October 17 History International Eradication of Poverty Day

Ridley’s Believe It Or Not—October 17, 2015 Trust your weekend is off to a great start; as always I hope you enjoy Saturday’s holidays and observances, factoids of interest, a music video by Lulu,  a relevant quote from Kofi Annan, looking forward to a serving of pasta, blessed with a positive attitude and secure in the knowledge that if you want to find a gift for any memorable event like birthdays, weddings, or anniversaries, 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. National Edge Day—celebrated by hard core punk rock fans but who eschew  recreational drugs, tobacco in response to the larger punk rock culture that uses them to great excess.

          2. International Eradication of Poverty Day—recognized by the UN to promote the idea that whenever the  population is doomed to live in extreme poverty, human rights are violated; unfortunately the basic premise that capitalism and entrepreneurship free of stifling taxes and regulations have limited millions upon millions out of poverty.

          3. 1967 Number One Song—celebrating the number one song in 1967 on a

run of 5 weeks in that position To Sir With Love by Lulu. Here is a link to Lulu performing To Sir With Love: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTapoA5RQyo

         4.  National Pasta Day—celebrating that great dish especially when combined with one’s favorite sauces and in the Alaskanpoet’s case clams.

         5.  Wish Over Cars Not Stars—commemorating not all those who dream of acquiring a top of the line car, but rather the birthday on this day in 1938 of famous motorcycle stunt man and annuity for orthopedic surgeons Evel Knievel famous for leaping over large numbers of cars and buses and surviving albeit with great numbers of broken bones.

On this day in:                                           

            a. 1888 Thomas Edison filed for a patent for the optical phonograph (movie).

            b. 1907 Marconi began the first transatlantic wireless communications service between Nova Scotia and Ireland.

            c. 1931 noted mobster Al Capone was convicted of federal income tax evasion.

            d. 1933 Albert Einstein fearing Nazi oppression of the Jews fled Germany and moved to America—his letter to Franklin Delano Roosevelt indicating the feasibility of creating the atomic bomb through the fission of uranium was instrumental in the approval of the Manhattan Project and the creation of the atomic bomb which ended the war in the Pacific.

            e. 1956 the world’s first commercial nuclear power plant was opened by Elizabeth II at Sellafield in Cumbria, England. 

Reflections on the impact of poverty "On this International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, let us recognize that extreme poverty anywhere is a threat to human security everywhere. Let us recall that poverty is a denial of human rights. For the first time in history, in this age of unprecedented wealth and technical prowess, we have the power to save humanity from this shameful scourge. Let us summon the will to do it." –Kofi Annan, Ghanaian diplomat who served as the Secretary General of the United Nations from 1997-2006 He may be right on the amount of wealth and technical prowess but if in trying to eradicate poverty we forget how that wealth was created efforts to reduce poverty are doomed.   

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© October 17, 2015, Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet
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