Browsing: Society

A Brief History On February 23, 2008, a US Air Force B-2 “Spirit” bomber crashed while attempting a take-off on the runway at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam.  The stealth jet bomber was totally destroyed, but the 2 man crew safely ejected.  The B-2 bomber is far and away the most expensive airplane ever built, costing somewhere between $1 billion and $2.1 billion apiece, depending on how you account for the price per aircraft. Digging Deeper The most modern bomber in the world, and the only large “stealth” aircraft, the Northrup Grumman B-2 is not all that new, having…

A Brief (And we mean Brief!) History On February 22, 1983, the Eugene O’Neill Theater (230 West 49th St., New York, although considered a “Broadway” theater) was the scene of perhaps the biggest fiasco in the History of Broadway Plays, the opening and closing night of the Arthur Bicknell play, Moose Murders. Digging Deeper Not only did this miserable play only have the one night, its very name has become the archetype for lousy plays, those which open and close after only one show.  Moose Murders is the low standard by which crumby plays are compared.  Frank Rich, Broadway critic…

A Brief History On February 21, 1945, while supporting the US invasion of Iwo Jima in the Pacific, the US aircraft carrier USS Saratoga (CV-3) was struck by 3 Japanese suicide planes known as Kamikaze.  Not only did Saratoga survive those devastating hits, she was also hit by 5 aerial bombs, and suffered extensive damage, 123 men dead and 192 wounded.  Thirty-six of her 70 aircraft were destroyed, and the battle was not yet over! Digging Deeper Only 2 hours later, the Japanese returned for another attack on the stricken ship, and Saratoga was hit again, and again refused to go…

A Brief History On February 20, 1942, the United States was still reeling from the sneak attack at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, and was in desperate need of victories after island after allied island fell to the seemingly unstoppable Japanese Navy and Army.  Burma, Malaya, The Dutch East Indies, Solomon Islands, Gilbert Islands, Philippines, Wake Island, Singapore, Hong Kong, and numerous other places had fallen or been invaded by the Japanese.  The US Navy that had been battered at Pearl Harbor was all that prevented Japan from sailing East to attack the US West Coast. Digging Deeper In…

A Brief History On February 19, 1859, New York Congressman Daniel E. Sickles made history as the first person acquitted by reason of “temporary insanity.”  The charge of murdering his wife’s lover was all the more historically significant because the victim was the son of Francis Scott Key, author of our National Anthem! Digging Deeper The theory behind the temporary insanity plea is closely aligned with the idea that in the throes of extreme emotion (passion) a person cannot think clearly and may do something out of his or her realm of control.  While this condition certainly seems to be…