The headlines are - and have been - all over the place:

Women Bask in New Speaker's Shining Moment
Pelosi Becomes Most Powerful Elected Woman in D.C.
Pelosi leads wave of women making political history
Pelosi, Champion of Women's Issues, To Lead Dems
Making history: Pelosi poised to shatter Capitol's 'marble ceiling,' draw more women into politics

If I follow the MSM, I am supposed to be reveling in the fact that a woman is now Speaker of the House - regardless of my political views, regardless of her qualifications. I am supposed to be thrilled at my vicarious ascension to power.

Baloney. All this orgy of attention does, in my opinion, is point out how very far we still have to go in the area of gender equality.

I've mentioned before that my father and I couldn't be farther apart in our philosophical or political views. Well, one of the most heated arguments I ever had with him occurred when I was 17 or 18, after I had taken my SAT's. A friend of his had asked me what I scored. I replied that I had gotten a 1310. His response? "Wow, that's a pretty good score for a girl."

"That's a pretty good score for anyone," I replied.

And then the argument began. I was taken to task for daring to say what I did. My ultra-liberal father didn't expect me to stand up for myself, apparently. I was expected to appreciate the 'compliment' of someone impressed that a girl could be smart.

And he completely failed to see the blatant insult in that.

Granted, as the first woman to achieve the position of Speaker of the House, Ms. Pelosi is unique. However, to turn that simple distinguishing characteristic into days of headlines based on her gender only reveals that we're still very far from equality.

The same camp that constantly squawks about how far we have to go in the area of women's' rights also crows at every achievement, as if it's some big surprise that a woman could get there. So who is it that perpetuates inequality? And where was all of this reveling when Condoleeza Rice became Secretary of State? After all, she's a woman - and she's African-American! Doubly remarkable that she could actually get a good job, right?

This is where the Liberal mindset is truly insidious. Look at things like Ebonics and Affirmative Action. While lauded as grand steps to equality, all programs like this do is perpetuate the thinking that those groups need help to achieve. Ebonics, for example, basically says that since African-American students are incapable of speaking proper English, we'll have to dumb down our speaking for them. That's reprehensible. And Affirmative Action says that since there's no other way a minority will get a good job, we have to make sure we get them one - whether or not they're actually qualified. Also reprehensible. It fosters the dependence so necessary to maintain power for the Libs. Their success, their power, relies on people needing them. After all, how are these groups to achieve without the Libs? Certainly, they can't do it on their own. Disgusting.

Martin Luther King, Jr., once spoke of his vision of true equality - that someday his children would be judged by who they were, not by the color of their skin. The true wisdom of his statement has been consistently overlooked. He was not speaking of things like Affirmative Action, Ebonics, and hand-outs. What he was saying was that someday, it wouldn't matter at all - in effect, that no one would notice what color someone's skin was. He was saying that someday, people would just be people. I highly doubt that the current Lib mindset would cut it.

Reveling in every single achievement - "Wow, she can walk in a straight line - and she's a woman!" - is not equality. It's just as wrong as negative action. Making the simplest action remarkable because of a person's gender, race, religion, etc. is not equality. It is the same thing as barring them from something because of that characteristic; they are two sides of the same coin.

Recently, I was watching the shuttle landing, and was stung by the big deal made of the first female to land a shuttle - and the mention that this showed how far women have come. If we'd really achieved equality, she would just have been the person landing the shuttle, and no mention of her gender would need to have been made.

Those who supposedly champion equality are doing more than anyone else is to prevent it. The "feminists" malign any woman who chooses to raise a family instead of work. They constantly gripe about supposed inequity in the workplace, without bothering to find out how many women are actually interested in pursuing certain fields, or seeing if something OTHER than malice is preventing women from achieving. In advertising, making jokes about men is OK; making jokes about women draws fire. Racist terminology is OK if it's used by one group, but not by another.

Billions of dollars were poured into women's health programs after a study determined that women were more likely to die of a heart attack than men were. The result? Deaths of women by heart attack dropped dramatically, and now men are far more likely to die of one. Where's the money pouring into men's health programs? Completely absent.

