Edakation is Importunt

Reel importunt!Jon Karry told us so -

You know, education--if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework, and you make an effort to be smart, uh, you can do well. If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq.

Yeah! U tell um Jon! Doughn't be like this hoser head!

Prince Harry is to be sent to Iraq next year as a troop commander and is likely to patrol the hazardous border with Iran, defence sources have disclosed.

The third in line to the throne will join the Army's 1st Mechanised Brigade, which will be deployed to Basra in May 2007.

Christmas in Virginia

Late December here in Virginia has been unusually mild. While the family back in Denver get slammed with another major snow storm tonight, we had temperatures in the upper 50's. I spent a fair amount of time yesterday working in the yard.

Here's a shot Winnie took of me Christmas Eve over on the Riverwalk in Yorktown. That's right, no jacket, just a cotton sweater.

Welfare Stud

I am alternately appalled by this story, and impressed with the man's, ummmm, vigor.

Serge Régnier (as some readers may remember) is a 47-year old Belgian with three wives and thirty children. In 1986 Régnier married Christine Wuest (who is now 38). They have fifteen children, between 19 years and 11 months old. A couple of years later, Christine’s homeless sister Karine Wuest (now 35 years old) came to live with the couple. Soon she fell in love with Serge. Christine consented in her husband taking her sister as a second wife. Serge and Karine have six children, between 10 years and 10 months old.

All that time, Serge had been meeting his former girlfriend Judith De Leenheer (now 38 years old). When Judith’s marriage broke up – which was not altogether surprising since all her children were Serge’s rather than her husband’s – Serge asked his two wives whether they would mind taking her in. They did not mind. Serge and Judith have nine children, between 18 years and 10 months old. They all live together in Serge’s house in Marcinelle, a town in Wallonia, the French-speaking South of Belgium.

How can he afford this? Silly boy! He's disabled and the women are on welfare.

On one hand, I'm appalled at the cost this is passing to society, but on the other at least he has done his bit to prop up the non-Muslim population there. You could argue that his kids will pay back every penny in their 'earning years', but as the article makes clear, this area of Belgium has "several families that had been on the dole for three generations and did not have a single relative who was officially employed."

Engagement

Michael and Winifred Ryan, PhD of Gloucester Point, Virginia are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Erin Lee Ryan, to Mark David Lacy, PhD, son of David and Penelope Lacy of Worthing, Sussex, England.

Erin is a 2002 graduate of the University of Arizona with a degree in Astronomy. She is currently a PhD student in Astronomy at the University of Minnesota, and resides in Minneapolis. Mark is employed by the Spitzer Space Center, Jet Propulsion Laboratory at the California Institute of Technology, and resides in Pasadena, California.

No wedding date has been announced.

Kudos

Today I got a framed certificate from Keane commemorating my recent "K-PIN" award. This was my third such award, so I got the certificate.

The award was based on the appreciation letter my VDOT boss recently submitted. Apparently he's not ready to "fire my ass" just yet.

I also got a $100 gift certificate. It looks like I owe Scott a lunch.

Professor Ryan

So, Dr. Winnie will soon be an "Adjunct Professor" at Thomas Nelson Community College where she will start by offering "Principles of Sociology". She'd like to see what other courses they'd be interested in having her present. I'm sure I'll be writing more about this over time.

When the Going Gets Tough...

...the French get going. Even cowering in Kabul is too much for them.

France is to withdraw its 200-strong special forces from Afghanistan, all of its ground troops engaged in the U.S anti-terror operation there, authorities announced Sunday.
France has balked at sending its 1,100-strong NATO contingent outside the relatively safe Afghan capital, Kabul.

Santapalooza

Last night Winnie and I attended the Santapalooza concert at the Norva Theater. On the bill were Leigh Nash (formerly of Sixpence None the Richer), Sister Hazel, and Barenaked Ladies.

All of it was great. I would have appreciated hearing more from Leigh Nash (her set was only about 5 songs). I have "all two" SPNTR albums, and really enjoy them. I went down and bought her new album (and got her Christmas album, gratis), but missed getting it signed. Rats!

Sister Hazel was quite the deal with the guys playing so hard that guitar strings popped. I'll probably be shopping around for their stuff too.

The Barenaked Ladies were awesome. I wouldn't have thought these guys, who are all around 40 now, could show that much energy on stage. They didn't play everything I might have hoped for, but if they had they would have been up there a long time. "The Old Apartment", "One Week", "It's All Been Done", "Alcohol", "Call and Answer", "Brian Wilson" were all in the set, and in their three encores they finished off with "If I Had A $1,000,000." There were more, but I don't remember them all.

The Norva is kind of an odd theater. Their website notes that there is some seating, but the best view is standing. Wrong. The only view is standing. The seating is all clustered around the three full service bars in the place. We weren't drinking, probably to their financial detrement. I'm sure they make a lot that way.

As we entered, the ground floor was really crowded already. I suggested we check out the upstairs. We did, and eventually found us a place off to the side where we had a really good, unobstructed view. It was kind of hard on us old farts (no chairs, etc.) but most of the rest of the crowd was of a "similar" age. Most of them were getting really well lubricated though.

By the time BNL were a couple of songs into their set, the bouncers decided we weren't looking too dangerous, and let Winnie and I right up to the rail, where we really lean over and watch. Didn't figure we'd throw any beer bottles or anything. These photos are absolutely indicative of the sort of spot we had. It was great.

The trip home was 'something' too. There was some sort of major accident on the Interstate, which they entirely closed. We were left driving around a part of Norfolk or Virginia Beach, where we had no idea where we were. Eventually we made it back to the Interstate in an open section. Then, when we're almost home we got stopped again. This time right at the foot of the Coleman Bridge, only a mile from home. Sobriety checkpoint. Hmmm, maybe it was fortunate we weren't drinking after all.

Political Patronage

This state runs on it.

Governor Kaine just proposed his new budget to the General Assembly. Included was $305M for a few new construction projects for VDOT. The list included building a bypass around the small western town of Hillsville. Intrigued, I looked it up. The project is $24M to build a 3 mile long bypass around the town. The population is about 3000.

The traffic they are looking to reroute is on US 58. With the town only being a couple miles of I-77, about 15000 vehicles per day travel on US 58 between the town and the Interstate. Only around 5000 come out of town on the other side on US 58. We can safely guess that, for at least a while, that traffic won't change much.

Is this cost effective? How does it help the town? Will the economy of the town improve when cars no longer pass through it?

I live on a suburban street, and VDOT has measured the traffic on my street at 2900 vehicles per day. I wonder if we could get them to invest $12M to reroute some of this traffic?

I can only assume that this is a sop thrown to the rural areas to get their support. Otherwise such a project just doesn't make sense.

Power Lines

No, silly, not that other blog. You know, lines carrying electricity. Apparently building these for the benefit of people in cities will destroy all that is holy about rural Virginia.

Power line opponents were sensitive Monday to the perception that a few well-heeled gentleman farmers concerned about the views from their estates are blocking progress and jeopardizing electricity for the region.

"This is not about a few wealthy landowners' self-interest," (actor Robert) Duvall said at the news conference. "This is about corporate vandalism."

Martha Toomey of Orlean said the power lines would hurt a region that has eschewed residential growth and sought to build an economy based on agriculture and tourism.

"We're not sitting out here making daisies. This is about business," Toomey said.

Having recently driven through those areas, I'm skeptical to any proclamations about farming. Robert Duvall may indeed have a farm, but most of the 'farmers' living in Fauquier are raising horses, not growing soybeans. Rich people with their toys.

You know, some other areas of the country have found that tourism can be a part of their local economy even when it's not rural. Take the above photo. The little, out-of-place house in the middle originally sat on 32 acres all by itself in the middle of rural Manhattan. Now it's near W 141st St in NYC.

That house belonged to Alexander Hamilton, patriot, war hero, and first Treasury Secretary. Sounds historic to me. Maybe they ought to restore it by tearing down all those other cluttery buildings around it, huh?


Heaven forbid, what would they think today about this second picture. See the peninsula in the upper left corner? That's Jamestown. You know, Captain John Smith and Pocahontas. Pretty historic stuff!

See the peninsula in the lower right? The one with the little straight canals? That's the Surry Nuclear Power Station. Could they even think about building that, today, only 4 miles from the first permanent English settlement on the continent?

Well, at least while Duvall and his cronies are burning horse poops for warmth, I'll have a nice electric supply.

