January 31, 2023 Ridley's Believe It Or Not

 Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona has announced he will be filing Articles of Impeachment against “The Border Is Secure” Mayorkas and Nikki Haley announced she will run for president on the Red ticket in 2024. Maxine Waters whose safe district would probably take an act of God to remove her has raised $192,000 in campaign contributions in 2022 to funnel to her daughter. While the climate change warriors are pedal to the metal to ban gas stoves and ranges and replace them with electric ones, 31 million Americans are bracing themselves for severe winter storms warnings. I hope you enjoy today’s Ridley's Believe It Or Not  and find it worthy to read and if not reply “Unsubscribe” to be removed.  

Ridley’s Believe It Or Not January 31, 2023
          Noted Holidays: Appreciate Your Social Security Check Day, celebrating the day Americans first started to receive Social Security checks with the first check in the amount of $22.54 ($2090.36 in today’s dollars)  sent to 65 year old retired legal secretary Ida May Fuller who received them until she die at age 100 on January 27, 1975. Americans in their 40’s working today should be rightfully concerned that the Social Security Trust Fund will be unable to pay full benefits when then retire unless we find a way to curb spending and increase the retirement age.
          Word of the Day: The word of the day is “aerostat” which means any lighter than air craft like a balloon, blimp or dirigible which unlike the Hindenburg which exploded in flames on landing at Lakehurst after crossing the Atlantic use helium and opposed to hydrogen which is very flammable.
          Number 1 Song of the Day: The number 1 song on this day in 1972 was “Brand New Key” by Melanie on a run of 2 weeks following a 1 week at the end of 1971  to share with 21 other acts achieving number 1 status, while 18 acts achieved their first number 1 song.  Here is a recording of Melanie performing “Brand New Key”: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKcpodt0YCU

          Noted Birthdays: Nolan Ryan, born on this day in 1947 in Refugio, Texas was a MLB pitcher who consistently threw fastballs at 100+ m.p.h., has a record 7 no hitters, tied with Bob Feller with 12 1 hitters, a record 5714 strikeouts, a record 2795 walks (which explains why he has never pitched a perfect game) and a batting average of players trying to hit against him of .204 yet in a hard to believe moment his 8 times being named to MLB All-Star teams, he has never received a Cy Young Award which MLB tried to make amends by having him elected to the MLB Hall of Fame on his first year of eligibility with the 5^th highest percentage of votes in favor. Still going strong and probably if requested could throw a baseball near 90 m.p.h. or higher.
          Notable Events that occurred on January 31:
          1.     1917—After receiving advice from his admirals that German submarines would sink enough merchant ships to bring England to its knees in 6 months and would sink any troop carrying ships if the U.S. declared war, the Kaiser ordered the recommencement of unrestricted submarine warfare which would lead to the U.S. declaring war on Germany on April 6, 1917.
          2.     1943—Defying Hitler’s command to fight to the last bullet, newly appointed Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus surrounded to the Soviet Red Army at Stalingrad with the remainder of the 6^th Army surrendering 2 days later which marked the beginning of the end finalized later at the Battle of Kursk of German chances of winning the war against the Soviets.
          3.     1961—Ham, a chimp from Cameroon, was launched into suborbital space in preparation for Alan Shephard’s later flight and returned to Earth safely, splashing into the Atlantic Ocean some 16 minutes later with only a slightly bruised nose to retire to the Washington Zoo and later to spend his last days with a small group of chimpanzees at the Albuquerque Zoo where he passed on January 17, 1983.
          4.     1988—Doug Williams became the first Afro-American quarterback to start in a Superbowl, playing for the Washington Redskins and after the John Elway led Denver Broncos led 10-0 at the end of the first quarter, the Redskins scored 35 points in the 2^nd quarter and won Super Bowl XXII 42-10.
          5.     2022—Sue Gray, a UK senior civil servant, released a report detailing widespread violations by government officials and Conservative Party leaders of existing lockdown orders prohibiting public gatherings during 2020 and 2021 which would lead to the resignation of Boris Johnson as Prime Minister (Newsom is not the only politician who lives by the rule of “Do as I say not as I do”).
          Quotes of the Day: German Chancellor Bethmann January 31, 1917 Before the German Reichstag announcing unrestricted submarine warfare would commence on February 1: "The destructive designs of our opponents cannot be expressed more strongly. We have been challenged to fight to the end. We accept the challenge. We stake everything, and we shall be victorious." 
German Admiral Holtzendorff: "I give your Majesty my word as an officer, that not one American will land on the Continent." Fortunately for the Allies at the cost of 15,000 Merchant seamen, both speakers proved wrong.
Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet
www.alaskanpoet.blogspot.com