Category Archives: Ideas

King Chuck

And now for something completely different… “Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony…  You can’t expect to wield supreme executive power just because some watery tart threw a sword at you!” Monte Python — Holy …

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Benedict Arnold was not Alone in his Treason

Colonel Rudolphus Ritzema was an American officer in the New York Line during the American Revolutionary War, and later changed sides, serving as a lieutenant colonel in a British regiment. On June 30, 1775, Ritzema was appointed lieutenant colonel of the 1st New York Regiment. In July he seized British armaments in New York City. On November 28, 1775 he was …

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Beer Recipe: “Never Surrender” Welsh Cake Porter

My friend Conner Duffy is actively working to bring another tavern to Fort Mifflin during the upcoming North American Festival of Wales in August of this year. To that end, on May 7, when the Regimental Brewmeister teaches the next 18th Century Brewing Class at Fort Mifflin, we will be brewing a Welsh Cake Porter. …

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Peace or War? What ARE we talking about?

Almost all of the Abrahamic religions have a huge focus on the idea of peace.  In fact, common greetings in Hebrew (שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם‎ — shalom aleichem) and in Arabic (ٱلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ‎ — as-salamu alaykum) quite literally mean “peace be upon you.”  In the Anglican Church ceremony celebrating the French Alliance yesterday they opened their proceedings with …

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Manhattan bought for 60 Guilder then given up for some spices

In 1609, Henry Hudson sailed up the river that would one day bear his name. The Englishman was an emissary of the Dutch and had been dispatched to chart a new passage to Asia, where the Dutch West India Company wanted to expand its trade. Hudson ultimately failed at that task, but his journey laid …

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Freedom of Religion is Really There to Protect Religious Practice from Government Abuse

There is a growing movement in the fascist wing of the Republican Party to infuse more Protestant Christianity in to all government decisions.  We see this in current anti-abortion and anti-LBGTQ laws as well as the political speech of certain candidates who wish to garner support from ultra-religious factions.  These politicians believe (or at least …

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There was no SPCA in the 18th Century – Fox Tossing

Der Vollkommene Deutsche Jäger (The perfect German hunter) describes a game called Fuchsprellen or “fox tossing.” Fox Tossing was a competitive sport mostly practiced by members of the upper classes. The sport was held on a closed patch of land where people threw live foxes and other animals up high using slings, with a person …

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