Today is Wednesday, Oct. 8, the 282nd day of 2008. There are 84 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On Oct. 8, 1871, the Great Chicago Fire erupted; fires also broke out in Peshtigo, Wisconsin, and in the Michigan communities of Holland, Manistee and Port Huron.

On this date:

In 1869, the 14th president of the United States, Franklin Pierce, died in Concord, N.H.

In 1892, Sergei Rachmaninoff first publicly performed his piano Prelude in C-sharp Minor, Opus 3, Number 2, in Moscow.

In 1918, Sgt. Alvin C. York almost single-handedly killed 25 German soldiers and helped capture 132 in the Argonne Forest in France.

In 1934, Bruno Hauptmann was indicted by a grand jury in New Jersey for murder in the death of the son of Charles A. Lindbergh.

In 1945, President Truman announced that the secret of the atomic bomb would be shared only with Britain and Canada.

In 1956, Don Larsen pitched the only perfect game in a World Series to date as the New York Yankees beat the Brooklyn Dodgers in Game 5, 2-0.

In 1957, the Brooklyn Baseball Club announced it was accepting an offer to move the Dodgers from New York to Los Angeles.

In 1970, Soviet author Aleksander Solzhenitsyn was named winner of the Nobel Prize for literature.

In 1981, at the White House, President Reagan greeted former Presidents Carter, Ford and Nixon, who were preparing to travel to Egypt for the funeral of Anwar Sadat.

In 1982, all labor organizations in Poland, including Solidarity, were banned.


Ten years ago: The House triggered an open-ended impeachment inquiry against President Clinton in a momentous 258-176 vote; 31 Democrats joined majority Republicans in opening the way for nationally televised impeachment hearings. Portuguese novelist Jose Saramago won the Nobel literature prize.

Five years ago: A day after being elected governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger said he was promised "a very smooth transition" by ousted Gov. Gray Davis and vowed to "open up the books" in dealing the state's ailing economy. Americans Peter Agre and Roderick MacKinnon won the Nobel Prize in chemistry; American Robert Engle and Briton Clive Granger won the Nobel Prize in economics. Jarome Iginla of the Calgary Flames was tabbed to become the first black captain in NHL history.

One year ago: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced his country would halve its remaining troop contingent in Iraq in the spring of 2008. (Britain ended up postponing the withdrawal amid a spike in militia violence.) Michael Devlin was sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping one of two boys he'd held captive in his suburban St. Louis apartment. (Devlin later pleaded guilty to dozens of other counts, resulting in a total of 74 life sentences.) Americans Mario R. Capecchi, Oliver Smithies and Briton Martin J. Evans won the 2007 Nobel Prize in medicine. Racing great John Henry, the thoroughbred who'd earned more than $6.5 million before retiring as a gelding, was euthanized at the Kentucky Horse Park at age 32.

Today's Birthdays: Entertainment reporter Rona Barrett is 72. Actor Paul Hogan is 69. Rhythm-and-blues singer Fred Cash (The Impressions) is 68. Rev. Jesse Jackson is 67. Comedian Chevy Chase is 65. Author R.L. Stine is 65. Country singer Susan Raye is 64. TV personality Sarah Purcell is 60. Actress Sigourney Weaver is 59. Rhythm-and-blues singer Robert "Kool" Bell (Kool & the Gang) is 58. Producer-director Edward Zwick is 56. Country singer-musician Ricky Lee Phelps is 55. Actor Michael Dudikoff is 54. Comedian Darrell Hammond is 53. Actress Stephanie Zimbalist is 52. Rock musician Mitch Marine is 47. Rock singer Steve Perry (Cherry Poppin' Daddies) is 45. Actor Ian Hart is 44. Gospel/rhythm-and-blues singer CeCe Winans is 44. Rock musician C.J. Ramone (The Ramones) is 43. Singer-producer Teddy Riley is 42. Actress Emily Procter is 40. Actor-screenwriter Matt Damon is 38. Actress Kristanna Loken is 29. Rhythm-and-blues singer Byron Reeder (Mista) is 29. Actor Nick Cannon is 28. Actor Max Crumm is 23. Actor Angus T. Jones is 15.

Thought for Today: "Politics are usually the executive expression of human immaturity." _ Vera Brittain, British author (1893-1970).
________________

Source: Associated Press

By The Associated Press – 9 hours ago

Today is Thursday, Oct. 9, the 283rd day of 2008. There are 83 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

Fifty years ago, on Oct. 9, 1958, Pope Pius XII died at age 82, ending a 19-year papacy. (He was succeeded by Pope John XXIII.)

