The post The Sleeping Habits of Cats: Olga’s Preferences by Christopher Bays appeared first on Catster. Copying over entire articles infringes on copyright laws. You may not be aware of it‚ but all of these articles were assigned‚ contracted and paid for‚ so they aren't considered public domain. However‚ we appreciate that you like the article and would love it if you continued sharing just the first paragraph of an article‚ then linking out to the rest of the piece on Catster.com. Hi‚ I’m Christopher! Read my introduction to learn more about me and my silly Russian Blue cat‚ Olga. Unlike many owners‚ I don’t wake up in the middle of the night because my cat is screaming for food or scratching the door. Olga can be annoying‚ stubborn‚ and aggressive but rarely interrupts my sleep. She likes to nap in different locations in my house‚ including a rocking chair in the spare bedroom‚ an ancient Lazy Boy recliner in the living room‚ and underneath the couch and bed. She doesn’t have a cat bed or preferred sleeping area‚ which is okay since she’s an indecisive feline. Most of the pet equipment I’ve purchased collects dust in storage because Olga isn’t interested in cat trees‚ cat beds‚ or scratching posts. I’m sorry‚ but this is my chair now. Where Should Cats Sleep? I’ve read several articles about the advantages of cat beds and why pets sleeping with you is risky‚ and I agree with most of their conclusions. However‚ I let Olga sleep at the foot of my bed. She doesn’t sleep there every night but usually sleeps somewhere in the bedroom. Although my life would be easier if she slept in a cat bed and napped in the same spot every day‚ I don’t want to force her or train her to use a bed if she’s happy with her unusual routine. Since she was a kitten‚ she’s always had trouble making up her mind. Stop moving. I’m trying to sleep. Why Can’t She Make Up Her Mind? She paces for a few minutes when she wants to jump in my lap‚ and she does the same thing when she winds down to go to sleep. She doesn’t eat all her food in one sitting; she eats a few bites‚ walks over to the window to see what’s happening in the neighborhood‚ and returns to her food bowl. She’ll do that several times before finishing. Indecision is part of her personality‚ and while some cat owners may be irritated or distracted when their pets circle around them‚ it amuses me. Sometimes‚ I want to yell‚ “Stop pacing and make a decision‚” but I refrain and accept her lack of confidence. I don’t like the way that Mockingbird is looking at me… Is Sleeping in the Same Bed as Your Pets Unsanitary? Sleeping in the same bed as your cat or dog is unsanitary‚ but you can minimize the risk of getting sick by washing your bedding at least once a week‚ keeping them groomed‚ and preventing them from sleeping on your face. If Olga runs to the litter box before jumping on my bed or lap‚ I say‚ “No‚” and gently push her off. She probably uses the bathroom when I’m asleep and jumps on the bed‚ but she stays near my feet‚ and as far as I know‚ I’ve never contracted an illness because of my cat’s sleeping habits. Olga doesn’t get in my face or bother me as long as I don’t oversleep‚ and since she doesn’t shed much‚ my covers aren’t covered with cat hair. Allowing a cat to sleep on the bed isn’t for everyone‚ but if you keep your bed and pet clean‚ it’s probably safer than sleeping in an airline’s cabin. The post The Sleeping Habits of Cats: Olga’s Preferences by Christopher Bays appeared first on Catster. Copying over entire articles infringes on copyright laws. You may not be aware of it‚ but all of these articles were assigned‚ contracted and paid for‚ so they aren't considered public domain. However‚ we appreciate that you like the article and would love it if you continued sharing just the first paragraph of an article‚ then linking out to the rest of the piece on Catster.com.

