"Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo" is the ninth episode of the first season
of the animated comedy television series South Park. The show's first
Christmas special, it portrays the Jewish character Kyle feeling
excluded from the town's Christmas celebrations and being comforted by
Mr. Hankey, who can talk and sing. As Mr. Hankey does not come alive in
the presence of other characters, they begin to think that Kyle is
delusional. In another plot strand, the townspeople remove all symbols
of Christmas from South Park to render the celebrations politically
correct and inoffensive. When all the children start believing in him,
Mr. Hankey finally reveals himself to everyone and scolds them for
losing sight of the good things of Christmas and focusing on the bad.
The townspeople apologize to Kyle, then sing Christmas songs and watch
Mr. Hankey fly away with Santa Claus. Heavily influenced by the Peanuts
Christmas special "A Charlie Brown Christmas", "Mr. Hankey, the
Christmas Poo" was the first South Park musical episode and the only
episode in season one in which Kenny does not die. It is a satire of
political correctness and religious sensitivity and has been described
as one of the classic South Park episodes.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Hankey,_the_Christmas_Poo>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
942:
William I Longsword of Normandy was ambushed by supporters of
Arnulf I, Count of Flanders while the two were at a peace conference to
settle their differences.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_I,_Duke_of_Normandy>
1790:
The Aztec calendar stone (pictured), now a symbol of modern
Mexican culture, was excavated in the Zócalo, Mexico City's main
square.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aztec_calendar_stone>
1944:
Nazi troops under Joachim Peiper killed unarmed prisoners of
war, captured during the Battle of the Bulge, with machine guns near
Malmedy, Belgium.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malmedy_massacre>
1951:
The Civil Rights Congress, an American civil rights group,
presented a document to the United Nations Genocide Convention charging
the United States government with genocide against African Americans.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/We_Charge_Genocide>
2010:
Tunisian street vendor Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire in
protest to police harassment, triggering the Tunisian Revolution.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohamed_Bouazizi>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
neotenous:
1. Exhibiting retention of juvenile characteristics in the adult.
2. (informal) Babyfaced.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/neotenous>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
You may well ask why I write. And yet my reasons are quite many. For it
is not unusual in human beings who have witnessed the sack of a city or
the falling to pieces of a people to set down what they have witnessed
for the benefit of unknown heirs or of generations infinitely remote;
or, if you please, just to get the sight out of their heads.
--Ford Madox Ford
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ford_Madox_Ford>
The 1950 Atlantic hurricane season was the first year in the Atlantic
hurricane database (HURDAT) in which storms were given names by the
United States Air force from the Joint Army/Navy Phonetic Alphabet. It
was an active season with sixteen tropical storms, with eleven of them
developing into hurricanes. Eight of these hurricanes were intense
enough to be classified as major hurricanes—a denomination reserved
for storms that attained sustained winds equivalent to a Category 3 or
greater on the present-day Saffir-Simpson scale. The high number of
major hurricanes make 1950 the holder of the record for the most systems
of such intensity in a single season. The large quantity of strong
storms during the year yielded the highest seasonal accumulated cyclone
energy (ACE) of the 20th century. The tropical cyclones of the season
produced a total of 88 fatalities and $38.5 million in property
damage. The first officially named Atlantic hurricane was Hurricane Able
(path pictured), which formed on August 12, brushed the North Carolina
coastline, and later moved across southeastern Canada. The strongest
hurricane of the season, Hurricane Dog reached the equivalent of a
Category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale, and caused extensive
damage to the Leeward Islands.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1950_Atlantic_hurricane_season>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1598:
Admiral Yi Sun-sin's Korean navy defeated the Japanese fleet at
the Battle of Noryang, the final naval battle of the Imjin War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Noryang>
1653:
Oliver Cromwell became Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of
England.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Cromwell>
1761:
Seven Years' War: Russian forces captured Kolberg, Prussia's
last port on the Baltic coast, after a four-month siege.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Kolberg_(Seven_Years%27_War)>
1918:
Vincas Mickevičius-Kapsukas declared the formation of the
Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, a puppet state created by Soviet
Russia to justify the Lithuanian–Soviet War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithuanian_Soviet_Socialist_Republic_(1918%E2…>
1930:
Herman Lamm, "the father of modern bank robbery", was shot and
killed during a botched robbery attempt in Clinton, Indiana, US.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herman_Lamm>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
tergiversation:
1. The act of abandoning something or someone, of changing sides;
desertion; betrayal.
