On This Day

“If you don’t like the news, go out and make some of your own.”
― Wes Nisker author, radio commentator, comedian,
and Buddhist meditation instructor.
1942 –

On this day in 2012, as a reasonably new blogger, I wrote a Post on a woman who gave a kidney to her immediate supervisor and then shortly afterward was dismissed from her job.  This should be a lesson to all those selfless people out there who are considering offering a body part to an employer or supervisor.  Your generosity will not be appreciated and may even be thrown back in your face, as in this case where the recipient of the kidney said to the donor “Don’t expect to be treated special because of what you did for me”. A strange way to say thanks.

On this day in 1773, The British Parliament passed the Tea Act.  This Act forced Colonists to buy tea from the East India Company that controlled all tea imported into the colonies.  Direct action by a group calling itself the Sons of Liberty in Boston resulted in the tea contained in three trading ships being destroyed.  We are told by Wikipedia that “this was a key event in the growth of the American Revolution”.

On this day in 1937, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco opened.  The American Society of Civil Engineers declared it one of the modern Wonders of the World and  Frommers travel guide considers the Golden Gate Bridge “possibly the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world.

On this day in 1989, Beijing students took over Tiananmen Square in China.  In case you are too young to know about this thousands of students and other citizens started gathering in groups large and small, protesting many issues, centered on a desire for freedom and democratic reform.  By mid-May, hundreds of thousands of people occupied the Square.  Chinese authorities responded with a declaration of martial law, and on June 3rd  tanks and armored personnel carriers rolled into the square, killing and wounding many, mostly civilians – estimates vary widely, from several hundred to several thousand dead.

On this day in 2011, a lashing string of tornadoes tore through Alabama smashing buildings, snapping trees and ending at least 58 lives.

On this day in 2013, eight people are killed and dozens are injured after Taliban attacks on election officials in Pakistan.

On this day in  2014, two tornadoes from a powerful storm system killed at least 17 people in Arkansas and Oklahoma on Sunday. Authorities in Arkansas said the twister there killed 16. It touched down about 10 miles west of Little Rock and stretched a half-mile wide.

On this day in 2018,  Bill Gates announced he is giving $12 million for influenza research. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will partner with Larry Page, the CEO of Google’s parent company Alphabet, to create a fund of $12 million to support research into  a universal flu vaccine.

So there you have it! And is it tea time yet?