Today is Tuesday, June 23, the 174th day of 2009. There are 191 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On June 23, 1969, Warren E. Burger was sworn in as chief justice of the United States by the man he was succeeding, Earl Warren.

On this date:

In 1757, forces of the East India Company led by Robert Clive won the Battle of Plassey, which effectively marked the beginning of British colonial rule in India.

In 1868, Christopher Latham Sholes received a patent for his "Type-Writer."

In 1931, aviators Wiley Post and Harold Gatty took off from New York on a round-the-world flight that lasted eight days and 15 hours.

In 1938, the Civil Aeronautics Authority was established.

In 1947, the Senate joined the House in overriding President Harry S. Truman's veto of the Taft-Hartley Act, designed to limit the power of organized labor.

In 1956, Gamal Abdel Nasser was elected president of Egypt.

In 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson and Soviet Premier Alexei Kosygin held the first of two meetings at Glassboro State College in New Jersey.

In 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and White House chief of staff H.R. Haldeman discussed a plan to use the CIA to obstruct the FBI's Watergate investigation. (Revelation of the tape recording of this conversation sparked Nixon's resignation in 1974.)

In 1985, all 329 people aboard an Air India Boeing 747 were killed when the plane crashed into the Atlantic Ocean near Ireland, after a bomb widely believed to have been planted by Sikh separatists exploded.

In 1989, the Supreme Court refused to shut down the "dial-a-porn" industry, ruling Congress had gone too far in passing a law banning all sexually oriented phone message services.


Ten years ago: A divided Supreme Court dramatically enhanced states' rights in a trio of decisions that eroded Congress' power. U.S. Marines in Kosovo killed one person and wounded two others after coming under fire; no Marines were injured. Two months after his retirement, Wayne Gretzky was voted into the Hockey Hall of Fame along with former referee Andy Van Hellemond and Ian (Scotty) Morrison in the builder category.

Five years ago: In a major retreat, the United States abandoned an attempt to win a new exemption for American troops from international prosecution for war crimes — an effort that had faced strong opposition because of the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal.

One year ago: Outraged at the turmoil in Zimbabwe, the U.N. Security Council declared that a fair presidential vote was impossible because of a "campaign of violence" waged by President Robert Mugabe's government. Seattle's Felix Hernandez hit the first grand slam by an American League pitcher in 37 years, then departed with a sprained ankle before he could qualify for a win in the Mariners' 5-2 victory over the New York Mets.

Today's Birthdays: Singer Diana Trask is 69. Musical conductor James Levine is 66. R&B singer Rosetta Hightower (The Orlons) is 65. Actor Ted Shackelford is 63. Actor Bryan Brown is 62. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is 61. "American Idol" judge Randy Jackson is 53. Actress Frances McDormand is 52. Rock musician Steve Shelley (Sonic Youth) is 47. Actor Paul La Greca is 47. R&B singer Chico DeBarge is 39. Actress Selma Blair is 37. Rock singer KT Tunstall is 34. R&B singer Virgo Williams (Ghostowns DJs) is 34. Singer-songwriter Jason Mraz is 32. New England Patriots offensive tackle Matt Light is 31. San Diego Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson is 30. Rock singer Duffy is 25. Country singer Katie Armiger is 18.

Thought for Today: "Suffering without understanding in this life is a heap worse than suffering when you have at least the grain of an idea what it's all for." — Mary Ellen Chase, American author (1887-1973).
________________

Source: Associated Press

Today is Wednesday, June 24, the 175th day of 2009. There are 190 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

Five hundred years ago, on June 24, 1509, Henry VIII was crowned king of England; his wife, Catherine of Aragon, was crowned queen consort.

On this date:

In 1314, the forces of Scotland's King Robert I defeated the English in the Battle of Bannockburn.

In 1497, the first recorded sighting of North America by a European took place as explorer John Cabot spotted land, probably in present-day Canada.

In 1793, the first republican constitution in France was adopted.

In 1807, a grand jury in Richmond, Va., indicted former Vice President Aaron Burr on charges of treason and high misdemeanor. (He was later acquitted).

In 1908, the 22nd and 24th presidents of the United States, Grover Cleveland, died in Princeton, N.J., at age 71.

In 1940, France signed an armistice with Italy during World War II.

In 1948, Communist forces cut off all land and water routes between West Germany and West Berlin, prompting the western allies to organize the Berlin Airlift. The Republican National Convention, meeting in Philadelphia, nominated New York Gov. Thomas E. Dewey for president.