Book Recommendations Jo Walton Reads Jo Walton’s Reading List: January 2024 Only eight books this month‚ but all of them were good. By Jo Walton | Published on February 5‚ 2024 icon-comment 0 Share New Share Twitter Facebook Pinterest RSS Feed January started at home in Montreal‚ having a lovely time with friends visiting for New Year. Then there was a bury week in Chicago‚ and I flew from there to Florence on the tenth. So a truly excellent start to 2024‚ really. Everything I was reading this month was very long‚ which made me feel as if I’d been reading all the same things forever—normally I’ll be finishing something fairly regularly‚ but January I didn’t finish anything at all until the 22nd! I read only eight books‚ but some of them were enormous‚ and all of them were good. Middlemarch‚ George Eliot (1871) Re-read‚ for book club. It’s funny‚ really—this is a wonderful book‚ and a generous book‚ and one that is full of marvellous three-dimensional characters about whom I care a great deal‚ and yet all I want to do is take them out of their narrow world and give them another world where they can have more opportunities to be their best selves. And yet it is a book about how most of us do not do anything that visibly changes the world and yet we do have a powerful and lasting effect on it—that’s the theme‚ and no wonder I wrote a piece last time I read it pondering on how Eliot had a science-fictional sensibility. It’s clear-sighted and has a wide vision and it’s probably my favourite novel written in the nineteenth century. It’s a really fun read. And I want Dorothea to be a Steerswoman and Rosamund to live in the Culture. Bartlett’s Poems for Occasions‚ edited by Geoffrey O’Brien (2007) A large anthology of poetry organized by theme‚ containing a huge mix of poetry from all over the world and all through time‚ but with a concentration on things originally written in English in the last few centuries. I felt this mostly had good choices‚ and I loved the Chinese poems in almost every section. This is so long‚ and so full of poems‚ and I’ve been reading it for so long that it’s hard to assess. If you want a large comprehensive poetry anthology that will last you a while‚ then this is a pretty good one. Furious Heaven‚ Kate Elliott (2023) Sequel to Unconquerable Sun and it continues to be Alexander the Great in space. For me half the fun is seeing how she does the Alexander parallels and how she’s going to do different things‚ and the other half is liking the actual science-fictional worldbuilding. These things are not unrelated‚ as the worldbuilding is making the Alexander parallels work‚ but it’s interesting in its own right. This book is very long‚ and the prequel was not short‚ and I feel like I’ve spent a lot of time in this world recently. But now there’s rather a long wait until the third book‚ Lady Chaos‚ is going to answer my questions. The thing I most want to know is whether she’s going to go on into the Funeral Games period‚ because it could be really‚ really interesting if she does. But there’s a long way to go before we get there. Meanwhile this is excellent. Margot at War: Love and Betrayal in Downing Street‚ 1912-1916‚ Anne de Courcy (2014) I love Anne de Courcy‚ and she brings so much to biography. She was constantly quoting other people about the major world events happening around her protagonists and giving other angles on them‚ from letters and diaries of people you wouldn’t ordinarily hear from in a book like this‚ like a girl on holiday in Cowes the week WWI broke out‚ and the Fabian Beatrice Webb. Margot Asquith was married to the prime minister during the first half of World War I‚ and he was having a chaste but obsessive affair with his daughter’s friend Venetia Stanley‚ writing her multiple letters every day. De Courcy brings clear-eyed scrutiny to the whole situation and all the people involved‚ and a level of detail that almost feels like knowing them all personally. It’s a world that doesn’t exist anymore‚ and good riddance too‚ but it’s a fascinating place to visit like this. I Promessi Sposi (The Betrothed)‚ Alexander Manzoni(1827) Hilarious historical romp originally written in Italian. I read it as part of the Harvard Shelf. This book has larger-than-life characters‚ evil villains‚ repentant villains‚ the Black