March 5 (A Triple)

1946 - The 'Iron Curtain Speech': Winston Churchill delivered his famous speech at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri.

"From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron Curtain has descended across the Continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe. Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest and Sofia, all these famous cities and the populations around them lie in...the Soviet sphere."

Churchill was the greatest leader in the free world during the 20th Century, and his evaluation of Soviet Communism was right on target...Just as he had been regarding Nazism in the 1930's.

1953 - After 29-years in power, Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin died at the age of 73.

In the entire history of the world, Stalin stands side by side with any of the worst and most destructive human beings...In his 12-year period of raising Hell, Hitler may have been worse, but Stalin was in power 17-years longer than Hitler, which allowed him to catch up and pass the German madman in the total number of lives ruined or ended.  Though he fell short of Mao's final number - and probably Genghis Khan's as well.

Here's how Stalin spent his last moments:

"For the last twelve hours the lack of oxygen became acute. His face and lips blackened as he suffered slow strangulation. The death agony was terrible. He literally choked to death as we watched. At what seemed to be the very last moment, he opened his eyes and cast a glance over everyone in the room. It was a terrible glance, insane and perhaps angry, full of fear of death." - Svetlana Stalin (Joe's daughter).

In other words, the Man of Steel exited the world just as he lived in it...Here's hoping he suffered mightily in death, and continues to do so in Hell.

2004 - Libya acknowledged stockpiling 44,000 pounds of mustard gas and disclosed the location of a production plant in a declaration submitted to the world's chemical weapons watchdog.

WOW!! This was an unforeseen, AND BARELY REPORTED, benefit of the Iraq War...It was also a scary awakening to the reality of the Middle East: If Libya had such weapons, what do the big players have?

The world also has to notice it wasn't long until the U.S. took out Gaddafi after he gave up his toys - It's debatable if we would have if he hadn't...Something every dictator with such weapons will keep in mind when we ask them to give them up:  North Korea, Iran, etc.

1616 - The Roman Catholic Church, through Cardinal Robert Bellarmine, declared Copernicanism a “false and erroneous” doctrine. As a result, Nicolaus Copernicus’ 'de Revolutionibus' was placed on the Index of Forbidden Books by the Roman Catholic Church.

He couldn’t prove his theories at the time, but Copernican ideas eventually won out on this argument...Years after his death.

1770 - The Boston Massacre: British soldiers, who had been taunted by a crowd of American colonists, opened fire killing five people.

In terms of bloodshed the 'massacre' has been over-hyped, but in terms of propaganda value for what was becoming a revolutionary cause it was a tremendous gift.

1933 - President Franklin Roosevelt ordered a four-day bank holiday in order to stop large amounts of money from being withdrawn from the banks.

Ever wonder why FDIC banks are never closed for four consecutive days? Here is your reason...I like FDR as a ‘war president,’ but his domestic plans were disastrous, and many were unconstitutional.

1933 - In German parliamentary elections, the Nazi Party won 44% of the vote, enabling it to join with the Nationalists to gain a slender majority in the Reichstag.

It is important to remember the Nazis took power through the ballot-box...Needless to say, this was the last 'free election' the Germans had for awhile.

Under the wrong circumstances it could happen in any country...Even in the U.S.

1998 - NASA officials announced the Lunar Prospector probe found the presence of water on the moon at the north and south poles. As much as 100 million tons of water was estimated. They estimated the water frozen in the loose soil of the moon might support a lunar base and a human colony.

The Moon is the next step in 'America’s Manifest Destiny'...No other country has ever been there, and none will have the audacity and ability to colonize it either.

1999 - In China, the annual two week plenary session was scheduled to amend the Constitution. The preamble mentioned the goal of developing a "socialist market economy" and acknowledged the late Deng Xiaoping. Revisions were planned to protect private enterprise and recognize multiple forms of ownership.

This was a giant leap towards capitalism, but China is a long way from having a free-market economy...If they ever allow free markets the world will see the establishment of an economic giant, capable of challenging the U.S. in the global economy - not just in GDP, but in individual economic wealth as well.

That's a big 'if,' though.

2000 - A Virginia subsidiary of PPL Therapeutics of Edinburgh, Scotland, the company that cloned Dolly the sheep, produced the first cloned pigs.

Congratulations! The Frankenstinians are extremely brilliant, and equally immoral and dangerous.

2001 - Muslim pilgrims began the stoning of the three pillars symbolizing the devil as part of the annual hajj to Mecca. 35 people suffocated to death during the stoning of the devil ritual.

Nice religion...If it only happened this particular year it would be an accident, but it happens every year.

November 14

1994 - After many delays, the first trains for the public were run in the Channel Tunnel (Chunnel) under the English Channel.

The Chunnel is an awesome feet of engineering: A 50-km-long, rail tunnel beneath the English Channel at the Straits of Dover, connecting England and France...Here’s hoping the Brits have a kill-switch to blow it up the next time the Germans plow through France.

Ok, the Germans are out of the conquest business...But the Muslims aren't.

565 - Byzantine Emperor Justinian I, 'the Great,' died.

Justinian ruled the Byzantines for 38-years, and was one of the greatest of the Roman emperors, and also its last great emperor.

I hope you understand the Byzantine Empire was nothing less than the continuation of the traditional Roman Empire, but was situated in Constantinople rather than Rome...Rome may have fallen in the 400's, but the Roman Empire lasted at Constantinople well into the 1500's.

