To All,
Good Monday morning September 25, 2023
I hope that you all had a relaxing weekend.
Regards
Skip
Today in Naval and Marine Corps History Thanks to NHHC
September 25
1863 Commodore Henry H. Bell reports to Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles from New Orleans about the yellow fever outbreak onboard steamers coming into port.
1925 USS S-51 sinks after being rammed by SS City of Rome off Block Island, R.I., killing 33 of her crew.
1943 USS Skill (AM 115) is sunk by German submarine (U 593) in Gulf of Salerno. Only 32 of her men survive from the 103 officers and men on board.
1944 USS Searaven (SS 196) is attacked by a Japanese small craft off southwest tip of Etorofu, Kurils. USS Barbel (SS 316) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship, Bushu Maru, off Togara Gunto. Additionally, USS Guardfish (SS 217) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship, No.2, Miyakawa Maru, in the Yellow Sea off Chinnampo. Also, on this day,USS Thresher (SS 200) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship, Nissei Maru, in the Yellow Sea.
1952 USS Taylor (DD 468) is fired on by a shore battery in the vicinity of Wonsan, Korea. Counter-battery fire by USS Taylor silences the enemy guns.
1957 In project Stratoscope, Office of Naval Research obtains sharp photographs of sun's corona from first balloon-borne telescope camera.
1982 USS Houston (SSN 713) is commissioned at Naval Station Norfolk. For two months in1989, the boat participated in the filming of The Hunt for Red October off the coasts of Washington and California.
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Today in World History September 25
1396 The last great Christian crusade, led jointly by John the Fearless of Nevers and King Sigismund of Hungary, ends in disaster at the hands of Sultan Bayezid I's Ottoman army at Nicopolis.
1598 In Sweden, King Sigismund is defeated at Stangebro by his uncle Charles.
1775 British troops capture Ethan Allen, the hero of Ticonderoga, when he and a handful of Americans try to invade Canada.
1789 Congress proposes 12 new amendments to the Constitution.
1804 The 12th Amendment is ratified, changing the procedure of choosing the president and vice-president.
1846 American General Zachary Taylor's forces capture Monterey, Mexico.
1909 The first National Aeronautic Show opens at Madison Square Garden.
1915 An allied offensive is launched in France against the German Army.
1918 Brazil declares war on Austria.
1937 German Chancellor Adolf Hitler meets with Italian Premier Benito Mussolini in Munich.
1938 President Franklin Roosevelt urges negotiations between Hitler and Czech President Edvard Benes over the Sudetenland.
1942 The War Labor Board orders equal pay for women in the United States.
1943 The Red Army retakes Smolensk from the Germans who are retreating to the Dnieper River in the Soviet Union.
1959 President Dwight Eisenhower and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev begin Camp David talks.
1974 Scientists warn that continued use of aerosol sprays will cause ozone depletion, which will lead to an increased risk of skin cancer and global weather changes.
1981 Sandra Day O'Connor, the first female Supreme Court Justice, is sworn in.
1983 Maze Prison escape, County Antrim, Northern Ireland; 38 IRA prisoners escape in the largest prison breakout in British history; known among Irish republicans as the Great Escape.
1992 NASA launches Mars Observer probe; it fails 11 months later.
1996 Ireland's last Magdalene laundry closes; begun as asylums to rehabilitate "fallen women," they increasingly took on prison-like qualities.
2008 China launches Shenzhou 7 spacecraft; crew performs China's first extra-vehicular activity (EVA).
2009 US President Barack Obama, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy jointly accuse Iran of building a secret nuclear enrichment facility.
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ROLLING THUNDER REMEMBERED Thanks to the Bear … Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
Skip… For The List for Monday, 25 September 2023… Bear ️
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post for 25 September 1968…
Major Cliff Cushman, USAF (KIA)… "A CHALLENGE FOR YOUTH"
Thanks to Micro
From Vietnam Air Losses site for Sunday and Monday, September 24/25
The Rolling Thunder for yesterday had been some how deleted from the Bear's files
September 24th: https://www.vietnamairlosses.com/loss.php?id=3018
September 25th: https://www.vietnamairlosses.com/loss.php?id=818
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Thanks to Al
Monday Morning Humor--Church Stories
Submitted by Dave Harris:
Mildred, the church gossip, and self-appointed monitor of the church's morals, kept sticking her nose into other people's business. Several members did not approve of her extracurricular activities, but feared her enough to maintain their silence.
