Monday, December 31, 2012

Fishing the Fall Salmon Run in Michigan - A Beginner's Guide

I decided to write this guide because a couple of years ago I was the "beginner." I don't claim to be a master at it, but I have lost my fair share of fish and have put a few in the freezer each year. Let me start by saying that, to the best of my knowledge, Michigan has the best Salmon fishery in the United States except for Alaska, and the Pacific Northwest (which is where our Salmon were originally stocked from). I also have to say that once you hook one, you will be "hooked" on the experience. I have broken this article into several parts to keep it organized, and from time to time the article will be updated as I learn more about it. This year I am going to try fly-fishing for the Salmon as well as bait fishing.


About the Fish

Salmon stocking started in Michigan in 1967 to combat the excessive Alewife population. The first species to be stocked was the Coho. As time went on the Chinook was added to the mix. Since that time they have taken off, and between the naturally reproduction that occurs and the DNR stocking we now have one of the best salmon fisheries anywhere. For pictures of the fish please refer to the Michigan Fishing Regulation book for the current year. In addition to the Coho and Chinook salmon you may also occasionally catch a Pink Salmon or Atlantic Salmon, but to the best of my knowledge it doesn't happen often. Maybe someone reading this can correct me if I am wrong.

Fishing the Fall Salmon Run in Michigan - A Beginner's Guide

Where to Go

We are lucky to have access to a state that has such a diverse fishery. Very few states have as many lakes and rivers as we do, or have the variety of fish that live there. For our particular purposes we need rivers that drain into the Great Lakes, since that is where the salmon spend their adult lives. If you search the internet you will find many rivers that have salmon such as the Muskegon, Big Manistee, Little Manistee, Pere Marquette, and Betsie, just to name a few. Some of these rivers have naturally reproducing populations of Salmon while others are stocked by the DNR. There are also several rivers in the Upper Peninsula that play host to salmon in the fall. In all the rivers you have to pay close attention to the fishing regulations because certain sections of the rivers may be closed to fishing to protect the spawning fish or have limitations on the gear you can fish with.

When to Go

The main salmon run occurs every fall. There is no set start date, but you can usually start to see fish in the river in early September, and expect the run to be pretty much done by the end of October. A lot of this depends on the weather. A lack of rain and/or warm weather can make the run start later, and extra rain with cooler temperatures can cause the run to start a little earlier. I guess it all depends on when the fall rains and cooler temperatures hit the area. If you go to the rivers during September and October you are going to eventually find fish, it's just a matter of timing it to catch the big run.

How to Fish For Them

This article is only going to cover techniques for the fisherman who wades. Most fishermen use either a spinning rod or fly rod and do the Chuck-and-Duck method. I believe this fishing method was named by the fly-fisherman because of the extra weight involved and the problem of getting hit in the head (Been There-Done That). You can also cast flies, such as Wooly Buggers, egg patterns, streamers, nymphs, and probably others I don't know about yet. Yet another method is to suspend spawn, flies, or jigs below a float of some type. Whatever rig you choose you will need some waders, a net of some type, a head-lamp or other light source for night fishing, rain-gear, and some warm clothes.

The Chuck-n-Duck method usually involves a three-way swivel, some type of weight, and a hook with salmon eggs or yarn balls. I have also seen anglers use flies or plugs instead of the hook and spawn. A diagram can bee seen at Figure 1 which is listed at the end of the article.

I personally prefer to use about a 3' leader when I fish this method but you will have to experiment and modify it to fit the conditions. If the fish are spooky you might need to lengthen the leader a bit more. You can also do a modified version of this without the three way swivel by using rubber-core sinkers for weight. To do this, tie the hook directly to your main line and then connect a rubber-core sinker above the hook about 18" for weight. This will get your lure into the current but not necessarily bouncing on the bottom. Again, you will have to experiment with the length of line between the weight and the hook, but I would keep it at least 12" from the hook. A diagram of this rig can be seen in Figure 2 which is listed at the end of the article.

Fishing flies for salmon is gaining in popularity. I have not tried it yet, but plan too this year. I understand that the usual flies are either egg patterns, woolybugger variations, big streamers, and egg-sucking leaches. I am going to try them all and see if I can get a hit. The nice thing about fishing the flies is that you also run the chance of hooking other trout species while searching for the salmon. If you want more professional instruction on fly-fishing for salmon there are several outfitters that are offering the service now. Do an internet search on it and you should have little difficulty finding one.

Fishing the Fall Salmon Run in Michigan - A Beginner's Guide

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Figure 1

Figure 2

http://www.michfish.com

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Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Animal Symbolism in Feng Shui - Your Key to Success, Happiness, and Wealth

Below are some common animals used in activating sectors in Feng Shui. There is a long list of animals you can use, this is just a sampling of them.


Cow: The Chinese honor the cow because it pulls the plow used to prepare the fields from which they reap their harvest and it represents the season of Spring.

Crane. Symbolizes fidelity and longevity. Placed with a water feature in the North, it represents good fortune, wealth, wisdom and longevity for mother and father.

Animal Symbolism in Feng Shui - Your Key to Success, Happiness, and Wealth

Dolphins: Considered magical creatures. They are said to help you to think more freely and creatively. You may place dolphins in your child's room or in your office.

Dragon: The dragon is one of the four Celestial Animals in Feng Shui and is the animal of the East. They can be placed almost anywhere in your home, but I would at least have one in the East. The dragon is considered "All Powerful" and is said to bring about wealth, prosperity, power, protection, great success, good luck and abundance. If you have a dragon that is holding or protecting a round object, that is said to be the Pearl of Life and symbolizes wisdom and great achievement. They do not belong in bedrooms or bathrooms.

Eagle: A picture or figurine of an eagle in full flight is an excellent symbol of success, strength, power and authority. Always have an eagle flying or perched on a tree do not show one looking fierce and predatory. Best placed in your career sector or N corner of your desk or office

Elephant: Elephants are considered sacred creatures in Feng Shui and are probably best known for their symbolism of wisdom. They also symbolize good luck, fidelity, fertility, longevity and virility.

Fish: (Arowana, Money Carp). The Fish is a symbol of wisdom, faith, freedom, wholeness and purity. In Chinese, the Arowana is called "Kam Lung Yue", which means Golden Dragon Fish. This name is synonymous with great wealth in abundance. Fish represent Yang energy which brings good fortune into your home or business. Fish also symbolizes freedom from restriction. The fish is often seen on the soles of the Buddha's feet which represents the power of energy.

Fu Dogs: Fu Dogs are part lion and part dragon. They are used to protect your home or office from negative energies and to ward off evil or people with bad intentions form entering your home. The male represents domain of the world at large, and the female represents offspring and home These are intended to be placed on the ground and to flank your front door. Place the male with a ball under paw on left side of door as you face out. The Female with a lion cub under her paw should be on the right.

Horse: In a galloping stance, the horse represents nobility, fame & recognition and is also used for single people looking for a life partner. Do not display a raring horse directly in front of or behind you. The best location to place the horse is the living room and in the South sector of your home or desk. Do not display the horse in any of the bedrooms.

Iguana: The iguana symbolizes creativity, spontaneity and playfulness. It is a good item to place in your child's Personal Development sector.

Lion: Symbolizes courage and bravery. It is considered as a guardian and protector of businesses and homes. A pair of lions with both their front feet on the ground can be placed on either side of the front entry way to your home or business for protection of wealth.

Love Birds: Because love birds form an attachment to their partners and are said to pine away when one dies or they are separated, they represent devotion, fidelity and romantic bliss. Best placed in the SW of home or bedroom. These are the Western Culture's equivalent to the Chinese Mandarin Duck.

Lucky Cat: The lucky cat has a very powerful symbolism in bringing luck and good fortune into your home. They can be placed in your Good Luck Sector or in the SE corner of home or desk. The legend behind the Luck Cat is as follows: In the 17th century , there was a run down and poverty stricken temple in Tokyo. The temple's priest was very poor, but he shared what little food he had with his pet, Tama. One day, a feudal lord was caught in a storm while hunting and he took refuge under a big tree near the temple. While he waited for the storm to pass, the man notice Tama, the priest's cat, beckoning him to come inside the temple gate. The feudal lord followed the cat into the temple and instantly, a lightning bolt struck the place where the lord had been standing. Thus the cat saved his life. From then on, the Lucky Cat has been considered an incarnation of the Goddess of Mercy ( Kwan Yin ).

Mandarin Ducks: Like the love birds, mandarin ducks represent devotion, fidelity and romantic bliss and should be placed in the SW sector of your home or bedroom.

Money Frog: This is a mythical animal known as the "Chan Chu" and is said to appear every full moon near homes that will receive news of increased wealth and good fortune. Also called the "Three Legged Money Frog" it is usually placed right inside your front door facing INTO the home. The coin in it's mount should be place with the four symbols up, not down. It can also be placed in your wealth sector and next to a cash register. They are never to be placed in a kitchen, bedroom or bathroom.

