To this very day the word "Camelot" makes me ill.
Posted on 02/20/2006 2:45:22 AM PST by The Ghost of JG
February 22 is the birthday of George Washington, the man who, more than any other, made possible our republican form of government. The third Monday in February has come to be known - wrongly - as President's Day. America's political leaders should take this occasion to remember Washington's deeds, recollect his advice, and once again call the holiday celebrating him by its legal name: Washington's Birthday.
James Flexner, George Washington's greatest biographer, called him the "indispensable man" of the American Founding. Without Washington, America would never have won our War of Independence. He played the central role in the Constitutional Convention and, as our first President, set the precedents that define what it means to be a constitutional executive: strong and energetic, aware of the limits of authority but guarding the prerogatives of office. Washington not only rejected offers to make him king, but was one of the first leaders in world history to relinquish power voluntarily. His peaceful transfer of the presidency to John Adams in 1797 inaugurated one of America's greatest democratic traditions
(Excerpt) Read more at speroforum.com ...
I respectfully disagree. Washington made tactical errors and lost some battles, but he stuck it out. He stayed there out in the field for years writing endless letters to congress pleading for more support and troops while the whole country was about ready to give up...including some members of congress. The troops were deserting, the militia figured their job was over. Washington, with his character and charisma was the rallying point that never quit.
To this very day the word "Camelot" makes me ill.
Now we don't even get off for President's Day. We get off Thursday and Friday for Rodeo Day. Kind o' sad, isn't it.
Of all the great people our country has produced, George Washington still stands at the top of the list. Courageous, humble, decent and the embodiment of integrity. Anyone who hasn't read Flexner's book really should. It isn't even that long.
Of all the blessings America has had, having George Washington there at the right time is one of the greatest.
I have long said that there is a simple solution that everyone could support:
Let everyone off the day after the Super Bowl (they are all pretty usless that day anyway) and call it:
Martin Luther Super King President's Bowl Day!
Beats Festivus.
In JFK's case it was "Came-a-lot"
The author is misinformed. Back in the day, we used to celebrate Lincoln's birthday and Washington's birthday in alternate years. The holiday would be on the actual birthday, February 12th or February 22. Then the whole "Monday holidays" thing started and the holiday was renamed to "President's Day". So historically speaking, the holiday is intended to honor both Lincoln and Washington, not just Washington. Maybe you have a problem with Lincoln?
I believe you are one who is misinformed. Washington's birthday was a Federal holiday celebrated on February 22 every year and it was changed to President's Day. Lincoln's birthday has been a recognized holiday in certain local and state governments, but it has never been a federal holiday. So the new holiday was created to take emphasis off the celebration of Washington's birthday. Your post really makes little sense. Was the holiday intended to recognize Lincoln's birthday before Lincoln was even born? If any person in American history deserves a holiday it is George Washington. President's Day can be moved to coincide with Lincoln's birthday, and it can place some extra emphasis on Lincoln. MLK day should not be a holiday.
Ping!
February 22, is George Washington's birthday. It will always be Washington's birthday in my house. We are having Roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, candied yams and bread pudding for desert. The 4th of July and Washington's birthday are the only real American hollidays!
Spare me.
MLK was a man of enormous charisma and courage and certainly a pivotal figure in the civil rights movement. There is much about him that I admire. An assesment of his life could creditably yield the adjective of great. Despite that, he does not deserve to be the ONLY American with his own holiday named after him. That honor should be reserved for only one person in American history, the greatest of all Americans, George Washington. More so than any other SINGLE figure in our history, he was the "indispensable man." Without his courage, acumen,honor, and integrity, the US would simply not exist, and if it did, it probably would have been as a monarchy and certainly not as a constitutional republic. He was quite simply and obviously, the greatest American who ever lived. It is incomprehensible that this man does not have a holiday devoted only to him. As far as I am concerned, he is the ONLY American who rates one, despite the thousands and thousands of great Americans who live and have lived.
MLK's birthday was a sop to PC and a reflection of the DemocRAT Congress that voted it. The depth of MLK's association with (ironically, given MLK's emphasis on freedom) the most anti-freedom and murderous ideology (Communism)of our time will prove to very embarrassing when it is fully revealed. Additionally, MLK's legacy to the modern day civil rights movement is a socialist bequeathment, that of looking to big government solutions for many of the behavioral problems in today's black community. MLK continues to cast a long shadow over most of the modern day civil rights establishment and black politicians who largely reject free market, educationally based solutions to the unique problems plaguing the black community.
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