On this date in history:

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On this date in history:


Today is Wednesday, Nov. 29, the 333rd day of 2006 with 32 to follow.

The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include (julieajr- ts4ms.com),(Horts- ts4ms.com), Austrian physicist Christian Doppler in 1803; author Louisa May Alcott in 1832; Chinese Empress Dowager Tz'u Hsi in 1835; English electrical engineer John Fleming, who devised the radio tube-diode, in 1849; film choreographer Busby Berkeley in 1895; Irish novelist C.S. Lewis in 1898; actress Diane Ladd and French President Jacques Chirac, both in 1932 (age 74); musician/composer Chuck Mangione in 1940 (age 66); comedians Garry Shandling in 1949 (age 57) and Howie Mandel in 1955 (age 51); filmmaker Joel Coen in 1954 (age 52); and actors Cathy Moriarty in 1960 (age 46), Kim Delaney in 1961 (age 45) and Andrew McCarthy in 1962 (age 44).



On this date in history:

In 1877, Thomas Edison demonstrated his invention, a hand-cranked phonograph that recorded sound on grooved metal cylinders. Edison shouted verses of "Mary Had a Little Lamb" into the machine, which played back his voice.

In 1890, the first Army-Navy football game was played with Navy winning, 24-0.

In 1929, Lt. Cmdr. Richard Byrd and three crewmen became the first people to fly over the South Pole.

In 1947, despite strong Arab opposition, the United Nations voted for the partition of Palestine and the creation of the independent Jewish state of Israel.

In 1963, U.S. President Lyndon Johnson appointed the Warren Commission to investigate the assassination of U.S. President John Kennedy.

In 1986, movie icon Cary Grant died of a stroke at the age of 82.

In 1988, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev told a landmark Supreme Soviet session that the country's system of government needed radical change.

In 1989, Romanian Olympic gymnastic hero Nadia Comaneci fled to Hungary. She eventually reached the United States.

Also in 1989, Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi resigned after his Congress Party lost its majority in national parliamentary elections.

In 1990, the U.N. Security Council passed a resolution authorizing "all necessary means," including military force, against Iraq if it did not withdraw from Kuwait by Jan. 15, 1991.

In 1991, a dust storm in Coalinga, Calif., triggered a massive pileup by more than 250 vehicles on Interstate 5, killing 15 people and injuring more than 100.

In 1992, blacks killed four whites and wounded 17 more in an unusual attack at a South African golf club. The attack was thought to be the first by blacks against white civilians since the 1990 legalization of anti-apartheid groups.

In 1994, voters in Norway rejected a proposal to join the European Union.

In 1996, astronomers announced that an asteroid would pass within 3.3 million miles of Earth -- a "near miss" in galactic terms.

In 1997, some 28,000 couples gathered in Washington's RFK Stadium for a wedding performed by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon of the Unification Church.

In 2001, George Harrison, lead guitarist and spiritual anchor of the Beatles, died of cancer. He was 58.

In 2002, United Airlines shares lost nearly one-third of their value as the nation's second-largest airline teetered on the brink of bankruptcy.

In 2003, Iraqi insurgents killed seven members of Spain's National Intelligence Center and two Japanese diplomats in a series of attacks apparently aimed at non-American foreigners.

Also in 2003, plans by the European Union's "big three" -- Britain, France and Germany -- to give the EU a military planning arm, independent of NATO, won backing from the rest of the bloc.

In 2004, President George Bush chose Carlos Gutierrez, a Cuban refugee who became head of the Kellogg Co., to be the country's Commerce secretary.

In 2005, Louisiana's Department of Health and Hospitals reported 1,086 bodies were recovered in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

Also in 2005, a Vatican policy paper said men who recognize homosexuality as a "transitory problem" can be allowed to pursue ordination to become Roman Catholic priests.


A thought for the day: Helmuth von Moltke wrote, "A war, even the most victorious, is a national misfortune."

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On this date in history:

Today is Thursday, Nov. 30, the 334h day of 2006 with 31 to follow.

The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include (Maurie -ts4ms.com) (DorotaG -ts4ms.com),Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio in 1508; Irish satirist Jonathan Swift in 1667; novelist Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens) in 1835; British statesman Winston Churchill in 1874; actor Efrem Zimbalist Jr. in 1918 (age 88); Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman elected to Congress, in 1924; actor Richard Crenna in 1926; actor Robert Guillaume in 1927 (age 79); producer/TV music show host Dick Clark in 1929 (age 77); Watergate figure G. Gordon Liddy in 1930 (age 76); 1960s radical Abbie Hoffman in 1936; filmmaker Ridley Scott in 1937 (age 69); playwright David Mamet in 1947 (age 59); singer/actor Mandy Patinkin in 1952 (age 54); rock singer Billy Idol in 1955 (age 51); and actor Ben Stiller in 1965 (age 41).



On this date in history:

In 1731, a series of earthquakes struck China. More than 100,000 people died.

In 1782, preliminary peace articles formally ending the American Revolutionary War were signed in Paris.

In 1913, Charles Chaplin made his screen debut in Mack Sennett's short film "Making A Living."

In 1939, the Russo-Finnish War started after the Soviet Union failed to obtain territorial concessions from Finland.

In 1975, Israel pulled its forces out of a 93-mile-long corridor along the Gulf of Suez as part of an interim peace agreement with Egypt.

In 1988, the Soviet Union stopped jamming broadcasts of Radio Free Europe for the first time in 30 years.

In 1989, rebels launched a fifth major coup attempt against Philippine President Corazon Aquino.

Also in 1989, Czechoslovakia announced an end to travel restrictions and said it planned to dismantle some of the fortifications along the Austrian border.

In 1990, the three Baltic republics -- Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia -- had an historic joint parliamentary session to plot their common course.

In 1993, Israeli and Palestinian leaders met in the Gaza Strip in an effort to end violence that threatened the peace accord.

In 1997, the government of Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus of the Czech Republic resigned after Klaus's Civic Democratic Party was accused of accepting contributions from foreign sources.

In 2003, the World Health Organization in Geneva unveiled a historic plan to treat 3 million impoverished AIDS sufferers by the end of 2005.

In 2004, reports say flash floods and landslides killed more than 300 people in the storm-swept Philippines.

Also in 2004, the International Committee of the Red Cross charged that the U.S. military intentionally abused prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

And, Tom Ridge, the United States' first Homeland Security secretary announced his resignation.

