Today is Friday, Feb. 27, the 58th day of 2009. There are 307 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On Feb. 27, 1933, Germany's parliament building, the Reichstag, was gutted by fire. Chancellor Adolf Hitler, blaming the Communists, used the fire as justification for suspending civil liberties.

On this date:

In 1801, the District of Columbia was placed under the jurisdiction of Congress.

In 1860, former Illinois Congressman Abraham Lincoln delivered a widely acclaimed speech in which he argued against the expansion of slavery into the western territories, telling listeners at Cooper Union in New York that "right makes might."

In 1861, in Warsaw, Russian troops fired on a crowd protesting Russian rule over Poland; five marchers were killed.

In 1922, the Supreme Court, in Leser v. Garnett, unanimously upheld the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, which guaranteed the right of women to vote.

In 1939, the Supreme Court, in National Labor Relations Board v. Fansteel Metallurgical Corporation, outlawed sit-down strikes.

In 1951, the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, limiting a president to two terms of office, was ratified.

In 1960, the U.S. Olympic hockey team defeated the Soviets, 3-2, at the Winter Games in Squaw Valley, Calif. The U.S. team went on to win the gold medal.

In 1973, members of the American Indian Movement occupied the hamlet of Wounded Knee in South Dakota, the site of the 1890 massacre of Sioux men, women and children. The occupation lasted until May.

In 1979, Jane M. Byrne confounded Chicago's Democratic political machine as she upset Mayor Michael A. Bilandic to win their party's mayoral primary. Byrne went on to win the election.

In 1991, President George H.W. Bush declared that "Kuwait is liberated, Iraq's army is defeated," and announced that the allies would suspend combat operations at midnight, Eastern Time.


Ten years ago: The Reverend Henry Lyons, president of the National Baptist Convention USA, was convicted in Largo, Fla., of swindling millions of dollars from companies seeking to do business with his followers. Lyons, who served nearly five years in prison, was released in 2003. Nigerians voted to elect Olusegun Obasanjo their new president as the country marked the final phase of its return to democracy.

Five years ago: America's top bishop, Wilton Gregory, declared the days of sheltering sex abusers in the Roman Catholic priesthood were "history" as two reports showed how pervasive assaults on minors had been during the previous half-century. California Attorney General Bill Lockyer asked the state's top court to stop San Francisco from issuing same-sex marriage licenses until the justices could decide whether the weddings were legal. The justices halted the weddings the following month.

One year ago: William F. Buckley Jr., the author and conservative commentator, was found dead at his home in Stamford, Conn.; he was 82. Civil rights leader John Lewis dropped his support for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton in favor of Barack Obama. A judge in Canton, Ohio, sentenced former police officer Bobby Cutts Jr. to life in prison with a chance of parole after 57 years for killing his pregnant lover, Jessie Davis, and their unborn child.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Joanne Woodward is 79. Actress Elizabeth Taylor is 77. Consumer advocate Ralph Nader is 75. Actress Barbara Babcock is 72. Actor Howard Hesseman is 69. Actress Debra Monk is 60. Rock singer-musician Neal Schon (Journey) is 55. Rock musician Adrian Smith (Iron Maiden) is 52. Actor Timothy Spall is 52. Rock musician Paul Humphreys (Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark) is 49. Country singer Johnny Van Zant (Van Zant) is 49. Rock musician Leon Mobley (Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals) is 48. Basketball Hall-of-Famer James Worthy is 48. Actor Adam Baldwin is 47. Actor Grant Show is 47. Rock musician Mike Cross (Sponge) is 44. Actor Donal Logue is 43. Rhythm-and-blues singer Chilli (TLC) is 38. Rock musician Jeremy Dean (Nine Days) is 37. Rhythm-and-blues singer Roderick Clark is 36. Football player Tony Gonzalez is 33. Country-rock musician Shonna Tucker (Drive-By Truckers) is 31. Chelsea Clinton is 29. Rhythm-and-blues singer Bobby Valentino is 29. Singer Josh Groban is 28. Actress Kate Mara is 26.

Thought for Today: "Reasoning with a child is fine, if you can reach the child's reason without destroying your own." -- John Mason Brown, American essayist (1900-1969).
________________

Source: Associated Press

Today is Saturday, Feb. 28, the 59th day of 2009. There are 306 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On Feb. 28, 1849, the California gold rush began in earnest as regular steamship service started bringing gold-seekers to San Francisco.

On this date:
n 1827, the first U.S. railroad chartered to carry passengers and freight, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Co., was incorporated by the state of Maryland.

In 1844, a 12-inch gun aboard the USS Princeton exploded, killing Secretary of State Abel P. Upshur, Navy Secretary Thomas W. Gilmer and several others.

