The Great Debate

The first televised debate between two candidates for US president took place on September 26, 1960.  Running as a Democrat, John F. Kennedy was considered the underdog against then Vice President Richard Nixon, who'd long served in Congress as a Republican and who spent eight years as vice president to the popular Dwight Eisenhower.  The debate demonstrated how awkward and impersonal Nixon was, especially compared to the charismatic Kennedy.  Interestingly, most people who saw the debate on television believed that Kennedy presented as the better candidate while most who listened to it on the radio felt that Nixon presented better.  That November, Kennedy narrowly defeated Nixon in, at the time, the closest presidential election in US history.  Of course, the drama and closeness of the 1960 election was later upstaged by the election of 2000 between George H.W. Bush and Al Gore.

Nixon was an all-around loser in the early 1960's.  After being defeated for the presidency, Nixon went home to California and attempted to run for governor in 1962.  He lost to Democrat Gerald Brown, Sr.  Although Nixon lost these two important elections, he would go on to win the US presidential election of 1968 and the rest, as they say, is history.

All I can say is that I have no idea how Nixon ever became president.  Seems like that's when a lot of our troubles, dirty conservative politics, and party rancor really got going.  If Nixon were alive today, I would not play with him.

- Charlie

Charlie's Island

Gilligan's Island is a hilarious show.  You know, if I am ever marooned on a deserted island, I really hope my buddy Austin is there with me.  The only bummer would be that we would always fight for the top hammock!

- Charlie

Escape from Berlin

In 1961, East Berlin, then under the firm grip of the Soviet Union and deeply involved in the Cold War with the West, closed the border between East Berlin (under Soviet control) and West Berlin (under the protection of the US, Great Britain, and France.)  The Soviets and East Germany, tired of their socialist citizens defecting to West Berlin and West Germany, decided to close the border and to start building a wall separating the divided city.  Many East Berliners wisely made a run for it.  Many were shot dead.  This famous photo was taken just a few days after the border was closed and construction on the wall began.  A 19-year old East German soldier drops his rifle and makes a run for it.  Like I've always said, "Running sets you free!"  Whee!

- Charlie

Uncle Sam = U.S.

As crazy as this might sound, it was on September 7, 1813 that "Uncle Sam" came to be synonymous with the United States.  How?  Well, according to my research, there was a character named Samuel Wilson, a meat packer who supplied beef to the US Army during the War of 1812.  Allegedly, Wilson would stamp "U.S." on the barrels of meat intending it to stand for "United States" but the soldiers in the field started to refer to it as "Uncle Sam's meat."  Voila!  A nickname for a whole country was born.  In September 1961, the US Congress recognized Samuel Wilson as the person responsible for creating the nickname that stuck.  I wonder if Wilson or any of those soldiers ever imagined that Uncle Sam would have an African American president.

- Charlie