Panda Bear: This beautiful animal is one of the most endangered animals in existence. It is called Da xiong mao which means giant bear cat in China. The Panda is believed to have magical powers that can ward off natural disasters and evil spirits and is also a symbol of peace.

Peacock: The peacock is the western culture equivalent to the phoenix in China. Placed in the SW of your home or bedroom it is said to attract and enhance happy relationships and marriage.

Phoenix: The phoenix is imaginary creature of the ancient Chinese Feng Shui. The phoenix is usually red or crimson in color and symbolizes the luck of wish fulfillment. The South corner of your home or office can be activated by placing the phoenix there. The phoenix is said to bring opportunities, fame and recognition. When combined with its "soul mate", the Dragon, put in SW to attract happy relationships and marriage.

Red Bird: This can be an image or a figurine/statue of any kind of bird, a parrot, cardinal, etc. Put in the South for protection.

Rooster: If you have a lot of petty office politics going on in the workplace, displaying a rooster in your office is said to counter this negative energy. The rooster is said to quell arguments, backstabbing and politicking. Also, pointing the beak of a rooster towards a beam or column in the home will deflect the negative chi they can bring.

Tiger: The tiger is considered the king of the wild animals. It is seen as a symbol for royalty, power and fearlessness. An image of the Tiger is believed to dissipate negative chi. The Tiger is very important in Feng Shui because its stripes represent the auspicious balance of Yin and Yang.

Turtles: The turtle symbolizes support, longevity, endurance, wealth, happy family, long generations, good luck and fortune. Because the turtle is one of the celestial animals, it is said to possess protective powers as well. Legend tells us that the turtle has in his body the secret of heaven and earth and the design on his shell shows the Lo Shu magic square which is the guide for life. Turtles can be placed anywhere, but you should really have at least one in the North sector of your home. They can be facing in different directions based on what they are made of. For example: place crystal turtles facing North, metal turtles facing West, wooden facing East or Southeast, ceramic facing Southwest or Northeast. The Dragon Headed Turtle is a powerful symbol of wealth, health, prosperity and protection and should be placed in the North or the Southeast.

Wild Geese: Because wild geese always fly in pairs, they are excellent to put in SW part of your home or bedroom to enhance your romantic relationship. Geese are messengers of good news and represent the married state.

Animal Symbolism in Feng Shui - Your Key to Success, Happiness, and Wealth

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Judy Gunderson is a Feng Shui practitioner and has helped many clients over the years with consultations and supplying them with Feng Shui products on her website at http://learnaboutfengshui.com

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Saturday, December 8, 2012

Wanna Get Lucky? Four Secrets to Increase Your Luck and Good Fortune

Are you lucky in life? Really, do you feel like you're a lucky person? Not that you have a perfect life, but that things just seem to always work out for you. Even apparent negative situations end up turning into something better. Do great opportunities simply fall into your lap? Do you meet (attract) the right people in your life? If so, then you are truly a lucky person, if not, you can quickly increase your good fortune.


A few days ago I was at a coffee shop with a buddy of mine. Sitting deep in an overstuffed blue chair, I listened to my friend talk about how lucky my life is. I never really thought about it before, but he is right. I put down my cinnamon smelling coffee and nestled back into my chair, taking in and trying to digest his compliments.

A bit later, I mentioned that I need to find a topic for my article this month. He immediately said, "Why don't you write about how to be a lucky person!" I chuckled to myself, because I would have never thought about that in a million years, but it intuitively felt so right. I knew that the Universe had just winked at me with a confirmation.

Wanna Get Lucky? Four Secrets to Increase Your Luck and Good Fortune

He said, "goodbye", gave me a hug and left his empty ceramic cup still dripping with foam next to my chair. All around me, the coffee shop conversations were mumbling into my ears. I quietly sank deeper into my chair and started to type. I must have been in a trance, because with only one refill the article poured out of my Soul and into my laptop. I wrote the first draft in less than two hours. Wow, how lucky can I get, since I originally thought I was going to need the entire weekend to write.

Whether you believe you are lucky or not, most people think that luck is not real or at best a random activity that can't be chosen or developed. You might think that people stumble into good things by accident. How then do you explain when a friend calls you at the last minute with free tickets to a sold out show you've been dying to see? Or when you turn around to quickly drive back home, because you "forgot something" and a long lost friend is standing at your door, but had no way to contact you except to stop by and hope you'd be home. Is this coincidence or something much more magical?

I believe becoming a lucky person is easy when you understand the characteristics of these blessed people. Consider for a moment that luck isn't random after all! There is an attitudinal structure underlying every fortunate human being. And anyone who is wiling to change their mental-emotional habits can increase their good fortune and become lucky.

The English studied showed what naturally lucky individuals have in common with each other. They discovered a set of four qualities that set them apart from the "unlucky". The cool thing is that people who developed these attitudinal qualities started to increase their own good fortune very quickly!

Four Qualities of Lucky People

1. Lucky people are mindful and present. They pay attention to the present moment and aren't preoccupied thinking about the past (disappointment) or fearing the future (worry). They naturally choose to live in the present moment. This allows them to notice and seize new opportunities, instead of being distracted, confused or simply unaware.

2. They value their "intuition" as much as "logic and reason". They tend to look at both the "bigger picture" and also the details of the "little picture" in their lives. They're open to an intuitive sense of possibilities (bigger picture) and how it can fit into their current situation. They are neither stuck in the details nor dreaming about the future. Instead, they bring these two perceptions together; awareness of the big and little picture, the possibilities and the actuality of their lives, simultaneously. This offers them a way to set goals and make a plan that works.

3. Lucky people have a positive relationship with the future. They are hopeful about the unknown (future) instead of being fearful. Even though they don't have all the answers, they're naturally optimistic and open. They refuse to fantasize about what could go wrong and instead focus on "what can go right". They feel positive even when things appear to be negative. Simply put... they don't let negativity get in the way of their plans and dreams.

4. They are self empowered and take responsibility. They refuse to hang out in feelings of powerlessness, apathy or self-pity. They don't believe that life happens to them nor are they a victim of circumstances. They know that what they think and feel about themselves and the future matters. They believe that opportunities are a direct result of their attitude, thoughts, feelings and actions. Simply put, they embrace their inner power and choose to live their lives with responsibility.

The study also revealed that most lucky people had fairly large social circles. They make friends easily and are socially connected to their community. They're naturally outgoing because they really enjoy people and tend to be non-judgmental. They get involved with their community. They believe that people are inherently good, beautiful and caring, this tends to make them popular individuals.

Wanna Get Lucky?

At first this can seem like a large demand. The truth is you can almost instantaneously increase your luck, simply by reading this article and making a choice to function from the qualities of lucky people. That's right a simple choice in a single moment can shift and lift your energy into the realm of good fortune. This article should only take 10 minutes or so to read... lucky you!
Many times in my life I experienced how quickly I could turn a negative situation around - literally mid-sentence - by changing my attitude and embracing my power. I believe that the minute you stop pretending you're powerless and stop feeling like a victim that miracles begin to rain into your life. I've experienced this over and over again, and have witnessed it with others who have chosen to live in the magic of life.

Four Secrets to Increase Your Luck and Good Fortune:

1) Embrace and accept yourself and your life, just the way it is. The good, the bad, the beautiful and the ugly-accept everything that is happening in your life, warts and all. Stop fighting yourself and make a decision instead to accept things the way they are instead of longing for it to be different. Acceptance creates the space for change and healing to occur.

You'll feel more comfortable when you accept yourself and begin to naturally relax in social situations. A quick method to do this is to choose to believe that the world is a friendly place. It is here to support you and your dreams. Unlucky people believe the world is "out to get them." Which world is true? Whatever world you choose to believe in will be true for you! Both worlds are possible but only one will become your reality. Choose wisely.

2) Listen to your intuition and open your heart to feel greater intimacy. There is much more happening around you than you can ever grasp in your conscious mind. Your mind filters out over 50% of the experiences happening to you right now. However, beneath your conscious awareness your subconscious is continuously picking up clues about your future and the possibilities that are there. This is called your intuition. When you blend intuition with intimacy, you will experience a deeper connection with yourself and others. You'll know what decisions to make and why. You'll be more wise and understanding. Opening your heart will improve your intuition and deepen your sense of purpose. This naturally leads toward increasing your opportunities for luck and expanding good fortune.

3 Avoid feeling sorry for your self. Admit the truth- you are powerful. Embrace a resilient positive attitude about your self and your life. You know this and have done it before. Lemons can be made into lemonade when you change your attitude. You can learn something about yourself from the worst disaster. If you'll begin looking for the silver lining in the dark clouds of your life, your luck will improve rapidly. What you focus on expands. So focus on being powerful and seek the good in all situations.

