Browsing: Politics

A Brief History On June 16, 1586, Mary, Queen of Scots, named her heir and successor, Phillip II of Spain.  Since Mary was imprisoned at the time and not on any throne to give, this move was sure to irritate her jailer, Queen Elizabeth I of England.  Plus, Phillip II was Catholic as was Mary, something the Protestant Elizabeth would certainly not tolerate. Digging Deeper Mary had become Queen at age 6 days upon the death of her father, King James V of Scotland.  Raised in France while adults ran Scotland, she was married to the heir (Dauphin) to the…

A Brief History On June 14, 1954, Flag Day that year, President Eisenhower signed a joint resolution of Congress amending the 1942 Flag Code, adding the words “under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance.  The president had only recently been baptized a Presbyterian and was apparently in a religious feeling when he declared “the dedication of our nation and our people to the Almighty.” Digging Deeper Not surprisingly, not everyone agreed.  The backdrop to this issue was the Cold War, the struggle of atheistic communism against “Christian” democracy and capitalism.  Eisenhower and Congress clearly wanted to differentiate us from them. Many people already were against the Pledge of Allegiance on…

A Brief History On June 12, 1987, Emperor Bokassa, former leader of the Central African Empire, was sentenced to death for atrocities during his reign of 13 years.  At least he was acquitted of cannibalism!  Goofy leaders like Bokassa have appeared throughout history and continue to appear.  Here we list 10 such buffoons, people of massive egos, incredible cruelty, sub-standard intellect, or just plain old buffoonery.  We are talking about goofs that could just as easily be a cartoon character villain.  These guys have pictures of themselves all over their country, statues, too.  Sometimes they declare themselves a god or…

A Brief History On June 11, 323 BC, one of History’s greatest conquerors and generals died at the age of 32, not on the battlefield where he had spent so much time putting his life in danger, but in bed in the Palace of Nebuchadnezzar II in Babylon. Digging Deeper The facts surrounding the death of Alexander the Great are somewhat muddled for so great a personage, but the reality is that the written historical accounts we have of the Macedonian King date from many decades after his death.  How much of his legacy is fact and how much is…

A Brief History On June 11, 1963, George Wallace, the governor of Alabama stood in the doorway to the University of Alabama in a vain attempt to block four newly admitted African-American students from entering the school.  Wallace had ascended to the governorship on promises of fighting Civil Rights for African-Americans, most especially against Federal efforts to end racial segregation. Digging Deeper Today, with throngs of Alabama football fans heartily cheering Black athletes and with a mixed race man in the White House, it is hard to remember such a day when a state governor could physically try to block…