"Comments Regarding The Pfaffinger Foundation"

Upon my approaching Pfaffinger Foundation for a reimbursement for purchase of hearing aides I was informed that since I had already paid for them it was disqualified from reimbursement and that was a pre need thing. My hearing was damaged from years working around the presses and being a group that maybe could help a former employee I guess I was just too naive and thought they would actually care but that’s not the case. I was informed that there’s just too many people taking advantage of the situation and since I was responsible enough to pay up front that they were concerned that maybe I was just tricking them. It never stated anywhere on site that you can’t pay up front and not be eligible for reimbursement. A costly lesson for me but they should be more clear about the rules.

Rural newspapers shut down in latest disappearance of local journalism

 

Facing deep financial troubles, News Media Corporation shut down 23 news operations in five states. The closures are just the latest in a trend contributing to news deserts in rural America. Stephanie Sy discussed what this means for the future of local news with Teri Finneman, a journalism professor at the University of Kansas and co-author of "Reviving Rural News."

Wednesday Morning in the Blogosphere

 Newspaper rack graveyard

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Today in Labor History August 5, 2026

 

Using clubs, police routed 1.500 jobless men who had stormed the plant of the Fruit Growers Express Company in Indiana Harbor, Indiana, demanding jobs. – 1931

During the Great Depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the National Labor Board to enforce the right of collective bargaining. Ultimately declared illegal by the Supreme Court, it was replaced two years later by the National Labor Relations Board. – 1933

President Ronald Reagan fired the striking members of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO), declaring the work stoppage illegal. Reagan’s action crushed the union and set the tone for labor-management relations across the country for the ensuing 30 years, with employers beginning to take a tougher stance against unions and increasingly relying on strikebreakers and mass firings.  – 1981

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) took effect on this day. The first law signed by President Clinton, it required employers to provide employees job-protected and unpaid leave for qualified medical and family reasons. Qualified medical and family reasons include: personal or family illness, family military leave, pregnancy, adoption, or the foster care placement of a child. The FMLA is administered by the Wage and Hour Division of the United States Department of Labor. – 1993

Important Events From This day in History August 5

 

 

5 Aug, 1962 U.S.A. Marilyn Monroe

1962 : Marilyn Monroe was found dead in her bedroom, the death was ruled a suicide, as a bottle of empty sleeping pills was found near Monroe's body. Find More What happened in 1962.

5 Aug, 1920 Women’s’ Suffrage Movement

1920 : Senator Harding of Tennessee wired republican leaders to ask for support for the women’s’ suffrage movement in the legislature. The general assembly of Tennessee was on the brink of deciding whether it would support the cause or not. Senator Harding sent telegrams to two leading women in the suffrage movement -- Mrs.Carrie Chapman Catt and Mrs.George Milton -- telling them it looked hopeful for women getting the vote in Tennessee.

5 Aug, 1934 U.S.A. Dust Bowl Years

1934 : Oklahoma experienced a ravaging drought with temperatures reaching 117 degrees, killing both animals and humans. Ten thousand people in this state are on federal relief because of the drought. The cotton crop was only in fair condition. Pastures, crops, and orchards were scorched. Two thousand five hundred livestock were being bought a day by the government to prevent them from starving, however 30,000 beasts have already succumbed.

5 Aug, 1944 Poland Freedom Fighters

1944 : Polish freedom fighters liberate a German forced labor camp in Warsaw, freeing 348 Jewish prisoners, who join in a general uprising against the Germans.

5 Aug, 1901 Dowager Empress Frederick of Germany

1901 : Victoria, Dowager Empress Frederick of Germany has become gravely ill and many royal dignitaries are rushing to her sickbed. An official medical statement read, “The external disease from which her majesty is suffering, and which for years has been slowly increasing, has in the course of the last few weeks extended to the internal regions. Her majesty’s strength is diminishing rapidly … .”

5 Aug, 1947 Great Britain Asks US For Another Loan

1947 : Impoverished by World War II, Britain was looking to America in 1948 for financial help. Winston Churchill offered the Labor party support in appealing to the U.S. for another loan. He accused the British government of wasting the previous loan of $3,150,000 on non-essentials. Churchill pontificated, “There is no shame in one brave and faithful ally, deeply injured in the common struggle, asking for another to help him recover and stand upon his feet.”

5 Aug, 1948 Ecuador Earthquake

1948 : A deadly 6.7 magnitude earthquake hits Ecuador killing 6,000 people and injuring another 20,000 . The quake hit high in the Andes Mountains, about 100 miles south of Quito. The worst-affected cities were Ambato, Guano, Pelileo, Patate and Pillaro, though the tremor caused serious damage over an area of 1,500 square miles. Landslides set off by the quake proved to be the most deadly feature of the disaster. Houses fell down hills and others were buried. Approximately 100,000 people lost their homes. The landslides also caused some flooding by changing water-flow patterns. Some of the victims lost their lives to drowning.

