was most fond of sweet things to eat. He detected coffee on the wind, as well. Thus, his guess was that should they seek the source of the sweetness they would find an India coffee house at the end of it. That sounded like a suitable goal to Ignacio, who would be willing to forego a main course if he could have two or three desserts in place of it.
No more than two turns around a block they found it. The coffeehouse had French doors open wide in welcome. White sheers danced on the wind, drifting in and out of the eatery. The coffee aroma grew stronger as father and son approached the house. Ignacio saw an India man hand-grinding coffee beans fished from a sack. About forty people sat at an array of small tables inside the coffeehouse or outside either of the three French door entrances. The strange thing about coffeehouses, like this one in India, was that because European knowledge of coffee origins was associated with the Middle Eastern desert regions, the coffee houses in France tended to be decorated like the ones that the Arabs frequented. Yet, here in Pondicherry, the coffee houses packed in the trappings of France and India more than Arab.
Jean-Louis pointed out the thing that Ignacio wanted. Two workers busied themselves at a griddle making light crepes filled with sweet and savory chocolate or raspberry sauces and dusted with cinnamon or powdered sugar. Hungrily, Ignacio ordered a plate of each variety while he had his son to get the coffees and go outside to snare a table for two out under the fading blue India sky. At the table, they split the spoils so that each of them would have a chocolate and a raspberry crepe.
Commentary
"The Star of India" is the second of a three novel story that began with "A Voice from New Mill Creek: The Methodists." If you would like to see surviving photographs of French India, click http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-in... .Tony Grayson If you would like to read a Trip Advisor report on Pondicherry, click http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g6... . Those who love to see worldwide beach photography will enjoy the blog site of Don Charisma. Click http://doncharisma.org/
Pondicherry, India is a destination to the past as well as the present. Located on India's Coromandel Coast, Pondicherry celebrates its French Colonial history, blends it with the local Tamil culture, and fills the senses of visitors with a rich and varied heritage blended with grace and hospitality. Such a place tempts the theme traveler. The theme: Find traces of the French East India Company.
An Excerpt from "The Star of India"
The Dupons beheld a recently established botanical garden in the French Quarter about two blocks west of a magnificent palm tree-fringed promenade. Romantics walked there to enjoy the warm sea breezes. There, spectacular red sunsets were framed by the gentle sea of the Bay of Bengal. The town was in harmony with nature and its heavenly bodies. The name of every street began with the word rue. Dumas kept the Dutch-designed grid. The streets intersected at right angles. The current governor did add his hand to the local engineering when he encircled the entire French Quarter with a spectacular boulevard. Now, the French portion of Pondicherry was softened into the shape of an oval.
The carriage stopped at a colonial house with large windows. The shudders were constructed of teak, and teak doors, twice the size of average house doors, hung in their traces. This house featured a spectacular veranda on Rue Romain Rolland. The veranda was adorned with wicker furniture. The Dupons were provided with a pair of rooms in that expansive place, including one with a small private balcony that offered a view of the Bay of Bengal.
A light wind caught the high fronds atop the tall thin trunks of Pondicherry palm trees, to rock them gently like babes in their mother's arms. The same breeze carried delicious fragrances of food that tempted the nostrils of Ignacio and his teenage son. They walked down well-engineered and remarkably straight Mahe De La Bourdonnais Street, in the French Quarter. They walked toward the Bay of Bengal. The Dupons had come out to socialize and find dinner. It was their game not to plan such outings. Instead, they preferred chance encounters and clues to steer them where they were supposed to dine. Ignacio thought they both liked that because so much of their lives had become structured. The evening time was their time for élan...to enjoy. Jean-Louis simply thought it fun to try new things, and he relished this daily time with his father. It seemed to him that they had become closer now that the father believed that his ambition for his child would be realized.
"What food is that?" Ignacio asked as he lifted his head slightly to catch with his nose more of some delicious sweet-scented aroma that wafted by. Jean-Louis decided that it was a crepe that his father smelled for he knew that Ignacio was most fond of sweet things to eat. He detected coffee on the wind, as well. Thus, his guess was that should they seek the source of the sweetness they would find an India coffee house at the end of it. That sounded like a suitable goal to Ignacio, who would be willing to forego a main course if he could have two or three desserts in place of it.
No more than two turns around a block they found it. The coffeehouse had French doors open wide in welcome. White sheers danced on the wind, drifting in and out of the eatery. The coffee aroma grew stronger as father and son approached the house. Ignacio saw an India man hand-grinding coffee beans fished from a sack. About forty people sat at an array of small tables inside the coffeehouse or outside either of the three French door entrances. The strange thing about coffeehouses, like this one in India, was that because European knowledge of coffee origins was associated with the Middle Eastern desert regions, the coffee houses in France tended to be decorated like the ones that the Arabs frequented. Yet, here in Pondicherry, the coffee houses packed in the trappings of France and India more than Arab.
Jean-Louis pointed out the thing that Ignacio wanted. Two workers busied themselves at a griddle making light crepes filled with sweet and savory chocolate or raspberry sauces and dusted with cinnamon or powdered sugar. Hungrily, Ignacio ordered a plate of each variety while he had his son to get the coffees and go outside to snare a table for two out under the fading blue India sky. At the table, they split the spoils so that each of them would have a chocolate and a raspberry crepe.
Commentary
"The Star of India" is the second of a three novel story that began with "A Voice from New Mill Creek: The Methodists." If you would like to see surviving photographs of French India, click http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-in... .Tony Grayson If you would like to read a Trip Advisor report on Pondicherry, click http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g6... . Those who love to see worldwide beach photography will enjoy the blog site of Don Charisma. Click http://doncharisma.org/
August 9, 2014
Can Excellence Co-Exist with Equality?
Summary
Democratic governments of nations throughout the world are establishing new laws that mandate benefits to all people that they govern. The cost of these new benefits is borne by a mixture of industry that can be taxed in those nations, taxes from the citizens themselves, and increasingly, unpaid debt that is passed to future generations to pay. The United States of America (USA) practices governance that follows an ancient Greek model for government, with some adjustments. Essentially, the people of the USA elect their government office holders, who then occupy offices of authority, responsibility, and accountability. I refer to all three as an elected official's "power" in this article. Power includes the capability to create new law. It is the government apparatus itself that enforces the law. Since the founding fathers of the USA were most concerned about too much power in the hands of one or a few people, the government of the USA features many well-crafted checks and balances on elected government officials. However, the greatest check on a wielder of power in government is the people who are governed. They wield the power of the vote. The balance is supposed to be achieved by the flow of information to the voters so that they understand what the elected officials intend to propose as new law.
Why New Laws with more Benefits?
Any two people might encounter a politician, and each might perceive him/her differently. Politicians are (or try to be) all things to all people that they govern. Some possess a soul seated with a strong moral compass. Others are in office to enjoy the perks. The rest of them are somewhere between those two extreme viewpoints. In the USA, unless they are independent of a political party, all of them are affiliated with one of two political parties, and are subjected to great pressure to support the objectives and goals of their party. Many people view the word "compromise" as weak. However, compromise is how politicians (especially those with different party affiliations) reach agreement. Think of it like the saying, "You scratch my back and I will scratch your back." In other words, one politician can say to the other that he/she does not agree, but will support the other's proposed new law in exchange for the same agreement from the other. Why so many new laws with more benefits? One of the political parties is willing and feels empowered to be Santa Claus for voters. One gets gifts from Santa Claus, and does not pay him for those gifts. The elected officials of the other political party are so few in number that they cannot check the move. There can be no compromise when the elected officials of one party can achieve their party objectives without the need for compromise. Is this a bad thing? Maybe. That is something for you (the voter) to decide. Simply put, if your government passes a new law that gives you something that you did not have, that is a benefit to you, it is a good thing, if you can afford it. If you get the benefit without paying for it (the Santa Claus effect), then the good thing is even better! On the other hand, if the government passes a law that gives a benefit that you already have, it is a yawn. It is choking, when the government also gives you the bill (tax) to pay for the gift to others.
Should Voters be Concerned?
