Irish Catholic parish records

Irish Catholic parish records

Posted on by jack

Good news for those with an interest in Irish genealogy. For some time now, we have known Irish Catholic parish records would be put an the internet with a searchable index.

Find My Past has put a searchable index of Irish Catholic parish records online, and it is free for a limited time. This has long been desirable since the are the state of useful records for Irish genealogy is so poor. In fact, births of Catholics were not included in public records until 1864.

Many of those records that did exist were destroyed during the Irish civil war. So the state of genealogical records in Ireland is pretty bad for everyone and worse for those of us with Catholic ancestors. That is why a searchable index for Irish Catholic parish records is so important. Continue reading “Irish Catholic parish records”

Yellow Dog Republicans

Yellow Dog Republicans

Posted on by jack

Before I retired I lived in Georgia for 30 years. For part of that time Georgia was a solid democratic state. Of course, this was a long time ago. The state seemed to have an abundance of Yellow Dog Democrats. That is, Democrats who would vote for a yellow dog if nominated by the Democrats over any candidate nominated by the Republicans.

So solid was Democratic Georgia that Republicans quite often didn’t even put-up an opposition candidate for many offices. The real decision was reached in the Democratic primary.

Now it seems we have Yellow Dog Republicans as well. Continue reading “Yellow Dog Republicans”

Brick wall broken by DNA

Brick wall broken by DNA

Posted on by jack

Genealogists trace a family and then get to a point where is seems very difficult or maybe even impossible to get beyond. These involuntary stopping points in genealogy are often called “Brick Walls”. I have several and I suppose a good many people doing genealogy have several brick walls. This is the story of a brick wall broken by DNA.

To be more specific it is the brick wall in my McKenzie line. I had been able to go back as far as my great grandfather Malcolm McKenzie and his wife Emma Cash McKenzie. Over a year and a half I wrote a very short post about them, mostly Emma Cash McKenzie.
Continue reading “Brick wall broken by DNA”

Bernie Sanders’ foreign policy

Bernie Sanders’ foreign policy

Posted on by jack

I watched the New Hampshire Democratic debate a few days ago. It was good seeing Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton debate some of the differences between them.

In some cases I think it did get a bit silly in arguing who is a progressive. I think they both take progressive stances but they are also very different.

In asking about foreign policy Continue reading “Bernie Sanders’ foreign policy”

Crazy, Useless, Shafted

Crazy, Useless, Shafted

Posted on by jack

I called this book review Crazy, Useless, Shafted. That seems to cover it in a few words. The full title is The Party Is Over: How Republicans Went Crazy, Democrats Became Useless, and the Middle Class Got Shafted but that seemed a bit long for a title.

The book is by Mike Lofgren who spent 28 years has a Republican Congressional staffer. His start was with John Kasich who in the 1980s was on the House Armed Services Committee. Mike switched from national security to the House Budget Committee when Representative Kasich became chairman. He retired from the Senate Budgetary Committee in 2011, frustrated by the ridiculous debt ceiling debate and the lunacy and terrorism of the Republican party.

Why I read this book

Continue reading “Crazy, Useless, Shafted”

Who is this guy? Why should I care?

Who is this guy? Why should I care?

Posted on by jack

I got an email titled “Who is this Guy???” It is apparently a version of an email that has been around since 2010 or earlier.  I suppose the 3 question marks are meant to show that this is an important question.

I wasn’t quite sure of the point but it seems to suggest that I should not vote for Hillary Clinton because her daughter’s father-in-law scammed lots of people out of money and went to jail for it. Continue reading “Who is this guy? Why should I care?”

Clinton misleads on Healthcare

Clinton misleads on Healthcare

Posted on by jack

Hillary Clinton has said the Bernie Sanders’ “Medicare for all” plan would leave health care in the hands on Republican governors. Perhaps she has confused Bernie Sanders’ plan with the medicaid expansion under Obamacare. But it does seem more likely that Hillary Clinton misleads, or tries to mislead, us on Bernie Sanders’ “Medicare for all” plan.

I have Medicare. I do not have Medicaid. They are 2 distinct programs. If someone believes they should be President, I think they should understand the difference between them, be able to intelligently discuss them, and not use the similarity in names to mislead the public.

There are some real differences between Clinton and Sanders. I would rather see an honest discussion of the policy differences than misleading claims.

