Today in History (February 17th):
1621: Miles Standish was appointed first commander of the Plymouth colony.
1801: The U.S. House of Representatives chose Thomas Jefferson as the third president of the United States after he and Aaron Burr tied in the Electoral College. It took 35 House ballots before Jefferson won and Burr became vice president.
1817: Baltimore became the first U.S. city with gas-burning street lights.
1843: Birthdays: Mail order retailer Aaron Montgomery Ward.
1856: Birthdays: Engraver Frederic Ives.
1867: The first ship passed through the Suez Canal.
1889: Birthdays: Texas oil millionaire H.L. Hunt.
1904: Giacomo Puccini’s Madama Butterfly premiered in Milan, Italy.
1908: Birthdays: Sportscaster Red Barber.
1909: Apache leader Geronimo died while under military confinement at Fort Sill, Okla.
1924: Birthdays: Author Margaret Truman Daniel, daughter of U.S. President Harry Truman.
1925: Birthdays: Actor Hal Holbrook.
1933: Newsweek magazine published its first issue.
1934: Birthdays: Actor Alan Bates.
1936: Birthdays: Football Hall of Fame member and actor Jim Brown.
1940: Birthdays: Singer Gene Pitney.
1942: Birthdays: Political activist Huey P. Newton.
1945: Birthdays: Actor Brenda Fricker.
1954: Birthdays: Actor Rene Russo.
1956: Birthdays: Actor Richard Karn.
1962: Birthdays: Actor Lou Diamond Phillips.
1963: Birthdays: Comedian Larry the Cable Guy, born Daniel Whitney; Basketball Hall of Fame member Michael Jordan.
1965: Birthdays: Film director Michael Bay.
1968: The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame opened in Springfield, Mass.
1974: Birthdays: Actor Jerry O’Connell.
1979: A Prairie Home Companion, hosted by Garrison Keillor, made its debut on National Public Radio.
1981: Birthdays: Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt; Heiress Paris Hilton.
1986: Johnson and Johnson halted production of all non-prescription drugs in capsules following the death of a Peekskill, N.Y., woman from cyanide-laced Extra-Strength Tylenol.
1991: Birthdays: Actor Bonnie Wright.
2002: A series of raids by communist rebels left 137 dead in Nepal.
2003: When security guards used pepper spray to break up a fight at a packed Chicago social club the ensuing panic by patrons resulted in 21 deaths as the crowd stampeded for the exits.
2005: U.S. President George W. Bush nominated John Negroponte to be the first director of national intelligence.
2006: More than 1,000 people were killed in a mudslide that covered a village on Leyte in the central Philippines.
2007: 22-year-old Prince Harry of England was ordered to the front lines in Iraq along with his British army unit. He didn’t go, however, since publicity about his presence was deemed a potential danger to his unit.
The male impotence can cause divorce, cialis sales uk breakup and problems in relationships. Why do we sildenafil pfizer http://www.devensec.com/bylaws/bylaws-exhibitb.html have two of them? Surely we could breathe in more air in a single breath if we had just one, large nasal orifice (a “monostril”, perhaps)? The human body tends to be a victim of erectile dysfunction. Driving the blood towards penis is the most common cause of impotency and various treatments are available that can help to improve blood circulation near at specific places in the body, yet it works find out content buy viagra online wonderfully in nearby areas of male reproductive system. Enough to do one injection purchase generic levitra devensec.com per week to increase their odds of conceiving. 2008: The province of Kosovo declared independence from Serbia as thousands of ethnic Albanians celebrated in the streets but some others resorted to violent protest. The United States and several other nations, including Britain, Germany, and France, recognized Kosovo as a sovereign and independent state. A suicide bomber attacked a crowded dogfight near Kandahar in Afghanistan, killing about 80 people, including a local police chief, and injuring nearly 100.
2009: U.S. President Barack Obama signed the $787 billion stimulus package into law, hoping to create 3.5 million jobs for Americans in the next two years. Most Republican lawmakers argued it contained too much pork-barrel spending and not enough tax cuts. General Motors and Chrysler asked for an additional $14 billion from the government to keep from going bankrupt. That made their total request to $39 billion.
2011: The British government advised same-sex couples they can form civil partnerships in church if they wish. A spokesman said Britain also was considering rewriting the law on marriage.
2012: The U.S. Congress approved an extension of the 2 percent payroll tax cut to run for the rest of the year. The measure also financed federal unemployment benefits and maintained Medicare rates to doctors.
Quotes
“Experience is not what happens to you; it’s what you do with what happens to you.” – Aldous Huxley
“As freely as the firmament embraces the world,”
“or the sun pours forth impartially his beams,”
“so mercy must encircle both friend and foe.”
– Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller, poet and dramatist (1759-1805)
Michael Jordan (1963- ) American Basketball Player:
“As athletes, we’re used to reacting quickly. Here, it’s ‘come, stop, come, stop.’ There’s a lot of downtime. That’s the toughest part of the day.”
“Even when I’m old and grey, I won’t be able to play it, but I’ll still love the game.”
“I can accept failure, but I can’t accept not trying.”
“I never looked at the consequences of missing a big shot… when you think about the consequences you always think of a negative result.”
“I never thought a role model should be negative.”
“I play to win, whether during practice or a real game. And I will not let anything get in the way of me and my competitive enthusiasm to win.”
“I realize that I’m black, but I like to be viewed as a person, and this is everybody’s wish.”
“I’ve always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come. I don’t do things half-heartedly. Because I know if I do, then I can expect half-hearted results.”
“I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed.”
“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”
“If you accept the expectations of others, especially negative ones, then you never will change the outcome.”
“If you’re trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I’ve had them; everybody has had them. But obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.”
spoonerism
PRONUNCIATION: (SPOO-nuh-riz-em)
http://wordsmith.org/words/spoonerism.mp3
MEANING: (noun), The transposition of (usually) the initial sounds of words producing a humorous result. For example:
“It is now kisstomary to cuss the bride.” (Rev. Spooner while officiating at a wedding)
“Is the bean dizzy?” (Rev. Spooner questioning the secretary of his dean)
ETYMOLOGY: After William Archibald Spooner (1844-1930), clergyman and educator, who was prone to this. Earliest documented use: 1900.
USAGE: “As for her own red-faced moment on air, Hudson recalled how she coined a somewhat racy spoonerism in a reference to Killorglin’s Puck Fair.” – Seán McCárthaigh; AA Roadwatch Broadcasters Celebrate 21 Years; Irish Examiner (Cork, Ireland); Aug 31, 2010.
Explore “spoonerism” in the Visual Thesaurus.
http://visualthesaurus.com/?w1=spoonerism
ahimsa
PRONUNCIATION: (uh-HIM-sah)
MEANING: (noun), The principle of noninjury to living beings.
ETYMOLOGY: Sanskrit ahimsa : a-, not + himsa, injury (from himsati, he injures).
USAGE: “As Lindsey’s conception of ahimsa went on maturing, she elected to become a vegetarian so that she would not contribute to the suffering of farm animals.”