Browsing: October

A Brief History On October 23, 1983, 241 US servicemen (220 Marines of 1st Battalion 8th Marines Regiment, 18 US Navy sailors, and three US Army soldiers) were killed when a truck bomb was driven into the building where the men were quartered. Digging Deeper The Marines had been deployed to Beirut by President Ronald Reagan in response to turmoil within Lebanon after the Israeli withdrawal following the Israeli invasion of Lebanon.  Reagan promised the Marines would stay no longer than 30 days.  He lied.  With no particular mission other than just to be there as a presence, the Marines…

A Brief History On October 22, 1707, four ships of the Royal Navy ran aground and sank near the Isles of Scilly near Cornwall in Great Britain.  All four ships were lost with almost all hands, 1,550 (estimate) British sailors went to Davey Jones’s Locker that fateful day, including the fleet commander, Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell.  Only 13 of the sailors survived. Digging Deeper Before we go any further, we have to seriously ask, “What kind of jerk names their kid ‘Cloudesley?’”  You would have to home school the poor lad because other kids would brutalize him over that goofy…

A Brief History On October 21, 1973, defensive end Fred Dryer of the Los Angeles Rams (yes, that is where they played before St. Louis, and they were the Cleveland Rams before that) became the first player in NFL history to score two safeties in one game, a remarkable feat. Digging Deeper Not because of that curious statistic, but because of his good looks and acting ability Dryer went on to become a successful Hollywood actor, notably in the title role of the television series, Hunter (1984-1991). Not only did Dryer have a stellar 13 year pro football career and star…

A Brief History On October 20, 1944, during the height of World War II, the Midwestern US city of Cleveland, Ohio, then the 6th biggest city in America (1940 census), was rocked by a massive explosion of liquid natural gas and a subsequent fire, causing the city to  suffer 30 city blocks flattened with 130 people killed. Historical Evidence The disaster began around 2:30 pm when a liquefied natural gas tank located above ground started leaking, the vapors finding their way into the sewer system of this industrial city.  The gas, owned by the East Ohio Gas Company, gathered in…

A Brief History On October 19, 1950, the worst fears of President Truman came true, when despite General Douglas MacArthur’s confident assessment that the Chinese would not cross the Yalu River and interfere with the Korean War, 200,000 Chinese soldiers streamed across the river and attacked UN/South Korean forces.  MacArthur had told Truman only about 100,000 Chinese soldiers were near the Yalu, a gross underestimate.  Even after initial fighting with Chinese, MacArthur did not grasp the scope of the disaster. Digging Deeper North Korea had invaded South Korea earlier that year, surprising the US and its South Korean ally.  Korea…