February 18

1405 - Emir al Kebir Timur 'i-Leng' (Tamerlane) died while leading an expedition to China.

How can one person be known by so many names? Timur - also known as Temur, Taimur, Timur Lenk, Timur i Leng, Tamerlane, Tamburlaine, or Taimur-e-Lang, which translates to Timur the Lame.

No matter what he was called, this Turko-Mongol was a fantastic leader, and one of the few to go down in history with 'the Great' after his name - a well earned title.

1536 - France and the Ottoman Empire signed a trade and military alliance against the Holy Roman Empire.

It's important to remember the Ottomans held large chunks of Eastern Europe and were major players in the European power structure...It's also important to remember the French have always been willing to take on any allies - even Muslims who wanted to crush Christian Europe.

1546 - Martin Luther, German Augustinian Friar and leader of the Protestant Reformation, died.

Luther is one of the twenty most important people in history...Anyone could have taken on the Church, but very few could have survived its attacks, and almost none could have won.

1861 – Jefferson Davis was inaugurated the Confederacy’s provisional president at a ceremony held in Montgomery, Ala...“All we ask is to be left alone,” Davis stated.

Thankfully President Lincoln was at the helm...If a man of lesser qualities had been president, the America we know today would be a much different place.

1932 - Japan declared Manchurian independence from China.

How nice of the Japanese...In reality, Japan placed a puppet in charge of Manchuria and held it for themselves, but the headline is nice.

1962 - Robert F. Kennedy said U.S. troops would stay in Vietnam until Communism was defeated.

Or until peaceniks flooded his party and forced the defeat of our proud military.

I have no doubt the war would have went differently if JFK hadn’t been assassinated...If nothing else, a reasonably Conservative leader would have been Commander-in-Chief, instead of LBJ.

1979 - Snow fell in the Sahara Desert.

Global Cooling at its finest.

1985 - General William C. Westmoreland and CBS reached an out-of-court settlement in Westmoreland's $120 million libel suit from a CBS News documentary, 'The Uncounted Enemy: A Vietnam Deception.'

You’d think CBS would have learned, but they obviously haven’t and continue to put out 'hate-the-military propaganda.'

1998 - President Bill Clinton's foreign policy team encountered jeers during a town meeting at Ohio State University while trying to defend the administration's threat to bomb Iraq into compliance with U.N. weapons edicts. "One, two, three, four, we don't want your racist war," shouted some of the handful of hecklers at The Ohio State University in Columbus, catching Secretary of State Madeleine Albright off guard and drowning out what she was trying to say.

This puts a big challenge to the 'Bombs with (D) = Good, Bombs with (R) = Bad' theory.

That said, I’m sure Halfbright was 'caught off guard,' because she had no reason to think 'her people' would turn on her.

January 30

1933 - Adolph Hitler was named German Chancellor.

German President Hindenburg, the Army, and others thought they could control and marginalize Hitler by putting him in this post.

"I will employ my strength for the welfare of the German people, protect the Constitution and laws of the German people, conscientiously discharge the duties imposed on me, and conduct my affairs of office impartially and with justice to everyone." - A. Hitler

That worked out well.

Hindenburg died in 1934, Hitler was hardly marginalized - let alone controlled - and the Nazi regime was about to 'make history.'

1648 - The Peace of Munster.

The Netherlands finally achieved independence from Spain...Over a hundred years before the American colonies broke from Britain.

1661 - Oliver Cromwell was ritually executed.

I love this kind of stuff.  So, what did English King Charles II do?  Two years after Cromwell had been dead, he was dug up, hanged, drawn and quartered, then his body was thrown in a pit and his head displayed on a pole outside Westminster Abby.

Such is the fate of those who overthrow their leaders and don't figure out a way to keep their own on the throne.

1717 - Surrounded by the Russian Army, the Lithuanian-Polish Parliament reduced its army by half and acknowledged Russian protection.

'Acknowledged Russian protection?' Very nice.

The Ruskies had them surrounded...And soon conspired with Germany and Austria to eliminate both nations.

1781 - The Articles of Confederation went into effect as the official government of the United States of America.

I hope you know there was a U.S. government between the period of American independence and the Constitution...If you didn't, you need to return to this blog much more regularly.

1835 - A gunman fired twice at President Andrew Jackson, the first attempt on the life of a U.S. President. Jackson wasn't injured.

The first, but not the last...I’m not hoping for Trump, or any future president, to take a shot (not by any means), but we are very overdue for another.

1862 - The U.S. Navy's first ironclad warship, the Monitor, was launched:  U.S. Civil War.

It’s nearly miraculous this 'can with a turret' didn’t sink immediately...The upcoming battle between the two ironclads (Monitor vs. Merrimack) proved to be a joke, but the era of wooden ships was about to come to an end with the introduction of these two ships.

1937 - Thirteen leading Communists were sentenced to death for allegedly participating in a plot, led by Leon Trotsky, to overthrow the Soviet regime and assassinate its leaders.

Was it true or not? Probably, probably not...Either way it was a good excuse for Uncle Joe to pull out the execution squads, and he didn't limit his retaliation to thirteen.

1939 - Adolf Hitler called for the extermination of European Jews:  WWII.

WhoooHooo!!!! Happy Extermination Day...Sick bastard.

1948 - Indian political and spiritual leader Mahatma Gandhi was murdered by a Hindu extremist.

A sad day for the world...Gandhi was a Socialist, but he was a good man, and a great Indian.

1953 - President Eisenhower announced he would pull the Seventh Fleet out of Formosa to permit the Nationalists to attack Communist China.

What a joke...The Nationalists would have been slaughtered en mass, as our troops found out in North Korea.

Nice bluff, Ike. Don’t make threats you don’t aim to keep.

1968 - The Tet Offensive began: North Vietnamese forces launched surprise attacks against South Vietnamese provincial capitals.

The war was a mess before, but this event caused LBJ to flinch (almost a full Turret’s twitch)...The U.S. eventually won the battle, as it did every other, but never regained its footing politically.

And never forget why we lost the war: Both parties (and many presidents) failed our country, but the Democrats (who controlled the presidency and Congress for most of it) were too weak to win the war, and the Republicans were given an unwinnable situation by the time Nixon became president.

1979 - The civilian government of Iran announced it decided to allow Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who'd been living in exile in France, to return.

Khomeini's return was one of the biggest mistakes of the Carter Presidency...Which says a lot.

It was expected Khomeini would fire up a revolution, but Carter didn’t have the stomach to have him assassinated...We know the rest of the story in Iran, but most overlook the overall effect this had on the Middle East, where various forms of Islamic fundamentalism are trying to take hold throughout the region.

2003 - President G.W. Bush put America's allies on notice that diplomacy would give way to a decision on war with Iraq in "weeks, not months."

THANK GOD Jimmy Carter wasn’t president after 9/11/01...Or Clinton, or Gore, or Kerry, or Obama, etc, etc, etc.……

January 21

1924 - Vladimir Lenin died of a brain hemorrhage.

Lenin is one of the most important figures of the 20th Century...I'd like to say for better or for worse, but truth be told it was only for worse.

Sadly, as bad as the pathetic Soviet people had it under Lenin, they didn't get a reprieve after his death.  Instead they found out the real meaning of Hell - under Joseph Stalin.

1522 - Adrian Florisz Boeyens was elected Pope, as Adrian VI.

Normally I don't make much of Popes being elected, but this one is special for his previous role:  He was the leader of the Inquisition.

I've said it many times, but this event proves it as well as any, the Church has had its share of scoundrels.  Adrian was one of the most bloody.

