Canada & Trump Tariff Negotiations Break Down, Carney Sees Threat to French Language As Americans Going Too Far

Numerous times during visits up to Canada, I have heard the opinion expressed that French Canadians go to far in trying to preserve their Francophone identity and culture, and obviously the French language, particularly in Québec. This included the news, where I remember seeing one reporter kind of smiling in that "there they go again" tone while reporting on yet another apparently tiresome effort by the Québec government to preserve the French language there.

Here's the thing: the threat to the language is real. It is large province in terms of size, and large in terms of population by Canadian standards. Yet, it is really just an isolated pocket in many respects, standing alone as the only major political body in North America, north of the Mexican border, where English is not the dominant language. As such, the people there are only too aware of the fragility of their language in a continent dominated by English.

Is that an exaggeration? Paranoia, perhaps?

Well, let's look at history. Dutch used to be the dominant language in New York City. It has completely gone away. German used to have a strong presence in various parts of the United States. One of my favorite authors, Kurt Vonnegut, remembered a time when German was commonly spoken in his neighborhood in Indianapolis. But it went away, disappeared. And French itself was largely extinguished in Louisiana, largely because it was regarded as an inferior language representing a decadent culture in the Deep South, and needed to be gotten rid of.  For the most part, it has been. When I went to New Orleans some years ago, I was wondering how much of a French presence actually would be in evidence. For the most part, the only evidence that I saw that it ever existed were in the bilingual signs and maybe a few signs for stores here and there. But I heard not one person speaking French in the streets or anywhere else.

The only other example of a fairly large group of people speaking another language, other than English or Spanish, on the North American continent would be the Amish, who speak German. In short, nowhere else in North America will you see or hear another language spoken or used commonly. And remember: French was treated almost like a second class language in Canada until not that long ago. The Constitution and the laws were not translated until shockingly recently, and French only gained officially equal status with English in 1982. Hardly ancient history. 

And now, yet another attack on the French language in Canada. This time, that threat comes from outside of Canada proper.

Part of the terms of Trump's negotiations on tariffs towards Canada was evidently to limit the use of the French language. 

To his credit, Prime Minister Carney declared that to be a non-starter, immediately shutting down the tariff negotiations. Here is some of what he said:

“You’re at war when you’re attacked, and we got attacked,” the Canadian prime minister told reporters in Ottawa. “We cannot accept what they’ve offered and we will not give what they’ve asked.”

So Carney walked away because he felt that the demands made by the Trump administration were “unfair, uneconomic, and called into question the reliability of any deal.”

Carney went on to say:

“In short, they asked too much, and they offered too little.” 

The province of Québec has been hit particularly hard by these tensions and tariffs placed by American President Trump. Québec Premier Christine Fréchette expressed support for Carney, saying that he did the right thing. Then, she went on to explain how important French is to her province:

“Our culture, our language, is central to our identity, and it is important to exclude that from the negotiating table,” Fréchette told reporters Saturday. “Even though we are threatened with different tariffs, it won’t change. We will stay the way we are.”

Fréchette went on to state that U.S. alcohol would remain off Société des alcools du Québec shelves for as long as the trade war continued. She also made clear that Québec would continue to place limits and penalties on U.S. companies bidding on public contracts.  

“As long as the Americans continue to wage this tariff war against our businesses, against our workers, I will not put American alcoholic products back on the shelves of the SAQ,” she said.

Bad feelings and growing distrust between the two countries is at a modern high. Many Americans, particularly those who agree with Trump and identify as MAGA, tend to rally behind every move he makes. However, there is also a strong presence of many prominent Americans who openly criticize Trump and blast him for starting conflicts with traditional allies, especially Canada.

Despite some Americans being critical of Trump, distrust and distaste towards Americans seems to be running very high in Canada presently. There was a 21% drop in the number of Canadian entering New York state last year, with three million fewer visitors than the year prior (before Trump took office). American consumer products have been taken off the shelves of some Canadian stores. And if all of that was not enough, here is more:

Furthermore, a petition to expel the US ambassador to Canada, Pete Hoekstra, from the country has gathered about 248,000 signatures since late July, according to the Associated Press.  

This year a poll by Globe and Mail newspaper found that only 9% of Canadians agreed that the US was a “trustworthy ally”, and that 51% of those polled had cancelled American trips in reaction to comments by Trump.

Let us remember that prior to Trump, Canada was widely regarded as a trustworthy ally and solid economic partner all around by most Americans. There were never any serious problems between Canada and the United States in recent times before the Trump presidency, which saw the president routinely referring to Canada as the "51st state" and referring to the then Canadian Prime Minister as "Governor Trudeau."

And Trump once again seemed to hint at Canada possibly becoming the "51st state" again after the talks broke down, saying on social media: 

“Canada wants the benefits of being a State, without being one!!!”  

He then added:

“They have also charged our great farmers, for many years, massive amounts of tariffs,” he added. “No more!!!”

What a stubborn, stupid jackass. Once again, he is showing why he lacked the qualifications needed for the presidency, and how utterly and completely he is failing both Americans and the rest of the world, at that.

Below are the links to the two articles I used in writing this entry, and from which I obtained the specific quotes used above:

Threat to Quebec’s French language, identity key reason Carney ends trade talks with Trump by Harry North August 22, 2026:

Fresh U.S. tariffs called a “worst-case scenario” for the province’s businesses.

https://montrealgazette.com/news/quebec-wakes-to-worst-case-scenario-as-trump-slaps-new-50-tariffs-on-canada/

Quebec wakes to ‘worst-case scenario’ as Trump’s tariffs hit

‘No more!!!’: Trump lashes out after US-Canada talks devolve into trade war by Lauren Almeida Sun 23 Aug 2026.

