Joshua A. Norton

A long dozen decades ago today, Emperor Norton, who – amongst other things – proclaimed the United States Congress abolished, passed on.

Constantinople and Bolsheviks

Five years short of a century ago today, a Bolshevik envoy approached the Imperial German representative in Constantinople.

First Presidential Electors

Eleven score and a year ago today, the landed gentry of those United States voted for electors to the Electoral College.

Radetzky

152 years ago today, Johann Josef Wenzel Graf Radetzky von Radetz passed away.

Military Service Bill

Seven years short of a century ago today, a bill was introduced in the United Kingdom that was to become the Military Service Act 1916.

T.S. Eliot

45 years ago today, T.S. Eliot passed on from this world.

French Colors

Two centuries and fourteen years ago today, the United States House of Representatives hailed the French Republic.

Tolkien 118

Two years short of a dozen decades ago today, J.R.R. Tolkien was born.

Writes Vox Nova:

Tolkien chose monarchy as the form of government which most satisfied him because, looking to history and knowing how monarchies worked, he saw that monarchs rarely were concerned about the lives of ordinary people and let them therefore live, as they would like, as long as the people themselves did not organize themselves as a threat to the monarch’s power (despite what “democratic” propaganda might suggest). Again, the Shire presents this picture well, because the Shire existed in its anarchical state under the auspices of Gondor; the king in theory had authority to dictate laws, but in practice, rarely had the need to do so because the people of the Shire caused no major disruption when left to themselves. Tolkien thus understood that monarchies, by their very nature, tended to be more anarchical, and this makes sense, because there is, in theory, far less heads and people vying for (and claiming) power in a monarchy than in other forms of government.

The Tory Act

234 years ago today, the Continental Congress issued the Tory Act.

Republic of China

2 years short of a century ago today, the Republic of China was established, with Dr. Sun Yat-sen as first President.

Cuban Revolution

51 years ago today, the Cuban Revolution led to regime change.

Dr. Thomas E. Woods, Jr. interviewed Mr. Humberto Fontova a few years ago on his book Fidel: Hollywood’s Favorite Tyrant.

Happy New Year!

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year.

Enjoy from Vienna:

BTW, we are NOT at the turn of the decade – in any other sense than a decade being a randomly chosen period of time with the length of ten years, that is.