A Brief History On April 11, 2011, an explosion rocked the Kastryčnickaja station of the Minsk Metro in the capital city of the country of Belarus. Sadly, 15 people were killed and over 200 others were wounded. Although a pair of alleged perpetrators were convicted and executed for the crime, suspicion about the actual motive for the bombing remains about whether or not the Belarusian government of President Alexander Lukashenko conducted a “false flag” operation itself in order to strengthen its hand against virulent opposition forces. In April of 2022, the otherwise non-descript country of Belarus has been in the…
Browsing: Places
A Brief History On June 14, 1900, the United States expanded by officially adding the territory of Hawaii to its growing empire. The Pacific region became an American area of interest during the Spanish-American War in 1898, with the US adding the islands of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines to its territory. Today we take a look at some places we would like to see become American someday, just as Hawaii (which I have visited and believe is truly paradise) was added over a century ago. What country or territory would you add to this list? (OK, Donald Trump,…
A Brief History On June 7, 2021, we have had the opportunity to read and review a great new historical examination of “the Roman campaign to crush the Jewish revolt,” as the book calls itself. Conquering Jerusalem, by Stephen Dando-Collins, is just about 200 pages long, long enough to address detail while compact enough to keep the reader engaged. (By the way, this reviewer has personally been to Jerusalem, a fascinating place.) Digging Deeper We found the text highly readable, while retaining academic accuracy and serious addressing of facts and events, the flow of the book is more like a…
A Brief History On February 2, 2020, we celebrate yet another Groundhog Day, a day in which Winter weary people find out if we are in for 6 more weeks of Winter or if we are facing the joy of an early Spring. As implied by the name of the day, an actual Groundhog is “consulted” for his (or her) “prediction.” But…. This year the animal rights organization, PETA, is recommending we immediately end this act of animal cruelty (?) and replace our beloved Marmots with (gasp!) animatronic replicas of Groundhogs! A discussion of why this plan is “stupid” is…
A Brief History On October 21, 1096, a Seljuk Turk army led by Sultan Kilij Arslan I massacred a Christian army from Europe, known as the People’s Army, ending the first of the religious wars known as the Crusades. This particular “Crusade” is not considered an “official Crusade,” a distinction reserved for the Catholic Church sanctioned invasion of the Middle East (i.e., Holy Land) a year later. Digging Deeper The so called “People’s Crusade,” “Popular Crusade,” “Peasants’ Crusade” or “Paupers’ Crusade” was the work of a charismatic French monk called Peter the Hermit. In keeping with the multiple names theme,…