2. The act of evading any clear course of action or speech, of being
deliberately ambiguous; equivocation.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/tergiversation>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The God to whom depth in philosophy bring back men’s minds is far from
being the same from whom a little philosophy estranges them.
--George Santayana
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_Santayana>
The common toad is an amphibian found throughout most of Europe, with
the exception of Ireland, Iceland and some Mediterranean islands. It is
an inconspicuous animal as it usually lies hidden during the day,
becoming active at dusk and spending the night hunting for the
invertebrates on which it feeds. It moves with a slow ungainly walk or
short jumps and has greyish brown skin covered with wart-like lumps.
Although usually a solitary animal, in the breeding season large numbers
converge on certain breeding ponds, where the males compete to mate with
the females. Eggs are laid in gelatinous strings in the water and later
hatch out into tadpoles. After several months of growth and development,
these sprout limbs and undergo metamorphosis into tiny toads. The
juveniles emerge from the water and remain largely terrestrial for the
rest of their lives. The common toad seems to be in decline in part of
its range but overall is listed as being of "Least Concern" in the IUCN
Red List of Threatened Species. It is threatened by habitat loss,
especially by drainage of its breeding sites, and some toads get killed
on the roads as they make their annual migrations. It has long been
associated in popular culture and literature with witchcraft.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_toad>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1467:
Troops under Stephen III of Moldavia defeated the forces of
Matthias Corvinus of Hungary in present-day Baia, Romania.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Baia>
1791:
The first ten amendments to the United States Constitution,
collectively known as the Bill of Rights, were ratified.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Bill_of_Rights>
1906:
The Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway, a
14.17-kilometre (8.80 mi) long deep-level underground tube railway
connecting Hammersmith and Finsbury Park, London, opened.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Northern,_Piccadilly_and_Brompton_Railw…>
1961:
Former Nazi leader Adolf Eichmann was sentenced to death after
being found guilty on fifteen criminal charges, including war crimes and
crimes against humanity.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Eichmann>
2010:
A boat carrying around 90 asylum seekers, mostly from Iraq and
Iran, crashed into rocks and sank off the coast of Christmas Island,
Australia, killing 48 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_Christmas_Island_boat_disaster>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
mango:
To remove the innards of, stuff (especially with spicy foods), seal and
pickle or pour boiling vinegar over (a fruit).
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/mango>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
In time of crisis, we summon up our strength. Then, if we are lucky, we
are able to call every resource, every forgotten image that can leap to
our quickening, every memory that can make us know our power. And this
luck is more than it seems to be: it depends on the long preparation of
the self to be used. In time of the crises of the spirit, we are aware
of all our need, our need for each other and our need for our selves. We
call up, with all the strength of summoning we have, our fullness.
