On this date in history

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Today is Friday, Feb. 22, the 53rd day of 2008 with 313 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Pisces. They include (Schooner-ts4ms);(SilkRoad-ts4ms);(skimble -ts4ms); George Washington, first president of the United States, in 1732; German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer in 1788; poet, diplomat and editor James Lowell in 1819; Englishman Robert Baden-Powell, founder of the Boy Scout movement, and German physicist Heinrich Hertz, discoverer of radio waves, both in 1857; poet Edna St. Vincent Millay in 1892; actor and TV producer Sheldon Leonard in 1907; Robert Pershing Wadlow, at 8 ft. 11.1 inches tall, the tallest person in recorded history, in 1918; actors Robert Young in 1907, John Mills in 1908 and Paul Dooley in 1928 (age 80); U.S. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., in 1932 (age 76); filmmaker Jonathan Demme in 1944 (age 64); former basketball star "Dr. J" Julius Erving in 1950 (age 58); and actors Kyle MacLachlan in 1959 (age 49), Jeri Ryan ("Star Trek: Voyager") in 1968 (age 40) and Drew Barrymore in 1975 (age 33).




On this date in history:

In 1819, a treaty with Spain ceded Florida to the United States.

In 1862, Jefferson Davis was inaugurated as president of the Confederate States of America.

In 1879, Woolworth, the first chain store, opened in Utica, N.Y.

In 1972, U.S. President Richard Nixon arrived in Beijing on a historic visit to China. It was the first U.S. presidential visit to the world's most populous country.

In 1973, Israeli fighter planes shot down an unarmed Libyan commercial airliner, killing 106 of the 113 people aboard.

In 1980, in one of the most dramatic upsets in Olympic history, the underdog U.S. hockey team, made up of collegians and second-tier professional players, defeated the defending champion Soviet team, regarded as the world's finest, 4-3 at the XIII Olympic Winter Games in Lake Placid, N.Y.

In 1987, the United States, Japan, West Germany, Britain, France and Canada agreed to cooperate to stem the decline of dollar.

Also in 1987, artist Andy Warhol died of heart failure at age 58.

In 1991, Iraq set fire to dozens of oil facilities in occupied Kuwait.

In 1993, the U.N. Security Council voted to form an international war crimes tribunal to try those accused of such offenses during the ethnic fighting in the former Yugoslavia.

In 1995, at a news conference, British Prime Minister John Major and his Irish counterpart, John Bruton, unveiled a plan they hoped would bring peace to Northern Ireland.

In 1998, Iraq averted U.S. military intervention when it agreed to allow U.N. weapons inspectors to resume work.

In 2002, the General Accounting Office, investigative arm of Congress, sued U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney in an effort to find out who met with him and his task force while they were developing a proposed national energy policy.

In 2003, U.S, President George Bush said time has run out for Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's non-compliance with disarmament mandates.

In 2004, rebels attacked a refugee camp in northern Uganda, killing at least 192 people.

In 2005, a powerful earthquake struck Iran with a heavy loss of life. The number of those killed differed widely with some reports placing the toll at more than 500.

In 2006, a terrorist attack destroyed the golden dome atop the most revered Shitte shrine in Iraq, the al-Askari Mosque in Samara, touching off a wave of sectarian violence. Reports placed the number of dead at nearly 140 during the first two days after the attack.

In 2007, reports said insurgents in Iraq had begun using "dirty bombs" to spread chlorine gas.

Also in 2007, a San Diego jury said Microsoft must pay $1.52 billion for infringing on Alcatel-Lucent patents for MP3 audio technology. Microsoft said it would fight the verdict.


A thought for the day: it was the Roman poet Ovid who advised, "Let your hook be always cast. In the pool where you least expect it, will be fish."

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Today is Saturday, Feb. 23, the 54th day of 2008 with 312 to follow.

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

Those born on this day are under the sign of Pisces. They include (The Conch Man-ts4ms); German composer George Frideric Handel in 1685; Meyer Amschel Rothschild, European banker and founder of the Rothschild financial dynasty, in 1744; writer and philosopher W.E.B. DuBois in 1868; film director Victor Fleming ("Gone With The Wind," "Wizard of Oz") in 1883; journalist-author William Shirer in 1904; journalist Sylvia Chase in 1938 (age 70); actor Peter Fonda in 1939 (age 69); rock musician Johnny Winter, brother of Edgar Winter, in 1944 (age 64); and actress Patricia Richardson ("Home Improvement") in 1951 (age 57).



On this date in history:

In 1942, a Japanese submarine surfaced off the coast of California and fired 25 shells at an oil refinery near Santa Barbara.

In 1945, six members of the 5th Division of the U.S. Marines planted a U.S. flag atop Mount Suribachi on the strategically important Pacific island of Iwo Jima at the end of one of World War II's bloodiest battles.

In 1982, Canada, Japan and the Common Market nations of Europe joined the United States in economic and diplomatic sanctions against Poland and the Soviet Union, to protest imposition of martial law in Poland.

In 1991, military forces in Thailand overthrew the elected government and imposed martial law.

In 1994, Bosnia's warring Croats and Muslims signed a cease-fire agreement. The Croats agreed to pull back from the Muslim city of Mostar, which had been under siege.

In 1995, the Dow Jones industrial average closed above 4,000 for the first time -- at 4,003.33.

In 1996, two sons-in-law of Saddam Hussein, who had fled Iraq to exile in Jordan, returned after being pardoned and told they'd be safe back home. The next day, they were killed -- within hours of an Iraqi government announcement that their wives, Saddam's daughters, were granted divorces.

In 1997, Scottish scientists introduced Dolly the cloned sheep to the world. She was the first mammal successfully cloned from a cell from an adult animal.

Also in 1997, a gunman identified as a Palestinian teacher killed a tourist from Denmark and wounded six other people on the observation deck of the Empire State Building in New York City before turning the gun on himself.

In 1998, a series of tornadoes raked central Florida, killing 42 people and injuring more than 200 others.

In 1999, a jury in Jasper, Texas, convicted self-described white supremacist John King in the June 1998 killing of a black man who'd been dragged to his death behind a pickup truck. King was sentenced to death two days later.