When it was found that girls were not achieving in certain educational areas, billions of dollars were poured into programs to help them. The result? Girls gained ground, and boys lost it.

This is not equality.

Two areas where women are achieving significant equality are crime and infidelity. Violent crime perpetrated by women has increased dramatically. Bravo. Thank goodness the Libs are there for us, eh? Oh, and now the percentage of married women who report infidelity is almost equal to that of men. I am woman - hear me roar.

I am an executive in a company. I answer directly to the company president, who does not happen to be White. It is one of the most diverse companies I have ever seen - and we hire based on qualifications. In my work life, I have only seen one instance of what I would consider to be discrimination against me - at an interview, I was once asked if I planned to have kids (because if I was, that would negatively impact on my ability to work). The person who asked that question was a woman. Oh, and there was another woman who wanted to make sure that I advertised only in certain sources when I was hiring - to make sure we got the "right" kind of applicants. I told her exactly what I thought of that idea, and what the law required. When I was younger, unemployed, engaged, and facing possible cancer, I called social services to find out about assistance that might be available to me. I was told - and I kid you not - that if I wasn't "Black or pregnant," I had no hope of getting assistance. If I knew then what I know now, I'd have sued.

Nondiscrimination means NONdiscrimination. Treat people fairly. And in my opinion, acting as if people of a certain ethnicity, gender, race, religion, etc. can't achieve without you boosting them is just as disgusting as actively trying to prevent them from achieving - maybe even more so.

Look at the cases of pretty female teachers sleeping with teenage boys. Don't think for a moment that if this were a male teacher, he'd have avoided jail time. People would be ready to string him up - even if the teenage girl had been the one to initiate things. Yet jail time is avoided, and excuses are made when the teacher is female. Either it's excusable, or it's not.

The laws are in place to address those who discriminate. Refuse to hire, house, or serve someone solely based on a protected class, and you're breaking the law. All of this other stuff only perpetuates the myth that certain groups can't achieve on their own merit.

True equality will be achieved when we no longer need to point out the gender, race, etc. of a successful person - when these things are not remarkable.

I have a dream...

We are a long way from true equality. And I ain't basking.

Labels: My Two Cents, opinion, politics

Sow-er Feelings
Texas man staging elaborate pig races near planned mosque site after being asked to move. VIDEO

Colonel Bob McCarthy, 41 from East Bridgewater, Mass. and a Police Transition Team leader with Regimental Combat Team 5, 1st Marine Division, kneels down to speak some words of encouragement to a recovering Riyam Shihan. Riyam’s cousin was trying to close a heavy, metal door, at a home in Habbaniyah when it became unhinged and fell on Riyam, crushing her skull. When she arrived at TQ Surgical, her condition deteriorated quickly. Fearing the worst, doctors and corpsmen “launched into action,” said Lt. Cmdr. Pamela C. Harvey, 39 from Muscatine, Iowa and a doctor with TQ Surgical, 1st Marine Logistics Group (Forward). In the early hours of October 14th, an unconscious Riyam Shihan was flown to a higher level hospital. TQ Surgical’s staff doubted she would survive the required surgery, much less walk and talk again. So when Riyam walked back into the hospital a month later and asked for strawberry bubble gum, surgeons and corpsmen were amazed. “I couldn’t believe it,” said Cmdr. Tracy R. Bilski, a trauma surgeon for TQ Surgical. Upon seeing the girl’s outcome, Bilski, 38 from Bellmawr, N.J. burst into tears of shock and joy. “(The sheik) is in charge of six thousand people, and all of them know this story, and soon all of their friends will know this story,” said Hameed. Riyam’s grandfather has also informed many other sheiks, who will probably inform their people, he added. “Saving this girl’s life,” said Hameed, “was like saving all of Iraq.”

Photo by: Lance Cpl. Geoffrey P. Ingersoll
Photo ID: 20071565929
Submitting Unit: 1st Marine Logistics Group
Photo Date:11/23/2006

Read the story associated with this photo

Would someone explain to me why we aren't securing our borders? Oh, that's because everyone coming across is just peaceful, benevolent, and looking for a better life, right?

No, nothing untoward goes on at the border - and if there is trouble, it's just caused by us American meanies, trying to deny these poor people their "right" to enter the country.

