29 Mar

 

Week 14  Day 88 Flag Today  66°/44°                             Wind 14 mph Gusts 25 mph

Active Fire: 47 miles away Risk of fire: Extreme   Nearest Lightning: 1631 miles away

Air Quality: Moderate Sunshine Mostly Cloudy Windy

Mar. Averages: Temps: 54°\24° Moisture: 12 days

Weekly Observations

3/22-4/4 Passiontide 23-29 Shakespeare Week Link

25-31 National Farm Workers Awareness Week Link Link National Physicians Week  Link 3/29-4/4Holy Week

Daily Observations

Knights of Columbus Founders Day National Education and Sharing Day Link  National Mom & Pop Business Owner's Day National Vietnam War Veterans Day  Link Niagara Falls Runs Dry Day

Palm Sunday Smoke & Mirrors Day  Link Texas Loves The Children Day World Piano Day Link

Today’s Quotes                                                                 

Today’s Memes

Today’s Thoughts

I sure wish these clouds carried much needed moisture. Not looking good for moisture, but wind is sure present.

Our discussion group meets today to discuss The Third Nuclear Age. It should be interesting with the premise that our world is entering the 3d age where many countries want nuclear weapons because they no long trust those that have been protecting them. Many countries no longer see the nuclear powers…US, Russia, China, N. Korea, Israel, and others to protect them. They want to protect themselves from evil in the world.

It sure is difficult to watch Tiger Woods. His latest comeback has been interrupted by another car crash where it appears he was impaired. I’ve seen many people in need of help due to addiction. No amount of intervention will be successful until the person has reached a point where help is wanted and not just provided.

I’ll be at the No Kings protest here in Flagstaff. Our discussion group will meet after the rally ends. 

Real Hoaxes

The War of the Worlds Panic (1938)

On Halloween eve 1938, Orson Welles aired a radio adaptation of The War of the Worlds using realistic news bulletins. Some listeners tuned in late, missed the disclaimer, and briefly believed Martians had landed in New Jersey.

The broadcast became legendary for supposedly causing nationwide chaos.

Later research shows the panic narrative was largely overstated by rival newspapers criticizing radio. There were confused calls and isolated incidents, but no mass stampedes or broad mayhem.

Still, the show proved how authentic formats can manufacture urgency and uncertainty when context is missed.

The episode influenced media standards for disclaimers, interruptions, and tone during simulated events. It also highlights selective memory: dramatic retellings outlive the quieter facts.

When news bulletins break into entertainment, pause and seek multiple sources before acting. Cross-check station websites, official alerts, and local authorities.

The medium’s style can feel authoritative even when it is fiction. Critical listening is as important as critical reading, especially during fast-moving reports. 

The Zinoviev Letter (1924

Days before Britain’s 1924 election, newspapers published a letter allegedly from Soviet official Grigory Zinoviev. It appeared to urge British communists to inflame agitation and influence foreign policy.

The document was treated as authentic and helped damage the Labour government at the polls.

From the start, doubts existed about phrasing, channels, and provenance, but partisanship amplified the story. Intelligence services, private actors, or propagandists may have planted it, and competing inquiries muddied accountability.

The scandal shows how a plausible document, well-timed, can shift political momentum.

Later analyses concluded the letter was a forgery, though its exact authorship remains debated. The case now serves as a template for information operations using leaks and timed releases.

For readers, the takeaway is clear: assess incentives, metadata, and corroboration, not just rhetorical heat. Authentic documents can still mislead if quoted selectively, but forged documents can upend outcomes entirely.

Verification from independent sources and transparent chains of custody are not luxuries during elections. They are essential defenses against manipulation. 

Try Rebus

EET                                                           R                                                     T                                                                S

GIVE     GET GIVE     GET GIVE     GET GIVE     GET

Historic Events

 March in History

 

REBUS ANSWERS

Street corner

Forgive and forget

Birthdays

Yayoi Kusama (98 years old), Japanese artist and writer, born in Matsumoto, Japan φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Joseph Hooton Taylor Jr. (85 years old), American astrophysicist (1993 Nobel Prize in Physics for the discovery of a new type of pulsar), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ John Major (83 years old) British Prime Minister (Conservative: 1990-97), born in Carshalton, Surrey, England φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Walt Frazier (81 years old) College / Basketball HOF guard (Southern Illinois Uni; NBA C'ship 1970, 73 NY Knicks; 7×NBA All-Star; NBA All-Star Game MVP 1975; 4×All-NBA First Team), born in Atlanta, Georgia   φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ  Brendan Gleeson (71 years old) Irish actor and film director (Braveheart, The Banshees of Inisherin), born in Dublin, Ireland φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Christopher Lambert (69 years old), French-American actor (Highlander, Subway, Greystoke, Why Me), born in Great Neck, New York φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Maggie Baird (67 years old), American actress (The X-Files, Another World, An Innocent Man), singer-songwriter, and mother of Billie Eilish and Finneas, born in Fruita, Colorado φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Amy Sedaris (65 years old), American comedian and actress (At Home with Amy Sedaris, BoJack Horseman), born in Endicott, New York φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Elle MacPherson (62 years old) Australian supermodel and actress (Sirens), born in Sydney, New South Wales φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Lucy Lawless (58 years old) New Zealand actress (Xena: Warrior Princess) and singer, born in Auckland, New Zealand φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Jennifer Capriati (50 years old) 1976 American tennis player (Olympic gold women's singles 1992; Australian Open 2001, 02; French Open 2001; World #1 2001), born in New York City   φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ

John Tyler (1790-1862; @71, stroke) American politician, 10th US President (1841-45), born in Charles City County, Virginia φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Elihu Thomson, English-born American engineer who co-founded General Electric Company and inventor with 696 patents, born in Manchester, England (d. 1937; @83)  φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Cy Young (Denton True "Cy" Young) (1867-1955; @88) American Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher (Cleveland Spiders, Boston Americans; most wins in MLB history 511), born in Gilmore, Ohio φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Lou Henry Hoover, US First Lady (1929-33) and wife of the 31st President, Herbert Hoover, born in Waterloo, Iowa (d. 1944; @69, heart attack) φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Eugene McCarthy (1916-2005; @89) American politician (Sen-D-Minn) and presidential candidate, born in Watkins, Minnesota φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Pearl Bailey, American Tony and Emmy Award-winning stage and screen actress, singer and dancer (Hello, Dolly!), born in Newport News, Virginia (d. 1990; @72, narrowed coronary artery) φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Sam Walton (1918-1992; @74, multiple myeloma) American businessman (founder and CEO of Walmart and Sam's Club), born in Kingfisher, Oklahoma φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ John McLaughlin, American TV commentator (McLaughlin Group) and Nixon aide, born in Providence, Rhode Island (d. 2016; @89) φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Billy Carter, American brother of US President Jimmy Carter, born in Plains, Georgia (d. 1988; @51, pancreatic cancer) φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Vangelis [Evángelos Odysséas Papathanassíou], Greek composer, keyboardist, and Academy Award winner (Chariots of Fire), born in Agria, Greece (d. 2022; @79. COVID)  φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Kurt Thomas, American gymnast (first American male to win gold medal at World Championships, floor 1978; floor, horizontal bars 1979), and actor (Gymkata), born in Miami, Florida (d. 2020; @64, stroke) φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ φ

 

…The End for today…