On this date:

In 1446, the Korean alphabet, created under the aegis of King Sejong, was first published.

In 1701, the Collegiate School of Connecticut — later Yale University — was chartered.

In 1776, a group of Spanish missionaries settled in present-day San Francisco.

In 1888, the public was first admitted to the Washington Monument.

In 1919, the Cincinnati Reds won the World Series, defeating the Chicago White Sox 10-5 at Comiskey Park. (The victory turned hollow amid charges eight of the White Sox had thrown the Series in what became known as the "Black Sox" scandal.)

In 1930, Laura Ingalls became the first woman to fly across the United States as she completed a nine-stop journey from Roosevelt Field, N.Y., to Glendale, Calif.

In 1946, the Eugene O'Neill drama "The Iceman Cometh" opened at the Martin Beck Theater in New York.

In 1967, Latin American guerrilla leader Che Guevara was executed while attempting to incite revolution in Bolivia.

In 1968, the new military government of Peru seized the country's oil fields.

In 1975, Soviet scientist Andrei Sakharov was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.


Ten years ago: Ariel Sharon returned to the center of power in Israel as the country's new foreign minister.

Five years ago: A suicide car bombing at a Baghdad police station killed eight people; Spanish military attache Jose Antonio Bernal Gomez was shot to death in Baghdad.

One year ago: Republican presidential hopefuls Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani clashed over tax and spending cuts, each claiming greater commitment than the other in a debate in Dearborn, Mich. Two Armenian Christian women were shot to death in Baghdad by security contractors working for Australian-owned Unity Resources Group. France's Albert Fert and German Peter Gruenberg won the 2007 Nobel Prize in physics for a discovery that lets computers, iPods and other digital devices store reams of data on ever-shrinking hard disks. Actress Carol Bruce died in Woodland Hills, Calif., at age 87.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Fyvush Finkel is 86. Former Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., is 67. Rhythm-and-blues singer Nona Hendryx is 64. Singer Jackson Browne is 60. Actor Gary Frank is 58. Actor Richard Chaves is 57. Actor Robert Wuhl is 57. Actress-TV personality Sharon Osbourne is 56. Actor Tony Shalhoub is 55. Actor Scott Bakula is 54. Musician James Fearnley (The Pogues) is 54. Actor John O'Hurley is 54. Actor Michael Pare is 50. Jazz musician Kenny Garrett is 48. Rock singer-musician Kurt Neumann (The BoDeans) is 47. Country singer Gary Bennett is 44. Movie director Guillermo del Toro is 44. Singer P.J. Harvey is 39. Golfer Annika Sorenstam is 38. Country singer Tommy Shane Steiner is 35. Actor Steve Burns is 35. Sean Lennon is 33. Actor Randy Spelling is 30. Actor Brandon Routh is 29. Actor Zachery Ty Bryan is 27. Actor Tyler James Williams ("Everybody Hates Chris") is 16.

Thought for Today: "All generalizations are dangerous, even this one." — Attributed to Alexandre Dumas, fils, French author (1824-1895).
________________

Source: Associated Press

__________________
~Time owns each and everything~
~Useless youth if not useful for Pakistan~

By The Associated Press – 7 hours ago

Today is Friday, Oct. 10, the 284th day of 2008. There are 82 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On Oct. 10, 1845, the U.S. Naval Academy was established in Annapolis, Md.



On this date:

In 1758, French fur trader, early St. Louis settler and "father of Oklahoma" Jean Pierre Chouteau was born in New Orleans.

In 1813, composer Giuseppe Verdi was born in Le Roncole, Italy.

In 1908, the Chicago Cubs won Game 1 of the World Series with a 10-6 victory over the Detroit Tigers at Bennett Park.

In 1911, revolutionaries under Sun Yat-sen launched their overthrow of China's Manchu dynasty.

In 1935, George Gershwin's opera "Porgy and Bess" opened on Broadway.

In 1938, Germany completed its annexation of Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland.

In 1958, the private-eye series "77 Sunset Strip" premiered on ABC-TV.

In 1967, the Outer Space Treaty, which prohibits the placing of weapons of mass destruction on the moon or elsewhere in space, entered into force.

In 1973, Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, accused of accepting bribes, pleaded no contest to one count of federal income tax evasion and resigned from office.

In 1978, President Carter signed a bill authorizing the Susan B. Anthony dollar.


Ten years ago: Former Defense Secretary and presidential adviser Clark M. Clifford died at age 91.