In 2003, Israeli attacks on Hamas-related facilities in Gaza and the West Bank over the past week left at least 40 Palestinians dead.

In 2005, official efforts to identify victims from the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York ended, leaving more than 1,000 bodies unidentified.

Also in 2005, the death toll from the heavy snowfall and avalanches in Kashmir reached 300.

In 2006, the snow-covered roof of a Moscow market collapsed, killing at least 60 people and injuring more than two dozen others.

In 2007, A U.S. law creating universal coverage for prescription drugs topped the choices of participants in a UPI-Zogby International poll.

A thought for the day: Ben Sweetland said, "We cannot hold a torch to light another's path without brightening our own."

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Today is Sunday, Feb. 24, the 55th day of 2007 with 311 to follow.

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

Those born on this day are under the sign of Pisces. They include(14thMed-ts4ms); Wilhelm Grimm, historian and, with his brother Jacob, compiler of "Grimm's Fairy Tales," in 1786; painter Winslow Homer in 1836; John Philip Holland, inventor of the modern submarine, in 1841; Irish author George Moore in 1852; baseball shortstop and Hall of Famer Honus Wagner in 1874; Adm. Chester Nimitz, World War II commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific, in 1885; actors Abe Vigoda in 1921 (age 87); James Farentino in 1938 (age 70), Barry Bostwick in 1945 (age 63), James Edward Olmos in 1947 (age 61) and Helen Shaver in 1951 (age 57); Steven Jobs, founder of the Apple computer company, in 1955 (age 53); TV personality Paula Zahn in 1956 (age 52); and the Kienast quintuplets of Liberty Corner, N.J., in 1970 (age 38).




On this date in history:

In 1920, a group of Germans organized the National Socialist party, forerunner of the Nazi party later led by Adolf Hitler.

In 1922, Henri Landru, better known as "Bluebeard," was executed in France for killing 10 of his girlfriends.

In 1945, U.S. troops liberated the Philippine city of Manila from the Japanese.

In 1946, Juan Peron was elected president of Argentina.

In 1986, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional an Indianapolis law that defined pornography as discrimination against women.

In 1988, the U.S. Supreme Court defended the right to satirize public figures when it voted 8-0 to overturn a $200,000 settlement awarded the Rev. Jerry Falwell over the parody of him in Hustler Magazine.

In 1989, nine people were killed when a 10-by-40-foot section of a United Airlines 747 ripped away from the jetliner's outer skin while en route from Hawaii to New Zealand.

In 1991, U.S.-led forces began a lightning, multipronged ground assault against Iraq.

In 1992, General Motors announced a record $4.5 billion loss in 1991 and said it will close 21 plants and idle 74,000 workers over four years.

Also in 1992, the U.S Postal Service unveiled two designs for a commemorative stamp honoring Elvis Presley -- one showing him as young rock-and-roll singer, the other at the height of his success in Las Vegas.

In 1993, rock veteran Eric Clapton took home seven Grammys for his emotion-packed "Tears In Heaven" and bluesy "Layla."

In 1995, diver Greg Louganis, who won four gold medals in the Olympic Games in 1984 and 1988, revealed he had AIDS.

In 1996, Cuba shot down two unarmed planes flown by pilots belonging to a Cuban exile group who were looking for boat people to rescue.

In 1997, a nationally televised funeral for China's "paramount leader" Deng Xiaoping was held at a military hospital in Beijing.

In 2001, Colin Powell arrived in the Middle East on his first overseas trip as U.S. secretary of State.

In 2002, the Winter Olympics concluded at Salt Lake City, Utah, with the United States winning 34 medals, 10 of them gold, its most medals in Winter Games history and one less than medals champ Germany.

In 2003, at least 260 people were killed in an earthquake in northwest China as the tremor flattened thousands of houses and other buildings. The quake measured 6.8 on the Richter scale.

Also in 2003, Britain and Spain submitted a resolution to the U.N. Security Council declaring that Iraq's Saddam Hussein has missed a "final opportunity" to disarm peacefully.

In 2004, U.S. President George Bush called for a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages in the United States.

Also in 2004, an earthquake struck Morocco, killing about 600 people and injuring hundreds more.

In 2005, Pope John II underwent a tracheotomy at a Rome hospital to ease the 84-year-old pontiff's breathing problems.

In 2006, Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo declared a state of emergency and ordered the arrest of military officers suspected of plotting a coup.

In 2007, a bombing near a Sunni mosque outside Baghdad killed at least 35 people, apparently signaling an end to a downturn in sectarian violence.

A thought for the day: Harry Millner said, "There are many paths to the top of the mountain, but only one view."

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Today is Monday, Feb. 25, the 56th day of 2008 with 310 to follow.

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

Those born on this day are under the sign of Pisces. They include (shaggy-ts4ms);(catman-ts4ms); French painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir in 1841; Italian operatic tenor Enrico Caruso in 1873; U.S. statesman John Foster Dulles in 1888; actor Herbert "Zeppo" Marx, the "sane" sibling of the early Marx Brothers movies, in 1901; actor Jim Backus in 1913; tennis player Bobby Riggs in 1918; producer/writer Larry Gelbart in 1928 (age 80); actors Tom Courtenay in 1937 (age 71) and Diane Baker in 1938 (age 70); former Beatle George Harrison in 1943; director Neil Jordan in 1950 (age 58); and actress Tea Leoni in 1966 (age 42).





On this date in history:

In 1791, the First Bank of the U.S. at Philadelphia became the first national bank chartered by Congress.

In 1836, Samuel Colt patented a "revolving gun," the first of the six-shooters.

In 1868, U.S. President Andrew Johnson was impeached for violation of the Tenure of Office Act. He was acquitted of the charges the following May by one vote.

In 1870, Hiram Rhoades Revels, a Republican from Natchez, Miss., was sworn into the U.S. Senate, becoming the first African-American to sit in Congress.

In 1964, Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) defeated Sonny Liston to become the world heavyweight boxing champion.

In 1967, U.S. warships began shelling Vietnam.

In 1986, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos left his Manila palace for Hawaii, ending 20 years in power. The United States recognized Corazon Aquino as president of the Philippines.

