===
January 6: Armed Forces Day in Iraq
- 1066 – Harold Godwinson was crowned King of England, widely regarded as the last Anglo-Saxon king before theNorman conquest.
- 1322 – Having defeated his half-brother Stephen Constantine in battle, Stephen Dečanski (fresco pictured)was crowned King of Serbia.
- 1839 – The most damaging storm in 300 years swept across Ireland, with 100-knot winds damaging or destroying more than 20% of the houses in Dublin.
- 1953 – The first Asian Socialist Conference, an organization of socialistpolitical parties in Asia, opened in Rangoon, Burma, with 177 delegates, observers and fraternal guests.
- 1993 – Indian Border Security Force (BSF) units killed 55 Kashmiri civilians in Sopore, Jammu and Kashmir, in revenge after militants ambushed a BSF patrol.
- 2005 – About 60 tons of chlorine gas were released when two Norfolk Southern trains collided in Graniteville, South Carolina, US.
===
Events
- 1066 – Harold Godwinson is crowned King of England.
- 1118 – Reconquista: Alfonso the Battler conquers Zaragoza.
- 1205 – Philip of Swabia becomes King of the Romans.
- 1322 – Stephen Uroš III is crowned King of Serbia.
- 1355 – Charles I of Bohemia is crowned with the Iron Crown of Lombardy as King of Italy in Milan.
- 1449 – Constantine XI is crowned Byzantine-Roman Emperor at Mystras.
- 1492 – Ferdinand and Isabella The Catholic Monarchs enter Granada, completing the Reconquista.
- 1540 – King Henry VIII of England marries Anne of Cleves.
- 1579 – The Union of Arras is signed.
- 1661 – English Restoration: The Fifth Monarchists unsuccessfully attempt to seize control of London, England.
- 1690 – Joseph, son of Emperor Leopold I, becomes King of the Romans.
- 1721 – The Committee of Inquiry on the South Sea Bubble publishes its findings.
- 1781 – In the Battle of Jersey, the British defeat the last attempt by France to invade Jersey.
- 1809 – Combined British, Portuguese and colonial Brazilian forces begin the Invasion of Cayenne during the Napoleonic Wars.
- 1839 – The most damaging storm in 300 years sweeps across Ireland, damaging or destroying more than 20% of the houses in Dublin.
- 1853 – President-elect of the United States Franklin Pierce and his family are involved in a train wreck near Andover, Massachusetts.
- 1870 – The inauguration of the Musikverein in Vienna, Austria.
- 1893 – The Washington National Cathedral is chartered by Congress. The charter is signed by President Benjamin Harrison.
- 1900 – Second Boer War: Having already sieged the fortress at Ladysmith, Boer forces attack it, but are driven back by British defenders.
- 1907 – Maria Montessori opens her first school and daycare center for working class children in Rome, Italy.
- 1912 – New Mexico is admitted as the 47th U.S. state.
- 1912 – German geophysicist Alfred Wegener first presents his theory of continental drift.
- 1921 – Formation of the Iraqi Army.
- 1929 – King Alexander of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes suspends his country's constitution (the January 6th Dictatorship).
- 1929 – Mother Teresa arrives in Calcutta, India to begin her work among India's poorest and sick people.
- 1930 – The first diesel-engined automobile trip is completed, from Indianapolis, Indiana, to New York, New York.
- 1931 – Thomas Edison submits his last patent application.
- 1941 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivers his Four Freedoms speech in the State of the Union address.
- 1947 – Pan American Airlines becomes the first commercial airline to schedule a flight around the world.
- 1950 – The United Kingdom recognizes the People's Republic of China. The Republic of China severs diplomatic relations with the UK in response.
- 1951 – Ganghwa massacre: Korean War.
- 1953 – The first Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma.
- 1960 – National Airlines Flight 2511 is destroyed in mid-air by a bomb, while en route from New York City to Miami, Florida.
- 1960 – The Associations Law comes into force in Iraq, allowing registration of political parties.
- 1967 – Vietnam War: United States Marine Corps and ARVN troops launch "Operation Deckhouse Five" in the Mekong River delta.
- 1974 – In response to the 1973 oil crisis, daylight saving time commences nearly four months early in the United States.
- 1978 – The Crown of St. Stephen (also known as the Holy Crown of Hungary) is returned to Hungary from the United States, where it was held after World War II.
- 1992 – President of Georgia Zviad Gamsakhurdia flees the country as a result of the military coup.
- 1993 – Indian Border Security Force units kill 55 Kashmiri civilians in Sopore, Jammu and Kashmir, in revenge after militants ambushed a BSF patrol.
- 1994 – Nancy Kerrigan is clubbed on the knee at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Detroit, Michigan.
- 1995 – A chemical fire in an apartment complex in Manila, Philippines, leads to the discovery of plans for Project Bojinka, a mass-terrorist attack.
- 2005 – American Civil Rights Movement: Edgar Ray Killen is arrested as a suspect in the 1964 murders of three civil rights workers.
- 2005 – A train collision in Graniteville, South Carolina, releases about 60 tons of chlorine gas.
[edit]Births
- 1367 – King Richard II of England (d. 1400)
- 1412 – Joan of Arc, French military figure and Roman Catholic Saint (legendary date) (d. 1431)
- 1486 – Martin Agricola, German composer (d. 1556)
- 1488 – Helius Eobanus Hessus, German poet (d. 1540)
- 1525 – Caspar Peucer, German reformer (d. 1602)
- 1561 – Thomas Fincke, Danish mathematician (d. 1656)
- 1580 – (baptised) John Smith of Jamestown (d. 1631)
- 1587 – Gaspar de Guzmán, Count-Duke of Olivares, Spanish statesman (d. 1645)
- 1595 – Claude Favre de Vaugelas, French man of letters (d. 1650)
- 1617 – Kristoffer Gabel, Danish statesman (d. 1673)
- 1655 – Empress Eleonore-Magdalena of Neuburg of the Holy Roman Empire (d. 1720)
- 1673 – James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos, English noble (d. 1744)
- 1695 – Giuseppe Sammartini, Italian composer and an oboist (d. 1750)
- 1702 – José de Nebra, Spanish composer (d. 1768)
- 1714 – Percivall Pott, English physician (d. 1788)
- 1745 – Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier, French inventor (d. 1799)
- 1766 – Mihály Fazekas, Hungarian author (d. 1828)
- 1785 – Andreas Mustoxydis, Greek historian and philologist (d. 1860)
- 1793 – James Madison Porter, American politician, 18th United States Secretary of War and a founder of Lafayette College (d. 1862)
- 1795 – Anselme Payen, French chemist (d. 1871)
- 1799 – Jedediah Strong Smith, American hunter and explorer (d. 1831)
- 1803 – Henri Herz, Austrian pianist, composer (d. 1888)
- 1807 – Jozef Maximilián Petzval, Slovak inventor (d. 1891)
- 1808 – Joseph Pitty Couthouy, American naval officer (d. 1864)
- 1811 – Charles Sumner, American politician (d. 1874)
- 1812 – Melchora Aquino, Filipino revolutionary figure (d. 1919)
- 1819 – Baldassare Verazzi, Italian painter (d. 1886)
- 1822 – Heinrich Schliemann, German archaeologist (d. 1890)
- 1832 – Gustave Doré, French painter and sculptor (d. 1883)
- 1836 – Ludwig Schüler, German politician (d. 1930)
- 1838 – Max Bruch, German composer (d. 1920)
- 1848 – Hristo Botev, Bulgarian poet and revolutionary figure (d. 1876)
- 1850 – Franz Xaver Scharwenka, Polish-German pianist and composer (d. 1924)
- 1856 – Giuseppe Martucci, Italian composer (d. 1909)
- 1857 – Hugh Mahon, Irish-born Australian politician (d. 1931)
- 1857 – William E. Russell, American politician (d. 1896)
- 1859 – Samuel Alexander, Australian-born British philosopher (d. 1938)
- 1861 – George Lloyd (bishop of Saskatchewan), Anglican bishop and theologian (d. 1940)
- 1861 – János Zsupánek, Slovene (Prekmurian) poet and writer (d. 1951)
- 1868 – Stefan Luchian, Romanian painter (d. 1917)
- 1868 – Vittorio Monti, Italian composer (d. 1922)
- 1870 – Gustav Bauer, Chancellor of Germany (d. 1944)
- 1872 – Alexander Scriabin, Russian composer (d. 1915)
