Sunday Open Thread: June 17 is World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought

and it is also Sweetmorn, Confusion 15, 3184 YOLD (for you Discordians out there)

World History this day

1462 - Vlad III the Impaler attempted to assassinate Mehmed II 1579 - Sir Francis Drake claimed California for England 1673 - Marquette and Jolliet reached the Mississippi 1767 - Samuel Wallis sighted Tahiti 1775 - The (first) Battle of Bunker Hill. * 1839 - Kamehameha III issued the edict of toleration letting Roman Catholics worship their way 1843 - The Wairau Affray, between Maori and British settlers colonists ** 1900 - Western and Japanese imperialist forces captured the Taku Forts in Tianjin, China. 1940 - Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia were occupied by the Soviet Union. 1944 - Iceland declared independence 1991 - South Africa repealed the Population Registration Act

* The hardest battle was ever on Bunker Hill, when me and a bunch of cowboys run into Buffalo Bill - Leadbelly ** I'm sorry, but those who "settle" somebody else's land, except by invitation, are not settlers, they are colonists.

US History this day

1876 - The Battle of the Rosebud: Sioux and Cheyenne beat US forces 1877 - The Battle of White Bird Canyon: Nez Perce beat US cavalry 1930 - Herbie Hoover signed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act 1932 - The Bonus Army massed at the Capitol to no avail 1963 - The Supremes banned forcing students to recite Bible verses and the "Lord's Prayer" in public schools 1972 - Five White House operatives were busted for burgling the offices of the DNC 1992 - Bush and Yeltsin agreed to what would become START II

Science & Technology this day

1922 - Gago Coutinho and Sacadura Cabral completed the first aerial crossing of the South Atlantic.

The Arts this day

Misc. this day

1987 - The dusky seaside sparrow became extinct

Birthdays of Note this day

1704 - John Kay, engineer, invented the flying shuttle 1818 - Charles Gounod, composer 1832 - William Crookes, chemist and physicist, vacuum tube (Crookes' tube) pioneer 1882 - Igor Stravinsky, pianist, composer, and conductor 1898 - M. C. Escher, illustrator and artist 1910 - Red Foley, singer, songwriter, and guitarist 1914 - John Hersey, journalist and author 1927 - Wally Wood, author, illustrator, and publisher 1930 - Cliff Gallup, guitarist 1940 - Chuck Rainey, bassist 1943 - Barry Manilow, singer, songwriter, and producer 1943 - Burt Rutan, engineer and pilot 1945 - Eddy Merckx, cycling legend 1947 - Gregg Rolie, singer, songwriter, and keyboard player 1957 - Philip Chevron, singer, songwriter, and guitarist 1958 - Jello Biafra, singer, songwriter, and producer

Deaths of Note this day

1631 - Mumtaz Mahal, wife of Shah Jahan, reason for the Taj Mahal 1719 - Joseph Addison, essayist, poet, playwright, and politician,co-founded The Spectator 1954 - Danny Cedrone, guitarist and bandleader 1986 - Kate Smith, singer 1996 - Thomas Kuhn, physicist, historian, and philosopher

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So now some music

Stravinsky

Red Foley  

Cliff Gallup  

Chuck Rainey  

Barry Manilow  

Gregg Rolie  

Philip Chevron  

Jello Biafra  

Mumtaz Mahal  

Danny Cedrone  

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Photo: is Yaqui Wash from the Kenyon Overlook by the author (The Anza-Borrego Desert, looking roughly Southeast from the top of Yaqui Pass)

It's an open thread, so do your thing

Crossposted from http://caucus99percent.com