If there is no check on the Santa Claus effect, it will continue, unbounded. This will especially be true if enough voters (a majority) combine to support the political party that promotes for election only candidates that will strengthen and expand the Santa Claus effect. Should all Americans (or citizens of any country led by a Democratic government) be concerned? Yes! Those who are compelled by law to pay for Santa Claus' free toys will leave, and take their money with them. That should be apparent to Americans, who see so many American companies shift operations to other countries. How happy are you, as a voter, to get more "free stuff" from your government when it caused you to lose your job, caused your children to not be able to get a job, and took from you the long-held vision of excellence for America? If you are upset about this, whose fault is it? Who is to blame? You are at fault. You (the voter) are to blame. It is your fault because you are uninformed and you are disinterested in politics. See the summary above. The balance is information. Until inter-netted communications was put into place, American voters were informed by journalists. Today, the visual media (television) still provides the most convenient source of information to the voters on what their elected officials do. The problem with that is that most of the networks affiliate with one of the political parties. They have true journalists in the lower ranks, but the message to you, the voter, each day, is blended with the objectives and goals of (mostly) the political party that is behind the Santa Claus effect. You will not get balanced information on what your elected officials propose to become new law by watching television news.
Check the Politicians
Especially if you are an American citizen, the ghosts of the founding fathers of your country must be screaming at you from their graves! Do something. They did not spill blood and treasure to give you gifts. They gave you a democracy. It is not, and will not ever be a finished product that will run on autopilot. Get involved. Get your balance from political blog sites. Search for several that will tell you what your local government's objectives and goals are. Become familiar with the local elected official who represents you. Form an opinion and share that opinion with your neighbors. When you and your neighbors agree, each of you should communicate your opinion to that local representative. The vote is important, but the officials only see the numbers. The way you understand what is happening in your local community is by being informed (information), interested (form an opinion and talk with others), and by communicating your views to the elected official.
The Power of the Voter
Try this: State a summary (3-4 sentence narrative) on a situation that concerns you; state a desired end state (what you want to achieve);state some facts (give sources) and assumptions, that support your concern; give your guidance with constraints (must do this) and restraints (must not do that); suggest some tasks that will begin to address your concern; state what you believe are measures of performance that will define that your end state has been achieved. This is what you prepare before you communicate with an elected official. Practice with your neighbors. They will tell you if you have made a point that effects them. Ask them to support that point along with you. If they will, you and they can contact the elected official as a block of voters. The official must reply, must tell you if he/she will promote your concern or not, and why. If he/she does accept your concern, he/she will ask you to help him/her form up more voters to support what you asked him/her to do. Do it! That is what your founding fathers wanted you to do. Once you have made this your habit, scale it up. Repeat what you did by finding the blog sites for your state government. Now you will communicate with your state representative. Finally, repeat this habit at the national level. You will communicate with your senator and representative in Congress.
The Responsibility of a Citizen
If you and your neighbors are active in communicating your concerns locally, in your state, and nationally in Washington, you and your neighbors have formed the ways and means to examine and act on the objectives and goals of political parties. Perhaps, half of (you and your neighbors) might join one political party (Democrats) and the other half join the other party (Republicans). Now, work with your neighbors in both parties to repeat the check. Stay informed, form opinions, and advocate those opinions to those in both political parties who set agendas that may become law. This is where you earn the right to be called a United States (or other Democratic nation) citizen. Tell both party officials that you do not expect to see Santa Claus until Christmas, and that it is you, the voter, who pays for the toys that Santa Claus brings to your house. Tell them the major focus areas that concern you. Give them your objectives, your restraints and constraints, your measures of performance, and the end states that you want them to achieve. Explain to them the intellectual and moral qualities that you expect their candidates for office to have. Tell them plainly what will win your vote. Can excellence coexist with equality? Yes it can, if that is what you want, and you, as a voting citizen, work to get it. Tony Grayson
Democratic governments of nations throughout the world are establishing new laws that mandate benefits to all people that they govern. The cost of these new benefits is borne by a mixture of industry that can be taxed in those nations, taxes from the citizens themselves, and increasingly, unpaid debt that is passed to future generations to pay. The United States of America (USA) practices governance that follows an ancient Greek model for government, with some adjustments. Essentially, the people of the USA elect their government office holders, who then occupy offices of authority, responsibility, and accountability. I refer to all three as an elected official's "power" in this article. Power includes the capability to create new law. It is the government apparatus itself that enforces the law. Since the founding fathers of the USA were most concerned about too much power in the hands of one or a few people, the government of the USA features many well-crafted checks and balances on elected government officials. However, the greatest check on a wielder of power in government is the people who are governed. They wield the power of the vote. The balance is supposed to be achieved by the flow of information to the voters so that they understand what the elected officials intend to propose as new law.
Why New Laws with more Benefits?
Any two people might encounter a politician, and each might perceive him/her differently. Politicians are (or try to be) all things to all people that they govern. Some possess a soul seated with a strong moral compass. Others are in office to enjoy the perks. The rest of them are somewhere between those two extreme viewpoints. In the USA, unless they are independent of a political party, all of them are affiliated with one of two political parties, and are subjected to great pressure to support the objectives and goals of their party. Many people view the word "compromise" as weak. However, compromise is how politicians (especially those with different party affiliations) reach agreement. Think of it like the saying, "You scratch my back and I will scratch your back." In other words, one politician can say to the other that he/she does not agree, but will support the other's proposed new law in exchange for the same agreement from the other. Why so many new laws with more benefits? One of the political parties is willing and feels empowered to be Santa Claus for voters. One gets gifts from Santa Claus, and does not pay him for those gifts. The elected officials of the other political party are so few in number that they cannot check the move. There can be no compromise when the elected officials of one party can achieve their party objectives without the need for compromise. Is this a bad thing? Maybe. That is something for you (the voter) to decide. Simply put, if your government passes a new law that gives you something that you did not have, that is a benefit to you, it is a good thing, if you can afford it. If you get the benefit without paying for it (the Santa Claus effect), then the good thing is even better! On the other hand, if the government passes a law that gives a benefit that you already have, it is a yawn. It is choking, when the government also gives you the bill (tax) to pay for the gift to others.
Should Voters be Concerned?
If there is no check on the Santa Claus effect, it will continue, unbounded. This will especially be true if enough voters (a majority) combine to support the political party that promotes for election only candidates that will strengthen and expand the Santa Claus effect. Should all Americans (or citizens of any country led by a Democratic government) be concerned? Yes! Those who are compelled by law to pay for Santa Claus' free toys will leave, and take their money with them. That should be apparent to Americans, who see so many American companies shift operations to other countries. How happy are you, as a voter, to get more "free stuff" from your government when it caused you to lose your job, caused your children to not be able to get a job, and took from you the long-held vision of excellence for America? If you are upset about this, whose fault is it? Who is to blame? You are at fault. You (the voter) are to blame. It is your fault because you are uninformed and you are disinterested in politics. See the summary above. The balance is information. Until inter-netted communications was put into place, American voters were informed by journalists. Today, the visual media (television) still provides the most convenient source of information to the voters on what their elected officials do. The problem with that is that most of the networks affiliate with one of the political parties. They have true journalists in the lower ranks, but the message to you, the voter, each day, is blended with the objectives and goals of (mostly) the political party that is behind the Santa Claus effect. You will not get balanced information on what your elected officials propose to become new law by watching television news.
Check the Politicians
Especially if you are an American citizen, the ghosts of the founding fathers of your country must be screaming at you from their graves! Do something. They did not spill blood and treasure to give you gifts. They gave you a democracy. It is not, and will not ever be a finished product that will run on autopilot. Get involved. Get your balance from political blog sites. Search for several that will tell you what your local government's objectives and goals are. Become familiar with the local elected official who represents you. Form an opinion and share that opinion with your neighbors. When you and your neighbors agree, each of you should communicate your opinion to that local representative. The vote is important, but the officials only see the numbers. The way you understand what is happening in your local community is by being informed (information), interested (form an opinion and talk with others), and by communicating your views to the elected official.
The Power of the Voter
Try this: State a summary (3-4 sentence narrative) on a situation that concerns you; state a desired end state (what you want to achieve);state some facts (give sources) and assumptions, that support your concern; give your guidance with constraints (must do this) and restraints (must not do that); suggest some tasks that will begin to address your concern; state what you believe are measures of performance that will define that your end state has been achieved. This is what you prepare before you communicate with an elected official. Practice with your neighbors. They will tell you if you have made a point that effects them. Ask them to support that point along with you. If they will, you and they can contact the elected official as a block of voters. The official must reply, must tell you if he/she will promote your concern or not, and why. If he/she does accept your concern, he/she will ask you to help him/her form up more voters to support what you asked him/her to do. Do it! That is what your founding fathers wanted you to do. Once you have made this your habit, scale it up. Repeat what you did by finding the blog sites for your state government. Now you will communicate with your state representative. Finally, repeat this habit at the national level. You will communicate with your senator and representative in Congress.
