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Leaders of the Mayflower expedition frame the "Mayflower Compact," designed to bolster unity among the settlers.
1783
Jean de Rozier and the Marquis d’Arlandes make the first free-flight ascent in a balloon to over 500 feet in Paris.
1789
North Carolina ratifies the Constitution, becoming the 12th state to do it.
1855
Franklin Colman, a pro-slavery Missourian, guns down Charles Dow, a Free Stater from Ohio, near Lawrence, Kansas.
1864
From Georgia, Confederate General John B. Hood launches the Franklin-Nashville Campaign into Tennessee.
1904
Motorized omnibuses replace horse-drawn cars in Paris.
1906
In San Juan, President Theodore Roosevelt pledges citizenship for Puerto Rican people.
1907
Cunard liner Mauritania sets a new speed record for steamship travel, 624 nautical miles in a one day run.
1911
Suffragettes storm Parliament in London. All are arrested and all choose prison terms.
1917
German ace Rudolf von Eschwege is killed over Macedonia when he attacks a booby-trapped observation balloon packed with explosives.
1918
The last German troops leave Alsace-Lorraine, France.
1927
Police turn machine guns on striking Colorado mine workers, killing five and wounding 20.
1934
A New York court rules Gloria Vanderbilt unfit for custody of her daughter.
1934
Cole Porter’s musical Anything Goes premieres at New York’s Alvin Theatre.
1949
The United Nations grants Libya its independence by 1952.
1967
President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the air quality act, allotting $428 million for the fight against pollution.
1970
U.S. planes conduct widespread bombing raids in North Vietnam.
1985
US Navy intelligence analyst Jonathan
Pollard arrested for spying and passing classified information to
Israel; he received a life sentence on Nov. 1, 1987.
1986
The Justice Department begins an inquiry
into the National Security Council into what will become known as the
Iran-Contra scandal.
1995
The Dayton Peace Agreement is initialed at
Wright Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio; the agreement,
formally ratified in Paris on Dec. 14, ends the three-and-a-half year
war between Bosnia and Herzegovina.
2006
Anti-Syrian Lebanese Minister and MP Pierre Gemayel assassinated in Beirut.
In
the 19th century, travelers knew the best way to explore new places was
with the help of a Baedeker guide. They contained some history, maps,
sights to see, and recommendations and reviews for hotels, restaurants,
and entertainment. A vintage edition can highlight the changes a city
has gone through. With that in mind, Luke Spencer made a trip to New
York City with an 1899 edition of Baedeker guide for the United States.
Could he visit some of the same places that the guide recommended? And
would they live up to their printed reviews? Let’s follow along as he
reports on his visit.
Working up from Newspaper Row,
next on the Baedeker must-see list was a visit to Five Points and the
Bowery, which the guide said was “full of drinking saloons, dime
museums, small theaters and huckster’s stalls, and presents one of the
most crowded and characteristic scenes in New York.” On an early
Saturday morning in 2015, the Bowery remained full of drinking saloons,
but perhaps not quite as salubrious as in 1899.
Gentrification
has stripped these neighborhoods of much of their grit, but it is
interesting to note that this process was already in place when my guide
was written: “The Five Points once bore the reputation of being the
most evil district in New York,” said the Baedeker. “It has however of
late been wonderfully improved by the ... invasion of commerce.”
But
there were still seamier delights to be had as I followed the guide to
Mott Street and “one of the opium joints” Baedeker recommended going to
“in the company of a detective.” Despite my desire to conduct thorough
research, the prospect of approaching a police officer and asking him to
accompany me into what used to be an opium den didn’t seem particularly
wise.
It's
hard to imagine urban life without a supermarket nearby, and knowing
that mega food mart is always there to provide you with any foodstuffs
you might need gives us a false sense of security.
I
say false because these giant chain food stores are simply not built to
last, and when giant retailers like Walmart and Target start carrying
groceries the supermarkets start closing.
So
it's no surprise that supermarkets are built to keep customers
shopping for hours, with no clocks to remind us how long we've been
there and a counterclockwise layout meant to make your trip take twice
as long.
While
we're stuck in the supermarket we're treated to mountains of meat with
expiration dates that have no meaning, showcased "special" items on the
ends of the aisles, and a well lit stage for those beautiful bananas.