Now, That's a Heavy Sleeper

I've slept through some things in my life (or at least pretended to), but this one takes the prize.

Dustin Noffsinger is lucky he hasn't been banished to the couch for all eternity. The last time he fell asleep there, his wife gave birth to their son in the bathtub, and he slept right through it.

On the night of Nov. 28, Noffsinger and his wife, Rhonda Richardson, went to bed in their Rifle home. Rhonda slept upstairs by herself because she wasn't feeling well.

Then early Wednesday, the 22-year-old Richardson started having contractions. Because her baby wasn't due until Christmas Eve, she called her midwife and was told to take her medicine, relax and take a hot bath. So she did.

A few minutes later, Richardson had an urge to push, and she could see the baby coming out. "I started screaming for my husband when I saw his head," Richardson recalled. "But no reaction. I could hear him snoring."

She screamed again but no luck. Noffsinger was crashed out, having stayed up with his wife for the past few days.

The baby came out but was still inside his amniotic sac, so Richardson used her fingernails to breach it.

At that point, finally awakened by his wife's screams, Noffsinger, 30, raced upstairs. "I woke up, and she had Dorian (the baby) in her arms, and I said, 'What the heck is going on?"' he said.

They called 911, and an ambulance took Richardson to Valley View Hospital in Glenwood Springs. On Sunday, baby and mother were allowed to go home.

Keep the U.N. Out of Our Beeswax

The U.N. is dreadfully worried that the Internet causes users to need to create user IDs and passwords, which they will inevitably re-use elsewhere. Their proposed solution is that we do reuse them, but that a better job be done coordinating this. (Great, so one gets hacked, they all get hacked).

The number of passwords and logins web users need makes it inevitable they will re-use phrases, warned the International Telecommunications Union.

Re-using these identifiers puts people at serious risk of falling victim to identity theft, said the ITU report.

It called on regulators and businesses to find better ways for people to identify themselves to websites.

Why am I suspicious of their motives? Hey, Kofi! Mind your own business!

Stuck on an Airplane

Normally, I prefer to sit next to women on an airplane as opposed to, say, some big beefy guy.

Well, maybe not this woman.

Flatulence brought 99 passengers on an American Airlines flight to an unscheduled visit to Nashville early Monday morning.

American Flight 1053, from Washington Reagan National Airport and bound for Dallas/Fort Worth, made an emergency landing here after passengers reported smelling struck matches, said Lynne Lowrance, a spokeswoman for the Nashville International Airport Authority.

The plane landed safely. The FBI, Transportation Safety Administration and airport authority responded to the emergency, Lowrance said.

The passengers and five crew members were brought off the plane, together with all the luggage, to go through security checks again. Bomb-sniffing dogs found spent matches.

The FBI questioned a passenger who admitted she struck the matches in an attempt to conceal body odor, Lowrance said. The woman lives near Dallas and has a medical condition.

The flight took off again, but the woman was not allowed back on the plane.

"American has banned her for a long time," Lowrance said.

She was not charged but could have been. While it is legal to bring as many as four books of paper safety matches onto an aircraft, it is illegal to strike a match in an airplane, Lowrance said.

Good Day / Bad Day

This was one of those days at work that had it's ups and downs.

On the good side, I found out that my company has given me a commendation. These go to around 10 people per month, out of a workforce of around 10,000. This is the third time I've received one. Pretty cool. I assume they'll be mentioning this at my service anniversary dinner on Thursday.

On the down side, while checking my current vacation balance with the HR folks, I found out that I earned one week more of vacation this year than I had thought. (I thought the increased rate didn't kick in until next year.) Why is that bad? Because our vacation is use-or-lose every year, and my customer doesn't want me to take off 2 1/2 weeks in December. (I was planning to take 1 1/2 weeks anyway.)

So, unless the company gives special dispensation to allow this "commended" employee to roll it over into next year, I'm going to lose a week of sorely needed vacation.

Argh!

Property Assessment - Revisited

A few weeks ago I wrote about our surprisingly successful effort to get our property reappraisal reconsidered. The Equalization Board is still at it, working on last year's appraisals, STILL.

As Gloucester's Board of Equalization nears the end of its work to rectify mistakes made to recent real estate assessments, the owners of nearly 400 properties are already seeking Circuit Court relief, said an at-large county supervisor.

The statement by Michelle Ressler was made during an informational meeting attended by about 30 people Monday night. She said 398 county properties are the subject of Circuit Court appeals contesting property appraisals by Blue Ridge Mass Appraisal that were reviewed by the board of equalization.

County attorney Bill Stuck said Circuit Court appeals could be filed for three years after the board concludes its work in December.

In Blue Ridge's 2006 appraisals, countywide property values increased by about 80 percent on average and as much as 400 percent in some cases. The appraisals have been the subject of repeated complaints since early this year.

The equalization board has until Dec. 31 to complete the reviews intended to fix discrepancies in property values.

Ressler said more than 7,300 Blue Ridge assessments have been scheduled for review since March. So far, those reviews have reduced countywide private property assessments by $36 million, while increasing commercial property assessments by $99 million, she said.

George Woodhouse, chairman of the Board of Equalization, said the board would also review 528 commercial properties where functional problems that weren't addressed - such as limited access - caused property values to be unduly increased. Those properties will see value reductions by 30 percent or more, he said.

Once the board is finished, the Gloucester Board of Supervisors will have to decide how to handle court challenges.

Stuck, the county attorney, said Gloucester could not ask the court for a blanket nullification of the reassessments. Instead, each appeal to the Circuit Court must be heard individually, he said, answering a resident's question about whether a class action lawsuit was feasible.

Ressler said the county has hired a property assessor and will no longer use an outside contractor for the work. County officials have also decided to reduce the span between assessments from every four years to every two years, she said.

Limits on Acceptable Christmas Wreaths - UPDATED

Today we have this charming story out of Colorado.

In a town in scenic southwestern Colorado homeowners are battling over whether a Christmas wreath that includes a peace sign is an anti-Iraq war protest or even a promotion of Satan.

"We have had three or four complaints. Some people have kids in Iraq and they are sensitive," said Bob Kearns, president of the Loma Linda Homeowners Association in Pagosa Springs. He also said some believe it is a symbol of Satan.

Jeff Heitz, of the association board, sent a letter to Lisa Jensen saying: "Loma Linda residents are offended by the peace sign displayed on the front of your house. ... This Board will not allow any signs, flags etc. that can be considered divisive...."

The subdivision's convenants say no signs, billboards or advertising are permitted without the consent of the architectural control committee.

When Kearns ordered the association's architectural control committee to require Jensen to remove the wreath removed, they refused. Jack Lilly, chairman of the group, said it decided it was merely a seasonal symbol that didn't say anything. Lilly also said he had received no complaints from homeowners. Kearns fired all five members of the committee.

"Somebody could put up signs that say drop bombs on Iraq. If you let one go up you have to let them all go up," said Kearns in a telephone interview Sunday. Earlier another homeowner had complied when required to take down a peace sign that was made of a pie plate held up by two skis.

Jensen, a past president of the association in the subdivision of 200 homes 270 miles southwest of Denver, said: "I honestly wasn't thinking of the Iraq war. Peace is way bigger than not being at war. This is a spiritual thing. I am not going to take it down until after Christmas. Now that it has come to this I feel I can't get bullied. What if they don't like my Santa Claus."

Kearns said the association will fine Jensen $25 a day for every day it remains up. She calculates that will cost her about $1,000, although she doubts they will be able to make her pay.

Kearns, meanwhile, also said he was concerned about the pagan symbolism of the peace sign. "It's also an anti-Christ sign. That's how it started," he told the Durango Herald.

Let's start with the last part. First, the pagan symbolism thing, is a load of you-know-what. Some will try to tell you otherwise, but unless you are willing to concede Richard Nixon and Winston Churchill as Satanists, I think you better let it rest.

Second, I suppose in the wild and wacky world of Home Owners Associations and the courts, someone might rule that an offensive pagan religious display may be banned. However, at this point, out of consistency, Mr. Kearns will be telling everyone to take down their lights and Santas. If you ban one religious display, you've got to ban them all.

"Oh, it's only those pagans we're trying to stop." Really? Where do you draw the line at pagan (i.e. non-Christian)? Does that allow you to prevent someone from displaying a menorah on their lawn? What about if the local Morman family (and there are plenty in Colorado) wants to put up a lighted Rudolph? There are certainly some who don't consider the LDS church as Christian. To them, it's a crazy cult.

