Free Republic

Today we honor the 232nd anniversary of the first battles between the Bi-Coastal Elites (Unicoastal in those days) and the "Flyover Country" (obviously no flying over back then). I refer to the Battles of Lexington and Concord. On this day in 1775, local militias made their stand on the Village Green of Lexington under the command of Captain John Parker. "Stand your ground men; don't fire unless fired upon; but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here!" Parker bravely said. His bold words were matched with brave deeds as his militiamen stood against the government forces....

Americans revere a great number of dates that hold special significance for their culture and history. The Fourth of July, Veterans Day, the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. — a quick glance through any calendar provides numerous other examples. Yet the one day of most importance, to both the nation and its culture, is the one that is conspicuously absent from any mention of notable historical dates. No parades honor the fallen; no speeches in Congress remind us of their deeds; no wreaths are laid; no moments of silence requested. On this sacred date no president will stand on...

On April 19, 1775, British and American soldiers exchanged fire in the Massachusetts towns of Lexington and Concord. On the night of April 18, the royal governor of Massachusetts, General Thomas Gage, commanded by King George III to suppress the rebellious Americans, had ordered 700 British soldiers, under Lieutenant Colonel Francis Smith and Marine Major John Pitcairn, to seize the colonists' military stores in Concord, some 20 miles west of Boston. A system of signals and word-of-mouth communication set up by the colonists was effective in forewarning American volunteer militia men of the approach of the British troops. Henry Wadsworth...

A federal judge on Wednesday denied a former Republican congressional candidate’s request for a restraining order barring President Bush or Vice President Richard Cheney from bombing Iran or Syria. Mary Maxwell, 59, of 179 Loudon Road, Apt. 10, Concord, filed a lawsuit Monday against Bush, Cheney and other “unnamed defendants actively engaging in acts of war against Iran and Syria in the guise of the war against terrorism.” Maxwell’s suit seeks a ruling that the administration lacks legal authority to pre-emptively attack either Iran or Syria without a Congressional declaration of war, and that radioactive fallout from the use of...

A Concord police officer who was fired a year ago for profiling Latino drivers next to a Mexican market is back on patrol with his old job. City officials approved Officer Jim Carroll's return last month following a favorable recommendation from an independent mediator. In 2004, the officer would park next to Mercado del Valle along Monument Boulevard and stop Latino drivers leaving the market for flimsy reasons to see if they had a driver's license, according to an internal police investigation. If they did not, he would cite them and have their cars towed. Former Police Chief Ron Ace,...

Americans revere a great number of dates that hold special significance for their culture and history. The Fourth of July, Veterans Day, the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. — a quick glance through any calendar provides numerous other examples. Yet the one day of most importance, to both the nation and its culture, is the one that is conspicuously absent from any mention of notable historical dates. No parades honor the fallen; no speeches in Congress remind us of their deeds; no wreaths are laid; no moments of silence requested. On this sacred date no president will stand on...

WHO knew the Minute Man has sex appeal? My daughter, Gabrielle, 15, took one look and announced, "He's hot!" She had a point. Strapping and rifle-toting, with a luxuriant mop of curly hair and sleeves rolled up to expose muscular arms, the Minute Man on the green in Lexington, Mass., may be made of bronze, but he looked more than capable, on the March day when we visited, of defending not only his country, but any damsel threatened with distress. Lexington, where the Revolutionary War began, is dotted with sites made historic by real minutemen, resonant places scattered on country...

With every developer West of the Mississippi drooling over the chance to develop some 1/4 acre of the Concord Naval Weapons Station, it seems every politician and city planner worth their salt is now talking about “affordable housing.” But what is “affordable housing” in California?Since normal people know that “affordable housing” doesn’t really exist in the regions of California where normal people really want to live, what is it that big-government, pro-redevelopment politcos really mean when they yap on and on about “affordable housing” this campaign season?Two words: Subsidized Housing.When you look at it, most everything about housing in California...

Behind the sale of an 18th-century gold box in New York today lies one of the saddest love stories of the American Revolution. When the box, embossed with the arms of New York, was presented with the freedom of the city in 1773 to Thomas Gage he was the commander-in-chief of the British Army in North America and was deeply in love with his American-born wife. Gen Thomas Gage, Margaret Gage and the 18th-century gold box Two years later, the general was a broken man, his career was in tatters and he was estranged from Margaret Gage for ever after...

Concord police arrested a 25-year-old woman Saturday after she allegedly took an undercover police car and led officers on a high-speed pursuit. About 6:24 a.m. Concord police received a report that someone had taken an unmarked police car from a driveway in the Clayton Valley area, said Sgt. Matt Morrissey. About 15 minutes later, a Concord officer spotted the vehicle on Treat Boulevard and Clayton Road and attempted to pull the driver over. "She did not want to be stopped," Morrissey said. She then led police on a pursuit through Pleasant Hill and then onto Highway 242 with speeds reaching...