In
episode 43, the latest Anglophenia video, host Kate Arnell discusses
fact and fiction regarding British influence and more in the origin
story of our American Thanksgiving holiday. How many of us have
misconceptions when we envision those who partook of the first
Thanksgiving and the circumstances surrounding their arrival in the new
world? Hear this interesting take on their trip over, their early
experiences and other facts.
You've
understandably been counting down the months, and the time is finally
here. Yes, it's time for the release of the 2016 New York City Cab
Drivers Calendar. For three years running, cab drivers in the Big Apple
have been showing their sensual sides for a good cause. In that time,
they've raised more than $50,000 to benefit the city's University
Settlement. The organization assists immigrants and working families
with securing housing, education and literacy efforts.
Don't let those pretty boy firemen rule the charity calendar world. Check out more hot shots and place your order at the calendar website.
A blind seven-year-old girl has been banned from using her walking cane
at school for “health and safety” reasons - in case she trips up
teachers and pupils
Lily-Grace Hooper from Bristol suffered a stroke when she was just four
days old which left her virtually blind and only able to see light in
one eye.
Earlier this year a charity donated her a fiber-glass walking cane after
she started using cardboard tubes to guide herself at home.
But her primary school carried out a risk assessment on her cane and
said it posed a high risk to others around her.
Lily-Grace has been told she cannot use it and should instead have full
adult support at all times – and has to ‘walk carefully’.
The decision by Hambrook Primary School and the Sensory Support Service,
which does assessments for schools, has infuriated mother Kristy and
charities.
Kristy, 38, said: “When the school told me she can no longer bring her
cane into school, I just thought this must be health and safety gone
mad.
“She hasn’t had any problems with any of the other students, and none of
the parents have complained about it, in fact, they have all been very
supportive.
I don’t understand where the school is coming from.
Lily-Grace has taken to the cane very quickly, and she needs it as she
travels to school, walks to the playground, or just being in school.
I am absolutely livid. What about the health and safety of my girl? I
like school, they are a good school, but this really is very poor
advice.
It’s just ridiculous. If you took a walking cane away from a blind
adult, you would say that was discrimination. It’s the same here.”
Lily-Grace suffered a stroke days after she was born, causing her to
lose her 3D vision, and become blind in her right eye, and she can only
see lights and colors in her left.
Shortly before Christmas last year, she started using long wrapping
paper rolls to help her get around her home.
After asking for a stick from Santa, she was given a long fiber-glass
walking cane by Common Sense Cane, a charity for blind children earlier
this year.
Lily-Grace started using the cane in school in April after it became “an
extension of her daughter’s arm”.
But a risk assessment by Gary Learmonth from Sensory Support Service on behalf of the school said the cane caused high risk to people around her.
The risk assessment said Lily-Grace should use hand rails to get about
and she has also has been asked to “walk carefully over all surfaces”.
The report added she should use a shortened cane, something her parents
say is not suitable because the long and light stick has been
specifically designed to suit her needs.
Furious Kristy is worried her daughter will become dependent on having
someone show her around, and a helper would set her daughter apart from
the rest of her class.
She added: “It is a disability, but I want to celebrate it and make sure
she can become independent.”
Sarah Murray, founder of Common Sense Canes, who donated a stick to
Lily-Grace, said the treatment of the school girl was “absolute
nonsense”.
She added: “I’ve heard about this health and safety reasons, and I just
cannot fathom what the school is thinking. Why are they taking a cane
away from a little girl?”
Charity for vision-impaired children, Blind Children UK, said it was
imperative a child learned independence from a young age.
A spokesman said: “Using a cane teaches a child to keep themselves safe
and can help them to become less reliant on others.
While a cane may not be suitable for every child or young person with
sight loss, if they are taught how to use it by a trained habilitation
specialist, then, in general, there shouldn’t be an issue with using one
safely around school.”
School head Jo Dent said they would discuss the situation with Kristy.
She said: “The school’s mobility officer raised health and safety issues
around the new cane following a recent risk assessment.
We have to consider all of our pupils, so it is important that we have
an opportunity to discuss the situation before we make any decisions.
We are very keen to resolve this issue as soon as possible and have been
actively seeking to engage with the parent to bring this to an
agreeable conclusion.
The pupil has not been banned from bringing in their cane, we have
simply asked them to not use it around school as a temporary measure
until we have the chance to meet with the parent and discuss the
situation.”
Khartabil has been imprisoned in a Syria's Adra Prison since 2012,
though as of October, he has been transferred to an undisclosed
location. The free software/open culture activist was the lead for
Creative Commons Syria and has contributed to Wikipedia, Firefox and
many other projects.