She made a mistake, however, when she accused George, a new member, of being an alcoholic after she saw his old pickup parked in front of the town's only bar one afternoon. She emphatically told George, in the presence of several others, that everyone seeing it there would know what he was doing.
George, a man of few words, stared at her for a moment and just turned and walked away. He didn't explain, defend, or deny. He said nothing.
Later that evening, George quietly parked his pickup in front of Mildred's house... walked home.... and left it there all night.
Don't ya just love old George?
Submitted by Al Anderson:
An atheist was seated next to a little girl on an airplane and he turned to her and said, "Do you want to talk? Flights go quicker if you strike up a conversation with your fellow passenger."
The little girl, who had just started to read her book, replied to the total stranger, "What would you like to talk about?"
"Oh, I don't know," said the atheist. "How about why there is no God or no heaven or hell or no life after death?" as he smiled smugly.
"Okay," she said. "Those could be interesting topics but let me ask you a question first. A horse, a cow, and a deer all eat the same stuff—grass. Yet a deer excretes little pellets, while a cow turns out a flat patty, but a horse produces clumps. Why do you suppose that?"
The atheist, visibly surprised by the little girl's intelligence, thinks about it and says, "Hmmm, I have no idea."
To which the little girl replies, "Do you really feel qualified to discuss God, heaven and hell, or life after death, when you don't know $#!+?"
Submitted by Mark Logan:
I'm Going to Find God at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9N8OXkN0Rk
One day at kindergarten, the teacher said to the class of five-year-olds, "I'll give $10 to the child who can tell me who was the most famous man who ever lived."
A little Irish boy put up his hand and said, "It was St. Patrick."
The teacher said, "Sorry Sean, that's not correct."
The little Scottish boy put up his hand and said, "It was St. Andrew."
The teacher replied, "I'm sorry Hammish, that's not right either."
Finally, a little Jewish boy raised his hand and said, "It was Jesus Christ."
The teacher said, "That's absolutely right Marvin. Come up here and I'll give you the $10."
As the teacher was giving Marvin his money, she said, "You know Marvin, since you're Jewish, I was very surprised you said 'Jesus Christ.'"
Marvin replied, "Yeah. In my heart, I knew it was Moses, but business is business."
In the Wisdom of Solomon…
Two women were on the bus bitterly fighting over the last available seat.
A polite gentleman had already tried unsuccessfully to intervene when the bus driver shouted, "Let the ugly one take the seat."
Both women stood for the rest of the journey.
A woman had just returned to her home from an evening of church services, when she was startled by an intruder. She caught the man in the act of robbing her home of its valuables and yelled: "Stop! Acts 2:38 !" (Repent and be baptized, in the name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins may be forgiven.)
The burglar stopped in his tracks.
The woman calmly called the police and explained what she had done.
As the officer cuffed the man to take him in, he asked the burglar: "Why did you just stand there? All the old lady did was yell a scripture to you."
"Scripture?" replied the burglar. "She said she had an ax and two 38's!"
Submitted by John Hudson:
Nine year old Dewey, was asked by his mother what he had learned in Sunday school.
"Well, Mom, our teacher told us how God sent Moses behind enemy lines on a rescue mission to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. When he got to the Red Sea, he had his engineers build a pontoon bridge and all the people walked across safely. Then he used his walkie-talkie to radio headquarters for reinforcements. They sent bombers to blow up the bridge and all the Israelites were saved."
"Now, Dewey, is that really what your teacher taught you?" his mother asked.
"Well, no, Mom. But if I told it the way the teacher did, you'd never believe it!"
Have a great week,
Al
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For all of us that remember 51 Years ago and what we were doing to help make this happen…..skip From The List archives Hand Salute!!!!
Thanks to Eagle
One of my most memorable missions from Vietnam was being on BARCAP when the first C 141 came out with the boys on it.
Hey Fingers has a nice part of this one.
EAGLE
Memories--------------------------------
No matter what one thinks of Nixon now - watch this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=LemllfcAY8A&sns=em
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From the list archives…..Maybe it did not stop???
Project Mkultra: One of the Most Shocking CIA Programs of All Time
http://gizmodo.com/project-mkultra-one-of-the-most-shocking-cia-programs-1370236359
Project Mkultra: One of the Most Shocking CIA Programs of All Time When the extent of the U.S. government's domestic spying program was revealed this past summer, many were surprised and outraged: how could a government which so prizes liberty of its citizens covertly collect data on its own people?
