Browsing: Society

A Brief History On February 16, 2006, the United States Army decommissioned the last of the Mobile Army Surgical Hospitals, or MASH as they were called.  Since the Army is staffed by educated and intelligent people (mostly), they obviously had a backup plan, and that is the Combat Support Hospital (CSH pronounced cash). Digging Deeper Mobile Army Surgical Hospitals had served the combat medical needs of the U.S. Army since their inception in 1945, continuing through the Korean and Viet Nam Wars and then in the conflicts in the Middle East until being replaced by Combat Support Hospitals. Famously depicted in the 1968…

A Brief History On February 14, we celebrate St. Valentine’s Day, a day on which we show our appreciation for our special loved one or significant other.  Uncharacteristically, however, this date has also been a black day of death and murder! Digging Deeper Now considered a “Hallmark Holiday,” it was named after the unfortunate St. Valentine, a Christian, said to be a bishop, who was executed by the Romans in 269 A.D. for preaching the Gospel.  He was not just executed but beaten with clubs and beheaded.  Somehow, this guy whom we know almost nothing about came to symbolize romantic love (especially ironic…

A Brief History On February 11, 2013, the sitting Pope of the Catholic Church, Benedict XVI, announced his resignation from the papacy.  As no pope had voluntarily resigned in about 500 years, this news shocked the entire world, not just the Catholic world. Digging Deeper Born Joseph Ratzinger in Bavaria, he first became a priest, then an archbishop, then a cardinal before ascending to the papacy in 2005 when he succeeded Pope John Paul II.  At one point fairly liberal, Benedict became much more conservative starting in 1968.  At his resignation at age 86, he claimed old age and infirmity (“lack of strength of mind and body”). As…

A Brief History At the suggestion that Kim Kardashian deserved a spot in the History and Headlines’ series on women famous for being naked, the author paused.  Yes, Kim’s first taste of fame was the result of the leak of her sex tape video, however, that had already been done by Pamela Anderson.  To include Kim for this reason would mean that Paris Hilton and many others would have to be included as well.  Instead, perhaps a list of people who have been on sex tapes would be more appropriate, but those are commonplace across the internet and need no…

A Brief History On February 9, 2001, the U.S. Navy nuclear submarine USS Greeneville (SSN 772) accidentally sank the Japanese training fishing vessel Ehime Maru on board which were some high school students. Digging Deeper The Greeneville had been conducting maneuvers of the coast of Honolulu, Hawaii with guests aboard, mostly big-money donors to the Battleship Missouri Memorial at Pearl Harbor.  In the course of conducting an emergency main ballast tank blow and ascent, the nuclear sub came up underneath the Ehime Maru in a terrific collision that smashed the hapless fishing boat and sank it within 10 minutes.  Japanese losses were 9…