In 2005, U.S. President George Bush unveiled his vision of victory in Iraq for the American people and rejected calls for a timetable for withdrawal of troops.

Also in 2005, the world's first partial-face transplant was conducted in France where a woman was given a new nose, lips and chin following a brutal dog bite.


A thought for the day: Irish satirist Jonathan Swift wrote, "I never saw, heard, nor read that the clergy were beloved in any nation where Christianity was the religion of the country. Nothing can render them popular but some degree of persecution."

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On this date in history:

Today is Friday, Dec. 1, the 335th day of 2006 with 30 to follow.

The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include detective novelist Rex Stout in 1886; former United Mine Workers president W.A. "Tony" Boyle in 1904; actress Mary Martin in 1913; comedian-filmmaker Woody Allen in 1935 (age 71); soul singer Lou Rawls, also 1935; pro golfer Lee Trevino in 1939 (age 67); comedian Richard Pryor in 1940; singer/actress Bette Midler in 1945 (age 61); actor Treat Williams in 1951 (age 55); and model Carol Alt in 1960 (age 46).


On this date in history:

In 1891, the game of basketball was invented when James Naismith, a physical education teacher at the International YMCA Training School in Springfield, Mass., put peach baskets at the opposite ends of the gym and gave students soccer balls to toss into them.

In 1903, the world's first drive-in gasoline station opened for business in Pittsburgh.

In 1917, the Rev. Edward Flanagan founded Boys Town near Omaha, Neb.

In 1943, ending a "Big Three" meeting in Tehran, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Russian Premier Josef Stalin pledged a concerted effort to defeat Nazi Germany.

In 1953, the first Playboy magazine was published. Marilyn Monroe was on the cover.

In 1955, Rosa Parks, a black woman, was arrested in Montgomery, Ala., for refusing to give up her seat to a white man on a city bus. The event has been called the birth of the modern civil rights movement.

In 1989, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev and Pope John Paul II met in the Vatican City. Afterward, they announced an agreement to establish diplomatic ties and Gorbachev renounced more than 70 years of oppression of religion in the U.S.S.R.

In 1990, Iraq agreed to U.S. President George H.W. Bush's call for diplomatic missions to seek a solution to the Gulf crisis, but insisted the Arab-Israeli dispute be a part of any bargain.

In 1991, voters in Soviet republic of Ukraine overwhelmingly voted for independence.

In 1996, an oil tanker sunk by the Japanese in 1941 was located off the California coast with its cargo intact.

In 1997, it was announced that Walt Disney Co. would donate $25 million to Los Angeles for the construction of the Walt Disney Concert Hall.

In 2000, with the presidential election still undecided, Democrats and Republicans wound up with a 50-50 split in the Senate.

In 2001, as the U.S. and Israel pressured Yasser Arafat to crack down on Palestinian terrorist attacks, three suicide bombers struck Israelis the first two days of December, killing 29 people.

In 2003, Thailand officials said illegal drug traffic had been nearly eradicated, but that the fight would continue until Thailand is completely drug free.

Also in 2003, Slobodan Milosevic, the former Yugoslav president detained in The Hague on war crimes charges, said he would return to Serbian politics on the Dec. 28 legislative ballot.

In 2004, the U.S. State Department endorsed a U.S. Senate investigation into possible fraud in the U.N. oil-for-food program.

Also in 2004, one dozen people were reported dead in a prison riot and shootouts in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, during a visit by U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell.

And, political chaos in Ukraine entered its 10th day as parliament voted to fire Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych and form an interim government.

In 2005, U.S. Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee and a military veteran, said the war in Iraq had left the U.S. Army "broken, worn out" and "living hand-to-mouth."

Also in 2005, U.S. President George Bush signed legislation authorizing a statue of civil rights icon Rosa Parks in the National Statuary Hall in Washington.

And, gay marriage became legal in South Africa when the country's Constitutional Court ruled that laws banning it are unconstitutional.


A thought for the day: it was Ezra Pound who said, "Literature is news that stays news."

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On this date in history:

Today is Saturday, Dec. 2, the 336th day of 2006 with 29 to follow.

The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include (pgrill-ts4ms.com),( Bourne-ts4ms.com),( jerseywolfe- ts4ms.com), French painter Georges Seurat in 1859; circus co-founder Charles Ringling in 1863; engineer Peter Carl Goldmark, the inventor of the long-playing record, in 1906; actor Ray Walston in 1914; composer/lyricist Adolph Green in 1914; opera singer Maria Callas in 1923; former Secretary of State Alexander Haig Jr. in 1924 (age 82); actress Julie Harris in 1925 (age 81); former U.S. Attorney General Edwin Meese III in 1931 (age 75); artist and dog photographer William Wegman in 1943 (age 63); actress Cathy Lee Crosby in 1944 (age 62); figure skater Randy Gardner in 1957 (age 49); actress Lucy Liu in 1968 (age 38); tennis player Monica Seles in 1973 (age 33), and pop singer Britney Spears in 1981 (age 25).



On this date in history:

In 1804, Napoleon crowned himself emperor of France.

In 1823, during his annual address to the U.S. Congress, President James Monroe proclaimed a new U.S. foreign policy initiative that became known as the "Monroe Doctrine."

In 1859, abolitionist John Brown was hanged for his raid on the federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry, W.Va.

In 1927, the Model A Ford was introduced as the successor to the Model T. The price of a Model A roadster was $395.

In 1942, the Atomic Age was born when scientists demonstrated the first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction at a laboratory below the stands at the University of Chicago football stadium.

In 1954, the U.S. Senate voted 65 to 22 to condemn Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy, R-Wis., for conduct unbecoming a senator. The condemnation, which was equivalent to a censure, related to McCarthy's controversial investigation of allegedly suspected communists in the U.S. government, military, and civilian society.

In 1961, Fidel Castro disclosed he was a communist, acknowledging he concealed the fact until he solidified his hold on Cuba.

In 1982, 62-year-old retired dentist Barney Clark became the first person to receive a permanent artificial heart. He survived 112 days.

In 1990, Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein declared that the chance for war was "50-50," depending on U.S. willingness to negotiate the Persian Gulf crisis.

Also in 1990, Aaron Copland, the dean of American music, died at age 90; and actor Bob Cummings died at age 80.

In 1993, Colombian drug trafficker Pablo Escobar was killed in a shoot-out with police and soldiers in the Colombian city of Medellin.

