This Day in History: April 21

From the New York Times:
1649	The Maryland Toleration Act, which provided for freedom of worship for all Christians, was passed by the Maryland assembly.
1789	John Adams was sworn in as the first vice president of the United States.
1816	Charlotte Bronte, author of "Jane Eyre," was born in Thornton, England.
1836	Texans led by Sam Houston defeated the Mexicans at San Jacinto, assuring Texas' independence.
1918	Baron Manfred von Richthofen, the German ace known as the "Red Baron," was killed in action during World War I.
1960	Brazil inaugurated its new capital, Brasilia, transferring the seat of national government from Rio de Janeiro.
1975	South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu resigned after 10 years in office.
1977	The musical "Annie" opened on Broadway.
1980	Rosie Ruiz, the first woman to cross the finish line at the Boston Marathon, was disqualified when officials discovered she had jumped into the race about a mile from the finish.
1986	A vault in Chicago's Lexington Hotel that was linked to Al Capone was opened during a live TV special hosted by Geraldo Rivera. Except for a few bottles and a sign, the vault was empty.
1992	Robert Alton Harris became the first person executed by the state of California in 25 years as he was put to death in the gas chamber for the 1978 murder of two teenage boys.
2004	Five suicide attackers detonated car bombs against police buildings in Basra, Iraq, killing at least 74 people.

Will History Repeat Itself?

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

1. World War II.

2. Needs to fix the disasters that had been left behind by World War I.

3. Attempts to fix the economy by applying the “New Deal”.

4. Stock market crashes before FDR comes into office.

5. Millions lose jobs before FDR comes into office.

6. Millions of homes foreclosed before FDR comes into office.

7. Attempts to fix the banks that are about to go out of business, creates the FDIC.

8. Created new jobs.

9. FDR applied the “New Deal” in his “First 100 Days”. This helped to ease the pains of the Great Depression and gave millions of people work.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Barack Hussein Obama

1. War on terror and the War in Iraq.

2. Needs to fix the disasters of War in Iraq.

3. Attempts to fix the economy by applying the stimulus package.

4. Stock market crumbles in 2008 before Obama comes into office.

5. Millions lose jobs before Obama comes into office.

6. Millions of homes foreclosed before Obama comes into office.

7. Attempt to fix the banks that are about to go out of business.

8. Will he create new jobs?

9. Attempting as of now to apply the stimulus package in order to help ease the pains of this economic crisis. Will he give millions of American jobs?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The American people elected Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 because he promised the country that his candidacy would bring change and a promise of hope. When FDR made his inaugural address, he announced that, “[it is] my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance,” this was addressing the issue of the politicians and the economists that were too afraid or too careful to actually make any radical changes to the government. FDR also addresses that the American nation as of then was in a crisis. He addressed to the nation that we were not in a minor from of a crisis, but we were in a serious economic catastrophe.
The American people elected Barack Obama because he promised the country that he would bring change and a promise of a better future. Barack Obama, when he was addressing the nation, said, “we are in the midst of [a] crisis… Our nation is at war... Our economy is badly weakened… Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.” Obama also addresses the nation that the economic crisis we are in now is not such a light deal, and that we have to take it very seriously. Both of these Presidents are/were Democrats and have/had very similar situations tied to their belts. With these similarities, will Obama bring change? Or will history repeat itself and bring about another war? No one will know for sure, but until that time comes, all that we can do is compare and contrast both President Barack Obama and President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

War, economic turmoil, and the millions of people without jobs are few of the situations that Barack Obama, our new president, has to deal with. According to the Employment Situation Summary from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the percentage of unemployed Americans as of this year has been 10.3%, or approximately 15.7 million people. This, however, is not the first time America has gone through these times of serious economic turmoil.
Some 76 years ago, Franklin Delano Roosevelt became the new President of the United States when President Hoover ended his term with the Great Depression. Hoover, much like George W. Bush, had a very low approval rating when he left his seat at the Whitehouse. The times were tough and the Great Depression was taking a huge toll on the American economy. We can surely relate that both the presidents, Roosevelt and Obama, had a tight situation when they began their term(s) in office. President Obama has to deal with both the war in Iraq and the economic troubles in America, while President Roosevelt had to deal with the financial crisis after World War I, the rise of Nazi Germany, World War II, and the ever-endeavoring Great Depression.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



















A line for the unemployed. Where the unemployed went daily to get a cup of coffee and some bread.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
























Shows a mother and her children suffering through the Great Depression.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Roosevelt dealt with the Great Depression with his series of plans called the “New Deal”. Some of the programs created, such as the Agricultural Adjustment Act, National Recovery Administration, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, helped to settle the uneasiness in the American homes. President Obama has the same situation and plan when he is dealing with the economy of today. President Obama has promised the country a national stimulus package, in which the government would do whatever it could to revitalize the economy.
World War II had saved the American economy from crashing completely, and maybe the war in Iraq may do the same, but currently all it has been doing is creating a huge gaping hole in the American markets. Both back then and now, the stock markets have been fluctuating and people have lost their homes due to banks foreclosing on their property. When Obama was getting ready to come into office, the American stock market was plummeting, millions of homes were foreclosing, and millions jobs were being lost. As of today, according to USAToday, about 79% of homes in America are being foreclosed.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

















Home foreclosure is one of the most devastating things that can happen to a homeowner.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When Roosevelt was in office, banks were shutdown because thousands of people took out money in a brief period of time, the stock market was failing completely because of large number of margin buying, jobs were being lost because of overproduction of goods, and millions of homes were foreclosing due to unemployment in addition to no money being in the homeowners’ savings accounts. Getting back into the reasons for the stock market crashing, the markets crashed because of margin buying that most of the investors have done. The Republican controlled government that Hoover ran was a laissez-faire style government, which left the businesses to roam free without government restrictions and interventions. Hoover’s Republican ideas also consisted of low interest rates in banks; to one withdrawing money, it almost seemed like getting the money free of charge. This low interest plan is all well and good if the market stayed at the bull market, which is a stock market where the prices were expected to rise steadily. If the market stayed that way, no one would have lost any money, but because the people sold too low and lost money from margin buying, they lost their fortunes and the market fell to a bear market, which is the opposite of a bull market in which the prices are expected to fall. All of these economic problems that Roosevelt had are very distinctly similar to both then and now.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------




















People gathering in the streets when the stock markets crashed in 1929.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
























The New York Stock exchange today.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Roosevelt’s Emergency Banking Relief Act created a four-day banking holiday, which stopped all activities of the Federal Reserve System and other banks, credit unions, and loan associations. Over 5,000 banks reopened within three days. This banking holiday helped to give FDR a huge boost of support from the American people. When the bailout started with the Bush administration, many Americans disagreed, questioning whether it was really necessary. The Bush administration claimed that the companies were too large to fail and this caused billions of U.S. dollars to go into the already huge multi-million dollar corporations. As of today, the credit crisis is not getting much better. The bailout plan was supposed to help the American corporations to recuperate, but it looks like all it has done was temporarily create a safety net for the large companies. Loans and interest keeps going up due to the credit crisis that had started in 2007.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

























Graph of Wall Street and credit markets drying up due to the shortage of money and the financial crisis.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When Roosevelt promised change in his presidency, he created administrations to help the development of jobs in the American society. The Works Progress Administration, or the WPA, helped to give out jobs to unemployed Americans. By the spring of 1936, about 3.5 million Americans were on the WPA. Some of the workers were laborers, writers, musicians, actors, and clerks, whom were all given jobs according to their own work fields. Much like times today, many critics reviewed these actions as pointless and that much of the employment was useless work. However, the WPA built roads and public buildings, which helped to create jobs and renew the American society. The WPA employed about 8.5 million people at the cost of about $11 billion after its initial creation. Will this happen with the Obama administration? We can only find out after the President makes his decisions about the economy and the millions upon millions of jobs and homes lost. Will history repeat itself once again? Or will the new frontier of American economy bring about change without drastic warfare? President Obama announced on Monday, February 09, 2009 that the plan that he came into office with is not set in stone. He mentions that he did not plan on spending billions of dollars to start off his administration, but due to the circumstances, the ideas and the plans that he administrated, he had to change by the ebb and flow in order to fit the situation. We can only hope and demand for change, but in reality it is all up to the President to decide what the needs and desires of the American people are.

