Random News and Notes 27 July
The year was 1777, the American Revolution was not going well for either side, when a 19 year old Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette landed in New England to help the Colonists to fight the British Crown. La Fayette would become one of George Washington’s most capable aides.
. . .On July 27,
the Marquis de La Fayette arrived in New England and took an active part in the War of Independence alongside the American insurgents against the British.
Other European officers—including the German Kalb—had come with him to serve the King of France.\
The Industrial Workers of the World known as the Wobblies, a radical international labor union was founded in Chicago on this date in 1905. Key figures like Eugene V. Debs and William D. “Big Bill” Haywood helped start it to build “One Big Union” for all workers. Debs would spend several years in prison after being convicted of Contempt of Court and separately for sedition for his WWI resistance. The IWW were and continue to be commies. The Taft-Hartley act nearly destroyed the union at the close of WWII. The union hobbles along with an estimated current membership of about 8000, well down from the 1917 peak of 150,000 members.
The Armistice ending active hostilities in Korea was signed on this date in 1953.
The Korean War lasted for 3 years, 1 month, and 2 days, running from June 25, 1950, to July 27, 1953. The war cost the lives of millions of Koreans and Chinese, as well as almost 40,000 Americans.
We start off in Europe today where there were not one, but two attacks by islamists.
The first happened in the 17th arrondissement of Paris, where a ‘man’ stabbed three women-one of whom was pregnant. He was recorded saying “Allah ordered me to do it”. The women aged 19, 24 and 36 were taken to hospital. Interior minister, Laurent Nuñez said two had been gravely wounded but their lives were not in danger. One had been injured in the lower back; the other in the abdomen.
The stabber was detained by locals. One is reported to have been an off duty police officer. The local authorities are saying people shouldn’t jump to conclusions about the motive.
Yeah, because him saying on video that Allah told him to isn’t enough. Also, WTF is up with the woman saying he doesn’t know what he’s doing in the background? And yeah, the subtitles/translation is correct.
The other islamic violence happened in Spain. An algerian migrant in Spain attacked a man in Valencia. 26-year-old Algerian Said L. allegedly attacked Arturo* without provocation on Calle Ingeniero José Sirera, punching and kicking him until he was defenseless. Arturo suffered severe cranial injuries and fractures, and remains in critical condition at Hospital Peset.
Police arrested Said L. shortly after; a judge ordered his provisional imprisonment Sunday on attempted homicide charges, noting his status as an irregular – read illegal – migrant with prior offenses. Some of the reports I read indicated that Arturo suffered several skull fractures because of the beating.
*Spanish law does not allow the release of last names for either victim (a good thing IMO) or the perpetrator (not so good).
There was a ‘mass’ shooting in Seattle yesterday. Gunfire erupted shortly before 6PM at Bite of Seattle, a three-day food fest that was being held at Seattle Center in the shadow of the city’s famous Space Needle. The shooting- which appears to be gang related – killed 3 and injured 4 more including a 2 year old.
The response, particularly the press conference, has been amateur hour. It seems the $340k a year chief of police was not in Seattle, but rather at his home in Chicago.
The CEO that oversaw the disastrous rebrand of Cracker Barrel Restaurants is out. Julie Felss Masino will step down August 10, replaced by restaurant veteran David Deno.
Masino’s tenure as CEO was a rocky period that included the 2025 rebrand that faced swift online criticism and was quickly reversed after sales dipped.