text:
Talk:Gohonzon

This article needs
to be expanded to include the view of other schools of Nichiren Buddhism such as Nichiren Shu. Also, honzon and gohonzon are used by Japanese Buddhist schools other than Nichiren Buddhism, though they do not place the importance on them that Nichiren Buddhists do. Also should have a picture of an example of this artifact, if a non-copyvio version can be found. I'll see if I can take a picture of one, as I know several Nichiren Buddhists of various denominations. In any event, tagging for POV check. HyperZonktalk 19:35, Feb 20, 2005 (UTC)

Hello. I agree with you that the Gohonzon page should include information on the Gohonzons of Nichiren Shoshu, Nichiren Shu, and other Gohonzons used by Japanese Buddhists. I really don't kow anything about "non-SGI" Gohonzons to be honest, so please feel free to add to what I have already, or change what you feel might be to biased towards the SGI. Also, for the time being, if it helps, I'll be more than happy to make a little note on the bottom of the page explaining this is information on the Gohonzon used by Soka Gakkai and that there are other Gohonzons that exist. Contributed by Butsushin, recovered from history.

Outside Japan the term "Gohonzon" refers to the Gohonzon of Nichiren, however in Japan any object of worship at a temple is called "gohonzon" and similarly taking photos, touching, and so forth is prohibited. (User: Cycling Nut aka John Thiel, member of SGI since 1988 and former US expat having lived in Japan for 7 years). —Preceding unsigned comment added by CyclingNut (talk • contribs) 03:21, 27 December 2009 (UTC)

The image
I added an image from Commons in June 2012, because for an article dicussing such a visual object, an image is pretty essential. Subsequently the use of the image was questioned on the basis that some schools prohibit its reproduction. I am sorry if its inclusion gives offence to anyone, but would like to point out that per WP:NOTCENSORED the primary test for contentious content is relevance to the article, not potential objectionableness. The policy is quite clear on this point: Any rules that forbid members of a given organization, fraternity, or religion to show a name or image do not apply to Wikipedia because Wikipedia is not a member of those organizations. Mcewan (talk) 22:29, 27 June 2012 (UTC)

 * Okay I have read the policy you've referenced, and have to agree that there's no grounds to remove image based on the policies of some of the schools.
 * That having been said I suggest that it would be important to move the information in the Article - that certain schools (i.e. Sōka Gakkai, Nichiren Shōshū etc.) discourage/do not allow images to be taken/displayed - to it's own sub-section in the Handling of the Gohonzon section as it's a major point in some schools. Mollari08 (talk) 19:35, 6 July 2012 (UTC)
 * Nice work. I agree that this is useful information. Thanks Mcewan (talk) 18:30, 7 July 2012 (UTC)

I reinserted the image of the Gohonzon as it is available in commons. Its not an image of a Gohonzon issued by organisations regarding it to be disrespectful to show such image. --Catflap08 (talk) 18:54, 15 August 2012 (UTC)

I don't believe Nichiren Shu calls it a "Gohonzon" but rather "O'Honzon", so I would disagree with the "slant" claim above. Nichiren Shu would rather have relevance on a page titled "O'Honzon". — Preceding unsigned comment added by Bob the Lunatic (talk • contribs) 12:35, 20 December 2012 (UTC)
 * Actually, Nichiren Shu and all of the other sects with an English presence call their Object of Worship the Gohonzon. I would point to a google word search of the Nichiren Shu official web page (www.nichiren-shu.org) for confirmation. I'm not sure where the "O'Honzon" came from. The pictorial Gohonzon, which is pictured in the article, is called a "Omandala (Go)Honzon", as Nichiren Shu also uses statues as their Object of Worship (to Nichiren Shu, both the pictorial Gohonzon and the statue Gohonzon represent the same thing). So I don't think a separate article is necessary. At most, perhaps an additional section that explains Nichiren Shu's theology behind the Gohonzon, which is somewhat different from either SGI or Nichiren Shoshu interpretation, would address these concerns. 60.229.3.82 (talk) 06:03, 3 January 2013 (UTC)

Moved page
I've taken the liberty of moving the page to "Gohonzon (Nichiren Buddhism)" to denote the difference between a "Honzon", the general term for any Buddhist image in a home or temple (of which an article exists already), and the "Gohonzon" of Nichiren Buddhism. The article seems to take a Nichiren Buddhist point of view anyway. Tktru (talk) 00:23, 18 June 2014 (UTC)

 * @Tktru, my response is very late, I'm afraid. I agree with your concern although I don't believe the solution is to create another article.  Rather, I think the solution is to substantiate the editors' claims that any Buddhist image is a Go-honzon.  This is a claim I have never seen in any of my readings.
 * BrandenburgG (talk) 22:46, 15 April 2016 (UTC)

Way too late a response, but substantiating that the term "honzon" refers to any Buddhist image held as the principal image of a temple is as easy as opening a goddamned Japanese-English dictionary. The sheer pedantry of wiki editors is frustrating sometimes. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 60.71.224.156 (talk) 06:00, 28 March 2020 (UTC)

Lack of citations
Many of the sections of this article are lacking in citations and might consist of OR. I will mark several places where citations are sorely needed. BrandenburgG (talk) 17:37, 15 April 2016 (UTC)

 * The more I read the article the more I see how much work it needs. Unless citations are provided this article, important topic though it is, must be seen as primarily original research.  In particular I am concerned that the definition of the Gohonzon found in dictionaries I've consulted all refer to the application to Nichiren Buddhism.  The prior editors argue that all Japanese religions, as well as schools outside of Japan, have a Gohonzon.  This constitutes WP:OR and WP:POV until citations can be provided.
 * BrandenburgG (talk) 22:42, 15 April 2016 (UTC)

 * @Tokuburai, you stated earlier this month "A Gohonzon, not just Honzon itself is completely universal to all Japanese Buddhist sects regardless of denomination. The word is used in many Japanese langa...)" [the rest of the citation was cut off]. I am sure you are well-informed on this matter but I think this article which would be much improved if you could provide sources (preferably English sources) to substantiate this claim.  My quick searches on Google and Google Books did not return sources to substantiate your claim, especially in the earlier pages of returns.
 * BrandenburgG (talk) 22:59, 15 April 2016 (UTC)

@Tokuburai, I really would like to work together with you to improve this article. It is my experience that articles are much better when there is collaboration, and differences in POV come together with dialogue. Let's get started soon! BrandenburgG (talk) 20:24, 18 April 2016 (UTC)

Restructuring of article to follow sources
After waiting for a few days I made some edits to make the article conform with sources. Until citations are added to prove otherwise, our priority should be with research and not unsubstantiated opinions. Listed on top are sections that deal with the Gohonzon and Nichiren Buddhism. Further down are the sections that are not substantiated by sources, mostly opinions that the term "Gohonzon" should be applied to any object of devotion. BrandenburgG (talk) 17:05, 19 April 2016 (UTC)

I want to take a break to give others a chance to leave feedback. There are other statements in the article that refer to Nichiren Buddhism and should be moved to the Nichiren Buddhism section. Although I added a couple of citations (dictionary.com and Causton), the article is still very weak, lacking in RS, and therefore OR. It will take a lot of work to bring it to an acceptable level.

I would like to suggest that we start from the top, paragraph by paragraph, to provide readers with RSs. BrandenburgG (talk) 17:31, 19 April 2016 (UTC)

Need for arbitration?
@2605:e000:218a:2d00:4837:92d8:a447:c3b4 and @tokuburai. The last thing I need is an edit war. I want to work together with you, even though we may have two different perspectives on the definition of the Gohonzon, to create a trusted article.

But in this endeavor we have to follow WP guidelines. You may be Ja-ranese, you may be an expert as a butsudan store owner, you may even be right. But according to WP guidelines your statements must be backed with reliable sources or they remain just "original research." We have to follow the scholarship.

In a quick search about the Gohonzon on Google Books (https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&hl=en&q=Gohonzon) every single reference supports the definition of the Gohonzon on www.dictionary.com, that it is an object in Nichiren Buddhism. I tracked 7 pages of references without seeing one to support your contention.

I did a similar search on Google Scholar (https://scholar.google.com/scholar?start=0&q=gohonzon&hl=en&as_sdt=0,33) and I perused four pages of titles (about 40 sources). Out of the 40 there were 2 that took your POV and 38 that limited their discussion to Nichiren-scrolls. From the preponderance of research, the majority of the article and real estate should refer to the Gohonzon in Nichiren schools and a much smaller footprint to the more generic understanding of the Gohonzon as an object of devotion for any/all denominations.

The Wikipedia guidelines should supersede your personal opinions, even though you may have unique skills through your profession.

I would like to ask you to acknowledge these points so we can work together to improve what is now a very shaky article. If you disagree I would like to suggest that we go to arbitration for the wisdom of the community. BrandenburgG (talk) 23:23, 20 April 2016 (UTC)

Priority real estate for statements backed by RS
I am calling on all editors interested in improving this page to find reliable sources to back up the many statements here that remain unsupported.

In the interim I would like to give priority in the lede to statements supported by RS. I would like to move unsupported statements to the bottom of the article. BrandenburgG (talk) 09:38, 27 April 2016 (UTC)

 * @2605:e000:218a:2d00:39a5:12dc:e772:9ce0, "https://www.tofugu.com/japan/omamori-japanese-charms/" is the flimsiest of sources to claim that your preferred definition of the gohonzon is more basic than the Nichiren calligraphy (regardless of Nichiren school). For example, a simple search on "gohonzon" on Bing (https://www.bing.com/search?q=gohonzon&qs=PF&cvid=68f670c8a0844c72b26b0691c2e0cbf2&pq=gohonzon&first=1&FORM=PERE) brings back more than a dozen pages of references to the gohonzon in the Nichiren tradition, without the tofugu source popping up.

 * I am rewriting this section. I am also disappointed that you have not made any comments on this Talk page where the matter can be discussed civilly.

 * If need be I believe we should go to arbitration about the matter.
 * BrandenburgG (talk) 22:36, 26 June 2016 (UTC)

Strong objections
@2605:E000:218A:2D00:247D:DF18:30EA:B3F32605:E000:218A:2D00:247D:DF18:30EA:B3F3. I placed messages in the Talk Page of your User Pages. I want to pull you into participating in the Talk Page of the Gohonzon article. I have been opening since April 2016 sections to open dialogue with you. You have not accepted these invitations. I am assuming that you are new editors and just might not be aware of this valuable feature of WP editing.