PM Mark Carney says ‘we got attacked’ as tariffs come into force on items from hockey sticks to tongue depressors

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/aug/23/donald-trump-lashes-out-after-us-canada-talks-devolve-into-trade-war

‘No more!!!’: Trump lashes out after US-Canada talks devolve into trade war | Canada | The Guardian

August 24th: 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

This was not a good day in Roman history. Julius' Caesar's general, Gaius Scribonius Curio, was defeated at the Second Battle of the Bagradas River, by the Numidians, and commits suicide so as to avoid capture. Thirty years later on this day, Mount Vesuvius erupted. And hundreds of years later on this date, Rome was overrun by the Visigoths, which symbolized the fall of the Roman Empire as we know it. On this day in 1349, Jews in Cologne set themselves on fire rather than submit to being baptized. In 1814, British troops took over and burned Washington, D.C., during the War of 1812. On this day in 1821, Mexico gained its independence from Spain with the Treaty of Cordoba. On this day in 1831, John Henslow asked Charles Darwin to travel with him on HMS Beagle, where Darwin would ultimately come up with the ideas which would later result in the explosive findings in his book, "Origin of Species." Thomas Edison patented the motion picture camera, and applied patents for the kinetoscope and kinetograph on this day in 1891. Franklin D. Roosevelt gave the FBI the authority to pursue communists and fascists. The Luftwaffe bombed London. The Soviet Union launched Luna 11 to orbit around the moon. 

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

The spine design for this particular edition of "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" by Edward Gibbons, with pillars going from impressive and strong to decadent and fallen into a serious state of disrepair.

• On this day in 49 BCE, Julius Caesar's general Gaius Scribonius Curio was defeated in the Second Battle of the Bagradas River by the Numidians under Publius Attius Varus and King Juba of Numidia. Curio committed suicide to avoid capture. 

• In 79 on this day, Mt Vesuvius erupted, burying the cities of Pompeii, Stabiae and Herculaneum in volcanic ash, killing between 15,000 - 20,000 people. 

• On this day in 410, Rome was overrun by Visigoths, an event which came to symbolize the fall of the Western Roman Empire. 

• Pope Innocent III declared the Magna Carta invalid on this day in 1215. 

• The Battle at South Foreland was fought on this day in 1217, with the English fleet defeating the French fleet. 

• On this in 1349, 6,000 Jews were killed in Mainz after getting blamed for the Plague. 

• On that same day in 1349, Jews of Cologne, Germany, set themselves on fire in order to avoid baptism. 

• In 1391 on this day, Jews of Palma Majorca were massacred. 

• The printing of the Gutenberg Bible was completed on this day in 1456. 

• In 1511 on this day, Alfonso de Albuquerque of Portugal conquered Malacca, the capital of the Sultanate of Malacca. 

• The Battle at Aleppo took place on this day in 1516, with the Ottomans defeating Syria. 

• Conquistador Francisco de Orellana returned to Spain on this day in 1542. 

• On this day in 1572, the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre of Protestants by Roman Catholics began in Paris, and would later spread to the French provinces. The killings claimed about 70,000 people. 

• On this day in 1608, the first English convoy landed at Surat India. 

• Louis II Condé disbanded, marking the end of Atrecht on this day in 1654. 

• The Battle at Grevelingen was fought on this day in 1658, when the English fleet beat the Spanish. 

• The Act of Uniformity occurred on this day in 1662, which required the English to accept the book of Common Prayer. 

• On this day in 1682, Duke James of York gave Delaware to William Penn. 

• In 1690 on this day, Job Charnock founded Calcutta, India. 

• On this day in 1704, there was a sea battle at Malaga. 

• In 1751 on this day, Thomas Colley was executed in England for drowning supposed witch. 

Bust of Composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

• Wolfgang A Mozart completed his viola sonata in A, K526, on this day in 1787. 

• On this day in 1814 (during the War of 1812), British forces captured Washington, DC, & burned down many landmarks in the city, including the Capitol building and the White House. 

• The Treaty of St. Louis was signed in St. Louis, Missouri, on this day in 1816. 

• In 1820 on this day, there was a Constitutionalist insurrection at Oporto, Portugal; see Portugal's crises of the Nineteenth Century. 

Flag of Mexico

• On this day in 1821, Spanish Viceroy Juan de O'Donojú signed the Treaty of Córdoba, which approved a plan to make Mexico an independent constitutional monarchy.

Netherland's South Willems Port (Bosch-Luik) opened on this day in 1826. The Dutch army took Fort Du Bus in New Guinea on this day in 1828. 

• On this day in 1831, John Henslow asked Charles Darwin to travel with him on HMS Beagle, where Darwin would ultimately come up with the ideas which would later result in the explosive findings in his book, "Origin of Species." 

British Botanist Charles Darwin

• In 1833 on this day, the HMS Beagle reached Bahia Blanca, Argentina. 

• Charlotte Bronte finished manuscript of "Jane Eyre" on this day in 1847. 

• The first potato chips were prepared by Chef George Crum in Saratoga Springs, New York, on this day in 1853. 

• In 1853 on this day, the first convention of the American Pharmaceutical Association was held. 

• In 1854 on this day, National Emigration Convention met in Cleveland, Ohio. 

• The Panic of 1857 began on this day in 1857, setting off one of the most severe economic crises in American history. 

• Richmond "Daily Dispatch" reported that 90 blacks were arrested for learning on this day in 1858. 

• In 1869 on this day, Cornelius Swarthout patented the waffle iron. 

• On this day in 1870, the Wolseley Expedition reached Manitoba to end the Red River Rebellion. 

• In 1876 on this day, riot abolished fairs in Amsterdam, 2 killed. 

Monuments to Thomas Edison at Menlo Park in Edison,  NJ 

• Thomas Edison patented the motion picture camera, and applied patents for the kinetoscope and kinetograph (U.S. Pats. 493,426 and 589,168). on this day in 1891. 

• On this day in 1893, a tornado destroys coast of Savannah & Charleston, about 1000 die

1904 - Field battle at Liao-Yang-200,000 Japanese against 150,000 Russian

• 1909 - Workers start pouring concrete for Panama Canal

1911 - Manuel d'Arriaga elected 1st president of Portugal

1912 - NYC ticker tape parade for Jim Thorpe & victorious US olympians

1912 - District Alaska becomes an organized incorporated territory of the United States

1912 - US passes Anti-gag law, federal employees right to petition government

1914 - Battle at Bergen: Germans defeat Belgian/British troops

1914 - German troops occupy Namur Belgium

1914 - Jerome Kern & Michael E Rourles musical premieres in NYC

1919 - Cleveland pitcher Ray Caldwell is flattened by a bolt of lightning

1921 - Battle of Sakaray Valley begins between Turkey & Greece

1921 - British airship R-38 crashes in Humber, 44 die

1929 - Palestinians attack orthodox Jews in Jerusalem

1929 - Turkey & Persia signs friendship treaty

1931 - France & USSR sign neutrality/no attack treaty

1932 - 1st transcontinental non-stop flight by a woman, Amelia Earhart

1936 - Australian Antarctic Territory created

Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial in Washington, D.C.

