Motherfucker is an English-language vulgarism. While the word is considered offensive, it is used in the literal sense of one who engages in sexual activity with another person's mother, or his or her own mother. Rather, it refers to a mean, despicable, or vicious person, or any difficult or frustrating situation. Alternatively, it can be a term of admiration, as in the term badass motherfucker, meaning a fearless and confident person. Like many used offensive terms, motherfucker has a large list of minced oaths. Motherhumper, mother f'er, mothertrucker, motherlover, fothermucker, motherflower and many more are sometimes used in polite company or to avoid censorship; the participle motherfucking is used as an emphatic, in the same way as the less strong fucking. The verb to motherfuck exists, although it is less common. Conversely, when paired with an adjective, it can become a term denoting such things as originality and masculinity, as in the related phrase "bad ass mother fucker". Use of the term as a compliment is frequent in the jazz community, for example when Miles Davis addressed his future percussionist Mino Cinelu: "Miles...grabbed his arm and said,'You're a motherfucker.'

Cinelu thanked Miles for the compliment." The word dates back at least to the late 19th century. In an 1889 Texas murder case, a witness testified that the victim had called the defendant a "God damned mother-f—king, bastardly son-of-a-bitch" shortly before his death. A Texas court opinion from 1897 prints the word "mother-fucking" in full, and in 1917 a U. S. soldier called his draft board "You low-down Mother Fuckers..." in a letter. In literature, Norman Mailer, in his 1948 novel The Naked and the Dead uses it disguised as motherfugger, used it in full in his 1967 novel Why Are We in Vietnam?. It appears twice in James Purdy's 1956 novella 63: Dream Palace. In Kurt Vonnegut's novel Slaughterhouse-Five the word is used by one of the soldiers in the story – leading to the novel being challenged in libraries and schools. Vonnegut joked in a speech, published in the collection Fates Worse Than Death, that "Ever since that word was published, way back in 1969, children have been attempting to have intercourse with their mothers.

When it will stop no one knows."The words "mother for you" or "mother fuyer", as minced oaths for "motherfucker", were used in blues and R&B records from the 1930s. A few examples include Memphis Minnie's "Dirty Mother For You", Roosevelt Sykes' "Dirty Mother For You", Dirty Red's "Mother Fuyer"; the singer Stick McGhee, whose recording of "Drinking Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee" was a hit in 1949, claimed that he had heard the song as "Drinking Wine, Motherfucker". Johnny "Guitar" Watson had a hit in 1977 with "A Real Mother For Ya". In popular music, the first mainstream rock release to include the word was the 1969 album Kick Out the Jams by MC5; the title track, a live recording, is introduced by vocalist Rob Tyner shouting "And right now... right now... right now it's time to... kick out the jams, motherfuckers!". This was pulled from stores, an edited version was released with the words "brothers and sisters" overdubbed on the offending word. At about the same time, the Jefferson Airplane released the album Volunteers, the opening track of which, "We Can Be Together", included the line "up against the wall, motherfucker", a popular catch phrase among radical groups at the time.

This attracted less attention. The word was implied, but not said explicitly, in Isaac Hayes' huge 1971 hit song "Theme from Shaft". Arlo Guthrie's 1967 piece "Alice's Restaurant" used a minced version, "mother rapers." Though broadcast in the US, the word has since become common in popular music in hip hop. The word appears in George Carlin's Seven Words. In one HBO special, he comments that at one point, someone asked him to remove it, since, as a derivative of the word "fuck", it constituted a duplication, he added it back, claiming that the bit's rhythm does not work without it. The word has become something of a catchphrase for actor Samuel L. Jackson, who utters the word in some films, his use of the word helped him overcome a lifelong stuttering problem. The Compleat Motherfucker: A History of the Mother of All Dirty Words by Jim Dawson, is a history of the word in black culture and in American literature, film and music. Incest Maternal insult Prick Grass Mud Horse Mat

Dirk B. K. Van Raalte was a Union soldier during the American Civil War and served as a member of the Michigan State Legislature for three different terms. Van Raalte was an active member in the community of Michigan as a local businessman, he is buried in Pilgrim Home Cemetery. Born on March 1, 1844 in Ommen Netherlands, Van Raalte was the fifth of ten total children of Albertus van Raalte and Christina Van Raalte, he was named after a business partner of his father Albertus, who founded Holland and Hope College. Van Raalte enlisted in the army a week after his older brother, Benjamin enlisted on August 20, 1862; the decision to enlist was supported by his father, who encouraged Dutch boys to enlist. Christina, his mother, was not thrilled to have two of her three sons. Christina would send both him and Benjamin treats along with extra clothes against their wishes. In a letter home Benjamin explains "I will write for it. Mother must not send me anything unless I ask for it." Van Raalte was part of the 25th Michigan Volunteer Infantry Regiment.

