Today Marks the 63rd Anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr. “I Have a Dream” Speech

Two pictures that I took (on two separate trips) to Washington, D.C. - The spot where MLK gave his famous "I have a dream" speech is pictured above, while below, the MLK Memorial, which is a bit of a distance from the Lincoln Memorial (but not too far).

A picture of my son in front of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Washington, taken back in the spring of 2013 for the Cherry Blossom Festival. 

Statue of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Binghamton, NY

On this day back in 1963, Martin Luther King Jr gave his famous "I have a dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial, for a civil rights rally with over 200,000 demonstrators gathered in Washington, D.C..  

In this day and age, we have sees racism seemingly on the rise in this country, with reminders that black lives do matter after a slate of clearly unnecessary police shootings and beatings that are increasingly caught on tape, with hate crimes on the rise, with nationalist movements also on the rise here and in many other western nations, and with a President here in these United States who was outright supported by the Ku Klux Klan and other white supremacist organizations, after eight years of the first black presidency.

Yes, these are scary times that we live in, and it is all too easy to despair. Indeed, many people seem to be despairing right now.

Yet, we need to remember that improvements have been made, and still can be made. Indeed, they must be made, and that will not happen if we just look around in horror and feel totally overwhelmed by it all.

Let us remember the progress that has been made, even if some of the hard earned victories of the past feel threatened now. Martin Luther King, Jr., fought against racial segregation in the United States back in the 1950's and 1960's. He fought against both legalized and de facto practices of racial segregation in both the north and the south of the United States. Back then in the Jim Crow South, we must remember, there were separate entrances for white and non-whites in public buildings, separate bathrooms and water fountains for whites and non-whites, and they had separate spaces in restaurants and movie theaters and beaches and hotels. It goes without saying that they lived in separate neighborhoods, and that the economic disparity between whites and non-whites was very significant. Blacks were also discouraged from voting, particularly in the South.

The civil rights movement of the 1950's and 1960's helped to change all of that. Suddenly, people saw on the nightly news, here and abroad, images of peaceful protesters being attacked by dogs and sprayed by powerful hoses. Official practices of racial segregation gained increasing media coverage, so that noted musicians like Ray Charles and even the Beatles, as well as other pop icons of the time, decided to boycott facilities which practiced racial segregation. The peaceful marches, including the most famous one in Washington that was dominated by MLK's famous "I have a dream" speech, helped to sway public opinion, despite fierce resistance by segregationists, particularly the Dixiecrats of the day.

Change did come, and King's emphasis on nonviolent activism proved effective in forcing change, although it certainly did not achieve real equality or permanently resolve the racial problems that have always plagued the United States, in particular. It would not have been resolved had Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life not been cut short by an assassin's bullet in the spring of 1968, although more progress might indeed have been made.

However, I believe that his calming influence, like that of Nelson Mandela in South Africa, did help the country to confront itself and it's own shortcomings (and not just in regards to racism) and to make some changes accordingly. Jim Crow segregation was officially abolished in a series of legislative steps that increasingly empowered non-whites in the South, and even in the North. Progress seemed to be being made, although the steps forward often seem to be quickly followed by matching steps backwards, as the recent election of Donald Trump to the White House, the racial disparity of our for profit prison system, as well as other efforts to suppress voters (particularly gerrymandering) clearly suggest. 

Still, we have to try and keep our eyes on the prize. We have to keep fighting for, and believing in, progress, if we are to make serious efforts towards improving the country. Towards those ends, we could certainly do worse than to follow the example put forth by MLK half a century ago. 

And so, on this day, I honor the man and his lasting legacy on the occasion of what most recognize was his finest, most enduring moment. It was on this day in 1963 that the march on Washington took place, when Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his now immortal "I have a dream" speech.

Below is a video of the speech. Enjoy. 

Yesterday Will Endure as One of the Most Infamous Days of the Trump Presidency, Complete With His Own ‘Mission Accomplished’ Moment

This is a picture of a magnet that was being sold at Strand's Book Store in New York City a few years ago. No, I did not buy it, but I liked it and took a picture, which I am sharing here now. 

While the entire Trump presidency has been so awful that it deserves to be forgotten, it will likely be remembered for a very long time. In fact, my expectations are that it will live in infamy as a time when the United States reached a clear decline visible to everyone but the Mindless MAGA Cult.

That said, some days are more memorable than others. Yesterday was one such day for the Trump administration, and that is saying something. 

