http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=37293&st=&st1=
Radio Address to the Nation on Armed Forces Day
May 17th, 1986
My fellow Americans:
We're broadcasting live today from Fort Myer, a military installation just outside Washington. And before me at this moment, looking tall and impressive, are members of the honor guard of the five branches of the military service: the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard. These proud units appear at special ceremonies and are always on hand to help me greet foreign heads of state at the White House. And believe me, the leaders of other nations have often commented on the snap, the polish, and the soldierly bearing of these troops. In fact, I sometimes think a few of our visitors are a little envious of "The Gipper," as our uniformed sons and daughters pass by in review. Well, okay, in my case, our uniformed grandsons and granddaughters. [Laughter]
But today we're all on hand at Fort Myer to celebrate a very special date in America's official calendar: Armed Forces Day. Today we set aside a few moments to pay tribute to the millions of Americans serving their nation in the cause of freedom all over the globe. Many of them are listening to me now, and as Commander in Chief I want to remind each of you in uniform how grateful your country is to you. Let me assure you that the millions of Americans going about their usual Saturday schedule and listening now join me in saying to you, "Thanks-thanks for being there, for keeping our homes and children safe, for keeping America free and at peace."
Now, I know you here with me and most members of the armed services listening at the moment aren't in your dress uniforms, and maybe—and I'm sure it only happens every now and then—your shoeshines aren't quite as bright as the ones I'm looking at here. But I know the sense of military professionalism, love of country, and commitment to freedom is just as strong. It's because of that patriotism and professionalism that you've left your homes and communities to become part of an extraordinary military tradition. Unlike so many other traditions, America's military history has been largely one not just of great battlefield victories but victories in the name of something beyond conquest or self-interest.
Here in America we've been fortunate to be the keeper and custodian of a dream—a dream that began this nation, a dream that millions of people hope to share in someday. And every member of America's Armed Forces has a special part in keeping that dream alive. The dream, of course, is freedom, and truly those of you in uniform today are freedom's honor guard.
The new patriotism that's alive in our nation today is reflected in these young people joining our military services. They're better educated, better trained, and as highly motivated as any time in our history. These young Americans look to a future they know will be free as long as America remains strong and her people resolute. But this revitalization of our military was a long time coming, the result of a lengthy legislative battle here in Washington.
Time after time in the postwar era, the American people have made it clear that those who trifle with our national security and oppose adequate military budgets will be held responsible on election day. And it's this kind of support from the American people that got a consistently reluctant Congress to vote the appropriations necessary to rebuild America's defenses. But old habits die hard, and much of what we've achieved is now in jeopardy. As one Congressman described the inconsistency, "We are marching down the mountain we have been marching up."
You see, the House of Representatives recently passed a military budget that is wholly inadequate, a throwback to the seventies, a budget that is a breach of faith with our Armed Forces and our allies and would send exactly the wrong signal to the Soviets and their satellites. So, today I not only want to ask every American to join me in saluting our young Americans in uniform, I want to reiterate that the best way to ensure their lives are never placed in jeopardy is to send a message to Washington and to the world, a message that says the American people are committed to national defense and that we stand behind those who wear our country's uniform.
We owe a great debt to those on freedom's first line of defense—men like Captain Lorence and Captain Ribas-Dominicci, Air Force pilots who recently lost their lives in the raid on Libyan terrorists. We honor them today and all the members of freedom's honor guard. And we say thank you to you, our Armed Forces, and pledge our support for adequate military expenditures, a strong defense, and the dream of world freedom and peace.
Until next week, thanks for listening, and God bless you.
Note: The President spoke at 12:06 p.m. from the dining facility at Fort Myer in Arlington, VA. Following his address, the President had lunch with members of the honor guards and then returned to the White House.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Myer
Fort Myer is a U.S. Army post adjacent to Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, across the Potomac River from Washington, DC. It is a small post by US Army standards, and has no ranges or field training areas. Most of its private quarters are occupied by officers, among whom include many prominent generals assigned to the Department of Defense at the Pentagon. Some of the more notable of Fort Myer's residents include the Army Chief of Staff General George W. Casey, Jr., the Air Force Chief of Staff, General T. Michael Moseley, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Peter Pace, (USMC).