In 1861, the Territory of Colorado was organized.

In 1953, scientists James D. Watson and Francis H.C. Crick announced they had discovered the double-helix structure of DNA, the molecule that contains the human genes.

In 1959, American author and playwright Maxwell Anderson died in Stamford, Conn., at age 70.

In 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai issued the Shanghai Communique at the conclusion of Nixon's historic visit to China.

In 1975, more than 40 people were killed in London's Underground when a subway train smashed into the end of a tunnel.

In 1986, Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme was shot to death in central Stockholm.

In 1993, a gun battle erupted at a compound near Waco, Texas, when Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents tried to serve warrants on the Branch Davidians; four agents and six Davidians were killed as a 51-day standoff began.

In 1997, in North Hollywood, Calif., two heavily armed and armored robbers bungled a bank heist and came out firing, unleashing their arsenal on police, bystanders, cars and TV choppers before they were killed.


Ten years ago: Guerrillas detonated two bombs beside a military convoy in southern Lebanon, killing a Israeli brigadier general and three other Israelis; Israel retaliated with air raids on suspected guerrilla hideouts.


Five years ago: Iraq's U.S.-picked leaders failed to meet a deadline for adopting an interim constitution. Six-nation talks on ending North Korea's nuclear weapons program ended in Beijing with an agreement to hold more negotiations. The Bow Mariner, a tanker carrying ethanol, exploded and sank off the Virginia coast; three crew members died and 18 were left missing and presumed dead, while six men survived. Former Librarian of Congress Daniel J. Boorstin died in Washington D.C., at age 89.

One year ago: President George W. Bush told a White House news conference the country was not recession-bound; Democratic candidate Barack Obama said the economy was "on the brink of a recession" and blamed economic policies espoused by Bush and Republican presidential contender John McCain. Defense Secretary Robert Gates told his Turkish counterpart that Turkey should end its offensive against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq as soon as possible. Deposed Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra returned to Thailand from 17 months in exile to face corruption charges. Mike Smith, lead singer for the British band Dave Clark Five, died outside London at age 64.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Charles Durning is 86. Svetlana Alliluyeva, daughter of Josef Stalin, is 83. Actor Gavin MacLeod is 78. Actor Don Francks is 77. Actor-director-dancer Tommy Tune is 70. Auto racer Mario Andretti is 69. Singer Joe South is 69. Actor Frank Bonner is 67. Actress Kelly Bishop is 65. Football player Bubba Smith is 64. Actress Stephanie Beacham is 62. Actress Mercedes Ruehl is 61. Actress Bernadette Peters is 61. Energy Secretary Steven Chu is 61. Comedian Gilbert Gottfried is 54. Basketball Hall-of-Famer Adrian Dantley is 53. Actor John Turturro is 52. Rock singer Cindy Wilson is 52. Actress Rae Dawn Chong is 48. Actor Robert Sean Leonard is 40. Rock singer Pat Monahan is 40. Actress Maxine Bahns is 38. Country singer Jason Aldean is 32. Actor Bobb'e J. Thompson is 13.

Thought for Today: "Education is learning what you didn't even know you didn't know." -- Daniel J. Boorstin, American historian, educator and Librarian of Congress (1914-2004).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Sunday, March 1, the 60th day of 2009. There are 305 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On March 1, 1932, Charles A. Lindbergh Jr., the 20-month-old son of Charles and Anne Lindbergh, was kidnapped from the family home near Hopewell, N.J. Remains identified as those of the child were found the following May.

On this date:

In 1781, the Continental Congress declared the Articles of Confederation to be in force, following ratification by Maryland.

In 1790, President George Washington signed a measure authorizing the first U.S. Census.

In 1809, the Illinois Territory came into existence.

In 1867, Nebraska became the 37th state.

In 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant signed an act creating Yellowstone National Park.

In 1954, Puerto Rican nationalists opened fire from the gallery of the U.S. House of Representatives, wounding five congressmen.

In 1959, Archbishop Makarios III returned to Cyprus following an agreement on Cypriot independence from Britain. Makarios went on to be elected the first president of the Republic of Cyprus.

In 1961, President John F. Kennedy established the Peace Corps.

In 1981, Irish Republican Army member Bobby Sands began a hunger strike at the Maze Prison in Northern Ireland; he died 65 days later.

In 2003, suspected 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed was captured by Pakistani and CIA agents.


Ten years ago: The General Accounting Office released an audit of the Internal Revenue Service which found chronic problems in the agency's record-keeping. An attack by Rwandan Hutu rebels in a Ugandan national park left eight foreign tourists, including two Americans, and a park guard dead.