1880 - The first sewage system which was separated from storm drains was created; in Memphis, Tennessee.

It's hard to put enough emphasis on sanitation, because as a modern American I've never lived in a place of filth...Thankfully.

1954 - The first atomic submarine, the USS Nautilus, was launched at Groton, Connecticut.

Global Reach, Global Power, By Sea, Land or Air, 24/7, 365 days a year...Here's hoping President Trump will rebuild our military and restore it to it's former power - especially the Navy.

1968 - The Battle of Khe Sanh began:  U.S.-Vietnam War.

Both sides claimed victory in this battle - per normal - but the ultimate outcome was the Americans leaving the base, and the North Vietnamese laying the groundwork for the Tet Offensive.

1977 - President Carter pardoned American Vietnam War-era draft evaders and ordered a case-by-case study of deserters.

This makes me sick...Any and all draft evaders should be tried for subversive activities. Including our pathetic 41st president.

1997 - Trying to improve its tarnished image, the Democratic National Committee announced it would no longer accept money from people or companies with foreign ties and would limit contributions from labor unions and wealthy benefactors.

Hahahaha!!! This is one of the biggest lies ever told by the DNC. And that's saying a lot considering how high the bar is...It’s time they change their party logo from the Jackass to Pinocchio.

And no one has ever mastered the cash-grab from foreigners, labor unions and the super-rich more than Barack Obama and the Clintons.

November 11

1918 - Armistice Day: Fighting in World War I came to an end with the signing of an armistice between the Allies and Germany.

After four brutal years, WWI ended on the "eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month."

So, what did WWI accomplish? It:
1. Destroyed the 'old order of things' (especially in Germany, Russia, Austria, and Turkey)...Which has had massive consequences.
2. Ushered in the advent of the Communist Hell State...Starting with Russia.
3. Saw the beginning of America's international influence on a large scale.
4. Was the beginning of total, unrestricted warfare...Involving civilians as participants and casualties in exponential numbers.
5. Resulted in the death of over 15,000,000 people (8.6 million military, and 6.4 million civilians).
6. Created a perfect petri-dish for the 1918-19 Spanish Flu, which killed over 20,000,000 people.
7. Ended without a clear-cut victor...Germany wasn't 'defeated,' and hardly lost a battle on German soil.

Of all the disasters of WWI, it is the last one which cost humanity the most.

Germany quit the war, but wasn't defeated, and many Germans at the time believed they should resume the battle as soon as they could to reestablish their historic place in the world...And to put an end to the unreasonable reparations forced on them, which killed the German economy.

As a result, what WWI really accomplished was:
1. The founding of Leninim/Stalinism.
2. The founding of Nazism.
3. The resumption of WWI with an even greater and more horrific evil in WWII.

So, we must recognize and honor the end of WWI, but also should look back with disdain on those who didn't bring it to a proper end...Which caused the Armistice to be nothing but a cease-fire between 1918 and 1937-in-Asia/1939-in-Europe.

1215 - The Fourth Lateran Council was convened by Pope Innocent III.

It was here that the Church first defined 'transubstantiation': The Eucharist changing invisibly into the body (bread) and blood (wine) of Christ.

The Council also attempted to define papal primacy over secular leaders, which had been, and continued to be, a huge problem between the various European kings and the Pope.

On a side note, the Council also determined Jews and Muslims should wear clothes to enable them to be distinguished from Christians...Very nice.

1620 - The Mayflower Compact was signed: An agreement by 41 Pilgrims calling for a "body politick” designed to guarantee "just and equal" laws.

The Pilgrims felt they landed in a world outside that owned by the London Company, therefore they were outside the reach of British rule...They soon found this wasn't the case in the eyes of the British crown, though.

The importance of the Compact is it provided for the basis of all governments in what eventually became the thirteen American colonies.

1921 - President Harding dedicated the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery.

1923 - The Eternal Flame was lit at the Tomb of the Unknowns.

I hope you will someday be able to visit this amazing site...There have been few moments in my life more powerful than the two days I spent at Arlington, and even fewer than the time I spent at the Tomb.

1972 - The U.S. Army turned over its base at Long Bihn to the South Vietnamese army, symbolizing the end of direct U.S. military involvement in the Vietnam War.

In other words, we turned tail and left the South Vietnamese to be slaughtered by their northern brothers.

"It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it." - General Douglas MacArthur

1992 - Russian President Boris Yeltsin told U.S. senators in a letter that Americans had been held in prison camps after World War II and some were "summarily executed," but that others were still living in his country voluntarily.

No one should be shocked by this statement, but not being shocked doesn't take away the sting of its reality.

1995 - The European Union's 15 member-states decided to pull their envoys out of Lagos to show their anger at Nigeria's execution of human rights leaders.

I'm sure the Nigerians were really upset by this action...Scared, too.

1998 - President Clinton ordered warships, planes and troops to the Persian Gulf as he laid out his case for a possible attack on Iraq. Iraq, meanwhile, showed no sign of backing down from its refusal to deal with U.N. weapons inspectors.

Clinton should have taken care of this problem during his administration, but didn't have the testicular fortitude to do it...Instead he 'spoke loudly, and carried a wiffle-ball bat.'

Keep this in mind the next time you think about voting for a peacenick Commander-in-Chief.

Question: I thought Billy and his Democrat pals have been saying there was no need to worry about Iraq? Hmmmmmm.

2004 - Yasir Arafat, chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization, died in Paris.

HAPPY YASIR's DEAD DAY!!! WoooooooooooooHoooooooooooo!

Good riddance to dead murderers...I hope he suffered terribly, and wish it lasted longer.

I also hope he's getting his '72 Virgins' in Allahville...Of course, I'm of the opinion the 72 are gorillas, and they do the devirginizing.

November 10

461 - Pope Leo 'The Great' died.

Why is Leo 'The Great'? Well, he was the only person who personally faced off with and defeated Attila the Hun, which is enough to earn anyone the title of 'The Great.'

Amazingly, he did it without bloodshed, and forced the Hun to turn-tail and never return to Italy...What did he do, or what did he say? No one knows, but this event forever changed history, and set the Christian Church up as the eventual successor to the Roman Empire.

1775 - The United States Marine Corps was formed by order of the Continental Congress.

Happy birthday to the greatest amphibious military force in the history of the world...Semper Fi!!

1917 - The new Russian government suspended freedom of the press.

Of course they did...They were Communists.

The suppression of human rights is the norm in every Communist state ever created...Which is why Communism is a failed theory. Even though it hasn’t been exterminated and has found a 'soft home' in Western Liberalism.

1919 - Abrams v. United States:  The U.S Supreme Court ruled the federal government could suspend constitutional rights when the nation faced "a clear and present danger."

Duh!! How can anyone think otherwise? There will be no 'constitutional rights' without the existence of the U.S.

Obviously this is a slippery-slope and must be avoided, but desperate times call for desperate measures...This is also why every American must be armed. To make sure the government doesn’t use tools like this without necessary cause.

1964 - Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara said the United States had no plans to send combat units into Vietnam.

What a sad joke...We should never make such a promise with anyone!

1975 - The U.N. General Assembly approved a resolution equating Zionism with racism.

That's par for the course in the U.N...Reason #873,466 why the U.S. should not be in the U.N.

October 31

1517 - Martin Luther posted the '95 Theses' on the door of the Wittenberg Palace Church, marking the start of the Protestant Reformation in Germany.

The proper name for the '95 Theses' is 'The Disputation of Doctor Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences.'

Luther was a Catholic monk, and grew tired of the bastardizations of the Christian faith...Even a strict Catholic would have difficulty denying Luther's claims, because the Church had grown quite fat and abusive.