You have both made radical changes and reverts without explaining your rational in Talk page discussions. Can we agree that this is not a productive way to move forward in the future?

Yesterday, in a simple click, you reverted many hours of my work. I would hope in the future you will recognize the sincerity and efforts of your fellow editors and extend proper courtesies when you want to make a major change.

I am glad that you provided some reliable sources. This is a good start. Without RS the article will still be tagged as "stub class" or "original research." Can we agree to work together to improve the quality of the article?

Our main dispute, I believe, is how to open the article. You contend that the cultural understanding of the Gohonzon in Japan should start the article; I believe that we should follow the common use of the word in English-language reliable sources. The lede in WP should summarize and follow the content of the rest of the article. As you left it, the lede does not reflect the content of the article.

We should talk about this at length in the Talk page and seek guidance from WP protocols. Eventually we can call in other editors through various arbitration boards to seek a resolution.

In the meanwhile, however, there is so much work to do on the rest of the article so I plan to focus my efforts there and try to resolve our dispute over time.

BrandenburgG (talk) 11:06, 29 June 2016 (UTC)

Categorization scheme
I believe the paragraphs on Shingon and Pure Land are so small (especially in comparison to the Nichiren section) that it is best to place them as subsections under an umbrella section of "In Non-Nichiren" BrandenburgG (talk) 18:07, 5 July 2016 (UTC)

History section
There is a lot of content in the History section that would fit better in the Description section. I would like to work on this and would appreciate help. Thank you.BrandenburgG (talk) 11:08, 6 July 2016 (UTC)

 * I added more historical content about the inscription of early Gohonzon and writings. I still want to move content from the history subsection to more appropriate subsections.BrandenburgG (talk) 21:49, 7 July 2016 (UTC)

Really, really, really needs work!
This article just has no flow. In the "History" section are things that belong in "Description." I have no idea what "Pious beliefs concerning the origin of mandalas and devotional statues" means. What are pious beliefs? (BTW, in the SG at least--arguably in Nichiren Buddhism as a whole--, there is no sense of pious, sacred, holy, etc.) When talking about "origin" doesn't that mean "History"? If there is a section about "History" and "Description," there really should be a section about "Significance". The article suffers from collectivism--trying to make all types of beliefs fit under one umbrella. Wouldn't it be better to have subsections for Nichiren Shoshu, Nichiren Shu, Soka Gakkai so their respective viewpoints can be authentically described without artificially squeezing them under the same umbrella? Ugh!!!! BrandenburgG (talk) 15:55, 8 July 2016 (UTC)

 * @tokuburai, you added two sources to the lead of this article. Both do not support what you claim they support: "while in mainstream Japanese culture and religious lexicon, a Go-Honzon refers to any tangible object of devotion within the scope of Buddhism in Japan .  I checked this source and found out that it only translates a gohonzon as "an object of worship." There is nothing in this source that discusses ""mainstream Japanese culture," "religious lexicon," or "within the scope of Buddhism.  Your contribution here is highly problematic.

 * Then you use pp. 153 and 161 of the Nakamaka book (https://books.google.com/books?id=mOArBgAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=Hirochika+Nakamaki&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjsu4zzjsjTAhUCMSYKHcWWBFYQ6AEIJzAA#v=onepage&q=gohonzon&f=false) to support "whether a statue or set of statues, a painted scroll, an ancestry Ihai (spirit tablet), deceased ashes, representing ones ancestors, an elemental substance used in a ceremony, or some other religious object that is venerated by the Buddhist faithful." At the best this is WP:OR because the source gives some examples of gohonzon being moved or installed in Brazilian temples and is in no way a scholarly source to defend the text. At its worst, it is misleading and fraudulent research.

 * In reality these two sentences and their accompanying "citations" should be entirely removed. For the time being, I am just going to move them to another section to give you the opportunity to find appropriate sources.

BrandenburgG (talk) 22:00, 28 April 2017 (UTC)

First step: the lead
Quite a bit of time has elapsed. I still believe this article needs extensive rewriting. But I would like to suggest that editors start with the lead. A good lead should follow the guidelines in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:How_to_create_and_manage_a_good_lead_section. The article has a about a hundred lines about the gohonzon in Nichiren Buddhism and about five lines about the Gohonzon in non-Nichiren sects. Yet the current lede starts with a definition of the gohonzon in non-Nichiren traditions. This is an unbalanced reflection of the article itself. BrandenburgG (talk) 17:29, 28 April 2017 (UTC)

 * Check out the article about Mandala. There is no reference to gohonzon outside of Nichiren Buddhism.

Rissho Koseikai
I found a couple of reputable academic sources that confirm that RKK refers to its statue of Shakyamunu as its gohonzon. I will add at the next opportunity. BrandenburgG (talk) 08:58, 13 May 2017 (UTC)

Sorry...this turns out to be a bogus source. I will keep searching.BrandenburgG (talk) 20:37, 15 May 2017 (UTC) BrandenburgG (talk) 20:37, 15 May 2017 (UTC)

Rewrites
I finished the rewrite of the lead. I think it is strong and will be accepted by multiple perspectives.

I would like to begin reviewing the next section, Nichiren Buddhism. I think it needs careful editing. Here is what I propose: 1) switching the "history" and "description" subsections. I think readers would profit from the context of history before reading a more detailed description. 2) checking for placement. Right now sentences about description are in history and vice versa. 3) removing tags as soon as appropriate sources are found. BrandenburgG (talk) 08:58, 13 May 2017 (UTC)

Pious Beliefs....
I've been making steady progress on revising this article, starting from the top. I'm currently working of the Description subsubsection. Soon I will get to the History.

I figure by next week Iwill get to the Pious Beliefs section. IMHO this section does not work at all. It is OR for the most part. It is without any secondary sources. In fact the only only source is Nichiren's writings.

I don't understand its purpose either. I don't even understand what is a "pious belief."

My suggestion is that this subsubsection be deleted in its entirety. I don't want to do it unilaterally and would appreciate other opinions. Thank you. BrandenburgG (talk) 20:35, 15 May 2017 (UTC) BrandenburgG (talk) 20:35, 15 May 2017 (UTC)

 * @JimRenge, thanks for removing this section based on WP:OR. I would like to propose replacing it with a subsection that describes the respective viewpoints about the Gohonzon expressed by Nichiren Shoshu, Nichiren Shu, and SG.

Move II
The article does not follow WP:NPOV because it gives WP:UNDUE weight to Nichiren Buddhism. Moving the article to Gohonzon (Nichiren Buddhism) and the addition of a short summary to Honzon might be a simple solution of this problem. Tktru renamed the article in June 2014: Gohonzon (Nichiren Buddhism). I remember that this move was reverted by Tokuburai or one of the (possibly related) disruptive IP´s. JimRenge (talk) 11:43, 19 May 2017 (UTC)

 * I would agree strongly with your suggestion, @JimRenge. The problem with WP:UNDUE does not come from nefarious intent. Rather, there is simply minimal source material (in English at least) to support @Tokuburai's line of reasoning.  The situation may be different in Japanese WP (I can't read Japanese) but that might be due to different sources there. Otherwise it's a difficult stretch to provide NPOV in one umbrella article.

BrandenburgG (talk) 04:43, 20 May 2017 (UTC)

I would like to start parsing these two articles. Originally the current Gohonzon article was titled Gohonzon (Nichiren). This article still exists but redirects to the current article. The original concept is still preferred, IMHO. Now there is a stronger Honzon article so there is now better reason to parse the two articles.

I added a "See also Honzon" template at the start of the article. I hope this can be helpful for readers who want information about Honzon vs. Gohonzon (Nichiren). BrandenburgG (talk) 07:12, 1 June 2017 (UTC)

This article should be brodened to include the five types of Gohonzon that Nichiren established, the Mandala Gohonzon is only one of the five gohonzons that Nichiren had stablished Gonzalopena25 (talk) 03:01, 28 September 2018 (UTC)

Description
This section needs some improvement. I think it is trying to accomplish too much under one heading.

I broke down one paragraph so the more theological descriptions of the Gohonzon are separated from "colloquial" descriptions.

I think it needs one more restructuring. There should be two subsections, I would like to recommend. The new subsection could be entitled "Typology of the Gohonzon" and would describe each of the characters on the Gohonzon. Right now it is descriptive in a general sense. There are several diagrams of the Gohonzon on the web but they are not in the public domain. Has anyone seen a diagram that is open for use? @JimRenge, would you know of one? BrandenburgG (talk) 09:34, 20 June 2017 (UTC)
 * No, I have not seen a pd diagram. JimRenge (talk) 21:16, 22 June 2017 (UTC)

I am going ahead with the revision I proposed. Also, I created a visual of the "topology" of the Gohonzon which I will post in a few days. BrandenburgG (talk) 12:49, 24 June 2017 (UTC)

 * There are so many versions of Gohonzon, written by both Nichiren and his successors, that it is not possible, I see, to create one "topology." Research and models on this is also limited to several self-published books which, regrettably, are not accepted by WP. Therefore I decided to focus on the 1720 Nichikan Gohonzon that is used by the SG. Arguably there are more of this version of the Gohonzon "out there" than any other.