Among the very few things which I thought even Trump would have sense enough to avoid regarding his Middle Eastern war in Iran are uttering the words "Mission Accomplished." Given the significance of those two words in particular when uttered about unpopular American wars in the Middle East, it seemed that surely he would at least avoid that much.

Yet once again, despite having very low expectations of Trump and his ability to avoid idiotic and self-destructive mistakes, he used those words specifically. Apparently, I gave Trump too much credit, which I assure you is a rarity. 

As if using those specific words was not risky enough, Trump actually seemed to go out of his way to remind people of George W. Bush's infamous "Mission Accomplished" moment, to boot. Here, according to an article about it by the Tribune News Service from the South China Morning Post, is a description of the social media post in which Trump used those two words:

The slogan evokes former president George W. Bush’s infamous premature declaration of “mission accomplished” in Iraq, a conflict that continued for years afterwards. Trump even includes a photo of Bush in the image with the caption “Mission not accomplished 2001-21”.

Yikes. 

Have to say, nothing about any of that sounds like the actions of a "very stable genius" in any sense of those words. All Trump managed to do is build a history of infamy regarding American presidents using those two, specific words prematurely. It will inevitably draw comparisons with what was arguably George W. Bush's most infamous moment, with perhaps one exception. The exception? Trump could and should have learned from Bush's disastrous example. The fact that Trump himself was highly critical of Bush regarding the Iraq war showed that he understood how disastrous it was. Which of course makes his decision to start the war with Iran all the more puzzling.

That will be remembered, but not for the reasons that Trump likely wants it to be remembered for. 

Yet, there was something else which Trump did yesterday which will be remembered, also likely for the wrong reasons. 

With the tensions between the United States and Canada intensifying, Trump decided to sign an Executive Order renaming Lake Ontario as Lake America, in a similar gesture to what he did with the Gulf of Mexico being renamed the Gulf of America.

Seriously, does he even have a clue how childless and petty his actions and rants appear to the entire rest of the world? Does he understand that these kinds of actions have real consequences, and are costly to millions of people? Does he care?

Apparently not. 

If ever there was proof needed that Trump lacks the gravitas, the maturity, and the seriousness required to be a prominent world leader, his actions yesterday are still further proof - as if any more were needed - that he is completely unfit for the presidency. All kidding aside, he seems like a child throwing a tantrum, trying desperately to be taken seriously in a room full of adults. Then he has another tantrum precisely because he knows that nobody is going to take him seriously.

Except for his loyal Mindless MAGA Moron Cult base. They've always got his back. 

So Trump reacted like a child after picking a fight with Canada after which he largely is regarded as the loser by most of the world. And he also somehow managed to repeat the same mistake of a former president whom he himself had criticized. A mistake which he certainly should have known enough to avoid, given the benefit of history.

And nobody apparently let him know that neither of these actions would be a good idea.

Are there any actual adults in the White House at this point? 

What times we live in.

Below are the links to the two articles used in writing this particular blog entry, and from which I obtained the snippet of article used above:

Trump declares ‘Mission Accomplished’ in Iran, as conflict drags on by Tribune News Service Published: 27 Aug 2026

US president’s claim evokes George W. Bush’s premature declaration about the US invasion of Iraq in 2003

https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3365374/trump-declares-mission-accomplished-iran-conflict-drags

Trump declares ‘Mission Accomplished’ in Iran, as conflict drags on | South China Morning Post

Trump signs order renaming Lake Ontario as ‘Lake America’ in the United States by MICHELLE L. PRICE and WILL WEISSERT, August 27, 2026:

https://apnews.com/article/lake-ontario-canada-america-trump-trade-war-3ac58dca0ca83c15605d4dbff146b28a

Trump signs order renaming Lake Ontario as 'Lake America' in the US | AP News

August 28th: This Day in History

  

Once again, it should be reiterated, that this does not pretend to be a very extensive history of what happened on this day (nor is it the most original - the links can be found down below). If you know something that I am missing, by all means, shoot me an email or leave a comment, and let me know!

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history

Today marks the anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s iconic "I Have a Dream" speech, which he delivered in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. 