------------------------------

Note: I will update this post as the Obama administration goes on.

This Day In History: August 13

Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 13, 1961, Berlin was divided as East Germany sealed off the border between the city's eastern and western sectors and began building a wall in order to halt the flight of refugees.

On this date:
In 1521, Spanish conqueror Hernando Cortez captured Tenochtitlan, present-day Mexico City, from the Aztecs.

In 1624, French King Louis XIII named Cardinal Richelieu his first minister.

In 1704, the Battle of Blenheim was fought during the War of the Spanish Succession, resulting in a victory for English-led forces over French and Bavarian soldiers.

In 1846, the American flag was raised for the first time in Los Angeles.

In 1889, William Gray of Hartford, Conn., received a patent for a coin-operated telephone.

In 1910, Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing, died in London at age 90.

In 1932, Adolf Hitler rejected the post of vice-chancellor of Germany, saying he was prepared to hold out "for all or nothing."

In 1934, the satirical comic strip "Li'l Abner," created by Al Capp, made its debut.

In 1960, the first two-way telephone conversation by satellite took place with the help of Echo 1.

In 1981, in a ceremony at his California ranch, President Reagan signed a historic package of tax and budget reductions.

Ten years ago: President Clinton led the nation in mourning 12 Americans killed in a pair of U.S. embassy bombings in Africa. Standing before black hearses carrying ten of the bodies, the president pledged to seek justice "for these evil acts."

Five years ago: Iraq began pumping crude oil from its northern oil fields for the first time since the start of the war. Libya agreed to set up a $2.7 billion fund for families of 270 people killed in the 1988 Pan Am bombing.

One year ago: President Bush's political strategist, Karl Rove, announced his resignation. A bridge under construction in the ancient Chinese city of Fenghuang collapsed, killing 64 people. Two women among the 23 South Koreans kidnapped by the Taliban in Afghanistan were freed. Philanthropist Brooke Astor died in Briarcliff Manor, N.Y., at age 105. Hall of Fame Yankees shortstop and broadcaster Phil Rizzuto died in West Orange, N.J., at age 89.

Today's Birthdays: Former Cuban President Fidel Castro is 82. Actor Pat Harrington is 79. Former U.S. Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders is 75. Actor Kevin Tighe is 64. Actress Gretchen Corbett is 61. Opera singer Kathleen Battle is 60. Movie director Paul Greengrass is 53. Actor Danny Bonaduce is 49. TV host/weatherman Sam Champion ("Good Morning America") is 47. Actress Dawnn Lewis is 47. Actor John Slattery is 46. Actress Quinn Cummings is 41. Actress Seana Kofoed is 38. Country singer Andy Griggs is 35. Country musician Mike Melancon (Emerson Drive) is 30. Actress Kathryn Fiore is 29.

Thought for Today: "You should avoid making yourself too clear even in your explanations." — Baltasar Gracian, Spanish philosopher (1601-1658).

Source: Edwin1961 and the AP

This Week In Étudiant News (2007): I officially start a little weekly feature called "Songs of the Week," listing them by genre. The songs are later classified by decade. Merv Griffin died. Ben tells us that it is not cool to park in handicap spaces. Darfur asks for select countries to send troops.

This Day In History: August 12

Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 12, 1944, during World War II, Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., eldest son of Joseph and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy, was killed with his co-pilot when their explosives-laden Navy plane blew up over England.

On this date:
In 1867, President Andrew Johnson sparked a move to impeach him as he defied Congress by suspending Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.

In 1898, fighting in the Spanish-American War came to an end.

In 1953, the Soviet Union conducted a secret test of its first hydrogen bomb.

In 1960, the first balloon satellite, the Echo 1, was launched by the United States from Cape Canaveral, Fla.

In 1962, one day after launching Andrian Nikolayev into orbit, the Soviet Union also sent up cosmonaut Pavel Popovich; both men landed safely Aug. 15.

In 1978, Pope Paul VI, who had died Aug. 6 at age 80, was buried in St. Peter's Basilica.

In 1981, IBM introduced its first personal computer, the model 5150.

In 1985, the world's worst single-aircraft disaster occurred as a crippled Japan Air Lines Boeing 747 on a domestic flight crashed into a mountain, killing 520 people.

In 1988, the controversial movie "The Last Temptation of Christ," directed by Martin Scorsese, opened in nine cities despite objections by some Christians who felt the film was sacrilegious.

In 2000, the Russian nuclear submarine Kursk and its 118-man crew were lost during naval exercises in the Barents Sea.

Ten years ago: Swiss banks agreed to pay $1.2 billion as restitution to Holocaust survivors to settle claims for their assets.

Five years ago: Liberia's leading rebel movement agreed to lift its siege of the capital and vital port, allowing food to flow to hundreds of thousands of hungry people.

One year ago: A gunman opened fire in the sanctuary of a southwest Missouri church, killing a pastor and two worshippers. (Suspect Eiken Elam Saimon is charged with murder.) Crooner, talk show host and game show producer Merv Griffin died in Los Angeles at age 82. Tiger Woods captured the PGA Championship to win at least one major for the third straight season and run his career total to 13.

Today's Birthdays: Former Sen. Dale Bumpers, D-Ark., is 83. Actor George Hamilton is 69. Actress Jennifer Warren is 67. Rock singer-musician Mark Knopfler (Dire Straits) is 59. Singer Kid Creole is 58. Jazz musician Pat Metheny is 54. Actor Sam J. Jones is 54. Actor Bruce Greenwood is 52. Country singer Danny Shirley is 52. Pop musician Roy Hay (Culture Club) is 47. Rapper Sir Mix-A-Lot is 45. Actor Peter Krause is 43. Tennis player Pete Sampras is 37. Actor Michael Ian Black is 37. Actress Rebecca Gayheart is 36. Actor Casey Affleck is 33. Rock musician Bill Uechi (Save Ferris) is 33. Actress Maggie Lawson is 28. Actress Dominique Swain is 28. Actress Imani Hakim ("Everybody Hates Chris") is 15.

Thought for Today: "Regrets are as personal as fingerprints." — Margaret Culkin Banning, American writer (1891-1982).

Courtesy of Edwin1961 and the AP

This Week In Étudiant News (2007): Liz let us know that the annual Perseid Meteor Shower peaked on August 12-13. The peak occurred today at 7:00 AM EST.

This Day In History: August 11

Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 11, 1949, President Truman nominated Gen. Omar N. Bradley to become the first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

On this date:
In 1919, Germany's Weimar Constitution was signed by President Friedrich Ebert.

In 1934, the first federal prisoners arrived at the island prison Alcatraz in San Francisco Bay.

In 1942, during World War II, Pierre Laval, prime minister of Vichy France, publicly declared that "the hour of liberation for France is the hour when Germany wins the war."

In 1954, a formal peace took hold in Indochina, ending more than seven years of fighting between the French and Communist Vietminh.

In 1956, abstract painter Jackson Pollock, 44, died in an automobile accident on New York's Long Island.

In 1962, the Soviet Union launched cosmonaut Andrian Nikolayev on a 94-hour flight.

In 1965, rioting and looting that claimed 34 lives broke out in the predominantly black Watts section of Los Angeles.

In 1984, President Reagan joked during a voice test for a paid political radio address that he had "signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes."

In 1992, the Mall of America, the biggest shopping mall in the U.S., opened in Bloomington, Minn.

In 1993, President Clinton named Army Gen. John Shalikashvili to be the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, succeeding the retiring General Colin Powell.

Ten years ago: One of the shooters in the Jonesboro, Ark., schoolyard massacre, Mitchell Johnson, pleaded guilty to murder and battery and the other, Andrew Golden, was convicted. (The boys, ages 14 and 12, were detained by Arkansas juvenile authorities until they turned 18, then transferred to federal custody. Federal authorities released the two when they turned 21.) British Petroleum announced it was purchasing Amoco for $49 billion.

