Publisher’s Note

In the last issue I took offense to the renaming of Maury Hall at the U. S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland to Carter Hall. Maury’s contribution to the science of the oceans for the U. S. Navy, and the world at large, is second to none. He was recognized outside of the Navy and by numerous other countries for his many contributions, especially regarding the merchant marine due to his research in winds and currents on the oceans of the world. He was also a major supporter of starting the Naval Academy. Yes, he went to the Confederate States during the Civil War, but his contributions there were limited. How does Jimmy Carter come close to any of these accomplishments? Then, after the Secretary of Defense stripped his name from the Naval Academy building, it was later announced that his name would also be removed from the naval vessels and replaced with Marie Tharp. She is credited with mapping the Atlantic Ocean floor. Hold on did not Maury do some of this so they could lay the Atlantic cable in the 1850s? She is another person who does not even come close to Maury’s accomplishments. All this is trying to rewrite history and eliminate what some feel is inappropriate. They are put in power and take the opportunity to push their ideas forward without regard for the truth or importance. Both sides of history should be told so people can understand the whole issue and not repeat mistakes. Those that do this and teach future generations their white-washed ideas of history threaten to have these events repeat themselves and worse.

Then came an announcement that the Welsh Government wanted to remove several people from the public to create the “right historical narrative” calling them “old white men.” The names they mentioned were the Duke of Wellington, Admiral Lord Nelson, Sir Thomas Picton and Henry Morton Stanley. This agenda is led by the Labour Party, Wales’ devolved government, who wants to remove or destroy the statues of these historical figures or renaming streets named in their honour saying that they assisted British expansion and that with the diverse population in Britain this may be offensive to some. Sometimes you just cannot believe how some people can be that stupid. Was George Orwell correct in his book “1984?” He wrote that they wanted to whitewash history and eliminate anything someone thought offensive. Wow, and we were told that this was fiction.

The Duke of Wellington was actually Arthur Wellesley, 1^st Duke of Wellington, who had a very distinct military career, which included his victory at Waterloo ending Napoleon’s advances in Europe. He was also a politician. Admiral Lord Nelson had an incredible naval career protecting England, which ended Napoleon’s threat to attack England when his fleet defeated the combined French and Spanish navies at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Is a 47 old enough to be consider an “old white man?” Henry Morton Stanley was an explorer of Central Africa and the person who found Dr. Livingstone. He also made numerous discoveries in the Congo. Sir Thomas Picton was a British Army officer, who fought numerous battles on the continent, many against Napoleon. However, he did have a sketchy incident in Trinidad involving the use of torture.

Most people have little to no understanding of history. Those that are experts usually only have an understanding of specific events or a definitive period of time. The more you read the more your eyes open to the complexity of history. The other major problem is whether what you read is accurate? Sometimes discovering the truth usually means doing a lot more reading and research. This is easier today than what it was even 20 years ago with the internet and all the documents that have been uploaded. Still there are pitfalls as some publish lies that push their agenda.

Ready for another idiotic statement, this one from the Secretary of the Navy, Carlos Del Toro. He said that his main objective is climate change and that we should be shrinking our fleet was warships.

In these troubled times with threats coming for many areas of the globe, the military should be stronger than ever. The better the military the bigger the deterrent. If one of these adversaries think we have a kink in our armor they will try to defeat us. Watch the happenings, listen to the real experts, and figure out truly what is going on. Remember the meek will not inherit the earth, they will be enslaved or sent on a voyage to eternity.