Hall County Texas World War Two, Korean War, Vietnam War and Gulf War Memorial.

Yesterday we featured the Hall County, Texas Civil War and World War One Memorial.  Today we have their memorials for the series of wars following the Great War.

Note how many names appear for the Second World War.

Again, MKTH photograph.

Civil War and World War One Memorial, Hall County (Memphis) Texas

The Hall County, Texas memorial in Memphis Texas was dedicated in 1924 in honor of the veterans of that county who had served in the Civil War, and World War One.  MKTH Photo.

Lex Anteinternet: Wars and Rumors of War, 2022. The Russo Ukrainian War Part 5. Ukrainian Snake Island Postage Stamp.

Lex Anteinternet: Wars and Rumors of War, 2022. The Russo Ukrainian ...: 

Yesterday was also the date of first issuance of a Ukrainian postage stamp dedicated to the men on Snake Island, depicting a border guard giving a Russian ship the middle finger salute.

National Vietnam Veteran's Day

Governor and Veterans Commission to Host Veterans Welcome Home Day Events

 

CHEYENNE, Wyo. –  Governor Gordon and the Wyoming Veterans Commission have announced three celebrations around the state  for “Wyoming Veterans Welcome Home Day” on Saturday, March 26. During the 61st Legislative Session in 2011, the day of welcoming was codified in state law for March 30 of each year. This coincides with the date U.S. combat troops would have set foot on Wyoming soil after returning home from the Vietnam War in 1973.

All Wyoming Veterans, especially those from the Korean War, Vietnam War, and other Veterans who were not properly thanked upon their return home, are invited to attend and receive the welcome and thanks of a grateful state. Military, surviving spouses of Veterans, and family members are also welcome to attend.

The first ceremony begins at 8:30 am in Green River at American Legion Post 28, 38 North Center St.

A ceremony takes place at 11:30 am in Worland at American Legion Post 44, 129 S. 7th St.

The final ceremony of the day will commence at 3 pm in Gillette at the Campbell County Senior Center located at 701 Stocktrail Ave.

The ceremonies will include remarks by Governor Mark Gordon, Maj. Gen. Greg Porter, the Adjutant General of Wyoming and Veterans Commission Chairman Jake Jacobs, local officials and Veterans. Receiving lines will be formed so Wyoming residents can join the effort to thank our Veterans.

Wyoming communities are also encouraged to host their own celebrations to honor Wyoming Veterans who may not have been thanked for their service or welcomed home.

For additional information, contact the Wyoming Veterans Commission at (307) 777-8151.

-END-

 

A Cottonwood Memorial.

Even though I've been in City Park in Casper lots of times, I managed to have never noticed this memorial to James Cobb Barlow.

James A. Barlow Jr. was a noted Wyoming geologist.  He was the son of the elder James Barlow who was a homesteader first in Colorado and then later in Wyoming, but who had relocated to the East Coast prior to marrying.  James A. Barlow came to Wyoming to study geology, and had one of the first two Ph.D's from the University of Wyoming's geology department.  While I hadn't realized it, he obviously served as Mayor of Casper, Wyoming in 1965-66.

A French film will be made about the funeral of Norbert Herriges. . .

 a P47 pilot who was killed over the country on August 12, 1944.  He was from Montana.

His body was hidden by the farm family where he landed when he attempted to parachute out of his stricken plane.  Villagers of the village of Pourrieres conducted a funeral that gathered three times the residency of the town's, which was 1,000.

100th Anniversary of the Dedication of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Today is the 100th Anniversary of the Dedication of the Tomb of the Unkown Soldier.

Lex Anteinternet: Friday, November 11. Veterans Day: 

Friday, November 11. Veterans Day

Today In Wyoming's History: November 11. Veterans Day: 

1921 Warren G. Harding dedicated the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery.

On this day in 1921 the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was dedicated in Arlington National Cemetery.  I noted that on our companion blog, Today In Wyoming's History, quite some time ago, but the photo below, of Chief Plenty Coups, whom I discussed on November 8, is a new addition here.

