6/15/10
This morning we were on the bus for a couple of hours, sleeping when I should have been blogging, but 7 a.m. is EARLY! We drove to Salty’s Pub and Grill to pick up our guide, James Hughto, and proceeded on to Ft. Ticonderoga.
The fort was much larger than I had anticipated, having only a few prior forts that I’ve been to to compare this one with. It must have been quite the “deal” in its day–a picket fence to surround it, a grassy area next, then followed by a trench surrounding the entrance. There were parts of the fort that looked newer than the rest, and asking one of the young men there (dressed in period costume), we found out that the fort is very difficult to maintain. The quality of the original work was poor (someone said they thought the builder or designer was executed in France!) and so it has been a constant battle to keep the fort in working order. We listened to James talk about the fort some and then we wandered on our own. I went to one of the highest points on the upper level and put my quarter in the viewfinder to look around. I was stunned and amazed at the view! I could clearly see the site that our guide told us was Defiance Hill, and I could see two different sections of Lake Champlain. The lush green countryside was neverending.
The next leg of our journey was to Saratoga, the site of two Revolutionary War battlesites—September 19 and October 7, 1777. This tour was okay, passable, in that we spent most of it on the bus. It reminded me somewhat of the day we toured Gettysburg two years ago. Anyway, we stopped at a few key spots around the area and James explained the different battles and the strategic plans for each. I don’t pretend to know much about or understand the theories behind all this “stuff,” but I tried to hang with James while he explained! Our last stop was at the memorial erected in the memory of Benedict Arnold. James explained the symbols on the monument–the boots, the officer’s logo, etc.–and then made a comparison between Benedict Arnold and Timothy McVeigh. His point was that both men had served their country honorably before committing “the big sin.” In Arnold’s case it was treason against the United States and in McVeigh’s case it was the bombing of the Murrah building in Oklahoma City. James made us think about this–did Arnold deserve to have a monument erected in his honor? Should we erect a monument to McVeigh because he served in the Gulf War? I think NOT, in both cases; just my opinion!
I think using this lesson in class would be very easy to do. Middle school students would easily grasp the conversation concerning erecting monuments to men (or women) who’ve committed a crime, a crime that would be considered to be a ‘biggie.’ Are there other examples of this somewhere in our history? Perhaps. But, as I said, students would be able to give their opinions as to whether or not we should be erecting these monuments to these men. I would show the pictures I took and also explain the symbology to them concerning the boot and its decorations.
We capped off the night with a trip to Salty’s Pub and Grill for what I believe was the best meal of the two weeks we’ve been gone! There was a wide variety of food at our table—Marie had scallops, Becky had a Pastrami, Connie had a dish called Fruit of the Sea, as did Karin, and I had comfort food, turkey and dressing with mashed potatoes. A few of us followed this up with dessert–Marie and Becky had Ashley’s Chocolate Concorde and I had warm apple crisp with vanilla ice cream! Talk about yummy—like I said, the best we had on the whole trip!
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When Nelson Mandela was imprisoned on Robbin Island in South Africa for over 20 years–many of them in solitary confinement–he memorized a brilliant poem–”Invictus”–to get him through his days (I toured this place a few years ago, with a former inmate as our guide). Timothy McVeigh apparently–in his own mind–tried to elevate himself to this same staus by asking that this poem be read on the day of his execution. Ridiculous! McVeigh was nothing but a cold-blooded killer who took the lives of innocent men, women, and CHILDREN. Anybody who needs to be reminded of this fact should head down to Oklahoma City and look at all the chairs in that monument. Believe me, I read your blog, and you are not the only one with that opinion; I agree with you. And, if Jim’s stories about Arnold are accurate, I would put him in the same boat.