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Baseball History for February 13th

Tom Knuppel Other

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This Date in Baseball History

1914
The Cubs exchange second basemen with the Braves, sending future Hall of Famer Johnny Evers to Boston for Bill Sweeeny. Boston gets the better of the deal when their new middle infielder plays a pivotal role in the club’s World Championship this season, garnering the Chalmers Award as the Most Valuable Player of the league.

1920
A group of eight midwestern team owners meets at the Kansas City YMCA to organize the Negro National League, which will become one of the most successful ventures of its kind. Rube Foster, the owner and manager of the American Giants, will become president of the new circuit, leading to accusations of favoritism, which appear especially true when the schedule had Chicago play a disproportionate number of games at home.

1935
Former major league journeyman Gus Dugas, a French-Canadian obtained from by the Montreal Royals from Albany of the International League in November, signs his contract while visiting relatives in his native province of Quebec. The contract is totally written in French, a first in the history of professional baseball.

1953
In honor of their longtime owner and manager, the A’s rename their Philadelphia ballpark from Shibe Park to Connie Mack Stadium. During his 50-year tenure as Athletics skipper, the ‘Tall Tactician’ guided the team to nine American League pennants and appeared in eight World Series, winning five of the Fall Classics.
1964
At the age of twenty-two, Cubs’ second baseman Ken Hubbs dies when the red and white Cessna 172 plane he is piloting crashes in Provo, Utah during a winter storm. The 1962 National League Rookie of the Year took flying lessons in the past two off-seasons, obtaining his license last month, to overcome his fear of flying.

1968
The Dodgers trade infielders Ron Hunt and Nate Oliver to the Giants in exchange for backstop Tom Haller. The 30 year-old All-Star catcher will compile a very respectable .276 batting average during his four years behind the plate for L.A.

1970
A day after his 27th birthday, Paul Edmondson and his girlfriend are killed in an automobile accident in San Barbara, California when his automobile skids on a rain-slicked U.S. Route 101 and crashes into oncoming traffic. The White Sox had hoped their sophomore right-hander would become the fourth starter in the team’s rotation, after compiling a misleading 1-6 record last season.

1986
Ron Hassey, whom the White Sox acquired two months ago from the Yankees, is traded back to the Bronx Bombers, along with three minor-leaguers for Neil Allen, Scott Bradley and a minor leaguer. In December, the 32 year-old catcher was sent to the Windy City, along with Joe Cowley for Britt Burns and two minor leaguers.

1987
Jack Morris is awarded the highest salary ever given to a pitcher by arbitration when the Tigers must pay the hurler $1.85 million for his services next season. The 31 year-old right-hander will not disappoint, posting an 18-11 record along with an ERA of 3.38 for the AL East Division champions.

1995
The Dodgers sign five-time Japanese all-star pitcher, Hideo Nomo. ‘Tornado Boy’ is the first player to move directly from the majors in Japan to the North American majors.

2002
The Red Sox sign 43 year-old Rickey Henderson to a minor-league contract. Last season with the Padres, the future Hall of Famer got his 3000th career hit and broke the all-time records for walks and runs.

2003
The Mets sign 40 year-old David Cone to a minor league contract. The right-hander, who compiled an 80-48 record with the team from 1987-1992, is coming out of retirement hoping to win the fifth spot in the rotation.

2005
Avoiding an arbitration hearing, Ben Sheets (12-14, 2.70) and the Brewers agree to a one-year contract valued at $5.5 million. The All-Star right hander, who made $2.5 million last season, established a team record last May, striking out 18 batters in a game.

2005
After 19 years at shortstop for the Reds, Barry Larkin announces his retirement as an active player to become special assistant to Nationals’ general manager Jim Bowden, who had served as the team’s GM from 1992 to 2001. The 40 year-old former Gold Glove infielder spent his entire career in his hometown of Cincinnati.

2006
Avoiding an arbitration hearing, Adam Dunn (.247, 40, 101) and the Reds agreed to a $18.5 million two-year deal and gives the team a 2008 option for $13 million with a buyout for $500,000. The 26 year-old outfielder/first baseman, who led the big leagues for the second consecutive season in strikeouts, had asked for $8.95 million, with the club countering with $7.1 million.

2008
Takashi Saito (2-1, 1.40), who signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers two years ago after playing 14 seasons in the Japanese Central League with the Yokohama Bay Stars, agrees to a $2 million, one-year contract to stay with Los Angeles. The 37 year-old All Star closer had 39 saves in 43 chances last season.

2008
In a much anticipated congressional hearing, Roger Clemens and his former personal trainer, Brian McNamee, testify for 4 1/2 hours concerning the allegations of the Rocket’s use of performance-enhancing drugs. Although no definitive conclusions are reached, Republicans appear to believe the seven-time Cy Young Award winner while Democrats seem to favor his chief accuser’s account of events.

2009
In an effort to avoid arbitration for the remainder of his career, Ryan Howard agrees to a three-year, $54 million deal with Philadelphia. The Phillies slugger, who led the major leagues in home runs (48) and RBI (146), was unable reach a contract settlement in less than friendly negotiations with the team and was awarded $10 million by arbitrators during the 2008 off-season, tying the highest sum ever given to a player in the process.