Yet, sadly, this is not the first time Uncle Sam, without permission or notice, secretly gathered information on its people and wasn't even close to the greatest atrocity. For that, there are numerous other examples such as when the government intentionally poisoned certain alcohol supplies they knew people would drink, killing over 10,000 American citizens and sickening many thousands others. (Despite this, the program continued for some time, though it was hotly debated in Congress when the death tolls started rolling in.) One other such "interesting" program, was from 1953 to 1964, when the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) conducted dozens of experiments on the effects of biological and chemical agents on American citizens without their knowledge in Project MKUltra. These covert tests included subjecting the unwitting subjects to hallucinogenic drugs and other chemicals, among other things.
It is difficult to find official documents about this program; however, in 1976 and 1977, the U.S. Senate conducted investigations and even held a joint committee hearing on Project MKUltra, then published much of what was discovered; you will not believe what they found out.
MKULtra's Purpose
According to the hearing report, the project was intended to "develop a capability in the covert use of biological and chemical materials."[1] The motivation was also defensive, in that many were afraid during the Cold War that the Russians and Chinese had already developed weapons in this area. As the project's proponents noted:
The development of a comprehensive capability in this field of covert chemical and biological warfare gives us a thorough knowledge of the enemy's theoretical potential, thus enabling us to defend ourselves against a foe who might not be as restrained in the use of these techniques as we are.[2] Officially authorized in 1953, by 1955, project creep had expanded the CIA's authority under MKUltra to include the following:
Discovery of the following materials and methods [including those]:
which will promote the intoxicating affect of alcohol; which will render the induction of hypnosis easier or otherwise enhance its usefulness; which will enhance the ability of individuals to withstand privation, torture and coercion during interrogation and so called "brain-washing;"
which will produce amnesia for events preceding and during their use; [which will produce] shock and confusion over extended periods of time and capable of surreptitious use; and which will produce physical disablement such as paralysis of the legs, acute anemia, etc.[3] LSD experiments Senator Edward Kennedy dominated the hearing. In his opening remarks, he noted there was:
an "extensive testing and experimentation" program which included covert drug tests on unwitting citizens "at all social levels, high and low, native Americans and foreign." Several of these tests involved the administration of LSD to "unwitting subjects in social situations."[4] For many of these drug tests, especially early on, there were "no medical personnel on hand either to administer the drugs or observe their effects." Often, the randomly selected subjects had "become ill for hours or days, including hospitalization in at least one case."[5] Even more troubling, some of the tests proved lethal, but that did not stop the CIA from continuing their experimentation:
The deaths of two Americans can be attributed to these programs; other participants in the testing programs may still suffer from the residual effects. . . . The fact that they were continued for years after the danger of surreptitious administration of LSD to unwitting individuals was known, demonstrate fundamental disregard for the value of human life.[6] One of these lives belonged to Dr. Frank Olson, himself a researcher with the U.S. Army who studied "developing techniques for offensive use of biological weapons . . . [and] biological research for the CIA."[7] Along with a group of 9 other such scientists, he attended a conference in a cabin at Deep Creek Lake, Maryland in November 1953. Once there, ironically, CIA operatives spiked the researchers' Cointreau with LSD. Only after the scientists had finished their drinks were they informed that they had been drugged.[8] Most of the researchers handled the experience well and had no aftereffects, but not Dr. Olson. He never recovered from the ordeal and shortly after the experiment, began to show "symptoms of paranoia and schizophrenia."[9] Dr. Olson's superior and the CIA who ran the experiment arranged for him to get treatment in New York City. While spending the night in a hotel room with the CIA officer, and after requesting a wake-up call for the next morning, Dr. Olson somehow managed to fall to his death. As the CIA officer (Lashbrook) reported:
At approximately 2:30 a.m. Saturday, November 28, Lashbrook was awakened by a loud "crash of glass." . . . . Olson "had crashed through the closed window blind and the closed window and he fell to his death from the window of our room on the 10th floor."[10] There is no indication that any investigation of foul play, particularly by the CIA officer (who was both responsible for the experiment and alone in the hotel room with Olson) was ever conducted.
