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On a cold, gray autumn Monday afternoon 57 years ago today, John Fitzgerald Kennedy was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. ...
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Six years ago today, President Obama conferred the Presidential Medal of Freedom on 19 Americans, six of them posthumously. Such ...
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Eighty-four years ago today, a shiny and sophisticated pictorial publication hit the newsstands. The brainchild of Henry Luce and Briton ...
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Good morning, it's Friday, Nov. 20, 2020, the day the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. Today's ...
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Sometime overnight, this country passed a grim milestone: More than 250,000 Americans have now died from COVID-19.
Although this is nowhere near the ...
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On this date in American history, Abraham Lincoln boarded a train in Washington, D.C., heading for a small town just ...
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It's been two weeks since Election Day, and although the man in the Oval Office won't admit it and a significant ...
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Thirty-four years ago today, a group of peace demonstrators, some of whom had walked across the entire country before arriving ...
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Good morning, it's Nov. 13. Yes, Friday the 13th -- an unlucky day in the minds of the superstitious, but, really, ...
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On this date 159 years ago, a well-to-do Harvard graduate named John Worthington Ames explained in a letter to his ...
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Good morning, it’s Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2020 -- Veterans Day. A hundred years ago today, Great Britain buried an unnamed ...
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Election Day was a week ago, but it seems like a month, doesn’t it? In yesterday’s newsletter, I wrote about ...
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Joseph R. Biden Jr., who will turn 78 this month, is in line to become the 46th president of the United ...
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Good morning, it's Nov. 6 -- Day 4 of the maddeningly slow voting-counting process in the 2020 elections. Today is ...
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Good morning, it's Thursday, Nov. 5, Day Three of Election 2020. As of this writing, Donald Trump is making up ...
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Good morning. It's Wednesday, Nov. 4 -- Day Two of Election Day 2020. Six different candidates were elected president of ...
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Good morning, it's Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020. Election Day. Six presidential elections have been held on this date since the ...
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Today is the birthday of two previous U.S. presidents: James K. Polk (1795) and Warren G. Harding (1865). As is ...
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Good morning, it's Friday, Oct. 30, 2020, the day the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. Today's ...
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"The sun has risen bright and clear," a German immigrant named Carl Schurz wrote to his wife, Margarethe, on this date in ...
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Nine years ago this morning, baseball fans woke up bleary-eyed from watching one of the most dramatic World Series games in history. ...
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The United States now has a ninth justice on the Supreme Court, making a full complement -- at least for ...
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On this date in 1967, a third-generation U.S. Navy officer climbed into the cockpit of his A-4 Skyhawk and headed ...
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Good morning, it's Friday, Oct. 23, 2020, the day the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. Today's ...
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Good morning, it's Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020, the date of the second and final debate between Donald Trump and Joe ...
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Seven years ago today, with a government shutdown settled (for the time being), President Obama turned his attention back to ...
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It was a weird baseball season -- like everything else in 2020 -- but the World Series is upon us. ...
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Four years ago tonight, Nevada hosted a faceoff that some locals dubbed the biggest prize fight in the history of ...
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Good morning, it's Friday, Oct. 16, 2020, the day the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. Today's ...
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On this date in 1775, British troops billeted in Boston steeled themselves for an attack by a rebel force ringing ...
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Seven years ago this week, during one of Washington's periodic partial government shutdowns -- one that devolved into a game ...
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Election Day is three weeks from today, although whether definitive results will be known that night is an open question. ...
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Good morning, it's a rainy Monday in the nation's capital. A federal holiday, too, although I'm not sure what to ...
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Good morning, it's Friday, Oct. 9, 2020, the day the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. Today's ...
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The subject of West Coast wildfires arose in last night's vice presidential debate, with both Kamala Harris and Mike Pence ...
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On this date 152 years ago, Cornell University first opened its doors to students on the bucolic campus overlooking the ...
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On this date 59 years ago, state civil defense directors were assembled in Washington, D.C., for a conference on national ...
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Today is the birthday of Chester A. Arthur, one of six U.S. presidents born in October. I had intended to ...
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Good morning, it's Friday, Oct. 2, 2020, the day the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. Given ...
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On this date in 1891, Stanford University opened its doors. On the first day of school, the incoming class of ...
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I'm not someone who customarily says, "I told you so," but I prepared you yesterday for the likelihood that last ...
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The first televised debate of the 2020 general election takes place tonight, a quadrennial ritual started 60 years ago by ...
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Major League Baseball's strange, shortened, and fan-less 2020 regular season has come to an end. Every team with a winning ...
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Good morning, it's Friday, Sept. 25, 2020, the day the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. Choosing ...
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On this date in 1896, in the upper Mississippi River state capital of St. Paul, an upper-middle-class couple with Irish ...
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On this the date in 1806, the Lewis and Clark expedition returned to St. Louis after three years in the ...
