November 20 History Great American Smokeout

Ridley's Believe It Or Not—November 20, 2014:  Trust your Thursday is going well as you near the weekend and Thanksgiving; and as always I  hope you enjoy the holidays and observances, factoids and quotes from two journalists on the Nuremberg Trials, with a smile on your sunscreened face, looking forward to enjoying a few pieces of peanut butter fudge, blessed with a positive attitude even though you know you will have to wade through tons of spam in your inbox, and secure in the knowledge that if you want to find a gift for a memorable event or the coming Christmas, you know that the Alaskanpoet can provide you with a unique customized poem at a great price tailored to the event and the recipient.  You need only contact me for details.

       1. Universal Children’s Day—established by the UN in 1954 encouraging all countries to promote exchange among the children of the world and to promote policies to benefit the children.

      2. African Industrialization Day—another UN observance established in 1990 to promote investment in Africa, a continent which badly needs it but is sorely hampered by lack of infrastructure, abysmal health conditions (e.g. Ebola in West Africa), corruption and in places like Nigeria, Somalia, and Mali jihadist movements.

      3. Great American Smokeout—promoted by the American Cancer Society to encourage the almost 44 million Americans who despite all evidence of the mortal dangers continue to smoke to take the first step toward quitting and stop for 24 hours. If you see someone continually reaching for his pocket or her purse, encourage them in their efforts as it might save a life from an early and painful death.

      4. Gaffes Are Your Friend Day—celebrating the birthday on this day in 1943 of the most prolific gaffer of all time and the best life insurance policy or impeachment protection a president could ever have Joe Biden.

       5. National Peanut Butter Fudge—celebrating, but if you wear dentures only if your Polident is liberally applied, a great chewy candy.

On this day in

      a. 1789 New Jersey became the first state to ratify the Bill of Rights.

      b. 1945 in Nuremburg, Germany the Nuremberg Trials commenced against 24 Nazi war criminals; the court adjourned on September 1, 1946 and 12 of the defendants were executed on October 16, 1946 and 7 of the defendants received prison sentences.

     c. 1974 the Justice Department filed an anti-trust suit against AT&T, leading to the breakup of it and its Bell System and generation of millions upon millions to dollars in legal fees incurred by the defendant.

     d. 1985 Microsoft released Windows 1.0 which despite its inadequacies was not declared obsolete and no longer supported until December 31, 2001.

Reflections on the Nuremberg Trials:

     a. “The Nuremberg Trials of Nazi leaders in open court before an international tribunal had a profound long-term effect on the Germans, bringing them back to democracy and humanity.” Anthony Lewis, noted American journalist and twice winner of the Pulitzer Prize

      b. “When you look at the ruins of Nuremberg, you are looking at the startling effects of war. When you look at the prisoners on view in the courthouse, you are looking at 22 of the causes.” Janet Flanner, noted 20^th century columnist for the New Yorker who served in Paris

If the waging of war regardless of how it waged becomes a war crime in and of itself, will leaders be less willing to wage it unless victory is a certainty?
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© November 20, 2014 Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet

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