Text 30678, 103 rader
Skriven 2016-01-12 21:07:19 av Lee Lofaso (2:203/2)
  Kommentar till text 30556 av Maxim Babichev (2:5064/54.71)
Ärende: Hi ALL!
===============
Hello Maxim,

 MB> Ðöоброго времени ÑüуÑéок, David!

 MB> 10 Янв 16 07:23, ÑéÑ‹ пиÑüал(а) мне:

 MB>>> Ðöоброго времени ÑüуÑéок, All!
 MB>>> Hi, ALL!
 MB>>> How is people in Z1 and other zone?
 MB>>> How are you?
 MB>>> Regards
 MB>>> С уважением, Maxim
 DD>> Hi Maxim,
 DD>> This person in Z3 is just fine thanks, how are you in Z2?

 MB> Thank you. As far as I know the Fidonet losing popularity in z2, but to me
 MB> it is very interesting... And I want to get a node in the near future :)

 MB> ps. sty my bad english  :)

Not to worry.  My native tongue is Cajun.  As such, I speak
English as a second language.  Where I am from, we speak normal
and everybody else has an accent.  But tell that to tourists
who visit New Orleans.  We gawk at their strange costumes and
say "Who dat?" and they think we talk funny when we just try
to strike up a friendly conversation ...

The French taught us very well.  And then sold us out to the
Spanish.  Twice.  And then hoodwinked the Americans to buy
swampland with money they did not have in order to finance a
stupid war in Russia, which froze Napoleon's ass off and got
him sent into exile (for the first time).

This was really all our fault.

US President Thomas Jefferson had sent two emissaries to
buy the city of New Orleans from the French.  But the French
told the Americans that they no longer held the deed to the
city, as it had been sold to Spain.  However, France was
willing to cut a deal with the Americans by selling all other
properties, known as the Louisiana Purchase.  The problem was,
the US did not have any money to buy the property.  So the
US borrowed the money from Lloyd's of London.  That got the
Americans the property (which did not include New Orleans).
And then the US defaulted on the loan.

You understand?

Napoleon got the money to finance his military campaign
against Russia.  The US got the land it wanted by sending
settlers into the new lands purchased from France, while
the Spanish simply gave up on New Orleans as there were
just too many American cowboys making the place unsafe.

Go ahead.  Read the document.  The Louisiana Purchase
is a deed.  A bill of sale.  It does not include the city
of New Orleans, which remained a Spanish possession.

Meanwhile, the British got shafted, as the Americans
defaulted on the loan.  So the King of England decided
to have the British navy impound American merchant
ships so as to get their money back.  But John Paul
Jones was going to have none of that.  So a war was
started and the British decided to invade New Orleans.

That's right.  We started the War of 1812.  The US Congress
declared war on England.  It is the last time the US Congress
has ever declared war.  In WWII, FDR simply made a statement
to a joint session of the Congress that a state of war existed.
No formal declaration of war was ever enacted.  Not against
Japan.  Not against Germany.  Not against Italy.

Anyway, back to the subject at hand.
The intended British invasion of New Orleans.

That effort turned out very badly for the British.
It would have been bad enough for the British to have
lost the battle of New Orleans to General Andrew Jackson,
who was by his own right a brilliant military commander.
But the British lost to a common criminal, a pirate by
the name of Jean Lafitte, who had given his assistance
to General Jackson in defense of the city.

The American casualties were insignificant, the British
casualties massive and a total embarrassment to the Crown.

General Andrew Jackson went on to become President of
the United States.  Jean Lafitte rode off into the sunset
never to be seen again, after giving his ship away to his
half-brother Dominique Youx.  As for Dominique, he went
on to rescue Napoleon Bonaparte from exile, collecting
his reward, then returned to New Orleans, where he spent
the rest of his days chasing skirts.

Napoleon Bonaparte never made it to his Waterloo.
He was tragically killed by his wife, who had mistaken
him for a burglar.  A body double took his place on
the battlefield ...

--Lee

--- MesNews/1.08.05.00-gb
 * Origin: news://eljaco.se (2:203/2)