Hols of the Day

 
Polar Bear Day

It is. Variously called "National" and "International," I guess we're supposed to think about polar bears.

Ma admits they are very cute and cuddly and would hasten to add that those terms most aptly apply to baby bears. Little Knut of the past has grown into quite the psychopath.

Speaking of changes or deceiving appearances, we've all seen the picture below, many times associated with the perils of global warming and the diminished Arctic ice pack...
...except, this photo actually exhibits polar bears playing on an ice-wave sculpture, formed by cold winds and cold water.

Ma awards one out of fifty points for a good try.


Today in History:

1869--John Menard is 1st black to make a speech in Congress

1872--Charlotte Ray, 1st Black woman lawyer, graduated *Harvard U

1883--Oscar Hammerstein patents 1st cigar-rolling machine

1922--Supreme Court unanimously upheld 19th amend woman's right to vote

1933--German parliament building, Reichstag, destroyed by fire (set by Nazis, blamed on communists)

1962 South-Vietnam President Ngo Dinh Diem's palace bombed, 1st US killed

1992--Tiger Woods, 16, becomes youngest PGA golfer in 35 years

2008--Death of William F. Buckley Jr.

A few of these merit further attention:

The above Oscar Hammerstein was the father of Oscar Hammerstein II, of musical fame. Oscar I was an inventor, publisher and jack of many trades. Almost above all else, he wished to promote opera. You can read a short and informative article about this man, written by his grandson, Oscar Hammerstein III.

February is Black History Month, or African American History Month, whichever you prefer.

And in keeping with that, the name John Menard stands out when in 1868 he won the election of Louisiana's second congressional district. However, instead of becoming the first African American in congress, the seat was given to his opponent for the reason that “it was too early to admit a Negro to the U. S. Congress.”

Mr. Menard was granted permission to address congress in 1869, where he spoke concerning the right of his elected office. John Willis Menard had a distinguished career as a journalist, editor, civil rights activist and poet.

He is NOT to be confused with the present day John Menard, who founded the famous Menard's hardware store chain. In truth though, that type of association of names is just the ticket to help one like me remember the name :-)

Charlotte E. Ray was the first black woman lawyer, although because of her gender she was never allowed to make a living from her trained profession. The above listing came from the Scopes Systems site and the reason for my asterisk is that contrary to the notation of graduation from Harvard, every website I checked mentioned Howard University as her alma mater. While Harvard did start admitting women to it's law school in 1869, it would seem that the Scopes site has made an error regarding which university she graduated from.

And now Iowa Black History...did you know George Washington Carver went to school here in Iowa? First at Simpson college in Indianola, after which he obtained his masters and taught at Iowa State College, later named Iowa State University! (in Ames)

Ma had not known (or remembered) that and is most pleased to learn such. More info can be had, here.

And now, I was very sad to learn this afternoon of the passing of William F. Buckley. Even if one did not agree with all of his views (and with whom does one?), it cannot be denied that he had an incredible impact on conservative thought, intellectual thought and politics in general. (I separated those first two categories--conservative and intellectual--because sadly, they have often been disparate)

The following is an excerpt from a rather decent biographical article on Breitbart.com...

"I am, I fully grant, a phenomenon, but not because of any speed in composition," he wrote in The New York Times Book Review in 1986. "I asked myself the other day, `Who else, on so many issues, has been so right so much of the time?' I couldn't think of anyone."

Buckley had for years been withdrawing from public life, starting in 1990 when he stepped down as top editor of the National Review. In December 1999, he closed down "Firing Line" after a 23-year run, when guests ranged from Richard Nixon to Allen Ginsberg. "You've got to end sometime and I'd just as soon not die on stage," he told the audience.

He was 82 and died in his home, while at work in his study.

Homo doctvs is se semper divitias habet - A learned man always has wealth within himself

Homo vitae commodatus non donatus est - Man has been lent to life, not given.

 

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