Five years ago: President Bush chose Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt to head the Environmental Protection Agency. NATO took command of the 5,000-strong peacekeeping force in Afghanistan. Charles Taylor resigned as Liberia's president and went into exile in Nigeria. Herb Brooks, who coached the U.S. Olympic hockey team to the "Miracle on Ice" victory over the Soviet Union in 1980, died in a car wreck near Minneapolis at age 66.

One year ago: President Bush welcomed French President Nicolas Sarkozy to his family's estate in Kennebunkport, Maine. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won an easy and expected victory in a high-profile Iowa Republican straw poll. Funeral services were held in Newark, N.J., for three college students shot to death in a schoolyard during an apparent robbery attempt. Big Ben's bongs fell silent as workers began a month of maintenance work on the iconic London clock and its world-famous bell.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Arlene Dahl is 80. Actress Anna Massey is 71. Songwriter-producer Kenny Gamble is 65. Rock musician Jim Kale (Guess Who) is 65. Country singer John Conlee is 62. Singer Eric Carmen is 59. Wrestler-actor Hulk Hogan is 55. Singer Joe Jackson is 54. Playwright David Henry Hwang is 51. Actor Miguel A. Nunez Jr. is 44. Actress Viola Davis is 43. Actor Duane Martin is 43. Actor-host Joe Rogan is 41. Rhythm-and-blues musician Chris Dave is 40. Actress Anna Gunn is 40. Rock guitarist Charlie Sexton is 40. Hip-hop artist Ali Shaheed Muhammad is 38. Actor Will Friedle is 32. Rapper Chris Kelly (Kris Kross) is 30. Singer J-Boog is 23.

Thought for Today: "Some people think that doctors and nurses can put scrambled eggs back into the shell." — Dorothy Canfield Fisher, American author (1879-1958)

Courtesy of AP and Edwin1961

This Day In History: August 10

Today is Sunday, Aug. 10, the 223rd day of 2008. There are 143 days left in the year.
Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 10, 1846, President Polk signed a measure establishing the Smithsonian Institution, named after English scientist James Smithson, whose bequest of half a million dollars had made it possible.
On this date:
In 1792, during the French Revolution, mobs in Paris attacked the Tuileries Palace, where King Louis XVI resided. (The king was later arrested, put on trial for treason, and executed the following January.)
In 1821, Missouri became the 24th state.
In 1874, Herbert Clark Hoover, the 31st president of the United States, was born in West Branch, Iowa.
In 1921, Franklin D. Roosevelt was stricken with polio at his summer home on the Canadian island of Campobello.
In 1948, Allen Funt's "Candid Microphone," later titled "Candid Camera," made its television debut on ABC.
In 1949, the National Military Establishment was renamed the Department of Defense.
In 1968, 35 people were killed in the crash of a Piedmont Airlines Fairchild FH-227 at Kanawha County Airport in West Virginia.
In 1969, Leno and Rosemary LaBianca were murdered in their Los Angeles home by members of Charles Manson's cult, one day after actress Sharon Tate and four other people were slain.
In 1988, President Reagan signed a measure providing $20,000 payments to Japanese-Americans who'd been interned by the government during World War II.
In 1993, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was sworn in as the second female justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.
Ten years ago: Secretary of State Madeleine Albright announced a $2 million reward for information leading to the conviction of the terrorists who bombed U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, killing 224 people, including 12 Americans.
Five years ago: Liberian President Charles Taylor delivered a farewell address to a nation bloodied by 14 years of war. During a heat wave plaguing Europe, Britain topped 100 degrees for the first time in recorded history. Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko, aboard the international space station, married his earthbound bride, Ekaterina Dmitriev, who was at Johnson Space Center in Houston, in the first wedding ever conducted from space. Atlanta Braves shortstop Rafael Furcal turned the 12th unassisted triple play in major league history against the St. Louis Cardinals. (St. Louis beat Atlanta 3-2.)
One year ago: Three men were killed in a southern Indiana coal mine when a nylon sling used to transport supplies up and down a shaft got caught, causing the bucket the men were riding in to tip and send them plummeting more than 500 feet to their deaths.
Today's Birthdays: Singer Al Alberts is 86. Actress Rhonda Fleming is 85. Singer Jimmy Dean is 80. Singer Eddie Fisher is 80. Actress Kate O'Mara is 69. Singer Ronnie Spector is 65. Actor James Reynolds is 62. Rock singer-musician Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull) is 61. Singer Patti Austin is 60. Country musician Gene Johnson (Diamond Rio) is 59. Actor Daniel Hugh Kelly is 56. Folk singer-songwriter Sam Baker is 54. Actress Rosanna Arquette is 49. Actor Antonio Banderas is 48. Rock musician Jon Farriss (INXS) is 47. Singer Julia Fordham is 46. Journalist-blogger Andrew Sullivan is 45. Singer Neneh Cherry is 44. Singer Aaron Hall is 44. Rhythm-and-blues singer Lorraine Pearson (Five Star) is 41. Singer-producer Michael Bivins is 40. Actor Justin Theroux is 37. Actress Angie Harmon is 36. Country singer Jennifer Hanson is 35. Actress JoAnna Garcia is 29. Rhythm-and-blues singer Nikki Bratcher (Divine) is 28. Actor Ryan Eggold is 24.
Thought for Today: "Conceit is God's gift to little men." — Bruce Barton, American advertising executive (1886-1967).

Source: Associated Press

This Day In Étudiant News (2006): Baked goods are banned from Wakefield Public Schools. Mitt Romney puts the National Guard at Logan Airport.

This Day In Étudiant News (2007): Ben goes ape shit posting a myriad of "show your love" banners.

This Day In History: August 9

Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 9, 1945, three days after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Japan, the United States exploded a nuclear device over Nagasaki, killing an estimated 74,000 people.

On this date:
In 1842, the United States and Canada resolved a border dispute by signing the Webster-Ashburton Treaty.

In 1848, the Free-Soil Party convened in Buffalo, N.Y., where it nominated Martin Van Buren for president.

In 1854, Henry David Thoreau's "Walden," which described his experiences while living near Walden Pond in Massachusetts, was first published.

In 1902, Edward VII was crowned king of Britain following the death of his mother, Queen Victoria.

In 1936, Jesse Owens won his fourth gold medal at the Berlin Olympics as the United States took first place in the 400-meter relay.

In 1969, actress Sharon Tate and four other people were found brutally murdered in Tate's Los Angeles home; cult leader Charles Manson and a group of his followers were later convicted of the crime.

In 1974, President Nixon's resignation took effect. Vice President Gerald R. Ford became the nation's 38th chief executive.

In 1988, President Reagan nominated Lauro Cavazos to be secretary of education; Cavazos became the first Hispanic to serve in the Cabinet.

In 1995, Jerry Garcia, lead singer of the Grateful Dead, died in San Francisco of a heart attack at age 53.

In 1997, Haitian immigrant Abner Louima was brutalized in a Brooklyn, N.Y., stationhouse by Officer Justin Volpe, who raped him with a broken broomstick. (Volpe was later sentenced to 30 years in prison.)

Ten years ago: Americans, Kenyans and Tanzanians held church and memorial services to mourn those killed in a pair of U.S. embassy bombing attacks. In China, engineers dynamited levees along the Yangtze River to ease the worst floods in 44 years.

Five years ago: The Army fired up its first chemical weapons incinerator located near a residential area, outside Anniston, Ala., to destroy two rockets loaded with enough sarin nerve agent to wipe out a city. Dancer-actor Gregory Hines died in Los Angeles at age 57.

One year ago: President Bush held a news conference in which he publicly prodded Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, his embattled war-on-terror partner, to hold free presidential elections, share intelligence and take "swift action" against terrorist leaders pinpointed in his country. China banned exports by two toy manufacturers whose products were subject to major recalls in the United States. David Beckham made his long-awaited Major League Soccer debut, entering in the 72nd minute of the Los Angeles Galaxy's 1-0 loss to D.C. United.

