BIRTHDAYS: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 1807; John Steinbeck, 1902;
Joanne Woodward, 1930; Eliazbeth Taylor, 1932; consumer crusader Ralph
Nader, 1934; Howard Hessman, 1940; Mary Frann, 1943; physicist Alan Guth,
1947.
THIS DAY IN HISTORY:
On this date in 1827 the first Mardi Gras was celebrated in New Orleans.
On this date in 1883 Oscar Hammerstein obtained a patent for the first
cigar rolling machine. By the way, it was Oscar Hammerstein II who
rolled out the lyrics for Richard Rodger's music.
On this date in 1922 the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously guaranteed
women's suffrage.
On this date in 1933 the Reichstag parliamentary building, the seat
of Germany's fragile democracy, burned in Berlin. Adolf Hitler had
been elected Chancellor of Germany, but the nation was politically divided.
The Nazi party did not have majority rule and it used this incident to
incite a public outcry. The party promptly denounced the fire as
a Communist plot. Ultimately that public handed dictatorial powers
to Hitler. History's verdict is that the fire was probably set by
the Nazis themselves.
On this date in 1939 the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed sit-down strikes.
The civil unrest spurred by the nation's great economic depression had
forced the government's hand for too long. To stop the seemingly
endless stream of sit-down strikes organized by unemployed workers and
union laborers, the court limited their right to protest.
On this date in 1973 the American Indian Movement began the occupation
of Wounded Knee. Angered by the government's disregard for the rights
of Indians, they occupied the Ogalalla Sioux settlement at Wounded Knee,
South Dakota. The 3-month seige took place on the site of an 1890
massacre where American cavalrymen killed hundreds of aboriginal men, women
and children.
MEANINGLESS FACTS: Although their business has often gone on
the rocks, Justerini and Brooks continue to make a famous product (of which
I do not partake) -- J & B Scotch... The Oscars are manufactured by
the Dodger Trophy Company... The world's largest manufacturer of feminine
apparel is Mattel, the toymaker. The company sells about twenty million
Barbie doll costumes annually.
TRIVIA: I was 22 years old when I assumed the throne in Jerusalem,
and I reigned two years in that city. My mother's name was Meshullemeth,
she was the daughter of Haruz of Jotbah. I did that which was evil
in the sight of the Lord, as my father Manasseh had done before me.
My servants conspired against me and slew me in my own house. My
son, Josiah, followed me on the throne, and unlike me he was righteous.
I was buried in the garden of Uzza. Who am I?
I do hope you rested well last evening!
Here is a quote from Mr. Anonymous (or Mrs. -- who knows???) to get us
started: "Smoking is the leading cause of statistics." Enjoy...
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Thanks to LBS for these "Words" --
The game is game and plays a game while the quarry is in the quarry
while they quarry.
He will chair the chair while on a chair.
The party in the party will have a party.
The staff got staff infection by leaning on a staff.
The flag was lovely but the flag was more lovely.
I was rapt but then I wrapped the hose around the hose before I could
hose the sidewalk.
He was bent on doing something to the bent pipe, while he smoked his
pipe, thinking someone would pipe up and that was his bent.
It’s fine to dump here but you get a fine to use that dump He wrote
a line on a line while in a line.
In the fall, he leaves the court to court someone at the court,
while the leaves fall His chest was on the chest which contained his war
chest.
The rest would rest.
Old Blue was blue in a blue suit, out in the blue.
A crow can’t crow nor eat crow.
She will throw a dart at the dart while I dart.
He can drum his fingers on the drum, which sits beside the brake drum.
Pare the pear for that pair.
The wave can wave at the right wave while I waive my rights.
In March, march in that march with the March Hare.
Increase the increase Refuse the refuse.
Net your net without a net.
Exit at the exit.
Bow at the bow, which was made from a bough by a beau.
Appropriate that which is appropriate.
The counter sat on the counter to counter the accusations.
The siren heard the siren.
Toast the toast.
Fire the gun and fire him for setting the fire.
Try to try the case, just in case.
The judge would judge and was just, just as the law required.
Maul the maul and the moll at the mall.
Can I can with this can while they do the can-can?
L.B.
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Thanks to LBS: Railroad tracks The U.S. standard railroad
gauge (distance between the rails) is 4 feet, 8.5 inches. That is an exceptionally
odd number.
Why was that gauge used? Because that's the way they built them in England,
and the U.S. Railroads were built by English expatriates. Why did the English
build them that way? Because the first rail lines were built by the same
people who built the pre-railroad tramways, and that's the gauge they used.
Why did "they" use that gauge then? Because the people who built the tramways
used the same jigs and tools that they used for building wagons, which
used that wheel spacing. So why did the wagons have that particular odd
spacing? Well, if they tried to use any other spacing, the wagon wheels
would break on some of the old, long distance roads in England, because
that's the spacing of the wheel ruts. So who built those old rutted roads?
The first long distance roads in Europe (and England) were built by Imperial
Rome for their legions. The roads have been used ever since. And the ruts
in the roads? The ruts in the roads, which everyone had to match for fear
of destroying their wagon wheels, were first formed by Roman war chariots.
Since the chariots were made for (or by) Imperial Rome, they were all alike
in the matter of wheel spacing. The U.S. standard railroad gauge of 4 feet,
8.5 inches derives from the original specification for an Imperial Roman
war chariot. Specifications and bureaucracies live forever. So the next
time you are handed a specification and wonder what horses rear end came
up with it, you may be exactly right, because the Imperial Roman war chariots
were made just wide enough to accommodate the back end of two war horses.
Thus we have the answer to the original question. Now the twist to the
story.......
When we see a space shuttle sitting on it's launching pad, there are
two booster rockets attached to the side of the main fuel tank. These are
solid rocket boosters, or SRB's. The SRB's are made by Thiokol at their
factory in Utah. The engineers who designed the SRB's might have preferred
to make them a bit fatter, but the SRB's had to be shipped by train from
the factory to the launch site. The railroad line from the factory had
to run through a tunnel in mountains. The tunnel is slightly wider than
the railroad track, and the railroad track is about as wide as two horses'
behinds. So, the major design feature of what is arguably the world's most
advanced transportation system was determined over two thousand years ago
by the width of horse's butt!!! Don't you just love engineering?
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ANSWER: I am Amon. II Kings 21:19-26
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