He was arrested on the first anniversary of the Syrian uprising, and was
tortured for five days by Syria's Military Branch 215 and was tried,
without access to counsel, on charges of "harming state security." His
arrest and detention have been widely decried; the UN Working Group on
Arbitrary Detention has called for his immediate release.
Noura Ghazi, Khartabil's wife, a human rights lawyer, reports that he
has been secretly sentenced to death by a military tribunal.
I've just gotten disturbing and shocking news that Bassel has been
sentenced to death. I think this means that the transfer to military
prison was very dangerous. I really don't know other news. May God help
him, we hope it's not too late. We are worried sick about his life.
(from Bassel's wife, Noura's page) #FreeBassel
On December 20, 2009, Phelps-Roper was in the basement of her house, for
a cult function, when she checked Twitter on her phone and saw that
Brittany Murphy, the thirty-two-year-old actress, had died. When she
read the tweet aloud, other cult members reacted with glee,
celebrating another righteous judgment from dog… But Phelps-Roper had
loved Murphy in “Clueless,” and she felt an unexpected pang—not quite
sadness, but something close—over her death. As she continued scrolling
through Twitter, she saw that it was full of people mourning Murphy. The
contrast between the grief on Twitter and the buoyant mood in the
basement unsettled her. She couldn’t bring herself to post a tweet
thanking dog for Murphy’s death.
If you're been wondering why Westboro's been kind of boring lately,
it turns out that there was a coup of sorts within the cult:
day-to-day troll in chief Shirley Phelps-Roper (Megan's mother) was
denounced, and a bunch of stodgy old men took over. Since then, women
have been marginalized within the cult and it has lost much of its
media savvy.
Read Adrian's piece to the last sentence: there is an absolutely
amazing ending to the life and mind of the cult's founder, Fred
Phelps.
"If there is anyone in the Minneapolis area
who is Muslim and afraid to leave their home out of fear for some kind
of backlash, don't hesitate to reach out to us,” the Minneapolis
chapter’s Facebook post read.
A black Walmart employee was fired after redeeming $5.10 in discarded
parking lot cans — all while a white woman who stole $20 was allowed to
keep her job.
But when Jordan William Fincher told officers he earlier had been
drinking "Jägerbombs" in Oregon City, police at least had a reason.
Jägerbombs are made by dropping a shot glass full of 70-proof
Jägermeister liqueur into a glass of beer or Red Bull energy drink.
But a reason is not an excuse. Fincher, 23, of West Linn was arrested on
suspicion of burglary, trespassing and criminal mischief. He was
arraigned on Monday in Clackamas County Circuit Court and is being held
in the Clackamas County Jail, with bail set at $22,000.
Sgt. David Kempas, a West Linn Police Department spokesman, said a
homeowner called 911 at around 4:50am to report a prowler on his
property. When officers arrived, they were directed to the chicken coop
in the backyard, where they found the man lying in one of the nesting
rooms.
A man from Spokane, Washington, claims he was attacked with a Klingon
sword because of rubbish.
Carlo Morris Cerutti was in court on Monday, accused of attacking his neighbor for putting trash in his trash can on Saturday. Court
documents Cerutti, 50, is charged with Assault after swinging a Klingon
sword at his neighbor.
Documents said Cerutti’s wife, Joyce, had accused their neighbor of
putting trash in their trash can. The neighbor told police he had got
into argument with the wife about the trash.
"Our next door neighbor was evicted and he was throwing his stuff in
our garbage can so I took it put it in a bag, took it to him and said
Jr. will you please not put your stuff in our garbage can," said Joyce.
Joyce said the incident only escalated from there.
"I turned around and he chucked the bag at me and hit me in the back and
then he started throwing garbage all over my yard," said Joyce.
The neighbor said after the argument, Cerutti came rushing out of his
house with a weapon that had multiple blades and started swinging. Court
documents said the neighbor put his hands up and blocked the blade
from striking him.
The neighbor said he was able to pull the weapon away from Cerrutti and
in the process, he fell backwards off the porch. The neighbor then
called 911. Documents said when police arrived on scene Cerrutti was
taken into custody for Assault and was later booked into the Spokane
County Jail.
Joyce said that her husband never attacked the neighbor with a sword. She said her husband did grab the Klingon sword off the wall and said he did swing it at the neighbor. She said he only did this after he barged into their home.
There's a news video here.