Today's Birthdays: Former baseball manager Ralph Houk is 89. Jazz musician Jack DeJohnette is 66. Comedian-director David Steinberg is 66. Boxing Hall-of-Famer Ken Norton is 65. Actor Sam Elliott is 64. Singer Barbara Mason is 61. Actress Melanie Griffith is 51. Actress Amanda Bearse is 50. Rapper Kurtis Blow is 49. Singer Whitney Houston is 45. TV host Hoda Kotb is 44. Actor Pat Petersen is 42. Football player Deion Sanders is 41. Actress Gillian Anderson is 40. Actor Eric Bana is 40. TV anchor Chris Cuomo is 38. Rock musician Arion Salazar (Third Eye Blind) is 38. Rapper Mack 10 is 37. Latin rock singer Juanes is 36. Actress Liz Vassey is 36. Actress Rhona Mitra is 33. Actress Jessica Capshaw is 32.

Thought for Today: "If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away." — Henry David Thoreau, American author (1817-1862).

Courtesy of AP and Edwin 1961

This Day In Étudiant News (2007): Drama kids. The Dow Jones is yanked down 180 points. The U.S is not on the list of nations to offer military aid to Darfur. Ben is mad. A Darfur rebel plans to leave the Sudan.

This Day In History: August 8

Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 8, 1974, President Nixon announced he would resign following damaging new revelations in the Watergate scandal.

On this date:
In 1876, Thomas A. Edison received a patent for his mimeograph.

In 1908, American statesman and Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg was born in Chicago.

In 1942, six convicted Nazi saboteurs who'd landed in the U.S. were executed in Washington, D.C.; two others were spared.

In 1945, President Truman signed the United Nations Charter.

In 1945, the Soviet Union declared war against Japan during World War II.

In 1963, Britain's "Great Train Robbery" took place as thieves made off with 2.6 million pounds in banknotes.

In 1968, the Republican national convention in Miami Beach nominated Richard M. Nixon for president on the first ballot.

In 1973, Vice President Spiro T. Agnew branded as "damned lies" reports he had taken kickbacks from government contracts in Maryland, and vowed not to resign — which he ended up doing.

In 1978, the U.S. launched Pioneer Venus 2, which carried scientific probes to study the atmosphere of Venus.

In 1994, Israel and Jordan opened the first road link between the two once-warring countries.

Ten years ago: President Clinton, in his Saturday radio address, vowed the bombers of two U.S. embassies in Africa would be brought to justice, "no matter how long it takes or where it takes us."

Five years ago: The Boston Roman Catholic archdiocese offered $55 million to settle lawsuits stemming from sex abuse by priests. (The archdiocese later settled for $85 million.)

One year ago: Space shuttle Endeavour roared into orbit with teacher-astronaut Barbara Morgan on board. Screenwriter-director Mel Shavelson died in Studio City, Calif., at age 90.

Today's Birthdays: Producer Dino DeLaurentiis is 89. Actress Esther Williams is 87. Actor Richard Anderson is 82. Joan Mondale (wife of former Vice President Walter F. Mondale) is 78. Actress Nita Talbot is 78. Singer Mel Tillis is 76. Actor Dustin Hoffman is 71. Actress Connie Stevens is 70. Country singer Phil Balsley (The Statler Brothers) is 69. Actor Larry Wilcox is 61. Actor Keith Carradine is 59. Rhythm-and-blues singer Airrion Love (The Stylistics) is 59. Country singer Jamie O'Hara is 58. Movie director Martin Brest is 57. Radio-TV personality Robin Quivers is 56. Actor Donny Most is 55. Rock musician Dennis Drew (10,000 Maniacs) is 51. TV personality Deborah Norville is 50. Actor-singer Harry Crosby is 50. Rock musician The Edge (U2) is 47. Rock musician Rikki Rockett (Poison) is 47. Rapper Kool Moe Dee is 46. Rock musician Ralph Rieckermann is 46. Rock singer Scott Stapp is 35. Country singer Mark Wills is 35. Actor Kohl Sudduth is 34. Rock musician Tom Linton (Jimmy Eat World) is 33. Singer JC Chasez ('N Sync) is 32. Actress Tawny Cypress is 32. Rhythm-and-blues singer Drew Lachey (98 Degrees) is 32. Rhythm-and-blues singer Marsha Ambrosius (Floetry) is 31. Actress Countess Vaughn is 30. Actor Michael Urie is 28. Tennis player Roger Federer is 27. Actress Meagan Good is 27. Britain's Princess Beatrice of York is 20.

Thought for Today: "I think most people are more important than their opinions." — Jorge Luis Borges, Argentine author (1899-1986).

Courtesy of AP and Edwin1961 of the catholic.com forums

This Day In Étudiant News: I plan on writing two pieces for the Spin's first issue. Neither of my ideas came to be.

This Day In History: August 7

Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 7, 1942, U.S. and allied forces landed at Guadalcanal, marking the start of the first major allied offensive in the Pacific during World War II.

On this date:
In 1782, George Washington created the Order of the Purple Heart, a decoration to recognize merit in enlisted men and non-commissioned officers.

In 1789, the U.S. War Department was established by Congress.

In 1882, the famous feud between the Hatfields of West Virginia and the McCoys of Kentucky erupted into full-scale violence as one member of the Hatfield clan was mortally wounded by three McCoy brothers, who ended up being slain in turn.

In 1927, the Peace Bridge between the United States and Canada was dedicated during ceremonies attended by Prince Edward of Wales, Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King and U.S. Vice President Charles Dawes.

In 1947, the balsa wood raft Kon-Tiki, which had carried a six-man crew 4,300 miles across the Pacific Ocean, crashed into a reef in a Polynesian archipelago; all six crew members reached land safely.

In 1959, the United States launched Explorer 6, which sent back a picture of the Earth.

In 1964, Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, giving President Lyndon B. Johnson broad powers in dealing with reported North Vietnamese attacks on U.S. forces.

In 1974, French stuntman Philippe Petit repeatedly walked a tightrope strung between the twin towers of New York's World Trade Center.

In 1987, the presidents of five Central American nations, meeting in Guatemala City, signed an 11-point agreement designed to bring peace to their region.

In 1993, the public got its first glimpse inside Buckingham Palace as people were given the opportunity to tour the London home of Queen Elizabeth II. (Proceeds were earmarked to help repair fire damage at Windsor Castle.)

Ten years ago: Terrorist bombs at U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania killed 224 people, including 12 Americans. The Federal Aviation Administration, in a follow-up to the probe of the 1996 explosion that destroyed TWA Flight 800, ordered the inspection of Boeing 747 fuel tanks.

Five years ago: A bombing outside the Jordanian Embassy in Baghdad killed 19 people. An Indonesian court sentenced Amrozi bin Nurhasyim to death in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people. West African peacekeepers entered Liberia's rebel-besieged capital; President Charles Taylor picked vice president Moses Blah as his successor.

One year ago: San Francisco's Barry Bonds hit home run Number 756 to break Hank Aaron's storied record with one out in the fifth inning of a game against the Washington Nationals, who ended up winning, 8-6.

Today's Birthdays: Writer-producer Stan Freberg is 82. Rhythm-and-blues singer Herb Reed (The Platters) is 80. Bluesman Magic Slim is 71. Actress Verna Bloom is 69. Humorist Garrison Keillor is 66. Singer B.J. Thomas is 66. Singer Lana Cantrell is 65. Actor John Glover is 64. Actor David Rasche is 64. Rhythm-and-blues singer Harold Hudson is 59. Country singer Rodney Crowell is 58. Actress Caroline Aaron is 56. Actor Wayne Knight is 53. Rock singer Bruce Dickinson is 50. Marathon runner Alberto Salazar is 50. Actor David Duchovny is 48. Country musician Michael Mahler (Wild Horses) is 47. Actor Harold Perrineau is 45. Jazz musician Marcus Roberts is 45. Country singer Raul Malo is 43. Actress Charlotte Lewis is 41. Actress Sydney Penny is 37. Actress Charlize Theron is 33.