It's important to note Luther didn't set out to destroy the Catholic Church or to found his own version of Christianity...Instead he wanted to reform the existing church - to cleanse it of abuses of power and un-holiness.

This didn't work out because the Church was far too big for anyone to make demands on, and the Church had Holy Roman Emperor Charles V to lean on for military support...But, both the Papacy and Charles made a huge mistake: They allowed Luther to live. Had they killed him immediately, the Reformation would have likely died with him.

Instead, Luther found refuge in the German states and the Reformation took root - a pivot in European history the likes of which hadn't happened since the fall of Rome.

475 - Romulus Augustulus, last Western Roman Emperor, was elevated to the throne.

What a pathetic figure. He didn’t last long, though, and the Empire was in its last months.

It is interesting to look at the name of this last emperor and its irony: Romulus was the legendary founder of Rome, and Augustus the founder of the Roman Empire...Romulus Augustus proved to be much less than either.

1803 - The USS Philadelphia grounded off Tripoli and was captured by the Barbary pirates.

This event sparked the Barbary Wars, which were the U.S.'s first as an independent nation...It's not surprising it was Muslim pirates who were our first enemy. Just as they are today.

1846 - The Donner party, unable to cross the Donner Pass, began constructing a winter camp.

It was a long Winter - For some.

1914 - The Battle of the Vistula River ended.  Russian troops pushed the Germans back to their original positions:  WWI.

This battle is also known as the Battle of Warsaw.

It was one of the first WWI battles on the Eastern Front, and the Russians were able to overwhelm the Germans due to superior numbers...This was the case for all of 1914 and much of 1915, but it didn't last past that point. After 1915 the Russians found themselves on the opposite end of most of these battles.

1942 - One of the great wartime radio shows premiered, as CBS debuted 'Thanks to the Yanks.' The show, starring Bob Hawk, became one of the most popular of the wartime programs.

This was back in the day when the media and Hollywood were pro-American...Oh how things have changed.

1961 - The body of Joseph Stalin was removed from public display (in Stalin's Tomb). The longtime dictator of the former Soviet Union was reburied in a simple grave, beginning the USSR's 'de-Stalinization policy.'

Uncle Joe is one of the greatest butchers in the history of the world, causing death and suffering for millions of his enemies and his own countrymen...They should have drawn and quartered his dead corpse, then burned the remains in the hope of every part of his existence going straight to Hell.

1968 - President Lyndon Johnson ordered a halt to all U.S. bombing in North Vietnam, saying he hoped for fruitful peace negotiations.

Peace never comes through weakness...He should have bombed them into submission and allowed the infantry to force Ho Chi Mihn to surrender.

1998 - President Bill Clinton signed the 'Iraq Liberation Act' which stated it was "... the policy of the United States to support efforts to remove the regime headed by Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq and to promote the emergence of a democratic government to replace that regime."

Getting rid of Saddam was the official policy of the U.S.

"Today I am signing into law H.R. 4655, the 'Iraq Liberation Act of 1998.' This Act makes clear that it is the sense of the Congress that the United States should support those elements of the Iraqi opposition that advocate a very different future for Iraq than the bitter reality of internal repression and external aggression that the current regime in Baghdad now offers." - President Bill Clinton

So, why didn't Clinton follow through with this official U.S. government policy instead of leaving it to his successor to handle?

It's important to point this out to every fool who questions why Bush took out Hussein. He followed the official policy of the United States, which was signed by Bill Clinton...Clinton wouldn't, Bush did.

I was all for this measure.  The problems began when Bush thought he could bring Western-style freedom and democracy to the Middle East.

September 16

335 B.C. - Alexander the Great destroyed every building in Thebes, Egypt, except the temples and the house of the poet Pindar.

Alexander did the world a disservice with this event, but the Greeks/Macedonians were semi-barbaric and brutal...Then again, so are many modern people.

It’s terribly unfortunate much of the ancient world has been destroyed or put to flame, because the puzzle we have left of the ancients is tough to piece together, and much of it has been propagandized by the 'winners.'

1620 - The Mayflower set sail from Southampton, England.

There were other people on the North American continent, but this ship carried the first 'Americans.'

It's important to note, the term 'American' describes an attitude and sense of freedom much more than it describes a people or a region...Which is why even people who hate America would like to become 'Americans.'

1630 - The Massachusetts village of Shawmut changed its name to Boston.

The original Bostonians would be sick to see the insane, God-hating, Liberal pukes who now reside in their once-great village.

1782 - The Great Seal of the United States was used for first time.

The Great Seal tells a great story, and portrays America in it’s full glory, as it is and should always be…Click on the links below to read about the meaning of each item.

Obverse: On the breast of the American bald eagle is a shield with thirteen vertical white and red stripes beneath a blue chief. In the eagle's right talon is an olive branch, and in his left a bundle of thirteen arrows. In his beak is a scroll inscribed with the motto E Pluribus Unum.

Over the head of the eagle, a golden glory is breaking through a cloud and surrounding a constellation of thirteen stars on an azure field.

Reverse: In the zenith of an unfinished pyramid is an eye in a triangle surrounded with a golden glory. Over the eye are the words Annuit Coeptis. On the base of the pyramid are the numerical letters MDCCLXXVI, and underneath, the motto Novus Ordo Seclorum.

Great Seal of the U.S. Homepage.

1893 - More than 100,000 homesteaders rushed to claim shares of a six-million acre strip between Oklahoma and Kansas opened up by the U.S. government.

The 'Boomers' were off to settle a new and better life...The 'Sooners' already had their plots.

1974 - President Ford offered conditional amnesty to Vietnam draft evaders. He said they could come home if they performed up to two years of public service.

1. This offer was far too generous, and they should have either went to jail or not been allowed to come home at all.

2. Carter eliminated the 'two years of public service,' and the Liberal scumbags in the country turned the evaders into celebrities...Hell, one even managed to be elected president:  Bill Clinton.

1997 - Attorney General Janet Reno named Charles La Bella the Justice Department's new lead prosecutor in the campaign fund-raising investigation.

Hahahaha!! I hope you find this as funny as I do...Especially considering Reno's boss was one of the most corrupt 'fund-raisers' ever:  Bill Clinton.

2005 - A 3-day U.N. summit, billed as the largest gathering of world leaders in history, ended and achieved far less than Secretary-General Kofi Annan had hoped.

What a joke! I would have assumed nothing of worth would have gotten done. The fact they got less than hoped for must mean they didn't even get started.

August 15 (A Double)

1096 - The First Crusade set out for Jerusalem.

A Battle of Civilizations was about to begin...A battle which neither side won, and neither side lost - to this day.

The West won many battles, but couldn’t invest and control the Middle East...On the flip side, Islam was kept at bay by the Crusaders, and was never able to conquer Central Europe.

1945 - V.J. Day: Japan agreed to surrender unconditionally, ending WWII. In a recorded radio message, Emperor Hirohito called upon the Japanese people to "bear the unbearable" and lay down their arms.

Don't forget WWII started in 1937 with Japan invading China, not in 1939 with the Germans invading Poland...And please don't feel sorry for the Japanese or Germans, regardless of how revisionist historians play games with the history of the war. Both deserved the ass kicking they received - and then some.

That said, almost 60,000,000 people were killed as a result of this war, and the world was turned upside down...Sadly, there will eventually be a third, and who knows what the damage and outcome will be. 

636 - The Battle at Yarmuk: Islamic forces beat a Byzantine army and gained control of Syria.

Islam was on the march, and the Byzantines were in the process of a long decline...A deadly reality for the Western world.