The Responsibility of a Citizen
If you and your neighbors are active in communicating your concerns locally, in your state, and nationally in Washington, you and your neighbors have formed the ways and means to examine and act on the objectives and goals of political parties. Perhaps, half of (you and your neighbors) might join one political party (Democrats) and the other half join the other party (Republicans). Now, work with your neighbors in both parties to repeat the check. Stay informed, form opinions, and advocate those opinions to those in both political parties who set agendas that may become law. This is where you earn the right to be called a United States (or other Democratic nation) citizen. Tell both party officials that you do not expect to see Santa Claus until Christmas, and that it is you, the voter, who pays for the toys that Santa Claus brings to your house. Tell them the major focus areas that concern you. Give them your objectives, your restraints and constraints, your measures of performance, and the end states that you want them to achieve. Explain to them the intellectual and moral qualities that you expect their candidates for office to have. Tell them plainly what will win your vote. Can excellence coexist with equality? Yes it can, if that is what you want, and you, as a voting citizen, work to get it. Tony Grayson
July 25, 2014
Righteous or Reckless
Summary
In December, 1800, William Eaton bound himself to the Bey (monarch) of Tunis for $5,000 (a huge some of money at that time). This was his promise to pay the ransom of a twelve-year-old Sardinian (Italian) girl who was kidnapped by Tunisian pirates. The pirates were the infamous Barbary Pirates, organized by Bey Hammuda ibn Ali to seize Mediterranean shipping and to conduct coastal raids. The pirates brought their prizes to Tripoli, where the Bey protected the pirates. The Bey took an active role to communicate the demands for ransom (for a hefty fee). If the owners failed to pay the ransom, the ships, the goods, and the people aboard the ships were sold. For the people, that meant enslavement. This means to enrich himself and others of his realm worked especially well while Napoleon campaigned in Europe. It was easier for the kings of Europe to pay the ransom. It was not easy for a man of principle to do that.
An Historical Footnote
William Eaton, the principled man, was also the U.S. Ambassador to Tunisia. From his consulate in Tripoli, he was compelled to hand over ransoms to free American ships and crews that were captured by the pirates. The United States was in debt following its revolutionary war, and President Jefferson had his hands full building the foundation of the new democratic nation. The President and Congress had little money to invest in the American Navy, a maritime defensive force, and not one capable of mounting a sustained campaign across an ocean. Yet, Ambassador Eaton, who was beseeched by the mother of the unfortunate girl, believed that the matter at hand was a test of the integrity of the United States. If rescuing the girl was the right thing for a man to do, then it was also the right thing for a just country to do.
President Thomas Jefferson
The president might not have ever known about Eaton's diplomatic gesture. Eaton's binding agreement gave the girl's father time to raise the money in Europe. He had six months to do that. But, he did not do that, and the Bey expected Eaton to make the payment. Eaton did not have the money to pay. All along, he sent communications by ship to President Jefferson, in which he described the state of lawlessness in Tunis and how it was an opportunity for the United States to show the world its goodness. It took a long time for letters to be sent and replies to be received. But, Jefferson communicated a clear point to his ambassador. "You have made a personal loan guarantee. You have not bound the United States Treasury to that promise." Eaton was not happy about that, but he accepted the decision. As the time grew near to pay the ransom, Eaton tried to raise the money himself. He wrote a letter to Jefferson, to tell him that. But, he also told the president that in Tunis, the Barbary Pirates lived by viewing the world in this way: "Act like a sheep, and the wolf will eat." Jefferson understood Eaton's point. When the powerful European nations were done Goodnight Paigesparring with Napoleon, it would be best if the United States did not look like a sheep. He consulted with the congress and obtained their concurrence to send three armed frigates to the coast of Tripoli - a show of force.
Righteous or Reckless?
American children are taught how the American Navy cleaned out the Barbary Pirates. The United States Marine Corps played a key role in the land portion of that campaign. U.S. Marines celebrate that role in a line of the Marine Corps hymn: "To the shores of Tripoli!" But, this was not a clean story. It is one of the more colorful threads in the fabric of the United States. Few tell that story better than author Richard Zacks, in his book, "The Pirate Coast". From the beginning and throughout the tumultuous events that followed, William Eaton remained both righteous and reckless. The man was a world shaper. He showed one of our early American presidents the purity of a citizen's resolve and the power of individual perseverance. Those are qualities on the other side of the coin labeled "reckless". The people of the United States acquired a moral sense of themselves,and their government began to test the foundational principles of the constitution in the early nineteenth century because of the principled actions of William Eaton.
In December, 1800, William Eaton bound himself to the Bey (monarch) of Tunis for $5,000 (a huge some of money at that time). This was his promise to pay the ransom of a twelve-year-old Sardinian (Italian) girl who was kidnapped by Tunisian pirates. The pirates were the infamous Barbary Pirates, organized by Bey Hammuda ibn Ali to seize Mediterranean shipping and to conduct coastal raids. The pirates brought their prizes to Tripoli, where the Bey protected the pirates. The Bey took an active role to communicate the demands for ransom (for a hefty fee). If the owners failed to pay the ransom, the ships, the goods, and the people aboard the ships were sold. For the people, that meant enslavement. This means to enrich himself and others of his realm worked especially well while Napoleon campaigned in Europe. It was easier for the kings of Europe to pay the ransom. It was not easy for a man of principle to do that.
An Historical Footnote
William Eaton, the principled man, was also the U.S. Ambassador to Tunisia. From his consulate in Tripoli, he was compelled to hand over ransoms to free American ships and crews that were captured by the pirates. The United States was in debt following its revolutionary war, and President Jefferson had his hands full building the foundation of the new democratic nation. The President and Congress had little money to invest in the American Navy, a maritime defensive force, and not one capable of mounting a sustained campaign across an ocean. Yet, Ambassador Eaton, who was beseeched by the mother of the unfortunate girl, believed that the matter at hand was a test of the integrity of the United States. If rescuing the girl was the right thing for a man to do, then it was also the right thing for a just country to do.
President Thomas Jefferson
The president might not have ever known about Eaton's diplomatic gesture. Eaton's binding agreement gave the girl's father time to raise the money in Europe. He had six months to do that. But, he did not do that, and the Bey expected Eaton to make the payment. Eaton did not have the money to pay. All along, he sent communications by ship to President Jefferson, in which he described the state of lawlessness in Tunis and how it was an opportunity for the United States to show the world its goodness. It took a long time for letters to be sent and replies to be received. But, Jefferson communicated a clear point to his ambassador. "You have made a personal loan guarantee. You have not bound the United States Treasury to that promise." Eaton was not happy about that, but he accepted the decision. As the time grew near to pay the ransom, Eaton tried to raise the money himself. He wrote a letter to Jefferson, to tell him that. But, he also told the president that in Tunis, the Barbary Pirates lived by viewing the world in this way: "Act like a sheep, and the wolf will eat." Jefferson understood Eaton's point. When the powerful European nations were done Goodnight Paigesparring with Napoleon, it would be best if the United States did not look like a sheep. He consulted with the congress and obtained their concurrence to send three armed frigates to the coast of Tripoli - a show of force.
Righteous or Reckless?
American children are taught how the American Navy cleaned out the Barbary Pirates. The United States Marine Corps played a key role in the land portion of that campaign. U.S. Marines celebrate that role in a line of the Marine Corps hymn: "To the shores of Tripoli!" But, this was not a clean story. It is one of the more colorful threads in the fabric of the United States. Few tell that story better than author Richard Zacks, in his book, "The Pirate Coast". From the beginning and throughout the tumultuous events that followed, William Eaton remained both righteous and reckless. The man was a world shaper. He showed one of our early American presidents the purity of a citizen's resolve and the power of individual perseverance. Those are qualities on the other side of the coin labeled "reckless". The people of the United States acquired a moral sense of themselves,and their government began to test the foundational principles of the constitution in the early nineteenth century because of the principled actions of William Eaton.
July 12, 2014
The Truth Will Stand When the World is on Fire
Summary
A version of this statement is often passed down within families. It comes from a variety of sources. One is Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice": "The Truth will Out." In Ephesians 5:9 of The Bible, a modern translation fits the statement: "The light within you produces what is good, right, and true." Essentially, it is the little voice in our heart that tells us right from wrong. The world is on fire when enough people do not listen to that little voice. Yet, time after time, even when the world is on fire, enough people have listened, combined, and acted for the collective good. Another quote: "When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall one by one, an un-pitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle." Give Edmund Burke, an Irish political philosopher, credit for saying something that we all know to be true.
