http://tspwiki.com/index.php?title=1991
As always, Alex Shrugged's opinions are his own. Other people's work are their own. I include them here for the sake of completeness and to provide a second method of access to the material for the TSP history segment.
* The Dead Sea Scrolls are Released to the Public -- Contributed by Alex Shrugged
* Jaycee Dugard is Kidnapped -- Contributed by Southpaw Ben
* The Gulf War Timeline -- Contributed by Alex Shrugged
* Notable Births -- See below.
* This Year in Film -- See below.
* This Year in Music -- See below.
* In Other News -- See below.
================================
The Dead Sea Scrolls are Released to the Public
Contributed by Alex ShruggedAncient scrolls were found by a Bedouin shepherd in a cave near the Dead Sea in 1947. He sold them for a very low price, less than $50 each in today's money. They were soon recognized as the discovery of the century. People have wondered what was held in these ancient scrolls, a entire library hidden away from Roman destruction and the coming Apocalypse. And until now it has been very difficult to find out. A few scholars have kept them under academic lock-and-key for decades, releasing them for study only to a few favored colleagues and academic interns. INTERNS! One photographic copy of the scrolls resides at the Huntington Library in San Marino, California, so after decades of academic quarantine, the library director announces that the Dead Sea Scrolls will be made available to any scholar who asks. Although this goes against the original agreement, it has been long enough... over 4 decades. A photographic copy is published, and what follows are books, papers and rantings from anyone with a Phd after his name, and an opinion. Yet, despite all this initial craziness, it is a good thing in the long run. [1] [2] [3] [4]
My Take by Alex Shrugged
While it is reasonable for a scholar to withhold some original source material to give himself time to make his academic name with them, 44 years is too much. Naturally, the question is whether there is any new information in the scrolls about Jesus. The answer is ... not really. It's mostly background stuff. Most of the scrolls are copies of biblical texts already known. A large number of scrolls are extra biblical books have since been rejected from the canon. (These have a special name which I will not burden you with, but they are the same texts that fiction author Dan Brown used to create The Da Vinci Code, a delightful adventure that I recommend as long as you don't take it too seriously.) [5] Nevertheless, at the time, these extra books were accepted as biblical texts, so studying them is important in knowing the mindset of the people of the time. Finally, there are original documents, many of which contain coded messages hidden within the texts. It all makes for an interesting academic read. What use normal people would have for them is a mystery to me, and I'll leave it at that. [6] [7]
While it is reasonable for a scholar to withhold some original source material to give himself time to make his academic name with them, 44 years is too much. Naturally, the question is whether there is any new information in the scrolls about Jesus. The answer is ... not really. It's mostly background stuff. Most of the scrolls are copies of biblical texts already known. A large number of scrolls are extra biblical books have since been rejected from the canon. (These have a special name which I will not burden you with, but they are the same texts that fiction author Dan Brown used to create The Da Vinci Code, a delightful adventure that I recommend as long as you don't take it too seriously.) [5] Nevertheless, at the time, these extra books were accepted as biblical texts, so studying them is important in knowing the mindset of the people of the time. Finally, there are original documents, many of which contain coded messages hidden within the texts. It all makes for an interesting academic read. What use normal people would have for them is a mystery to me, and I'll leave it at that. [6] [7]
Jaycee Dugard is Kidnapped
Contributed by Southpaw BenOn June 10th, 11 year old Jaycee Dugard was walking to the bus stop by herself, when a man, Phillip Garridos, in a car approached her, rolled down the window, and shocked her unconscious with a stun gun, then drug her into the car. Her stepfather saw her being kidnapped and gave chase on a bicycle, but had no chance of catching up. Within hours of her kidnapping, her story was being covered from coast to coast, but it was to no avail. She was repeatedly raped during her 18 years in captivity, giving birth to two daughters as a result, aged 11 and 15 when rescued. She was finally rescued in 2009 at age 29. Phillip Garridos was sentenced for 431 years to life for her kidnapping and rape, and Nancy Garridos, his wife, was sentenced to 36 years to life as well.[1] [8]
My Take by Southpaw Ben
In case you didn't want to do the math, Jaycee became pregnant for the first time at the age of 13 due to rape. When I realized this, I wanted to literally rip Phillip limb from limb. One of my friends from back home was raped last year by a coworker, and eventually quit her job because she couldn't stand seeing him. She saw it as her fault, and didn't seek help or contact authorities about it. While she did eventually go for help, it was only after much talking with her and convincing her that she needed to talk to someone who knew what they were doing and not just me, her friend. Given how horrible and damaging this experience has been for her, I can't even fathom how bad it must be to be raped over and over by the man you're forced to live with, and give birth to multiple children to him. While I'm with Jack most of the time that the state can't be trusted to carry out death sentences accurately, cases like this make me think long and hard about that belief.
