So I got kinda bored . . . and made up some avatars . . .

anyone want em? Take em. No problem. I am partial to John Adams. Because I'm an American history buff, love politics and law. And reside in Massachusetts . . .

1.) John Adams (1735–1826), born in Quincy, Massachusetts (in area then known as Braintree but now known as Quincy), leader in the Revolutionary group opposing the British, member of both First Continental Congress and Second Continental Congress, member of drafting cmte of Declaration of Independence, negotiator of Treaty of Paris ending American Revolutionary War, author of the Massachusetts constitution which was the first constitution in the nation and upon which our federal constitution was modelled, lawyer, legal scholar, our 2d president (1797–1801), schoolteacher, foreign diplomat (France, England, the Netherlands), vice president under Washington (1789–1797), writer/author


2.) Daniel Webster (1782-1852), born in New Hampshire, schoolteacher, constitutional law lawyer, scholar, New Hampshire U.S. Representative (1813–1817), Massachusetts U.S. Representative (1823–1827), Massachusetts U.S. Senator (1827–1841) and (1845–1850), Secretary of State (1841-1843) and (1850–1852), nationally known debater and orator


3.) This avator is a symbol of the back-alley illegal abortions performed (with a wire coathanger) prior to Roe v. Wade (1973), when many women became seriously ill, maimed, unable to conceive again, and w/ many deaths -- a symbol of days that may return if Roe is over-turned by new U.S. Supreme Court justice(s) appointed through George W. Bush


4.) No discrimination in our constitution, no constitutional amendment prohibiting same-sex marriage, "freedom to marry" and the pink triangle symbol


5.) no AIDS discrimination, no gay discrimination ribbon


I hope to see a few (or many?) Adams avatars. Anyone read David McCullough's "John Adams?" A great book.




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I'm looking for the Long Toes Thread! Where did it go?? So who else is bored??

I was just beginning to have some fun! Where is the Toes Thread??

edited to add larger version of pro-Roe v. Wade strike-out wire coathanger symbol . . . maybe you'd want to flip this button (reverse) it so that the strike-out is going in the opposite direction . . .







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which direction the line goes?

right top diagonally to left bottom . . . internationally, that is, like this:

Anyone disagree??????? If so, please share your source.


edited to add: Oh, sheesh, here's a Delaware .gov driver's license website that has both strike-out no U-turn sign and strike-out no right turn signs. Both of which have the red strike-out line going from left top diagonally to right bottom which is exactly the opposite way than my avatar strike-out wire coathanger . . . LOL . . . Oh, well, just flip the wire coathanger avatar around. And the larger strike-out wire coathanger button is "correct?" But getting back to your original query, does it really make a difference? heh.

http://www.dmv.de.gov/services/driver_services/drivers_license/dr_lic_exam.shtml

Now...how do I make one my avatar?

edit your profile, Avatar image. Here you will find many avatars to chose from . . . however, if you want your own avatar then you must be a DU donor and have the avatar on your own harddrive.

esp. the coat hanger one!

Some great ones there.

...that supposedly marred adams' legacy so badly?

I've honestly always wondered about this...usually given as the reason not to give him as much due as jefferson (yuck!).

It's often been stated that if not for France during our American Revolutionary War then we, "colonists," would never have won that war. There's honest truth to that statement. Jefferson had negotiated on our behalf for France's assistance against the British. And the French, eventually, came through. In the meantime, Jefferson (w/ his slave Sally Hemings) became enamored with the French court and its aristocracy while espousing the "liberties" and "freedoms" of individual non-royal Frenchmen. A dichotomy.

John Adams negotiated the end of the American Revolutionary War (Treaty of Paris, 1794) which also settled outstanding differences and land boundaries between England and the "colonies." The resultant improvement in American-English relations angered the revolutionary French who had fought and won the Revolutionary War (for America) and who remained enemies with the English.

Resentment in America increased against France during George Washington's administration (Adams was vice president).

Jefferson and other "Jeffersonian-Republicans" wore the French tri-colored hat ribbon while here in America, before and during times of potential war w/ France. The opposing political party at the time -- the Federalists -- called them the "traitorous French Party."

Jefferson and Adams were deeply polarized political enemies at this time shortly after our new nation's founding. A bitter and protracted election ensued for our nation's second presidency, Adams (Federalist Party) became president (1797-1801) and Jefferson ("Jeffersonian-Republican Party") our 2d vice president.

During the Adams administration an emissary was sent to France to negotiate an agreement. However, a bribe was requested by a French negotiator in order to enact the agreement (the "XYZ Affair"). Our diplomatic emissary balked. The American public became furious. Our nation grew to the brink of war against France, and President Adams popularity soared.