5 Aug, 1954 Terrible New Clothes Fashions

1954 : Col. John H. Dilley, a hardened warrior who distinguished himself in Africa during World War II, wasn’t scorned today because of his military advice. He was outspoken about his views on clothing worn by American women. Clothing, which he said looked awful. His forbidden list included halter tops, revealing bathing suits, shorts, strapless dresses, and even blue jeans. In the wake of his remarks some women became furious. One retorted that female freedom was at stake, not just clothing.

5 Aug, 1957 U.S.A. "American Bandstand"

1957 : "American Bandstand," which featured teenagers dancing to Top 40 chart music hosted by Dick Clark, makes its network debut on ABC. The show had been running as a local show since it was introduced on Philadelphia television station WFIL-TV (Channel 6, now WPVI-TV) on October 7th, 1952 and ran until the show ended in 1989.

5 Aug, 1963 Soviet Union Test Ban Treaty

1963 : A partial nuclear test ban treaty was signed by the United States, Britain and Russia, the ban ends testing in the atmosphere, outer space and underwater.

Tuesday Morning in the Blogosphere

 Los Angeles City Hall

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As search referrals plunge, news publishers must anticipate they’ll never rebound - E&P Magazine

Today in Labor History August 4, 2026

 

Teamsters on Strike

The Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers is formed. It partnered with the Steel Workers Organizing Committee, CIO in 1935; both organizations disbanded in 1942 to form the new United Steelworkers. – 1876

15,000 silk workers went on strike in Paterson, N.J. for 44 hour week. – 1919

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, led by President Ron Carey, went on strike at UPS. Involving 185,000 IBT members, the strike effectively shut down UPS operations for 16 days and cost UPS hundreds of millions of dollars. This victory for the union resulted in a new contract that increased wages, secured their existing benefits and gave increased job security. – 1997

Important Events From This day in History August 4

 

 

4 Aug, 1892 Lizzie Borden

1892 : The parents of Lizzie Borden (Andrew and Abby Borden) were found murdered at their home in Massachusetts. And although never found guilty the following rhyme is remembered even to this day:

Lizzie Borden took an ax,

And gave her mother forty whacks,

When she saw what she had done,

She gave her father forty-one.

4 Aug, 1932 U.S.A. Warren G. Harding

1932 : Warren G. Harding, former president of the United States, lay in a funeral train as people from all stations of life bared their heads and bowed. Some were in groups of hundreds, others in dozens. Military men were to escort Harding’s remains from the White House to Washington for the funeral. Harding’s remains were to lie in state at the White House. His successor was Calvin Coolidge.

4 Aug, 1941 Nazi Troops Within 50 miles of Kiev

1941 : Nazi troops marched within 50 miles of Kiev. Both Russians and Nazis reported catastrophic casualties in the 44 day battle. Hitler’s high commissioners boasted that 2,300 Soviets were dead, 71 tanks were captured, and 10,000 Russian soldiers were taken captive. Russia claimed that in a counteroffensive they killed 1,000 Nazis, and wrecked 100 tanks. Mussolini summed World War II up to his troops, “the line-up is now complete between the two worlds with Rome, Berlin, and Tokyo on one side and London, Washington, and Moscow, on the other.”

4 Aug, 1944 Anne Frank Captured

1944 : The Nazi Gestapo captures 15-year-old Jewish diarist Anne Frank and her family in a sealed-off area of an Amsterdam warehouse.

4 Aug, 1950 U.S.A. Polio Cases Increase

1950 : Both Snyder and Abilene in Texas had a total of six polio cases involving children recently, which indicates and upswing in this disease. One child was so badly affected that she had to be on a respirator.

4 Aug, 1964 Three Civil Rights Workers Bodies Found

1964 : Three civil rights workers (Michael Schwerner, Andrew Goodman and James Chaney) were found buried in a partially constructed dam near Philadelphia, Mississippi. after disappearing more than a month before, police are investigating if members of the Ku Klux Klan are responsible.

4 Aug, 1967 Nuclear Worries Over China

1967 : The world’s nuclear fears were aroused when China exploded an H-bomb on June 17th, 1966, under the presidency of Mao Tse-tung. An editorial a year later in The Ada Evening News focused on fear mongering about nuclear war and remembered the horrors of Nagasaki and Hiroshima 22 years before the Chinese got the bomb.

4 Aug, 1972 Governor George Wallace

1972 : Arthur Bremer, from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has been found guilty of the shooting and attempted murder of White House hopeful Mr Wallace at a political rally in Laurel, Maryland on 15th May. He has been sentenced to 63 years in jail by a court in Maryland, USA. Mr Wallace, was paralyzed by the shots and three other people were injured in the incident.

4 Aug, 1972 Philippines Monsoon

August 4, 1972 : Floodwaters finally recede revealing total devastation and hundreds dead. During July in the monsoon season nearly 70 inches of rain fell causing several dikes to fail and less than a week later, a typhoon dropped even more rain on the already saturated region causing more dikes throughout the area to fail causing many hundreds of thousands of acres to flood and leaving many dead and many more homeless , following on Cholera and typhoid epidemics broke out and because most of the crops had also been damaged food also became scarce.

