Browsing: Society

A Brief History On July 30, 1419, The First Defenestration of Prague took place, which of course, means there was a second Defenestration!  Prague, the capital in what was then called Bohemia and today the capital of the Czech Republic, is a vibrant city as the seat of government today, just as it was back in 1419.  Why would such a beautiful city be the scene of violence? Digging Deeper First of all, we must let you know what “defenestration” means.  Not a word you hear every day although the action described by it is not all that unusual.  (Drum…

A Brief History On July 26, 2016, a bizarre mass killing near Tokyo was reported in which a 26 year old man, a former employee of a facility for disabled people, went to that facility at 2:30 am local time on July 26, 2016 (still July 25 in Eastern Daylight Time) and killed 19 people with a knife and wounded about 26 more.  Police arrived too late to stop the mayhem, and the perpetrator turned himself in at the local police department.  Once again, we have tragic proof that a deranged person does not need a gun to commit mass…

A Brief History On July 23, 1973, American pilot and national hero, Eddie Rickenbacker, died at the age of 82, later buried in his native Columbus, Ohio, the city of his birth.  Rickenbacker was the leading American flying “Ace” in World War I, having shot down 26 enemy aircraft and being awarded the most medals of any American war hero of World War I, including the coveted Medal of Honor.  Prior to his wartime exploits, Rickenbacker had been a premier race car driver and automotive designer.  After various other pursuits, Rickenbacker became the head of Eastern Airlines in 1935, a…

A Brief History On July 20, 1304, the forces of King Edward I of England successfully took Stirling Castle during the First War of Scottish Independence.  Although the Scots would ultimately maintain their independence, key to the English victory was the intimidating-sounding “Warwolf,” allegedly the largest trebuchet ever made.  This mighty siege engine catapulted rocks or other projectiles up to 300 pounds and was capable of battering down the walls of any castle.   We used this event to precipitate our article in 2015, “Weapons with Cool Names!”  We discussed the “importance” of giving your weapons and weapon systems cool names…

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…