778 - Charlemagne's rear guard, returning from Spain, was attacked by Muslim Basques.

This headline is confusing if you don't understand Spain was a Muslim country at this time...If you come here daily you should already know this, though, and Charlemagne and the Franks were the only force which kept Islam from sweeping through Western Europe.

Of note in this battle is the death of Roland, Charlemagne’s 'right hand,' whose death was a terrible blow to the great king...It was also an event which put Charlemagne on the offensive, keeping Islam isolated in Spain.

I highly recommend you read The Song of Roland, one of the greatest books of the Middle Ages, and a great story for all time.

1620 - The Mayflower set sail from Southampton with 102 Pilgrims.

These Puritans could have met the same fate as the settlers at Roanoke (probably should have), but they were destined to survive...And a great nation emerged from their founding.

1914 - The Panama Canal opened.

The Canal is an awesome engineering achievement, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and should be put right up  with any of the ‘Wonders of the World’...Ancient or modern

1947- The Indian Independence Bill created the two independent states of India and Pakistan, after some 200-years of British rule.

Two nations with awesome and terrible potential...Both have proven nuclear capability and both border some of the world’s hot spots:  China, Afghanistan, Iran, etc.

Oh, and they have ancient hatred for each other, for various ethnic and religious reasons - with nukes and missiles to deliver them...Both will be major players on the world stage in the 21nd Century - for better or worse.

1961 - East Germany began building the Berlin Wall.

The Berlin Wall was a terrible monument to the reality of the Cold War...I wasn't alive when it went up, but remember the day 'The Wall' came down, and still get tears in my eyes at the event of it falling.

1971 - President Nixon announced a plan to help the economy recover from the costs of the Vietnam and Cold Wars - freezing wages and rents for 90-days.

Oh goody, the government threw itself even more into the lives of the American people - specifically the economy...So, how'd that work out?

The Down Jones went up!  For one day...Followed by a dismal economy for a decade...Genius!!!

That said, it's predictable, and should be a warning to our overlords to quit trying to 'help'.

2001 - Astronomers announced the discovery of the first solar system outside our own.

We are not alone...We have no understanding of the enormity and power of the universe, and must admit we (Earth) are but one of what is possibly millions of planets with life on them (or not). The more we search, the more we will find.

2005 - Israel began to pull out from the Gaza Strip.

This is working out great for the Israelis...Not! As predicted by anyone willing to admit the truth about the Palestinians.

August 14

1281 - The 'Divine Wind' sunk an invading Mongol fleet off of Japan.

The 'Divine Wind' was a typhoon, which saved Japan from a likely Mongol onslaught, because there was little doubt if the Mongols reached land they would have conquered Japan...And every enemy who bothered to fight the Mongols paid dearly for not just giving up.

The invasion force consisted of 281 ships and 150,000 men, and after 50+ days of fighting they were getting the upper hand on the Japanese before the typhoon hit...Only a miracle could save Japan.

It is interesting to know, the Japanese do not call the WWII suicide-bombers by the name of Kamikaze's = 'Divine Wind'...The relationship is a loose English translation.

410 - Visigoth King Alaric sacked Rome.

Rome was on it's last leg, and accelerated the problems with the Goths (and all the other Barbarians) by allowing them in their ranks.

This 'sacking' can be directly related to this matter, because Alaric was trained by Roman General Stilicho - a Goth.

Ironically, it was Stilicho who was sent out to put down the Gothic force...After thinking it through, however, the Romans decided to recall Stilicho, and had him executed. Thereby killing their best leader, and the man who knew Alaric best.

Such was the Western portion of the Empire in the 400's...A shell of its former self, and barely clinging to its very existence.

1848 - The Oregon Territory was established.

The northern border of the U.S. was finally delineated, and a major source of contention between the U.S. and Britain was put to rest.

1900 - International forces entered Beijing to put down the Boxer Rebellion, which was aimed at purging China of foreigners.

I can't say I blame China for wanting to overthrow these foreigners, but China had no chance of success...Just about every world power was in the fight against it - powers with modern technology on their side.

Unfortunately, the only one who ultimately profited from this battle was Japan, who used this event as one more step towards its domination of the Far East.

Even worse, the Chinese haven't forgotten the way it was treated by the West during this time, and it has a long memory...There's little doubt they will be looking for a little payback as soon as they can.

1935 - The U.S. Congress passed the Social Security Act and President Franklin Roosevelt immediately signed it into law.

Social Security was created as a means to provide 'Aid to Dependent Children' (now Aid to Families with Dependent Children [AFDC]), unemployment insurance, and pension plans for the elderly."

A nice idea, and one which has become the National Noose around the neck of every living - and unborn - American.

1945 - Japanese Imperial Guards attempted a coup, which was put down:  WWII.

Even after 2+ years of continuous ass kickings, including two atomic bombs, many Japanese leaders didn't want to surrender...Thankfully these nuts were crushed.

1945 – President Truman announced Japan accepted terms for unconditional surrender, setting the stage for the end of WWII.

August 15th is considered VJ Day, but it was still the 14th in North America at the time of the Japanese surrender...It was August 15th in Japan.

1973 - The U.S. bombing of Cambodia came to a halt, marking the official end to 12-years of American combat in Southeast Asia:  Vietnam War.

I can't do this one...Hopefully we learned from our mistakes and never again fight a war without the objective of winning.

Sadly, the same Liberal scum who forced us to lose in Vietnam made a goal of 'stealing defeat from the jaws of victory' in Iraq, and due to sheer incompetence by Obama have gotten a double in Afghanistan. Make that a triple in Syria.  Make that a quadruple in Libya, make that...Ugh!!!!

1997 - Convicted Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh was sentenced to death for his part in the 1995 explosion which killed 168 people.

On June 11, 2001, this SOB was executed. Good riddance to murderous scum.

2000 - On the opening night of the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles, President Bill Clinton offered an embarrassing triumphant review of his years in office, and exhorted delegates to propel Al Gore on the road to succeed him.

Gotta love Bubba turning Al's party into a Bill Clinton love fest...Imagine what he would have done if Hillary had won in 2016.  For that matter, imagine the 'Ode to Obama' Obama will give himself as well.

2003 - The largest blackout in North American history hit the northeast.

Picture of the Cause of the Blackout...Warning: Rated R.

August 12 (A Double)

1934 - Babe Ruth played his final game.

The Babe, the Bambino, the Sultan of Swat. The greatest player in the history of the game...The most dominant American athlete - regardless of which sport.

I don’t do many sports events here, but there has never been a bigger American sports figure, and there will likely never be another like him in the future...The Babe was a baseball god, the likes of which has never been seen.

Most know of his hitting prowess, but it should also be known he was one of the best pitchers of his time, and had he not switched to the outfield would have possibly gone into the Hall of Fame as a pitcher.

1953 - The Soviet Union conducted a secret test of its first hydrogen bomb.

They had the A-Bomb, and it was only a matter of time before they got the 'H'...Thankfully the Soviets never put that bad-boy to belligerent use, but the Ruskies still have them and who knows what will happen in the future?

1099 - The Crusaders won the Battle of Ascalon.

Ascalon was the last major battle of the First Crusade - a victory for the Crusaders...Sadly, they soon realized they conquered a land which could never be held. A lesson which went unlearned for the entirety of the Crusades.

As much as I hate to say it, I'm afraid this is a lesson the Israelis are going to learn over time as well.

1552 - Emperor Charles V granted religious freedom with the Treaty of Passau.

'Granted'? Hardly...Charles had no choice, because he couldn’t control the Protestant lands he gave such 'freedom' to.

