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      Welcome!   03/05/2016

      Welcome, everyone, to the new 910CMX Community Forums. I'm still working on getting them running, so things may change.  If you're a 910 Comic creator and need your forum recreated, let me know and I'll get on it right away.  I'll do my best to make this new place as fun as the last one!
Illjwamh

This Day In History

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2 minutes ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

Yes, Egypt has contributions to make to science and culture that are not wrapped in linen and natron.

I feel that it is worth mentioning that the current era Danish success with wind powered turbines is based on a study a Danish PhD student made of Middle Kingdom Egyptian mathematics and water mills. Three millenniums after their invention, these calculations still outperformed any mill design made until then.

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16 hours ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

If generations of forced inbreeding isn't healthy for humans of remote villages or royal families, why is it good for dogs?

Because some people like to pretend their pets came off an assembly line? ...Considering the health problems many pure-breed dogs and cats have, perhaps it would be better for everyone involved if those people just bought robot "pets".

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June 29

1613 – The Globe Theatre in London burns to the ground.  Blame was initially place on theatre critics.  But it was really just someone who liked very crispy Bacon.

1950 – Korean War: U.S. President Harry S. Truman authorizes a sea blockade of Korea.  He is then informed that the United States Navy does not have enough warships to actually enforce a blockade of Korea.

1956 – The Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 is signed, officially creating the United States Interstate Highway System.  Road Work Ahead Next 50,000 Miles.

1975 – Steve Wozniak tested his first prototype of Apple I computer.  Building electronics in your home workshop might be an interesting hobby, but what would you actually do with it?

1976 – The Seychelles become independent from the United Kingdom.  Commentators in the capital of Victoria dread the answer they must give when asked about women who distribute mollusk remains as souvenirs at the beach.  "She sells sea shells by the Seychelles seashore."

1995 – Space Shuttle program: STS-71 Mission (Atlantis) docks with the Russian space station Mir for the first time.  When the Shuttle program was being proposed to President Nixon, he was told that the big cargo bay would let the Shuttle capture Soviet spy satellites and bring them back for the US to analyze.  Well, the Shuttle did reach a Soviet satellite...

2007 – Apple Inc. releases the first iPhone.  And there is a significant chance that anyone reading this right now is doing so on an iPhone.

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7 hours ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

2007 – Apple Inc. releases the first iPhone.  And there is a significant chance that anyone reading this right now is doing so on an iPhone.

And after a long time of getting smaller, this event strangely causes mobile phones to start getting bigger again. Can the day be far off where Apple will release an iPhone with a 54-inch screen?

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59 minutes ago, The Old Hack said:

And after a long time of getting smaller, this event strangely causes mobile phones to start getting bigger again. Can the day be far off where Apple will release an iPhone with a 54-inch screen?

It is strange, because when the first flip phone came out, it was like "these are just like the Star Trek:TOS communicators!" and there probably were people involved in the design of them that had TOS in mind. and when Apple brought out the iPhone it was like "well they're kinda like TNG's PADDs though I don't recall PADDs being used as communicators" then a few years later Apple released the iPad, maybe Apple realized their mistake and made an actual interpretation of a PADD but they couldn't take the iPhone off the market because it had already gain popularity?

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1 hour ago, Scotty said:

maybe Apple realized their mistake and made an actual interpretation of a PADD but they couldn't take the iPhone off the market because it had already gain popularity?

I think it was more that they realised that with a bit of luck they could talk a lot of people into buying both an iPad and an iPhone at the same time. Even if the overlap was only like a third or so, what's not to love about getting paid twice? And then again there would also be the non-overlap, the part that might buy an iPad but not an iPhone, or the other way around.

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June 30

350 – Roman usurper Nepotianus, of the Constantinian dynasty, is defeated and killed in Rome by troops of the usurper Magnentius.  For those who don't understand this style of politics, the goal is to make all the "Usurpers" kill each other off, then who ever is left must be the legitimate ruler.

1520 – Spanish conquistadors led by Hernán Cortés fight their way out of Tenochtitlan.  Even though the Conquistadors got away that day, Montezuma would have his revenge.

1559 – King Henry II of France is mortally wounded in a jousting match against Gabriel, comte de Montgomery.  Someone should have told the Comte that when you play against the boss, you never actually want to win.