Third, crazy as our culture is, I suppose they can ban it based on the concept that it is "political". However, the First Amendment says

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

So, if the wreath is carrying a religious message or a political one (petition for redress), the first amendment explicitly protects it. Thus, the proper stance for Ms. Jensen is to tell Mr. Kearns to F- Off! Signs, billboards, and advertising are supposedly banned without approval of the HOA, and those aren't political speech, and so enjoy lesser Constitutional protection. Fine. But by Mr. Kearns own statement, he believes the matter is political, so he's damned himself here.

(By the way, does this mean everyone would be OK with this if she hung the wreath in her car window? Then, it's not attached to the 'architecture'. How about, if she gets one of those old-fashioned 'colored light-wheel' things you would use with an aluminum Christmas tree, and just projects a peace symbol on her own house?)

Fourth, did you notice in the article that the whole matter went through the proper channels and when Mr. Kearns didn't get the response he wanted from the architectural review board he fired them en masse? Wow! Quite a democratic process they've got going there when the president of the HOA can just fire anyone that doesn't agree with him.

UPDATE - Well the HOA has backed down and apologized for the misunderstanding. The two silly HOA doofuses (doofi?) that ordered the wreath's removal have now changed to unlisted phone numbers. The "complainer" has been publicly identified, and no doubt will be changing his phone number soon, too.

And that five-member architectural review board that heard, but rejected, the original complaint? The board turns out to include two Vietnam and one Korean War vet. Apparently someone understands what freedon is about.

Home Science Experiment

As Jamie would say on MythBusters, "now that's what I'm talking about!" I definitely think this kid is destined for something great, based on this science fair project. Hopefully that's some thing great and "good".

On the surface, Thiago Olson is like any typical teenager.

In the basement of his parents' Oakland Township home, tucked away in an area most aren't privy to see, Thiago is exhausting his love of physics on a project that has taken him more than two years and 1,000 hours to research and build -- a large, intricate machine that , on a small scale, creates nuclear fusion.

Nuclear fusion -- when atoms are combined to create energy -- is "kind of like the holy grail of physics," he said.

In fact, on http://www.fusor.net/, the Stoney Creek senior is ranked as the 18th amateur in the world to create nuclear fusion. So, how does he do it? Pointing to the steel chamber where all the magic happens, Thiago said on Friday that this piece of the puzzle serves as a vacuum. The air is sucked out and into a filter.

Then, deuterium gas -- a form of hydrogen -- is injected into the vacuum. About 40,000 volts of electricity are charged into the chamber from a piece of equipment taken from an old mammogram machine. As the machine runs, the atoms in the chamber are attracted to the center and soon -- ta da -- nuclear fusion.

Can You Say "Ouch?"

Feel fortunate that the on-line version of the paper doesn't include photos. The original print article did.

Q: How was severe constipation treated in early 17th-century Virginia?

A: One method called for using a foot-long iron tool called a "spatula mundani."

"Mundani" derives from the word "mundify," which means "to make clean," says a Web site run by the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities.

The tool's spoon end was used for the actual medical procedure. The spatula end was probably used for stirring or applying ointments.

Archaeologists found a spatula mundani at Jamestown. Records say it was shipped there with other medical tools in 1609.

The Yorktown Pub's in Trouble

I've written several entries in which I mentioned the Yorktown Pub, most recently on 19 October. Now it seems that they are in some trouble.

A popular watering hole is under state scrutiny following several reports of over-serving alcohol to patrons, one of whom has been tied to the death of a Hampton man in a September boat crash.

Agents with the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control are investigating whether the Yorktown Pub has violated state liquor laws in several cases of dangerously excessive drinking over the past three months.

The investigation stems from the boat crash that killed 27-year-old Casey Marks of Hampton, said ABC spokeswoman Beth Straeten. Marks and two Poquoson men had been drinking at the pub before they boarded a Boston whaler on Sept. 12 and crashed full-speed into a pier along the Yorktown waterfront...

An ABC investigator is also looking into two cases from October in which pub patrons were so drunk that they had to be hospitalized. On Oct. 20, a York County sheriff's deputy came across a group of sailors crowded around an unconscious man near the Yorktown Pub. Witnesses said the man had been drinking at the pub and was heavily inebriated, according to a search warrant for the man's medical records and toxicology tests.

I'm a bit surprised at this. Most of their patrons tend to be middle-class middle-age old farts, like me. Hardly the type you'd think would get that plastered in public. Note the reference to the 20th? I'm guessing the "group of sialors" are the same we were in the pub with that night.

The Bottom Drops Out on Starbucks...

I've been waiting for this. Even here, in quasi-rural Virginia the density of Starbucks has now exceeded that of McDonalds. There is one spot, around our nearest mall, where there are now at least 7 Starbucks inside a 2 mile diameter circle. Our local grocery chain, Farm Fresh, is putting a Starbucks kiosk in all their new and renovated stores.

Despite all the openings, it's down the tubes time. (Guys, this is called "market saturation". You might want to look the term up.) -

Starbucks Corp. said Wednesday its fourth-quarter profit slipped 5 percent, but only because of changes in accounting rules. Despite solid revenue growth and a record number of new store openings, the results sent the stock sinking in after-hours trading.

Uh-huh. Those pesky accounting rules are doing it again.

Revenue for the quarter was $2 billion, up 20 percent from $1.66 billion in the same period last year...Starbucks opened 2,199 new store stores in fiscal 2006, setting a company record and boosting its worldwide store count to 12,440.

So you have 21% more stores than a year ago, and your sales revenue, not accounting for inflation, has increased by 20% in the same period. The Consumer Price Index is up 1.3% over a year ago, so their adjusted revenue growth is more like 19%. It would be interesting to look at their quarterly filings and see what same-store-sales have done over last year. I suspect they are way down.

Still, you gotta love this quote. -

Some analysts voiced concerns about increased payroll costs, which the company attributed to staffing more stores with assistant managers. Chairman Howard Schultz said it was part of a strategy to make sure the company has enough trained managers to keep its steadily growing number of stores running smoothly.

Should I be amused that not all stores had assistant managers before? I mean, what happens when the manager isn't there? Who's in charge? On the other hand, given the penchant for fast food places to make assistant managers out of anyone who lasts 6 months, this makes a sort of twisted sense. We'll give these guys there own stores to manage!

Though I'd also note that the first stores were big, spacious and full of comfy chairs, and then the new stores were smaller with cafe tables, then tiny with a drive-through window, and now a kiosk in my grocery store. Coming next, a guy with a cart on the street. Damn, too late, they're already here. Gosh, what a privilege to be the "Manager" of one of those.

Moderate vs Extremist

I don't think I can make this point any better than James Taranto, so I won't try.

In a USA Today op-ed, Kirsten Powers, a onetime Clinton administration official, celebrates the rise of "moderate" Democrats:

It was critical that Rep. Rahm Emanuel of Illinois and Sen. Charles Schumer of New York--who ran the campaign committees--recruited candidates palatable to conservative or moderate voters who wanted to send a message about the war, but who didn't want to compromise on beliefs about abortion, gay marriage or the role of religion in public life. . ..

In North Carolina, Democrat Heath Shuler ran as a born-again Christian who opposes abortion. Pro-gun Brad Ellsworth, who opposes abortion and favors an amendment banning gay marriage, will be a new representative from red-state Indiana. Rep. Ted Strickland, a United Methodist minister, became the first Democrat to win as governor in Ohio in 20 years.

This column is scrupulously nonpartisan, so it falls to us to point out the double standard here: How come Democrats who oppose abortion and same-sex marriage are "moderates," while Republicans who hold the same views are "extremists"?

Boo hoo hoo

Won't somebody do something for these poor guys?

Likening themselves to prisoners at Abu Ghraib and Guantánamo Bay, a dozen inmates on death row in Texas have staged hunger strikes over the last month to protest what they call abusive conditions, including 23 hours a day of isolation in their cells...Since death row was moved from an older and more open facility in 2000, he said, “We lost all our group recreation, art programs, and supplies.”

The quote above is from Steven Woods, one of the hunger strikers on death row. Don't you feel sorry for him?

Personally, I think I'll save my sympathy for the family of Bethena Lyn Brosz, the young women, almost my own daughter's age, that Steven Woods murdered.

Shenandoah National Park

I haven't posted for a week or more, because there was a break while we visited Shenandoah National Park. It was nice to get out of town for a few days.