Universities, Prisons and Hospitals Conducted Experiments In the hearing, Senator Kennedy noted that many otherwise respectable institutions were fraudulently incorporated into MKUltra projects:
What we are basically talking about is . . . the perversion and corruption of many of our outstanding research centers in this country, with CIA funds, where some of our top researchers were unwittingly involved in research sponsored by the Agency in which they had no knowledge of the background or the support for[11] According to the hearing report, "eighty-six universities or institutions were involved,"[12] and "185 non-government researchers and assistants" worked on these projects.[13] "Physicians, toxicologists, and other specialists in mental [and] narcotics" were lured into MKUltra through the provision of grants that were "made under ostensible research foundation auspices, thereby concealing the CIA's interest from the specialist's institution."[14] For some of the 12 hospitals that participated in Project MKUltra, tests were conducted on terminal cancer patients – presumably because the experiments were anticipated to have long-lasting detrimental, if not lethal, effects.[15] Sadly, to get the hospitals (and perhaps the patients) to agree to these experiments, the CIA often paid the institution. For example, Subproject 23, authorized in August 1955, worked as follows:
The project engineer . . . authorized the contractor to pay the hospital's expenses of certain persons suffering from incurable cancer for the privilege of studying the effects of these chemicals during their terminal illnesses.[16] Likewise, many of the experiments conducted at the three prisons were done secretly: "We also know now that some unwitting testing took place on criminal sexual psychopaths." [17] Not all testing was done unwittingly, although that did not make it any more ethical. For example, in a prison experiment conducted by the National Institute of Mental Health Addiction Research Center at the Lexington Rehabilitation Center (a prison for convicted drug addicts), prisoners who volunteered to participate in a hallucinogenic drug experiment were promised (and received) doses of "the drug of their addiction."[18] Miscellaneous Other Experiments An unknown number of other experiments in "such areas as effects of electro-shock, harassment techniques for offensive use . . [and] gas propelled sprays and aerosols" to be used as "assassination delivery systems" were also being conducted.[19] In addition, MKUltra scientists were authorized to research "additional avenues to the control of human behavior" including "radiation . . .[and] paramilitary devices and materials."[20] Heinous Covert Experiments: By the Numbers Project MKUltra consisted of 149 subprojects "many of which appear to have some connection with research into behavioral modification, drug acquisition and testing or administering drugs surreptitiously,"[21] including as follows:
"6 subprojects involving tests on unwitting subjects were conducted."
8 subprojects involving hypnosis, including 2 that also used drugs were performed.
7 subprojects included the use of drugs or chemicals.
4 subprojects used "magician's art . . . e.g., surreptitious delivery of drug-related materials."
9 subprojects studied sleep research (read: deprivation) and psychotherapy's influence on behavior.
6 subprojects studied the effects on human tissue of "exotic pathogens and the capability to incorporate them in effective delivery systems."[22] The CIA Lost or Destroyed All Records of Project MKUltra Sadly, but not surprisingly, almost no records remain of the 10 years of covert activity. As Senator Kennedy noted:
Perhaps most disturbing of all was the fact that the extent of experimentation on human subjects was unknown. The records of all these activities were destroyed in 1973, at the instruction of then CIA Director Richard Helms.[23] Notably, however, some records were overlooked during the CIA's destruction because new records were found in 1977, as noted by Senator Kennedy:
We believed that the record, incomplete as it was, was as complete as it was going to be. Then one individual, through a Freedom of Information request, accomplished what two U.S. Senate committees could not. He spurred the agency into finding additional records . . . . The records reveal a far more extensive series of experiments than had previously been thought.[24] Nonetheless, these records still leave an incomplete record of the program.
No Accountability
Two lawsuits arising out of MKUltra activities made it to the Supreme Court, but both protected the government over citizen's rights:
In 1985, the Court held in CIA vs. Simms that the names of the institutions and researchers who participated in Project MKUltra were exempt from revelation under the Freedom of Information Act due to the CIA's need to protect its "intelligence sources."
In 1987, in United States v. Stanley, the Court held that a serviceman who had volunteered for a chemical weapons experiment, but who was actually tested with LSD, was barred from bringing a claim under the Federal Tort Claims Act.
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Thanks to Amazing Facts
The Difference Between Couches and Sofas, and Other Fascinating Facts About Household Items
The world is full of wonders, and some of them are closer than you think. For many of the everyday items in your household, there's an interesting backstory or long-forgotten purpose — and since it's always a good time to appreciate the small things, read on for a few of them.