4. Meditate regularly. If there is one activity I had to choose that I believed cultivated good fortune and luck, it would have to be meditation. Looking back on my life, I now realize that learning to meditate as a teenager was a major turning point in my life. It changed everything dramatically. My good fortune accelerated once I learned to relax and meditate on a regular basis. I fully believe that meditation opens the door to a fortunate and lucky life.

How Meditation Increases your Luck and Good Fortune
- Meditation increases self esteem and self acceptance.
- Meditation provides a method to relax your body and mind quickly.
- Meditation improves intimacy that deepens empathy.
- Meditation decreases criticism and judgmentalness.
- Meditation can foster a deeper sense of belonging.
- Meditation strengthens your imagination and improves your ability to visualize.
- Meditation opens your mind to the possibilities of your potential.
- Meditation helps create a positive relationship to your future.
- Meditation fosters positive feelings of hope, peace and good expectations.
- Meditation improves your relationship to yourself and your world.
In most studies on psychological health, those who meditate regularly (at least three times weekly) are less nervous, anxious, depressed, and much less irritable, controlling, or inhibited. They were overall more sociable, self-confident, felt positive about themselves and the future, they were emotionally stable, and self-reliant individuals compared to non-meditators in the study.

I hope you'll re-read this article many times and let the truth contained within it, sink deep into your subconscious mind. This will help you change your attitude and attract more opportunities and greater good fortune in your life. Please feel free to forward this to a friend. Keep me posted by email on any feedback regarding your experiences of good luck.

Wanna Get Lucky? Four Secrets to Increase Your Luck and Good Fortune

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Michaiel Patrick Bovenes is an author, relaxation therapy consultant and self empowerment teacher. Since 1994, he is the author of a popular series of guided meditations. To explore other articles, learn how to meditate or receive a free MP3 download on, "How to Relax and Focus Your Mind in Minutes"

Visit: http://www.RelaxationMeditations.com

Michaiel currently resides in San Francisco, CA and teaches throughout the USA and Canada.

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Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Diaspora Literature - A Testimony of Realism

Diaspora Literature involves an idea of a homeland, a place from where the displacement occurs and narratives of harsh journeys undertaken on account of economic compulsions. Basically Diaspora is a minority community living in exile. The Oxford English Dictionary 1989 Edition (second) traces the etymology of the word 'Diaspora' back to its Greek root and to its appearance in the Old Testament (Deut: 28:25) as such it references. God's intentions for the people of Israel to be dispersed across the world. The Oxford English Dictionary here commences with the Judic History, mentioning only two types of dispersal: The "Jews living dispersed among the gentiles after the captivity" and The Jewish Christians residing outside the Palestine. The dispersal (initially) signifies the location of a fluid human autonomous space involving a complex set of negotiation and exchange between the nostalgia and desire for the Homeland and the making of a new home, adapting to the power, relationships between the minority and majority, being spokes persons for minority rights and their people back home and significantly transacting the Contact Zone - a space changed with the possibility of multiple challenges.


People migrating to another country in exile home

Living peacefully immaterially but losing home

Diaspora Literature - A Testimony of Realism

Birth of Diaspora Literature

However, the 1993 Edition of Shorter Oxford's definition of Diaspora can be found. While still insisting on capitalization of the first letter, 'Diaspora' now also refers to 'anybody of people living outside their traditional homeland.

In the tradition of indo-Christian the fall of Satan from the heaven and humankind's separation from the Garden of Eden, metaphorically the separation from God constitute diasporic situations. Etymologically, 'Diaspora' with its connotative political weight is drawn from Greek meaning to disperse and signifies a voluntary or forcible movement of the people from the homeland into new regions." (Pp.68-69)

Under Colonialism, 'Diaspora' is a multifarious movement which involves-

oThe temporary of permanent movement of Europeans all over the world, leading to Colonial settlement. Consequen's, consequently the ensuing economic exploitation of the settled areas necessitated large amount of labor that could not be fulfilled by local populace. This leads to:
oThe Diaspora resulting from the enslavement of Africans and their relocation to places like the British colonies. After slavery was out lawed the continued demand for workers created indenturement labor. This produces:
oLarge bodies of the people from poor areas of India, China and other to the West Indies, Malaya Fiji. Eastern and Southern Africa, etc. (see-http://www.postcolonialweb.com)

William Sarfan points out that the term Diaspora can be applied to expatriate minority communities whose members share some of the common characteristics given hereunder:

1.They or their ancestor have been dispersed from a special original 'centre' or two or more 'peripheral' of foreign regions;
2.They retain a collective memory, vision or myth about their original homeland-its physical location, history and achievements;
3.They believe they are not- and perhaps cannot be- fully accepted by their lost society and therefore feel partly alienated and insulted from it;
4.They regard their ancestral homeland as their, true, ideal home and as the place to which they or their descendents would (or should) eventually return- when conditions are appropriate;
5.They believe they should collectively, be committed to the maintenance or restoration of their homeland and its safety and prosperity; and
6.They continue to relate, personally and vicariously, to that homeland in one way or another, and their ethno- communal consciousness and solidarity are importantly defined by the existence of such a relationship ;( Safren Willam cited in Satendra Nandan: 'Diasporic Consciousness' Interrogative Post-Colonial: Column Theory, Text and Context, Editors: Harish Trivedi and Meenakshi Mukherjee; Indian Institute of Advanced Studies 1996, p.53)

There lies a difficulty in coming to terms with diaspora, and as such it introduces conceptual categories to display the variety of meanings the word invokes. Robin Cohen classifies Diaspora as:

1. Victim Diasporas
2. Labour Diasporas
3. Imperial Diasporas
4. Trade Diasporas
5. Homeland Diasporas
6. Cultural Diasporas

The author finds a common element in all forms of Diaspora; these are people who live outside their 'natal (or imagined natal) territories' (ix) and recognize that their traditional homelands are reflected deeply in the languages they speak, religion they adopt, and cultures they produce. Each of the categories of Diasporas underline a particular cause of migration usually associated with particular groups of people. So for example, the Africans through their experience of slavery have been noted to be victims of extremely aggressive transmigrational policies. (Cohen)
Though in the age of technological advancement which has made the traveling easier and the distance shorter so the term Diaspora has lost its original connotation, yet simultaneously it has also emerged in another form healthier than the former. At first, it is concerned with human beings attached to the homelands. Their sense of yearning for the homeland, a curious attachment to its traditions, religions and languages give birth to diasporic literature which is primarily concerned with the individual's or community's attachment to the homeland. The migrant arrives 'unstuck from more than land' (Rushdie). he runs from pillar to post crossing the boundries of time, memory and History carrying 'bundles and boxes' always with them with the vision and dreams of returning homeland as and when likes and finds fit to return. Although, it is an axiomatic truth that his dreams are futile and it wouldn't be possible to return to the homeland is 'metaphorical' (Hall). the longing for the homeland is countered by the desire to belong to the new home, so the migrant remains a creature of the edge, 'the peripheral man' (Rushdie). According to Naipaul the Indians are well aware that their journey to Trinidad 'had been final' (Andse Dentseh,) but these tensions and throes remain a recurring theme in the Diasporic Literature.

Diaspora

1.Forced 2.Voluntary

Indian Diaspora can be classified into two kinds:

1. Forced Migration to Africa, Fiji or the Caribbean on account of slavery or indentured labour in the 18th or 19th century.

2.Voluntary Migration to U.S.A., U.K., Germany, France or other European countries for the sake of professional or academic purposes.

According to Amitava Ghose-'the Indian Diaspora is one of the most important demographic dislocation of Modern Times'(Ghosh,) and each day is growing and assuming the form of representative of a significant force in global culture. If we take the Markand Paranjpe, we will find two distinct phases of Diaspora, these are called the visitor Diaspora and Settler Diaspora much similar to Maxwell's 'Invader' and 'Settler' Colonialist.

The first Diaspora consisted of dispriveledged and subaltern classes forced alienation was a one way ticket to a distant diasporic settlement. As, in the days of yore, the return to Homeland was next to impossible due to lack of proper means of transportation, economic deficiency, and vast distances so the physical distance became a psychological alienation, and the homeland became the sacred icon in the diasporic imagination of the authors also.