Thought for Today: "Civilization is a movement and not a condition, a voyage and not a harbor." — Arnold Toynbee, English historian (1889-1975)

Courtesy of the AP and Edwin1961

This Day In Étudiant News (2006): Wakefield prepares for an avian flu threat... A passenger is found on the no-fly list so a London to Boston flight is called back.
This Day In Étudiant News (2007): Brownie girls build bears.

This Day In History: August 5

Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 5, 1858, the first trans-Atlantic telegraph cable, the dreamchild of American businessman Cyrus Field, was laid between Newfoundland and Ireland. (However, after several weeks of use, the cable burned out.)

On this date:
In 1864, during the Civil War, Union Adm. David G. Farragut led his fleet to victory in the Battle of Mobile Bay, Ala.

In 1884, the cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty's pedestal was laid on Bedloe's Island in New York Harbor.

In 1914, one of the first, if not the first, electric traffic light systems was installed in Cleveland, Ohio, at the intersection of 105th Street and Euclid Avenue.

In 1924, the comic strip "Little Orphan Annie," by Harold Gray, made its debut.

In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the National Labor Board, which was later replaced with the National Labor Relations Board.

In 1953, Operation Big Switch began as prisoners taken during the Korean conflict were exchanged at Panmunjom.

In 1962, actress Marilyn Monroe, 36, was found dead in her Los Angeles home; her death was ruled a probable suicide from an overdose of sleeping pills.

In 1963, the United States, Britain and the Soviet Union signed a treaty in Moscow banning nuclear tests in the atmosphere, in space and underwater.

In 1968, the Republican national convention convened in Miami Beach.

In 1981, the federal government began firing air traffic controllers who had gone out on strike.

Ten years ago: Iraqi President Saddam Hussein broke off cooperation with U.N. weapons inspectors and demanded the commission monitoring the weapons be reorganized. Marie Noe of Philadelphia was arrested and charged with first-degree murder, accused of smothering eight of her children to death between 1949 and 1968. (Noe later received 20 years' probation.)

Five years ago: Episcopal leaders in Minneapolis voted to approve the election of the Rev. V. Gene Robinson, an openly gay clergyman, as bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire. A car bombing at the Marriott hotel in Jakarta, Indonesia, killed 12 people.

One year ago: President Bush and Afghan President Hamid Karzai began meeting at Camp David to discuss security issues in Afghanistan. Lorena Ochoa won the Women's British Open — the first women's professional tournament played at venerable St. Andrews — for her first major title. Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger, one of the most influential Roman Catholic figures in France, died in Paris at age 80. Comedian Stanley Myron Handelman died in Panorama City, Calif., at age 77.

Today's Birthdays: Former astronaut Neil A. Armstrong is 78. Country singer Vern Gosdin is 74. Actress Cammie King ("Gone with the Wind") is 74. Actor John Saxon is 73. Actor Zakes Mokae is 73. Country songwriter Bobby Braddock is 68. Rock musician Rick Huxley (The Dave Clark Five) is 66. Actress Loni Anderson is 62. Actress Erika Slezak is 62. Rock singer Rick Derringer is 61. Actress Holly Palance is 58. Singer Samantha Sang is 55. Actress-singer Maureen McCormick is 52. Rock musician Pat Smear is 49. Actress Tawney Kitaen is 47. Country musician Mark O'Connor is 47. Rapper MCA (The Beastie Boys) is 44. Actor Jonathan Silverman is 42. Country singer Terri Clark is 40. Actor Brendon Ryan Barrett is 22.

Thought for Today: "I slept, and dreamed that life was Beauty; I woke, and found that life was Duty." — Ellen Sturgis Hooper, American poet (1816-1841).

Courtesy of the Associated Press and Edwin 1961

This Day In History: August 4

Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 4, 1944, Nazi police raided the secret annex of a building in Amsterdam and arrested eight people, including 15-year-old Anne Frank, whose diary became a famous account of the Holocaust. (Anne died at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp some seven months later.)

On this date:
In 1735, a jury acquitted John Peter Zenger of the New York Weekly Journal of seditious libel.

In 1790, the Coast Guard had its beginnings as the Revenue Cutter Service.

In 1792, English romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley was born at Field Place near Horsham, England.

In 1830, plans for the city of Chicago were laid out.

In 1892, Andrew and Abby Borden were axed to death in their home in Fall River, Mass. Lizzie Borden, Andrew's daughter from a previous marriage, was accused of the killings, but acquitted at trial.

In 1900, Britain's Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother, was born.

In 1916, the United States reached agreement with Denmark to purchase the Danish Virgin Islands for $25 million.

In 1964, the bodies of missing civil rights workers Michael Schwerner, Andrew Goodman and James Chaney were found buried in an earthen dam in Mississippi.

In 1977, President Carter signed a measure establishing the Department of Energy.

In 1987, the Federal Communications Commission voted to abolish the Fairness Doctrine, which required radio and television stations to present balanced coverage of controversial issues.

Ten years ago: Turning aside an urgent White House appeal, Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist cleared the way for prosecutors to question White House lawyers about their advice to President Clinton in the Monica Lewinsky case. The Dow Jones industrial average plunged 299.43 points, finishing at 8,487.31.

Five years ago: California Gov. Gray Davis asked the state Supreme Court to delay his Oct. 7 recall election until the following March (the recall went ahead as originally scheduled). West African forces arrived in Liberia to oversee the departure of President Charles Taylor. Chung Mong-hun, a top executive of South Korea's Hyundai conglomerate embroiled in a scandal over a historic 2000 summit between the two Koreas, committed suicide.

One year ago: President Bush toured the site of a collapsed highway bridge in Minneapolis, pledging to cut red tape that could delay rebuilding. Three students, Iofemi Hightower, Terrance Aeriel and Dashon Harvey, were shot to death execution-style in Newark, N.J. Barry Bonds tied Hank Aaron's 755 career home runs as his San Francisco Giants lost 3-2 to the San Diego Padres. Alex Rodriguez became at age 32 the youngest player in major league history to hit 500 home runs with a first-inning homer in a 16-8 victory over Kansas City.

Today's Birthdays: Journalist Helen Thomas is 88. Singer Frankie Ford is 69. Actress-singer Tina Cole is 65. Actor-comedian Richard Belzer is 64. Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is 53. Actor-screenwriter Billy Bob Thornton is 53. Actress Kym Karath ("The Sound of Music") is 50. Track star Mary Decker Slaney is 50. Actress Lauren Tom is 49. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., is 47. TV producer Michael Gelman ("Live with Regis and Kelly") is 47. Baseball pitcher Roger Clemens is 46. Actress Crystal Chappell is 43. Author Dennis Lehane is 43. Rock musician Rob Cieka (Boo Radleys) is 40. Actor Daniel Dae Kim is 40. Actor Michael DeLuise is 39. Actor Ron Lester is 38. Rapper-actress Yo-Yo is 37. Country singer Jon Nicholson is 35. Actor Andy Hallett is 33. Rhythm-and-blues singer-actor Marques Houston is 27. Actors Cole and Dylan Sprouse are 16.

Thought for Today: "Poetry is the record of the best and happiest moments of the happiest and best minds." -- Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822)

Courtesy of the Associated Press and Edwin1961'
----

I'm going to start doing This Day In Étudiant History as an adjunct to This Day In History. Unfortunately, there were no articles written on August 4 in Étudiant history.

This Day In History: August 3

Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 3, 1958, the nuclear-powered submarine USS Nautilus became the first vessel to cross the North Pole underwater.

On this date:
In 1492, Christopher Columbus set sail from Palos, Spain, on a voyage that took him to the present-day Americas.

In 1807, former Vice President Aaron Burr went on trial before a federal court in Richmond, Va., charged with treason. (He was acquitted less than a month later.)

In 1914, Germany declared war on France at the onset of World War I.