In 1990, Violeta Chamorro, the U.S.-backed candidate for the presidency of Nicaragua, scored an upset victory over President Daniel Ortega, leader of the leftist Sandinista Liberation Front.

In 1991, as the Persian Gulf War ground assault continued, Iraq ordered its forces to withdraw from Kuwait.

Also in 1991, the Warsaw Pact nations signed an agreement to dissolve their alliance after 36 years.

In 1994, 32 Muslim worshippers were killed by a Jewish settler who opened fire with an automatic rifle inside the Cave of the Patriarchs in the West Bank town of Hebron. The settler was overpowered and beaten to death.

In 1996, a bus bombing in Jerusalem killed 25 people.

In 1997, documents revealed U.S. President Bill Clinton endorsed rewarding Democratic contributors with such perks as golf games with him or overnight stays in the White House.

In 2000, four white New York City police officers were acquitted in the shooting death of unarmed African immigrant Amadou Diallo, slain as he sat in his doorway.

In 2003, as the possibility of war loomed, the chief U.N. weapons inspector said Iraq was showing new signs of cooperation in dismantling its weapons arsenal.

In 2005, authorities arrested Dennis Rader, a municipal employee and church leader, for the so-called BTK serial killings that terrorized Wichita, Kan. The attacker referred to himself as "BTK," for bind, torture, kill.

Also in 2005, in the first terrorist attack in Israel in four months, a suicide bombing outside a Tel Aviv nightclub killed four and injured 50 others.

In 2006, new fears of an Iraqi civil war rose as violence continued days after terrorists bombed a revered Shiite mosque in Baghdad. In one incident, more than 12 members of a Shiite family were reported killed in a retaliatory attack.

Also in 2006, veteran Emmy-winning comic star Don Knotts, best known for his Barney Fife on "The Andy Griffith Show," died of lung cancer. He was 81.

In 2007, Iran claimed to have fired its first rocket into space. Iran reportedly had relied on Russia to put its satellites into space in the past.


A thought for the day: John Foster Dulles said, "A man's accomplishments in life are the cumulative effect of his attention to detail."

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Today is Tuesday, Feb. 26, the 57th day of 2008 with 309 to follow.

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

Those born this day are under the sign of Pisces. They include French novelist and poet Victor Hugo in 1802; Levi Strauss, who created the world's first pair of jeans, in 1829; American frontiersman William "Buffalo Bill" Cody in 1846; surgeon and cornflakes developer John Kellogg in 1852; actors Jackie Gleason in 1916, Tony Randall in 1920 and Betty Hutton in 1921; R&B pianist Antoine "Fats" Domino in 1928 (age 80); and singer Johnny Cash in 1932.



On this date in history:

In 1531, an earthquake in Lisbon, Portugal, killed an estimated 20,000 people.

In 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte and 1,200 men left his exile on the Isle of Elba to start his 100-day campaign to regain France.

In 1935, Germany began operation of its air force, the Luftwaffe, under Reichmarshal Hermann Goering.

In 1984, the last U.S. Marines sent to Lebanon as part of a multinational peacekeeping force left Beirut. Some 250 of the original 800 Marines lost their lives during the problem-plagued 18-month mission in the war-torn Lebanese capital.

In 1991, U.S. Marines entered Kuwait City as Iraqi troops retreated.

In 1992, a U.N. report accused Iraq of systematic human rights violations including "brutal torture" and "widespread arbitrary and summary executions" during its occupation of Kuwait.

In 1993, a powerful bomb exploded in the parking garage below the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York, killing six people and injuring more than 1,000 others.

In 1994, 11 members of the Branch Davidian religious cult were acquitted of murder and conspiracy charges stemming from the 1993 federal raid and siege at the compound near Waco, Texas.

In 1995, China agreed to enforce copyright laws, thus avoiding threatened U.S tariffs on certain imports.

In 1997, the Israeli Cabinet approved development of a large Jewish neighborhood in East Jerusalem, a traditionally Arab area.

In 1998, a federal jury in Amarillo, Texas, ruled in favor of Oprah Winfrey in a lawsuit filed against her by Texas cattlemen. They said she had caused beef prices to fall with her 1996 talk show about "mad cow" disease.

In 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court lifted its nationwide ban on protests that interfere with abortion clinic business.

Also in 2003, a Colombian army Black Hawk helicopter searching for guerrillas crashed in the northern Colombia mountains, killing all 23 people aboard.

In 2004, the U.S. Senate overwhelmingly approved a measure requiring child safety locks be supplied with most handguns sold in the United States.

In 2005, Bank of America acknowledged it lost computer tapes containing account information on 1.2 million federal employee credit cards, including those of some U.S. senators.

Also in 2005, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said he wanted his parliament to change the constitution to allow multiple candidates in presidential elections.

In 2006, the Winter Olympic Games ended in Turin, Italy, with the United States finishing second in the overall medal derby. Germany won the most medals, 29, of which 11 were gold. The U.S. team won 25 medals, including nine golds. Canada, Austria and Russia came next.

In 2007, the death toll from a fire aboard an Indonesian ferry that later sank rose to 48 with scores of people missing off Jakarta.


A thought for the day: Victor Hugo wrote, "The learned man knows that he is ignorant."

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Today is Wednesday, Feb. 27, the 58th day of 2008 with 308 to follow.

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

Those born on this day are under the sign of Pisces. They include poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in 1807; U.S. Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black in 1886; David Sarnoff, RCA board chairman and father of American television, in 1891; soprano Marion Anderson in 1897; novelist John Steinbeck in 1902; actress Joan Bennett in 1910; former Texas Gov. John Connally in 1917; actors Joanne Woodward in 1930 (age 78); Elizabeth Taylor in 1932 (age 76), Howard Hesseman in 1940 (age 68) and Mary Frann in 1943; consumer activist Ralph Nader in 1934 (age 74); actor Adam Baldwin in 1962 (age 46); and former first daughter Chelsea Clinton in 1980 (age 28).


On this date in history:

In 1933, Adolf Hitler's Nazis set fire to the German parliament building in Berlin, blamed it on the communists and made that an excuse to suspend German civil liberties and freedom of the press.

In 1942, opening salvos were fired in the Battle of the Java Sea, during which 13 U.S. warships were sunk by the Japanese, who lost two.