But the second Diaspora was the result of man's choice and inclination towards the material gains, professional and business interests. It is particularly the representation of privilege and access to contemporary advanced technology and communication. Here, no dearth of money or means is visible rather economic and life style advantages are facilitated by the multiple visas and frequent flyer utilities. Therefore, Vijay Mishra is correct when he finds V S Naipaul as the founding father of old diaspora but it is also not wrong to see Salman Rushdie as the representative of Modern (second) Diaspora V S Naipaul remarkably portrays the search for the roots in his 'A House for Mr. Biswas:

"to have lived without even attempting to lay claim to one's portion of the earth; to have lived and died as one has been born, unnecessary and accommodated.(Naipaul,14) similarly Mohan Biswas's peregrination over the next 35 years, he was to be a wanderer with no place to call his own'(ibid. 40)

In the same manner, Rushdie's Midnight Children and Shame are the novels of leave taking... from the country of his birth (India) and from that second country (Pakistan) where he tried, half-heartedly to settle and couldn't." (Aizaz Ahmad, 135)

Here the critique of Paranjape generates the debate of competing forms of writing: Diaspora or domiciled -those who stayed back home and importantly a competitive space for the right to construct the homeland, so he points out the possibility of harm by 'usurping the space which native self- representations are striving to find in the International Literary Market place and that they may 'contribute to the Colonization of the Indian psyche by pondering to Western tastes which prefer to see India in a negative light.' The works of various authors like Kuketu Mehta, Amitava Ghosh, Tabish, Khair, Agha Shahid Ali, Sonali Bose, Salman Rushdie confirm a hybridity between diasporic and domiciled consciousness. They are National, not Nationalistic inclusive not parochial, respecting the local while being ecumenical, celebrating human values and Indian pluralism as a vital 'worldliness'. (Ashcraft, 31-56)

The diasporian authors engage in cultural transmission that is equitably exchanged in the manner of translating a map of reality for multiple readerships. Besides, they are equipped with bundles of memories and articulate an amalgam of global and national strands that embody real and imagined experience. Suketu Mehta is advocate of idea of home is not a consumable entity. He says:
You cannot go home by eating certain foods, by replaying its films on your T.V. screens. At some point you have to live there again."(Mehta, 13)

So his novel Maximum City is the delineation of real lives, habits, cares, customs, traditions, dreams and gloominess of Metro life on the edge, in an act of morphing Mumbai through the unmaking of Bombay. It is also true, therefore, that diasporic writing is full of feelings of alienation, loving for homeland dispersed and dejection, a double identification with original homeland and adopted country, crisis of identity, mythnic memory and the protest against discrimination is the adopted country. An Autonomous space becomes permanent which non- Diasporas fail to fill. M K Gandhi, the first one to realize the value of syncretic solutions' hence he never asked for a pure homeland for Indians in South Socio-cultural space and so Sudhir Kumar confirms Gandhi as the first practitioner of diasporic hybridity. Gandhi considered all discriminations of high and low, small or great, Hindu or Muslim or Christian or Sikh but found them 'All were alike the children of Mother India.'

Diasporic writings are to some extent about the business of finding new Angles to enter reality; the distance, geographical and cultural enables new structures of feeling. The hybridity is subversive. It resists cultural authoritarianism and challenges official truths."(Ahmad Aizaz, In Theory: Classes, Nations, Literatures; OUP, 1992,p.126) one of the most relevant aspect of diasporic writing is that it forces, interrogates and challenges the authoritative voices of time (History). The Shadow Line of Amitav Ghosh has the impulse when the Indian States were complicit in the programmes after Indira Gandhi's assassination. The author elaborates the truth in the book when he says:

"In India there is a drill associated with civil disturbances, a curfew is declared, paramilitary units are deployed; in extreme cares, the army monarchs to the stricken areas. No city in India is better equipped to perform this drill than New Delhi, with its high security apparatus."(Amitava Ghosh, 51)

The writers of Diaspora are the global paradigm shift, since the challenges of Postmodernism to overreaching narratives of power relations to silence the voices of the dispossessed; these marginal voices have gained ascendance and even found a current status of privilege. These shifts suggest:

"That it is from those who have suffered the sentence of history-subjugation, domination, Diaspora, displacement- that we learn our most enduring lessons for living and thinking."(Bhabha, 172)

The novels of Amitav Ghosh especially the hungry tide in which the character Kanai Dutt is cast together "with chance circumstance with a Cetologist from the US, Priya Roy studying fresh water Dalphines, The Oracaella Brebirostris. The multiple histories of the Sunderbans became alive when the diaries of Marxist school teacher Nirmal came to light. He withdraws from the romance of political activism and came to settle with his wife Nilima in Lucibari and the relation between them is exemplified in the pragmatism of Nilima:

"You live in a dream world- a haze of poetry

Such passages of the novel points towards the metaphorical distinctions between the centre and margins, made narrative and little histories the well knows gods and the gods of small things. In the novels of Ghosh an assault of unarmed settlers Morich Jhapi, in order to evict them forcively is carried out by gangsters hired by states. They had been "assembling around the island... they burnt the settlers, hearts, they sank their boats, they lay waste their fields."(ibid)

Similarly there are a number of novels by South Asian and British Writers on the theme of partition a blatant reality in the global history. Partition was the most traumatic experience of division of hearts and communities. Similarly, Ice Candy Man comprises 32 chapters and provides a peep into the cataclysmic events in turmoil on the sub continent during partition, the spread of communal riots between the Hindu and Sikhs on the one side and the Muslim on the other. The Muslims were attached at a village Pirpindo and the Hindus were massacred at Lahore. It was partition only that became the cause of the biggest bloodshed and brutal holocaust in annals of mankind. Lenny on eight years child narrates the chain of events on the basis of her memory. How she learns from her elders and how she beholds the picture of divided India by her own eyes in the warp and woof of the novel. There is a fine blend of longing and belonging of multiplicity of perspectives and pointed nostalgia of mirth and sadness and of Sufism and Bhakti is epitomized in the work of Aga Shahid Ali. Similarly the novels of Rahi Masoom Raja (in Hindi) narrate woeful tale of partition, the foul play of politicians, the devastated form of the nation and its people after partition and longing for the home that has been:

"Jinse hum choot gaye Aab vo jahan kaise hai
Shakh-e-gulkaise hai, khushbu ke mahak kaise hai
Ay saba too to udhar hi se gujarti hai
Pattaron vale vo insane, vo behis dar-o-bam
Vo makee kaise hai, sheeshe ke makan kaise hai.

(Sheeshe Ke Maka Vale ,173)
("To which we hav'een left adrift how are those worlds
How the branch of flower is, how the mansion of fragrance is.
O,wind! You do pass from there
How are my foot-prints in that lane
Those stony people, those tedious houses
How are those residents and how are those glass houses.)

Most of the major novels of South Asia are replete with the diasporic consciousness which is nothing but the witness of the all the happenings of social realities, longings and feeling of belonging. Train To Pakistan, The Dark Dancer, Azadi, Ice Candy Man, A Bend In The Ganges, Twice Born, Midnight's Children, Sunlight on A Broken Column, Twice Dead, The Rope and Ashes and Petals all these novels abound in the same tragic tale of woe and strife from different angles. Most of the fictions of South Asian Countries are written in the background of post- colonial times and the same South Asian countries were under the colonial rules of the English. After a long battle of independence when those countries were liberated, other bolt from the blue of partition happened. This theme became whys and wherefores of the most of South Asian novels and the popularity of it will prognosticate its golden future.

References:

1.(Cohen Robin, Global Diasporas- An Introduction. London: UC L Press, 1997)
2.Rushdie: Picador, Rupa, 1983.
3.Safren Willam cited in Satendra Nandan: 'Diasporic Consciousness' Interrogative Post-Colonial: Column Theory, Text and Context, Editors: Harish Trivedi and Meenakshi Mukherjee; Indian Institute of Advanced Studies 1996, p.53)
4.Stuart Hall, 'Cultural Identity and Diaspora in Patric White and Laura Christmas, eds, Colonial Discourses and Post-Colonial Theory: A Reader, New York: Columbia University Press, 1994,p.401)
5.(Rushdie: Shame Picader, Rupa, 1983, p.283).
6.(An Area of Darkness London: Andse Dentseh, 1964,p. 31)
7.(Ghosh, Amitava : 'The Diaspora in Indian Culture' in The Imam and The Indian Ravi Dayal and Permanent Books, Delhi : 2002,p.243)
8.(Naipaul, V S, A House for Mr. Biswas Penguin, 1969,p.14)
9.Aizaz Ahmad 'In Theory: Classes Nations, Literatures, O.U.P.1992, and p.135)
10.(Ashcraft. Bill. And Pal Ahluwalia, Edward Said: The Paradox of Identity Routledge,London & New York 1999,p.31-56 )
11.(Mehta, Suketu, Maximum City Viking, Penguin, 2004, p. 13)
12.(Amitava Ghosh, The Ghost of Mrs. Gandhi in The Imam and The Indian , Ravi Dayal, New Delhi, 2002,p.51
13.(Bhabha, Homi, The Location of Culture, Lodon, 1994,)
14.(Ghosh, Amitav,The Hungry Tide Delhi:Ravi Dayal Pub.2004)
15.Dr. Rahi Masoom Raza, Sheeshe Ke Maka Vale. ed. Kunvar Pal Singh, Delhi: Vani Pub.2001,)

Diaspora Literature - A Testimony of Realism

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Saturday, April 21, 2012

Was The 'Rainbow' Division Tarnished By Its Battlefield Behavior In World War I?

