August 14th is
World Lizard Day
∞
Social Security Act Day
National Navajo Code Talkers Day
International Rosé (wine) Day
_________________________________________________________
WORLD FESTIVALS AND NATIONAL HOLIDAYS
Israel – Tisha b’Av
Morocco – Oued Ed-Dahab Day
Pakistan – Independence Day
Saint Helena – Tristan da Cunha:
Anniversary Day
United States –
Erie PA: Carnival of Madness
Honolulu HI: Slack Key Guitar Fest
San Francisco CA: Jerry Garcia Day
Vatican City – Assumption Vigil
Western Sahara – Oued Ed-Dahab Day
_________________________________________________________
On This Day in HISTORY
1040 – Scottish King Duncan I killed in battle
by his first cousin Macbeth, who becomes his
successor as King of Scotland
1248 – Rebuilding of Cologne Cathedral begins after it is destroyed by fire
1820 – Dr. Edward Delafield opens first US infirmary exclusively for treating eye diseases in NYC
MORE! for Thomas Edison, David Crosby and Social Security, click
1880 – Construction of Cologne Cathedral is completed in Germany after 632 years
1888 – Thomas Edison’s phonograph plays a recording of Arthur Sullivan’s “The Lost Chord” as a demonstration for the British press in London
1896 – Gold discovered in Canada’s Yukon Territory
1900 – A military force from eight nations lefts the siege of Peking, ending the Boxer Rebellion, which tried to purge foreigners from China.
1935 – FDR signs the Social Security Act into law
1941 – US Congress appropriated $83 million to build the Pentagon
1941 – David Crosby born, singer-songwriter – The Byrds, and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
1945 – U.S. President Truman announces Japan surrenders, ending WWII
1947 – Pakistan becomes independent from British rule
1953 – The whiffle ball is invented
1979 – Morocco claims disputed territory Oued Ed-Dahab from Mauritania, over objections of the Sahrawi people who also claim sovereignty
1982 – President Reagan proclaims August 14 as National Navajo Code Talkers Day
Over 430 young Navajo-speaking men recruited in 1942 helped develop and use a wartime code based on the Navajo language in the Pacific Theater. It proved unbreakable, confounding the enemy and helping Allied Forces to win the war. On Iwo Jima alone, Navajo Code Talkers delivered over 800 encrypted messages.
1984 – Lionel Ritchie performed “All Night Long” at the closing of the L.A. Olympics
1992 – Emergency airlifts of food to Somalia begin to ease drought and warfare crisis
2003 – A widespread power blackout affects northeastern U.S and Canada
2015 – U.S. Embassy in Havana re-opens, 54 years after diplomatic relations with Cuba were cut off
_________________________________________________________
Visuals
- Collared Lizard
- International Flags
- King Duncan I of Scotland
- Cologne Cathedral in Germany at night
- Navajo Code Talkers at Lincoln Memorial
- Cuban welcoming re-opening of U.S. Embassy in Havana
_________________________________________________________
Nicole Plyler Fisk
Gene Howington
FFS Guest Blogger
Joy of Fishes
Chuck Stanley
shortfinals
Terry Welshans
ann li-summers
wordcloud9
Flowers For Socrates 
I notice that MacBeth took over the throne of Scotland by killing Duncan. That makes today an important date in our family history.
My wife was a Head Nurse and did not suffer fools, especially management types who put beancounting ahead of patient care. Once, after she had ripped a managed care guy a new one, he asked me later how I managed to live with her. I told him it was easy. Every night when I went to bed, I simply reminded myself this woman beside me is a descendant of the guy who cut off the head of the King of Scotland…..in a church.
He looked puzzled, wanting to know what I meant.
I explained, “She is a MacBeth.”
Chester Nez, the last of the original Code Talkers, passed away a two years ago, on June 4, 2014. The old Marine Corps veteran was one of two code talkers who wrote about his experiences. There may be other code talkers still living who were recruited later in the war, but most of them maintained their oath of secrecy their entire lives. As a result, many code talkers never came forward to identify themselves.
Here is the report of his passing in the Navajo Times.
Thank you, off’bss!
For anyone new to FfS, it is very easy to comment here even if you don’t have a wordpress account. All you need to do is to provide your email addy (which won’t be published) and the name you want to use. Go for it!
Thanks Chuck for your comments – love the story about your wife!
I’ve known about the Code Talkers since I was in elementary school because they were a very big deal in Arizona, and there were stories about them in the Phoenix morning newspaper, and Arizona Highways magazine.
And thank you Joy for explaining how to comment for new visitors to Flowers for Socrates.