Tag: Celtic

UK: Visiting Haytor – Dartmoor National Park! (17.4.2025

We were committed to traversing directly up before we fully appreciated the difference. Nevertheless, hundreds climb Haytor every week – with wild Dartmoor ponies wandering around the car-park area. These animals may – or may not – come over for a stroke, but visitors must be careful not to be bitten, head-butted, or kicked, etc. This does not happen very often – but wild animals should be respected. Another issues are yapping dogs (which must be kept on leads). As matters transpired, there was one or two calm and sedate ponies that wanted to be stroked and petted, etc. The general experience is important for children – particularly those from city areas – to re-connect with nature and experience the feeling that the immensity of nature – wide-open spaces – can generate! I last visited probably about 20-years ago with Gee – but our two children not yet born.

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Dead Confederate sharpshooters of Hood's Division among the rocks in Devil's Den in front of Little Round Top.

CSA: Remembering the Bravery of “Irish” Company “K” – 15th Alabama – Little Round-Top [2.7.1863] – Gettysburg! (3.4.2025)

The weather was hot – and the Confederates had to advance over open ground before storming an inclined slope (in the form of a steep hill) – with the intention of sweeping the Federals off its top and consolidating the victory. The previous day had seen the Confederates sweep the Federals out of West and Central Gettysburg – and into the hills to its East. Washington was just 80 miles to the South – and legend has it that Lincoln was packing his belongings to flee! I have audio-typed part of a chapter from Stephen Sears’ book – carefully reproducing the text from an Audible edition (in my native British English). This provides a general background to the battle – but does not mention the Irish specifically – other than one or two fighting for the Union. For the story of “Company K” of the 15th Alabama Regiment of the Confederate States of America (CSA) – we must turn to the excellent work of Phillip Thomas Tucker – who has produced an excellent book examining the contribution to the Confederate cause made by the Irish!

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Reaction & Religion Go Hand in Hand!

UK: The Kind Idiocy of Mary Augusta Ward [1851-1920]! (24.3.2025)

It is incredible that someone such as Bishop Smith thinks that Mary Ward – the co-founder of the “National Women’s Anti-Suffrage League” – is a person worthy of remembering when she dedicated her life to preventing society from developing – a process which required the lifting of the religious ignorance that had dominated the West for over a thousand years. Furthermore, the White, middle-class and thoroughly “male” interpretation of Christianity Bishop Smith and Ward seem to be peddling has virtually nothing to do with the teachings of Jesus Christ – and has more in common with the ramblings of St Paul – a fantasist who never met Jesus. The situation is probably more confusing than even this – as many of the letters ascribed to Paul – particularly the misogynistic editions – are thought to be forgeries.

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Gee's Birthday Treat - Cornish Cream Tea!

UK: Gee’s Birthday Treat – Cornish Cream Tea! (5.12.2024)

The box is delivered by a private Courier and contains four scones, four pots of jam, four tea-bags, two-bags of biscuits, and a pot of clotted cream! We breakout the best China tea-pot and tea-cups and saucers to consume this magnificent gift! As my parents live in Devon, we often visit nearby Cornwall and appreciate the history and old buildings. Cornwall is essentially a “Celtic” region of the UK with kilts, bagpipes and a Gaelic language all of its own!

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Long Live Horses and Shoes!

Celtic-Chinese – Time for the Horse-Shoe Feng Shui! (2.11.2024)

In return, we often march carrying the Red Flag of China in the UK – on the grounds that it belongs to humanity and the Working Class of the World! Due to fascism in the UK, the population is riddled with confusion and race-hate – what Marx termed a “false consciousness”. Difference is not a threat and should not be viewed as such. When you think of it, the Chinese people have so much to hate the West – and the British – about, but racism, (particularly retaliatory racism) is completely lacking in China (outside the false imaginings of the China-haters)! Superstitions are pointless, of course, but they can be fun! Horse-shoes are “good luck” – just like the Feng Shui placards the Chinese use!

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Eire Harp - St Patrick Battalion!

St Patrick Battalion – How the Irish Changed Sides During the US Invasion of Mexico! (17.9.2024)

Fortunately, night fell and with it came a violent tropical rain-storm. Even more fortunately for the Americans, Brigadier-General Persifor P Smith, a remarkably steady man, arrived to assume Command of the American forces to the West of the Pedregal. Smith was apparently not shaken by the fact that he was surrounded and had fewer than 4,000 troops with which to face the possibility of a combined attack from something between 13,000-17,000 men the next day. He summoned Lee, who had scattered the land between San Jeronimo and General Valencia’s position, and found it unguarded, and decided to ignore the large body of Mexican troops to his North, and attack General Valencia’s left-flank at first-light. It would obviously be helpful if the American troops in front of Valencia staged a strong demonstration in the morning, but Smith had no-way of communicating this to them.

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