World War I began in Europe in 1914, however, the United States remained neutral until 6 April 1917 when President Woodrow Wilson signed the joint resolution declaring that a state of war now existed between the United States of America and Imperial Germany. Three months later, in August 1917, U. S. National Guard units from twenty-six states and the District of Columbia united to form the 42nd Division of the United States Army. Douglas MacArthur, serving as Chief of Staff for the Division, commented that it "would stretch over the whole country like a rainbow." In this manner, the 42nd became known as the "Rainbow Division." It comprised four infantry regiments from New York, Ohio, Alabama, and Iowa. Men from many other states, among them New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Indiana, Michigan, Rhode Island, Maryland, California, South Carolina, Missouri, Connecticutt, Tennessee, New Jersey, Colorado, Maine, North Carolina, Kansas, Texas, Wisconsin, Texas, Illinois, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Oregon, and Pennsylvania also joined the division and became machine gunners, ambulance drivers, worked in field hospitals, or served in the military police.

The Southeastern Department commander recommended that the 4th Alabama Infantry be assigned to the 42nd. The commander of the 4th was Colonel William P. Screws, a former regular army officer who had served from 1910 to 1915 as the inspector-instructor for the Alabama National Guard. Screws was widely regarded as one of the major assets of the Alabama National Guard, and his reputation was likely a prominent factor in the selection of the 4th to join the 42nd. To upgrade the 4th Infantry to war strength, the transfer of the necessary numbers of enlisted men from other Alabama Guard units, including the 1st and 2nd Infantry Regiments and the 1st Alabama Cavalry.

World Wild News

On August 15 the War Department officially redesignated the 4th Alabama Infantry as the 167th Infantry Regiment, 84th Brigade, 42nd Division. The regiment comprised 3,622 enlisted troops and 55 enlisted medical staff for a total of 3,677men. The 1st Alabama Infantry had contributed 880 enlisted men to join the new 167th, the 2nd Alabama Infantry and the 1st Alabama Cavalry had provided enlisted men to bring the 167th to war strength, which was nominally 3,700 officers and men.
The Rainbow Division became one of the first sent to Europe in 1917 to support French troops in battles at Chateau-Thierry, St. Mihiel, the Verdun front, and Argonne. On 15 July 1918 the Division, acting as part of the 4th French Army, assisted in containing the final German offensive at the Battle of Champagne.

Was The 'Rainbow' Division Tarnished By Its Battlefield Behavior In World War I?

Let us set the scenario for the matter of alleged American battlefield atrocities on the part of the 'Rainbow' Division. On 15 July 1918, the Germans, in their final bid to end the war in their favor, launched a massive attack southward in the Champagne country of France. Although most of the defending troops were French, there were some units of the U.S. 42nd Division also involved in the defense and in the counter-attacks that ensued.

Concerning the battle participation of the U. S. 42nd ('Rainbow') Division in the Champagne-Marne Defensive battle of 15 July 1918, we read as follows in Donovan, America's Master Spy, by Richard Dunlop:

"The regimental commanders [of the U. S. 42nd Division] were instructed to post only a few men in the first trench line, which would easily fall. Most were to be positioned in the second line, from which they were also expected to withdraw as the Germans swept ahead."

"On July 15 at 12:04 a.m., the German artillery commenced one of the war's most tremendous barrages. When at 4:30 a.m. the artillery stopped firing as suddenly as it had started, the silence over no-man's-land was dreadful. The first Germans appeared wraithlike, running toward the American lines through the morning mist. Minenwerfers [large caliber German mortars] suddenly rained down on the defending Americana, and machine guns chattered death. The Americans who escaped the first charge scrambled back to the second line."

"The Germans found themselves in full possession of the American first trenches; they thought they had won. They shouted, cheered and broke into song. Then the American barrage opened on the trenches. Since each piece of artillery had been carefully zeroed in on the trenches when they were still in American hands, the accuracy of the gunfire was uncanny. Some of the crack Prussian Guards still managed to reach the second line of trenches, but they too were repulsed, after bloody hand-to-hand encounters. The Germans broke off the attack."

"To Donovan's [Colonel William J. Donovan, commanding officer of the 165th Infantry Regiment, from New York] disgust, the Germans resorted to subterfuge. Four Germans, each with a Red Cross emblazoned on his arm, carried a stretcher up to the lines held by the 165th. When they were close, they yanked a blanket from the stretcher to reveal a machine gun, with which they opened fire. The Americans shot them dead. Still another group tried to infiltrate the American lines one night wearing French uniforms. They too were shot. All told, some breakthroughs were made, but the Germans had been halted by the Americans. The Americans had not been defeated as the French battle plans had expected they would be. After three days of battle, the Germans began
to pull back." 1

On 18 August 1918 the following cablegram was received at American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) headquarters, Chaumont, France:

""A F August 18, 1918.

Commanding General, 42nd Division, Bourmont.

Following received from Washington:
"For Nolan. Condemned Associated Press Dispatch from London received by Cable Censor '0055 Monday Baumans Amsterdam accusation that soldier[s'] of 42nd American line Division enraged at losses suffered 15/7 near Rheims killed same evening 150 German prisoners is made by Wolff Bureau on "Creditable authority" and accordingly displayed in Saturday's German papers'. Dispatch held for assumed inaccuracy. Investigate and report." Make immediate investigation and report by wire this office. By direction.

Nolan

4.55 P.M. "" 2
A "Condemned Associated Press Dispatch..." is assumed to be an AP dispatch which was intercepted by the "Cable Censor" and deemed unfit for forwarding (if sent from F&F) or transmission (if originating in London) and thus was condemned. This action would also presumably be taken if the origin of the telegram or cablegram was thought to be spurious or even sent under false pretenses. The original copy of this message was most probably burned with the "Confidential waste" at AEF HQ Chaumont.

Pershing and his staff at Chaumont did everything possible to control the press and the AEF staff would quickly 'condemn' sources from reporters and reports that were not run through General Pershing's staff.

Regarding the day the telegram was received by AEF HQ on August 18, 1918, this would have been on a Sunday. "0055 Monday" in the telegram would refer to 12 August 1918. The telegram was received shortly after the Champagne-Marne Defensive Campaign, and while the U. S. 42nd Division was fighting in the Marne Salient during July and August of 1918. The "Wolff Bureau" was the Wolff Telegraph Agency in Berlin, a semi-official German new agency in 1918.

The G-2 (Intelligence Officer) of AEF Headquarters, Brigadier General Dennis E. Nolan took prompt action to investigate the alleged murder of German prisoners of war on 15 July 1918 during the Champagne-Marne Defensive Campaign. Nolan directed Major General Charles T. Menoher, commander of the U. S. 42nd Division to undertake an immediate investigation of the charge. The investigation was made on 20 August 1918 at the station of the U. S. 42nd Division, AEF, Bourmont, France.

The U.S. 42nd Division was composed of troops from Alabama, Ohio, Iowa, and New York. The troops that had contact with the German Army on 15 July 1918 were:

2nd Battalion, 165th Infantry Regiment (New York); 3rd Battalion, 166th Infantry Regiment (Ohio); 2nd Battalion, 167th Infantry Regiment (formerly 4th Alabama), and Companies E and F of the 168th Infantry Regiment (Iowa).

The force of the investigation fell on the 2nd Battalion, 165th Infantry, the 3rd Battalion of the 168th, 2nd Battalion, 167th, and Companies E and F of the 168th.

According to the "Report of investigation of reported killing of German prisoners of war," from the Division Inspector and to the Commanding General, 42nd Division, AEF, sworn testimony was taken from a total of thirty-eight officers of the 42nd Division, and particularly from officers whose troops were so stationed as to come into contact with the Germans in the Champagne battle of 15 July 1918. Twenty-three officers gave sworn testimony and fifteen company-grade officers were required to give depositions. The testimony was uniformly a denial that any atrocities were committed during the fighting that day of 15 July 1918.