Tell that to the National Guard:

Gunmen Attack National Guard Border Patrol Site in Arizona

Friday, January 05, 2007
Associated Press

TUCSON, Ariz. — National Guard troops working at an observatory post near the Mexican border were forced to flee after being approached by a group of armed individuals, authorities said.

The event occurred about 11 p.m. Wednesday at one of the National Guard entrance identification team posts near Sasabe, said National Guard Sgt. Edward Balaban.

He said the troops withdrew safely, no shots were fired and no one suffered injuries.

U.S. Border Patrol officials are investigating the incident and trying to determine who the armed people were, what they were doing and why they approached the post before retreating to Mexico.

The incident occurred in the west desert corridor between Nogales and Lukeville in the vicinity of Sasabe, Balaban said.

"We don't know exactly how many because obviously it took place in the dark," Balaban said. "Nobody was able to get an accurate count."

The Guard troops are not allowed to apprehend illegal entrants...

OK, so we have troops who are not allowed to apprehend anyone, not allowed to fire - hell, if we're going to do that, why not make it a U.N. operation??

Isn't this sort of thing - armed persons from another nation advancing on our troops - an act of war? And this isn't the first such incident - only in the past, they have fired at Border Patrol agents.

What were they intending to do this time, bring care packages?




Make sure you've taken any needed blood pressure medication before reading the rest of the story here

Labels: border control, immigration, opinion

Honor Guard gives President Ford final honors
The Armed Forces Honor Guard prepares for the arrival of President Gerald R. Ford's body in front of the the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum Jan. 2 in Grand Rapids, Mich. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Cecilio M. Ricardo Jr.)

From Kathy:

Time for the first official update regarding Operation: Valentine! :) In yesterday's mail (at home), I received 200 beautiful clay hearts , each in a small plastic baggie with a slip of paper that says something like, " As you hold this heart, know that you are held in our hearts back home... you are our hero !" from "Hearts 4 Heroes ," a truly wonderful organization. Have not ventured to the post office yet to check the P.O. Box to see what kinds of goodies are waiting there for me-- will most likely do so this weekend some time.

I've sent these hearts before to my adopted soldiers and veterans, and they've always been a big hit. So... to the folks at Hearts 4 Heroes...THANK YOU! :) And thanks to everyone who is working on making Operation: Valentine a success! Y'all are AWESOME!

For more information regarding Operation: Valentine, CLICK HERE

Norfolk, Va. (Jan. 4, 2007) - Line handlers stand at parade rest as the amphibious transport dock ship USS Shreveport (LPD 12) departs Naval Station Norfolk. Shreveport is part of the Bataan Expeditionary Strike group (ESG), which is deploying in support of the ongoing rotation of forward-deployed forces. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Lolita Lewis

Many of you may have seen this already, but I just found it.

SNL did a send-up of Nancy Pelosi that is too funny not to share. Probably not what you want to be checking out at work, but really funny. I definitely prefer it to yesterday's speech.



David over at the Thunder Run is taking a look at what the Left is saying about Nancy's swearing-in - Check it out

KEEPING WATCH — U.S. Army Sgt. Munraj Singh, of Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 102nd Infantry Regiment, looks out over the village of Dingak, Afghanistan, while soldiers with his unit search for possible enemy observation posts and weapons caches, Jan. 3, 2007. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Michael L. Casteel

News of Note
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Bush to Reveal Iraq Strategy Next Week
Bush's Iraq fresh start to include new advisers - Video
Iraq threatens arrest of police officer
Iraqi PM accuses Sunni clerics of fuelling tension
Marines in Iraq Surpass Reenlistment Goal

Homeland Security / War on Terror / Hamas-Hezbollah Happenings
New Al Qaeda Rallying Cry
Zawahiri urges Muslims to join fight in Somalia
Hamas Gunmen Kill Palestinian Security Chief
Abbas and Haniyeh agree to defuse tensions in Gaza
9/11 hijacker friend seeks halt to sentence hearing
Pakistan court remands London plot suspect in custody
Gunmen kidnap five Chinese workers in Nigeria

