Irish America 250
Sure shot Tim was the name given Irish American Timothy Murphy, son of Irish immigrants from County Donegal. Murphy and his brother John were among the thousands of Irish Americans who fought during the Revolution and helped create this most favored nation of America.
July 4th, Independence Day 2026, we will celebrate the 250th Anniversary of our unique and bold experiment in democracy; pray that this anniversary will rejuvenate the fight in us to resist the dark forces of autocracy and tyranny. Murphy had honed his marksmen skills on what was then the Pennsylvania frontier.
He joined up with the Continental Army in 1775 and fought in the siege of Boston, the Battle of Long Island, crossed the Delaware River with Gen. George Washington before being sent to upstate New York with Morgan’s Rifleman to repulse Redcoat Gen. George Burgoyne after he successfully took Fort Ticonderoga from the American Patriots. The Brit’s plan was to cut the more rebellious New England Colonies off, straight down the Hudson River Valley from more docile New York and Middle Atlantic Colonies.
This was after Boston, New York and Philadelphia had fallen to the Redcoats. The time was bleak for the Continental Army and the fledgling American cause.
Saratoga
An American Patriot victory at Saratoga broke the momentum of the Brits. The fight, after two battles had devolved into a bloody slugfest when “Sure Shot Tim” went into action and with his marksmanship expertise, took out Brit Gen. Simon Frazer and his Senior Officer, leaving the Brit troops confused, bewildered and demoralized.
This turned the tide of an advancing Redcoat Army at Saratoga, leading to a Patriot Victory. This was the first time an entire Brit Army surrendered to American troops.
Amongst historians, The Battle of Saratoga in the Fall of 1777 is considered one of the most decisive battles in human history. This battle proved to European powers such as France, Spain and the Netherlands that the Americans could win this war; leading to significant investment by our European friends of preciously needed resources.
The Battle of Saratoga is considered The Turning Point of the American Revolution. European ships, troops and money began to flow to the American Patriots.
Pulitzer Prize winning author and historian, Richard Norton Smith, stated: “One could argue that the bullet that took out British Gen. Simon Frazer did as much as any Founding Father to establish American Independence.” Irish Americans should be secure and proud in the knowledge of the contributions of Irish Americans like Tim Murphy and thousands of others who helped win the War of Independence.
Pulitzer Prize winning author and historian, Richard Norton Smith, stated: “One could argue that the bullet that took out British Gen. Simon Frazer did as much as any Founding Father to establish American Independence.” Irish Americans should be secure and proud in the knowledge of the contributions of Irish Americans like Tim Murphy and thousands of others who helped win the War of Independence.
Take the opportunity to visit Saratoga, it’s a beautiful spot in the World. The Racetrack there transports one back in time, don’t miss it.
The Ancient Order of Hibernians installed a small monument to Tim Murphy, which one can visit.
Nearby Lake George and the entire Hudson Valley is worthy of your time.
Time up for Tenney
Rep Claudia Tenney, Republican from Upstate New York, is castigating Ireland, quoting Israeli advocacy groups, charging the Irish are Anti-Semitic and participating in “bigoted boycotts.” Her false claims are in reaction to proposed Irish “Occupied Territories” legislation.
Tenney further charged Ireland with a “blatant attempt to isolate and delegitimize Israel.” Neil Cosgrove, Political Education Chair of the A.O.H., pushed back by writing her that, “The Occupied Territories Bill, as introduced, applies only to goods and services originating from settlements in territories that the United States, the European Union, and the United Nations recognize as occupied – principally the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza. It does not ban trade with Israel as a recognized sovereign state. By treating a restriction on goods from the occupied territories as equivalent to a boycott of Israel as a whole, your letter disregards the distinction that has been maintained by successive U.S. administrations, Republican and Democrat alike.”
To use Rep. Tenney’s marginal standards of analysis, she a member of the Presbyterian Church, could be labeled as an Anti-Irish and Anti-Catholic Bigot. Tenney is trying to push formal sanctions against the Irish State.
The Irish State has the right to take whatever positions it so chooses. The Irish understand the weapons of forced migration, the taking of lands, the loss of voting rights, and the use of starvation as tools of subjugation; the Irish recognize a bully when they see it. The AOH went on to say: “Members of Congress hold a sacred responsibility to present policy disagreements accurately and in good faith, particularly when the reputations of allied nations and the integrity of U.S. law are at stake. I respectfully urge you, in any future engagement, to ensure that your comments accurately reflect the scope of the legislation under discussion, and to distinguish between opposition to a nation’s policies and prejudice against its people. Such standards are essential if this debate is to be grounded in fact rather than misrepresentation. I hope that, going forward, such mischaracterizations will not be repeated.”
The letter was copied to 15 other Republican Congressmen who signed on to her letter.
Know Nothing Two
Ohio Republican Senator Bern Moreno has introduced legislation forcing U.S. citizens to renounce any other ties to another nation. In the Irish American community, many take pride in acknowledging their Irish heritage by maintaining or applying for secondary Irish citizenship. In an effort to advocate for a solution to a problem that does not exist, Sen. Moreno proposes to force Irish Americans to renounce Ireland.
Don’t look for this legislation to go anywhere; one pundit had suggested that Sen. Moreno, an immigrant from the South American nation of Columbia, one of the nations that his dear little leader considers one of the “Sh**hole countries”, is self-conscious and eager to prove his “Uber Americanism.”
Know Nothing Three
President dTrump is looking to create an “Office of Remigration” within the U.S. State Department. In one of his all-night media postings, Dear little Leader dTrump stated: “America was invaded and occupied. I am reversing the Invasion. It’s called Remigration.”
The word Remigration has become popularized in recent years by German White Ethnonationalists groups who look for the forced repatriation of non-white immigrants. Dozing Donnie seems comfortable with the use of this word enough to create a formal office of Remigration.
One best renew that Ancestry subscription so you can find your third cousin, once removed in County Mayo to let them know to get the guest room in the barn ready for you and your family once the repatriation begins. Question of the day, will that remigration include Sen. Moreno? Will it include the son of immigrants Dozing Donnie? Or his children or immigrant wives? Resist!!