Five years ago: Rebels rolled into Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, where they were met by thousands of residents cheering the ouster of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide the day before, on Leap Day. Iraqi officials approved an interim constitution. The California Supreme Court ruled a Roman Catholic charity had to pay for workers' contraceptive health insurance benefits.

One year ago: President George W. Bush, speaking at his Texas ranch, declined to promise more U.S. troop withdrawals from Iraq before leaving, underscoring the need for a strong military presence during Iraqi provincial elections. The USS New York, an amphibious assault ship built with scrap steel from the ruins of the World Trade Center, was christened at Avondale, La. Raul Reyes, the No. 2 commander of the Colombian rebel group FARC, was slain during a cross-border raid into Ecuador by Colombian security forces. New York's famed Plaza Hotel reopened after a three-year, $400 million renovation.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Robert Clary is 83. Singer Harry Belafonte is 82. Former U.S. Solicitor General Robert H. Bork is 82. Actor Robert Conrad is 74. Rock singer Mike D'Abo (Manfred Mann) is 65. Former Senator John Breaux, D-La., is 65. Rock singer Roger Daltrey is 65. Actor Dirk Benedict is 64. Actor Alan Thicke is 62. Actor-director Ron Howard is 55. Actress Catherine Bach is 55. Country singer Janis Gill (AKA Janis Oliver Cummins) (Sweethearts of the Rodeo) is 55. Actor Tim Daly is 53. Singer-musician Jon Carroll is 52. Rock musician Bill Leen is 47. Actor Russell Wong is 46. Actor John David Cullum is 43. Actor George Eads is 42. Actor Javier Bardem is 40. Actor Jack Davenport is 36. Rock musician Ryan Peake (Nickelback) is 36. Actor Mark-Paul Gosselaar is 35. Actor Jensen Ackles is 31. TV host Donovan Patton is 31. Rock musician Sean Woolstenhulme is 28. Rhythm-and-blues singer Sammie is 22.

Thought for Today: "Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind." -- Rudyard Kipling, English author (1865-1936).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Monday, March 2, the 61st day of 2009. There are 304 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On March 2, 1939, Roman Catholic Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli was elected Pope on his 63rd birthday; he took the name Pius the 12th.

On this date:

In 1793, the first president of the Republic of Texas, Sam Houston, was born near Lexington, Va.

In 1836, the Republic of Texas formally declared its independence from Mexico.

In 1877, Republican Rutherford B. Hayes was declared the winner of the 1876 presidential election over Democrat Samuel J. Tilden, even though Tilden had won the popular vote.

In 1899, Mount Rainier National Park in Washington state was established.

In 1917, Puerto Ricans were granted U.S. citizenship as President Woodrow Wilson signed the Jones-Shafroth Act.

In 1939, the Massachusetts legislature voted to ratify the Bill of Rights, 147 years after the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution had gone into effect. Georgia and Connecticut soon followed.

In 1943, the World War II Battle of the Bismarck Sea began; U.S. and Australian warplanes were able to inflict heavy damage on a Japanese convoy.

In 1958, a multinational expedition led by British explorer Vivian Fuchs completed the first overland crossing of Antarctica by way of the South Pole in 99 days.

In 1977, the U.S. House of Representatives adopted a strict code of ethics.

In 1989, representatives from the 12 European Community nations agreed to ban all production of CFC's (chlorofluorocarbons) by the end of the 20th century.


Ten years ago: Texas Governor George W. Bush announced he was forming a presidential exploratory committee. Conservative commentator Pat Buchanan launched a third White House bid. Singer Dusty Springfield died at her home west of London at age 59.

Five years ago: A series of coordinated blasts in Iraq killed 181 people at shrines in Karbala and Baghdad as thousands of Shiite Muslim pilgrims gathered for a religious festival. John Kerry laid claim to the Democratic presidential nomination after his victories in Super Tuesday contests. Former WorldCom CEO Bernard Ebbers was charged with falsifying the books at the long-distance company; his chief financial officer, Scott Sullivan, pleaded guilty to fraud and agreed to testify against him. Ebbers was later convicted of securities fraud and conspiracy and sentenced to 25 years in prison; Sullivan was sentenced to five years. Marge Schott, the controversial former owner of the Cincinnati Reds, died at age 75. Academy Award-winning actress Mercedes McCambridge died in La Jolla, Calif., at age 87.