The first day we stopped off at a couple of wineries. First up was Barboursville where we tasted everything they had(about 15 wines), and bought a half dozen to take home.

Then we crossed the road to Horton, where we definitely did not taste everything, as they had about 40 varieties on display, but did buy three more bottles. The tasting room didn't look like the website either; there was barely enough room to turn around.

We popped up over the mountain, and spent the night in Waynesboro. The next morning we drove north up the valley past the Virginia version of the Coors brewery, and did some shopping at Art Studio Pottery. Later we stopped off in Staunton, but not much was open, it being Sunday.

So, we drove up into the park, and headed up to our hotel at Skyland. Winnie wants me to say "we went hiking on the Appalachian Trail, and saw a bear." I call that technically correct, but a deceptively creative use of a conjuctive clause. It was a beautiful spot though, a thousand feet above the valley, with the rooms looking out over the ridges turning blue at sunset, and pink at sunrise. Views in between are of the little farms and towns, and all their lights at night. It was a nice little trip.

Property Assessment

Winnie and I had to travel up to the courthouse today to meet with our local Board of Equalization about a reassessment of our house. Only a year ago our assessment had been increased from $86K to $155K. That seemed reasonable to us, given there hadn't been a general reassessment in about 10 years. But the new valuation, of $224K seemed a bit much.

Our property, lying so close to US 17, is zoned B-1. As part of a reevaluation, they had decided to increase the assessment on our land by over $89K. That's a pretty hefty hike considering our lot is only 0.3 acres. There wasn't to be any change to the value of the house.

So, we wrote them a protest letter, noting the great increase, that this property though in business zoning was, in fact, our residence, comparing the (old) assessments of other properties in the area, and noting the current advertised prices for B-1 zones lots in our area.

Amazingly enough, they agreed. Since they can't do anything about the formula they use to calculate the value of the land, they are decreasing the valuation on the house to $1000 (that's not a mis-typing) from $101K. So, our overall assessment will decrease by $11K, bring us back in line with what we think it is worth.

For their part, I guess it provides a recognition that anyone that wanted this property for a business would be planning on razing the house anyway. What a pity that would be, given all the time and effort we've put into fruit trees and such.

I just hope this doesn't freak out the guys at Allstate. Remember folks, I have a replacement value policy!

Thin Canadian Skin

Ottawa is whining because a Republican said something mean about them -

A Republican attack ad that slams Canada as a bad neighbour on the world stage is inappropriate but not a big deal, said U.S. Ambassador David Wilkins....

"Just imagine if I registered a complaint every time my country or president was criticized," said Wilkins.

"Compare that (one ad) with the criticism early this year during the (federal) election that happened every day in Canada ...ads that were run consistently throughout your country."...

"Canada can take care of North Korea," says one man featured in the ad. They're not busy.''...

Canada has worked hard to raise awareness among Americans about its involvement in Afghanistan. The Canadian Embassy in Washington has been on an advertising campaign to get the word out, plastering subway stations in the capital with posters depicting Canadian troops in Afghanistan.

Having seen some of the criticisms of the U.S. in the Canadian press this year, if I saw a poster advertising that Canadian troops were fighting in Afghanistan I might be tempted to ask "for which side?"

Not the Best Day

So, I wake up an hour late. Fortunately, I made up a lot of the time, and only got on the road a half hour late. The delay turns out to be fortunate for me, because I get five miles from home, and blow out a tire. The one day I might actually use my new cell phone, I've forgotten it at home, on my desk.

I get out my shiny new jack, read the instructions, and get out my itty-bitty spare tire. I'm wearing pretty decent clothes for work, and don't want to get them dirty or torn kneeling down, so I squat down to loosen the lug nuts. At this point there is a ripppppp as my boxers cut loose.

I get the tire replaced, and head back the other way to find a tire dealer. These are factory original, and have 81,000 miles on them, so I'm not surprised that it's time to change them just not like this. I get to the tire dealer 10 minutes after they open.

I'm at the tire store an hour. The guy tells me my car is just about ready. Minutes go by. Then he tells me there is a small snafu. The tires have a "forward" direction, and the installer has done them all the same way, so two are pointing backwards. So, he has to take two of them back off the rims, put them back on, and rebalance them. So, I'm at the tire store for more like an hour and 45 minutes.

I finally got to work 2 1/2 hours late. About the only good I can see, is at least I didn't blow that tire out at 70+ mph on I-64. Sigh!

October 20, 2006

We made another trip over to Yorktown on Saturday, accompanied by our friend Erica. This time we got to take the tour of the Godspeed. Pretty little "life size" reconstruction. The photo here pretty well says it all. Can you imagine crossing the Atlantic in this tub, crammed down in the hold with all the makings of a colony including the pigs and chickens. The crossing took almost 5 months.

After the tour we went up to the area around the National Park visitor center. I was prepared to see vendors there, but not quite the variety I saw. I know that I certainly had no idea that there were so many little businesses that cater to historical re-enactors. Old fashioned clothes for sale. Tailors that would make them for you. Bulk cloth, yarn, etc. Shoes. Hats. All of it for both men and women. Assorted weaponry, both personal and to service artillery.

I realize that it doesn't take much to fill the little market area they had, but I have to assume these people are set up to follow the reenactments around, battle to battle, and presumably war-to-war as this was (mostly) Revolutionary stuff. (I saw a couple of costumes that I think would have more in place in, say, 1870 rather than 1780.)

Just as we got up there, too, the troops were assembling in their ranks. "Hey, a British Major General is going to come by an inspect us in a couple minutes." "Yeah? Which one is he playing?" "No! A real British Major General!"

The one really dissonant item is that all the reienactors are about twice the age of the real soldiers back then. Joseph Plumb Martin, who I quoted repeatedly in the history of the siege, was 21 years old when he arrived in Yorktown, and had been in the army for 5 years.

We topped of our day by returning to the modern setting of VIMS, and the annual pig roast. These parties at VIMS take place inside the reconstructed Civil War fort, which more or less sits on top of the site of Banistre Tarleton's encampment, yards from the old Gloucester Town. Remnants of the settlements turn up here every time someone digs a new foundation. I wonder down there some times, how many British, French, and American dead lie under our feet? For all I know some of them rest, even now, in my front yard.

October 21, 1781 - Surrender

On the day of the surrender, Lord Cornwallis was "indisposed", and so was unable to surrender in person. Instead, General O'Hara was sent out to present his sword. He first tried to surrender to General Rochambeau, who directed him to General Washington. When informed that Lord Cornwallis was not going to surrender in person, General Washington directed O'Hara to his second in command, General Lincoln. Lincoln accepted O'Hara's sword, completing the surrender, with the largely humilitating terms, after having been forced to similarly submit in Charleston.

October 19, 2006

The Americans and French were together again in Yorktown, this time in the Yorktown Pub, about 50 yards from Cornwallis' Cave. The place was filled with seaman and warrant officers from the FS De Grasse. We arrived at about 7pm, and apparently the French had already been there drinking for quite some time. The silliness you see all took place between 7pm and 8pm. I haven't seen Winnie blush so much in a long time.

October 19, 1781 - Articles of Capitulation

(ed. note - OK, I'm going to publish this a day early, because I don't intend being anywhere near this computer when the fireworks for the surrender celebration begin.)

The final terms of the Articles of Capitulation were -

"Settled between his Excellency General WASHINGTON, Commander in Chief of the combined Forces of America and France; his Excellency the Count de ROCHAMBEAU, Lieut. General of the armies of the King of France, Great Cross of the Royal and Military Order of St. Louis, commanding the auxiliary Troops of His Most Christian Majesty in America; and his Excellency the Count de GRASSE, Lieut. General of the naval Armies of His Most Christian Majesty, Commander of the Order of St. Louis, commanding in chief the naval Army of France in the Chesapeake, on the one Part AND

The Right Hon. Earl CORNWALLIS, Lieut. General of his Britannic Majesty Forces, commanding the Garrisons of York and Gloucester; and THOMAS SYMONDS, Esq; commanding his Britannic Majesty naval Forces in York river in Virginia, on the other part. ARTICLE I. The garrisons of York and Gloucester, including the officers and seamen of his Britannic Majesty ships, as well as other mariners, to surrender themselves prisoners of war to the combined forces of America and France. The land troops to remain prisoners to the United States: The navy to the naval army of his Most Christian Majesty. Granted.