Now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Fort Myer was originally established as Fort Whipple during the American Civil War in 1863. It was renamed for Brigadier General Albert J. Myer, who established the Signal School of Instruction for Army and Navy Officers there in 1869. Fort Myer was the location of several exhibition flights by Orville Wright in 1908 and 1909. On September 18, 1908 it was the location of the first aviation fatality, as Lt. Thomas Selfridge was killed when on a demonstration flight with Orville, at an altitude of about 100 feet, a propeller split, sending the aircraft out of control. Selfridge was killed in the crash, the first person to die in powered fixed-wing aircraft. Orville was badly injured, suffering broken ribs and a leg. The brothers' sister Katharine, a school teacher, rushed from Dayton to Washington and stayed by Orville's side for the many weeks of his hospitalization. She helped negotiate a one-year extension of the Army's contract with the Wright's.
Fort Myer is the home of The U. S. Army Band (Pershing's Own) and the 1st Battalion of the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, (The Old Guard) -- except for 'A' Company (Commander in Chief's Guard), which is stationed at Fort McNair. The gravesite of Black Jack, the riderless horse in the state funerals of General Douglas MacArthur and U.S. Presidents John F. Kennedy, Herbert Hoover and Lyndon B. Johnson, is located on the post in Somerall Field, 200 feet northeast of the parade ground's flagpole.
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=37350&st=&st1=
Remarks at a Memorial Day Ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia
May 26th, 1986
Today is the day we put aside to remember fallen heroes and to pray that no heroes will ever have to die for us again. It's a day of thanks for the valor of others, a day to remember the splendor of America and those of her children who rest in this cemetery and others. It's a day to be with the family and remember.
I was thinking this morning that across the country children and their parents will be going to the town parade and the young ones will sit on the sidewalks and wave their flags as the band goes by. Later, maybe, they'll have a cookout or a day at the beach. And that's good, because today is a day to be with the family and to remember.
Arlington, this place of so many memories, is a fitting place for some remembering. So many wonderful men and women rest here, men and women who led colorful, vivid, and passionate lives. There are the greats of the military: Bull Halsey and the Admirals Leahy, father and son; Black Jack Pershing; and the GI's general, Omar Bradley. Great men all, military men. But there are others here known for other things.
Here in Arlington rests a sharecropper's son who became a hero to a lonely people. Joe Louis came from nowhere, but he knew how to fight. And he galvanized a nation in the days after Pearl Harbor when he put on the uniform of his country and said, "I know we'll win because we're on God's side." Audie Murphy is here, Audie Murphy of the wild, wild courage. For what else would you call it when a man bounds to the top of a disabled tank, stops an enemy advance, saves lives, and rallies his men, and all of it single-handedly. When he radioed for artillery support and was asked how close the enemy was to his position, he said, "Wait a minute and I'll let you speak to them." [Laughter]
Michael Smith is here, and Dick Scobee, both of the space shuttle Challenger. Their courage wasn't wild, but thoughtful, the mature and measured courage of career professionals who took prudent risks for great reward—in their case, to advance the sum total of knowledge in the world. They're only the latest to rest here; they join other great explorers with names like Grissom and Chaffee.
Oliver Wendell Holmes is here, the great jurist and fighter for the right. A poet searching for an image of true majesty could not rest until he seized on "Holmes dissenting in a sordid age." Young Holmes served in the Civil War. He might have been thinking of the crosses and stars of Arlington when he wrote: "At the grave of a hero we end, not with sorrow at the inevitable loss, but with the contagion of his courage; and with a kind of desperate joy we go back to the fight."
All of these men were different, but they shared this in common: They loved America very much. There was nothing they wouldn't do for her. And they loved with the sureness of the young. It's hard not to think of the young in a place like this, for it's the young who do the fighting and dying when a peace fails and a war begins. Not far from here is the statue of the three servicemen—the three fighting boys of Vietnam. It, too, has majesty and more. Perhaps you've seen it—three rough boys walking together, looking ahead with a steady gaze. There's something wounded about them, a kind of resigned toughness. But there's an unexpected tenderness, too. At first you don't really notice, but then you see it. The three are touching each other, as if they're supporting each other, helping each other on.