2012
In a deal confirmed by his agent, Yoenis Cespedes has reached a four-year, $36 million agreement with the A’s, pending the results of a physical. The Cuban defector, who is slotted to play center field, moving Coco Crisp to left, hit .458 with a double, three triples, two home runs, and five RBIs in the six games he played in the 2009 World Baseball Classic.

Baseball History for February 12

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Baseball History for February 12

 

 

Today on February 12th in Major League Baseball History

1878 After designing the device last season to protect his team’s promising, but skittish, catcher James Tyng, Fredrick Thayer receives a patent for his innovative invention, the catcher’s mask. The Harvard captain, who will never play in a major league game, designed an oblong wire frame modeled after a fencing mask with eyes holes that supports a series of strategically-placed pads made from animal skins. Here is an article from the New York Times about fans scoffing at a catcher’s mask.
1924 The National League announces it will join the AL in awarding a thousand dollars to the player selected by writers as the league’s Most Valuable Player. Dazzy Vance, who posts a 28-6 record along with an ERA of 2.16 for the Dodgers, easily outpoints Rogers Hornsby to become the Senior Circuit’s first MVP.
1930 After leading his A’s to a world championship, Connie Mack becomes the first Philadelphian sports figure to receive the prestigious Edward W. Bok Prize. The honor, now known as the Philadelphia Award, recognizes distinguished Philadelphians for their achievements in education, industry, law, politics, science, medicine, philosophy, and the creative arts. Very good article written in the SabrBio Project about Connie Mack.
1942 Former Texarkana outfielder Gordon Houston is the first professional ballplayer to be killed in WW II. The minor league batting champion, who became a full-time fighter pilot following the attack on Pearl Harbor, dies at the age of 25 when his Republic P-43 Lancer crashes at Washington’s McChord Field, after leading a sortie along the West Coast, looking for Japanese submarines.
1944 Bob Coleman, who filled in for Casey Stengel last season when the Boston skipper suffered a broken leg when hit by a taxi cab trying to cross a street, is named to replace the ‘Old Perfessor’ as the manager of the Braves. Considered one of the most successful managers in minor league history, the 54 year-old Indiana native could not work his magic with the wartime club, and after finishing sixth followed by a slow start in 1945, the former big league catcher will be replaced by Del Bissonette, one of his coaches.
1980 Marv Davis’s plan to buy the A’s from Charlie Finley is thwarted when the American League offers to buy out the Oakland Coliseum lease. The billionaire businessman, who will also make failed bids for the NFL’s Cowboys and Broncos, had hoped to move the franchise from the City by the Bay to Denver.
1981 Arbitrator Raymond Goetz officially declares Carlton Fisk a free agent, citing the Boston Red Sox had violated the CBA by not mailing the catcher’s contract by the December 20th deadline as specified in the agreement. Next month, the 33 year-old future Hall of Fame backstop will signed a $3.5 million deal to catch for the White Sox this season.
2002 For the first time in its history, Major League Baseball will own a team after acquiring the Expos from Jeffrey Loria. The former Montreal owner sells the Expos for $120 million, then buys the Florida Marlins for $158.5 million with the difference being made up with a loan from major league baseball.
With unanimous approval of the sale of the Florida Marlins to the former owner of the Montreal Expos, Jeffrey Loria, and Major League Baseball’s acquisition of the Montreal franchise, personnel changes are announced. The Expos name Frank Robinson as manager, Tony Tavares as president of the club with Omar Minaya becoming the major leagues’ first Hispanic general manager, and south of the border former Expo manager Jeff Torborg will manage the Marlins with former Expos’ interim general manager Larry Beinfest as the GM and David Samson will take over the duties of team president.

 