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The QWERTY Keyboard Was Designed to Prevent Typewriter Jams
Before accidentally deleting a document was the worst thing that could happen to a piece of writing, typewriter jams were feared above all else. A number of brilliant minds did their utmost to alleviate this problem, but it was a newspaper editor in Kenosha, Wisconsin, who had perhaps the most positive impact on how we type today. Christopher Latham Sholes worked on several typewriter models, beginning in 1867, and eventually settled on the "QWERTY" design that is still in use today. (If the name has you confused, look at the first six letters on the top row of your keyboard, left to right.)
If that arrangement seems counterintuitive, it's quite literally by design. This particular array of letters was meant to slow writers down, since one of the many causes of typewriter jams was typing too fast; for instance, the letters "s" and "t" were separated because "st" is among the most common combinations of letters. Seasoned typists eventually got used to the layout and continued to punch out dozens of words per minute anyway, but other advances in typewriter design eventually helped make jams far less common. By the time the modern computer keyboard overtook the typewriter, keyboards were far more durable (though you still wouldn't want to spill a drink on one!).
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Pen Caps Have Holes for Safety Reasons
If you've ever gotten bored enough to study the cap of your ballpoint pen, you may have noticed that it has a hole in it. This wasn't done to save on plastic or to regulate air pressure. The design was added to prevent people — namely small children — from choking should they ever swallow one. This was first done by BIC, whose popular Cristal pen had a cap that proved more desirable amongst undiscerning children than safety-conscious parents would have liked. So while the conspiracy-minded among us tend to think that the holes are there to dry out the ink and ensure that consumers will have to continue buying pens in mass quantities, this particular design choice was actually made with public health in mind.
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The Color of Your Bread Tag Has an Important Meaning
The color of plastic tags on bread bag use to tell you which day of the week bread was baked on. Ever wonder why the tags used to seal loaves of bread come in different colors? Far from arbitrary, the color-coded system indicates which day of the week the bread was baked. The color system is even alphabetical: Monday is blue, Tuesday is green, Thursday is red, Friday is white, and Saturday is yellow. (Traditionally, bread wasn't delivered on Wednesday or Sunday.)
Because bread rarely remains on the shelf for more than a few days, this system is more for internal use among employees than it is for customers looking to get the freshest sourdough possible. But, if you favor a local bakery and get to know their system, you could either snag the best deals or the fluffiest dinner rolls in town.
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Couches and Sofas Aren't the Same Thing
Though usually used interchangeably, these are technically two different pieces of furniture — and the distinction lies in the words themselves. "Couch" comes to us from French, namely coucher — "to lie down" — whereas we have the Arabic word suffah to thank for "sofa." In the most traditional sense, a sofa would be a wooden bench that comes complete with blankets and cushions and is intended for sitting. eBay's selling guide used to distinguish between the two by defining a couch as "a piece of furniture with no arms used for lying." Though it may be a distinction without a difference these days, purists tend to think of sofas as a bit more formal and couches as something you'd take a nap on and let your pets hang out on.
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The Computer Mouse Also Had a Different Animal Name
Whether you think the plural should be mice or mouses — some dictionaries accept both! — there's no denying which animal the ubiquitous device is named after. Or is there? It turns out that early versions were named turtles, as the gadget's hard, protective shell covers the important parts within. (You can even buy ones intentionally shaped like a turtle.) That said, the current name is so well known that it's the same in several languages — many don't even translate it into their own word for "mouse."
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High Heels Were Originally for Men
High heels have long been a symbol of femininity, but that wasn't always the case. The shoes, which are thought to date all the way back to the 10th century, were invented for a practical rather than sartorial reason: horseback riding. Anyone who's placed their feet in stirrups while sitting atop a noble steed knows that it can be difficult to actually keep your feet inside them, and some enterprising equine enthusiast eventually realized that an extended heel allowed for a more secure fit.
In addition to leisure, horseback riding was a crucial element of warfare, meaning that there was a time when entire armies rode into battle wearing high heels. Eventually people realized that this kind of footwear was pleasing to the eye, and in the 17th century high heels became a gender-neutral fashion statement — especially among those who wanted to show off their upper-class credentials (heels were associated with horses, and only the wealthy tended to own them). As for how heels became linked to women, it wasn't haute couture but rather pin-up photography that brought them back en vogue.
