Memorial Day Weekend is just a week away.
In keeping with my blog’s theme of addressing items that slip through the cultural cracks I’m showcasing a few of the Congressional Medal of Honor winners from the neglected war fought in the Philippines from 1899 to 1902.
HIRAM BEARSS (Correct spelling) – This Captain won the Medal for his actions on November 17th,1901 during a battle at the confluence of the Sohotan and Cadacan Rivers in Samar. Bearss led his men in a surprise attack on the enemy positions in the fortified cliffs. Relying mostly on bamboo ladders the Captain and his troops drove their opposition from their entrenched positions, literally “charging uphill” against enemy fire.
They also had to contend with the countless booby-traps lining the hills, many of which had been in place since the Spanish- American War of 1898. Those deadly traps took the form of pits, poison- tipped spears, trip-sprung vine nets loaded down with literally tons of stones and many others. The opposition in the caves honeymooning the cliffs needed rooting out as well with various forms of death lurking around every twist and turn in the caverns.
Following that Bearss and his men kept up their advance, seizing gunpowder and arms in addition to food and other supplies before driving the enemy forces out of their secondary positions in the cliffs. The U.S. forces had never penetrated so far before. Bearss went on to serve in World War One.
FRANK L ANDERS – Corporal Anders served in the storied unit remembered as Young’s Scouts. He was decorated for actions taken on May 13th, 1899 in Luzon. The Corporal and ten other Americans stormed 300 – yes – THREE HUNDRED – of the enemy and, in a case of truth REALLY being stranger than fiction, they attacked so ferociously they drove their hundreds of foemen into retreat. Continue reading
CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – The title game in the USCAA (United States Collegiate Athletic Association) was played between the 6th seeded PENN STATE AT DUBOIS NITTANY LIONS and the 2 seeds – the NEWPORT NEWS APPRENTICE SCHOOL BUILDERS. 
Here’s another blog post where I take a break from pointing out how the American Left’s unbearable pomposity and snobbery have driven away so many of us who used to consider ourselves part of it. This time my points are being made in a New York Times Op-Ed by Gerard Alexander, a professor of political science at the University of Virginia. 
DAY THREE: GAME ONE – The 2 seeds – the NEWPORT NEWS APPRENTICE SCHOOL BUILDERS – battled for survival against the top seeded UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI AT CLERMONT COUGARS. 
THE AVENGERS Volume One, Number 92 (September 1971) 
Synopsis: We pick up several days after the Avengers and their old civilian ally, rock singer Rick Jones, saved the world from Ronan the Accuser. Ronan was the new ruler of the alien Kree Empire after a coup d’état. When his plan was stymied by the Avengers, Ronan was forced to retreat back to Hala, the homeworld of the Kree Empire, because the Kree’s ancient foes the Skrulls had launched attacks on every Kree-held planet in the galaxy. 
DAY TWO: GAME ONE – The 5 seeds – the CLEARY UNIVERSITY PROWLING COUGARS – faced the top seeded UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI AT CLERMONT COUGARS to start Day Two. 
Here’s a look at two of the most recent. For newbies, I had been a Democrat for much of my life until Obama’s disastrous and damaging presidency helped motivate me to become an Independent Voter. His callous, clueless, comfortable and uncaring supporters helped, too. I distrust both the Democrats and the Republicans. Trump is a de facto Third Party President. 
***
.
DAY ONE: GAME ONE – The 10th seeded MISSISSIPPI UNIVERSITY FOR WOMEN OWLS (co-ed despite the name) faced off with the 9 seeds – the FLORIDA NATIONAL UNIVERSITY CONQUISTADORS, with both teams making their first appearance in the USCAA World Series. 
Balladeer's Blog 