Ridley’s Believe It Or Not For April 2, 2017 First it was the
Cardinal then yesterday the Ducks, the Cinderella team whose carriage to the
Championship Game on Monday turned into a pumpkin and the Pac 12 with no teams
vying for the National Championship in either by the men or the women; as Obamacare
continues its death spiral of insurance companies leaving and premiums and
deductibles going through the roof, in an attempt to do what is best for the
American people, the art of the deal master is coming back to the table (hope
the Freedom Caucus works on its my way
or the highway attitude); only three brave Blue Senators appear to be willing
to buck Schumer and vote in favor of Gorsuch (although it is to be expected
that our junior Senator who is in terms of her views a Barbara Boxer on steroids
has announced she will vote not, Diane Feinstein may also vote no); Mitch McConnell
has vowed Gorsuch will be confirmed this week which means the Blues are going
to be nuked; Mylan the pharma company that everyone detests for its price gouging
of the EpiPen found itself in the spotlight again with a recall of 800,000 due
to a defect that would render the EpiPen unusable; the DOJ is serious about
moving forward to withdraw funds for sanctuary cities like L.A. (take the money
and use it to build the wall or clean up the mess at the VA); Flynn’s request
for immunity was denied and he may face more difficulties by failing to have
disclosed payments from Russian entities on his ethics disclosure form; almost
like a stuck record or a remake of Groundhog Day, Chicago style, the carnage in Chicago continues unabated with
total shootings in 2017 through April 1 increasing by 6 to 737 and the death
toll rising by only 2 to 137 (God help those poor minorities being shot mostly
by minorities when the weather gets warmer and the shooters’ aim gets really
better and there is more daylight to find and shoot victims) and yet nothing,
absolutely nothing, appears to be occurring to address this blight on blacks
and minorities which is what racism from a black mayor really looks like (when
will Chicago residents through the city council try to impeach this pathetic,
inept mayor?).
As always, I hope you enjoy
today’s holidays and observances, music links to Minnie Riperton and Marvin
Gaye, factoids of interest for this day in history, a relevant quote from
Temple Grandin, while avoiding any lycanthropy, 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. World Autism Awareness Day—created by the UN in
2007 to promote awareness of autism and the need for research and treatment of
a disorder that experts estimate affects one percent of the world’s population.
2. International Children’s Book Day—celebrated
since 1967 of Hans Christian Andersen to promote reading by and to children,
the earlier the better.
3. 1975 Number One Song—celebrating the number one song in 1975 on a run of 1 week in that position “Lovin’ You” by Minnie
Riperton, singer with a 5 ½ octave range who died way too soon from breast
cancer at the age of 32. Here is a recording of her performing the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kE0pwJ5PMDg.
4. Word of the Day—today’s word of the day is “lycanthrophy” which means the
supernatural transformation of a person into a wolf as Michael J. Fox has
demonstrated on the silver screen.
5. Cocaine, Alcohol and a
38 Don’t Mix—celebrating the birth on this day in
1939 of the “Prince of Soul,” Marvin Gaye noted singer who while in a cocaine
and alcohol rage was shot and killed by his pastor father with a 38 that
ironically Marvin had given to him for his protection after an altercation in
which Marvin Gaye punched and kicked him. Here is a recording of one his more
memorable songs in protest of the Vietnam War: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-kA3UtBj4M
On this day
in:
a. 1865 in the end of the Confederacy is near, the third battle
of Petersburg, Virginia, forced the Army to retreat from Richmond as the Union
Army was advancing into the city unchecked.
b. 1900 the Congress
passed the Foraker Act granting limited self rule to the island of Puerto Rico,
which today due to excessive spending is for all intent and purposes bankrupt.
c. 1917 after the resurrection by the Germans of unrestricted
submarine warfare against the merchant ships of all nations including the United
States and the interception of the infamous Zimmerman Telegram promising German
aid to Mexico to assist it in recovering territory from the United States, President
Wilson asked Congress to declare war on Germany which it did bring the U.S.
into World War I.
d. 1973 LexisNexis, a computerized legal search program, was
launched.
e. 1986 Alabama Governor and American Independence Party candidate
for President announced that he would not seek a fifth four year term and would
retire from public life when his current
term expire in 1987 (nothing like an assassination attempt resulting in his being
confined to a wheel chair to dampen the desire to run for office).
Reflections on Autism
and its spectrum: “Mild autism can give you a genius like Einstein. If
you have severe autism, you could remain nonverbal. You don't want people to be
on the severe end of the spectrum. But if you got rid of all the autism
genetics, you wouldn't have science or art. All you would have is a bunch of
social 'yak yaks.”Temple Grandin, autism advocate who was diagnosed with
autism at the age of two but went on to write several bestselling books and
receive a PhD in animal science from the University of Illinois. 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 2, 2017, Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet
Alaskanpoet for Hire, Poems to Admire
Poet Extraordinaire Beyond Compare
The Perfect Gift, All Recipients to Receive Lasting Lift
The Perfect Gift, All Recipients to Receive Lasting Lift
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