In 1997, representatives of 41 countries met in London to discuss the whereabouts of gold and other valuable assets seized by the Nazi government from Jews in Germany and other occupied countries before and during World War II.

In 2001, U.S. forces in Afghanistan captured John Walker Lindh, 20, a U.S. citizen from San Anselmo, Calif., found fighting with the Taliban.

Also in 2001, Enron, the giant Houston-based energy trading company, its stock nearly worthless, became the largest firm to file for bankruptcy.

In 2002, U.S. President George W. Bush said "the signs are not encouraging" that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein is ready to fully comply with U.N. resolutions on disarmament despite the prospect of military action should he fail to do so.

Also in 2002, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston reportedly considered bankruptcy protection in the wake of the clergy sex abuse scandal. More than 200 alleged victims were involved.

In 2004, Iraq's largest party of Sunni Muslims warned of civil war if elections scheduled for Jan. 30 aren't moved back six months.

Also in 2004, John Danforth, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, resigned.

And, NATO officially handed over peacekeeping duties in Bosnia to European forces known as Eufor.

In 2005, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration decided to allow passengers to carry scissors and some tools on planes.


A thought for the day: Casey Stengel once remarked, "There comes a time in every man's life and I've had many of them."

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On this date in history:

Today is Sunday, Dec. 3, the 337th day of 2006 with 28 to follow.

The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include presidential portrait painter Gilbert Stuart in 1755; U.S. Weather Bureau meteorologist Cleveland Abbe, who initiated daily weather bulletins, in 1838; English novelist Joseph Conrad in 1857; country singer Ferlin Husky in 1925 (age 81); singer Andy Williams in 1927 (age 79); French film director Jean-Luc Godard in 1930 (age 76); rocker Ozzy Osbourne in 1948 (age 58); former race car driver Rick Mears in 1951 (age 55); actresses Daryl Hannah and Julianna Moore, both in 1960 (age 46); Olympic figure skater Katarina Witt in 1965 (age 41); and actors Brendan Fraser in 1968 (age 38) and Brian Bonsall in 1981 (age 25).




On this date in history:

In 1833, Oberlin College in Ohio opened with an enrollment of 29 men and 15 women, the nation's first truly co-educational college.

In 1929, the Ford Motor Co. raised the pay of its employees from $5 to $7 a day despite the collapse of the U.S. stock market.

In 1948, the first news of the Whittaker Chambers spy case disclosed that microfilm of secret U.S. documents was found in a pumpkin on the former magazine editor's Maryland farm, allegedly for delivery to a communist power.

In 1967, Dr. Christiaan Barnard performed the first successful heart transplant at Capetown, South Africa.

In 1984, poison gas leaked at a Union Carbide pesticide factory in Bhopal, India. The world's most deadly chemical disaster was eventually blamed for 2,889 deaths.

In 1990, soldiers seized Argentina's army headquarters two days before U.S. President George H.W. Bush was due to visit. The rebellion was quickly put down.

In 1992, the U.N. Security Council voted unanimously to authorize a U.S.-led multinational force to Somalia.

Also in 1992, Roman Catholic officials in Boston agreed to pay compensation to 68 people who claimed they were sexually abused 25 years ago by then-priest James Porter.

In 1995, South Korean police arrested former president Chun Doo Hwan on charges of orchestrating the December 1979 military coup that brought him to power.

In 1997, delegates from 131 countries met in Ottawa, Canada, to sign the Convention on the Prohibition, Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines. The United States, Russia and China were not among the 212 nations that signed.

In 2001, responding to a new wave of Palestinian suicide bombings, Israel struck the West Bank with planes, helicopter gunships, tanks and bulldozers, firing missiles into Yasser Arafat's headquarters.

In 2002, senior U.S. officials sought Turkey's full support for a possible attack on Iraq with promises of economic, military and diplomatic rewards.

In 2003, the Pentagon put a hold on Boeing's controversial $20 billion U.S. Air Force contract for 100 refueling aircraft pending an investigation into possible questionable behavior by some company executives.

Also in 2003, an international court in Tanzania convicted three Rwandan media executives of genocide for inciting a 1984 killing spree by machete-wielding gangs accused of slaughtering about 800,000 Tutsis.

In 2004, the death toll from a series of storms in the Philippines stood at a reported 568 with hundreds missing.

Also in 2004, Ukraine's top court invalidated the Nov. 21 presidential election and said it as fraught with fraud. A new election was set for Dec. 26.

In 2005, the American Civil Liberties Union charged the CIA with violating U.S. and international human rights laws by transporting terrorist suspects to other countries for interrogation in secret prisons.

Also in 2005, a Vietnamese doctor with experience in treating bird flu says Tamiflu, the drug being stockpiled for treatment, is useless against the virus.


A thought for the day: poet Stella Benson said, "Call no man foe, but never love a stranger."

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On this date in history:


Today is Monday, Dec. 4, the 338th day of 2006 with 27 to follow.

The moon is full. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include Scottish historian Thomas Carlyle in 1795; English novelist Samuel Butler in 1835; actress/singer Lillian Russell in 1861; Spanish dictator Francisco Franco in 1892; Gregory "Pappy" Boyington in 1912; actress Deanna Durbin in 1921 (age 85); actors Max Baer Jr. in 1937 (age 69) and Jeff Bridges in 1949 (age 57); actresses Patricia Wettig in 1951 (age 55) and Marisa Tomei in 1964 (age 42); and model Tyra Banks in 1973 (age 33).


On this date in history:

In 1942, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered liquidation of the Works Progress Administration, created during the Depression to provide work for the unemployed.

In 1971, India joined East Pakistan in its war for independence from West Pakistan. East Pakistan became the republic of Bangladesh.

In 1991, American Terry Anderson was freed by his pro-Iranian captors after 6 years. He was the last U.S. hostage held in the Middle East.

In 1992, U.S. President George H.W. Bush ordered U.S. troops into Somalia.

In 1995, officials of the United Auto Workers union called an end to a largely unsuccessful 17-month strike against Caterpillar in Peoria, Ill.

In 1997, top health officials in Europe voted to ban most forms of advertising of tobacco beginning in four to five years.

In 1998, the space shuttle Endeavor blasted off, carrying into orbit a U.S. component of the International Space Station.