2003 Federal Judge James Holderman has given the Cubs and the owners of rooftop bleachers which provide fans a view of Wrigley Field a year to settle their dispute. The team believes the seating provided above the field via rooftops directly competes with the club for ticket sales revenue and the surrounding neighbors, in turn, have not been sympathetic to the team’s expansion plans.
2007 The Major League Baseball Players Association asks the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider its 2-1 decision which would allow the names and urine samples of more than 100 players who tested positive for performance enhancing drugs to be made available to authorities investigating the use of steroids in baseball. The 1993 samples were collected by MLB in an effort to gauge the prevalence of steroid use with players and owners agreeing the results would be confidential.
2007 After a year of negotiations, an agreement is reached on the sale of the Braves from Time Warner to Liberty Media. Seventy percent of the owners must approve the deal which includes the retention of general manager John Schuerholz and manager Bobby Cox.
2008 The Twins, in an effort to add experience to a young rotation, sign Livan Hernandez (11-11, 4.93) to a $5 million, one-year deal with an additional $2 million in performance bonuses. The 32 year-old right-hander from Cuba will also add innings to a staff depleted due to the departures of starters Johan Santana and Carlos Silva.
2009 Three days after Alex Rodriguez apologizes for using steroids, commissioner Bud Selig chastises the Yankee superstar, and all the other players, who used such substances, for bringing shame to the game. The third baseman’s apology followed a SI.com report that he was one of 104 players who tested positive in tests taken in 2003 to determine the extent of steroid use in the national pastime.
2009 Ervin Santana avoids arbitration, agreeing to a deal with the Angels which could be worth $42 million over the next five years. The 26 year-old right-hander, who posted a 16-7 record with a 3.49 ERA for the AL West Champions last season, is the youngest active hurler with 50 career victories (51-37).
2009 Dan Uggla (.260, 32, 92), eligible for arbitration for the first time, is awarded $5.35 million by the process. The All-star second baseman, who has averaged 30 home runs and 90 RBIs his first three seasons in the majors, rejected the Marlins’ offer of $4.4 million.
2009 Jose Offerman, a former All-Star major league infielder with the Red Sox and Dodgers, is sued by John Nathans for his bat-wielding attack at a minor league game in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The Bluefish catcher is seeking $4.8 million in damages against the Long Island Ducks player, claiming the 2007 incident left him with career-ending injuries which include inner ear damage, vertigo, headaches and post-concussion syndrome.
2010 Corey Hart (.260, 12, 48) is awarded a raise from $3.25 million to $4.8 million in the Brewers’ first salary arbitration hearing in a dozen years. In the first case to use the process this year, Milwaukee’s offer of $4.15 million to their 27 year-old right-fielder, an All-Star in 2008, was rejected by a panel of arbitrators.
2010 Tim Lincecum, two-time reigning NL Cy Young Award winner, reaches a preliminary agreement on a $23 million, two-year deal with the Giants prior to the start of a scheduled arbitration hearing. The 25 year-old right-hander has compiled a 40-17 record along with an ERA of 2.90 ERA during three big league seasons with San Francisco.
2011 “Doris From Rego Park” makes its debut on Jonathan Schwartz’s weekend program on WNYC-FM. The song, written and performed by Don Rosler, is a tribute to Doris Bauer, the Mets fan who became a New York institution as a late-night caller to WFAN sports radio before she died in 2003.

2014 Derek Jeter, who will turn 40 during in June, announces the 2014 season will be his final one, informing his fans via a lengthy Facebook post. The 13-time All-Star shortstop acknowledged that his numerous injuries have taken their toll, making the game more of a struggle and less enjoyable.

This Date in Baseball History- Feb. 11th

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Here’s a look at This Date in Baseball History
1915 New York Giants president Harry Hempstead rejects the International League’s request for permission to put a team in the Bronx. The shift of the IL’s Jersey City to the nearby borough, already the home to the Yankees, was conceived as a way to prop up the failing minor league franchise and perhaps to thwart the invasion of the Federal League into the Big Apple.
1974 The first arbitration ruling in baseball history is decided in favor of Twins’ hurler Dick Woodson. The right-hander, the first player to invoke the new free agency clause, is awarded the $29,000 he asked for rather than having to take Minnesota’s offer which was $6 thousand less.
1977 The Cubs trade two-time NL batting champ Bill Madlock along with Rod Sperring to the Giants for Bobby Murcer, Steve Ontiveros and a minor leaguer. During the 1979 season, San Francisco will trade the fiercely competitive ‘Mad Dog’ to the Pirates, where he play a major role in the team’s world championship that season, and will win two more batting crowns during his seven-year tenure in Pittsburgh.
1982 Two months after the trade was announced, the Ozzie Smith agrees to go to the Cardinals to complete the December deal that finally sends Gary Templeton to the Padres. An outside arbitrator, Tom Roberts, will determine ‘the Wizard of Oz’s’ Cardinal salary before the season starts, awarding the light-hitting Gold Glove shortstop $450,000 rather than the $750,000 he requested.
1985 Kent Hrbek signs a new contract, making him the Twins’ first million dollar player. The Minnesota first baseman was the runner-up for the American League Most Valuable Player last season after batting .311 along with 27 homers and 107 RBIs for the second-place club.
On This Day in Baseball History in 1987 After refusing the Mets’ $800,000 one-year offer, World Series MVP Ray Knight signs with the Orioles for $475,000 plus incentives and an option for an additional year.
1997 General Mills, the makers of Wheaties, unveils three new Jackie Robinson cereal boxes to be sold in stores nationwide. The Dodgers’ Hall of Fame infielder will be the first athlete to be honored on all three varieties of Wheaties: Original Wheaties, Honey Frosted Wheaties, and Crispy Wheaties ‘n’ Raisins.

2001 As thousands cheer, Three Rivers Stadium, 30 year-old home of the Pirates, is imploded. Roberto Clemente’s 3,000th hit as well as Mike Schmidt’s 500th career home run are part of the historic park’s legacy.

