A Brief History On August 8, 2004, Chicago’s Little Lady, a tour boat carrying 120 passengers, was bombed by a tour bus belonging to the Dave Matthews Band. About 2/3 of the passengers were soaked with human waste dumped from the bus as it crossed the Kinzie Street bridge over the Chicago River in Chicago, Illinois. Digging Deeper Only the driver was aboard the bus and he decided to dump the waste from the toilets into the Chicago River as he crossed the bridge, the bridge made of open metal grates, and the driver claims he had no idea the…
Author: Major Dan
Major Dan
Major Daniel Zar is a retired veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He served during the Cold War and has traveled to many countries around the world. Prior to his military service, he graduated from Cleveland State University, having majored in sociology. Following his military service, he worked as a police officer eventually earning the rank of captain prior to his retirement.
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A Brief History On August 7, 1978, President Jimmy Carter recognized the toxic waste that had been disposed of negligently into a residential area canal as a federal emergency. Digging Deeper The Love Canal neighborhood of Niagara Falls, New York had been planned in 1890, but only reached a portion of its planned size. The eponymous canal in the neighborhood was used for industrial dumping of various chemical by-products by the Hooker Chemical Company as well as municipal waste products. By the 1950s, people took notice of the health problems experienced by people in the neighborhood, finally drawing the attention…
A Brief History On August 6, 1991, Tim Berners-Lee, a professor with ties to the University of Oxford and MIT, announced his invention, plans for what he called the “World Wide Web.” The head of a committee that seeks to ever increase the utility and efficacy of the internet, Berners-Lee is the director of the World Wide Web Consortium. Digging Deeper Holding numerous positions in computer, internet, and charitable organizations, and having been associated with the European physics concern, CERN, Berners-Lee has also been the recipient of many awards and recognition for his contribution to modern society, including being knighted…
A Brief History On August 5, 1957, the iconic pop music show American Bandstand made its debut, starting a 37-season run of 3002 episodes and making host Dick Clark a national icon. Despite its impressive record, Bandstand is far from the longest running TV show, and here we list some of the shows that beat Bandstand. Which is your favorite? Digging Deeper Meet The Press, a Sunday morning talk show since November of 1947, over 3600 episodes. CBS Evening News, daily newscast since May of 1948, well over 16,000 episodes. Music & the Spoken Word, a religious LDS show since…
A Brief History On August 4, 1987, the Federal Communications Commission officially removed any obligation of television and radio media to present controversial issues in an even and “fair” manner when they rescinded the Fairness Doctrine. Digging Deeper Much has been made of the blatant cheerleading by mass media for one side or the other in recent years, making so called news programs more partisan than just information. Calling the media “biased” and “fake news” has become an allegation by all sides of every issue anytime the media does not agree with a point of view. The Fairness Doctrine originated…