In 1964, the Italian government asked for suggestions on how to save the renowned 180-foot Leaning Tower of Pisa from toppling over.

In 1982, an Atlanta jury convicted Wayne Williams of killing two of 28 young blacks whose deaths over a two-year period had shaken the city. Williams was sentenced to life in prison.

In 1990, the Soviet Parliament approved creation of a U.S.-style presidential system that gave Mikhail Gorbachev broad new powers and established direct popular elections for the post.

Also in 1990, a federal grand jury in Anchorage, Alaska, indicted Exxon Corp. and its shipping subsidiary over the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

In 1991, allied troops liberated Kuwait City.

In 1992, Elizabeth Taylor celebrated her 60th birthday by closing Disneyland for an elaborate private party with her celebrity friends.

In 1994, the 17th Winter Olympic Games ended in Lillehammer, Norway.

In 1998, the Dow Jones industrial average closed at an all-time high of 8,545.72, the first time it closed at more than 8,500.

In 1999, Nigeria's transition to civilian rule was nearly completed with the election of Olusegun Obasanjo, a former military leader, as president.

In 2003, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein denied Baghdad had any connection with al-Qaida or its leader Osama bin Laden and that Iraq would set fire to its oil fields and blow up its dams in response to a U.S.-led invasion.

Also in 2003, Amnesty International reported that the Ivory Coast's main rebel group slaughtered dozens of Ivorian policemen and their children during a horrific October rampage.

In 2004, two studies commissioned by the U.S. Roman Catholic church showed at least 4 percent of priests were involved in child sexual abuse between 1950 and 2002, with the peak year 1970 in which one of every 10 priests eventually was accused of abuse.

In 2005, the United Nations took a first step aimed at curtailing worldwide smoking by announcing its tough tobacco control treaty had gone into effect.

In 2006, more than 1,300 Iraqis were reported killed in sectarian violence since the bombing of a major Shiite shrine in Baghdad.

In 2007, U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, identified as the target by the Taliban, escaped injury when a suicide bomber blew himself up outside U.S. Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan, Twenty-three people were reported killed in the attack.



A thought for the day: Marion Anderson, saying she had forgiven the Daughters of the American Revolution for withdrawing its invitation to perform because she was black, said, "You lose a lot of time hating people."

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Today is Thursday, Feb. 28, the 59th day of 2008 with 307 to follow.

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

Those born on this day are under the sign of Pisces. They include (Kay H-ts4ms);(boilerpete -ts4ms);French essayist Michel de Montaigne in 1533; American journalist and screenwriter Ben Hecht in 1894; chemist and physicist Linus Pauling, twice winner of the Nobel Prize, in 1901; movie director Vincente Minnelli in 1903; Svetlana Stalin, daughter of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, in 1926 (age 82); actors Charles Durning in 1923 (age 85) and Gavin MacLeod in 1931 (age 77); dancer Tommy Tune in 1939 (age 69); former race car driver Mario Andretti in 1940 (age 68); singer/actress Bernadette Peters in 1948 (age 60); and actors John Turturro in 1957 (age 51) and Robert Sean Leonard in 1969 (age 39).




On this date in history:

In 1844, an explosion rocked the "war steamer" USS Princeton after it test-fired one of its guns. The blast killed or wounded a number of top U.S. government officials who were aboard.

In 1849, the first shipload of gold seekers arrived in San Francisco after a five-month journey from New York.

In 1942, Japanese forces landed in Java, the last Allied bastion in the Dutch East Indies.

In 1982, the J. Paul Getty Museum became the most richly endowed museum on Earth when it received a $1.2 billion bequest left by Getty.

In 1983, the concluding episode of the long-running television series "M*A*S*H" drew what was then the largest TV audience in U.S. history.

In 1986, Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme was assassinated on a street in Stockholm.

In 1990, the Soviet Parliament passed a law permitting the leasing of land to individuals for housing and farming. It was another radical change in the Stalinist scheme of a state-run economy.

In 1991, Iraq agreed to meet with the allies to arrange a permanent cease-fire.

In 1992, a judge in Rochester Hills, Mich., said euthanasia advocate Jack "Dr. Death" Kevorkian must stand trial for murder for helping two chronically ill women commit suicide.

Also in 1992, a bomb blamed on the IRA ripped through a London railway station, injuring at least 30 people and shutting down the British capital's rail and subway system.

In 1993, federal agents attempting to serve warrants on the Branch Davidian religious cult's compound near Waco, Texas, were met with a hail of bullets that left at least five dead and 15 wounded and marked the start of a month-and-a-half-long standoff.

Also in 1993, film actress Lillian Gish, a major star in the silents and whose career spanned more than 80 years, died at age 96; and actress/dancer Ruby Keeler, star of '30s musicals ("42nd Street"), died at age 82.

In 1994, NATO was involved in actual combat for the first time in its 45-year history when four U.S. fighter planes operating under NATO auspices shot down four Serb planes that had violated the U.N. no-fly zone in central Bosnia.

In 1996, Britain's Prince Charles and Princess Diana agreed to divorce after 15 years of marriage.

In 1997, the Democratic National Committee said it would return nearly $1.5 million in contributions that may have been illegal or improper.

Also in 1997, former FBI agent Earl Pitts pleaded guilty to spying and became only the second FBI agent convicted of espionage.

In 2000, bowing to international pressure, Jorg Haider resigned as leader of Austria's anti-immigrant Freedom Party. Haider had come under scrutiny for his reported admiration of Adolf Hitler.

In 2001, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake rocked the U.S. Pacific Northwest, injuring 250 people and causing more than $1 billion damages.

In 2003, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a ban on all forms of human cloning, setting up a Senate debate on what would be appropriate research.

In 2004, documents provided by members of the Iraq Governing Council are said to indicate systematic skimming of billions of dollars by Saddam Hussein.

In 2005, at least 125 Iraqi police recruits and others were killed when a suicide bomber drove into a crowd outside a government office south of Baghdad.

In 2006, in another bloody day in Baghdad, at least 25 people died in an explosion outside a Shiite mosque and 33 more were killed in three other bombings.

In 2007, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Diego declared bankruptcy, halting trials on about 150 lawsuits alleging sexual abuse of children by priests.