Five years ago: Iranian writer and activist Shirin Ebadi won the Nobel Peace Prize. Conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh announced during his syndicated radio show that he was addicted to painkillers and was checking into a rehab center.

One year ago: A 14-year-old suspended student opened fire in a Cleveland high school, wounding two teachers and two classmates before killing himself. The United Auto Workers tentatively agreed on a contract with Chrysler. (UAW members ratified the accord but with significant dissent in the ranks.) A Russian spacecraft blasted off for the international space station, carrying Malaysia's first astronaut (Sheikh Muszaphar) and Peggy Whitson, an American who became the first woman to command the orbital outpost. German Gerhard Ertl won the 2007 Nobel Prize in chemistry.

Today's Birthdays: Playwright Harold Pinter is 78. Former Illinois Sen. Adlai Stevenson III is 78. Actor Peter Coyote is 67. Entertainer Ben Vereen is 62. Singer John Prine is 62. Actor Charles Dance is 62. Rock singer-musician Cyril Neville (The Neville Brothers) is 60. Actress Jessica Harper is 59. Singer-musician Midge Ure is 55. Rock singer David Lee Roth is 54. Country singer Tanya Tucker is 50. Actress Julia Sweeney is 49. Actor Bradley Whitford is 49. Musician Martin Kemp is 47. Rock musician Jim Glennie (James) is 45. Actress Rebecca Pidgeon is 43. Rock musician Mike Malinin (Goo Goo Dolls) is 41. Football quarterback Brett Favre is 39. Actress Wendi McLendon-Covey is 39. Actor Mario Lopez is 35. Actress Jodi Lyn O'Keefe is 30. Singer Mya is 29. Singer Cherie is 24. Actress Aimee Teegarden is 19.

Thought for Today: "There are two kinds of statistics, the kind you look up and the kind you make up." — Rex Stout, American writer (1886-1975).
________________

Source: Associated Press

__________________
~Time owns each and everything~
~Useless youth if not useful for Pakistan~

Today is Saturday, Oct. 11, the 285th day of 2008. There are 81 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On Oct. 11, 1968, Apollo 7, the first manned Apollo mission, was launched with astronauts Wally Schirra, Donn F. Eisele and Walter Cunningham aboard.

On this date:

In 1779, Polish nobleman Casimir Pulaski, fighting for American independence, died two days after being wounded during the Revolutionary War Battle of Savannah, Ga.

In 1890, the Daughters of the American Revolution was founded in Washington, D.C.

In 1908, the Chicago Cubs took a 2-0 lead in the World Series, defeating the visiting Detroit Tigers 6-1 at the West Side Grounds.

In 1948, the musical comedy "Where's Charley?," starring Ray Bolger and featuring songs by Frank Loesser, opened on Broadway.

In 1958, the lunar probe Pioneer 1 was launched; it failed to go as far out as planned, fell back to Earth and burned up in the atmosphere.

In 1962, Pope John XXIII convened the first session of the Roman Catholic Church's Second Ecumenical Council, also known as "Vatican 2."

In 1968, the government of Panama was overthrown in a military coup.

In 1983, the last full-fledged hand-cranked telephone system in the United States went out of service as 440 telephone customers in Bryant Pond, Maine, were switched over to direct-dial service.

In 1984, space shuttle Challenger astronaut Kathryn Sullivan became the first American woman to walk in space.

In 1991, testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Anita Hill accused Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of sexually harassing her; Thomas reappeared before the panel to denounce the proceedings as a "high-tech lynching."


Ten years ago: Pope John Paul II decreed the first Jewish-born saint of the modern era: Edith Stein, a nun killed in the gas chambers of Auschwitz.

Five years ago: A team of 18 doctors at Children's Medical Center Dallas began complicated separation surgery for 2-year-old conjoined twins from Egypt; the operation was completed in 34 hours. Clerks for three major supermarket chains in Southern California began a 4 1/2-month strike after negotiations with store officials broke off. Ivan A. Getting, a Cold War scientist who conceived the Global Positioning Satellite system, died in Coronado, Calif., at age 91.

One year ago: The Bush administration reported that the federal budget deficit had fallen to $162.8 billion in the just-completed budget year, the lowest amount of red ink in five years. Cold medicines for babies and toddlers were pulled off shelves amid concerns about unintentional overdoses. Briton Doris Lessing won the 2007 Nobel Prize in literature. Werner von Trapp, a member of the family made famous by the musical "The Sound of Music," died in Waitsfield, Vt., at age 91.