2005 Jose Canseco’s controversial book, Juiced, is made available in certain markets in anticipation of his appearance on CBS’s Sixty Minutes. The self proclaimed godfather of the steroids in baseball alleges Mark McGwire, Juan Gonzalez, Rafael Palmeiro and Ivan Rodriguez all used illegal performance-enhancing

2005 The Mets announce their former slugging All-Star and often-troubled Rookie of the Year, Darryl Strawberry, will rejoin the team as a special outfield instructor during spring training. He will also join former 1986 World Champion teammates Gary Carter, Lenny Dykstra, Howard Johnson and Tim Teufel at Shea Stadium on Feb. 27 when single-game tickets go on sale.
2006 Avoiding an arbitration hearing, starting pitcher Carlos Zambrano (14-6, 3.26) and the Cubs agree to a one-year deal worth $6.5 million. After earning $3.76 million last season, the emotional right-hander had asked for $7.2 million, with Chicago offering $6 million.
2007 Avoiding salary arbitration, AL’s reigning batting champ Joe Mauer (.347, 13, 84) and the Twins come to terms on a $33 million, four-year contract. The hometown 23 year-old All-Star backstop is the first catcher to lead the majors in batting average and the first to win the batting title in the American League.
2008 Following in the footsteps of fan favorites Nolan Ryan, Roger Clemens and Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio agrees to a three-year personal services contract with the Astros. The 42 year-old retired ballplayer spent his entire 20-year career in Houston, leading the club in games, at-bats, hits, doubles, and total bases.
2009 The Nationals sign slugger Adam Dunn to a two-year, $20 million deal. The 29 year-old left-handed free-agent, who played for Arizona last season, will bat cleanup for Washington, replacing Nick Johnson at first base.
2010 Ernie Harwell, the long-time voice of the Tigers, will receive the Vin Scully Lifetime Achievement Award in Sports Broadcasting during WFUV Radio’s Spring Gala at Fordham University. The 92 year-old Hall of Fame broadcaster is the third recipient of the VSLA, named for the former alum and Dodger broadcast icon, joining inaugural honoree Vin Scully (2008) and Dick Enberg (2009).

 

 

 

 

 

February 10, 1967- 25th Amendment to Constitution Ratified

Tom Knuppel Other

 

The Twenty-fifth Amendment (Amendment XXV) to the United States Constitution deals with succession to the Presidency and establishes procedures both for filling a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, as well as responding to Presidential disabilities. It supersedes the ambiguous wording of Article II, Section 1, Clause 6 of the Constitution, which does not expressly state whether the Vice President becomes the President or Acting President if the President dies, resigns, is removed from office or is otherwise unable to discharge the powers of the presidency. The Twenty-fifth Amendment was adopted on February 10, 1967.

Section 1. In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the Vice President shall become President.
Section 2. Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress.
Section 3. Whenever the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that he is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary, such powers and duties shall be discharged by the Vice President as Acting President.
Section 4. Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.
Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty-eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty-one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty-one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two-thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his office.

The Twenty-fifth Amendment in the National Archives

Article II, Section 1, Clause 6 of the Constitution states:
In Case of the Removal of the President from Office, or of his Death, Resignation, or Inability to discharge the Powers and Duties of the said Office, the Same shall devolve on the Vice President, and the Congress may by Law provide for the Case of Removal, Death, Resignation or Inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what Officer shall then act as President, and such Officer shall act accordingly, until the Disability be removed, or a President shall be elected.
That clause was unclear regarding Presidential succession and inability; it did not state who had the power to declare a President incapacitated. Also, it did not provide a mechanism for filling a Vice Presidential vacancy prior to the next Presidential election. The vagueness of this clause caused difficulties many times before the Twenty-fifth Amendment’s adoption:
In 1841, President William Henry Harrison became the first U.S. President to die in office. Representative John Williams had previously suggested that the Vice President should become Acting President upon the death of the President. John Tyler asserted that he had succeeded to the presidency, as opposed to only obtaining its powers and duties. He also declined to acknowledge documents referring to him as “Acting President”. Although he felt his vice presidential oath negated the need for the presidential oath, Tyler was persuaded that being formally sworn-in would clear up any doubts about his right to the office. Having done so, he then moved into the White House and assumed full presidential powers. Tyler’s claim was not formally challenged, and both houses of Congress adopted a resolution confirming that Tyler was the tenth President of the United States, without any qualifiers. The precedent of full succession was thus established. This became known as the “Tyler Precedent”.
There had been occasions when a President was incapacitated. For example, following Woodrow Wilson’s stroke no one officially assumed the Presidential powers and duties, in part because the First Lady, Edith Wilson, together with the White House Physician, Cary T. Grayson, covered up President Wilson’s condition.
The office of Vice President had been vacant sixteen times due to the death or resignation of the Vice President or his succession to the presidency. For example, there was no Vice President for nearly four years after the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt.
All of these incidents made it evident that clearer guidelines were needed. There were two proposals for providing those guidelines.

