A Brief History On December 17, 2017, Orthodox Christians celebrate the Feast of Daniel, a recognized prophet in Christianity, a recognized nabi in Islam (saintly or righteous man), and although Judaism does not consider Daniel a prophet, it does accord him status as a legendary example of a pious and good man. (Roman Catholic Feast of Daniel is July 21st.) Digging Deeper The story of Daniel is told in the Bible, appropriately in The Book of Daniel. The Bible relates that Daniel was a noble Jew from Jerusalem that was captured as a youth by the Babylonians and taken to…
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 December 16, 1838, one of the greatest defeats of a large military force by a much smaller force took place with incredibly lopsided results when the Boers (also known as Voortrekkers or Afrikaners) of South Africa fought the Zulu warriors at ‘Blood River’ (also known as Ncome River) in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa. Digging Deeper The Boers were Dutch settlers of South Africa, and those hardy souls that headed inland to settle were called “Trekkers” or pioneers (or “Voortrekkers” after 1880). In 1838, the Trekkers had encountered many obstacles in illness, harsh terrain, and hostile African…
A Brief History On December 15, 1956, Elvis Presley gave the last of 50 performances on Louisiana Hayride, a live Shreveport, Louisiana radio show. This event was the occasion that the famous line, “Elvis has left the building” comes from. In honor of this musical trivia, and the fact that Elvis himself sang a song with lyrics in German and in English (“Wooden Heart”), we list today 10 great tunes, some of our favorites, that feature English and at least one other language. Digging Deeper 1. “Wooden Heart”, Elvis Presley, 1960. This nice tune comes from the 1960 film, GI Blues,…
A Brief History On December 14, 2017, we would like to take a moment to discuss the new feature film, The Shape of Water, a science fiction Cold War based movie that is hard to fit into a particular movie genre. Featuring spies, mad scientists, cold blooded bureaucrats, artists and other sensitive people, race and class struggle, and of course, love, and the lack of love. Oh, and it also features a Creature From the Black Lagoon type character as well! Digging Deeper Guillermo del Toro, horror and sci-fi maven, wrote and directed the film, and his vision for this movie…
A Brief History On December 15, 2017, the blockbuster major motion picture, Star Wars: The Last Jedi (also known as Star Wars: Episode VIII) will premier across the United States, having already premiered in the Los Angeles area on December 9th. We watched a press screening of the film on December 11, 2017 and were quite happy with the latest installment of the Star Wars saga. Digging Deeper Set after 2015’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi features familiar characters Princess Leia (in Carrie Fisher’s last movie role), Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill as an old, retired recluse), Chewbacca…