ARTICLE II.The artillery, arms, accoutrements, military chest, and public stores, of every denomination, shall be delivered unimpaired, to the heads of departments, appointed to receive them. Granted.

ARTICLE III. At 12 o’clock this day the two redoubts on the left flank of York to be delivered, the one to a detachment of American Infantry, the other to a detachment of French Grenadiers --- The garrison of York will match out to a place to be appointed, in front of the posts, at two precisely, with shouldered arms, colors cased and drums beating a British or German march --- they are then to ground their arms and return to their encampment, where they will remain until they are dispatched to the place of their destination --- Two works on the Gloucester side, will be delivered at one to detachments of French and American troops appointed to possess them --- The garrison will march out at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, the cavalry with their swords drawn, trumpets sounding, and the infantry in the manner prescribed for the garrison of York --- They are likewise to return to their encampment until they can be finally marched off. Granted.

ARTICLE IV.Officers are to retain their side arms --- both officers and soldiers to keep their private property of every kind, and no part of their baggage or papers to be at any time subject to search or inspection --- The baggage and papers of officers and soldiers taken during the siege to be likewise preserved for them --- It is understood that any property obviously belonging to the inhabitants of these States, in the possession of the garrison, shall be subject to be reclaimed. Granted.

ARTICLE V. The soldiers to be kept in Virginia, Maryland or Pennsylvania, and as much by regiments as possible, and supplied with the same rations of provisions as are allowed to soldiers in the service of America: A field officer from each nation, viz. British, Anspach and Hessian, and other officers on parole, in proportion of one to fifty men, to be allowed to reside near their respective regiments, to visit them frequently and be witnesses of their treatment --- and that these officers may receive and deliver clothing and other necessaries for them, for which passports are to be granted when applied for. Granted.

ARTICLE VI. The General --- Staff and other officers, not employed as mentioned in the above article, and who chose it, to be permitted to go on parole to Europe, to New York, or to any other American maritime ports at present in the possession of the British forces, at their own option; and proper vessels to be granted by the Count de Grasse, to carry them, under flags of truce, to New York within ten days from this date, if possible, and they to reside in a district to be agreed upon hereafter, till they embark. The officers of the civil department of the army and navy to be included in this article. Passports to go by land to be granted to those to whom vessels cannot be furnished. Granted.

ARTICLE VII. Officers to be allowed to keep soldiers as servants, according to the common practice of the army --- Servants, not soldiers, are not to be considered as prisoners, and are to be allowed to attend their masters. --- Granted.

ARTICLE. VIII. The Bonetta sloop of war to be equipped and navigated by its present Captain and crew, and left entirely at the disposal of Lord Cornwallis, from the hour that the capitulation is signed, to receive an Aid de Camp to carry dispatches to Sir Henry Clinton, and such soldiers as he may think proper to send to New York, to be permitted to said without examination, when his dispatches are ready. --- His Lordship engaging on his part, that the ship shall be delivered to the order of the Count de Grasse, if she escapes the dangers of the seas --- that she shall not carry off any public stores --- any part of the crew that may be deficient on her return and the soldiers, passengers, to be accounted for on her delivery. Granted.

ARTICLE. IX. The traders are to preserve their property, and to be allowed three months to dispose of or remove them --- and those traders are to be considered as prisoners of war.

ANSWER. The traders will be allowed to dispose of their effects --- the allied army having the right of pre-emption. The traders to be considered as prisoners of war on parole.

ARTICLE X. Natives or inhabitants of different parts of this country, at present in York and Gloucester, are not to be punished on account of having joined the British army.

ANSWER This article cannot be assented to, being altogether of civil resort.

ARTICLE XI. Proper hospitals to be furnished for the sick and wounded - they are to be attended by their own surgeons on parole, and they are to be furnished with medicines and stores from the American hospitals.

ANSWER The hospital stores now in York and Gloucester shall be delivered for the use of the British sick and wounded. Passports will be granted for procuring them further supplies from New York, as occasion may require, and proper hospitals will be furnished for the reception of the sick and wounded of the two garrisons.

ARTICLE XII. Wagons to be furnished to carry the baggage of the offices attending the soldiers, and the surgeons when traveling on account of the sick, attending the hospitals, at the public expense.

ANSWER They will be furnished if possible.

ARTICLE XIII. The shipping and boats in the two harbors, with all their stores, guns, tackling and apparel shall be delivered up in their present state to an officer of the navy appointed to take possession of them, previously unloading the private property, part of which had been on board for security during the siege. Granted.

ARTICLE XIV. No article of the capitulation to be infringed, on pretext of reprisal, and if there be any doubtful expressions in it, they are to be interpreted according to the common meaning and acceptation of the words. Granted.

Done at York, in Virginia, this 19th day of October, 1781."

October 18, 1781 - Terms of Surrender

Early in the morning of the 18th, Cornwallis received the reply to his request that his soldiers be released to return to England and fight no more. -

"To avoid unnecessary Discussions and Delays, I shall at Once, in Answer to your Lordship's Letter of Yesterday, declare the general Basis upon which a Definitive Treaty and Capitulation must take place.

The Garrisons of York and Gloucester, including the Seamen, as you propose, will be received Prisoners of War. The Condition annexed, of sending the British and German Troops to the parts of Europe to which they respectively belong, is inadmissible. Instead of this, they will be marched to such parts of the Country as can most conveniently provide for their Subsistence; and the Benevolent Treatment of Prisoners, which is invariably observed by the Americans, will be extended to them. The same honors will be granted to the Surrendering Army as were granted to the Garrison of Charles town.

The Shipping and Boats in the two Harbours, with all their Guns, Stores, Tackling, Furniture and Apparel, shall be delivered in their present State to an Officer of the Navy, appointed to take possession of them.

The Artillery, Arms, Accoutrements, Military Chest and Public Stores of every Denomination, shall be delivered unimpaired to the Heads of Departments, to which they respectively belong.

The Officers shall be indulged in retaining their Side Arms, and the Officers and Soldiers may preserve their Baggage and Effects, with this Reserve, that Property taken in the Country, will be reclaimed.

With Regard to the Individuals in civil Capacities, whose Interests Your Lordship wishes may be attended to, until they are more particularly described, nothing definitive can be settled.

I have to add, that I expect the Sick and Wounded will be supplied with their own Hospital Stores, and be attended by British Surgeons, particularly charged with the Care of them.

Your Lordship will be pleased to signify your Determination either to accept or reject the Proposals now offered, in the Course of Two Hours from the Delivery of this Letter, that Commissioners may be appointed to digest the Articles of Capitulation, or a Renewal of Hostilities may take place."

The reference to the surrender at Charlestown referred to the humiliating conditions in which the American forces had been forced to endure there, when they were refused permission to march out playing martial music and showing their colors after having endured six weeks of continuous bombardment.

Cornwallis had little choice but to accept, though. -

"I agree to open a treaty of capitulation upon the basis of the garrisons of York and Gloucester, including seamen, being prisoners of war, without annexing the condition of their being sent to Europe; but I expect to receive a compensation in the articles of capitulation for the surrender of Gloucester in its present state of defence.

I shall, in particular, desire, that the Bonetta sloop of war may be left entirely at my disposal, from the hour that the capitulation is signed, to receive an aid-de-camp to carry my dispatches to Sir Henry Clinton. Such soldiers as I may think proper to send as passengers in her, to be manned with fifty men of her own crew, and to be permitted to sail without examination, when my dispatches are ready: engaging, on my part, that the ship shall be brought back and delivered to you, if she escapes the dangers of the sea, that the crew and soldiers shall be accounted for in future exchanges, that she shall carry off no officer without your consent, nor public property of any kind; and I shall likewise desire, that the traders and inhabitants may preserve their property, and that no person may be punished or molested for having joined the British troops.

If you choose to proceed to negociation on these grounds, I shall appoint two field officers of my army to meet two officers from you, at any time and place that you think proper, to digest the articles of capitulation."

The two sides met at the Moore house and worked throughout the day, and into the night, hammering out the articles of capitulation.

Homecoming

Meanwhile, from back home -

"Homecoming weekend for a group of women at the Colorado School of Mines means pulling flags instead of pulling all-nighters.

For at least four years, Mines has organized a powder puff football game, where interested women play flag football against competitors of the same gender. This year, six teams competed in a preliminary round, and the championship game was Saturday after the men's game against the New Mexico Highlands University Cowboys.