Death‚ True Love‚ a saintly friar‚ a wicked nun‚ a saint‚ bread riots‚ narrow escapes‚ a virtuous maiden‚ a cowardly curate‚ a heroic weaver‚ beautiful descriptions of the Italian countryside‚ etc. You aren’t supposed to take it too seriously‚ and indeed it is delightful but not in the least deep. It’s long‚ but it keeps moving at a good clip‚ except on a couple of occasions where it literally stops to show you its research—the actual documents and proclamations of the day!Hilarious historical romp originally written in Italian. I read it as part of the Harvard Shelf. This book has larger-than-life characters‚ evil villains‚ repentant villains‚ the Black Death‚ True Love‚ a saintly friar‚ a wicked nun‚ a saint‚ bread riots‚ narrow escapes‚ a virtuous maiden‚ a cowardly curate‚ a heroic weaver‚ beautiful descriptions of the Italian countryside‚ etc. You aren’t supposed to take it too seriously‚ and indeed it is delightful but not in the least deep. It’s long‚ but it keeps moving at a good clip‚ except on a couple of occasions where it literally stops to show you its research—the actual documents and proclamations of the day! The Monkey and Other Stories‚ Miklos Banffy (1947‚ trans. 2021) Excellent collection of short stories by Hungarian writer Banffy‚ translated by Thomas Sneddon. To my surprise some of them (and some of the best of them) were historical short fiction‚ while others were more like the novels of his I’ve read‚ set in Europe (mostly Hungary) in the first half of the twentieth century. Almost all of them are good stories and memorable. I just keep being more and more impressed with Banffy the more I read. Demon Daughter‚ Lois McMaster Bujold (2024) Another Penric and Desdemona novella! I can’t exactly say this is a story where nothing bad happens‚ but it’s close. You probably don’t want to read it without having read the other eleven Pen and Des stories‚ but it might stand alone reasonably well‚ Bujold is good at that. I can’t imagine anyone else taking something horrific like demonic possession and making it so domesticated. I don’t think I can say anything about it without spoilers. Well‚ I loved reading this‚ I’ll read any other ones as soon as they pop up. (It was also nice to read something short that I could get through fast‚ as I am still in the middle of some very long books.) The Only Purple House in Town‚ Ann Aguirre (2023) So‚ this is a feel-good romance set in a universe where witches came out a few years ago and shapeshifters and fae are also around‚ but it’s basically this world. I’m not usually keen on urban fantasy because I find the worldbuilding annoying‚ but this was sufficiently well done that it worked for me. It helped that the love interest is a were-hawk‚ and that was really well done in terms of who he is and how that works. Aguirre is one of those writers who writes sentences that make me want to read the next sentence and chapters that make me want to read the next chapter‚ so I gobbled this up.So‚ this is a feel-good romance set in a universe where witches came out a few years ago and shapeshifters and fae are also around‚ but it’s basically this world. I’m not usually keen on urban fantasy because I find the worldbuilding annoying‚ but this was sufficiently well done that it worked for me. It helped that the love interest is a were-hawk‚ and that was really well done in terms of who he is and how that works. Aguirre is one of those writers who writes sentences that make me want to read the next sentence and chapters that make me want to read the next chapter‚ so I gobbled this up. This is almost a gothic‚ because a girl inherits a house‚ but it’s much heavier on the friend group than on the weird‚ which is odd when there are actual paranormal people around. There’s a woman called Iris whose family are psychic vampires but she doesn’t seem to have any abilities‚ and she inherits a house from her great aunt and lives there with a diverse and assorted group of people (lots of representation‚ none of it feeling token) who become found family‚ and of course her powers eventually develop too. It’s a very warm and cuddly book‚ in which there’s never a moment’s doubt as to what will happen but you can’t put it down anyway. [end-mark] The post Jo Walton’s Reading List: January 2024 appeared first on Reactor.