One year ago: Dmitry Medvedev, Vladimir Putin's hand-picked successor, scored a crushing victory in Russia's presidential election. Four adults and two children were slain in a shooting and stabbing rampage at a Memphis house; three children survived. Jessie Dotson, brother of one of the victims, is charged with six counts of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Jennifer Jones is 90. Bluegrass singer-musician Doc Watson is 86. Actor John Cullum is 79. Author Tom Wolfe is 79. Former Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev is 78. Actress Barbara Luna is 70. Actor Jon Finch is 68. Author John Irving is 67. Singer Lou Reed is 67. Actress Cassie Yates is 58. Actress Laraine Newman is 57. Senator Russell Feingold, D-Wisc., is 56. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar is 54. Singer Jay Osmond is 54. Pop musician John Cowsill (The Cowsills) is 53. Tennis player Kevin Curren is 51. Country singer Larry Stewart (Restless Heart) is 50. Rock singer Jon Bon Jovi is 47. Blues singer-musician Alvin Youngblood Hart is 46. Actor Daniel Craig is 41. Rock musician Casey (Jimmie's Chicken Shack) is 33. Rock singer Chris Martin (Coldplay) is 32. Actress Heather McComb is 32. Actress Bryce Dallas Howard is 28. Football player Ben Roethlisberger is 27. Actor Robert Iler ("The Sopranos") is 24.

Thought for Today: "Just as we are often moved to merriment for no other reason than that the occasion calls for seriousness, so we are correspondingly serious when invited too freely to be amused." -- Agnes Repplier, American essayist (1858-1950).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Tuesday, March 3, the 62nd day of 2009. There are 303 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On March 3, 1931, President Herbert Hoover signed a measure making "The Star-Spangled Banner" the national anthem of the United States.

On this date:

In 1845, Florida became the 27th state.

In 1849, the U.S. Department of the Interior was established.

In 1887, Anne Sullivan arrived at the Tuscumbia, Ala., home of Captain and Mrs. Arthur H. Keller to become the teacher for their blind and deaf 6-year-old daughter, Helen.

In 1894, British Prime Minister William Gladstone submitted his resignation to Queen Victoria, ending his fourth and final premiership.

In 1918, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, the Ottoman Empire and Russia signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, which ended Russian participation in World War I. The treaty was rendered moot by the November 1918 armistice.

In 1945, the Allies fully secured the Philippine capital of Manila from Japanese forces during World War II.

In 1959, the United States launched the Pioneer 4 spacecraft, which flew by the moon. Comedian Lou Costello died of a heart attack in East Los Angeles, Calif., three days before his 53rd birthday. His reported last words: "That was the best ice cream soda I ever tasted."

In 1969, Apollo 9 blasted off from Cape Kennedy on a mission to test the lunar module.

In 1974, a Turkish Airlines DC-10 crashed shortly after takeoff from Orly Airport in Paris, killing all 346 people on board.

In 1991, motorist Rodney King was severely beaten by Los Angeles police officers in a scene captured on amateur video. Twenty-five people were killed when a United Airlines Boeing 737-200 crashed while approaching the Colorado Springs airport.


Ten years ago: The Supreme Court ruled that public schools had to finance one-on-one nursing care for some disabled students throughout the school day. Monica Lewinsky, in an ABC interview timed to coincide with the publication of her book, recounted for Barbara Walters some of the fondest, as well as most painful, aspects of her relationship with President Bill Clinton.


Five years ago: Multnomah County, Ore., began issuing same-sex marriage licenses. Oregon voters later approved a constitutional ban on gay marriage, and the state Supreme Court nullified the marriage licenses. The Walt Disney Company's board voted to strip Michael Eisner of his chairman's post while retaining him as CEO.

One year ago: Democrat Barack Obama said his campaign had never given Canada back-channel assurances that his harsh words about the North American Free Trade Agreement were for political show -- despite a Canadian memo indicating otherwise. A gunman opened fire inside a Wendy's restaurant in West Palm Beach, Fla., killing a paramedic who'd gone back to fetch a missing meal toy for his child; the gunman wounded five others before turning the gun on himself. Operatic tenor Giuseppe Di Stefano died in Santa Maria Hoe, Italy, at age 86.

Today's Birthdays: Socialite Lee Radziwill is 76. Movie producer-director George Miller is 64. Actress Hattie Winston is 64. Singer Jennifer Warnes is 62. Actor-director Tim Kazurinsky is 59. Singer-musician Robyn Hitchcock is 56. Rock musician John Lilley is 55. Actress Miranda Richardson is 51. Radio personality Ira Glass is 50. Actress Mary Page Keller is 48. Olympic track and field gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee is 47. Football player Herschel Walker is 47. Rapper-actor Tone-Loc is 43. Rock musician John Bigham is 40. Actress Julie Bowen is 39. Country singer Brett Warren (The Warren Brothers) is 38. Actor David Faustino is 35. Singer Ronan Keating (Boyzone) is 32. Rapper Lil' Flip is 28. Actress Jessica Biel is 27.