Also noting the tragedy of the Great War, today was the first day in which the Royal British Legion sold poppies in remembrance of the war.  This tradition still goes on in the United Kingdom and also in Canada.  When I was a kid, it occurred here in the form of artificial "bloody poppies" that were sold by one of the two veterans organizations, although I forget which one  I dimly recall it was the VFW, but I could be in error.

Harding gave a speech, as noted, at the event, which was transmitted nationwide by telephone wires by AT&T.

A photographer played with black and while film to capture this image at 10:30 that evening.

The war with Germany officially ended on this day, not coincidentally, as the US and Weimar Germany officially recognized the peace.   Germany also was reaching out to the Soviet Union with the formation of Deruluft, a joint German Russian airline.  It operated until 1937.

The New York Bible Society presented a bible to the conference meeting in Washington on arms limitation.

Lex Anteinternet: Wednesday, November 9, 1921. The Unknown Soldier Comes Home

Lex Anteinternet: Wednesday, November 9, 1921. The Unknown Soldier ...: 

Wednesday, November 9, 1921. The Unknown Soldier Comes Home.

The body of the Unknown Soldier arrived in the United States from Europe abord the USS Olympia, and was conveyed to lie in state.

 

President Harding visited the bier of the Unknown Solder.  The body had been conveyed by ship to the United States arriving earlier that day.

Leonard L. Robinson Memorial Bridge, Casper Wyoming.

Back last year we posted this item here:

Lex Anteinternet: The 2020 Wyoming Legislative Session. Proposed Dr. Leonard L. Robinson memorial bridge.

Lex Anteinternet: The 2020 Wyoming Legislative Session. The early c...: There's a proposal to dedicate a bridge in Casper that crosses Center Street in honor of a veteran of the Bataan Death March.

2020

STATE OF WYOMING

20LSO-0464

HOUSE BILL NO. HB0096

Dr. Leonard L. Robinson memorial bridge.

Sponsored by: Representative(s) Harshman, Blake, Brown, Lindholm, MacGuire and Walters and Senator(s) Anderson, Landen, Pappas and Von Flatern

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to highways and bridges; designating a bridge as specified; providing for signage; providing an appropriation; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1.  W.S. 24‑1‑138 is created to read:

24‑1‑138.  Dr. Leonard L. Robinson World War II Bataan Death March memorial bridge.

The bridge on United States Interstate Highway 25 crossing over Center Street in Casper, Wyoming shall be known as the "Dr. Leonard L. Robinson World War II Bataan Death March Memorial Bridge."  The department of transportation shall install appropriate signage, in compliance with applicable federal and state law, to identify the Dr. Leonard L. Robinson World War II Bataan Death March Memorial Bridge.

Section 2.  Nothing in this act shall require the department of transportation to remove or modify any designation of the bridge specified in section 1 of this act submitted to the federal highway administration.

Section 3.  There is appropriated five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) from the general fund to the department of transportation for purposes of installing signage required by this act.  This appropriation shall be for the period beginning with the effective date of this act and ending June 30, 2022.  This appropriation shall not be transferred or expended for any other purpose and any unexpended, unobligated funds remaining from this appropriation shall revert as provided by law on June 30, 2022.  It is the intent of the legislature that this appropriation not be included in the department of transportation's standard budget for the immediately succeeding fiscal biennium.

Section 4.  This act is effective July 1, 2020.

(END)

1

HB0096

Robinson was an enlisted man 200th Coastal Artillery in the Philippines at the time of the Japanese invasion of the islands and was part of the large group of US troops taken prisoner as a result.  He had been an engineering student at the University of Colorado and conscripted in the prior year, during which period he was also a semi-professional golfer.

A deeply religious man, after the war he completed his engineering studies and obtained a Doctorate in Theology from Northwestern some time later.  As an engineer, he helped design one of the first US ejection seats for aircraft.

An Englewood Colorado native, he is certainly worthy of a memorial, although I have to say that I don't know if an Interstate 25 bridge in a confusing intersection is really a great one.  I don't mean to be disrespectful  on that, but it does seem a better memorial, or even a better bridge, could have been used.  Indeed, that's somewhat reflected in the poor quality of these photographs, as there's really no convenient way to take a photo from the ground, and the intersection is always pretty busy.