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On this date 158 years ago, a wartime president changed the course of American history. Using the carnage on the ...
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Good morning. It's Monday, Sept. 21, 2020, the last day of a very difficult summer in American history. In case ...
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Good morning, it's Friday, Sept. 18, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. ...
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Sixty years ago today, the Democratic Party's presidential nominee went to the eastern part of North Carolina. Although this sounds ...
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One hundred years ago today, The New York City sky was the same "unbelievable blue," to use Bruce Springsteen's phrase, ...
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Good morning, it's Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020, the birthday of William Howard Taft. The big man was born on this ...
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Good morning, it's Monday, Sept. 14, 2020. On this date in 1901, President William McKinley died after being shot by ...
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Good morning, it's Friday, Sept. 11, 2020. Nineteen years ago today, a coordinated terrorist attack against our country took the ...
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Good morning, it's Thursday, Sept. 10, 2020, the anniversary of one of the most memorable events in U.S. naval history. ...
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On this day in American history, a group of enslaved people in South Carolina's low country congregated at a bridge ...
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Fifty-four years ago today, a "starship" named the USS Enterprise fulfilled its creator's mission of boldly going where no network series had ...
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Good morning, it's Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, the day the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. Today's ...
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Thirty-eight years ago today, an enterprising California computer wizard set out to reproduce the magic of the '60s -- at ...
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Good morning, it's Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2020, the 75th anniversary of V-J Day. Today is when the United States celebrates its ...
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Good morning, it's Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2020. Yesterday, Joe Biden spoke in Pittsburgh about the social unrest testing this country. ...
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On this date in 1935, in the Texas port city of Beaumont, Frank Robinson and Ruth Shaw welcomed their 10th child ...
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Hello, it's Friday, Aug. 28, 2020, the morning after the GOP wrapped up the second online presidential nominating convention in ...
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Fifty-seven years ago today, Washington, D.C., began filling up with Americans from every part of this country, especially the South. ...
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As I write these words, Hurricane Laura is barreling toward the Louisiana and Texas coasts. Hopefully, those in its path ...
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Last night, the Donald Trump-led Republican Party launched its own version of an online political convention. For the evening's "Land ...
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Eight years ago this week, Republicans watched the weather report uneasily while preparing to gather in Tampa. GOP leaders weren't ...
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Hello, it's Friday, Aug. 21, 2020, the morning after the first online presidential nominating convention in U.S. history. This is ...
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We now officially have a vice presidential nominee, a native Californian raised in Oakland and Berkeley. Kamala Devi Harris is ...
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Good morning, it's Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2020. At 74 (his birthday is today), Bill Clinton is not the "Comeback Kid" ...
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Last night's prime-time lineup for opening night in the Democrats' 2020 virtual convention began with a female senator from Minnesota ...
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The Democratic National Convention begins today, and what a strange exercise it will be during our pandemic-induced lockdown. Twenty years ...
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It's Friday, Aug. 14, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. Today's comes ...
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On this date in 1898, the U.S. flag was raised over Manila, ending the Philippines theater of the Spanish-American War. ...
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Our divided country has a new vice presidential candidate, one who breaks the mold of previous nominees in several ways, ...
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On this date in 1911, an unknown 19-year-old Hawaiian swimmer named Duke Kahanamoku shattered the world record in the 100-yard ...
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It's Friday, Aug. 7, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise instructive or inspirational quotations. Today's concerns Joseph ...
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On this date in 1945, the United States Army dropped an ordnance of unprecedented destructive power on the bustling Japanese ...
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On this date seven years ago, in a private White House ceremony, President Obama hosted a reception for Negro League ...
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On this date 115 years ago, while on a road trip to Boston, the shorthanded Cleveland Indians signed a local ...
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On this date in U.S. history, the presidency passed in the middle of the night to Calvin Coolidge as he slept ...
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It's Friday, July 31, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise instructive or inspirational quotations. Today's comes from ...
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COVID-19 has now officially claimed 668,000 lives worldwide, although the actual number is probably significantly higher. That's two-thirds of 1 ...
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It's Wednesday, July 29, a milestone date in the history of technological advancement in the United States. On this day ...
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On this date 88 years ago, an American president superseded local authorities and unleashed the U.S. Army on protesters who'd ...
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Twenty-four years ago today, an anonymous 911 call was received by an emergency operator in Atlanta during the Summer Olympics. ...
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It's Friday, July 24, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. Today's concerns ...
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On this date in American history, Ulysses S. Grant died at age 63, Detroit was consumed by a 1967 race ...
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The weather forecaster on the local NBC affiliate in Washington, D.C., did not mince words this morning. High of 96, ...
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Yesterday, the Washington Nationals announced that Dr. Anthony Fauci will throw out the ceremonial first pitch when Major League Baseball belatedly begins ...
