May Day
The May Day association with labor is all American, and just as controversial as everything of any consequence in history. The day is tied to a strike for the eight-hour day and the so-called “Haymarket Riot” of 1886. When it comes to “riots” and the Chicago police are involved, you are not going to find a single truth.
As May 1st falls at the mid point between the vernal equinox and the summer solstice it marks the beginning of summer for many people and is celebrated by Teutonic cultures [on the eve] as Walpurgisnacht [in German], and among the Gaelic peoples as Beltane.
The dynamic duo that mucked up the Pledge of Allegiance, Dwight Eisenhower and his Republican Congress, made May 1st both Law Day and Loyalty Day so those Commie working people wouldn’t get any ideas about having rights.
The real significance was that it is unlikely there was going to be another freeze and it is probably safe to start planting crops, so a fertility festival is in order. This is to ensure a good crop, not to get together and have a good time before getting to the backbreaking work of farming, really.
This is the fourth anniversary of Mission Accomplished, the Shrubbery’s prance across the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln, one of the most expensive photo ops in American political history, and 2052 days since he said that Osama was “Wanted: Dead or Alive”.
This year Congress will celebrate by giving the Shrubbery the supplemental funding bill that he has threaten to veto. If he vetos it, Congress should just move on to other work, making it clear that the bill he vetoed is the only bill that will get a majority vote in Congress.
8 comments
I just like the dancing around the pole with all the virgins.
The real significance was that it is unlikely there was going to be another freeze…
…not where I live. That concept doesn’t exist, thanks to 4500-ft. elevation and volcanic soils that don’t retain heat…
I have to admit that there is a certain mean convergence of circumstances and a brutal form of serendipity that today will bring together Loyalty Day, “Mission Accomplished”, and the long-promised veto. It was good to see yesterday that most of the MSM to which I was subjected made sure to mention that today’s veto would fall on that grim 4th anniversary..
Actually, Fallenmonk, I prefer sitting on the side drinking mead and watching. Virginity is not a noted part of northern European belief systems.
It was a nice piece of theater on the part of Congress, Jack. I look upon it as a small bit of payback for the crew of the Abraham Lincoln who had to sail in circles off the coast of San Diego so the Shrubbery could stage his event. They were sent to the Persian Gulf at the end of a six-month deployment, so were coming home after a four-month extension and were extended again to facilitate this stand-up routine.
Based on the Shrub’s little voyage off San Diego, I proclaimed New MayDay, the International Day of the Wanker. Or Wanker-in-Chief, if you like.
I agree completely about the supplemental bill. Congress should say “take it or leave it.”
Right Bryan. I know that and realized I should have used the term “maidens” which doesn’t necessarily mean virgin when I hit the go button. I wouldn’t turn down a mug of mead either BTW.
As we used to say in the Navy…Hooray, Hooray, the first of May. Outdoor “fooling around” starts today.
Steve, I don’t think they can pass a “clean bill,” I don’t think there’s enough support with all of the revelations about mismanagement popping up every day. I wouldn’t support any spending bill that didn’t have explicit controls and oversight built in. This administration can’t handle money, they are like a teenager with a credit card.
In the Air Force, Fallenmonk, it was the start of “weeds and seeds,” all of the squadron projects that had been buried under the snow had to be restarted. I don’t know who decided that painted rocks and flower beds were part of the military, but they should be dug up and burned as evil incarnate. If you think washing a car is fun, try a C-135 [Boeing 707].
One of the schools I used to teach at had Maypole dancing. I can’t say if the high school kids were virgins or not, I think they just liked to get out of class. (Yes, they actually got out of class for an hour to do this…)
I remember doing it during the dark ages when I went to school, but it has a “pagan taint” and isn’t allowed anymore down here. Kids aren’t permitted to have any fun.