- 1874 – Fred Niblo, American film actor, director, producer (d. 1948)
- 1878 – Dame Adeline Genée, Danish-born British ballerina (d. 1970)
- 1878 – Carl Sandburg, American poet and historian (d. 1967)
- 1880 – Tom Mix, American actor (d. 1940)
- 1882 – Aleksandra Ekster, Russian painter (d. 1949)
- 1882 – Fan S. Noli, Albanian bishop (d. 1965)
- 1882 – Sam Rayburn, American politician (d. 1961)
- 1883 – Khalil Gibran, Lebanese writer (d. 1931)
- 1883 – Frank Haller, American featherweight boxer (d. 1939)
- 1896 – Péter Veres, Hungarian writer and politician (d. 1970)
- 1898 – James Fitzmaurice, Irish aviation pioneer (d. 1965)
- 1898 – Charles E. Pont, American artist (d. 1971)
- 1899 – Phyllis Haver, American actress (d. 1960)
- 1899 – Heinrich Nordhoff, German automobile engineer (d. 1968)
- 1900 – Kathryn Hulme, American novelist (d. 1981)
- 1902 – Helmut Poppendick, German physician (d. 1994)
- 1903 – Maurice Abravanel, Greek-born conductor (d. 1993)
- 1903 – Francis L. Sullivan, English actor (d. 1956)
- 1905 – Idris Davies, Welsh poet (d. 1953)
- 1907 – David Fleay, Australian naturalist (d. 1993)
- 1908 – Menachem Avidom, Austro-Hungarian born Israeli composer (d. 1995)
- 1910 – G. N. Balasubramaniam, Indian Carnatic musician (d. 1960)
- 1910 – Wright Morris, American writer (d. 1998)
- 1912 – Danny Thomas, American actor (d. 1991)
- 1913 – Edward Gierek, Polish politician (d. 2001)
- 1913 – Loretta Young, American actress (d. 2000)
- 1914 – Godfrey Edward Arnold, Austrian-born American otolaryngologist (d. 1989)
- 1915 – Don Edwards, American politician
- 1915 – John C. Lilly, American psychoanalyst (d. 2001)
- 1915 – Alan Watts, English writer/philosopher (d. 1973)
- 1916 – Eugene T. Maleska, American crossword puzzle creator and editor (d. 1993)
- 1916 – Vincent Serventy, Australian writer and conservationist (d. 2007)
- 1917 – Koo Chen-fu, Chinese negotiator (d. 2005)
- 1920 – John Maynard Smith, English biologist (d. 2004)
- 1920 – Sun Myung Moon, Korean evangelist (d. 2012)
- 1920 – Doris Stokes, British psychic medium (d. 1987)
- 1920 – Early Wynn, American baseball player (d. 1999)
- 1921 – Cary Middlecoff, American golfer (d. 1998)
- 1923 – Norman Kirk, New Zealander politician (d. 1974)
- 1923 – Jacobo Timerman, Argentine writer (d. 1999)
- 1924 – Earl Scruggs, American musician (Flatt and Scruggs) (d. 2012)
- 1925 – John DeLorean, American auto maker (d. 2005)
- 1926 – Ralph Branca, American baseball player
- 1926 – Pat Flaherty, American racecar driver (d. 2002)
- 1926 – Kid Gavilan, Cuban boxer (d. 2003)
- 1926 – Mickey Hargitay, Hungarian-born American actor and bodybuilder (d. 2006)
- 1928 – Capucine, French actress (d. 1990)
- 1928 – George H. Ross, American businessman
- 1929 – Anne Rogers Clark, American dog breeder and trainer (d. 2006)
- 1929 – Babrak Karmal, Afghan politician (d. 1996)
- 1930 – Vic Tayback, American actor (d. 1990)
- 1931 – E. L. Doctorow, American author
- 1931 – Juan Goytisolo, Spanish poet, essayist, and novelist
- 1931 – Dickie Moore, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1932 – Stuart A. Rice, American chemist
- 1933 – Leszek Drogosz, Polish boxer and actor (d. 2012)
- 1933 – Oleg Makarov, Soviet cosmonaut (d. 2003)
- 1933 – Emil Steinberger, Swiss comedian
- 1933 – Fred L. Turner, American restaurant industry executive
- 1934 – Harry M. Miller, Australian entrepreneur
- 1934 – Sylvia Syms, English actress
- 1934 – John Wieners, American lyric poet (d. 2002)
- 1935 – Margarita Gomez-Acebo y Cejuela, Spainsh wife of Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha
- 1935 – Nino Tempo, American singer and actor
- 1936 – Rubén Amaro, Sr., Mexican baseball player
- 1936 – Darlene Hard, American tennis player
