The female fighter pilot who helped defend the skies on September 11th, 2001. — On September 11th, 2001, First Lieutenant Heather Renee Penney awoke to a clear day. She would recall years later how “omnipresent” the blue skies were that Tuesday morning (1). The 26-year-old F-16 pilot reported to Andrews Air Force Base in the early morning hours. …

The GOP’s favorite president’s brief flirtation with Communism. — Long before he was a Red State political icon, President Ronald Wilson Reagan (R-California) allegedly flirted with a much different sort of “Red” politics — Communism (1). In 1937, a 26-year-old “Ronnie” Reagan moved to Hollywood (Los Angeles( to pursue an acting career (2). Until this point, he had lived…

The controversial magazine vs. Iran’s theocracy — As anti-government protests in Iran hit their fourth month, a controversial French publication released a series of cartoons supporting the demonstrations. The Associated Press reports that Charlie Hebdo published 35 illustrations on January 7th mocking Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (1). Some caricatures depict Khamenei in a sexually explicit…

The forgotten resistance to the Cambodian genocide. — On April 17th, 1975, the Communist Khmer Rouge seized control of Cambodia (1). In three years and eight months, nearly two million Cambodians perished in forced labor camps, re-education centers, or grisly execution sites known as “Killing Fields.” Among those targeted for execution were the Cham people, a racial and…

The looming threat of terrorist drones at home. — The recent vandalism of two electrical substations in Washington has raised concerns about domestic terrorism on the home front (1). On Christmas Day, four Tacoma Public Utilities and Puget Sound Energy were damaged by vandals, resulting in a blackout for 14,000 customers. No suspects have been apprehended as of January…

The bizarre plot to violently overthrow Germany’s government explained. — On December 7th, 3,000 German police officers and tactical response units launched the largest counter-terrorism sweep the country had seen since World War Two. The International Centre for Counter-Terrorism states that the operation — conducted in eleven states — foiled a plot to overthrow the government and install a right-wing…

The amusing tale of the Green Berets and two elephants during the Vietnam War. — In one of the oddest episodes of the Vietnam War, US Special Forces recruited two elephants to construct a training camp (1). Largely successful, the lead-up to the operation was hampered by many obstacles. Not only did animal rights groups complain about the involvement of elephants in a war zone…

The hypothesis behind alcohol’s contribution to humanity. — Approximately 10,000 years ago, humanity transitioned from hunter-gathering tribes to agricultural civilizations (1). Having mastered the wilderness, peoples of antiquity became tenants of fertile lands. The agricultural shift brought about innovations such as farming methods, water systems, and nuclear families, as well as social classes and hierarchies.

An outlaw gang vs. an armed posse in a Kansas town. — On October 5th, 1892, a dreaded robber gang met its end in Coffeyville, Kansas (1). Starting in 1890, the Dalton Gang — comprised of three brothers and additional cohorts — terrorized banks and train routes from California to Arkansas. …