• In 1936 on this day, American President Franklin Delano Roosevelt provided the FBI with the authority to pursue fascists & communists.

1937 - Republican offensive near Belchite Spain

• 1937 - In the Spanish Civil War, the Basque Army surrenders to the Italian Corpo Truppe Volontarie following the Santoña Agreement.

1938 - England beat Australia by an innings & 579 runs at The Oval

1938 - Virgil Trucks strikes out his 418th batter, highest season total in organized ball-for Andalusia in an Alabama-Florida League game

1939 - Germany & USSR sign 10-year non-aggression pact

1940 - Luftwaffe bombs London

1940 - Red Sox left fielder Ted Williams pitches the last 2 innings in a 12-1 loss to Detroit Tigers, Williams allows 3 hits & 1 run

1942 - Sea battle off Eastern Solomon Islands

1942 - Transport nr 23 departs with French Jews to Nazi-Germany

• On this day in 1944 during World War II, French General LeClerc's troops opened their assault on Paris.

1945 - Cleveland ace Bob Feller returns from Navy & strike out 12

1949 - North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) goes into effect

1950 - 1st US Negro delegate to UN appointed-ES Sampson

Baseball Player Ted WilliamsBaseball Player Ted Williams 1950 - Edith Sampson named 1st black US delegate to UN

1950 - Operation Magic Carpet concludes transporting 45,000 Yemenite Jews

1951 - Bill Veeck's "Fans Managers' Night," Browns defeat A's 5-3; Browns coaches hold up placards for fans to vote on

1954 - Communist Control Act passed, at height of McCarthyism

General Dwight Eisenhower, 34th President of the United States

• On this day in 1954, American President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Communist Control Act, outlawing the Communist Party.

1954 - International Amateur Athletic Federation recognizes Red China

1954 - William Heatherton's "Reluctant Debutante," premieres in London

1956 - 1st non-stop transcontinental helicopter flight arrived Wash DC

1957 - British soccer player Jimmy Greaves' (17) 1st game for Chelsea

1958 - Fay Crocker wins LPGA Waterloo Golf Open

1958 - Sergei Popov wins Stockholm marathon (2:15:17.0) (WR)

1959 - England complete 5-0 series drubbing of India

1959 - Hiram L Fong sworn in as 1st Chinese-American senator while Daniel K Inouye sworn in as 1st Japanese-American Rep (Both from Hawaii)

1960 - -127°F (-88°C), Vostok, Antarctica (world record)

1960 - 60 people die when bus plunges off bridge into Turvo River, Brazil

1961 - Windward Islands' Airways International (Winair) forms

Flag of South Africa during the apartheid era

• In 1961 on this day, Johannes Vorster, a wartime Nazi sympathizer and supporter, became South Africa's Minister of Justice during the days of apartheid white minority rule.

1962 - Dodger coach Leo Durocher suffers a near-fatal allergic reaction to a penicillin injection while in the clubhouse at the Polo Grounds

1962 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site

1966 - USSR launches Luna 11 for orbit around Moon

• 1967 - Liberian flag designed

• 1968 - France became world's 5th thermonuclear power, explodes on Mururoa

1969 - Peru nationalizes US oil interests

1970 - Bomb kills 1 at U of Wisconsin's Army Math Research Center in Madison

1971 - India beat England by 4 wickets, their win against the Poms

1972 - 8th Mayor's Trophy Game, Yanks beat Mets 2-1

1972 - Dennis Amiss scores 1st one-day int century, 103 v Australia

1972 - Gordie Howe & Jean Beliveau inducted in Hockey Hall of Fame

1973 - Garry Sobers scores 26th & last Test Cricket ton 150 v Eng Lord's

1973 - John Adams & his drum - become a right-field fixture in Cleve Stadium

1974 - Sandra Haynie wins LPGA National Jewish Hospital Golf Open

1975 - Davey Lopes steals his 38th consecutive base, then thrown out stealing

1975 - Judy Rankin wins LPGA National Jewish Hospital Golf Open

• 1975 - Papadopoulos/Pattakos/Makarezos sentenced to death in Athens

1975 - SF Giant Ed Halick no-hits NY Giants, 6-0

1975 - Tampa Bay Rowdies beat Portland 2-0 for NASL cup

1976 - Soyuz 21 returns to Earth

1978 - USSR performs underground nuclear test

1979 - Cars play concert in NY Central Park

1979 - NFL fans (60,916) choose old Patriots logo over new

1979 - UN's Vienna office begins issuing postage stamps

1980 - Beth Daniel wins Columbia Savings LPGA Golf Classic

1980 - Jozef Pinkovski replaces Poland premier Babiuch

1981 - American Charles Chapman is 1st black to swim English Channel

1981 - Mark David Chapman is sentenced to 20 yrs to life for Lennon's murder

1982 - KC's John Wathan steals 31st en route to 36 base for catcher's record

1983 - Cin Red Pete Rose ends consecutive games played streak at 745

1984 - Pat Bradley set LPGA record for 9 holes with a 28 at Denver

1985 - STS 51-I mission scrubbed at T -5m because of bad weather

1986 - Juli Inkster wins Atlantic City LPGA Golf Classic

1987 - Announcement of possible Martian tornadoes

1989 - British brewery Bass buys Holiday Inn hotel chain

1989 - Pete Rose is suspended from baseball for life for gambling

1989 - Voyager 2 flies past Neptune

1990 - 3,500 peacekeepers arrive in Liberia

1990 - Iraqi troops surround US & other embassies in Kuwait City

1991 - Emmy Creative Arts Award presentation

1991 - Gorbachev resigns as head of USSR Communist Party

1991 - Silky Stallone, wins the Cane Pace at Yonkers Raceway

1991 - Taiwan captures its 15th Little League World Series, 11-0

• Ukraine declared its independence from the USSR on this day in 1991.