Other Military News
Bush to Name New Military Leadership
Army Eyes Advanced Hypersonic Weapon

Religion of Peace??
Somali Islamists weakened, not defeated
Somali, Ethiopian troops prepare assault

Worldwide Wackos
China urges Iran to respond to U.N. resolution
Activity spotted at North Korea nuclear test site

Politics / Government
Historic Firsts for New House
Nancy Pelosi Elected First Female House Speaker
First Muslim Congressman Uses Koran in Photo-Op
Ethics Package Leads Way in New Congress
REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK: Lofty Language, Unpredictable Kids
VIDEO: House Confirms First Female Speaker
Lofty Language, Unpredictable Children Mark Pelosi Vote
George H.W. Bush Has Hip Replacement
White House Counsel Harriet Miers Resigns
Nuke Weapons Head Ousted After Lax Security
"No back rubs," Bush tells Germany's Merkel
2008 buzz fills the halls of Congress
Statement may allow gov't to open mail
Lawmakers to debate 'pay as you go' rule

In the Courts / Crime and Punishment
'He Has Motive and Opportunity'
VIDEO: Prof Carries Drink in One Hand, Wife's Coffin in Other
Washington Teen Refuses to Tell Cops Why He Shot and Killed Fellow Student
Former Duke Student Sues University, Says Professor Gave Him Bad Grade for Being on Lacrosse Team
Duke Rape Accuser Gives Birth to Baby Girl
12-Year-Old Special Education Student Charged With Disorderly Conduct for Wetting Pants
Cops Find SUV Possibly Tied to Bronco Slay
U.S. death sentences drop to 30-year low

U.N. News
Source: Iraq Envoy to Be U.N. Ambassador
U.N. Can't Punish Bad Peacekeepers

Media in the Media / Bloggers in the News / Watching the Web
YouTube ordered to block video in Brazil

Science / Nature
Parents Under Fire for Making Daughter Stay Child Forever
Surgery on girl raises ethical questions
Robot mother helps South Koreans prepare for birth
NASA veteran takes reins at Kennedy Space Center
Russian rocket rains space junk on western U.S
Orphaned bear cub not hibernating

News from My Neck of the Woods
Estate of Missing Connecticut Man to Receive Over $1 Million From Cruise Line
Connecticut DMV Instructor Accused of Giving Passing Grade in Exchange for Striptease

Oddities
Saddam Hanging Blamed in Houston Boy's Accidental Death (Give me a flippin' break)
Bank issues credit card to cat
A guide to understanding rude Parisians

Other News of Note
American Sailor Adrift off Chile's Coast Rescued
Feds Indict Man in Grenade Attack Plot
More coup rumors rattle Bangkok

Fox News
Gates-Backed Company Offers Microjets
Playboy Wants Miss USA Tara Conner on Cover; Trump Reportedly Mulling Offer
Hybrid Discs, Machines May Soon End DVD Format War
GRRR! Britney Spears' 'Collapse'
Spokane Diocese to Pay $48M for Sex Abuse

Reuters: Top News
Indonesia says no timeline for plane search - Video
Fiji coup leader sworn in as premier - Video
Boosting intelligence among poor is child's play
Price battle hits soaring Christmas handset market
Italy gives Litvinenko contact withering welcome
Slovak PM riding high on popular measures
Boosting intelligence among poor is child's play
Soap and water as good as sanitizers to clean hands
Judge freezes O.J. Simpson's "If I Did It" money
Liz Hurley to wear pink sari for wedding: report
Motorola shares drop on outlook
Futures point down; eyes on Motorola, jobs
Oil below $56 after plunge on mild weather
Nokia shares fall as Motorola warns on Q4
BOJ hike talk boost yen; dollar awaits payrolls
Refining, not running
Big Oil braces for battle
Best Buy December same-store sales up 7 percent
GM CEO sees more job cuts in 2007
Price battle hits soaring Christmas handset market
Motorola cuts view on cell phone results
QBE to buy Winterthur for $1.2 bln
Amaranth founder may start new business: report

