Day of the week in surrounding years:
1983,1988,1994,. . . .,2005—MON—2011
. . . .,1989,1995,2000,2006—TUE—. . . .
1984,1990,. . . .,2001,2007—WED—2012
1985,1991,1996,2002,. . . .—THU—2013
1986,. . . .,1997,2003,2008—FRI—2014
1987,1992,1998,. . . .,2009—SAT—2015
. . . .,1993,1999,2004,2010—SUN—. . . .
Best Liberal Quote of the Day: On Simplicity "The greatest truths are the simplest." — A. W. Hare
Stupidest and/or Scariest Quote from the Right for the Day: On The Inquisition ". . . By conducting the two standard DNA comparison tests, the FBI Laboratory concluded that the President was the source of the DNA obtained from the dress. According to the more sensitive RFLP test, the genetic markers on the semen, which match the President's DNA, are characteristic of one out of 7.87 trillion Caucasians." — From The Starr Report, "Narrative" section I.B.1., "Physical Evidence," 9-9-98.—Part 3 of 3 {Due to the length of some of these nutball quotes, I have decided to split the longer ones into parts. I could have abridged them but I think that would have lessened the impact of showing just how crazy these guys are. Please refer to previous and/or subsequent posts for complete quote.}
Dumbest Thing Said for the Day: From Politics "Sir, I would anchor a frigate off each bank of the river, with strict orders not to stir; and so, by cruising up and down, put a stop to the smuggling." — Sir Boyle Roche was an eighteenth-century Irish member of Parliament noted for malapropisms and other gaffes, Sir Boyle is Hall of Shame member #5
{Disclaimer: I have attempted to give credit to the many different sources that I get entries. Any failure to do so is unintentional. Any statement enclosed by brackets like these are the opinion of the blogger, A Proud Liberal.}
NASA ASTRONOMY PICTURE OF THE DAY
Trifid Pillars and Jets
Credit: J. Hester (Arizona St. U) et al., WFPC2, HST, NASA
Click picture to go to NASA APOD site for full explanation
EVENTS
● 838 - A heavy storm surge causes floods in nearly all the coastal areas of the Low Countries.
● 1481 - Battle of Westbroek - Holland defeats troops of Utrecht.
● 1606 - First Performance of William Shakespeare's King Lear
● 1620 - Elizabeth Báthory's crimes are uncovered.
● 1620 - Pilgrim Fathers land at what becomes New Plymouth in Massachusetts.
● 1776 - Battle of Trenton, where Washington surprises the British troops in a battle considered to be the turning point in the American War of Independence.
● 1787 - Anti-Federalist mob, displeased that a Pennsylvania State Convention ratified the U.S. Constitution, attack a framer of the document, James Wilson, with barrel staves and nearly kill him.
● 1790 - Louis XVI of France gives his public assent to Civil Constitution of the Clergy during the French Revolution.
● 1792 - The final trial of Louis XVI of France begins in Paris.
● 1793 - Battle of Geisberg: French defeat Austrians.
● 1793 - The wedding of Prince Friedrich Ludwig of Prussia and Frederica of Mecklenburg-Strelitz takes place.
● 1805 - Austria and France signed the Treaty of Pressburg.
● 1806 - Battles of Pultusk and Golymin: Russian forces hold French forces under Napoleon.
● 1811 - A theater fire in Richmond, Virginia kills the Governor of Virginia George William Smith and the president of the First National Bank of Virginia Abraham B. Venable.
● 1825 - Several Imperial Russia army officers lead circa 3000 soldiers on the Senate Square in the failed Decembrist uprising.
● 1825 - The Erie Canal opens.
● 1854 - Nisqually tribe makes treaty at Medicine Creek,Wash., ceding all lands to the U.S.
● 1861 - American Civil War: Confederate diplomatic envoys James M. Mason and John Slidell are freed by the United States government, thus heading off a possible war between the United States and Britain.
● 1862 - 39 Santee Lakota simultaneously hanged in the largest mass execution in U.S. history. Mankato, Minn.
● 1862 - American Civil War: The Battle of Chickasaw Bayou begins.