Lex Anteinternet: Juneteenth. What the new Federal Holiday Commemorates

Lex Anteinternet: Juneteenth. What the new Federal Holiday Commemor...: 

Juneteenth. What the new Federal Holiday Commemorates

Today is a Federal Holiday.  And for the first time.

Emancipation Day celebration, Richmond Virginia, 1905.

The holiday is Juneteenth.

The creation of the holiday is certainly proof that the Federal Government can in fact act quickly.  The bills on this were very recently introduced and this just passed Congress earlier this week and was signed into law yesterday, giving Federal employees the day off today. On Monday, they weren't expecting a day off.

So what is it?

The day basically celebrates the end of slavery, but in a bit of an unusual way. The Emancipation Proclamation was issued on September 22, 1862.  Juneteenth, however, marks the calendar date of June 19, 1865, when Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, after the end of the war, and issued proclamations voiding acts of the Texas legislature during the war and proclaiming the enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation.  His General Order No. 3 was read aloud in the streets. Hence, June 19 became recognized, regionally, as the day that the Emancipation Proclamation reached the most distant outposts of the slave states, bringing slavery finally to an end.

Band for Texas Emancipation Day celebration, 1900.

Celebration of the day in Texas started almost immediately, being first observed just one year later, by the state's freed African American population.  Interestingly, the day was generally known as Emancipation Day.  However, the revival of segregation in the South in the late 19th Century and early 20th Century caused the day to suffer a decline, until it began to be revived in the 1950s.  Upon revival, the name Juneteenth began to apply to it.  It was made a state holiday in Texas in 1979.  The day received recognition in 47 of the states since then, with North and South Dakota and Hawaii being the only ones that had not up until now.

Talk of making it a Federal holiday has existed at least since the 1980s.  Generally there's been very broad support for the move, but it obviously has taken years to accomplish, if we regard 1979 as the onset.  It's interestingly been an example of states largely being out in front of the Federal Government on a holiday, and not surprisingly the various ways that states have recognized it have not been consistent.

Gen. Gordon, who brought news to African Americans in Texas that they'd been freed two years prior.

There's been next to no opposition to the holiday being created which is interesting, in part, as the current times have been very oddly polarized in all sorts of ways.  The measure had bipartisan support, although fourteen Republican members of Congress voted against it.  One interestingly voted against it as he thought the official name confusing, Juneteenth National Independence Day, which in fact it somewhat is.  That individual wanted to use the original name, Emancipation Day, which is a view I somewhat sympathize with.

It'll be interesting to see what the public reaction is given that this happened seemingly so quickly.  By and large people who are aware of it seem pleased, although Candace Owens, the African American conservative columnists and quasi gadfly, predictably wasn't.  It'll probably be next year until there's widespread national recognition of the day.

In very real ways, what it commemorates is the suffering of one of the most American of all American demographics, the African Americans, who have been in the country since its founding, but who still were the victims of legal discrimination all the way into the 1960s and whose economic plight remains marked.

Private Memorials: Tombstones

They can be things of real beauty, deeply personal, and yet public at the same time.  Perhaps the last word in private memorials.

They were clearly Irish, recalling the old country, or at least its heritage.

I love this grave marker.  Probably because of my Irish heritage.

People who had raised cattle. . . and loved what they raised.

I love this one too.  Would that most people would seek to be so closely identified with an occupation so natural.

Blog Mirror: Memorial Day: It’s History & Meaning

 

Memorial Day: It’s History & Meaning

April 18, 1921. "Grave of Edith Barnett of New York City. An American Red Cross nurse who died in Siberia, Aug. 15, 1919. Monument placed at Tomsk, Siberia on April 18, 1921. Photograph taken on April 19, 1921"

 

Lex Anteinternet: Subscribe by email "gadget" going away.

Lex Anteinternet: Subscribe by email "gadget" going away.: 

Subscribe by email "gadget" going away.

Google seems pretty intent on destroying the Blogger format, which means that for people like me, who have blogged on blogger, we have a choice of ultimately finding a new blogging service (which is what I think Google would like for us to do) or continue to try to find work arounds.

