A Brief History On October 29, 2014, the island nation of Sri Lanka experienced a fatal natural disaster known as the Badulla landslide. Monsoon rains loosened hillside soil which cascaded downhill on an incredible three kilometer path into the village of Koslanda, leaving at least 16 dead and hundreds missing, and about 150 homes destroyed. Digging Deeper Mudslides are an ever-present danger to people living on or below hills, and can be triggered by excessive rain, poorly engineered slopes, lack of adequate vegetation, heavy snow cover, earthquakes and tsunamis. Of course, mud has tormented people in many other ways, making…
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A Brief History On October 28, 2006, former heavyweight champ, Trevor Berbick, was beaten to death with a metal pipe while in a church in Jamaica. Berbick lost his first defense of his boxing title to Mike Tyson, by TKO, but apparently his murderer hit even harder than Iron Mike! Digging Deeper Many boxers have come to a premature end, about 500 due to injuries from boxing, others for various reasons. We list a few of those notably unlucky pugilists: Champion Sugar Ray Robinson killed Jimmy Doyle in a welterweight title match in 1947, In 1933, Primo Carnera pummeled Ernie…
A Brief History On October 27, 312, Emperor Constantine the Great of the Roman Empire on the eve of the Battle of Milvian Bridge is reported to have had a vision or dream of the Christian Cross, leading to his men fighting under the protection of the cross. Sure enough, Constantine beat his rival as Roman Emperor, Maxentius and won the battle, eventually turning the Roman Empire Christian. The date and whether or not the vision really happened has been argued. Digging Deeper Some other notable historic visions include: Visions of the Virgin Mary are numerous in Christian lore, most…
A Brief History On October 26, 2024, we celebrated another National Pumpkin Day, noting those orange gourds that make delicious pies, cheesecakes, and iconic Fall decorations. Not known for being particularly smart, we ask, Are Pumpkins Smarter than People? Digging Deeper Humans often think highly of themselves as somehow the epitome of evolution and master over all of the Earth, we take this opportunity to point out many cases where people are undeniably dumber than pumpkins. Some examples proving the intellectual superiority of pumpkins include: Pumpkins did not elect the politicians running our country. Pumpkins do not smoke or vape,…
A Brief History On October 25, 1854, the gallant but foolish Battle of Balaclava took place during the Crimean War, propelling the Light Brigade into immortality when Alfred, Lord Tennyson, penned his great poem, The Charge of the Light Brigade. Digging Deeper As horrible as war is, human combat has also inspired writers to create epic poems, books and even music to remember those that fought and died. Just a a few of these great works include: In Flanders Fields by Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae, a Canadian doctor, who was lamenting the loss of life at the Second Battle of Ypres…