AP World News
No survivors found at plane S.C. crash
Stock futures fall ahead of payroll data
J.Lo honored by People en Espanol
Bill Cowher expected to resign Friday
Teen pleads not guilty in school slaying
GM vows to defend title against Toyota
Woman sues Oprah studio over show injury
Taylor takes AP Defensive Player honors
Art Shell steps down as Raiders coach
Gap woes deepen in bleak holiday season
For extreme tree hunters, redwoods rule
Bush to name retired admiral as top spy
Yanks, D-Backs agree on Big Unit trade
FTC fines weight loss pill firms $25M
Lohan to have surgery to remove appendix

Military.com
2007 COLA Rate Calculator
Op-ed: What's Hillary's Problem?
The Best of the Milblogosphere
DT: Contractor Abuse at Gitmo?
Somebody Else's Turn to Fight?
Podcast: Saddam's Death and the Surge
COLA Rates Updated

CENTCOM: News Releases
COMBINED TASK FORCE 150 MAINTAINS PRESENCE OFF EAST COAST OF AFRICA

TRIGGERMEN, BOMB MAKER DETAINED IN JOINT OPERATION

TROOPS SEIZE ANTI-AIRCRAFT WEAPONS, FIND IED

U.S. AND IRAQI TROOPS DETAIN TWO, FIND CACHE

IRAQI ARMY, COALITION TROOPS FIND THREE WEAPONS CACHES NEAR TAJI

USJFCOM
U.S. Joint Forces Command bringing together military, interagency for Multinational Experiment 5 - podcast
2006 -- The Year in Review
USJFCOM gets approval to connect U.S., Australian networks - podcast

Department of Defense
NEWS UPDATES
Iraqis, Coalition Detain Suspects - Story
Stability & Security in Iraq Report (pdf)
For Top News Visit DefenseLink

ON THE GROUND
Coalition Ships Maintain Presence off Africa - Story
Warrior Brigade Re-enlists More Than 120 - Story
Infantry Soldiers Help Injured Iraqi Children - Story
U.S. Army Veterinarian Tends to Iraqi Animals - Story
Stateside Communities Rally Support for Marines - Story

IN IRAQ
Iraqi Police Graduates Begin Working in Baqubah
Physical Therapy Team Comes to Front Line
Soldiers Work Fast to Keep Aircraft Refueled
Top Marines Visit Camp Taqaddum in Iraq
Raids in Iraq Yield Terrorists, Terror Leaders
Stryker Brigade Reunites in Baghdad
Coalition Troops Kill 4 Terrorists; Iraqis Detain 21
Iraqi Doctors Facilitate Change in Healthcare

IN AFGHANISTAN
Afghan Officials, U.S. Troops Open Runway
Chief of Chaplains Brings Support to Region
Buccaneers Return from Afghanistan Tour

BACKGROUND
IRAQ
Renewal In Iraq
Iraq: Security, Stability
Fact Sheet: Progress and Work Ahead
Report: Strategy for Victory in Iraq
Iraq Daily Update
This Week in Iraq
Multinational Force Iraq
State Dept. Weekly Iraq Report (PDF)
'Boots on the Ground' Audio Archive
Weekly Reconstruction Report (PDF)
Iraq Reconstruction
Maps

AFGHANISTAN
Afghanistan Update
Maps

WAR ON TERRORISM
Fact Sheet: Budget Request
Fact Sheet: War on Terror
Fact Sheet: Terror Plots Disrupted
Waging and Winning the War on Terror
Terrorism Timeline
Terrorism Knowledge Base

CASUALTIES
Officials Identify Army Casualties - Story

Weather
Afghanistan
Bost/Laskar Ghurian Herat Kabul Qandahar

Germany
Ansbach Aschaffenburg Berlin Berlin-Tempelhof Berlin/Schonefeld Bremerhaven
Darmstadt Frankfurt Frankfurt/Main Freiburg/Breisgau Garmisch
Garmisch-Partenkirchen Geilenkirchen Gelnhausen Giessen Kitzingen
Hanau Am Main Heidelberg Mainz Mannheim Nurnberg Stuttgart Trier
Wiesbaden Wurzburg

