December 3, 2016 Ridley's Believe It Or Not International Day of Persons with Disabilities

Ridley’s Believe It Or Not For December 3, 2016 Trump is on his swing state victory and thank you tour while the Blues are still in a state of shock and may name an ardent supporter of Lois Farrakhan to head the DNC (will the last blue collar Blue worker fleeing the Blue tent please turn off the lights); massive fire in a Oakland warehouse where a party was being held with tragic consequences of nine dead and dozens missing and feared dead; kudos to the Penn State Nittany Lions who came back from a 28-7 deficit to the Badgers and with the Big Ten and to the Huskies who defeated Colorado to win the Pac 12; all eyes will be watching to see which four teams go to the National playoffs while the also-rans wonder where they will be bowling; Secretary of Defense Ash Carter acknowledged the inevitable when he indicated the need even when ISIS is defeated to keep a presence of troops in Iraq; Jill Stein Don Quixote style quest to upset Trump has continued into the federal courts in Pennsylvania; Castro’s ashes have been interred in a private cemetery in Cuba—one can only hope like the proverbial Phoenix they will rise up again as a vibrant democracy under capitalism so the Cubans can join the 21^st Century.   

          As always, I hope you enjoy today’s holidays and observances,  a music link to Tony Bennett, factoids of interest for this day in history, a relevant quote from Teri Garr, while looking forward to munching on large slice of apple pie, 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. International Day of Persons with Disabilities—promoted by the UN since 1992 to create awareness of the needs of persons with disabilities and to acknowledge the benefits to society of their integration into the economic, cultural and political fabric of our society.

2. Skywarn Recognition Day—celebrating the contribution that amateur radio operators make in times of natural  disasters to the National Weather Service and emergency management systems.  3. 1951 Number One Song—celebrating the number one song in 1951 on a run of 4 weeks in that position “Cold, Cold Heart” by Tony Bennett.  Here is a recording of Tony Bennett performing the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uORPxmsBJoE

4. National Apple Pie Day—celebrating the about as American as any desert can be whether served al a mode or topped with a slice of cheddar (other than the tart crab apple not native to North America but introduced her in the early 17^th Century). 

5. Mermaids and Kill Bills—celebrating the birth on this day in 1960 of Darly Hannah whose career seems to have ebbed but her political activism has soared; appropriate to note her birthday on the day honoring persons with disabilities as she was diagnosed as a child as autistic and her parents received recommendations to have her medicated and institutionalized which fortunately they ignored.     

On this day in:                                                                                   

a. 1901 in his State of the Union address, President Theodore Roosevelt proposed to curb the monopolistic powers of trusts “within reasonable means.”

b. 1960 the musical Camelot associated with the Kennedy Administration debuted at the Majestic Theater on Broadway.       

c. 1964 police arrested over 800 students who had occupied Cal’s administration building after the UC Board of Regents voted to prevent public demonstrations on public property.

d. 1989 at a meeting off the coast of Malta President H.W. Bush and Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev released statements indicating that the Cold War between NATO and the Soviet Union may be coming to an end.   

e. 1992 an engineer at the Sema Group using his personal computer sent the world’s first text message using the Vodaphone network to a colleague’s phone.   

Reflections on the disability that should be the one most feared: “When you hear the word 'disabled,' people immediately think about people who can't walk or talk or do everything that people take for granted. Now, I take nothing for granted. But I find the real disability is people who can't find joy in life and are bitter.” Teri Garr noted American actress who has not acted since 2007 due to multiple sclerosis but still possesses a very positive attitude.
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.

© December 3, 2016, Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet 

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