A thought for the day: it was Ben Hecht who wrote, "Do it first, do it yourself, and keep on doin' it."

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Today is Friday, Feb. 29, the 60th day of 2008 with 306 to follow.

This is Leap Year Day, which occurs only once every four years.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Pisces. They include English religious leader Ann Lee, founder of the American Shaker sect, in 1736; operatic composer Gioacchino Antonio Rossini in 1792; American inventor John Holland, who pioneered the modern submarine, in 1840; film director William Wellman ("The Ox Bow Incident") in 1896; big band leader Jimmy Dorsey in 1904; astronaut Jack Lousma in 1936 (age 72); and actors Dennis Farina in 1944 (age 64) and Antonio Sabato Jr. in 1972 (age 36).


On this date in history:

In 1704, in the bloodiest event of the so-called Queen Anne's War, Deerfield, a frontier settlement in western Massachusetts, was attacked by a French and Indian force. Some 100 men, women, and children were massacred as the town was burned to the ground.

In 1868, British statesman Benjamin Disraeli became prime minister for the first time.

In 1916, during World War I, German U-boat commanders were ordered to attack merchant shipping in the Atlantic without warning, a policy that killed thousands and helped draw the United States into the war.

On this day in 1940, the legendary Southern epic "Gone With The Wind" won eight Academy Awards, including best picture. But, the most momentous award that night went to the movie's Best Supporting Actress winner Hattie McDaniel, first African-American actor honored with an Oscar.

In 1948, the President's National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders condemned racism as the primary cause of the recent surge of riots. The commission said in its report that "our nation is moving toward two societies, one black, one white -- separate and unequal."

In 1956, almost nine years after becoming an independent nation, Pakistan declared itself an Islamic republic.

In 1968, British astronomer Jocelyn Burnell announced the discovery of a pulsating radio source, or "pulsar," in the depths of outer space. Astrophysicists believe pulsars to be rapidly rotating neutron stars.

In 2000, George W. Bush, after losing to John McCain in Arizona and Michigan, won the important Virginia Republican primary and declared he had "taken a step" toward the White House.

In 2004, Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide resigned and fled the country as rebel forces massed on the outskirts of the capital. U.S. President George Bush ordered Marines into Haiti after the ouster.

Also in 2004, the Iraqi Governing Council finished a draft constitution for final approval by the U.S. administrator.

And, Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings: Return of the King," the finale of the epic fantasy trilogy, won all 11 Academy Award nominations it received, including best picture and director, a record sweep.



A thought for the day: in "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," Lewis Carroll, whose real name was Charles Dodgson, wrote, "Curtsy while you're thinking of something to say. It saves time."

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Today is Saturday, March 1, the 61st day of 2008 with 305 to follow.

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

Those born on this day are under the sign of Pisces. They include(Eric - Riverdees05-ts4ms); Polish composer Frederic Chopin in 1810; author William Dean Howells in 1837; big band leader Glenn Miller in 1904; actor David Niven in 1910; poet Robert Lowell in 1917; legendary St. Louis Cardinals and Chicago Cubs announcer Harry Caray in 1914; Donald "Deke" Slayton, one of the original Mercury astronauts, in 1924; singer Harry Belafonte in 1927 (age 81); actors Robert Conrad in 1935 (age 73) and Alan Thicke in 1947 (age 61); Roger Daltrey of The Who in 1944 (age 64); director Ron Howard in 1954 (age 54); and actor Timothy Daly in 1956 (age 52).




On this date in history:

In 1692, the notorious witch-hunt began in the Salem village of the Massachusetts Bay colony, eventually resulting in the executions of 19 innocent men and women.

In 1780, Pennsylvania became the first state to abolish slavery.

In 1781, the American colonies adopted the Articles of Confederation, paving the way for a federal union.

In 1872, Yellowstone National Park was established by an act of Congress. It was the first area in the world to be designated a national park.

In 1932, aviator Charles Lindbergh's son was kidnapped. The boy's body was found May 12 and Bruno Hauptmann was executed for the crime in 1936.

In 1954, Puerto Rican nationalists opened fire from the gallery of the U.S. House of Representatives, wounding five members of Congress.

In 1961, U.S. President John Kennedy formed the Peace Corps.

In 1971, a bomb exploded in a restroom in the Senate wing of the U.S. Capitol, causing some $300,000 damage but no injuries. The Weather Underground, a leftist radical group that opposed the Vietnam War, claimed responsibility.

In 1991, the United States reopened its embassy in newly liberated Kuwait.

Also in 1991, after 23 years of insurgency in Colombia, the Popular Liberation Army put down its arms in exchange for two seats in the national assembly.

In 1992, the collapse of a building housing a cafe in East Jerusalem killed 23 people.

In 1994, the Muslim-dominated government of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Bosnia's Croats agreed to a federation embracing portions of their war-torn country under their control.

In 1996, Dr. Jack Kevorkian, who reportedly had assisted more than two dozen suicides, was acquitted of murder for a third time.

In 1999, Rwandan rebels killed eight tourists, including two Americans, a Ugandan game warden and three rangers in a national forest in Uganda.

In 2000, in a rare unanimous vote, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to allow most Social Security recipients to earn as much money as they want without losing any benefits.

In 2003, the suspected mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States was captured in Pakistan. Khalid Sheik Mohammed was believed to be the third ranking member of al-Qaida.

Also in 2003, as the possibility of war in Iraq grew, Turkey's parliament refused to permit U.S. troops on Turkish soil.

In 2004, a new interim government took over in Haiti after a bloody, monthlong insurrection, one day after President Jean-Bertrand Aristide fled into exile.

In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that execution of juvenile offenders is unconstitutional.

In 2006, U.S. President George Bush, en route to Pakistan, made an unscheduled stop in Afghanistan to discuss security matters. The day before he arrived in Pakistan a bomb exploded outside the U.S. Consulate in Karachi, killing an American diplomat.

Also in 2006, New Orleans' first Mardi Gras after being slammed by Hurricane Katrina wound down peacefully in what Mayor Ray Nagin called a "symbol that we're on our way back."

In 2007, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., announced that he will be a candidate for president in 2008.

Also in 2007, Arthur Schlesinger Jr., the two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning historian who served as an adviser in the Kennedy Administration, died at age 89.