In 1968, "Resurrection City," a shantytown constructed as part of the Poor People's March on Washington, D.C., was closed down by authorities.

In 1975, 113 people were killed when an Eastern Airlines Boeing 727 crashed while attempting to land during a thunderstorm at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.

In 1983, the space shuttle Challenger — carrying America's first woman in space, Sally K. Ride — coasted to a safe landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California.


Ten years ago: Union organizers claimed victory after workers at six Fieldcrest Cannon mills in North Carolina voted to be represented by the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees. (Fieldcrest Cannon's parent company, Pillowtex, went bankrupt in 2003.) Testimony wound to an end after 76 days in the landmark Microsoft antitrust trial.

Five years ago: Federal investigators questioned President George W. Bush for more than an hour in connection with the news leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity. A federal appeals court struck down an FCC effort to make sweeping changes in media ownership rules. In a bizarre conclusion to a huge upset, the chair umpire called the wrong score in the second tiebreaker, and Venus Williams fell 7-6 (5), 7-6 (6) to Karolina Sprem in the second round at Wimbledon.

One year ago: Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe refused to give into pressure from Africa and the West, saying the world can "shout as loud as they like" but he would not cancel an upcoming runoff election even though his opponent had quit the race. Leonid Hurwicz, who shared the Nobel Prize in economics in 2007, died in Minneapolis at age 90.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Al Molinaro is 90. Comedian Jack Carter is 86. Movie director Claude Chabrol is 79. Actress Michele Lee is 67. Actor-director Georg Stanford Brown is 66. Rock musician Jeff Beck is 65. Singer Arthur Brown is 65. Rock singer Colin Blunstone (The Zombies) is 64. Musician Mick Fleetwood (Fleetwood Mac) is 62. Actor Peter Weller is 62. Rock musician John Illsley (Dire Straits) is 60. Actress Nancy Allen is 59. Reggae singer Derrick Simpson (Black Uhuru) is 59. Actor Joe Penny is 53. Reggae singer Astro (UB40) is 52. Singer-musician Andy McCluskey (Orchestral Manoevres in the Dark) is 50. Rock singer Curt Smith is 48. Actress Danielle Spencer is 44. Actress Sherry Stringfield is 42. Singer Glenn Medeiros is 39. Actress-producer Mindy Kaling is 30. Actress Minka Kelly (TV's "Friday Night Lights") is 29. Orlando Magic guard J.J. Redick is 25. Singer Solange Knowles is 23.

Thought for Today: "There is a way to look at the past. Don't hide from it. It will not catch you if you don't repeat it." — Pearl Bailey, American singer and actress (1918-1990).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Thursday, June 25, the 176th day of 2009. There are 189 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On June 25, 1950, war broke out in Korea as forces from the communist North invaded the South.

On this date:

In 1788, Virginia ratified the U.S. Constitution.

In 1868, Congress passed an Omnibus Act allowing for the readmission of Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina to the Union.

In 1876, Lt. Col. George A. Custer and his 7th Cavalry were wiped out by Sioux and Cheyenne Indians in the Battle of the Little Bighorn in Montana.

In 1906, architect Stanford White was shot to death atop New York's Madison Square Garden, which he had designed, by millionaire Harry K. Thaw, the jealous husband of Evelyn Nesbit. (Thaw was acquitted of murder by reason of insanity.)

In 1938, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 was enacted.

In 1942, some 1,000 British Royal Air Force bombers raided Bremen, Germany, during World War II.

In 1959, spree killer Charles Starkweather, 20, was put to death in Nebraska's electric chair. Eamon de Valera was inaugurated as president of Ireland.

In 1962, the Supreme Court, in Engel v. Vitale, ruled that recital of a state-sponsored prayer in New York State public schools was unconstitutional.

In 1973, former White House Counsel John W. Dean began testifying before the Senate Watergate Committee.

In 1996, a truck bomb killed 19 Americans and injured hundreds at a U.S. military housing complex in Saudi Arabia.


Ten years ago: During a news conference, President Bill Clinton said the people of Serbia had to "get out of denial" about the atrocities blamed on Slobodan Milosevic and decide if he was fit to remain president of Yugoslavia. The San Antonio Spurs won their first title as they defeated the New York Knicks 78-77 in Game 5 of the NBA finals.

Five years ago: Republican Jack Ryan withdrew from the U.S. Senate race in Illinois after allegations of sex-club visits with his then-wife, actress Jeri Ryan. President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, opened a European trip as they arrived in Ireland. Taliban fighters killed up to 16 men after learning they had registered for Afghanistan's U.S.-backed national elections.