 * I have a prototype of this on my sandbox (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:BrandenburgG/sandbox). I would like to receive feedback.  I plan on incorporating this into the Gohonzon article over the next couple of days.BrandenburgG (talk) 11:42, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

 * I apologize for confusion but please leave feedback here and not on my Sandbox. BrandenburgG (talk) 19:32, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

There is a problem with the description of the Nichikan Mandala in the center part it says that the name Nikko appears in the Mandala Gohonzon this is incorrect the name Nikko does not appear in the center of this Mandala Gonzalopena25 (talk) 02:57, 28 September 2018 (UTC)

Schools
Changed "primary object of devotion for Nichiren Shu and other Nichiren schools" to "primary object of devotion for Nichiren schools". There is no need to single one out when it applies to many. --Daveler16 (talk) 01:35, 8 September 2018 (UTC)

He stated that by using sumi ink to inscribe it he was acting like a "lion king."[13]
Even though this has a source which is the gosho "Reply to Kyo-o" the authenticity of this gosho can not be corroborated. There is no original copy of reply to Kyo-o by Nichiren or any of his direct disciples. Thrre is also no mention to Reply to Kyo-o until the 16th century. All Nichiren Schools except for Taisekiji and SGI concider it to be forged. With regard to Tokubetsu Gohonzons or Omamori Gohonzon there is not enough evidence to say that Nichiren inscribed those. First, on regard to Tokubetsu Gohonzons everything seams to indicate that inscribing such a Msndalas was a development that happen over time after Nichiren's passing. There is no way to tell if a Gohonzon inscribed by Nichiren was a Tokubetsu Mandala. There is also no reference in Nichiren's writings to any Tokubetsu Gohonzon. Nichiren was also known to write Gohonzon Mandala of many different styles, and materials depending on what was available to him, he wrote Gohonzons with a stick, when he was unable to get brushes in Sado Island. Secondly with regard to the Omamori Gohonzon, there is not a single existant Omamori Gohonzon writen by Nichiren, there is not mention in Nichiren's writings to any Omamori Gohonzon. There is a mention to the word Omamori in Nichiren's Writings only once in a letter sent to Shijo Kingo, however Omamori in Japanese culture refers to an amulet, a very common custom in Japanese buddhism and it seams this is what Nichiren sent to Kingo. Gonzalopena25 (talk) 03:22, 28 September 2018 (UTC)

Right below, also in bold, Nichiren writes his name followed by his seal. This signifies Nichiren's conviction that his life had manifested the essence of the Lotus Sutra.[39
There are two problems here. First, Nichiren did not write his name down bellow Namu Myoho Renge Kyo in any of the Mandala Gohonzons he wrote. At the beginning he wrote his name and seal towards the left side in the bottom in the Mandala. As years passed his signature and seal moved towards the center bottom of the Mandalas. However, Nichiren never placed his name right under Namu Myoho Renge Kyo. Even in the Gohonzons that were wrote with his name in the bottom center there is a noticeable space between the Daimoku and Nichiren's name. Secondly the phrase: "This signifies Nichiren's conviction that his life had manifested the essence of the Lotus Sutra." It should be noted that this an interpretation of Nichiren Shoshu, there are no writings by Nichiren to proof this and my first point speaks about this too. No other school but Nichiren Shoshu believes this. Gonzalopena25 (talk) 03:37, 28 September 2018 (UTC)

Eliminate the "Controversy Section"
This section does not explain about the Gohonzon but instead discusses the doctrinal issues between SGI and Nichiren Shoshu  Gonzalopena25 (talk) 03:40, 28 September 2018 (UTC)

Reference to the Object of Devotion in terms of the person
The idea that Nichiren Shonin's writing "The Opening of The Eyes" defines Nichiren as the object of devotion in terms of the person is an interpretation of Nichiren Shoshu upheld by SGI, other Nichiren Schools do not agree in this interpretation. Gonzalopena25 (talk) 03:45, 28 September 2018 (UTC)

== casting off the transient and revealing the true" (Jpn hosshaku-kempon), at which time he claimed to have discarded his transient status and revealed his essential identity as the Buddha of the Latter Day of the Law.[5 ==

Again this an interpretation exclusive of Nichiren Shoshu and SGI Gonzalopena25 (talk) 03:47, 28 September 2018 (UTC)

The moji-mandala gohonzon or "Mandala gohonzon" (曼荼羅御本尊) is the primary object of devotion in Nichiren schools.
This is incorrect, the Mandala Gohonzon is not the primary Gohonzon in all Nichiren Schools. Nichiren Shoshu and SGI are the only schools to use exclusively a Mandala Gohonzon and none of the other 4 kinds of Gohonzon that Nichiren prescribed. In his writings Nichiren described five Gohonzons which include the mandala Gohonzon, a mandala consiting only in the Daimoku, or different settings or convinentions of statues. All the other Nichiren Schools use Mandalas and statues as Gohonzons. Gonzalopena25 (talk) 05:00, 28 September 2018 (UTC)

title: Talk:Gohonzon


text:
User:Li-sung

I am from czech wikipedia cs:wikipedista:Li-sung. Don't touch my page

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: User:Li-sung


text:
International Opium Commission

The International Opium Commission was a meeting convened on February 1 to February 26, 1909 in Shanghai that represented one of the first steps toward international drug prohibition.

History
Hamilton Wright and Charles Henry Brent headed the U.S. delegation. Brent was elected president of the commission.

The meeting was designated a 'commission' rather a conference, although this was the preference of the United States. Having the status of a conference would have given it the power to draft regulations to which signatory states would be bound by international law". The commission was only authorized to make recommendations.

According to Paul S. Reinsch, the commission made these suggestions in its final resolution:"It is the duty of all countries to adopt reasonable measures to prevent the departure of shipments of opium to any country which prohibits its entry; that drastic measures should be taken by each government in its own territories to control the manufacture, sale, and distribution of the drug; that all governments possessing settlements in China shall take effective action toward the closing of opium divans in the said settlements."The meeting united the attending nations behind the cause of opium prohibition, leading to the 1912 International Opium Convention.

title: International Opium Commission


text:
File:Duxford UK Feb2005 F15.JPG

An F-15 at Duxford Imperial War Museum Photographed by me Martin Richards Feb 2005

title: File:Duxford UK Feb2005 F15.JPG


text:
Badges of the United States Army

Badges of the United States Army are military decorations issued by the United States Department of the Army to soldiers who achieve a variety of qualifications and accomplishments while serving on active and reserve duty in the United States Army.

As described in Army Regulation 670-1 Uniforms and Insignia, badges are categorized into marksmanship, combat and special skill, identification, and foreign. Combat and Special Skill badges are further divided into six groups.

A total of six combat and special skill badges are authorized for wear at one time on service and dress uniforms; this total does not include special skill tabs or special skill tab metal replicas.

Personnel may wear up to three badges above the ribbons or pocket flap, or in a similar location for uniforms without pockets. Personnel may only wear one combat or special skill badges from either group 1 or group 2 above the ribbons. Soldiers may wear up to three badges from groups 3 and 4 above the ribbons. One badge from either group 1 or group 2 may be worn with badges from groups 3 and 4 above the ribbons so long as the total number of badges above the ribbons does not exceed three.

Only three badges (from groups 3, 4, or 5) can be worn on the pocket flap at one time. This total does not include special skill tab metal replicas. Personnel will wear the driver and mechanic badges only on the wearer's left pocket flap of service and dress uniforms, or in a similar location on uniforms without pockets. Personnel may not attach more than three clasps to the driver and mechanic badges. The driver and mechanic badges are not authorized for wear on utility uniforms.

The order of precedence for combat and special skill badges are established only by group. There is no precedence for combat or special skill badges within the same group. For example, personnel who are authorized to wear the Parachutist and Air Assault badges may determine the order of wear between those two badges.

The 21st century United States Army issues the following military badges (listed below in order of group precedence) which are worn in conjunction with badges of rank and branch insignia.

Combat and Special Skill Badges and Tabs
Source:

title: Badges of the United States Army


text:
Sylvan Ebanks-Blake

Sylvan Augustus Ebanks-Blake (born 29 March 1986) is an English former professional footballer who played as a striker.

He played youth team football for Cambridge United and Manchester United before making his professional debut in 2004. A spell on loan with Royal Antwerp followed before Ebanks-Blake was transferred to Plymouth Argyle in 2006. During his two seasons with Argyle, he scored 21 goals in the Championship and then joined Wolverhampton Wanderers for £1.5 million, where he won the Championship top scorer award in consecutive seasons to help the club gain promotion to the Premier League.

Ebanks-Blake represented England at under-21 level, but was also eligible to play for Jamaica at senior international level through his parents.

Early career
Born in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, Ebanks-Blake attended the Netherhall School and his first clubs were Cherry Hinton Lions and Fulbourn Falcons in the Cambridge area. At the age of 15, having been on schoolboy terms with Cambridge United, he attended a two-week trial with Manchester United at their training centre. He was offered a contract at the end of the trial and turned down a scholarship with Cambridge to join Manchester United's Academy. He played his first match at senior level for the club on 26 October 2004 against Crewe Alexandra in the League Cup. One year later, he scored his first senior level goal for the club against Barnet in another League Cup tie.

Towards the end of the 2004–05 season, he fractured his leg and was ruled out for the remainder of the season. He recovered and scored a hat-trick on his return for the Manchester United reserves. However, he was never called on for a first team league game again, although he was an unused substitute in several Champions League games. In January 2006, he moved on loan to Royal Antwerp in Belgium to gain first team experience.

Plymouth Argyle
Ebanks-Blake returned to England in the summer and signed a three-year deal with Championship club Plymouth Argyle on 14 July 2006. The fee paid to Manchester United was an initial £200,000, potentially rising to over £300,000 due to clauses. Ebanks-Blake was new manager Ian Holloway's first signing and became a first team regular.

The striker notched up 10 goals in his first season at Argyle, many of which came at the end of the season. He cemented his status as a fan favourite and top prospect with 11 league goals by New Year in the 2007–08 season, despite starting the season on the substitutes bench.

Wolverhampton Wanderers
His form attracted the attention from fellow Championship side Wolverhampton Wanderers, who activated a buy-out clause in his contract for £1.5 million, and he signed for them on 11 January 2008, on a four-and-a-half-year contract. He scored his first league goal for Wolves on 19 January 2008, against Scunthorpe United, and a run of seven goals in his first eight games won him the Championship Player of the Month Award for March 2008. The season ended with him winning the Championship Golden Boot for the 2007–08 season, scoring a total of 23 goals, 12 for Wolves and 11 for Plymouth Argyle.

Ebanks-Blake started the 2008–09 season in excellent form, scoring nine goals in the opening 13 league games, form which also earned him a cap for the England under-21 side, when he came on as a substitute against Czech Republic U21s on 18 November 2008. At the 2009 Football League Awards he was named Championship Player of the Year, and also received the Goal of the Year Award for his solo effort at Charlton Athletic in March 2008.

