Child safety expert says ‘Playgrounds should be as safe as necessary, not as safe as possible.’ A new bureau has been set up to determine exactly how safe is safe enough….

June 15th: Today in 1215 King John put his royal seal on the Magna Carta, establishing the principal the people have rights under law in English law. Naturally he wouldn’t be King John if he didn’t immediately renounce the Magna Carta once he was away from his rebellious barons, but in the end a toned [...]

June 14th: Today in 1777 the Second Continental Congress passed the Flag Resolution which established the red, white and blue flag we use today as the national flag. The resolution did not specify the pattern for the stars and this varied for awhile before setting into the pattern used today, but overall the flag has [...]

June 13th: Today in 1920 the US Post Office ruled you can not send children via parcel post. Ok, this one is highly suspect, but it shows up on multiple ‘this day in history lists‘. I tried to verify it, but drew a blank. I normally won’t post them if I can’t verify it and [...]

June 13th: Today in 1645 Miyamoto Musashi author of the Book of Five Rings died. His books had a tremendous impact on Samurai culture and his duels are studied today and still controversial. From growing up in Hawaii where the Samurai show was my replacement for the westerns I would have been watching on TV [...]

June 12th: Today in 1939 the Baseball Hall of Fame opened in Cooperstown, NY. It was not the first Hall of Fame, but it was the most famous and influential for quite a while. Now there is a Hall of Fame for anything, even things which have no fame about them at all. My favorite [...]

June 11th: Today in 1837 a group of firemen returning from a fire met an crowd returning from an Irish funeral and The Broad Street Riot broke out. Ok, I admit I am reaching here but not everyday is going to be a gem. Hmmm. Maybe I should have gone with Captain Cook running aground [...]

June 10th: Today in 1942 the Nazi security forces sealed off the Czech village of Lidice then rounded up all the inhabitents. They killed the males over 15, sent the women off to concentration camps and either sent the children to German families or killed them. This was in retaliation for the murder of Reinhard [...]

This is very cool. They have found what is left of the Royal Table beneath Westminster Palace. It was used from Edward the First until Oliver Cromwell had it destroyed. Very cool find.

June 9th: Today in 68 Emperor Nero committed suicide rather than face a senate imposed death sentence. Questions remain whether Nero was crazy or whether he was slandered by historians but his life makes for an entertaining read either way.