Our weather will be on the upswing. Wednesday will still be cool with a number of clouds but a sunny start. Then we get to the mid 70′s to end up the week and head into the Memorial Day Weekend. Sunday we get to the low 80′s and the mid 80′s on Memorial Day. Monday night perhaps some thunderstorms.
On This Date In History: Remember the story about De Soto and his pigs from a few days ago? Well, he died on this date in 1542 and the pigs he was saving got auctioned off.
Pig Brigade
But it was a day for flying. On this date in 1927, Charles Lindbergh became the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic when he landed in Paris. But, I think it was the 22ndin Paris while it was the 21st in the US. Anyway, less celebrated but significant nonetheless was on the same date in 1932, Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic when she landed in Ireland. Now, she flew from New Foundland and it was just under 2000 miles. Lindbergh flew from New York to Paris which was nearly twice as far and he had to stay awake for over 33 hours while Earhart’s flight lasted but 15 hours. He won a prize of $25,000 and she got the Distinguished Flying Cross from the US Congress.
The photo of Earhart is interesting because most of the photos of her are somewhat unflattering but do indicate the potential for beauty. This photo verifies….she was a hottie.
Whether it’s 15 or 33.5 hours, that’s a long time to be driving, or flying. Perhaps they could have used the help of Jacob German, who on this date in 1899 became the first person ever arrested for speeding. He had been spotted driving a taxi for the Electric Vehicle Company at the “breakneck” speed of 12 miles per hour. The cops grabbed him and threw him in the clink but they didn’t take his driver’s license. That’s because New York didn’t issue driver’s licenses until 1901.
On The Not-So-Green Front: You’ve probably heard of the Kyoto Protocol which is the international treaty signed in Kyoto, Japan where all the signature nations agree to work toward reduction of Greenhouse Gases. The US didn’t sign because it felt that the agreement was destined to unfairly penalize the United States. That has drawn much criticism. But, it seems that many of the people of Tokyo, Japan have a kindred spirit with the United States and reject their brethren in Kyoto. A recent poll indicates that over 41% of the citizens of Tokyo are not willing to sacrifice anything to fight global warming. They’d rather maintain their lifestyles and convenience. Do they know something that so many other’s do not? Here’s the story.