- 1936 – Julio María Sanguinetti Coirolo, Uruguayan politician
- 1937 – Paolo Conte, Italian singer
- 1937 – Lou Holtz, American football coach
- 1937 – Doris Troy, American singer (d. 2004)
- 1938 – Adriano Celentano, Italian singer and actor
- 1938 – Adrienne Clarke, Australian botanist and politician
- 1938 – Mario Rodríguez Cobos, Argentine writer and spiritual figure
- 1939 – Murray Rose, Australian swimmer (d. 2012)
- 1940 – Penny Lernoux, American journalist (d. 1989)
- 1940 – Van McCoy, American musician (d. 1979)
- 1942 – Yiannis Boutaris, Greek businessman, mayor of Thessaloniki
- 1943 – Hak Ja Han, Korean church leader
- 1943 – Terry Venables, English football manager
- 1944 – Bonnie Franklin, American actress
- 1944 – Rolf M. Zinkernagel, Swiss immunologist, Nobel laureate
- 1945 – Allen Appel, American novelist
- 1946 – Syd Barrett, English guitarist, singer and songwriter (Pink Floyd and Stars) (d. 2006)
- 1947 – Sandy Denny, English singer and songwriter (Fairport Convention and Fotheringay) (d. 1978)
- 1947 – Ian Millar, Canadian equestrian
- 1948 – Guy Gardner, American astronaut
- 1950 – Louis Freeh, American jurist, and 10th Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
- 1951 – Don Gullett, American baseball player
- 1951 – Kim Wilson, American musician (The Fabulous Thunderbirds)
- 1952 – Moondog Spot, American professional wrestler (d. 2003)
- 1952 – Frank Sivero, Italian-born American actor
- 1953 – Malcolm Young, Scottish-born Australian guitarist (AC/DC and Marcus Hook Roll Band)
- 1954 – Hans Robert Hiegel, German architect
- 1954 – Yuji Horii, Japanese video game designer
- 1954 – Anthony Minghella, British film director (d. 2008)
- 1954 – Karen Moras, Australian swimmer
- 1954 – Trudie Styler, English actress
- 1955 – Rowan Atkinson, English comedian and actor
- 1955 – Richard Corbett, British politician
- 1956 – Angus Deayton, English comedian and actor
- 1956 – Justin Welby, English archbishop
- 1957 – Michael Foale, American astronaut
- 1957 – Nancy Lopez, American golfer
- 1958 – Themos Anastasiadis, Greek journalist
- 1958 – Scott Bryce, American actor
- 1959 – Kapil Dev, Indian cricketer
- 1959 – Kathy Sledge, American singer
- 1960 – Paul Azinger, American golfer
- 1960 – Kari Jalonen, Finnish ice hockey player
- 1960 – Nigella Lawson, English chef and writer
- 1960 – Howie Long, American football player and analyst
- 1960 – Andrea Thompson, American actress
- 1961 – Georges Jobé, Belgian motocross racer (d. 2012)
- 1962 – Michael Houser, American guitarist (Widespread Panic) (d. 2002)
- 1963 – Norm Charlton, American baseball player
- 1963 – Tony Halme, Finnish boxer and politician (d. 2010)
- 1964 – Denise Borino, American actress (d. 2010)
- 1964 – Charles Haley, American football player
- 1964 – Henry Maske, German boxer
- 1964 – Jacqueline Moore, American wrestler
- 1964 – Mark O'Toole, English musician (Frankie Goes to Hollywood)
- 1964 – Rafael Vidal, Venezuelan athlete (d. 2005)
- 1964 – Yuri, Mexican actress and singer
- 1965 – Muhammed al-Ahari, American Muslim writer
- 1965 – Konnan, Cuban-born professional wrestler
- 1965 – Bjørn Lomborg, Danish political scientist
- 1966 – Fernando Carrillo, Venezuelan actor
- 1966 – Sharon Cuneta, Filipina singer and actress
- 1966 – A. R. Rahman, Indian composer
- 1966 – Ipče Ahmedovski, Serbo-Macedonian folk singer
- 1968 – John Singleton, American film director
- 1969 – Norman Reedus, American model and actor
- 1970 – José Carabalí, Venezuelan track and field athlete
- 1970 – Julie Chen, American television presenter
- 1970 – Gabrielle Reece, American volleyball player
- 1971 – Irwin Thomas, Australian singer (Southern Sons, Electric Mary and She Said Yes)
