Browsing: Military

A Brief History On October 23, 2022, the Air Force of Myanmar conducted a bombing raid with a few fighter-bombers against a music concert!  At least 80 civilians were killed in an incident called the “Hpakant massacre.” Digging Deeper Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, has been undergoing a civil war since a military coup took over the government in 2021.  The “junta” government claimed the air raid was against a military post of the rebel Kachin Independence Organisation and that no civilians were targeted or killed.  The large crowd present at the bombing disagrees with that claim. Performers and concert…

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A Brief History On October 20, 1827, an international coalition of British, French, and Russian ships fought against a fleet of Turkish Ottoman and Egyptian ships in the Battle of Navarino, the last major naval battle fought by wooden sailing ships. Digging Deeper Part of the 1821 to 1829 Greek War of Independence, Navarino pitted 1,252 naval guns spread across 10 ships of the line, 10 frigates, two schooners, four sloops, and one cutter on the European side against the Ottoman fleet of 2,158 guns dispersed among three ships of the line, 17 frigates, 30 corvettes, five schooners, 28 brigs,…

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A Brief History On October 19, 1943, a French cargo ship that had been seized by Germany in 1942, was sunk by USAAF North American B-25 Mitchell and RAF Bristol Beaufighter bombers near Crete, taking 2,098 Italian soldiers being held as POWs to a watery grave. Digging Deeper The Italians had surrendered to the Allies in September of 1943, and the Germans were faced with considerable numbers of Italian military forces alongside German forces.  The Germans decided to give the Italian soldiers the choice of either serving alongside their German comrades just as before the surrender, or to assume the…

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A Brief History On October 11, 2023, in the Middle East and around the world, many feel a sense of anxiety over what will happen next in the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. Digging Deeper The war began on October 7, 2023 with a combined land, air, and sea assault on Israeli territory by Hamas rockets and militants from the Palestinian controlled Gaza Strip.  The invading Palestinian terrorists attacked Israeli soldiers and civilians, massacring perhaps over 1,000 victims, wounding thousands more, and abducting perhaps hundreds in horrifying scenes of atrocities shared across various social media platforms as can be…

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A Brief History On October 8, 1982, actor Fernando Lamas died, probably best remembered for the Billy Crystal impression saying the phrase, “You look marvelous!”  Many other actors and celebrities have been attributed quotations they did not really say, and today we look at a few of those. Digging Deeper PT Barnum, showman and huckster, “There’s a sucker born every minute.” Julius Caesar, Roman dictator, “Et tu, Brute?” Albert Einstein, physicist and genius, “If the bee disappeared off the face of the Earth, man would only have four years left to live.” Greta Garbo, actress, “I vant to be alone…”…

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