One year ago: A divided Supreme Court struck down a Louisiana law that allowed capital punishment for people convicted of raping children under 12; the ruling also invalidated laws in five other states that allowed executions for child rape that did not result in the death of the victim. A jury in Woburn, Mass., convicted Neil Entwistle of first-degree murder in the deaths of his wife, Rachel, 27, and their 9-month-old baby, Lillian Rose. (Entwistle was sentenced the next day to two life prison terms without possibility of parole.) Wesley N. Higdon, 25, shot and killed five workers and himself at a western Kentucky plastics plant; a sixth victim survived.

Today's Birthdays: Movie director Sidney Lumet is 85. Actress June Lockhart is 84. R&B singer Eddie Floyd is 72. Actress Barbara Montgomery is 70. Basketball Hall of Famer Willis Reed is 67. Writer-producer-director Gary David Goldberg is 65. Singer Carly Simon is 64. Rock musician Allen Lanier (Blue Oyster Cult) is 63. Rock musician Ian McDonald (Foreigner; King Crimson) is 63. Actor-comedian Jimmie Walker is 62. Actor-director Michael Lembeck is 61. TV personality Phyllis George is 60. Rock singer Tim Finn is 57. Rock musician David Paich (Toto) is 55. Actor Michael Sabatino is 54. Actor-writer-director Ricky Gervais is 48. Actor John Benjamin Hickey is 46. Rock singer George Michael is 46. Actress Erica Gimpel is 45. Recently retired Houston Rockets center Dikembe Mutombo is 43. Rapper-producer Richie Rich is 42. Rapper Candyman is 41. Contemporary Christian musician Sean Kelly (Sixpence None the Richer) is 38. Actress Angela Kinsey ("The Office") is 38. Rock musician Mike Kroeger (Nickelback) is 37. Rock musician Mario Calire is 35. Actress Linda Cardellini is 34. Actress Busy Philipps is 30.

Thought for Today: "The press, like fire, is an excellent servant, but a terrible master." — James Fenimore Cooper, American author (1789-1851).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Friday, June 26, the 177th day of 2009. There are 188 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On June 26, 1963, President John F. Kennedy visited West Berlin, where he expressed solidarity with the city's residents by declaring: "Ich bin ein Berliner" (I am a Berliner).

On this date:

In 1870, the first section of Atlantic City's Boardwalk was opened to the public in New Jersey.

In 1919, the New York Daily News was first published.

In 1945, the charter of the United Nations was signed by 50 countries in San Francisco.

In 1948, the Berlin Airlift began in earnest after the Soviet Union cut off land and water routes to the isolated western sector of Berlin.

In 1950, President Harry S. Truman authorized the Air Force and Navy to enter the Korean conflict.

In 1959, President Dwight D. Eisenhower joined Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in ceremonies officially opening the St. Lawrence Seaway. Swedish boxer Ingemar Johansson knocked out Floyd Patterson in the third round of their match at New York's Yankee Stadium to win the heavyweight title.

In 1973, former White House counsel John W. Dean told the Senate Watergate Committee about an "enemies list" kept by the Nixon White House.

In 1977, 42 people were killed when a fire sent toxic smoke pouring through the Maury County Jail in Columbia, Tenn.

In 1988, three people were killed when a new Airbus A320 jetliner carrying more than 130 people crashed into a forest during an air show demonstration flight in Mulhouse, France.

In 1989, the Supreme Court ruled the death penalty may be imposed for murderers who committed their crimes as young as age 16, and for mentally retarded killers as well.


Ten years ago: An advance contingent of Russian troops flew into Kosovo to help reopen a strategic airport and join an uneasy alliance with NATO peacekeepers.

Five years ago: President George W. Bush won support from the 25-nation European Union for an initial agreement to help train Iraq's armed forces. A memorial service was held in Egg Harbor Township, N.J., for Paul M. Johnson Jr., an engineer slain by kidnappers in Saudi Arabia.

One year ago: The Supreme Court struck down a handgun ban in the District of Columbia as it affirmed, 5-4, that an individual right to gun ownership existed. Juan Alvarez, who triggered a 2005 rail disaster in Glendale, Calif., by parking an SUV on the tracks, was convicted of 11 counts of first-degree murder. (Alvarez was later sentenced to 11 consecutive life terms.)