Over 1,000 people subscribe to this blog by email.  Come July, that feature will be dysfunctional thanks to Google:

FollowByEmail widget (Feedburner) is going away
You are receiving this information because your blog uses the FollowByEmail widget (Feedburner).
Recently, the Feedburner team released a system update announcement , that the email subscription service will be discontinued in July 2021.
After July 2021, your feed will still continue to work, but the automated emails to your subscribers will no longer be supported. If you’d like to continue sending emails, you can download your subscriber contacts. Learn how

So, starting in July,  your email subscriptions won't work any longer.

I'd suggest you opt for the RSS feed if you receive this by email so you keep getting the blog, if you like the blog.  I'm sure a lot of people will simply drop off.

In the meantime, we'll look for a replacement gadget, but even though the work around allows for a new system, I'm not going to hand enter over 1000 email address as I do have a full time job, etc.  You'll probably have to resubscribe if you like the blog, which is a good reason just to opt for the RSS feed.

And we'll look for an alternative platform, although we hate to do it as we do like this platform.  Or frankly we'll ponder, if this and other things are going to destroy these blogs, doing what Google apparently wants us to do, and simply quit blogging.

Lex Anteinternet: Tragic, no doubt. But is it historically correct and comparatively of value?

Lex Anteinternet: Tragic, no doubt. But is it historically correct a...: 

Tragic, no doubt. But is it historically correct and comparatively of value?

Soldiers sick with the Spanish Flu at Ft. Riley, Kansas during World War One.  Ft. Riley is where the Spanish Flu first demonstrably broke out.

Yesterday, we posted this item:

Lex Anteinternet: 500,000. Governor Gordon Orders Flags Be Flown at ...

500,000. Governor Gordon Orders Flags Be Flown at Half-Staff Statewide Through February 26 in Memory of Americans lost to COVID-19

 

Governor Gordon Orders Flags Be Flown at Half-Staff Statewide Through February 26

in Memory of Americans lost to COVID-19 

CHEYENNE, Wyo. - Governor Mark Gordon, pursuant to President Joe Biden's Proclamation remembering the 500,000 Americans lost to COVID-19, has ordered both the U.S. and State of Wyoming flags be flown at half-staff statewide until sunset February 26.

The Presidential Proclamation follows: 

REMEMBERING THE 500,000 AMERICANS LOST TO COVID-19
- - - - - - -

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

A PROCLAMATION

As of this week during the dark winter of the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 500,000 Americans have now died from the virus. That is more Americans who have died in a single year of this pandemic than in World War I, World War II, and the Vietnam War combined. On this solemn occasion, we reflect on their loss and on their loved ones left behind. We, as a Nation, must remember them so we can begin to heal, to unite, and find purpose as one Nation to defeat this pandemic.

In their memory, the First Lady and I will be joined by the Vice President and the Second Gentleman for a moment of silence at the White House this evening. I ask all Americans to join us as we remember the more than 500,000 of our fellow Americans lost to COVID19 and to observe a moment of silence at sunset. I also hereby order, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and on all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset February 26, 2021. I also direct that the flag shall be flown at half-staff for the same period at all United States embassies, legations, consular offices, and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-second day of February, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-one, and of the Independence of the United States of America the

two hundred and forty-fifth.

JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR. 

--END--

First of all, let us note that this is a grim and tragic marker.  500,000 lives cut short, and we're not out of the woods yet.  Not by a long shot.

But breaking this down, what does it mean, and is it actually accurate?

First, let me note that what I did was to link in the state's endorsement of President Biden's proclamation. So that we can be sure we're reading it correctly, let's first link in the actual proclamation:

A Proclamation on Remembering the 500,000 Americans Lost to COVID-19

FEBRUARY 22, 2021 • PRESIDENTIAL ACTIONS

As of this week during the dark winter of the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 500,000 Americans have now died from the virus.  That is more Americans who have died in a single year of this pandemic than in World War I, World War II, and the Vietnam War combined.  On this solemn occasion, we reflect on their loss and on their loved ones left behind.  We, as a Nation, must remember them so we can begin to heal, to unite, and find purpose as one Nation to defeat this pandemic.