In 2002, a Roman Catholic priest was indicted on seven counts in a 7-month investigation of sex abuse allegations in the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland. Nine others faced charges in the case.

In 2003, an especially virulent strain of the flu hit the United States, mostly in the West at first, with Colorado reporting more than 6,300 cases with the deaths of five children.

In 2004, Colombia extradited to the United States the most notorious drug cartel kingpin in its custody, Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela, a co-founder of the notorious Cali cartel.

In 2005, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin urged Hurricane Katrina evacuees to return but many were reported skeptical about what they would find there.

Also in 2005, the remains of at least 20 people were found in a grave in east Lebanon near a former Syrian-run prison where many Lebanese detainees were held.


A thought for the day: Scottish historian Thomas Carlyle said, "A well-written Life is almost as rare as a well-spent one."

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On this date in history:

Today is Tuesday, Dec. 5, the 339th day of 2006 with 26 to follow.

The moon is waning. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include Martin Van Buren, eighth president of the United States, in 1782; Gen. George Custer in 1839; film director Fritz Lang in 1890; Walt Disney in 1901; U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond, R-S.C., in 1902; film director Otto Preminger in 1906; singer Little Richard (Richard Penniman) in 1932 (age 74); author Joan Didion in 1934 (age 72); singer Chad Mitchell in 1939 (age 67); opera tenor Jose Carreras in 1946 (age 60); rock singer Jim Messina in 1947 (age 59); comedian Margaret Cho in 1968 (age 38); and actor Frankie Muniz ("Malcolm In The Middle") in 1985 (age 21).

On this date in history:

In 1776, the first scholastic fraternity in America, Phi Beta Kappa, was organized at William and Mary College in Virginia.

In 1848, U.S. President James Polk confirmed the discovery of gold in California, leading to the "gold rush" of 1848 and '49.

In 1933, prohibition of liquor in the United States was repealed when Utah became the 36th state to ratify the 21st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

In 1945, five U.S. Navy Avenger torpedo-bombers disappeared on a routine flight in the area of the Atlantic known as the Bermuda Triangle.

In 1955, in one of the early civil rights actions in the South, blacks declared a boycott of city buses in Montgomery, Ala., demanding seating on an equal basis with whites. The boycott, prompted by the arrest of Rosa Parks, a black woman who refused to give up her bus seat to a white man, lasted until Dec. 20, 1956, when a U.S. Supreme Court ruling integrated the city's public transit system.

Also in 1955, the American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organization merged after 20 years of rivalry to form the AFL-CIO.

In 1990, the U.S. State Department said Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein had accepted the idea of direct high-level U.S.-Iraqi talks to resolve the Gulf crisis.

In 1991, British media magnate Robert Maxwell disappeared while on his yacht off the Canary Islands.

Also in 1991, convicted mass murderer Richard Speck died, one day short of his 50th birthday and 25 years after killing eight student nurses in Chicago.

In 1993, Rafael Caldera Rodriguez was elected president of Venezuela.

In 2001, factions in war-shaken Afghanistan agreed on an interim government, naming Hamid Karzai, a Pakistan tribal chief, as their new leader.

In 2002, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein said U.N. inspectors were being given the "chance" to prove that Baghdad had not produced weapons of mass destruction.

Also in 2002, U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond, R-S.C., celebrated his 100th birthday on Capitol Hill. Thurmond, who retired the following year, had served the Senate since 1954, making him both the longest-serving and oldest member of Congress. He died on June 27, 2003.

In 2003, U.S. President George W. Bush lifted tariffs on imported steel, reversing one of his trade policies.

In 2004, the president of Pakistan said the search for Osama bin Laden had gone cold and there were no signs of where he was though it was certain he was alive.

Also in 2004, the U.S. Congress said it was considering a proposal to withhold millions of dollars in foreign aid unless countries agree to shield Americans from prosecution of war crimes.

In 2005, the bi-partisan Sept, 11 commission said the United States remained vulnerable to terrorist strikes four years after the 2001 attacks with "many obvious steps" not taken.

Also in 2005, a Texas judge dismissed some charges against U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Texas, the former House Republican leader, but let stand money-laundering charges.

A thought for the day: Archibald MacLeish said of Americans, "They were the first self-constituted, self-created people in the history of the world."

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On this date in history:

Today is Wednesday, Dec. 6, the 340th day of 2006 with 25 to follow.

The moon is waning. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include (buckeyefever-ts4ms.com) England's King Henry VI in 1421; French chemist Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac in 1778; pioneer Western movie star William S. Hart in 1870; poet Joyce Kilmer in 1886; lyricist Ira Gershwin in 1896; photojournalist Alfred Eisenstaedt in 1898; actress Agnes Moorehead in 1900; jazz pianist Dave Brubeck in 1920 (age 86); comedian Wally Cox in 1924; actors James Naughton in 1945 (age 61) and Tom Hulce in 1953 (age 53); comedian Steven Wright in 1955 (age 51); and actress Janine Turner in 1962 (age 44).



On this date in history:

In 1811, the first in a series of earthquakes rocked the Midwest, in and around New Madrid, Mo.

In 1865, the 13th Amendment to the U.S Constitution was ratified, abolishing slavery in the United States.

In 1907, in West Virginia's Marion County, an explosion in a network of mines owned by the Fairmont Coal Company in Monongah killed 361 coal miners. It was the worst mining disaster in U.S. history.

In 1917, more than 1,600 people died in an explosion when a Belgian relief ship and a French munitions vessel collided in the harbor at Halifax, Nova Scotia.

In 1922, the Irish Free State, forerunner of the modern Republic of Ireland, was officially proclaimed.

In 1933, Americans crowded into liquor stores, bars and cafes to buy their first legal alcoholic beverages in 13 years, following repeal of Prohibition.

In 1941, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt sent a message to Japanese Emperor Hirohito expressing hope that gathering war clouds would be dispelled. Japan attacked Pearl Harbor the next day.

In 1969, an all-star concert headlined by the Rolling Stones at the Altamont Speedway in Livermore, Calif., was marred by tragedy when a spectator was stabbed to death by members of the Hell's Angels, who had been hired as security guards for the event.

In 1973, Gerald Ford was sworn in as U.S. vice president under Richard Nixon, replacing Spiro Agnew, who had resigned in the face of income tax evasion charges.

In 1975, the U.S. Senate authorized a $2.3 billion emergency loan to save New York City from bankruptcy.

