Why Was John Vaughan (1825) in Abersychan in 1847?

Another serendipitous discovery as I was skimming through Welsh Historical Journals online, the simple answer being that 1846-47 were the years of highest pay for puddlers at the Abersychan Iron Works.

Cynefin "A Sense of Place" Wales

We have already shared some work from crowd-sourcing or indexing the Tithing maps of Wales (1840s) for the National Library of Wales (here, here, and here). I just discovered that there are some parishes with the parcels now "clickable" to find who owned and occupied the place including Tract No. 44 in Llanfoist Village:

Clicking on box 44, this is what popped up on the right.

The Cynefin system is very different from FamilySearch.org indexing. One nice thing is that they list the names of the volunteers:

Utah Can Save a Lot of Money Letting the Bundy Trials Test Ownership of Public Lands

Yes! Governor Gary Herbert and especially, legislator/lobbyist Ken Ivory take note! The State of Utah is seriously considering a lawsuit to challenge United States ownership of the federal public lands within the state of Utah based on some tricky readings of the U.S. Constitution, the Utah Enabling Act, and the Utah State Constitution - basically the same theories that the Bundy Bunch have used to claim the feds have no authority in Oregon and Nevada!

But wait! Please! A major part of the charges filed today against accused co-conspirator Cliven Bundy in armed confrontation with federal officials performing federal activities on federal public lands is that those lands were obtained by the United States under the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo with Mexico and never relinquished!

From the Criminal Complaint filed today against Cliven Bundy

US Supreme Court Says Federal Government Can Manage Public Lands

Wild Stallions on Public Land
(To be technically and biologically precise, they are "feral"
not  a native "wild" species. Congress can't get everything right.)

Yeah, so I'm back for another little Civics lesson. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 40 years ago that the U.S. Department of Interior can manage the public lands in any state under constitutional federal law.

I know, the far right-wing constitutional fundamentalists don't even believe that the Supreme Court can interpret the Constitution. But better them than a bunch of cowboys with guns who forgot a change of underwear  . . . and snacks. (I'm pretty sure the US Supreme Court always has clean underwear except for maybe one or two of them. And I think they have snacks in the robing room).

The case is Kleppe v. New Mexico (1976) ruling that the Wild Free-roaming Horse and Burro Act is constitutional. We usually call it "the Wild Horse Act." We don't deal with too many burros in Utah. And it's one of those lovely Acts of Congress that they give us to manage that is absolutely impossible to manage. We are authorized to kill horses, but do you think that's the PC thing to do? And I've even been sued in my own name once as part of an alleged conspiracy to obstruct the act. The US Attorney easily got the individual names switched out for the United States as we were within our official duties; then got the case dismissed. Slam dunk.

Live-Blogging LDS General Conference - Saturday A.M. - April 2015

Getting set up here. These are my personal notes on General Conference shared (potentially) with the world! For direct broadcast, do not rely on me, but see LDS.org and watch live or recorded sessions.

It will be interesting if there will be any mention at all of President Obama's recent visit to Utah. I'm bettin' on President Uchtdorf.

President Monson is there looking rather rather thin and drawn.

Please note that they started with the Mormon version of "Cwm Rhondda," the great Welsh Hymn.

Personal Embossing Tool

My children are the greatest in the world! Each in their own independent and unique way contribute to the world and to the happiness of their parents. United, they are a powerful force for love to be reckoned with.

Honest praise for my children seems more appropriate than just showing off the best Christmas gift ever! They pooled creativity and resources to present me with a personal embossing tool for my library.

It comes in its own little case!

They used the logo from my Vaughan Family armorial, "the Strangled Boye!" OK, my wife still thinks it's creepy and refuses to claim the family, but I proudly do!

The first book I crimped was a new book for Christmas that Santa ordered for himself (but Mrs. Clause is reading the Llewellyn Fawr [the Great] series, so she'll get to this one), The Sunne in Splendor by Sharon Kay Penman. I thought I'd give old Richard III a chance. The second book was my Welsh translation of the Book of Mormon:

Still the 1852 translation with no chapters or verses. There is a new Welsh version in preparation by a BYU Prof & Adjuncts.