Today's Birthdays: Author Elmore Leonard is 83. Actor Earle Hyman is 82. Actor Ron Leibman is 71. Country singer Gene Watson is 65. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., is 58. Rhythm-and-blues musician Andrew Woolfolk is 58. Actress-director Catlin Adams is 58. Actor David Morse is 55. Country singer Paulette Carlson is 55. Actor Stephen Spinella is 52. Football Hall of Fame player Steve Young is 47. Actress Joan Cusack is 46. Rock musician Scott Johnson (Gin Blossoms) is 46. Comedy writer and TV host Michael J. Nelson is 44. Actor Sean Patrick Flanery is 43. Actor Luke Perry is 42. Country singer-songwriter Todd Snider is 42. Actress Jane Krakowski is 40. Rapper U-God (Wu-Tang Clan) is 38. Rapper MC Lyte is 37. Singer NeeNa Lee is 33. Actress Emily Deschanel is 32. Actress Michelle Trachtenberg is 23. Golfer Michelle Wie is 19.

Thought for Today: "When a friend speaks to me, whatever he says is interesting." — Jean Renoir, French movie director (1894-1979).
________________

Source: Associated Press

__________________
~Time owns each and everything~
~Useless youth if not useful for Pakistan~

Today is Sunday, Oct 12, the 286th day of 2008. There are 80 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On Oct. 12, 1492 (Old Style calendar; Oct. 21 New Style), Christopher Columbus arrived with his expedition in the present-day Bahamas.

On this date:

In 1870, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee died in Lexington, Va., at age 63.

In 1908, the Detroit Tigers beat the Chicago Cubs 8-3 in Game 3 of the World Series, played in Chicago.

In 1915, English nurse Edith Cavell was executed by the Germans in occupied Belgium during World War I.

In 1918, the Cloquet Fire erupted in Minnesota, claiming some 450 lives.

In 1933, bank robber John Dillinger escaped from a jail in Allen County, Ohio, with the help of his gang, who killed the sheriff, Jess Sarber.

In 1960, Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev disrupted a U.N. General Assembly session by pounding his desk with a shoe when a speaker criticized his country.

In 1968, the Summer Games of the 19th Olympiad officially opened in Mexico City.

In 1968, Equatorial Guinea became independent of Spain.

In 2000, 17 sailors were killed in a suicide bomb attack on the destroyer USS Cole in Yemen.

In 2002, a bomb blamed on Islamic militants destroyed a nightclub on the Indonesian island of Bali, killing 202 people, many of them foreign tourists.


Ten years ago: Matthew Shepard, a gay University of Wyoming student, died five days after being beaten and lashed to a fence; two men were charged with his murder. (Russell Henderson and Aaron McKinney are serving life sentences.) Three Americans, Robert F. Furchgott, Louis J. Ignarro and Dr. Ferid Murad, won the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for blood vessel research.

Five years ago: A suicide attack outside a Baghdad hotel full of Americans killed six bystanders. Doctors in Dallas succeeded in separating 2-year-old conjoined twins from Egypt. Germany won the Women's Soccer World Cup 2-1 over Sweden in the eighth minute of overtime. Hall of Fame jockey Bill Shoemaker died in San Marino, Calif., at age 72. Philanthropist Joan B. Kroc died in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., at age 75. British wartime hero Patrick Dalzel-Job, whose exploits made him a model for James Bond, died in Plockton, Scotland, at age 90.

One year ago: Former Vice President Al Gore and the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change won the Nobel Peace Prize for sounding the alarm over global warming. A fiery, 34-vehicle pileup at a freeway tunnel in Santa Clarita, Calif., left three people dead. A jury in Panama City, Fla., acquitted seven former juvenile boot camp guards and a nurse in a black teenager's death.

Today's Birthdays: Former Vice President Al Gore and the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change won the Nobel Peace Prize for sounding the alarm over global warming. A fiery, 34-vehicle pileup at a freeway tunnel in Santa Clarita, Calif., left three people dead. A jury in Panama City, Fla., acquitted seven former juvenile boot camp guards and a nurse in a black teenager's death.

Thought for Today: "Some people always sigh in thanking God." — Elizabeth Barrett Browning, English poet (1806-1861).
________________

Source: Associated Press

__________________
~Time owns each and everything~
~Useless youth if not useful for Pakistan~

Today is Monday, Oct. 13, the 287th day of 2008. There are 79 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

This is the Columbus Day holiday in the United States, as well as Thanksgiving Day in Canada.

On this date:

In A.D. 54, Roman emperor Claudius I died, poisoned apparently at the behest of his wife, Agrippina.

In 1775, the United States Navy had its origins as the Continental Congress ordered the construction of a naval fleet.

