Author Archive

Notes on an Old Map

Written by William Bryk on . Posted in Breaking News, Posts

Some weeks after her move, Catherine’s nieces and nephews emptied the house. They found its furnishings neat, modest, even austere. She had thought material possessions an encumbrance. Perhaps this reflected the inclination of her generation of Harts to the religious life. An older sister took the veil. Others tested their vocations to realize, usually with
[ read more... ]

Be the first to comment on this post

Don’t Vote: It Only Encourages Them

Written by William Bryk on . Posted in Breaking News, Posts

To Aristotle, man was by nature a political animal. His notion of politics revolved around the substantial participation in public life one assumed as an Athenian citizen. To most Americans, however, political activity involves merely voting. The media describes the declining voter turnout as a bad thing. One might speculate it is merely a symptom
[ read more... ]

Be the first to comment on this post

The Hon. Mike Walsh: Working-Class Punk, Proletarian Dandy

Written by William Bryk on . Posted in Breaking News, Posts

Then there was Walsh. M.R. Werner, in Tammany Hall, calls Walsh "formidable and picturesque." He was, and more. Mike Walsh was the city’s most successful radical politician before the Marxists transformed American left-wing politics into a parlor game. He was a rabble-rousing militant and an enemy of corruption. He was also a funny, vitriolic orator
[ read more... ]

Be the first to comment on this post

The 19th-Century’s Jewish Commodore

Written by William Bryk on . Posted in Breaking News, Posts

Within nine years, as Levy wrote, "I passed through every grade of service–cabin boy, ordinary seaman, able-bodied seaman, boatswain, third, second and first mates, to that of captain…" In 1809, while on shore leave in Tortola, a British press gang seized him. He was carrying his papers. However, a Royal Marine sergeant sneered, "You don’t
[ read more... ]

Be the first to comment on this post

The Man Who Did Not Invent Baseball

Written by William Bryk on . Posted in Breaking News, Posts

Abner Doubleday was born on June 26, 1819, at Ballston Spa, NY, whose promoters believed it would become America’s Baden-Baden, Aix-les-Bains and Bath once the world knew of its alkali, sulphur and warm springs, "good for the treatment of rheumatism, gout, liver trouble, blood ailments, dyspepsia, and even cancer." Soldiering ran in the family. His
[ read more... ]

Be the first to comment on this post

..