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Thanks to Mud
This is an all time favorite
S/F,
- Mud
In a message dated 9/22/2021 7:15:30 AM Central Standard Time, xyz@aol.com writes:
This is indeed worth about two minutes to read. I think this comes under the heading, "Lest We Forget". Robert E. Lee was undoubtedly the most loved general by those under his command in this country's history.
Subject: Robert E. Lee
Robert E Lee is one of very few cadets to pass through the US Military Academy at West Point without a single demerit. In the Mexican War General Winfield Scott called him "the greatest soldier I've ever seen." As an Army Engineer he re-routed the Mississippi River and saved the city of St Louis. When he inherited slaves from his father in law, he educated them and set them free, and he referred to slavery as "a political and moral evil". He turned down Lincoln's offer to Command the US Army that would invade the South and his home State of Virginia even though leading that Army would have certainly brought him international fame and likely the presidency. He instead offered his sword to Virginia and fought against that invasion for four years leading an Army that was vastly outnumbered, out supplied and out fed. After the war, as the most beloved figure on either side of the war, he turned down all of the opportunities that would have enriched him by refusing to sell his family name. He chose instead to take a job with meager pay at Washington College because he knew that rebuilding the country meant that we needed to raise men of high honor and character. His first act as President of the College was to build a Chapel.
On Lee's last visit to Richmond, a lady approached General Lee with an infant in her arms and asked "Would you please hold my baby?" General Lee took the child, looked the woman in the eye and said "you must teach him to deny himself." Biographer Douglas Southall Freeman pointed out that this one statement characterized the entirety of how General Lee lived.
As the end of his life was approaching Robert E Lee was asked, with all of his accomplishments, what should his headstone say. He answered "that I am a poor sinner, trusting in Christ alone for my salvation."
That a monument to this man has been taken down is a monument itself. The barren space where his memorial stood is a testament to the depraved depths to which the morality and character of our society has fallen.
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This Day in U S Military History
1789 – The first Congress of the United States approves 12 amendments to the U.S. Constitution, and sends them to the states for ratification. The amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, were designed to protect the basic rights of U.S. citizens, guaranteeing the freedom of speech, press, assembly, and exercise of religion; the right to fair legal procedure and to bear arms; and that powers not delegated to the federal government were reserved for the states and the people. Influenced by the English Bill of Rights of 1689, the Bill of Rights was also drawn from Virginia's Declaration of Rights, drafted by George Mason in 1776. Mason, a native Virginian, was a lifelong champion of individual liberties, and in 1787 he attended the Constitutional Convention and criticized the final document for lacking constitutional protection of basic political rights. In the ratification process that followed, Mason and other critics agreed to approve the Constitution in exchange for the assurance that amendments would immediately be adopted. In December 1791, Virginia became the 10th of 14 states to approve 10 of the 12 amendments, thus giving the Bill of Rights the two-thirds majority of state ratification necessary to make it legal. Of the two amendments not ratified, the first concerned the population system of representation, while the second prohibited laws varying the payment of congressional members from taking effect until an election intervened. The first of these two amendments was never ratified, while the second was finally ratified more than 200 years later, in 1992.
1804 – The 12th Amendment was ratified. The Twelfth Amendment (Amendment XII) to the United States Constitution provides the procedure for electing the President and Vice President. It replaced Article II, Section 1, Clause 3, which provided the original procedure by which the Electoral College functioned. Problems with the original procedure arose in the elections of 1796 and 1800. The Twelfth Amendment refined the process whereby a President and a Vice President are elected by the electors of the Electoral College. The amendment was proposed by the Congress on December 9, 1803
1948 – Iva Toguri D'Aquino (b.1916), a Japanese-American suspected of being wartime radio propagandist "Tokyo Rose," arrived in SF aboard the General Hodges and was taken away by FBI agents. On Sep 9, 1949, she was found guilty of speaking into a microphone concerning the loss of US ships. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. She was released in 1956 and pardoned by Pres. Ford in 1977.