Today's Birthdays: Actress Eleanor Parker is 87. Jazz musician-film composer Dave Grusin is 75. Actor Josef Sommer is 75. Singer Billy Davis Jr. is 69. Rock singer Georgie Fame is 66. Actor Clive Francis is 63. R&B singer Brenda Holloway is 63. Actor Michael Paul Chan is 59. Actor Robert Davi is 56. Singer-musician Mick Jones is 54. Actor Gedde Watanabe is 54. Rock singer Chris Isaak is 53. Rock singer Patty Smyth is 52. Singer Terri Nunn (Berlin) is 48. Rock singer Harriet Wheeler (The Sundays) is 46. Rock musician Colin Greenwood (Radiohead) is 40. Writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson is 39. Actor Sean Hayes is 39. Actor Matt Letscher is 39. Actor Chris O'Donnell is 39. Actress Rebecca Budig is 36. New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter is 35. Country singer Gretchen Wilson is 35. Green Bay Packers offensive tackle Chad Clifton is 33. Rock musician Nathan Followill (Kings of Leon) is 30. Pop-rock singer-musician Ryan Tedder (OneRepublic) is 30. Actor-musician Jason Schwartzman is 29. Utah Jazz guard Deron Williams is 25. Actress Kaitlin Cullum is 23. Actress-singer Jennette McCurdy is 17.

Thought for Today: "When I was a young man I vowed never to marry until I found the ideal woman. Well, I found her — but, alas, she was waiting for the perfect man." — Robert Schuman, French statesman (1886-1963).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Saturday, June 27, the 178th day of 2009. There are 187 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On June 27, 1844, Mormon leader Joseph Smith and his brother, Hyrum, were killed by a mob in Carthage, Ill.

On this date:

In 1846, New York and Boston were linked by telegraph wires.

In 1893, the New York stock market crashed.

In 1944, during World War II, American forces completed their capture of the French port of Cherbourg from the Germans.

In 1950, the U.N. Security Council passed a resolution calling on member nations to help South Korea repel an invasion from the North.

In 1957, more than 500 people were killed when Hurricane Audrey slammed through coastal Louisiana and Texas.

In 1969, police raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York's Greenwich Village; patrons fought back in clashes considered the birth of the gay rights movement.

In 1977, the Supreme Court, in Bates v. State Bar of Arizona, struck down state laws and bar association rules that prohibited lawyers from advertising their fees for routine services. The Republic of Djibouti became independent of France.

In 1984, the Supreme Court ended the NCAA's monopoly on controlling college football telecasts, ruling such control violated antitrust law.

In 1986, the International Court of Justice at The Hague ruled that the United States had broken international law and violated the sovereignty of Nicaragua by aiding the contras.

In 1988, 57 people were killed in a train collision in Paris.


Ten years ago: George Papadopoulos, the head of Greece's 1967-74 military dictatorship, died of cancer in Athens at age 80. Juli Inkster shot a 6-under 65 to win the LPGA Championship, becoming the second woman to win the modern career Grand Slam (the first was Pat Bradley). The Seattle Mariners beat the Texas Rangers 5-2 in the final game at the Kingdome.

Five years ago: NATO leaders gathered in Turkey closed ranks on a pledge to take a bigger military role in Iraq; President George W. Bush declared that the alliance was poised to "meet the threats of the 21st century." Insurgents threatened to behead Cpl. Wassef Ali Hassoun, a U.S. Marine who'd vanished in Iraq, in a videotape that aired on Arab television. (However, Hassoun contacted American officials in his native Lebanon the following month; after being reunited with his family in Utah, Hassoun disappeared in December 2004.)

One year ago: North Korea destroyed the most visible symbol of its nuclear weapons program, the cooling tower at its main atomic reactor at Yongbyon. (However, North Korea announced in September 2008 that it was restoring its nuclear facilities.) In Zimbabwe, roaming bands of government supporters heckled, harassed or threatened people into voting in a runoff election in which President Robert Mugabe was the only candidate.

Today's Birthdays: Business executive and former presidential candidate Ross Perot is 79. The former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, retired Army Gen. John Shalikashvili, is 73. Former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt is 71. Singer-musician Bruce Johnston (The Beach Boys) is 67. Actress Julia Duffy is 58. Actress Isabelle Adjani is 54. Country singer Lorrie Morgan is 50. Actor Brian Drillinger is 49. Writer-producer-director J.J. Abrams is 43. Olympic gold and bronze medal figure skater Viktor Petrenko is 40. TV personality Jo Frost ("Supernanny") is 39. Actor Yancey Arias is 38. Actor Christian Kane is 35. Actor Tobey Maguire is 34. Gospel singer Leigh Nash is 33. Actor Drake Bell is 23. Actor Ed Westwick is 22. Actress Madylin Sweeten is 18.

