re: GMT

Morning all

Morning All

Good morning

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1803
French flag lowered in New Orleans to mark the formal transfer of the Louisiana Purchase from France to USA, purchased for $15M

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The funny bit about this is that the French had only gained operational control of New Orleans from Spain just a couple of weeks before this happened. New Orleans was kinda semi sorta under French control for some time before it kinda semi sorta passed to Spain who gave it back to France... but didn't bother to stop actually occupying the city and getting tax revenue from it.

Considering that the main point of the Louisiana Purchase was gaining control of the port of New Orleans (and effectively controlling trade for the middle of the continent) if the deal had fallen through not only would France have been denied the money they got from selling the land, it likely would have seen the US enter an alliance with the UK and declare war on France.

Today in History 22 Dec

401
St. Innocent I begins his reign as Catholic Pope

1775
Continental navy organized with 7 ships

1807
US Congress passes Embargo Act and President Thomas Jefferson signs into law. Prohibits American ships from trading in foreign ports, as result of involvement in hostilities between France and Britain

1885
Pope Leo XIII proclaims extraordinary jubilee

1910
US postal savings stamps 1st issued

1944
Germans demand surrender of American troops at Bastogne, Belgium

1967
"The Graduate", American comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols, starring Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft, premieres (Best Director, 1968)

1973
OPEC Gulf Six decides to raise the posted price of marker crude from $5.12 to $11.65 per barrel effective January 1, 1974

1977
36 die as grain elevator at Continental Grain Company plant explodes

1990
Iraq announces it will never give up Kuwait

2010
Repeal of the "Don't Ask Don't Tell policy", a 17-year-old policy banning homosexuals serving openly in the US military, signed into law by President Barack Obama

2016
Ebola vaccine VSV-EBOV is found to be 70-100% effective in a study published in The Lancet, becoming the world's first proven vaccine against Ebola

2018
Partial shutdown of US federal government begins

2022
"American life expectancy is now at its lowest in nearly two decades" - 76.4 years, according to new report by CDC, biggest factors in the fall among many, COVID-19 and drug overdoses

2022
US Drug Enforcement Administration says it seized enough fentanyl in 2022 to kill every American, more than 379 million doses of

Born on this day 22 Dec

1903
Barbara Moore, Russian-born British engineer (walked across US in 86 days in 1960), born in Russia (d. 1977)

1970
Ted Cruz [Rafael Edward], Canadian-born US politician (Senate-R-Texas 2013-), born in Calgary. Alberta

JOTD

Two hunters are out in the woods when one of them collapses. He doesn't seem to be breathing and his eyes are glazed. The other guy whips out his phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps, "My friend is dead! What can I do?" The operator says, "Calm down. I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead." There is a silence; then a gun shot is heard. Back on the phone, the guy says, "OK, now what?"

Good morning

These are the GMTs I can get behind

quote:

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quote:

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1807
US Congress passes Embargo Act and President Thomas Jefferson signs into law. Prohibits American ships from trading in foreign ports, as result of involvement in hostilities between France and Britain

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"I'll take laws that were ignored before the ink was dry for 600."

The French and British were knee deep in the Napoleonic Wars at this point and both saw merchant ships from the United States as fair game. Jefferson's Democratic Republican party, usually referred to as the Republicans, were devoted to the founding principles of the new Republic.

That meant they were incredibly hostile to Britain and the Netherlands, while supporting the French Revolution. Never mind that both of those countries had working parliamentary democracy while the French went from monarchy, to anarchy, and then back to monarchy again.

At the time the US did most of its trade with the UK, both the British isles and the Caribbean colonies. Jefferson thought that this embargo would both protect US merchant ships and harm Britain.

It didn't help much with the first issue and while it did make the British miserable it was a great example of cutting off your nose to spite your face. The US economy imploded, shipbuilding ground to a halt, agriculture took a massive hit, and the American people, not surprisingly, were not amused.

It would be repealed just two years and replaced but tensions continued. to raise between the UK and the US. Economically it was a hand grenade fight in a broom closet, It crippled both countries economic output, with the US suffering more than the UK.

Sadly it would take the disastrous (for both countries) War of 1812 to clear the air and convince both sides that whether they liked it or not, they had to find a way to get along.

Today in History: December 23

438
The Theodosian Code of Roman laws proclaimed in the Western Empire (first law reforms since 295)

1783
US General George Washington resigns his military commission as Commander-in-Chief of the Army to Congress

1900
The Federal Party, which recognizes American sovereignty, is formed in the Philippines.

1941
Despite throwing back an earlier Japanese amphibious assault, the U.S. Marines and Navy defenders on Wake Island capitulate to a second Japanese invasion.

1944
General Dwight D. Eisenhower confirms the death sentence of Private Eddie Slovik, the only American shot for desertion since the Civil War.

1947
President Harry S Truman grants a pardon to 1,523 who had evaded the World War II draft.

1948
Japan's Prime Minister, Hideki Tojo and six other collaborators are hanged for war crimes.

1974
The B-1 bomber makes its first successful test flight.

1986
The Voyager completes the first nonstop flight around the globe on one load of fuel. The experimental aircraft, piloted by Americans Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California after nine days and four minutes in the sky.

1990
In a referendum on Sovlenia's independence from Yugoslovia, 88.5% vote in favor of independence.

2002
An Iraqi MiG-25 shoots down a US MQ-1 Predator drone.

2016
United Nations Security Council adopts a landmark resolution demanding a halt to all Israeli settlement in Palestinian territory occupied since 1967. Resolution 2334 was moved by New Zealand, Malaysia, Senegal and Venezuela and passed 14-0 with a US abstention.

2022
Washington Capitals center Alex Ovechkin scores two goals to move past Gordie Howe on most NHL career goals list in 4-1 win over visiting Winnipeg Jets

Born on December 23

1790
Jean François Champollion, French founder of Egyptology who deciphered the Rosetta Stone.

1805
Joseph Smith, founder of the Mormon Church.

1938
Bob Kahn, computer scientist and engineer; co-developed the Transmission Control Protocol that web browsers use to connect to servers on the World Wide Web.

JOTD

A journalist goes to Russia for a documentary. In a little village he saw an old man and asked him to narrate a typical happy story of his village.

The old man smiled and began:"One day, a long time ago, my goat got lost in the mountains. As is our tradition, all the men of the village gathered to drink vodka first and then looked for the goat. When we finally found her, as is our tradition, we all drank some more vodka and all the men in the village each got their turn to mate with the goat. We had so much fun that day!"
The journalist realized that he couldn't publish such a story so he asked the old man if he had another happy story.
The old man smiled again and started all over again: "Once, my neighbor’s wife got lost in the mountains. As per our tradition, all of the village's men gathered to drink vodka and then went to look for her. As is our tradition, when we finally found her, all the men in the village got their turn to mate with the neighbor’s wife. We had great fun that day!"
The journalist couldn't publish that story either and therefore asked: "Don't you have a story that is less happy; something... umm ... sadder?"
The old man's smile faded. His eyes welled up..... In a sad, soft voice he began: "One day I got lost in the mountains.....

Good morning