In 1923, Calvin Coolidge was sworn in as the 30th president of the United States, following the death of Warren G. Harding.

In 1943, Gen. George S. Patton slapped a private at an army hospital in Sicily, accusing him of cowardice. (Patton was later ordered by Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower to apologize for this and a second, similar episode.)

In 1948, former Communist Whittaker Chambers, testifying before the House Un-American Activities Committee, accused former State Department official Alger Hiss of having been part of a Communist cell, a charge Hiss denied.

In 1949, the National Basketball Association was formed as a merger of the Basketball Association of America and the National Basketball League.

In 1980, closing ceremonies were held in Moscow for the Summer Olympic Games, which had been boycotted by dozens of countries, including the United States.

In 1981, U.S. air traffic controllers went on strike, despite a warning from President Reagan they would be fired, which they were.

In 1988, the Soviet Union released Mathias Rust, the young West German pilot who had landed a light plane near Moscow's Red Square in May 1987.

Ten years ago: The White House played down the possibility that President Clinton would reverse previous statements and admit to a sexual relationship with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky when he testified before a grand jury.

Five years ago: The Episcopal Church's House of Deputies further paved the way for the Rev. V. Gene Robinson to become the church's first openly gay elected bishop, approving him on a 128-63 vote. Annika Sorenstam completed a career Grand Slam at the Women's British Open, beating Se Ri Pak by a stroke in a thrilling head-to-head showdown. Hank Stram, Marcus Allen, James Lofton, Elvin Bethea and Joe DeLamielleure were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

One year ago: A jury at Camp Pendleton, Calif., sentenced Marine Sgt. Lawrence G. Hutchins III to 15 years in prison for the murder of an Iraqi civilian during a fruitless search for an insurgent. Iraqis welcomed home their soccer team, which had won the Asian Cup.

Today's Birthdays: Author P.D. James is 88. Broadway composer Richard Adler is 87. Singer Gordon Stoker (The Jordanaires) is 84. Singer Tony Bennett is 82. Actor Martin Sheen is 68. Lifestyle guru Martha Stewart is 67. Singer Beverly Lee (The Shirelles) is 67. Rock musician B.B. Dickerson is 59. Movie director John Landis is 58. Actress JoMarie Payton is 58. Actor Jay North ("Dennis the Menace") is 57. Country musician Randy Scruggs is 55. Actor John C. McGinley is 49. Rock singer-musician Lee Rocker (The Stray Cats) is 47. Rock singer James Hetfield (Metallica) is 45. Rock singer-musician Ed Roland (Collective Soul) is 45. Actor Isaiah Washington is 45. Country musician Dean Sams (Lonestar) is 42. Rock musician Stephen Carpenter (Deftones) is 38. Hip-hop artist Spinderella (Salt-N-Pepa) is 37. Actress Brigid Brannagh is 36. Actress Evangeline Lilly is 29. Singer Holly Arnstein (Dream) is 23.

Thought for Today: "The soul of a civilization is its religion, and it dies with its faith." Will (1885-1981) and Ariel Durant (1898-1981), American historians

Courtesy of the Associated Press and Edwin1961

This Day In History: August 2

Today is Saturday, Aug. 2, the 215th day of 2008. There are 151 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Aug. 2, 1776, members of the Continental Congress began attaching their signatures to the Declaration of Independence.

On this date:

In 1790, the enumeration for the first United States census began; the final total was 3,929,214.

In 1873, inventor Andrew S. Hallidie successfully tested a cable car he had designed for the city of San Francisco.

In 1876, frontiersman "Wild Bill" Hickok was shot and killed while playing poker at a saloon in Deadwood, Dakota Territory.

In 1923, the 29th president of the United States, Warren G. Harding, died in San Francisco.

In 1927, four years after becoming president, Calvin Coolidge issued a written statement to reporters: "I do not choose to run for President in 1928."

In 1934, German President Paul von Hindenburg died, paving the way for Adolf Hitler's complete takeover.

In 1939, Albert Einstein signed a letter to President Roosevelt urging creation of an atomic weapons research program.

In 1943, during World War II, Navy boat PT-109, commanded by Lt. John F. Kennedy, sank after being rammed by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri off the Solomon Islands.

In 1964, the destroyer USS Maddox suffered light damage from North Vietnamese patrol torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin.

In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait, seizing control of the oil-rich emirate. (The Iraqis were later driven out in Operation Desert Storm.)

Ten years ago: Cyclist Marco Pantani of Italy won the Tour de France, which had been marred by a doping scandal. Ventriloquist Shari Lewis died in Los Angeles at age 65.

Five years ago: Saddam Hussein's two elder sons and a grandson were buried as martyrs near the deposed Iraqi leader's hometown of Tikrit, where insurgents afterward attacked U.S. troops with three remote-controlled bombs. Liberian President Charles Taylor agreed to cede power.

One year ago: Mattel apologized to customers as it recalled nearly a million Chinese-made toys from its Fisher-Price division that were found to have excessive amounts of lead. A Marine Corps squad leader was convicted at Camp Pendleton, Calif., of murdering an Iraqi man during a frustrated search for an insurgent. (Sgt. Lawrence G. Hutchins III was sentenced to 15 years in prison.) Two small Russian submarines completed a voyage below the North Pole where they planted the country's flag on the Arctic Ocean floor.

Today's Birthdays: Former Sen. Paul Laxalt, R-Nev., is 86. Actor Peter O'Toole is 76. Country singer Hank Cochran is 73. Rock musician Garth Hudson (The Band) is 71. Movie director Wes Craven is 69. Singer Kathy Lennon (The Lennon Sisters) is 65. Actor Max Wright is 65. Actress Joanna Cassidy is 63. Actress Kathryn Harrold is 58. Singer Andrew Gold is 57. Actor Butch Patrick ("The Munsters") is 55. Singer Mojo Nixon is 51. Actress Victoria Jackson is 49. Actress Apollonia is 49. Actress Cynthia Stevenson is 46. Actress Mary-Louise Parker is 44. Rock musician John Stanier is 40. Writer-actor-director Kevin Smith is 38. Actor Edward Furlong is 31. Rock musician Devon Glenn is 28. Actress Hallie Eisenberg is 16.

Thought for Today: "A man who does not lose his reason over certain things has none to lose." — Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, German dramatist (1729-1781).

Courtesy of the Associated Press

This Day In History: August 1

Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 1, 1907, the U.S. Air Force had its beginnings as the U.S. Army Signal Corps established an aeronautical division.

On this date:
In 1714, Britain's Queen Anne died at age 49; she was succeeded by George I.

In 1876, Colorado was admitted as the 38th state.

In 1894, the First Sino-Japanese War erupted, the result of a dispute over control of Korea; Japan's army routed the Chinese.

In 1933, the National Recovery Administration's "Blue Eagle" symbol began to appear in store windows and on packages to show support for the National Industrial Recovery Act.

In 1936, the Olympic games opened in Berlin with a ceremony presided over by Adolf Hitler.

In 1944, an uprising broke out in Warsaw, Poland, against Nazi occupation, a revolt that lasted two months before collapsing.

In 1946, President Truman signed the Fulbright Program into law, establishing the scholarships named for Sen. William J. Fulbright.

In 1946, America's Atomic Energy Commission was established.

In 1966, Charles Joseph Whitman, 25, went on a shooting rampage at the University of Texas in Austin, killing 14 people. Whitman, who had also murdered his wife and mother hours earlier, was gunned down by police.

In 1988, conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh began broadcasting his nationally syndicated radio program.

Ten years ago: Dismissing as "an empty promise" GOP-backed legislation to create a patients' bill of rights, President Clinton in his Saturday radio address pressed Congress to pass a measure that would allow patients to sue their health insurers.

Five years ago: A suicide bomber rammed a truck filled with explosives into a military hospital near Chechnya, killing 50 people, including Russian troops wounded in Chechnya.

One year ago: The eight-lane Interstate 35W bridge, a major Minneapolis artery, collapsed into the Mississippi River during evening rush hour, killing 13 people.