Thought for Today: "A man, after he has brushed off the dust and chips of his life, will have left only the hard, clean question: Was it good or was it evil? Have I done well — or ill?" — John Steinbeck, American author (1902-1968).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Sunday, June 28, the 179th day of 2009. There are 186 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On June 28, 1919, the Treaty of Versailles was signed in France, ending World War I. In Independence, Mo., future president Harry S. Truman married Elizabeth Virginia Wallace.

On this date:

In 1491, England's King Henry VIII was born at Greenwich.

In 1778, the Revolutionary War Battle of Monmouth took place in New Jersey; it was from this battle that the legend of "Molly Pitcher" arose.

In 1836, the fourth president of the United States, James Madison, died in Montpelier, Va.

In 1838, Britain's Queen Victoria was crowned in Westminster Abbey.

In 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife, Sophie, were assassinated in Sarajevo by a Serb nationalist — the event which sparked World War I.

In 1928, New York Gov. Alfred E. Smith was nominated for president at the Democratic national convention in Houston.

In 1934, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed into law the National Housing Act, which established the Federal Housing Administration.

In 1939, Pan American Airways began regular trans-Atlantic air service with a flight that departed New York for Marseilles, France.

In 1950, North Korean forces captured Seoul, the capital of South Korea.

In 1978, the Supreme Court ordered the University of California-Davis Medical School to admit Allan Bakke, a white man who argued he'd been a victim of reverse racial discrimination.


Ten years ago: Announcing even bigger projected budget surpluses, President Bill Clinton said the government could drastically reduce the national debt while still buttressing Social Security and Medicare.

Five years ago: The U.S.-led coalition transferred sovereignty to the interim Iraqi government two days ahead of schedule. The Supreme Court ruled that the war on terrorism did not give the government a "blank check" to hold a U.S. citizen and foreign-born terror suspects in legal limbo. The United States resumed direct diplomatic ties with Libya after a 24-year break.

One year ago: Presidential rivals John McCain and Barack Obama vied for the support of Hispanics in separate appearances before the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials conference in Washington, with each vowing to remake immigration policy. Jered Weaver and Jose Arredondo combined to no-hit the Los Angeles Dodgers, but the Angels won 1-0. (The Angels became the fifth team in modern major league history to win a game in which they didn't get a hit.)

Today's Birthdays: Blues singer-musician David "Honeyboy" Edwards is 94. Comedian-movie director Mel Brooks is 83. Senate Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin (D-Mich.) is 75. Comedian-impressionist John Byner is 72. CIA Director Leon Panetta is 71. Rock musician Dave Knights (Procul Harum) is 64. Actor Bruce Davison is 63. Actress Kathy Bates is 61. Actress Alice Krige is 55. Football Hall of Famer John Elway is 49. Record company chief executive Tony Mercedes is 47. Actress Jessica Hecht is 44. Rock musician Saul Davies (James) is 44. Actress Mary Stuart Masterson is 43. Actor John Cusack is 43. Actor Gil Bellows is 42. Actress-singer Danielle Brisebois is 40. Jazz musician Jimmy Sommers is 40. Actress Tichina Arnold is 38. Actor Alessandro Nivola is 37. Actress Camille Guaty is 33. Rock musician Tim Nordwind (OK Go) is 33. Rock musician Mark Stoermer (The Killers) is 32. Country singer Kellie Pickler is 23.

Thought for Today: "Heresy is what the minority believe; it is the name given by the powerful to the doctrines of the weak." — Robert G. Ingersoll, American lawyer and statesman (1833-1899).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Monday, June 29, the 180th day of 2009. There are 185 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On June 29, 1776, the Virginia state constitution was adopted, and Patrick Henry was made governor.

On this date:

In 1767, the British Parliament approved the Townshend Acts, which imposed import duties on certain goods shipped to America. (Colonists bitterly protested, prompting Parliament in 1770 to repeal the duties on all goods, except tea.)

In 1946, authorities in British-ruled Palestine arrested more than 2,700 Jews in an attempt to stamp out extremists.

In 1954, the Atomic Energy Commission voted against reinstating Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer's access to classified information.

In 1959, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously struck down a New York State obscenity ban on exhibiting a French movie version of the D.H. Lawrence novel "Lady Chatterley's Lover."

In 1966, the United States bombed fuel storage facilities near the North Vietnamese cities of Hanoi and Haiphong.

