Archive for 2023
History of Pentecost
HISTORY OF PENTECOST The Feast of Pentecost is taken from the Greek word πεντηκόστη which means “the 50th,” referring to the fiftieth day after Passover and Easter. This would coincide with the harvest festival Shavuot the “Feast of Weeks in the Jewish calendar.” In the Christian calendar, Passover played a part in several visits Jesus…
Read MoreHistory of Memorial Day: Where did it Begin?
HISTORY OF MEMORIAL DAY: BOALSBURG, PA The city of Boalsburg, Pennsylvania, an American village on the National Historic Register, claims to be the birthplace of Memorial Day, as do at least 24 other towns in America. I first visited this hamlet near State College, home of Penn State University, decades ago. Boalsburg’s claim goes back…
Read MoreHistory of the Golden Gate Bridge: 86 Years Old
HISTORY OF THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE This week we celebrate the 86th anniversary of the opening of the Golden Gate Bridge. On May 27, 1937, the bridge opened to traffic after taking over five years to build. I remember asking my father when I was young: “Why isn’t the Golden Gate Bridge golden?” He didn’t…
Read MoreHistory of Memorial Day: Why We Fight
HISTORY OF MEMORIAL DAY: WHY WE FIGHT The world is different from two decades ago as we celebrate Memorial Day. We have troops in countries that we didn’t have then, and after 9/11, we now remember why we fight. The History Channel often re-runs the HBO series Band of Brothers, the T.V. adaptation of the…
Read MoreHistory of Memorial Day: Which War?
HISTORY OF MEMORIAL DAY: WHICH WAR? Memorial Day was not universally recognized as a shared American Holiday until after World War I. But that’s not how it started in the United States. When did it begin? Civil War and Memorial Day Following the American Civil War, or the “War Between the States,” as it…
Read MoreHistory of Star Wars: Premiered 46 Years Ago
HISTORY OF STAR WARS The original Star Wars movie premiered on May 25, 1977. Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away… when living in Berkeley, in November 1976, I picked up a new science fiction novel, “Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker” by George Lucas. I did not know then that it…
Read MoreHistory of The Who’s Tommy: 54 Years Ago
HISTORY OF THE WHO’s TOMMY Fifty-four years ago today, on May 23, 1969, the British rock group The Who released the double-album rock opera Tommy. Commercially the record went Gold in the UK and Double Platinum in the US. Several songs were released as singles that charted in the Top 20 in the UK and…
Read MoreHistory of Mother’s Day: Ancient and Modern Sources
HISTORY OF MOTHER’S DAY The person who initially was most active in opposing the celebration of Mother’s Day is the very person who started this holiday in the U.S. How did that happen? Anna Jarvis’ mother died in 1905, and in her honor, Anna held a memorial in 1908 in Grafton, West Virginia. She continued…
Read MoreThinking About: AI in Big Tech Earning Reports: the Race is On
AI in Big Tech Earning Reports: the Race is On The hottest tech topic of late has been Artificial Intelligence. You can’t read a news article on tech that doesn’t discuss AI. For example: Two weeks ago, the Big Tech companies reported their financial results: Microsoft, Alphabet (Google), Meta (Facebook), and Apple reported strong sales. …
Read MoreHistory of VE-Day: End of WWII in Europe 78 Years Ago
HISTORY OF VE-DAY Seventy-eight years ago today, World War II ended in Europe with the acceptance by the Allies of unconditional surrender from Germany on VE-Day. Or did it? May 7, 1945, VE-Day Adolf Hitler had committed suicide in his Berlin bunker a week earlier, on April 30, 1945, as I describe in…
Read MoreHistory of Cinco de Mayo
HISTORY OF CINCO DE MAYO Cinco de Mayo is frequently regarded as the Mexican equivalent of the United States 4th of July. This is incorrect: it is the equivalent of the “5th of May” in Spanish. Another misconception is that this has something to do with Mayonnaise. That too, is a bum spread, as the…
Read MoreHistory of May the Fourth (Be With You): Star Wars Day
HISTORY OF MAY THE FOURTH May 4th or May the Fourth is a geek holiday that has gained popularity in recent years due to a popular film franchise. But where did it begin? History of May the Fourth “May the Fourth” is taken from the benediction “May the Force be with you,” made famous…
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