Gitmo

Guam
Agana Agana Heights Agat Andersen AFB Asan Barrigada

Iraq
Al Azamiyah Al Basrah Al Hillah Al Karkh Al Kazimiyah Al Kut
An Nasiriyah Baghdad Baqubah Mosul Najaf Nineveh Tall Kayf

Japan
Kadena Air Base Okinawa Tokyo Yokohama

Philippines
Baler Radar Site Catanduanes Radar Site Manila

South Korea
Cheju Upper/Radar Chonju Chunchon Inch'on Kunsan Masan Mokp'o
Osan Pusan Seoul Suwon Taegu Taejon Tonghae Radar Site Ulsan Yosu

* If you're deployed, and want to see your location's weather listed here, please email me! *

Today in History
1349 - Margaretha of Bavaria names her son Willem V Earl of Holland/Zealand
1438 - Pope Eugenius IV deallocated council of Basel to Ferrara
1477 - Battle at Nancy, Burgundy vs Switzerland, 7000+ killed
1500 - Duke Ludovico Sforza's troops reconquer Milan
1531 - Pope Clemens VII forbids English king Henry VIII to re-marry
1554 - Great fire in Eindhoven, Netherlands
1593 - William Louis of Nassau becomes Governor/Viceroy of Drenthe
1638 - Petition in Recife Brazil leads to closing of their 2 synagogues
1675 - Battle at Turkheim (Colmar) French army beats Brandenburg
1709 - Sudden extreme cold kills 1000s of Europeans
1717 - Prussian King Frederik Willem I buys conscript for nobles
1719 - England/Hannover/Saxony-Poland/Austria sign anti-Prussian/Russian pact
1757 - Failed assassination attempt on French king Louis XV by Damiens
1776 - Assembly of New Hampshire adopts its 1st state constitution
1781 - British naval expedition led by Benedict Arnold burns Richmond VA
1804 - Ohio legislature passes 1st laws restricting free blacks movement
1809 - Treaty of Dardanelles concluded between Britain & France
1822 - Central America proclaims annexation to Mexican Empire
1825 - Alexandre Dumas fights his 1st duel
1834 - Kiowa Indians record this as the night the stars fell
1836 - Davy Crockett arrives in Texas -- just in time for the Alamo
1841 - James Clark Ross (UK) is 1st to enter pack ice near Ross Ice Shelf
1854 - Steamship San Francisco wrecked-300 die
1859 - 1st steamboat sails, Red River
1861 - Alabama troops seize Forts Morgan & Gaines at Mobile Bay; 250 Federal troops are sent from New York to Fort Sumter
1875 - President Grant sends federal troops to Vicksburg MS
1888 - Dutch Heidemaatschappij established
1892 - 1st successful auroral photograph made
1895 - French Captain Alfred Dreyfus, convicted of treason, publicly stripped of his rank; later declared innocent
1896 - German physicist Wilhelm Roentgen's discovers x-rays
1903 - San Francisco-Hawaii telegraph cable opens for public use
1905 - Charles Perrine announces discovery of Jupiter's 7th satellite, Elara; National Association of Audubon Society incorporates
1909 - Colombia recognizes Panamá's independence
1911 - Portuguese expel Jesuits
1916 - Austria-Hungary offensive against Montenegro
1918 - British premier Lloyd George demand for unified peace
1919 - National Socialist Party (Nazi) forms as German Farmers Party; Spartacus uprising in Berlin state of siege
1925 - Nellie Taylor Ross became Governor of Wyoming, 1st woman governor in USA; Under Polish control, Danzig establishes Port Gdansk post office
1929 - Coup by King Alexander in South Slavia
1930 - Mao Tse-tung writes "A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire"
1933 - Work on Golden Gate Bridge begins, on Marin County side
1937 - Only unicameral state legislature in US opens 1st session (Nebraska)
1940 - FCC hears 1st transmission of FM radio with clear, static-free signal; Finnish offensive at Suomossalmi against Russia
1941 - British/Australian troops conquer Bardia Lybia
1942 - 55 German tanks reach North-Africa
1943 - William H. Hastie, civilian aide to secretary of war, resigns to protest segregation in armed forces
1945 - Pepe LePew debuts in Warner Bros cartoon "Odor-able Kitty"; Surprise attack on Liese-Aktion-office on Marnix St, Amsterdam;
1949 - President Harry S Truman labels his administration the "Fair Deal"; General Spoor orders cease-fire on Sumatra
1952 - Flying Enterprise sinks
1953 - Passenger ships Willem Ruys & Orange collide in the Red Sea
1957 - Eisenhower asks Congress to send troops to the Mid East
1959 - "Bozo the Clown" live children's show premieres on TV
1961 - US breaks diplomatic relations with Cuba
1964 - Pope Paul VI visits Jordan & Israel
1968 - Dr. Benjamin Spock indicted for conspiring to violate draft law; Dubcek succeeds President Novotny as party leader of Czechoslovakia
1969 - USSR Venera 5 launched for 1st successful planet landing (Venus)
1970 - 23,000 Belgian mine workers strike
1971 - Harlem Globetrotters lose 100-99 to New Jersey Reds, ending 2,495-game win streak
1972 - President Nixon signs a bill for NASA to begin research on manned shuttle; West-Pakistani sheik Mujib ur-Rahman freed
1973 - Mali & Niger break diplomatic relations with Israel; Netherlands recognizes German Democratic Republic
1975 - 14 die when British freighter "Lake Illawarra" rams pylon bridge between Derwent & Hobart, Tasmania & ship sinks; Salyut 4 with crew of 2 is launched for 30 days
1976 - "MacNeil-Lehrer Report" premieres on PBS; Cambodia is renamed "Democratic Kampuchea"
1977 - Kenya President Jomo Kenyatta disbands parliament
1981 - British police arrest Peter Sutcliffe, a truck driver later convicted of "Yorkshire Ripper" murders of 13 women
1982 - Arkansas judge rules against obligatory teaching of creation
1988 - Austrian President Waldheim's war record investigated
1989 - 2 French TV newsmen arrested for trying to plant fake bombs on three airlines at JFK airport in security test
1991 - Kevin Bradshaw of US International scores NCAA Division 1 record 72 points
1995 - Lockheed C-140 Jetstar crashes at Isfahan Persia, 18 killed
1998 - Vandals decapitate Copenhagen's Little Mermaid