Free Kurt Vonnegut short story

Free Kurt Vonnegut short story

Posted on by jack

I downloaded a free Kurt Vonnegut short story a few days ago. It was free then and free when I just checked so I’m guessing it will be free for a while but check.

The story was “2 B R 0 2 B “ which does seem like kind of an odd title but it makes perfect sense when you read the story. Well, I really enjoyed it. It reminded me of an older short story of his called Continue reading “Free Kurt Vonnegut short story”

Kindle vs Kindle App for iPad

Kindle vs Kindle App for iPad

Posted on by jack

I enjoy reading on my Kindle and occasionally use the Kindle app on my iPhone. I am currently using the Kindle Fire HDX but have used other Kindles in the past. So what I have to say is specifically about the Kindle HDX but also seems to apply to other Kindles.

I do like the feel of a real book but reading on the Kindle does have quite a few advantages and, as I see it, one big disadvantage. I like being able to quickly access the internet to look-up some thing i am not familiar with. I like being able to search the book I am reading when I run across something and want to refresh my memory on something related that I think I read but am a bit fuzzy on the details.

The big disadvantage Continue reading “Kindle vs Kindle App for iPad”

The Big Short – movie and book

The Big Short – movie and book

Posted on by jack

I liked both. The Big Short tells is a good story and an important one. Many of the events are familiar to some of us as they were covered in the news a few years ago after the big crash. Now for some details on both movie and book. Continue reading “The Big Short – movie and book”

New York Grid

New York Grid

Posted on by jack

One of my Christmas presents was City on a Grid: How New York Became New York by Gerard Koeppel. I spend much of the next few days reading and learning about the New York Grid.

One of the first things that strikes a visitor to New York City is the grid pattern of streets in Manhattan. The grid doesn’t include the southern end of Manhattan since the old city was at the southern tip of the island that that just grew organically. The grid doesn’t extend to the far north of the island. But the grid does rule on most of the island. Continue reading “New York Grid”

Mary McKenzie Hogge McDougall

Mary McKenzie Hogge McDougall

Posted on by jack

This is one of those things where I am not sure if Mary McKenzie Hogge McDougall is a relation. I’ve previously written about my McKenzie/MacKenzie search including Colin of Ellsworth and his possible brother Malcolm (my great grandfather).

This one is more of a “Hail Mary”. I stumbled upon an abstract of a death certificate for Mary McDougull at FamilySearch. (A big “thank you” to those volunteer indexers.) The thing that got me interested was that it said she was born in Nova Scotia in 1854 and her parents were Alexander and Anna McKenzie. This could match as a potential sister of Malcolm McKenzie but may just be coincidence.

Show me the records

Continue reading “Mary McKenzie Hogge McDougall”

Republicans against sensible gun laws

Republicans against sensible gun laws

Posted on by jack

Once again, Republicans take a stand against sensible gun laws.

Previously this stance against was taken against a proposed sensible gun law which proposed closing the gun show loophole so buyers cannot evade background checks by buying a gun shows or online.

Just last month, the Senate defeated an amendment to a bill which would similarly close this loophole.

This week the President is suggesting an executive order which would do much the same thing. Republicans are again opposed. Perhaps not all but a number of politicians have spoken.

Why Bernie Sanders Matters

Why Bernie Sanders Matters

Posted on by jack

I just finished reading Why Bernie Sanders Matters by Harry Jaffe. I had requested an Advance Reading Copy (ARC) from Netgalley because it sounded interesting so I thought I would give it a try. I’m glad I did. I understand it is out today so the ARC gave me a few days head start.

If you have been following the presidential primaries, you know there are 3 candidates left in the democratic field. Bernie Sanders is one. It is seems like Hillary Clinton will be the nominee, but Bernie Sanders is presenting a serious challenge.

So, who is Bernie Sanders and why does he matter?

Continue reading “Why Bernie Sanders Matters”

Paris climate change agreement

Paris climate change agreement

Posted on by jack

I was thinking about climate change because it is much in the news these days. We have the Paris climate change agreement (21st United Nations Convention on Climate Change (COP21)).

I ran across an interesting site. The Yale Project on Climate Change Communication is tracking changes in American public beliefs about climate change and the role of human activity in climate change. The data are looked at a number of ways. It is well-worth your time to look around the site. Continue reading “Paris climate change agreement”