But there also were other events that took place today. On this day back in 475, the Roman General Orestes forced Western Roman Emperor Julius Nepos to flee his capital city, Ravenna. New Amsterdam and Peter Stuyvesant barred Jews from military service on this day in 1655. On this day in 1777 during the American Revolutionary War, the Battle of Cooch's Bridge took place near Newark, Delaware. Sir William Herschel discovered Saturn's moon, Enceladus, on this day in 1789. Richard Wagner's opera "Lohengrin" premiered on this day in 1850 at Weimar, Germany. Germany declared war on Romania during the First World War in 1916 during World War I, and Italy declared war on Germany on that same day. Netherlands began to mobilize on this date in 1939, in anticipation of possible (some might have acknowledged, inevitable) invasion by Germany during the next World War. Cameroon and French Congo declared their support of General Charles De Gaulle on this date in 1940. A general strike against the Nazi occupying forces took place on this date in 1943 in Denmark. The last remaining German troops in Marseilles surrendered on this date in 1944. Six years to the day before the "I Have a Dream" speech, Senator Strom Thurmond spoke for 24 consecutive hours in an attempt to filibuster and block a Civil Rights bill. Five years after the speech, police clashed with protesters in Chicago on this day during the Democratic National Convention. The New York Cosmos won consecutive championships in two straight years on this date in the 1970's. Israeli Prime Minister Begin resigned on this day in 1983. A proposed bill introduced in the Pakistani National Assembly that would have put the "Qu'ran and Sunnah" as the "supreme law" was defeated.

Here's a more detailed look at events that transpired on this date throughout history:

• On this day back in 475, the Roman General Orestes forced Western Roman Emperor Julius Nepos to flee his capital city, Ravenna. 

• In 476 on this day, German ruler Odoacer captured Pavia. Also on this day in 476, West Roman Empire formally disbanded/Emperor Romulus August was ousted. 

• On this day in 489, Theodoric, King of the Ostrogoths, defeated Odoacer at the Battle of Isonzo, forced his way into Italy. 

• In 1189 on this day during the Third Crusade, the Crusaders began the Siege of Acre under Guy of Lusignan. Ottoman Sultan Suleiman I's troops occupied Belgrade on this day in 1521. 

• On this day in 1542 during the Ottoman-Portuguese Conflicts (1538-1557), the Battle of Wofla was fought. 

• The Portuguese were scattered, their leader Christovão da Gama was captured and afterwards executed. 

• St Augustine, Florida, the oldest city in the United States, was established on this day in 1565.

• In 1609 on this day, Henry Hudson, discovered & explored the Delaware Bay. 

• On this day in 1619, Ferdinand II was elected as the Holy Roman Emperor. Henry Casimir I was appointed Viceroy of Drenthe on this day in 1632. 

• On this day in 1637, WIC-Colonel Hans Koin conquered Fort Elmina, West Africa. 

• In 1640 on this day during Second Bishop's War, King Charles I's English army lost to a Scottish Covenanter force at the Battle of Newburn. 

• New Amsterdam and Peter Stuyvesant barred Jews from military service on this day in 1655. 

Statue of a Continental Soldier of the American Revolutionary War of Independence in Trenton, New Jersey

• On this day in 1777 during the American Revolutionary War, the Battle of Cooch's Bridge took place near Newark, Delaware. 

• Sir William Herschel discovered Saturn's moon Enceladus on this day in 1789. 

• On this day in 1830, the first locomotive in the United States, "Tom Thumb," ran from Baltimore to Ellicotts Mill. Pharmacists John Lea & William Perrins manufactured Worcester Sauce on this day in 1837. 

• In 1840 on this day, 9 Jewish prisoners were released from Damascus jails. 

• On this day in 1845, Scientific American magazine published its first issue.

• 1849 - Venice under Daniele Manin surrenders to Austrians under Radetsky, after been under siege since July 20 after proclaiming independence

Picture of a bust of German composer Richard Wagner

• Richard Wagner's opera "Lohengrin" premiered on this day in 1850 at Weimar, Germany.

1859 - A geomagnetic storm causes the Aurora Borealis to shine so brightly that it is seen clearly over parts of USA, Europe, and even as far afield as Japan.

1861 - Battle of Fort Hatteras NC

1862 - Battle of Thoroughfare Gap VA

1862 - Battle of Groveton, VA (Manassas Plains) [->AUG 19] US7000 CS7000

1862 - Belle Boyd released from Old Capital Prison in Washington, DC

1867 - US occupies Midway Islands in Pacific

1879 - Battle at Ulundi: Lord Chelmsford beats king Cetshwayo's Zuluz

1884 - 1st known photograph of a tornado is made near Howard SD

1884 - Mickey Welsh strikes-out 1st 9 men he faces

1898 - Caleb Bradham renames his carbonated soft drink "Pepsi-Cola".

• 1907 - United Parcel Service begins service, in Seattle

1907 - UPS is founded by James E. Casey in Seattle, Washington.