4 Aug, 1978 Lebanon Israeli Attack

1978 : An Israeli air attack on southern Lebanon occurred in retaliation for a Palestinian bombing of a Tel Aviv market place. The Israelis claimed that the Palestinian bomb contained nails and ball bearings, killing one and wounding 48. Israelis planes bombed a guerrilla headquarters in Dahar-a-Tutah.

4 Aug, 1989 Savings and Loan Crisis

1989 : The Savings and Loan crisis which involved more than 500 savings and loan associations led President George Herbert Bush to consider a $150 billion bail out in an unprecedented piece of legislature. The Ways and Means Committee Chairperson, Dan Rostenkowski and his partners, were opposed to the bill. If the bill passed, $75 million a year would go to the Justice Department to be the watch dog for institutional fraud. The reasons believed to cause the problems for the Savings and loan institutions included the issue of the new high-interest money-market funds, long term mortgages at low fixed interest rates (Interest Rates Year End Federal Reserve 10.50% from our 1989), and finally poor lending practices to to risky ventures.

4 Aug, 1999 ATM Usage Goes Down

1999 : The Bank News Network has discovered that there has been a drop in the usage of ATM machines. Angry consumers are annoyed by the service charges for ATM usage and there is a 2.9% decrease in ATM transactions. This is the first time in a decade that there has been a decrease. Debit card transactions, however, have increased 35%.

Today in Labor HIstory August 3, 2026

 

Florence Reece

Uriah Smith Stephens was born on this day in Cape May, New Jersey.  A tailor by trade, in 1869 he led nine Philadelphia garment workers to found the Knights of Labor, one of the more successful early unions. – 1821

Fighting broke out when sheriff’s deputies attempted to arrest Wobbly leader Richie “Blackie” Ford as he addressed striking field workers at the Durst Ranch in Wheatland, California. Four died in the so-called “Wheatland riots” when police fired into a crowd of California farmworkers trying to organize for better working conditions. Conditions were terrible with no water for the workers. They routinely contracted dysentery, malaria and typhoid fever. Two labor leaders, one of whom was not even present at the massacre, were later convicted of murder for encouraging workers to organize, which forced officials to shoot and kill.   – 1913

U.S. federal air traffic controllers began a nationwide strike after their union, PATCO, rejected the government’s final contract offer. Most of the 13,000 strikers ignored orders to go back to work and were fired on August 5 by President Reagan for participating in an illegal work stoppage. Reagan’s action – and the inability of the labor movement to respond to the crisis – led to the rapid downhill spiral of unions. – 1981

Labor activist and songwriter Florence Reece died. She had been active in Harlan County, Kentucky coal strikes and penned the famed labor song “Which Side Are You On?” The song was written in 1931 on an old wall calendar while Sheriff J.H. Blair was searching for her husband and ransacking her home. Blair had led his gang of thugs on a violent rampage, beating and murdering union leaders. – 1986

Important Events From This day in History August 3

 

 

3 Aug, 1981 Air Traffic Controllers Strike

1981 : 13,000 Air traffic controllers walked off the job today in hopes that the U.S. federal government would agree to their demands for better pay. President Ronald Reagan had warned them they would be fired if they went on strike and a short time later he did have them fired.

3 Aug, 1914 World War I Declaration of War

1914 : Germany and France Declare war on the other signaling the beginning of the first World War.

3 Aug, 1923 Calvin Coolidge Sworn In As President

1923 : Calvin Coolidge was sworn in as president of the United States after learning that President Warren Harding had collapsed and died while visiting California the day before. He was sworn in by his father, Colonel John C. Coolidge at his father's farmhouse in Plymouth, Vermont. Find More What happened in 1923.

3 Aug, 1940 England World War II

1940 : British troops hammered the Germans with air raids which the former claimed as “a smashing success”. Supplies, harbors, and airplane hangers were targeted in over 100 German cities. The British hoped to smash the Nazi blitzkrieg at its source. However, in retaliation, German war planes retaliated by bombing north western England.

3 Aug, 1957 Cuba Fidel Castro

1957 : Rebel resistance and strikes were plaguing President Fulgenico Batista’s government in Cuba. Fidel Castro’s forces poured down from their secret mountain hide- out to fight with Batista’s troops. A news blackout was in effect. The revolutionary stronghold in Santiago De Cuba had armed men demand gas from a gas station and then set fire to it.

3 Aug, 1958 North Pole Nautilus

1958 : The US Nuclear Submarine Nautilus is the first undersea vessel to reach the Geographic North Pole.

3 Aug, 1961 Arms Build Up During Cold War

1961 : President John F. Kennedy got approval from Congress to spend $958 million to purchase missiles, planes, and war ships to bolster the American military. This arms build up was felt to be needed because of the communist threat to West Berlin and other areas. Kennedy got powers from Congress to call 250,000 reservists into active duty and to extend their tour of duty for one year.

3 Aug, 1970 U.S.A. Hurricane Celia

August 3, 1970 : The category 3 hurricane "Hurricane Celia" makes landfall near Corpus Christi, Texas killing 15 in Texas and hundreds of millions of dollars of damage.