In 1990, Saddam Hussein asked the Iraqi Parliament to authorize the release of all hostages being held by Iraq. The legislature acted the next day and all Americans who wished to leave were out a week later.

In 1991, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued sweeping changes in food labeling rules that required more detailed listing of contents.

In 1997, the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia's Far East was hit by one of the largest earthquakes recorded, measuring 8.5 to 9 in magnitude. But, there were no reported deaths in the sparsely populated area.

In 2002, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he was "gravely disturbed" by Israel's Gaza attack that left 10 Palestinians dead, including two U.N. Relief Works Agency employees.

In 2003, U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., denying she had planned to run for president, blasted U.S. President George W. Bush for trying to wreck the United States.

Also in 2003, U.S. Embassy officials confirmed that U.S. troops apparently accidentally bombed a house near Ghazni, Afghanistan, killing nine children and one adult.

In 2004, the U.S. Congress passed a sweeping intelligence bill that would create a national intelligence director and enact other major recommendations of the Sept. 11 commission.

Also in 2004, militants struck the U.S. Consulate in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, with explosives and machine guns. Nine people died in the attack claimed by al-Qaida but no Americans were among them.

In 2005, two suicide bombers targeted a Baghdad police academy, reportedly killing at least 43 officers and cadets and injuring 73 others.

Also in 2005, at least 128 people were killed when an Iranian military aircraft hit a 10-story residential building in Tehran and exploded shortly after takeoff.


A thought for the day: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Robert Houghwout Jackson wrote, "The day that this country ceases to be free for irreligion, it will cease to be free for religion."

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On this date in history:

Today is Thursday, Dec. 7, the 341st day of 2006 with 24 to follow.

This is Pearl Harbor Day.

The moon is waning. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include Italian sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini in 1598; waxworks museum founder Marie Tussaud in 1761; German physiologist Theodor Schwann, co-originator of the cell theory and the first to use the term, in 1810; novelist Willa Cather in 1873; composer Rudolph Friml ("Indian Love Call") in 1879; actor Eli Wallach in 1915 (age 91); actor Ted Knight in 1923; linguist Noam Chomsky in 1928 (age 78); actress Ellen Burstyn in 1932 (age 74); rock/folksinger Harry Chapin in 1942; Baseball Hall of Famer Johnny Bench in 1947 (age 59); former basketball star and coach Larry Bird in 1956 (age 50); and actor C. Thomas Howell in 1966 (age 40).


On this date in history:

In 1787, Delaware became the first state to ratify the U.S. Constitution.

In 1909, Leo Baekeland patented the process for making Bakelite, giving birth to the modern plastics industry.

In 1925, five-time Olympic gold medalist and future movie Tarzan Johnny Weissmuller set a world record in 150-yard free-style swimming.

In 1931, U.S. President Herbert Hoover refused to see a group of "hunger marchers" at the White House.

In 1941, Japan launched a sneak attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, catapulting the United States into World War II. The Japanese attack left a reported 2,403 dead, 188 destroyed planes and a crippled Pacific Fleet. U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt described it as "a date that will live in infamy."

In 1972, Apollo 17 was launched from Cape Canaveral, Fla., on the last scheduled manned mission to the moon.

In 1983, the first execution by lethal injection took place at the state penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas.

In 1986, the speaker of Iran's Parliament said his country would help free more U.S. hostages in Lebanon in exchange for more U.S. arms.

In 1987, Mikhail Gorbachev arrived in Washington, the first Soviet leader to officially visit the United States since 1973.

In 1988, as many as 60,000 people were killed when a powerful earthquake rocked the Soviet republic of Armenia.

In 1991, on the 50th anniversary of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, U.S. President George H.W. Bush called for an end to recriminations and sought the healing of old wounds.

In 1992, the destruction of a 16th-century mosque by militant Hindus touched off five days of violence across India that left more than 1,100 people dead.

In 1993, U.S. Energy Secretary Hazel O'Leary revealed the United States had conducted 204 underground nuclear tests from 1963-90 without informing the public.

Also in 1993, astronauts aboard the space shuttle Endeavor fixed the orbiting Hubble Space Telescope.

In 1995, a 2-week strike by hundreds of thousands of French public-sector workers protesting planned cuts in welfare spending spread to cities throughout France.

In 2001, the U.S. Labor Department announced the loss of nearly 1 million jobs over the previous three months.

In 2002, New York authorities downplayed a suspected plot by Colombian rebels to kidnap former Mayor Rudy Giuliani in Mexico City.

Also in 2002, Azra Akin, a 21-year-old model from Turkey, won the Miss World competition, two weeks after Muslim-Christian violence in Nigeria forced organizers to move the pageant to London. More than 200 people were killed in the religious riots.

In 2003, a priest convicted of sexually abusing alter boys, was found beaten to death at his Lexington, Ky., home.

Also in 2003, during a visit to the United States, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said "we will never tolerate" Taiwan splitting away from China.

In 2004, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said he expected U.S. troops to withdraw from Iraq by 2008, conditions permitting.

Also in 2004, Hamid Karzai was sworn in as Afghanistan's first popularly elected president.

In 2005, U.S. air marshals killed a man who said he had a bomb aboard an American Airlines plane at Miami International Airport. No bomb was found and authorities said the man's wife told them he was mentally ill and had not taken his medication.

Also in 2005, Saddam Hussein's trial in Baghdad resumed but promptly adjourned for two weeks after the deposed Iraqi leader refused to appear in "a court without justice."


A thought for the day: Roscoe Pound said, "The law must be stable, but it must not stand still."

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On this date in history:

Today is Friday, Dec. 8, the 342nd day of 2006 with 23 to follow.

The moon is waning. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include (alanmj-ts4ms.com) Mary Queen of Scots in 1542; Eli Whitney, inventor of the cotton gin, in 1765; General Motors founder William Durant in 1861; Finnish composer Jean Sibelius in 1865; Mexican muralist Diego Rivera in 1886; humorist and artist James Thurber in 1894; actor Lee J. Cobb in 1911; entertainer Sammy Davis Jr. in 1925; actor Maximilian Schell in 1930 (age 76); comedian Flip Wilson in 1933; actors David Carradine in 1936 (age 70) and James MacArthur in 1937 (age 69); Irish flutist James Galway in 1939 (age 67); rock musicians Jim Morrison in 1943 and Gregg Allman in 1947 (age 59); actresses Kim Basinger in 1953 (age 53) and Teri Hatcher in 1964 (age 42); and Irish pop singer/songwriter Sinead O'Connor in 1966 (age 40).