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This summer, criminal justice issues have risen to the forefront of America's national political conversation. It's not the first time, ...
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It's Friday, July 17, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise an instructive or inspirational quotation. Today's concerns ...
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On this date in U.S. history, a Depression-era photographer working for the Farm Security Administration was loaned by the government ...
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Four years ago today, Donald J. Trump chose Mike Pence as his running mate. It was hardly a seamless process, ...
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Around the world, this date is known as Bastille Day, and the French ambassador to the United States has a ...
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Sixty-nine years ago today, Harry Truman signed legislation granting guest workers legal status in this country. The rationale wasn't humanitarian; it was ...
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It's Friday, July 10, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise a quotation intended to be instructive or ...
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Yesterday, I wrote about Warren G. Harding, one of eight U.S. presidents to die in office. Harding was one of ...
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I've been thinking about first ladies this week. Monday was Nancy Reagan's 99th birthday and in yesterday's note I mentioned how ...
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Thirty-nine years ago today, President Reagan chose Sandra Day O'Connor to be the Supreme Court's first female justice. Although those in the ...
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On this date in 1945, a 21-year-old Jewish refugee named Gerda Weissmann wrote a letter to an American officer she had met two ...
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Good morning. It’s July 3, 2020 -- a federal holiday -- but also a Friday, the day of the week ...
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On this date in 1976, Gerald R. Ford went to the National Archives and paid homage to the Constitution and ...
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On this date in 1898, Lt. Col. Theodore Roosevelt led the "Rough Riders," a mounted amalgamation of Western cowboys and ...
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On this date in 1918, a small British passenger ship that had been converted to a wartime cargo vessel was ...
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Fifteen years ago today, George W. Bush uncorked one of his frequent malapropisms. Discussing his upcoming trip to Denmark, the ...
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It's Friday, June 26, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise a quotation intended to be instructive or ...
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Seventy years ago today, Harry Truman's hopes for a relaxing weekend at his home in Independence, Mo., were dashed by ...
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One hundred and fifty-six years ago today, Union troops under the overall command of Ulysses S. Grant engaged Robert E. ...
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It's Tuesday, June 23, 2020, the third day of summer -- the summer of national discontent. John Steinbeck, a native ...
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I hope you had a good Father's Day weekend. If you're unfamiliar with the origins of the observance, you might ...
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It's Friday, June 19, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise a quotation intended to be instructive or ...
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On this date in 1983, Sally K. Ride, the astronaut with the dime novel name, made history aboard the space ...
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Forty-eight years ago today, five shadowy operators, one of whom told police he once worked for the CIA, were arrested ...
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On this date in 1858, a former one-term congressman from Illinois delivered one of the most momentous political orations in ...
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Yesterday was Flag Day, an annual remembrance that fell this year at a time when Old Glory is sorely stressed. ...
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It's Friday, June 12, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise quotes intended to be instructive or inspirational. ...
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Didn't HBO pick an odd day to go all Taliban on us by removing "Gone With the Wind" from its ...
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On this day in 1928, Sadie and Philip Sendak, Polish émigrés living in Brooklyn, welcomed their third child into the world. ...
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If this year reminds you of 1968, you are not alone. Yesterday, a friend of mine who was just a little kid ...
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Over the weekend five years ago, a vice president's son was laid to rest in the cemetery of his home ...
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Good morning. It's Friday, June 5, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise a quotation intended to be ...
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On this date in 1863 Abraham Lincoln wrote a letter to Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton regarding the thorny ...
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Eighty-seven years ago today, Jack and Irene Cannon welcomed their first son into the world. They lived in New York ...
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Yesterday evening, Donald Trump pronounced himself "your president of law and order," which apparently means he wants to be a ...
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Good morning, it's June 1, 2020, a Monday morning perhaps like no other in the history of our republic. A ...
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It's Friday, May 29, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise a quotation intended to be instructive or ...
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Yesterday I wrote about the lovely letters written 76 years ago this week by U.S. Army Cpl. Frank Elliott to ...
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Seventy-six years ago today, a 24-year-old U.S. soldier far from home wrote a letter to his wife, Pauline, who was ...
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On this date in 1864, the U.S. president who described America as the "last, best hope of Earth," took a ...
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On a day America mourns her war dead -- and honors the military service of those who answered their country's ...
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His name was John S. Carroll and he was old school all the way. I mean that in the best ...
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On this date in 1901, the state of Connecticut passed the first speed limits for motor vehicles. This was an ...
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On this date 158 years ago, a wartime U.S. president signed legislation that was of interest to the men under ...
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Forty-seven years ago today, the Preakness Stakes record was broken at Pimlico by a colt known affectionately by his handlers ...
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This year, graduation rituals at most colleges have been cancelled, postponed, or relegated to online ceremonies. It's a loss. Commencement ...
