"I'm a President. I'll do What I Want"

  

The Legendary
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)

     In my final year at Laurentian University, I took a class on the history of Protest and Political Change.  One of the topics we looked at was the abolition of slavery in the United States.  My professor told us an interesting incident that occurred during the reconstruction period.

The wigged, sassy,
and awesomely named
Thaddeus Stevens
(1792-1868)

     Let me set the stage.  The Civil War is over and Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, is dead, assassinated at Ford's Theatre by John Wilkes Booth.  His successor, the Democrat Andrew Johnson, is at odds with Congress for favouring the South, even claiming that the South never seceded as they were never allowed to in the first place (prompting the Republican Thaddeus Stevens to reply that it was like saying one could never commit murder as it was against the law).

The Untouchable
Andrew Johnson
(1808-1875) 

     The United States Congress, disgruntled by the actions of their President, took it upon themselves to try to impeach Andrew Johnson.  The Congressman John Ashley claimed that Johnson was connected to the assassination of Lincoln.  Both attempts of impeachment in July and December of 1867 were failures due to a lack of evidence.  Despite this, Congress was determined that they soon had their smoking gun.

The Bearded and Awesome

Edwin Stanton

(1814-1869)

     Around the same time Congress was trying to remove Johnson, the 17th president of the United States decided to fire Edwin Stanton, the Secretary of War. Stanton refuses to leave (citing that the Senate need to approve of the termination), even when Johnson appointed Ulysses S. Grant to the posting. Stanton quickly set up camp in his own office to prevent Johnson from having the locks changed with whiskey and crackers to keep him company.   Johnson approached the infamous General William Tecumseh Sherman (the one who set the South ablaze during the war). Sherman quickly fled town and told his brother tell anyone who asked for him that he was dead! Johnson was still determined and appointed General Lorenzo Thomas as the new Secretary of War. Thomas planned to storm the War Department and but on the morning of the attack he was arrested by the police, had a warrant issued by the Secretary of War (can you guess who it was?).  The incident gave Congress the chance they needed to impeach Johnson.  Tragicaly, they were short by one vote and the tired Congress returned to reconstruction.

     What was the point of all this?  Nothing.  I just thought it would be a fun story to share.


Bibliography:

"Abraham Lincoln." Wikipedia. Accessed August 19, 2015.

"Andrew Johnson." Wikipedia. Accessed August 19, 2015

 "Edwin Stanton" Wikipedia. Accessed August 19, 2015. 

 "Thaddeus Stevens." Wikipedia. Accessed August 19, 2015. 

1949: Europe gets out of Achor

     Some time ago one Christmas, I can remember my Grandfather telling us what Christmas was like for him as a kid in Western Germany just after the Second World War.  Amid the antidotes, I remember him saying that everything got better after 1949.  Of course in Europe that would be the case.  Policies like the Marshall Plan allowed for Europe to rebuild from the ravaging war that had taken lives and homes across the continent, it's safe to say that after 1949 things really did start to get better.

     Thinking about that makes me remember that bad stuff isn't going to to last for a long time.  There has to be a point where it turns around.  The Bible tells the story of the prophet Hosea, who was commanded by God to marry a prostitute named Gomer.  Hosea saw his life as an example of God's relationship with Israel.  Just as Gomer was disloyal to Hosea and sleeping with other men, Israel was rebellious to God.  Despite this poor relationship, both God and Hosea were forgiving, each leading the other from a valley of trouble to a door of hope.

     Things will turn around... at least that's what I keep telling myself.  Does that work all the time?  Nope.  But it helps a lot sometimes, sometimes a little.  If your in a valley of trouble, don't worry.  There should be a door of hope some where ahead.



Bibliography:

http://acciolacquer.com/notd/lucky-13-lacquer-softening-the-bad-things/

http://www.theseedofhope.com/post.cfm/when-god-opens-a-door

"Back and there again: The Vexing Problem with Prequels"

Vol. 1 of Shaman King by Hiroyuki Takai 

One of my favorite parts of the Manga Shaman King by Hiroyuki Takai is found in  volumes 19 and 20.  These two volumes take a break from the main plot (Yoh droping out of the Shaman tournament by order of Lady Jeanne in order to save Ren's life) to look at the background of Yoh and Anna's relationship.

What makes this story work is how it tries to provide background information without trying to ram down your throat the fact that it is before the main story, which is common problem among prequels and why I'm not a big fan of them.  I had this same problem with The Hobbit movies when they came out.  It's one thing to have references and little Easter eggs about but it shouldn't be the main focus.  The Hobbit is a separate story with only a few connections to Lord of the Rings.  Nobody cares about the stuff going on with the ring, in fact Jackson ruins the whole mystery of the ring by reveling that it is Saron's ring in The Hobbit  as it spoils the suprise of some silly old magic ring being something so powerful and dangerous (whether you saw Lord of the Rings or not).  The prequel break in Shaman King works because it is telling a separate story that has only a few connections to the main plot, which is what a prequel should be. 

Bibliography 

http://shamanking.wikia.com/wiki/Shaman_King