A thought for the day: "Some people can stay longer in an hour than others can in a week." William Dean Howells said that.

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Today is Sunday, March 2, the 62nd day of 2008 with 304 to follow.

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

Those born on this day are under the sign of Pisces. They include statesman DeWitt Clinton, chief sponsor of the Erie Canal project, in 1769; Sam Houston, first president of the Republic of Texas, in 1793; journalist, politician and reformer Carl Schurz in 1829; Pope Pius XII in 1876; publisher Max Schuster in 1897; German composer Kurt Weill in 1900; children's author "Dr. Seuss," Theodor Geisel, in 1904; entertainer Desi Arnaz in 1917; actors Jennifer Jones in 1919 (age 89) and John Cullum in 1930 (age 78); former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in 1931 (age 77); authors Tom Wolfe in 1931 (age 77) and John Irving in 1942 (age 66); singer Karen Carpenter in 1950; comedian Laraine Newman ("Saturday Night Live") in 1952 (age 56), and rock singer Jon Bon Jovi in 1962 (age 46).


On this date in history:

In 1836, Texas proclaimed its independence from Mexico.

In 1925, the first system of interstate highway numbering was introduced in the United States.

In 1943, in the Battle of Bismarck Sea, U.S. warplanes attacked a Japanese convoy en route to New Guinea in the South Pacific, eventually blocking Japan's attempt to send in reinforcements.

In 1945, toward the close of World War II, units of the U.S. 9th Army reached the Rhine River opposite Dusseldorf, Germany.

In 1949, a U.S. Air Force plane piloted by Capt. James Gallagher completed the first non-stop around-the-world flight in just more than 94 hours.

In 1991, Yugoslavia's federal army was sent to Croatia to protect Serbs after violence erupted between Croatian security forces and villagers.

In 1992, U.S. President George H.W. Bush vetoed a bill linking improvements in human rights to continued most-favored-nation trade status for China.

In 1993, six youngsters were killed as gunmen opened fire at point-blank range on a truck transporting school children in South Africa's strife-torn Natal province.

In 1994, the Mexican government reached a tentative agreement with the Zapatista National Liberation Army, which had launched a rebellion in January in Chiapas.

In 1997, a state of emergency was declared in Albania amid public unrest triggered by the collapse of pyramid funds in which many people had invested.

In 1999, Texas Gov. George W. Bush said he was setting up a committee to explore a run for the White House.

In 2000, the British government abruptly dropped extradition proceedings against former Chilean dictator Gen. Augusto Pinochet, who had been under house arrest in London for 16 months as Spain sought to try him for crimes committed during his regime.

Also in 2000, a longtime political fundraiser for U.S. Vice President Al Gore was convicted for arranging more than $100,000 in illegal donations in 1996.

In 2004, John Kerry locked up the Democratic presidential nomination with a series of primary victories.

Also in 2004, at least 125 people died in explosions at two Shiite shrines in Iraq.

In 2005, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan urged Congress to scrutinize spending and taxes to help solve the problem of federal budget deficits that he called "unsustainable."

In 2006, the U.S. Senate gave final congressional approval to a long-term extension of the Patriot Act, after settling disputes over privacy rights of U.S. citizens. The law had been enacted in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Also in 2006, the United States and India announced agreement on a plan to allow India to buy U.S. nuclear fuel and reactor components. India in return reportedly would separate military and civilian nuclear programs and allow inspections.

In 2007, U.S. Army Secretary Francis J. Harvey announced his resignation amid charges of poor conditions for patients at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington.


A thought for the day: Mikhail Gorbachev said, "Sometimes when you stand face to face with someone, you cannot see his face."

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Today is Monday, March 3, the 63rd day of 2008 with 303 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Pisces. They include(RESORT2ME-ts4ms); English poet Edmund Waller in 1606; industrialist George Pullman, inventor of the railway sleeping car, in 1831; telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell in 1847; U.S. Army Gen. Matthew Ridgway in 1895; movie star Jean Harlow in 1911; "Star Trek" actor James "Scotty" Doohan in 1920; Lee Radziwill, sister of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, in 1933 (age 75); former football star Herschel Walker, the 1982 Heisman Trophy winner, and Olympic gold medal heptathlete Jackie Joyner-Kersee, both in 1962 (age 46); and actors David Faustino ("Married ... With Children") in 1974 (age 34) and Jessica Biel ("7th Heaven") in 1982 (age 26).




On this date in history:

In 1879, attorney Belva Ann Lockwood became the first woman to argue a case before the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 1931, an act of the U.S. Congress designated "The Star Spangled Banner" the national anthem of the United States.

In 1974, a Turkish jetliner crashed near Paris, killing 345 people.

In 1985, British coal miners ended a yearlong strike, the longest and costliest labor dispute in British history.

In 1986, the President's Commission on Organized Crime, ending a 32-month investigation, called for drug testing of most working Americans, including all federal employees.

In 1991, a home video captured three Los Angeles police officers beating motorist Rodney King.

Also in 1991, residents of the Soviet republics of Latvia and Estonia voted overwhelmingly for independence.

In 1993, Dr. Albert Sabin, the medical pioneer who helped conquer polio, died at his home of heart failure at age 86.

In 1995, the last U.N. peacekeepers left Somalia.

In 1996, a bus bombing in Jerusalem killed 19 people.

In 1997, U.S. Vice President Al Gore admitted he made fundraising calls from the White House but said he'd been advised there was no law against it.

Also in 1997, former CIA official Harold Nicholson pleaded guilty to spying for Russia. He was sentenced to 23 years and seven months in prison.

In 1999, an estimated 70 million people tuned in to watch former White House intern Monica Lewinsky's taped TV interview with Barbara Walters.

In 2001, foot-and-mouth disease, which had flared in Britain, was reported in France and Belgium where livestock were quarantined on two farms.

In 2004, former WorldCom Chief Executive Officer Bernard Ebbers pleaded innocent to an indictment on federal fraud and conspiracy charges. The company's 2002 bankruptcy was the largest in U.S. history.

In 2005, the U.S. military death toll in Iraq reached 1,500.

Also in 2005, North Korea announced it was dropping its self-imposed moratorium on long range missile testing, in place since 1999.