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Except maybe at Kentucky Derby time, which was postponed this year, thoroughbred horse racing is passé among most Americans these days. This ...
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When the United States entered the First World War, a young New Yorker named Henry Johnson was one of those ...
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Eighty years ago today, in her darkest hour, Great Britain turned to Winston Churchill as her leader. Hitler's invasion of Poland eight ...
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On this date in 1883, Boston publishing house James R. Osgood and Co. issued a new work, "Life on the ...
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Good morning, it's Monday, May 11, 2020. Yesterday was a glorious day on the East Coast, and Americans who've been ...
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It's Friday, May 8, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise a quotation intended to be educational or ...
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Sixteen years ago this week, NBC aired the final episode of "Friends" to a national audience estimated at 52.5 million. ...
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This is Willie Mays' birthday. Yes, the "Say Hey" Kid turns 89 today. During the current lockdown, everybody has things ...
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Today is Cinco de Mayo, one of the holidays I cherish most, albeit an unlikely cause for celebration in the United ...
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Fifty years ago today, the number of Americans killed in Vietnam had surpassed 50,000. Most of those who gave their last full ...
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It's Friday, May 1, 2020, the day of the week when I reprise a quotation intended to be educational or ...
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It was April 30 in 1789 when George Washington took the inaugural oath as the first president of this -- ...
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No American is alive today who attended the St. Louis World's Fair, which opened this month in 1904, but those ...
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The United States is closing in on 1 million confirmed coronavirus cases. As I write these words, the death toll ...
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Today is the birthday of Ulysses S. Grant, born 198 years ago on this date in Point Pleasant, Ohio. His ...
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At his daily White House coronavirus briefing/2020 campaign rally earlier this week, President Trump induced much merriment among the assembled ...
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April is National Poetry Month. Perhaps you already knew that, but it might surprise you to learn how many U.S. ...
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Good morning, it's Wednesday, April 22, 2020, the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Even ardent environmentalists couldn't have foreseen how we're ...
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On this date in 1861, 27-year-old Asa Melvin, a Concord farmer, was just getting to know his new comrades in ...
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On this date in 1875, centennial festivities in New England had concluded, President Grant had returned to Washington, and residents ...
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After the Bay of Pigs fiasco in April 1961, John F. Kennedy's third month in office, the president reluctantly accepted ...
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Yesterday, while writing about the doomed ship Titanic, I mentioned the White Star Line's early-20th-century competition with Cunard Line. Competition ...
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Americans didn't always have to pay income taxes, you know. It took a constitutional amendment to even make it legal. ...
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Today, Ford's Theatre is quiet -- as are the famous stages on Broadway and elsewhere in the country. The place ...
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President Franklin D. Roosevelt had planned to deliver a radio address on April 13, 1945, from his curative getaway in ...
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At Episcopal High School in Bellaire, Texas, Mark Hamilton lettered in soccer as well as in baseball. Baseball America magazine ...
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More than 3,800 Americans have died in the last two days from the coronavirus that has shut down America. That's ...
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Today the RealClear family of sites welcomes a new member, one focused on a topic receiving scant attention in our ...
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Long before "Hamilton," there was "South Pacific," which opened on Broadway 71 years ago today. I've written about this musical ...
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In an alternative universe, which is to say, the normal reality that we've enjoyed for the past 80 years, the ...
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Mason Temple in Memphis was packed with listeners on this date in 1968. They had come to hear Martin Luther ...
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On this date in history, Albert Einstein came to the United States for the first time. The famed scientist has ...
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Today's history lesson is about coping with loss, although it was loss on a human scale, which is to say ...
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On this date in 1938, Ernest Hemingway returned to Barcelona for the third time during the bloody civil war between ...
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On Friday, I wrote about heroism. I’ll continue in that vein this morning by highlighting the actions of an American ...
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In wartime, and that's what this feels like, sentient citizens find themselves contemplating the true meaning of courage and its ...
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On March 26, 1953, Dr. Jonas E. Salk announced on CBS radio that he had developed a vaccine for the ...
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One would be foolish to minimize the threat of this pandemic. And still, an event that took place 63 years ...
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Yesterday, I wrote at length about the life and times of reporter and author Randy Shilts during the earliest days ...
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Thirty-seven years ago today, the San Francisco Chronicle ran a bracing story based on a study done by two local ...
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Yesterday, a friend and I were commiserating (digitally, of course) about the uncertainty -- and, in some places, misery -- ...
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On this date in 1993, two months after Bill and Hillary Clinton moved into the White House, Hillary’s father suffered ...
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It seems so long ago, but a large and unruly roster of candidates assembled themselves at the outset of this ...
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The big St. Patrick’s Day parades were canceled in Europe as well as the United States. Ireland’s prime minister cut ...