During the season he scored his first hat-trick of his professional career, against Norwich City on 3 February 2009 at Molineux, to once again reach the 20-goal mark. Having recovered from a calf injury, his final goal of the campaign came against Queens Park Rangers on 18 April 2009, which gave the team the 1–0 win that secured promotion to the Premier League. The striker finished this Championship-winning season with a tally of 25 goals, enough to retain the Championship Golden Boot for a second consecutive season. Wolves rewarded him with a new four-year deal in July 2009, which saw him stay at Molineux until the summer of 2013.

Ebanks-Blake struggled to repeat his goalscoring form at Premier League level. After struggling with injuries in early stages of the season, he returned but only managed to score one goal, from the penalty spot (against Aston Villa in October 2009). He was then dropped from the side as manager Mick McCarthy preferred to play the 4–5–1 formation, with Kevin Doyle playing the lone striker role. Later on in the season, Ebanks-Blake scored his second and final league goal in the campaign, heading in against Blackburn Rovers on 24 April 2009 to secure a 1–1 draw that effectively guaranteed Wolves their Premier League survival.

He had a brighter start to the 2010–11 Premier League season, scoring four league goals before Christmas: against Everton, Newcastle United, former club Manchester United and Sunderland. Although he was less favoured for a starting berth than Kevin Doyle or new signing Steven Fletcher, he ended the season with seven goals from 28 appearances as the club narrowly avoided relegation on the final day.

In August 2011, he suffered knee ligament damage that put him out of action for six weeks, but when he returned, he was unable to match his goalscoring tally of the previous season as the team struggled against relegation. He scored only one Premier League goal during the campaign (against Norwich) as the club returned to the Championship under the temporary management of Terry Connor.

The 2012–13 season saw Ebanks-Blake return to his goalscoring form and net 14 league goals, before a broken fibula and sprained ankle suffered against Birmingham City on 1 April 2013 ruled him out for the remainder of the season, as well as potentially the start of the following. He was released by the club at the end of the 2012–13 season, which saw Wolves relegated to League One.

Ipswich Town
Ebanks-Blake signed for Ipswich Town on 19 December 2013 a move which reunited him with his former manager Mick McCarthy. He was assigned the number 27 shirt having signed a contract until end of 2013–14 season. He made his debut for the club in the FA Cup third round tie against Preston North End on 4 January 2014, but was substituted off injured after 29 minutes.

Preston North End
After a trial period with Brentford in October 2014, Ebanks-Blake went on trial with a number of other Football League clubs before ending up at Preston North End in December 2014. He was signed by Preston on a short-term contract on 1 January 2015, keeping him at the club until the end of the 2014–15 season.

He was released in May 2015 following Preston's promotion to the Championship, making 13 appearances in all competitions, his only goal for the club came in the form of a 76th-minute equaliser against Yeovil Town.

Chesterfield
On 6 June 2015, Ebanks-Blake signed for Chesterfield after his release from Preston North End. Ebanks-Blake was released at the end of the 2016–17 season.

Shrewsbury Town (loan)
Ebanks-Blake joined Shrewsbury Town on a half-season loan on 31 August 2016. Making just seven first-team appearances without scoring during his loan period, which also saw a change in management at the club, new manager Paul Hurst opted not to extend this arrangement when it came to an end in January 2017.

A.F.C. Telford United
In October 2017, it was reported that as a free-agent, Ebanks-Blake was training with National League North side A.F.C. Telford United. He joined the club the following month, making his debut on 25 November in a 4–2 FA Trophy victory over Droylsden, scoring two goals.

Ebanks-Blake left Telford on 6 February 2018, as manager Rob Edwards wanted to balance the budget.

Halesowen Town
Ebanks-Blake joined Halesowen Town on 26 July 2018 to play alongside former West Bromwich Albion striker Lee Hughes. After a change in management at Halesowen he signed for league rivals Barwell in October 2018.

Walsall Wood
In December 2018, Ebanks-Blake joined Midland League side Walsall Wood. He scored two goals in five games in the 2018–19 Midland League Premier Division, prior to suffering a serious injury having broken his leg for the third time in his career.

Personal life
In 2008 Ebanks-Blake was charged with causing actual bodily harm to a doorman in an incident at a Plymouth nightclub on 11 November 2007 while a Plymouth Argyle player. He was subsequently fined £1,350 with £650 costs and £500 compensation by Plymouth Crown Court on 4 July 2008, after admitting to having attacked the doorman with his girlfriend's handbag causing a three-inch cut to his head. In March 2013 he was arrested and questioned by police in Birmingham on suspicion of witness intimidation but released without charge.

Honours
Wolverhampton Wanderers
 * Football League Championship: 2008–09

Individual
 * Denzil Haroun Reserve Team Player of the Year: 2004–05
 * Football League Championship Player of the Month: March 2008
 * Football League Championship Golden Boot: 2007–08, 2008–09
 * PFA Team of the Year: 2008–09 Championship
 * Football League Championship Player of the Year: 2008–09
 * Football League Goal of the Year: 2008–09

title: Sylvan Ebanks-Blake


text:
Badges of the United States Navy

Insignias and badges of the United States Navy are military badges issued by the United States Department of the Navy to naval service members who achieve certain qualifications and accomplishments while serving on both active and reserve duty in the United States Navy. Most naval aviation insignia are also permitted for wear on uniforms of the United States Marine Corps.

As described in Chapter 5 of U.S. Navy Uniform Regulations, badges are categorized as breast insignia (usually worn immediately above and below ribbons) and identification badges (usually worn at breast pocket level). Breast insignia are further divided between command and warfare and other qualification.

Insignia come in the form of metal pin-on devices worn on formal uniforms and embroidered tape strips worn on work uniforms. For the purpose of this article, the general term "insignia" shall be used to describe both, as it is done in Navy Uniform Regulations. The term "badge", although used ambiguously in other military branches and in informal speak to describe any pin, patch, or tab, is exclusive to identification badges and authorized marksmanship awards according to the language in Navy Uniform Regulations, Chapter 5.

The modern day United States Navy currently maintains the following breast insignia and badges:

Command

The Command at Sea insignia is for commissioned officers between the ranks of Lieutenant (O-3) and Admiral (O-10) who are in or have been in command of a ship or operational fleet air unit. The Command Ashore/Project Manager insignia is for officers who are or have been commanding officer of a naval installation, a shore-based command (to include non-deploying air commands), or in charge of a major program or project (the latter being primarily in the Naval Air Systems Command or Naval Sea Systems Command).

An incumbent officer wears insignia on the right breast; in full dress it is worn 1/4 in above the nametag.

A post tour officer wears the insignia on the left breast 1/4 inch below the top of the pocket/flap. If a warfare or qualification insignia is already occupying that position, it is then worn 1/4 inch below that insignia, or on uniforms with pocket flaps, 1/4 inch below the flap. Women in full dress will wear post tour command insignia 1/4 inch above the left pocket, medals or primary breast insignia. Only one post tour command insignia may be worn.

Warfare and Other Qualification
Warfare and Other Qualification insignia are awarded for completing qualifications in various fields within the Navy. They are worn on the left side of the uniform in the primary position (for one insignia), or the primary and secondary position (for two insignia). Only two of this class of breast insignia may be worn at one time.

 * The primary position is centered above ribbons or medals with the lower edge of the device 1/4 inch above the top row of ribbons or medals. When no ribbons or medals are worn, it is centered above the left pocket with the lower edge of the device 1/4 inch above the top of the pocket.
 * The secondary position is centered 1/4 inch below the top of the pocket or pocket flap, when ribbons or no awards are worn. When medals are worn, centered below medals with the top of the device 1/4 inch below the lowest row of medals.

Warfare and Other Qualification insignia are grouped in the following categories (in alphabetical order):

"Warfare" insignia take precedence over "Other" insignia and are placed in the primary position. If two Warfare insignia are authorized for wear, insignia of the specialty in which currently serving will be worn in the primary position. Personnel with multiple qualifications may wear only two insignia. Since September 2009, personnel with multiple designators within a single community (for example, an aviation officer who has earned both Naval Aviator and Naval Flight Officer qualifications) may wear both insignia, with their current billet's insignia on top.

Listed below are all the Warfare and Other Qualification insignia within each category.

Aviation Warfare

Aviation Warfare insignia (usually called "wings") are breast insignia of the aviation warfare community which are issued to those naval personnel who are trained and qualified to perform duties related to operation and support of naval aircraft.

There are two variants for line officers: Naval Aviator insignia for pilots, and Naval Flight Officer insignia for officers performing weapons systems officer, electronic countermeasures officer, navigator or similar functions. There is also an astronaut version of each of these insignia, known as the Naval Astronaut and Naval Astronaut (NFO), respectively.

The Enlisted Aviation Warfare Specialist (EAWS) insignia is earned by sailors who demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of Naval Aviation. The EAWS designation may be earned by both enlisted Naval Aircrew and non-flying enlisted support personnel in Naval Aviation. EAWS status does not require any sort of actual flight experience or flight status in a flight crew capacity.

In 2009, the United States Navy converted the Naval Aircrew insignia from a qualification to a warfare designator like the Enlisted Aviation Warfare Specialist, Enlisted Submarine Warfare Specialist, and Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist. The title was changed from Naval Aircrew (NAC) to Naval Aircrew Warfare Specialist (NAWS). Per MILPERSMAN 1220-020.

Naval Aircrew Warfare Specialist (NAWS): Sailors must be qualified aircrew members; possess an eligible Navy enlisted classification of 78XX, 82XX, 8401, or 94XX; and be assigned to flying duty in an eligible billet for their NEC. Candidates must complete a positional qualification for the respective aircraft in which they fly within 18 months of reporting to a permanent duty station. See MilPersMan Article 1220-020. See further down this article for more on Naval Aircrew insignia. Other insignia for qualification in specialized areas exists for Flight Surgeons, Flight Nurses, Experimental Psychologists/Physiologists, Observers/Flight Meteorologists, and Supply Corps personnel. With the exception of the Naval Aviation Supply Corps insignia, all of the above insignia require the wearer to be, or have been, on some sort of flight status in naval aircraft. Naval Aviation Supply Corps qualification does not require any sort of actual flight experience or flight status in a flight crew capacity.

