February 19, 2017 Ridley's Believe It Or Not International Tug of War Day

Ridley’s Believe It Or Not For February 19, 2017 in a déjà vu moment reminiscent of President Ford’s gaffe in a debate with Jimmy Carter that there is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe, President Trump stated that Sweden had suffered a terrorist attack last Friday that the mainstream media immediately pounced on (Sweden has had its share of rapes of sexual assaults from its Muslim refugees); while Trump was energizing the faithful in Melbourne, Florida, Pence was reassuring Europe of America’s commitment; Trump interviewing persons to replace Flynn as his National Security Adviser; total uproar over a draft DHS memo of using 100,000 National Guardsmen to enforce our immigration laws; SpaceX in a joint venture with NASA has launched an ISS resupply rocket after a one day delay from the Apollo Launch pad that sent our astronauts to the moon (great to see private enterprise at work); California has been battered by severe rain and is bracing for yet another assault with the Oroville Dam still not out of the woodworks; the carnage in Chicago continues unabated rising to 468, 85 of whom were killed (God help those poor minorities being shot mostly by minorities when the weather gets warmer and the shooters’ aim gets better.  

    As always, I hope you enjoy today’s holidays and observances, a music link to Zayan, factoids of interest for this day in history, a relevant quote from Lee Marvin, while enjoying the scent of the incensed used by a thurifer during church services, 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 Tug of War Day—celebrating a contest of strength and teamwork that has been practiced for centuries and was actually an Olympic sport until 1920; a great way to get blisters or a hernia before being dragged into a muddy pit.

2. National Prevent Plagiarism Day—commemorating an often losing struggle to prevent plagiarism of one’s words—nothing works faster to dull the mind and weaken cognitive though than to copy someone else’s brilliance and pass it off as one’s own.

3. 2016 Number One Song—celebrating the number one song in 2016 on a run of 1 week in that position “Pillowtalk” by Zayn. Here is a recording of Zayn performing the song:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_3d6GntKbk

     4. Word of the Day—today’s word of the day is “thurifer” which means a person carrying a thurible of burning incense during a religious ceremony.                      

      5. Semper Fi on the Saipan and the Stage—celebrating the birth on this day in 1924 of noted Marine Corps veteran and actor Lee Marvin and Oscar winner for his roles in Cat Ballou and although he did not dodge the bullets on Saipan dodged the palimony bullet fired by his long time girl friend in the California case of Marvin v. Marvin.

On this day in:                                                                                   

a. 356 Emperor Constinius II issued a decree closing all pagan temples in Rome to the great joy of Christians who were not enjoying being used as lion food in the Coliseum.

b. 1807 former Vice President Aaron Burr infamous for killing Alexander Hamilton in a duel was arrested for treason although he was acquitted at trial.      

c. 1847 the first party of rescuers reached the Donner Party stranded in the snows of the Sierras.

d. 1942 in one of the darker moments of hysteria of this nation President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 providing for the relocation of Japanese-Americans including those born here from the West Coast inland in shabby concentration camps.

e. 1985 William J. Schroeder became the first person to be able to leave a hospital after receiving an artificial heart the Jarvik 7, but sadly 18 days later suffered the first of a series of debilitating strokes and died in a vegetative state  one year and 255 days later (message be kind to your heart).

Reflections on the business of acting: “You spend the first forty years of your life trying to get in this business, and the next forty years trying to get out. And then when you're making the bread, who needs it?" Lee Mavin.
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.

© February 19, 2017, Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet 

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