Browsing: July

A Brief History On July 19, 1588, during the Anglo-Spanish War’s Battle of Gravelines, the ultimately doomed Spanish Armada was sighted in the English Channel.  The next couple of weeks were among the most harrowing in English and Spanish history.  Indeed, human history is full of exciting and often tragic events. The turning points in world history is an exciting topic for a discussion, but it might take us too long to discuss all of them. So, some of the most prominent events include: Early humans discovering and using fire; The fall of the Roman Empire; The period of the…

A Brief History On July 18, 1290, King Edward I of England, also known as “Edward Longshanks” or alternatively “The Hammer of the Scots,” issued the Edict of Expulsion, a royal decree ordering all Jews out of England.  At the time, about 16,000 Jews resided in not so Merry Old England.  Along with so many other pogroms, massacres, and forcible expulsions, Jewish people have had such a history of discrimination and exclusion that they have their own day of fasting and remembrance of various calamities and disasters, called Tisha B’Av, known as the “saddest day on the Jewish calendar.” Digging…

A Brief History On July 12, 1917, the local sheriff deputized 2,000 men as a posse to do the dirty work for the local mining company, called Phelps Dodge Corporation, and forcibly and illegally “deported” 1,300 people to New Mexico.  The deported people were striking miners and their supporters, most of which were Mexican Americans.  Echoes of this shameful event are evident today when we are on the precipice of another announced mass round up and deportation of undocumented (i.e., “illegal”) Mexicans from the United States, to be conducted legally by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) at the…

A Brief History On July 11, 2019, the annual frozen drink concoction promotion held by convenience store chain 7-Eleven is celebrated by giving away a free Slurpee to customers.  Available in many flavors, the mushy ice drink was “invented” by accident back in the 1950’s, originally given the name “Icee.”  No matter what you call them, the slushy, icy, sweet drinks are more than a bit popular, with about 7.3 million gallons of the sugary cold drinks sold each year! Digging Deeper Free Slurpee day first started in 2002, and has been celebrated on each July 11th ever since.  (The…

A Brief History On July 10, 1997, British scientists in London, England, reported that the DNA analysis of a Neanderthal skeleton gave credibility to the “Out of Africa” theory of human origins, including the likelihood of an “Eve” ancestress to all modern humans dated back to 100,000 to 200,000 years ago.  Some other scientists have since pushed back the possible date of origin of the human species to over 300,000 years ago, still believed to have originated in Africa. Digging Deeper The idea that every single human being on Earth has a common ancestor, the fabled “Eve,” is supported by…