Tests of our Character
It tends to happen in small groups. Someone does something out of line. What do the others in the small group do? Usually, they tolerate the act. Then, the antagonist believes that his/her activity has borne fruit. It happens again. Most likely, the group will take note, but will not get involved. A psychologist among them would have an opportunity to conduct a case study on what has become a group dynamic. For everyone else in the group, this could be the opening volley of misery. This is the tyrant in the office, the bully on the school round,the rule breaker and mischief-maker. What happens if someone in the office realizes, after repeated disruptions, that he/she must stand up to the tyrant? What indeed? If one good person takes a stand, the rest of the group still must do something. Usually, they do nothing. "Let Human Resources handle it." "Discipline is the teacher's job." These moments are a test of character for everyone in the small group. If someone stands up for right, and stands alone, the stronger personality will win. Quite often, the stronger personality belongs to the tyrant. An emboldened tyrant will dominate, much as a sheep-herding dog dominates sheep that outnumber the dog, perhaps 200:1.
Citizens
People predominately live their lives as members of a human society. In some parts of the world, those societies are still called tribes. In industrialized countries, citizens often form around villages, towns, cities. Folks identify themselves to be part of a district, a state, a region and a country. Besides geography, people form around their familial ties, their religion, their sport team, their school, their earned educational designation (society of engineers, local labor union). In all of these examples of shared human bonds, the rule of law is necessary. Someone must lead. He/'she is expected to promote the welfare of the society through governance. Tests of our character are found here too. The same people who will not listen to their inner voice, will not stand up for righteousness, will not support the one who does, also will not likely contribute to the society. They will not lead or volunteer to support. They will not vote and will not communicate with the one who was elected. When trouble comes,they expect the police to handle it. When their child acts out in public, they will not correct the child. Their country might have been born from sacrifice. Others, before them, may have given their lives to guarantee the freedoms that all of the citizens enjoy. Yet, in time of need, during crisis, and even during the safe times when voting in the best leader is so important, so many will shirk their obligation to their ancestors and to the Tony Graysonsociety's needs today. They will not listen to their inner voice. "Let someone else vote." "Someone should say something to that lady who lets her dog C*** on their lawn." "I don't have time to answer that senator who asked me how he is doing in Congress." "Those poor starving people in the earthquake zone;someone should organize food for them." "What is the world coming to? Those people have just taken another country. Don't they realize that their leader is a tyrant? I hope we stay out of it."
The Truth
The rule of law only works when society enforces the rule. Many will argue that there is too much corruption and crime in the world, too many different points of view to gain consensus on what is right, vast distances in geography, and greater personal risks today make it harder to take a principled stand. Yet,no argument has the strength to withstand public scrutiny or self-examination. When we do not take a stand, we stand for nothing. Edmund Burke is not remembered for being correct about the stands that he took. He is admired for standing up. Any of us who have done that in our lives, look back on the moment without the stinging rebuke of regret. The ones who stand alone against the tyrant and bully stand tall, even if they lose. It is the ones who will not stand with him/her, those who let themselves fail the test of character, who cast their eyes down to their shoes in the presence of the one who was sacrificed. But, take heart. Some of the most admired, good people of societies were slackers for much of their early lives. One day,they looked up and stood up for right. That became their habit. The truth will stand when the world is on fire. Truth is revealed by people who will not tolerate a wrong. When they stand, they are the rock. Those who stand with them build a stone wall about that rock. Never are there too many of them to extinguish a moral fire. There can be too few. Stand up!
A version of this statement is often passed down within families. It comes from a variety of sources. One is Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice": "The Truth will Out." In Ephesians 5:9 of The Bible, a modern translation fits the statement: "The light within you produces what is good, right, and true." Essentially, it is the little voice in our heart that tells us right from wrong. The world is on fire when enough people do not listen to that little voice. Yet, time after time, even when the world is on fire, enough people have listened, combined, and acted for the collective good. Another quote: "When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall one by one, an un-pitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle." Give Edmund Burke, an Irish political philosopher, credit for saying something that we all know to be true.
Tests of our Character
It tends to happen in small groups. Someone does something out of line. What do the others in the small group do? Usually, they tolerate the act. Then, the antagonist believes that his/her activity has borne fruit. It happens again. Most likely, the group will take note, but will not get involved. A psychologist among them would have an opportunity to conduct a case study on what has become a group dynamic. For everyone else in the group, this could be the opening volley of misery. This is the tyrant in the office, the bully on the school round,the rule breaker and mischief-maker. What happens if someone in the office realizes, after repeated disruptions, that he/she must stand up to the tyrant? What indeed? If one good person takes a stand, the rest of the group still must do something. Usually, they do nothing. "Let Human Resources handle it." "Discipline is the teacher's job." These moments are a test of character for everyone in the small group. If someone stands up for right, and stands alone, the stronger personality will win. Quite often, the stronger personality belongs to the tyrant. An emboldened tyrant will dominate, much as a sheep-herding dog dominates sheep that outnumber the dog, perhaps 200:1.
Citizens
People predominately live their lives as members of a human society. In some parts of the world, those societies are still called tribes. In industrialized countries, citizens often form around villages, towns, cities. Folks identify themselves to be part of a district, a state, a region and a country. Besides geography, people form around their familial ties, their religion, their sport team, their school, their earned educational designation (society of engineers, local labor union). In all of these examples of shared human bonds, the rule of law is necessary. Someone must lead. He/'she is expected to promote the welfare of the society through governance. Tests of our character are found here too. The same people who will not listen to their inner voice, will not stand up for righteousness, will not support the one who does, also will not likely contribute to the society. They will not lead or volunteer to support. They will not vote and will not communicate with the one who was elected. When trouble comes,they expect the police to handle it. When their child acts out in public, they will not correct the child. Their country might have been born from sacrifice. Others, before them, may have given their lives to guarantee the freedoms that all of the citizens enjoy. Yet, in time of need, during crisis, and even during the safe times when voting in the best leader is so important, so many will shirk their obligation to their ancestors and to the Tony Graysonsociety's needs today. They will not listen to their inner voice. "Let someone else vote." "Someone should say something to that lady who lets her dog C*** on their lawn." "I don't have time to answer that senator who asked me how he is doing in Congress." "Those poor starving people in the earthquake zone;someone should organize food for them." "What is the world coming to? Those people have just taken another country. Don't they realize that their leader is a tyrant? I hope we stay out of it."
The Truth
The rule of law only works when society enforces the rule. Many will argue that there is too much corruption and crime in the world, too many different points of view to gain consensus on what is right, vast distances in geography, and greater personal risks today make it harder to take a principled stand. Yet,no argument has the strength to withstand public scrutiny or self-examination. When we do not take a stand, we stand for nothing. Edmund Burke is not remembered for being correct about the stands that he took. He is admired for standing up. Any of us who have done that in our lives, look back on the moment without the stinging rebuke of regret. The ones who stand alone against the tyrant and bully stand tall, even if they lose. It is the ones who will not stand with him/her, those who let themselves fail the test of character, who cast their eyes down to their shoes in the presence of the one who was sacrificed. But, take heart. Some of the most admired, good people of societies were slackers for much of their early lives. One day,they looked up and stood up for right. That became their habit. The truth will stand when the world is on fire. Truth is revealed by people who will not tolerate a wrong. When they stand, they are the rock. Those who stand with them build a stone wall about that rock. Never are there too many of them to extinguish a moral fire. There can be too few. Stand up!
July 4, 2014
Travelers on the Orphan Train
Summary
The words abandoned, abused, and orphaned do not sound sweet upon the ear. They are heartbreaking when the word children follows them. New York City was a magnate for European immigrants to America. Many never got beyond that city, which grew to accommodate them. As their resources dwindled, the impoverished immigrants inhabited the baser parts of the city, known as the slums. So many people from so many places massed together, creating a breeding ground for pestilence, which laid waste to many families. By the 1850s, the slums became the unhappy home of legions of orphans, whose parents had died or abandoned them. As the great War Between the States fired up in the early 1860s, this matter was made worse when so many men of immigrant families were compelled to enlist to fight a war in order to get money to feed their families. Many of those men were killed or maimed them beyond repair, spawning more orphans to roam the slums in search of scraps of food. Survival was the daily trial of an orphan.
An Angel
Philanthropist Charles Loring Brace founded the Children's Aid Society in 1853 in that city. A minister by trade, he channeled his beliefs and his energy into gathering resources from those who had means and a conscience and swooped up as many orphans as he could catch. But, the task was overwhelming. The orphanages filled with them. He realized that those places were people storage for kids, and not the way to replace a loving family that each kid had lost. He got an idea: Get the orphans out of New York City!