In 1843, the Jewish organization B'nai B'rith was founded in New York City.

In 1858, the sixth debate between senatorial candidates Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas took place in Quincy, Ill.

In 1908, the Chicago Cubs won Game 4 of the World Series, defeating the Detroit Tigers 3-0 to take a 3-1 Series lead.

In 1943, Italy declared war on Germany, its one-time Axis partner.

In 1944, American troops entered Aachen, Germany, during World War II.

In 1960, Richard M. Nixon and John F. Kennedy participated in the third televised debate of their presidential campaign. (Nixon was in Los Angeles; Kennedy was in New York.)

In 1962, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" by Edward Albee opened on Broadway.

In 1974, longtime television host Ed Sullivan died in New York City at age 72.


Ten years ago: White House and congressional budget bargainers continued to hunt for agreement on issues snarling a massive $500 billion bill for the new fiscal year. Five scientists in the United States won the Nobel Prize in chemistry for developing ways to analyze molecules in chemical reactions and the Nobel Prize in physics for discovering how electrons can change behavior. The National Basketball Association wiped out the first two weeks of the 1998-99 season after collective bargaining talks broke off. The New York Yankees won the American League pennant, defeating the Cleveland Indians 9-5 in Game 6 of their championship series.

Five years ago: The U.N. Security Council approved a resolution expanding the NATO-led peacekeeping force in Afghanistan. Texas Gov. Rick Perry signed into law a controversial redistricting bill designed to put more Republicans in the Texas congressional delegation. Democratic congressman Dennis Kucinich formally kicked off his presidential bid.

One year ago: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, after meeting with human-rights activists in Moscow, told reporters the Russian government under Vladimir Putin had amassed so much central authority that the power-grab could undermine its commitment to democracy.

Today's Birthdays: Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher is 83. Playwright Frank D. Gilroy is 83. Gospel singer Shirley Caesar is 70. Actress Melinda Dillon is 69. Singer-musician Paul Simon is 67. Actress Pamela Tiffin is 66. Musician Robert Lamm (Chicago) is 64. Country singer Lacy J. Dalton is 62. Actor Demond Wilson is 62. Singer-musician Sammy Hagar is 61. Actor John Lone is 56. Model Beverly Johnson is 56. Producer-writer Chris Carter is 52. Actor Reggie Theus is 51. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., is 50. Singer Marie Osmond is 49. Rock singer Joey Belladonna is 48. Actress T'Keyah Crystal Keymah is 46. Actress Kelly Preston is 46. Country singer John Wiggins is 46. Actor Christopher Judge is 44. Actress Kate Walsh is 41. Rhythm-and-blues musician Jeff Allen (Mint Condition) is 40. Actress Tisha Campbell-Martin is 40. Classical singer Carlos Marin (Il Divo) is 40. Olympic silver-medal figure skater Nancy Kerrigan is 39. Country singer Rhett Akins is 39. Actor Sacha Baron Cohen is 37. Rock musician Jan Van Sichem Jr. (K's Choice) is 36. Rhythm-and-blues singers Brandon and Brian Casey (Jagged Edge) are 33. Singer Ashanti is 28. Christian rock singer Jon Micah Sumrall (Kutless) is 28.

Thought for Today: "There are some things one can only achieve by a deliberate leap in the opposite direction. One has to go abroad in order to find the home one has lost." — Franz Kafka, Austrian author (1883-1924).
________________

Source: Associated Press

__________________
~Time owns each and everything~
~Useless youth if not useful for Pakistan~

Today is Tuesday, Oct. 14, the 288th day of 2008. There are 78 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

One hundred years ago, on Oct. 14, 1908, the Chicago Cubs won the World Series as they defeated the Detroit Tigers in Game 5, 2-0, at Bennett Park.

On this date:

In 1066, Normans under William the Conqueror defeated the English at the Battle of Hastings.

In 1890, Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th president of the United States, was born in Denison, Texas.

In 1908, the E.M. Forster novel "A Room With a View" was first published.

In 1912, Theodore Roosevelt, campaigning for the presidency, was shot in the chest in Milwaukee. Despite the wound, he went ahead with a scheduled speech.

In 1933, Nazi Germany announced it was withdrawing from the League of Nations.

In 1944, German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel committed suicide rather than face execution for allegedly conspiring against Adolf Hitler.

In 1947, Air Force test pilot Charles E. ("Chuck") Yeager broke the sound barrier as he flew the experimental Bell XS-1 (later X-1) rocket plane over Muroc Dry Lake in California.