1911 - 45.7 cm rainfall at St George, Georgia (state record)

1913 - Queen Wilhelmina opens Peace Palace (The Hague)

1914 - 3rd day of battle at Tannenberg: violent German/Russian battles

1914 - Battle at Helgoland: British fleet beats German, 1100 killed

1914 - John French evacuate Amiens

• 1916 - Germany declares war on Romania

• 1916 - Italy declares war against Germany during WW I

1917 - 10 suffragists arrested as they picket White House

1918 - Tris Speaker suspended for season due to assault on ump Tom Connolly

1919 - General John Smuts becomes premier of South Africa

1921 - 2nd Pan-African Congress meets (London, Brussels& amp; Paris)

1921 - Babe Ruth starts streak of an extra-base hit in 9 straight games

1922 - 1st Walker Cup: US beats England 8-4

1922 - Albert von Tilzer & Neville Fleesons musical premieres in NYC

1922 - WEAF in NYC airs 1st radio coml (Queensboro Realty-$100 for 10 mins)

1924 - Georgian opposition stages the August Uprising against the Soviet Union.

1925 - Meteorite falls on Ellemeet, Schouwen, Devil Island

1926 - Indian Emil Levsen pitches complete doubleheader victory (Red Sox)

1929 - Frank Woolley scores his 100th first-class hundred

1937 - Toyota Motors becomes an independent company.

1938 - Mauthausen concentration camp opens in Austria

1938 - Northwestern U awards honorary degree to dummy Charlie McCarthy

1938 - On Connie Mack Day at Shibe Park, the A's win a doubleheader

1939 - "Monty" becomes commandant of 3rd "Iron" Infantry division

1939 - Netherlands mobilizes

1939 - Sammy Fain/Jack Yellen's musical "George White's Scandals" premieres

French President Charles De Gaulle

• Cameroon and French Congo declared their support of General Charles De Gaulle on this date in 1940. 

1941 - Last meeting of resistance fighter Comte d'Estienne d'Orves

1942 - Transport nr 25 departs with French Jews to nazi-Germany

1943 - Denmark, declares a universal strike against Nazi occupiers

• 1943 - Benito Mussolini transfered from La Maddalena Sardinia to Gran Sasso

1944 - Last German troops in Marseille surrendered, and Toulon cleared

1944 - US air raid on Ambon

1949 - Riot prevents Paul Robeson from singing near Peekskill NY

1950 - Earle & Roy Mack, purchase 54% of A's from Connie Mack Jr

1951 - Braves sell pitcher Johnny Sain to the Yankees for $50,000

1951 - Pirates snap NY Giants 16 game win streak

1952 - German & Israeli reach accord about recovery payments

1952 - Jakob Malik succeeds Zorine as Foreign minister

1953 - "Me & Juliet" opens at Majestic Theater NYC for 358 performances

1955 - 1st NFL preseason sudden death football, Rams beats Giants 23-17

1955 - Marilynn Smith wins LPGA Heart of America Golf Tournament

1956 - England retain cricket Ashes, Jim Laker 46 wickets in the series

1957 - Sen Thurmond begins 24-hr filibuster against civil rights bill

1958 - Nellie Fox sets record for consecutive games without striking out (98)

1960 - White Sox Ted Kluzewski's 3-run HR is disallowed as ump called time

1962 - 55.9 cm rainfall at Hackberry, Louisiana (state record)

1962 - Dr Geza DeKaplany tortures wife with acid

1962 - Tony Sheridan & Beat Brothers record "Ya Ya (Parts 1 + 2)"

Two pictures that I took (on two separate trips) to Washington, D.C. - The spot where MLK gave his famous "I have a dream" speech is pictured above, while below, the MLK Memorial, which is a bit of a distance from the Lincoln Memorial (but not too far).

• On this day back in 1963, Martin Luther King Jr gave his famous "I have a dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial, for a civil rights rally with over 200,000 demonstrators gathered in Washington, D.C..  

• In 1963 on this day, Evergreen Point Floating Bridge connecting Seattle and Bellevue opened. There was a race riot in Philadelphia on this day in 1964.