1959 – A US Navy P5M seaplane that had ditched off the Oregon coast was located through radio contact by a U.S. Coast Guard UF-1G Albatross aircraft. After sighting 10 survivors in two rafts 110 miles off shore, the Albatross crew directed the CGC Yocona to the scene, where a successful night rescue was made.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
RICKENBACKER, EDWARD V. (Air Mission)
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, U.S. Army Air Corps, 94th Aero Squadron, Air Service. Place and date: Near Billy, France, 25 September 1918. Entered service at: Columbus, Ohio. Born: 8 October 1890, Columbus, Ohio. G.O. No.: 2, W.D., 1931. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy near Billy, France, 25 September 1918. While on a voluntary patrol over the lines, 1st Lt. Rickenbacker attacked 7 enemy planes (5 type Fokker, protecting two type Halberstadt). Disregarding the odds against him, he dived on them and shot down one of the Fokkers out of control. He then attacked one of the Halberstadts and sent it down also.
*NEW, JOHN DURY
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Marine Corps. Born: 12 August 1924, Mobile, Ala. Accredited to: Alabama. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 2d Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division, in action against enemy Japanese forces on Peleliu Island, Palau Group, 25 September 1944. When a Japanese soldier emerged from a cave in a cliff directly below an observation post and suddenly hurled a grenade into the position from which 2 of our men were directing mortar fire against enemy emplacements, Pfc. New instantly perceived the dire peril to the other marines and, with utter disregard for his own safety, unhesitatingly flung himself upon the grenade and absorbed the full impact of the explosion, thus saving the lives of the 2 observers. Pfc. New's great personal valor and selfless conduct in the face of almost certain death reflect the highest credit upon himself and the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for September 25, FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
25 September
1918: MEDAL OF HONOR. While on a voluntary patrol, Lt Edward V. Rickenbacker attacked seven German aircraft near Billy, France. Despite the odds, he dived on them and shot one of the Fokkers out of control and then attacked one of the Halberstadts and also shot it down. For this action, he later received the Medal of Honor (see 6 November 1930). (4) (24)
1920: Harry E. Honeywell won the Birmingham National Balloon Race by landing at Chatham, Ontario, for a distance of 699 miles. (24)
1932: Through 27 September, Lt Cmdr Thomas G. W. Settle and Lt Wilfred Bushnell (USN) participated in an international balloon race. They set a FAI distance record of 963.124 miles for subclass A-7, A-8, and A-9 balloons (1,600-2,200; 2,200-3,000; and 3,000-4,000 cubic meters) by flying their balloon traveled from Basle, Switzerland, to Daugieliski, Poland. (9) (24)
1950: KOREAN WAR. FEAF flew flare missions over Seoul all night, which allowed USMC night fighters to attack N. Korean troops fleeing the city. FEAF Combat Cargo Command delivered a battalion of 187th Airborne Regiment paratroopers to Kimpo to protect the U.S. Army's X Corps' northern flank as it moved out from Inchon. (28)
1951: KOREAN WAR. Nearly 100 MiG-15s attacked 36 F-86s flying a fighter sweep mission over the Sinanju area. Sabre pilots destroyed five MiGs in aerial combat, the daily high for the month. (28)
1957: First TM-76A Mace missile flown from the Air Force Missile Development Center at Holloman AFB to Wendover AFB, Utah, by overland test corridor.
1958: Capt Ronald J. Layton flew an F-101 Voodoo 2,000 miles from Bermuda Island to Fort Worth in 3 hours 9 minutes to set a record for nonstop, nonrefueled flight in a supersonic jet. (24) The 703 SMW, the first Titan I unit, activated at Lowry AFB. (6)
1960: Cmdr John F. Davis (USN) flew an F4H-1 Phantom II to 1,390 MPH for 100 kilometers over a closed-circuit course. He beat the existing world record by more than 200 MPH.
1974: The Northrop F-5F two-place fighter made a 43-minute first flight at Edwards AFB, during which the aircraft reached Mach 0.8 and 43,000 feet.
1981: A B-52G, with the Offensive Avionics System, arrived at Edwards AFB for Integrated Weapons System testing. (3)
1997: The OC-135B treaty verification aircraft flew over Edwards AFB. The specialized aircraft, from Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, and manned by a joint USAF and Turkish crew, conducted the overflight sortie as part of a test run for the Open Skies program as part of the international Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). (3)
1997: Astronaut David A. Wolf, a former Indiana Air Guard flight surgeon, launched into orbit on the Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-86). He then served as a long duration crewmember on the Russian MIR Space Station, returning to earth on the Space Shuttle Endeavour (STS-89) on 31 January 1998. It was his second space flight. (32)
2007: FIRST MQ-9 REAPER MISSION. The MQ-9 Reaper flew its first operational mission in Afghanistan for Operation ENDURING FREEDOM. The Reaper, a larger and heavily-armed brother of the MQ-1 Predator, provided intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities and an ability to attack time-sensitive targets quickly and precisely. Like the Predator, the Air Force launched, recovered, and maintained the Reaper at deployed locations, while the pilots and sensor operators at Creech AFB, Nev., remotely operated the aircraft. By this date, Reaper operators had not dropped weapons on enemy positions. (AFNEWS, "Reaper UAV Now Flying in Afghanistan," 11 Oct 2007).