1992 - 1st structural steel beams are erected at Gateway (Jacobs Field)

1992 - Cleveland Browns suffer their worst preseason loss, 56-3, to Vikings

1992 - Hurricane Andrew hits South Florida; 35 die

1992 - Screw magazine superimposed a gunsight over a picture of Larry Flint

1992 - Diplomatic relations are established between the People's Republic of China and South Korea.

1993 - Mars Observer comes closest to Mars

• 1994 - Israel & PLO initialed accord giving autonomy to Palestinians in West Bank in education, health, taxation, social welfare & tourism

1995 - Fire that wipes 6,000 acres begins in Hamptons on Long Island

1995 - Windows 95 debuts

1997 - Gordon Spence discovers 2^2976221 - 1 (36th known Mersenne prime)

• 1998 - The Netherlands is selected as the site for the trial of the two Libyan suspects of the 1988 Pan Am bombing.

1998 - First RFID human implantation tested in the United Kingdom.

2000 - Argon fluorohydride, the first Argon compound ever known, is discovered at the University of Helsinki by Finnish scientists.

2001 - Air Transat Flight 236 runs out of fuel over the Atlantic Ocean (en route to Lisbon from Toronto) and makes an emergency landing in the Azores.

• 2004 - 89 passengers die after two airliners explode after flying out of Domodedovo International Airport, near Moscow. The explosions were caused by suicide bombers (reportedly female) from the Russian Republic of Chechnya.

2006 - The International Astronomical Union (IAU) redefines the term "planet" such that Pluto is considered a Dwarf Planet.

2012 - Monsoon rains and floods kill 26 people in Pakistan

2012 - Yangmingtan Bridge collapses in China killing three people

2012 - Both Apple and Samsung are found guilty of patent infringement in a South Korean court

2012 - A US jury in California finds that Samsung is guilty of patent infringement and awards over US$1 billion in damages to Apple

 1814 - Washington, DC, was invaded by British forces that set fire to the White House and Capitol.   1853 - The first convention of the American Pharmaceutical Association was held.   

1869 - A patent for the waffle iron was received by Cornelius Swarthout.   1891 - Thomas Edison applied patents for the kinetoscope and kinetograph (U.S. Pats. 493,426 and 589,168).   

1912 - A four-pound limit was set for parcels sent through the U.S. Post Office mail system.   1932 - Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly across the U.S. non-stop. The trip from Los Angeles, CA to Newark, NJ, took about 19 hours.   1949 - The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) went into effect. The agreement was that an attack against on one of the parties would be considered "an attack against them all."   1954 - The Communist Party was virtually outlawed in the U.S. when the Communist Control Act went into effect.   1959 - Three days after Hawaiian statehood, Hiram L. Fong was sworn in as the first Chinese-American U.S. senator while Daniel K. Inouye was sworn in as the first Japanese-American U.S. representative.   1963 - John Pennel pole-vaulted 17 feet and 3/4 inches becoming the first to break the 17-foot barrier.   1968 - France became the 5th thermonuclear power when they exploded a hydrogen bomb in the South Pacific.   1975 - Davey Lopes of the Los Angeles Dodgers set a major league baseball record when he stole his 38th consecutive base.   1985 - 27 anti-apartheid leaders were arrested in South Africa as racial violence rocked the country.   1986 - Frontier Airlines shut down. Thousands of people were left stranded.   1989 - Pete Rose, the manager of the Cincinnati Reds, was banned from baseball for life after being accused of gambling on baseball.   1989 - "Total war" was declared by Columbian drug lords on their government.   1989 - The U.S. space probe, Voyager 2, sent back photographs of Neptune.   1990 - Iraqi troops surrounded foreign missions in Kuwait.   1991 - Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev resigned as the head of the Communist Party.   1992 - China and South Korea established diplomatic relations.   1995 - Microsoft's "Windows 95" went on sale.   1998 - U.S. officials cited a soil sample as part of the evidence that a Sudan plant was producing precursors to the VX nerve gas. And, therefore made it a target for U.S. missiles on August 20, 1998.   1998 - A donation of 24 beads was made, from three parties, to the Indian Museum of North America at the Crazy Horse Memorial. The beads are said to be those that were used in 1626 to buy Manhattan from the Indians.   2001 - In McAllen, TX, Bridgestone/Firestone agreed to settle out of court and pay a reported $7.5 million to a family in a rollover accident in their Ford Explorer.   2001 - The remains of nine American servicemen killed in the Korean War were returned to the U.S. The bodies were found about 60 miles north of Pyongyang. It was estimated that it would be a year before the identies of the soldiers would be known.   2001 - U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly was randomly picked to take over the Microsoft monopoly case. The judge was to decide how Microsoft should be punished for illegally trying to squelch its competitors.   2001 - NASA announced that operation of the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite would end by September 30th due to budget restrictions. Though the satellite is best known for monitoring a hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica, it was designed to provide information about the upper atmosphere by measuring its winds, temperatures, chemistry and energy received from the sun.   2005 - The planet Pluto was reclassified as a "dwarf planet" by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Pluto's status was changed due to the IAU's new rules for an object qualifying as a planet. Pluto met two of the three rules because it orbits the sun and is large enough to assume a nearly round shape. However, since Pluto has an oblong orbit and overlaps the orbit of Neptune it disqualified Pluto as a planet.

 1814 The British set fire to the White House and the Capitol when they invaded Washington, DC during the War of 1812. 1821 Mexico gained its independence from Spain with the Treaty of Cordoba. 1949 The North Atlantic Treaty went into effect. 1968 France became the world's fifth nuclear power as it exploded a hydrogen bomb in the South Pacific. 1989 Pete Rose was banned from baseball for gambling. 1991 Mikhail Gorbachev resigned as the general secretary of the Communist Party after a failed coup attempt against him. 1992 Hurricane Andrew hit Florida, causing record damage.

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/aug24.htm

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

http://www.infoplease.com/dayinhistory

Paying Interest Alone Is Stifling

Throughout my life - literally lasting a span of decades - Republican always seemed to be vocal in championing fiscal responsibility. They were budget hawks all of the time, voting down proposed ideas by Democrats on the grounds of fiscal irresponsibility.

They were always particularly vocal and militant budget hawks whenever there was a Democrat in the White House. 