On this date in history:

In 1886, delegates from 25 unions founded the American Federation of Labor, forerunner of the modern AFL-CIO, in Columbus, Ohio.

In 1941, the United States, Britain and Australia declared war on Japan.

In 1949, the Chinese Nationalist government, defeated by the Communists, retreated from the mainland to the island of Taiwan.

In 1980, former Beatle John Lennon was shot to death outside his apartment building in New York City. He was 40.

In 1986, U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz told the House Foreign Affairs Committee the transfer of Iran arms money to the Nicaraguan Contras was illegal.

In 1987, at a meeting in Washington, U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev signed the first treaty between the two superpowers to reduce their massive nuclear arsenals.

In 1991, the Soviet Union ceased to exist when the republics of Russia, Byelorussia (now known as Belarus) and Ukraine signed an agreement creating the Commonwealth of Independent States.

In 1993, U.S. President Bill Clinton signed the North American Free Trade Agreement.

In 1997, the Union Bank of Switzerland and the Swiss Bank Corp. announced plans to merge, creating the world's second-largest bank with assets of some $600 billion.

Also in 1997, Jenny Shipley was sworn in as the first woman prime minister of New Zealand.

In 2002, Iraq said all its chemical and biological weapons programs ended in 1991 and that the country had never reached the assembly or testing stage for nuclear weapons.

In 2003, U.S. Rep. William Janklow, R-S.D. and former governor, was convicted of second-degree manslaughter in the traffic death of a motorcyclist.

In 2004, International Business Machines Corp., reported it was selling its personal computer business to Chinese rival Lenovo Group for $1.25 billion in cash and stock.

Also in 2004, most of the world's automakers were reported lining up to fight a new California anti-pollution law mandating a 30-percent cut in greenhouse gases by 2016.

In 2005, a suicide bomber detonated explosives on a crowded bus in Baghdad, killing at least 30 people and wounding 27 others.

Also in 2005, a Southwest Airlines jetliner overshot a runway at Chicago's Midway International Airport in a snowstorm, crashing through a fence into a city street. A 6-year-old boy in one a car hit by the plane was killed and at least 11 others were hurt.


A thought for the day: Saki, the pen name for Hector Hugh Munro, said, "A little inaccuracy sometimes saves tons of explanation."

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On this date in history:

Today is Saturday, Dec. 9, the 343rd day of 2006 with 22 to follow.

The moon is waning. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include English poet John Milton in 1608; journalist Joel Chandler Harris, author of the "Uncle Remus" stories, in 1848; Clarence Birdseye, industrialist/inventor, noted as "the father of frozen foods," in 1886; circus clown Emmett Kelly in 1898; bandleader Freddie Martin in 1906; actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr. in 1909; actor Broderick Crawford in 1911; former Speaker of the House Thomas "Tip" O'Neill, D-Mass., in 1912; actor Kirk Douglas in 1916 (age 90); comedian Redd Foxx in 1922; actors Dina Merrill in 1925 (age 81), Dick Van Patten in 1928 (age 78), John Cassavetes in 1929, Judi Dench in 1934 (age 72), and Beau Bridges in 1941 (age 65); Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker, sportscaster and actor Dick Butkus in 1942 (age 64); actors Michael Nouri in 1945 (age 61) and John Malkovich in 1953 (age 53); singer Donny Osmond in 1957 (age 49), and actor Joe Lando in 1961 (age 45).


On this date in history:

In 1907, the first Christmas Seals to raise money to fight tuberculosis went on sale in the post office in Wilmington, Del.

In 1920, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to U.S. President Woodrow Wilson.

In 1958, in Indianapolis, retired Boston candy manufacturer Robert H. W. Welch, Jr., established the John Birch Society, a right-wing organization dedicated to fighting what it perceived to be the extensive infiltration of communism into U.S. society.

In 1974, White House aide John Ehrlichman testified at the Watergate trial that U.S. President Richard Nixon was responsible for the coverup.

In 1985, OPEC oil ministers abandoned the struggle to control production and prices, setting the stage for a global oil price war.

In 1987, in the Israeli-occupied Gaza Strip, the first riots of the Palestinian intifada began one day after an Israeli truck crashed into a station wagon carrying Palestinian workers, killing four and wounding 10.

In 1990, Lech Walesa won Poland's first direct presidential vote.

In 1992, the U.S. Marines landed in famine-wracked Somalia to ensure the delivery of food and medicine.

Also in 1992, British Prime Minister John Major announced the formal separation of Prince Charles and Princess Diana.

In 1994, U.S. President Bill Clinton fired U.S. Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders for reportedly suggesting that masturbation be taught in the schools.

In 2002, United Airlines, which said it was losing $22 million a day, filed for bankruptcy.

In 2003, the U.S. Defense Department indicated that only nations that supported the United States in the war in Iraq would be allowed to bid on the $18.6 billion in contracts for reconstruction projects there.

In 2004, the U.S. Congress released documentation to back up reports of glaring armor shortages for military transport trucks ferrying fuel, food and ammunition in Iraq.

Also in 2004, police said a man rushed a Columbus, Ohio, night club bandstand and opened fire, killing at least five people, including two members of the heavy metal band Damageplan.

In 2005, published reports said a key prewar Bush administration claim about ties between Iraq and al-Qaida came from a prisoner who said he made it up to avoid harsh treatment.

A thought for the day: English poet John Milton wrote, "No man who know aught can be so stupid to deny that all men naturally were born free."

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On this date in history:

Today is Sunday, Dec. 10, the 344th day of 2006 with 21 to follow.

The moon is waning. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include (pagosajim-ts4ms.com) ,Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, founder of the first free school for the deaf, in 1787; poet Emily Dickinson in 1830; librarian Melvil Dewey, inventor of the Dewey decimal book classification system, in 1851; TV newscaster Chet Huntley in 1911; actress Dorothy Lamour in 1914; actor Harold Gould in 1923 (age 83); actress Susan Dey in 1952 (age 54); and actor Kenneth Branagh in 1960 (age 46).


On this date in history:

In 1869, the Territory of Wyoming granted women the right to vote.

In 1898, Spain signed a treaty officially ending the Spanish-American War. It gave Guam, Puerto Rico and the Philippines to the United States.