Thought for Today: "A good man can be stupid and still be good. But a bad man must have brains." -- Maxim Gorky, Russian writer (1868-1936).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Wednesday, March 4, the 63rd day of 2009. There are 302 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On March 4th, 1789, the Constitution of the United States went into effect as the first Federal Congress met in New York. The lawmakers then adjourned for lack of a quorum.

On this date:

In 1791, Vermont became the 14th state.

In 1809, James Madison was sworn into office as the fourth president of the United States. The occasion marked the first time an inaugural ball was held the evening after the swearing-in.

In 1858, Sen. James Henry Hammond, D-S.C., declared "Cotton is king" in a speech to the U.S. Senate.

In 1861, Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated as the 16th president of the United States.

In 1908, a fire at Lake View School in Collinwood, Ohio, claimed the lives of 172 children and three adults.

In 1909, William Howard Taft took the oath of office as the 27th president of the United Sates.

In 1929, Herbert Hoover was inaugurated as the 31st president of the United States.

In 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt took office as America's 32nd president.

In 1977, some 1,500 people were killed in an earthquake that shook southern and eastern Europe.

In 1989, Time Inc. and Warner Communications Inc. announced plans for a huge media merger.


Ten years ago: Outraging Italian authorities, a military jury in North Carolina cleared a Marine pilot of charges he was flying recklessly when his jet sliced through a ski gondola cable in the Alps, sending 20 people plunging to their deaths. Retired Supreme Court Justice Harry A. Blackmun, who wrote the 1973 decision that legalized abortion nationwide, died in Arlington, Va., at age 90.

Five years ago: Mounir el Motassadeq, convicted in Germany in connection with the 9/11 attacks, won a retrial from an appeals court. El Motassadeq was later convicted of helping three of the suicide hijackers and was sentenced to 15 years in prison, the maximum possible under German law.

One year ago: Republican John McCain clinched his party's presidential nomination. Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton won primary victories in Ohio, Texas and Rhode Island, while Barack Obama prevailed in Vermont. Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre retired after 17 seasons, saying he was "tired." Favre later made a comeback with the New York Jets before retiring again. Dungeons & Dragons co-creator Gary Gygax died in Lake Geneva, Wisc., at age 69.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Paula Prentiss is 71. Movie director Adrian Lyne is 68. Singer Bobby Womack is 65. Rock musician Chris Squire (Yes) is 61. Singer Shakin' Stevens is 61. Singer Chris Rea is 58. Actor Ronn Moss is 57. Actress Kay Lenz is 56. Musician Emilio Estefan is 56. Movie director Scott Hicks is 56. Actress Catherine O'Hara is 55. Actress Patricia Heaton is 51. Actor Steven Weber is 48. Rock musician Jason Newsted is 46. Actress Stacy Edwards is 44. Rapper Grand Puba is 43. Rock musician Patrick Hannan (The Sundays) is 43. Rock singer Evan Dando (Lemonheads) is 42. Actress Patsy Kensit is 41. Chastity Bono is 40. Actor Nick Stabile is 39. Rock musician Fergal Lawler (The Cranberries) is 38. Country singer Jason Sellers is 38. Jazz musician Jason Marsalis is 32. TV personality Whitney Port is 24. Actress Andrea Bowen ("Desperate Housewives") is 19. Actress Jenna Boyd is 16.

Thought for Today: "When a man gets up to speak, people listen, then look. When a woman gets up, people look; then, if they like what they see, they listen." -- Pauline Frederick, American broadcast journalist (1908-1990).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Thursday, March 5, the 64th day of 2009. There are 301 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

Fifty years ago, on March 5, 1959, a fire at the Negro Boys Industrial School in Wrightsville, Ark., claimed the lives of 21 teenagers trapped inside a locked dormitory room four dozen other boys managed to escape.


On this date:

In 1770, the Boston Massacre took place as British soldiers who'd been taunted by a crowd of colonists opened fire, killing five people.

In 1849, Zachary Taylor was inaugurated as the 12th president of the United States. The swearing-in was delayed by a day because March 4, 1849 fell on a Sunday.

In 1868, the Senate was organized into a Court of Impeachment to decide charges against President Andrew Johnson, who was later acquitted.

In 1933, in German parliamentary elections, the Nazi Party won 44 percent of the vote; the Nazis joined with a conservative nationalist party to gain a slender majority in the Reichstag.

In 1946, Winston Churchill delivered his famous "Iron Curtain" speech at Westminster College in Fulton, Mo.

