I made it to York! Woohoo! but not without some difficulties.
I left home the morning of the 27th. Everything was going well until my flight to Chicago was delayed. Luckily, the American Airlines people were helpful and they transferred me to a Delta flight that actually left before the flight I was supposed to be on (and Delta goes to Chicago from MSP like twice an hour). I had to go practically across the whole airport but I got there with like 15 minutes to spare. That flight tied for shortest flight I've had--47 minutes. Then, in Chicago, because the airport is HUGE, I got to walk through like half of it. I got there with plenty of time to spare... and then we were delayed. When we were supposed to start boarding, the plane wasn't even a the gate; it was just coming from the hangar (yes, it was late from the HANGAR). And when it eventually got to the gate, there was a mechanical problem. We boarded and left the gate an hour after we were supposed to be gone, and we took off and hour and a half late.
After all that, I made it to Manchester. From the airport, I got on a bus provided by the university. That bus dropped me (and others) off in a parking lot to catch a van to Wentworth College. I got checked in and all that. Finally, I was in my room.
After I unpacked a bit and figured out my internet, I went to the "free store" to get some dishes and hangers. I unpacked some more and then went on a campus tour (which didn't make a whole lot of sense). Last night the Graduate Student Association (GSA) did a karaoke event. I went by myself but after a while, a girl sat down at my table and we discovered we are in the same program (YAY). We were joined by a woman doing a Phd in politics and then later by a guy from Germany I had met earlier on the tour (he's only here for a semester).
This morning I walked around to see if I could figure out were stuff is, which I can. I also saw a ton of geese... like I'm pretty sure there are two kinds of geese here. I took some pictures too, which I will put up later.
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
Reflections on the Navy Yard
As most of you know, when I was in DC, I worked at the Navy Yard in the History and Heritage Command with the Photo Curator. Yesterday, the news of a shooting at the base where I worked was strange. I walked right where all the reporters were and I know most of the buildings (kinda) that they were talking about.
In my 7 hours of CNN, everything was familiar. Given, I was in Building 44/108 and the shooting was in Building 197. But, there's only four blocks between the two. They were talking about base police: the people who checked my ID. Even the front of the Department of Transportation was familiar.
Sadly, tragedies like this one have become too much a part of life in this country (even this was not the first mass shooting at a military installation). But, this is the first one in a place I have been--and not for an insignificant amount of time. Like many people, I suppose, I felt safe there. The security was good (I needed a pass that was checked everyday) but it wasn't the most secure place. As occurred yesterday, anyone with a pass is pretty much let into the Yard. I fear one fall out is going to be increased security at the Yard. While that would be, I suppose, a good thing, I cannot help but think that will not solve the overall problem.
What I see as the root of the problem is societal, and isn't even one problem. I'm not sure about the individual who did the shooting, and I don't want to speculate about him. But, one of the problems is the access to guns in this country. That the rifle he used (and that has been used in numerous mass shootings in the past few years) was even available to civilians, seems crazy to me. Why would anyone need that kind of gun? I don't buy the argument that only people with guns can stop other people with guns. The "Right to Bear Arms" in the 2nd Amendment... also confuses me.
(I am now going to slip into historian mode. Sorry, not sorry.)
The 2nd Amendment reads: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." (from http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/bill_of_rights_transcript.html)
Obviously, the meaning is not clear... considering there are 3 commas... BUT in looking at the historical context of this sentence (aka what a "Militia" was, what was meant by "a free State," and what "Arms" were), I think we can clear the confusion, at least a little.
First: "A well regulated Militia": A Militia is composed of, basically, civilians to supplement the army in an emergency (paraphrased from my desktop dictionary). Militias were very important during the Revolutionary War, before the colonies could actually form an army. Militias are volunteers... what I would now consider the National Guard. (I looked up the National Guard on Wikipedia... sue me). (Another quick side note: until World War I, the entire armed forces in the US was voluntary but state Militias and the National Reserves existed.) So, we still have "a well regulated Militia"... at least how I understand it.
So, if we substitute "a National Guard" for "A well regulated Militia", we get "A National Guard, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." Moving next to "a free State."
"A free State"... uh... I would think that would be obvious... but lets just say a "free State" is one that upholds the Constitution, or, you know, the one we have.