- 1971 – Gary Wiseman, American musician (Bowling for Soup)
- 1972 – Nek, Italian singer
- 1973 – Scott Ferguson, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1973 – Vasso Karantasiou, Greek beach volleyball player
- 1974 – Paul Grant, American basketball player
- 1974 – Daniel Cordone, Argentine footballer
- 1975 – Nick Clarke, Pro Bull Rider
- 1975 – Nicole DeHuff, American actress (d. 2005)
- 1975 – James Farrior, American football player
- 1975 – Jason King, English radio DJ
- 1975 – Yukana, Japanese voice actress
- 1976 – Johnny Yong Bosch, American actor, and musician
- 1976 – Danny Pintauro, American actor
- 1976 – Daniel Tynell, Swedish cross-country skiier
- 1976 – Lu Yi, Chinese actor
- 1976 – Richard Zedník, Slovak ice hockey player
- 1977 – Marc Johnson, American skateboarder
- 1978 – Nikki Einfeld, Canadian opera singer
- 1978 – Bubba Franks, American football player
- 1978 – Casey Fossum, American baseball player
- 1978 – Tara Spencer-Nairn, Canadian actress
- 1979 – Camila Grey, American musician (Mellowdrone and Uh Huh Her)
- 1980 – Steed Malbranque, French footballer
- 1981 – Mike Jones, American rapper
- 1981 – Rinko Kikuchi, Japanese actress
- 1981 – Jérémie Renier, Belgian actor
- 1981 – Asante Samuel, American football player
- 1982 – Gilbert Arenas, American basketball player
- 1982 – Brian Bass, American baseball player
- 1982 – Tiffany Pollard, American reality television personality
- 1983 – Adam Burish, American ice hockey player
- 1983 – Mithra Jin, South-Korean hip hop musician (Epik High)
- 1986 – Paul McShane, Irish footballer
- 1986 – Petter Northug, Norwegian skier
- 1986 – Irina Shayk, Russian-born American model
- 1986 – Benjamin Simm, German rugby player
- 1986 – Mike Teel, American football player
- 1986 – Alex Turner, English musician (Arctic Monkeys and The Last Shadow Puppets)
- 1987 – Zhang Lin, Chinese swimmer
- 1987 – Bongani Khumalo, South African footballer
- 1989 – Andy Carroll, English footballer
- 1989 – James Durbin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1989 – Max Pirkis, English actor
- 1992 – Aline Sokar, German actress
- 1996 – Kishan Shrikanth, Indian film director, actor
[edit]Deaths
- 429 – Honoratus, French archbishop (b. c.350)
- 786 – Abo of Tiflis, Christian saint killed by Muslims
- 664 – Amr ibn al-A'as, Arab general (b. c.583)
- 1088 – Berengar of Tours, French theologian (b. c.999)
- 1275 – St. Raymond of Peñafort (b. c.1175)
- 1448 – Christopher of Bavaria, King of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden (b. 1418)
- 1481 – Akhmat Khan, Khan of the Golden Horde
- 1537 – Alessandro de' Medici, Duke of Florence (b. 1510)
- 1537 – Baldassare Peruzzi, Italian architect and painter (b. 1481)
- 1592 – Johann Casimir of Simmern, Elector Palatine (b. 1543)
- 1616 – Philip Henslowe, English theatrical entrepreneur (b. c.1550)
- 1646 – Elias Holl, German Architect (b. 1573)
- 1689 – Seth Ward, English mathematician and astronomer (b. 1617)
- 1693 – Mehmed IV, ex-Ottoman Sultan (b. 1642)
- 1711 – Philipp van Almonde, Dutch admiral (b. 1646)
- 1718 – Richard Hoare, English goldsmith and banker (b. 1648)
- 1718 – Giovanni Vincenzo Gravina, Italian writer and jurist (b. 1664)
- 1725 – Chikamatsu Monzaemon, Japanese dramatist (b. 1653)
- 1731 – Étienne François Geoffroy, French chemist (b. 1672)
- 1734 – John Dennis, English dramatist (b. 1657)
- 1813 – Louis Baraguey d'Hilliers, French general (b. 1764)
- 1829 – Josef Dobrovský, Czech philologist (b. 1753)
- 1831 – Rodolphe Kreutzer, French violinist, composer and conductor (b. 1766)
- 1840 – Fanny Burney, English novelist and diarist (b. 1752)
- 1847 – Tyāgarāja, Carnatic Classic Music Composer,Indian(b. 1767)