1553 - Pope Julius III ordered all copies of the Talmud to be confiscated and burned.

There’s no doubt the Roman Catholic Church had a period where it was much more like the Taliban than the 'Kingdom of Heaven'...This was one of those cases.

1865 - Joseph Lister became the first doctor to use disinfectant during surgery.

Coming from a medical background and knowing what I know about infection, I’d say this was a huge event.

1867 - President Andrew Johnson sparked a move to impeach him when he defied Congress by suspending Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.

I hope you know Johnson was the first president to be impeached...It wasn’t Clinton (#2), and it wasn’t Nixon (who wasn’t impeached).

If you didn’t know this, you need to come to this blog much more regularly.

1941 - French Marshal Henri Petain gave full support to Nazi Germany:  WWII.

Would anyone expect anything else? Petain rolled over like a cheap whore for the invading Germans. Why would he be expected to fight after the fact.

1972 - The last American combat ground troops left Vietnam.

We won every battle, but lost the war...A pathetic statement about our civilian leaders - who sent the military out to fail.

It was the right war, in the right place, at the right time, but those in the ultimate position of running the war ran it right into the ground...Unfortunately they took the country with them.

1990 - Air Force Staff Sergeant John Campisi died after being hit by a military truck in Saudi Arabia, becoming the first U.S. casualty of the Persian Gulf crisis.

All too often our brave troops die in events other than combat related...Such is the history of warfare and always will be.

No matter how they fall, however, every American soldier who serves the country honorably is deserving of infinite honor and remembrance by the American people.

1998 - Swiss banks agreed to pay $1.25 billion to settle lawsuits brought by Holocaust survivors and their heirs. The banks kept millions of dollars deposited by Holocaust victims before and during World War II.

This really is pathetic, but lets play games with math just to show how pathetic it is (Assume 6,000,000 dead Jews):

- 1,250,000,000/6,000,000 = $208.33 per dead Jew.

Most of us spend more than $210 on groceries every other week. No wonder Hitler thought they were worthless.

August 7

1942 - The Battle of Guadalcanal began: U.S. Marines launched America's first offensive in the Pacific in World War II.

Midway was the ‘turning-point’ in the Pacific, but the Battle of Guadalcanal started a string of victories which didn’t end until the Japanese surrendered.

The battle also showed what it would take to defeat Japan: Of the 30,000 Japanese troops at Guadalcanal, almost 24,000 died during the battle. Compared to only 1,500 for the U.S…They had to be slaughtered, and even at that barely surrendered.

1782 - The Order of the Purple Heart (Badge of Military Merit) was established by General George Washington to honor Americans who fought in the Revolutionary War.

The Purple Heart should be worn as a 'Badge of Honor' for the self-sacrifice made for this great nation.

THANK YOU TO EVERY PURPLE HEART RECIPIENT!

1944 - The trial of the anti-Hitler 'July Plot' conspirators began in Germany:  WWII.

The Nazi's were on their last leg, and the executions against those in this plot did much to bring the war to a quicker end - because many of the German Army's best leaders were killed...Again, Hitler did what he could to cause Germany to suffer as much as possible.

1963 - Jacqueline Kennedy became the first wife of a president to give birth while he was in the White House since the days of Grover Cleveland. The infant died two days later.

A premonition of Kennedy tragedies to come??

1964 - The U.S. Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, giving President L.B. Johnson broad powers in dealing with reported North Vietnamese attacks on U.S. forces:  Vietnam War.

If Congress had any balls it would have declared war on North Vietnam instead of passing the buck to the President...Yes, this gave LBJ the power to fight the war, but if he had a declaration of war he would have had much more, and would have been able to pursue it properly.

It would have also kept Congress in the loop, and kept the traditional power of going to war in their hands...One of many responsibilities Congress has abrogated on the way to being the President's bitch.

1992 - The 39-nation Conference on Disarmament produced the final draft of a treaty to ban chemical weapons, ending 24-years of talks.

What a complete waste of time. There is little doubt all 39 nations at the conference continue to produce such weapons...Including the U.S.

1998 - Terrorist bombs at U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania killed 224 people, including 12 Americans.

And what did President Clinton do? Other than launching a few missiles in the desert, he didn’t do jack-squat!!

Try to imagine Bill or any of his Lefty cronies as Commander-in-Chief on 9/12/01...A scary thought.

2006 - A new finding implied that the universe is about 15.8 billion years old and about 180 billion light-years wide based on new evidence, which suggested that the Hubble constant, a number that measures the expansion rate and age of the universe, is actually 15% smaller than other studies have found.

We are very small.

August 2

216 B.C. – The Battle of Cannae: Second Punic War.  Hannibal crushed a Roman Army at Cannae, Italy.

Hannibal routed the Romans, making superb use of the terrain, his elephants and executing a perfect 'double envelopment' in one of the most famous battles in history.

How overwhelming were the Carthaginians in this battle? Hannibal had significantly less troops (the Romans had one of the largest field armies they ever sent out to battle), but handed the Romans almost 70,000 casualties, compared to less than 20,000 of his own.

That said, Hannibal won battles, but like many great invaders he was unable to conquer Rome...As a result, the Romans eventually destroyed and ended Carthaginian civilization - literally.

1776 - The Declaration of Independence, adopted on July 4th, was actually signed by members of the Continental Congress:  American Revolutionary War.

I bet you thought the declaration was signed on July 4th...It isn’t important when they ‘formally’ signed the document. It is important when they declared their intentions, which was July 4th.

1802 - Napoleon declared himself 'Consul for Life.'

He only kept this title for a year and a half before taking an even bigger leap, naming himself Emperor.

1934 - Adolf Hitler declared himself Fuhrer (leader) of Germany, and the German Armed Forces swore a 'Holy Oath' to Hitler personally.

1. It’s wasn't chance that Hitler picked this day (same as Napoleon crowning himself emperor).

2. Many have tried to wash away the sins of the German Army when it comes to Hitler and his crazy Nazis, but it must be noted there would have been no Fuhrer without their loyalty to him...History should not be kind to the Wehrmacht on this issue, in which they had every opportunity to depose of - instead of empowering - the madman.

1939 - Albert Einstein signed his famous letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt urging the American government to support research toward an atomic bomb. After the bombing of Hiroshima, Einstein stated, "I could burn my fingers that I wrote that first letter to Roosevelt."

Einstein’s quote is very famous, and extremely short-sighted...The Germans were the dominant scientific nation of the time, and there was no way to know the Allies would defeat them before they created their own atomic weapon.

And there is little doubt Hitler would have made much more horrific, and frequent, use of such a weapon...Same with the Japanese if they had the opportunity.

Einstein was a math and physics genius, but his moral compass was short circuited.

1964 - The Pentagon reported the first of two attacks on U.S. destroyers by North Vietnamese torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin:  Vietnam War.

Was it a fake report? Maybe...Was the war inevitable either way? The U.S. had an official doctrine of 'containing communism,' so war was going to happen either way.

1983 - The U.S. House of Representatives voted 338-90 to designate the third Monday in January a federal holiday in honor of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

This should have been Civil Rights Day...There were too many who had a large roll in the process to give it to one person, even though MLK was the logical choice if they insisted on naming it after a specific person.

1990 - Iraq invaded Kuwait, seizing control of the oil-rich emirate. President GHW Bush condemned the incursion as an act of "naked aggression."

Today’s Democrats claim the second war with Iraq was wrong, but the first one was proper because the 'international community' agreed with it.

Lets look back: Only ten Democrat Senators voted to back Bush in 1991...The same double-talking SOB’s voted against the first, just as they did in the second - even though, after the fact, they claim they supported the first.

