A Brief History On May 21, 1881, Clara Barton established the American Red Cross in Washington, DC. A nurse, teacher and patent clerk, Barton left the legacy of the Red Cross for all Americans that had no one else to turn to in time of crisis, whether man-made or natural disaster. Additionally, the Red Cross is instrumental in teaching First Aid and CPR classes as well as gathering and distributing most of the blood supply in the US. Like Clara Barton, many other women have risen to the top of their profession, sport, or field as a leader for men…
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 May 20, 1899, history’s first traffic ticket was issued to a New York cab driver, Jacob German who was zipping down Lexington Street at 12 mph. Ever since, drivers have been arguing about traffic tickets with no real idea what the law is, just basing their beliefs on urban myths that are frequently untrue. We list 10 of the most misunderstood facts about everyday traffic and other laws as told by a retired police captain. (Note: laws vary from state to state and sometimes from town to town. We know that and are trying to avoid…
A Brief History On May 20, 1983, two separate groups of researchers published their research that indicated AIDS was caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus in Science Magazine. AIDS, Auto-immunodeficiency Syndrome, had been discovered in the United States first in 1981. Digging Deeper Instead of widespread concern and alarm, the American public reacted largely with scorn, thinking that the AIDS problem was limited to homosexuals and drug addicts, making up acronyms such as GRID (Gay Related Immune Deficiency), 4H Disease (for Haitians, Homosexuals, Hemophiliacs and Heroin), and referring to AIDS as “Anally Injected Death Syndrome.” As more people were identified…
A Brief History On May 20, 1802, Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul (later Emperor) of France, made a mistake he later regretted the rest of his life when he reinstated slavery in the French colonies. The revolutionary movement had previously put an end to slavery in France and its colonies, and this step backward was perhaps instigated by Napoleon’s wife, Josephine who was born in Martinique, a French colony with a slave based economy. Reinstating slavery had disastrous consequences, especially in the country now known as Haiti. Digging Deeper Of course, Napoleon had many successes, and is believed to be the…
A Brief History On May 20, 1873, Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis patented blue jeans with copper rivets. Trousers have never been the same. Clearly an iconic American invention, a nice comfortable pair of jeans can well be a person’s best friends. At least that is the way some people treat them. There are several innovations in the world of clothing that seem hard to live without, and here we list 10 of them. Digging Deeper 10. Bikini Bathing Suit, 1946. Bestowed upon an adoring, mostly male, public in Paris in 1946 while the United States conducted nuclear weapons testing…