1964 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site

1964 - US weather satellite Nimbus 1 launched

1964 - WEWS-TV Channel 5's "Upbeat" debuts in Cleveland

1965 - Bob Dylan booed for playing electric guiter at a concert in New York's Forest Hills

1966 - Sandra Haynie wins LPGA Glass City Golf Classic

1967 - Asif Iqbal & Intikhab Alam make 190 stand for 9th wkt v Eng

1967 - Boston signs 1st free-agent outfielder Ken Harrelson for $75,000 bonus

1968 - Police & anti-war demonstrators clash at Chicago's Dem Natl Conven

1970 - Phillies Larry Bowa steals home for 2nd time in 1970

1971 - The dollar is allowed to float against the yen for the first time.

1972 - USSR performs nuclear test at Novaya Zemlya USSR

1973 - "Monster Mash" goes gold

1973 - "Smoke on the Water" by Deep Purple goes gold

1973 - 6.8 quake centered in Oaxaca State in Mexico kills 527

1973 - France performs nuclear test at Muruora Island

• 1973 - India & Pakistan sign POW accord

1973 - USSR performs underground nuclear test

1974 - Soyuz 15 returns to Earth

1976 - NY Cosmos beat Seattle Sounders 2-1 for NASL cup

1976 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR

1977 - NY Cosmos defeat Seattle Sounders, 2-1, at Civic Stadium in Portland Ore, winning their 2nd North American Soccer League championship

1978 - Donald Vesco rode 21'-long Kawasaki motorcycle at 318.598 mph

1978 - Ja'afar Sharif-Emami appointed premier of Iran

1979 - IRA bomb explodes on Brussels Great Market

1979 - Train crash at Nijmegen, 7 die

• 1981 - John Hinckley Jr pleads innocent in attempt to kill Pres Reagan

1981 - Sebastian Coe of UK sets 1-mi record of 3:47.33 (since broken)

1981 - National Centers for Disease Control announces high incidence of Pneumocystis & Kaposi's sarcoma in gay men

1982 - "Sugar Babies" closes at Mark Hellinger Theater NYC after 1208 perfs

1982 - USSR performs underground nuclear test

1982 - The first Gay Games are held in San Francisco.

1983 - "Mame" closes at Gershwin Theater NYC after 41 performances

1983 - Greg Luzinski is 1st player to put 3 HRs onto roof at Comiskey Park

• 1983 - Israeli PM Menachem Begin announces resignation

1984 - USSR performs underground nuclear test

• 1986 - Bolivia president Victor Paz Estensoro calls state of siege

1986 - Largest wrestling crowd in Canada (69,300) at Toronto Stadium

1986 - Tina Turner's star unveiled in Hollywood

1986 - US Navy officer Jerry A Whitworth sentenced to 365 years for spying

1987 - Mike Schmidt passes Ted Williams & Willie McCovey with 522 HRs

1988 - 70 killed in crash of 3 Italian AF fighters at air show in Germany

1988 - Italian stunt flyers crashes in flames in West Germany, killing 50

1991 - Lexington Ave IRT subway train derails at Union Square, 5 die

1991 - Red Tom Browning vs Expo Dennis Martinez both perfect game pitcher

1993 - Dam breaks in Qinghai West China, 223 killed

1993 - Jakovlev-42 crashes in Tadzjikistan, 76 killed

• 1993 - Singapore vice-premier Teng Cheong elected president

1994 - 1st Japanese gay pride parade

1995 - Last day of Test Cricket for Richie Richardson

1995 - Northants 7-781 decl defeat Nottinghamshire 527 & 157

1996 - Liam Botham takes 5-67 on 1st-class debut Hants v Middlesex

1997 - Belgian amusement park riders were stuck upside down for 90 minutes

1998 - Pakistan's National Assembly passes a constitutional amendment to make the "Qur'an and Sunnah" the "supreme law" but the bill is defeated in the Senate.

• 2003 - An electricity blackout cuts off power to around 500,000 people living in south east England and brings 60% of London's underground rail network to a halt.

2005 - Hurricane Katrina hammers the south eastern United States, especially New Orleans, Louisiana, and coastal Mississippi

2012 - Mitt Romney is officially nominated as the United States Republican Party's candidate

