From guardian.co.uk

. . . corrupts absolutely.

As I read about the unrest in Iran, I just have to look at the irony of it all.  I remember back in 1979 when the current regime came to power.  They said that they were overcoming oppression from the Shah.  They said they represented the people.  They said a lot of things, but over time, they have proved to be just the same as the Shah’s corrupt administration that they replaced – maybe even worse.

The mullahs came to power because they said they were persecuted and used religion as the opiate to get the masses on their side.  Once in power, they started to crack down and enforce rules and laws that they thought were best, not necessarily what the people wanted.  They used terrorist methods and supported terrorist causes to further their agenda and to build power.  Over time, this arrogance and desire for power led to the unrest we’ve seen lately.

It’s tragic to see that these religious rulers who run Iran are so power hungry that they can murder their own people in order to maintain their power.  They accuse their own people of using terrorism (when they did so openly and with pride when they came to power) in protesting against what they feel is wrong.  They send armed forces out against unarmed civilians.  And I’m sure they’ll find some passage from the Koran that could be perverted to back their power play here – they’ve been perverting it for years.

This regime has to go.  The people must be heard.

The day I went was the Warbird airshow. That means that all sorts of vintage, restored aircraft from WW II through Vietnam was flying during the airshow. The day was great – not too hot, and mostly sunny. There was a threat of a storm but that passed to the north. During the day I got to see a flyby by some F-15s and I got to see the F-22 in action. It is amazing how close you can get to some of the aircraft.

Anyway, enjoy the images. Leave comments if you feel like it. Also, check out the EAA AirVenture 2008 video page – I took some video with my digital camera. The quality is good, but a little bouncy – I didn’t bring a tripod. Enjoy!

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What was fun was that the re-enactment portrayed the Battle of Brandy Station.  I was able to walk this battlefield last August.  You can see my pictures of the actual battle site here.  This was the first time that I can remember that the Big Battle was fashioned after an actual battle.  Most of the times, the battle showed the was the armies fought and some of the tactics they used.  I thought this years battle was pretty interesting becuase I could put some frame of reference around it, but I’m not sure how others viewed it.  I know my son liked it because he got to see the reenactment and was able to see the cannons fire.  All in all, a good time was had by the two of us.

This is a great event put on by the Lake County IL Forest Preserve district.  If you’ve never been, you should go!  Also, a heaping big thanks to all of the reenactors who devote their time to protraying this important time in our country’s history.  Here is a list of the participating units:

• 8th Illinois Cavalry
• 13th Tennessee Infantry
• 104th Illinois Infantry
• 154th Tennessee Infantry
• Crescent City Benevolent Society
• Taylor’s Battery
• Battery G

If you like the pictures below, please leave a comment!

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In related information, there have been some interesting articles about breweries in the Midwest. One of the articles is from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, titled “Back-roads breweries” It’s an interesting read about some of the smaller breweries that can be found in Wisconsin. The other article is titled “Draft Picks” and comes from Chicago Magazine. The author picks out six breweries from the IN-IL-WI area that offer not only great beers but also tours. besides some interesting information, the article also provides directions to these breweries.

Lastly, I found some information that has an interesting historical aspect for me. Pabst is bringing back the original recipe for Schlitz beer. The Chicago Sun-Times has more detail. This is interesting to me since my grandfather once worked for the Schlitz brewery in Milwaukee. I’ll have look for it in the store and try some out. ]]> http://fjbering.com/2008/04/06/75-years-of-beer/feed/ 0 http://fjbering.com/2008/03/30/civil-war-at-the-grove/ http://fjbering.com/2008/03/30/civil-war-at-the-grove/#comments Sun, 30 Mar 2008 17:40:14 +0000 FJB http://www.fjbering.com/?p=89 Images from another Civil War event that my son and I went attended. This one was smaller than the Lake County event, but it was still a great event.

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This page contains a short, incomplete description of some of the places I was lucky enough to visit during our brief visit to Virginia. We went out there to see some family friends, but I snuck some time by myself and went to several Civil War battlefields.

In the page, you will find some short descriptions as well as links to the image pages that correspond to the battle sites. In addition, I have added notation to the images to explain what they show.

Click here to visit the Civil War page on fjbering.com.

Speaking of the kids, I was surprised by how much fun the kids ended up having. I know my son would like the battle – he went with me last year and was excited the first time he saw a poster for the event. My daughter, well, I didn’t know how she’d like to whole thing. She ended up finding it fun and interesting. They found it funny when some of the re-enactors asked them about things they were carrying – like a ballpoint pen, blue Gatorade and a hat with Alaska embroidered on it. This made the experience more real for the kids – these weren’t just actors spending time on the weekend playing soldier. These were individuals living like the soldiers of the Civil War lived.

The encampment was large, filled with re-enactors portraying the Confederate and Federal forces. There were also poeple who represented the civilians of the time – those who would follow the armies in their campaigns. My son wanted to see the blacksmith, and once we found him, he seemed interested but not too interested. This was my daughter’s first visit to the event and she was interested to see Mr. Lincoln and his wife. In addition to the encampments, there is a sutlery area where all types of items are for sale. Uniforms for re-enactors are available as well as other items. I didn’t get out cheap. The boy got a toy Civil War rifle and a Union cap. The girl got a handcarved Maple fife.

Saturday, I bummed around the camps and asked some questions. Talked with the gentlemen from Grant, Lee, Custer & Co. for a while. These guys are a living history troupe that bring the Civil War generals to life. I talked with “Custer” for a while and also with the other gentlemen. I saw how they interacted with the other visitors, especially the children – and they were great. Mr. Lincoln and Harriet Tubman were also there on Saturday. The culmination of the day was the skirmish that took place. That was fun and less formal than the Sunday battle. You can see a couple videos of the Union cannons firing on this page.

The men and women of the 8th Illinois Cavalry, the 10th Illinois Volunteer Infantry, the 154th Tennesee Infantry, Taylor’s battery, Battery G, the Lexington Rifles and other units put on a great show. (If your unit was there and it’s not listed, drop me a line or leave a comment below with a link to your site and I’ll add you on.) The weather was nice – sunny, not overly warm or humid with no threat of rain. We did have to have water bottles with us, but you need to do that in any kind of heat.

Well – enough of my rambling for now. Take a look at the pictures here. Check out the sites I’ve linked above and make plans to come out to Civil War Days next year. You’ll have fun and might even learn a thing or two.