Keating–Kefauver proposal

In 1963, Senator Kenneth Keating of New York proposed a Constitutional amendment which would have enabled Congress to enact legislation providing for how to determine when a President is disabled, rather than, as the Twenty-fifth Amendment does, having the Constitution so provide. This proposal was based upon a recommendation of the American Bar Association in 1960.
The text of the proposal read:
In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the said office shall devolve on the Vice President. In case of the inability of the President to discharge the powers and duties of the said office, the said powers and duties shall devolve on the Vice President, until the inability be removed. The Congress may by law provide for the case of removal, death, resignation or inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what officer shall then be President, or, in case of inability, act as President, and such officer shall be or act as President accordingly, until a President shall be elected or, in case of inability, until the inability shall be earlier removed. The commencement and termination of any inability shall be determined by such method as Congress shall by law provide.
Senators raised concerns that the Congress could either abuse such authority or neglect to enact any such legislation after the adoption of this proposal. Tennessee Senator Estes Kefauver (the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Constitutional Amendments), a long-time advocate for addressing the disability question, spearheaded the effort until he died of a heart attack on August 10, 1963.

Kennedy assassination

With President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, the need for a clear way to determine presidential succession, especially with the new reality of the Cold War and its frightening technologies, forced Congress into action. The new President, Lyndon B. Johnson, had once suffered a heart attack, and the next two people in line for the presidency were Speaker of the House John McCormack, who was 71 years old, and Senate President pro tempore Carl Hayden, who was 86 years old. Senator Birch Bayh succeeded Kefauver as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Constitutional Amendments and set about advocating for a detailed amendment dealing with presidential succession.

Bayh–Celler proposal

On January 6, 1965, Senator Birch Bayh proposed in the Senate and Representative Emanuel Celler (Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee) proposed in the House of Representatives what became the Twenty-fifth Amendment. Their proposal specified the process by which a President could be declared disabled, thereby making the Vice President an Acting President, and how the President could regain the powers of his office. Also, their proposal provided a way to fill a vacancy in the office of Vice President before the next presidential election. This was as opposed to the Keating–Kefauver proposal, which did not provide for filling a vacancy in the office of Vice President prior to the next presidential election or itself provide a process for determining presidential disability. In 1964, the American Bar Association endorsed the type of proposal which Bayh and Celler advocated.
On February 19, the Senate passed the amendment, but the House passed a different version of the amendment on April 13. On July 6, after a conference committee ironed out differences between the versions, the final version of the amendment was passed by both Houses of the Congress and presented to the states for ratification.

 

(the above from wikipedia)

 

Volleyball Invented February 9, 1895

Tom Knuppel Other

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On February 9, 1895, in Holyoke, Massachusetts (USA), William G. Morgan, a YMCA physical education director, created a new game called Mintonette as a pastime to be played (preferably) indoors and by any number of players. The game took some of its characteristics from tennis and handball. Another indoor sport, basketball, was catching on in the area, having been invented just ten miles (sixteen kilometers) away in the city of Springfield, Massachusetts, only four years before. Mintonette was designed to be an indoor sport, less rough than basketball, for older members of the YMCA, while still requiring a bit of athletic effort.
The first rules, written down by William G Morgan, called for a net 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) high, a 25 ft × 50 ft (7.6 m × 15.2 m) court, and any number of players. A match was composed of nine innings with three serves for each team in each inning, and no limit to the number of ball contacts for each team before sending the ball to the opponents’ court. In case of a serving error, a second try was allowed. Hitting the ball into the net was considered a foul (with loss of the point or a side-out)—except in the case of the first-try serve.
After an observer, Alfred Halstead, noticed the volleying nature of the game at its first exhibition match in 1896, played at the International YMCA Training School (now called Springfield College), the game quickly became known as volleyball (it was originally spelled as two words: “volley ball”). Volleyball rules were slightly modified by the International YMCA Training School and the game spread around the country to various YMCAs.

The first official ball used in volleyball is disputed; some sources say that Spalding created the first official ball in 1896, while others claim it was created in 1900. The rules evolved over time: in the Philippines by 1916, the skill and power of the set and spike had been introduced, and four years later a “three hits” rule and a rule against hitting from the back row were established. In 1917, the game was changed from 21 to 15 points. In 1919, about 16,000 volleyballs were distributed by the American Expeditionary Forces to their troops and allies, which sparked the growth of volleyball in new countries.
The first country outside the United States to adopt volleyball was Canada in 1900. An international federation, the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB), was founded in 1947, and the first World Championships were held in 1949 for men and 1952 for women. The sport is now popular in Brazil, in Europe (where especially Italy, the Netherlands, and countries from Eastern Europe have been major forces since the late 1980s), in Russia, and in other countries including China and the rest of Asia, as well as in the United States.

February 9, 1870- National Weather Bureau Signed Into Law

Tom Knuppel Other

A Joint Congressional Resolution requiring the Secretary of War “to provide for taking meteorological observations at the military stations in the interior of the continent, and at other points in the States and Territories…and for giving notice on the northern lakes and on the seacoast, by magnetic telegraph and marine signals, of the approach and force of storms” was introduced. Congress passed the resolution and on February 9, 1870, President Ulysses S. Grant signed it into law. A new national weather service had been born within the U.S. Army Signal Service’s Division of Telegrams and Reports for the Benefit of Commerce that would affect the daily lives of most of the citizens of the United States through its forecasts and warnings for years to come. Gen. Albert J. Myer served as the first Director of the new weather service.

For the Whole Story

he National Weather Service (NWS) is an agency of the United States government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weather-related products to organizations and the public for the purposes of protection, safety, and general information. It is a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) branch of the Department of Commerce, and is headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland (located just outside Washington, D.C.). The agency was known as the United States Weather Bureau from 1890 to 1970, when it adopted its current name.
The NWS performs its primary task through a collection of national and regional centers, and 122 local weather forecast offices (WFOs). As the NWS is a government agency, most of its products are in the public domain and available free of charge.

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In 1870, the Weather Bureau of the United States was established through a joint resolution of Congress signed by President Ulysses S. Grant with a mission to “provide for taking meteorological observations at the military stations in the interior of the continent and at other points in the States and Territories…and for giving notice on the northern (Great) Lakes and on the seacoast by magnetic telegraph and marine signals, of the approach and force of storms.” The agency was placed under the Secretary of War as Congress felt “military discipline would probably secure the greatest promptness, regularity, and accuracy in the required observations.” Within the Department of War, it was assigned to the U.S. Army Signal Service under Brigadier General Albert J. Myer. General Myer gave the National Weather Service its first name: The Division of Telegrams and Reports for the Benefit of Commerce.
Cleveland Abbe – who began developing probabilistic forecasts using daily weather data sent by the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce and Western Union, which he convinced to back the collection of such information in 1869 – was appointed as the Bureau’s first chief meteorologist. In his earlier role as the civilian assistant to the chief of the Signal Service, Abbe urged the Department of War to research weather conditions to provide a scientific basis behind the forecasts; he would continue to urge the study of meteorology as a science after becoming Weather Bureau chief. While a debate went on between the Signal Service and Congress over whether the forecasting of weather conditions should be handled by civilian agencies or the Signal Service’s existing forecast office, a Congressional committee was formed to oversee the matter, recommending that the office’s operations be transferred to the Department of War following a two-year investigation.
The agency first became a civilian enterprise in 1890, when it became part of the Department of Agriculture. Under the oversight of that branch, the Bureau began issuing flood warnings and fire weather forecasts, and output the first daily national surface weather maps; it also established a network to distribute warnings for tropical cyclones as well as a data exchange service that relayed European weather analysis to the Bureau and vice versa. The first Weather Bureau radiosonde was launched in Massachusetts in 1937, which prompted a switch from routine aircraft observation to radiosondes within two years. The Bureau prohibited the word “tornado” from being used in any of its weather products out of concern for inciting panic (a move contradicted in its intentions by the high death tolls in past tornado outbreaks due to the lack of advanced warning) until 1938, when it began disseminating tornado warnings exclusively to emergency management personnel.
The Bureau would later be moved to the Department of Commerce in 1940. On July 12, 1950, bureau chief Francis W. Reichelderfer officially lifted the agency’s ban on public tornado alerts in a Circular Letter, noting to all first order stations that “Weather Bureau employees should avoid statements that can be interpreted as a negation of the Bureau’s willingness or ability to make tornado forecasts”, and that a “good probability of verification” exist when issuing such forecasts due to the difficulty in accurately predicting tornadic activity. However it would not be until it faced criticism for continuing to refuse to provide public tornado warnings and preventing the release of the USAF Severe Weather Warning Center’s tornado forecasts (pioneered in 1948 by Air Force Capt. Robert C. Miller and Major Ernest Fawbush) beyond military personnel that the Bureau issued its first experimental public tornado forecasts in March 1952. In 1957, the Bureau began using radars for short-term forecasting of local storms and hydrological events, using modified versions of those used by Navy aircraft to create the WSR-57 (Weather Surveillance Radar, 1957), with a network of WSR systems being deployed nationwide through the early 1960s; some of the radars were upgraded to WSR-74 models beginning in 1974.
The Weather Bureau became part of the Environmental Science Services Administration when that agency was formed in August 1966. The Environmental Science Services Administration was renamed the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on October 1, 1970, with the enactment of the National Environmental Policy Act. At this time, the Weather Bureau became the National Weather Service.[5] NEXRAD (Next Generation Radar), a system of Doppler radars deployed to improve the detection and warning time of severe local storms, replaced the WSR-57 and WSR-74 systems between 1988 and 1997

“Miniaturized Electronic Circuits” Patent on February 6, 1959

Tom Knuppel Other

 

Jack St. Clair Kilby

Kilby received his bachelor of science degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he was an honorary member of Acacia Fraternity. In 1947, he received a degree in Electrical Engineering. He obtained his master of science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Extension in Milwaukee (which later became the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee) in 1950, while simultaneously working at Centralab in Milwaukee.