The Orphan Train
Europeans heard the unhappy news of the plight of so many unfortunate immigrants to America. Many of those who followed them were able to plan and prepare to get past the Eastern cities and their slums. Especially, European farm families, blew past the coastal nuclei of humanity by organizing themselves into traveling caravans that moved west. First, they settled the mid-western valleys, and later, they went as far west as they could on the storied wagon trains. Yet, they too suffered the tragedy of death. Brace heard stories of mid-western farm families who had lost children and of those who were barren of children. Desperate for the joy of children in their lives, and willing hands to make the farms work, they turned to their pastors, parsons, and priests. Prayer led to practicality, and to Charles Loring Brace. Again, he turned to the city's wealthy, and with their help, he spawned the first orphan train.
A Child's Point of View
Many of the orphaned children were born in the city slums, and had not seen the world beyond that slum and the orphanage. The idea of going west, on a train, something that they also had never seen, was heady stuff. They would go along with their friends. Their caretakers filled them with hope as they prepared them to look presentable and placed them on the train. The journey was long, weeks long. They ate and slept on the train. Then, something for which they had not prepared happened. The train stopped at a mid-western town. All of the children disembarked to stand in a line on the loading dock. Throngs of people were there, nearly all of the inhabitants of the town. Pastors, parsons, and priests were there, and then magic happened. A farmer's wife said to one of the children, "Darling, there is something about you that makes my heart sing. Can I be your mother?" The poignant moments were very individual, and not all of them were so touching. Older children might be selected for their capability to do farm labor, while the younger ones might be picked to mend the broken heart of a barren wife. With each passing stop of the train, the ritual repeated. Those children who were not selected became fewer in number and more anxious. An unspoken thought passed among those who were left. "Does nobody want me? Will I be returned, alone?" Brothers, sisters, and best friends, were sometimes split up, never to be reunited.
A Legacy
So many stories came from Brace's orphan trains. Most of those stores were untold. Some of them were unhappy stories. But, the majority were uplifting tales of children who were orphans no more. One of the former orphans was Charles William Paddock. In 1919, he was known as "the fastest man alive". Readers may recall this, for he was the American that British runners aspired to race at the 1920 Olympics, illustrated in the book and film called Chariots of Fire. John Green Brady, three-time Governor of Alaska, told then Governor, and later President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt how Teddy's own father had been one of the financiers of the orphan train that took Brady out of the slums of New York City. This and so many stories of young lives salvaged, were the result of the ideas and actions of a world shaper, Charles Loring Brady. Goodnight Paige
The words abandoned, abused, and orphaned do not sound sweet upon the ear. They are heartbreaking when the word children follows them. New York City was a magnate for European immigrants to America. Many never got beyond that city, which grew to accommodate them. As their resources dwindled, the impoverished immigrants inhabited the baser parts of the city, known as the slums. So many people from so many places massed together, creating a breeding ground for pestilence, which laid waste to many families. By the 1850s, the slums became the unhappy home of legions of orphans, whose parents had died or abandoned them. As the great War Between the States fired up in the early 1860s, this matter was made worse when so many men of immigrant families were compelled to enlist to fight a war in order to get money to feed their families. Many of those men were killed or maimed them beyond repair, spawning more orphans to roam the slums in search of scraps of food. Survival was the daily trial of an orphan.
An Angel
Philanthropist Charles Loring Brace founded the Children's Aid Society in 1853 in that city. A minister by trade, he channeled his beliefs and his energy into gathering resources from those who had means and a conscience and swooped up as many orphans as he could catch. But, the task was overwhelming. The orphanages filled with them. He realized that those places were people storage for kids, and not the way to replace a loving family that each kid had lost. He got an idea: Get the orphans out of New York City!
The Orphan Train
Europeans heard the unhappy news of the plight of so many unfortunate immigrants to America. Many of those who followed them were able to plan and prepare to get past the Eastern cities and their slums. Especially, European farm families, blew past the coastal nuclei of humanity by organizing themselves into traveling caravans that moved west. First, they settled the mid-western valleys, and later, they went as far west as they could on the storied wagon trains. Yet, they too suffered the tragedy of death. Brace heard stories of mid-western farm families who had lost children and of those who were barren of children. Desperate for the joy of children in their lives, and willing hands to make the farms work, they turned to their pastors, parsons, and priests. Prayer led to practicality, and to Charles Loring Brace. Again, he turned to the city's wealthy, and with their help, he spawned the first orphan train.
A Child's Point of View
Many of the orphaned children were born in the city slums, and had not seen the world beyond that slum and the orphanage. The idea of going west, on a train, something that they also had never seen, was heady stuff. They would go along with their friends. Their caretakers filled them with hope as they prepared them to look presentable and placed them on the train. The journey was long, weeks long. They ate and slept on the train. Then, something for which they had not prepared happened. The train stopped at a mid-western town. All of the children disembarked to stand in a line on the loading dock. Throngs of people were there, nearly all of the inhabitants of the town. Pastors, parsons, and priests were there, and then magic happened. A farmer's wife said to one of the children, "Darling, there is something about you that makes my heart sing. Can I be your mother?" The poignant moments were very individual, and not all of them were so touching. Older children might be selected for their capability to do farm labor, while the younger ones might be picked to mend the broken heart of a barren wife. With each passing stop of the train, the ritual repeated. Those children who were not selected became fewer in number and more anxious. An unspoken thought passed among those who were left. "Does nobody want me? Will I be returned, alone?" Brothers, sisters, and best friends, were sometimes split up, never to be reunited.
A Legacy
So many stories came from Brace's orphan trains. Most of those stores were untold. Some of them were unhappy stories. But, the majority were uplifting tales of children who were orphans no more. One of the former orphans was Charles William Paddock. In 1919, he was known as "the fastest man alive". Readers may recall this, for he was the American that British runners aspired to race at the 1920 Olympics, illustrated in the book and film called Chariots of Fire. John Green Brady, three-time Governor of Alaska, told then Governor, and later President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt how Teddy's own father had been one of the financiers of the orphan train that took Brady out of the slums of New York City. This and so many stories of young lives salvaged, were the result of the ideas and actions of a world shaper, Charles Loring Brady. Goodnight Paige
June 28, 2014
A Bobcat
Summary
A feeling of power descends upon us when we become parents. The birth of a child in a family is a time of celebration. It is an inter-generational event, one in which the proud parents present the future to both the present and the past. All attention is focused upon the newborn. Whether a boy or a girl, the child is joy, and a proclamation, all at once. The mother receives deserved fanfare for having successfully delivered the future generation of a dynasty. The father receives confirmation that he matters, that he has sired someone of the next generation. Don't take this literally. Fathers and mothers of adopted children and stepchildren claim this right at well. Realize that there is something very special about birth for the parents.
I Passed the Test
Children who are fortunate to have their parents, at least one parent, or any adult to raise them in a loving and nurturing home, acquire an expectation
that they should do something with their lives to affirm to those parents that they were worth the effort. In nature, the young will often bring their
first kill home to show their parents that they learned how to feed themselves. That is what I describe here. Mom, Dad, I can never thank you enough for feeding and caring for me. Look at what I have done! I have produced a child! Your legacy will live on! Watch now. I will show you how I can be a great parent like you!
The Kid has a Vote
The baby challenges us. Sure, he/she is cute as bug's ear, is happy to be with us, reminds us of the joy of play, and gives us the wondrous gift of unrestrained love. But, he/she demands to be fed, to be held, and to be cleaned even as he/she produces ever greater loads of the most foul-smelling bile that we have ever encountered! We begin to wonder how our parents got through this. There is more to come, always more and different, as the baby becomes a toddler, a youngster, a tween, a teen, and a young adult. We are surprised how vulnerable he/she is at all of those ages. Mom, Dad, was I like that? It gets harder for us. We want the child to have the best, and to be the best. Yet, we have so many responsibilities, and why won't he/she listen to what I tell him/her to do? We see hints, glimpses of our child learning, applying what he/she has learned, and becoming an adult, but we do not always recognize the hints, especially not with the first child.