Today's Birthdays: Actor-director Geoffrey Holder is 78. Singer Ramblin' Jack Elliott is 77. Cartoonist Tom Wilson (retired creator of "Ziggy") is 77. Actor-comedian Dom DeLuise is 75. Former Sen. Alfonse D'Amato, R-N.Y., is 71. Actor Giancarlo Giannini is 66. Blues singer-musician Robert Cray is 55. Singer Michael Penn is 50. Rock singer Joe Elliott (Def Leppard) is 49. Rock singer-musician Suzi Gardner (L7) is 48. Rapper Chuck D (Public Enemy) is 48. Actor Jesse Borrego is 46. Rapper Coolio is 45. Actor John Carroll Lynch is 45. Rock singer Adam Duritz (Counting Crows) is 44. Movie director Sam Mendes is 43. Country singer George Ducas is 42. Country musician Charlie Kelley (Buffalo Club) is 40. Actress Tempestt Bledsoe is 35. Actor Jason Momoa is 29. Singer Ashley Parker Angel is 27. Actress Taylor Fry is 27. Actor James Francis Kelly is 19.

Thought for Today: "People say law but they mean wealth." — Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist, poet and philosopher (1803-1882)

Courtesy of Edwin19611 at the Catholic.com forums

This Day In History: July 31

Today is Thursday, July 31, the 213th day of 2008.
There are 153 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:
On July 31, 1948, President Truman helped dedicate New York International Airport (later John F. Kennedy International Airport) at Idlewild Field.

On this date:
In 1556, St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus — the Jesuit order of Catholic priests and brothers — died in Rome.

In 1777, the Marquis de Lafayette, a 19-year-old French nobleman, was made a major-general in the American Continental Army.

In 1875, the 17th president of the United States, Andrew Johnson, died in Carter County, Tenn., at age 66.

In 1919, Germany's Weimar Constitution was adopted by the republic's National Assembly.

In 1945, Pierre Laval, premier of the pro-Nazi Vichy government, surrendered to U.S. authorities in Austria; he was turned over to France, which later tried and executed him.

In 1957, the Distant Early Warning Line, a system of radar stations designed to detect Soviet bombers approaching North America, went into operation.

In 1964, the American space probe Ranger 7 reached the moon, where it transmitted pictures of the lunar surface.

In 1972, Democratic vice-presidential candidate Thomas Eagleton withdrew from the ticket with George McGovern following disclosures Eagleton had once undergone psychiatric treatment.

In 1987, Iranian pilgrims and riot police clashed in the Muslim holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, resulting in some 400 deaths, according to the Saudi government, which blamed the Iranians for the violence.

In 1991, President Bush and Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev signed the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty in Moscow.

Ten years ago: President Clinton said he would "completely and truthfully" answer prosecutors' questions about Monica Lewinsky in testimony to be beamed by closed-circuit television to a grand jury. IBM's Russian subsidiary agreed to pay $8.5 million in federal fines for selling powerful computers ultimately destined for a Russian nuclear weapons laboratory.

Five years ago: The Vatican launched a global campaign against gay marriages, warning Catholic politicians that support of same-sex unions was "gravely immoral" and urging non-Catholics to join the offensive. Two of ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's daughters and their nine children were granted refuge in Jordan.

One year ago: The Army censured retired three-star Lt. Gen. Philip Kensinger for a "perfect storm of mistakes, misjudgments and a failure of leadership" after the 2004 friendly-fire death in Afghanistan of Army Ranger Pat Tillman. The U.N. Security Council unanimously approved a 26,000-strong peacekeeping force for Sudan's Darfur region.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Don Murray is 79. Jazz composer-musician Kenny Burrell is 77. Actor Geoffrey Lewis is 73. Actress France Nuyen is 69. Actress Susan Flannery is 65. Singer Lobo is 65. Actress Geraldine Chaplin is 64. Former movie studio executive Sherry Lansing is 64. Singer Gary Lewis is 63. Rock singer Bob Welch is 62. Tennis player Evonne Goolagong Cawley is 57. Actor Barry Van Dyke is 57. The mayor of Fresno, Calif., actor Alan Autry, is 56. Actor James Read is 55. Actor Michael Biehn is 52. Rock singer-musician Daniel Ash (Love and Rockets) is 51. Rock musician Bill Berry is 50. Actor Wesley Snipes is 46. Country singer Chad Brock is 45. Musician Fatboy Slim is 45. Rock musician Jim Corr is 44. Author J.K. Rowling is 43. Actor Dean Cain is 42. Actor Ben Chaplin is 39. Actor Loren Dean is 39. Actress Annie Parisse is 33. Actor Robert Telfer is 31. Actor-producer-writer B.J. Novak is 29. Actor Eric Lively is 27. Country singer Blaire Stroud (3 of Hearts) is 25. Singer Shannon Curfman is 23.

Thought for Today: "We tell our thoughts, like our children, to put on their hats and coats before they go out." — Henry Watson Fowler, English lexicographer-author (1858-1933).

Courtesy of Edwin1961 of the Catholic.com forums

This Day In History: July 30

Today's Highlight in History:
On July 30, 1945, during World War II, the battle cruiser USS Indianapolis, which had just delivered components for the atomic bomb that would be dropped on Hiroshima, was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine; only 316 out of some 1,200 men survived the sinking and shark-infested waters.

On this date:
In 1619, the first representative assembly in America convened in Jamestown, Va.

In 1729, the city of Baltimore was founded.

In 1792, the French national anthem "La Marseillaise," by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, was first sung in Paris by troops arriving from Marseille.

In 1864, during the Civil War, Union forces tried to take Petersburg, Va., by exploding a gunpowder-filled mine under Confederate defense lines; the attack failed.

In 1908, the first round-the-world automobile race, which had begun in New York in February, ended in Paris with the drivers of the American car, a Thomas Flyer, declared the winners over teams from Germany and Italy.

In 1918, poet Joyce Kilmer, a sergeant in the 165th U.S. Infantry Regiment, was killed during the Second Battle of the Marne in World War I. (Kilmer is perhaps best remembered for his poem "Trees.")

In 1932, the Summer Olympic Games opened in Los Angeles.

In 1942, President Roosevelt signed a bill creating a women's auxiliary agency in the Navy known as "Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service" — WAVES for short.

In 1965, President Johnson signed into law the Medicare bill, which went into effect the following year.

In 1975, former Teamsters union president Jimmy Hoffa disappeared in suburban Detroit — although presumed dead, his remains have never been found.

Ten years ago: Japan's Parliament declared Keizo Obuchi the country's next prime minister. "Buffalo Bob" Smith, the cowboy-suited host of "The Howdy Doody Show," died in Hendersonville, N.C., at age 80. A group of 13 Ohio machinists stepped forward to claim the $295.7 million Powerball jackpot. (The workers opted to take the cash option — one payment of about $161.5 million.)

Five years ago: In his State of the Union address, President Bush took personal responsibility for the first time for using disputed intelligence, but predicted he would be vindicated for going to war against Iraq. Iraq's U.S.-picked interim government named its first president: Ibrahim al-Jaafari, a Shiite Muslim from a party banned by Saddam Hussein. Sun Records founder Sam Phillips, who discovered Elvis Presley, died in Memphis, Tenn., at age 80.