The "Jeffersonian-Republicans" including Vice President Jefferson wanted to go to war against France, and President Adams recognized that it would be disastrous for us to do so. Adams did not seek a congressional declaration of war nor did congress declare war against France.

Instead, Adams sought a middle ground.

History has shown that there was, at that time, rampant fear of the enemy (France, French) within America. French emigres in America numbered more than 25,000 (a large number at that time). Many were monied and powerful aristocrats who had fled the "terror" of France, but the majority were (upper class) refugees from the slave uprisings on the Caribbean islands. Philadelphia had numerous French-language newspapers. Across early America there were French booksellers, French schools, French boardinghouses, and other French establishments. There were also large numbers of disgruntled immigrant Irish who would be very willing to side with the French in any war against England thus America.

The Alien Act increased the number of years that an immigrant must qualify to become a naturalized citizen from five to fourteen years, as well as it granted the president the legal authority to expel any foreigner considered "dangerous." Despite these authorities and the rampant political ideology (vitriol) espoused and predicted by Jefferson and his followers at the time, Adams never invoked the act, thus never expelled any person u/ this act.

The Sedition Act, on the other hand, granted (later decided) unconstitutional authority to the president. Such "wartime" illegal authority, it may be said, rings similar to The U.S Patriot Act of 2001 that has yet to be decided by a court of law, or the ill-advised internment of Japanese-Americans which was upheld as constitutional (legal) by the U.S. Supreme Court in Korematsu v. United States and has never been directly over-ruled.

Adams (as our 2d president) recognized that our nation was ill-prepared, ill-equipped, and could not afford another war, particularly of Europe and/or against France. Adams did not ask for nor did he encourage congress for the passage of these congressional enactments; however, Adams did sign them into law. As such Adams owns them for what they are which is the most reprehensible acts signed into law at that time.

That being said, however, many "Jeffersonians" have never forgiven Adams signature on these acts.

In light of our nation's many transgressions during wartime, including but not limited to the internment of Japanese-Americans during WW2 , the various U.S. Supreme Court decisions upholding the government's military (and presidential) power against individuals during times of war both undeclared and declared, The U.S. Patriot Act of 2001, etc., it may be said that more than mere history is at issue in "Jeffersonians" protestations regarding Adams. It's politics brought forth to this day and/or ignorance of history and law.

Adams must be viewed in full light of all that he did as a Revolutionary Founding Father, constitutional lawyer who appeared several times before the U.S. Supreme Court and lesser courts championing and solidifying individual rights, statesman, writer, diplomat, originator of the Declaration of Independence, of our nation's first constitution (Massachusetts), and of our nation's federal constitution, as well as negotiator of the end of the Revolutionary War at the Paris Treaty as well as many other equal and greater activities too numerous to mention . . .

Adams stands tall as an American statesman and should be thus remembered.

between Bush and the Saudis? I'm not an expert on historical reference, nor on deals made between our govt an the Saudi Kingdom so I tend to see things in a big picture sort of way. The question might be: was Adams' dealings with those who brought war to our colonies the best thing for the future of our nation or was it just a practical convenience to keep the economic environment between the States and the Kingdom open for business?

I always thought Adams wouldn't actually have pushed for that legislation. It's disgusting how our schoolbooks are so pro-Jefferson and anti-Adams, even though half of them are done in Boston. Of course, none of my teachers ever were Jeff. fans, but it has an impact.

I remember reading in high school a private letter from Hamilton to Adams, warning him that these slaws would give a huge talking point to the Democratic-Republicans. (Isn't it a funny coincidence that Jeffersons party had two names, and now we have two political parties that often seem like one and go by the same, relatively meaningless, names.) Hamilton is another under-appreciated figure, funny since we was such a Wall Street-type. They were even talking about replacing him with Reagan on the $10 bill (yuck!).

Any movement to get John Adams on a bill--say, the $20? Andrew Jackson--now that guy is a Nazi (for real, genocidal tendencies and all). I think PC is usually a conservative strawman, but the Sacajawea gold coin clearly fits the bill--what did she ever do except serve as a translator for people who helped kill off a whole bunch of civilizations?

And what is it with the Southern politicians and their massive moral hypocrisy? Did the kinda-abolitionist plantation-Master Jefferson start this tradition or were they like that already? Is it just something in the air?

*Funny* that you should mention our schools history textbooks. Not too many folks know that most secondary public school history textbooks are written by three or four publishing houses in America. Being for-profit corporations, these textbook corporations attempt to publish only one textbook within each cycle to fulfill all schools needs.