I know that many veterans of Vietnam will gather today, some of them perhaps by the wall. And they're still helping each other on. They were quite a group, the boys of Vietnam—boys who fought a terrible and vicious war without enough support from home, boys who were dodging bullets while we debated the efficacy of the battle. It was often our poor who fought in that war; it was the unpampered boys of the working class who picked up the rifles and went on the march. They learned not to rely on us; they learned to rely on each other. And they were special in another way: They chose to be faithful. They chose to reject the fashionable skepticism of their time. They chose to believe and answer the call of duty. They had the wild, wild courage of youth. They seized certainty from the heart of an ambivalent age; they stood for something.
And we owe them something, those boys. We owe them first a promise: That just as they did not forget their missing comrades, neither, ever, will we. And there are other promises. We must always remember that peace is a fragile thing that needs constant vigilance. We owe them a promise to look at the world with a steady gaze and, perhaps, a resigned toughness, knowing that we have adversaries in the world and challenges and the only way to meet them and maintain the peace is by staying strong.
That, of course, is the lesson of this century, a lesson learned in the Sudetenland, in Poland, in Hungary, in Czechoslovakia, in Cambodia. If we really care about peace, we must stay strong. If we really care about peace, we must, through our strength, demonstrate our unwillingness to accept an ending of the peace. We must be strong enough to create peace where it does not exist and strong enough to protect it where it does. That's the lesson of this century and, I think, of this day. And that's all I wanted to say. The rest of my contribution is to leave this great place to its peace, a peace it has earned.
Thank all of you, and God bless you, and have a day full of memories.
Note: The President spoke at 10:10 a.m. at the Memorial Amphitheater. Prior to his remarks, he placed a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=37452&st=&st1=
Radio Address to the Nation on Flag Day and Father's Day
June 14th, 1986
My fellow Americans:
Today we celebrate Flag Day, the birthday of our Stars and Stripes. As we think back over the history of our nation's flag, we remember that the story of its early years was often one of hardship and trials, sometimes a fight for simple survival.
Such is the story behind our Star-Spangled Banner. It was 2 years into the War of 1812, and America seemed to be teetering on the edge of defeat. The British had already taken our Capital and burned the White House. Baltimore was the next target in a grand design to divide our forces and crush this newly independent nation of upstart colonies. All that stood between the British and Baltimore were the guns of Fort McHenry, blocking their entry into Baltimore Harbor.
The British bombardment lasted for 25 hours. Through the dark hours of the night, the rockets fired and the bombs exploded. And a young American patriot named Key, held captive aboard a British ship, watched anxiously for some proof, some sign, that liberty would prevail. You can imagine his joy when the next morning, in the dawn's early light, he looked out and saw the banner still flying—a little tattered and torn, but still flying proudly above the ramparts. Fort McHenry and the brave men manning it had withstood the assault. Baltimore was saved. The United States, this great experiment in human freedom, as George Washington described it, would endure.
Thinking back to those times, one realizes that our democracy is so strong because it was forged in the fires of adversity. In those dark days of the war, it must have been easy to give in to despair. But our forefathers were motivated by a cause beyond themselves. From the harsh winter of Valley Forge to the blazing night above Fort McHenry, those patriot soldiers were sustained by the ideals of human freedom. Through the hardships and the setbacks, they kept their eyes on that ideal and purpose, just as through the smoke of battle they kept a lookout for the flag. For with the birth of our nation, the cause of human freedom had become forever tied to that flag and its survival.
As the American Republic grew and prospered and new stars were added to the flag, the ideal of freedom grew and prospered. From the rolling hills of Kentucky to the shores of California to the Sea of Tranquility on the Moon, our pioneers carried our flag before them, a symbol of the indomitable spirit of a free people. And let us never forget that in honoring our flag, we honor the American men and women who have courageously fought and died for it over the last 200 years, patriots who set an ideal above any consideration of self. Our flag flies free today because of their sacrifice.
And I hope you all will join Nancy and me and millions of other Americans at 7 o'clock this evening, eastern daylight time, when we pause a few minutes to say the Pledge of Allegiance. Though separated by many miles, we will be together in our thoughts. These anniversaries remind us that the great American experiment in freedom and democracy has really just begun. They remind us of the terrible hardships our forefathers willingly endured for their beliefs. And they challenge us to match that greatness of spirit in our own time, and I know we will. We are, after all, the land of the free and the home of the brave.
