© December 10, 2023 Ridley’s Believe It Or Not
On Hamas Israel war front,
Israel continues to advance into South Gaza and is now in the center of the
second largest city in Gaza, Khan Youris, reputedly the home of the leader of
Hamas. The cries for a ceasefire continue to increase which Israel is not
prepared to enter into while hostages are still being held by Hamas who has
thrown down the gauntlet that Israel will not be able to free the hostages by
force, only by negotiation. Watch for Biden bobbing and weaving as more and
more of Gaza has been destroyed and food and medicine becoming almost
nonexistent.
On the antisemitism front, Harvard
President Gay has dug her heals in and has refused to resign, probably due to
the support of some Harvard faculty who are defending her right of free speech.
In Argentina populist and
admirer of Trump, Javier Milei, has been elected as Argentina’s President. He
ran on a platform of being an outsider and bringing an end to poverty. He will
be sworn in next Sunday, the 40th anniversary of Argentina returning to democratic rule after
replacement of the ruling military junta.
In Egypt, Egyptians are
going to the polls with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi expected to be reelected
to another 6 year term even though his popularity is on the decline given
Egypt’s poverty levels, shortage of foreign currency and massive debt increases
due to the amount of spending for infrastructure during his term.
On the MLB front the L.A.
Dodgers have signed Shohei Ohtani to a 10 year $700 million contract $680
million deferred without interest until the end of his contract and the rest
paid at $2 million a year in a move to enable the Dodgers to avoid the luxury
tax for exceeding the salary cap to be able to sign talent to enable Ohtani and
the Dodgers to win more games. The Angels and their fans will miss this
reincarnation of the first renown pitcher/homerun hitter Babe Ruth.
December 10, 2023 Michael P. Ridley aka The Alaskanpoet
Noted Holidays: Nobel
Prize Day: Celebrating the award of the Nobel Prizes in physics,
chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, economics, and peace. All but
the prize in economics were stipulated in Alfred Nobel's will and began being
awarded in 1901 from the interest earnings in Nobel Estate which in 1901 was
worth $150,000. The economics
prize, known officially as the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in
Memory of Alfred Nobel, began being awarded in 1969. It technically is not a
Nobel Prize but is associated with them. In 2023 the value of each Nobel Prize
is worth about $993 million
Word
of the Day: The word of the day as we continue with words
starting with “b” is “blendling” which means hybrid
which given the collapse of sales of EV’s that are supposed to lead us to the
promised land of zero carbon emissions due to lack of charging stations and low
battery range.
Song
of the Day: Leaving the number 1 songs on this day in
1940’s to come back to the number song in 2015 in the U.S.A. was
“Hello” by Adele on a run of 6 weeks to share number 1 status with
8 other songs, while 10 acts reached number one status with 6 achieving their 1st
number 1 single. Here is a recording with lyrics of Adele performing “Hello”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQHsXMglC9A
December 10
Birthdays: “Racism is a two way street and not excused by being responsive to
your constituents”: celebrating the birth on this day in 1966 in San Diego
of Kevin León, better known to his constituents as
Kevin De León, who gained notoriety by being the
first Latino Senator Pro Tempore in the second Brown Administration but lost it
after being recorded with 2 other Blue L.A. City Council Members, including
Nury Martinez, the President of the City Council using racist, homophobic and
other derogatory remarks which was leaked which prompted her to resign as the
President of City Council which did not quell demands for her resignation which
she did on October 12, 2022. Despite massive demands for his resignation and
being censured unanimously, De León has refused to resign and will run for
reelection in 2024.
December
10, Historical Events in Rhyme
1.
On this day in 2021 a deadly tornado outbreak had begun/Residents in Midwest,
Central and South regions of the U.S. were stunned/Hundreds were injured and 87
people died/Tornado touching down in Western Kentucky killed 57 as it sped 165.6
deadly miles before it petered out and would subside.
2. On
this day in 1993 the last shift of miners at Wearmouth colliery County Durham
came to an end/The coal fields in the area mined since the Middle Ages sent
England into the Industrial Revolution trend/At its peak in 1913 304 open pits
employed 165,246
miners but with carbon storage underground and efforts undergoing to coal use
revive/But today the coal mining heritage in the form of the annual Durham
Miners’ Gala attracting 100,000 or more visitors on the 2nd Saturday
in July insures the heritage will survive.
3. On this day in 1984
the UN General Assembly passed the Convention Against Torture which after 20
nations had signed the Convention on June 26, 1987 became effective/When
hostages are taken as in the case in the Hamas Israel war the Convention may be
defective/173 nations as of 2022 are parties to the Convention/Even if not
honored everywhere, it is a great step in torture prevention.
4. On
this day in 1978 the Nobel Peace Prize/was awarded to Menachem Begin and Anwar
Sadat to the conflicts between Israel and Egypt bring to a demise/ Though
jihadists like Hamas and Iran to continue to reject Israel’s right to exist/Egypt
and Israel have to this day an end of peace between the two have chosen to resist/
The Nobel Peace Prize does not come without a cost/Anwar Sadat’s efforts so
outraged the Egyptian Islamic Jihad that by assassination on October 6, 1981 his
life was lost.
5. On this day in 1949 the debate over
whether airplanes could sink heavily armed capital ships came to an end/Britain’s
newest battleship the HMS Prince of Wales and a World War I
battlecruiser HMS Repulse attacked by Japanese torpedo planes who
quickly both ships to the bottom would send/The sinkings plus the abysmal tactics
of British ground forces on the peninsula of Malay/Would mean the fall of Singapore in the
largest surrender of British forces in history following the sinkings in just
66 days.
Quote on the assassination of
Anwar Sadat by Ronald Reagan on October 6, 1981 broadcast to the nation: “President
Sadat was a courageous man whose vision and wisdom brought nations and people
together. In a world filled with hatred, he was a man of hope. In a world
trapped in the animosities of the past, he was a man of foresight, a man who
sought to improve a world tormented by malice and pettiness.
As an Egyptian patriot, he helped
create the revolutionary movement that freed his nation. As a political leader,
he sought to free his people from hatred and war. And as a soldier, he was
unafraid to fight. But most important, he was a humanitarian unafraid to make
peace. His courage and skill reaped a harvest of life for his nation and for
the world.
Anwar Sadat was admired and loved by
the people of America. His death today -- an act of infamy, cowardly infamy --
fills us with horror.”
© December 10, 2023 Ridley’s Believe It Or Not
www.alaskanpoet.blogspot.com
Poems on Events of the Day
Unique Commissioned Poems
for Special Events
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