Yet it seems strange, because it always seemed that these staunchly fiscally conservative Republicans who were so loud and proud in standing for a balanced budget during Democratic administrations would suddenly grow quiet about fiscal irresponsibility - even fiscal insanity - during Republican administrations. That was true during the Reagan years and the first Bush presidency. It was even more true during the second Bush administration.

Now, however, it has reached a point of such staggering levels of silence during these even more insane times, that it makes you wonder where all of the former budget hawks are now? 

Really, we have now officially reached (and technically surpassed) $40 trillion in debt. Trump claimed he would balance the budget, and then did nothing of the sort, instead producing record budget deficits. 

Both parties are responsible, true. At least in part. 

Still, I fault Republicans more than Democrats for several reasons. First of all, again, there is that hypocrisy of being loud about their official budget hawk stances only when Democrats are in power, and never when Republicans are in power. That level of hypocrisy was particularly pronounced during the presidential terms of George W. Bush and especially Donald Trump, both times. And what made these political eras different, and why I blame Republicans more - even far more - is that they not only had the White House, but they were in control of Congress, too. So when you have that much power and influence, and you run record deficits and have government shutdowns and all of that other nonsense while automatically giving a Republican president everything that he wants, including raising the debt ceiling, gives them more responsibility by far in my book than the Democrats, who more often than not were too inept as a major party to really hold power. 

Whatever happened to the Republicans being the party of fiscal responsibility, anyway?

I heard recently that the amount that we are paying each year just on the interest on our national debt is stagger Something like over $1 trillion.

But it seems to me that Republicans, specifically, seemed to want this level of chaos. While pretending to be the party that champions law and order, Republicans in particularly secretly are in favor of chaos in order to go to extremes to address it with overblown responses. The same is true with the budget. Get the country into a situation of undeniable fiscal crisis, and it becomes easier to make the supposedly "urgent" cuts to services that they were always in favor of in the first place. Meanwhile, they never, ever think about slashing the budget for the military industrial complex, or corporate welfare, or tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans, or the surveillance state which they seem to want to impose on the entire country. 

Indeed, the Republicans have also generally always had a reputation as war hawks. The budget for the military industrial complex exploded under Reagan and the first Bush administration. Then it escalated to unprecedented heights during the second Bush administration, when we were fighting two wars at the same time, while also cutting taxes. That was something which had never been done before. Not surprisingly, the national debt and budget deficits absolutely soared. 

Yet as always, under Trump, everything is just so much worse. The budget for the military industrial complex is a staggering $1.5 trillion, more than the next 10 countries in the world combined. Despite promising not to get us involved in another endless war - especially in the Middle East - President Trump has done exactly that with this no-win war in Iran, which has been extremely costly to the United States in every way. There is no accountability, and blatant corruption is being witnessed on unprecedented levels that are staggering. There are more people than ever convinced that all of this translates to a serious national decline. Possibly, even probably, the fall of a once great superpower or empire. 

And the very people who you might think - based on their traditional rhetoric and their loudly proclaimed patriotism - have maintained radio silence.

Of course, many of them have been quite busy cashing in themselves.

Absolutely disgusting.

Ron Smith Facebook post from August 13, 2026  · Are we great, yet? 😪

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=28635736526010178&set=a.259043657439511

Facebook

Weekend Humor: Jabba the Trump

Years ago, Nate White, a British journalist, compared Trump to Jabba the Hut, specifically suggesting that Trump was a "Jabba the Hut of privilege."

Of course, there was a lot more to it that piece by White than that, and I would recommend it. For whatever reason, I am having trouble finding the link, specifically. If I find it, I will add it later on.

Anyway, for the second time, I saw a reference suggesting that Trump seemed to be closer to being Jabba the Hut recently.

Thought it was pretty funny. Take a look:

Eric Alterman 2͏0͏ ͏A͏u͏g͏u͏s͏t͏ ͏a͏t͏ ͏0͏9͏:͏4͏8͏  ·

Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10244282671389856&set=a.4110406326409

August 23rd: 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

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

On this day in history, there were the first stirrings of Mount Vesuvius, on the feast day of the Vulcan - ironically, the Roman god of fire. Philip VI was crowned King of France. This date was an important one for Napoleon, as he left Egypt for France, in order to take over power. Some years later, his French forces were defeated by the Prussians during the Battle of Grossbeeren. The British captured Hong Kong from China on this day. The Treaty of Prague ended the Austro-Prussian War. Japan declared war on Germany in 1914, although the same two countries would be allied with one another in the next global war. Sacoo and Vanzetti were sentenced on this day. Arabs attacked Jews in Palestine, in what would later become Israel. The world found out that Hitler's Nazi Germany and Stalin's Communist Soviet Union had signed a non-aggression treaty (known officially as the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact), that proved anything but non-aggressive in fact, as it effectively gave Hitler the green light to invade Poland, which started World War II. The Germans took over the western portion of Poland, while the Soviet Union then took over in the Eastern portion shortly thereafter. East Germany imposed increased travel restrictions to West Germany. This was an important day in the history of the Beatles, as they  released "She Loves You", and on the same day, Ringo Starr admitted that he did not write "Don't Pass Me By".  A few years later on this same day, Ringo temporarily left the Beartles. Years after the actual breakup of the Beatles, John Lennon reported seeing a UFO on this day in 1974. Communists took over in Laos. It was on this day in 1990 that East and West Germany announced that they would reunify into one Germany later that year, on October 3rd.

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

• On this day in  the year 79, Mount Vesuvius began stirring, ironically enough, on the feast day of Vulcan, the Roman god of fire. 

• In 406 on this day, the Battle at Florence was fought, with Stilicho's Roman army defeating Radagaisus' Barbarians. Odoacer was proclaimed King of of Italy on this day in 476, the first "barbarian" King of Italy. King Henry III gave money to Utrecht Deventer diocese on this day in 1046. On this day in 1305, William Wallace, Scottish patriot and leader, and now national hero, was executed in London for high treason by Edward I of England.

1328 - Battle at Kassel: French troops stop uprising of Flemish farmers

1328 - King Philip VI of France, crowned

1441 - Holland & Hanzesteden sign cease fire treaty

1514 - Battle of Chaldiran ended with a decisive victory for the Sultan Selim I, Ottoman Empire, over the Shah Ismail I, Safavids founder.