In 2006, former U.S. Rep. Randy Cunningham, R-Calif., was sentenced to eight years in prison for taking $2.4 million in bribes from military contractors for help in landing lucrative government contracts.

In 2007, cleanup operations were under way in Alabama, Georgia and Missouri, where tornadoes killed 20 people, destroyed a hospital and a school and left hundreds homeless.

Also in 2007, California's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory was chosen to design the United States' first nuclear warhead in two decades.


A thought for the day: Edmund Waller wrote, "Poets that lasting marble seek / Must come in Latin or in Greek."

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Today is Tuesday, March 4, the 64th day of 2008 with 302 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Pisces. They include composer Antonio Vivaldi in 1678; Polish-born American patriot Casimir Pulaski in 1747; legendary Notre Dame football coach Knute Rockne in 1888; actor John Garfield in 1913; actress/singer Barbara McNair in 1934; English auto racing champion Jimmy Clark in 1936; actress Paula Prentiss in 1939 (age 69); actress Kay Lenz and musician/producer Emilio Estefan, both in 1953 (age 55); and actors Catherine O'Hara in 1954 (age 54) and Steven Weber in 1961 (age 47).


On this date in history:

In 1681, to satisfy a debt, England's King Charles II granted a royal charter, deed and governorship of Pennsylvania to William Penn.

In 1789, the U.S. Congress met for the first time, in New York City.

In 1801, Thomas Jefferson became the first president to be inaugurated in Washington.

In 1917, Jeanette Rankin, a Montana Republican, was sworn in as a member of the House of Representatives. She was the first woman to serve in Congress.

In 1958, the U.S. atomic submarine Nautilus reached the North Pole by passing beneath the Arctic ice cap.

In 1987, U.S. President Ronald Reagan acknowledged his administration swapped arms to Iran for U.S. hostages and said, "It was a mistake."

In 1991, the first allied prisoners of war were released as Iraq began complying with the terms of the official U.N. cease-fire.

In 1992, a Virginia fertility specialist was convicted of fraud and perjury for using his own sperm in the artificial insemination of his patients.

And in 1993, a Virginia boy who sawed off his hand while earning $4 an hour sued his parents for $2 million for letting him use a circular saw.

In 1994, four men were found guilty in the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center.

In 1996, a bombing at a shopping mall in Tel Aviv, Israel, killed 14 people.

In 1999, a U.S. Marine pilot whose plane had snapped a ski-lift cable high in Italy, killing 20 people, was acquitted of charges of involuntary homicide and manslaughter.

In 2002, after more than 40 people died violently in a week, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said he aimed to kill as many Palestinians as possible to force them to negotiate.

In 2003, Philippine authorities blamed two bombings on the island of Mindanao on Islamic separatists. Twenty-two people, including a U.S. missionary, were killed and 150 injured in one blast and one died and three were hurt in the other.

In 2004, as U.S. Marines mobilized and patrolled the streets of downtown Port-au-Prince, rebel forces proclaiming themselves Haiti's reinvented military after the president fled said they would lay down their weapons.

In 2005, homemaking guru Martha Stewart returned home after serving five months in a federal prison for conspiracy, obstruction of an agency proceeding, and making false statements to federal investigators and began five months of home confinement.

In 2006, the Pentagon opened a new criminal investigation into the reported 2004 friendly fire death of U.S. soldier and former pro football star Pat Tillman in Afghanistan.

In 2007, Sunni insurgents killed and wounded hundreds of Shiite Muslim pilgrims traveling to the holy city of Karbala in Iraq. At least 77 died at Hilla in the worst of the four-day series of attacks.

Also in 2007, U.S. soldiers were accused of killing 16 civilians on a road near Jalalabad in Afghanistan following a suicide bombing attack.


A thought for the day: Thomas Jefferson said, "Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom."

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Today is Wednesday, March 5, the 65th day of 2008 with 301 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Pisces. They include(dterman-ts4ms); Flemish mapmaker Gerardus Mercator in 1512; the Rev. William Blackstone, the first settler in what is now Boston, in 1595; Antoine Cadillac, founder of Detroit, in 1658; poet Lucy Larcom in 1824; lithographer James Ives, partner of Nathaniel Currier, in 1824; author Frank Norris in 1870; water treatment pioneer Emmett J. Culligan in 1893; actors Rex Harrison in 1908, Jack Cassidy in 1927, Dean Stockwell in 1936 (age 72), Samantha Eggar in 1939 (age 69), Paul Sand in 1944 (age 64), Michael Warren ("Hill Street Blues") in 1946 (age 62) and Marsha Warfield ("Night Court") in 1954 (age 54); and magician Penn Jillette of Penn and Teller in 1955 (age 53).




On this date in history:

In 1770, British troops killed five colonials in the so-called Boston Massacre, one of the events that led to the American Revolution.

In 1933, in German elections, Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party won nearly half the seats in the Reichstag, the German parliament.

In 1946, Winston Churchill, speaking in Fulton, Mo., established the Cold War boundary during his famed "Iron Curtain" speech.

In 1953, the Soviet Union announced that dictator Josef Stalin had died at age 73.

In 1984, the Standard Oil Co. of California, also known as Chevron, bought Gulf Corp. for more than $13 billion in the largest business merger in U.S. history at the time.

In 1991, rebellions against Saddam Hussein were reported in southeastern Iraq. U.S. military officials predicted the unrest probably would lead to his downfall.

In 1993, Canada's Ben Johnson, once called the world's fastest human, tested positive for drugs and was banned for life from track competition.

In 1997, Switzerland announced plans to establish a $4.7 billion government-financed fund, using interest from its gold reserves, to compensate survivors of the Nazi Holocaust and their descendants.

In 1998, NASA announced that ice had been found at the moon's north and south poles.

In 2005, military officials said an Italian reporter and former hostage was wounded and an Italian secret agent killed by U.S. forces when their vehicle failed to stop at a Baghdad roadblock.

In 2006, AT&T said it would purchase BellSouth for $67 billion in stock, beefing up the size of the nation's largest telecommunications company.

Also in 2006, Iran threatened to launch full-scale uranium enrichment if its nuclear program was referred to the U.N. Security Council for sanctions.