In 1967, Jerusalem was reunified as Israel removed barricades separating the Old City from the Israeli sector.

In 1970, the United States ended a two-month military offensive into Cambodia.

In 1972, the Supreme Court ruled the death penalty as it was being meted out could constitute "cruel and unusual punishment." (The ruling prompted states to revise their capital punishment laws.)

In 1988, the Supreme Court upheld the independent counsel law.

In 2003, actress Katharine Hepburn died in Old Saybrook, Conn., at age 96.


Ten years ago: Urging the biggest expansion in Medicare's history, President Bill Clinton proposed that the government help older Americans pay for prescription drugs. Some 10,000 demonstrators rallied in central Serbia, demanding the resignation of President Slobodan Milosevic. Abdullah Ocalan, leader of Turkey's rebel Kurds, was convicted of treason and sentenced to death. (The sentence was later commuted to life in prison.)

Five years ago: A United Nations helicopter crashed in Sierra Leone, killing all 24 peacekeepers, aid workers and others on board. The Supreme Court blocked a law meant to shield Web-surfing children from online pornography. Randy Johnson of the Arizona Diamondbacks became the fourth pitcher to record 4,000 career strikeouts. (However, his team lost to the San Diego Padres, 3-2).

One year ago: Zimbabwe's longtime ruler Robert Mugabe was sworn in as president for a sixth term after a widely discredited runoff in which he was the only candidate. Two weeks away from her 20th birthday, Inbee Park became the youngest winner of the U.S. Women's Open by closing with a 2-under 71 at Interlachen in Edina, Minn. Spain won the European Championship 1-0 over Germany for its first major title in 44 years.

Today's Birthdays: Movie producer Robert Evans is 79. Songwriter L. Russell Brown is 69. Actor Gary Busey is 65. Comedian Richard Lewis is 62. Actor-turned-politican-turned-radio personality Fred Grandy is 61. Rock musician Ian Paice (Deep Purple) is 61. Singer Don Dokken is 56. Rock singer Colin Hay (Men At Work) is 56. Actress Maria Conchita Alonso is 52. Actress Sharon Lawrence is 48. Actress Amanda Donohoe is 47. Rhythm-and-blues singer Stedman Pearson (Five Star) is 45. Actress Kathleen Wilhoite is 45. Musician Dale Baker is 43. Actress Melora Hardin is 42. Rap DJ Shadow is 37. Country musician Todd Sansom (Marshall Dyllon) is 31. Singer Nicole Scherzinger is 31.

Thought for Today: "These are times in which a Genius would wish to live. It is not in the still calm of life, or the repose of a pacific station, that great characters are formed.... Great necessities call out great virtues." — Abigail Adams, American first lady (1744-1818).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Tuesday, June 30, the 181st day of 2009. There are 184 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On June 30, 1859, French acrobat Charles Blondin (born Jean Francois Gravelet) walked back and forth on a tightrope above the gorge of Niagara Falls as thousands of spectators watched.

On this date:

In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Pure Food and Drug Act and the Meat Inspection Act.

In 1908, the Tunguska Event took place in Russia as an asteroid exploded above Siberia, leaving 800 square miles of scorched or blown-down trees.

In 1921, President Warren G. Harding nominated former President William Howard Taft to be chief justice of the United States, succeeding the late Edward Douglass White.

In 1934, Adolf Hitler carried out his "blood purge" of political and military rivals in Germany in what came to be known as "The Night of the Long Knives."

In 1936, the novel "Gone with the Wind" by Margaret Mitchell was published in New York.

In 1958, the U.S. Senate passed the Alaska statehood bill by a vote of 64-20.

In 1963, Pope Paul VI was crowned the 262nd head of the Roman Catholic Church.

In 1971, a Soviet space mission ended in tragedy when three cosmonauts aboard Soyuz 11 were found dead inside their spacecraft after it had returned to Earth.

In 1984, John Turner was sworn in as Canada's 17th prime minister, succeeding Pierre Elliott Trudeau.

In 1985, 39 American hostages from a hijacked TWA jetliner were freed in Beirut after being held 17 days.


Ten years ago: The Federal Reserve raised interest rates for the first time in two years, boosting the target for the funds rate a quarter-point to five percent. On the day the independent counsel law expired, Kenneth Starr wrapped up the Whitewater phase of his investigation as presidential friend Webster Hubbell pleaded guilty to a felony and a misdemeanor.

