Author: Major Dan

A Brief History On July 12, 1561, St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow was consecrated.  It would go on to become one of the most famous religious structures in the world and remains so to this day.  Here we list 10 of the most famous religious structures, not in a scientific order but the order as we think of them.  (Apologies to St. Basil’s, St. Patrick’s, Westminster Abbey, and your local parish.) Digging Deeper 10. Lotus Temple, India. Not the primary temple of the Baha’I faith, but what a beautiful building!  As this faith is the youngest listed here, this building…

A Brief History On July 12, 1862, a congressional resolution was signed into law authorizing the Army to issue the Medal of Honor to enlisted soldiers (only) for “personal valor.”  The Navy already had a similar medal for “personal valor” as of 1861.  Prior to this development, the US military had no medals at all since the Mexican War. Digging Deeper Objections to the issuing of medals, especially from senior Army General Winfield Scott, were based on the fact that Europeans engaged in the practice, therefore it must be bad.  Once the Civil War started it became apparent that some soldiers and…

A Brief History Yesterday we listed 10 people or groups we feel deserving of being named Scumbags of the Year (so far) for 2016, and today we take a brighter, more optimistic look at the year 2016 by naming 10 people or groups that provide someone we could look to for leadership, inspiration, and success. Digging Deeper 10. The Lake Erie Monsters, hockey. This American Hockey League team won the Calder Cup this year, giving Cleveland and Northeast Ohio a much needed breath of fresh air and pride, setting a fine example for other sports teams in the area. 9. …

A Brief History On July 12, 1918, the Japanese battleship, Kawachi, suffered a giant explosion in a main powder magazine and sank.  The unlucky ship was only 6 years old and her combat career had consisted of bombarding German fortifications at Tsingtao in 1914.  Maritime disasters are part of the history of men going to sea, and the military part of maritime adventure is loaded with incidents where the commanders just had to say, “Oops!”  In this case, the Japanese Navy had their turn at naval embarrassment and disaster.  Please see these below listed links for more great History and…

A Brief History On July 11, 1893, Mikimoto Kokochi of Japan invented a way to make cultured pearls, making pearl jewelry available to millions of women.  Many inventions over the years have been targeted toward women, sometimes welcomed with a sigh of relief and sometimes scorned.  Here we list 10 inventions oriented toward a female clientele.   Digging Deeper 10. Botox, 2002. Botulinum toxin is one of nature’s most deadly toxins, and yet people have it injected into their face to relax wrinkles.  At first a mostly female cosmetic application, many television and movie stars, newscasters, politicians, and people that can…