In December 2009, the first of the new Professional Aviation Maintenance Officer (PAMO) warfare designators and insignia were awarded. The PAMO community consists of aerospace maintenance duty officers, aviation maintenance limited duty officers, and aviation maintenance chief warrant officers. Complete eligibility requirements can be found in OPNAVINST. 1412.11. Like the Naval Aviation Supply Corps qualification, the Professional Aircraft Maintenance Officer qualification also does not require any sort of actual flight experience or flight status in a flight crew capacity.

Explosive Ordnance Disposal Warfare

The Explosive Ordnance Disposal Warfare (EOD) insignia, also known as the "crab", is awarded to personnel trained to deal with the construction, deployment, disarmament, and disposal of high explosives munitions. This group is part of Navy Special Operations and all are dive qualified as closed circuit divers. It is the only decoration awarded to all four uniformed services of the US Defense Department.

Enlisted EOD technicians wear the insignia as their primary warfare breast insignia. Officers formerly wore it as a secondary insignia under the Special Operations Warfare insignia, but now wear the Basic, Senior, and Master insignia as their primary warfare device.

In 2007, the Special Operations Officer Community was rechristened "Explosive Ordnance Disposal", a change which the Navy felt also needed to be reflected in the EOD Officer warfare device as well. The new officer insignia is identical to the Master EOD warfare device, but is gold in color.

Fleet Marine Force

The Fleet Marine Force (FMF) insignia can be awarded to Navy personnel assigned to Fleet Marine Force command, a combined command of Navy and Marine Corps. The insignia is earned by both officers and enlisted.

Hospital Corpsmen and Religious Programs Specialists are examples of Navy ratings in FMF.

The Chaplain (Chaps) version of the officers' badge does not include the crossed rifles.

Information Warfare
The Information Warfare insignia was approved in September 2010 and is authorized for wear by members of the Information Warfare Community who have successfully completed the qualification requirements outlined in OPNAVINST 1412.13 (for officers) and COMNAVCYBERFOR INST 1414.1 (for enlisted members). Upon implementation in September 2010, experienced Information Warfare Officers in the redesignated 18xx designators were afforded the opportunity to qualify for the IDWO Insignia through completion of an online course and the submission of evidence of prior completion of prescribed requirements. All Information Warfare Officers not being awarded the IWO Insignia via this method are required to complete the prescribed Officer PQS. The insignia became available for purchase in October 2010.

The Information Warfare Community includes the following communities: intelligence, information professional, cryptologic warfare (formerly information warfare), oceanography, meteorology, and space cadre additional qualification designators/NECs.

Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist
The Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist (SCWS) insignia is awarded to personnel assigned to qualifying units of the Naval Construction Force (Seabees) and Amphibious Construction Battalions after demonstrating superior proficiency in naval heritage, naval doctrine, command and control, hazardous material/hazardous waste environmental safety, supply & logistics, communications and communications security, weapons, general military tactics, contingency operations, embarkation, safety, basic first aid, civil engineer support equipment, and chemical, biological, & radiological warfare.

The two insignia variants correspond to the gold officer insignia and silver enlisted insignia. Officers are required to complete all aspects of the enlisted program, plus additional officer specific requirements while overall demonstrating broader and deeper knowledge proficiency commensurate with their increased responsibilities.

Qualifying units include Naval Mobile Construction Battalions (NMCB), Underwater Construction Teams (UCT), and Construction Battalion Maintenance Units (CBMU), and personnel assigned to Amphibious Construction Battalions (ACB).

Engineering Duty Officer

An Engineering Duty Officer (EDO) is a restricted line officer, involved with the design, acquisition, construction, repair, maintenance, conversion, overhaul, and disposal of ships, submarines, aircraft carriers, and the systems installed aboard (weapons, command and control, communications, computers, etc.). As of August 1, 2016, there are approximately 835 engineering duty officers on active duty in the United States Navy, representing approximately 2 percent of its active-duty commissioned officers (and approximately 400 engineering duty officers in the Navy Reserve).

Special Operations
The Special Operations Warfare (SPECOPS) insignia is earned by officers by virtue of training in the Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD), Mine Countermeasures (MCM), Operational Diving and Salvage (ODS), and Expendable Ordnance Management (EOM). Not to be confused with Special Warfare (i.e. SEALs), Special Operations, in Navy parlance, refers to dive qualified EOD technicians.

The insignia shares a similar design to the Surface Warfare insignia, but is considered a different category.

Special Warfare
There are two Special Warfare insignia issued to Navy personnel serving under Naval Special Warfare Command, a part of USSOCOM: Special Warfare and Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewman.

The Special Warfare insignia (aka the "SEAL Trident" or simply "Trident"), is awarded to personnel who completed BUD/S training and qualification, and have been designated as Navy SEALs and assigned to Navy SEAL Teams or SEAL Delivery Vehicle (SDV) Teams. The insignia is the same for both officer and enlisted personnel and is one of only four breast insignia authorized for enlisted personnel that is gold in color.

The Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewman (SWCC - pronounced "swick") insignia is awarded to enlisted personnel who complete SWCC training and qualification, and have been designated as United States Navy SWCCs assigned to Special Boat Teams. The SWCC qualification insignia consists of three separate insignias that denote the level of qualification achieved individually by SWCC sailors. The insignias include SWCC Basic, SWCC Senior, and SWCC Master. The SWCC Basic insignia is a 2-1/2 by 1-1/4 inch silver matte metal pin showing a background of a cocked flintlock pistol, a crossed naval enlisted cutlass, and a Mark V Special Operations Craft atop a bow wave. The SWCC Senior insignia incorporates an upright anchor in the background of the SWCC Basic insignia. The SWCC Master insignia incorporates a banner with three gold stars on the upper portion of the anchor from the SWCC Senior insignia.

Submarine Warfare

Submarine Qualification insignia (usually known as "dolphins" or "fish") are breast insignia of the submarine warfare community which are issued to those naval personnel after they complete a complex, demanding and extensive program that incorporates learning each system aboard the submarine and completion of certain watchstanding requirements including cross rate watch requirements. This program differs from many of the other "Warfare" programs in that it requires personnel to become proficient in engineering and operational details to such an extent that each person must be able to understand and perform basic operation of each system and equipment aboard the submarine. In addition each person must be able to efficiently perform damage control and emergency control functions in each space on the submarine. The Submarine Qualification insignia for officers and enlisted was first proposed by then-Captain Ernest King on June 13, 1923, with the current design finalized March 1924.

In addition to line officer and enlisted versions, there are insignia for officers working in engineering duty, medical corps, and supply corps.

Surface Warfare

Surface Warfare insignia are breast insignia of the surface warfare community. They are earned by those naval personnel who are trained and qualified to perform duties aboard United States surface warships. The Surface Warfare Officer insignia was first proposed in 1972, and by 1980 a variety of the Surface Warfare insignia had been approved for issuance.

Line officers of the surface warfare community earn the Surface Warfare Officer (SWO) insignia. Enlisted personnel who complete the Enlisted Surface Warfare qualification program earn the Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist (ESWS) insignia. Other insignia for qualification in specialized areas exist in the Medical Corps, Nurse Corps, Dental Corps, Medical Service Corps, and Supply Corps.

The SWO and ESWS insignia may be earned by United States Coast Guard personnel assigned to Navy commands.

The Surface Chaplain Officer Qualification Insignia is a newly introduced warfare pin for members of the surface chaplain corps. The qualification insignia started being awarded to qualified chaplains in 2023 after being approved by the Navy Uniform Board.

Expeditionary Warfare
The Enlisted Expeditionary Warfare Specialist Insignia is awarded to enlisted United States Navy personnel (and select United States Coast Guard personnel temporarily assigned to the U.S. Navy) who satisfactorily complete the required qualification course and pass a qualification board hearing. Enlisted members E-5 and above shall obtain the Enlisted Expeditionary Warfare (EXW) Specialist qualification while assigned to a qualifying unit. Enlisted members E-4 and below may voluntarily obtain EXW qualification while assigned to a qualifying unit and who meet eligibility requirements. The qualification was developed to provide a chance for enlisted sailors in the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC) community (naval personnel serving in a maritime security or maritime combat related role) to earn a warfare qualification. Core qualification skills include (but are not limited to) weapons qualification and maintenance, marksmanship, land navigation, field communications, and expeditionary camp deployment. The pin depicts the bow and superstructure of a Sea Ark 34 foot patrol boat superimposed on a crossed cutlass and M16A1 rifle on a background of ocean swells.

The Navy Expeditionary Supply Corps Officer (NESCO) program is designed to recognize significant contributions made by Supply Corps officers while serving in operational expeditionary billets. NESCO officer qualification represents a level of expeditionary knowledge that distinguishes an officer of the Supply Corps from his or her peers. The NESCO insignia is a gold metal pin showing a Supply Corps oak leaf centered, superimposed on a crossed sword and M16A1 rifle, on a background of ocean swells.

Strategic Sealift Officer Warfare
The newest surface warfare qualification insignia to be implemented by the U.S. Navy is the Strategic Sealift Officer Warfare Insignia (SSOWI). The SSOWI is a redesign of the old Navy Reserve Merchant Marine Insignia, also known as the "Golden Chicken" or "Sea Chicken", originally created in 1938. The SSOWI is approved for wear by officers who have successfully completed the qualification requirements outlined in OPNAVINST 1534.1E. The insignia may be worn by: The SSOWI is gold in color and is 2+3/4 by, reflecting the background of an eagle from the USS Constitution's stern, crossed naval officer swords, and a U.S. shield with fouled anchor from the U.S. Merchant Marine flag.
 * A Commissioned Officer in the U.S. Navy (or in the Naval Reserves) holding a valid U.S. Merchant Marine License for vessels of unlimited ocean tonnage or horsepower.
 * U.S. Merchant Marine Officers who are U.S. Navy Reserve officers while wearing U.S. Navy, U.S. Merchant Marine or U.S. Maritime Service uniforms.
 * Midshipmen at the United States Merchant Marine Academy are entitled to wear the old Navy Reserve Merchant Marine Insignia while in good standing as members of the U.S. Navy Strategic Sealift Officer Program until fully qualified as SSOs where the old pin is replaced by the SSOWI.

Aircrew
The Aircrew insignia is issued to enlisted personnel trained to operate equipment aboard airborne aircraft. It is one of only four gold color breast insignia awarded to qualified enlisted personnel.

