Ridley's
Believe It Or Not—June 14, 2014: Good day to fly
the flag, donate blood and toast your accomplishments with a sip of bourbon
after enjoying a strawberry shortcake, secure in the knowledge you will not
have to pop your best coat on Monday. So wished, hope you enjoy the holidays,
factoids and quote on patriotism as opposed to mere flag waving.
1. Flag Day—if you are wondering why there
are a lot more American flags flying today; it is due to the fact that today is
Flay Day commemorating the adoption of our flag by the Continental Congress in
1777.
2. Army
Day—celebrating the birthday of the U.S. Army on this day in 1775.
3. World Blood Donor
Day—celebrating and honoring all those who give blood regularly and in
times of disaster—quick, painless and comes with a snack—good use of 30 minutes
if a Red Cross Blood Drive is in the neighborhood.
4. Pop
Goes the Weasel Day- honoring the 17th century rhyme that still
delights children playing with a jack in the box and which memorialized in
rhyme the sad state of the poor in England who wore their only Weasel (“suit or
coat”) on Sunday and then popped (“pawned”) it on Monday to have money to go
the Eagle (London pub)—“Up and
down the city road, In and out the Eagle. That's the way the money goes, Pop
goes the weasel.”
5. National
Bourbon Day/National Strawberry Shortcake Day—honoring that unique American
distilled spirit made primarily from Indian corn and aged at least 2 years in oak
barrels used only once. If celebrated today with cocktails do it responsibly or on Flag Day your
flag may be at half mast.
On this
day in:
a. 1937 The Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 was enacted, imposing a Hobson’s
Choice on users and dealers of cannabis—pay the tax and incriminate oneself for
use marijuana and go to jail or not pay the tax and go to jail for not paying
the tax—finally declared illegal by the U.S. Supreme Court in Leary v. U.S. in
1969. As certain as the Sun rises in the East, if marijuana use is ever
decriminalized at the federal level, watch for an excise tax to be enacted.
b. 1954 President Eisenhower signs legislation inserting the phrase “under God”
in the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
c. 1994 the Stanley Cup Riot
occurred in Vancouver after the New York Rangers defeated the Vancouver Canucks
for their first Stanley Cup in 54 years, injuring over 200 people and causing
over a $1 million in property damages.
On
Flag Day a reflection on patriotism: “Patriotism is not waving the flag, but in
striving that our country be righteous as well as strong.” James Bryce,
Viscount Bryce, note English jurist, academician, and Liberal politician of the
19th and early 20th Century—not a bad observation from a
Brit.
Please enjoy the 140 character
poems on events of interest on my twitter account below (if you like them,
retweet and join almost 140 growing followers and please follow me)
and follow my blogs. Always good, incisive and entertaining poems on my blogs--click
on links below. www.alaskanpoet.blogspot.com
for poems to inspire, touch, emote, elate and enjoy. Go to Rhymes On The
Newsworthy Times for comments on important and breaking news events that should be
of interest.
mridley@octechlaw.com www.twitter.com/alaskanpoet www.alaskanpoet.blogspot.com Ridley's
Believe It Or Not Rhymes On The
Newsworthy Times
© June 14,
2014 Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet
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