Exploring the world and crafting the best weapons in the game fall short when you can’t find the last switch on a dungeon. Here is how to solve the Mistbury Catacombs puzzle in Enshrouded. Enshrouded: How to solve Mistbury Catacombs puzzle If you have been following the main quests in Enshrodued‚ Mistbury Catacombs is probably the first dungeon you will visit during your adventures across Embervale. It is located northeast of the Springlands Ancient Spire and directly north of the Scavenger Camp‚ where you collected the Scavenger Matron Head. Image: PC Invasion This dungeon will have you activate four different switches to get to its reward. You will have to face lesser shroud monsters‚ so bring some decent weaponry. You will also encounter several locked doors that you can open if you craft lockpicks (which will require Metal Scraps). If you are short of those‚ either visit the Scavenger Camp south of Mistbury Catacombs or just use your Felling Axe to destroy them (j...

Palworld Players complain about the lack of Palbox space when they need to stockpile Pals for the Pal essence Condenser. This is a worthy complaint‚ but the Viewing Cages will come to your rescue. Viewing Cages provide extra Pal storage in Palworld When players want to promote their Pals all the way to four stars through the Pal Essence Condenser‚ they start to see that despite the 16 boxes of Pal storage‚ they need even more. To promote a Pal to four stars‚ they need 64 extra Pals of that species‚ which takes up a considerable amount of space. This combined with a potential breeding strategy‚ a player may find themselves out of storage pretty soon. Screenshot: PC Invasion Conventional methods of freeing Pals from the Palbox are either by butchering them‚ assigning them to a Base‚ or‚ ironically‚ condensing them. Naturally‚ you may not want to butcher other Pals for the sake of the dozens of Chikipis you need to create the Ultimate Egg Boi. Using the Viewing Cages allevi...

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—A recent interview with the leader of an immigration reform organization that the Southern Poverty Law Center has branded a “hate group” potentially shines new light on how the SPLC allegedly uses its “hate” accusations as a tactical political weapon. Throughout the 2016 presidential election‚ the Southern Poverty Law Center‚ a 501(c)(3) nonprofit entity‚ condemned candidate Donald Trump for his supposed ties to “far-right extremists.” The following year‚ an immigration group helped report this to the IRS‚ claiming the SPLC had violated its tax-exempt status by engaging in political activity against Trump‚ and the SPLC appears to have responded by adding that group to its “hate map” in what the immigration group calls an act of retaliation. “It was direct retaliation‚” Dan Stein‚ president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform‚ or FAIR‚ and chairman of the board of directors of its affiliated legal organization‚ the Immigration Reform Law Institute‚ told The Daily Signal in an interview this week. In November 2016‚ the Immigration Reform Law Institute announced that it would represent FAIR in an official complaint to the IRS that claimed the SPLC had violated its tax-exempt status. FAIR‚ founded in 1979 by self-declared liberals‚ conservatives‚ and moderates as an organization aimed at opening debate on immigration issues‚ became an SPLC target in 2007‚ when the center branded it an “anti-immigrant hate group.” The SPLC had kept the FAIR-affiliated Immigration Reform Law Institute off the list‚ however. The 2015 list of “hate groups‚” published in February 2016‚ also included FAIR but not the institute. The 2016 “hate group” list‚ released in February 2017‚ featured the institute for the first time—just months after it announced it would file the complaint. FAIR then filed its IRS complaint with the Immigration Reform Law Institute’s help in April 2017. In 2018‚ the SPLC launched a 501(c)(4) organization that can legally participate in election-related activities‚ SPLC Action. “The SPLC went way over the line in this last election‚” Stein said at the time in a statement on the filing. “It publicly engaged in deep‚ deliberate‚ and unlawful participation during the 2016 presidential election cycle‚ flagrantly violating its nonprofit tax status.” FAIR’s complaint stretched to 38 pages‚ citing numerous examples of SPLC’s articles on Trump. “The SPLC used politically charged language in its publications and statements as well as linked publications in a blatant effort to stir opposition for prospective Republican presidential candidates and the eventual Republican nominee and influence the electoral decisions of voters nationwide‚” the complaint stated. It presented “overt smears that sought to tie President Trump to ‘white supremacists‚’ nationalists‚ and antigovernment conspiracists.” “Clearly‚ the primary goal of the SPLC in 2016 was to ensure that Donald J. Trump was not elected president‚” Stein said. “Any honest examination of this record can only lead to the conclusion that the SPLC was engaged in ongoing prohibited political activity.” SPLC_ComplaintDownload The SPLC did not respond to The Daily Signal’s request for comment on the IRS complaint and on the decision to add the Immigration Reform Law Institute to the “hate map.” The IRS