Though the sorority team Alpha Phi didn't advance that far, the players remained in high spirits despite its 24-0 defeat...On the playing field, the hardest part for the Alpha Phi girls is maintaining their competitive edge.

"It's hard to be angry," Saulsbery said, when facing fellow females on the line of scrimmage.

"It's such a small school, you pretty much know everybody," Waltman said. "It's hard to play against your friends."

But for teammates, the experience helps solidify friendships.

"It's a good way for our house to bond," Waltman said.

Though powder puff only takes place during homecoming weekend, it is one of many social opportunities for college women that take place throughout the year, said Cameron Bell, CSM public relations specialist.

"In addition to six varsity sports, 23 club sports and 12 intramural teams, women at Mines are encouraged to participate in Greek life, mentoring programs and a wide variety of non-athletic clubs," Bell said."

'For at least four years"? The powder puff games started not later than the mid-70's. I most definitely was there. Maybe they mean the concept of there being enough teams to actually need to eliminate some to get to a championship.

Back when I was a youngster, Sonny, we weren't worried about the women playing football. We were much more impressed that they had a championship rifle team.

October 17, 1781 - Flag of Truce

At dawn the bombardment of Yorktown resumed, now including batteries located in the lines the Americans had completed between Redoubts 9 and 10. This placed the cannon only 300 or so yards away from the nearest fortifications. From Richard Ketchum -

"The cannonade that began at daybreak was more devastating by far than anything before, and the Hessian soldier Johann Doehla thought it would never end. The enemy, he wrote, 'fired from all redoubts without stopping... One saw nothing but bombs and balls raining on our whole line.'"

Escape through Gloucester is now clearly cut off; about 3000 American and French troops are sealing off the tip of the peninsula, placing them nearly shoulder to shoulder in their fortifications.

Doehla continued -

"Also, this morning right after reveille General Cornwallis came into the horn work and observed the enemy and his works. As soon as he had gone back to his quarters, he immediately sent a flag of truce with a white standard over to the enemy."

Ketchum says Cornwallis wrote to General Clinton and informed him

"Under all these circumstances, I thought it would have been wanton and inhuman to the last degree to sacrifice the lives of this small body of gallant soldiers, who had ever behaved with such fidelity and courage, by exposing them to an assault, which from the numbers and precautions of the enemy could not fail to succeed. I therefore proposed to capitulate."

The letter read

"Sir, I propose a cessation of hostilities for twenty-four hours, and that two officers may be appointed by each side, to meet at Mr. Moore's house, to settle terms for surrender of the posts at York and Gloucester.
I have the honour to be, &c
Cornwallis"

Washington replied -

"I have had the Honor of receiving Your Lordship's Letter of this Date.

An Ardent Desire to spare the further Effusion of Blood, will readily incline me to listen to such Terms for the Surrender of your Posts and Garrisons at York and Gloucester, as are admissible.

I wish previous to the Meeting of Commissioners, that your Lordship's proposals in writing, may be sent to the American Lines: for which Purpose, a Suspension of Hostilities during two Hours from the Delivery of this Letter will be granted."

And late in the afternoon, Cornwallis sent another message -

"I have this moment been honoured with your Excellency's letter, dated this day.

The time limited for sending my answer will not admit of entering into the detail of articles; but the basis of my proposals will be, that the garrisons of York and Gloucester shall be prisoners of war, with the customary honours. And, for the conveniency of the individuals which I have the honour to command, that the British shall be sent to Britain, and the Germans to Germany, under engagement not to serve against France, America, or their allies, until released or regularly exchanged. That all arms and public stores shall be delivered up to you; but that the usual indulgence of side-arms to officers, and of retaining private property, shall be granted to officers and soldiers, and that the interest of several individuals, in civil capacities and connected with us, shall be attended to.

If your Excellency thinks that a continuance of the suspensions of hostilities will be necessary, to transmit your answer, I shall have no objection to the hour that you may propose. "

October 16, 1781 - Counter-attack

As the French are repairing batteries taken in the fighting two nights earlier, they are attacked before dawn by about 350 British. They overran one of the outer picket positions, and moved forward to one of the batteries. There they were met by a bayonet charge by the French which drove them off.

The day before Cornwallis had written a dispatch to Clinton informing him

"My situation now becomes very critical We dare not show a gun to their old batteries, and I expect that their new ones will open tomorrow morning. Experience has shown that our fresh earthen works do not resist their powerful artillery, so that we shall soon be exposed to an assault in ruined works, in a bad position, and with weakened numbers. The safety of the place is, therefore, so precarious that I cannot recommend that the fleet and army should run great risk in endeavoring to save us."

Cornwallis now saw his only means of escape as being via Gloucester. In consultation with Banastre Tarleton he determined to ferry his troops across the river. Their calculations showed they could evacuate all of the troops in three crossings using the small boats at their disposal.

The first wave of boats crossed the river before midnight on the 16th. As they returned for a second load, storms came up which lasted for some hours. Concerned about dividing his forces, Cornwallis ordered all of the troops brought back to Yorktown. Tarleton understood the result.

"Thus expired the last hope of the British army."

October 14, 1781 - Redoubt #9

The French forces attacking Redoubt #9 were under the command of Guillaume, Comte de Deux-Ponts. In his memoirs, he recounted the assault this way.

"I advanced in the greatest silence; at a hundred and twenty or thirty paces, we were discovered; and the Hessian soldier who was stationed as a sentinel on the parapet, cried out ' Werda'? [Who comes there?] to which we did not reply, but hastened our steps. The enemy opened -fire the instant after the 'Werda.' We lost not a moment in reaching the abatis, which being strong and well preserved, at about twenty-five paces from the redoubt, cost us many men, and stopped us ' for some minutes, but was cleared away with brave determination; we threw ourselves into the ditch at once, and each one sought to break through the fraises, and. to mount the parapet. We reached there at first in small numbers, and I gave the order to fire; the enemy kept up a sharp fire, and charged us at the point of the bayonet; but no one was driven back. The carpenters, who had worked hard on their part, had made some breaches in the palisades, which helped the main body of the troops in mounting. The parapet was becoming manned visibly.

Our fire was increasing, and making terrible havoc among the enemy, who had placed themselves behind a kind of intrenchment of barrels, where they were well massed, and where all our shots told. We succeeded at the moment when I wished to give the order to leap into the redoubt and charge upon the enemy with the bayonet; then they laid down their arms, and we leaped in with more tranquillity and less risk. I shouted immediately the cry of Vive le Roi, which was repeated by all the grenadiers and chasseurs who were in good condition, by all the troops in the trenches, and to which the enemy replied by a general discharge of artillery and musketry. I never saw a sight more beautiful or more majestic. I did not stop to look at it; I had to give attention to the wounded, and directions to be observed towards the prisoners. At the same true, the Baron de Viomesnil [Vioménil] came to give me orders to be prepared for a vigorous defence, as it would be important for the enemy to attempt to retake this work. An active enemy would not have failed, and the Baron de Viomesnil [Vioménil] judged the English general by himself. I made my dispositions to the best of my ability; the enemy showered bullets upon us. I did not doubt that the idea of the Baron de Viomesnil [Vioménil] would be fulfilled. Finally, when all was over, a sentinel, charged with observing the movements without, called inc, and said that seine of the enemy were appearing. I raised my head above the parapet, and at the same time a ball, which ricochetted in the parapet, and passed very near my head, covered my face with sand and gravel. I suffered much, and was obliged to leave the place, and, to be conducted to the ambulance.

Fifty-six grenadiers and chasseurs of the regiment of Gatinois, twenty-one grenadiers and chasseurs of the Royal Deuxponts, six chasseurs of the Agenois, and nine soldiers of the second battalion of the Gatinois, have been killed or wounded, in this attack, which lasted only seven minutes. Moreover, M. de Barthelot, captain of the regiment of Gatinois, was killed; M. de Sireuil, captain of the chasseurs of this regiment,*** had his leg broken, and M.de Sillegue, second lieutenant of chasseurs was shot through his thigh. The Chevalier de La Meth received two musket balls, one of which broke his, knee-pan, and the other pierced his thigh. He volunteered for this attack, as also did the Count de Damas; I endeavored to prevent their doing so; but neither of them listened to the representations that would have kept them from glory. The Count de Vauban was also at my attack, and was charged by the Count de Rochambeau to be present in order to give him an account of the affair."

