Browsing: Society

A Brief History On December 30, 2006, former dictator of Iraq, Saddam Hussein, was hanged in a gruesome execution that nearly severed his head from his body.  In the aftermath of the terror attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, the US alleged Iraqi involvement with those attacks and by 2003 the US led a coalition of nations in an invasion of Iraq, eventually arresting Hussein in December of 2003, with the newly installed Iraqi government executing the reviled dictator 3 years later.  Many national leaders have been executed throughout history, usually by their own people.  Today, we…

A Brief History On December 29, 1890, the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army perpetrated a massacre against Native Americans of the Lakota People near Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota.  Included among those killed were about 200 women and children.  (Note:  It was the 7th Cavalry under Lt. Col. George A. Custer that was massacred at the Little Big Horn River in 1873.) Digging Deeper The soldiers had rounded up about 120 Lakota men and over 240 Lakota women and children (numbers vary with source) on December 28th and had herded them back toward the Pine Ridge…

A Brief History On December 26, 1986, a new National Day was declared in “honor” of the most serious of the whiners in this fair land.  The man behind the plan was Rev. Kevin Zaborney, who also created a National Hugging Day (January 21st).  See the link at the end of the article for his website. Digging Deeper Zaborney named Donald Trump the Most Famous Whiner of 2015, apparently largely due to this actual Trump quotation while being interviewed by Chris Cuomo.  According to Mr. Trump, in his own words, “I do whine because I want to win, and I’m…

A Brief History On December 24, 1294, Pope Boniface VIII (born Benedetto Caetani) was elected Pope of the Roman Catholic Church to replace the previous Pope, St. Celestine V, who had resigned to return to his humble, monastic pre-papal life.  Fearing Celestine becoming an Anti-pope (pretender to the papacy), Boniface jailed Celestine, his predecessor (not the first Pope to ever resign the office, despite legend that he was).  Celestine spent the rest of his life imprisoned. Digging Deeper Celestine, born Pietro Angelerio in 1215 in Sicily, had become a Benedictine monk at the age of 17.  He led an austere…

A Brief History On December 23, 1997, the Seinfeld television comedy show introduced us to a new, secular holiday to be celebrated during the winter season, avoiding the religious friction of Hanukkah vs. Christmas vs. Saturnalia vs. Winter Solstice and the racially charged Kwanzaa.  (Note: Kwanzaa was invented by a creep that was convicted of kidnapping and torturing 2 African American women.)  December 23 is the day designated for the celebration of Festivus (For The Rest of Us!!!) Digging Deeper The brainchild of Seinfeld writer Dan O’Keefe, the idea of Festivus is to provide a “holiday” without any pressures to…