Five years ago: A federal appeals court approved an antitrust settlement Microsoft had negotiated with the Justice Department. The Iraqis took legal custody of Saddam Hussein and 11 of his top lieutenants, a first step toward the ousted dictator's expected trial for crimes against humanity. After nearly seven years of travel, the international Cassini spacecraft entered Saturn's orbit.

One year ago: President George W. Bush signed legislation to pay for the war operations in Iraq and Afghanistan for the rest of his presidency and beyond, hailing the $162 billion plan as a rare product of bipartisan cooperation. The United States announced that it was charging Saudi Arabian Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri with "organizing and directing" the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole in waters off Yemen — and would seek the death penalty.

Today's Birthdays: Singer Lena Horne is 92. Actor Tony Musante is 73. Actress Nancy Dussault is 73. Singer Glenn Shorrock is 65. Jazz musician Stanley Clarke is 58. Actor David Garrison is 57. Rock musician Hal Lindes (Dire Straits) is 56. Actor-comedian David Alan Grier is 53. Actor Vincent D'Onofrio is 50. Actress Deirdre Lovejoy is 47. Actor Rupert Graves is 46. Boxer Mike Tyson is 43. Rock musician Tom Drummond (Better Than Ezra) is 40. Actor Brian Bloom is 39. Actor Brian Vincent is 39. Actress Monica Potter is 38. Actor Rick Gonzalez is 30. Actress Lizzy Caplan is 27. Rhythm-and-blues singer Fantasia ("American Idol") is 25. Olympic gold medal swimmer Michael Phelps is 24.

Thought for Today: "Those who love deeply never grow old; they may die of old age, but they die young." — Sir Arthur Wing Pinero, English dramatist (1855-1934).
________________

Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Wednesday, July 1, the 182nd day of 2009. There are 183 days left in the year. This is Canada Day.


Today's Highlight in History:

On July 1, 1867, Canada became a self-governing dominion of Great Britain as the British North America Act took effect.

On this date:

In 1859, the first intercollegiate baseball game took place in Pittsfield, Mass., between teams from Williams College and Amherst College. (Amherst won the nearly four-hour, 26-inning contest by the score of 73-32.)

In 1863, the Civil War Battle of Gettysburg, resulting in a Union victory, began in Pennsylvania.

In 1934, Hollywood began enforcing its Production Code subjecting motion pictures to censorship review.

In 1946, the United States exploded a 20-kiloton atomic bomb near Bikini Atoll in the Pacific.

In 1959, the controversial motion picture "Anatomy of a Murder," starring James Stewart, was released.

In 1968, the United States, Britain, the Soviet Union and nearly 60 other nations signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

In 1969, Britain's Prince Charles was formally invested as the Prince of Wales by his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.

In 1980, "O Canada" was proclaimed the national anthem of Canada.

In 1984, the Motion Picture Association of America established the "PG-13" rating.

In 1997, Hong Kong reverted to Chinese rule after 156 years as a British colony.


Ten years ago: Exactly six months before the year 2000, Congress passed legislation to shield businesses from a potential flood of Y2K computer-related lawsuits. A gondola in the French Alps ripped away from its cables, killing 20 people aboard. African nationalist Joshua Nkomo died in Harare, Zimbabwe, at age 82.

Five years ago: Legendary film and stage actor Marlon Brando died in Los Angeles at age 80. Saddam Hussein scoffed at charges of war crimes and mass killings, making a defiant first public appearance in an Iraqi court since being hunted down seven months earlier. Hundreds of thousands of people marched in Hong Kong to demand democratic rights from China. The Cassini spacecraft sent back photographs of Saturn's shimmering rings.