- 1852 – Louis Braille, French teacher of the blind and inventor of braille (b. 1809)
- 1855 – Giacomo Beltrami, Italian explorer (b. 1779)
- 1872 – James "Big Jim" Fisk, American entrepreneur (b. 1834)
- 1882 – Richard Henry Dana, Jr., U.S. author (Two Years Before the Mast) (b. 1815)
- 1884 – Gregor Johann Mendel, Austrian geneticist (b. 1822)
- 1885 – Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, Norwegian writer and scientist (b. 1812)
- 1896 – Thomas W. Knox, American writer and journalist (b. 1835)
- 1905 – George Van Cleaf, American water polo player (b. 1880)
- 1913 – Frederick Hitch, English Victoria Cross Winner (b. 1856)
- 1918 – Georg Cantor, German mathematician (b. 1845)
- 1919 – Max Heindel, Danish astrologer and mystic (b. 1865)
- 1919 – Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States (b. 1858)
- 1921 – Devil Anse Hatfield, Patriarch of the Hatfield clan of the Hatfield/McCoy feud (b. 1839)
- 1922 – Jakob Rosanes, German mathematician (b. 1842)
- 1928 – Alvin Kraenzlein, American athlete (b. 1876)
- 1933 – Vladimir de Pachmann, Russian-German pianist (b. 1848)
- 1934 – Herbert Chapman, English football player and manager (b. 1878)
- 1937 – André Bessette, Canadian religious figure (b. 1845)
- 1941 – Charley O'Leary, American baseball player (b. 1882)
- 1942 – Emma Calvé, French soprano (b. 1858)
- 1942 – Henri de Baillet-Latour, Belgian International Olympic Committee president (b. 1876)
- 1944 – Ida Tarbell, American journalist (b. 1857)
- 1945 – Edith Frank, mother of Anne Frank (b. 1900)
- 1945 – Vladimir Vernadsky, Russian mineralogist (b. 1863)
- 1949 – Victor Fleming, American director (b. 1883)
- 1952 – Sofoklis Dousmanis, Greek naval officer (b. 1868)
- 1966 – Jean Lurçat, French painter and tapestry designer (b. 1892)
- 1972 – Chen Yi, Chinese military commander and politician (b. 1901)
- 1974 – David Alfaro Siqueiros, Mexican painter (b. 1896)
- 1978 – Burt Munro, New Zealand motorcycle racer (b. 1899)
- 1980 – Georgeanna Tillman, Member of The Marvelettes (b. 1944)
- 1981 – A. J. Cronin, Scottish writer (b. 1896)
- 1984 – Ernest Laszlo, Hungarian-U.S. cinematographer (b. 1898)
- 1990 – Pavel Alekseyevich Čerenkov, Russian physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1904)
- 1990 – Ian Charleson, Scottish actor (b. 1949)
- 1993 – Dizzy Gillespie, acclaimed jazz trumpet player (b. 1917)
- 1993 – Richard Mortensen, Danish painter (b. 1910)
- 1993 – Rudolf Nureyev, Russian ballet dancer (b. 1938)
- 1994 – Virginia Dell Cassidy, Bill Clinton's mother (b. 1923)
- 1995 – Joe Slovo, South African politician (b. 1926)
- 1997 – Catherine Scorsese, Italian-American actress (b. 1912)
- 1999 – Michel Petrucciani, French jazz pianist (b. 1962)
- 2000 – Don Martin, American cartoonist (b. 1931)
- 2003 – Hirini Melbourne, New Zealand musician and composer (b. 1949)
- 2004 – Pierre Charles, Prime Minister of Dominica (b. 1954)
- 2004 – Charles Dumas, American athlete (b. 1937)
- 2004 – Francesco Scavullo, American photographer (b. 1921)
- 2005 – Lois Hole, Lt. Governor of Alberta (b. 1933)
- 2005 – Louis Robichaud, Premier of New Brunswick (b. 1925)
- 2006 – Lou Rawls, American singer (b. 1933)
- 2006 – Hugh Thompson, Jr., decorated Vietnam War helicopter pilot (b. 1943)
- 2007 – Mario Danelo, American football player (b. 1985)
- 2007 – Sneaky Pete Kleinow, American musician and special-effects artist (b. 1934)
- 2007 – Roberta Wohlstetter, military historian and strategist (b. 1912)
- 2009 – Ron Asheton, American guitarist (The Stooges) (b. 1948)
- 2009 – John Scott Martin, English actor (b. 1926)
- 2010 – James von Brunn, perpetrator of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum shooting (b. 1920)
- 2011 – Uche Okafor, Nigerian footballer (b. 1967)
