Random News and Notes 5 November
On this date:
- 1219 – The port of Damietta falls to the Crusaders after a siege.
- 1556 – The Emperor Akbar defeats the Hindus at Panipat and secures control of the Mogul Empire.
- 1605 – Guy Fawkes is betrayed and arrested in an attempt to blow up the British Parliament in the “Gunpowder Plot.” Ever since, England has celebrated Guy Fawkes Day.
- 1653 – The Iroquois League signs a peace treaty with the French, vowing not to wage war with other tribes under French protection.
- 1757 – Frederick II of Prussia defeats the French at Rosbach in the Seven Years War.
- 1768 – William Johnson, the northern Indian Commissioner, signs a treaty with the Iroquois Indians to acquire much of the land between the Tennessee and Ohio rivers for future settlement.
- 1814 – Having decided to abandon the Niagara frontier, the American army blows up Fort Erie.
- 1840 – Afghani leader Dost Mohammed surrenders to the British army and is exiled to British India.
- 1854 – British and French defeat the Russians at Inkerman, Crimea.
- 1862 – President Abraham Lincoln relieves General George McClellan of command of the Union armies and names Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside commander of the Army of the Potomac.
- 1862 – In Minnesota, after five weeks of hastily conducted military trials following the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862, more than 300 Santee Sioux (Eastern Dakota) men are convicted for their roles in the conflict and are sentenced to hang. A month later, after reviewing the cases, President Abraham Lincoln commuted all but 39 of the death sentences. One of the Native Americans was granted a last-minute reprieve, but the other 38 were hanged simultaneously on December 26 in a mass execution witnessed by a crowd of more than 3,000 people.
- 1872 – Susan B. Anthony is arrested for trying to vote.
- 1911 – Calbraith P. Rodgers ends first transcontinental flight–49 days from New York to Pasadena, Calif.
- 1912 – Woodrow Wilson is elected 28th president of the United States.
- 1914 – France and Great Britain declare war on Turkey.
- 1917 – General John Pershing leads U.S. troops into the first American action against German forces.
- 1935 – Parker Brothers company launches “Monopoly,” a game of real estate and capitalism.
- 1940 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt is re-elected for third term.
- 1968 – Richard Nixon is elected 37th president of the United States.
- 1994 – George Foreman, age 45, becomes boxing’s oldest heavyweight champion when he defeats 26-year-old Michael Moorer in the 10th round of their WBA fight in Las Vegas.
- 1995 – Andre Dallaire’s attempt to assassinate Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien is foiled when the minister’s wife locks the door.
- 2009 – 13 people are killed and more than 30 others are wounded, nearly all of them unarmed soldiers, when a U.S. Army officer goes on a shooting rampage at Fort Hood in central Texas. The deadly assault is carried out by Major Nidal Malik Hasan, an Army psychiatrist.
- 2024 – Four years after leaving the White House, former President Donald Trump is elected to a second term in office, becoming the first president to serve nonconsecutive terms since Grover Cleveland in 1892.
We start the news in Indiana where a confessed child murderer was executed last night. Jeffrey Weisheit, 50, received a lethal injection of pentobarbital at Indiana State Prison in Michigan City, pronounced dead at 12:45 a.m. after a last meal of barbecue ribs and no final words. Convicted in 2013 of murdering siblings 8-year-old Alyssa and 5-year-old Caleb Lynch in their Evansville home. Court records detail how Caleb was bound with duct tape and flares placed on him, while Alyssa was trapped in a closet as the home burned. Weisheit fled but later admitted guilt, seeking life over death.
After years of appeals, the Indiana Supreme Court denied a final stay in a 3-2 ruling, Gov. Mike Braun rejected clemency, and Attorney General Todd Rokita called it justice for the victims, marking Indiana’s fourth execution since resuming in 2024.
Good riddance to bad rubbish.
Lockheed Martin agreed to a $29.5 million deal with the U.S. Department of Justice and EEOC to resolve allegations that its diversity programs discriminated against white workers in pay, bonuses, hiring, and promotions starting around 2019. The settlement includes $22 million to the government and $7.5 million for over 1,000 affected employees, with whistleblower Tim Booher receiving $4.4 million.
The company denied wrongdoing but pledged to exclude race and sex from future compensation decisions, marking one of the largest such recoveries.
Russell Brand has been found guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault in the U.K. He denied the charges and was acquitted of two additional rape charges and attempted indecent assault. He has been taken into custody and is due to be sentenced on Monday. Brand, 51, was accused of three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one count of attempted indecent assault involving six women between 1999 and 2009.
Brand acknowledged that he had been “reckless” and used his fame to pursue sexual relationships, but insisted that the encounters were consensual. He also told the jury that consent was “fundamental, essential and necessary.” Brand has denied forcing any of the women to engage in sexual activity against their will.
There are historic floods occurring along the Georgia – Tennessee border. The flooding developed after overnight storms dropped up to 6 inches of rain in six hours, sending the Toccoa River cresting just above its 1990 record near the Georgia-Tennessee border. Emergency crews conducted more than 30 rescues overnight as Earley reported water levels reached 6 to 7 feet in downtown McCaysville, submerging vehicles and surrounding homes. Several local businesses sustained significant damage from rising floodwaters. Major access points including Blue Ridge Drive and Highway 68 remain closed to prevent traffic risks, while Fannin County Emergency Management opened a shelter at the Fannin County Recreation Center for displaced residents.
Dangerous river flooding remains a threat throughout the day, the National Weather Service warned, noting that conditions can continue to worsen even after the rain has stopped. Officials urged residents to avoid flooded areas and seek higher ground.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations has halted all operations in Florida following the state’s designation of the group as a domestic terrorist organization under House Bill 1471, effective November 5. The law, approved by Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Cabinet on September 29, restricts public funding and support for listed groups including CAIR’s Florida chapter.
CAIR is the Muslim Brotherhood’s branch in the US. The organization was an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation terror funding trial.