Browsing: Society

A Brief History Whether you know this Greek Hero as Herakles, Heracles, or Hercules, and whether you picture him as played by Arnold Schwarzenneger or Kevin Sorbo, this man who has come to symbolize all that is strong and heroic did not always have it so good himself. Digging Deeper Born of the God Zeus and a mortal mother, this demi-god was hated by Hera, Queen of the Gods and wife of Zeus, although at first his true identity was hidden from Hera, who nursed him as a baby.  Possessing incredible strength even then, the little Hercules sucked so hard…

A Brief History Between 415 and 413 BCE a battle for Syracuse on the Island of Sicily was fought between the forces of Athens and the forces of Sparta.  Athens and Sparta had been engaged in the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BCE) for control of Greece and its environs in the Mediterranean.  This battle proved so debilitating to Athens that the war with Sparta was as good as lost, although Athens managed to hold on for a remarkable 10 more years. Digging Deeper Athens was the dominant city state of Northern Greece, while Sparta was the reigning heavyweight champ of Southern…

A Brief History On January 8, 1935, Elvis Aron Presley, the King of Rock and Roll was born in Mississippi.  Major Dan once spent 3 weeks in Mississippi, and was born on January 7.  Elvis had dark hair,  Dan likewise.  Both liked jelly donuts and peanut butter, not to mention cheeseburgers.  Alas, both estimable gentlemen were slightly overweight, but not as young men. Digging Deeper Elvis was born to a Christian family, the good Major was born into a Christian family.  The King was heterosexual, and most people think Major Dan is, too.  Long sideburns were once a trademark of both…

A Brief History On January 7, 1960, the United States first successfully test launched the Polaris Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM) from their launching facility in Cape Canaveral, Florida.  The Polaris would be the first missile deployed in the world that could be launched from a submerged submarine and carry a nuclear warhead, changing the game of nuclear brinkmanship forever. Digging Deeper In July of 1960 the first successful launch of a Polaris missile from a submerged USS Washington missile submarine led to the arming of 41 US submarines with 16 Polaris missiles each, with each missile carrying a single…

A Brief History On January 6, 1941, much of the world was enmeshed in World War II, with only the United States among the great powers not yet at war.  Many US citizens wanted to keep it that way, and sentiment was largely against any involvement in the affairs of Europe where Hitler and Nazi Germany along with Italy were at war with Western democracies such as France and Britain, and Asia where Japan was fighting in China. Digging Deeper US President Franklin Roosevelt publicly echoed the party line of non-involvement with the war, but he personally wanted to help…