SOB's indeed!

July 18

390 B.C. – The Battle of Allia: Gauls defeated and sacked Rome.

This Celtic force must have been a horrific sight - attacking in the nude, with a furor the Romans had never seen on the Italian Peninsula.

The Gauls more or less raped, pillaged and burned everything they could find, then stayed for about seven months...Who knows how history would have turned out had they been able to completely defeat the Romans and settle in their place?

This isn’t the way it was meant to be, however, and Rome went to great lengths to increase its military size and strength, and spent the next 300+ years attempting to conquer, subdue and control their Celtic neighbors.

64 - The Great Fire of Rome began, ultimately destroying most of the great city. Emperor Nero blamed it on Christians and began the first Roman persecution of them.

The Christians didn’t start the fire, and Nero didn’t sit around fiddling while it burned...But both make for good folklore.

That said, this fire purged Rome of most of its dilapidated structures, paving the way for a rebirth of the city...A rebirth which made it grander than ever.

1870 - The Vatican I Ecumenical Council issued the proclamation 'Pastor Aeternus,' declaring the Pope's primacy and infallibility in deciding faith and moral matters.

I’m quite certain few Protestants, and no Muslims, Buddhists, etc., bought into this proclamation, which was simply an attempt by the Pope to grab more power.

1925 - Adolf Hitler published the first volume of his personal manifesto 'Mein Kampf.'

He said what he was going to do, but the world either didn’t read his book, didn’t take him seriously, or was too apathetic to care...Unfortunately, Der Fuhrer soon proved to be true to his word.

This is something we must always remember..Especially with the multitude of nuts running around the globe in our current time.

1969 - Mary Jo Kopechne and Senator Ted Kennedy plunged off Chappaquiddick Bridge. Kennedy escaped but Mary Jo drowned. What caused the real stir was his failure to report the incident for almost ten hours. He was later found guilty of leaving the scene of the accident and given a two-month suspended sentence.

How the Duke of Chappaquiddick Bay got away with a two-month suspension is a mystery, and a travesty of justice...I guess Mary Jo's life wasn’t worth much compared to this fat POS’s.

1972 - Jane Fonda delivered an anti-war speech on Hanoi Radio, one of a series of six:  Vietnam War.

This bitch gave six speeches against the U.S., in the land of our enemy!!!!

How wasn’t she tried for sedition or treason??? Answer: Because the Liberal jokers controlling the country agreed with her.

By the way, how many of you lined her pockets by going to see her movies or buying her horrible exercise tapes? Too damn many.

1994 - Tutsi rebels declared an end to Rwanda's 14-week civil war.

After the slaughter of almost one million people the civil war ended...Read that again: 1,000,000 executed in 14 weeks. WOW!!

That is an awesome display of executions. And trust me, the war may have been over, the killing wasn’t.

But, no one cared. The U.N. and Bill Clinton sent troops to Serbia to keep the Serbs from slaughtering Muslims, but didn’t send jack to Africa...I wonder why? Could it be they didn’t care about the death of black Africans?

Their lack of response can say little else.

June 8 (A Double)

632 - Mohammad died.

As much as I hate to admit it, Mohammad must be given his due: Mohammad is tied with Christ for the title of 'Most Important Person in History.'

I'm sure Christians don't like reading this comparison, but real history is predicated on being honest and telling the truth...Sadly, if current trends continue, Mohammad will eventually pass Christ in importance because Islam is ever increasing in land and population while Christianity is faltering.

That's a problem for Christians, but an even bigger problem for the world.

793 - Norsemen sacked Lindisfarne.

This is a huge event, but sadly most Americans have never heard of it. Don’t blame yourself. It’s not your fault our education system pays no attention to 'real' history.

The Sack of Lindisfarne was the first major assault the Norsemen made on Europe, and marks the beginning of the Viking Age...Lindisfarne was easy pickings for the Vikings, because it was an unguarded island, inhabited mostly by monks from the local monastery.

"In nearly 350 years we and our forefathers have been living in this the best of countries and never before has such terror struck Britain as the one we now have to suffer from this heathen race. Nor was it thought to be possible that such an attack could be carried out from the sea. Look at St. Cuthbert's church sprinkled with the blood of the holy priests, deprived of its decorations, a room more venerable than any in Britain given as spoils to this Heathen race." - Alcuin (French historian)

65 - Jewish rebels captured the fortress of Antonia in Jerusalem, beginning the Jewish rebellion against Rome.

This can be looked at in the way listed, or as the beginning of the end of the Jewish nation...Within five years the Temple was destroyed, and the 1900-year Diaspora began.

452 - Attila the Hun invaded northern Italy.

After years of slapping around the eastern portion of the Empire, and then a little setback in Gaul, the 'Scourge of God' decided to bring Hell to Italy...Amazingly, he never went after Rome Proper.

Was it the city walls, or was it the power of the Pope?  No one will ever know for sure, but the long term importance of Attila is he turned tail after meeting the Pope, which began the ascension of a new power: The power of the Papacy.

1965 - U.S. troops were ordered to fight offensively in Vietnam.

What a disgusting order...U.S. troops should always be allowed to 'fight offensively.' Even when fighting defensively!

The U.S. Military knows its job, and does it better than any other on the planet, but when it is handcuffed by its political minders it is no more powerful than the simplest rock-thrower...A sad fact we witness often.

1967 - The USS Liberty was attacked for over two hours in international waters by the air and naval forces of Israel, using rockets, torpedoes, and napalm. 34 crew members died and 171 were wounded.

I am a friend of Israel, but it would be nice to find out the truth behind this incident. The BS we’ve been given for the past 50-years is unacceptable...The U.S. has been Israel’s lone, constant friend, and even if the truth is extremely disheartening we deserve to know why this happened.

1989 - Chinese Premier Li Peng appeared on TV praising a group of army soldiers, apparently for their role in crushing the student-led pro-democracy movement.

Of course he did...Peng was a descendant of Mao, and Mao would have awarded the military great honors for such a deed.

May 10 (A Triple)

1521 - Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes began the siege of Tenochtitlan (modern-day Mexico City).

Cortes surely wasn’t Quetzalcoatl, but the fact he conquered the Aztecs and their million man empire with his 600 man, 20 horse and 10 cannon force is almost godly. At the very least it was an Alexandrian effort...Having tons of moxie, as well as gunpowder, luck, and superstition, was helpful - but smallpox was Cortes' best ally.

1607 - The first permanent English colony in North America, the Jamestown Settlement, was founded near what is today Williamsburg, Virginia.

This settlement could have easily had the same fate as the 'Lost Colony of Roanoke Island'...Thankfully it didn’t and Anglo-American history took hold from this point.

1940 - Winston Churchill became British Prime Minister.
 
The Krauts invaded Western Europe, Neville Chamberlain resigned as P.M., and the Brits threw a 'Hail Mary' - named Winston!

Very few British citizens wanted Churchill to ever get close to the top spot; even fewer politicians did - even among his own Conservative Party...But he was a man of extremes (genius and crazy), and the Nazi invasion of Western Europe called for extreme measures.

The Soviets and Americans did the heavy lifting when it came to defeating Germany, but it was Winston Churchill who kept the Nazis from winning the war...He was able to string the Germans out across the map, buying space and time - allowing the Germans and their allies to make strategic mistakes; strategic mistakes no one could have predicted, but mistakes the Brits have always been able to create for their enemy in times of extremis.

Most important, Churchill refused to surrender.  Decades later it's easy to say 'of course the Brits didn't surrender', but at the time there were many who thought it was a smart idea; an inevitable reality - including many Brits...Winston refused to surrender, offering only "blood, toil, tears and sweat", and truly helped save the world from "the abyss of a new dark age."