3 Aug, 1977 CIA and Mind Control

1977 : As of today the CIA has spent a total of $25 million over 25 years started in 1950 to study mind control and brainwashing. Research was done by Dr. D. Ewen Cameron on sensory deprivation, isolation, and his own methods of “psychic driving”. He did these experiments at McGill University in Montreal. The psychiatric patients that Cameron used as subjects were damaged for life. The CIA also funded drug experiments on patients and staff at Memorial Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island. Brainwashing experiments were also done at Cornell University Medical Center and Dr. Carl Pfeiffer did LSD studies on federal inmates in Atlanta, and the Bordentown Reformatory in New Jersey from 1955-64.

3 Aug, 1978 Israel Bombs Southern Lebanon

1978 : Israel retaliates after Palestinian terrorists bomb a Tel Aviv market by sending in bombers to a guerrilla base southern Lebanon.

3 Aug, 1978 Canada Commonwealth Games

1978 : The Queen opens the 11th Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Canada.

3 Aug, 1982 U.S.A. Sodomy Arrest

1982 : Michael Hardwick is arrested for sodomy after a police officer observes him having sex with another man in his own bedroom in Georgia. In 1986 the Supreme Court handed down its decision in Bowers v. Hardwick, ruling by a 5-4 vote that states could continue to treat certain types of consensual sex as criminal acts.

Today in Labor History August 1, 2026

 

After organizing a strike of metal miners against the Anaconda Company, Wobbly organizer Frank Little was dragged from his boarding house room by six masked men. He was beaten and taken to the edge of town where he was lynched and hanged from a railroad trestle. A note with the words “First and last warning” was pinned to his thigh, referring to earlier vigilantes giving people three warnings to stop objectionable actions. The note also included the number 3-7-77 (a sign of vigilantes active in the 19th century in Virginia City, Montana that some people thought referred to grave measurements), and the initials of other union leaders, suggesting they were next to be killed. An estimated 10,000 workers lined the route of his funeral procession, which was followed by 3,500 more persons. He was buried in Butte’s Mountain View Cemetery. His grave marker reads “Slain by capitalist interests for organizing and inspiring his fellow men”. Years later writer Dashiell Hammett would recall his early days as a Pinkerton detective agency operative and recount how a mine company representative offered him $5,000 to kill Little. He says he quit the agency that night. – 1917

Sheriff Sid Hatfield and Ed Chambers were murdered by Baldwin-Feltz private cops for their part in the Matewan Battle in 1920, when two Feltz family thugs were killed by Hatfield and his deputies. They were executed in Welch WV., on the steps of the McDowell County courthouse, in front of their wives. This led to the Battle of Blair Mountain, where 20,000 coal miners marched to the anti-union stronghold of Logan County to overthrow Sheriff Dan Chaffin, the coal company tyrant who murdered miners with impunity. – 1921

Seventy Police officers in Hilo, Hawaii attempted to disband 200 unarmed protesters supporting the striking Longshoremen’s and Warehousemen’s Union. In their attempts to disband the crowd, officers tear gassed, hosed and finally fired their riot guns, leading to 50 injuries. – 1938

The American Federation of Musicians began a strike against the major American recording companies in a fight over royalty payments.  Decca Records settled with the union after one year, followed shortly by Capitol Records, while Victor and Columbia Records held out for another year before agreeing to the union’s terms.  The strike did not affect musicians performing on live radio shows or in concerts. – 1942

A 17-day, company-instigated wildcat strike (a strike without union authorization) in Philadelphia tried to bar eight African-American trolley operators from working. Transport Workers Union members stayed on the job in support of the men. – 1944

The Government & Civic Employees Organizing Committee merged into State, County & Municipal Employees. – 1956

The Window Glass Cutters League of America merged with the Glass Bottle Blowers – 1975

A ten-month strike against Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel won an agreement guaranteeing defined-benefit pensions for 4,500 Steelworkers. – 1997

The California School Employees Association affiliated with AFL-CIO. – 2001

Important Events From This day in History August 1

 

 

1 Aug, 1968 UK Apple Records

1968 : The Beatles finish recording their first record "Hey Jude" for Apple Records part of Apple Corps Ltd which they had created earlier in the year, it is released on 2August 6 with the B side "Revolution". The "Hey Jude" single went to number 1 on September 28th and stayed #1 for 9 weeks.

1 Aug, 1981 U.S.A. MTV Debuts

1981 : MTV the music video cable channel whose original purpose was to "play music videos" launches. The first music video shown on MTV was "Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles.

1 Aug, 1900 China Boxer Rebellion

1900 : The Boxer Rebellion erupted and the Chinese were fighting the Europeans. U.S. troops were sent to help quell the violence. It appeared unclear who actually remained in charge in Peking, but, General Chafee’s strong U.S. cavalry filled the gap in international forces. European politicians wanted a full scale attack the last week of August, but, the U.S. to poised their military personnel to attack immediately.

1 Aug, 1914 Germany Declaration of War

1914 : Germany sent a declaration of war to the Russian minister of foreign affairs as the German army began mobilizing for war.