In 1960, the idea of a Peace Corps was first suggested by Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kennedy to an audience of students at the University of Michigan.

In 1968, the first successful live telecast from a manned U.S. spacecraft was transmitted from Apollo 7.

In 1987, a real-life drama began in Midland, Texas, as 18-month-old Jessica McClure slid 22 feet down an abandoned well at a private day care center. (Hundreds of rescuers worked 58 hours to free her.)


Ten years ago: Amartya Sen won the Nobel Prize in economics. "Polka king" Frankie Yankovic died in Tampa, Fla., at age 83. Animal rights advocate and author Cleveland Amory died in New York at age 81. The San Diego Padres won the National League pennant, defeating the Atlanta Braves 5-0 in Game 6 of their championship series.

Five years ago: John Allen Muhammad pleaded innocent to murder as the first trial in the deadly Washington-area sniper rampage got under way in Virginia Beach, Va. (Muhammad was later convicted and sentenced to death for killing Dean Harold Meyers.) The United States vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution that would have condemned Israel for building a barrier that cut into the West Bank. In Game 6 of the National League Championship Series, a Cubs fan inadvertently deflected a foul ball away from the outstretched glove of Chicago outfielder Moises Alou; the Florida Marlins, down 3-0 at the time, rallied to win the game and went on to win Game 7 and advance to the World Series, where they beat the New York Yankees.

One year ago: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice opened an intense round of Mideast shuttle diplomacy. Three University of Texas students exploring Airman's Cave were rescued after getting lost inside a day earlier. Lorena Ochoa clinched her second straight LPGA Tour player of the year award with a runaway victory in the Samsung World Championship.

Today's Birthdays: Former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop is 92. Actor Roger Moore is 81. Movie director Carroll Ballard is 71. Former White House counsel John W. Dean III is 70. Country singer Melba Montgomery is 70. Fashion designer Ralph Lauren is 69. Singer Cliff Richard is 68. Actor Udo Kier is 64. Singer-musician Justin Hayward (The Moody Blues) is 62. Actor Harry Anderson is 56. Actor Greg Evigan is 55. TV personality Arleen Sorkin is 52. Golf Hall-of-Famer Beth Daniel is 52. Singer-musician Thomas Dolby is 50. Singer Karyn White is 43. Actor Jon Seda is 38. Country musician Doug Virden is 38. Country singer Natalie Maines (The Dixie Chicks) is 34. Actress-singer Shaznay Lewis (All Saints) is 33. Singer Usher is 30. Actor Jordan Brower is 27.

Thought for Today: "Ninety-nine percent of failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses." — George Washington Carver, American botanist (1864-1943).
________________

Source: Associated Press

__________________
~Time owns each and everything~
~Useless youth if not useful for Pakistan~

Today is Wednesday, Oct. 15, the 289th day of 2008. There are 77 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On Oct. 15, 1917, Dutch dancer Mata Hari, convicted of spying for the Germans, was executed by a French firing squad outside Paris.

On this date:

In 1858, the seventh and final debate between senatorial candidates Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas took place in Alton, Ill.

In 1860, 11-year-old Grace Bedell of Westfield, N.Y., wrote a letter to presidential candidate Abraham Lincoln, suggesting he could improve his appearance by letting his whiskers grow.

In 1908, economist John Kenneth Galbraith was born in Ontario, Canada.

In 1914, the Clayton Antitrust Act was signed into law by President Wilson.

In 1928, the German dirigible Graf Zeppelin landed in Lakehurst, N.J., completing its first commercial flight across the Atlantic.

In 1945, the former premier of Vichy France, Pierre Laval, was executed for treason.

In 1946, Nazi war criminal Hermann Goering fatally poisoned himself hours before he was to have been executed.

In 1964, it was announced that Soviet leader Nikita S. Khrushchev had been removed from office.

In 1969, peace demonstrators staged activities across the country, including a candlelight march around the White House, as part of a moratorium against the Vietnam War.

In 1976, in the first debate of its kind between vice presidential nominees, Democrat Walter F. Mondale and Republican Bob Dole faced off in Houston.

Ten years ago: The White House and congressional leaders struck agreement on a $500 billion spending package, ending a week of election-season budget brinkmanship. The Federal Reserve made surprise cuts in two key interest rates, igniting an explosive rally on Wall Street. President Clinton opened Mideast summit talks in Maryland that resulted in the Wye River land-for-peace agreement.