One year ago: President Bush and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, meeting at Camp David, forged a unified stand on Iraq. Chief U.S. Justice John Roberts was taken to a hospital after a seizure caused him to fall on a dock near his summer home in Maine. A second South Korean hostage was slain by the Taliban in central Afghanistan. Death claimed Swedish movie director Ingmar Bergman at age 87; Italian filmmaker Michelangelo Antonioni at age 94; and Hall of Fame football coach Bill Walsh at age 75.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Richard Johnson is 81. Actor Edd "Kookie" Byrnes is 75. Blues musician Buddy Guy is 72. Movie director Peter Bogdanovich is 69. Feminist activist Eleanor Smeal is 69. Former U.S. Rep. Patricia Schroeder, D-Colo., is 68. Singer Paul Anka is 67. Jazz musician David Sanborn is 63. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is 61. Actor William Atherton is 61. Actor Jean Reno is 60. Blues singer-musician Otis Taylor is 60. Actor Frank Stallone is 58. Actor Ken Olin is 54. Actress Delta Burke is 52. Singer-songwriter Kate Bush is 50. Country singer Neal McCoy is 50. Actor Richard Burgi is 50. Director Richard Linklater is 48. Actor Laurence Fishburne is 47. Actress Lisa Kudrow is 45. Bluegrass musician Danny Roberts (The Grascals) is 45. Country musician Dwayne O'Brien is 44. Actress Vivica A. Fox is 44. Actor Terry Crews ("Everybody Hates Chris") is 40. Actor Simon Baker is 39. Movie director Christopher Nolan is 38. Actor Tom Green is 37. Rock musician Brad Hargreaves (Third Eye Blind) is 37. Actress Christine Taylor is 37. Actor-comedian Dean Edwards is 35. Actress Hilary Swank is 34. Actress Jaime Pressly is 31. Actress Yvonne Strahovski (TV: "Chuck") is 26.

Thought for Today: "The fellow who says he'll meet you halfway usually thinks he's standing on the dividing line." — O.A. Battista, Canadian-born author-scientist

Courtesy of Edwin1961 at the Catholic.com forums

This Day In History: July 26

Today's Highlight in History:
On July 26, 1908, U.S. Attorney General Charles J. Bonaparte issued an order creating a force of special agents that was a forerunner of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

On this date:
In 1775, Benjamin Franklin became Postmaster-General.

In 1788, New York became the 11th state to ratify the U.S. Constitution.

In 1856, playwright Bernard Shaw was born in Dublin, Ireland.

In 1945, Winston Churchill resigned as Britain's prime minister after his Conservatives were soundly defeated by the Labour Party. (Clement Attlee became the new prime minister.)

In 1947, President Truman signed the National Security Act.

In 1952, Argentina's first lady, Eva Peron, died in Buenos Aires at age 33.

In 1956, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal.

In 1958, Britain's Prince Charles, age 9, was made the Prince of Wales by his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, although his investiture did not take place until the following year.

In 1971, Apollo 15 was launched from Cape Kennedy, Fla.

In 1986, kidnappers in Lebanon released the Rev. Lawrence Martin Jenco, an American hostage held for nearly 19 months.

Ten years ago: The White House said President Clinton's lawyers were working with prosecutor Kenneth Starr to avert Clinton's direct testimony to a grand jury about the Monica Lewinsky case. (The president ended up testifying via closed-circuit television.) AT&T and British Telecommunications PLC announced they were forming a joint venture that would combine their international operations and develop a new Internet system. (The joint venture, known as Concert, proved a money-loser and was shut down.)

Five years ago: Backers of a drive to oust California Gov. Gray Davis held a boisterous celebration at the state Capitol in Sacramento, more than two months before the Oct. 7 recall election. Cuba celebrated the 50th anniversary of the start of Fidel Castro's revolution against Fulgencio Batista. New York Times music critic Harold C. Schonberg died in New York at age 87.

One year ago: The Senate passed, 85-8, a measure intensifying anti-terror efforts in the U.S. Wall Street suffered one of its worst losses of 2007, closing down more than 310 points.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Marjorie Lord is 90. Movie director Blake Edwards is 86. Actor James Best is 82. Rhythm-and-blues singer-songwriter Bobby Hebb is 70. Singer Dobie Gray is 68. Actress-singer Darlene Love is 67. Singer Brenton Wood is 67. Rock star Mick Jagger is 65. Movie director Peter Hyams is 65. Actress Helen Mirren is 63. Rock musician Roger Taylor (Queen) is 59. Actress Susan George is 58. Actor Kevin Spacey is 49. Rock singer Gary Cherone is 47. Actress Sandra Bullock is 44. Rock singer Jim Lindberg (Pennywise) is 43. Actor Jeremy Piven is 43. Rapper-reggae singer Wayne Wonder is 42. Actor Cress Williams is 38. Actress Kate Beckinsale is 35. Rock musician Dan Konopka (OK Go) is 34. Gospel/Contemporary Christian singer Rebecca St. James is 31. Christian rock musician Jamie Sharpe (Rush of Fools) is 19.

Thought for Today: "One brave deed makes no hero." — John Greenleaf Whittier, American poet and essayist (1807-1892).

Courtesy of Edwin1961 of the Catholic.com forums

This Day In History: July 22

Today's Highlight in History:
On July 22, 1933, American aviator Wiley Post completed the first solo flight around the world as he returned to New York's Floyd Bennett Field after traveling for 7 days, 18 3/4 hours.

On this date:
In 1587, an English colony fated to vanish under mysterious circumstances was established on Roanoke Island off North Carolina.

In 1796, Cleveland was founded by Gen. Moses Cleaveland.

In 1908, American etiquette expert Amy Vanderbilt was born in New York City.

In 1934, a man identified as bank robber John Dillinger was shot to death by federal agents outside Chicago's Biograph Theater.

In 1937, the Senate rejected President Roosevelt's proposal to add more justices to the Supreme Court.

In 1942, the Nazis began transporting Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto to the Treblinka concentration camp.

In 1943, American forces led by Gen. George S. Patton captured Palermo, Sicily, during World War II.

In 1946, Jewish extremists blew up a wing of the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, killing 90 people.

In 1975, the House of Representatives joined the Senate in voting to restore the American citizenship of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.

In 1983, Samantha Smith and her parents returned home to Manchester, Maine, after completing a whirlwind tour of the Soviet Union.

Ten years ago: The Senate Armed Services Committee rejected, on a 9-9 vote, Daryl Jones' bid to become Air Force secretary. President Clinton, with Republican lawmakers at his side, signed a bill designed to mold the Internal Revenue Service into a friendlier, fairer tax collector.

Five years ago: Saddam Hussein's sons Odai and Qusai were killed when U.S. forces stormed a villa in Mosul, Iraq. Months after her prisoner-of-war ordeal, Pfc. Jessica Lynch returned home to a hero's welcome in Elizabeth, W.Va.

One year ago: A bus carrying Polish Catholic pilgrims from a holy site in the French Alps plunged off a steep mountain road, killing 26 people. Padraig Harrington survived a calamitous finish in regulation and a tense putt for bogey on the final hole of a playoff to win the British Open. Cinematographer Laszlo Kovacs died in Beverly Hills, Calif., at age 74.

Today's Birthdays: Former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, R-Kan., is 85. Singer Margaret Whiting is 84. Actor-comedian Orson Bean is 80. Fashion designer Oscar de la Renta is 76. Actress Louise Fletcher is 74. Movie director John Korty is 72. Rhythm-and-blues singer Chuck Jackson is 71. Actor Terence Stamp is 69. Game show host Alex Trebek is 68. Singer George Clinton is 67. Actor-singer Bobby Sherman is 65. Singer Estelle Bennett (The Ronettes) is 64. Movie writer-director Paul Schrader is 62. Actor Danny Glover is 61. Actor-comedian-director Albert Brooks is 61. Rock singer Don Henley is 61. Movie composer Alan Menken is 59. Actor Willem Dafoe is 53. Rhythm-and-blues singer Keith Sweat is 47. Actress Joanna Going is 45. Actor Rob Estes is 45. Folk singer Emily Saliers (Indigo Girls) is 45. Actor John Leguizamo is 44. Actor-comedian David Spade is 44. Actor Patrick Labyorteaux is 43. Rock musician Pat Badger is 41. Actress Irene Bedard is 41. Actor Rhys Ifans is 41. Actor Colin Ferguson is 36. Rock musician Daniel Jones is 35. Singer Rufus Wainwright is 35. Actress Franka Potente is 34. Actress A.J. Cook is 30.

Thought for Today: "Somehow a bachelor never quite gets over the idea that he is a thing of beauty and a boy forever." — Helen Rowland, American writer and humorist (1875-1950)

Courtesy of Edwin1961 of the Catholic.com forums.