--Muriel Rukeyser
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Muriel_Rukeyser>
Vidya Balan (born 1978) is an Indian film actress, who appears in Hindi,
Bengali and Malayalam language films. At age sixteen, Balan landed her
first acting role in the sitcom Hum Paanch (1995). After making several
unsuccessful attempts to start a career in film, she acted in television
commercials and music videos. In 2003, Balan made her feature film debut
with the independent Bengali drama Bhalo Theko and in 2005, she garnered
praise for her first Hindi film, Parineeta. Her subsequent portrayal of
glamorous characters in the films Heyy Babyy (2007) and Kismat
Konnection (2008) met with negative comments from film critics. She
later portrayed five consecutive roles to wide critical acclaim in Paa
(2009), Ishqiya (2010), No One Killed Jessica (2011), The Dirty Picture
(2011), and Kahaani (2012). These roles have fetched her the tag of a
"female hero" and established her as a leading contemporary actress of
Hindi cinema. Balan has received one National Film Award, four Filmfare
Awards and four Screen Awards. She initially drew criticism for her
weight and dress sense, but was later credited in the media for
retaining her individuality and breaking stereotypes of a Hindi film
heroine.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vidya_Balan>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1836:
The Toledo War, the mostly bloodless boundary dispute between
Ohio and the adjoining Territory of Michigan, unofficially ended with a
resolution passed by the controversial "Frostbitten Convention".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toledo_War>
1960:
Australian cricketer Ian Meckiff was run out on the last day of
the first Test between Australia and the West Indies, causing the first
Tied Test in the history of cricket.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Meckiff>
1962:
NASA's Mariner 2 became the world's first spacecraft to
successfully conduct a planetary encounter when it flew by Venus.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariner_2>
1999:
Torrential rains caused flash floods (damage pictured) in
Vargas, Venezuela, resulting in tens of thousands of deaths, the
destruction of thousands of homes, and the complete collapse of the
state's infrastructure.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vargas_tragedy>
2004:
Cuba and Venezuela founded the Bolivarian Alliance for the
Americas.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolivarian_Alliance_for_the_Americas>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
instar:
1. Any one of the several stages of postembryonic development which an
arthropod undergoes, between molts, before it reaches sexual maturity:
the hopper was placed in a box in its first instar.
2. An arthropod at a specified one of these stages: first and second
instars of this species are more susceptible to H. bacteriophora than
later instars.
3. A stage in development: "photographs of the landlady’s children in all
their instars" (Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita).
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/instar>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Instructors can impart only a fraction of the teaching. It is through
your own devoted practice that the mysteries of the Art of Peace are
brought to life.
--Morihei Ueshiba
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Morihei_Ueshiba>
Rex Ryan (born 1962) is an American football head coach for the New York
Jets of the National Football League (NFL). After serving as an
assistant coach for 22 years, Ryan attained his first head coaching job
in the NFL with the Jets in 2009. He is the son of former Philadelphia
Eagles and Arizona Cardinals head coach Buddy Ryan and is the fraternal
twin brother of Rob Ryan, defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys.
Upon graduating from Southwestern Oklahoma State University, Ryan spent
the next 22 years serving as an assistant coach on different teams at
both the college and professional level. At the behest of their head
coach Brian Billick, Ryan joined the Baltimore Ravens in 1999 and spent
nine years there. In 2005 he earned the title of defensive coordinator
and in 2008 became the assistant head coach. Hours after the Ravens lost
to the Steelers in the 2008 playoffs, Ryan accepted a contract offer
from the Jets for their vacant head coaching position. He has become
well known throughout the league for his outspoken manner, boisterous
attitude and success with the Jets, and his teams are highly regarded by
critics for their defensive capabilities.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rex_Ryan>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1577:
Sir Francis Drake left Plymouth, England, with five ships and
164 men on his round-the-world voyage.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Drake>
1636:
The Massachusetts Bay Colony organized three militia units, an
act considered to be the founding of the National Guard of the United
States.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Guard_of_the_United_States>
1862:
American Civil War: Union forces under Maj. Gen. Ambrose
Burnside suffered severe casualties against entrenched Confederate
defenders at the Battle of Fredericksburg in Fredericksburg, Virginia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Fredericksburg>
1937:
Second Sino-Japanese War: Japanese forces captured Nanjing in
China and then began to commit numerous atrocities over the next several
weeks.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanking_Massacre>
2001:
The Parliament of India was attacked by five gunmen, resulting
in 15 deaths, including those of the perpetrators.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2001_Indian_Parliament_attack>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
calendrical:
Of, pertaining to, or used by a calendar system.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/calendrical>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
If our animosities are born out of fear, then confident generosity is
born out of hope. One of the central lessons I have learned after a half
century of working in the developing world is that the replacement of
fear by hope is probably the single most powerful trampoline of
progress.