Well? How to "accommodate" all of the states that purchase these textbooks? Simple. Moderate history, eliminate those areas where some states won't purchase the books, and hype those areas to get sales of these books.

(see for example: http://www.heartland.org/Article.cfm?artId=16053 . . . this is a rightwing website; however, it outlines the structure of school textbook publishing in America)

(and see for example: http://washingtontimes.com/commentary/20041125-085450-4571r.htm . . . although The Washington Times is a rightwing publication owned by "Reverend" Sun Myung Moon and this article is written by a person from the Heritage Foundation, see through the biased political hype to the structure of the textbook content, sales, purchases and publication by the textbook corporations.)

Since early colonial times the schism of the mercantile north versus the agrarian south grated against each other. Despite much of the colonies commonality against the British during the American Revolutionary War, it's divide shown through during the drafting of the federal constitution. Many misconstrue the schism labelling the moderate John Adams as a radical factor against Jefferson as the moderate over-riding Jefferson's deep radicalism on the other side, which culminated during the second presidential election. And, further widened during The Civil War.

Many of whom believe and carry that schism to this day.

All this despite Adams' excellent record and service to his country as a statesman from the very early American Revolutionary times, his unwavering patriotism, his lawyering skills, his successful foreign diplomatic endeavors, the authoring of many writings including the Massachusetts constitution, his work as a member of both the First Continental Congress and the Second Continental Congress, an originator of the Declaration of Independence, our federal constitution, the treaties he drafted, his service as our first vice president and our second president as well as father to our seventh president John Quincy Adams and his many patriotic writings and those after his retirement with his former political enemy Thomas Jefferson.

Simply put, John Adams has been successfully written out of our history books as a result thereof.

There have been attempts of late to write John Adams back into American history teachings. It could be a tough sell in light of who writes the public school history textbooks. However, several historians have been writing and publicizing John Adams recently in a non-textbook manner. Two of whom are John J. Ellis' "Founding Brothers - The Revolutionary Generation" and David McCullough's "John Adams."

I've often found it rather odd that Thomas Jefferson has been written into America's history books as a "Founding Father" with no light shown upon Jefferson's many serious political and personal dichotomies that detract from his "Founding Father" status. Whereas, John Adams was every bit and more involved in founding and solidifying this nation than was Jefferson; and as such Adams is not given the historical weight that Adams so justly deserves.

And I agree w/ you about Hamilton. A great statesman and brilliant financial mind, our country's first Secretary of the Treasury. Yet, he's another over-looked Founding Father. However, I find it odd that despite his "illegitimate" birth and his foreign birth, Hamilton gets more textbook coverage in grade schools than does Adams! So deep does that schism descend. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Hamilton

As an added afterthought, did you know that John Adams was the sole Founding Father who never owned slaves during his entire lifetime? http://theamericanrevolution.org/ipeople/jadams.asp


http://www.universalway.org/johnadams.html
(one person's view of Adams being overlooked in American history)



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"Jefferson and other 'Jeffersonian-Republicans' wore the French tri-colored hat ribbon while here in America, before and during times of potential war w/ France. The opposing political party at the time -- the Federalists -- called them the 'traitorous French Party.'"

Some things never change.

Oh, and BTW, Jefferson was sooo much cooler than Adams.

Braintree? That's brilliant. In the UK it's a soulless RW Exurb in fascist Essex. We should rename 'em Quincy as well! That would raise hell!

From http://www.americanpresidents.org/presidents/president.asp?PresidentNumber=2

-- John Adams is the first president whose son became president.
-- He died on July 4, 1826, the same day as his friend and political rival Thomas Jefferson.
-- During his administration, the Alien and Sedition Acts--designed to suppress political opposition--were passed.
-- John Adams' last words are reported to have been, "Thomas Jefferson still survives."

the geographic area of Massachusetts where John Adams was born was known at the time of John Adams birth (in 1735) as Braintree, Massachusetts (incorporated as a city in 1640). However, it separated from Braintree (in 1792) to form Quincy, Massachusetts. Quincy was not incorporated as a city by Massachusetts until 1888.

I did not mean to infer that Braintree, Massachusetts no longer exists, for Braintree, Massachusetts still exists today as an adjacent city to Quincy, Massachusetts.

http://www.quincyonline.com/history.shtml
http://www.scstest.com/quincy/profile.asp

I apologize for the misconception.

map of Quincy, MA: http://maps.yahoo.com/py/maps.py?Pyt=Tmap&addr=&csz=Quincy%2C+MA+&Get+Map=G

consider them 'borrowed'!