1541 - French explorer Jacques Cartier lands near Quebec City in his third voyage to Canada.

1542 - Rabbi Joseph Caro completes his commentary of Tur Code

1553 - Bishop Stephen Gardiner appointed English Lord Chancellor

1555 - Calvinists are granted rights in the Netherlands.

1566 - Beeldenstorm reaches Amsterdam

1566 - Land guardian Margaretha van Parma grants Calvinists rights

1582 - French van Valois pays tribute to earl of Flanders

1595 - Michael the Brave confronts the Ottoman army in the Battle of Calugareni.

1614 - University of Groningen opens

1617 - 1st one-way streets open (London)

Scottish Patriot William WallaceScottish Patriot William Wallace 

• 1708 - Meidingnu Pamheiba is crowned King of Manipur.

• 1711 - Admiral Hovenden Walkers fleet reach St Lawrence

1784 - Eastern Tennessee settlers declare their area an independent state & name it Franklin; a year later the Continental Congress rejects it

1796 - African Methodist Episcopal Church incorporated

French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte

• 1799 - Napoleon leaves Egypt for France en route to seize power.

• 1813 - Battle of Grossbeeren - Prussians under Von Bulow repulse French

Flag of Mexico

• 1821 - Mexico declares independence

On August 24, 1821, Spanish Viceroy Juan de O'Donojú signed the Treaty of Córdoba, which approves a plan to make Mexico an independent constitutional monarchy.

1838 - Mt Holyoke Female Seminary (South Hadley, Mass) 1st graduating class

• 1839 - British capture Hong Kong from China

1850 - 1st national women's rights convention convenes in Worcester Mass

1862 - Skirmish at Big Hill, Kentucky (2 Federal regiments)

1864 - Union troops/fleet occupy Fort Morgan, Alabama

1866 - Treaty of Prague ends Austro-Prussian war

1869 - 1st carload of freight (boots & shoes) arrives in SF, from Boston

1872 - 1st Japanese coml ship visits SF, carrying tea

1873 - Albert Bridge creossing Thames opens

1879 - Governor-general Charles Gordon of Sudan returns to Cairo

1883 - Phillies make 27 errors against Providence (wild pitches, walks & & passballs count as errors prior to 1888)

1889 - 1st ship-to-shore wireless message received in US (SF)

1896 - First Cry of the Philippine Revolution is made in Pugad Lawin (Quezon City), in the province of Manila.

1898 - 18th US Mens Tennis: Malcolm Whitman beats Dwight Davis (36 62 62 61)

1900 - National Negro Business League organizes (Boston)

1903 - 6th Zionist Congres, Theodor Herzl declares Jewish state

1904 - Automobile tire chain patented

1906 - Chicago White Sox win 19th straight, beating Wash Senators

1906 - Cuba's 1st president Tomés Estrada Palma asks for US intervention

1907 - Pitts Howie Camnitz no-hits NY Giants, 1-0 in 5 inning game

1910 - Fred Clarke makes a record 4 outfield assists for Pittsburgh

1911 - British premier Asquith holds secret meeting about British strategy in case of war with Germany

1914 - -24] German troops plunder Belgium

1914 - Battle at Mons: general von Klucks troops beat Britten

1914 - Gen von Hausen executes 612 inhabitants of Dinant Belgium

1914 - Tsingtao, China, was bombarded as Japan declared war on Germany in World War I.  

1914 - Japan declares war on Germany in World War I

1915 - Czar Nicolaas II takes control of Russian Army

1916 - Military court of Berlin sentences Karl Liebknecht to 4 years

1917 - Race riot in Houston Texas (2 blacks & 11 whites killed)

1919 - "Gasoline Alley" cartoon strip premieres in Chicago Tribune

1920 - M R Rinehart & A Hopwood's "Bat," premieres in NYC

1923 - Capt. Lowell Smith and Lt. John P. Richter performed the first mid-air refueling on De Havilland DH-4B, setting an endurance flight record of 37 hours.

1924 - Mars' closest approach to Earth since 10th century

1926 - 40th US Womens Tennis: Molla B Mallory beats Elizabeth Ryan (46 64 97)

1929 - Arabs attack Jews in Israel

1930 - 44th US Womens Tennis: Betty Nuthall beats Anna McCune Harper (61 64)

1931 - 45th US Womens Tennis: Helen Moody beats Eileen B Whitingstall (64 61)

1931 - Count Gyula Károlyi becomes premier of Hungary

1931 - Phila A's Lefty Grove, loses 1-0 (Browns) after winning 16 straight

1933 - 1st TV boxing match - Archie Sexton & Laurie Raiteri in London

1936 - 17 year old Bob Feller's 1st game, he strikes out 15 St Louis Browns

1938 - England score 7-903 decl v Australia Hutton 364

1939 - John Cobb (Britain) drives 365.85 MPH (593.48 KPH) at Bonneville Flats

An Italian stamp (Italy Scott 0417) honoring the Rome-Berlin Axis, portraying German Fuhrer Adolf Hitler and "Il Duce", Benito Mussolini of Italy.

• On this day in 1939, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union stunned the world by signing the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, a non-aggression treaty which included that included a secret plan to divide Eastern Europe between them, for all intents and purposes. Few could have predicted this pact between the hostile nations given their ideological differences. However, it effectively eliminated the threat of a Soviet intervention, which gave Hitler and Germany the incentive to invade Poland and initiate the European theater of World War II just days later (on September 1st).

1939 - Molotov-Ribbentrop-pact (Soviet Union neutral/Poland divided)

1940 - German Luftwaffe begins night bombing on London

1940 - Queen Wilhelmina fires premier De Geer

1942 - 1st US flights to land on Guadalcanal

• 1942 - Battle of Stalingrad: 600 Luftwaffers bomb Stalingrad (40,000 die)

Statue of soldier, author and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in Parliament Square, London

• 1942 - British Premier Winston Churchill flies back to London from Cairo

1942 - Walter Johnson pitches to Babe Ruth in pregame attraction that draws 69,000 for NY-Wash game (raises $80,000 for Army-Navy relief

1942 - World War II: The last cavalry charge in history takes place at Izbushensky.