Navy aircrew assigned to Navy aircraft place "(NAC)" after their rating to indicate this skill. Navy aircrew qualified to wear the Combat Aircrew insignia place "(CAC)" after their rating. Example: "CTT1(NAC) Jenkins" is Cryptologic Technician Technical First Class Jenkins, who is a qualified Aircrewman.

Integrated Undersea Surveillance System

The Integrated Undersea Surveillance System insignia is awarded to those personnel who have been trained and qualified in naval sonar and undersea surveillance (SOSUS) technology.

Officer in Charge/Petty Officer in Charge
The Officer in Charge/Petty Officer in Charge insignia is issued to personnel of the small boat community. It is issued to operators of small combatant and non-combatant vessels.

The Small Craft insignia is awarded to officers and petty officers commanding small combatant vessels that patrol brown-water (littoral zone) and riverine environments.

The Craftmaster insignia is awarded mainly to enlisted personnel commanding vessels, such as Landing Craft Utility, Landing Craft Air Cushioned, YTBs, and various other tugs and barges. It is also awarded to certain staff officers and a few select midshipmen.

Parachutists

The Parachutists insignia, also known as "jump wings", is awarded to personnel for training in airborne school. The basic insignia is issued for completion of basic parachutist training. The Naval Parachutist insignia is issued after 10 qualifying jumps. It is used both by the Navy and the Marine Corps.

Enlisted personnel with jump wings place "(PJ)" after their rating to indicate this skill. Free-fall/HALO qualified place "(FPJ)" in their rating. Example: "EOD3(FPJ) Smith" is Explosive Ordnance Disposal 3rd Class Smith, who is Free-fall/HALO-qualified.

The Naval Parachutist insignia is a common secondary insignia among Navy SEALs, SWCC, Navy EOD, and Special Amphibious Reconnaissance Corpsman. It is one of only four gold color breast insignia awarded to qualified enlisted personnel.

Nuclear Weapons Security
The Navy Nuclear Weapons Security Insignia (NWS) is awarded to enlisted sailors and officers assigned to a Strategic Weapons Facility, Personal Reliability Program, supporting missions associated with the Marine Corps Security Force Battalion, or are qualified in their senior post or watch station consistent with their current pay grade and duties assigned. For enlisted sailors, the insignia represents completion of twelve months of fully qualified service to the NWS mission. A gold star mounted at the bottom of the insignia indicates an additional year of qualified service to the NWS mission. A silver star indicates five years of fully qualified service.

Navy Security Force
The Navy Security Force insignia program officially began in April 2022 with the release of NAVADMIN 094/22. The program allows active duty and reserve sailors and officers in the Navy Security Force community to earn a qualification that indicates their mastery of security force knowledge. Sailors in the Navy Security Force community can earn the Specialist, Senior Specialist, Master Specialist, and Officer insignia depending on their pay grade and qualification.

Submarine Patrol

The Submarine Combat Patrol insignia is a breast insignia worn by Navy personnel who have completed war patrols. Such patrols were conducted during World War II and this insignia has not been awarded since that time.

The SSBN Deterrent Patrol insignia or "boomer pin" is a breast insignia worn by Navy personnel of the submarine service who have completed strategic deterrent patrols in nuclear ballistic missile submarines. It is the successor to the Submarine Combat Patrol insignia awarded for submarine patrols during World War II. Upon the completion of their 20th successful patrol, personnel are upgraded from silver to gold. The insignia is the same for both officer and enlisted personnel and is one of only four breast insignia authorized for enlisted personnel that is gold in color.

Qualified personnel wear the insignia as a secondary device, after the Submarine Warfare device.

Underwater
The Deep Submergence insignia is worn by Navy personnel who are qualified in submarines and have completed one year of regular assignment to a crewed or uncrewed deep submersible.

Diver insignia are issued to personnel who are qualified divers and is given in several degrees. The first degree of the diving insignia is Scuba Diver. The remaining insignia are awarded for deep sea dive qualifications and are issued in the degrees of Second Class, First Class, and Master Diver. There also exists a Diving Officer insignia for officers who completed Basic Diving Officer course, and insignia for medical personnel who have qualified as both divers and medical response personnel to medical emergencies underwater.

Enlisted personnel who are dive qualified place "(DV)" after their rating to indicate this skill. Example: "PO2(DV) Jones" is a Petty Officer 2nd Class Jones, who is Diver-qualified.

Identification
The Presidential and Vice Presidential Service badges are worn on the right side at a level corresponding to badges worn on the left side on dress uniforms, and center of the right pocket on other uniforms. The badges for Office of the Secretary of Defense and Joint Chiefs of Staff are worn on the left breast pocket, 1/4 inch below medals or secondary breast insignia on dress uniforms, and in the center of left pocket on other uniforms. If a breast insignia in the secondary position forces the badge below the lower seam of the pocket, the secondary insignia must be omitted. (see figure 1)

The Command Senior Enlisted Leader Identification Badge for E-7s and higher (see figure 2) are issued to chiefs holding a command position (e.g. senior enlisted of the entire Navy, of a fleet or task force, of a single ship, etc.). Male incumbents wear it on the left breast pocket, 1/4 inch below medals or secondary breast insignia on dress uniforms, and in the center of left pocket on other uniforms. If a breast insignia in the secondary position forces the badge below the lower seam of the pocket, the secondary insignia must be omitted. Women wear it 1/4 inch above the right pocket, but may opt to wear it as men do. Miniature versions are issued to post tour chiefs.

Recruiting, Recruit Commanders, and Career Counselor badges are worn on the left breast pocket, 1/4 inch below medals or secondary breast insignia on dress uniforms, and in the center of left pocket on other uniforms. The only exception is the U.S. Navy Law Enforcement badges (Naval Security Force, Chief Master-at-Arms, and Naval Corrections), which is worn 1/4 inch above the name tape or name tag of the uniform, above the right breast pocket. The Navy Law Enforcement "Chief Master-at-Arms" and "Naval Corrections" badges are only issued and worn for the duration of the personnel's assigned duties for that position, with the exception of the "Naval Security Force" badge which are issued to rated Master-at-Arms and Security Officers, which are uniquely serialized and issued to the person for the duration of their career. Not permitted for wear on dinner dress uniform (see figures 3 through 6).

Although not worn on Navy uniforms, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) badge is also an identification badge of the U.S. Navy but is used by NCIS Special Agents, which are Naval Excepted Service employees. The badge is worn as an embroidered badge on jackets or displayed as part of a special agent's credentials (see figure 7).

Navy Uniform Regulations also allow CNO-approved Joint/Unified Command identification badges, including:
 * United Nations
 * Defense Intelligence Agency
 * National Security Agency
 * National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
 * Defense Information Systems Agency
 * Army Medical Department Center/School
 * Defense Commissary Agency
 * Inter-American Defense College Command
 * Department of State
 * Defense Threat Reduction Agency
 * Defense Finance and Accounting Service
 * Defense Logistics Agency
 * NATO EASTLANT
 * Military Postal Service Agency
 * U.S. Northern Command/North American Aerospace Defense Command
 * U.S. Africa Command
 * U.S. Special Operations Command
 * U.S. Pacific Command
 * U.S. Central Command
 * U.S. Transportation Command
 * U.S. Strategic Command
 * U.S. European Command
 * U.S. Southern Command
 * U.S. Cyber Command
 * Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe
 * Allied Forces Southern Europe
 * Air Education and Training Command Instructor Badge
 * U.S. Forces Japan
 * National Defense University
 * Joint Intelligence Center Pacific
 * Joint Communications Support Element

Marksmanship
The U.S. Navy also has Marksmanship Competition Badges that are authorized for wear on Navy service uniforms for those sailors and officers who earn them. These badges are awarded by the Navy to sailors and officers upon receipt of official scores, known as "leg points", earned at an authorized Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) competition. In addition, sailors can earn and wear the President's Hundred Brassard when finishing in the top 100 competitors of the President's Hundred Match. Also, sailors can earn and wear the U.S. Marine Corps's Annual Rifle Squad Combat Practice Competition Badge when competing as part of a Marine Rifle Squad—this badge is typically awarded to Navy Corpsman assigned to Marine infantry units. The following Marksmanship Competition Badges are currently awarded and authorized by the U.S. Navy (in order of precedence): Note: The basic design of the Navy's EIC Badge is the same regardless of the level of competition where the badge was earned. To help distinguish one EIC badge from another, the word "NATIONAL" or "FLEET" is embossed above the word "RIFLEMAN" or "PISTOL SHOT"; only the Interservice/Navy EIC Badges will lack any markings above the weapon designation.
 * U.S. Distinguished International Shooter Badge
 * Distinguished Marksman Badge
 * Distinguished Pistol Shot Badge
 * National Trophy Match Excellence-in-Competition (EIC) Rifle Badge (Gold)
 * National Trophy Match EIC Pistol Badge (Gold)
 * Interservice/Navy EIC Rifleman Badge (Gold)
 * Interservice/Navy EIC Pistol Badge (Gold)
 * Annual Rifle Squad Combat Practice Competition Badge (Gold) (a USMC badge)
 * Fleet EIC Rifle Badge (Gold)
 * Fleet EIC Pistol Badge (Gold)
 * National Trophy Match EIC Rifle Badge (Silver)
 * National Trophy Match EIC Pistol Badge (Silver)
 * Interservice/Navy EIC Rifleman Badge (Silver)
 * Interservice/Navy EIC Pistol Badge (Silver)
 * Annual Rifle Squad Combat Practice Competition Badge (Silver)
 * Fleet EIC Rifle Badge (Silver)
 * Fleet EIC Pistol Badge (Silver)
 * National Trophy Match EIC Rifle Badge (Bronze)
 * National Trophy Match EIC Pistol Badge (Bronze)
 * Interservice/Navy EIC Rifleman Badge (Bronze)
 * Interservice/Navy EIC Pistol Badge (Bronze)
 * Annual Rifle Squad Combat Practice Competition Badge (Bronze)
 * Fleet EIC Rifle Badge (Bronze)
 * Fleet EIC Pistol Badge (Bronze)
 * President's Hundred Brassard (enlisted only)

title: Badges of the United States Navy


text:
David Jones (footballer, born 1984)

David Frank Llwyd Jones (born 4 November 1984) is an English professional football coach and former player who is currently the first team coach at Welsh club Wrexham. Jones began his playing career at Manchester United, but struggled to get into the first team and spent loan spells at Preston North End, NEC and Derby County, before joining Derby on a permanent basis in 2007. However, he left Derby after just one season to join Wolverhampton Wanderers. He spent three years with Wolves before joining Wigan Athletic. At the end of his second season there, he went on a brief loan spell with Blackburn Rovers, before joining Burnley. After three years with Burnley, he left for Sheffield Wednesday, where he spent another three years before being released at the end of the 2018–19 season. He joined Oldham Athletic on a free transfer but was released in January 2020. He was without a club while football was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but in August 2021, he signed for Wrexham as a player-coach. In June 2022, he retired from football to become a coach full-time at Wrexham.