1 Aug, 1929 U.S.A. Thomas Edison

1929 : A state-wide contest held in West Orange County, New Jersey held by Thomas Edison to determine who his next 49 proteges would be. The tough exam questions included knowledge about science, geography, history, chemistry, and personal ethics. One query asked if “… a lie (is) permissible and … if they would choose to become successful at the loss of happiness, comfort, reputation, pride, honor, health, money, or love.” Among the extensive and penetrating questions asked was this one – “What new discovery or invention do you believe would be the greatest benefit to mankind?”

1 Aug, 1936 Germany Olympic Games

1936 : Possibly one of the most controversial Olympic games of modern times opens in Berlin, Germany with a ceremony presided over by Adolf Hitler. The Games of the XI Olympiad were used by Germany as a tool for propaganda. to promote their ideology, and its promotion of the superiority of the "Aryan Race" by only allowing Germans of "Aryan race" to compete for Germany.

1 Aug, 1941 Willy's Jeep Introduced

August 1, 1941 : Willy's Truck Company introduced the Jeep for the U.S. Army who were looking for a fast lightweight all terrain vehicle.

1 Aug, 1944 Polish Home Army

1944 : Following the sustained attack by the Red Army on German Nazi troops the Polish Home army begin the battle to liberate Warsaw from German control. The home army had been fighting the German invasion as an underground movement up to this day, but with the German troops already reeling from Russian attacks the Poles came out into the open to regain control for their beloved country.

1 Aug, 1949 England Atlantic Pact

August 1, 1949 : After World War II strategies for the defense of Europe was to be discussed in London when U.S. chiefs of staff visited. Americans were expected to employ both financial and military support as well as equipment to prevent Soviet political aggression. The Atlantic Pact made up of European countries possessed 2 million troops, but their military budget had been severely curtailed due to reconstruction costs after the ravages of war. Already, The Cold War was shaping up.

1 Aug, 1966 University Of Texas Shootings

1966 : Ex Marine Charles Whitman with a stockpile of guns and ammunition on the observatory platform at a 300 foot tower at the University of Texas proceeds to shoot 46 people, killing 14 people and wounding 31. He had killed both his wife and mother the night before. Charles J Whitman’s name will go on in infamy after he went on a rampage killing 14 people, in Austin Texas. One of the Catholic priests that took his funeral service insisted that for 25 years Whitman had lived a quiet, good, and honest life, before the killer started shooting victims from the university tower.

1 Aug, 1970 Soaring Inflation Worries

August 1, 1970 : President Richard Nixon’s powers to freeze prices, wages, and interest rates were to be voted on in the house amid howls of foul play from Republicans. Soaring inflation prompted this move to give the president more executive powers.

1 Aug, 1971 Space Apollo 15

1971 : During a moon safari on "lunar rover" astronauts David Scott and James Irwin have uncovered a rock ( Genesis rock ) believed to be about 4,500 million years old which may date back to the origin of the Moon.

1 Aug, 1972 U.S.A. George Bush

August 1, 1972 : Future President George W Bush, son of former president George Herbert Walker Bush, is suspended from flying with the Texas Air National Guard for missing an annual medical examination.

1 Aug, 1976 Germany F1 Crash Niki Lauda

1976 : Austrian born Formula 1 racing driver Niki Lauda became trapped inside his Ferrari after an horrific accident at the Grand Prix in Germany. He was trapped inside the burning car until other drivers managed to pull him from his burning Ferrari. Although he was out for some time with his injuries, in 1977 and 1984 he won the F1 World Championship again.

1 Aug, 1994 Michael Jackson Marries

1994 : The king of pop and the daughter of the king of rock confirmed they were secretly married 11 weeks ago. Michael Jackson, 35, and Lisa Marie Presley, 26, announced in a statement.

1 Aug, 1997 U.S.A. Thyroid Cancer

August 1, 1997 : The National Cancer Institute released information that nuclear testing during the 1950s could be a cause of thyroid cancer and as many as 10,000 to 75,000 people, exposed to the 1950s fallout as children, could develop thyroid cancer.

1 Aug, 2000 U.S.A. Titanic

2000 : Judge J. Calvitt Clarke Jr. on his own accord ruled that the R.M.S. Titanic Company, who had salvage rights to the Titanic, was banned from cutting into the sunken ship and plundering the artifacts. The salvage company apparently was searching for $300 million in lost diamonds and had sold chunks of coal from the famous ship wreck.

1 Aug, 2000 UK Concern Over Petrol Prices

2000 : Concern in the UK is growing as petrol goes over the 80p per litre mark making the cost of petrol just over £3.00 per gallon or $5.85 (current US Price is $1.26 per gallon) motorists are unhappy that in the UK 75% of the cost of a gallon or more than £2.00 goes to taxes.

1 Aug, 2001 U.S.A. Ban on Human Cloning

2001 : The United States House of Representatives votes to ban all human cloning but it is not voted into law as the Democratic led Senate votes against it. The current status of cloning around the world is still in disarray as many see the possibilities of (human therapeutic cloning) which could provide great breakthroughs in medical science for regenerative medicine, and tissues and organs for transplantation. But concerns over mad scientists tinkering with the gift of life makes the laws which are needed to allow for medical advances difficult to formulate.

Today in Labor History July 29, 2026

 Cesar Chavez, asked Americans to boycott the popular California fruit

The Coast Seamen’s Union merges with the Steamship Sailor’s Union to form the Sailors’ Union of the Pacific. – 1891

A preliminary delegation from Mother Jones’ March of the Mill Children from Philadelphia to President Theodore Roosevelt’s summer home in Oyster Bay, Long Island, publicizing the harsh conditions of child labor, arrives today. They are not allowed through the gates. – 1903

Following a five-year table grape boycott, Delano-area growers file into the United Farm Workers union hall in Delano, California to sign their first union contracts. The strike began on September 8, 1965. Due largely to a consumer boycott of nonunion grapes, the strike ended with a significant victory for the United Farm Workers as well as its first contract with growers. – 1970

Important Events From This day in History July 29

 

 

1981 UK Charles and Diana Marriage

1981 : Prince Charles marries Lady Diana at a royal ceremony at St. Paul's Cathedral, it is estimated 500 million television viewers in 74 countries tune in to witness the fairy tale marriage.

1932 U.S.A. Bonus Protesters

1932 : World War I Vets who are starving like many others due to the great depression march on Washington demanding that the bonus payment they are due to receive in 1945 is paid out early. Legislators refuse their requests so 20,000 vets set up camp in Washington trying to put further pressure on the government. President Herbert Hoover ordered the eviction and two veterans were killed, he then called on the army to disperse the remaining Bonus protesters and the Bonus Army headed home on July 29, 1932.

1945 USS Indianapolis Sinking

1945 : I-58 Japanese submarine sinks the American cruiser Indianapolis, killing 883 seamen in the worst loss in the history of the U.S. navy. More than 800 fell into the Pacific many died due to injuries during the sinking but the remaining seamen were left to flounder in the Pacific, fend off sharks, drink sea water it was 84 hours before help arrived and only 318 survived the rest were eaten by sharks or drowned. The USS Indianapolis had just delivered key components of the Hiroshima atomic bomb to the Pacific island of Tinian prior to it's sinking by the submarine.

1953 Germany Hohenzollern Jewels

1953 : Thieves have stolen the Hohenzollern Jewels valued at over $7.5 million by climbing the walls of ancient Hohenzollern castle , these are better known as the Prussian Crown Jewels.

1958 U.S.A. NASA Created

1958 : NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) is created by the National Aeronautics and Space Act to make sure America will win the space race and 11 years and billions of dollars later, Neil Armstrong stepped out of the lunar module Eagle and onto the moon's surface on July 20th, 1969.

1968 Vatican Pope Paul VI

1968 : Pope Paul VI banned the contraceptive pill as well as all other artificial means of birth control.

1976 U.S.A. Son of Sam

1976 : The so called "Son of Sam" pulls a gun from a paper bag and fires five shots at Donna Lauria and Jody Valenti of the Bronx while they are sitting in a car. Lauria died and Valenti was seriously wounded in the first in a series of shootings by the serial killer, who terrorized New York City over the course of the next year.

1976 Southend Pier Destroyed By Fire

1976 : The end of Southend Pier on Britain's south coast is destroyed by Fire, the pier was the longest pier in the world at close to 1 1/2 miles long. The original pier made of wood dates back to 1830 and in the 1880's the pier was rebuilt of iron.

1999 U.S.A. Woodstock 99

1999 : New York State Police have suspended an officer who posed with half naked women at Woodstock 99 while colleagues were quelling a riot at the festival, the officer is also facing criminal charges.

1999 U.S.A. Day Trader Goes On Killing Spree

1999 : Day Trader (Mark O. Barton) opens fire at the All-Tech Investment Group Inc Atlanta brokerage office, killing nine and wounding 13 others before shooting himself to death, he had earlier killed his wife and two children. It is thought he went on the killing spree after losing over $100,000 while day trading between June 9th and July 27th.

2006 Sudan Peace Agreement Broken

2006 : After signing a peace agreement on May 5 of 2006, the Sudanese government violated the agreement when they attacked the rebel group the Justice and Equality Movement, a group not involved in the peace deal, in the Jebel Moon mountains. The peace agreement between Sudanese government and the Minni Minnawi faction was used by both parties as a way to attack rebel groups who were not a part of the agreement.

2006 U.S.A. California Heat Wave

2006 : The Heat Wave in California which started on July 16th. and has reached temperatures of 115 degrees earlier in the week is now believed to have claimed the lives of over 140 people, and caused a massive toll to the state's agricultural industry with damage to peaches, plums, nectarines and walnuts and thousands of livestock lost. An additional burden to California residents has been the loss of power to over a million customers caused through equipment failures.

