A Brief History On April 17, 1905, the US Supreme Court dealt a blow to Progressives that were mobilizing across the United States to reform business practices, government, and a myriad of social and cultural institutions. (See our article, The Progressive Era, from April 15, 2017) The decision known as Lochner v New York overturned a state law that attempted to protect bakery workers from excessive work hours. Digging Deeper A New York state law had been passed that limited bakery workers to a maximum of 10 hours per day and 60 hours per week, an effort to enhance the quality of…
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A Brief History On April 15, 2017, we get a 2-day reprieve from the filing limit date for filing our Federal Income Tax Returns, since the day falls on Saturday. By Monday, April 17, 2017, you better either have your tax return in the mail or have applied for an extension. Americans did not always have an income tax, although it may seem like it to you. Digging Deeper Back in the 1890’s through the 1920’s the United States of America underwent a period called the Progressive Era, a period in which activists sought to improve the quality of life…
A Brief History On April 3, 1948, President Harry S Truman (there is no period after the “S” because it was just an initial, not standing for a name!) signed legislation authorizing $5 billion for the Marshall Plan, a foreign aid bill championed by former five star general George C. Marshall who was Secretary of State at the time. Digging Deeper Marshall was the first officer of five star rank promoted during World War II so that the US would have officers of a rank equal to or greater than Field Marshall. After the war he became Secretary of State…
A Brief History On March 25, 1975, the King of Saudi Arabia, the country with the largest proven oil reserves in the world (and mostly highly accessible reserves at that) was assassinated by his own nephew. A key (sort of) ally of the United States in the Arab/Islamic world, Saudi Arabia was then and is now of enormous importance on the world stage. Digging Deeper King Faisal had taken the throne by forcing his own brother, King Saud, into a toothless role as King while Faisal acted as regent, and finally forcing Saud to abdicate in favor of Faisal in…
A Brief History On March 24, 2015, we ran a list of 10 “Patriots” Who Dodged the Draft or Did Not Serve, people that either enjoy the mantle of or are perceived to be “patriots” that failed to serve in the military during time of war. Some used BS excuses to avoid the draft, some used ruses, and some just did not serve. A name not found on that list of 10 is our current President of the United States, Donald Trump. Today, we add him to the list. Digging Deeper Trump serves as our Commander in Chief of the…