Monday, March 13, 2017

March 13 Ridley's Believe It Or Not Commonwealth Day

Ridley’s Believe It Or Not For March 13, 2017 Mitch Seavey who already is the oldest person to win an Iditarod is smoking the pack including his son as he is less than 200 miles from Nome; http://alaskanpoet.blogspot.com/2017/03/ditarod-tails-march-13-1000-am_5.html President Trump is on a full court press to sell the replacement bill for Obamacare while Nancy Pelosi hypocritically proclaims that Congress must read the bill before it votes on it (short memory of  “we have to pass it to learn what’s in it” back in 2010 when it was rammed down our throats); the Northeast is going to get hit with a major blizzard and is in a firestorm of controversy over Trump’s as yet unsubstantiated allegations that Obama ordered his phones wiretapped (at least the controversy has slowed his proclivity to tweet); looks like the president will be meeting with the president of China within a month hopefully in addition to trade talking about what to do with North Korea’s ballistic missile program; the mainstream media is in major snit mode over Sessions’ following normal and customary practice of asking for resignations of all remaining District Attorneys appointed by Obama (prima donna Preet Bharara refused and had to be fired); at a time when American public school students are falling behind the world in education, news out of New York is that the state is going to drop its test administered to would be teachers because too many blacks and Hispanics are failing it; a top Putin aide revealed that members of the Clinton election team met numerous times with the Russian Ambassador and his aides (from the media the sounds of silence on this latest bit of hypocrisy); almost like a stuck record, the carnage in Chicago continues unabated with total shootings in 2017 through March 12 increasing to 608 and the  death toll increasing to 111 (God help those poor minorities being shot mostly by minorities when the weather gets warmer and the shooters’ aim gets really better and there is more daylight) and yet nothing, absolutely nothing, appears to be occurring to address this blight on blacks and minorities which is what racism from a black mayor really looks like.  
    As always, I hope you enjoy today’s holidays and observances, a music link to Elvis Presley, factoids of interest for this day in history, a relevant quote from Slyvia Earle while looking forward to a stress level that will not necessitate some rebirthing therapy, secure in the knowledge that if you want to find a gift for any memorable events 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. Chang Thai Day (National Elephant Day)—observed in Thailand since 1996 to promote conservation efforts for elephants and promote awareness of the importance of elephants in Thailand’s culture.  
2.  Commonwealth Day—celebrated by a multi-faith service at Westminster Abbey attended by Queen Elizabeth II who then broadcasts an address to the member nations of the British Commonwealth.      
3. 1958 Number One Song—celebrating the number one song in 1958 on a run of 5 weeks in that position “Don’t” by Elvis Presley.  Here is a recording of him performing the song:  https://video.search.yahoo.com/search/video?fr=mcafee&p=elvis+presley+don%27t#id=1&vid=c8d1be3659d9158836e821880cbbf147&action=click  
4. Word of the Day—today’s word of the day is “rebirthing” which means a form of therapy involving breathing that simulates the trauma of being born. 
5. Name Fits the Man—bemoaning the birth on this day in 1969 of long time drug and arms dealer Christopher Coke, aka as the “Kingston Kingpin” who finally was brought to justice in 2012 and was sentenced to 23 years in a Jamaican prison.  
On this day in:                                                                                   
a. 1862 Union officers were forbidden to return fugitive slaves to their owners thus effectively annulling the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 and setting the stage for the Emancipation Proclamation.      
b. 1865 in a little too late moment and a really hard to sell moment, the Confederacy agreed to begin using African-American troops.  
c. 1988 the Seikan Tunnel the longest tunnel in the world at 43.46 miles opened to connect the Japanese Islands of Hokkaido and Honshu. 
d. 1991 the Department of Justice announced that Exxon had agreed to pay $1 billion toward the cleanup of the oil spill caused by the grounding of the Exxon Valdez in Prince William Sound. 
e. 2008 the price of gold on the New York Mercantile Exchange reached $1,000 an ounce for the first time.
Reflections on the Exxon Valdez oil spill: “The Exxon Valdez spill triggered a swift and strong response that changed policies about shipping, about double-hulled construction. A number of laws came into place.” Sylvia Earle, noted American marine biologist and National Geographic Society explorer in residence. Please enjoy the poems on events of interest on my twitter account below (if you like them, retweet and follow me) and follow my blogs. Always good, incisive and entertaining poems on my blogs—click on the links below. Go to www.alaskanpoet.blogspot.com for Ridley’s Believe It Or Not—This Day in History, poems to inspire, touch, emote, elate and enjoy and poems on breaking news items of importance or go to Ridley's Believe It Or Not for just This Day in History.
© March 13, 2017, Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet 
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