One year ago: Ex-convict Nicholas T. Sheley, suspected in eight grisly slayings in two states, was arrested outside a bar in Granite City, Ill. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Denver agreed to pay $5.5 million to settle 18 more claims by people who said they'd been sexually abused by priests when they were children. Clay Felker, founding editor of New York magazine, died at age 82.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Olivia de Havilland is 93. Actor Farley Granger is 84. Actress-dancer Leslie Caron is 78. Actress Jean Marsh is 75. Actor Jamie Farr is 75. Bluesman James Cotton is 74. Actor David Prowse is 74. Cookiemaker Wally Amos is 73. Actress Karen Black is 70. Dancer-choreographer Twyla Tharp is 68. Actress Genevieve Bujold is 67. Gospel singer Andrae Crouch is 67. Rock singer-actress Deborah Harry is 64. Movie-TV producer-director Michael Pressman is 59. Actor Daryl Anderson is 58. Actor Trevor Eve is 58. Actor Terrence Mann is 58. Rock singer Fred Schneider (B-52's) is 58. Pop singer Victor Willis (Village People) is 58. Actor-comedian Dan Aykroyd is 57. Actor Alan Ruck is 53. Actress Lisa Blount is 52. Rhythm-and-blues singer Evelyn "Champagne" King is 49. Olympic gold medal track star Carl Lewis is 48. Country singer Michelle Wright is 48. Actor Andre Braugher is 47. Actress Pamela Anderson is 42. Rock musician Mark Pirro is 39. Rock musician Franny Griffiths (Space) is 39. Actor Henry Simmons is 39. Hip-hop artist Missy Elliott is 38. Actress Julianne Nicholson is 38. Actress Liv Tyler is 32. Bluegrass musician Adam Haynes (Dailey & Vincent) is 30. Actress Hilarie Burton is 27. Actress Lynsey Bartilson is 26. Actor Evan Ellingson is 21. Actors Andrew and Steven Cavarno are 17.

Thought for Today: "The more we learn the more we realize how little we know." — R. Buckminster Fuller (1895-1983).
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Source: Associated Press

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

Today is Thursday, July 2, the 183rd day of 2009. There are 182 days left in the year.


Today's Highlight in History:

On July 2, 1776, the Continental Congress passed a resolution saying that "these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States."

On this date:

In 1809, Shawnee leader Tecumseh began organizing an Indian Confederacy to resist the growing spread of white American settlers.

In 1881, President James A. Garfield was shot by Charles J. Guiteau at the Washington railroad station; Garfield died the following September. (Guiteau was hanged in June 1882.)

In 1926, the United States Army Air Corps was created.

In 1937, aviator Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan disappeared over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to make the first round-the-world flight along the equator.

In 1961, author Ernest Hemingway shot himself to death at his home in Ketchum, Idaho.

In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law a sweeping civil rights bill passed by Congress.

In 1979, the Susan B. Anthony dollar coin was released to the public.

In 1989, former Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko died in Moscow at age 79.

In 1994, a USAir DC-9 crashed in poor weather at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport in North Carolina, killing 37 of the 57 people aboard.

In 1996, electricity and phone service were knocked out for millions of customers from Canada to the Southwest after power lines throughout the West failed on a record-hot day.


Ten years ago: Former Northwestern University basketball coach Ricky Byrdsong was shot to death in Skokie, Ill.; authorities believe he was the victim of a three-day shooting rampage by white supremacist Benjamin Nathaniel Smith that targeted minorities in Illinois and Indiana. (One other person was killed and several wounded before Smith committed suicide.) "Godfather" author Mario Puzo died on Long Island, N.Y., at age 78.

Five years ago: Elijah Brown, 21, described by police as a disgruntled employee, went on a shooting rampage inside a meatpacking plant in Kansas City, Kan., killing five of his co-workers before taking his own life.

One year ago: Colombian military spies tricked leftist rebels into freeing 15 hostages: ex-presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, three U.S. military contractors, and 11 Colombian policemen and soldiers. Police in Randolph, Vt., unearthed the body of 12-year-old Brooke Bennett from a makeshift grave, ending a weeklong search. (The girl's uncle, convicted sex offender Michael Jacques, has been charged in the killing.)

Today's Birthdays: Country singer Marvin Rainwater is 84. Former Philippine first lady Imelda Marcos is 80. Jazz musician Ahmad Jamal is 79. Actor Robert Ito is 78. Actress Polly Holliday is 72. Former White House chief of staff John H. Sununu is 70. Writer-director-comedian Larry David is 62. Luci Baines Johnson, daughter of President Lyndon B. Johnson, is 62. Actor Saul Rubinek is 61. Rock musician Roy Bittan (Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band) is 60. Rock musician Gene Taylor is 57. Actress-model Jerry Hall is 53. Actor Jimmy McNichol is 48. Rock musician Dave Parsons (Bush) is 44. Actress Yancy Butler is 39. Baseball player Sean Casey is 35. Contemporary Christian musician Melodee DeVevo (Casting Crowns) is 33. Race car driver Sam Hornish Jr. is 30. Singer Michelle Branch is 26. Actress Vanessa Lee Chester is 25. Figure skater Johnny Weir is 25. Actress-singer Ashley Tisdale is 24. Actress Lindsay Lohan is 23.

Thought for Today: "The instinctive feeling of a great people is often wiser than its wisest men." — Louis Kossuth, Hungarian statesman (1802-1894).
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Source: Associated Press

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