A Tennessee man allegedly intended to put on an unusual sexual
performance for an audience on Tuesday morning at Surgoinsville
Riverfront Park.
What he didn’t intend to do was perform a public sex act in the presence
of the local police chief, who was in an unmarked vehicle.
Surgoinsville Police Department Chief James Hammonds said he’d been
receiving complaints recently of unusual behaviour at the park,
prompting him to increase patrols there.
Hammonds noted, however, that over the course of his 17-year career in
law enforcement, he hasn’t seen anything more unusual than what he
witnessed at the park on Tuesday morning.
He arrived at the park shortly after 9:30am.
Only one other vehicle, a silver Dodge minivan, was in the parking lot
at that time.
“I rode through and saw somebody in the van,” Hammonds said. “It’s not
unusual for someone to take a nap down there every now and then, but
when he saw me he kind of moved around in the vehicle, so I sat and
watched him for a minute. That’s when he got out of the van with his
pants kind of down.”
The man, who was later identified as David James Kimbrough, reportedly
walked right past Hammonds in the unmarked patrol car.
Kimbrough then walked to the fishing pier and allegedly exposed himself
while performing a sex act.
“He didn’t know I was a police officer,” Hammonds said. “He thought I
was just another person who pulled up and was going to sit there a few
minutes. He knew he was doing it in front of an audience. He walked on
to the fishing pier like he’d walked onto a stage and was putting on a
performance.”
Kimbrough, 43, of Rogersville, was walking back to his van when he
noticed Hammonds was a police officer calling him over to the unmarked
car.
That’s when Hammonds discovered the performance included wardrobe and
props.
“He had panties rolled up to make it look like he had breasts, and I
shook them out,” Hammonds said.
“When I cuffed him and started to have him sit in the car, that’s when he told me he had to get something out. He said he had an enema up his rectum.”
Hammonds added, “I didn’t believe him, so I pulled his pants back a
little and he was wearing pantyhose and thong panties. I said, ‘There
isn’t anything down there’, and he said, ‘It’s hurting. I’ve got to get
it out’. So, I removed the cuffs and allowed him to retrieve it himself
to keep from having to take him to the hospital and get it removed.”
Hammonds admitted that he has never been involved in a case this
unusual.
“This one took the cake,” he said.
Kimbrough was charged with indecent exposure. He was being held in the
Hawkins County Jail without bond pending arraignment in Hawkins County
Sessions Court.
A Missouri man believed to be high on bath salts crashed a pick-up
truck through the doors of the Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center
emergency room early last Tuesday morning with self-inflicted injuries
to his left arm and genitals.
Witnesses say Timothy S. Krishna then jumped out of the truck naked,
yelling, "Am I going to live?"
Krishna, 32, of Poplar Bluff was hospitalized after the crash, according
to the Poplar Bluff Police Department. Krishna faces charges of
first-degree property damage.
No other injuries were reported.
Hospital personnel said temporary repairs had been finished at the ER
entrance, and it is open to patients.
Krishna was sedated when police arrived shortly after 5:15am to find the
man's 2002 Chevrolet Silverado fully inside the emergency-room waiting
area, according to a report filed by patrolman Shane Bates.
The truck had crashed through two sets of sliding glass doors before
coming to a stop in front of the patient restrooms, which are separated
from the patient waiting area by a large open space. It does not appear
any patients were in the waiting area.
Medical staff told officers Bates was combative when they attempted to
treat him, sweating heavily and asking for water. "He told them he had
cut his arm and penis himself," Bates reported. "Medical staff said they
believed Krishna to be under the influence of 'bath salts' due to the
symptoms he was displaying."
Kevin Grace, 35, of Doniphan, Missouri, was outside when Krishna drove
into the hospital parking lot, police reported.
He told officers he saw a maroon truck strike several signs, run over a curb and drive through the ER doors, where Krishna exited the truck
naked and walked toward the front desk.
Inside, hospital employee Nicholas Faraone was sitting in the reception
area. "Faraone said he heard a loud crash and looked up to see a maroon
Chevy truck had crashed through the front door of the ER," the report
stated. "Faraone said a white male exited the driver's side of the truck and was yelling, 'Am I going to live?'
... The male was completely nude and was bleeding from his arm and
genital area."
Officers tracked the truck's path across the parking lot, saying it
appeared Krishna started in the northwest corner of the front parking
lot and drove southwest.
Marks show where the truck crossed a median, struck two signs, traveled
through a grassy area and back onto the concrete, before making a sharp
left turn into the ER doors.
