Notes from around the Human Experience…
CAN’T WE JUST CUT AND PASTE THE LAST MASS KILLING COLUMN?: It’s hardly even news anymore, the random killing of large numbers of our fellow humans. All we need to do is fill in the blanks: where and the number dead.
For The Record: This time the blanks are Manchester, England and 22. For now. It could rise.
Extra! Extra! Read All About It: Mass killings used to be news, rarities that caused us to take pause and take notice. Now, of course, that isn’t the case. Sure, we’ll issue thoughts and prayers, we’ll stand with Manchester, we’ll make colorful ribbons, but they will merely serve as templates for the next mass tragedy. We will no longer take pause because tragedy’s litany simply is not stopping.
Sigh: With the exception of our World Wars, our planet might be as violent as it’s ever been. Sure, mass killings like this have always happened because there will always be people hell bent on causing mayhem, but the frequency of them now is unprecedented.
History’s Question: Why? Why are mass killings now happening regularly instead of rarely?
U-S-A! U-S-A! The blame for most of our planet’s violence can be laid squarely at the feet of the United States.
Gaylon For Congress (Or Senate)…Vote Early, Vote Often: We said this every hour on the hour during our 2014 United States Senate campaign and last year’s US House campaign:
We have a violent world because we have a violent United States government.
Yeah, Yeah, Whatever: We also have a violent country for this reason, but that is a topic for the next Mass Shooting in America column.
Back On Message: From refusing to give other nations the dignity of conducting their affairs without the benefit of US interference, to fighting wars not declared by Congress, America is responsible for an awful lot of the violence in this world. America has been at war continuously since 1989 and a violent America has produced a violent world.
Write This Down: Had we been at peace every day since 1989 we would have a world considerably less violent. 9/11 would not have happened and ISIS would not exist and, perhaps, concert goers in Manchester would be looking back at a fun concert instead of deadly tragedy.
TESTING ONE, TWO, THREE: The first telegraph line is tested successfully on this date 1844 when Samuel Morse, sending from the Old Supreme Court Chamber in the US Capitol, sends the message “What hath God wrought” to his assistant Alfred Vail, who was in Baltimore.
FunFact: Morse would received a patent for the telegraph in 1847.
Dry, Technical Matter: Before turning his attentions to the telegraph, Morse was an accomplished portrait painter, and he was led to finding a faster way of transmitting information when he received word of the sudden illness and death of his wife by letter, after the fact and too late to do anything about it.
It’s About Time: The Brooklyn Bridge, after only 14 years of construction, opens on this date in 1883. 1,800 vehicles and over 150,000 people would cross the only land connection between Manhattan and Brooklyn that first day.
Let There Be Night Baseball: The first night game in major league baseball is played at Crosley Field in Cincinnati on this date in 1935. Night baseball had been played, with an pronounced increase in attendance, in the minor leagues for several years. In fact, Cincinnati general manager Larry McPhail had had success with it when he was with Columbus in the International league.
Despite this, baseball owners have never been known for their foresight, and it was great reluctance that McPhail had been given permission to play one night game against each National League team before the 1935 season began.
The Post Game Show Is Brought To You By Old Style Beer: The Reds beat Philadelphia that night 2-1.
Thought For The Day: They do what they are meant to do, and endure what they must endure, and they come to an end when it is tie – and no sooner – Gore Vidal, Creation
Answer To The Last Trivia Question: Pope Gregory XI was the last pope from France.
Today’s Stumper: The Trivia feature will return.