In case you didn't want to do the math, Jaycee became pregnant for the first time at the age of 13 due to rape. When I realized this, I wanted to literally rip Phillip limb from limb. One of my friends from back home was raped last year by a coworker, and eventually quit her job because she couldn't stand seeing him. She saw it as her fault, and didn't seek help or contact authorities about it. While she did eventually go for help, it was only after much talking with her and convincing her that she needed to talk to someone who knew what they were doing and not just me, her friend. Given how horrible and damaging this experience has been for her, I can't even fathom how bad it must be to be raped over and over by the man you're forced to live with, and give birth to multiple children to him. While I'm with Jack most of the time that the state can't be trusted to carry out death sentences accurately, cases like this make me think long and hard about that belief.
The Gulf War Timeline
Contributed by Alex ShruggedIn August of last year, Saddam Hussein of Iraq invaded Kuwait and it looked like he might invade Saudi Arabia, so the US launched Operation Desert Shield to block him. Then Hussein annexed Kuwait making it part of a Greater Iraq. This was unacceptable to other countries, so they prepared to join a US-led Coalition forces to kick Hussein out of Kuwait. The UN issued a January 15th deadline for Iraq to leave, and as that deadline nears, the US Congress authorizes the use of force. This war is going to get wall-to-wall media coverage. It is a real experience to see an event live and then compare it to a clip presented by reporters later on. One wonders if some reporters are even competent.
- Day 01: Operation Desert Storm launches. (1991 Jan 15)
- Day 03: The air war begins. Targets in Baghdad are hit.
- Day 04: Iraq launches SCUD missiles at Israel. Patriot missiles knock them down. You can hear the cheers at Raytheon for miles around. Reagan's "Star Wars" project actually works!
- Day 08: Iraq sets fire to Kuwaiti oil wells.
- Day 11: Iraq dumps crude oil into the Persian Gulf.
- Day 18: Iraq is driven out of Saudi Arabia.
- Day 39: President Bush (the Elder) issues a 24-hour ultimatum to Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait or the ground war begins.
- Day 40: The deadline passes.
- Day 41: The ground war begins. The British SAS is the first to enter Iraq.
- Day 43: The Highway of Death: Iraqi forces retreat in stolen cars and military trucks. They are picked off by Coalition aircraft.
- Day 44: The Battle of Medina Ridge: US Army tanks engage the Iraqi Republican Guard.
- Day 45: Kuwait has been liberated. President Bush announces victory. A ceasefire begins. [11]
Notable Births
- Bonnie Wright: Ginny Weasley in the Harry Potter series. (A teenage crush of mine ~Southpaw Ben)
- Dylan O'Brien: Thomas in The Maze Runner.
- Spencer Locke: Jenny in the animated horror comedy Monster House. [12]
- Mitchel Musso: "DJ" in the animated horror comedy Monster House. [12]
This Year in Film
- Terminator 2: Judgment Day: This time, Arnold is the good guy! [13]
- Disney's Beauty and the Beast: A sweet animated musical. [13]
- Hook: Peter Pan retold after Pan gets old. [13]
- The Addams Family: I cannot believe Angelica Huston pulled this one off.--alexshrugged [13]
- City Slickers: A visit to a dude ranch changes the lives of friends. [13]
This Year in TV
- TVs with built-in closed-captioning are sold in the USA: Before this time you needed a separate box. [14]
- Dinosaurs: It's like the Flintstones except the dinosaurs are in charge. [14]
- The Ren & Stimpy Show: You have to be really sick to like this cartoon show. (I LOVED it!--alexshrugged) [14]
- And...: Rugrats, Aeon Flux and Home Improvement. [14]
This Year in Music
- (Everything I Do) I Do it For You: Bryan Adams. [15]
- Black Or White: Michael Jackson. [15]
- Joyride: Roxette. [15]
- Ozzie Osbourne is sued because his song "Suicide Solution" forced a teenager to kill himself: The case is thrown out. (If that was true, the theme song to M*A*S*H should have caused mass suicide. It is called "Suicide Is Painless".--alexshrugged) [16]
This Year in Video Games
- Street Fighter II for the arcades is released: It sets the standard for fighting games. [17]
- Sega releases Sonic the Hedgehog!: (I loved this game.--alexshrugged). [17]
- Super Nintendo comes to the USA: It uses 16-bit computing and a more reliable cartridge system. [17]
In Other News
- 23 are shot in the Luby's Cafe massacre: Luby's is a gun-free zone. [1]
- Rodney King is beaten by the LAPD: His beating is caught on videotape, and it will lead to riots and destruction. [1]
- House Speaker Tom Foley closes the House Bank: House members have been writing bad checks as a way to launder money and feather their nest. [1]
No comments:
Post a Comment