In their memory, the First Lady and I will be joined by the Vice President and the Second Gentleman for a moment of silence at the White House this evening.  I ask all Americans to join us as we remember the more than 500,000 of our fellow Americans lost to COVID-19 and to observe a moment of silence at sunset.  I also hereby order, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and on all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset February 26, 2021.  I also direct that the flag shall be flown at half-staff for the same period at all United States embassies, legations, consular offices, and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-second day of February, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-one, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.              

JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

And, as can be seen, the linked in text was in fact correctly quoted by the Governor.  I know that linking that in is pedantic, but we want to be quoting correctly.

And I'm not faulting Governor Gordon or President Biden for the half mast order.  Indeed, I think it may be a useful reminder to the living that this isn't over yet and precautions are still needed.  We certainly don't want to hit the 1,000,000 mark.

None the less, can deaths due to disease really be compared to combat deaths?

Let's start with this, is it correct that the 500,000 tragic deaths amount to "more Americans who have died . .  than in World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War combined"?

116,516 Americans are officially listed as having died in World War I.

405,399 Americans officially lost their lives due to World War Two, although some figures will add in another 2,000.

58,209 Americans were lost in the Vietnam War.

You don't need the aid of a calculator to realize that President Biden is wrong.  500,000 Americans is a lot of lost lives, and it is tragic, but the combined totals of the three wars noted exceed 500,000.  Perhaps not grossly, but they do exceed them.  That's 580,124 lives lost in combat in the three wars noted.*

Or do they?

President Biden here correctly mourns and laments those who have died due to SARS-CoV-2 during this pandemic, but those are lives lost to a viral agent.  I.e., something loose in nature.  Lives lost in war are those lost due to the direct killing action of other men, in one fashion or another.  Now, I don't want to get into the "yeah, but if so and so had done something earlier. . . " type argument here, which just goes down a rat hole and looses point of this.  The point is, that death by infectious disease is inherently incomparable to death due to war.

Indeed, in human experience, death due to lethal pandemic often grossly exceeds death due to war, even if it occurs in the same time frame.

For example, 116,516 Americans died due to combat during World War One.  675,000 Americans died during the same time period due to the Spanish Flu.

Now, that's a useful statistic.  The Spanish Flu Epidemic and the Coronavirus Pandemic are in fact directly comparable as they're both viral pandemics, save for perhaps the argument that the Spanish Flu Pandemic was made worse by World War One, and perhaps caused by World War One. The first argument is undoubtedly correct.

Indeed, for that reason, although we won't develop it here, you could argue that the 116,516 lives lost due to the Great War need to be added to the 675,000 lost due to the Spanish Flu to get a full scale of lives lost due to the global disaster that was the Great War.  And that argument would in fact make a lot of sense.  We have a ways to go, thankfully, before we reach that mark, although we may very well reach it.  That figure is over 719,000 lives lost.

Be that as it may, we also have to keep in mind that the American population was 92,000,000 in the 1910s.  Lets' say it was 100,000,000, even though we were not there yet.

Looked at that way, the 675,000 would be the equivalent of about 2,000,000 deaths today.  For that matter, the World War One combat deaths, which I didn't add into that, would be equivalent to over 300,000 now.

We're not anywhere close to 2,000,000 deaths, thankfully, and hopefully we will have this in check before we are.

Going back more than a century starts becoming really problematic in such analysis, although it is tempting to do so.  Indeed, it can be argued that even going back a century is not a valid comparison as it was before modern medicine to a significant degree.   There were no effective antibiotics at the time, for example, and while antibiotics do absolutely nothing in regard to a virus, it can help keep a viral infection from developing into something else which is lethal.  For example, we just read the other day of the death of George Gipp, who was infected by strep throat that rapidly killed him. Today, that wouldn't occur. And indeed, there were no effective anti virals either.  No wonder the 1918-1919 Spanish Flu was such a killer.

Indeed, we just passed the 75th anniversary of the discovery of penicillin, the great anti biotic.