According to the same report, "All the officers state that no German prisoners were killed by American troops nor were any mistreated; not did any officer hear anything to that effect. On the contrary the prisoners were treated well, the wounded cared for and carefully transported to the rear and the prisoners given food, drink and cigarettes. In at least one case a wounded prisoner was carried while one of our wounded officers walked." 3

The "CONCLUSION" of the report states: "That the statements contained in the telegram set forth in Paragraph II of this report are false and without any foundation in fact. That all prisoners taken by troops of the 42nd Division were turned over immediately to the French military authorities, and that, therefore, no troops of the 42nd Division had access to them other than those whose statements are covered by this report." 4
The "RECOMMENDATION" of the report states: "That no further action be taken." The findings were forwarded to AEF Headquarters and there the matter was dropped. 5

An unknown German newspaper purportedly published in Berlin, Germany, on Saturday, 17 August 1918 allegedly printed an article alleging that 150 wounded and captured German soldiers were summarily killed by soldiers of the U. S. 42nd Division on 15 July 1918. There were five newspapers published in Berlin on the date of Saturday, 17 August 1918: Deutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, Deutsche Tageszeitung Germania, Neues Preussische Zeitung, Nordeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, Vossiche Zeitung. Searches of the mentioned German newspapers have been made by several historians. No atrocity articles have ever been located in these German papers.

In James J. Cooke's book, The Rainbow Division in the Great War, we read:
""The Rainbows also had developed a very real hatred for the Germans. During the German bombardment on 15 July 1918, the doctors and nurses moved what wounded they could to a dugout, and the once callow Lieutenant van Dolsen recoiled in horror at what he saw":

"Well we got down into the dug out and my dear mother such a shamble I never hope to see again. A long black tunnel lighted just a little by candles, our poor wounded shocked boys there on litters in the dark, eight of them half under ether just as they had come off the tables their legs only half amputated, surgeons trying to finish and check blood in the dark, the floor soaked with blood, the hospital above us a wreck, three patients killed and one blown out of bed with his head off. Believe me I will never forgive the bastards as long as I live."

Editor's note: Lt. van Dolsen, being an officer, was able to 'censor' his own letters, otherwise this type of comment would never have reached the home front. Van Dolsen's letter to his aunt, Occupation Forces, Germany, 19 February 1919, MHIA. See also Stewart, Rainbow Bright, 70-71.
"One Alabama private who was in the thickest of the fighting on 15 July wrote to his mother, "All of you can cheer up and wear a smile for I'm a little hero now. I got two of the rascals and finished killing a wounded with my bayonet that might have gotten well had I not finished him...I couldn't be satisfied at killing them, how could I have mercy on such low life rascals as they are?"
"A good bit of this hatred resulted from the Germans approaching American lines dressed in French uniforms taken from the dead in the first line sacrifice trench."

"The hand-to-hand fighting was especially severe for the Alabamians and New Yorkers, and many of their comrades were killed or wounded in the fighting for the second defense line and in the counter-attacks that followed. Adding to the confusion was the occasional round of friendly artillery fire that fell short and hit the Americans as they repulsed the enemy."

"The Alabama defense and decisive counter-attacks on 15 July was praised by all, and established the 167th Regiment as the best fighting regiment within the division."

"There had always been rumors of units of the 42nd Division taking no prisoners. Major William J. Donovan, in May of 1918, described to his wife the possibility of the Alabamians' of the 167th Infantry Regiment capturing and killing two Germans, and he ended his letter stating, "They [the 167th] wander all over the landscape shooting at everything."

"Elmer Sherwood, the Hoosier gunner, reported the story that the Alabamians attacked a German trench with Bowie knives. "They cleaned up on the enemy,
Sherwood recalled, "but it is no surprise to any of us, because they are a wild bunch, not knowing what fear is."

While in Germany on occupation duty with the Rainbow, Lieutenant van Dolsen wrote to his aunt back in Washington, DC, that the Alabams "did not take many prisoners, but I do not blame them for that."

"The New York regiment was also known for fierce fighting and taking few prisoners on the battlefield. This issue of battlefield atrocities by the U. S. 42nd Division would again surface after the severe fighting at Croix Rouge Farm, in the Marne Salient, where the soldiers from Alabama and Iowa were heavily engaged at close quarters with a determined enemy." 6

J. Phelps Harding, 2nd Lt., 165th Regiment, U. S. 42nd Division, AEF, wrote a letter home to his folks on 22 September 1918. His letter states, in part:

"I'm glad I had a chance to join the 165th-it's a man's outfit, and it has done fine work over here. One of the German prisoners, who met us here and at Chateau-Thierry, but did not realize we were at both places, said that America had only two good divisions - the 42nd and the Rainbow. He didn't know they were one and the same. I won't ask for any better men than the Irish in the 69th (165th). They are a hard hitting, dare devil bunch, very religious, afraid of nothing, and sworn enemies of the Boche. The regiment lost heavily at Chateau-Thierry - my company alone had 110 wounded and 36 killed outright - and every man has a 'buddy' to avenge. Lord help the Boche who gets in the way of the 'old 69th.' We are told to treat prisoners as approved by the war-that-was, when soldiers were less barbarous than they are now. After every action we see or hear of mutilation of our men - and there's many a German who suffers for every one American so treated. I don't mean he is mutilated - no American stoops that low - but I do mean that he grows daisies where, if his colleagues had been a bit more human, he might have been getting a good rest in an American prison camp.
Now I'll really stop - perhaps I should have stopped before writing this last paragraph, but it's said, so it stands." 7

Editor's note: As an officer Phelps was privileged to censor his own writing. An enlisted man, however, concerned about censorship, might have hesitated to write that 'after every action' soldiers found 'mutilation of our men' or to suggest that American soldiers killed German prisoners in reprisal. Boche is the French derogatory slang term for German soldiers during World War I.

In defense of the 'Rainbow' Division's behavior on the battlefield, here is a letter I received in 1997 from Clark Jarrett, grandson of Paul Jarrett, a lieutenant in the 166th Infantry Regiment. Clark Jarrett telephoned his grandfather (at his age of 101 years) and transcribed his father's conversation:

""I appreciated your letter very much. I did as you requested...I called my grandfather the night after I received your letter. We had a very good phone call. I read him your exact words and took notes during our conversation. Here is what he had to say:

"I never saw or heard of anything about atrocities in the Rainbow. I can say that the 165th (New York) was not prepared to go to the front when the entire division was ready. I heard personally that the "165th was not fit for service." They were considered playboys, not soldiers. My regiment, the 166th, served with the 165th as the 83rd Brigade. At the Second Battle of the Marne (Battle of the Champagne) I was informed by messenger that I should be aware of my left flank, as the Germans had entered the trenches of the 165th. I put my binoculars to my eyes and I saw that there was trench fighting going on down to my left. Thank God that the Germans did not break through. But I was aware that they might at any moment. After that, the 165th performed as well as any other unit in the Rainbow.

As for the 167th Alabama...the only time I every saw or heard of anything unusual was at Camp Mills, Long Island, New York, when we were in training to go to Europe. One night, we were called out to separate the 167th from a Negro unit. Apparently the white soldiers really got upset that black soldiers were in the division. Anyway, we had to part the two units...but I didn't see any specific violence. I heard that there was a pretty good fight going before we got there. It was the 167th I was going to help when I got my knee fractured during the fighting at the Ourcq River.""

I hope this will give you another piece of the puzzle, David. I quizzed him really hard about the facts. He, as you know, has a wonderful memory, and will not [I repeat] not, go along with anything, nor any memory of someone else just to satisfy that person. He will tell it just exactly the way it was."" 8

"On the fourth day, when the 69th and the Alabama continued to hold, the French general [Gouraud] said, "Well, I guess there is nothing for me to do but fight the war out where the New York Irish want to fight it." 9

Author of The Last Hero, Wild Bill Donovan, Anthony Cave Brown, tells us:

"And, Donovan was to admit, the Micks took no prisoners. "The men, "he wrote," when they saw the Germans with red crosses on one sleeve and serving machine guns against us, firing until the last minute, then cowardly throwing up their hands and crying "Kamerad," became just lustful for German blood. I do not blame them." Later when WJD [William J. Donovan] was required to sit in judgement on the German officers' corps for its conduct in World War II, he recalled this incident, realized that if World War I had gone the wrong way, he might have been arrested for having committed war crimes, and he refused to prosecute." 10
It is interesting to note that, during the fighting along the Ourcq River, and after the Champagne-Marne Defensive Campaign, the U. S. 42nd Division evidently again became involved with the matter of battlefield atrocities. We read as follows in Anthony Cave Brown's book entitled, The Last Hero, Wild Bill Donovan:

"In the fighting the Micks again began to kill their prisoners, and Donovan recorded: "Out of the 25 I was able to save only 2 prisoners, the men killed
all the rest." 11

Editor's comment: "Micks" is an ethnic slang expression for the Irish-Americans. Once again we have the situation where an officer in the AEF is able to write just about any comment at all to the home folks. One speculates as to what the average enlisted soldier would have written, had he been permitted to do so. Major General William J. Donovan, commander of the 165th (formerly 69th ) Infantry Regiment during World War I, was later to become the founder of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and "father" of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Going back to the 167th Infantry Regiment (formerly 4th Alabama), Professor James J. Cooke, author of The Rainbow Division in the Great War, informs the author that:

"The matter of the atrocities concerned mainly the 167th Infantry and I was very concerned with it because of the investigation conducted by the HQ, AEF. There had been problems with the 167th being very aggressive in combat. But, when I searched for references in German papers, like you, I found none. It appeared that HQ got their information from reporters who simply heard rumors, etc. I do believe, however, that HQ was well aware of the hard fighting tendencies of units like the 167th and wanted to investigate quickly. I included the investigation mainly because it was HQ that ordered it done rather than from any German or poor sources. That is as far as I got when doing the Rainbow book. I did indeed research AEF records in RG 120 at National Archives II, especially the JAG [Judge Advocate General] and G2 [Intelligence] records, but found, like you, a brick wall as far as the origins of the reported atrocities. By the way, when I ran across "condemned" sources it was usually for reporters and reports that were not run through Pershing's staff. As you know Pershing and his staff at Chaumont did everything possible to control the press." 12

The soldiers of the 4th Alabama National Guard Regiment (167th of the U. S. 42nd Division) seem to have been a rather different 'breed of cat.' Many of them were backwoodsmen, avid hunters and crack rifle shots. It is said that many of them brought their personal Bowie knives over to France and that they used them in battle. 13

In a letter to the home folks, Ambulance Corps driver George Ruckle wrote, in part: "The Germans call us barbarians, they don't like the way we fight. When the boys go over the top or make raids they generally throw away their rifles and go to it with trench knives, sawed off shotguns, bare fists and hand grenades, and the Bosch doesn't like that kind of fighting. The boys from Alabama are particularly expert with knives and they usually go over hollering like fiends-so I don't blame the Germans for being afraid of them." 14

A young officer in the 42nd Division, made the observation in a letter home in early 1918 that, "the Alabamans, a rough, quick-tempered lot, always spoiling for a fight, lost their tempers." This comment was made in regards to an altercation between the men from Alabama and the French civilians.

Could the old adage that, "where there is smoke, there must be fire" apply here?
In placing all of these pieces of evidence of alleged battlefield atrocities committed by the U. S. 42nd Division on the scales of justice, how does it all weigh out? In the opinion of this historian, the 'Rainbow' Division probably stands guilty of some extremely aggressive battlefield behavior during World War I. It is also my distinct impression that the investigation conducted by AEF HQ was a total whitewash.

Americans are loathe to accept the idea that their soldiery, in any war, either enjoy killing their enemies or are capable of committing war crimes of any sort and specifically battlefield atrocities against enemy soldiers or civilians. Americans are always so shocked and horrified whenever their soldiers act (or react) like anyone else in the world, as if "our boys" occupy a moral high ground unique on the planet. But, if one is to be true to historical fact, one must accept the idea that American soldiers have not always behaved honorably on the battlefield. There is ample testimony to this effect from World War I, World War II, Korea, (e.g., the incident at the tunnel at No Gun Ri in 1950, where a number of civilians were allegedly massacred by American soldiers) Vietnam (e.g., the Mylai incident, where Vietnamese civilians were allegedly massacred under the command of Lt. William Calley), and from Iraq, where all too frequently some of our fighting forces are accused of having shot unarmed prisoners, or having tortured them in prison.

In coming down to the year of 2005, we have Marine Corps Lt. General James N. Mattis, known as "Mad Dog Mattis" to the troops he led in Afganistan and Iraq, publicly stating that "It's a lot of fun to fight, you know. It's a hell of a hoot. It's fun to shoot some people. I'll be right up front with you. I like brawling." The Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. Mike Hagee said, in part, "While I understand that some people may take issue with the comments made by him, I also know he intended to reflect the unfortunate and harsh realities of war." 15

The murder of surrendering prisoners is not unique to World War I. That has been a barbarous practice in all wars. However, one aspect of World War I fighting has been perhaps neglected; perhaps the murder of surrendering prisoners was more common in that brutal war than we would like to believe.

While brave, kindly and charitable acts also characterized World War I, we should not forget that it also produced its share of battlefield atrocities. A certain de-sensitization about the value of human life may be necessary to cope in the stress of performing a job that requires killing, a cold mentality that must be kept on the battlefield.

Perhaps the best tribute to fighting ability of the Guardsmen of the Rainbow Division came from their enemies. In a study made in post-war days, the German High Command considered eight American divisions especially effective; six of those were those of the much maligned "militia" or National Guard! When the German soldiers were asked which American combat division they most feared and respected, the reply was always, "the 42nd", and "the Rainbow." For some reason the Germans never made the distinction. 16

Editor's note: On German opinion of the 42nd Div., see e.g., The United States Army in the World War, XI, 410, 412-13; Thomas, History of the A.E.F., 221.

George Pattullo, a World War I correspondent for the periodical Saturday Evening Post, and accredited to American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) in France in 1918, wrote as follows in his article entitled, "The Inside Story of the A.E.F.," May 6, 1921:

"Just as it is impossible for an individual to view his family's relations with outsiders impartially, so it is beyond the capacity of nationals of one country to see anything except their own side in dealing with other nations. The tendency to attribute base motives and double dealing to a rival is universal; on the other hand, everything that one's own country does is great and noble and of pure purpose. And of course an enemy is always a scoundrel.

The extremes to which this sort of thinking will drive people are often laughable. I remember two nice old ladies from New England stopping a returned war correspondent on Fifth Avenue to question him about certain stories they had heard of war prisoners in German hands.

"Was it true that the Germans prodded prisoners with bayonets and kicked them, too, to make them walk faster?"
"Well, war's a tough game," answered the correspondent who was a bit fed up with
the whole business.
"It's dog eat dog, and every army has men in it who go in for rough stuff.

You have to, in a fight!"
"Oh!" gasped the ladies, all aflutter, "But not our boys!
They're too noble." 18
Howard V. O'Brien, an AEF officer stationed in Paris, wrote an illuminating statement in his 1918 diary:
"Acquaintance growing up among different regions of U.S. Oregon reg't and

outfit from Boston on same ship. Mass. boys at first dubious of "wild" Westerners-which had highest percentage of college men and generally bien élevé of any outfit I've seen. Most refractory bunch yet encountered, from Alabama. Pistol toters. G.O. [general order] ruled rods out. After that, all scrapping Marquis of Queensberry, and several good lickings helped." 19

Victor L. Hicken, in his book The American Fighting Man, states:

"As far as the fear of the German soldier for the American soldier in 1917

was concerned, there is some basis for this contention. A French officer, observing the Yanks, wrote: "He arrived a born soldier....I think the Germans are afraid of him." Rumor spread behind the German lines that it didn't pay to fight well against the Americans; for they seldom allowed the Germans to surrender after putting up a stiff fight. One American regimental history, that of the "Rainbow Division," substantiates this possibility by claiming that its men "fought to kill," and that few prisoners were usually taken. Indeed, the facts on the "Rainbow Division" show that, for the amount of fighting the division did, very few prisoners were taken." 20

A German is reported to have said:

"I did not meet the Americans on the battlefields but I have talked with German soldiers who did. These soldiers were against the Rainbow Division near Verdun and said they don't want such fighting as they encountered there. The Americans were always advancing and acted more like wild men than soldiers." 21

In Americans in Battle, we read:

"An historian of the Rainbow Division admits that its men fought to kill, an admission borne out by the mere 1,317 prisoners taken by the division." 22

Was The 'Rainbow' Division Tarnished By Its Battlefield Behavior In World War I?

David C. Homsher, a veteran of U.S. Army service during the Korean War, and now retired, is a historian/author of and about the American soldier of World War I and his battlefields. Dave has traveled extensively over many of the battlegrounds of both World Wars and he is has written and published the first of a series of guidebooks to the American battlefields of the World War I in France and Belgium.

Copyright April 2007 by David C. Homsher.
85 Tilton Avenue, # 4, San Mateo, CA 94401
Tel. (650) 347-6073
Website: http://www.battlegroundpro.com AEF blogs: http://www.davehomsher-wwi.blogspot.com/
http://www.doughboydiaries.blogspot.com/
Email: daveh@battlegroundpro

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Tuesday, April 17, 2012

The Effect of Deforestation

Deforestation is the process of converting forested lands into non-forest sites that are ideal for crop raising, urbanization and industrialization. Because deforestation is a serious concept, there are also serious effects to the surroundings.

Effects of deforestation can be classified and grouped into effects to biodiversity, environment and social settings. Because deforestation basically involves killing trees in forests, there are so many effects that can be enumerated as results of the activity.

World Wild News

When forests are killed, nature basically requires people to renew the forest. Reforestation is one concept that is in the opposite direction as deforestation, but is proven to be a much harder effort than deforestation.

