Posted on 11/25/2004 9:12:49 AM PST by O.C. - Old Cracker
WASHINGTON — When giving thanks this year, think of Lena Woebbecke. She and many others paid a terrible price for misreading the prairie sky on the afternoon of Jan. 12, 1888. That day was unseasonably balmy, by prairie standards — some temperatures were in the 20s — and many children scampered to school without coats or gloves. Then, at about the time schools were adjourning, death, in the shape of a soot-gray cloud, appeared on the horizon of Dakota Territory and Nebraska.
(Excerpt) Read more at sacbee.com ...
That's where I came from, and I've heard those stories, too. Sod hutters may have burned buffalo bones, but I've heard tale of burning something a good deal less genteel produced by buffalo.
Seriously. Back in the day, when they got too hungry, they ate the dog, or a horse. Like to see the po folks in the ghetto eat their pit bulls.
Celebrate the day.
Come on George, with all thats going on and you can't come up with something better than a story about Lotta Lena or Lena Woebegone or whatever her name is..? Jeese.. George your starting to look like a talking head conservative shill for democrat psuedo pundits.. George its really not about all the money you can scam from democrats as a pillow backboard for the their party lines.. George do you have NO.. WILL..
I understand that obesity is now a serious problem among the poor.
Outstanding!
It would be nice if all Americans could read this article before dinner on Thanksgiving.
Actually you're right. They don't look too hungry. I agree we're too soft. I was a drifter for several years. Cars and convenience makes us soft.
I've been poor and lived the hard life, it sucked. My goal was the good life and getting soft, mission accomplished and I'm not going back.
Ezekiel 4:12
>George do you have no Will?<
Besides a will, George seems to have a soul. Do you?
Phew! No, none of my relatives ever told me about burning THAT stuff.
Bump. Another excellent article by George Will. We have forgotten the sacrifices of those who blazed the trail for this great country to be what it is today. I will be sure to read "The Children's Blizzard."
I read this article in my local paper today. A good read. It's sobering to think about what our pioneer ancestors went through.
Good post!
Yes! I am awed that I grew up among grandparents, great aunts and uncles who had made The Run in 1893. That's the one where you see the photographs of all the horses and wagons lined up on the open prairie, awaiting the cavalry officer's gunshot at noon.
Then they rode hellbent across the grassland, in wagons or on horseback, even on foot, to stake a claim to land in the Cherokee Strip of Oklahoma. They broke the plain, bred their animals, worked in the sun and cold and slept in sodhouses...making a life for themselves and their families.
They knew all about the Blizzard of '88, too. But they didn't hesitate to make their own commitment.
Damn! I was privileged to grow up among these people. I KNEW them! Why didn't I have a fuller appreciation of what they'd done? For one thing, I was a kid -- too young to appreciate such things. For another, they didn't really see it as that big a deal themselves -- they'd simply done what they'd had to do and didn't believe it warranted any particular attention. Everybody they knew either did or would've done the same thing...
Those folks knew hardships that we can only imagine.That particular storm truly boggles the imagination. The temperature drops
killed so many inocents. To read more on this horiffic event:
http://www.olden-times.com/OldtimeNebraska/n-dtaylor/blizzard.html
George is part of the MSM conservative shills.. Feel good storys are so..... "democrat"... George rarely offends the democrat(MSM) party.. If he does/has it's been a mistake.. George has gone way out his way to become irrelevant.. The only conservatives ones that care what he says..
are ditz women.. and a few "sissy" gays... the "butch" gays already know that hes a.. "well you know"..
Speaking of drifters, have you read the book "Into The Wild" by Jon Krakauer? You should if you haven't. It's a great book for anyone, but especially for someone with your background.
Don't let your seething hatred color your view of history, though. The story that George Will provides here is one that needs to be told, especially in the midst of our selfish society where folks are more interested in indulging their senses than thanking their Creator God. George Will makes no mention of God because he seemingly detests God, but this story made me realize just how fortunate we are as a nation. We have God and our forefathers to thank for our easy life.
What do your references to homosexuality have to do with this article? Are you saying that I am a homosexual for having posted it?
Don't be homophobic, for real.. it was merely jesting to demean anything said by this media whore...
I don't hate G. Will... You must know a person first hand to truely hate them.. including Hitler.. You can hate what a person stands for and not hate THEM.. They can deluded, just ignorant, or even intimidated to do and/or say some things.
I don't hate HIM(G. Will) but the condition hes gotten himself into.. Because he did get himself in the position hes in.. Hes responsible for it.. However I have seething hatred for some things.. Like: democracy... Democracy is pre-cursor to socialism which is slavery by government. In every place, at every time, and in every way.. The founders of this country knew that.. Thats why America was set up TO NOT be a democracy.. Three words NOT found in the American Constitution ANYWHERE.. by design, its not an accident..
1) democracy...
2) democratic..
3) democrat..
There are ZERO democracys in this world NOT a socialist country.. now or in the past.. Socialism is a symptom of democracy... and like I said, I Hate socialism and so, also democracy.. for that reason.. Socialism is a symptom of a social disease.. but it is NOT THE disease.. democracy is.. Many republicans are defacto democrats.. WHY?.. They are FOR democracy as if were a GOOD THING.. How bout you?.. Are you a democrat in this context..?
I don't like George Will's politics, but that's a discussion for another thread.
Regards, O.C.
I'll look it up. Thanks.
This is portrayed in Ayn Rand's 'Anthem'. The country continues further from 'democracy' to full blown socialism. Society begins to reject technology and modern methods, and eventually slides back into the middle ages. All because of the loss of the individual to the 'good of the many'.
It's a great short novel, if you haven't read it.
I have but, forgot all that.. Thanks.. I arrived this concept myself.. unless seeds from her book and others influenced me.. Probably did.. Don't matter.. every time I hear a non democrat use the word democracy it crawls my nape.. I expect it of democrats because democrats are for democracy thats why they are clled that(democrat).. but O.C. wants return to discussing G.Will.. can't help it though G. Will "IS" a defacto democrat as far as I can tell.. pap from democrats is ALWAYS just BULL SPERM.. if Dashole was talking about Apple Pie, he is still an ICEHOLE.
10 / 4 ... ol' Crouton... the boy crawls my nape.. makeing one of my eyes flutter.. and I get the twiches.. will get a second cup of "my mornin meds"...
My grandmother used to say, "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all." While there's a time and place for exposing a danger, may more level minds prevail. Thank you for your wiser words, O.C..
What a small world. I know somebody from Wahoo, just about 4 miles up the road from Swedeburg...
Almost certainly, your ancestors did experience the Blizzard of '88. Mine, however, were not yet in country. They didn't arrive from Russia and Germany until 1889.
A year or so ago some friends and I decided to see what dung fires were all about. We were camping out on the Nebraska prairie and decided to use the few remaining hot coals from the fire we cooked our dinner over to start a dung fire using bleached cow pies.
It doesn't stink at all. You must remember that dried cow dung (Buffaloe dung also being from ruminants has the same characteristics) is really compressed fiber (ruminants only eat vegetable matter). If dry it has no odor.
You have to have a lot of it in order to keep a fire stoked but it does work.
Once you see what it is all about peoples knee jerk reactions to hearing about "burning THAT stuff" seem silly and uninformed.
OldCracker's citation in Ezekiel referred to burning human dung. Of course I had heard of burning buffalo dung. When I said "that stuff," I meant human dung. Note that I originally called attention to burning buffalo chips because George Will referred only to burning buffalo bones.
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