declined to comment on the complaint‚ saying that federal law precludes any employee from commenting on tax statuses. “Under the federal tax law‚ federal employees cannot disclose tax return information‚ including whether there’s an investigation or not‚” Anthony Burke‚ public affairs specialist at the IRS‚ told The Daily Signal in a phone interview. Stein described the SPLC adding the institute to the “hate map” as a “retaliatory strike.” He noted that he founded the institute in 1986 as the law institute affiliated with FAIR. “It had been around 20 years before it got labeled” by the SPLC. As I wrote in my book “Making Hate Pay: The Corruption of the Southern Poverty Law Center‚” the SPLC weaponized the program it used to bankrupt KKK groups in the 1980s‚ turning it against mainstream conservative and Christian organizations. Its “hate map” suggests conservatives and Christians are similar to the Klan by listing mainstream organizations alongside largely defunct KKK groups. The “hate map” inspired a terrorist attack at the Family Research Council in 2012. FAIR‚ which consciously appealed to Republicans‚ Democrats‚ and moderates‚ became an early mainstream target of the SPLC back in 2007. “We were really the first victim of this whole scam‚” Stein told The Daily Signal. Although FAIR had been around since 1979‚ Stein claims the SPLC decided to put FAIR on the “hate map” in retaliation for the failure of the 2007 immigration bill during the George W. Bush administration. “FAIR took a lot of blame in the Left’s eyes for the failure of that bill‚” he said. The SPLC’s 2007 announcement that it had branded FAIR an “anti-immigrant hate group” “seemed totally retaliatory in our view.” Stein said the SPLC and others blamed FAIR for “the loss of a bill they thought would be a massive extinction event for the Republican Party.” He noted that liberals had criticized the SPLC at the time‚ and the group was seeking to make itself relevant. “Civil rights groups were saying that SPLC was a vacuum cleaner‚ sucking up all the money and doing nothing‚” Stein said. “They were really flailing around‚ looking for a way to maintain relevance and prove that they had some purpose in this world.” “FAIR is the turning point of when the SPLC became the political attack dog for the radical Left and not just a broad consensus civil rights organization‚” he added. “It turned into party apparatchiks who have been terribly destructive to the consensus-building‚ the public square.” “SPLC has been the spearhead behind the destruction of the middle ground‚” Stein said. The SPLC’s attacks on FAIR focus a great deal on John Tanton‚ a former leader of the Sierra Club and Planned Parenthood in Michigan who supported abortion in part because he prioritized environmental conservation and considered overpopulation a threat to preserving the environment. He grew to oppose immigration for these reasons and established FAIR as an organization to bring liberals and conservatives together to debate the issue. Of the five initial board members of the organization‚ he described only one as conservative and described himself and another board member as centrist and the other two as liberal. FAIR’s board of directors has included financier Warren Buffett and former Democratic Sen. Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota. Stein did not defend Tanton’s attacks on Roman Catholics and Hispanics‚ which became public after the release of a notorious 1986 memo. Stein noted that the memo did not represent an official FAIR position‚ and many members condemned it at the time. “In evaluating how to characterize an organization‚ what is fair game is what the organization itself says and stands for‚ not the private comments or interests of individual board members or funders‚” Stein told The Daily Signal. The SPLC also attacked FAIR for receiving grants from the Pioneer Fund‚ a foundation that funded eugenics research aiming to prove the superiority of certain races. Stein told The Daily Signal that the foundation “had funded tons of peer-reviewed scientific research on genetics and inherited characteristics through a variety of highly respected academic institutions‚ including a well-regarded study through Tel Aviv University and a twins study through the University of Michigan.” “At no time did they ever require us to participate in activities that were inconsistent with our stated mission‚” Stein added. “Moreover‚ FAIR had not received any funding from that foundation for over 14 years” when the SPLC attacked the federation. “FAIR opposes policies based on favoritism toward‚ or discrimination against‚ any person based on race‚ color‚ religion‚ or gender‚” the mission statement reads‚ in part. “Virtually all the attacks of any consequence unleashed by the SPLC in 2007 were based on material that was at least 15 years old‚” Stein told The Daily Signal. “What prompted them to list us when they did has nothing to do with 95% of the things they were complaining about. Those things were out in the public square long before that.” Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the url or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post ‘DIRECT RETALIATION’: SPLC Added Immigration Group to ‘Hate Map’ After It Reported SPLC’s Attacks on Trump to IRS appeared first on The Daily Signal.

