Category Archives: General
Independence Day
And so to the 3rd in my series of “On this day in History”.
Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the Declaration of Independence on July 4 1776, declaring independence from Great Britain.
Independence Day is commonly associated with fireworks, parades, barbecues, carnivals, fairs, picnics, concerts, baseball games, family reunions and political speeches and ceremonies. In addition there are usually various other public and private events celebrating the history, government and traditions of the United States.
Historians have long disputed whether Congress actually signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, even though Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin all later confirmed that they had signed it on that day. Most historians have concluded that the Declaration was signed nearly a month after its adoption, on August 2, 1776, and not on July 4 as is commonly believed.
In a remarkable coincidence, both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, the only signers of the Declaration of Independence later to serve as Presidents of the United States died on the same day: July 4, 1826, which was the 50th anniversary of the Declaration. Although not a signer of the Declaration of Independence, but another Founding Father who became a President, James Monroe, died on July 4, 1831, 
thus becoming the third president in a row who died on this memorable day. Calvin Coolidge, the 30th President, was born on July 4, 1872, and, so far, is the only President to have been born on Independence Day.
Poor Barack Obama – he was born on 4th August 1961 – exactly a month too late !!!
The reign of Spain continues in Ukraine
So that’s it – the end of another tournament and Spain are the worthy winners, beating Italy 4-0 to enter the record books as the only team to win 3 consecutive major international competitions, Euro2008, World Cup 2010 and Euro2012 – quite an achievement for a team often described throughout this competition as “boring”.
Well they were far from boring tonight. If you watched the game you’ll know that this was a game totally dominated by Spain from the start and their passing game meant Italy had very little chance of doing anything on the rare occasions when Spain allowed them to take possession of the ball.
Leading through first-half goals from David Silva and Jordi Alba, Spain’s victory was sealed when final substitute Thiago Motta was stretchered off, leaving the Azzurri to play the final half hour with 10 men. And just to rub it in, Chelsea duo Fernando Torres and Juan Mata scored in the final minutes to complete a sensational victory.
Former Arsenal player, Cesc Fabregas, got his own back. In his post-match interview with the BBC he said:
“It feels really, really amazing. It’s one of the best days of my life. “I don’t think we realise what we’ve done. But in time we’ll see what we’ve done. “Are we boring? People who think we are boring, I don’t think they understand the game.”
It always happens in 3’s
Today bought 3 shock results/news items in the world of sport.
Firstly we discovered that David Beckham had been left out of the GB Olympic Squad by Stuart Pearce who, in his infinite wisdom decided he had a strong enough midfield and so picked Manchester City defender Micah Richards ahead of him. (Yes, the same Micah Richards who refused to be on stand-by for the England Squad for Euro2012). When he only had the choice of three over 23 year olds, it seems bonkers to me that Beckham wasn’t chosen – he was part of the Olympic flame handover ceremony in May, bringing it to Britain for the torch relay. He also played a major role as a sporting ambassador when London won the 2012 bid, and has made no secret of his desire to captain Team GB.
So then we came to this evening’s entertainment! Starting with the Euro2012 semi-final between Italy and Germany. With the Germans the strong favourites I don’t think any of the neutrals watching could believe the happenings on the pitch! The Germans were rubbish and the Italians were magnificent. Two sensational goals from the super-loopy Mario Balotelli catapulted them into the final against Spain on Sunday. There was a wee flurry in extra time where the Germans were awarded a penalty and despite a brilliant strike from Ozil to make it 2-1, it was too little, too late and Italy were the victors.
That just left enough time for me to switch over to BBC2 to see the world No.2, Rafael Nadal, get beaten in the 5th set in the 2nd round of Wimbledon to Lukas Rosol, a player who is ranked 100th in the world!
This charming Czech player modestly said in his post-match interview:
“I know Nadal is only human. Nadal played a good match but I think I was a little bit better.”
The last few games that I was able to watch definitely proved this – he was exciting to watch and I was rather sorry I’d elected to watch the football instead of this tennis match but they were both equally unexpected results which is always refreshing for the armchair sports fan!
Oh well, that’s enough excitement for one day – only the Final on Sunday and the 2nd week of Wimbledon to look forward to before the Olympics – how will I cope???
Should this be happening in the 21st Century?
I have just read the most awful story on the BBC News Website!
Headed up “The ‘baby box’ returns to Europe” it goes on to describe how these boxes, which were common in medieval times, where people can leave an unwanted baby, have been making a comeback in recent years!
Supporters say that a heated box, monitored by nurses, is better for babies than abandonment on the street – but the UN says it violates the rights of the child.
“Article 7 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child clearly states that every child has ‘the right to know and be cared for by his or her parents’ – when a child is abandoned, this right is violated” (source University of Nottingham)
The idea has taken off in various locations across Europe and the statistics currently available from the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child are:
Boxes by country:
-
Germany – 99 - Poland – 45
- Czech Republic – 44
- Hungary – 26
- Slovakia – 16
- Lithuania – 8
- Italy – 8 (approx.)
- Belgium – 1
- Netherlands – 1 (planned)
- Switzerland – 1
- Vatican – 1
- Canada – 1
- Malaysia – 1
- Also exist in Japan and the US
The law in some countries encourages their spread in popularity – in Hungary, for example, it was changed so that leaving a baby in the official baby box was deemed to be a legal act amounting to consent to adoption, while dumping a child anywhere else remains a crime.
Further details discovered about a box in Berlin was that once placed in the box, the baby is apparently supported by the full facilities of a maternity unit. As soon as a baby is in the hatch, an alarm rings and medical staff come, even as the mother walks away unseen. The baby is cared for in the hospital and then fostered before going into the legal system for adoption. In the early period, mothers can return and retrieve their child, but later they can’t – adoption is final.