--Aga Khan IV
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Aga_Khan_IV>
Pepper v Hart is a landmark decision in English law on the use of
legislative history in statutory interpretation. The House of Lords, by
a majority, established the principle that when primary legislation is
ambiguous then, under certain circumstances, a court may refer to
statements made in Parliament in an attempt to interpret the meaning of
the legislation. Before this ruling, such an action would have been seen
as a breach of parliamentary privilege. Lord Mackay (pictured),
dissenting, argued that Hansard should not be considered admissible
evidence due to the time and expense involved in a lawyer having to look
up every debate and discussion on a particular statute when giving legal
advice or preparing a case. The decision met a mixed reception. While
the judiciary were cautiously accepting, legal academics argued that it
violated rules of evidence, damaged the separation of powers between the
executive and Parliament and caused additional expense in cases. In
2000, a senior judge, Lord Steyn, delivered a lecture in which he
attacked the logic and legal theory behind the decision, and several
subsequent judicial decisions have considerably limited the use of
Pepper by the courts.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepper_v_Hart>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
627:
A Byzantine army under Emperor Heraclius defeated Emperor
Khosrau II's Persian forces, commanded by General Rhahzadh, near
present-day Mosul, Iraq.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Nineveh_(627)>
1915:
President Yuan Shikai of the Republic of China reinstated the
monarchy and declared himself Emperor.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuan_Shikai>
1939:
The Royal Navy destroyer HMS Duchess was rammed by the
battleship HMS Barham she was escorting and sank with heavy loss of
life.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Duchess_(H64)>
1942:
World War II: German troops began Operation Winter Storm, an
attempt to relieve encircled Axis forces during the Battle of
Stalingrad.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Winter_Storm>
1964:
Jomo Kenyatta became the first President of the Republic of
Kenya.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jomo_Kenyatta>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
tin anniversary:
The tenth anniversary (yearly recurrence) of an event, especially a
wedding.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/tin_anniversary>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
With reasonable men, I will reason; with humane men I will plead; but to
tyrants I will give no quarter, nor waste arguments where they will
certainly be lost.
--William Lloyd Garrison
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/William_Lloyd_Garrison>
The Battle of Radzymin, a key part of what later became known as the
Battle of Warsaw, took place during the Polish–Soviet War (1919–21).
The battle occurred near the town of Radzymin, some 20 kilometres
(12 mi) north-east of Warsaw, between August 13 and 16, 1920. The first
phase began with a frontal assault by the Red Army on the Praga
bridgehead. The Soviet forces captured Radzymin on August 14 and
breached the lines of the 1st Polish Army, which was defending Warsaw
from the east. Radzymin changed hands several times in heavy fighting.
The Russians wanted to break through the Polish defences to Warsaw,
while the Polish aim was to defend the area long enough for a two-
pronged counteroffensive to outflank the attacking forces. After three
days of intense fighting, the corps-sized 1st Polish Army under General
Franciszek Latinik managed to repel a direct assault by six Red Army
rifle divisions at Radzymin and Ossów. The struggle for control of
Radzymin forced General Józef Haller, commander of the Polish Northern
Front, to start the 5th Army's counterattack earlier than planned.