The Effect of Deforestation

So the rate of deforestation has not been offset by the rate of reforestation. Thus, the world is now in a troubled state when it comes to issues concerning the environment.

Pollution is rapidly growing along with population. Forests are greatly helping reduce the amount of pollutants in the air. So, the depletion of these groups of trees is greatly increasing the risk that carbon monoxide would reach the atmosphere and result in the depletion of the ozone layer, which in turn results to global warming.

Environment change

One major effect of deforestation is climate change. Changes to the surroundings done by deforestation work in many ways. One, there is abrupt change in temperatures in the nearby areas. Forests naturally cool down because they help retain moisture in the air.

Second is the long process of global climate change. As mentioned above, deforestation has been found to contribute to global warming or that process when climates around the world become warmer as more harmful rays of the sun comes in through the atmosphere.

The ozone layer is a mass of oxygen or O3 atoms that serves as shield in the atmosphere against the harmful ultraviolet rays from the sun. Because ozone is made up of oxygen atoms, oxygen react with carbon monoxide. Such reaction would use up oxygen atoms.

It follows that when there are more carbon monoxide atoms going to the atmosphere, the volume of oxygen would decline. Such is the case of ozone depletion.

The third effect to the environment would be on the water table underneath the ground. Water table is the common source of natural drinking water by people living around forests.

Water table is replenishing. That means, the supply of water underground could also dry up if not replenished regularly. When there is rain, forests hold much of the rainfall to the soil through their roots.

Thus, water sinks in deeper to the ground, and eventually replenishing the supply of water in the water table. Now, imagine what happens when there is not enough forests anymore. Water from rain would simply flow through the soil surface and not be retained by the soil.

Or other than that, the water from rain would not stay in the soil longer, for the process of evaporation would immediately set in. Thus, the water table is not replenished, leading to drying up of wells.

Effect to biodiversity

Forests are natural habitats to many types of animals and organisms. That is why, when there is deforestation, many animals are left without shelters. Those that manage to go through the flat lands and residential sites are then killed by people.

Through the years, it is estimated that there are millions of plant and extinct animal species that have been wiped out because they have been deprived of home. Thus, biodiversity is significantly lowered because of the savage deforestation practices of some people.

Wildlife advocates have been constantly reminding that several wild animals left in the world could still be saved if deforested forests would only be reforested and the practice of slash and burn of forests would be totally abandoned.

Social effects of deforestation

Deforestation is hardly hitting the living conditions of indigenous people who consider forests as their primary habitats. Imagine how they are rendered homeless when forests are depleted. These natives would be forced to live elsewhere, and are usually left to becoming mendicants in rural and urban areas.

Overall, effects of deforestation cannot be offset by the contribution of the practice to development. While it is logical that progress is very much needed by mankind, it must also be noted that nature knows no defeat. Destruct it and it would certainly retaliate, one way or another.

The Effect of Deforestation

For more information now go to: http://www.solutionstoearthdestruction.com/The-Effect-Of-Deforestation.html http://www.solutionstoearthdestruction.com/Benefit-Of-Deforestation.html

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Sunday, April 15, 2012

Walmart Job Openings - The Unknown Walmart Job Openings

Walmart job openings are posted pretty much all the time as the giant retailer continues to show profits while other retailers struggle. What most people do not realize is that Walmart offers the opportunity for anyone to work at home assisting people looking to buy things by directing them to where they can get what they want online.

These Walmart job openings are never listed on any type of employment site but they are real jobs that allow anyone to get started immediately.

Retailers

The deal is that these jobs involve sending people to the retailers web site and when they make a purchase Walmart pays you a percentage of the sale as a commission.

Walmart Job Openings - The Unknown Walmart Job Openings

These types of jobs are known as affiliates and you can go to Walmart as well as hundreds of other well known retailers online, sign up and get started right away. Here's the catch.

If you have ever started a job in a new career field you know there are certain things you have to learn about the job to be proficient in what you are doing. These Walmart job openings are no different.

Once you learn how to sign up for the job and use the internet to start earning money you will find it is probably the best job the company offer. Who else works for this giant in the industry and gets to do it from home? Sounds like a pretty good gig right?

Target, Amazon, Macys, Guitar Center and many more online retailers all offer these positions that allow you to work from home and help them grow their online business.

Walmart Job Openings - The Unknown Walmart Job Openings

The best way to get started is from the best training site online by Clicking Here.

I have used this training to make over 100k annually online.

You can even just pick up their Free Wealth Guide to get started.

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Friday, April 13, 2012

Identifying the Most Common Insurance KPI

Many people think that running an insurance firm is just as easy as selling premiums and waiting for the payments to come in. Actually, there is a lot more to it than that. Oftentimes, it involves processes that test even the mightiest business strategy. Of course, there is the accounting and collection management. But above all these management processes, measuring performance is one that should not be left out. In the operation of an insurance agency or company, knowing what yardstick to use to determine current performance is good. But learning the important insurance KPI or key performance indicators is better. Below are lists of most common and possible indicators that insurance companies should focus on.

In reality though, the KPI or key performance indicators most giant insurance firms use are not that different with those used by retailers or sales oriented companies. Basically, the nature of business of an insurance company is to sell. The difference comes with the products that are being sold. See, retailers or manufacturers sell good at a one time basis, which means, after a product is sold and consumed, the seller no longer has to deal with the customer. But with an insurance company, the lifecycle type of sales occurs. Once, an insurance policy is purchased, the company is obliged or attached to cover the cost, especially in paying the benefits of the customer.

Retailers

Generally, there are six most common key performance indicators used in managing an insurance firm. First, the company must measure the number of policy sales. This is the most basic and just about the most important of all. A dip in quarterly sales is not just a historical record. It is even more like a threat for the company since a decrease in number of sold policies can imply long term wounds on company sales. So, before anything gets worse, the firm must make its move accordingly. The second KPI is to determine the ratio of policies that are renewed against the accumulated number of sold policies. Knowing this will not just give managers an idea of which policy sells more. It will also help them make changes in updating old and current customers.

Identifying the Most Common Insurance KPI

The third KPI is determining the number of missed payments or lapses. It is not only the performance of the company that should be tracked here but also the contribution of the customer. Oftentimes, when neglected, due payments lead to undesirable incidents, such as foreclosure. Measuring this indicator is best done when the number is identified as a percentage of the total sold policies. The fourth KPI still has something to do with lapses, only that the indicator should fall in the first 2 years of using the policy. The fifth key performance indicator is the quota. This figure usually tells the insurance company how effective collectors, agents, and sellers are in targeting desired sales. The sixth KPI for an insurance company is identifying the total paid benefits as a percentage of the premium.

These insurance KPI or key performance indicators are just actually part of the many metrics one can use. These indicators may not be used all the time, but you should be able to get the idea by now. If the company currently has a new project, it is best that agents and managers work together to achieve good results.

Identifying the Most Common Insurance KPI

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Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Kindles On Sale: Best Places To Buy Kindles

Are you looking where to find Amazon Kindles on sale? The Amazon Kindle has become one of the most popular of the e-book reader devices and is also one of the least expensive computer tablets out there. We will discuss some of the best places where you can buy Kindles at.

The Amazon Kindle is quickly becoming the most popular of the e-book readers. It has been Amazons best-selling product for the past two years and is gaining reputation as being the best e-reader that's currently available on the market.

Retailers

The Kindle has many superior features than other e-book readers as well as some other computer tablets such as the iPad. For one, the battery life of a Kindle far surpasses any other tablet device currently available lasting up to one month without the need to recharge. Most tablet devices last only a day to a few days at best.

Kindles On Sale: Best Places To Buy Kindles

Kindles E-Ink display is the first of its kind making words on the screen resemble and appear book/paper-like. The screen also is a no-glare display, so reading in the sun or high reflected areas is no problem.

The Kindle can store up to 3,500 books and It also has a text-to-speech feature that reads written words and books back to you in audio format. Additionally, the Kindle has a new-web based browser that allows you to surf the web within its Wi-Fi capabilities.

So where are the best places to buy Kindles on Sale?

There are really only a few places that sell Kindles.

In June of 2010 Target became the first brick-and-mortar retailer to put Kindles on the self. There are rumors that some other physical retailers might release Kindles in the future, but it wont likely be for a couple of years.

There are a couple of places online that sell them in pawned or used formats such as eBay or Craigslist. However, most people who shop online for electronics don't use these sites. The products on these sites are usually not high in quality and are done by regular people and not legitimate online retailers / companies.

The places that you want to buy from are trustworthy online sites and companies that offer new, used and refurbished Kindles with good solid reviews and reputations.

Kindles On Sale: Best Places To Buy Kindles

Check the best places to find Kindles on sale online at the Kindle blogspot

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