During his time of service he would lose an arm during the Battle of Atlanta. While riding his horse through the woods, trying to deliver a message, Van Raalte was ambushed by Confederate soldiers and was shot in the forearm and shoulder after attempting to escape on horseback, his wounds would lead to the amputation of his right arm from the shoulder down. His family received the news of his injury through a letter written home on August 30, 1864, composed by Van Raalte himself, with help from his brother Benjamin; the horse Van Raalte was riding during the time of his injury was black, so for the rest of his life he refused to ride anything other than a black horse. After hearing the news of his son's injury, Albertus attempted to go south and bring his son back, but did not make it past Nashville, Tennessee before being told to turn around by soldiers guarding the city. Van Raalte began as a private in the army and was discharged as a hospital steward on April 13, 1865, he returned to Holland the spring after the war's close in 1865.

All the letters from both Van Raalte and his brother Benjamin corresponding during the war can be found in collection 300 in Calvin College's Heritage Hall known as The Van Raalte papers. In October 1880 Van Raalte would marry Kate Ledeboer, the sister of Willie Ledeboer a man, in his regiment during the war. Together they would have two sons, Albertus Christiaan and D. B. K Junior; the couple would live in the family house which Van Raalte purchased in 1875. During his tenure on the state legislature, which began twelve years after his discharge from the military, Van Raalte would serve two consecutive terms, return for a third term in 1909 until his death in 1910, his primary job on the legislature was serving on committee of means. Van Raalte was well-liked by everyone on the legislature from all the different political parties. One fellow member is quoted as saying "Van Raalte is no mean opponent in scathing debate, the representatives who can better him in sarcasm and ironical oratory may be counted upon the fingers of a single hand."

Jacobson, Jeanne M.. Albertus C. Van Raalte: Dutch Leader and American Patriot. Holland, Michigan: Hope College. ISBN 9780963406118. Calvin College Heritage Hall

The Newton House Museum known as the Matthew Rainey House, is a historic house museum at 510 North Jackson Street in El Dorado, Arkansas. The house was built sometime between 1843 and 1853 by Matthew Rainey, El Dorado's first settler, is the oldest building in the city, it is rooms on either side. It stands at the edge of a 4-acre parcel, having been moved from its center in 1910; the house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974, included in the Murphy-Hill Historic District in 2007. It is now owned by the South Arkansas Historical Foundation. National Register of Historic Places listings in Union County, Arkansas Newton House Museum website

Clifton Russell Richardson, known as Clif Richardson, was a businessman from Greenwell Springs, a Republican member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from District 65 in East Baton Rouge Parish. Prior to his legislative service, Richardson was a justice of the peace from 1991 to 2007. Richardson was elected in the nonpartisan blanket primary on October 20, 2007, in a two-candidate Republican race for the seat vacated by the term-limited Donald Ray Kennard, a Democrat-turned Republican from Baton Rouge, he defeated Ed Clarke of Central in East Baton Rouge Parish. The election results were not close, as Richardson prevailed, 8,610 votes to Clarke's 4,193. Richardson served on three House committees: Civil Law and Procedure, Municipal and Cultural Affairs. At the close of the 2010 legislative session, Richardson questioned the economic and personal impact of the proposed Greater Baton Rouge Loop on the communities of East Baton Rouge Parish, he supported Governor Bobby Jindal's veto of $5 million for planning and initial construction of the loop.

Jindal said that he was vetoing the loop because the state "has scarce capital outlay and general fund dollars available... It is therefore important that major projects such as this have the widest support possible and the consensus of the legislative delegation in the area; that consensus has not thus far been achieved. Without the consensus of the public and the legislative delegation, the success of the project is in question, it would therefore be premature to fund the planning of such a large and controversial project until a consensus can be achieved."A native of Independence, a town in Tangipahoa Parish near Hammond, Richardson graduated in 1961 from Independence High School. He and his wife, the former Sylvia Carpenter, resided in Greenwell Springs, where he owned Rebel Electric Company, they had Mark Russell Richardson. Richardson was a veteran of the United States Navy. Richardson was a Baptist. Richardson announced in November 2012 that because he was a cancer patient he would vacate his House seat effective January 2, 2013.

