A Brief History On May 9, 1941, German submarine U-110 was forced to the surface by a British corvette and a destroyer that were escorting a convoy attacked by the sub.  U-110 had been a successful attack submarine, but on this day, depth charges forced the boat to the surface. Digging Deeper Damaged and in danger of sinking, the captain ordered the sub abandoned and scuttled, but in their haste to get off the sub that was also under fire from the British, the crew failed to scuttle the sub. U-110 was not sinking, so the British kept German sailors…

A Brief History On May 8, 2019, a British teenager became the first patient to receive bacteriophage therapy to treat an antibiotic resistant infection.  The use of bacteriophages, which are viruses that attack bacteria cells, to treat bacterial infections was an idea that went back many decades but was superseded by the widespread use of antibiotic drugs. Digging Deeper Those same antibiotics, while highly successful, have caused mutations in bacteria that make those pathogens resistant to the antibiotics and difficult to treat with normal methods.  The use of genetically altered bacteriophages results in fewer side effects and less chance of…

A Brief History On May 7, 1992, the State of Michigan ratified the 27th Amendment after a two century struggle to pass this “common sense” law, namely that Congress cannot give itself a raise during a current term. Digging Deeper Laws are by nature political, and therefore differences of opinion about what is a “good” law generates fierce debate, but we offer some ideas for laws that we think are good and invite you to nominate your own ideas. Term limits for elected officials, especially in Congress, and also for the Supreme Court and Federal Courts. Mandatory ethical standards for…

A Brief History On May 6, 2001, Pope John Paul II of the Roman Catholic Church became the first pope to ever set foot in a mosque when he entered the Great Omayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria, during a visit to that predominantly Muslim country. Digging Deeper Born in Wadowice, Poland, in 1920, Karol Józef Wojtyła was the first Catholic pope to hail from Poland and the first non-Italian pope since 1523.  In fact, John Paul II was the first pope ever of any Slavic origin.  John Paul II headed the Catholic Church from 1978 to 2005, the third longest…

A Brief History On May 5, 1945, a rare circumstance arose when German troops fought alongside US Army troops against an attack by the German 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division.  Making the event even more bizarre, freed French prisoners of war joined the Americans and Germans in fighting off the attacking SS soldiers. Digging Deeper The Germans fighting with the Americans to defend Castle Itter in Austria were led by Hauptsturmführer Kurt-Siegfried Schrader of the SS and Major Josef Gangl.  The German soldiers involved had quit fighting for Germany and joined the Austrian resistance. Castle Itter was used to house prisoners,…