Jehovah’s Witnesses

Famous for their door-to-door evangelizing, Jehovah’s Witnesses are members of an international religious movement founded in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, by Charles T. Russell in 1872. The group’s beliefs are based primarily on the apocalyptic portions of the Bible, and their primary goal is the establishment of God’s kingdom on Earth. Several of their beliefs are controversial; members refrain from performing military service or saluting the flag, and they refuse what type of medical procedure? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

The Morecambe Bay Cockling Disaster (2004)

At low tide, the sand flats of England’s Morecambe Bay are rich in cockles, or edible saltwater clams. However, gathering them can be dangerous, as the bay is subject to treacherous, fast-moving tides. In 2004, 23 Chinese immigrants who had been at work collecting cockles on the sand flats drowned after becoming trapped by the incoming tide. The leader of the group was later convicted of manslaughter for failing to warn them about the tide. Whose attempt to warn them unfortunately went unheeded? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Birthday of Johan Runeberg

Johan Ludvig Runeberg (1804-1877) is widely regarded as Finland’s greatest poet. Schools throughout Finland are closed on Runeberg’s birthday. Busts and pictures of him are displayed in shop windows, particularly in Helsinki. A special ceremony is observed at Runeberg’s monument in the Esplanade, where his statue is decorated with garlands of pine and spruce, suspended between four huge torches. At night the torches are lit, and lighted candles burn in the windows of houses and apartments. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Belle Starr (1848)

Though her only criminal conviction was for the theft of a horse, Starr associated with numerous criminals throughout her life and was portrayed after her death as a notorious American outlaw, earning the nickname “the Bandit Queen.” Two of her husbands were killed in the course of their respective criminal careers, and days before her 41st birthday, Starr herself was ambushed and shot in the back as she returned to her Oklahoma ranch. Her murder was never solved. Who were some of the suspects? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Romulus and Remus

Romulus and Remus, the legendary founders of Rome, appear in Roman mythology as the twin sons of the war god Mars and priestess Rhea Silvia. Thrown into the Tiber River as infants, they were found by a she-wolf who nursed them and a shepherd who raised them. The two later built a city on the site where they were saved from the river, but an argument during its construction led Romulus to kill Remus. In its early days, Rome lacked female inhabitants, so Romulus organized the kidnapping of whom? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Karen Carpenter Dies of Anorexia-Related Heart Failure (1983)

Anorexia nervosa was a little-known disorder during Carpenter’s life, but her death brought it lasting media attention. Performing alongside her brother Richard as half of the Carpenters duo, she had become a successful pop singer in the 1970s. Behind the scenes, however, her obsessive dieting and extreme weight fluctuations took a toll on her health, straining her heart. She succumbed to a heart attack at the age of 32. What is her husband said to have thrown into the casket at her funeral? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary