02/02/2023
In light of a frustrating, enlightening, and disgusting continuation of current events covered in an NY Times article about an AP course I saw today, as well as today’s date, I thought I’d discuss some American history with 3 simple questions about historic events. If you know or figure out the answers please respond, I will make the answers easier with more details if no-one gets them right away.
1) 12/7/1941 is (rightfully) known as a date that lives in infamy, but what common, disgusting, and certainly infamous occurrence ties together 5/31/1921 and 5/13/1985?
2) What incredibly serious political event occurred only once in US history on 9/10/1898?
Now if the previous 2 questions are difficult, it’s likely because there’s little to no teaching of them, and will certainly be less still, repressed and removed by those pushing an agenda of ‘American exceptionalism’. But while is strongly disagree with hiding and not learning from shameful events of the past, I have no objection to also celebrating exceptionalism and exceptional individuals. Laughably perhaps that was the goal of a series and poll conducted in 2005 called ‘the greatest American’ in which via open polling a list was created of the top 100, then top 25, then top 5 ‘greatest Americans’ ranked by total votes cast. I can safely say regardless of political or ideological belief at least 1/5 of those ranked will upset, annoy, bewilder, or leave you saying ‘wtf’. Also many of them have not aged well. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Greatest_American In spite of this, rather than be negative about that list, I wish this last question to be positive.
3) Who was Robert Smalls? What were some of his many exceptional, almost unbelievable achievements? If you didn’t know the answer instantly, why not? Why wasn’t he on that list at all. And seriously could you find any American that can be argued to be as exceptional as he was?
Anyway please take the time to answer… feel free to share if this shed light on history you didn’t know. And if you need hints they’ll be coming if no one gets all 3.
The Greatest American was a four-part American television series hosted by Matt Lauer in 2005. The show featured biographies and lists of influential persons in U.S. history, and culminated in a contest in which millions in the audience nominated and voted for the person they felt was the "greatest....