1609 - Delaware Bay was discovered by Henry Hudson.   1619 - Ferdinand II was elected Holy Roman Emperor. His policy of "One church, one king" was his way of trying to outlaw Protestantism.   1774 - The first American-born saint was born in New York City. Mother Elizabeth Ann Seton was canonized in 1975.   1811 - Percy Bysshe Shelley and Harriet Westbrook eloped.   1830 - "The Tom Thumb" was demonstrated in Baltimore, MD. It was the first passenger-carrying train of its kind to be built in America.   1833 - Slavery was banned by the British Parliament throughout the British Empire.   1907 - "American Messenger Company" was started by two teenagers, Jim Casey and Claude Ryan. The company's name was later changedto "United Parcel Service."   1916 - Italy's declaration of war against Germany took effect duringWorld War I.   1917 - Ten suffragists were arrested as they picketed the White House.   1922 - The first radio commercial aired on WEAF in New York City. The Queensboro Realty Company bought 10 minutes of time for$100.   1922 - The Walker Cup was held for the first time at Southampton, NY. It is the oldest international team golf match in America.   1939 - The first successful flight of a jet-propelled airplane took place. The plane was a German Heinkel He 178.   1941 - The Football Writers Association of America was organized.   1963 - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., gave his "I Have a Dream" speech at a civil rights rally in Washington, DC. More than 200,000 people attended.   

1972 - Mark Spitz captured the first of his seven gold medals at the Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany. He set a world record when he completed the 200-meter butterfly in 2 minutes and 7/10ths of a second.   1981 - "The New York Daily News" published its final afternoon edition.   1990 - Iraq declared Kuwait to be its 19th province and renamed Kuwait City al-Kadhima.   1995 - The biggest bank in the U.S. was created when Chase Manhattan and Chemical Bank announced their $10 billion deal.   1996 - A divorce decree was issued for Britain's Charles and Princess Diana. This was the official end to the 15-year marriage.   1998 - The Pakistani prime minister created new Islamic order and legal system based on the Koran.   2004 - George Brunstad, at age 70, became the oldest person to swim the English Channel. The swim from Dover, England, to Sangatte, France, took 15 hours and 59 minutes.

1609 Henry Hudson discovered Delaware Bay.  1922 The first commercial to be broadcast on radio aired on station WEAF in New York City. The ten minute advertisement for the Queensboro Realty Company cost $100. 1955 Emmett Till, a black teenager from Chicago, was abducted and by white men after he supposedly whistled at a white woman in Mississippi. The case was reopened in 2005. 1963 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial to civil rights demonstrators. 1968 Anti-Vietnam war protesters and police clashed in the streets of Chicago while the Democratic National Convention nominated Hubert H. Humphrey for president. 1981 The Centers for Disease Control announced a medical task force had been formed to look into the incidence of Kaposi's sarcoma and pneumocystis in homosexual men. AIDS was later found to be the cause.

The following links are to web sites that were used to complete this blog entry:

http://www.historyorb.com/today/events.php

http://on-this-day.com/onthisday/thedays/alldays/aug28.htm

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history

http://www.infoplease.com/dayinhistory

Pearl Jam's Debut Album Ten Was Released on This Day 35 Years Ago

  

Today marks a major anniversary for Pearl Jam. 

It was on this day 35 years ago - on August 27, 1991 - that their debut album, Ten, was released. It would go on to become a huge album, becoming the second biggest selling album by late 1992. I got into them around the time when all of the Seattle bands of that period were getting big, although I admittedly was not familiar with the band back on the actual day when the album was released.

Back in late August of 1991, I was 16 years old and getting ready for the final academic year of my high school career to begin. In New Jersey, that usually means a couple of days after Labor Day weekend. While not the biggest fan of school back then, a part of me was certainly excited to finally be a senior in high school. Yet, a part of me also recognized that this coming year was it. That my childhood behind the protective walls of the high school was basically running out.

The world was a different place. This was not only pre-MAGA, but pre-Covid and even well before September 11th. Hell, the Cold War was coming to an end, but the Soviet Union still existed back then. While the music world was still largely dominated by pop names like Michael Jackson and Madonna and Whitney Houston, the grunge "Seattle Sound" explosion was about to take over. Mostly on the strength of albums like Pearl Jam's Ten, Soundgarden's Superunknown, Alice in Chain's Facelift and Nirvana's Nevermind. Plus, other bands were releasing albums that would be huge sellers that would also help to reshape the world of music, with the Red Hot Chili Peppers releasing Blood Sugar Sex Magic, Metallica releasing the black album, and Guns 'n Roses releasing Use Your Illusions I and II.

What a time in music!

Horror in Nepal

 

I was always fascinated by the country of Nepal since I was a kid. My grandfather had a stamp collection, and some of the most beautiful and unique stamps were from Nepal. Also, I was always fascinated with flags, and Nepal's flag is one of the most unique. 

As an adult, my fascination only grew. After all, I came to love mountains, and in few places in the world are mountains as comparably tall as they are in Nepal. 