Birthdays
1759 - Jacques Cathelineau, French royalist/army leader
1779 - Stephen Decatur, US Naval hero (War of 1812); Zebulon Montgomery Pike, explorer (Pike's Peak)
1813 - Thomas Neville Waul, Confederate Brigadier General
1822 - Joseph Brevard Kershaw, Confederate Major General
1828 - August Valentine Kautz, Union Brevet Major General
1840 - John Doby Kennedy, Confederate Brigadier General
1848 - Khristo Botev, hero of Bulgarian revolt against Turkey, poet
1855 - King Camp Gillette, inventor (safety razor)
1859 - DeWitt B. Brace, inventor (spectrophotometer)
1874 - Joseph Erlanger, doctor (shock therapy-Nobel 1944)
1876 - Konrad Adenauer, chancellor of Germany (1949)
1896 - Hendrik Algra, Dutch MP (ARP)
1900 - Yves Tanguy, French/US sailor/surrealistic painter
1901 - H.L. Honore comte d'Estienne d'Orves, French officer/resistance fighter; Mario Scelba, premier Italy (1954-55)
1912 - Frank Pace, Jr., US Secretary of Army (1950-53)
1921 - Jean d'Aviano, grand duke of Luxembourg (1964- )
1923 - Robert L. Bernstein, publisher (Random House)
1928 - Walter Fritz Mondale (Senator-MN)/42nd US Vice President (1977-81); Zulfikar Ali Khan Bhutto President/Premier (Pakistan)
1930 - Edward Galven Givens Jr Quanah TX, Major USAF/astronaut
1932 - Raïsa Maximovna Titorenko Gorbachev, Russia's First Lady (1982-1991)
1935 - Nancy L. Johnson (Representative-CT, 1983- )
1938 - Juan Carlos I, King of Spain (1975- )
1947 - Michael DeWine (Representative-OH, 1983- )