In 1953, Soviet dictator Josef Stalin died after three decades in power.

In 1963, country music performers Patsy Cline, "Cowboy" Copas and "Hawkshaw" Hawkins died in a plane crash near Camden, Tenn., that also claimed the life of pilot Randy Hughes, Cline's manager.

In 1970, a nuclear non-proliferation treaty went into effect after 43 nations ratified it.

In 1979, NASA's Voyager 1 space probe flew past Jupiter, sending back photographs of the planet and its moons.

In 1982, comedian John Belushi was found dead of a drug overdose in a rented bungalow in Hollywood; he was 33.


Ten years ago: Italian Prime Minister Massimo D'Alema met at the White House with President Bill Clinton, a day after a military jury in North Carolina acquitted a Marine pilot in the Italian cable car accident that killed 20 people; D'Alema demanded justice, while Clinton expressed profound regret. Actor Richard Kiley died in Warwick, N.Y., at age 76.

Five years ago: Martha Stewart was convicted in New York of obstructing justice and lying to the government about why she'd unloaded her Imclone stock just before the price plummeted; her ex-stockbroker, Peter Bacanovic, also was found guilty in the stock scandal. Each later received a five-month prison sentence.

One year ago: John McCain, having sewn up the Republican presidential nomination, got a White House embrace from President George W. Bush, who praised the Arizona senator's "incredible courage and strength of character and perseverance."

Today's Birthdays: Actor James Noble is 87. Actor James B. Sikking is 75. Actor Dean Stockwell is 73. Actor Fred Williamson is 71. Actor Michael Warren is 63. Actor Eddie Hodges is 62. Singer Eddy Grant is 61. Violinist Eugene Fodor is 59. Rock musician Alan Clark (Dire Straits) is 57. Actress-comedian Marsha Warfield is 55. Magician Penn Jillette is 54. Actress Adriana Barraza is 53. Pop singer Teena Marie is 53. Rock singers Charlie and Craig Reid (The Proclaimers) are 47. Rock musician John Frusciante (Red Hot Chili Peppers) is 39. Singer Rome is 39. Actor Kevin Connolly is 35. Actress Jill Ritchie is 35. Actress Jolene Blalock is 34. Actress Eva Mendes is 34. Model Niki Taylor is 34. Actor Jake Lloyd is 20.

Thought for Today: "To force opinion is like pushing the magnetized needle round by brute strength until it points to where we wish the North Star stood, rather than to where it really is." -- Dorothy Canfield Fisher, American author and essayist (1879-1958).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Friday, March 6, the 65th day of 2009. There are 300 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On March 6, 1836, the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, fell to Mexican forces after a 13-day siege.

On this date:


In 1834, the city of York in Upper Canada was incorporated as Toronto.

In 1853, Verdi's opera "La Traviata" premiered in Venice, Italy.

In 1857, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Dred Scott v. Sandford that Scott, a slave, was not an American citizen and could not sue for his freedom in federal court.

In 1933, a nationwide bank holiday declared by President Franklin D. Roosevelt went into effect.

In 1935, retired Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., died in Washington.

In 1944, U.S. heavy bombers staged the first full-scale American raid on Berlin during World War II.

In 1957, the former British African colonies of the Gold Coast and Togoland became the independent state of Ghana.

In 1967, the daughter of Josef Stalin, Svetlana Alliluyeva, appeared at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi and declared her intention to defect to the West.

In 1983, in a case that drew much notoriety, Cheryl Araujo was gang-raped atop a pool table in a tavern in New Bedford, Mass., called Big Dan's; four men were later convicted of the attack. Araujo was killed in a car accident in 1986.

In 1987, 193 people died when the British ferry Herald of Free Enterprise capsized off the Belgian port of Zeebrugge.

Ten years ago: The emir of Bahrain, a key Western ally who had ruled for nearly four decades, died shortly after a meeting with Defense Secretary William Cohen; he was 65.

Five years ago: President George W. Bush backed off on plans to require frequent Mexican travelers to the U.S. to be fingerprinted and photographed before crossing the border. A water taxi capsized in Baltimore's Inner Harbor, killing five people.

One year ago: A Palestinian killed eight students at a Jewish seminary in Jerusalem before he was slain. Twin bombings in a shopping district in Baghdad killed at least 68 people and wound 130 others.