Now for the "Arms" concept. The American Bill of Rights was ratified in 1791. I think we can all agree "Arms" have undergone massive shifts in the last 222 years. I'm not an arms expert, something I am proud of, so I won't try to go into details. I will clear up my ideas in a second, promise.
Now, I've already put National Guard in for Militia. The phrase "being necessary to the security of a free State" now refers to the Militia. So, to ensure the future of the State, a Militia is required. OK, so we need volunteers who will be civilians except for during emergencies. Now we get "the right of the people to keep and bear Arms." The militiamen of the late 18th century had muskets and, as I understand, access to additional weapons at a local armory. I am not entirely sure what this means in the current context, but I think I am making progress in understanding what it meant in 1790.
So, if we say that "the people" of the "bear Arms" section are the people of the Militia, then the 2nd Amendment affirms the need for a voluntary military force (that will only be a military force in an emergency), the need for that force to be armed, and the importance of that force to the continuation of the State.
This has been a long explanation for something, I see as, relatively simple. If you hadn't guessed by now, I'm for regulation of guns. But not just because I think it's stupid for regular people to have assault rifles, also because I understand the context in which the 2nd Amendment was written.
[Three things:
One: when I started, I was just going to quickly say how tragic it is that another mass shooting has occurred and how strange it is to actually know the place it happened.
Two: I am sorry this was long. But I am not sorry if you don't care about history. Like anything, this is my opinion, so I also don't particularly care if you disagree with my interpretation of the history or my conclusions. I am sorry if this sounded preachy... I am simply tired of people making arguments based on simple readings of history or disregarding history in general. Something I believe in, and am trying to be better at, is seeing things complexly--ideas, situations, people... nouns.
Three: I will probably do an actual update soon]
In my 7 hours of CNN, everything was familiar. Given, I was in Building 44/108 and the shooting was in Building 197. But, there's only four blocks between the two. They were talking about base police: the people who checked my ID. Even the front of the Department of Transportation was familiar.
Sadly, tragedies like this one have become too much a part of life in this country (even this was not the first mass shooting at a military installation). But, this is the first one in a place I have been--and not for an insignificant amount of time. Like many people, I suppose, I felt safe there. The security was good (I needed a pass that was checked everyday) but it wasn't the most secure place. As occurred yesterday, anyone with a pass is pretty much let into the Yard. I fear one fall out is going to be increased security at the Yard. While that would be, I suppose, a good thing, I cannot help but think that will not solve the overall problem.
What I see as the root of the problem is societal, and isn't even one problem. I'm not sure about the individual who did the shooting, and I don't want to speculate about him. But, one of the problems is the access to guns in this country. That the rifle he used (and that has been used in numerous mass shootings in the past few years) was even available to civilians, seems crazy to me. Why would anyone need that kind of gun? I don't buy the argument that only people with guns can stop other people with guns. The "Right to Bear Arms" in the 2nd Amendment... also confuses me.
(I am now going to slip into historian mode. Sorry, not sorry.)
The 2nd Amendment reads: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." (from http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/bill_of_rights_transcript.html)
Obviously, the meaning is not clear... considering there are 3 commas... BUT in looking at the historical context of this sentence (aka what a "Militia" was, what was meant by "a free State," and what "Arms" were), I think we can clear the confusion, at least a little.
First: "A well regulated Militia": A Militia is composed of, basically, civilians to supplement the army in an emergency (paraphrased from my desktop dictionary). Militias were very important during the Revolutionary War, before the colonies could actually form an army. Militias are volunteers... what I would now consider the National Guard. (I looked up the National Guard on Wikipedia... sue me). (Another quick side note: until World War I, the entire armed forces in the US was voluntary but state Militias and the National Reserves existed.) So, we still have "a well regulated Militia"... at least how I understand it.
So, if we substitute "a National Guard" for "A well regulated Militia", we get "A National Guard, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." Moving next to "a free State."
"A free State"... uh... I would think that would be obvious... but lets just say a "free State" is one that upholds the Constitution, or, you know, the one we have.
Now for the "Arms" concept. The American Bill of Rights was ratified in 1791. I think we can all agree "Arms" have undergone massive shifts in the last 222 years. I'm not an arms expert, something I am proud of, so I won't try to go into details. I will clear up my ideas in a second, promise.