● 1862 - Four nuns who were volunteer nurses on board USS Red Rover were the first female nurses on a U.S. Navy hospital ship.
● 1870 - The 12.8-km long Fréjus Rail Tunnel through the Alps is completed.
● 1872 - England - Birth of Peace advocate Norman Angell.
● 1877 - US - Workingmen's Party reorganized as the Socialist Labor Party. Liberty and fly an inverted U.S. flag from the crown.
● 1893 - Birth of Chinese communist revolutionary and dictator Mao Zedong.
● 1894 - Birth of African American novelist Jean Toomer. Known as part of the "Harlem Renaissance."
● 1898 - Marie and Pierre Curie announce the isolation of radium.
● 1902 - England - Constitutive Congress of the Federation of the Anarchist Groups of Yiddish language of the United Kingdom and Paris held in London.
● 1906 - The Story of the Kelly Gang is released, widely considered to be the world's first feature film.
● 1908 - Jack Johnson becomes the first African American heavyweight boxing champion by defeating Tommy Burns in Sydney, Australia.
● 1913 - Writer and scathing social critic Ambrose Bierce ("The Devil's Dictionary"), travelling with Pancho Villa's army in Mexico, writes his last letter and is never heard from again.
● 1916 - Joseph Joffre is made Marshal of France.
● 1917 - Birth of Jose Peiro Olives. Son of Juan Peiro Belis, theorist and militant of Spanish anarcho-syndicalism. In 1936, volunteered in a confederal column and fought Franco's fascists at the fronts in Aragon, Raising, and Catalonia. With the defeat of the Republic, sought refuge in France and was interned in refugee camps. Participated in the resistance in France and Spanish exile organizations, agitating for the re-establishment of freedoms in Spain.
● 1917 - Pres. Woodrow Wilson orders federal government to seize the railroads for the duration of WW I.
● 1925 - The Communist Party of India is founded.
● 1925 - Turkey adopts the Gregorian Calendar.
● 1933 - FM radio is patented.
● 1933 - U.S. government forswears armed intervention in Western Hemisphere nations. Simultaneous with invention of first laugh track.
● 1943 - World War II: The German warship Scharnhorst sinks off the coast of North Cape in Norway after being attacked by the Royal Navy late the previous evening.
● 1944 - World War II: U.S. troops repulse German forces at Bastogne.
● 1945 - CFP franc and CFA franc are created.
● 1946 - The Flamingo Hotel opens in Las Vegas.
● 1947 - Twenty-six inches of snow falls in 16 hours in New York City.
● 1948 - Cardinal Mindszenty is arrested in Hungary and accused of treason and conspiracy.
● 1966 - The first Kwanzaa celebration is organized in Los Angeles, California, by Dr. Maulana Karenga, chairman of Black Studies at California State University at Long Beach. Establishes Kwanzaa as a non-religious African-American holiday to celebrate family, community, and culture for seven days, today through New Year's Day. After the Watts riots in Los Angeles, Karenga searched for ways to bring African Americans together as a community. He researched African "first fruit" harvest celebrations, and combined aspects of several, such as those of the Ashanti and the Zulu, to form the basis of Kwanzaa. The name Kwanzaa is derived from the phrase matunda ya kwanza, which means "first fruits" in Swahili. Each family celebrates Kwanzaa in its own way, but celebrations often include songs and dances, African drums, storytelling, poetry reading, and a large traditional meal.
● 1966 - Time magazine declares "The Younger Generation" Man of the Year.
● 1971 - Two dozen Vietnam Veterans Against the War "liberate" the Statue of Liberty with a sit-in to protest resumed bombings in Vietnam, and fly an inverted U.S. flag from the crown as a signal of distress.
● 1972 - A study rates conditions in half of Washington's state prisons to be "inhuman."
● 1973 - Comet Kohoutek reaches perihelion but is not such a display as expected.
● 1973 - Soyuz 13 lands on earth after a week in orbit.
● 1974 - Salyut 4 is launched.
● 1975 - The Tupolev Tu-144 goes into service in Soviet Union.
● 1976 - The Communist Party of Nepal (Marxist-Leninist) is founded.