A special election to choose a successor for the nearly three years remaining in Richardson's term was held on March 2, 2013. In a low-turnout contest, Republican Barry Ivey defeated another Republican, Scott Wilson, a member of the Baton Rouge Metro Council, to claim the seat that Richardson vacated. Ivey polled 2,202 votes to Wilson's 1,954. Ivey, who had never before sought office, opposes abortion in all circumstances except to save the life of the woman giving birth in a medical emergency, but Wilson supports exceptions in the case of impregnation from rape and incest as well. Ivey noted his friendship with Representative Valarie Hodges, a Republican from Denham Springs in neighboring District 64, he died of a heart attack on March 6, 2020, in Greenwell Springs, Louisiana at age 75

Šatrijos Ragana was the pen name of Marija Pečkauskaitė, a Lithuanian humanist and romantic writer and educator. Her most successful works are Irkos tragedija. Born in Medingėnai, Kovno Governorate to a family of petty Lithuanian nobles, Pečkauskaitė was raised in Polish culture. However, she made friends with local Lithuanian peasants and, influenced by her tutor Povilas Višinskis, joined the Lithuanian National Revival; because of poor health and expensive tuition, Pečkauskaitė did not graduate from a gymnasium in Saint Petersburg and had to complete her education in the Labūnava estate near Užventis. Višinskis translated her first works, written in Polish, into Lithuanian and published in liberal Lithuanian periodicals, such as Varpas and Ūkininkas. However, Pečkauskaitė disagreed with their secular agenda and turned to pro-Catholic Tėvynės sargas and similar newspapers. After her father's death in 1898, the family moved to Šiauliai as the old estate had to be sold for debts. In 1905 she received a scholarship from the Žiburėlis Society, established by Gabrielė Petkevičaitė-Bitė, to study pedagogy at the University of Zurich and the University of Fribourg.

While studying, she met with Friedrich Wilhelm Foerster and was affected by his views on education. After returning to Lithuania in 1907, Pečkauskaitė stayed in Šaukotas and Vilnius. In 1909, she was hired by the Žiburys Society as a teacher at a girls' pre-gymnasium in Marijampolė. In 1915 she moved to Židikai, she was involved in the town's cultural life, promoting teetotalism, organizing a youth chorus, other charity work. For her achievements in pedagogy, Pečkauskaitė was awarded an honorary degree of the University of Lithuania in 1928, she died in Židikai. Pečkauskaitė debuted in 1896 with short story Margi paveikslėliai, her works reflect social changes in her times: from estates to villages, from former nobles to peasants, from Polish to Lithuanian culture. All of her characters are strong romantic individuals, they altruistically sacrifice themselves for the benefit of the society. For example, one character, Viktutė, sacrifices her career in the arts to work as a teacher in a small town.

Pečkauskaitė was one of the first Lithuanian writers to create deep and complex characters, analyzing not only their psychology but spirituality. Her most critically acclaimed novel, Sename dvare, is somewhat autobiographical and depicts a family of a Samogitian landlord; the estate and manor owners, unlike in writings of Žemaitė or Lazdynų Pelėda, are not the sources of social injustice, but one of the last remaining outposts of old culture and values. Through the depiction of Mamatė the author expresses the realization that physical life is temporary and longs for permanent metaphysical existence; as with other works, parts inspired by her early childhood are bright and warm, colored by loving memories of dreams and aspirations, lean towards impressionism. In contrast, the short story Irkos tragedija, depicts the painful crash of a young girl's innocent world with harsh reality and family failure. Bibliography of Šatrijos Ragana

The MPL-50 is a small spade invented by Danish officer Mads Johan Buch Linnemann in 1869. It was used by rank and file military personnel in the Russian Empire, Soviet Union and its successor states since late 19th century. While nominally an entrenching tool, the MPL-50 saw wide ranged wartime applications ranging from a close quarters combat weapon to a cooking utensil; the MPL-50 was invented in 1869 by the Danish officer Mads Johan Buch Linnemann. In 1870 it was supplied to the Danish Army; the next year it was adopted by the much bigger Austrian Army, Linnemann founded a factory in Vienna to produce his spade. It was introduced to Germany, France and Russia, though only Russia recognized Linnemann's patent rights, paid him 30,000 rubles and ordered 60,000 spades; the MPL-50 remained unchanged through its history in Russia and the Soviet Union. The MPL-50 has a total length of 50 cm, it is sharpened on its working edge and on one side, for use as an axe. The wooden handle is not painted, but polished with sandpaper and fire singed to create a smooth surface that does not slide in the hand.

The blade carries the manufacturer's seal, which indicates the production year and distinguishes original products from primitive forgeries. The main purpose of MPL-50 is entrenching, carried out at a rate of 0.1–0.5 m3/hour depending on the soil type and physical condition of the soldier. The spade can be used as an axe, one side of its blade is sharpened for this purpose, or as a hammer, with the flat of the blade as the working surface, it can serve as an oar for paddling on improvised rafts, as a frying pan for cooking food, as a measuring device, as its length and width are standardized. Soviet Spetsnaz units had advanced training with the MPL-50, which they used not for entrenching, but for close quarters combat; the spade is well balanced, which allows it to be used as a throwing weapon