You're NOT In Good Hands with Private Insurance

That's with intentional reference to Allstate, by the way. Thankfully like a pretty good neighbor, State Farm is there.

On the evening of New Years Day, we discovered the above situation with our car that was parked out in front of our house. There was no note from whomever may have hit the dang thing.

Book of Mormon Pride Cycle (Liberal View)

Every active member of the LDS Church can draw the Book of Mormon Price Cycle with their eyes closed. I would make an attempt, but it is easier explained with a clear graphic:

My son wrote a very popular Guest Post on Humility and Pride on this blog. Anonymous D has hit the Pride Cycle theme in rather direct terms here, here, and here. And keep reading the blog. I don't think he's through yet.

Von Mises Institute Secessionist Theory

Discuss:

"With the orderly, legal secession of the southern states, the American genius for self-government reached its highest moral expression." Donald W. Livingston of the Ludvig von Mises Institute.

Discuss is what I did with my good Libertarian friend on Facebook. With his permission, I will post the discussion here. Any other comments are welcome (under the rules of posting down below).

Russell first recommended the article linked above in this way:

Very well written. Grant, I would like to read a rebuttal on your blog if you can find the time.

Me:

Yikes! My whole blog is a rebuttal to this convoluted argument about the power of states over people. Yes. That's the argument of States Rights. Just a smaller government rather than a big one. And if you've ever been to a City Council meeting, you can see first hand that the idea of "the smaller the government, the better" is a myth. It is still a "state" or "government" power. But can't argue you out of a deeply held belief system. The beauty of the Constitutional Union, in spite of its faults, and your article points out many, is that it allows the government of the people to protect the rights of individuals with the people's power united in a Constitutional system respecting basic human rights. Look, I know I can't convince you. And I don't think even Lincoln can, but here it is in a better summary than I could ever make:

Teddy Roosevelt - "for Men and not for Property"

The ugliness of the current presidential election distresses me. I decline to argue or comment on the specifics of the charges and counter-charges between the President and the Governor. People have generally already chosen their champion based on politics and personal preference. Factual debate seems rather elusive as each side marshals their own political offenses to charge against the other side.

I guess I am still doing that to some degree, but it seems a little less contentious to go back into history. Thinking a lot about the modern conservative movement, I was trying to find a good quote from Republican President Teddy Roosevelt on the progressive income tax. I have also pondered on the apparent connection between conservatives and anti- civil rights sentiment (anti- immigration reform, anti- social programs for the poor - generally minorities, etc.)

The Civil War Isn't Over

Hat tip to Ardis at Keepapitchinin.org who linked on her Mormon History blog a fascinating clip from the National Archives of elderly Confederate Civil War Veterans giving the "Rebel Yell." It is entertaining, informative, and absolutely chilling.

Also, in the same Smithsonian article is reference to another clip of film that I haven't been able to find yet on-line--an elderly Union Veteran, William Smallwood, of the 54th Massachusetts Regiment performing the manual of arms with a wooden crutch. That I would like to see. The 54th Massachusetts was the all African-American Regiment honored in the film Glory. If I were King of the World, I would require every U.S. Citizen to see that movie. Of course, the whole point of that film is to inspire us beyond the divine right of kings and the ownership of humans in chattel slavery. But it is so much more than that.

Taxation as Theft. Or Is It "Property Is Theft?"

I'm getting really tired of the arguments from the far right that taxation is somehow stealing from the deserving and giving to the undeserving. It makes as much sense to me as "property is theft" from the leftists. I think that's an anarchist sentiment from Proudhon, but it fits in with Marxist Communism just fine.

Both sayings have some basic logic to them. They really fall apart though, when you use them as a  response to any opposing political or economic theory. I lose respect for argument or discussion when they turn into fights over dogma.