If we ask ourselves what has held our nation together, what has given it the strength to endure and the spirit to achieve, we find the answer in our families and those basic family values of work, hope, charity, faith, and love. So, it's appropriate that this year Father's Day falls on the same weekend as Flag Day, for in commemorating fatherhood, we're also expressing a basic truth about America. What does fatherhood mean today in America? I guess the same as it always has.
Fatherhood can sometimes be walking the floor at midnight with a baby that can't sleep. More likely, fatherhood is repairing a bicycle wheel for the umpteenth time, knowing that it won't last the afternoon. Fatherhood is guiding a youth through the wilderness of adolescence toward adulthood. Fatherhood is holding tight when all seems to be falling apart; and it's letting go when it is time to part. Fatherhood is long hours at the blast furnace or in the fields, behind the wheel or in front of a computer screen, working a 12-hour shift or doing a 6-month tour of duty. It's giving one's all, from the break of day to its end, on the job, in the house, but most of all in the heart.
Now, if you are thinking, "Look who's talking—he's a father himself." Well, that's right, but on today I think we could all remember—this weekend, at least—that every father is also a son. So, on this day for fathers, we, too, say thanks to America's dads—for the labor and legacy of our families and our freedoms.
Until next week, thanks for listening, and God bless you.
Note: The President spoke at 12:06 p.m. from Camp David, MD.
I recognize the day 2/14/1986 as when I was shot down by anti-aircraft fire and was a Prisoner of War in Libya until 4/14/1986.
From 2/14/1986 to 9/19/1986 is: 217 days
217 / 365 = 0.59
From 2/14/1986 to 9/19/1986 is: 0.59 year
From 4/14/1986 to 8/28/1986 is: 4 months, 14 days
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=37786
Proclamation 5520—National P.O.W./M.I.A. Recognition Day, 1986
August 28th, 1986
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
Courage and sacrifice are no strangers to America. In every war since our first struggle for independence, America's prisoners of war have endured terrible hardships and have been called upon to make extraordinary sacrifices. The bravery, perseverance, and profound devotion to duty of our POWs and MIAs have earned them a place of honor in the hearts of all Americans. Their heroism is an inspiration to future generations. Their spirit of hope and their commitment to the defense of freedom are a claim on our loyalty to them.
All Americans are also deeply moved by the pain and suffering endured by the families and friends of those who remain missing or unaccounted for. We share both their burden and their commitment to secure the release of any U.S. personnel who may still be held against their will, to recover the missing, to resolve the accounting, and to relieve the suffering of our missing servicemen. Until the P.O.W./M.I.A. issue has been resolved, it will continue to be a matter of the highest national priority. As a symbol of this national commitment, the P.O.W./M.I.A. Flag will fly over the White House, the Departments of State and Defense, the Veterans' Administration, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on September 19, 1986. It will also fly over the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on Memorial Day and Veterans Day.
In order to recognize the special debt all Americans owe to the men and women who gave up their freedom in the service of our country and to reaffirm our commitment to their families, the Congress, by Senate Joint Resolution 220, has designated September 19, 1986, as "National P.O.W./M.I.A. Recognition Day," and authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of this occasion.
Now, Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim Friday, September 19, 1986, as National P.O.W./M.I.A. Recognition Day. I call on all Americans to join in honoring all former American prisoners of war, those still missing, and their families who have made extraordinary sacrifices on behalf of this country. I also call upon State and local officials and private organizations to observe this day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-eighth day of August, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-six, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and eleventh.
RONALD REAGAN
I almost fell out of my chair just now as I made this calculation. This is the first type of proclamation about homelessness I can find among his speeches, although it seems to have been approved by Congress on 6/22/1986. I haven't looked it up to see if they had been working on it for a while. I think that is important because this represents, perhaps, something to do with the first time I could make contact with the U.S. military network and report my status.
From 4/14/1977 to 6/25/1986 is: 3359 days
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1986/62586a.htm
Proclamation 5506 -- National Homelessness Awareness Week, 1986
June 25, 1986
By the President of the United States
Santini. There is that Robert Duvall movie about Santini, who I think was an A-6 pilot.