● 1979 - Opening night of the Concerts for the People of Kampuchea at the Hammersmith Odeon; a benefit concert for the citizens of Cambodia who were victims of dictator Pol Pot
● 1979 - Soviet Special forces troops take over presidential palace in Kabul, Afghanistan.
● 1980 - Aeroflot puts the Ilyushin Il-86 into service.
● 1981 - U.S. Supreme Court upholds right of three Indian tribes to use gill nets to fish in Lakes Michigan, Superior, and Huron.
● 1982 - Time Magazine's Man of the Year was for the first time given to a non-human, the personal computer.
● 1988 - Funeral of Chico Mendes, activist murdered for his leadership in struggle against the destruction of Amazon rainforests, Brazil.
● 1988 - The Nanjing Anti-African protests in Nanjing, the People's Republic of China begin.
● 1991 - Supreme Soviet meets and formally dissolves the USSR.
● 1992 - Women In Black begin campaign against rape in war, Belgrade, Serbia.
● 1996 - Start of the largest strike in South Korean history.
● 1996 - The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification goes into force.
● 1997 - The Soufriere Hills volcano on the island of Montserrat explodes, creating a small tsunami offshore.
● 1998 - Iraq announced its intention to fire upon U.S. and British warplanes that patrol the northern and southern no-fly zones.
● 1998 - Severe gales over Ireland, northern England, and southern Scotland cause widespread disruption and widespread power outages in Northern Ireland and southern Scotland.
● 1999 - Severe weather in France kills over 100 people and causes extensive damage to property and trees and the French national power grid (see Lothar).
● 2002 - French Raelian scientist Brigitte Boisselier says Clonaid has delivered the first of a supposed five clone babies through cesarean section.
● 2003 - A strong magnitude 6.6 earthquake devastates southeast Iranian city of Bam, killing tens of thousands and destroying the citadel of Arg-é Bam.
● 2004 - An earthquake measuring 9.3 on the Richter magnitude scale creates a tsunami causing devastation in Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, The Maldives and many other areas around the rim of the Indian Ocean, killing more than 200,000.
BIRTHS
● 1194 - Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1250)
● 1532 - Guilielmus Xylander, German classical scholar (d. 1576)
● 1536 - Yi I, Korean Confucian scholar (d. 1584)
● 1646 - Robert Bolling, English settler in Virginia (d. 1709)
● 1666 - Guru Gobind Singh, Tenth Guru of Sikhism (d. 1708)
● 1687 - Johann Georg Pisendel, German musician (d. 1755)
● 1716 - Thomas Gray, English writer (d. 1771)
● 1716 - Jean François de Saint-Lambert, French poet (d. 1803)
● 1723 - Friedrich Melchior, baron von Grimm, German writer (d. 1807)
● 1737 - Prince Josias of Coburg, Austrian general (d. 1815)
● 1751 - Clement Hofbauer, Austrian missionary and saint (d. 1820)
● 1771 - Julie Clary, queen consort of Naples (d. 1845)
● 1780 - Mary Fairfax Somerville, British mathematician (d. 1872)
● 1782 - Filaret Drozdov, Metropolitan of Moscow (d. 1867)
● 1791 - Charles Babbage, English mathematician and inventor (d. 1871)
● 1819 - E. D. E. N. Southworth, American novelist (d. 1899)
● 1822 - Dion Boucicault, Irish actor and playwright (d. 1890)
● 1837 - George Dewey, U. S. admiral (d. 1917)
● 1853 - René Bazin, French novelist (d. 1932)
● 1859 - William Stephens, U.S. political figure (d. 1944)
● 1872 - Norman Angell, British politician, Nobel laureate (d. 1967)
● 1873 - Thomas Wass, English cricketer (d. 1953)
● 1883 - Maurice Utrillo, French artist (d. 1955)
● 1887 - Arthur Ernest Percival, British Army officer (d. 1966)
● 1890 - Uncle Charlie Osborne, American fiddler (d. 1992)