Jones represented England at under-21 level, but he also had a parental qualification to play for Wales.

Manchester United
Born in Southport, Jones joined Manchester United in 1995 at the age of 10. He made eight appearances for the under-17 side in the 2000–01 season, and signed as an apprentice on 2 July 2001, before breaking into the Under-19 side in early 2002. He was made captain of the Under-19s at the start of the 2002–03 season, and went on to make 18 appearances, scoring one goal, as the team progressed to the final of the FA Youth Cup in April 2003, where a 2–0 victory over Middlesbrough in the second leg saw him lift the trophy at Old Trafford.

The following season saw Jones promoted to the reserve team, where he established himself as a regular in the heart of midfield. He was named as a substitute for a League Cup tie against West Bromwich Albion in December 2003, but did not feature in the game. In the 2004–05 season, Manchester United introduced a second reserve team to play in the Pontins' Holiday League, in addition to the existing FA Premier Reserve League North side. Jones was named as captain of the latter and also made regular appearances for the former. Jones experienced a great deal of success with the reserve sides, lifting the FA Premier Reserve League North trophy and then captaining the side to victory over Charlton Athletic Reserves (winners of the FAPRL South) to take the national title. He also featured as the reserves secured the Pontins Holiday League title and the Pontins Holiday League Cup, once again acting as captain as Manchester United were narrowly denied a fifth trophy at the hands of Manchester City Reserves in the final of the Manchester Seniors Cup.

Jones was allocated a squad number, 31, during the 2003–04 season and made his senior debut as a late substitute in a 1–0 home win over Arsenal in the League Cup. He made his full team debut in Manchester United's shock 0–0 home draw with non-league Exeter City in the FA Cup third round. Despite these opportunities Jones found it hard to break into the first team ahead of Roy Keane and Paul Scholes and spent much of the remainder of his Manchester United career either in the reserves or out on loan.

Preston North End
For the 2004–05 season Jones was sent on a season long loan to Football League Championship side Preston North End to gain first-team experience making his debut at Watford on 6 August 2005. Good performances from the bench soon saw him established as first-choice in midfield and he scored his first goal for the club in a 4–0 away win at Ipswich Town on 29 August 2005. Jones played a key role in a long unbeaten run which pushed Preston up into the Championship play-off positions, making 24 appearances, including three as substitute, and scoring 3 goals.

NEC Nijmegen
Jones' spell at Preston was followed by joining Eredivisie side NEC Nijmegen on a loan deal until the end 2005–06 season. Wearing number five, he again had to spend time on the substitutes bench to begin with, but impressed sufficiently in brief appearances against Ajax and Sparta Rotterdam to be brought on at half-time against ADO Den Haag on 22 January 2006. Jones scored two goals in a 5–0 win to secure a place in the starting line-up for the next game, where he again scored twice, this time to salvage a draw against Willem II. One of those goals was from the penalty spot. He started every game for the rest of the season in a left centre midfield role in NEC's 4–3–3 formation. During a match against Heracles, he scored a goal from 30 yards. In the match against FC Groningen, he again scored a goal from a free kick, just 25 yards out, receiving the Man of the Match award. In the short time he was with NEC Nijmegen, he got himself placed second on their Man of the Year list, with 134 points, thirty points behind talented striker Romano Denneboom. The team ended 10th in 2006 and Jones returned to England having signed a new three-year deal at Manchester United.

Despite his success in the Netherlands, the arrival of £14 million Michael Carrick from Tottenham meant Jones was restricted to appearances in the League Cup. On 15 November 2006, a bid of £1 million from Derby County was accepted. The deal would see Jones initially move on loan to Pride Park until the January transfer window – the first possible opportunity to make the transfer a permanent one. In moving to Derby, Jones would link up once again with Billy Davies, manager of Preston during his loan spell there.

Derby County
Jones' Derby career started promisingly, with the midfielder establishing himself as first choice in midfield and contributing significantly to Derby's push for promotion, including scoring a stoppage-time free-kick in the 1–0 home win against Sheffield Wednesday. Alex Ferguson once remarked that he had sold Jones too cheaply to Derby. However, as the season drew to a close Derby's form took a dip and Jones found himself moving to the fringes of the first team, only appearing as an 87th-minute substitute in the 1–0 victory over West Bromwich Albion in the Championship Playoff Final which promoted Derby to the Premier League.

Despite Derby struggling on their return to the top flight Jones was unable to force himself into the first team on a regular basis, playing only 15 times in the league. He scored the first top flight goal of his career in Derby's 6–1 defeat at Chelsea on 12 March 2008. Jones was in and out of the side under new manager Paul Jewell, although he did make 12 of his 15 appearances that season under Jewell.

Wolverhampton Wanderers
Jones signed for Wolverhampton Wanderers of the Championship on 27 June 2008 in a three-year deal for a reported fee of £1.2 million. He made his Wolves debut on the opening day of the 2008–09 season at Plymouth Argyle and scored his first goal in a 5–1 win over Nottingham Forest on 30 August. He became a regular fixture in the first team squad throughout the season until a suspected injury halted his run in early 2009. He returned to the side during the final stages as the club eventually won promotion to the Premier League as champions, Jones' second promotion in three seasons.

Jones' return to the top flight was initially curtailed by several injury setbacks to a troublesome knee problem that had occurred in the previous season. However, he returned to the central midfield in early 2010 at the expense of Nenad Milijaš and scored his first Premier League goal for Wolves when he finished an 18-pass move to defeat Tottenham Hotspur. His performances during the remainder of the season helped the club to survival and saw Jones be offered a new contract. However, Jones rejected a new contract with Wolves, with only 12 months left to run on his existing deal. Despite rejecting a new contract, Jones will continue to give 100 per cent in the upcoming season. After scoring an opener for Wolves in a 2–1 win over Stoke City on the opening day, Jones is still hoping to sign a new contract with the club. Jones scored the fifth goal in the game in a 5–0 win over Doncaster Rovers putting Wolves through to the next round of the FA Cup. Since February 2011, Jones has not featured since early February under McCarthy.

However, Jones failed to agree the terms of a new contract and he instead exited Wolves at the expiry of his deal in May 2011.

Wigan Athletic
On 2 August 2011, Jones was signed by Wigan Athletic on a free transfer after impressing on trial during the pre-season. On the opening day of the Premier League season Jones was on the bench for the match against Norwich City, but was not used. He made his Wigan debut on 13 September 2011 as Wigan lost 2–1 to Crystal Palace in the League Cup. He made his league debut after coming on for Jordi Gomez in the 71st minute of a 3–1 loss to Everton on 17 September 2011.

Blackburn Rovers
On 2 March 2013, Jones completed an emergency loan move to Blackburn Rovers for the remainder of the season. He made his debut the same day and scored in a 3–2 defeat to Peterborough United. He later thanked Wigan manager Roberto Martínez for allowing him the opportunity to go out on loan.

Burnley
After media speculation that Jones would make his loan deal at Ewood Park permanent, it was a surprise to many when Jones began training with Rovers' East Lancashire rivals, Burnley in July 2013. Jones was included in Sean Dyche's squad that embarked on a pre-season training camp in Cork, which included a friendly against Cork City, in which Jones played. Jones played in Burnley's other pre-season victories against Tranmere Rovers, Carlisle United and Sparta Rotterdam and on 1 August 2013, Jones completed a permanent move to Burnley on a free transfer. Jones scored his first goal for Burnley on 6 August in a 4–0 win at York City along with goals from Junior Stanislas, Danny Ings and a first goal for new arrival Scott Arfield. Jones scored his first league goal for the club on 1 March 2014, during a 2–0 win over Derby County.

Sheffield Wednesday
On 16 August 2016, Jones joined Championship side Sheffield Wednesday for an undisclosed fee. He scored his first goal for Sheffield Wednesday – his first for almost two years – in a 1–1 draw against Sunderland on 16 August 2017.

He was released by Sheffield Wednesday at the end of the 2018–19 season.

Oldham Athletic
After his release by Sheffield Wednesday, Jones trained with former employers Burnley but only to keep his fitness levels up while looking for a new club. He joined Oldham Athletic on a free transfer, but would be released only a few months later, having played six games for the club.

Wrexham
On 17 August 2021, Jones joined Wrexham as a player-coach after a successful trial. On 1 June 2022, after his contract as a player-coach ended, Wrexham offered Jones the opportunity to continue in his role as the Club’s First Team Coach.

Coaching career
Jones joined Wrexham on 17 August 2021 joined as a player-coach and a year later was named as reserve team manager. In June 2022 Jones retired as a player and was appointed as Wrexham’s First team coach.

International career
Jones was called up to the England under-21 squad during the 2003–04 season. Although qualified to play for Wales, Jones opted to play for England at that level and made what was to be his only appearance for the under-21 side in a 2–2 away draw with Sweden on 30 March 2004, coming on as a second-half substitute for Nigel Reo-Coker.

Honours
Wolverhampton Wanderers
 * Football League Championship: 2008–09

Individual
 * Denzil Haroun Reserve Team Player of the Year: 2003–04

title: David Jones (footballer, born 1984)


text:
Talk:ESP guitars

What do we do here? The page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ESP_Guitars is much better than this page.

title: Talk:ESP guitars


text: Template:Elliott Smith

title: Template:Elliott Smith


text: User talk:69.212.72.83

title: User talk:69.212.72.83


text:
Øistein Strømnæs

Øistein Strømnæs (28 June 1914 – 21 July 1980) was the head of XU, the main Norwegian intelligence organization from 1943 to 1945.

