Hope the officials are too superstitious

It appears that the last time China had an earthquake of this magnitude was in 1976 - months before Mao died. Another reason the officials of the Beijing Olympics might be sweating.

Today in History

May 13 1568 -
At the battle of Langside, Mary Queen of Scots was defeated by the English. Her heroic stand is worthy of remembrance, but it's interesting to speculate how she might have fared if she had brought
along some soldiers.



May 13, 1787 -
The first fleet of ships carrying convicted criminals left England en route to a new British prison called Australia.



You'd think that by sending their religious nuts to North America and their criminals to Australia, the British would have created a pleasant little island paradise for themselves. Instead their empire has dwindled away over the past 100 years, while the religious nuts and criminals of the U.S. and Australia have established themselves as major powers at Wimbledon.

May 13 1913 -
The latest brainchild of Russian aircraft design genius Igor Sikorsky embarks on its maiden flight. The Grand, easily the world's most luxurious passenger plane, includes such innovations as upholstered
seats, a balcony, and even a lavatory.



May 13 1917-
Three small children in Fatima, Portugal receive the first of six visitations from the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God. Over the next five months she lays some pretty heavy shit on the kids,
including a three-part secret: a vision of Hell, a prophecy of war with godless Russia, and a third secret which remains classified until Y2K.



May 13 1940 -
Winston Churchill takes the helm as Great Britain's new prime minister, announcing: "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat." He assures Parliament that his new policy will consist of nothing less than "to wage war, by sea, land and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us; to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime."

May 13 1972 -
Faulty electrical wiring ignites a fire underneath the Playtown Cabaret in Osaka, Japan. Blocked exits and nonfunctional elevators cause 118 fatalities, with many victims leaping to their death.

May 13 1981 -
A delusional Turk guns down Pope John Paul II in St. Peter's Square. Mehmet Ali Agca believes that the Vatican is an abomination before God and must be destroyed. 19 years later, the Church will disclose that the assassination attempt was foretold in 1917, as part of the third secret of Fatima.



May 13 1985 -
After attempting to serve arrest warrants at 6221 Osage Avenue, police in West Philadelphia are sucked into a 90-minute gunfight with members of the MOVE organization. Later, police drop a bomb on the house from a helicopter. The bomb misses its target and ignites a fire which consumes the entire city block. 61 houses are destroyed in the conflagration, killing 11 MOVE members -- including five children -- and leaving hundreds of neighbors homeless.

And so it goes.