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1986/62586c.htm
Remarks on Arrival in Las Vegas, Nevada
June 25, 1986
Well, thank you all very much for a very warm greeting. And I happen to have a hunch that a great many of you are out here becuase you are supporters of a fellow named Jim Santini.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Santini
Release date October 26, 1979
The Great Santini is a 1979 film which tells the story of a highly successful Marine officer whose success as a military aviator contrasts with his shortcomings as a husband and father. It also explores the high price of heroism and self sacrifice on the man's soul and interpersonal relationships. It stars Robert Duvall
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1986/62586d.htm
Remarks at a Senate Campaign Fundraising Dinner for Jim Santini in Las Vegas, Nevada
June 25, 1986
Thank you very much. And, Jim, thank you. And won't you all please be seated. You know, I'm -- I know I'm a little late -- about 24 hours late. [Laughter] A funny thing happened to me on the way to Nevada. [Laughter] We had to tend to the Nation's business, and that meant helping the freedom fighters and trying to restore the bipartisan coalition on foreign policy. And let me tell you right now that it's situations like this one that we just saw in Washington that make it so obvious why we need Jim Santini in the Senate.
The more I think about it, the more odd it seems the placement of this paragraph. It just seems odd to be there.
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1986/62586d.htm
Earlier this month I visited some young marines going through boot camp in -- well, I was first of all, before I say that I want to tell you that one of the most heartening trends, I think, are the young people. And God love them, they're with us. I've seen them all over the country, and just a few days ago I was at a high school in New Jersey. And the energy and optimism of this generation is infectious. And then, I tell you, earlier this month I visited some young marines going through boot camp in Parris Island, South Carolina. And they are really great. Their commanding officer, a general, will be retiring at the end of the month. And he told me that in all his years in the military, he has never seen young people of greater quality than those that are in the uniform today. And I found myself remembering -- and if you'll permit me to use a bit of profanity, but I'm quoting accurately -- back in World War II someone asked General George Marshall if we had a secret weapon, and he said, ``Yes, the best damn kids in the world.'' Well, I can tell you, after what I've seen of today's youth and those in uniform today, the Commander in Chief can say the same thing that George Marshall said, and I do say it about those young people of ours. There's never been a higher quality in our military than we're seeing today.
This part reminds me of that photo of Becky Reed taking a nap with the caption that she is doing what she does best and then my thinking that Becky is symbolic somehow of the Bekaa Valley. This may also be some kind of commentary on how I was helping myself escape from captivity and that they gave me some military support to help me help myself.
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1986/62586d.htm
And with the reforms early on in the administration, we've ushered in 3\1/2\ years of growth and stability of which we can all be proud. Yes, the American people are better off, but they're better off -- and I would say -- because of what we've done. But let me tell you, you're better off because of yourselves. Because, really, all we did was get government out of the way and turn you loose to do the things you can do so well. But when I use that word ``we'' that includes Jim Santini; because, even as a Democrat, he was on our side with things such as that.
JOURNAL ARCHIVE:
08/14/07 11:26 PM
He was 33 years, 4 weeks, 1 day, old on 6/25/1986. There was that press release about homeless awareness and about Santini on 6/25/1986.
This date 7/8/1986 was 3 days, 3 weeks, 4 months, after 2/14/1986.
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=37565&st=&st1=
Appointment of C. Dean McGrath, Jr., as Associate Counsel to the President
July 8th, 1986
The President today announced the appointment of C. Dean McGrath, Jr., to be Associate Counsel to the President.
Since 1979 Mr. McGrath has been an attorney-adviser, Office of the General Counsel, Department of the Treasury. In 1981 he served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney (Civil Division), United States Attorney's Office, in the District of Columbia.
Mr. McGrath graduated from Duke University (B.A, 1975), the University of Nebraska College of Law (I.D., 1978), and the National War College (1985). He was born May 27, 1953, in Chicago, IL, and resides in Alexandria, VA.
08/14/07 11:30 PM
He is 3 weeks, 343 months, older than me. Maybe Gambia was a diversion.
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=37526&st=&st1=
Nomination of Herbert E. Horowitz To Be United States Ambassador to The Gambia
July 1st, 1986
Mr. Horowitz was born July 10, 1930
08/14/07 11:33 PM
Gambia is about 3000 miles from where I think I was at that time. It could have been like that guy who seemed to be examining the wound on my leg from my bicycle pedal. I rode my bicycle to CDA beach from Spokane Valley and a guy with a woman asked me to take their picture. I remember thinking I left my fingerprint on his camera and also that he seemed to be looking to see if my wound was infected. There was that Dennis Quaid movie around that time that also made me think about that wound. It was a painful and large cut but it never caused me any problems, other than being painful.