Yet it seems like whenever I mention Nepal here in this blog, it is because of bad news. 

Yesterday, there was a massive, horrific flash flood unlike anything that I have ever seen or heard of before, with maybe the exception of the aftermath of a volcano erupting. The waves from the torrent went incredibly high and traveled very fast. Many victims never had a chance. 

The death toll keeps rising. Watching the news, it just keeps going up and up. Well over one thousand are missing. With some of the video footage of how quickly and violently this flash flood came, and without apparent warning, it is difficult to imagine that the death toll will do anything but rise, and dramatically, at that.

Like most people, I was shocked and horrified to see the video footage emerging from Nepal. My heart goes out to the victims and their families, and to the devastated regions impacted by the flood. 

Just awful. 

Tonight Will See a Serious Lunar Eclipse

Get ready for a serious lunar eclipse tonight.

The lunar eclipse will be visible in most of the Americas, as well as the western parts of both Europe and Africa.

Here is a bit more information on the lunar eclipse, which will take place a little after midnight, Eastern time according to a Smithsonian article by Margherita Bassii:

The lunar eclipse will peak on August 28 at 12:13 a.m. Eastern time, during which 96.3 percent of the moon will be within Earth’s umbra, or the central, darkest part of the shadow, according to NASA. This part of the eclipse will be viewable in most of the Americas, western Europe and western Africa.  

“There will be a little part of the moon that will still glow, and the rest of it will be dark,” Nico Cappelluti, an astrophysicist at the University of Miami, tells USA Today’s Julia Gomez.  

During the event, the darkened area should take on a reddish hue. An almost “blood” moon will appear because of the same physics that give us gorgeous sunsets. When the sun is low in the sky, only yellow-to-red wavelengths of sunlight make it through the Earth’s atmosphere and to your eyes, while bluer light gets scattered away.

It should be fascinating.

Grab your telescopes!

Below is the link to the article which I used in writing this blog entry, and from which I obtained the information in a few paragraphs used above:

Turn Your Eyes to the Night Skies This Week to See a Near-Total Lunar Eclipse. It’ll Temporarily Turn the Moon Red by Margherita Bassii | Daily Correspondent  August 26, 2026:

During the peak, 96 percent of the moon will be within the darkest part of our planet’s shadow. The orb will take on an eerie glow because of how sunlight gets filtered through Earth’s atmosphere 

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/turn-your-eyes-to-the-night-skies-this-week-to-see-a-near-total-lunar-eclipse-itll-temporarily-turn-the-moon-red-180989404/?utm_source=smithsoniandaily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=editorial&utm_content=20260826-daily&lctg=98217613&user_id=94e433415b0144d9acbc3fda312292e70f80b1a346bfc9e62a5a35be6c37fe99

Turn Your Eyes to the Night Skies This Week to See a Near-Total Lunar Eclipse. It'll Temporarily Turn the Moon Red

Paul Musgrave Made the Argument That the Fiasco in Iran Is a Bigger Defeat Than Vietnam

Recently, I read an article by Paul Musgrave. In it, he argued that the American defeat in the Iran conflict will prove to be a bigger, costlier, more glaring defeat for the United States than the conflict in Vietnam proved to be.        

Frankly, he made some compelling arguments. While it may seem a ridiculous argument on the surface, since Vietnam saw many more casualties on both sides and lasted seemingly forever, the Iran conflict might prove to be costlier and more compromising for the United States. 

Musgrave argues (see link to article below):

The absence of substantial U.S. casualties in this conflict also masks the scale of the U.S. defeat. To be sure, the war has been deadly: Thousands of Iranians, combatants and civilians, have died in the fighting. Americans, however, have endured far fewer deaths: To date, fewer than 20 U.S. soldiers have died—and many of those in a single strike.

Indeed, there is no argument that the war in Vietnam saw more suffering, more casualties and injured. But that is not what Musgrave is suggesting when he talks about Iran being a bigger defeat than Vietnam ever was. What he is arguing is that while the actual purpose, the reason for fighting (the "domino theory" in Southeast Asia) largely felt irrelevant by the time that the United States pulled it's forces out of Vietnam, the same cannot be said for the war with Iran.

Again, let's see what Musgrave specifically says:

Yet those observations do not change the fact that, for the United States itself, the consequences of a costly defeat were, in the long run, relatively minor and inward-looking. The United States emerged from the wider Cold War triumphant. Vietnam itself is a power surprisingly friendly to the United States today.