October 14, 1781 - Redoubt #10

The American forces, made up from forces from New York and throughout New England, under the command of Lt. Col. Alexander Hamilton, were the attackers at Redoubt #10. As usual, Jospeh Plumb Martin, of Connecticut, was there. -

"At dark the detachment was formed and advanced beyond the trenches and lay down on the ground to await the signal for advancing to the attack, which was to be three shells from a certain battery near where we were lying. All the batteries in our line were silent, and we lay anxiously waiting for the signal. The two brilliant planets, Jupiter and Venus, were in close contact in the western hemisphere, the same direction that the signal was to be made in. When I happened to cast my eyes to that quarter, which was often, and I caught a glance of them, I was ready to spring on my feet, thinking they were the signal for starting. Our watchword was 'Rochambeau,' the commander of the French forces' name, a good watchword, for being pronounced Ro-sham-bow, it sounded, when pronounced quick, like rush-on-boys.

We had not lain here long before the expected signal was given, for us and the French, who were to storm the other redoubt, by the three shells with their fiery train mounting the air in quick succession. The word up, up, was then reiterated through the detachment. We immediately moved silently on toward the redoubt we were to attack, with unloaded muskets. Just as we arrived at the abbatis, the enemy discovered us and directly opened a sharp fire upon us. We were now at a place where many of our large shells had burst in the ground, making holes sufficient to bury an ox in. The men, having their eyes fixed upon what was transacting before them, were every now and then falling into these holes. I thought the British were killing us off at a great rate. At length, one of the holes happened to pick me up, I found out the mystery of the huge slaughter.

As soon as the firing began, our people began to cry, 'The fort's our own!' and it was 'Rush on boys.' The sappers and miners soon cleared a passage for the infantry, who entered it rapidly. Our miners were ordered not to enter the fort, but there was no stopping them. 'We will go,' said they. 'Then go to the d---l,' said the commanding officer of our corps, 'if you will.' I could not pass at the entrance we had made, it was so crowded. I therefore forced a passage at a place where I saw our shot had cut away some of the abattis; several others entered at the same place. While passing, a man at my side received a ball in his head and fell under my feet, crying out bitterly. While crossing the trench, the enemy threw hand grenades (small shells) into it. They were so thick that I at first thought them cartridge papers on fire, but was soon undeceived by their cracking. As I mounted the breastwork, I met an old associate hitching himself down into the trench. I knew him by the light of the enemy's musketry, it was so vivid. The fort was taken and all quiet in a very short time. Immediately after the firing ceased, I went out to see what had become of my wounded friend and the other that fell in the passage. They were both dead. In the heat of the action I saw a British soldier jump over the walls of the fort next the river and go down the bank, which was almost perpendicular and twenty or thirty feet high. When he came to the beach he made off for the town, and if he did not make good use of his legs I never saw a man that did."

October 14, 1781 - Sunset

Richard Ketchum, in victory at Yorktown states -

"On Sunday the 14th all the American batteries concentrated on the British strongholds in the sector opposite them - notably the Number 9 and Number 10 redoubts that lay behind a moat and a tangle of abatis, and bristled with the angled, sharp-pointed stakes known as a fraise work"

The method that the Americans were going to use totake the redoubts was to send their sappers and miners ahead to breach the abatis. This would be followed by direct assaults by French infantry on redoubt Number 9 by the French, and Number 10 by the Americans. As usual, Joseph Plumb Martin was in the thick of things. -

"We arrived at the trenches a little before sunset. I saw several officers fixing bayonets on long staves. I then concluded we were about to make a general assault upon the enemy's works, but before dark I was informed of the whole plan, which was to storm the redoubts, the one by the Americans and the other by the French. The sappers and Miners were furnished with axes and were to proceed in front a cut a passage for the troops through the abatis, which are composed of the tops of trees, the small branches cut off with a slanting stroke which renders them sharp as spikes. These trees are then laid at a small distance from the trench or ditch, pointing outwards, and the butts fastened to the ground in such a manner that they cannot be removed by those on the outside of them. It is almost impossible to get through them. Through these we were to cut a passage before we or the other assailants could enter."

Kyoto Goals

From the Guardian Unlimited:

"Europe's security of electricity supply is facing a growing threat, with generating capacity ahead of rising demand by the lowest ever level, according to a report published today...This week Powergen parent E.ON UK said it had applied to build two units at its coal-fired station at Kingsnorth, Kent, which the company says would represent a £1bn investment. Yesterday RWE, which owns npower, said it was bringing another 500megawatt unit at its oil-fired Fawley plant in Hampshire back into service after being mothballed for more than a decade."

I don't get it, wasn't Europe going to cut their CO2 output, which certainly isn't helped by coal-fired power plants? They should be working on closing these plants permanently, not building them? Or have they changed their minds, and decided electricity is good?

UnReal Estate Assessment

When we moved into this house in 1997 the assessed value was $91,000. In 2001, perhaps realizing that this is an older house (built in 1948), the county lowered our assessment to $86,300.

Late last year, as a part of a county-wide reassessment, our valuation was raised to $155,000, an increase of 80%. We didn't get too freaked about it, unlike a lot of folks, because we realized that a mill levy adjustment would occur. We were right. Our property taxes did go up, but only $62 per year (7.4%).

Today we got a letter from the Board of Equalization notifying us that the property value is being increased again, this time to $244,400, a 58% increase over last year's new rate, and a total increase of 183% since two years ago.

What's going on? I have to find out ASAP. We've been given 13 working days to

"show cause against such increase. You must contact this office, in writing, on or before November 1, 2006 and provide substantial evidence that the proposed corrected assessment is erroneous and was not arrived at in accordance with generally accepted appraisal practice."

So, this should be entertaining. We'd be thrilled to learn this house is actually worth that much, but see no particular evidence of it ourselves. There's only been one house sold nearby lately, so I don't know how they arrived at the new figure.

In fact I REALLY don't know how they got this figure, because their letter doesn't even break down which part of the new assessment is for the land and which part is the house. The old assessment was $51K for the land and $104K for the structure.

My speculation has to do with zoning. Some years ago the Board of Supervisors, in a mighty stroke of wisdom, decided that all properties that were within 300 feet of US 17 were to be zoned B-1. That includes us, but not the folks on the other side of the street. There have already been newspaper articles lately about people being saddled with outrageous tax assessments for falling in this zoning. Which is ridiculous, as these house have been here for decades. I could understand the land valuation going way up in this case, but if someone buys it for commercial property they're not going to want an old house. That's coming down in a flash.

Or, most suspiciously, this notice arrived a day after we were seen speaking in public with some of the few known Democrats in the county.

Well, I'll call them tomorrow and see what they can tell me about their rationale.

UPDATE: I spoke with the county on Friday, and the increase was entirely concerned with increasing the value of our lot under the B-1 zoning. They feel that our 1/4 acre is worth $140,400. I'm impressed. I had no idea that building lots even here, so close to the edge of the known universe, went for over a half million dollars per acre. I'm starting to feel I have some grounds for appeal.

October 11, 1781

Since the completion of the first set of trenches, a new set of trenches has been under construction, to bring the allied forces closer to the British positions. On the 11th the second set of parallel trenches is begun, now only 360 yards from the British fortifications. Soldiers guarded those doing the excavating, and they were ordered to niether sit or lie down. By morning, none of the american soldiers had been killed.

The British side, by contrast had received more than 3600 shots from cannons in a twenty-four hour period, some of the shot even landing in Gloucester, where it wounded soldiers on the beach. By this time the American soldiers were able to see the damage being inflicted with dead and wounded strewn about the town.

Fireworks Follow-up

You may recall back in July, I mentioned the case of a local boy killed by the use of illegal fireworks. They were launching home-made mortar shells with a PVC pipe when the kid was hit. The father finally came up in court, and walked.

Getting hit by lightning was enough punishment for the New Kent County man who'd been charged with involuntary manslaughter and child neglect in a July 4 fireworks accident in Gloucester County that killed the man's 15-year-old stepson, a judge agreed.

"That's fair and reasonable," said Circuit Judge William H. Shaw III in a Gloucester trial Tuesday that ended with Ryland Fleet, 51, pleading guilty to a single misdemeanor count of unlawful use of fireworks. In return, Commonwealth's Attorney Robert D. Hicks agreed not to prosecute the two felony charges.

Hicks told Shaw that Fleet was undergoing therapy to deal with the grief of the "tragic accident" that killed Ryan Seomin during a party at a Gloucester residence.

The next month, lightning struck Fleet while he was riding his bicycle, Hicks said, "causing serious physical and cognitive injuries," which included temporary amnesia.