08/14/07 11:43 PM
This is the general area of Gambia. It might be the lat/long that means something or it could be a city name in Gambia that means something.
http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?searchtype=address&formtype=address&latlongtype=degrees&latdeg=13&latmin=30&latsec=0&longdeg=-15&longmin=0&longsec=0
08/14/07 11:45 PM
It could be that I was somewhere to the east of Latitude 13° 30 Min. The Darfur region seems to be along that line.
08/14/07 11:50 PM
Maybe I was somewhere around here on 7/1/1986.
http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?searchtype=address&formtype=address&latlongtype=degrees&latdeg=13&latmin=30&latsec=0&longdeg=25&longmin=0&longsec=0
This occurred on a day 59 days after 4/14/87. It was also 30 days after 5/13/87, the date I think I finished my escape from Africa, and it reminds me of my theory that I had to literally kill a lion with my bare hands when I was thrown into a cage with one. I have been thinking that I have done that more than once, and when - somehow - I was prompted to write about it, by who ever can prompt me somehow, I guess through some form of communication we established before I was hynoptized, I wrote about one other time I killed a large cat with my bare hands. I started thinking I was supposed to write about an artificial and symbolic memory of when I accidently hit a dog on its backbone with a machete after the dog ran in front of me just as I swung the machete to chop a stick. But what I wrote about was of doing some kind of flip or side-flip or some kind of somersault over the charging lion and I snapped its spine with my fist when it raced underneath me. I am reminded of a time at Microsoft when a coworker rushed over to my desk to tell me his pet had died and I don't remember the type of animal, but he said something about it being a big cat. I was confused by the whole conversation. I just hope I remember how to do that if they try it again. Lot of crazy stuff going on around me out there every day, here behind the lines of insurrection of insurgent-controlled King County, Washington.
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=34391&st=hungry&st1=
Remarks on the 750th Anniversary of the Founding of Berlin
June 12th, 1987
The President. Well, Chancellor Kohl and Mayor Diepgen, Ambassador Burt, ladies and gentlemen: It's an honor for me to be able to join you today at this 750th birthday party for the city of Berlin. I'm especially pleased to be here today because—well, it's not often that I get to go to a birthday party for something that's older than I am. [Laughter]
But to subject you to a second speech here— [laughter] —you know, I keep thinking of a story of ancient Rome, where, on a Saturday afternoon, the hungry lions were turned loose on the little group of people there on the floor of the Coliseum, and they came charging toward them. And one individual stepped out of the group, said something very quietly, and the lions all laid down. Well, the crowd was enraged and horrified that they're going to be denied the show. And Caesar sent for the man who had spoken to the lions. And they brought him, and he said, "What did you say to them that made them act like that?" And he said, "I just told them that after they ate, there'd be speeches." [Laughter]
http://www.nps.gov/archive/trte/index.htm
The Trail of Tears National Historic Trail commemorates the removal of the Cherokee and the paths that 17 Cherokee detachments followed westward. Today the trail encompasses about 2,200 miles of land and water routes, and traverses portions of nine states.
Designation
National Historic Trail - December 16, 1987
http://www.tntota.org/enabling_legislation.htm
PUBLIC LAW 100-192 [S. 5781; December 16,1987
TRAIL OF TEARS NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY-S. 578:
HOUSE REPORTS- No 100-461 Comm on Interior and Insular Affairs
SENATE REPORTS No 100-175 Comm. on Energy and Natural Resources CONGRESSIONAL RECORD. Vol. 133 (1987)
Oct. 1, considered and passed Senate.
Dec. 1 considered and passed House, amended.
Dec. 3 Senate concurred in House amendments. 101 STAT. 1309
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1987/121687a.htm
Letter to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate on Low Intensity Conflict Policy
December 16, 1987
Dear Mr. Speaker: (Dear Mr. President:)
Conflict in the Third World can pose serious threats to our security interests. Low intensity conflicts, which take place at levels below conventional war, but above routine peaceful competition among states, can be particularly troublesome.
The attached report, prepared pursuant to section 1311 of the National Defense Authorization Act of 1987, responds to legislation passed by the Congress in 1986. It describes actions taken, and ongoing, as a result of our experience with low intensity conflicts over the last several years and highlights a broad-range effort to address problems associated with low intensity conflict and our Special Operations Forces. In that regard, in June of this year, I approved a new national policy and strategy for low intensity conflict and established a Board for Low Intensity Conflict that is chaired by my National Security Adviser. The essential elements of our low intensity conflict policy and strategy are described in the report.