● 1891 - Henry Miller, American writer (d. 1980)
● 1893 - Mao Zedong, Chinese military leader and politician (d. 1976)
● 1894 - Jean Toomer, American writer (d. 1967)
● 1902 - Anatoli Lvovich Kaplan, Russian painter (d. 1980)
● 1903 - Elisha Cook Jr., American actor (d. 1995)
● 1904 - Alejo Carpentier, Cuban writer (d. 1980)
● 1906 - Imperio Argentina, Argentine actress and singer (d. 2003)
● 1913 - Frank Swift, English footballer and journalist (d. 1958)
● 1914 - Richard Widmark, American actor
● 1914 - Annemarie Wendl, German actress (d. 2006)
● 1918 - George Rallis, Greek politician, Prime Minister of Greece (d. 2006)
● 1921 - Steve Allen, American comedian (d. 2000)
● 1922 - Richard Mayes, English actor (d. 2006)
● 1927 - Alan King, American comedian (d. 2004)
● 1927 - Denis Quilley, British actor (d. 2003)
● 1927 - Stu Miller, baseball player
● 1929 - Régine, French singer and nightclub owner
● 1930 - Donald Moffat, English-born actor
● 1930 - Jean Ferrat, French singer and songwriter
● 1933 - Ugly Dave Gray, Australian television personality
● 1933 - Caroll Spinney, American puppeteer
● 1935 - Abdul "Duke" Fakir, American singer (The Four Tops)
● 1935 - Norm Ullman, Canadian hockey player
● 1937 - John Horton Conway, British mathematician
● 1937 - Jay Heimowitz, American poker player
● 1938 - Bahram Beizai, Iranian playwright and film director
● 1938 - Alamgir Kabir, Bangladeshi film director (d. 1989)
● 1939 - Fred Schepisi, Australian film director
● 1940 - Edward C. Prescott, American economist, Nobel laureate
● 1940 - Phil Spector, American music producer
● 1940 - Ray Sadecki, Major league baseball pitcher
● 1941 - Daniel Schmid, Swiss film director (d. 2006)
● 1942 - Marco Vinicio Cerezo Arévalo, Guatemalan president
● 1942 - Gray Davis, former Governor of California
● 1944 - Jane Lapotaire, British actress
● 1945 - John Walsh, American talk show host
● 1947 - Carlton Fisk, American baseball player
● 1947 - James T. Conway, 34th Commandant of the USMC
● 1948 - Candy Crowley, American journalist
● 1949 - José Ramos Horta, Foreign Minister of East Timor, Nobel laureate
● 1951 - Richard Skinner, British radio presenter
● 1953 - Henning Schmitz, German musician (Kraftwerk)
● 1954 - Ozzie Smith, American baseball player
● 1954 - Steve Steen, English actor
● 1955 - Evan Bayh, American politician
● 1956 - David Sedaris, American essayist
● 1957 - Dermot Murnaghan, British broadcaster
● 1958 - Adrian Newey, British engineer
● 1959 - Koji Morimoto, Japanese animated film director
● 1960 - Temuera Morrison, New Zealand actor
● 1961 - John Lynch, Irish actor
● 1963 - Lars Ulrich, Danish-born drummer (Metallica)
● 1964 - Elizabeth Kostova, American author
● 1966 - Sandra Taylor, American model and actress
● 1968 - Dennis Knight, American professional wrestler
● 1970 - James Mercer, musician (The Shins)
● 1970 - Krissada Terrence, Thai singer and actor
● 1971 - Jared Leto, American actor and singer (30 Seconds to Mars)
● 1971 - Jonathan M. Parisen, American film director
● 1971 - Mika Nurmela, Finnish footballer
● 1972 - Robert Muchamore, Children's Author
● 1975 - Marcelo Ríos, Chilean tennis player
● 1976 - Lea De Mae, Czech actress (d. 2004)
● 1978 - Kaoru Sugayama, Japanese volleyball player
● 1979 - Chris Daughtry, American singer
● 1980 - Todd Dunivant, American soccer player
● 1982 - Oguri Shun, Japanese Actor/Model
● 1984 - Alex Schwazer, Italian race walker
● 1985 - Yuu Shirota, Japanese Idol
● 1987 - Adam Walker, British flautist
DEATHS
● 268 - Pope Dionysius
● 418 - Pope Zosimus
● 1350 - Jean de Marigny, French bishop
● 1458 - Arthur III, Duke of Brittany (b. 1393)
● 1476 - Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan (b. 1444)