1497 - Italian navigator Amerigo Vespucci sailed on his first voyage to the New World. America was named after him.

This was a strange twist of history, because the New World should have been called Columbia.

FYI: America was originally going to be called Americus, but was changed to America (the female version) instead.

1752 - Benjamin Franklin first tested the lightning rod.

Franklin was a true genius - the Da Vinci of his time...It's incredible so many difference-making men appeared in the American Colonies in such a short period of time.

It's impossible to rank the American revolutionaries in order of importance, but Ben Franklin belongs in the top two or three easily.

1775 - The Second Continental Congress named George Washington supreme commander of the revolutionary forces.

Like Franklin, above, Washington is one of those 'top three' guys...Actually, the top guy.

The congress didn't pick a perfect general, but it did pick a perfect supreme commander for this war.

1801 - The First Barbary War began:  The Barbary pirates of Tripoli declared war on the U.S.

"...to the shores of Tripoli."

Our young Navy and Marines proved themselves more than worthy, and set a precedent for the U.S. not being messed with...Until modern times, that is.

1837 - The Panic of 1837.

Recessions and depressions have come and gone through all of American history.  None were 'good times', but they were a by-product of America's tremendous growth.  Luckily, they were always followed by more times of growth...Only in the last couple decades have we become so pathetic as to think things have never been so bad, which is part of the reason our recoveries have been so poor.

1863 - Confederate General Stonewall Jackson died after being accidentally shot by his own troops at the Battle of Chancellorsville:  U.S. Civil War.

A great general met his end.  Only Lee was more important to the Confederate cause...It's not surprising, his troops and country started a downward slide from this point on.

1869 - The 'golden spike' was driven at Promontory Point, Utah, joining the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific lines to form America's first transcontinental railway.

The Gold Rush was huge, but linking the nation via rail was the source of the population boom in the American West.

Amazingly, California alone comprises 1/8 of the current U.S. population...And that doesn’t even include the illegals.

1924 - J. Edgar Hoover became FBI Director.

Hoover was an extremely important person in American history, but no one should hold a government post for 48-years...New blood is vital to any organization, especially in doing the 'people’s business.'

1940 - Germany invaded France, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg:  WWII.

It’s hard to believe the French surrendered almost as quickly as the other three...Something to keep in mind when marveling at the Brits holding out alone for the next year.

1941 - Adolf Hitler's deputy, Rudolf Hess, parachuted into Scotland on what he claimed was a peace mission:  WWII.

Hess was Deputy Fuhrer of the Third Reich, and technically only behind Hitler and Goering on the Nazi food-chain.

In reality, however, Hess was a 'deputy' without duties, nothing more than Hitler’s lapdog, and by fleeing he saved his tail from the real power-brokers in the Reich: Hitler, Himmler, Goering, Heydrich, Borman, etc., who would have eventually swallowed him up.

1969 - The Battle of Hamburger Hill began: Vietnam War.

This was a controversial battle, but in no way a large-scale, strategic or tactically important battle...It was a meat-grinder, however.

1984 - The International Court of Justice said the U.S. should halt any actions to blockade Nicaragua's ports. The U.S. previously said it would not recognize World Court jurisdiction on this issue.

Thankfully we had a president in Ronald Reagan who told the globalists to stick it up their arse.

Do you think any of the (D)-boys would have done this? Jimmy (D) Carter, William (D) Clinton, John (D). Kerry, Barack (D) Obama? Hell NO!!

American sovereignty trumps any global authority and we run serious risks of losing such sovereignty every time we elect a Democrat president.

1993 - Members of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee visited the Norfolk Naval Base in Virginia for a hearing on the issue of homosexuals in the military.  Most of the sailors said they favored keeping the ban on gays.

I was in the military and can guarantee you many more than 'most of the sailors (military)' don’t want gays in the service...Probably over 95% of them would say NO WAY!!

1994 - The state of Illinois executed convicted serial killer John Wayne Gacy for the murders of 33 young men and boys.

Good riddance to serial killers.

It’s hard to believe a bunch of Liberal pukes protested the execution of this human piece of crap, but they did...Per normal, they were on the wrong side of humanity.

Oh, and I'm sure these same scum would fight like hell for the right to execute the unborn.

2000 - High winds drove what began as a deliberately set fire into a New Mexico canyon, forcing the evacuation of the entire town of Los Alamos and its 11,000 residents. The fire was set to contain an earlier blaze intended to clear brush.

Nice 'controlled burn.'

May 7 (A Huge Day)

This date has six events which would be the top event on most normal days...It's rare, but it happens, so I'm not going to try to pick one or two over the others, and will highlight all six.
---------------
1429 - The English siege of Orleans was broken by Joan of Arc:  100 Years War.

The English were on the verge of winning the war, but a girl saved France.

And what did the French do to repay 'The Maid?' They handed her over to the English to be executed…Bastards then, bastards now!!

1863 - The Battle of Vicksburg began:  U.S. Civil War.

Vicksburg was one of the turning points of the war, splitting the Confederate east and west, and giving the Union control of the Mississippi River...Other than ending the war, Vicksburg was Grant's finest moment.

1939 - The Rome-Berlin Axis:  Germany and Italy announced a military and political alliance.

Hitler got a crappy ally - he expended far too much time and too many troops bailing Il Duce out of problems...Mussolini got a maniacal ally - he lost control of events, and the Germans absorbed Italy.

Both men paid the ultimate price for their alliance - as did their countries.

1945 - General Dwight Eisenhower accepted the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany from General Alfred Jodl:  WWII.

The end of the war in Europe was one day away.

1954 - The 55-day Battle of Dien Bien Phu ended: Vietnamese insurgents overran French forces, beginning the end of French involvement in Indochina.

They not only lost, but got smoked in this battle...Question: Since 1918 have the French won a single military battle? Answer: None of consequence!!

1975 - President Ford formally declared an end to the 'Vietnam era.' In Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) the Viet Cong staged a rally to celebrate their takeover.

It's ironic the date of the French capitulation in Vietnam matched that of the U.S...It's not something we should be proud of.

Incredibly, the U.S. won every battle, but lost the war...Has this ever happened?  The whole war was the ultimate 'Pyrrhic Victory.'

Not only was Vietnam the right battle, at the right place, at the right time, it was one we won militarily. But we lost domestically because the 'Enemy Within' was stronger than the will of the general public, and surely stronger than that of our political leadership - some of which happened to be part of the 'Enemy Within'...A dangerous precedent we've been paying for on every front in American society since this time.

1915 - 1,198 people, including 63 children, died when a German torpedo sank the British liner Lusitania off the Irish coast. 114 of the victims were American:  WWI.

We should have been in WWI prior to this event, and it’s pathetic we waited almost two more years to get in, but the sinking of the Lusitania was a prime motivating factor of U.S. entry in 1917.

1985 - 10-years after the Vietnam War ended, New York City honored Vietnam veterans with a huge ticker tape parade.

Spit on our soldiers for 10-years, then throw them a parade? I think not...We must never screw over our troops again!!

1997 - A U.S. government study criticized Switzerland for dealing in Nazi gold during World War II.

It took 50-years to figure this out??

April 30 (A Triple)

1789 - George Washington was inaugurated as the first President of the United States.

Washington was much more than the ‘right man, in the right place, at the right time’...He was probably the ONLY man who could have orchestrated the uniting of the states into a federal republic.

So, not only was he the man who led the battle to escape British rule, but he was the man who forged the Union...As such, he is 'The Great Man' in American history.

