Thursday, January 5, 2017

January 5, 2016 Ridley's Believe It Or Not National Bird Day

Ridley’s Believe It Or Not For January 5, 2017 The press remains fixated over dubious claims that Russian hacking tilted the election in favor of President-elect Trump as Assange and Guccifer both of whom cast doubt on Russia’s hacking into the DNC and Clinton Campaign operatives (Assange said a anyone could have hacked into Podesta’s email as his password was “password”); but Assange said it best “the Democrats didn’t pick the strongest candidate” which will rank as 2017’s biggest understatement;  the brutal kidnapping and torture by four blacks that was live streamed on Facebook is now being investigated as a hate crime; finally some good news out of Chicago as the 150,000 gang members estimated there were reduced by 6 as 6 members of the Los Hobos Gang were convicted and face life in prison, but the news is tempered by the fact through the first several days in January 7 people killed and 48 wounded with some predictions that the killings in 2017 may reach 850; Turks are on full scale manhunt for the killer in the Istanbul nightclub attack that killed 39 innocents as his photo is probably the most circulated photo in Europe (add another radical Islam group of recruits to your list--Uighurs, an ethnic Turkish group, some members of which have been trained in Afghanistan by Al-Qaeda; in yet another example on how disconnected and aloof Blue big city mayors are from ordinary Americans, Di Blasio of NYC deigned to go to the Long Island Railroad derailment that injured 100 commuters because no one died (even his supporters view this man as a pompous sphincter); whether you agree with him or not, President-elect Trump is making a huge financial sacrifice to become president, terminating discussions in three countries over new Trump properties to have constructed there (contrast that with the Clintons who viewed the presidency as a stepping stone to great wealth which they achieved after leaving office, especially when HRC became the master of the quid pro quo game and Bill’s speaking fees went through the roof).
          As always, I hope you enjoy today’s holidays and observances, a music link to the Bee Gees, factoids of interest for this day in history, a relevant observation from Dwight Eisenhower, looking forward to using  the Word of the Day, “fugacious”, 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 Bird Day—celebrated by thousands upon thousands of Americans engage in bird watching and learning more about the avians that may have descended from the dinosaurs.                                                                             
          2. Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival—celebrating in Harbin, China, the largest ice and snow sculpture festival that draws attendees and participants from around the world and lasts for a month—definitely something to go onto one’s bucket list.
          3. Number One Song in 1979—celebrating the number 1 song in 1979 on a run of 2 weeks in that position “Too Much Love” by the Bee Gees. Here is a link to the Bee Gees performing the song:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nREV8bQJ1MA
          4. Word of the Day—the word of the day is “fugacious” which means something that tends to disappear or is fleeting as Obama’s executive orders will soon be with a President Trump sitting in the Oval Office.
          5. One Way to Never Forget One’s Birthday—celebrating the birth on this day in 1978 of January Jones noted actress, model and single mom.
On this day in:
1. 1757 Louis XV survived an assassination attempt by Robert-Francois Damiens who will have the unenviable distinction in French history of being the last person to be executed by a very painful process known as drawing and quartering, the typical method of punishment for someone convicted of regicide or attempted regicide.
2. 1914 the Ford Motor Company announced it would institute an eight hour work day with a living wage of at least $5 a day (worth $118 in today’s dollars or $14.75 an hour which is less than the $15 an hour minimum wage most Sanders-like Blues want).
3. 1949 President Truman announced the Fair Deal which promised to continue and expand the New Deal but with Republicans controlling Congress, the Fair Deal was mostly DOA with the coup de gras delivered by the Korean War and its claim for increased military spending.     
4. 1957 President Eisenhower in an address to Congress outlined the Eisenhower Doctrine which provided for economic and military aid to any country in the Middle East attacked by another nation (read Soviet Union). Poor Ike must be rolling in his grave looking at what has happened to the American presence and prestige under this feckless lead from behind president.
5. 1972 in a great day for American preeminence in space, President Nixon ordered the development of the Space Shuttle Program (he like Eisenhower must be rolling in his grave to see that program under Obama end and leaving us to act like hitchhikers to put our astronauts into the International Space Station). 
Reflections on leadership that our current president in his community organizing days never learned from a former president: “The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an office.” Dwight D. Eisenhower 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.
© January 5, 2017 Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet 
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