In mid-1958, Kilby, as a newly employed engineer at Texas Instruments (TI), did not yet have the right to a summer vacation. He spent the summer working on the problem in circuit design that was commonly called the “tyranny of numbers” and finally came to the conclusion that manufacturing the circuit components en masse in a single piece of semiconductor material could provide a solution. On September 12 he presented his findings to management, which included Mark Shepherd. He showed them a piece of germanium with an oscilloscope attached, pressed a switch, and the oscilloscope showed a continuous sine wave, proving that his integrated circuit worked and thus that he had solved the problem. U.S. Patent 3,138,743 for “Miniaturized Electronic Circuits”, the first integrated circuit, was filed on February 6, 1959.[4] Along with Robert Noyce (who independently made a similar circuit a few months later), Kilby is generally credited as co-inventor of the integrated circuit.
Jack Kilby went on to pioneer military, industrial, and commercial applications of microchip technology. He headed teams that built both the first military system and the first computer incorporating integrated circuits. He later co-invented both the hand-held calculator and the thermal printer that was used in portable data terminals.
In 1970, he took a leave of absence from TI to work as an independent inventor. He explored, among other subjects, the use of silicon technology for generating electrical power from sunlight. From 1978 to 1984 he held the position of Distinguished Professor of Electrical Engineering at Texas A&M University.

1967_caltech

He is also the inventor of the handheld calculator and the thermal printer, for which he has patents. He also has patents for seven other inventions.
In 1983, Kilby retired from Texas Instruments.

Yalta Conference February 4-11,1945- Churchill, Stalin and Roosevelt in Attendance

Tom Knuppel Other

Yalta_Conference_1945_Churchill,_Stalin,_Roosevelt

The Yalta Conference, sometimes called the Crimea Conference and codenamed the Argonaut Conference, held from February 4 to 11, 1945, was the World War II meeting of the heads of government of the United States, the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union, represented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Premier Joseph Stalin, respectively, for the purpose of discussing Europe’s post-war reorganization. The conference convened in the Livadia Palace near Yalta in Crimea.

The meeting was intended mainly to discuss the re-establishment of the nations of war-torn Europe. Within a few years, with the Cold War dividing the continent, Yalta became a subject of intense controversy. To some extent, it has remained controversial.

Yalta was the second of three wartime conferences among the Big Three. It had been preceded by the Tehran Conference in 1943, and was followed by the Potsdam Conference in July 1945, which was attended by Stalin, Churchill (who was replaced halfway through by the newly elected British Prime Minister Clement Attlee) and Harry S. Truman, Roosevelt’s successor.

 

All three leaders were attempting to establish an agenda for governing post-war Europe. They wanted to keep peace between post-world war countries. On the Eastern Front, the front line at the end of December 1943 remained in the Soviet Union but, by August 1944, Soviet forces were inside Poland and parts of Romania as part of their drive west. By the time of the Conference, Red Army Marshal Georgy Zhukov’s forces were 65 km (40 mi) from Berlin. Stalin’s position at the conference was one which he felt was so strong that he could dictate terms. According to U.S. delegation member and future Secretary of State James F. Byrnes, “It was not a question of what we would let the Russians do, but what we could get the Russians to do.” Moreover, Roosevelt hoped for a commitment from Stalin to participate in the United Nations.
Stalin, insisting that his doctors opposed any long trips, rejected Roosevelt’s suggestion to meet at the Mediterranean. He offered instead to meet at the Black Sea resort of Yalta, in the Crimea. Stalin’s fear of flying also played a contributing factor in this decision. Each leader had an agenda for the Yalta Conference: Roosevelt wanted Soviet support in the U.S. Pacific War against Japan, specifically invading Japan, as well as Soviet participation in the UN; Churchill pressed for free elections and democratic governments in Eastern and Central Europe (specifically Poland); and Stalin demanded a Soviet sphere of political influence in Eastern and Central Europe, an essential aspect of the USSR’s national security strategy.
Poland was the first item on the Soviet agenda. Stalin stated that “For the Soviet government, the question of Poland was one of honor” and security because Poland had served as a historical corridor for forces attempting to invade Russia. In addition, Stalin stated regarding history that “because the Russians had greatly sinned against Poland”, “the Soviet government was trying to atone for those sins.”Stalin concluded that “Poland must be strong” and that “the Soviet Union is interested in the creation of a mighty, free and independent Poland.” Accordingly, Stalin stipulated that Polish government-in-exile demands were not negotiable: the Soviet Union would keep the territory of eastern Poland they had already annexed in 1939, and Poland was to be compensated for that by extending its western borders at the expense of Germany. Comporting with his prior statement, Stalin promised free elections in Poland despite the Soviet sponsored provisional government recently installed by him in Polish territories occupied by the Red Army.
Roosevelt wanted the USSR to enter the Pacific War with the Allies. One Soviet precondition for a declaration of war against Japan was an American official recognition of Mongolian independence from China (Mongolian People’s Republic had already been the Soviet satellite state in World War One and World War Two), and a recognition of Soviet interests in the Manchurian railways and Port Arthur (but not asking the Chinese to lease), as well as deprivation of Japanese soil (such as Sakhalin and Kuril Islands) to return to Russian custody since the Treaty of Portsmouth; these were agreed without Chinese representation, consultation or consent, with the American desire to end war early by reducing American casualties. Stalin agreed that the Soviet Union would enter the Pacific War three months after the defeat of Germany. Stalin pledged to Roosevelt to keep the nationality of the Korean Peninsula intact as Soviet Union entered the war against Japan.
Furthermore, the Soviets had agreed to join the United Nations, given the secret understanding of a voting formula with a veto power for permanent members of the Security Council, thus ensuring that each country could block unwanted decisions.
At the time, the Red Army had occupied Poland completely and held much of Eastern Europe with a military power three times greater than Allied forces in the West. The Declaration of Liberated Europe did little to dispel the sphere of influence agreements that had been incorporated into armistice agreements.
All three leaders ratified previous agreements about the post-war occupation zones for Germany: three zones of occupation, one for each of the three principal Allies: The Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States. They also agreed to give France a zone of occupation, carved out of the U.S. and UK zones.
Also, the Big Three agreed that all original governments would be restored to the invaded countries (with the exception of France, whose government was regarded as collaborationist; Romania and Bulgaria, where the Soviets had already liquidated most of the governments;[clarification needed] and Poland whose government-in-exile was also excluded by Stalin) and that all civilians would be repatriated.

