Category Archives: History

The Double V Campaign: The struggle for racial equality in the US Armed Forces in the Second World War

Posted on November 17, 2016 by odeboyz

The festering sore that was American segregation became a burning issue after Hitler’s declaration of war (11th December 1941). The world’s worse racist state declared war on a country which enshrined segregation. America’s non-white soldiers were officially second class citizens. … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History, War | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

The ‘Cat and Mouse’ Act 1913

Posted on October 21, 2016 by odeboyz

The 1913 Prisoners (Temporary Discharge for Ill-Health) Act was an elegant way of nullifying the women prisoners who were using hunger strikes for publicity. The government was irritated by the suffragette movement (the lesser of two constitutional crises* they faced), … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Sound advice from a father during the Warsaw Uprising 1944*

Posted on September 13, 2016 by odeboyz

The Warsaw Uprising museum has numerous videos with survivors recounting their experiences. One video shows a man telling the story of how, when he was fifteen years old, he asked his parents if he could join the uprising. First he … Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiography, History, War | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

General de Gaulle’s war aims, 1941

Posted on August 2, 2016 by odeboyz

“Do you think I am interested in England’s winning the war? I am not- I am interested only in France’s victory,” de Gaulle said provocatively (to General Spears his British liaison officer.) James Barr A Line in the Sand p235 … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Politics, War | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Naval Intelligence*: the Royal Navy, 1940

Posted on July 19, 2016 by odeboyz

At the end of the campaign, the Commander-in-Chief of the Home Fleet complained that “it is most galling that the enemy should know just where our ships…always are, whereas we generally learn where his major forces are when they sink … Continue reading →

Posted in History, War | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Nigel Farage: A One-Trick Pony?

Posted on July 8, 2016 by odeboyz

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:* Nigel Farage’s political career ended on the 23rd June, 2016 though the finale only came on the 4th July. Unlike David Cameron’s career, his didn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Harold Hill: created by the Attlee Government

Posted on June 29, 2016 by odeboyz

I didn’t start living on Harold Hill until 1980 but lived there for eighteen years. For twelve of those years I was a Labour Party Councillor. So the following narrative is based on what I have been told and my research from … Continue reading →

Posted in History, housing, local politics, Politics, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Hannah Arendt* Escapes Nazi Germany

Posted on June 21, 2016 by odeboyz

(Hannah and her mother) crossed to Czechoslovakia (then still safe) by a method that sounds almost too fabulous to be true: a sympathetic German family on the border had a house with its front door in Germany and its back … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Philosophy | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Harry S Truman: War Criminal

Posted on June 9, 2016 by odeboyz

The American bombing of Tokyo (March 1945) and Hiroshima (August 1945) were war crimes (see addendum) promoted by President Truman. Both raids were criminal because the slaughter of civilians was intentional. Civilian deaths occur during bombing raids. They are unavoidable … Continue reading →

Posted in History, War | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Girolamo Savonarola and the bonfire of the vanities

Posted on May 13, 2016 by odeboyz

The Franciscan monk Girolamo Savonarola was the antithesis of Pope Alexander VI. Savonarola was an ascetic monk who preached against wealth and conspicuous consumption. Pope Alexander devoted his life to power, wealth and the pleasures of the flesh. As Savonarola’s … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Religion | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment