John A. Macdonald (1815–1891) was the first Prime Minister of Canada
(1867–73, 1878–91). The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation,
he had a political career which spanned almost half a century. His
family immigrated from Scotland to Kingston in the colony of Upper
Canada (today in eastern Ontario) when he was a boy. He became a lawyer,
and was involved in several high-profile cases, quickly becoming
prominent in Kingston. Seeking and obtaining a legislative seat in 1844,
he served in the legislature of the colonial United Province of Canada
and by 1857 had become premier under the colony's unstable political
system. When in 1864 no party proved capable of governing for long,
Macdonald agreed to a proposal from his political rival, George Brown,
that the parties unite in a Great Coalition to seek federation and
political reform. Macdonald was the leading figure in the subsequent
discussions and conferences, which resulted in the British North America
Act and the birth of Canada as a nation on 1 July 1867. Macdonald is
credited with creating a Canadian Confederation despite many obstacles,
and expanding what was a relatively small country to cover the northern
half of North America. By the time of his death in 1891, Canada had
secured most of the territory it occupies today.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_A._Macdonald>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1693:
An intensity XI earthquake, the most powerful in Italian
history, struck the island of Sicily.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1693_Sicily_earthquake>
1787:
German-born British composer and astronomer William Herschel
discovered two Uranian moons, later named, by his son, after characters
from the Shakespeare play A Midsummer Night's Dream, Oberon and Titania.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titania_(moon)>
1923:
Troops from France and Belgium invaded the Ruhr Area to force
the German Weimar Republic to pay its reparations in the aftermath of
World War I.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occupation_of_the_Ruhr>
1946:
Enver Hoxha, First Secretary of the Party of Labour of Albania,
declared the People's Republic of Albania with himself as head of state.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enver_Hoxha>
2013:
French special forces failed in an attempted rescue of a DGSE
agent who had been taken hostage in July 2009 by Al-Shabaab in Bulo
Marer, Somalia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulo_Marer_hostage_rescue_attempt>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
superannuated:
Obsolete, antiquated.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/superannuated>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
There is but one unconditional commandment, which is that we
should seek incessantly, with fear and trembling, so to vote and to act
as to bring about the very largest total universe of good which we can
see. Abstract rules indeed can help; but they help the less in
proportion as our intuitions are more piercing, and our vocation is the
stronger for the moral life. For every real dilemma is in literal
strictness a unique situation; and the exact combination of ideals
realized and ideals disappointed which each decision creates is always a
universe without a precedent, and for which no adequate previous rule
exists.
--William James
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/William_James>
Sense and Sensibility is a 1995 period drama film directed by Ang Lee
and based on Jane Austen's 1811 novel of the same name. Actress Emma
Thompson (pictured) wrote the script and stars as Elinor Dashwood, while
Kate Winslet plays Elinor's younger sister Marianne; actors Hugh Grant
and Alan Rickman appear as their respective suitors. The story follows
two English sisters from a wealthy family (wealthier in the film than
the book) who become destitute and seek financial security through
marriage. The film was released in December 1995 in the US and two
months later in Britain. A commercial success, it garnered
overwhelmingly positive reviews upon release and received many
accolades, including three awards and eleven nominations at the 1995
British Academy Film Awards. It earned seven Academy Awards nominations,
including for Best Picture and Best Actress (for Thompson). The actress
won for Best Adapted Screenplay, becoming the only person to have
received Academy Awards for both acting and screenwriting. Sense and
Sensibility contributed to a resurgence in popularity for Austen's
works, and has led to many more productions in similar genres. It
persists in being recognised as one of the best Austen adaptations of
all time.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sense_and_Sensibility_(film)>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1475:
Moldavian–Ottoman Wars: Moldavian forces under Stephen the
Great defeated an Ottoman attack led by Hadân Suleiman Pasha, the
Beylerbeyi of Rumelia, near Vaslui in present-day Romania.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Vaslui>
1776:
Common Sense, a pamphlet by Thomas Paine denouncing British
rule in the Thirteen Colonies, was published.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Sense_(pamphlet)>
1929:
The Adventures of Tintin, a series of popular comic books
created by Belgian artist Hergé, first appeared in a children's
supplement to the Belgian newspaper Le Vingtième Siècle.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventures_of_Tintin>
1985:
Sir Clive Sinclair launched the Sinclair C5 personal electric
vehicle, "one of the great marketing bombs of postwar British industry",
which later became a cult collector's item.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinclair_C5>
2004:
Helge Fossmo, the village priest of Knutby, Sweden,
orchestrated the murders of his wife and his neighbor, a crime that
shocked the country.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knutby_murder>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
apotropaic:
Intended to ward off evil.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/apotropaic>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The tides are in our veins, we still mirror the stars, life is
your child, but there is in me Older and harder than life and more
impartial, the eye that watched before there was an ocean.
--Robinson Jeffers
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Robinson_Jeffers>
Mark Satin (born 1946) is an American political theorist, author, and
newsletter publisher, best known for contributing to three political
perspectives – neopacifism in the 1960s, New Age politics in the
1970s and 1980s, and radical centrism in the 1990s and 2000s. After
emigrating to Canada at the age of 20 to avoid serving in the Vietnam
War, Satin co-founded the Toronto Anti-Draft Programme to assist war
resisters in Canada, and wrote the Manual for Draft-Age Immigrants to
Canada (1968), which sold nearly 100,000 copies. His book New Age
Politics (1978) described an emerging culture focused on simple living,
decentralism, and global responsibility, and he expanded these themes in
the political newsletter New Options (1984–92). He also co-drafted the
foundational statement of the U.S. Green Party, "Ten Key Values", in
1984. After a period of political disillusion, Satin launched a new
political newsletter and wrote Radical Middle (2004). Both projects
criticized political partisanship and sought to promote mutual learning
across social and cultural divides, but the book was not warmly received
by many on the traditional left or right of the American political
spectrum.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Satin>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
475:
Basiliscus became Byzantine Emperor after Zeno was forced to
flee Constantinople.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basiliscus>
1857:
A 7.9 Mw earthquake ruptured part of the San Andreas Fault in
California and was felt as far east as Las Vegas.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1857_Fort_Tejon_earthquake>
1923:
Lithuanian residents of the Memel Territory rebelled against
the League of Nations decision to leave the area as a mandated region
under French control.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klaip%C4%97da_Revolt>
1972:
Seawise University, formerly RMS Queen Elizabeth, an ocean
liner which sailed the Atlantic Ocean for the Cunard White Star Line,
was destroyed by fire in Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Queen_Elizabeth>
2005:
Mahmoud Abbas was elected President of the Palestinian National
Authority to replace Yasser Arafat, who died in 2004.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahmoud_Abbas>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
carpe diem:
Seize the day, make the most of today, enjoy the present.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/carpe_diem>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
That's what I consider true generosity. You give your all, and
yet you always feel as if it costs you nothing.
--Simone de Beauvoir
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Simone_de_Beauvoir>
The Hillsgrove Covered Bridge, a 186-foot (57 m) one-lane bridge with a
roof and sides to protect the wooden structure from the weather, crosses
Loyalsock Creek in Hillsgrove Township, Sullivan County in the U.S.
state of Pennsylvania. Built by Sadler Rodgers around 1850 and serving
as a landing site for lumber rafts between 1870 and 1890, it has been on
the National Register of Historic Places since 1973. Nineteenth-century
regulations restricting speed, number of animals, and fire are still
posted on the bridge. It gets its strength and rigidity from load-
bearing Burr arches sandwiching multiple vertical king posts on each
side. Restoration work was carried out in 1963, 1968, 2010, and, after
serious flood damage (pictured), again in 2012. The bridge was still in
use in 2015, and its average daily traffic was 54 vehicles in 2012, but
the same year, the National Bridge Inventory found the bridge to be
"Structurally Deficient" despite the restorations, with problematic
railings and a 16.5 percent structural sufficiency rating. Only three
of the 30 covered bridges that were in Sullivan County in 1890 remain
in 2015: Forksville, Hillsgrove, and Sonestown. Pennsylvania had the
first covered bridge in the United States, and has had more of them than
any other state since the mid-19th century.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillsgrove_Covered_Bridge>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1297:
Francesco Grimaldi, disguised as a monk, led his men to capture
the fortress protecting the Rock of Monaco, establishing his family as
the rulers of Monaco.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monaco>
1889:
Statistician Herman Hollerith received a patent for his
electric tabulating machine, the precursor to modern computers.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herman_Hollerith>
1920:
The steel strike of 1919, an attempt to organize the United
States steel industry in the wake of World War I, collapsed in complete
failure for the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel_strike_of_1919>
1964:
During his State of the Union address, U.S. President Lyndon B.
Johnson declared a "War on Poverty".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_on_Poverty>
2010:
Gunmen from an offshoot of the Front for the Liberation of the
Enclave of Cabinda attacked the bus transporting the Togo national
football team to the Africa Cup of Nations, killing three.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Togo_national_football_team_attack>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
factitious:
1. Created by humans; artificial.
2. Counterfeit, fabricated.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/factitious>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The psychological basis for the use of nonviolent methods is
the simple rule that like produces like, kindness provokes kindness, as
surely as injustice produces resentment and evil. It is sometimes
forgotten by those whose pacifism is a spurious, namby-pamby thing that
if one Biblical statement of this rule is "Do good to them that hate
you" (an exhortation presumably intended for the capitalist as well as
for the laborer), another statement of the same rule is, "They that sow
the wind shall reap the whirlwind." You get from the universe what you
give, with interest!
--A. J. Muste
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/A._J._Muste>
Song of Innocence (1968) is the debut album of American composer and
producer David Axelrod. Inspired by the 1789 illustrated collection of
poems of the same name by William Blake, it is an instrumental jazz
fusion album presented as a suite of tone poems, incorporating elements
of classical, rock, funk, pop, and theatre music. Arranged for bass,
drums, and string instruments and recorded with an orchestra and studio
musicians, it is written with rock-based tempos. Axelrod used contrast
in his orchestral compositions, interspersing the album's euphoric
psychedelic R&B; form with dramatic, harrowing arrangements to reflect
the supernatural themes found in Blake's poems. Song of Innocence was
not commercially successful on its release, and it confounded music
critics, who viewed it as innovative and ambitious but also as less than
serious, a curiosity piece. In the 1990s, critics reassessed the album
as a classic, while leading disc jockeys in hip hop and electronica
rediscovered and sampled the album's music, including "Holy Thursday",
the album's best-known song. The renewed interest in Axelrod's work
prompted Stateside Records to reissue Song of Innocence in 2000.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_of_Innocence>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1558:
Francis, Duke of Guise (pictured), retook Calais, England's
last continental possession, for France.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calais>
1610:
Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei made his first observation
of the four Galilean moons through his telescope: Ganymede, Callisto, Io
and Europa, although he was not able to distinguish the latter two until
the following day.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europa_(moon)>
1797:
The first official Italian tricolour was adopted by the
government of the Cispadane Republic.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Italy>
1979:
The Vietnam People's Army captured the Cambodian capital city
Phnom Penh, deposing Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge, which marked the end
of large-scale fighting in the Cambodian–Vietnamese War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodian%E2%80%93Vietnamese_War>
1993:
The Fourth Republic of Ghana was inaugurated with Jerry
Rawlings as its president.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Ghana>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
burgess:
1. An inhabitant of a borough with full rights; a citizen.
2. (historical) A town magistrate.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/burgess>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Anyone who has got any pleasure at all from living should try to
put something back. … I'm glad to be giving something back because
I've been so extraordinarily lucky and had such great pleasure from it.
--Gerald Durrell
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Gerald_Durrell>
The Falkland Islands (Spanish: Islas Malvinas) are a 4,700-square-mile
(12,200 km2) archipelago of hundreds of islands in the South Atlantic
Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. East and West Falkland, the two largest
islands, are about 300 miles (500 km) east of South America's southern
Patagonian coast, at a latitude of about 52°S. The Falklands have
internal self-governance, with the United Kingdom taking responsibility
for their defence and foreign affairs. The islands' capital is Stanley
on East Falkland (Government House pictured). At various times, the
islands have had French, British, Spanish, and Argentine settlements.
Britain reasserted its rule in 1833, although Argentina maintained its
claim to the islands. In April 1982, Argentine forces occupied the
islands. British administration was restored two months later at the end
of the Falklands War. The population (2,932 inhabitants in 2012)
primarily consists of native Falkland Islanders, the majority of British
descent. Other ethnicities include French, Gibraltarian and
Scandinavian. Immigration from the United Kingdom, the South Atlantic
island of Saint Helena, and Chile has reversed a population decline.
Falkland Islanders have been British citizens since 1983. Local trades
include fishing, tourism and sheep farming.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falkland_Islands>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1066:
Harold Godwinson, widely regarded as the last Anglo-Saxon king
before the Norman conquest, was crowned King of England.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Godwinson>
1449:
The last Byzantine-Roman Emperor, Constantine XI Palaiologos,
was crowned, four years before the Fall of Constantinople.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantine_XI_Palaiologos>
1907:
Italian educator Maria Montessori opened her first school and
day care center for working class children in Rome, employing the
philosophy of education that now bears her name.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Montessori>
1960:
National Airlines Flight 2511, traveling from New York City to
Miami, exploded in midair due to a bomb placed by an unknown party,
resulting in the deaths of all 34 people on board.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Airlines_Flight_2511>
1977:
The record label EMI ended its contract with the English punk
rock band Sex Pistols in response to its members' disruptive behaviour
at London Heathrow Airport two days earlier.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_Pistols>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
at first blush:
(idiomatic) Upon first impression or consideration; seemingly,
apparently, ostensibly.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/at_first_blush>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Your thought sees power in armies, cannons, battleships,
submarines, aeroplanes, and poison gas. But mine asserts that power lies
in reason, resolution, and truth. No matter how long the tyrant endures,
he will be the loser at the end. Your thought differentiates between
pragmatist and idealist, between the part and the whole, between the
mystic and materialist. Mine realizes that life is one and its weights,
measures and tables do not coincide with your weights, measures and
tables. He whom you suppose an idealist may be a practical man.
--Khalil Gibran
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Khalil_Gibran>
Suillus pungens, commonly known as the pungent slippery Jack, is a
species of fungus with a slimy convex cap up to 14 cm (5.5 in) wide.
The young cap is typically whitish, later becoming grayish-olive to
reddish-brown or a mottled combination of these colors. The mushroom has
a dotted stem up to 7 cm (2.8 in) long and 2 cm (0.8 in) thick. On
the underside of the cap is the spore-bearing tissue with angular,
yellowish pores; milky droplets on the pore surface of young
individuals, especially in humid environments, are a characteristic
feature of this species. The mushroom is considered edible, but not
highly regarded. The fungus—limited in distribution to
California—fruits almost exclusively with Monterey and bishop pine,
two trees with small and scattered natural ranges concentrated in the
West Coast of the United States. Several studies have investigated the
role of S. pungens in the coastal Californian forest ecosystem it
occupies. Although the species produces more mushrooms (mostly through
efficient transfer of nutrients from its host) than similar competing
fungi in the same location, it is not a dominant root colonizer, and
occupies only a small percentage of root tips.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suillus_pungens>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1757:
Louis XV of France survived an assassination attempt by Robert-
François Damiens, who later became the last person to be executed in
the country by drawing and quartering.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert-Fran%C3%A7ois_Damiens>
1919:
The German Workers' Party, the forerunner to the Nazi Party,
was founded by Anton Drexler.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_Workers%27_Party>
1968:
Alexander Dubček came to power in Czechoslovakia, beginning a
period of political liberalization known as the Prague Spring that ended
with a military intervention by the Warsaw Pact nations to halt reform.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prague_Spring>
1996:
Hamas operative Yahya Ayyash was assassinated by a bomb-laden
cell phone, planted by Israel's Shin Bet.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yahya_Ayyash>
2008:
Mikheil Saakashvili was decisively re-elected as President of
Georgia in "the first genuinely competitive presidential election" in
the history of the country.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgian_presidential_election,_2008>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
Twelfth cake:
A decorative cake distributed among friends or visitors on the festival
of Twelfth Night (which is either the evening of January 5th or of
January 6th, depending on interpretation).
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Twelfth_cake>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I am guiding you to seek truth from the facts of the historical
conditions of our society and to identify the problems. The correct
solutions will come with the correct identification of the problems.
--Zulfikar Ali Bhutto
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Zulfikar_Ali_Bhutto>
Canis Major (greater dog in Latin) is a constellation in the southern
hemisphere's summer sky and northern hemisphere's winter sky. In the
second century, it was included in Ptolemy's 48 constellations, and is
counted among the 88 modern constellations. Along with Canis Minor
(lesser dog), it is commonly represented as following the constellation
of Orion the Hunter through the skies. The Milky Way passes through
Canis Major. Several open clusters lie within its borders, including
M41, which covers an area around the same size as the full moon. Sirius,
also called the dog star, is the brightest star in the night sky, and
one of the closest stars to Earth. The other bright stars in the
constellation are much farther away but very luminous. At magnitude 1.5,
Epsilon Canis Majoris (Adhara) appears as the second brightest star of
the constellation and the brightest source of extreme ultraviolet
radiation in the night sky. Next in brightness are the yellow-white
supergiant Delta (Wezen) at 1.8, the blue-white giant Beta (Mirzam) at
2.0, and the blue-white supergiant Eta (Aludra) at 2.4. The red
hypergiant VY Canis Majoris is one of the largest stars known, while the
neutron star RX J0720.4-3125 has a radius of a mere 5 km.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canis_Major>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1798:
After having been invested as Prince of Wallachia, Constantine
Hangerli arrived in Bucharest to assume the throne.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantine_Hangerli>
1847:
American gun inventor Samuel Colt made his first large sale of
his revolvers to the Texas Rangers.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Colt>
1912:
The Boy Scout Association was incorporated throughout the then
British Empire by royal charter.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scout_Association>
1951:
Korean War: Chinese and North Korean troops captured Seoul.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Battle_of_Seoul>
2004:
Spirit (artist's impression pictured), the first of two rovers
of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Mission, landed successfully on Mars at
04:35 Ground UTC.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit_(rover)>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
swage:
A tool, used by blacksmiths and other metalworkers, for cold shaping of
a metal item.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/swage>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Truth is ever to be found in simplicity, and not in the
multiplicity and confusion of things.
--Isaac Newton
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Isaac_Newton>
Oliver Bosbyshell (1839–1921) was Superintendent of the United States
Mint at Philadelphia from 1889 to 1894. He also claimed to have been the
first Union soldier wounded by enemy action in the Civil War, stating
that he received a bruise on the forehead from an object thrown by a
Confederate sympathizer while his unit was marching through Baltimore in
April 1861. After briefly working on the railroad and then studying law,
Bosbyshell enlisted in the Union cause on the outbreak of war. He joined
the 48th Pennsylvania, remaining in that regiment for three years. He
saw action in such battles as Second Bull Run and Antietam. He rose to
the rank of major and led his regiment, but was mustered out upon the
expiration of his term of service in October 1864. He was appointed to a
post at the Philadelphia Mint in 1869, and became chief coiner in 1876
and superintendent in 1889, serving for four years. One of Bosbyshell's
underlings at the mint stole gold bars and Bosbyshell was held
responsible for the loss by virtue of his office. He was absolved of
this liability by act of Congress in 1899. In his later years, he was an
officer of an insurance company; he died in 1921.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Bosbyshell>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1848:
Joseph Jenkins Roberts began his term as the first President of
Liberia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Jenkins_Roberts>
1888:
The 36 in (91 cm) refracting telescope at the Lick
Observatory near San Jose, California, at the time the largest in the
world, was used for the first time.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lick_Observatory>
1919:
Emir Faisal of Iraq signed an agreement with Zionist leader
Chaim Weizmann on the development of a Jewish homeland in Palestine and
an Arab nation in a large part of the Middle East.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faisal%E2%80%93Weizmann_Agreement>
1949:
The first Central Bank of the Philippines was formally
inaugurated with Miguel Cuaderno, Sr. as the first governor.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangko_Sentral_ng_Pilipinas>
1976:
The multilateral International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights, part of the International Bill of Human Rights, came
into effect.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Covenant_on_Economic,_Social_an…>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
cacophonous:
Containing, consisting of, or producing harsh, unpleasant or discordant
sounds.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/cacophonous>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
My political opinions lean more and more to Anarchy
(philosophically understood, meaning abolition of control not whiskered
men with bombs) … The most improper job of any man, even saints (who
at any rate were at least unwilling to take it on), is bossing other
men. Not one in a million is fit for it, and least of all those who seek
the opportunity.
--J. R. R. Tolkien
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/J._R._R._Tolkien>
Sir Michael Tippett (1905–1998) was an English composer who rose to
prominence during the Second World War. He was considered to rank with
his contemporary Benjamin Britten as one of the leading British
composers of the 20th century. Among his best-known works are the
oratorio A Child of Our Time, the orchestral Fantasia Concertante on a
Theme of Corelli, and the opera The Midsummer Marriage. Tippett withdrew
or destroyed his earliest compositions, and was 30 before any of his
works were published. Initial difficulties in accepting his
homosexuality led him in 1939 to Jungian psychoanalysis. Until the mid-
1950s his music was broadly lyrical in character, before changing to a
more astringent and experimental style, open to new influences including
jazz and blues. He was much honoured in his lifetime, but uneven
critical judgement reserved praise generally for his earlier works.
Having briefly embraced communism in the 1930s, Tippett avoided
identifying with any political party. A pacifist after 1940, he was
imprisoned in 1943 for refusing to carry out war-related duties. He was
a strong advocate of music education, a radio broadcaster and a writer
on music.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Tippett>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1920:
Under the leadership of U.S. Attorney General A. Mitchell
Palmer (pictured), Department of Justice agents launched a series of
raids against radical leftists and anarchists across 30 cities in 23
states.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palmer_Raids>
1944:
World War II: The United States and Australia successfully
landed 13,000 troops on Papua New Guinea in an attempt to cut off a
Japanese retreat.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landing_at_Saidor>
1971:
At Ibrox Park in Glasgow, Scotland, 66 people were killed in a
stampede during an Old Firm football match.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1971_Ibrox_disaster>
1981:
English serial killer Peter Sutcliffe, the "Yorkshire Ripper",
was arrested in Sheffield, ending one of the largest police
investigations in British history.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Sutcliffe>
2004:
The Stardust space probe flew by the comet Wild 2 and collected
particle samples from its coma, which were later returned to Earth.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/81P/Wild>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
Silent Sam:
(informal) A person who seldom or never speaks; a taciturn or
unresponsive individual.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Silent_Sam>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
If I were not an atheist, I would believe in a God who would
choose to save people on the basis of the totality of their lives and
not the pattern of their words. I think he would prefer an honest and
righteous atheist to a TV preacher whose every word is God, God, God,
and whose every deed is foul, foul, foul.
--Isaac Asimov
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Isaac_Asimov>