Crabs and Beer!

On this day in 1935, President Franklin Roosevelt signed into law the Social Security Act. The law created the Social Security program as well as insurance against unemployment. The law was part of Roosevelt’s New Deal domestic program.

By 1930, the United States was one of the few industrialized countries without any national social security system. Amid the Great Depression, the physician Francis Townsend galvanized support behind a proposal to issue direct payments to older people. Responding to that movement, Roosevelt organized a committee led by Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins to develop a major social welfare program proposal. Roosevelt presented the plan in early 1935 and signed the Social Security Act into law on August 14, 1935. The Supreme Court upheld the act in two major cases decided in 1937.

Roosevelt’s New Deal is a shining example of how progressive government can make significant improvements to the lives of everyday Americans, something we could use today. Among the accomplishments are the 1933 Banking Act which created the FDIC to insure bank deposits, Social Security, Unemployment Insurance, the Securities and Exchange Commission which protected investors from abusive stock market practices, the National Labor Relations Act which guaranteed employees the right to organize, the Fair Labor Standards Act which prohibited “oppressive” child labor, and enshrined a 40-hour work week and national minimum wage.

Roosevelt signs the Social Security Act into law, August 14, 1935.

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Thanks, Debra!!

Here’s The Band…https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jREUrbGGrgM

Today is the anniversary of Barbed Wire Sunday – the day when the military and police of East Germany closed the border between East and West Berlin and began the construction of what would become the Berlin Wall. The intention of closing the border was to prevent the migration of East Germans to the West.

Prior to the establishment of the wall, approximately 3.5 million (or 20% of the population) East German citizens defected to West Germany, many through the Berlin border due to its lack of security. This posed a major issue to the government as it was losing its substantial amounts of not just its workforce but also its intellectuals.

East German tanks stretch out along the Warschauer bridge/Oberbaum Bridge in Berlin to stem the flow of refugees to the West, 13 August 1961

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Today is the birthday, in 1959, of American radio/television personality, comedian Danny Bonaduce who with The Partridge Family had the 1970 US No.1 single ‘I Think I Love You’, and the 1972 UK No.3 single ‘Breaking Up Is Hard To Do’. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EW4E0jAeAf8

On this day in 1851, Isaac Singer was granted a patent for his sewing machine. Many others, including Walter Hunt and Elias Howe, had patented sewing machines before Singer, but his success was based on the practicality of his machine, the ease with which it could be adapted to home use and its availability on an installments payment basis.

Singer died in 1875, dividing his $13 million fortune unequally among 20 of his living children by his wives and various mistresses, although one son, who had supported his mother in her divorce case against Singer, received only $500. Altogether, he fathered 26 children by five different women.

In 1856, manufacturers Grover & Baker, Singer, Wheeler & Wilson, all accusing each other of patent infringement, met to pursue their suits. Orlando B. Potter, a lawyer and president of the Grover and Baker Company, proposed that, rather than squander their profits on litigation, they pool their patents. This was the first patent pool, a process which enables the production of complicated machines without legal battles over patent rights. They agreed to form the Sewing Machine Combination.

Up to then, sewing machines had been industrial machines, made for garments, shoes, bridles and for tailors, but in 1856, smaller machines began to be marketed for home use. However, at the then enormous price of over $100 ($4,094.82 in 2024 USD), few sold. Singer invested heavily in mass production utilizing the concept of interchangeable parts developed by Samuel Colt and Eli Whitney for their firearms. He was able to cut the price in half, while at the same time increasing his profit margin by 530%. Singer was the first who put a family machine, “the turtle back”, on the market. Eventually, the price came down to $10(about $404.23 in 2024 USD) According to PBS, “His partner, Edward Cabot Clark, pioneered installment purchasing plans and accepted trade-ins, causing sales to soar.”

Singer in 1869

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A fleeting moment of self-awareness…

Combo business…

If you remember…

Today is the birthday, in 1949, of Mark Knopfler British songwriter, guitarist, singer with Dire Straits who had the 1985 US No.1 single ‘Money For Nothing’, the 1986 UK No.2 single ‘Walk Of Life’, and the 1985 world-wide No.1 album Brothers In Arms. Knopfler has recorded and performed with many prominent musicians, including Chet Atkins, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Bryan Ferry, Emmylou Harris, Van Morrison, Steely Dan, Sting, and James Taylor. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kd9TlGDZGkI

On this day in 1858, the first successful ascent of The Eiger in the Bernese Alps is made by Charles Barrington accompanied by Christian Almer and Peter Bohren.

The Eiger is a 3,967-metre (13,015 ft) mountain of the Bernese Alps. It is the easternmost peak of a ridge crest that extends across the Mönch to the Jungfrau at 4,158 m (13,642 ft), constituting one of the most emblematic sights of the Swiss Alps. While the northern side of the mountain rises more than 3,000 m (10,000 ft) above the two valleys of Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen, the southern side faces the large glaciers of the Jungfrau-Aletsch area, the most glaciated region in the Alps. The most notable feature of the Eiger is its nearly 1,800-metre-high (5,900 ft) north face of rock and ice.

The Eiger has been highly publicized for the many tragedies involving climbing expeditions. Since 1935, at least 64 climbers have died attempting the north face, earning it the German nickname Mordwand, literally “murder(ous) wall”—a pun on its correct title of Nordwand (North Wall).

The north face of the Eiger

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SIGNZZZ

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Today is the birthday, in 1949, of Eric Carmen, American singer, songwriter, guitarist and keyboardist, who with The Raspberries had the 1972 US No.5 single ‘Go All The Way’ and the 1976 solo US No.2 single, ‘All By Myself’, plus other hits with ‘She Did It’, ‘Hungry Eyes’, and ‘Make Me Lose Control. He died on 11 March 2024 age 74. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzoazPPC7b8

On this day in 1961, the US Army began Operation Ranch Hand. It was a U.S. military operation during the Vietnam War, lasting from 1962 until 1971. Largely inspired by the British use of Agent Orange during the Malayan Emergency in the 1950s, it was part of the overall herbicidal warfare program during the war called “Operation Trail Dust”.

Ranch Hand involved spraying an estimated 19 million U.S. gallons of defoliants and herbicides over rural areas of South Vietnam in an attempt to deprive the Viet Cong of food and vegetation cover. According to the Vietnamese government, the chemicals have killed or maimed 400,000 people. The United States government has described these figures as “unreliable”.

Nearly 20,000 sorties were flown between 1961 and 1971. The “Ranch Handers” motto was “Only you can prevent a forest” – a take on the popular U.S. Forest Service poster slogan of Smokey Bear. During the ten years of spraying, over 5 million acres (20,000 km²) of forest and 500,000 acres (2,000 km²) of crops were heavily damaged or destroyed. Around 20% of the forests of South Vietnam were sprayed at least once.

Four-plane defoliant run, part of Operation Ranch Hand

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BE YOURSELF!

Thanks, Debra!

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Today is the birthday, in 1947, of American singer Ronnie Spector, who co-founded and fronted the girl group The Ronettes who had the 1963 US No.2 & UK No.4 single ‘Be My Baby’. She married producer Phil Spector in 1968. Ronnie alleged in her 1990 memoir, Be My Baby, that following their marriage, Phil subjected her to years of psychological torment and sabotaged her career. Ronnie died on January 12, 2022, aged 78. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-dr1PZZMds