November 3 (A Double)

1534 - The English Parliament passed an Act of Supremacy making King Henry VIII Head of the Church of England; a role formerly held by the Pope.

"...the only supreme head in earth of the Church in England and that the English crown shall enjoy all honours, dignities, preeminences, jurisdictions, privileges, authorities, immunities, profits, and commodities to the said dignity."

Prior to being excommunicated, Henry was given the title of 'Defender of the Faith' for condemning Martin Luther...But nothing is forever, and Henry and the Pope fell into disfavor over a woman: Catherine of Aragon.

Interesting enough, it was another woman who repealed this act: Henry's daughter, Queen Mary I...And another who re-instituted it: Henry's other daughter, Elizabeth I.

It's important to always recognize the importance of politics in religion, and vice versa.

1862 - Dr. Richard Gatling patented the machine gun.

War was becoming more bloody and deadly with great improvements on long and short guns (especially due to rifling), and then this beast was invented - firing hundreds of rounds in the blink of an eye.

War has always been brutal, but the creation of rapid fire weapons forever changed it from a battle between armies to a battle between nations:  Meaning armies and civilians...A true revolution in warfare.  A horrible one.

1394 - Jews were expelled from France by the order of Charles VI.

How many of you thought the Nazi's were the first Euros to crap on the Jews?

Those paying attention should know better, because just about every European nation, and many in Southwest Asia, have either tossed them out or killed them...The Nazi's were just the most brutal, efficient, and recent.

1755 - Massachusetts offered to pay for Indian scalps: £30 for Warriors, £20 boys or girls.

Never make the mistake of thinking our forefathers weren't brutal...Any people can become savages, at any time.

1839 - The first Opium War began: China v. Britain.

The Opium Wars were about sovereignty and trade - between China and the European powers (primarily Britain), which resulted in the establishment of European dominance of China.

Don't think for a second the Chinese have forgotten this humiliation, either...The Euros are floundering and the Chinese are on the up-swing - at some point there will be some payback.

1883 - The U.S. Supreme Court declared Native Americans to be 'aliens.'

Such is the reality of conquest...The Indians are lucky not to have been wiped off the face of the Earth, like many other ancient people who were conquered.

The fact this didn't happen proves the decency of most Americans...And the sooner American Indians jump off the 'rez' and truly become Americans the better off they will be.

1944 - Japan began the release of 9,000 balloons to start fires in America:  WWII.

Had these balloons proven to be stable we would have seen much worse than fire flying across the Pacific. Biological, chemical and atomic weapons were being worked on in Japanese labs - in China...Luckily we figured out how to weaponize the atom first.

1988 - Neo-Nazis broke Geraldo Rivera's nose while he was reporting on the air.

I’m very anti-Neo-Nazi, but am very pro-breaking-Geraldo’s-nose.

1997 - California Proposition 209 (voted for in 1996) survived a broad challenge in the U.S. Supreme Court. The act provided a state ban on all forms of affirmative action.

It is so obvious that discriminating against one group to prop up another is wrong, and the judgment on this case is perfect:

"The state shall not discriminate against, or grant preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education, or public contracting."