- 2012 – Roger Boisjoly, American engineer (b. 1938)
- 2012 – Bob Holness, English radio and television presenter (b. 1928)
- 2012 – Clive Shell, Welsh international rugby player (b. 1947)
[edit]Holidays and observances
- Armed Forces Day (Iraq)
- Christian Feast Day:
- Epiphany (Western Christianity) or Theophany (Eastern Christianity), and its related observances:
- Pathet Lao Day (Laos)
- The beginning of the Carnival period, from Epiphany until Shrove Tuesday. (Roman Catholicism)
===
Gillard’s offshore solution
Piers Akerman – Sunday, January 06, 2013 (12:12am)
DON’T look now, mum, but Labor is outsourcing the government. Just as Aussie jobs have been sent offshore, the Gillard Labor-Green-independent minority government has abdicated its decision-making responsibilities and is letting foreign green activists dictate policy.
Don’t call Canberra to speak to our policy-makers, dial 1-800-GREENMAIL instead and speak to the offshore extremists who really wield the power.
What started as a racket under the Hawke government when it passed World Heritage legislation in 1983 to enable it to hide behind a UN convention to block the building of Tasmania’s proposed Franklin dam is now a full-on enterprise.
The drive for Labor’s new nation-encircling marine reserves came from offshore, and so too have guidelines for anti-forestry legislation. The cattle industry is next in line.
Labor’s relentless drive to capture the green vote has seen it ignore local industry figures and embrace foreign pressure groups. Queensland Nationals Senator Ron Boswell, one of the few who have been blowing the whistle on the situation, has identified what he calls “big environment” (as opposed to “big business") as the source of much of the Gillard government’s new laws.
In a hard-hitting speech in November, Boswell slammed the environmental non-government organisations (ENGOs) and the government which has bent over backward to accommodate them.
Under its new Illegal Logging Prohibition Bill, the Labor minority government is permitting the radical green groups, including Greenpeace, the Wilderness Society, the Australian Conservation Foundation, Friends of the Earth, and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and other environmental non-government organisations to determine the regulations governing imported timber products.
As Boswell said: “We see ENGO ‘sustainability certification’ bodies established or projected in a number of primary production areas for example, forestry, fishing, and now beef, and others.”
These bodies will be made up of green-friendly groups and, says Boswell, “raise issues of fundamental importance about how Australia will be governed in future certainly about how food, fibre and timber products will be harvested”.
“The growth of these certification bodies highlights an apparent abdication of responsibility by the current federal government for making important decisions about primary production,” he said.
“I believe it also represents a direct attack on science and the role of scientists in decision-making in primary production and other areas. It also belittles the role of experienced resource managers and potentially sidelines them.”
Forget the cuddly koala-suited image of these activist groups’ street collectors. Boswell says the new laws governing forestry and fisheries demonstrate the growing power of ENGOs, especially their financial power and their ability to exert influence over government decisions.
“We are all familiar with references to ‘big business’ as a general term for wealthy and influential business organisations. Now, in Australia, we are seeing the rise of ‘big environment’ : a large, wealthy network of environmental activists,” he said.