A Rare Thing
I was blessed to have a baby man. Nine years later, Babes was born. Even though they were not close in age, brother and sister bonded, and they have always remained close, all the way into their adulthood. I coached all of my son's sports. One day, I recall how our soccer team fought its way to win the next level in a tournament. We might win the trophy this year. He had done his part, but had not led the advances. I wanted him to lead. To me, the sports were tests, trials to learn how to excel. On that day, I got a glimpse that the game was simply fun to him. He was with his friends, and he remembers the day as one when the sun warmed his face while his team was victorious. I wondered, shouldn't I just be happy when my children are happy? Was he teaching me this? On the trip home from the game, something spectacular happened. We had played a team at their rural location. Our path home was a country road that turned hills in twists and winding turns, amidst meadows and forests. I topped a small hill, and saw a bobcat step out of the road ahead, into a meadow. She was magnificent!
The Bobcat.
No other cars followed, and none approached. I eased my car to the shoulder to give my children a look at the elusive hunter, which stood her ground exactly where I saw her. The gold in her gold-and-white fur was so bright in the sunlight that her coat seemed to be woven with the precious metal. My son was mesmerized as I directed him to see the tiny tufts of hair at her ears and the shape of her hypnotizing, whiskered face. I told both of my children all that I knew about the habits and lore of the bobcat, which is so rarely seen that it has been ascribed as having mythical qualities. My son engaged me in a collegial discussion! He had never done that before. My daughter repeated, "Wow! Bobcat!" She was only two-years-old. She strained to see the elusive predator from her car seat, which was set centrally in the backseat of my car. We enjoyed our prize for a full three minutes before she sprinted across the meadow on powerful legs, showing us her black-tipped stubby tail. She melted into the forest. My son said that he could not wait to get home to tell Mom about the bobcat. I began to drive off. As I did, I felt a tiny tug at my right elbow. Babes had leaned forward to grab the fabric of my shirt. I adjusted my rear view mirror, and saw that she wanted to ask me something. My two-year-old was about to engage me in a
collegial discussion too. I could see it on her face! She asked her qHow Tony Wrote and Published Two Novelsuestion. "How you know that cat's name is Bob?"
A feeling of power descends upon us when we become parents. The birth of a child in a family is a time of celebration. It is an inter-generational event, one in which the proud parents present the future to both the present and the past. All attention is focused upon the newborn. Whether a boy or a girl, the child is joy, and a proclamation, all at once. The mother receives deserved fanfare for having successfully delivered the future generation of a dynasty. The father receives confirmation that he matters, that he has sired someone of the next generation. Don't take this literally. Fathers and mothers of adopted children and stepchildren claim this right at well. Realize that there is something very special about birth for the parents.
I Passed the Test
Children who are fortunate to have their parents, at least one parent, or any adult to raise them in a loving and nurturing home, acquire an expectation
that they should do something with their lives to affirm to those parents that they were worth the effort. In nature, the young will often bring their
first kill home to show their parents that they learned how to feed themselves. That is what I describe here. Mom, Dad, I can never thank you enough for feeding and caring for me. Look at what I have done! I have produced a child! Your legacy will live on! Watch now. I will show you how I can be a great parent like you!
The Kid has a Vote
The baby challenges us. Sure, he/she is cute as bug's ear, is happy to be with us, reminds us of the joy of play, and gives us the wondrous gift of unrestrained love. But, he/she demands to be fed, to be held, and to be cleaned even as he/she produces ever greater loads of the most foul-smelling bile that we have ever encountered! We begin to wonder how our parents got through this. There is more to come, always more and different, as the baby becomes a toddler, a youngster, a tween, a teen, and a young adult. We are surprised how vulnerable he/she is at all of those ages. Mom, Dad, was I like that? It gets harder for us. We want the child to have the best, and to be the best. Yet, we have so many responsibilities, and why won't he/she listen to what I tell him/her to do? We see hints, glimpses of our child learning, applying what he/she has learned, and becoming an adult, but we do not always recognize the hints, especially not with the first child.
A Rare Thing
I was blessed to have a baby man. Nine years later, Babes was born. Even though they were not close in age, brother and sister bonded, and they have always remained close, all the way into their adulthood. I coached all of my son's sports. One day, I recall how our soccer team fought its way to win the next level in a tournament. We might win the trophy this year. He had done his part, but had not led the advances. I wanted him to lead. To me, the sports were tests, trials to learn how to excel. On that day, I got a glimpse that the game was simply fun to him. He was with his friends, and he remembers the day as one when the sun warmed his face while his team was victorious. I wondered, shouldn't I just be happy when my children are happy? Was he teaching me this? On the trip home from the game, something spectacular happened. We had played a team at their rural location. Our path home was a country road that turned hills in twists and winding turns, amidst meadows and forests. I topped a small hill, and saw a bobcat step out of the road ahead, into a meadow. She was magnificent!
The Bobcat.
No other cars followed, and none approached. I eased my car to the shoulder to give my children a look at the elusive hunter, which stood her ground exactly where I saw her. The gold in her gold-and-white fur was so bright in the sunlight that her coat seemed to be woven with the precious metal. My son was mesmerized as I directed him to see the tiny tufts of hair at her ears and the shape of her hypnotizing, whiskered face. I told both of my children all that I knew about the habits and lore of the bobcat, which is so rarely seen that it has been ascribed as having mythical qualities. My son engaged me in a collegial discussion! He had never done that before. My daughter repeated, "Wow! Bobcat!" She was only two-years-old. She strained to see the elusive predator from her car seat, which was set centrally in the backseat of my car. We enjoyed our prize for a full three minutes before she sprinted across the meadow on powerful legs, showing us her black-tipped stubby tail. She melted into the forest. My son said that he could not wait to get home to tell Mom about the bobcat. I began to drive off. As I did, I felt a tiny tug at my right elbow. Babes had leaned forward to grab the fabric of my shirt. I adjusted my rear view mirror, and saw that she wanted to ask me something. My two-year-old was about to engage me in a
collegial discussion too. I could see it on her face! She asked her qHow Tony Wrote and Published Two Novelsuestion. "How you know that cat's name is Bob?"
June 21, 2014
Who was the Marquis de Ruffec?
Summary
Most Americans can identify the Marquis de La Fayette as a dashing young French aristocrat and soldier who joined General Washington's army to fight for American liberty from British rule in the American Revolutionary War. Many know how La Fayette passionately beseeched his king, King Louis XV, to support the American colonials' bid for freedom from autocratic rule. Yet, was this story so simple? How could it be that La Fayette could persuade the French king to support a popular revolt against the British king?
The Pursuit of Power
The great kingdoms of Europe were formed by the victorious houses (families) of tribes of humans who fought with each other for control of people, land, and resources (power) for more than a millennium. The King of the House of Bourbon sat upon the throne of France during the time of the American Revolution. He had invested most of his power into the French army, as the French kings before him had done. Thus, France had an advantage if conflict (war) came in the form of land campaigns. However, France's principal rival, Britain, an island realm, had the advantage when war was fought on the seas and oceans, since the Kings of Britain understood that their best protection was to keep armies from landing on British soil. As European kingdoms grew, wars became the means to expand territory. Arranged marriages became the means to encourage alliances. By 1776, many of the European houses were led by people who had the DNA of other European houses flowing in their veins. But, there was no guarantee that familial relationships would forestall war. In fact, all of the kings seemed to understand what Carl Von Clausewitz, a Prussian general and military theorist, (who was not yet born in 1776) would say: War is an extension of policies (politics). In other words, war was political maneuvering by kings through the use of weapons when diplomacy fell short of meeting strategic objectives.
Discovery of the World
Marco Polo, Vasco de Gama, and Christopher Columbus were three most notable explorers who opened up the greater world to the European kings and their quest for power. The spices of the orient, the riches of India, the manpower of Africa, and the agricultural space and precious metals of the Americas drew the European kings onto a worldwide scene to compete on a grand scale. Those who could not compete and win would be crushed by those kingdoms that did win. By 1776, it was clear who would win, the kingdom that controlled the seas! Even though Spain got to the Orient, India, and the Americas first, and was the first to exploit the fabulous silver and gold of South America, the riches had to flow back to Spain by seas and oceans. Great Britain's naval might was supreme. The British could take, tax, or sink what Spain or the other European kings had claimed. That is why France, Spain, and the Dutch tended to ally when Britain threatened any one of them. King Louis XV did not want to react to what Britain did. So, he employed the Marquis de Ruffec, his trusted diplomat, in a hidden role, as his Chief of the Secret du Roi.
The Secret du Roi
French King Louis XV split his diplomatic service staff. Diplomats were expected to represent their kings overtly in the courts of other kings. Yet, some of the French King's diplomats were secretly employed to pursue the strategic objectives of France by other means, including subversion, sabotage, usury, bribery, and even trickery of French citizens. These were unsavory tactics that were ways and means to advance the power of the King of France without their being linked to him. That is why Americans have not heard of the Marquis de Ruffec or the Secret du Roi. De Ruffec tricked the Marquis de La Fayette into throwing his heart and soul into helping the American colonials to revolt against Great Britain!
