Author: Major Dan

A Brief History On February 5, 2023, Americans were flooded with a variety of opinions about the Chinese “spy” balloon that had crossed much of the US and was shot down by a US fighter plane off the coast of South Carolina yesterday. Digging Deeper Some of the controversies concerning this event include: Chinese outrage over US action against their alleged “weather balloon.” China’s promise to “retaliate.” Why did President Biden wait until the balloon was off the coast to shoot it down? Why didn’t President Trump shoot down the three Chinese balloons that crossed the US during his administration?…

A Brief History On February 5, 1852, the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia, was opened to the public.  The largest art museum in the world, by floor space, the Hermitage was established in 1764 by Empress Catherine the Great to house her massive art collection. Digging Deeper The Hermitage ranks 6th in the world by number of annual visitors, and most lists of “Greatest Museums” include it on their honor roll. Other worthy contenders for the title of Greatest Museum would include the Louvre, in Paris, the Smithsonian Institution, in Washington, D.C., the British Museum, in London, and the…

A Brief History On February 4, 1555, English clergyman John Rogers became the first martyr burned at the stake under the rule of Queen Mary I of England, known better as Bloody Mary. Digging Deeper Rogers was a Protestant cleric in an England that had turned away from the Catholic Church under King Henry VIII, but when Henry’s daughter, Mary, a Catholic, assumed the throne in 1553, she did all she could to reinstall the supremacy of the Catholic Church and reverse the Reformation in England. During Mary’s 5 year reign, at least 280 religious dissenters were burned at the…

A Brief History On February 3, 1509, the Arabian Sea portion of the Indian Ocean witnessed a naval battle that had centuries of effects on the global balance of power when a Portuguese fleet defeated a combined fleet of Asian warships at the Battle of Diu, India. Digging Deeper The Portuguese put together a force of 18 warships along with 1200 soldiers to face a fleet of 46 warships and an additional 70 to 150 smaller war boats of the Sultan of Gujarat, the Mamlûk Burji Sultanate of Egypt, the Zamorin of Calicut, the Republic of Venice, and the Ottoman…

A Brief History On February 2, 2023, while the US celebrates Groundhog Day, more serious Americans are celebrating a much more important “national day,” namely National Heavenly Hash Day! Digging Deeper You may immediately think of the common offering by ice cream manufacturers, consisting of vanilla ice cream with some combination of marshmallow, chocolate, and nuts whipped together in a gustatory delight, but Heavenly Hash can be so much more than that! Heavenly hash can be concocted from some kind of marshmallow crème or whip mixed with your choice of ingredients, and ice cream is NOT mandatory.  Cakes, fruit salads,…