In 1901, the Nobel prizes were first awarded in Oslo, Norway, and Stockholm, Sweden.

In 1927, the Grand Ole Opry made its first radio broadcast from Nashville.

In 1936, Britain's King Edward VIII abdicated to marry American divorcee Wallis Warfield Simpson. His brother succeeded to the throne as King George VI.

In 1941, Japanese troops landed on northern Luzon in the Philippines in the early days of World War II.

In 1950, U.S. diplomat Ralph Joseph Bunche received the Nobel Peace Prize for his peace mediation during the first Arab-Israeli war. He was the first African-American to win the prestigious award.

In 1984, the National Science Foundation reported the discovery of the first planet outside our solar system, orbiting a star 21 million light-years from Earth.

In 1990, the communists won a major victory in the first postwar multi-party elections in the Yugoslavian republics of Serbia and Montenegro.

In 1991, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a New York law that allowed a criminal's profits for selling his story to be seized and given to his victims.

In 1997, the Swiss high court ruled that $100 million of the money that had been salted away in banks by former dictator Ferdinand Marcos would be returned to the Philippine government.

In 2002, the Roman Catholic diocese of Manchester, N.H., admitted responsibility for failing to protect children from abusive priests.

In 2003, The European Union planned to examine the legality of a United States decision to exclude several nations from multi-billion-dollar reconstruction contracts in Iraq.

Also in 2003, the U.S.-appointed Iraqi Governing Council announced the formal establishment of a war crimes tribunal.

And, Mick Jagger became Sir Mick after the Rolling Stones' front man was knighted by Prince Charles.

In 2004, 33 miners were reported dead after China's latest mine blast, this one in the northern province of Shanxi.

Also in 2004, the U.S. government said it would go ahead with plans to build a nuclear plant in New Mexico despite health and safety issues raised by state regulators.

And, an Italian court cleared Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of corruption charges.

In 2005, former U.S. Senator and presidential candidate Eugene McCarthy, credited with helping bring down U.S. President Lyndon Johnson by challenging him on the Vietnam War, died in his sleep at 89.

Also in 2005, more than 100 people were believed dead after a passenger plane crashed in the southern Nigerian city of Port Harcourt.

And, Richard Pryor, who pushed the envelope on racial themes and vulgarity with standup and movie comedy, died of cardiac arrest. He was 65.

A thought for the day: Marcel Proust said, "Only through art can we get outside of ourselves and know another's view of the universe."

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On this date in history:

Today is Monday, Dec. 11, the 345th day of 2006 with 20 to follow.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include Scottish physicist and kaleidoscope inventor David Brewster in 1781; French composer Hector Berlioz in 1803; German pioneer bacteriologist Robert Koch in 1843; New York Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia in 1882; Italian film producer Carlo Ponti in 1912 (age 94); Russian novelist Alexander Solzhenitsyn in 1918 (age 88); actress Rita Moreno (first performer to win an Oscar, Tony, Emmy and Grammy) in 1931 (age 75); singers David Gates in 1940 (age 66) and Brenda Lee in 1944 (age 62); actors Donna Mills in 1943 (age 63), Teri Garr in 1949 (age 57) and singer Jermaine Jackson in 1954 (age 52).

On this date in history:

In 1941, four days after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Germany and Italy declared war on the United States.

In 1951, Joe DiMaggio announced his retirement from baseball.

In 1953, Alaska's first TV station signed on the air.

In 1983, 30,000 women tried to rip down fences around a U.S. cruise missile base at Greenham Common, England.

In 1984, a nativity scene was displayed near the White House for the first time since courts ordered it removed in 1973.

In 1989, Bulgarian leader Peter Mladenov set a May 31 deadline for free elections and called for a constitution that did not guarantee the Communist party a dominant role in the Eastern European country.

In 1992, the three major TV networks agreed on joint standards to limit entertainment violence by the start of the next fall's season.

In 1993, Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle of the ruling center-left Coalition of Parties for Democracy won Chile's presidential election.

In 1994, up to 40,000 Russian troops invaded Chechnya, a semi-autonomous republic on Russia's border with Georgia, to put down a secessionist rebellion.

In 1995, two Japanese cult members admitted they had released the toxic sarin gas in Tokyo subway trains the previous March that killed 12 people.

In 1997, a U.S. judge in Washington ruled that Microsoft Corp. could not bundle its Internet Explorer with Windows 95.

In 1998, the International Olympic Committee began an internal investigation into rumors that bribes had been offered by cities seeking to be chosen as sites for the Olympic Games.

In 2001, the United States filed its first charges in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, accusing Zacarias Moussaoui, a French citizen of Moroccan descent, of conspiring with others to carry out the assault.

In 2004, Vienna doctors treating the mystery illness of Ukrainian opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko determined he was poisoned by dioxin while campaigning for president.

Also in 2004, a study indicated that U.S. teen sexual activity dropped significantly since 1995.

In 2005, reports say Britain's Prince Charles was formally interviewed by Scotland Yard detectives investigating the death of Princess Diana, his former wife. A letter left by Diana allegedly accused Charles of plotting against her.

Also in 2005, news reports said French intelligence had warned the CIA several times there was no evidence Iraq tried to buy uranium from Niger before U.S. President George Bush went to war.

A thought for the day: Paul Valery said, "That which has always been accepted by everyone, everywhere, is almost certain to be false."

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On this date in history:

Today is Tuesday, Dec. 12, the 346th day of 2006 with 19 to follow.

The moon is waning. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include John Jay, first chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, in 1745; abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison in 1805; French novelist Gustave Flaubert in 1821; Norwegian painter Edvard Munch in 1863; actor Edward G. Robinson in 1893; singer/actor Frank Sinatra in 1915; TV game show host Bob Barker in 1923 (age 83); former New York Mayor Edward Koch in 1924 (age 82); singers Connie Francis in 1938 (age 68) and Dionne Warwick in 1940 (age 66); former Olympic gymnast Cathy Rigby in 1952 (age 54); musician Sheila E in 1957 (age 49), former tennis player Tracy Austin in 1962 (age 44); and actress Mayim Bialik in 1975 (age 31).


On this date in history:

In 1870, Joseph Hayne Rainey of South Carolina was sworn in as the first black to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.

In 1901, Italian physicist and radio pioneer Guglielmo Marconi sent the first radio transmission across the Atlantic Ocean.