Concord -- As towns across the country nervously await word about which military bases the Pentagon wants to close, this San Francisco suburb is hardly on edge. It'd be happy if the government included the Concord Naval Weapons Station on its list of proposed closures being released Friday. In a letter to Navy officials, Mayor Laura Hoffmeister spoke of "tremendous benefits for the city of Concord and the Department of the Defense" if the 63-year-old installation is shuttered. About 35 miles northeast of San Francisco, the base covers thousands of grassy acres that Concord officials believe is ideal for homes...

It was 230 years ago this month when 700 British redcoats marched from Boston to Concord to seize rebel colonial war supplies and hopefully capture John Hancock and Samuel Adams during the incursion. They weren’t overly concerned about the rag-tag colonial farmer opposition who had dubbed themselves Minutemen. The name ’Minutemen‘ was derived from a vow that colonial farmers could and would be ready to fight for liberty within a minute’s notice. What kind of threat could these Minutemen, tillers of soil, be to one of Europe’s finest armies? The Minutemen’s strength was just 70 men against some 700 regimented...

Beyond the DropZone By W. Thomas Smith Jr. April is a month chocked-full of American military anniversaries: The Continental Navy captured its first enemy warship in April 1776. Marines captured Tripoli, 1805. The Civil War began, 1861. Lee surrendered to Grant, 1865. The Spanish-American war began, 1898. The U.S. declared war on Germany, 1917. Doolittle raided Japan, 1942. American troops landed on Okinawa, 1945. The Bay of Pigs invasion was launched, 1961. The last American Marine left Saigon, 1975. The Air Force raided Libya, 1986. And Baghdad fell to U.S. forces, 2003. All are but a few of this month's...

The birth-cry of America's armed forces by W. Thomas Smith Jr. April is a month chocked-full of American military anniversaries: The Continental Navy captured its first enemy warship in April 1776. Marines captured Tripoli, 1805. The Civil War began, 1861. Lee surrendered to Grant, 1865. The Spanish-American war began, 1898. The U.S. declared war on Germany, 1917. Doolittle raided Japan, 1942. American troops landed on Okinawa, 1945. The Bay of Pigs invasion was launched, 1961. The last American Marine left Saigon, 1975. The Air Force raided Libya, 1986. And Baghdad fell to U.S. forces, 2003. All are but a few...

Student Sues to Pose With Gun in YearbookCONCORD, N.H. — Where other students might pose for their senior yearbook photo with tennis rackets or favorite cars, Blake Douglass (search) wants to be seen with his shotgun.The 17-year-old senior filed a federal lawsuit to force Londonderry High School (search) to allow the photo and give up the policy school officials used to reject it."What they’re doing is basically discriminating based on content or message," said Penny Dean (search), Douglass’ lawyer and a specialist in gun cases. "You can’t do that. You might want to but you can’t — and especially you can’t with...

The Brown Bess The fully functional Short Land Service Musket (New Pattern) used by the 64th Regiment of Foot replicates the firearm issued by the British Army as a result of the 1768 Clothing Warrant. This musket came to be affectionately called the "Brown Bess". While the exact origin of this nickname has become obscured over the years, one explanation states that the name came from the colour of the walnut stock. Prior to the "Brown Bess", stocks were painted black. The predecessor of the Short Land Service Musket was the Long Land Service Musket, developed during the late 1720s....

Concord Hymn Ralph Waldo Emerson By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April's breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood, And fired the shot heard round the world. The foe long since in silence slept; Alike the conqueror silent sleeps; And Time the ruined bridge has swept Down the dark stream which seaward creeps. On this green bank, by this soft stream, We set to-day a votive stone; That memory may their deed redeem, When, like our sires, our sons are gone. Spirit, that made those heroes dare To die, or leave their children free,...

A Caltech graduate physics student pleaded innocent today to firebombing and vandalizing more than 100 sports utility vehicles in a suspected protest attack by a radical environmentalist movement against the gas-guzzling vehicles. William Cottrell, 23, a graduate student at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., pleaded not guilty to the charges laid out in a nine-count indictment. Cottrell could face more than 30 years in prison if he is convicted. According to the indictment, Cottrell and "other known and unknown co-conspirators" went on a spree of firebombing and vandalizing sports utility vehicles in the Los Angeles area in...

In July, Bob J and Diotima visited Lexington and Concord while on a visit to the RadioFR studio in Taxachusetts. We thought others might enjoy some of the pics we took while there! Statue honoring the Minutemen on Lexington Green Miniature of Battle Scene Notice the drummer boy in lower left corner This is the 16 year old who played his drum to call the minutemen to battle. View of the Lexington Green looking SW Plaque honoring the event placed in 1799 Sign on Buchman Tavern Buchman tavern where the minutemen gathered prior to the clash with the RedcoatsUnfortunately, we...

In a related matter, the supervisors delayed discussion of a "punch list" of Concord Chase residents' complaints about "poor workmanship" such as poor insulation, leaks and stormwater runoff. Many Concord Chase residents want Toll's license revoked until all the problems are fixed. More than 40 residents of Concord Chase, or about 40 percent, levied complaints against Toll Brothers for poor workmanship.