April 7, 2016 Ridley's Believe It Or Not International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Rwanda Genocide

Ridley’s Believe It Or Not For April 7, 2016. Only 288 days to go in President Obama’s pathetic lame duck term. Political theater is getting more and more exciting as Sanders before a rally of 10,000 (dishonest Hillary couldn’t draw a crowd of 10,000 unless they were paid $50 a head to listen to hear) calls Hillary unfit to be president due to the millions of dollars contributed to her campaign by special interests. On the Red theater Trump is being welcomed by New York and Cruz is scrambling to defend his “New York Values” charge against Trump.  As always, I hope  you enjoy today’s holidays and observances,  music links to the Beatles and Billie Holiday, factoids of interest, a  relevant quote from John Prendergast, while looking forward to enjoying a coffee cake, blessed with a positive attitude and  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. National Beer Day—celebrating that on this day in 1933 after 13 years it became legal once again in the U.S. to be able to brew and drink a beer if it had not more that 3.2 percent alcohol. When President Roosevelt signed the Cullen-Harrison Act which made it possible on March 28, 1933 he exclaimed, “I think it would be a good time to have a beer.”

2. International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Rwanda Genocide—observing one minute of silence to honor and remember the up to 1,000,000 innocent men, women and children who were slaughtered in Rwanda in a genocide that started on this day in 1994 because they were Tutsi tribe members. For 100 days the vow “Never again!” was ignored by the civilized world.   

3. 1964 Number One Song—celebrating the number one song in 1964 on a run of five weeks in that position Can’t Buy Me Love by the Beatles. Here is a link to the very young and clad in coats and ties Beatles performing Can’t Buy Me Love: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxha1IUsSPI

4. National Coffee Cake Day—celebrating that delicious mini cake that appeared around the 17^th Century in Europe when coffee was beginning to appear at breakfast and lunch.

5. Cirrhosis Blues Have a Sour Note—celebrating the birthday on this day in 1915 of Billie Holiday who rose up from a hard childhood of prostitution to become an iconic jazz singer only to die far too early at age 44 due to cirrhosis of the liver from her alcoholism. Here is a recording of her singing one of her most famous songs, Lady Sings the Blues: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulGwHzrKOAU

On this day in:

a. 1827 John Walker an English chemist sold the first friction match greatly simplifying the process of starting a fire.       

b. 1906 Mt. Vesuvius erupted again killing 100 people and devastating the city of Naples so badly that Italy the site of the 1908 Olympics requested the games be moved and they were, to London, England.           

c. 1940 Booker T. Washington, whose birthday was noted in Ridley's Believe It Or Not-This Day In History two days ago became the first African American to appear on a U.S. postal stamp.  

d. 1948 the World Health Organization was founded by the United Nations.       

e. 1969 Steve Crocker published RFC1 “Host Software.” The date is recognized as the official birthday of the internet.  

Reflections on Genocide: “The biggest road block to action on genocide and other human rights crimes is ignorance. Most people just don't know that such things are happening, and often, if they have a vague idea they are happening, there is a feeling that there is nothing that can be done to stop these crimes.” John Prendergast, noted American human rights activist and author.
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.          

© April 7, 2016, Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet 
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