A Brief History On August 9, 1965, the city/state of Singapore was evicted from the country of Malaysia and became the only country that became independent against their own will. Digging Deeper Established as the British Crown Colony of Singapore in 1946, Singapore, a strategically positioned island near the Straits of Malacca, possesses a fine harbor and had a strong British presence since 1819. An important Far East British possession, Singapore was fortified to the point where it was called “The Gibraltar of the Pacific.” After World War II, the world saw the gradual independence of many formerly colonized countries,…
Browsing: August 9
A Brief History On August 9, 48 BC, Gaius Julius Caesar, known more familiarly to us as Julius Caesar or simply Caesar, won the Battle of Pharsalus in Central Greece against his arch enemy and former friend, Pompey, decisively winning the pivotal battle of the conflict known as “Caesar’s Civil War.” Caesar’s Civil War was fought from 49 to 45 BC, pitting Caesar and his allies against the political bloc known as “The Optimates,” led by Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (known as Pompey the Great or merely just as Pompey) and representing the Senate of Rome and those Romans opposed to…
A Brief History On August 9, 1999, Russian President Boris Yeltsin fired not only his Prime Minister, Sergei Stepashin, but also his entire cabinet. Firing an entire cabinet? Yeltsin had previously done just that 3 times before! Despite being the second most powerful country in the world (at least militarily), Russia has some less than modern political traits. Digging Deeper After the break up of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russia lost its de facto empire and began a new chapter in its history as its own country once again. Of course, many Russians were thrilled to be done with…
A Brief History On August 9, 1969, members of the Manson Family, followers of cult leader Charles Manson, murdered actress Sharon Tate, her unborn baby, coffee heiress Abigail Folger, and 3 other people. Although definitely nutty people with bizarre, cult ideas about sparking a race war through senseless murder, none of these people successfully played the insanity card. Charles Manson died in prison in November of 2017 one seriously deranged dude that seemed to be a shoo in for the loony bin. We previously discussed “9 Blatantly Nutty People Not Found Insane” and today we nominate another 3 goofy people…
A Brief History On August 9, 1936, Clevelander and Ohio State University athlete James Cleveland “Jesse” Owens won his 4th Gold Medal at the 1936 Olympics, by anchoring the 4 X 100 m relay, winning in a world record time of 39.8 seconds. An international sensation, Owens was not even the first Olympic athlete to win 4 Gold Medals in an Olympics! Here we list 10 Greatest Olympic Athletes, or at least as we see it. (No special order to the list.) Digging Deeper 1. Jesse Owens, 1936. Not only a spectacular performance at the 1936 Olympics, but Owens also set…