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Thanks to Brett
The Weekly Rundown: The U.S.-Pacific Islands Forum Summit, China-Japan-South Korea Talks
Sep 25, 2023
What We're Tracking
The second annual U.S.-Pacific Islands Forum summit. The United States and the 18 member nations of the Pacific Island Forum will hold their second annual summit Sept. 25-26 in Washington. The United States is seeking to win influence over the vast Pacific island region and maintain its naval dominance there as China makes diplomatic inroads, particularly in the Solomon Islands. But Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare is unlikely to attend, suggesting the U.S. goal of bringing the two countries together has not materialized. Meanwhile, the renewal of the Compact of Free Association between the United States and the Marshall Islands will be a main point of discussion at the summit, as the latter has held out on renewing to secure additional U.S. financial and environmental concessions.
China-Japan-South Korea talks. Representatives from China, Japan and South Korea will meet Sept. 26 in Seoul, South Korea, to review the status of their trilateral consultative body, the Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat, and attempt to reinstate the countries' trilateral heads of state summit format. As it continues to emerge from three years of COVID-19-era isolation, China is reacting to Japan and South Korea's rapid rapprochement and the two countries' deepening trilateral security relationship with the United States. South Korea and Japan, for their part, are interested in maintaining open dialogue with China as the regional security environment in Northeast Asia becomes more tenuous. The talks will likely succeed in reviving the summit format, and this will lead to a tightening of economic ties in sectors such as tourism and manufacturing supply chains. But the Chinese overtures will prove insufficient to reverse recent Japanese and South Korean security initiatives, though deepening economic ties and mutual dependencies will help the trio manage their relations and reduce tensions to some extent.
The EU-China trade forum. EU Commissioner for Trade Valdis Dombrovskis will be in China Sept. 23-6 to take part in a joint economic and trade dialogue in Beijing; attend a business economic forum in Shanghai; hold meetings with senior Chinese officials, including Commerce Minister Wang Wentao and Vice Premier He Lifeng, in Beijing; and visit European companies active in China. Dombrovskis is expected to bring up long-standing EU grievances vis-a-vis China concerning reciprocity, market access and alleged unfair economic practices, while Beijing will contest the newly introduced EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and Brussels' recent announcement of an investigation into subsidies for Chinese electric vehicles that could lead to higher tariffs. While the European Union has embarked on a process to derisk economic relations with China, both sides are interested in preserving trade and economic ties and in cooperation in areas such as the green transition.
A presidential runoff in the Maldives. The Sept. 30 runoff between Mohamed Muiz and incumbent President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih will occur Sept. 30 given that no candidate obtained at least 50% in the first-round vote Sept. 9. Whether the pro-India Solih or pro-China Muizu wins will determine which regional power holds more influence in the Maldives. Muiz, who in a surprise led in the first round with 46% of the vote, has run on a so-called India-out campaign that would limit India's military presence and potentially seek investment from China. That said, some observers believe the Indian-China issue is less pressing for voters more concerned about housing, health care and other domestic considerations.
U.S. budget talks down to the wire. The U.S. budget impasse will take center stage next week as lawmakers aim to pass a government funding bill by Sept. 30 to avert a possible government shutdown starting Oct. 1. Discussions among House Republicans will be fierce as hardline conservatives push for deeper budget cuts than Republican leaders want. One option under consideration by the Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is a stopgap funding bill that would keep the government open at least through October. Meanwhile, the Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer aims to hold a vote Sept. 26 on advancing a stopgap funding bill, which could pressure House Republicans to follow suit. A shutdown, which is far from assured, would result in hundreds of thousands of federal workers being temporarily furloughed and disrupt some government services. How impactful the shutdown would prove on the overall U.S. economy depends on the length of the shutdown. The most recent government shutdown lasted 25 days in 2018-19 and cost the U.S. economy about $11 billion. By contrast, most shutdowns have lasted less than a week.
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