Month: April 2022

Jomo Kenyatta Sentenced to Seven Years Hard Labor (1953)

Kenyatta was an African political leader and the first president of an independent Kenya. His activities were integral to the effort to liberate Kenya from British colonial rule. In 1953, British leaders sentenced Kenyatta to seven years in prison for his suspected ties to the Mau Mau guerilla organization. Released in 1959, he participated in negotiations with the British to write a new constitution for Kenya, which became independent in 1963. What did he achieve during his 14-year presidency? Discuss

Betty Ford (1918)

Betty Ford, born Elizabeth Anne Bloomer, supported herself as a dancer and model before marrying congressional hopeful Gerald Ford—later to be the 38th president of the US. An unusually candid first lady, she spoke openly about drugs, premarital sex, abortion, and women’s rights. In 1978, she sought treatment for alcoholism and drug addiction and later established the Betty Ford Center for the treatment of chemical dependency. What prompted critics to call for the first lady’s “resignation”? Discuss

spit (out) the dummy

To have a childish overreaction or angry outburst to a negative situation or outcome; to act in a bad-tempered manner, likened to a temper tantrum of a child. “Dummy” here refers to a plastic teat used to soothe teething infants (also called a “pacifier” in the U.S. or a “soother” elsewhere), which they may spit when in the middle of a tantrum. Primarily heard in Australia. Watch the video

Napster: Listeners and Lawsuits

One of the most notorious names in the early years of the commercial Internet, Napster was a peer-to-peer music file sharing service created in 1999 by then 18-year-old Shawn Fanning. More than 60 million users took advantage of the service, but despite its popularity, it quickly became one of the most controversial ventures on the Web due to the widespread sharing of copyrighted material. The music industry sued, claiming losses of millions in royalties, and won. What became of Napster? Discuss

Rwandan Genocide Begins (1994)

In 1993, after years of conflict between the Hutu and Tutsi ethnic groups in Rwanda, a new accord was signed and a UN peacekeeping mission was established. However, when Rwanda’s and Burundi’s presidents were killed in a suspicious plane crash in April 1994, civil strife erupted on a massive scale. Rwandan soldiers and Hutu gangs slaughtered an estimated 500,000 to 1 million people, mostly Tutsis and moderate Hutus, in the 100 or so days before the Tutsis regained power. What has happened since? Discuss

Charles Fourier (1772)

Fourier was a French social philosopher who developed a form of utopian socialism known as Fourierism. He proposed the idea that the natural passions of humans would, if properly channeled, result in social harmony. The social organization for such development was to be based on an economic unit composed of 1,620 people living in a single community building and dividing work according to their interests and desires. Why did he designate 1,620 as the ideal number of persons in a phalanx? Discuss

John Donne

Donne was one of the greatest 17th century metaphysical poets. His characteristically rigorous poetry and prose reflect that school’s belief in reason over emotion and mysticism. Author of the famous phrase, “for whom the bell tolls,” a reference to the tolling of church bells upon someone’s death, Donne is reported to have slept next to a portrait of himself in his funeral shroud. Discuss