February 21

1916 - The Battle of Verdun began (7:12 a.m., French time):  WWI.

Verdun was the longest, bloodiest battle of WWI, and one of the biggest battles in history...There were over 700,000 German and French casualties, with almost 300,000 deaths, in this standoff, where 'trench warfare' proved its ultimate uselessness against modern weaponry - particularly against long-range artillery, rifles and machine guns.

This battle was also one of the last times the French put up a good fight...When the Germans came calling in 1939 they surely didn’t give such a valiant effort.

1431 - England began the trial of Joan of Arc, on charges of witchcraft.

It was awfully nice of the French to turn their ‘savior’ and national hero over to the English.

1613 - Michael Romanov, son of the Patriarch of Moscow, was elected Russian Tsar.

The Romanovs were one of the most successful European monarchical dynasties, ruling Russia until 1917 when the Commies took over.

1940 - The Germans began construction of a concentration camp at Auschwitz:  WWII.

What a glorious day for mankind...The Goth finally re-emerged in the Germans and all Hell was breaking loose.

Civilization held the Germans at bay for almost 2,000 years, but their base instincts finally got the best of them, and the Jews, Roma, Poles, etc., were in the process of feeling their wrath.

1965 - Former Black Muslim leader Malcolm X, was shot to death in New York by assassins identified as Black Muslims.

Good riddance...Blacks were finally starting to make some political headway, and the last thing they needed was a fighting war to erupt. Malcolm could have brought this on eventually, which would have been catastrophic for the Civil Rights Movement.

Blacks have gotten much more through the process of politics and economics then they ever could have with the sword.

Of interesting note: Norman 3X Butler (Abdul Aziz), one of the three men convicted of killing Malcolm, was paroled in 1985 and in 1998 was appointed by Louis Farrakhan to head a Harlem mosque.

1972 - President Nixon began his historic visit to China. The first American president to visit China and the first president to visit a country not officially recognized by the United States.

This was Nixon's shining moment, and had he not gone all 'Tricky Dick' it would have propelled him to the heights of some of our greatest presidents...But he couldn't help himself.

Also, it's important to note how important Nixon's visit was in the fall of the Soviet Union, because the Ruskies feared China more than they did the U.S., and the fear of a Sino-American alliance drove them crazy.