Random News and Notes 17 May
On this date in 1756, Great Britain declared war on France, kicking off the French and Indian war – known as the 7 year war in Europe. It pitted Britain, its colonists and allied Indian tribes against the French and their allied tribes. By 1760, the French had been expelled from Canada. The war – which involved all the then-great powers of Europe, including Prussia, Austria, Saxony, Sweden, Russia – ended with the signing of the treaties of Hubertusburg and Paris in February 1763. In the Treaty of Paris, France lost all claims to Canada and ceded Louisiana to Spain, while Britain received Spanish Florida, Upper Canada, and various French holdings overseas.
On this date in 1885, Goyahkla, a famed and feared Chiricahua Apache warrior and medicine man, broke out of the San Carlos, Arizona Indian reservation for the second time. It set off a wave of panic among the whites and Hispanics in the region. You may know him by the name Geronimo.
Fed up with the strictures and corruption of the reservation, he and many other Apache broke out for the first time in 1881. For nearly two years, the Apache band raided the southwestern countryside despite the best efforts of the army to stop them. Finally, Geronimo wearied of the continual harassment of the U.S. Army and agreed to return to the reservation in 1884, much on his own terms.
After a year and a half of running, Geronimo and his 38 remaining followers surrendered unconditionally to General Nelson Miles on September 4, 1886. Relocated to Florida, Geronimo was imprisoned and kept from his family for two years. Finally, he was freed and moved with this family to Indian Territory in Oklahoma. He died of pneumonia at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, in 1909.
On this date in 1943, the crew of the Memphis Belle, one of a group of American bombers based in Britain, becomes one of the first B-17 crews to complete 25 missions over Europe and return to the United States.
The Memphis Belle performed its 25th and last mission, in a bombing raid against Lorient, a German submarine base. But before returning back home to the United States, film footage was shot of Belle‘s crew receiving combat medals.
On this date in 1956, the Supreme Court handed down the opinion in Brown v Board for Education. The ruling held that racial segregation in public educational facilities is unconstitutional. The historic decision, which brought an end to federal tolerance of racial segregation, specifically dealt with Linda Brown, a young African American girl who had been denied admission to her local elementary school in Topeka, Kansas, because of the color of her skin.
On today’s date in 1973 the Watergate hearings started. The Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities, headed by Senator Sam Ervin of North Carolina, begins televised hearings on the escalating Watergate scandal. One week later, Harvard law professor Archibald Cox was sworn in as special Watergate prosecutor.
During the Senate hearings, former White House legal counsel John Dean testified that the Watergate break-in had been approved by former Attorney General John Mitchell with the knowledge of chief White House advisers John Ehrlichman and H.R. Haldeman, and that President Nixon had been aware of the cover-up.
In a bit more than a year, Nixon would become the first US president to resign.
Now, News!
For the first time in 14 years, a sitting US senator has lost to a primary challenger. Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, who voted to impeach President Trump, lfinished 3rd behind Trump backed Julia Letlow and John Fleming.
Letlow and Fleming advance to a June 27 runoff.
An Italian citizen of North African descent drove his car into a crowd in Modena yesterday afternoon. 31-year-old Salim El Koudri drove a gray Citroën at high speed into pedestrians on Modena’s Via Emilia Centro, injuring eight people including a woman who lost both legs. He then pulled a knife and stabbed Luca Signorelli, who along with other locals subdued him until police arrived.
El Koudri, an unemployed economics graduate with a history of psychiatric treatment but no criminal record or extremist ties, gave no motive but officials ruled out terrorism and charged him with attempted massacre. Signorelli, hailed a hero by leaders including Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, said he’d do it again to show humanity endures.
Yeah. I seriously doubt El Koudri did not have extremist ties. I also expect we’ll find out the Carabinieri had him on their radar here in the next few days.
Axios is reporting that Cuba has acquired a small – ~300 – drone arsenal from Russia and Iran. They also report that the Cuban leadership have been discussing using them. Potential targets include the Guantanamo naval base, U.S. warships, and Key West.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe visited Havana last Thursday to warn against hosting adversaries or beginning hostilities. This news comes as the Trump administration considers new sanctions and unseals an indictment against Raúl Castro.
Daland Corporation, which runs 94 Pizza Huts across 11 states, has remodeled 37 locations as ‘Pizza Hut Classics’ featuring checkered tablecloths, salad bars, oversized red cups, and vintage arcade games to recapture the 1980s and ’90s vibe. CEO Tim Sparks sourced rare pieces himself, driven by a desire to create phone-free spaces for family connections.
Customers drive hours to visit these top-performing sites, sharing memories of personal pan pizzas and Friday buffets.
If I can talk the kids into it, expect a review of the retro Hut soon-ish. The Tunkhannock location is maybe 3 hours south of me.