In 1913, two years after it was stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris, Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece "The Mona Lisa" was recovered in a Florence, Italy, hotel room.

In 1917, the Rev. Edward J. Flanagan, a 31-year-old Irish priest, opened the doors to Boys Town, a home for troubled and neglected children in Omaha, Neb. He lived by the adage, "There is no such thing as a bad boy."

In 1937, Japanese planes bombed and sank the U.S. gunboat Panay in the Yangtze River north of Nanking, China. Japan later said it was a mistake.

In 1968, stage and screen actress Tallulah Bankhead died at the age of 65.

In 1975, Sara Jane Moore said she willfully tried to kill U.S. President Gerald Ford. She was sentenced to life in prison.

In 1981, martial law was imposed in Poland.

In 1985, the crash of an Arrow Air DC-8 military charter on takeoff from Gander, Newfoundland, killed all 256 aboard, including 248 U.S. soldiers.

In 1989, five Central American presidents, including Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega, called for an end to the rebel offensive against El Salvador's U.S.-backed government.

In 1990, 15 people were killed and more than 260 injured in a pileup on a foggy Tennessee highway.

In 1991, the Russian parliament ratified a commonwealth treaty linking the three strongest Soviet republics in the nation's most profound change since the 1917 revolution.

Also in 1991, North and South Korea concluded an historic agreement to reunify peacefully after 46 years of division and animosity.

In 1992, Princess Anne, the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II of Britain, became the first divorced royal in the inner circle to remarry when she wed Cmdr. Timothy Laurence.

In 1993, Russian voters approved a new constitution.

In 1996, a French gunman took 35 hostages in a Paris office. The standoff ended without injuries.

In 2002, North Korea announced it would reactivate a nuclear reactor idle since 1994.

Also in 2002, the European Union invited 10 nations, including Poland and Hungary, to join its ranks in 2004.

In 2003, Paul Martin became Canada's 21st prime minister, succeeding Jean Chretien.

Also in 2003, armed men attacked military police near the Ivory Coast's national television station in Abidjan, leaving at least 19 people dead.

In 2004, the U.S. Defense Department reportedly held simulations to determine the effectiveness of an attack on Iran.

Also in 2004, seeking to head off a potential trade war with the United States and the European Union, China announced it would place tariffs on textile imports.

In 2005, Jibran Tueni, an anti-Syrian member of the Lebanese Parliament and head of a leading Lebanon newspaper, was assassinated when an explosion tore through his armored car outside Beirut.


A thought for the day: Leon Blum wrote, "I have often thought morality may perhaps consist solely in the courage of making a choice."

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On this date in history:


Today is Wednesday, Dec. 13, the 347th day of 2006 with 18 to follow.

The moon is waning. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include clergyman Phillips Brooks, who wrote the Christmas carol "O Little Town of Bethlehem," in 1835; World War I hero Sgt. Alvin York in 1887; actor Van Heflin in 1910; former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz in 1920 (age 86); comedian/actor Dick Van Dyke in 1925 (age 81); actor Christopher Plummer in 1929 (age 77); singer/actor John Davidson in 1941 (age 65); rock singer Ted Nugent in 1948 (age 58); and actors Wendy Malick in 1950 (age 56), Steve Buscemi in 1957 (age 49) and Jamie Foxx in 1967 (age 39).

On this date in history:

In 1642, Dutch navigator Abel Tasman discovered New Zealand.

In 1816, the nation's first savings bank, the Provident Institution for Savings, opened in Boston.

In 1862, an estimated 11,000 northern soldiers were killed or wounded in a battle with Confederate troops outside Fredericksburg, Va.

In 1982, the Sentry armored car company in New York discovered the overnight theft of $11 million from its headquarters. It was the biggest cash theft in U.S. history at the time.

In 1990, the last of the U.S. hostages being held by Iraq, five diplomats in Kuwait, flew to freedom.

Also in 1990, troops were rushed to Soviet Georgia and a state of emergency was imposed after ethnic violence killed three people.

In 1991, the leaders of the Central American countries had a meeting and agreed to pledge $4.5 billion to fight poverty.

In 1992, Ricky Ray, 15, one of three hemophiliac brothers barred from attending a Florida school because they had the AIDS virus, died.

In 1998, in a non-binding referendum giving Puerto Ricans the opportunity to express a political preference, most indicated they wished to remain a U.S. commonwealth.

In 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court halted the Florida presidential vote recount, in effect giving the presidency to Republican George W. Bush more than a month after the balloting. Winning Florida meant Bush had enough electoral votes to defeat Democrat Al Gore, who had won the popular vote.

In 2001, as the extensive manhunt continued for Osama bin Laden, the U.S. government released a tape of the suspected mastermind of the Sept.11 terrorist attacks in which he spoke of the attacks and voiced pleasure and surprise that so many of the "enemy" had died.

Also in 2001, calling it a Cold War relic, President George W. Bush announced the United States was pulling out of the 1972 Antiballistic Missile Treaty, opening the way for the Defense Department to test and deploy a missile defense system without restraints.

And in 2001, 14 people were killed when gunmen tried to storm the Indian Parliament building in New Delhi.

In 2002, Cardinal Bernard Law, under fire for allegedly protecting priests accused of abusing minors, resigned as Roman Catholic archbishop of Boston.

Also in 2002, Henry Kissinger resigned as head of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks, saying compliance with disclosure rules could jeopardize his consulting firm.

Further in 2002, U.S. President George W. Bush, saying he feared terrorists might use the smallpox virus as a weapon, ordered mandatory smallpox vaccinations for all military personnel and offered it to emergency workers on a voluntary basis.

In 2003, a bearded and apparently disoriented Saddam Hussein, the deposed Iraqi president, was captured by U.S. troops in a small underground hideout southeast of his home town of Tikrit, ending an 8-month manhunt.

In 2004, the Pentagon acknowledged investigations into the death of eight prisoners in Afghanistan, five more than it disclosed in May.

Also in 2004, Ukrainian opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko was said to be convinced government authorities were behind the poisoning attempt on his life during his presidential campaign.

In 2005, a majority of U.S. employers plans no major changes in what is described as positive hiring sentiments in 2006, a survey report says.

Also in 2005, Indonesian health officials confirmed the country's ninth death from bird flu.


A thought for the day: Willa Cather said, "The history of every country begins in the heart of a man or a woman."