Strømnæs was born in Sarpsborg in Østfold county, Norway. He studied biology at the University of Oslo and was working on a master's degree in botany when Norway was attacked in 1940. To support his studies he also had a part-time job as a police constable, this proved very valuable when he got involved in intelligence.

Recruited by one of the founders of XU, Captain Eivind Hjelle, Strømnæs joined XU in August 1940. Strømnæs was said to be a "natural agent", and he had a very relaxed tone with his agents. Strømnæs assumed the leadship of XU when Arvid Storsveen was killed in April 1943. He worked undercover in Oslo until the end of World War II. Strømnæs focused on security to the point Defense Command in London, did not know the real identity of the chairman of the intelligence service.

After the liberation of Norway Strømnæs received a scholarship and earned his doctor's degree at the University of California, Berkeley. Anne-Sofie Østvedt (1920–2009), former vice chairman of the XU also attended college at Berkeley. The couple was married in 1946. Anne-Sofie Strømnæs received her master's degree in food chemistry at Berkeley. They moved home to Norway after completing studies in 1951. For many years, Strømnæs was assistant professor and later associate professor of genetics at the University of Oslo.

Other sources

 * Sæter, Einar; Sæter, Svein (2007) XU - I Hemmeleg Teneste 1940-45 (Oslo: Det Norske Samlaget) ISBN 978-82-521-7208-9

title: Øistein Strømnæs


text:
Stephen Dodson Ramseur

Stephen Dodson Ramseur (May 31, 1837 – October 20, 1864) was a Confederate general in the American Civil War, at one point the youngest in the army. He impressed Lee by his actions at Malvern Hill and Chancellorsville, where his brigade led Stonewall Jackson’s flank attack, taking 50% casualties. On the first day of Gettysburg, he dramatically routed a Union brigade, sending it running through the town, though his superiors did not authorize further pursuit. Ramseur also distinguished himself in the Overland campaign and the Valley campaign, where he was mortally wounded at Cedar Creek.

Early life
Dodson Ramseur generally did not use his first name; intimate friends called him "Dod". He was born in Lincolnton, North Carolina to Jacob Able and Lucy Mayfield Dodson Ramseur. He was a second cousin to future Confederate generals John Horace Forney and William H. Forney. Ramseur attended Davidson College, where he studied mathematics under Daniel Harvey Hill, another future Confederate general. He continued at the United States Military Academy, graduated in 1860, was commissioned a second lieutenant, and was assigned to the 3rd and 4th U.S. Artillery regiments just before the start of the war. An intensely devout man, he believed slavery a divinely blessed institution, and by the time he entered West Point he bore great hatred for all Northerners.

Civil War
Ramseur did not wait until North Carolina seceded from the Union, joining the Confederate States Army in Alabama, but quickly transferred to the 10th North Carolina Militia. He became the lieutenant colonel of the 3rd North Carolina Infantry on May 27, 1861. He was injured with a broken collarbone while being thrown from his horse in July and was out of service until the following spring.

Peninsula Campaign
At the start of the Peninsula Campaign in 1862, Ramseur commanded artillery in Brig. Gen. John B. Magruder's division, but he was elected colonel of the 49th North Carolina Infantry on April 12, 1862. In the Seven Days Battles, Ramseur saw his first significant action at the Battle of Malvern Hill, where he led a futile charge against the strong Union defense and was severely wounded in the right arm. The arm mangled and paralyzed, Ramseur returned home to recuperate. After the Battle of Antietam, he returned from leave as commander of a brigade of four North Carolina regiments in Brig. Gen. Robert E. Rodes's division of Lt. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's corps. Promoted to brigadier general on November 1, 1862, he became, at 25 years old, the youngest general in the Confederate army at that time. This was a remarkable accession to rank for someone who had missed so many battles, but Gen. Robert E. Lee had been very impressed by Ramseur's aggressive performance at Malvern Hill.

Chancellorsville
In the Battle of Chancellorsville, Ramseur's was the lead brigade in Jackson's famous flank march of May 2, 1863, against the Union right. Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart, in temporary command of the corps after Jackson was mortally wounded, ordered three cheers for the brigade's aggressive assault and recommended that Ramseur be promoted to major general; this would not come to pass for another year. Ramseur's performance was actually overly aggressive because his brigade moved out in front of the other brigades too quickly, became exposed, and ran out of ammunition. They had to have reinforcements rush in from the neighboring brigade to help consolidate their gains. His brigade had higher casualties in the battle—more than 50%—than any other Confederate brigade. On the following day, he was wounded again, this time in the leg. General Lee wrote about Ramseur's brigade after the battle:

Gettysburg
In the Battle of Gettysburg, on July 1, 1863, Ramseur's brigade was one of five Rodes led in an assault south from Oak Hill against the right flank of the Union I Corps. Ramseur started in reserve, but the failed attacks by the brigades of Brig. Gens. Alfred Iverson and Edward A. O'Neal required him to move forward to keep the assault from petering out. Rather than repeating their direct assaults, he swung around to the left, across the Mummasburg Road, and hit the defenders in the rear, routing them and driving them back through the town. (This assault was not as difficult as Iverson's and O'Neal's because the Union defenders had now only one brigade in position instead of two and they were low on ammunition.) Ramseur was dismayed when ordered to halt the pursuit of his foe at the foot of Cemetery Hill. This was the last fighting at Gettysburg for Ramseur; Rodes's division sat idle just northwest of Cemetery Hill for the next two days and retreated to Virginia with the rest of the Army of Northern Virginia. Ramseur returned home on leave to marry Ellen E. "Nellie" Richmond and they spent three months together in the Confederate army winter encampment.

The Wilderness
In the Wilderness, the start of Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Overland Campaign, Ramseur was once again kept in reserve. On May 7, 1864, his brigade was called forward and smashed into Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside's IX Corps, which was attempting to outflank Ramseur's corps. Both Lee and corps commander Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell wrote in admiration of his gallant attack, which drove Burnside's troops back over a half mile. At Spotsylvania Court House, his brigade counterattacked the II Corps of Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock after its assault on the Mule Shoe at the "Bloody Angle". Desperate hand-to-hand fighting, some of the most intense of the war, lasted for over 20 hours. He was wounded again in this attack, shot from his horse in the right arm, but refused to leave the field.

Major General
Ramseur assumed command of Jubal A. Early's division when that general took over from Ewell after Spotsylvania. He received a temporary promotion to major general on June 1, 1864, becoming at 27 the youngest West Point graduate to ever be promoted to major general in the Confederate Army. He fought at Cold Harbor and was the first division to intercept Grant before he could capture Petersburg.

1864 Valley Campaign
In June 1864, Ramseur and the rest of Early's corps was sent by Lee to the Shenandoah Valley to draw Union forces away from Petersburg, in the Valley Campaigns of 1864. They conducted a long and successful raid down the Valley, into Maryland, and reached the outskirts of Washington, D.C., before turning back. Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan was sent by Grant to drive Early from the Valley. On September 19, 1864, Sheridan attacked the Confederates at the Battle of Opequon, also known as the Third Battle of Winchester. Ramseur's division was routed by a strong Union assault near Stephenson's Depot; Ramseur allegedly wept openly and immaturely blamed his men for the retreat. His colleague Rodes was mortally wounded.

Cedar Creek and death
In a surprise attack a month later, Early routed two thirds of the Union army at the Battle of Cedar Creek on October 19, but his troops were hungry and exhausted and fell out of their ranks to pillage the Union camp; Ramseur managed to corral a few hundred soldiers out of his division and stood with them in the center of the line as Sheridan counterattacked. They held off the Union assault for an hour and a half. Ramseur displayed great bravery in rallying his troops, but he was mounted conspicuously on horseback and drew continuous fire. He was wounded in the arm and his horse was shot out from under him. A second horse was also killed. On his third horse, he was struck through both lungs and fell, later to be captured by Union soldiers of the 1st Vermont Cavalry.

Dodson Ramseur died the following day near Middletown, Virginia, at Sheridan's headquarters in the Belle Grove Plantation. His last words were, "Bear this message to my precious wife—I die a Christian and hope to meet her in heaven." The day before the battle, word reached Ramseur of the birth of a baby daughter. He is buried near his birthplace, Lincolnton, in St. Luke's Episcopal Cemetery.

Jubal Early's account of Ramseur at Cedar Creek sums up the man and his accomplishments:

Legacy
The town of Ramseur in eastern Randolph County, North Carolina is named in Ramseur's honor.

A monument on the Cedar Creek battlefield commemorates Ramseur's death in the Belle Grove House.

By chance, Henry A. Dupont, his friend from West Point, was present at Cedar Creek, and years later described his death bed scene.

In popular culture
In MacKinlay Kantor's 1961 alternate history book If the South Had Won the Civil War, Ramseur appears as one of several prominent people who would have campaigned for the abolition of slavery in an independent Confederacy and eventually achieved it by 1885.

In Ralph Peters's 2015 fictionalized account of the Valley Campaigns of 1864, Valley of the Shadow, General Ramseur is a significant character up until his death near the end of the book.

title: Stephen Dodson Ramseur


text:
Talk:Vinko Bogataj

Family?
Certain Jure Bogataj is part of the Slovenian team that won bronze medal at the Nordic World Championship in Oberstdorf (plus, he won the continental cup game in Engelbert, 2004). Are they related? --romanm (talk) 19:47, 20 Feb 2005 (UTC)

 * I got an e-mail from another person with the same surname, and he claims they are not related. --romanm (talk) 21:29, 20 May 2005 (UTC)

Addition to information
Can anyone else verify or provide specifics - I recall Mr. Bogataj doing an American Express credit card commercial many years ago. It was along the lines of 'You probably don't know my name, but you've seen me many times'. Then it cuts to 'fall' footage. Then his name is 'embossed' on an AmEx card one letter at a time. The commercial was how I first learned his real name - it had bothered me for years that I recognized many events used as the 'thrill of victory', but did not know who the 'agony of defeat' was!

I can't prove this claim; perhaps others can.

TractorBill 03:13, 7 August 2007 (UTC)

Birth date
The date is 1948, but there's a link at the bottom directing the reader to 1950 births. I'll let someone else fix it. NavyVet6989 (talk) 21:05, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

title: Talk:Vinko Bogataj