1860 – The 1860 Oxford evolution debate at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History takes place seven months after the publication of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species.  Can a university teach materials based on scientific evidence and not established religious dogma?

1905 – Albert Einstein sends the article On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies, in which he introduces Special Relativity, for publication in Annalen der Physik.  The laws of Physics are the same in every system?  The speed of light in a vacuum is the same for all observers?  Equality may be a good thing, but this may be taking things too far.

1908 – The Tunguska Event, the largest impact event on Earth in human recorded history, resulting in a massive explosion over Eastern Siberia.  No disrespect intended to Dr. Ray Stantz, but the event was almost certainly an airburst from an impacting meteoroid.  Not "the biggest interdimensional cross-rip".

1966 – Birth of Mike Tyson, American boxer and actor.  Talk with the man as much as you want, but don't let him chew your ear.

1972 – The first leap second is added to the UTC time system.  Thirty days hath September, and the hour has 3600 seconds, except when the Greenwich guys say otherwise.

2015 – First observation of International Asteroid Day.  The Tunguska event might have been an asteroid.  However it may have been caused by a comet, some other type of space debris, or even the biggest interdimensional cross-rip.  But the UN wants us all to watch for asteroids.  Not comets.  I suspect that the Comet Empire may be behind this.

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July 01

1782 – Raid on Lunenburg: American privateers attack the British settlement of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia.  The Americans took prisoners to Boston, but no one from Britain would pay for their ransom, so they were released.

1858 – The1st Canadian coins minted (1, 5, 10 and 20 cent).  A little bit late considering that Britain had converted Canadian currency to a decimal system over a year earlier.

1867 – The British North America Act of 1867 takes effect as the Province of Canada, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia join into confederation to create the modern nation of Canada. Sir John A. Macdonald (No, he does not want fries with that) is sworn in as the first Prime Minister of Canada. This date is commemorated annually in Canada as Canada Day.  And in only one hundred fifteen years, Canada would get permission from Britain to amend this Constitution which will allow Canada to amend the Constitution without permission from Britain.

1873 – Prince Edward Island joins into Canadian Confederation.  Some claim the seven year delay was due to interference from Britain and/or the United States.  Some say the decision to join was the result of bad business decisions.  Having neighbors from PEI, I suspect that no one actually understood what the delegates from Charlotte were saying, and the other Canadians were too polite to ask the PEI officials to repeat themselves, so no decision was formally made.

1878 – Canada joins the Universal Postal Union.  Can you really join the Universal Postal Union on a day when all your Post Offices are closed?

1881 – The world's first international telephone call is made between St. Stephen, New Brunswick, Canada, and Calais, Maine, United States.  International telephone call?  Considering the location, children with tin cans and string stretched over the river could achieve the same effect.

1885 – The United States terminates reciprocity and fishery agreement with Canada.  This issue would come up repeatedly with political sentiments for and against the idea alternatively embraced and rejected by the liberals, progressives, moderates, and conservatives from both Canada and The United States.

1890 – Canada and Bermuda are linked by telegraph cable.  Because the governments of Hamilton and Ottawa are determined to not have a preventable war due to the lack of communication as happened between Washington and London back in 1812.

1923 – The Canadian Parliament suspends all Chinese immigration.  Because the 1903 act demanding $500 per Chinese immigrant (over $8000 today) was not restrictive enough.

1952 – Birth of Dan Aykroyd, Canadian actor, producer, and screenwriter.  He is on a mission from God.

1958 – The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation links television broadcasting across Canada via microwave.  So don't put metal in your Canadian television.

1959 – Specific values for the international yard, avoirdupois pound and derived units (e.g. inch, mile and ounce) are adopted after agreement between Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the USA.  The yard is exactly 0.9144 meters and the pound is exactly 0.45359237 kilogram.  Forget the logical arguments about the need to use  SI units like the rest of the world and celebrate the incredible stubbornness of the English speaking people.

1966 – The first colour television transmission in Canada takes place from Toronto.  Those microwaves probably are to blame.

1980 – "O Canada" officially becomes the national anthem of Canada.  Never mind that the original French version was one hundred years old.  The most popular English translation was over seventy years old.  And it had been acting as a de facto national anthem for over forty years.  The Queen finally gave royal assent to what the Canadians had been singing all along.

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Happy Canada Day!

I'm a day late; blame my vacation.

On July 1 in History:

69 - Roman governor of Egypt Tiberius Julius Alexander orders his legions to support Vespasian as emperor. By a strange coincidence, Vespasian would become emperor, ending the Year of Four Emperors, shortly thereafter.

552 - Byzantine forces defeat the Ostrogoths at the Battle of Taginae, leading to them retaking large parts of the Italian peninsula that the Goths had taken back from them after they retook it the first time. They will keep it for a while.

1431 - At the Battle of La Higueruela (little fig tree) during the Reconquista, Castile is victorious over Granadan forces, but don't actually reconquist anything.

1523 - The Catholic Church, famous for its veneration of martyrs, martyrs a couple of Lutherans. They won't be the last, as organized religion's longstanding war against irony continues on.

1569 - Poland and Lithuania's fusion dance creates the Polish-Lithuanian-Commonwealth, or just the Commonwealth of Poland if you're not from Lithuania.

1766 - François-Jean de la Barre does not salute a passing religious procession in Abbeville, France. His punishment is swift: he is tortured, then burned at the stake with a copy of Voltaire's Dictionnaire philosophique nailed to his chest. They cut his head off first though, so he wouldn't suffer. The Church is nothing if not reasonable.

1863 - Suriname abolishes slavery. They saw what was going on up in the U.S. and said, "Holy shit, we don't want to be the last ones! That would make us look really bad!"

1867 - Province of Canada! New Brunswick! Nova Scotia! By your powers combined, I am Captain Canada! You can just call me Canada.

1873 - Prince Edward Island joins in, but they don't do the cool role call thing again.

1881 - The world's first international telephone call is made, which sounds impressive until you realize that it was between towns in Maine and New Brunswick that were just across a river from one another.

1885 - Leopold II of Belgium decides to call his personal rubber plantation the Congo Free State, because he thinks that's funny.

1898 - The only battle that anyone knows anything about from the Spanish American War takes place.

1943 - Tokyo City ceases to exist. No, you're not crazy; it merged with the prefecture, so it's technically not a city anymore. Pedant smash!

1959 - Still stubbornly refusing that French "metric" nonsense, the U.S., the UK, and other Commonwealth nations agree on standard values for yards and pounds and stuff. Glad we cleared that up.

1980 - "O Canada" is adopted as the national anthem, though for a long time there are many holdouts for the original anthem, "Hockey Night in Canada".

1984 - The MPAA says maybe kids shouldn't be seeing shit like a guy ripping another dude's heart out of his chest, and creates the PG-13 rating.

1997 - China takes Hong Kong back from the British. It's a great day for China and international cooperation. Slightly less as great a day for Hong Kong.

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July 03

The start of the Dog Days according to the Old Farmer's Almanac but not according to established meaning in most European cultures.  Sorry Europe, but the Almanac says you've been doing it wrong for centuries.

987 – Hugh Capet is crowned King of France, the first of the Capetian dynasty that would rule France until the French Revolution in 1792.  Eight Hundred years is not a bad run for a Royal Dynasty.

1035 – William becomes the Duke of Normandy, reigns until 1087.  He will pick up the nickname "The Conqueror" and gain another land to rule before he's done.

1767 – Pitcairn Island is discovered by Midshipman Robert Pitcairn on an expeditionary voyage commanded by Philip Carteret.  A newly discovered Island is named for the Midshipman?  The only way this makes sense is if the Commander was making the Midshipman do all the boring paperwork.

1819 – The Bank for Savings in the City of New-York, the first savings bank in the United States, opens.  Saving is still an unproven idea to many Americans.

1839 – The first state normal school in the United States, the forerunner to today's Framingham State University, opens in Lexington, Massachusetts with three students.  Three Students?  Not much margin to separate Valedictorian from Last in the Class.

1844 – The last pair of great auks is killed.  The flightless bird of the North Atlantic had become rare.  So hunters stepped up their efforts to gather specimens and eggs to stuff and mount.

1884 – Dow Jones & Company publishes its first stock average.  Business and Economic concepts are drastically simplified for the average newspaper reader.  Dow Jones up?  Good.  Dow Jones Down?  Bad.

1908 – Death of Joel Chandler Harris, American journalist and author (b. 1845).  It is painful to admit today that we found so much humor in nostalgia for a slavery based culture.

1952 – The Constitution of Puerto Rico is approved by the United States Congress.  Don't give up hope, Virgin Islands.  The Congress may someday approve your Constitution.

1989 – Death of Jim Backus, American actor and voice artist (b. 1913).  It is painful to admit today that we found so much humor in the animated exploits of a legally blind man who was too stubborn to admit he couldn't see.

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58 minutes ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

1035 – William becomes the Duke of Normandy, reigns until 1087.  He will pick up the nickname "The Conqueror" and gain another land to rule before he's done.

There was this marvellous book full of small bloopers that schoolchildren had written in their essays. One I remember with fondness was: "1066: William the Conqueror conquers England with the Salvation Army."

1 hour ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

1819 – The Bank for Savings in the City of New-York, the first savings bank in the United States, opens.  Saving is still an unproven idea to many Americans.

They just needed a taste of the power of the Salvation Army. Then they would know what it meant to be saved.

1 hour ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

1839 – The first state normal school in the United States, the forerunner to today's Framingham State University, opens in Lexington, Massachusetts with three students.  Three Students?  Not much margin to separate Valedictorian from Last in the Class.

So what is the fancy name for Last in Class? Maledictorian?

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Happy birthday, USA.

On July 4 in History:

1054 - A supernova is first observed by observers in Arabia and Song China. For several months it will remain bright enough to see during the day. It will become what we know now as the Crab Nebula. Foreshadowing?

1187 - Saladin defeats the King of Jerusalem, Guy de Lusignan, at the Battle of Hattin. If he was anything like his portrayal in that Orlando Bloom movie, he totally had it coming.

1634 - The city of Trois-Rivières is founded. We know it today as Québec. At this point Boston is already four years old, so nyah.

1744 - Depending on whom you ask, the Treaty of Lancaster requires the Six Nations of the Iroquois to cede to colonial governments all land claims east of the Allegheny Mountains up to the Ohio River watershed, or to the Pacific Ocean.

1776 - 56 dudes in Philadelphia signed their names to a long-winded document containing a list of complaints about their king and how they didn't want to do what he said anymore. TL;DR: "Eff off, England."

1802 - Founding of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Better late than never.

1803 - The Louisiana Purchase is announced to the American people, who waste no time in condemning the Jefferson Administration for such wasteful spending.

1817 - Construction of the Erie Canal begins in Rome, NY, despite even more protests against wasteful spending.

1826 - Exactly 50 years to the day after signing the DoI, former president John Adams dies. His last words are purportedly, "[former president Thomas] Jefferson survives." Jefferson, of course, had died earlier in the day.

1827 - New York State abolishes slavery. Better late than never?

1831 - "My Country 'Tis of Thee" is written in Boston - ostensibly for elementary schoolchildren to have something to sing for the next hundred and eighty-five years, but by putting it to the tune of "God Save the King", it was really just another "F U" to England.

1855 - The first edition of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass is published. In an idea that will be stolen by tech and software developers decades later, he never writes another book; he just keeps updating this one and forcing people to get the new version.

1862 - Lewis Carroll tells a story to a little girl. Wait for it...

1863 - The Army of Northern Virginia retreats from Gettysburg. The Confederacy never recovers their momentum or initiative, meaning they essentially lost their fight for independence on Independence Day. Burn!

1865 - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is published. There it is!

1886 - France gifts the United states with the Statue of Liberty for their 110th birthday. Not wanting to seem rude or ungrateful, the Americans put it out by their front door so the French will see it the next time they come to visit.

1918 - Mehmed VI ascends to the Ottoman throne at the worst possible time. Meanwhile, Tsar Nicholas II of Russia is permanently removed from his, if you know what I mean.

1939 - Lou Gehrig redefines luck as being forced to quit your amazing job due to an incurable terminal disease.

1946 - The Philippines achieve independence from the U.S. Their two-fold reasons for waiting until today include not only irony, but also not having to reschedule their holidays.

1947 - The British House of Commons is presented with the Indian Independence Bill regarding both India and Pakistan. After glancing at a calendar, at least one member of Parliament is known to have said, "Oh, COME ON!"

1960 - The 50 star flag debuts, even though Hawaii has been a state for over ten months. Word has it they were growing tired if the federal government's claims that they were "getting around to it."

2004 - In the grand American tradition of using this day to tell their enemies to **** off, the cornerstone to the new One World Trade Center, a.k.a. the Freedom Tower, is laid.

2012 - Scientists at the LHC believe they may have discovered the Higgs boson, a.k.a. the "God Particle." World religions remain skeptical.

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50 minutes ago, Illjwamh said:

1776 - 56 dudes in Philadelphia signed their names to a long-winded document containing a list of complaints about their king and how they didn't want to do what he said anymore. TL;DR: "Eff off, England."

And so dudebros make themselves known long before there even is an Internet.

51 minutes ago, Illjwamh said:

1863 - The Army of Northern Virginia retreats from Gettysburg. The Confederacy never recovers their momentum or initiative, meaning they essentially lost their fight for independence on Independence Day. Burn!

So moving an experience was it that Lincoln felt moved to a new Gettysburg address.

52 minutes ago, Illjwamh said:

2012 - Scientists at the LHC believe they may have discovered the Higgs boson, a.k.a. the "God Particle." World religions remain skeptical.

Unfortunately for them, Higgs is unstoppable.

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On July 5 in History:

1594 - Portugal invades the Kingdom of Kandy on Sri Lanka. Fools. That's one of the Tamil Kings. No one conquers the Tamil Kings.

1610 - John Guy sets sail for Newfoundland to establish the first English colony there. Though the island has been known for over a century by this point, Guy wisely does not update the name of his colony to "Foundland".

1775 - The Second Continental Congress adopts the Olive Branch Petition, which reaffirms American loyalty the British Crown and beseeches George III to avoid conflict. It's such a momentous event that plans are already in motion setting up the one year anniversary celebration.

1914 - "Whatever you guys decide to do, we've got your back." ~ Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany to Austria-Hungary, and #1 on his list of proclamations he will come to regret.

1934 - When faced with the problem of striking longshoremen in San Francisco, police decide to just shoot them. So nothing's changed, really.

1937 - Hormel foods introduces Spam. It is a versatile food that can be served with egg; egg and bacon; egg, bacon and sausage; spam, bacon, and sausage; spam, egg, spam, spam, and bacon; spam, sausage, spam, spam, bacon, spam, tomato, and spam; spam, spam, spam, and egg; spam, spam, spam, spam, baked beans, spam, and spam; or Lobster Thermidor au Crevette with a Mornay sauce served in a Provencale manner with shallots and aubergines garnished with truffle pate, brandy and with a fried egg on top.

1946 - The bikini goes on sale. Roadside car washes suddenly become a viable business model.

1950 - The Law of Return gives all Jews worldwide the right to immigrate into Israel. I tried really hard, but I couldn't find a suitably fancy word that means the opposite of "Exodus".

1971 - The United States decides that if you're old enough to be drafted and sent to your death, you should be old enough to vote. Awfully nice of them.

1989 - For his role in the Iran-Contra affair, Oliver North is sentenced to a three-year suspended prison term, two years probation, $150,000 in fines and 1,200 hours community service, the reversal of all of that on a questionable technicality, several lucrative media contracts, and the presidency of the NRA.

1996 - Dolly the sheep is the first cloned mammal. For some reason however, a theme park centered around her never really took off.

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3 hours ago, Illjwamh said:

1996 - Dolly the sheep is the first cloned mammal. For some reason however, a theme park centered around her never really took off.

It's possible they wanted to, but there was already a Dolly theme park.

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July 06

1189 – Richard I "the Lionheart" accedes to the English throne.  Just two days after Henry II named him heir apparent.  He spent most of his ten year reign fighting to defend his claims in France, on Crusade, or in captivity being held for ransom.  But for spending very little time in England, he is remembered as one of the great English Kings.

1348 – Pope Clement VI issues a papal bull protecting the Jews accused of having caused the Black Death.  No word on protecting the Jews accused of ... everything else.

1438 – A temporary compromise between the rebellious Transylvanian peasants and the noblemen is signed in Kolozsmonostor Abbey.  Rebellious peasants in Transylvania?  This will not end well.

1535 – Sir Thomas More is executed for treason against King Henry VIII of England.  "Treason" was interpreted very broadly under the reign of Mr VIII.

1557 – King Philip II of Spain, consort of Queen Mary I of England, sets out from Dover to war with France.  This voyage would result in England losing control of Calais, what had been the last English territory in France, and Philip never returning to Britain.  All in all a rather unsuccessful business trip.

1885 – Louis Pasteur successfully tests his vaccine against rabies on Joseph Meister, a boy who was bitten by a rabid dog.  This list has gone to the dogs.

1917 – World War I: Arabian troops led by T. E. Lawrence ("Lawrence of Arabia") and Auda ibu Tayi capture Aqaba from the Ottoman Empire during the Arab Revolt.  The story of Auda ibu Tayi would not attain the legendary status in English Literature that story of T.E. Lawrence would enjoy.

1919 – The British dirigible R34 lands in New York, completing the first crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by an airship.  Certainly this would mark the dawn of an age of convenient, comfortable, affordable, and safe international travel.

1957 – John Lennon and Paul McCartney meet for the first time, as teenagers at Woolton Fete.  Elsewhere in Britain, someone dusts off an old set of plans from 1812 for invading the United States.

2003 – The 70-metre Yevpatoria Planetary Radar sends a METI message (Cosmic Call 2) to five stars: Hip 4872, HD 245409, 55 Cancri (HD 75732), HD 10307 and 47 Ursae Majoris (HD 95128). The messages will arrive to these stars in 2036, 2040, 2044, and 2049, respectively.  Because nothing endears you to your neighbors like yelling at them and then waiting a century for a response.

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1 hour ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

1348 – Pope Clement VI issues a papal bull protecting the Jews accused of having caused the Black Death.  No word on protecting the Jews accused of ... everything else.

UjzjtgA.jpg

Mind you, with that bull around to protect the Jews, I'd think twice about bothering them anyway.

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2 hours ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

July 06

1990 -- Some kid is born in Oregon. He would hike mountains twice before graduating high school. For the next decade afterwards, his greatest achievement would be not finishing anything he writes.

Edited by Zorua

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11 minutes ago, Zorua said:

1990 -- Some kid is born in Oregon. He would hike mountains twice before graduating high school. For the next decade afterwards, his greatest achievement would be not finishing anything he writes.

Happy birthday, Zorua!

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July 07

1456 – A retrial verdict acquits Joan of Arc of heresy 25 years after her death.  The Maid of Orleans is unavailable for comment.

1520 – Spanish conquistadores defeat a larger Aztec army at the Battle of Otumba.  In a scene that would be repeated in an uncountable number of Westerns, a Cavalry charge would save the day for the potential victims of the natives.

1534 – Jacques Cartier makes his first contact with aboriginal peoples in what is now Canada.  Their first question for Mssr Cartier was "What happened to Leif?  He said he'd be right back."  Unfortunately, no one in the French crew spoke Old Norse.

1575 – The Raid of the Redeswire is the last major battle between England and Scotland.  It all started when local politicians were unable to resolve a complaint and began throwing insults at each other.  Much to Scotland's embarrassment, they won.

1863 – The United States begins its first military draft; exemptions cost $300, which would be over $6,000 today.  That seems fair for everyone.

1907 – Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. staged his first Follies on the roof of the New York Theater in New York City.  Top celebrities giving brief performances in an extended show held together by good music, colorful sets, and pretty girls in elaborate costumes.  Who would have thought something like that would work?

1928 – Sliced bread is sold for the first time (on the inventor's 48th birthday) by the Chillicothe Baking Company of Chillicothe, Missouri.  This was the greatest thing since... since...  What was the greatest thing BEFORE sliced bread?

1937 – The Marco Polo Bridge Incident provides the Imperial Japanese Army with a pretext for starting the Second Sino-Japanese War.  Although, it should be noted that pretexts for starting wars have never been difficult to find.

1941 – The American occupation of Iceland replaces the British occupation.  This was how the Americans and British respected Iceland's neutrality.

1954 – Elvis Presley makes his radio debut when WHBQ Memphis played his first recording for Sun Records, "That's All Right".  Thankyouverymuch

1959 – Venus occults the star Regulus. This rare event is used to determine the diameter of Venus and the structure of the Venusian atmosphere.  Despite the demonstrated scientific value, occultism continues to be disparaged by society in general.

Edited by Pharaoh RutinTutin
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2 hours ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

1863 – The United States begins its first military draft; exemptions cost $300, which would be over $6,000 today.  That seems fair for everyone.

I don't know. I have heard of supposedly wealthy real estate dealers and reality TV hosts that would declare bankruptcy faced with expenses they actually had to pay. It's safer to have a doctor claim that there is something wrong with your feet.

2 hours ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

1928 – Sliced bread is sold for the first time (on the inventor's 48th birthday) by the Chillicothe Baking Company of Chillicothe, Missouri.  This was the greatest thing since... since...  What was the greatest thing BEFORE sliced bread?

Unsliced bread.

2 hours ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

1937 – The Marco Polo Bridge Incident provides the Imperial Japanese Army with a pretext for starting the Second Sino-Japanese War.  Although, it should be noted that pretexts for starting wars have never been difficult to find.

"They looked at us funny."

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July 08

1099 – Some 15,000 starving Christian soldiers begin the siege of Jerusalem by marching in a religious procession around the city as its Muslim defenders watch.  How did the Crusades accomplish anything when they were so often unprepared, ill equipped, and incompetently led?

1663 – Charles II of England grants John Clarke a Royal charter to Rhode Island.  The full document was larger than the colony.

1822 – Chippewas turn over a huge tract of land in Ontario to the United Kingdom.  Because they knew how much British Nobility appreciated huge tracts of land.

1853 – The Perry Expedition arrives in Edo Bay with a treaty requesting trade.  Well, they requested trade with a treaty and several heavily armed warships.  But it was a request.

1874 – The Mounties begin their March West.  After an ill-planned and arduous journey of nearly 900 miles, someone finally asks why the "Mounties" were marching west and not riding.

1932 – The Dow Jones Industrial Average reaches its lowest level of the Great Depression, closing at 41.22.  This is of course the time when your ancestors should have bought stock.  But no, they spent their few remaining dollars on silly things like food, clothing, shelter...

1947 – Reports are broadcast that a UFO crash landed in Roswell, New Mexico in what became known as the Roswell UFO incident.  Nothing to see here.  Move along.

1970 – Richard Nixon delivers a special congressional message enunciating Native American self-determination as official US Indian policy, leading to the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975.  This sounds like a good idea proposed by the President.  Why did it take so long to be enacted?  It's almost as if the White House was distracted by something.

2011 – Space Shuttle Atlantis is launched in the final mission of the U.S. Space Shuttle program.  The Roswell team was supposed to have the next interplanetary transport system operational by this time...

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1 hour ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

1099 – Some 15,000 starving Christian soldiers begin the siege of Jerusalem by marching in a religious procession around the city as its Muslim defenders watch.  How did the Crusades accomplish anything when they were so often unprepared, ill equipped, and incompetently led?

Around the Fourth Crusade they finally got smart. After assembling at Constantinople they decided that it was way too far to march all the way to Jerusalem so they just sacked Constantinople instead. Lots of awesome loot right at hand, much shorter trip home.

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1 hour ago, Pharaoh RutinTutin said:

July 08

1099 – Some 15,000 starving Christian soldiers begin the siege of Jerusalem by marching in a religious procession around the city as its Muslim defenders watch.  How did the Crusades accomplish anything when they were so often unprepared, ill equipped, and incompetently led?

1663 – Charles II of England grants John Clarke a Royal charter to Rhode Island.  The full document was larger than the colony.

1822 – Chippewas turn over a huge tract of land in Ontario to the United Kingdom.  Because they knew how much British Nobility appreciated huge tracts of land.

1853 – The Perry Expedition arrives in Edo Bay with a treaty requesting trade.  Well, they requested trade with a treaty and several heavily armed warships.  But it was a request.

1874 – The Mounties begin their March West.  After an ill-planned and arduous journey of nearly 900 miles, someone finally asks why the "Mounties" were marching west and not riding.

1932 – The Dow Jones Industrial Average reaches its lowest level of the Great Depression, closing at 41.22.  This is of course the time when your ancestors should have bought stock.  But no, they spent their few remaining dollars on silly things like food, clothing, shelter...

1947 – Reports are broadcast that a UFO crash landed in Roswell, New Mexico in what became known as the Roswell UFO incident.  Nothing to see here.  Move along.

1970 – Richard Nixon delivers a special congressional message enunciating Native American self-determination as official US Indian policy, leading to the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975.  This sounds like a good idea proposed by the President.  Why did it take so long to be enacted?  It's almost as if the White House was distracted by something.

2011 – Space Shuttle Atlantis is launched in the final mission of the U.S. Space Shuttle program.  The Roswell team was supposed to have the next interplanetary transport system operational by this time...

You forgot:

1990 12:34:56 on 7/8/90 (1234567890)

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