Today's Birthdays: Orchestra conductor Julius Rudel is 88. TV personality Ed McMahon is 86. Former FBI and CIA director William Webster is 85. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan is 83. Author Gabriel Garcia Marquez is 82. Orchestra conductor Lorin Maazel is 79. Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova is 72. Country singer Doug Dillard is 72. Senator Christopher Bond, R-Mo., is 70. Actress-writer Joanna Miles is 69. Actor Ben Murphy is 67. Opera singer Dame Kiri Te Kanawa is 65. Singer Mary Wilson (The Supremes) is 65. Rock musician Hugh Grundy (The Zombies) is 64. Rock singer-musician David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) is 63. Actor-director Rob Reiner is 62. Singer Kiki Dee is 62. Rock singer-musician Phil Alvin (The Blasters) is 56. Actor Tom Arnold is 50. Former child actress Suzanne Crough is 46. Actor D.L. Hughley is 45. Country songwriter Skip Ewing is 45. Actress Yvette Wilson is 45. Actor Shuler Hensley is 42. Actress Connie Britton is 41. Actress Moira Kelly is 41. Actress Amy Pietz is 40. Basketball player Shaquille O'Neal is 37. Country singer Trent Willmon is 36. Country musician Shan Farmer (Ricochet) is 35. Rapper Beanie Sigel is 35. Rapper Bubba Sparxxx is 32. Rock musician Chris Tomson (Vampire Weekend) is 25. Football player Andre Gurode is 31. Actor Eli Marienthal is 23. Actor Jimmy Galeota is 23. Actor Dillon Freasier (Film: "There Will Be Blood") is 13. Actress Savannah Stehlin is 13.

Thought for Today: "Learn by other's mistakes because you do not live long enough to make them all yourself." -- Anonymous.
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Saturday, March 7, the 66th day of 2009. There are 299 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On March 7, 1965, a march by civil rights demonstrators was broken up in Selma, Ala., by state troopers and a sheriff's posse.

On this date:

In 1793, during the French Revolutionary Wars, France declared war on Spain.

In 1850, in a three-hour speech to the U.S. Senate, Daniel Webster endorsed the Compromise of 1850 as a means of preserving the Union.

In 1875, composer Maurice Ravel was born in Ciboure, France.

In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell received a patent for his telephone.

In 1926, the first successful trans-Atlantic radio-telephone conversations took place, between New York and London.

In 1936, Adolf Hitler ordered his troops to march into the Rhineland, thereby breaking the Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Pact.

In 1945, during World War II, U.S. forces crossed the Rhine River at Remagen, Germany, using the damaged but still usable Ludendorff Bridge.

In 1975, the U.S. Senate revised its filibuster rule, allowing 60 senators to limit debate in most cases, instead of the previously required two-thirds of senators present.

In 1981, anti-government guerrillas in Colombia executed kidnapped American Bible translator Chester Allen Bitterman, whom they accused of being a CIA agent.

In 1994, the Supreme Court, in Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc., ruled that a parody that pokes fun at an original work can be considered "fair use" that doesn't require permission from the copyright holder.



Ten years ago: Movie director Stanley Kubrick, whose films included "Dr. Strangelove," "A Clockwork Orange" and "2001: A Space Odyssey," died in Hertfordshire, England, at age 70.

Five years ago: Fourteen Palestinians were killed in the deadliest Israeli raid in Gaza in 17 months. An investiture ceremony was held in Concord, N.H., for V. Gene Robinson, the Episcopal Church's first openly gay bishop. Actor Paul Winfield died at age 64.

One year ago: On the heels of a gloomy report that 63,000 jobs were lost in February 2008, President George W. Bush said "it's clear our economy has slowed" as he tried to reassure an anxious public that the long-term outlook was good. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Samantha Power, who was acting as an adviser to Barack Obama, resigned after calling rival Hillary Rodham Clinton "a monster." Leon Greenman, the only Englishman sent to the Auschwitz concentration camp, died in London at age 97.

Today's Birthdays: Comedian Alan Sues is 83. Photographer Lord Snowdon is 79. TV personality Willard Scott is 75. Auto racer Janet Guthrie is 71. Actor Daniel J. Travanti is 69. Former Walt Disney Company chief executive officer Michael Eisner is 67. Rock musician Chris White (The Zombies) is 66. Actor John Heard is 63. Rock singer Peter Wolf is 63. Rock musician Matthew Fisher (Procol Harum) is 63. Football Hall-of-Famer Franco Harris is 59. Football Hall-of-Famer Lynn Swann is 57. Rhythm-and-blues singer-musician Ernie Isley (The Isley Brothers) is 57. Actor Bryan Cranston is 53. Actress Donna Murphy is 50. Actor Nick Searcy is 50. Golfer Tom Lehman is 50. Tennis Hall-of-Famer Ivan Lendl is 49. Actress Mary Beth Evans is 48. Actor Bill Brochtrup is 46. Opera singer Denyce Graves is 45. Comedian Wanda Sykes is 45. Singer-actress Taylor Dayne is 44. Rock musician Randy Guss (Toad the Wet Sprocket) is 42. Actor Peter Sarsgaard is 38. Actress Rachel Weisz is 38. Classical singer Sebastien Izambard (Il Divo) is 36. Rock singer Hugo Ferreira (Tantric) is 35. Actress Jenna Fischer is 35. Actress Audrey Marie Anderson is 34. Actress Laura Prepon is 29.


