March 29, 2016 Ridley's Believe It Or Not Vietnam Veterans Day

Ridley’s Believe It Or Not For March 29, 2016. Only 297 days to go in President Obama’s pathetic lame duck term but fortunately March Madness is in full swing for both men and women and the Pac 12 has two teams in the Women’s Final Four. As always, I hope  you enjoy today’s holidays and observances, a music link to Bill Hayes by wearing your coonskin hat, factoids of interest, a  relevant quote from Zach Wamp while looking forward to a large slice of lemon chiffon 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. Vietnam Veterans Day—created by one of the best things Obama has done by Presidential Proclamation in 2012, an observance to commemorate the sacrifice and service of all of those men and women who served in the most divisive war this country has ever fought; God bless each and every one of those vets who returned in the later years not to parades but protests and scorn.

2. National Mom and Pops Business Day—celebrating the foundation of our economy and the largest job creator in this nation; today shun the big retailers and shop in a small business.                       

3. 1955 Number One Song—celebrating the number one song in 1955 on a run of five weeks in that position The Ballad of Davy Crocket by Bill Hayes. Here is a link to Bill Hayes performing The Ballad of Davy Crocket: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1KYpizprfI If you listen to it, it is clear that America in the 50’s was a far different place for fans of music.

4. National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day—celebrating a cake invented by an insurance salesman Harry Baker who sold the cake first to the Brown Derby in the 20’s and later the recipe 20 years later to General Mills for an undisclosed amount; a light and airy cake because of the use of vegetable oil instead of butter.   

5. Kingfisher’s Hero Day—celebrating the birthday on this day in 1902 of Sam Walton, born in Kingfisher, Oklahoma and who moved on to establish Wal-Mart, the largest brick and mortar retailer in the U.S.

On this day in:

a. 1806 construction of the Cumberland Road, the first federal highway which was to start at Cumberland, Maryland and link the Ohio and Potomac Rivers and traverse 620 miles, was authorized. In typical federal government slowness, construction did not begin until 1811 and the road reached its terminus at Wheeling, West Virginia in 1818.      

b. 1936 Adolf Hitler received 99 percent of the votes of the German people in favor of reoccupying the Rhineland in violation of the Versailles Treaty emboldening him for future aggressive acts and France and Great Britain stood idly by.       

c. 1951 Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were convicted of passing information on how to build an atomic bomb to the Soviet Union which was able to construct its own atomic bomb much sooner with the information. Both were executed on June 19, 1953.  

d. 1999 the Dow Jones Average driven by the dot.com bubble crossed 10,000 for the first time only to collapse less than a year later when the bubble burst.    

e. 2004 in what has to rank as one of Ireland’s finest moments, Ireland banned smoking in all workplaces including pubs—what smokers can’t seem to fathom as they puff away to an early death or disability is that second hand smoke kills and maims also.  

Reflections on Vietnam War Veterans: “Thank you for the sacrifices you and your families are making. Our Vietnam Veterans have taught us that no matter what are positions may be on policy, as Americans and patriots, we must support all of our soldiers with our thoughts and our prayers.” Zach Wamp, 8 term former Republican Congressman from Tennessee

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© March 29, 2016 Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet 
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