Now, I've already put National Guard in for Militia. The phrase "being necessary to the security of a free State" now refers to the Militia. So, to ensure the future of the State, a Militia is required. OK, so we need volunteers who will be civilians except for during emergencies. Now we get "the right of the people to keep and bear Arms." The militiamen of the late 18th century had muskets and, as I understand, access to additional weapons at a local armory. I am not entirely sure what this means in the current context, but I think I am making progress in understanding what it meant in 1790.
So, if we say that "the people" of the "bear Arms" section are the people of the Militia, then the 2nd Amendment affirms the need for a voluntary military force (that will only be a military force in an emergency), the need for that force to be armed, and the importance of that force to the continuation of the State.
This has been a long explanation for something, I see as, relatively simple. If you hadn't guessed by now, I'm for regulation of guns. But not just because I think it's stupid for regular people to have assault rifles, also because I understand the context in which the 2nd Amendment was written.
[Three things:
One: when I started, I was just going to quickly say how tragic it is that another mass shooting has occurred and how strange it is to actually know the place it happened.
Two: I am sorry this was long. But I am not sorry if you don't care about history. Like anything, this is my opinion, so I also don't particularly care if you disagree with my interpretation of the history or my conclusions. I am sorry if this sounded preachy... I am simply tired of people making arguments based on simple readings of history or disregarding history in general. Something I believe in, and am trying to be better at, is seeing things complexly--ideas, situations, people... nouns.
Three: I will probably do an actual update soon]
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Travel Book Humor
So, I have an actual update as well... which I suppose I'll put at the end. But first, something amusing.
One night last week, I couldn't sleep. The only book I had in my room (that I wanted to read... obviously I have more than one book in my room... haha I have like a hundred) was Rick Steves' Great Britain 2013. So, I read that... well, parts of it... mostly the history sections. While, I was reading, I noticed some funny... sections.
In no particular order:
The "British-Yankee Vocabulary" section:
"Bob's your uncle--there you go (with a shrug), naturally" um... really? Why do I feel like that is like saying "yeah, sure, you bet'cha"?
"Joe Bloggs- John Q. Public" John Smith?
"Scouser- a person from Liverpool" sure, why not?
There are other ones... and some I know... but yeah... I hope to see if people actually use the stuff that's in here.
The "Great Britain: Past and Present" section: (yay history)
Right away, at the end of the first paragraph (in a parenthetical): "Generally speaking, the nice and bad stories guides tell are not true...and the boring ones are." I don't really believe this... some of the true stories are boring... but occasionally history hands you a story so outrageous you think it's made up but it's not, which is why I love history.
Another parenthetical, in relation to Henry VIII: "To keep track of each one's fate, British kids learn this rhyme: "Divorced, beheaded, died; divorced, beheaded, survived."
The next amusing bit is in a picture... in a diagram of "Typical Castle Architecture," there is a labeled picture of a dragon.
The "Wales" section contains some gems... mostly in the pronunciation of Welsh places.
There is a "Speaking Welsh" section, including "Good-bye:" in Welsh is "Hwyl" pronounced "hoo-il." Yes. I know, what? But, seeing as I will not actually be in Wales, unless I visit, I'm not going to be worried about actually making sense of this.
There is a place in Beaumaris nicknamed: Llanfairpwll. Real name "(no kidding)": Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch and it is "the second-longest place name in the world"... which begs the question, what's the longest?
The "Scotland" section points out that Scotland has weather similar to MN: "four seasons in one day."
Also that Scottish Gaelic is pronounced "gallic" instead of "gaylic" as they pronounce it in Ireland... because.
Lastly, the York section.
Fun fact: the Vikings controlled the city from the 9th century until the 11th century and was "a Danish trading center called Jorvik."
By the time of Henry VIII (and the inception of the Anglican Church), York was "England's second city." Now, the Archbishop of York is "second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury" (The York bishop is "Primate of England" and the Canterbury bishop is "Primate of All England"... to which, I asked, how different are those?)
"During World War II, Hitler chose to bomb York by picking the city out of a travel guidebook (not this one)." Note to self: when bombing countries in an attempt to dominate the world, pick targets out of a guidebook.
"(In York, a 'bar' is a gate and a 'gate' is a street. Blame the Vikings.)" Oh parenthetical... how I love you.
Apparently, the Kit Kat was created in York.