The Reconstruction Acts of 1867 entirely upended society in the American South‚ enfranchising Black men across the states of the former Confederacy and placing those states (except Tennessee) under the authority of the U.S. military. The acts created five military districts in the South‚ requiring new state constitutions to be drafted and the 14th Amendment ratified. While Black Southerners rejoiced at their citizenship status and set about exercising their newly won rights‚ federal occupation and Black suffrage was widely opposed by the region’s White population. Seeing Blacks casting ballots‚ negotiating labor contracts‚ and bearing arms panicked many former slaveowners. But even while residents branded federal occupation as “bayonet rule‚” they were quick to seek U.S. troop intervention when feeling threatened by freedmen engaging in politics. In 1867‚ Whites in St. Landry Parish‚ La.‚ were rattled by the emergence of a well-regulated Black militia‚ which engaged in public drills‚ marches‚ assorted military pageantry and‚ perhaps most important‚ guarded Republican meetings from local belligerents (the Ku Klux Klan‚ etc.) and safely escorted Republican voters to the polls for elections. No doubt‚ St. Landry’s White citizens wouldn’t have resisted a return to the antebellum status quo‚ with Black Southerners essentially returned to a state of bondage—something they believed was unattainable as long as a Black militia remained mobilized. Winfield Scott Hancock spent nearly 40 years in the U.S. Army and also ran for president in 1880. Serving as commander of the Fifth Military District‚ which consisted of Louisiana and Texas‚ was Civil War hero Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock. In December 1867‚ planters in St. Landry petitioned Hancock to send them an entire company of U.S. Cavalry “under the command of a prudent and discreet officer.” White Democrats across Louisiana railed against federal occupation in newspapers and in public speeches‚ but they nonetheless fully recognized that most U.S. soldiers harbored only a tepid commitment to Reconstruction. In their petition‚ the planters claimed they had been satisfied with their previous post commander‚ Captain William W. Webb. Men like Webb—and White officers in general—had reservations about occupying what they considered domestic soil populated by American citizens. Few were willing to involve themselves in strife between the parties‚ even when clashes would turn violent and deadly. The petition below‚ signed by hundreds of local citizens‚ was just one of dozens sent to Hancock in the fall of 1867.      Parish of St. Landry‚ LAOpelousas‚ December 27‚ 1867 Sir: The undersigned citizens…impressed with the importance and necessity of the pacific influence of a small organized military force in our midst‚ respectfully request the commanding General to station at this place‚ a Company of U.S. Cavalry‚ under the command of a prudent and discreet officer. During the time that Capt. W.W. Webb of Co. E. 4th U.S. Cavalry‚ was stationed at Opelousas‚ there were no disturbances; quiet reigned everywhere‚ and the community felt a sense of perfect security. [He] was eminently qualified for his positions. His firmness‚ justice and discretion‚ to say nothing of his affable manners‚ and conciliatory deportment‚ rendered him generally acceptable‚ and gave him a commanding influence‚ which he used for the promotion of the general good. When‚ several weeks ago‚ Gen. [Joseph A.] Mower‚ then commanding‚ thought proper to remove Capt. Webb’s command…our citizens respectfully protested‚ in a written memorial‚ of which no notice seems‚ so far‚ to have been taken… In point of numbers‚ this is the most important rural population in the State. This Parish alone has registered about five thousand voters; and there are probably one thousand