1803 - The Louisiana Purchase:  The United States more than doubled its land area after obtaining all French territory west of the Mississippi River for $15 Million.

1. Talk about a steal. This $15 million has multiplied in worth many times over...In many more ways than just economically.

2. Napoleon accepted he couldn’t invade the U.S., and would likely not be able to hold his American lands for much longer anyway.

3. The Brits were pissed at what looked like an American alliance with the French. And during America's first century the French were much more trustworthy than the Brits when it came to American sovereignty...Even if it mostly was because the French couldn't get here with much of a force.

1945 - Adolf Hitler committed suicide along with his wife of one day, Eva Braun.

Very few human being (maybe two or three) have ever deserved to die more than Hitler, but it would have been nice to see 'The Madman' swinging from a lamp-post like his Italian friend: Mussolini.

311 - Galerius Valerius Maximianus issued an edict legally recognizing Christians in the Roman Empire.

Legal but loathed, which was the norm in the Empire until Constantine made Christianity the preferred religion.

711 - The Islamic conquest of the Iberian Peninsula began with the invasion of Gibraltar by Tariq ibn-Ziyad.

This conquest was rapid, and the region of Spain and Portugal was part of the Islamic Empire for over 700 years.

It's important to remember this, because Muslims believe any land which is or has been Muslim must always be Muslim...There is little doubt in my mind they will attempt to return in due-time.

1492 - Spain announced the expulsion of all Jews in its kingdom.

1563 - Jews were expelled from France by order of Charles VI.

A double for my Jewish friends...And I bet many thought it was the Germans who first practiced anti-Semitism in Europe.

I guess the Spanish and French should be commended for not exterminating them, though...Such are the low standards of decency in Euroville.

1943 - The Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp for Jews was established:  WWII.

The final resting place of approximately 50,000 Jews.
 
1961 - Fidel Castro received the Lenin-Peace Prize.

This is classic...I’m sure Fidel was thrilled with such an honor, however.

1975 - South Vietnam unconditionally surrendered to North Vietnam.

A tragedy was on the verge of unfolding, with the U.S. leaving the South Vietnamese to the whim of the North...Which led to hundreds of thousands of executions.

At least in Korea we stuck around to protect the South and saved them from the horrors of Communism, but in Vietnam we turned tail and ran...A terrible mark on our history.

1994 - 100,000 men, women and children fleeing ethnic slaughter in Rwanda crossed into neighboring Tanzania.

No one cared to stop the slaughter...The U.N. sat on its thumbs, and who knows what our illustrious president was doing with his hands at the time.

1999 - President Bill Clinton declared May 1 to be 'National Law Day.'

What in the Hell does this mean??? Especially from a man who did so much to skirt the law.

April 29

1975 - Operation Frequent Wind:  Vietnam War.
 
We've all seen pictures and video of American helicopters evacuating its embassy personnel and 'at risk' Vietnamese from the rooftops at the end of the Vietnam War...This was Operation Frequent Wind.

It was the final act of U.S. involvement in the war...It was also a final American humiliation.

Humiliating for non-Liberal Americans, that is...For Liberals, it was a day to rejoice over America's humiliation.

1863 - The Battle of Chancellorsville began:  U.S. Civil War.

Chancellorsville was General Lee's masterpiece - it was also another Union debacle - but proved to be a battle the Confederates couldn't afford to win...The Union had over 17,000 casualties compared to the Confederates 13,000, but the Union also had over 133,000 troops at the battle compared to 66,000 Confederate troops.

The fact the Confederates continued to win battles but couldn't get a decisive, strategic victory doomed them to defeat...If nothing else, they were going to run out of troops and materiel faster than the Union.

And then there was the matter of a 'Stone wall' going down in this battle.

1918 - Germany's last large offensive on the Western Front ended:  World War I.

The war ended in half a year, but the killing machine churned out plenty of death in this six month period.

1945 - American troops liberated 32,000 prisoners from the Dachau Concentration Camp:  WWII.

32,000 were saved, but at least that many were killed...Thankfully American troops were the ‘liberators’ instead of the Soviets, which would have simply given the prisoners a new master.

1945 - The German Army-in-Italy unconditionally surrendered to the Allies:  WWII.

The entire German house-of-cards was crumbling, and the '12 Year Reich' was on its last leg.

1992 - Rioting claimed 54 lives and caused $1 billion in damage erupted in Los Angeles after a jury in Simi Valley acquitted four Los Angeles police officers of almost all state charges in the videotaped beating of Rodney King.

Rodney got what he deserved for resisting arrest, and these fools destroyed their own city...Bunch of jackasses.

1997 - The Chemical Weapons Convention became international law:  A worldwide treaty to ban chemical weapons.

What a joke!! I bet it’s safe to estimate at least 50 countries are currently breaking this ban...Including the U.S.

2004 - Sixty Minutes II divulged American soldiers, male and female, abused Iraqi prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison.

The Horror!!!

The media made a fiasco out of nothing, and in the process took joy in humiliating the U.S. military...What else is new?!?!

April 10

1865 - Confederate General Robert E. Lee issued his last order.

This was Lee’s official order for his Confederate troops to surrender...The text is so chivalrous it is amazing. Probably the last of its kind in the history of warfare.

General Order No 9
After four years of arduous service marked by unsurpassed courage and fortitude, the Army of Northern Virginia has been compelled to yield to overwhelming numbers and resources.

I need not tell the brave survivors of so many hard fought battles who have remained steadfast to the last that I have consented to this result from no distrust of them; but feeling that valour and devotion could accomplish nothing that would compensate for the loss that would have attended the continuance of the contest, I determined to avoid the useless sacrifice of those whose past services have endeared them to their Countrymen.

By the terms of the Agreement officers and men can return to their homes and remain there until exchanged.

You will take with you the satisfaction that proceeds from the consciousness of duty faithfully performed, and I earnestly pray that a Merciful God will extend to you his blessing and protection.

With an unceasing admiration of your constancy and devotion to your country and a grateful remembrance of your kind and generous consideration for myself, I bid you all an affectionate farewell. - R. E. Lee

1932 - German President Paul Von Hindenburg was re-elected, with Adolf Hitler coming in second.

He didn't have the votes here, but it's important to remember Hitler became Chancellor through the electoral process in 1933. Of course the Brown Shirts were running amok, causing electoral chaos (as were the Communists, Socialists, etc), but there's no denying many of the people of Germany wanted Hitler...Since Hitler wasn’t one to mince words they knew what they were voting for, and in 1933 they got it.

By the end of 1945 they really got it.

1968 - President Lyndon Johnson replaced General Westmoreland with General Creighton Abrams in Vietnam.

Westmoreland was competent, but Abrams was a far superior general. Unfortunately, he was put in a position to fail...Johnson, the media and the Democrat Party were the problem, not the military leadership.

Sound familiar?? It should, because history continues to repeat itself on this matter.

1972 - The United States and the Soviet Union joined some 70 nations signing an agreement banning biological warfare.

I’d bet my next paycheck most of these nations have violated the agreement...Including the U.S.

1974 - Israeli prime minister Golda Meir announced her resignation.

Meir is the third most important woman of the 20th Century (after Marie Curie and Margarette Thatcher)...Israel has paid for her loss since this time.

1996 - President Bill Clinton vetoed a bill which would have outlawed a technique used to end pregnancies in their late stages.

The 'technique' in question is the Partial Birth Abortion.

How can anyone defend this procedure? Take a look at how this 'technique' is performed.

Can you defend the practice of Late Term Abortions/Partial Birth Abortions?