A Brief History On January 8, 2020, Iranian air defense forces fired a surface to air missile at a civilian jetliner, Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, a Boeing 737 carrying 176 passengers and crew, downing the jet and killing all those aboard. Digging Deeper Sadly, there have been too many instances where airliners have been shot down, either on purpose because they were thought to be violating some defense parameter or accidentally due to misidentification. Today, we look at a few of those incidents, incidents that make TSA inconveniences, surprise fees, cramped seats, and crying babies on planes seem like…
Browsing: January 8
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A Brief History On January 8, 2023, supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro stormed the Brazilian capital of Brasilia in protest of the 2022 presidential election that Bolsonaro lost to Luis Inácio Lula da Silva. Apparently, dissatisfaction with the results of a presidential election is NOT a uniquely American phenomenon! Digging Deeper The pro-Bolsonaro mob heavily damaged several government buildings, including the Presidential Palace and the national Supreme Federal Court as well as the Congress building. The stated goal of the mob was to force the Brazilian military to take action and hopefully reinstate Bolsonaro. Hundreds of rioters were…
A Brief History This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on January 8th. For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event. Digging Deeper On January 8, 1835, President Andrew Jackson saw fit to celebrate the rarest of events in American history, the only time the US has ever had a zero balance for a National Debt. On January 8, 1935, Elvis Aron Presley, the King of Rock and Roll was born in Mississippi. On January 8, 1964, President Lyndon Johnson announced his “War on Poverty,” just one…
A Brief History On January 8, 1835, President Andrew Jackson saw fit to celebrate the rarest of events in American history, the only time the US has ever had a zero balance for a National Debt. This rare and wonderful situation lasted until 1837, never to be seen again. Digging Deeper Today, we routinely talk about our national debt, which is about $31.5 Trillion at this time. Our spending for Fiscal Year 2023 has exceeded our tax revenues by about $336 billion, adding that amount to our national debt. The last time the US had a balanced budget, where spending…
A Brief History On January 8, 2020, speculation as to whether or not the United States will re-institute a military draft not seen since 1973 is causing heated discussions among politicians, pundits, and citizens. We have previously discussed the American military draft in articles “New York City Draft Riots (Worst Riot in US History),” “10 “Patriots” Who Dodged the Draft or Did Not Serve,” “Jimmy Carter Pardons Draft Dodgers!” and “Was Tough Guy Donald Trump a Draft Dodger?” (That last article listed was published before Trump was elected President.) The military draft and those men that did and did not…