Radzymin was recaptured on August 15, and this victory proved to be one
of the turning points of the Battle of Warsaw.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Radzymin_(1920)>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1905:
In support of the December Uprising in Moscow, the Council of
Workers' Deputies of Kiev stage a mass uprising, establishing the
Shuliavka Republic in the city.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuliavka_Republic>
1920:
Irish War of Independence: Following an Irish Republican Army
ambush of a British Auxiliary patrol in Cork, British forces burned and
looted numerous buildings in the city.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Burning_of_Cork>
1972:
Apollo 17 (insignia pictured), the last Apollo moon mission,
landed on the Moon.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_17>
1981:
Salvadoran Civil War: About 900 civilians were killed by the
Salvadoran armed forces in an anti-guerrilla campaign.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Mozote_massacre>
2006:
The International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the
Holocaust opened in Tehran "to provide an appropriate scientific
atmosphere for scholars to offer their opinions in freedom about a
historical issue", but was criticised worldwide as a "meeting of
Holocaust deniers".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Conference_to_Review_the_Global…>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
stigmatize:
(transitive) To characterize as disgraceful or ignominious; to mark with
a stigma or stigmata.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/stigmatize>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Existence is a mystery, and one should accept it as a mystery and not
pretend to have any explanation. No, explanation is not needed — only
exclamation, a wondering heart, awakened, surprised, feeling the mystery
of life each moment. Then, and only then, you know what truth is. And
truth liberates.
--Osho
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Bhagwan_Shree_Rajneesh>
Anna (killed 653 or 654) was King of East Anglia from the early 640s
until his death. Little is known of Anna's life or his reign, as few
records have survived from this period. He was one of the three sons of
Eni who ruled East Anglia, succeeding after Ecgric was killed in battle
by Penda of Mercia. Anna was praised by Bede for his devotion to
Christianity and was renowned for the saintliness of his family. In 645
Cenwalh of Wessex was driven from his kingdom by Penda and due to Anna's
influence, he was converted to Christianity while living as an exile at
the East Anglian court. Upon his return from exile, Cenwalh re-
established Christianity in his own kingdom and the people of Wessex
then remained firmly Christian. Following the attack in 651 by Penda on
the monastery at Cnobheresburg, which Anna richly endowed, he was forced
by Penda to flee into exile. He may have travelled to the western
kingdom of the Magonsæte and returned in about 653, but East Anglia was
attacked again by Penda soon afterwards and at the Battle of Bulcamp the
East Anglian army, led by Anna, was defeated by the Mercians, and Anna
and his son Jurmin were both killed. He was succeeded by his brother,
Æthelhere.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_of_East_Anglia>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1872:
P. B. S. Pinchback took office as Governor of Louisiana, the
first African American governor of a U.S. state.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P._B._S._Pinchback>
1911:
A mine explosion near Briceville, Tennessee, killed 84 miners
despite a well-organized rescue effort led by the United States Bureau
of Mines.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_Mountain_Mine_disaster>
1931:
The approval of the Spanish Constitution by the Constituent
Cortes paved the way to the establishment of the Second Spanish
Republic.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Constitution_of_1931>
1940:
Second World War: British and Commonwealth forces opened
Operation Compass, the first major Allied military operation of the
Western Desert Campaign.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Compass>
1969:
U.S. Secretary of State William P. Rogers proposed his plan for
a ceasefire in the War of Attrition; Egypt's and Jordan's acceptance of
it over PLO objections led to civil war in Jordan in September 1970.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rogers_Plan>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
pass muster:
1. (idiomatic) To meet or exceed a particular standard.
2. (idiomatic) To adequately pass a formal or informal inspection.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pass_muster>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Accuse not Nature: she hath done her part; Do thou but thine.
