Author: Major Dan

A Brief History On September 3, 1943, the Allies (mainly the United States and the United Kingdom) invaded mainland Europe, thus living up to the promise to Soviet Premier Josef Stalin to invade mainland Europe in 1943.  Of course, Stalin was not satisfied with the choice of Italy as the target of the Western Allies, and despite the assurance of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill that attacking the “soft underbelly of the Axis” would yield good results, the invasion of Italy proved to be an agonizingly difficult endeavor.  The main Allied attack was at Salerno, called Operation Avalanche, while secondary,…

A Brief History On September 2, 1885, the Wyoming Territory was the scene of a terrible racially motivated riot that resulted in the deaths of a minimum of 28 Chinese immigrants, and possibly as many as 50.  The aggressors in this case were also recent immigrants to the United States, coming from White, European countries.  The rioting and killing was over the Union Pacific Coal Company paying Chinese miners less than White miners, undercutting the availability of jobs for White immigrants. Digging Deeper Not only did a couple to a few dozen Chinese immigrants lose their lives, additional people of…

A Brief History On September 1, 2018, men across the world get revenge on women for living longer and getting better car insurance deals, by celebrating World Beard Day!  Next time some woman tells you, “I can do anything better than you!” you tell that feisty female, “Oh yeah?  Let’s have a beard growing contest.”  (Unfortunately, some women can actually grow a beard, especially with hormone treatment, so be careful who you challenge.)  Although we have not had a bearded President for many years, and the fact that Russia once instituted a tax on beards in order to discourage their…

A Brief History On August 31, 2018, the new sci-fi action-adventure film Kin makes its debut across the United States.  Right off the bat, the first thing I thought when I watched this film was, “Why didn’t they spend more on advertising?”  Obviously, I thought this because I loved the movie.  So did the audience, although my partner was only okay with the film.  Proof that I am the superior judge of film value!  Directors Jonathan and Josh Baker have crafted a movie centered on the angst of a 14 year old boy in the middle of a gang war…

A Brief History On August 30, 2018, we celebrate National Toasted Marshmallow Day, a day in late summer when we gather around the campfire with long forks or even sharpened sticks and toast our bubbly, gooey marshmallow treats.  Be careful not to burn your mouth!  Our more sophisticated marshmallow connoisseurs may ratchet things up a notch by making “Smores,” another gooey treat in which one smears melted, toasted marshmallows on a graham cracker with melted milk chocolate.  MMMM!  A tradition among campers and Scouts (Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts). Digging Deeper So what are those white, spongy cubes we…