Browsing: Politics

A Brief History On December 25, 1991, on the day that Mikhail Gorbachev resigned as President of the Soviet Union, Ukraine’s referendum was completed, meaning Ukraine was no longer part of the USSR.  In fact, the next day, the USSR itself ceased to exist. Digging Deeper Ukrainian independence had been declared back on August 24, 1991, but became official when the December 1, 1991 national vote on leaving the USSR became finalized.  In Ukraine at the time of independence, Christmas was usually celebrated on January 7th,  although the horrible events surrounding the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine caused Ukrainians to…

A Brief History On December 24, 1913, someone, either as a prank or as an evil way of messing with the crowd, yelled, “Fire!” in the crowded Italian Hall in Calumet, Michigan.  The Christmas party turned tragic when 73 people died in the crush to escape the false fire. Digging Deeper When discussing “Freedom of Speech,” the example of falsely calling out “Fire!” in a crowded place is often cited as an exception.  Some other exceptions include: Counterfeit currency. False advertising and speech that is copyrighted or otherwise owned by another. False statements, which include Slander and Libel, the spoken…

A Brief History On December 22, 1975, President Gerald Ford ordered a national stockpile of oil, or petroleum if you prefer, be created in underground storage located in Texas and Louisiana.  The stockpile would consist of as many as 714 million barrels of oil and would be there if a national crisis mandated its use. Digging Deeper During the October 1973 Arab-Israeli War, Arab and Muslim oil producing countries followed Saudi Arabia’s lead to embargo oil from nations aiding Israel, most notably the United States.  International oil prices soared from an average of $3 per barrel to $12 per barrel…

A Brief History On December 19, 1974, former governor of New York, Nelson Rockefeller, was sworn in as Vice President of the US.  Gerald Ford had previously served as Vice President when Spiro Agnew resigned in disgrace in 1973, meaning that both the President and the Vice President in late 1974 had both not been elected to office! Digging Deeper The office of Vice President has long been derided as a trivial position, with John Adams, our first Vice President, calling it “the most insignificant Office,” and John Garner, FDR’s first VP calling the job, “almost wholly unimportant.” Critics of…

A Brief History On December 16, 1863, after bungling the defense of Chattanooga, Confederate Army General Braxton Bragg was replaced as Commander of the Army of Tennessee by General Johnston.  Nevertheless, a major US Army base was named after Bragg. Digging Deeper Many other American places have been named after people infamous for their failures, including: Fort Polk, Louisiana, named after Confederate General Leonidas Polk, a political appointee with no significant military experience and poor performance during the Civil War.  Fort Polk is now Fort Johnson. Custer, South Dakota and Custer City, Oklahoma, named after US Army Lt. Col. George…