PARACULTURAL CALENDAR FOR AUGUST 28

[Mark Thibodeau]

On this day in 1833, the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 receives Royal Assent,
abolishing slavery through most the British Empire.

***

On this day in 1845, the first issue of Scientific American magazine is
published. Blind to the problems inherent in the oftentimes grim worldview
of "scientism", it has been a faithful defender of cybernetics and
technocracy pretty much since its inception.

***

On this day in 1859, a geomagnetic storm causes the Aurora Borealis or
Northern Lights to shine so brightly that it is seen clearly over parts of
USA, Europe, and even as far away as Japan.

***

On this day in 1879, Cetshwayo, last king of the Zulus, is captured by the
British.

***

On this day in 1898, Caleb Bradham invents the carbonated soft drink that
will later be called Pepsi-Cola.

***

On this day in 1955, black teenager Emmett Till is brutally murdered in
Mississippi, galvanizing the nascent American Civil Rights Movement.

***

On this day in 1957, U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond begins a filibuster to
prevent the Senate from voting on Civil Rights Act of 1957; he stopped
speaking 24 hours and 18 minutes later, the longest filibuster ever
conducted by a single Senator.

***

Fifty years ago today - on this day in 1963 - Martin Luther King Jr stood
on the steps of the Lincoln memorial in Washington D.C. and delivered one
of the greatest speeches in the rich history of American oratory. Most of
you have heard parts of it, but when you listen to the whole thing, you
start to understand why The Powers That Be needed him gone.

***

On this day in 1968, riots take place in Chicago, Illinois, during the
Democratic National Convention, mostly thanks to the thuggish behavior of
the city's notoriously brutal police.

***

On this day in 1988, the Ramstein airshow disaster: three aircraft of the
Frecce Tricolori demonstration team collide and the wreckage falls into the
crowd. 75 are killed and 346 seriously injured.

***

On this day in 1990, Iraq declares Kuwait to be its newest province. That
doesn't work out so well for them, in hindsight.

***

On this day in 1996, the divorce between England's Prince Charles and Diana
Spencer becomes final, freeing the future King to pursue his longstanding
equine interests - both sporting and romantic - and the then-future corpse
to soak up Third World adulation and consort with Egyptian billionaire
playboys. One year and two days later, Diana would perish in a plane crash
or something. I don't really remember the details, seeing as the incident
received such paltry media coverage.
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