● 1530 - Babur, Emperor of the Mogul empire (b. 1483)
● 1574 - Charles of Guise, French cardinal (b. 1524)
● 1624 - Simon Marius, German astronomer (b. 1573)
● 1731 - Antoine Houdar de la Motte, French writer (b. 1672)
● 1771 - Claude Adrien Helvétius, French philosopher (b. 1715)
● 1780 - John Fothergill, English physician (b. 1712)
● 1784 - Seth Warner, American revolutionary leader (b. 1743)
● 1786 - Gasparo Gozzi, Italian critic and dramatist (b. 1713)
● 1869 - Jean Louis Marie Poiseuille, French physiologist (b. 1797)
● 1890 - Heinrich Schliemann, German archaeologist (b. 1822)
● 1909 - Frederic Remington, American artist (b. 1861)
● 1931 - Melvil Dewey, inventor of the Dewey decimal classification (b. 1851)
● 1933 - Anatoly Lunacharsky, Russian literary critic and politician (b. 1875)
● 1957 - Charles Pathé, French film and recording industries pioneer (b. 1863)
● 1960 - Watsuji Tetsuro, Japanese philosopher (b. 1889)
● 1963 - George Wagner, American professional wrestler and television personality (b. 1915)
● 1970 - Lillian Board, British athlete (b. 1948)
● 1972 - Harry S. Truman, 33rd President of the United States (b. 1884)
● 1973 - Harold B. Lee, 11th president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (b. 1899)
● 1974 - Jack Benny, American comedian (b. 1894)
● 1977 - Howard Hawks, American film director and writer (b. 1896)
● 1980 - Tony Smith, American sculptor (b. 1912)
● 1981 - Savithri, Indian actress (b. 1937)
● 1981 - Amber Reeves, feminist writer (b. 1887)
● 1983 - Violet Carson, British actress (b. 1898)
● 1985 - Dian Fossey, American gorilla specialist (b. 1932)
● 1985 - Harold P. Warren, American movie director (d. 1928)
● 1986 - Elsa Lanchester, British-born actress (b. 1902)
● 1988 - Glenn McCarthy, American oil tycoon and businessman (b. 1907)
● 1989 - Doug Harvey, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1924)
● 1992 - Nikita Magaloff, Russian pianist (b. 1912)
● 1996 - JonBenét Ramsey, American murder victim (b. 1990)
● 1997 - Cornelius Castoriadis, Greek philosopher and economist (b. 1922)
● 1999 - Curtis Mayfield, American musician (b. 1942)
● 1999 - Shankar Dayal Sharma, President of India (b. 1918)
● 2000 - Jason Robards, American actor (b. 1922)
● 2001 - Nigel Hawthorne, English actor (b. 1929)
● 2002 - Herb Ritts, American photographer (b. 1952)
● 2002 - Armand Zildjian, American cymbal manufacturer (b. 1921)
● 2003 - Alan Bates, British actor (b. 1934)
● 2004 - Troy Broadbridge, Australian rules footballer (b. 1980)
● 2004 - Marianne Heiberg, Norwegian mediator (b. 1945)
● 2004 - Sir Angus Ogilvy, British businessman, husband of Princess Alexandra of Kent (b. 1928)
● 2004 - Aki Sirkesalo, Finnish musician (b. 1962)
● 2004 - Reggie White, American football player (b. 1961)
● 2004 - Jonathan Drummond-Webb, South African pediatric heart surgeon (b. 1959)
● 2004 - Mieszko Talarczyk, Lead singer/Guitarist of grindcore band, Nasum (b. 1974)
● 2005 - Jane Creba, Canadian murder victim (b. 1990)
● 2005 - Muriel Costa-Greenspon, American mezzo-soprano (b. 1937)
● 2005 - Kerry Packer, Australian businessman (b. 1937)
● 2005 - Vincent Schiavelli, American actor (b. 1948)
● 2005 - Erich Topp, German submarine commander (b. 1914)
● 2006 - Gerald Ford, 38th President of the United States (b. 1913)
● 2006 - Ivar Formo, Norwegian skier (b. 1951)
HOLIDAYS AND OBSERVANCES
● Roman Catholic:
● St. Abadiu
● St. Amaethlu
● St. Archelaus
● St. Marinus
● St. Neol Chabanel
● St. Pope Dionysius
● St. Stephen
● St. Tathal
● St. Theodore the Sacrist
● St. Vincentia Maria Lopez Y Vicuna
● St. Zeno
● St. Zosimus
● Russian Orthodox Christian Menaion Calendar for December 13 (Civil Date: December 26)
● Nativity Fast. Wine And Oil allowed.
