Browsing: Politics

A Brief History On October 14, 1982, President Ronald Reagan declared a “War on Drugs,” meaning of course a war against illegal drugs.  His wife, First Lady Nancy Reagan coined the phrase, “Just Say No” in an effort to inspire the youth of America to resist the urge to use drugs illegally.  Neither the government law enforcement campaign nor the simplistic exhortation by the First Lady had much of an effect on illegal drug availability or use back then and no discernible effect on curbing illegal drug use since. Digging Deeper The 1980’s was a time when cocaine became the…

A Brief History On October 10, 2010, the group of islands known as the Netherlands Antilles ceased to exist as a united country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.  Some of those islands became constituent countries by themselves within the Netherlands, while others changed their status to “Special Municipalities” within the Netherlands.  Some minor islands became part of each of the 6 larger islands.  Today we will discuss 10 places that formerly were recognized as countries, that are no longer independent nations.  So many African countries, especially pre-colonial, existed that they would require an extensive list of their own.  Europe…

A Brief History On October 9, 2006, the “Hermit Kingdom” of North Korea conducted its first test of a nuclear bomb, an event that has led to this rogue nation that is run by a blatantly deranged dictator to develop an arsenal of nuclear weapons.  The finger pointing among American politicians and American political parties over exactly who “allowed” North Korea to gain nuclear weapon status has been going on ever since and continues today. Digging Deeper When World War II ended there was a land grab going on around the world, with some former colonies demanding independence, others being…

A Brief History On September 28, 2018, the 4th Thursday in September, we celebrate National Brave Day.  We take this opportunity to discuss what exactly is courage, bravery, valor, any of the synonyms for doing brave things or having the quality to act in the face of danger or highly distasteful consequences.  We will discuss some ways to define bravery/courage, some brave people, and of course how to celebrate National Brave Day. Digging Deeper Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines “brave” as “having or showing mental or moral strength to face danger, fear, or difficulty : having or showing courage” in its…

A Brief History On September 27, 1777, the Continental Congress, precursor to the United States Congress, fled the American capital of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (our first capital city) as British troops closed in.  The American government ended up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania for a mere one day stay, leaving an historical mark on the city by giving it claim to have been one of nine US capital cities.  Or one of eight.  Or one of three.  Confused?  Different sources use different criteria for deciding which cities deserve recognition as having been our “capital” city, so you can take your pick as to…