Still, we can recognize the 1918-19 Flu as there are those still among us, small in number though they are, who are still with us.  Many families retain some memories of the flu (ours does) and its impact.  And our current society is a direct evolution of that one, even though much has changed.  And of course our governments were highly developed at the time, particularly given that the 1918-19 Flu occurred during a time of war, and therefore mass societal mobilization.

For this reason, going back further, is problematic.  For example, what became the United States lost 6,800 men to death by combat during the American Revolution.  17,000 Americans died of disease, however, although its significant that the majority of them were prisoners of war at the time.  The population, however, was a shade under 3,000,000 (and growing incredibly rapidly) which would mean that the equivalent loss, in modern terms, would have been about 680,000 combat deaths and 1,700,000 deaths due to disease in contemporary terms, or about the same disease loss, oddly enough, as the Spanish Flu had in the Great War period in the United States.  But as noted, these figures would be of questionable utility.

So, what does all this tell us?

500,000 deaths is a terrible tragedy, but the frequent comparison to war, while inevitable, really isn't historically or statically valuable except as a loose measuring stick. What that probably tells us, more than anything else, is that as a species we're geared toward understanding loses due to war, so we use those figures as its easy for us to do it, even though that doesn't really tell us anything.  We are, that is, psychologically geared toward thinking about fighting an invading enemy.  We are apparently less psychologically geared towards thinking about fighting an invading virus.

Indeed, the oppose may in fact be true. We've always lived with killer diseases, but we haven't always really understood them very well, and overall the evidence suggest we really still don't quite, on a day to day personal basis. During the 1918-19 pandemic we really didn't get a handle on it.  When inoculations first were introduced some societies around the globe believed all sorts of fanciful scary tales about it.  Some religions eschew them today for reasons that have very little to do with what is found in any faith.  Folk medicines remain just as popular as ever, and included in that are a collection of myths about vaccinations in general and this one in particular.  We remain pretty willing to line up for uniforms when wars come, but much less so to the wearing of uniform masks in times of pandemic.

Footnotes.

*It's interesting how the Korean War, which had a loss of life comparable to Vietnam's, is skipped, as usual, even though the lives lost in that war occurred in a much shorter period of time.

Lex Anteinternet: 500,000. Governor Gordon Orders Flags Be Flown at Half-Staff Statewide Through February 26 in Memory of Americans lost to COVID-19

Lex Anteinternet: 500,000. Governor Gordon Orders Flags Be Flown at ...:  

500,000. Governor Gordon Orders Flags Be Flown at Half-Staff Statewide Through February 26 in Memory of Americans lost to COVID-19

 

Governor Gordon Orders Flags Be Flown at Half-Staff Statewide Through February 26

in Memory of Americans lost to COVID-19 

CHEYENNE, Wyo. - Governor Mark Gordon, pursuant to President Joe Biden's Proclamation remembering the 500,000 Americans lost to COVID-19, has ordered both the U.S. and State of Wyoming flags be flown at half-staff statewide until sunset February 26.

The Presidential Proclamation follows: 

REMEMBERING THE 500,000 AMERICANS LOST TO COVID-19
- - - - - - -

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

A PROCLAMATION

As of this week during the dark winter of the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 500,000 Americans have now died from the virus. That is more Americans who have died in a single year of this pandemic than

in World War I, World War II, and the Vietnam War combined. On this solemn occasion, we reflect on their loss and on their loved ones left behind. We, as a Nation, must remember them so we can begin to

heal, to unite, and find purpose as one Nation to defeat this pandemic.

In their memory, the First Lady and I will be joined by the Vice President and the Second Gentleman for a moment of silence at the White House this evening. I ask all Americans to join us as we remember the more than 500,000 of our fellow Americans lost to COVID19 and to observe a moment of silence at sunset. I also hereby order, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and on all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset February 26, 2021. I also direct that the flag shall be flown at half-staff for the same period at all United States embassies, legations, consular offices, and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-second day of February, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-one, and of the Independence of the United States of America the

two hundred and forty-fifth.

JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

 

--END--

Combatants from Battle of Vyazma laid to rest.