Compare that situation with the aftermath of Trump’s war. The United States is inarguably in a weaker position than when it began this war of choice, with core U.S. strategic objectives harmed.  

Contrast how its military performance has seemed during this conflict with the U.S.-led coalition’s war to reverse Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s conquest of Kuwait. In the 1990-91 conflict, the seeming ease with which Iraq’s military was dismembered stunned the world.

Now there, Musgrave makes a solid point. True, the United States did not look stronger as a result of the Vietnam conflict. Yet, it clearly did not derail American resolve in the Cold War. I am not entirely certain that I would agree with the United States emerging triumphant after the Cold War. That attitude itself feels like part of the problem, the nationalistic hubris that helped to produce this disastrous Trump presidency to begin with. Nonetheless, the point is taken. The war in Vietnam was sobering for Americans, but it did not come at as critical a time as this defeat to Iran has come, with the world largely losing faith in, and even turning against, the United States.

Musgrave continues:

The effects on U.S. leadership in the global system have been more profound. Regional allies, many of whom reportedly argued against the venture, bore the brunt of the costs of the fighting. Most tellingly, Iran learned that its capacity to throttle the Strait of Hormuz could deliver economic leverage on a worldwide scale.

Indeed. I will admit to having been opposed to both the Iraq and Iran wars. So I had no great faith in the outcomes of either war. But while the United States did not triumph as brilliantly as George W. Bush bragged about during his infamous "Mission Accomplished" speech on the aircraft carrier, it nevertheless is nothing compared to 's waffling, claiming that what we are doing is a war, then backing off, claiming that we won within the first couple of hours, then saying that the war  continue, then saying Iran was completely incapacitated, then being unable to remove them from blocking the Straight of Hormuz. Add to that his asking for help from the same allies he had insulted not long before, as well as his previous claims from the summer of 2025 that he had "totally obliterated" Iran's nuclear capabilities, and what you have is a fiasco that went much further towards discrediting the United States, and it's choice of leadership, than either Vietnam or Iraq did. 

This war was begun by Donald Trump. It was all his decision, dating back to when he decided to tear up the Iran treaty under Obama's leadership. That in and of itself undermined credibility in American leadership. This, however, proved to be worse, with Trump's repeated conflicting claims (again, the whole "totally obliterated" claim) and what proved to be a complete and utter disaster with the United States failing to bring Iran to heel, or to end their nuclear capabilities or, again, to prevent them from bringing the world economy to it's knees by controlling the Straight of Hormuz. And again, American allies paid a steep price, especially early in this war. The only people who will not admit that the United States came out looking weaker and less capable, and Iran came out looking stronger, are the incompetent idiots in the Trump White House. Everyone else sees clearly that this was truly a disaster. 

So it feels like Musgrave does have a point. And it is something which the United States will continue to pay for long after Trump is gone. Even different leadership will have a difficult time trying to undo the damage which Trump's war has caused the United States, Musgrave explains:

The United States, under whatever management, will confront these consequences while being itself weakened at home and abroad. Its allies will have less confidence in its capabilities; its public will be less willing to bear the costs of even productive engagement; its rivals will be likelier to challenge Washington’s will. Those results will be far more lasting and severe than the U.S. failure in its war in Vietnam.

Agreed. Not only did Trump's clear and obvious miscalculations prove costly in this war, it may set trends which will further compromise the United States in the future. Also, it cannot be overstated that the timing of this, coming as it does at a time when the entire world seems to be losing faith in Americans and their chosen leadership, only contributes more to the growing perception that the United States now appears clearly to be a power in decline, even sharp decline. 

Below is the link to the article which got me on this topic, and from which I obtained all of the specific parts of the article used above:

Iran Is a Bigger Defeat Than Vietnam by Paul Musgrave, associate professor of government at Georgetown University in Qatar, June 16, 2026

A war of choice has turned into a strategic disaster for Washington. 

https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/06/16/iran-vietnam-strategy-defeat/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=socialads&tpcc=Facebook_PaidSocial_Bof&utm_id=120233776133040637&utm_content=120248472448350637&utm_term=120233776191200637&utm_campaign=120233776133040637&fbclid=IwY2xjawT8vB9wZG9mBWV4dG4DYWVtATAAYWRpZAGrNkYzAxSdc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHgsP9hEl1mGZra8JtOaaaMVLJC9gNp4luOtGfa46pV4B8Ph42U7odJ4wTB5-_aem_RN8g1Ythmj1UHqxXnHCnXQ

Iran Defeat Is Bigger Strategic Loss Than Vietnam War