What was the Name of That War?
Americans call it The American War of Independence. Britain refers to the same war as a colonial revolt that occurred while they fought a world war with the French, the Spanish, the Dutch, and the Marathas and Mysore (in India). It was the job of The Secret du Roi to extend politics into the practice of war. The French had no great interest in Britain's American colonies. They did have interests in India, in the islands of the Caribbean Sea, and in protecting France from invasion from across the English Channel. Thus, The Marquis de Ruffec was empowered to employ a tactic to ensnare an aristocratic citizen of France who was known to be the latest edition to a hot-blooded, even reckless family, Gilbert du Motier, aka The Marquis de La Fayette. The trick was that de Ruffec invited La Fayette to attend a dinner party in which he also invited an outspoken member of the British royal family, the Duke of Gloucester (British King George III's brother). Since France was not presently at war with Britain, it was common for diplomats from the two countries to dine and debate. At the dinner table, de Ruffec encouraged the Duke to explain what the colonials were about. The Duke's words inflamed the young de La Fayette! More importantly, de La Fayette was convinced that the colonials were justified in their revolt. After the dinner, de Ruffec offered to help de La Fayette get an audience before the king, to express his views about the subject. Then, de Ruffec worked secretly with King Louis XV to craft how to use de La Fayette as an instrument of national power to cause the British to tie down the maximum possible land and naval forces in the American colonial theater of operations. After all, war must come between France and Britain again, since war was but an extension of politics. The Marquis de Ruffec was a world shaper.
The Star of India
Most Americans can identify the Marquis de La Fayette as a dashing young French aristocrat and soldier who joined General Washington's army to fight for American liberty from British rule in the American Revolutionary War. Many know how La Fayette passionately beseeched his king, King Louis XV, to support the American colonials' bid for freedom from autocratic rule. Yet, was this story so simple? How could it be that La Fayette could persuade the French king to support a popular revolt against the British king?
The Pursuit of Power
The great kingdoms of Europe were formed by the victorious houses (families) of tribes of humans who fought with each other for control of people, land, and resources (power) for more than a millennium. The King of the House of Bourbon sat upon the throne of France during the time of the American Revolution. He had invested most of his power into the French army, as the French kings before him had done. Thus, France had an advantage if conflict (war) came in the form of land campaigns. However, France's principal rival, Britain, an island realm, had the advantage when war was fought on the seas and oceans, since the Kings of Britain understood that their best protection was to keep armies from landing on British soil. As European kingdoms grew, wars became the means to expand territory. Arranged marriages became the means to encourage alliances. By 1776, many of the European houses were led by people who had the DNA of other European houses flowing in their veins. But, there was no guarantee that familial relationships would forestall war. In fact, all of the kings seemed to understand what Carl Von Clausewitz, a Prussian general and military theorist, (who was not yet born in 1776) would say: War is an extension of policies (politics). In other words, war was political maneuvering by kings through the use of weapons when diplomacy fell short of meeting strategic objectives.
Discovery of the World
Marco Polo, Vasco de Gama, and Christopher Columbus were three most notable explorers who opened up the greater world to the European kings and their quest for power. The spices of the orient, the riches of India, the manpower of Africa, and the agricultural space and precious metals of the Americas drew the European kings onto a worldwide scene to compete on a grand scale. Those who could not compete and win would be crushed by those kingdoms that did win. By 1776, it was clear who would win, the kingdom that controlled the seas! Even though Spain got to the Orient, India, and the Americas first, and was the first to exploit the fabulous silver and gold of South America, the riches had to flow back to Spain by seas and oceans. Great Britain's naval might was supreme. The British could take, tax, or sink what Spain or the other European kings had claimed. That is why France, Spain, and the Dutch tended to ally when Britain threatened any one of them. King Louis XV did not want to react to what Britain did. So, he employed the Marquis de Ruffec, his trusted diplomat, in a hidden role, as his Chief of the Secret du Roi.
The Secret du Roi
French King Louis XV split his diplomatic service staff. Diplomats were expected to represent their kings overtly in the courts of other kings. Yet, some of the French King's diplomats were secretly employed to pursue the strategic objectives of France by other means, including subversion, sabotage, usury, bribery, and even trickery of French citizens. These were unsavory tactics that were ways and means to advance the power of the King of France without their being linked to him. That is why Americans have not heard of the Marquis de Ruffec or the Secret du Roi. De Ruffec tricked the Marquis de La Fayette into throwing his heart and soul into helping the American colonials to revolt against Great Britain!
What was the Name of That War?
Americans call it The American War of Independence. Britain refers to the same war as a colonial revolt that occurred while they fought a world war with the French, the Spanish, the Dutch, and the Marathas and Mysore (in India). It was the job of The Secret du Roi to extend politics into the practice of war. The French had no great interest in Britain's American colonies. They did have interests in India, in the islands of the Caribbean Sea, and in protecting France from invasion from across the English Channel. Thus, The Marquis de Ruffec was empowered to employ a tactic to ensnare an aristocratic citizen of France who was known to be the latest edition to a hot-blooded, even reckless family, Gilbert du Motier, aka The Marquis de La Fayette. The trick was that de Ruffec invited La Fayette to attend a dinner party in which he also invited an outspoken member of the British royal family, the Duke of Gloucester (British King George III's brother). Since France was not presently at war with Britain, it was common for diplomats from the two countries to dine and debate. At the dinner table, de Ruffec encouraged the Duke to explain what the colonials were about. The Duke's words inflamed the young de La Fayette! More importantly, de La Fayette was convinced that the colonials were justified in their revolt. After the dinner, de Ruffec offered to help de La Fayette get an audience before the king, to express his views about the subject. Then, de Ruffec worked secretly with King Louis XV to craft how to use de La Fayette as an instrument of national power to cause the British to tie down the maximum possible land and naval forces in the American colonial theater of operations. After all, war must come between France and Britain again, since war was but an extension of politics. The Marquis de Ruffec was a world shaper.
The Star of India
June 14, 2014
Who Was the Marquis de Ruffec?
The Star of IndiaSummary
Most Americans can identify the Marquis de La Fayette as a dashing young French aristocrat and soldier who joined General Washington's army to fight for American liberty from British rule in the American Revolutionary War. Many know how La Fayette passionately beseeched his king, King Louis XV, to support the American colonials' bid for freedom from autocratic rule. Yet, was this story so simple? How could it be that La Fayette could persuade the French king to support a popular revolt against the British king?
The Pursuit of Power
The great kingdoms of Europe were formed by the victorious houses (families) of tribes of humans who fought with each other for control of people, land, and resources (power) for more than a millennium. The King of the House of Bourbon sat upon the throne of France during the time of the American Revolution. He had invested most of his power into the French army, as the French kings before him had done. Thus, France had an advantage if conflict (war) came in the form of land campaigns. However, France's principal rival, Britain, an island realm, had the advantage when war was fought on the seas and oceans, since the Kings of Britain understood that their best protection was to keep armies from landing on British soil. As European kingdoms grew, wars became the means to expand territory. Arranged marriages became the means to encourage alliances. By 1776, many of the European houses were led by people who had the DNA of other European houses flowing in their veins. But, there was no guarantee that familial relationships would forestall war. In fact, all of the kings seemed to understand what Carl Von Clausewitz, a Prussian general and military theorist, (who was not yet born in 1776) would say: War is an extension of policies (politics). In other words, war was political maneuvering by kings through the use of weapons when diplomacy fell short of meeting strategic objectives.
Discovery of the World
Marco Polo, Vasco de Gama, and Christopher Columbus were three most notable explorers who opened up the greater world to the European kings and their quest for power. The spices of the orient, the riches of India, the manpower of Africa, and the agricultural space and precious metals of the Americas drew the European kings onto a worldwide scene to compete on a grand scale. Those who could not compete and win would be crushed by those kingdoms that did win. By 1776, it was clear who would win, the kingdom that controlled the seas! Even though Spain got to the Orient, India, and the Americas first, and was the first to exploit the fabulous silver and gold of South America, the riches had to flow back to Spain by seas and oceans. Great Britain's naval might was supreme. The British could take, tax, or sink what Spain or the other European kings had claimed. That is why France, Spain, and the Dutch tended to ally when Britain threatened any one of them. King Louis XV did not want to react to what Britain did. So, he employed the Marquis de Ruffec, his trusted diplomat, in a hidden role, as his Chief of the Secret du Roi.