In 2009, The Canberra Times calculated that Australia’s four largest environmental groups had spent a total of $70 million that year, much of it for political lobbying.
“Under this Labor government, we have seen ‘big environment’ grow more and more powerful and influential to the point where environmental activists now seem to be orchestrating much of Labor’s policy on primary industries and natural resources,” Boswell said.
Green groups have demanded that forestry importers must get their certification through the group they control Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and not the alternate body the Australian Forestry Standard Limited (AFS).
And, even though the AFS says it covers by far the majority of certified forests in Australia (more than 10 million hectares, certified under Australian Standard 4707: The Australian Standard for Sustainable Forest Management), businesses throughout the supply chain, from loggers right through to the final end-user, are already under pressure to use only the expensive services of the green-dominated FSC-certified timber.
Those that do not bow to the government-endorsed activists demands are targeted for greenmail.
One company, Ta Ann Tasmania, which uses timber sourced from regrowth and plantation timber harvested by others for woodchips, has been attacked by environmental activists, who have been contacting its customers and prejudicing jobs in the state with an unemployment rate about 2 per cent higher than the national average.
Before the London Olympics, a protest group called Markets for Change flew to London and convinced a local company buying plywood for a basketball court not to use Ta Ann product they had previously agreed to purchase.
A spokesman for the London contractor said: “The reason we’ve stopped or we’ve suspended purchasing from Ta Ann is mainly because of the controversy around the logging in Tasmanian forestry. The NGOs will have to be happy with any changes that they can make to enable the product to be purchased by us again.”
Customers for Ta Ann flooring products in Japan have been lobbied as well as the Harvey Norman chain.
“Harvey Norman is selling furniture made from sustainable Tasmanian timber but that’s not good enough for Markets for Change,” Senator Boswell said.
“Markets for Change website tells businesses, like Ta Ann and Harvey Norman, what they should do: ‘Give preference to plantation products with full Forest Stewardship Council certification.’ So, there we are: trying to force producers and buyers into using the Forest Stewardship Council,” he said.
The aims of the green activist ENGOs go far, far beyond just timber, the senator warns.
The WWF has been behind the organisation of the Forest Stewardship Council for timber products, the Marine Stewardship Council for wild-caught seafood, the Aquaculture Stewardship Council for farmed fish and now a so-called round table for beef production.
“Last year, WWF International stated it was focusing on commodities, including beef, bio-energy, cotton, dairy, farmed fish, palm oil, pulp and paper, soy, sugar cane, timber and wild-caught fish,” Senator Boswell said.
“It is by no means far-fetched to say that WWF and other ENGOs fully intend that all food and fibre products harvested in Australia will be forced to go through one of its cash-producing ‘sustainability certification’ schemes.”
Australia’s agricultural, forestry and fisheries industries have a gross value of production of some $50 billion. The green extremists aim to earn money from these industries or close them and Labor is doing nothing to stop these new multinationals destroying Australian jobs and the Australian economy.
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DRIVER UNKNOWN
Tim Blair – Sunday, January 06, 2013 (11:16am)
Someone is being nordy:
Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s taxpayer-subsidised private car has been pinged eight times in six months for traffic offences – but her office is refusing to reveal who was behind the wheel at those times.
Suspicion falls on an obvious target:
Two years ago, Ms Gillard’s private-plated, taxpayer-funded car was snapped twice in six months by police. Ms Gillard said at the time that her partner Tim Mathieson had accepted responsibility for the infringements, which included speeding and going through a red light.
Is the First Bloke a serial scofflaw? Perhaps not. Many others also have access to the Prime Ministerial vehicle. You decide: (poll at link)
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Actually Dennis, you were wrong. People did not fear and loathe you because they misunderstood you. They feared and loathed you because they understood you. - ed
Dennis Ferguson's last words: 'This will show them'===
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Team 9 lives
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Actually, it does mean that. But that is ok. - ed
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Mr. Cricket is unbeaten in his final innings as Australia complete a whitewash against his favourite opponent. Does it get better than that? Adios champ! http://es.pn/UOmgKU
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But Mr Abbott replied: "Well that's just bullshit. I believe it should be safe, legal and rare.">
Abbott was staffer's IVF confidant===
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