"Mr. Fleet initially didn't remember the July 4th incident," the prosecutor told Judge Shaw. Hicks said considering that Fleet had to begin grief therapy all over again and that he had no prior criminal record, "we decided it was the right thing to do."

Fleet, who hobbled to the defense table with a cane, casts on an arm and a knee, murmured in a barely audible voice, "No," when Shaw asked if he wanted to say anything before formal sentencing.

Shaw then sentenced him to 12 months in jail, with all of the time suspended for three years.

October 10, 1781

In Victory at Yorktown, Richard Ketchum states that "early the next morning [the 10th] the French Grand Battery opened with eighteen- and twenty-four-pounders and mortars...the defenders could find no refuge in or out of the town. Residents fled to the waterfront and hid in hastily built shelters on the sand cliffs, but some eighty of them were killed and others wounded - many with arms or legs severed - while their houses were destroyed...A British officer reported that the allied cannonade was so intense that his men could scarcely fire a gun of their own since 'fascines, stockade platforms, and earth, with guns and gun-carriages [were] all pounded together in a mass."

This same day part of the French batteries opened on the remaining British ships in the York River, using "hot shot", cannonballs heated to red hot before being fired. At least one shot was entirely successful; it set the three-year-old, 44-gun, Charon on fire. She was abandoned, drifted to the Gloucester side of the river, where she sank. Artifacts since recovered are displayed today in the NPS museum. Two or three other smaller vessels were sunk the same way that night.

October 9, 1781

After months of travel, weeks of preparation, and three days and nights of back-breaking work, the siege line was completed around Yorktown.

"The French, who were upon our left, had completed their batteries a few hours before us, but were not allowed to discharge their pieces till the American batteries were ready. Our commanding battery was on the near bank of the [York] river and contained ten heavy guns; the next was a bomb battery of three large mortars; and so on through the whole line. The whole number, American and French, was ninety-two cannon, mortars and howitzers. Our flag-staff was in the ten-gun battery, upon the right of the whole. I was in the trenches the day that the batteries were to be opened. All were upon the tiptoe of expectation and impatience to see the signal given to open the whole line of batteries, which was to be the hoisting of the American flag in the ten-gun battery. About noon, the much-wished-for signal went up. I confess I felt a secret pride swell my heart when I saw the 'star-spangled banner' waving majestically in the very faces of our implacible adversaries. It appeared like an omen of success to our enterprise, and so it proved in reality. A simultaneous discharge of all the guns in the line followed, the French troops accompanying it with 'Huzza for the Americans!' It was said that the first shell sent from our batteries entered an elegant house formerly owned or occupied by the Secretary of State under the British government, and burned directly over a table surrounded by a large party of British officers at dinner, killing and wounding a number of them. This was a warm day to the British." - Sergeant Joseph Plumb Martin

Washington had personally fired off the first shot that pierced the house of Thomas Nelson, and now the artillery barrage continued without a break.

Nor'easter

Winnie and I went over to Yorktown at about noon today and filmed some of the latest storm. There was minor damage, good winds and waves, and a helicopter out, apparently for a rescue. I'm glad we're not our there now (at 2:30) as it is pouring rain again.

October 6, 1781

"The next night, which was the sixth of October, the same men were ordered to the lines that had been there the night before. We this night completed laying out our works. The troops of the line were there ready with entrenching tools, and began to entrench, after General Washington had struck a few blows with a pickaxe, a mere ceremony, that it might be said 'General Washington with his own hands broke ground at the siege of Yorktown.' The ground was sandy and soft, and the men employed that night eat no 'idle bread' (and I question if they eat any other), so that by daylight they had covered themselves from danger from the enemy's shot, who, it appeared, never mistrusted that we were so near them the whole night, their attention being directed to another quarter. There was upon the right of their works a marsh. Our people had sent to the western side of this marsh a detachment to make a number of fires, by which, the British were led to imagine that we were about some secret mischief there, and consequently diverted their whole fire to that quarter, while we were entrenching literally under their noses.

As soon as it was day they perceived their mistake and began to fire where they ought to have done sooner. They brought out a fieldpiece or two without their trenches, and discharged several shots at the men who were at work erecting a bomb battery, but their shot had no effect and they soon gave it over. "

- Sergeant Joseph Plumb Martin

House Poor or Entirely Normal?

The Richmond Times-Dispatch had this to say about housing prices. -

The median price of a home in the Richmond area is $178,836, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight.Americans are becoming increasingly house poor, Census data show.

Homeowners in every state except Alaska spent more of their incomes on housing costs last year than at the start of the decade, according to data released yesterday by the Census Bureau. Alaskans spent the same.

Nationwide, homeowners spent nearly 21 percent of their incomes on housing costs last year, up from just under 19 percent in 1999...

...Nearly 45 percent of all households here -- with a median income of $55,741 -- can afford a median-priced home of $178,836 in the Richmond area.

That is down from 55 percent of households that could afford a median priced house in the first quarter of 2004, when the cost was $130,345.

"Until incomes catch up, the housing market is going to remain flat," Zandi said.

America's home-ownership rate is at a near-record 68.7 percent. But some housing advocates warn that declining affordability will make it difficult for low-income owners to keep their homes.

For example, the government says housing costs are excessive if they top 30 percent of household income. Nationally, 34.5 percent of homeowners with a mortgage had housing costs that topped that benchmark in 2005, an increase from 26.7 percent in 1999.

So, if I understand this correctly, just under half of all households, which includes both those that own homes anyway, and those that rent, could afford the current price of the median home on the market. Two points.

First, most of the 68% or so who already own a home don't need to worry that prices are rising quickly. This does not make them "house poor" in the least. They have an asset of floating value and a liability of fixed cost. I'll admit my economics courses were many years ago, but shouldn't the term "house poor" be limited to those who owe more to the bank than the house is worth on the market? This spike in house prices certainly isn't making these people poor, though it might lead them into making poor decisions about what to do with their (paper) equity.

Second, if you want a real measure of house inaffordability, shouldn't you use only the incomes of renters to calculate this value? So, look at that 32% who rent now, and tell me what fraction of them could afford to buy a house, but choose not to. If that was what they meant above, then I really have no sympathy. If 45% of renters could afford to buy a median priced house, but choose not to, who am I to argue with their judgment? For the other 55%, maybe this indicates that if they want a house they need to look at those below the median price. After all, in a perfect market economy, wouldn't 50% of all households be able to afford the median price? We're not that far off.

October 5, 1781

"We now began to make preparations for laying close siege to the enemy. We had holed him and nothing remained but to dig him out. Accordingly, after taking every precaution to prevent his escape, [we] settled our guards, provided fascines and gabions, made platforms for the batteries, to be laid down when needed, brought on our battering pieces, ammunition, &c. On the fifth of October we began to put our plans into execution.



One-third part of all the troops were put in requisition to be employed in opening the trenches. A third part of our Sappers and Miners were ordered out this night to assist the engineers in laying out the works. It was a very dark and rainy night. However, we repaired to the place and began by following the engineers and laying laths of pine wood end-to-end upon the line marked out by the officers for the trenches. We had not proceeded far in the business before the engineers ordered us to desist and remain where we were and be sure not to straggle a foot from the spot while they were absent from us. In a few minutes after their departure, there came a man alone to us, having on a surtout, as we conjectured, it being exceedingly dark,and inquired for the engineers. We now began to be a little jealous for our safety, being alone and without arms, and within forth rods of the British trenches. The stranger inquired what troop we were, talked familiarly with us a few minutes, when, being informed which way the officers had gone, he went off in the same direction, after strictly charging us, in case we should be taken prisoners, not to discover to the enemy what troops we were. We were obliged to him for his kind advice, but we considered ourselves as standing in no great need of it, for we knew as well as he did that Sappers and Miners were allowed no quarters, at least, are entitled to none, by the laws of warfare, and of course should take care, if taken, and the enemy did not find us out, not to betray our own secret.



In a short time the engineers returned and the afore-mentioned stranger with them. They discoursed together some time when, by the officers often calling him 'Your Excellency,' we discovered that it was General Washington. Had we dared, we might have cautioned him for exposing himself too carelessly to danger at such a time, and doubtless he would have taken it in good part if we had. But nothing ill happened to either him or ourselves.

It was coming on to rain hard, we were ordered back to our tents, and nothing more was done that night."

- Sergeant Joseph Plumb Martin