1943 - Red army recaptures Charkow

• 1943 - World War II: Kharkov liberated.

1944 - 94.5°F (34.7°C) in De Bilt Netherlands & 101.5°F (38.6°C) in Warnsvelt

1944 - Allied troops capture Marseilles France

• 1944 - General George Leclercs troops advance towards Paris

Soldier, author, journalist, politician Winston ChurchillSoldier, author, journalist, politician Winston Churchill 1944 - General Montgomery consults with Generals Bradley/Eisenhower

• 1944 - King Michael of Romania ordered his forces to cease fire against Allies & dismissed the pro-Axis premier, Marshal Ion Antonescu

• 1944 - Romania liberated from Nazi occupation

1944 - Sammellager Drancy freed

1944 - US 20th Army corp enter Fontainebleau/Melun de Seine

1944 - US B-24 crashes into school in Freckelton England, 76 killed

• On this day in 1944 during World War II, Allied troops liberated Marseilles, France, from Axis occupation.

1946 - 13th NFL Chicago All-Star Game: All-Stars 16, Los Angeles 0 (97,380)

1946 - Ordinance No. 46 of the British Military Government constitutes the German Land (state) of Schleswig-Holstein.

1947 - Pres Truman's daughter, Margaret's 1st public singing concert

1948 - Earl Bernadotte asks aid for fugitives to Palestine

1948 - World Council of Churches formed by 147 churches from 44 countries

1950 - Jack Holden wins marathon (2:32:12)

1950 - West Germany & Japan readmitted to Intl Amateur Athletic Federation

1952 - Arab League security pact goes into effect

1952 - Giants Bob Elliot is ejected for arguing a strike, Bobby Hoffman complete his at bat, he strikes out & is also ejected for arguing

1953 - Braves Phil Paine is 1st former major leaguer to play in Japan

1953 - Cyclist Arie Van Vliet becomes world champion sprinter

1953 - Dutch DC-6 crashes near Ymuiden in North Sea, 21 die

1953 - KBAK TV channel 29 in Bakersfield, CA (ABC) begins broadcasting

1953 - Phil Grate sets record for throwing a baseball (443'3")

1953 - USSR performs nuclear test

• 1954 - President Getulio Vargas of Brazil resigns temporarily

1954 - First flight of the C-130 Hercules transport aircraft.

1955 - Betty Jameson wins LPGA White Mountain Golf Open

1957 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site

1958 - China PR resumes fire on Quemoi & Matsoe

1958 - Marie Ashton completes playing piano a female record 133 hours

• 1958 - Chinese Civil War: The Second Taiwan Strait crisis begins with the People's Liberation Army's bombardment of Quemoy.

1959 - Beverly Hanson wins LPGA Spokane Golf Open

1960 - World's largest frog (3.3 kg) caught (Equatorial Guinea)

• 1961 - Belgium sends troops to Rwanda-Urundi

Flag of East Germany

• 1961 - East Germany imposed new curbs on travel between West & East Berlin

1961 - US lunar probe Ranger 1 reaches 190 km from Earth, falls back

1962 - 1st Europe-US live TV program (via Telstar)

    

    

• 1963 - Beatles release "She Loves You" in UK

• 1963 - Ringo admits he wrote a song "Don't Pass Me By"

1963 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site

1964 - Marilynn Smith wins Albuquerque Professional Amateur Golf Tournament

1964 - St Louis Cards are 11 games back in NL, & win World Series

1966 - Lunar Orbiter 1 takes 1st photograph of Earth from Moon

• 1968 - Ringo quits Beatles over a disagreement, temporarily

1968 - Yanks & Tigers play 3-3 tie in 19 due to 1 AM curfew

1969 - Audrey McElmory (US) wins World Cycling Championships, Brno

1969 - France's Une De Mai wins International Trot at Roosevelt Raceway Czechoslovakia (1st American to win cycling race title since 1912)

1970 - Kathy Ahern wins LPGA Southgate Ladies Golf Open

1970 - Roberto Clemente compiles his record 2nd straight 5-hit game

1971 - WGTU TV channel 29 in Traverse City, MI (ABC) begins broadcasting

1972 - Republican convention (Miami Beach, Fla) renominates VP Agnew but not unanimous-1 vote went to NBC newsman David Brinkley)

1972 - Chicago's Dick Allen is 4th (Jimmie Foxx, Hank Greenberg, & Alex Johnson) to homer into Comiskey Park's center field bleachers

1973 - Intelsat communications satellite launched

• 1974 - John Lennon reports seeing a UFO in NYC

1974 - Zaheer Abbas scores 240 Pakistan v England at The Cricket Oval

1975 - Classical Way wins Championship Cup at Roosevelt Raceway

1975 - Communists take over Laos

Flag of Ethiopia

The Lion of Judah Emblem of the Ethiopian Empire

• 1975 - Ethiopian junta under Mengistu Haile

1975 - Free guitarist Paul Kossoff revived from dead after heart attack

1975 - Philip Kapleau conducts 1st jukai ceremony in Poland

1975 - USSR performs nuclear test at Novaya Zemlya USSR

1976 - Heavy earthquake strikes China, 1,000s die

1977 - 1st man-powered flight of a mile (Bryan Allen in Gossamer Condor)

1977 - Marxist philosopher Rudolf Bahro imprisoned in German DR

1978 - Iranian students occupies Iranian embassy at Wassenaar

1979 - Bolshoi Ballet dancer Alexander Godunov defects in NYC

1979 - Iran army opens offensive against Kurds

1979 - UN's Vienna office opens

1980 - Charlie Finley sells A's for $127M to Haas (owners of Levi Strauss)

1981 - Beth Daniel wins LPGA World Championship of Women's Golf

1982 - Lebanese falangist leader Bechir Gemayel elected as president

1982 - Seattle Mariner pitcher Gaylord Perry ejected for throwing a spitter

1982 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR

1985 - Said Aouita of Morocco sets 1.5k record (3:29.46) in Berlin

Flag of South Africa during the apartheid era

• 1985 - South African attorney/UDF leader "Dulah" Omar arrested

1985 - West German top counter espionage Hans Tiedge moves to German DR

1985 - Paul Hornung awarded $1,160,000 by a Louisville court against NCAA who barred him as a college football analyst for betting on games