Five years ago: Eleven people were killed when a Staten Island ferry slammed into a maintenance pier. (The ferry's pilot, who'd blacked out at the controls, later pleaded guilty to 11 counts of manslaughter.) Doctors in Florida removed the feeding tube of Terri Schiavo, a severely brain-damaged woman at the center of a right-to-die battle. (The tube was reinserted six days later after the Florida Legislature rushed through "Terri's Law," which was later struck down by the Florida Supreme Court.) An explosion ripped apart a U.S. diplomatic vehicle in the Gaza Strip, killing three Americans. China launched its first manned space mission. The Florida Marlins won the National League championship with a 9-6 victory over the Chicago Cubs in Game 7.

One year ago: Americans Leonid Hurwicz, Eric S. Maskin and Roger B. Myerson won the Nobel economics prize. The Colorado Rockies beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-4 in Game 4 to sweep the NL championship series and advance to the World Series for the first time in franchise history.

Today's Birthdays: Jazz musician Freddy Cole is 77. Singer Barry McGuire is 73. Actress Linda Lavin is 71. Actress-director Penny Marshall is 66. Rock musician Don Stevenson (Moby Grape) is 66. Singer-musician Richard Carpenter is 62. Actor Victor Banerjee is 62. Tennis player Roscoe Tanner is 57. Singer Tito Jackson is 55. Actor Jere Burns is 54. Actress Tanya Roberts is 53. Britain's Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, is 49. Chef Emeril Lagasse is 49. Rock musician Mark Reznicek is 46. Actress Vanessa Marcil is 40. Singer-actress-TV host Paige Davis is 39. Actor Dominic West is 39. Singer Eric Benet is 38. Rhythm-and-blues singer Ginuwine is 38. Actor Chris Olivero is 29. Christian singer-actress Jaci Velasquez is 29. Rhythm-and-blues singer Keyshia Cole is 27. Actor Vincent Martella ("Everybody Hates Chris") is 16.

Thought for Today: "The conventional view serves to protect us from the painful job of thinking." — John Kenneth Galbraith, Canadian-born American economist (1908-2006).
________________

Source: Associated Press

__________________
~Time owns each and everything~
~Useless youth if not useful for Pakistan~

Today is Thursday, Oct. 16, the 290th day of 2008. There are 76 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On Oct. 16, 1978, the College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church chose Cardinal Karol Wojtyla to be the new pope; he took the name John Paul II.

On this date:

In 1758, American lexicographer Noah Webster was born in Hartford, Conn.

In 1793, during the French Revolution, Marie Antoinette, the queen of France, was beheaded.

In 1859, abolitionist John Brown led a group of about 20 men in a failed raid on Harper's Ferry, Va.

In 1916, Margaret Sanger opened the first birth control clinic, in Brooklyn, N.Y. (The clinic ended up being raided by police and Sanger was arrested.)

In 1946, 10 Nazi war criminals condemned during the Nuremberg trials were hanged.

In 1962, the Cuban missile crisis began as President Kennedy was informed that reconnaissance photographs had revealed the presence of missile bases in Cuba.

In 1964, China set off its first atomic bomb, codenamed "596," on the Lop Nur Test Ground.

In 1968, American athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos sparked controversy at the Mexico City Olympics by giving "black power" salutes during a victory ceremony after they'd won gold and bronze medals in the 200-meter race.

In 1987, a 58 1/2-hour drama in Midland, Texas, ended happily as rescuers freed Jessica McClure, an 18-month-old girl trapped in an abandoned well.

In 1991, a deadly shooting rampage took place in Killeen, Texas, as George Hennard opened fire at a Luby's Cafeteria, killing 23 people before taking his own life.


Ten years ago: Negotiators David Trimble and John Hume were named recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize for brokering the Northern Ireland peace accord.

Five years ago: The U.N. Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution aimed at attracting more troops and money to help stabilize Iraq and speed its independence. Three American soldiers were killed during a clash at a Shiite Muslim cleric's headquarters in Karbala. Pope John Paul II celebrated his 25 years as pontiff before a huge crowd in Rome's St. Peter's Square. The New York Yankees won the American League Championship Series, defeating the Boston Red Sox 6-5 in Game 7.