--John Milton
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Milton>
"Imagine" is a song written and performed by English musician John
Lennon. The best selling single of his solo career, its lyrical
statement is one of collectivist positivism. It challenges the listener
to imagine a world at peace, without the divisiveness and barriers of
borders, religious denominations and nationalities, and to consider the
possibility that the focus of humanity should be living a life
unattached to material possessions. Lennon and Yoko Ono co-produced the
song and album of the same name with Phil Spector. One month after the
September 1971 release of the LP, Lennon released "Imagine" as a single
in the United States; the song peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Hot
100 and the album became the most commercially successful and critically
acclaimed of his solo career. Lennon released "Imagine" as a single in
the United Kingdom in 1975, and the song has since sold more than 1.6
million copies in the UK. It earned a Grammy Hall of Fame Award, an
induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped
Rock and Roll, and Rolling Stone ranked it number 3 in their list of
"The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imagine_(song)>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1854:
In his apostolic constitution Ineffabilis Deus, Pope Pius IX
proclaimed the dogmatic definition of Immaculate Conception, which holds
that the Virgin Mary was born free of original sin.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immaculate_Conception>
1941:
Second World War: Led by Takashi Sakai, the Imperial Japanese
Army invaded Hong Kong and quickly achieved air superiority by bombing
Kai Tak Airport.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Hong_Kong>
1987:
A man shot and killed eight people at the Australia Post
building in Melbourne, before jumping to his death.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Street_massacre>
1991:
Leaders of Belarus, Russia and Ukraine signed the Belavezha
Accords, agreeing to dissolve the Soviet Union and establish the
Commonwealth of Independent States.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_Independent_States>
2010:
The Japanese experimental spacecraft IKAROS (model pictured)
passed by Venus at about 80,800 km distance, completing its planned
mission to demonstrate solar sail technology.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IKAROS>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
menorah:
(Judaism) A candelabrum with nine branches used in Jewish worship on
Hanukkah.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/menorah>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
How could I think the brief years were enough To prove the reality of
endless love?
--Delmore Schwartz
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Delmore_Schwartz>
Season two of Supernatural, an American paranormal drama television
series created by Eric Kripke, premiered September 28, 2006, and
concluded May 17, 2007, airing 22 episodes. The season focuses on
protagonists Sam (Jared Padalecki, pictured) and Dean Winchester (Jensen
Ackles) as they track down Azazel, the demon responsible for the deaths
of their mother Mary and father John. They attempt to discover the
demon's plan for Sam and other psychic children—young adults who were
visited by Azazel as infants and given abilities, and whose mothers
often then died in a fire. During their travels, they use their father's
journal to help them carry on the family business—saving people and
hunting supernatural creatures. The season aired Thursdays, 9:00 pm ET
in the United States, and averaged only about 3.14 million viewers. The
cast and crew garnered many award nominations, but the episodes received
mixed reviews from critics. While both the brotherly chemistry between
the lead actors and the decision to finish the main storyline were
praised, the formulaic structure of the episodes was criticized. The
season was internationally syndicated, released on DVD as a six-disc
box, and made available through digital retailers.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernatural_(season_2)>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1724:
In Toruń, Royal Prussia, Polish authorities executed the
city's mayor and nine other Lutheran officials following tensions
between Protestants and Catholics.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tumult_of_Thorn_(Toru%C5%84)>
1787:
Delaware became the first U.S. state to ratify the United
States Constitution.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delaware>
1941:
World War II: The Imperial Japanese Navy made a surprise attack
on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, intending to neutralize the United States
Pacific Fleet from influencing the war Japan was planning to wage in
Southeast Asia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attack_on_Pearl_Harbor>
1988:
A 6.9 Mw earthquake struck the Spitak region of Armenia,
killing at least 25,000 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988_Spitak_earthquake>
2005:
Spanish authorities captured Croatian Army general Ante
Gotovina (pictured), who was wanted for war crimes committed during the
Croatian War of Independence; he was eventually cleared of all charges.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ante_Gotovina>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
blunderbuss:
An old style of muzzleloading firearm and early form of shotgun with a
distinctive short, large caliber barrel that is flared at the muzzle,
therefore able to fire scattered quantities of nails, stones, shot, etc.
at short range: Timothy was excited to find a toy blunderbuss waiting
under the Christmas tree.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/blunderbuss>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
And I feel that something's coming, and it's not just in the wind. It's
more than just tomorrow, it's more than where we've been, It offers me a
promise, it's telling me "Begin", I know we're needing something worth
believing in.
--Harry Chapin
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Harry_Chapin>