The key points of the meeting:

 

  • Agreement to the priority of the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany. After the war, Germany and Berlin would be split into four occupied zones.
  • Stalin agreed that France would have a fourth occupation zone in Germany, but it would have to be formed out of the American and British zones.
  • Germany would undergo demilitarization and denazification.German reparations were partly to be in the form of forced labour. (see also Forced labor of Germans after World War II and Forced labour of Germans in the Soviet Union). The forced labour was to be used to repair damage that Germany inflicted on its victims.
  • Creation of a reparation council which would be located in the Soviet Union.
  • The status of Poland was discussed. It was agreed to reorganize the communist Provisional Government of the Republic of Poland that had been installed by the Soviet Union “on a broader democratic basis.”
  • The Polish eastern border would follow the Curzon Line, and Poland would receive territorial compensation in the west from Germany.
  • Stalin pledged to permit free elections in Poland, but forestalled ever honoring his promise.
  • Citizens of the Soviet Union and of Yugoslavia were to be handed over to their respective countries, regardless of their consent.
  • Roosevelt obtained a commitment by Stalin to participate in the UN.
  • Stalin requested that all of the 16 Soviet Socialist Republics would be granted UN membership. This was taken into consideration, but 14 republics were denied; Roosevelt agreed to membership for Ukraine and Byelorussia while reserving the right, which was never exercised, to seek two more votes for the United States.
  • Stalin agreed to enter the fight against the Empire of Japan “in two or three months after Germany has surrendered and the war in Europe is terminated,” and that as a result, the Soviets would take possession of Southern Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands, the port of Darien would be internationalized, and the Soviet lease of Port Arthur would be restored, among other concessions.
  • Nazi war criminals were to be hunted down and brought to justice
  • A “Committee on Dismemberment of Germany” was to be set up. Its purpose was to decide whether Germany was to be divided into six nations.

 

What if God said, “I’m Calling in Sick?”

Tom Knuppel Other

What would happen if God took a day off? What would you do if you knew that just for one day you couldn’t have access to the Creator of all that is known and unknown?  Can you imagine what nonsense and horror that might occur if the “gates of hell” got advance notice of the time and length of God’s one-day vacation from the responsibilities He carries? Can any of us fathom what it might be like to sit alone in the middle of the night, tears flowing down our face, and there is no God of the universe to share our innermost thoughts with? Can any of us contemplate the emptiness that would be evident with each new baby born on that day when there is no God to say “thank you” to? I really wonder what all of us “believers” and “skeptics” would do if God took one little day off.
I suspect that one of the biggest challenges of being the one, true, living, and eternal God is that you can’t, like in a basketball game, look down the bench, and signal for the guy at the end of the bench to go to the scorer’s table and check into the game. God’s it. There is no other. There is no substitute. There’s not even one old grizzled veteran that can be called to come out of retirement to substitute for the Divine. It’s either God or nobody.
So, if God knows there is no other entity to take the Creator’s place, two things come to my mind immediately. First, if we were to think in human terms, there is a tremendous amount of pressure and responsibility when it comes to taking care of God’s creation. Second, I truly wonder what the reaction would be when it became clear that for just one day there would be no hope of any connection or communication to this creating and sustaining God?
It certainly isn’t unusual for a person who feels overworked and underappreciated to take a day off from the grind of his or her working life. There must be a million people who every once in a while have decided to give into the perceived need to rest, recuperate, and relax from the pressures of life. Taking an unscheduled day off every once in a while is actually a good thing; we cannot go on indefinitely without an outlet for the frustrations of the working world.
I wonder what it would be like if God just simply decided, “I’ve had enough with these foolish creatures! I’m calling in sick on Thursday.”

 

A New Year’s Resolution for Everyone- Let’s Do This Together

Tom Knuppel Other

Resolutions are difficult but here is one that can be transforming. Can we work together for this one?

We have a problem in America. Our view of God has slipped away from the God of the Scriptures. Christians are picking and choosing the parts of God they like. That’s not who GOD IS. We must regain an accurate view of God.

In 2016, let’s focus on teaching as many people as we can WHO GOD IS really.