One year ago: President Bush welcomed the Dalai Lama to the White House for a half-hour meeting. Libya won a seat on the U.N. Security Council. Actress Deborah Kerr died in Suffolk, England, at age 86. Barbara West Dainton, believed to be one of the last two survivors from the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, died in Camborne, England, at age 96.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Angela Lansbury is 83. Author Gunter Grass is 81. Former presidential adviser Charles W. Colson is 77. Actor-producer Tony Anthony is 71. Actor Barry Corbin is 68. Rock musician C.F. Turner (Bachman-Turner Overdrive) is 65. Actress Suzanne Somers is 62. Rock singer-musician Bob Weir is 61. Producer-director David Zucker is 61. Record company executive Jim Ed Norman is 60. Actor Daniel Gerroll is 57. Actor-director Tim Robbins is 50. Actor-musician Gary Kemp is 49. Singer-musician Bob Mould is 48. Actor Randy Vasquez is 47. Rock musician Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers) is 46. Actor Todd Stashwick is 40. Jazz musician Roy Hargrove is 39. Actress Terri J. Vaughn is 39. Singer Wendy Wilson (Wilson Phillips) is 39. Rapper B-Rock (B-Rock and the Bizz) is 37. Rock singer Chad Gray (Mudvayne) is 37. Actress Kellie Martin is 33. Singer John Mayer is 31. Actor Jeremy Jackson is 28. Actress Brea Grant (TV: "Heroes") is 27.

Thought for Today: "To walk into history is to be free at once, to be at large among people." — Elizabeth Bowen, Irish-born author (1899-1973).
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Source: Associated Press

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~Time owns each and everything~
~Useless youth if not useful for Pakistan~

Today is Friday, Oct. 17, the 291st day of 2008. There are 75 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On Oct. 17, 1777, British forces under General John Burgoyne surrendered to American troops in Saratoga, N.Y., in a turning point of the Revolutionary War.

On this date:

In 1807, Britain declared it would continue to reclaim British-born sailors from American ships and ports regardless of whether they held U.S. citizenship.

In 1907, Guglielmo Marconi began offering limited commercial wireless telegraph service between Nova Scotia and Ireland.

In 1919, the Radio Corporation of America was chartered.

In 1931, mobster Al Capone was convicted of income tax evasion. (Sentenced to 11 years in prison, Capone was released in 1939.)

In 1933, Albert Einstein arrived in the United States as a refugee from Nazi Germany.

In 1941, the U.S. destroyer Kearny was torpedoed by a German submarine off the coast of Iceland; 11 people died.

In 1958, the special "An Evening with Fred Astaire," the first major TV program produced on color videotape, aired on NBC.

In 1973, Arab oil-producing nations announced they would begin cutting back oil exports to Western nations and Japan; the result was a total embargo that lasted until March 1974.

In 1978, President Carter signed a bill restoring U.S. citizenship to Confederate President Jefferson Davis.

In 1989, an earthquake measuring 7.1 on the Richter scale struck Northern California, killing 63 people and causing $6 billion in damage.


Ten years ago: A pipeline explosion and fire in southwest Nigeria killed some 700 people. The New York Yankees won Game 1 of the World Series, defeating the San Diego Padres 9-6.

Five years ago: Fire killed six people in a high-rise county building in Chicago. The House and Senate voted to spend some $87 billion earmarked for securing peace and eliminating terrorist threats in Iraq and Afghanistan. Bolivian President Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada resigned; Vice President Carlos Mesa replaced him.

One year ago: President Bush, raising Beijing's ire, presented the Dalai Lama with the Congressional Gold Medal and urged Chinese leaders to welcome the monk to Beijing. Comedian Joey Bishop, the last of Sinatra's Rat Pack, died in Newport Beach, Calif., at age 89. Singer Teresa Brewer died in New Rochelle, N.Y., at age 76.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Marsha Hunt is 91. Actress Beverly Garland is 82. Actress Julie Adams is 82. Country singer Earl Thomas Conley is 67. Singer Jim Seals (Seals & Crofts) is 66. Singer Gary Puckett is 66. Actor Michael McKean is 61. Actress Margot Kidder is 60. Actor George Wendt is 60. Actor Sam Bottoms is 53. Astronaut Mae Jemison is 52. Country singer Alan Jackson is 50. Movie director Rob Marshall is 48. Animator Mike Judge is 46. Rock singer-musician Fred LeBlanc (Cowboy Mouth) is 45. Actor-comedian Norm Macdonald is 45. Singer Rene' Dif is 41. Reggae singer Ziggy Marley is 40. Singer Chris Kirkpatrick ('N Sync) is 37. Rapper Eminem is 36. Singer Wyclef Jean is 36. Actress Sharon Leal is 36. Actor Matthew Macfadyen is 34. Rock musician Sergio Andrade is 31.

Thought for Today: "The thinking of a genius does not proceed logically. It leaps with great ellipses. It pulls knowledge from God knows where." — Dorothy Thompson, American journalist (1894-1961).
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Source: Associated Press

__________________
~Time owns each and everything~
~Useless youth if not useful for Pakistan~