Yesterday the bodies of 120 French and Russian soldiers, three women, and three teenage boys were buried with military honors at Vyazma in Russia.  Dignitaries from both countries were present.

Illustration from War and Peace on the battle of Vyazma.

All died there during Napoleon's retreat from Russia, during a battle that occurred there on October 22, 1812.  Conditions were brutally cold during the ceremony, something that would have been familiar to the soldiers themselves.

Lex Anteinternet: The 2021 Wyoming Legislative Session, Part II

Lex Anteinternet: The 2021 Wyoming Legislative Session, Part II: 

The 2021 Wyoming Legislative Session, Part II

February 10, 2021

Governor Gordon signed the first crop of 2021 bills yesterday, so this is a good place to start a new thread.

Governor Mark Gordon Signs 20 Bills on Tuesday February 9

 

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon signed 20 bills into law on Tuesday, February 9. He has now taken action on all legislation passed by the Wyoming Legislature during the eight-day virtual session. 

The Governor signed the following bills into law today:

 

Bill No.	Enrolled Act #	Bill Title
HB0008	HEA0006	Consumer credit amendments
HB0018	HEA0007	Military training memorials
HB0025	HEA0008	Tribal vehicle registration exemption implementation
HB0035	HEA0009	Theft statute-amendment
HB0045	HEA0010	Changes to water right - notice requirements for hearing
HB0030	HEA0013	Public utility assessment
HB0009	HEA0015	Short time compensation program
HB0027	HEA0016	Business code revisions
HB0013	HEA0017	Alcoholic beverage regulation
HB0015	HEA0018	Department of transportation communication facilities
HJ0001	HEJR0001	Traumatic brain injury and post traumatic stress treatments
SF0057	SEA0005	School finance-dates for fund transfers
SF0014	SEA0007	Credit for reinsurance
SF0032	SEA0008	Water permit notice requirements
SF0060	SEA0009	Monthly ad valorem tax revisions-2
SF0029	SEA0010	Revised uniform law on notarial acts
SF0054	SEA0011	Statewide health information exchange-codification
SF0026	SEA0012	Animal abuse statutes reorganization and update
SF0018	SEA0013	Universal occupational licensure
SF0053	SEA0014	Ground ambulance service provider assessment act

What of those bills?

Well, a lot probably don't draw that much attention, but some will.  The one that will draw the most notice is the change in liquor laws, which is the third major overhaul in as many years.  Home delivery by full license holders will now be allowed.

The Military Training Memorials bill is interesting in that it allows for memorials to military members who died in training accidents.  It's text provides:

ORIGINAL HOUSE 

BILL NO. HB0018

 

ENROLLED ACT NO. 7,  HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 

SIXTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING

2021 GENERAL SESSION

 

 

 

 

AN ACT relating to honoring military members; authorizing the creation of memorials to military members who died in training accidents in Wyoming; authorizing expenditure of nonstate funds; and providing for an effective date.

 

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

 

Section 1.  The department of state parks and cultural resources in cooperation with the Wyoming military department and appropriate nongovernmental organizations, may design and create memorials to honor United States military personnel who died in military training accidents in Wyoming during United States involvement in overseas wars and conflicts. The department shall consult with the Wyoming department of transportation to identify the placement of the memorials in appropriate locations accessible to the public along public roads, highways or parking areas to honor the known crash sites located at Shirley Basin, Edgerton and Bomber Peak. The adjutant general of the Wyoming national guard shall approve the design of each memorial prior to the creation of the memorial. The department may accept donations of private funds or funds from other nonstate entities for the design and placement of memorials under this section and shall not use state funds for purposes of this section.

 

Section 2.  This act is effective immediately upon completion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution.

 

(END)

This is an interesting bill and I think a good idea.  Those who died in training in the service, died in the service of their country.

In contrast, SF00018, which allows for temporary licensure for military spouses in licensed professions, is a bad idea.

Accommodating the spouses of service members makes sense, but Wyoming has been working on eroding the protection to the citizenry that holding a license means already.  This is one more step to licenses meaning absolutely nothing.  There's no reason to believe that because a professional is married to a service member, they're automatically competent in their profession.

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