The Secret du Roi
French King Louis XV split his diplomatic service staff. Diplomats were expected to represent their kings overtly in the courts of other kings. Yet, some of the French King's diplomats were secretly employed to pursue the strategic objectives of France by other means, including subversion, sabotage, usury, bribery, and even trickery of French citizens. These were unsavory tactics that were ways and means to advance the power of the King of France without their being linked to him. That is why Americans have not heard of the Marquis de Ruffec or the Secret du Roi. De Ruffec tricked the Marquis de La Fayette into throwing his heart and soul into helping the American colonials to revolt against Great Britain!
What was the Name of That War?
Americans call it The American War of Independence. Britain refers to the same war as a colonial revolt that occurred while they fought a world war with the French, the Spanish, the Dutch, and the Marathas and Mysore (in India). It was the job of The Secret du Roi to extend politics into the practice of war. The French had no great interest in Britain's American colonies. They did have interests in India, in the islands of the Caribbean Sea, and in protecting France from invasion from across the English Channel. Thus, The Marquis de Ruffec was empowered to employ a tactic to ensnare an aristocratic citizen of France who was known to be the latest edition to a hot-blooded, even reckless family, Gilbert du Motier, aka The Marquis de La Fayette. The trick was that de Ruffec invited La Fayette to attend a dinner party in which he also invited an outspoken member of the British royal family, the Duke of Gloucester (British King George III's brother). Since France was not presently at war with Britain, it was common for diplomats from the two countries to dine and debate. At the dinner table, de Ruffec encouraged the Duke to explain what the colonials were about. The Duke's words inflamed the young de La Fayette! More importantly, de La Fayette was convinced that the colonials were justified in their revolt. After the dinner, de Ruffec offered to help de La Fayette get an audience before the king, to express his views about the subject. Then, de Ruffec worked secretly with King Louis XV to craft how to use de La Fayette as an instrument of national power to cause the British to tie down the maximum possible land and naval forces in the American colonial theater of operations. After all, war must come between France and Britain again, since war was but an extension of politics. The Marquis de Ruffec was a world shaper.
Most Americans can identify the Marquis de La Fayette as a dashing young French aristocrat and soldier who joined General Washington's army to fight for American liberty from British rule in the American Revolutionary War. Many know how La Fayette passionately beseeched his king, King Louis XV, to support the American colonials' bid for freedom from autocratic rule. Yet, was this story so simple? How could it be that La Fayette could persuade the French king to support a popular revolt against the British king?
The Pursuit of Power
The great kingdoms of Europe were formed by the victorious houses (families) of tribes of humans who fought with each other for control of people, land, and resources (power) for more than a millennium. The King of the House of Bourbon sat upon the throne of France during the time of the American Revolution. He had invested most of his power into the French army, as the French kings before him had done. Thus, France had an advantage if conflict (war) came in the form of land campaigns. However, France's principal rival, Britain, an island realm, had the advantage when war was fought on the seas and oceans, since the Kings of Britain understood that their best protection was to keep armies from landing on British soil. As European kingdoms grew, wars became the means to expand territory. Arranged marriages became the means to encourage alliances. By 1776, many of the European houses were led by people who had the DNA of other European houses flowing in their veins. But, there was no guarantee that familial relationships would forestall war. In fact, all of the kings seemed to understand what Carl Von Clausewitz, a Prussian general and military theorist, (who was not yet born in 1776) would say: War is an extension of policies (politics). In other words, war was political maneuvering by kings through the use of weapons when diplomacy fell short of meeting strategic objectives.
Discovery of the World
Marco Polo, Vasco de Gama, and Christopher Columbus were three most notable explorers who opened up the greater world to the European kings and their quest for power. The spices of the orient, the riches of India, the manpower of Africa, and the agricultural space and precious metals of the Americas drew the European kings onto a worldwide scene to compete on a grand scale. Those who could not compete and win would be crushed by those kingdoms that did win. By 1776, it was clear who would win, the kingdom that controlled the seas! Even though Spain got to the Orient, India, and the Americas first, and was the first to exploit the fabulous silver and gold of South America, the riches had to flow back to Spain by seas and oceans. Great Britain's naval might was supreme. The British could take, tax, or sink what Spain or the other European kings had claimed. That is why France, Spain, and the Dutch tended to ally when Britain threatened any one of them. King Louis XV did not want to react to what Britain did. So, he employed the Marquis de Ruffec, his trusted diplomat, in a hidden role, as his Chief of the Secret du Roi.
The Secret du Roi
French King Louis XV split his diplomatic service staff. Diplomats were expected to represent their kings overtly in the courts of other kings. Yet, some of the French King's diplomats were secretly employed to pursue the strategic objectives of France by other means, including subversion, sabotage, usury, bribery, and even trickery of French citizens. These were unsavory tactics that were ways and means to advance the power of the King of France without their being linked to him. That is why Americans have not heard of the Marquis de Ruffec or the Secret du Roi. De Ruffec tricked the Marquis de La Fayette into throwing his heart and soul into helping the American colonials to revolt against Great Britain!
What was the Name of That War?
Americans call it The American War of Independence. Britain refers to the same war as a colonial revolt that occurred while they fought a world war with the French, the Spanish, the Dutch, and the Marathas and Mysore (in India). It was the job of The Secret du Roi to extend politics into the practice of war. The French had no great interest in Britain's American colonies. They did have interests in India, in the islands of the Caribbean Sea, and in protecting France from invasion from across the English Channel. Thus, The Marquis de Ruffec was empowered to employ a tactic to ensnare an aristocratic citizen of France who was known to be the latest edition to a hot-blooded, even reckless family, Gilbert du Motier, aka The Marquis de La Fayette. The trick was that de Ruffec invited La Fayette to attend a dinner party in which he also invited an outspoken member of the British royal family, the Duke of Gloucester (British King George III's brother). Since France was not presently at war with Britain, it was common for diplomats from the two countries to dine and debate. At the dinner table, de Ruffec encouraged the Duke to explain what the colonials were about. The Duke's words inflamed the young de La Fayette! More importantly, de La Fayette was convinced that the colonials were justified in their revolt. After the dinner, de Ruffec offered to help de La Fayette get an audience before the king, to express his views about the subject. Then, de Ruffec worked secretly with King Louis XV to craft how to use de La Fayette as an instrument of national power to cause the British to tie down the maximum possible land and naval forces in the American colonial theater of operations. After all, war must come between France and Britain again, since war was but an extension of politics. The Marquis de Ruffec was a world shaper.
June 6, 2014
The Star of India
Introducing my third novel: The Star of India.
The Star of India traces the life of a young Frenchman of noble birth. He is trained to become a world shaper. Set in the colorful time of the 18th century European East India Companies, Jean-Louis Dupon perseveres as he strives to take his place as a royal of France. From a life of privilege to life on the run as a hunted fugitive, the young world shaper adapts and overcomes every obstruction to his life's purpose. As he gains experience, he learns to shape the world that he believes to will his subordination or death. Marvel at how he glides down the razor's edge that separates two paths. He might become a leader for great good. He could become an instrument of the downfall of mankind. He is never alone during his incredible journey. Many goodhearted and gracious people help him along the way. Yet, as he learns to cheat destiny, he is tempted to use or betray those who have helped him. Enjoy the excitement of a royal's quest while the Kings of Europe battle for supremacy throughout the world. The Star of India is the second novel of a three novel drama series called A Voice from New Mill Creek. After the introduction of the world shaper is complete, this novel continues the story of The Methodists that began in the first book of the series. Tony Alan Grayson
The Star of India traces the life of a young Frenchman of noble birth. He is trained to become a world shaper. Set in the colorful time of the 18th century European East India Companies, Jean-Louis Dupon perseveres as he strives to take his place as a royal of France. From a life of privilege to life on the run as a hunted fugitive, the young world shaper adapts and overcomes every obstruction to his life's purpose. As he gains experience, he learns to shape the world that he believes to will his subordination or death. Marvel at how he glides down the razor's edge that separates two paths. He might become a leader for great good. He could become an instrument of the downfall of mankind. He is never alone during his incredible journey. Many goodhearted and gracious people help him along the way. Yet, as he learns to cheat destiny, he is tempted to use or betray those who have helped him. Enjoy the excitement of a royal's quest while the Kings of Europe battle for supremacy throughout the world. The Star of India is the second novel of a three novel drama series called A Voice from New Mill Creek. After the introduction of the world shaper is complete, this novel continues the story of The Methodists that began in the first book of the series. Tony Alan Grayson
