Snow Days

Coming from the mid-Atlantic region, I've had plenty of snow days. My senior year of high school, I didn't have school for 11 days because no one could dig out!

4 years later, I have now had my first college snow day. There hasn't been a snow day here at the University of Montana in the last 3 years so I decided to find out when the last one was. Assistant Vice President for Enrollment Services informed me today that the last time school was cancelled like this was the mid 1980s, but not for snow. 1983 saw the record low for Missoula, MT: -50º.

Enjoy your snow day, Montanans! 

The Olympic Games

Yesterday, the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games ended. The next Games will be the summer of 2016 in Rio De Janeiro and then the winter of 2018 in PyeongChang. The tradition of coming together to compete in athletic games originated in Ancient Greece.

The games began in Olympia in 776 BCE as a way to honor the Olympian gods. In addition to honoring the gods, it was a way for men, because men were the only participants and observers, to demonstrate their physical capabilities. When the games were held, wars between city states came to a stand still. In fact, the wars were paused before the games  so that the warriors could train for the games. These games ended in 393 CE.

The modern Olympic Games began in 1894 when Pierre de Coubertin founded the governing body of the Olympics. The first games were held in 1896 in Athens. Only 14 nations participated. Today, wars are not halted for the games. Athletes are rarely warriors who must take time away from war to train for competition. Instead, some Games have been cancelled because of World War One and Two. Politics often interfere with the Games, as was the case with the Summer Games held in Munich in 1972. The Games aren't perfect, but they are a feat the human race should be proud of.

 (Nike of Paeonios, statue that was in Zeus's temple at Olympia.)

(Alter of Hera at Olympia, the location where the Olympic flame was lit.)

(Entrance to the Olympic Statdium.)

(Starting line in Olympic Stadium)

(Olympic Stadium, spectators would recline on the hillsides while the officials were located in the box on the right.)

Workers of the world, unite!

February 21, 1848, the infamous Communist Manifesto was published in German in London. It was written by Friedrich Engels and Karl Marx. The well-known line of "A spectre is haunting Europe- the spectre of communism." opened the book, clearly stating that Communism would change the world as it was and the ruling elite of Europe would find that their time was over. Marx and Engels knew that change was terrifying, but they felt that the proletariate needed another option.

When the Bolshevik Revolution occurred in Russia in 1917, Marx was long dead, but his ideas lived on: it was the beginning of the revolution Marx believed was needed in order for a nation to become a communist state. From the revolution, the USSR emerged and lasted until 1991.

The formation of the USSR greatly influenced world history. The distrust of capitalism by the USSR and vice versa, resulted in the Cold War, which was fought through proxy wars as well as an arms and space race.

A lot of modern history occurred because of the ideas published in this little book.

"The gates to friendly contact have finally been opened."

February 17, 1972, the astonishing occurred: US President Richard Nixon left for China. The People's Republic of China and the US had not had any contact with each other in 23 years. This visit was monumental. The US was involved in the Vietnam war, which had Chinese backing, Nixon was known as a "red-baiter" and Nixon was the first US President to visit China.

There were three goals for this trip: solve the issue of Taiwan peacefully, settle the Vietnam war peacefully and to halt the spread of Soviet influence. In addition to these goals, which some people do not think were met, economic ties between the US and China were established and remain very strong today.

(Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress photos)

Target in Sight...

February 14, 1945 was not a day filled with romantic love. British pilots and US pilots were firebombing Dresden during World War II. The goal of the firebombing was to eliminate a military and industrial target, create confusion and help the Soviets who were fighting on the Eastern front.

The attack on Prague was a different story. Prague was not a target and the casualties were all civilians and not a single factory was destroyed. This accident occurred because of radar failure. From the air, Prague and Dresden appear similar and are only 120km apart. This mistake became known as "Ugly Wednesday."

Other than this accidental attack, Prague was mostly untouched during the war. It was under Nazi occupation but was a friendly city to the Allies. Today, Prague appears to have suffered very little damage. In comparison, Warsaw was almost completely destroyed and replaced with Soviet era buildings. Standing in the "old city" of Warsaw, the damage might not be visible but it is felt.

French and Indian War

February 10, 1763, the French and Indian war came to an end. It was a part of the Seven Years War, which was fought in Europe. In North America, it was fought between Great Britain and the French to determine who would control the colonial regions. While the British ultimately won, it was the beginning of their downfall in North America.

The war cost a lot of money and the British government felt that the colonists needed to contribute to the repayments, since they had participated in the war. This led to new taxes and new enforcement laws for those taxes, which the colonists did not like and eventually began the American Revolution.

Not only was a lot of money owed, but the British were suspicious of the colonists and did not treat the men who volunteered to fight for the British very well. At this time, the colonists still considered themselves to be Englishmen but this idea was slowly disappearing.

(George Washington as Captain in the French and Indian War

by Julius Brutus Stearns, circa 1849-1856

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts)

British Invasion

February 7th, 1964, the Beatles arrived for the first time in the US. The Beatles had already been heard in the states but the four Beatles did not realize how popular they actually were until they disembarked from their plane in JFK and saw 3,000 fans waiting for them.

The impact the Beatles had on American culture was lasting. They were a part of the cultural shift from conservative 1950s to the freedom of the 1960s. They influenced countless artists. Today, their music is still relevant and is constantly being covered by other musicians. They were the beginning of the British Invasion of the United States, making way for the Rolling Stones, the Animals and many others.

http://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/from-the-archive-blog/2011/may/31/guardian190-beatlemania-new-york-1964

The Day the Music Died

February 3, 1959, 55 years ago today, was the Day the Music Died. It was the day that Rock and Roll icons Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper died in a plane crash.

Buddy Holly’s band was touring 24 midwestern cities and featured Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper. When traveling between Iowa and Minnesota, Holly hired a plane for some of the members of the tour. Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper flew while the rest of the members took the bus. However, due to bad weather conditions and pilot issues, the plane crashed six miles away from the airport it took off from. All three passengers and the pilot were killed. 

Their deaths were announced on television before their family members were notified. Holly's wife, María Elena Holly, found out while watching tv. At the time, she was pregnant and the next day she miscarried due to the shock and trauma. After this incident, authorities never release victims names until family members have been notified. 

Buddy Holly is credited with being one of the most influential figures in early Rock and Roll. Artists influenced by Buddy Holly include the Beatles, Bob Dylan and The Rolling Stones. 

The Big Bopper, J.P. Richardson, was a radio show host and broke the record for continuous on-air broadcasting by 8 minutes. In addition, he played guitar and wrote many songs. George Jones' country hit "White Lightning" was originally performed by The Big Bopper.

Like Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens was influential in early Rock. He was a forefather of the Chicano Rock movement. He is known best for his rock version of the Mexican folk song "La Bamba."

All three of these musicians were honored and immortalized by Don McLean's song "American Pie." While he does not specifically name them, it mentions the plane crash.