Passings
1066 - King Edward the Confessor of England
1387 - Pedro IV king of Aragon/conqueror of Sicily, dies at 67
1425 - John of Bavaria/Bayern liege of Holland/Zealand/Dordrecht, poisoned
1477 - Charles the Bold, duke of Burgundy/writer, dies at 43
1589 - Catherine de' Medici Queen mother of France, dies at 69
1592 - Willem II, Duke of Gulik/Kleef/Gelre, dies at about 75
1762 - Elisabeth Petrovna tsarina of Russia (1741-62), dies at 52
1796 - Samuel Huntington, US judge (signed Declaration of Independence), dies at 64
1827 - Frederick of York English duke/bishop/General , dies at 63
1858 - Johann Radetzky von Radetz Austrian earl/field marshal, dies at 91
1860 - St John Nepomucene Neumann 1st male US saint, dies
1891 - Guillaume L. Baud, Dutch minister of Colonies (1848-49), dies at 89
1922 - Sir Ernest Shackleton, Antarctic explorer (Endurance), dies aboard his ship at 47
1933 - Calvin Coolidge 30th President (1923-29), dies in Northampton MA at 60
1942 - Yves Paringaux French chief of staff, murdered
1943 - George Washington Carver, famous Black American agricultural scientist, dies at 81
1952 - Victor Alexander John Hope, viceroy of India (1936-43), dies at 64
1960 - Pavel P. Parenago Russia, cosmonaut, dies at 53
1970 - Joseph A. Yablonski, candidate for United Mine Workers president, murdered; Max Born German/British physicist (Nobel 1954), dies at 87
1973 - Cornelis van Dis, Dutch MP (SGP), dies at 79
1981 - Harold C. Urey, US chemist (Deuterium, Nobel 1934), dies at 87
1991 - Vasko Popa Serbian, WWII-partisan/poet (Sporedno Nebo), dies at 68
1993 - George L. George, Russian/US journalist/director/producer, dies at 85; Henk Knol, Suriname MP (PvdA), dies at 61; 1993 Klaas Wiersma Dutch Secretary of Justice (VVD), dies; Nyamuisi Muvingi Zaire minister of Culture, murdered
1994 - Thomas P. "Tip" O'Neill (D-MA)/Speaker of House (1977-86), dies at 81
1995 - Yahya Ayyash, PLO bomb maker, booby trapped cellular phone at 28
1998 - Sonny Bono (Representative-CA)/singer (Sonny & Cher), dies skiing at 62

Reported Missing in Action
1967
Stratton, Richard A., USN (MA); A4E shot down, released by DRV March, 1973 - alive and well as of 1998

1968
The following US Army personnel reported MIA when their UH1C was shot down:
Anton, Francis G. (NJ); pilot, released by DRV March, 1973 - retired as a CW4 - alive and well as of 1998

Lewis, Robert III (TX); crewchief, released by PRG - alive as of 1998

Pfister, James F., Jr. (IN); doorgunner, released by PRG March, 1973 - alive as of 1998

The following US Army personnel reported MIA when their UH1D was shot down:
Brigs, Ernest F. (TX); crew chief

Gallagher, John T., US Army SF (CT); passenger

Hamilton, Dennis C. (IA); aircraft commander

Schultz, Sheldon D. (PA); pilot

Williamson, James D. (WA); crewman

Also reported MIA in 1968:
Foulks, Ralph E., Jr., USN (CA); A4E disappeared on bombing mission - remains ID'd January, 1993

Fantle, Samuel, USAF (SD); F105F shot down (w/Hartney), Killed in Captivity, remains returned by SRV September, 1977

Hartney, James C. USAF (FL); F105F shot down (w/Fantle), remains returned, ID'd November, 1989

Jones, William E., USAF (TX); F105D shot down, remains recovered August, 1985

Schweitzer, Robert J., USN (PA); A4E shot down released by DRV March, 1973 - deceased (auto accident in 1974

1970
Burnes, Robert Wayne, USMC (OK); F4B crashed (backseater, w/Robinson), KIA, body not recovered

Robinson, Larry Warren, USMC (NE); F4B crashed (pilot, w/Burnes); KIA, body not recovered

1971
Cramer, Donald M., US Army (MO); AH1G disappeared on training mission