In 2007, on the eve of a five-nation tour of Latin America, U.S. President George Bush pledged hundreds of millions of dollars in financial aid for poor people of the region.


A thought for the day: Winston Churchill said, "It is no use saying, 'We are doing our best.' You have got to succeed in doing what is necessary."

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Today is Thursday, March 6, the 66th day of 2008 with 300 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Pisces. They include Italian painter and sculptor Michelangelo in 1475; French dramatist Cyrano de Bergerac in 1619; English poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning in 1806; Union Army Gen. Philip Sheridan in 1831; humorist and short story writer Ring Lardner in 1885; Texas swing bandleader Bob Wills in 1905; comic actor Lou Costello (Abbott and Costello) 1906; TV personality Ed McMahon in 1923 (age 85); symphony conductor Sarah Caldwell in 1924; former Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan in 1926 (age 82); Mercury astronaut L. Gordon Cooper in 1927; former Washington, D.C., Mayor Marion Barry in 1936 (age 72); actor Ben Murphy in 1942 (age 66); actor/director Rob Reiner in 1947 (age 61); actor Tom Arnold in 1959 (age 49); and basketball star Shaquille O'Neal in 1972 (age 36).


On this date in history:

In 1836, Mexican forces captured the Alamo in San Antonio killing the last of 187 defenders who had held out in the fortified mission for 13 days. Famous frontiersman Davy Crockett was among those killed on the final day.

In 1857, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its landmark ruling that black slave Dred Scott couldn't sue for his freedom in a federal court, even though his white master had died in a "free" state.

In 1944, during World War II, U.S. bombers flying from Britain began the first daytime attacks on Berlin.

In 1982, an Egyptian court sentenced five Muslim fundamentalists to death for the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. Seventeen others drew prison terms.

In 1987, an earthquake and flood in northeastern Ecuador killed more than 300 people and ruptured a main oil pipeline.

Also in 1987, the British car ferry The Herald of Free Enterprise capsized off Zeebrugge, Belgium, killing at least 189 of some 540 people aboard.

In 1991, U.S. President George H.W. Bush declared the Persian Gulf War over.

In 2000, a federal jury convicted three New York City police officers of covering up the 1997 assault on prisoner Abner Louima in a police station men's room.

In 2002, Robert Ray, who succeeded Kenneth Starr as special prosecutor, said there was sufficient evidence to convict U.S. President Bill Clinton of perjury and obstruction of justice in the Monica Lewinski case. But, he said Clinton had agreed to admit he gave false testimony under oath, thus avoiding prosecution.

In 2003, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said the United States could lead a coalition of nations that would disarm Iraq even without U.N. authority.

Also in 2003, the U.S. Senate approved a U.S.-Russian agreement whereby each country would reduce deployed nuclear warheads to between 1,700 and 2,200 by 2012.

In 2005, Pope John Paul II appeared at his hospital window in Rome for the second consecutive week to wave to pilgrims. The 84-year-old pontiff was recovering from throat surgery.

In 2006, South Dakota Gov. Michael Rounds signed into law a measure outlawing all abortions except when necessary to save a woman's life. Opponents hoped a challenge would put the matter before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Also in 2006, officials said the 2005 hurricane season was the costliest disaster in U.S. history with Congress considering another $20 billion in relief. The federal government already had committed $88 billion to help areas devastated by hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma.

In 2007, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, was convicted of lying to FBI agents and to a grand jury in the investigation of who leaked the name of a covert CIA agent to the media.

Also in 2007, seven U.S. attorneys fired in late 2006 told congressional committee hearings they got inappropriate calls from Republican lawmakers or Justice Department officials about corruption cases under investigation.

A thought for the day: Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote that, "A woman's always younger than a man of equal years."

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Today is Friday, March 7, the 67th day of 2008 with 299 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Pisces. They include English painter Edwin Henry Landseer in 1802; American botanist Luther Burbank in 1849; Dutch abstract painter Piet Mondrian in 1872; French composer Maurice Ravel in 1875; actress Anna Magnani in 1908; NBC weatherman Willard Scott in 1934 (age 74); former Disney executive Michael Eisner (age 66)and TV evangelist Tammy Faye Bakker in 1942; actors Daniel J. Travanti in 1940 (age 68) and John Heard in 1945 (age 63); and Czech tennis star Ivan Lendl in 1960 (age 48).


On this date in history:

In 1869, the Suez Canal opened, connecting the Mediterranean and the Red Sea via Egypt.

In 1932, in the depths of the Great Depression, an estimated 3,000 men rioted at the Detroit plant of the Ford Motor Company. Four were killed.

In 1936, Adolf Hitler ordered Nazi troops into the Rhineland, violating the Treaty of Versailles.

In 1945, the U.S. 1st Army crossed the Rhine at Remagen in Germany. The bridge was the only one across the Rhine that had not been destroyed. World War II ended in Europe two months later.

In 1984, the U.S. Senate confirmed William Wilson as the first U.S. ambassador to the Vatican in 117 years.

In 1997, a U.S. veto killed an otherwise unanimous U.N. Security Council resolution condemning new Jewish settlements in Arab East Jerusalem.

In 2002, More than 600 people were reported dead after several days of Hindu-Muslim violence in the state of Gujarat, India.

In 2003, North Korea set up a "sea exclusion zone" in the Sea of Japan through March 11, aimed at keeping vessels out of the area while Pyongyang conducted a test of its newest cruise missile.

In 2004, after repeated failures and missed deadlines, the Iraqi governing council signed an interim constitution.

Also in 2004, V. Gene Robinson, openly gay and controversial, became the Episcopal bishop of New Hampshire.

In 2006, U.S. prosecutors sought the death penalty for Zacarias Moussaoui, who pleaded guilty to terrorism conspiracy leading up to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

In 2007, an Indonesian Garuda Airlines Boeing 737-400 with 140 people aboard crashed and burned on landing in Yogyakarta, killing 49 people.

Also in 2007, former U.S. Sen. Robert Dole, R-Kan., named co-chairman of a panel investigating U.S. military hospitals, said the military medical system fails veterans after their immediate injuries are treated.


A thought for the day: Franklin D. Roosevelt advised, "When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on."