Thought for Today: "The most dangerous creation of any society is that man who has nothing to lose." -- James Baldwin, American author (1924-1987).
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Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Sunday, March 8, the 67th day of 2009. There are 298 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On March 8, 1862, during the Civil War, the ironclad CSS Virginia formerly USS Merrimack rammed and sank the USS Cumberland and heavily damaged the USS Congress, both frigates, off Newport News, Va.

On this date:

In 1702, England's Queen Anne acceded to the throne upon the death of King William III.

In 1782, the Gnadenhutten massacre took place as more than 90 Indians were slain by militiamen in Ohio in retaliation for raids carried out by other Indians.

In 1854, U.S. Commodore Matthew C. Perry made his second landing in Japan; within a month, he concluded a treaty with the Japanese.

In 1859, British writer Kenneth Grahame, author of "The Wind in the Willows," was born in Edinburgh, Scotland.

In 1874, the 13th president of the United States, Millard Fillmore, died in Buffalo, N.Y., at age 74.

In 1917, Russia's "February Revolution" (so called because of the Old Style calendar being used by Russians at the time) began with rioting and strikes in Petrograd. The U.S. Senate voted to limit filibusters by adopting the cloture rule.

In 1930, the 27th president of the United States, William Howard Taft, died in Washington at age 72.

In 1948, the Supreme Court, in McCollum v. Board of Education, struck down voluntary religious education classes in Champaign, Ill., public schools, saying the program violated separation of church and state.

In 1965, the United States landed its first combat troops in South Vietnam as 3,500 Marines were brought in to defend the U.S. air base at Da Nang.

In 1988, 17 soldiers were killed when two Army helicopters from Fort Campbell, Ky., collided in mid-flight.


Ten years ago: New York Yankees baseball star Joe DiMaggio died in Hollywood, Fla., at age 84. President Bill Clinton began a tour of Central America with a visit to hurricane-battered Nicaragua. The Energy Department fired scientist Wen Ho Lee from his job at the Los Alamos National Laboratory because of alleged security violations. Despite being under a cloud of suspicion, Lee was never charged with espionage. He eventually pleaded guilty to mishandling computer files; a judge apologized for Lee's treatment.

Five years ago: Iraq's Governing Council signed a landmark interim constitution. Todd Bertuzzi of the Vancouver Canucks slugged Colorado Avalanche forward Steve Moore during a game, leaving Moore with a broken neck, concussion and facial cuts. Bertuzzi, who was suspended indefinitely from the NHL, later pleaded guilty to criminal assault; he received a conditional discharge and was sentenced to probation and community service. Abul Abbas, the Palestinian guerrilla leader who'd planned the hijacking of the Achille Lauro passenger ship, died while in U.S. custody in Baghdad, Iraq; he was 56. Actor Robert Pastorelli was found dead in his Hollywood Hills, Calif., home; he was 49.

One year ago: President George W. Bush vetoed a bill that would have banned the CIA from using simulated drowning and other coercive interrogation methods to gain information from suspected terrorists. Barack Obama captured the Wyoming Democratic caucuses.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Sue Ane Langdon is 73. Baseball player-turned-author Jim Bouton is 70. Actress Lynn Redgrave is 66. Actor-director Micky Dolenz is 64. Singer-musician Randy Meisner is 63. Pop singer Peggy March is 61. Baseball Hall-of-Fame electee Jim Rice is 56. Singer Gary Numan is 51. NBC News anchor Lester Holt is 50. Actor Aidan Quinn is 50. Country musician Jimmy Dormire (Confederate Railroad) is 49. Actress Camryn Manheim is 48. Actor Leon is 46. Rock singer Shawn Mullins (The Thorns) is 41. Actress Andrea Parker is 39. Actor Boris Kodjoe is 36. Actor Freddie Prinze Junior is 33. Actor James Van Der Beek is 32. Rhythm-and-blues singer Kameelah Williams (702) is 31. Rock singer Tom Chaplin (Keane) is 30. Rock musician Andy Ross (OK Go) is 30.

Thought for Today: "Noble deeds and hot baths are the best cures for depression." -- Dodie Smith, English playwright (1896-1990).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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