On this day in history:
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1429 – Joan of Arc showed up to raise the siege of Orleans
1910 – The UK Parliament passed the People's Budget with the stated intent of redistributing wealth 1916 – Irish rebel leaders surrendered to British forces, ending the Easter Rising
1945 – The German army in Italy surrendered to the Allies.
1945 – Dachau was liberated by US troops
1967 – Muhammad Ali was stripped of his title after refusing to join the war machine
1970 – The US invaded Cambodia, allegedly to hunt VC
1974 – Nixon announced the release of edited transcripts of the White House tapes
1968 – The musical Hair, which tried to co-opt hippie culture, opened
1975 – The U.S. began to evacuate U.S. citizens from Saigon
1986 – Assorted spy satellites imaged the ruins of the 4th Reactor at Chernobyl
1992 – Riots broke out in Los Angeles over the acquittal of the cops who brutalized Rodney King. 1997 – The Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993 entered into force, outlawing the production, stockpiling and use of chemical weapons by its signatories. HEH, AS IF.
2011 – UK Prince William married Catherine Middleton, momentarily upstaging the Kardashians.
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Some people who were born on this day:
All political parties die at last of swallowing their own lies.
~~ John Arbuthnot
1667 – John Arbuthnot, satirist, physician, and polymath
1810 – Thomas Adolphus Trollope, journalist and author
1847 – Joachim Andersen, flautist, composer, and conductor
1854 – Henri Poincare, mathematician, physicist, and engineer
1863 – William Randolph Hearst, yellow journalist
1894 – Marietta Blau, physicist,
1893 – Harold Urey, chemist
1895 – Malcolm Sargent, organist, composer, and conductor
1899 – Duke Ellington, pianist, composer, and bandleader
1900 – Concha de Albornoz, feminist and exile
1922 – Toots Thielemans, guitarist and harmonica player
1928 – Carl Gardner, singer, Robin, Coaster
931 – Lonnie Donegan, singer, songwriter, and guitarist; the king of skiffle
1933 – Rod McKuen, singer, songwriter and poet
1933 – Willie Nelson, singer, songwriter, guitarist, pot-head
1935 – Otis Rush, singer, songwriter and guitarist
1936 – Zubin Mehta, bassist and conductor
1936 – April Stevens, pop singer
1938 – Bernard Madoff, classic capitalist businessman and financier
1938 – Klaus Voormann, artist, bass player, and producer, major sideman
1943 – Duane Allen, country singer
1945 – Hugh Hopper, bass guitarist
1945 – Tammi Terrell, singer and songwriter
1947 – Tommy James, singer, songwriter, and guitarist
1952 – Dave Valentin, flautist
1978 – Javier Colon, singer, songwriter, and musician
1988 – Younha, singer, songwriter, and record producer
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Some people who died on this day:
It is one of the chief skills of the philosopher not to occupy himself with questions which do not concern him.
~~ Ludwig Wittgenstein
1380 – Catherine of Siena, a saint who married Jesus, the son of god, and received his foreskin for a ring
1905 – Ignacio Cervantes, pianist and composer
1951 – Ludwig Wittgenstein, philosopher 1
967 – J. B. Lenoir, singer, songwriter and guitarist
1980 – Alfred Hitchcock, director, producer and bird fancier
1993 – Mick Ronson, guitarist, songwriter, and producer
1997 – Mike Royko, journalist and author
2006 – John Kenneth Galbraith, economist
2008 – Albert Hofmann, chemist
2012 – Kenny Roberts, country singer and songwriter
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Some Holidays, Holy Days, Festivals, Feast Days, Days of Recognition, and such:
Day of Remembrance for all Victims of Chemical Warfare
National Rugelach Day
National Shrimp Scampi Day
The Feast of Saint Catherine of Siena
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Today's Tunes
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The Duke
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Toots
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Carl Gardner
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Lonnie Donegan, the king of skiffle
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Rod McKuen
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Willie
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Otis Rush
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April Stevens
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Klaus Voormann
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Tammi Terrell
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Tommy James
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Dave Valentin
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Javier Colon
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Younha
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Ignacio Cervantes
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J. B. Lenoir
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Albert Hofmann
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Bonus Lonnie Donnegan:
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And a tribute from the Bee Gees
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Ok, it's an open thread, so it's up to you folks now. So what's on your mind?
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Cross posted from http://caucus99percent.com Open Thread, Catherine of Siena, Joan of Arc, Dachau, Duke Ellington, Toots Thielemans, Lonnie Donegan, Willie Nelson, Otis Rush, Tommy James, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Albert Hofmann