It’s difficult to find out the full figures of how many relent – the critics of the system say that in Germany it is well-appointed, with the best facilities, but in some of the poorer countries to the east, baby boxes are less well organised.
But at one baby box in Hamburg, for example, there have been 42 babies left in the last 10 years. Seventeen of those mothers have then contacted the organisers, and 14 have taken back their child.
The argument for these boxes has to be that they have to be better than providing no facilities at all and babies being abandoned and perhaps left to die, exposed to the elements.
The argument against is that it sends out the wrong message to pregnant women that they are right to continue hiding their pregnancies, giving birth in uncontrolled circumstances and then abandoning their babies.
There is no clear right or wrong in this – it is an argument between well-meaning people. The one voice never heard is that of the mother who walks the path with the baby she bore secretly hours earlier, to return without the bundle. Her tears and how she feels can barely be imagined.
Guest Blog
Today’s Guest Blog Posting is about a cause that is extremely important to a couple of my friends whose children have been diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. This is a very dangerous and debilitating illness that strikes out of the blue with very little warning. Please watch the video I’ve posted and pass it on to all your friends – we need to raise awareness. Thank you.
Football -v- Sperm Whales?
Last night there was a huge, foootball-shaped hole in my evening. For the first time since 8th June there was no Euro2012 action and the TV schedulers failed to take advantage of this fact and give us anything else worth watching!
At least tonight things are “back to normal” with the quarter-final match between the Czech Republic and Portugal kicking off at 19.45.
Czech Republic captain (and Arsenal player) Tomas Rosicky is still nursing the Achilles injury he picked up against Greece in the second group match but is hoping to still play and the Portuguese don’t appear to have any injury worries and are expected to name an unchanged side from the 11 that defeated the Dutch in the last game. The same starting line-up incidentally that Portugal used in each match during the group stage – the only team to do this!
At the pre-match press conference today, Rosicky, sporting a beard along with the rest of the Czech squad, said he and his team mates would continue to grow their facial hair for as long as they remained at the tournament.
“We look scary as a team. Hopefully they (the beards) will get worse and worse,” he joked.
Of course, if you don’t like football, you could always watch Ocean Giants on BBC2. The last in the series, this documentary (narrated by Stephen Fry) explores the vocal ranges of marine mammals. Failing that, there is always Emmerdale and Lewis!!!
Where are they now?
As a child of the 70’s I was a regular in the audience at Top of the Pops. It got so bad that sometimes my parents were known to moan when we watched it the following day – “Are we going to see anyone else but you?” as I always managed to get myself on camera for the bulk of the show!
Happily, most of the tapes must have been destroyed as I’ve yet to see myself on any of the re-runs on BBC4! I have, however managed to come across this tape of a rehearsal for a 1975 show which shows you what a good fun show it used to be to work on and to watch!
OK, we know where Noel Edmonds is these days but the David Essex stand-in? If you know who and where he is, please let me know – not to mention Legs & Co who must surely have hung up their dancing shoes by now!
Sir Gary of the Barlow
It’s been a good few weeks for Gary Barlow. After the success(?) of the concert he masterminded at Buck House, comes a week when he continues to dominate the tabloid headlines!
At the beginning of the week, his Jubilee single “Sing” reached No. 1 in the charts and he was awarded Premier Inn’s “Celebrity Dad of the Year 2012”
It is the first time Gary has won the accolade and he was chosen in a public vote. The X Factor Judge said winning the award felt “amazing”.
And then, today, in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List it was announced that he has been awarded the OBE in recognition of his services to the entertainment industry and to charity.
I can’t help but think this last one must have come as something of a disappointment. There have been many calls for him to be knighted and Sir Gary does have something of a ring about it. But, more importantly, when us commoners regard the OBE as something being awarded for “Other Buggers Efforts” it’s just a wee bit of a smack in the face perhaps? – discuss!
It’s Donald Duck’s 78th Birthday!
In this, the second of my occasional “On this day in History” series, I am excited to tell you that on June 9th 1934 Donald Duck made his debut in the Silly Symphony cartoon “The Wise Little Hen.” (Though he is mentioned in a 1931 Disney Storybook.)
That means he is officially 78 years old today!
If, like me, you are fond of the old school Disney characters, a few other things you might not be aware of are the fact that Donald Duck supposedly represents what we are and Mickey Mouse represents what we should be – deep huh? Also, his full name is in fact Donald Fauntleroy Duck and he has his own star on the Hollywood Boulevard Walk of Fame!
So sit back and enjoy the cartoon on this wet and windy Saturday in June.
Gawd Bless You Ma’am!
This is the first and last of my posts about the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. After 5 full days of TV coverage I just wanted to mention the new portrait that appeared over the weekend in Bristol that was widely reported as being by the enigmatic street artist Banksy.
This latest work shows an image based on a 1950’s Queen Elizabeth. In the mural the Queen is shown wearing a tiara and a David Bowie “Aladdin Sane” style lightening-bolt drawn on her face. After careful research, however, this picture has now been discovered to be by another artist called Incwel and is featured on the Street Art website.
Banksy’s work usually includes a satirical social and political commentary. We do know that in the last month Banksy has been busy at work creating at least six new pieces in the UK. The first to appear was a portrait of a child worker sewing a string of Union Jack bunting for the Jubilee. It was painted on the side of a Poundland shop, a place where cheap goods, often using child-labour are sold.
In another “dig” at the Jubilee celebrations, Banksy has also decided to give away his piece titled, “Er…”. It’s a downloadable print, of course, and you’re encouraged to grab it for free, print it on anything you want (for personal use, not resale). Cheeky chappie!!!
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