1986 - "Rags" closes at Mark Hellinger Theater NYC after 4 performances

1986 - Vrijkomend vulkaangas kills 1500 people in Nyos-more, Cameroon

1987 - 15-years old boy hijacks KLM B737, demands $1 billion

1987 - Violent rainfall/floods in Bangladesh, kills 100s

1988 - Mike Tyson & Mitch Green brawl at 4 A.M. in Harlem

1989 - LA Dodgers beat Montreal Expos, 1-0, in 22 innings (Rick Dempsey HR)

1989 - Lewis/Everett/Burrell/Heard run world record 4x200 m (1:19.38)

1990 - Armenia declares independence

• 1990 - East & West Germany announced that they would unite on Oct 3

1990 - US begins call up of 46,000 reservists to the Persian Gulf

1992 - Kris Tschetter wins LPGA Northgate Computer Golf Classic

1992 - Dennis Eckersley, who previously set record for most consecutive saves (40), is 1st pitcher to record 40 saves in 4 different seasons

1993 - NY Dow Jones index reaches record high of 3,638.96 points

1993 - Fred McGriff & David Justice are 6th to hit back-to-back HRs twice in same game

1995 - Indians' Jose Mesa sets record with his 38th consecutive save

1995 - Larry Hagman receives a liver transplant

• 1996 - Osama bin Laden issues message entitled 'A declaration of war against the Americans occupying the land of the two holy places.'

2000 - A Gulf Air Airbus A320 crashes into the Persian Gulf near Manama, Bahrain, killing 143.

2000 - Nicaragua becomes a member of the Berne Convention copyright treaty. This essentially deprecated the Buenos Aires Convention treaty, because as of this date, all members of the BA Convention were also signatories to Berne.

Islamic Militant & Terrorist Osama bin LadenIslamic Militant & Terrorist Osama bin Laden 2005 - Hurricane Katrina forms over the Bahamas, later becomes a category 5 hurricane

2005 - TANS Peru Flight 204 crashes near Pucallpa, Peru, killing 41.

2006 - Natascha Kampusch, who was abducted at the age of 10, managed to escape from her captor Wolfgang Priklopil, after 8 years of captivity.

2010 - Manila hostage crisis, which occurred at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila, where a dismissed police officer took hostage a tour bus full of Chinese nationals.

2011 - Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi is overthrown after the National Transitional Council forces take control of Bab al-Azizia compound during the 2011 Libyan Civil War.

2011 - 5.8 earthquake occurrs in Mineral, Virginia felt as far north as Ontario and as far south as Atlanta, Georgia

2012 - Four people are killed and 28 injured in a hot air ballooning accident in Slovenia

2012 - At least 30 are killed as a result of monsoon rain in Rajasthan, India

1838 - The first class graduated from Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in South Hadley, MA. It was one of the first colleges for women.   1839 - Hong Kong was taken by the British in a war with China.   1858 - "Ten Nights in a Barroom" opened in New York City at the National Theater. It was a melodrama about the evils of drinking.   1892 - The printed streetcar transfer was patented by John H. Stedman.   1902 - Fannie Merrit Farmer opened her cooking school, Miss Farmer’s School of Cookery, in Boston, MA.   1904 - Hard D. Weed patented the grip-tread tire chain for cars.   1914 - Tsingtao, China, was bombarded as Japan declared war on Germany in World War I.   1939 - Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed a non-aggression treaty.   1944 - During World War II, Romanian prime minister Ion Antonescue was dismissed. Soon after the country would abandon the Axis and join the Allies.   1944 - Marseilles was captured by Allied troops during World War II.   1947 - Margaret Truman, U.S. President Truman's daughter, gave her first public performance as a singer. The event was at the Hollywood Bowl and had an audience of 15,000.   1952 - The security pact of the Arab League went into effect.   1959 - In the Peanuts comic strip, Sally debuted as an infant.   1962 - The first live TV program was relayed between the U.S. and Europe through the U.S. Telstar satellite.   1970 - U.S. swimmer Gary Hall broke three world records at the AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) outdoor swimming meet, held in Los Angeles, CA.   1979 - Soviet dancer Alexander Godunov defected while the Bolshoi Ballet was on tour in New York City.   1982 - The parliament of Lebanon elected Bashir Bemayel president. He was assassinated three weeks later.   1982 - Gaylord Perry (Seattle Mariners) was tossed out of a game for throwing an illegal spitball.   1983 - The U.S. announced that it was nearly ready for a test flight of an anti-satellite missile.   1984 - South Fork Ranch, the home of the fictitious Ewing clan of the CBS-TV show, "Dallas," was sold. The ranch was to be transformed from a tourist site into a hotel.   1987 - Robert Jarvik and Marilyn Mach vos Savant were married. The event was called the "Union of Great Minds" since Savant had an IQ of 228 and Jarvik was the inventor of the artificial heart.   1990 - President Saddam Hussein appeared on Iraqi state television with a group of Western detainees that he referred to as "guests." He told the group that they were being held "to prevent the scourge of war."   1993 - It was confirmed by Los Angeles police that Michael Jackson was the subject of a criminal investigation.   1996 - U.S. President Clinton imposed limits on peddling cigarettes to children.   1998 - Protestors in Sudan carried a sign that bore the resemblance of Monica Lewinsky and the words "No War for Monika." The anti-U.S. demonstration was in Khartoum, Sudan.   1998 - Boris Yeltsin dismissed the Russian government again.   1999 - Rescuers in Turkey found a young boy that had been buried in rubble from an earthquake for about a week.   1999 - Robert Bogucki was rescued after getting lost in the Great Sandy Desert of Australia on July 11. During the 43 day ordeal Bogucki lost 44 pounds.   2000 - Richard Hatch was revealed as the winning castaway on CBS' "Survivor." Hatch won $1,000,000 for his stay on the island of Pulau Tida in the South China Sea.

1305 Scottish leader and national hero, William Wallace, was executed in London. 1914 Japan declared war on Germany in World War I. 1926 Silent film star Rudolph Valentino died in New York at age 31. 1927 Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were executed for the murders of two men during a 1920 robbery, despite worldwide protests. 1939 Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed a non-aggression treaty.

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/aug23.htm

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

http://www.infoplease.com/dayinhistory