1305 - Clement V was crowned the first 'Avignon Pope.'

The Avignon Papacy (1305-1378) was a period of ‘dual Popes,’ with one in Rome (the traditional Pope), and one in France (a French puppet).

This period is also know as the 'Western Schism' or the 'Period of the Anti-Popes'...Sadly, most Americans (even Catholic Americans) have no clue of this event, but it was a major issue in its time.

1863 – Nathan Bedford Forrest was assigned to command the Confederate forces of western Tennessee:  U.S. Civil War.

N.B. Forrest is one of the greatest commanders of the Civil War, and it is lucky for the U.S. he was held in check by his own superiors. When given a chance to lead in the field, the Union forces he faced were amazed at his skill, ingenuity, and bravery, even though he was never formally trained in the military arts - He was a slave-trader, with exceptional instincts and no fear.

Oh by the way, NBF was also the first Grand Wizard of the KKK.

I highly recommend you read this fantastic book about this incredibly interesting (though terribly flawed) man: NB Forrest: A Biography.

1908 - Albert Einstein presented the Quantum Theory of Light.

I’m not going to try to explain this, but I’m sure there are some who’d like to read about it: photoelectric effect.

1935 - The Nazis deprived German Jews of their citizenship.

This is nothing compared to what was to come...It’s one thing to be 'deprived of citizenship,' and another to be ‘deprived of humanity.’

1940 - German planes bombed Coventry, England, destroying or damaging 69,000 buildings:  WWII.

How come Liberals cry about the Allied bombing of Dresden and other German cities, but never mention the ‘rain of Hell’ the Krauts dropped on the Brits and the rest of Europe?? Seems to me every bomb the Germans received was well-earned.

1969 - 'Apollo 12' blasted off for the Moon.

Apollo 12 was the second manned lunar mission, and we must make sure to never forget the greatness of those who have been there. On this trip it was:  Charles Conrad Jr., Richard F. Gordon Jr., and Alan L. Bean.

The membership of those who’ve been to the Moon is very small, hasn’t been increased in four decades, and includes only Americans.

1991 - Michael Jackson's 'Black or White' video premiered on FOX-TV.

Mikey didn't discriminate at all. He likes black little boys or white little boys...Or both at the same time.

1994 - President Clinton held one-on-one meetings with the leaders of China, Japan and South Korea, winning pledges to keep the pressure on North Korea to freeze its nuclear weapons program.

What he should have been doing was persuading China to kill Kim Jong il...There was no reasoning with him (nor his son, or grandson), and the only way to bring North Korea to the table of diplomacy is to rid it of the Kim family of nutty dictators - and yes, it's going to have to be the Chinese who finally get it done.

1998 - Iraq said it would resume cooperating with U.N. weapons inspectors as it appeared to back down in the face of a threatened U.S. attack.

I’m sure Iraqi pharmacy manufacturers were afraid of a U.S. attack, but Saddam knew Bubba didn’t have the spine to come after him.

1999 - The United Nations imposed sanctions on Afghanistan for refusing to hand over suspected terrorist Osama bin Laden.

What were they 'sanctioning?' The Afghanis only have two industries: Opium and Jihad.

October 15

1529 - The Ottoman Turks, led by Suleiman, abandoned the siege of Vienna.

The importance of the Habsburgs (rulers of the Austrian Empire - among many other holdings) can’t be minimized when it comes to stopping the spread of Islam. There was no other power to stop the onslaught from East to West, and had the Habsburgs not been such staunch defenders it’s likely much of Europe would be speaking Arabic at this time.

1582 – The Gregorian calendar was adopted in Catholic countries.

Ten days disappeared from the calendar...It’s funny to note, many Europeans thought this was nothing but a tax-collection scheme.

1892 - The U.S. government convinced the Crow Indians to give up 1.8 million acres of their reservation for 50 cents per acre.

Sounds like a rip-off, but it’s much more than most Indians got.

Again, I must repeat Rule #1 of invasions: Do not let the defenders off the beach...This rule held absolutely true for the Crow and every other conquered population. As it always has, and will.

1914 - The Clayton Antitrust Act became law.

This law was passed to eliminate monopolistic policies, and put limits on big-business...Worked very well didn’t it?

1923 - The N.Y. Yankees won their first World Series.

It wouldn’t be their last, with the Bombers founding the greatest dynasty in the history of American sports.

1946 - Nazi war criminal Hermann Goering poisoned himself hours before he was scheduled to be executed.

What a complete miscarriage of justice...The Fat Field Marshal had to die, but it shouldn’t have been at his own hands.

The executioner was cheated and so was justice.

1964 - It was announced Soviet leader Nikita S. Khrushchev had been removed from office. He was succeeded as Premier by Alexei N. Kosygin and as Communist Party Secretary by Leonid I. Brezhnev.

Nikki proved to be the last competent Soviet leader (an oxymoron in its own right), and the Evil Empire began a slow period of deterioration from this point on.

1966 - The Endangered Species Preservation Act became law, and the Fish and Wildlife service initially listed 78 species as being 'endangered.' The number of 'endangered species' grew greatly over the following years to a count of 984 in the U.S., as of September 2002.

We protect animals, but we've had no problem executing over 45,000,000 UNBORN BABIES in the past 40-years...Nice set of principles we have.