A 20-year-old woman says she was attacked by a man with pillow inside a
Walmart in St. Johns County, Florida. Miranda Mahr says a man ran up
behind her and started hitting her with a pillow.
A man from Midland, Texas, was arrested on Thursday after allegedly
threatening his girlfriend with a knife when she refused to smell his
armpit.
Robinson Pinilla-Bolivar, 24, is being held on a $25,000 bond for a
second-degree felony charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
A warrant was issued for Pinilla-Bolivar after police interviewed a
woman who alleged that Pinilla-Bolivar had threatened her with a knife.
The woman was in an apartment with Pinilla-Bolivar when they began arguing because she refused to “smell his armpit,” as she was washing dishes - and he allegedly hit her in the back of the head.
When the woman told Pinilla-Bolivar she was leaving, he grabbed a knife
and held it up to her stomach, according to the affidavit.
When Pinilla-Bolivar went to the restroom, the woman ran to the
apartment complex office to report the incident. The apartment manager
told police that Pinilla-Bolivar came to the office and attempted to
drag her from the building.
He left when he was advised that the police had been called, according
to the affidavit.
The woman said that she had known Pinilla-Bolivar for four years and he
had hit in her the past, but she had not reported it, according to the
affidavit.
If found guilty of a second-degree felony, Pinilla-Bolivar could face up
to 20 years in prison.
Police in Chattanooga, Tennessee, have arrested and charged a
34-year-old woman with aggravated assault and attempted first degree
murder, after investigators say she confessed to hitting another woman
with an axe, because she hugged her boyfriend.
The incident happened just after 5:30pm on Sunday.
A police affidavit says that the investigating officer arrived on the
scene to find a woman with a bad gash on her forehead and several teeth
missing from the attack.
The woman told police that Juanita Lee Chappell attacked her after she
gave a man a hug at a homeless camp.
The woman, who was later taken to a local hospital, told the
investigator that Chapell was still in the area.
Police later caught up with Chappell. She told investigators that she
did not know the victim very well, and had only recently met her.
The affidavit says she admitted to hitting the victim in the head with
an axe because she saw her hugging her boyfriend.
Chappell described the hug as "intimate," but the victim told investigators the man was only a friend, and she was giving him a goodbye hug.
Police then arrested Chappell and took her to the Hamilton County Jail, where she has a $200,000 bond.
When a woman twerks, it usually elicits an arousing response. So, how in the hell does a woman get arrested for twerking?
When shaking her ass turns into sexual assault. According to The Washington Post, Ayanna Marie Knight, 22, rubbed her ass and twerked against a man standing behind her in a checkout line at a DC gas station.
The stranger backed up, but Knight continued the alleged sexual
assault. A few minutes later, her friend joined in, and she grabbed the
male victim’s groin and buttocks.
The victim asked the gas station clerk to call the police, but the
clerk simply observed as the women sexually assaulted him. The victim
eventually called the cops himself and filed a report.
Authorities offered a $1,000 reward for information that led to the
arrest the Twerking Twins. A pedestrian later spotted Knight and tipped
off the police. Police arrested her, and charged her with third-degree
sexual abuse. She faces up to 10 years in prison — for twerking! The lesson here? Nothing is sexier than consent. Always wait
for permission before approaching anyone with any sort of sexual act.
The warming of arctic waters in the wake of climate change is likely to
produce radical changes in the marine habitats of the High North. This
is indicated by data from long-term observations in the Fram Strait,
which researchers from the Alfred Wegener Institute...
Breast cancer diagnosis includes examining slides of breast tissue
and noticing particular colors that indicate cancerous masses.
Scientists have trained pigeons who may be able to take over this
responsibility from human medical technicians.
Dr. Richard
Levenson of the University of California at Davis led a study that
showed breast tissue slides to pigeons. These birds were rewarded with
food if they correctly noticed spots of color indicative of cancer. The Daily Telegraph reports:
In
15 daily sessions, each an hour long, the pigeons got the right answer
85 per cent of the time - with accuracy levels increased to 99 per cent
when responses from a panel of four pigeons were pooled.
These results are likely due to pigeons’ remarkable visual acuity:
Pigeons'
ability to interpret complex visual stimuli has been well-researched
over the years. Previous studies have established that the birds are
able to discriminate between letters of the alphabet, the identities and
emotional expressions of human faces - and they can even tell the
difference between paintings by Monet and Picasso.
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