more male adults‚ who could not‚ or were not permitted to register. This large population is sufficiently compact to admit of easy and rapid concentration. It is about equally divided between the two races‚ who‚ under the influence of artful demagogues and designing men‚ are daily placed in positions of more decided antagonism. The failure of the crops of the past year‚ and the great difficulty of engaging situations for the future‚ have rendered the colored population restless‚ dissatisfied and uneasy. They are taught to believe‚ by unscrupulous leaders‚ that great injustice is done to them‚ and that the whites are their enemies. They are becoming more idle and vagrant under these influences‚ and consequently less obedient to the law. Larceny is becoming epidemic among them….They are just now in that condition when a few incendiary leaders could excite them to deeds of violence and great outrage. This is what we wish to avoid; and we think we are not mistaken in the remedy we suggest. Such is the general respect for the authority of the U.S. Government‚ particularly as administered by the able and patriotic Commander of the Fifth Military District‚ that the mere presence of a Company of U.S. Cavalry‚ under a proper officer‚ would impart a…feeling of security‚ and effectually prevent the outbreak of public disturbance.     We beg leave to assure [you]…that it is not from a mere sense of personal fear‚ as to the result of such an outbreak…that we invoke the presence of the military arm of the Government; but it is because we think the general interests of the Parish‚ the State‚ and the nation‚ would…be materially injured by any collision between the races….           In forwarding the petition to Hancock‚ the local Freedmen’s Bureau agent‚ Oscar H. Violet‚ insisted there was no cause for alarm and that the “armed assemblages” of freedpeople were peaceable and used their arms to withstand coercion into unfair labor contracts. Violet acknowledged the validity of the Black militia but nevertheless urged Hancock to dispatch a cavalry unit without delay. He complied‚ and the troopers began disarming and demobilizing the militia after arriving. In February 1868‚ this force‚ accompanied by Violet‚ disrupted a meeting of the Opelousas Republican Club‚ proclaiming it illegal and ordering the freedpeople in attendance to disarm. Chafing at “garrison duty‚” the unit’s commander was vocal in opposition to armed meetings of freedpeople and ordered them to cease. Black Republicans could no longer carry their arms in public. The local Black militia had been so weakened‚ in fact‚ it prompted one of the most horrific massacres in U.S. history. In September 1868‚ the beating of a local freedman’s school teacher by White assailants spiraled into a clash between Black militiamen and St. Landry citizens. Disarmed and demobilized‚ with no federal troops willing to come to their aid‚ the militiamen were simply outgunned. White extremists‚ some of whom even had signed the 1867 petition‚ combed the parish capturing or killing any freedperson unfortunate enough to cross their path. In what was known as the Opelousas Massacre‚ 21 captured militiamen were marched to a mass grave in a nearby woods and killed by firing squad‚ spawning weeks of racial violence and the slaying of an estimated 200 freedmen. In many ways‚ the 1867 petition and demobilization of St. Landry’s Black militia had made that possible. J. Jacob Calhoun is a UVa. Ph.D. candidate. This article originally appeared in the Spring 2024 issue of America’s Civil War magazine.

We present you funny dog posts from Jan 28 to Feb 03 that will paws-itively make you through the rest of the week!

Tell Me the Border Crisis Is a Problem for Biden's Re-Election Without Telling Me the Border Crisis Is a Problem

Senate Releases Border Amnesty Bill on Sunday Night