We have also activated the new Unified Command for Special Operations, improved our special operations capabilities, and established the office of the new Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict.
More work lies ahead. The United States must continue to respond to challenges arising from low intensity conflict -- to defend our interests and support those who put their lives on the line in the common cause of freedom. For the United States to be effective in this most important undertaking, there must be public understanding and strong congressional support. I hope this report will contribute to a broader understanding of low intensity conflict and the support that our policy requires.
Sincerely,
Ronald Reagan
I noted earlier that the cover art reminds me about when I was running through Africa on another record test of survival to get back home after my family thought I had been killed. I note that the release date might actually represent that I survived to bombing of the U.S. Marines barracks in Lebanon, on 10/23/1983, as I have written before. I have been thinking that attack was targeted at me because I was going to have some kind of role in the planned invasion of Grenada. I believe I have artificial and symbolic memories of being trapped in the rubble of that barracks until rescuers got me out.
I never get tired of listening to this group's music.
From 10/23/1983 to 9/26/1988 is: 59 months, 3 days
59-3
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boingo_Alive
Released September 26, 1988
Boingo Alive is a double album by Oingo Boingo. It is a mix of a best-of album, studio album, and live album. It was published to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the band, and it contained a selection of the band's classics rerecorded live on a soundstage without an audience, without making use of drum machines, or overdubs.
From 4/14/1977 to 10/23/1983 is: 3 days, 340 weeks
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1983_Beirut_barracks_bombing
The 1983 Beirut barracks bombing was a major incident on October 23, 1983, during the Lebanese Civil War. Two truck bombs struck buildings in Beirut housing U.S. and French members of the Multinational Force in Lebanon, killing hundreds of servicemen, the majority being U.S. Marines. The blasts led to the withdrawal of the international peacekeeping force from Lebanon, where they had been stationed since the Israeli 1982 invasion of Lebanon.
Rescue efforts continued for days. While the rescuers were at times hindered by sniper fire, some survivors were pulled from the rubble and airlifted to the RAF hospital in Cyprus or to U.S. and German hospitals in West Germany [2].
In the attack on the American barracks, the death toll was 241 American servicemen: 220 Marines, 18 Navy personnel and 3 Army soldiers. Sixty Americans were injured. In the attack on the French barracks, 58 paratroopers were killed and 15 injured, in the single worst military loss for the French since the end of the Algerian war.[1] In addition, the elderly Lebanese custodian of the Marines' building was killed in the first blast.[2] The wife and four children of a Lebanese janitor at the French building also were killed.[3]
This was the deadliest single-day death toll for the United States Marine Corps since the Battle of Iwo Jima (2,500 in one day) of World War II and the deadliest single-day death toll for the United States military since the 243 killed on 31st January 1968 — the first day of the Tet offensive in the Vietnam war. The attack remains the deadliest post-World War II attack on Americans overseas
President Ronald Reagan called the attack a "despicable act" and pledged to keep a military force in Lebanon. Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger said there would be no change in the U.S.'s Lebanon policy. On October 24 French President François Mitterrand visited the French bomb site. It was not an official visit, and he only stayed for a few hours, but he did declare: "We will stay." U.S. Vice President George Bush toured the Marine bombing site on October 26 and said the U.S. "would not be cowed by terrorists."
In retaliation for the attacks, France launched an air strike in the Beqaa Valley against Iranian Revolutionary Guard positions. President Reagan assembled his national security team and planned to target the Sheik Abdullah barracks in Baalbek, Lebanon, which housed Iranian Revolutionary Guards believed to be training Hezbollah fighters.[5] But Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger aborted the mission, reportedly because of his concerns that it would harm U.S. relations with other Arab nations.
Besides a few shellings, there was no serious retaliation for the Beirut bombing from the Americans. In December 1983, U.S. aircraft attacked Syrian targets in Lebanon, but this was in response to Syrian missile attacks on planes, not the barracks bombing.
The Marines were moved offshore where they could not be targeted. On February 7, 1984, President Reagan ordered the Marines to begin withdrawal from Lebanon. This was completed on February 26; the rest of the MNF was withdrawn by April.