So, that's it for guidebook entertainment. Now for an update.
I know what classes I am taking. My two mandatory courses are "Meanings and Values in Public History" and "Research Dissertation" (skills and stuff). My optional course is "Evolution and Society, c. 1800-1945," the one I wanted. I'm sure I'll be posting more about what each of those things are, but in the mean time, if you want to know what I know, just ask!
I know some other scheduling stuff--mostly stuff the Graduate Student Association (GSA) is doing, which is nice. Also when/where my visa registration is, when campus tours are, when there is a bus to a grocery store, and activities put on by the GSA/ International Student Association.
From the GSA Facebook page, I know one of the people living in my same block/flat (know of... wissen in German, not kennen). I also know some other helpful stuff.
Ok, this is long enough. Just under three weeks!
One night last week, I couldn't sleep. The only book I had in my room (that I wanted to read... obviously I have more than one book in my room... haha I have like a hundred) was Rick Steves' Great Britain 2013. So, I read that... well, parts of it... mostly the history sections. While, I was reading, I noticed some funny... sections.
In no particular order:
The "British-Yankee Vocabulary" section:
"Bob's your uncle--there you go (with a shrug), naturally" um... really? Why do I feel like that is like saying "yeah, sure, you bet'cha"?
"Joe Bloggs- John Q. Public" John Smith?
"Scouser- a person from Liverpool" sure, why not?
There are other ones... and some I know... but yeah... I hope to see if people actually use the stuff that's in here.
The "Great Britain: Past and Present" section: (yay history)
Right away, at the end of the first paragraph (in a parenthetical): "Generally speaking, the nice and bad stories guides tell are not true...and the boring ones are." I don't really believe this... some of the true stories are boring... but occasionally history hands you a story so outrageous you think it's made up but it's not, which is why I love history.
Another parenthetical, in relation to Henry VIII: "To keep track of each one's fate, British kids learn this rhyme: "Divorced, beheaded, died; divorced, beheaded, survived."
The next amusing bit is in a picture... in a diagram of "Typical Castle Architecture," there is a labeled picture of a dragon.
The "Wales" section contains some gems... mostly in the pronunciation of Welsh places.
There is a "Speaking Welsh" section, including "Good-bye:" in Welsh is "Hwyl" pronounced "hoo-il." Yes. I know, what? But, seeing as I will not actually be in Wales, unless I visit, I'm not going to be worried about actually making sense of this.
There is a place in Beaumaris nicknamed: Llanfairpwll. Real name "(no kidding)": Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch and it is "the second-longest place name in the world"... which begs the question, what's the longest?
The "Scotland" section points out that Scotland has weather similar to MN: "four seasons in one day."
Also that Scottish Gaelic is pronounced "gallic" instead of "gaylic" as they pronounce it in Ireland... because.
Lastly, the York section.
Fun fact: the Vikings controlled the city from the 9th century until the 11th century and was "a Danish trading center called Jorvik."
By the time of Henry VIII (and the inception of the Anglican Church), York was "England's second city." Now, the Archbishop of York is "second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury" (The York bishop is "Primate of England" and the Canterbury bishop is "Primate of All England"... to which, I asked, how different are those?)
"During World War II, Hitler chose to bomb York by picking the city out of a travel guidebook (not this one)." Note to self: when bombing countries in an attempt to dominate the world, pick targets out of a guidebook.
"(In York, a 'bar' is a gate and a 'gate' is a street. Blame the Vikings.)" Oh parenthetical... how I love you.
Apparently, the Kit Kat was created in York.
So, that's it for guidebook entertainment. Now for an update.
I know what classes I am taking. My two mandatory courses are "Meanings and Values in Public History" and "Research Dissertation" (skills and stuff). My optional course is "Evolution and Society, c. 1800-1945," the one I wanted. I'm sure I'll be posting more about what each of those things are, but in the mean time, if you want to know what I know, just ask!
I know some other scheduling stuff--mostly stuff the Graduate Student Association (GSA) is doing, which is nice. Also when/where my visa registration is, when campus tours are, when there is a bus to a grocery store, and activities put on by the GSA/ International Student Association.
From the GSA Facebook page, I know one of the people living in my same block/flat (know of... wissen in German, not kennen). I also know some other helpful stuff.
Ok, this is long enough. Just under three weeks!
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