● Martyrs Eustratius, Auxentius, Eugene, Mardarius, and Orestes at Sebaste
● Virgin Martyr Lucy of Syracuse.
● St. Arsenius of Latros.
● St. Gabriel, Archbishop of Serbia.
● St. Mardarius, recluse of the Kiev Caves.
● Greek Calendar:
● St. Ares, monk.
● Schemamonk Pantileimon "the Resurrected" of Glinsk Hermitage (1895).
● Eastern Catholic:
● Synaxis of Theotokos and feast of St. Joseph, King and Prophet David and St. James the Just
● Coptic Church:
● St. Abadiu of Antinoe
● December 26 is a public holiday in most Christian countries of Protestantism tradition but is not in many Roman Catholic countries. It is not a public holiday in the United States unless Christmas Day falls on a Sunday like it did in 2005 and will again in 2011, in which it is the observed federal holiday. In Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Suriname and Scandinavia, Christmas Day and the following day are called First and Second Christmas Day.
● Second day of Christmas in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Suriname and Scandinavia - a holiday without work. The celebration is more or less the same as first day of Christmas, including the option going to Mass.
● St. Stephen's Day, a public holiday in Catalonia, Croatia, the Czech Republic, and Ireland.
● The first of the twelve days of Christmas in Western Christianity.
● Boxing Day in the Commonwealth of Nations.
● Wren day in Ireland and the Isle of Man.
● Australia - Proclamation Day (South Australian public holiday), for the foundation of the Australian state of South Australia on December 28, 1836 but commemorated on this day.
● South Africa - Day of Goodwill, a public holiday
● First day of Kwanzaa
● First day of Junkanoo street parade in the Bahamas (the second day is on the New Year's Day)
● In Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Iceland, Poland, Slovakia, and Sweden, the 26th is known as the Second day of Christmas: Stefanitag in Austria, der zweite Weihnachtsfeiertag in Germany; Δεύτερη μέρα των Χριστουγέννων in Greece; Annandag Jul in Sweden; Anden Juledag in Denmark; Antroji Kalėdų diena in Lithuania; Andre Juledag in Norway; Tweede Kerstdag in Belgium and in the Netherlands; Annar dagur jóla in Iceland; Tapaninpäivä (St. Stephen's Day) in Finland; Karácsony másnapja in Hungary; drugi dzień Świąt Bożego Narodzenia in Poland. In some of these countries it is also a public holiday. This day is also known in Spain as San Esteban, and in Italy as Santo Stefano.
THIS IS AN ABBREVIATED POST FOR THIS DATE USING ONLY THE FOLLOWING SEVEN SOURCES. A COMPLETE POST IS PLANNED AS SOON AS TIME ALLOWS.
Click on this LINK to see original Wikipedia list with many having links with details.
Geov Parrish's this Day in Radical History, things that happened on this day that you never had to memorize in school.
Roman Catholic Saint of the Day
Russian Orthodox Christian Menaion Calendar
Liberal Quotes of the Day taken from The Best Liberal Quotes Ever: Why the Left Is Right Compiled by William P. Martin ©2004
Quotes from the Right of the Day taken from Take Them at Their Words: Startling, Amusing and Baffling Quotations from the GOP and Their Friends, 1994-2004 Compiled by Bruce J. Miller with Diana Maio ©2004
Dumbest Thing Said for the Day taken from 1001 Dumbest Things Ever Said Edited by Steven D. Price ©2004
Permanent Backlink to Post
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