2007 Iraq Wins Asian Cup

2007 : Despite being a country torn apart by invasion and internal fighting, the Iraqi football team was able to win the Asian Cup against Saudi Arabia on this day. The game, played in Indonesia, ended with a 1-0 score. The victory was able to bring some temporary joy to the country which had been plagued with a surge of violence at the time.

2008 U.S.A. Ronald Gray

2008 : Former United States President and Commander in Chief, George W. Bush approved the first execution of an American soldier in over fifty years on this day. Ronald Gray a serial killer who was found guilty of the rape and murder of 4 victims, a member of the armed forces in the states of North Carolina was convicted of rape and murder in 1988 and sentenced to death. On November 26th, 2008, a federal judge granted Gray a stay of execution to allow time for further appeals which is still proceeding.

2009 India Gayatri Devi

2009 : Gayatri Devi, one of the last queens in India, died on this day. The ninety year old played an important role in politics and fashion in India and was once voted one of the most beautiful women in the world according to Vogue magazine.

2011 Car Makers Agree to Fuel Efficiency Standard

2011 : Major car makers agreed to a the new fuel efficiency standard proposed by the Obama administration. The new standard that was agreed upon would raise the average miles per gallon to 54.5 by 2025. The move was hoped to reduce reliance on foreign oil imports as well as reduce air pollution.

2012 Snoop Dogg Banned from Norway

2012 : US Rapper Snoop Dogg has been banned from Norway for two years after he was caught trying to bring a small amount of marijuana into the country in June. His lawyer stated that he would live with the ban and had no plans to appeal.

2013 China Orders Debt Audit

2013 : The Chinese government has ordered a nationwide audit of all government debt. The move comes after a concern that debt has slowed the economic growth in the country after government borrowing was used to sustain growth amid the global financial crisis.

Tuesday Morning in the Blogosphere

 

Should journalists give up on traditional job paths? - Poynter

The Associated Press publishes the 58th edition of its AP Stylebook - E&P Magazine

Local group buying Chattanooga Times Free Press from Arkansas owners - Chattanoogan

NewsMedia Association to assume programs of dissolving Wisconsin Papers - NewsMedia

Vermont becomes first to sign executive order prioritizing local news - Rebuild Local News

Today in Labor History July 28, 2026

 

Troops, burned down a shantytown occupied by unemployed veterans

Women shoemakers in Lynn, Massachusetts created the Daughters of St. Crispin, the first national women’s labor union in the U.S. The union began with a strike of over a thousand female workers in 1860. By the end of 1869, it had a total of 24 local lodges across the U.S., the largest of which had over 400 members. Conventions of all the lodges were held annually in Massachusetts until 1872. The Name “Daughters of St. Crispin” was inspired by the contemporary men’s union of shoemakers, the order of the Knights of St. Crispin. Saint Crispin is the patron saint of cobblers, tanners, and leather workers. In 1870, a convention of the Daughters of St. Crispin unanimously adopted a resolution which demanded equal pay for doing the same work as men. – 1860

Harry Bridges was born in Australia. He came to America at age 19 and became a leader of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA). In 1937 he led several chapters in forming a new union, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), expanding membership to warehouse workers. He led the ILWU for the next 40 years. – 1901

A strike by Paterson, New Jersey silk workers for an eight-hour day and improved working conditions ended after six months, with the workers’ demands unmet. During the course of the strike, approximately 1,800 strikers were arrested, including Wobblie leaders Big Bill Haywood and Elizabeth Gurley Flynn. – 1913

General Douglas MacArthur, Major Dwight D. Eisenhower and their troops, burned down a shantytown occupied by unemployed veterans near the U.S. Capitol. 20,000 ex-servicemen had been camped out in the capital demanding a veterans’ bonus the government had promised but never given. Cavalry troops and tanks fired tear gas at veterans and their families and then set the buildings on fire. MacArthur and President Herbert Hoover said they had saved the nation from revolution. – 1932

Nine miners were rescued in Sommerset, Pennsylvania. after being trapped for 77 hours, 240 feet underground in the flooded Quecreek Mine. – 2002

Important Events From This day in History July 28

 

 

1932 "Bonus Army" World War I

1932 : Federal troops under the order of President Hoover forcibly dispersed the "Bonus Army" of (17,000 World War I veterans) who had gathered in Washington, D.C. on June 17th to demand money they weren't scheduled to receive until 1945. The troops under the command of General Douglas MacArthur and Major George S. Patton are ordered to charge into the veterans and were sent to destroy the temporary shacks in the Bonus Army's camps in Hooverville on the Anacostia Flats forcing the marchers out. By the end of the day hundreds of veterans were injured, and several were killed. The World War I Vets like every body else in the country were suffering with no jobs and money during these early years of the great depression and wanted the Service Certificates they had earned while fighting in World War I paid out early. More about the Bonus Army Protest

1914 World War I Begins

1914 : Following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, by Gavrilo Princip, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, within one month countries across Europe had formed alliances and declared war on other alliances. The main alliances in the early period of the war were: Entente Powers or the Allied Powers: consisted of British Empire, France, Russian Empire, Italy, United States. Central Powers: Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria.

1920 Mexico Francisco Villa Surrenders

1920 : Francisco Villa the notorious bandit has surrendered unconditionally to the provisional government of Mexico.

1931 U.S.A. Monoplane Race

1931 : A race between two powerful monoplanes got under way today starting from New York, the race is to Istanbul over 5,500 miles away. They are also hoping to break the current long distance record of 4,912 miles non stop.

1945 Plane Crashes Into Empire State Building

1945 : A B-25 Mitchell bomber crashes into the into the 79th story of the Empire State Building killing 14 people. The freak accident was caused by heavy fog.

1956 U.S.A. Elvis Presley

1956 : Elvis Presley scores his second No. 1 hit with "I Want You, I Need You, I Love You" following his April number 1 "Heartbreak Hotel."

1965 50,000 Extra Troops To Vietnam

1965 : President Johnson informed fellow Americans that he is adding 50,000 troops to the U.S. forces currently in Vietnam, for a total of 125,000 soldiers.

1972 UK Dock Strike Begins

1972 : 42,000 registered dock workers begin a national strike over container companies using cheap labor and concerns over compulsory redundancies. After one week the government under Edward Heath proclaimed a state of emergency which allowed the use of the British Army to unload cargo.

1976 China Earthquake Kills 1/4 Million

1976 : An earthquake measuring between 7.8 and 8.2 magnitude on the Richter scale flattens Tangshan, a Chinese industrial city with a population of about one million people. The quake killed an estimated 242,000 people in Tangshan and surrounding areas making the earthquake one of the deadliest in recorded history.

1978 Lebanon Syrian Attacks

1978 : The United States, Canada and Great Britain have advised nationals to leave Lebanon as quickly as possible due to increased Syrian attacks on Lebanon Christians and are leaving only a skeleton staff in their Embassy.

1978 Gold Reaches $200.00 Per Ounce

1978 : The Price of gold has reached an all time high on the Bullion Market of $200.00 per ounce , investors usually invest in gold during monetary instability and the steady decline in the value of the dollar has sent many US investors into the gold market.

1982 Israel Attack West Beirut

1982 : Israel Bombers and fighters are blasting large area's of West Beirut attacking any area or building they believe may house PLO Palestinian Liberation Army Guerillas. After nightfall the PLO Guerillas returned fire on Israeli positions using rockets and mortar fire.

1999 U.S.A. Y2K Compliance

1999 : Federal Regulators from the SEC have given until August 1 for Brokerage firms to prove compliance with Y2K or a court order will be obtained to close them down on December 31st.

2004 U.S.A. John Kerry

2004 : The Democratic National Convention in Boston Nominated John Kerry Democratic Nominee For President.

2005 IRA Announces End Of Armed Struggle

2005 : The IRA has formally ordered an end to its armed campaign and has announced the republican organisation will follow a democratic path ending more than 30 years of violence. The announcement is received on all sides as an important way forward following the Good Friday Agreement signed in 1997.

2006 Haiti Former Prime Minister Yvon Neptune Released

2006 : Yvon Neptune was released from prison in Haiti on this day. Neptune was a former Prime Minister of Haiti and was held in prison for two years without ever being convicted of a crime. Neptune had denied the charges he was held on. He had been charged in connection to the killings of opposition to the ex-president of Haiti, Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

2008 Iraq Suicide Bombers

2008 : On this day three suicide bombings took place in Baghdad, Iraq, killing 28 people and injuring 90 people. The suicide attacks were carried out by female bombers and were aimed at disrupting a Shia Muslim pilgrimage to the Kadhimiya shrine.

2009 Tanzania Banking For Women

2009 : A bank opened in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania that was aimed at helping women with their savings. The bank, the first of its kind in Tanzania, made it easier for women to open accounts and encouraged the empowerment of women in the country.

2011 Bangladesh Bus Crash Kills Seventeen

2011 : At least seventeen people died and another twenty people were injured when a passenger bus crashed into a truck in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Survivors of the accident blamed the bus driver for the crash, stating that he was driving recklessly at high speeds.

2012 First Gold of the London 2012 Games Won

2012 : China's Yi Siling won the first gold of the London Olympic games in the women's 10m Air Rifle competition. Sylwia Bogacka won the silver medal while China's Yu Dan won the bronze.

2013 Brazil Pope Francis Holds Mass on Beach

2013 : Pope Francis held mass for over three million people who had gathered to hear him on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Pope Francis had been there on a five day trip to Brazil to visit a Catholic youth festival on his first foreign trip since he became the pope.

Jerry Holden Rest in Peace

Just learned former Los Angeles Times Supervisor Jerry Holden passed away. Unfortunately I currently have no further details.

Monday Morning in the Blogosphere

 

A hyperlocal news page falls victim to Facebook’s AI - Poynter

How public media is adapting after federal funding cuts - E&P Magazine

Can New Jersey’s civic-information model help rebuild local news? - E&P Reports

AP updates newsroom standards for artificial intelligence - AP Corporate Communications

News/Media Alliance applauds AI bot transparency bill introduction - News/Media Alliance