Bairnsdale Conservative: Tue 8th Jan Todays News

Happy birthday and many happy returns Tha Ken. Born on the same day as NK's Kim Jong-un. Remember, birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.

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January 8: Kim Jong-un's Birthday in North Korea

1198 – After Lotario de Conti was elected as Pope Innocent III, his first act was the restoration of the papal power in Rome.
1811 – The German Coast Uprising, the largest slave revolt in United States history, took place in Louisiana.
1979 – The oil tanker Betelgeuse exploded at the offshore jetty of the Whiddy Island Oil Terminal off Bantry Bay, Ireland, killing approximately 50 people.
2004 – RMS Queen Mary 2 (pictured), at the time the longest, widest and tallestpassenger ship ever built, was christened by her namesake's granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II.
2011 – In Tucson, Arizona, US, Jared Lee Loughner opened fire on an outdoor public meeting, killing six people and injuring twelve others.

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Events

307 – Jin Huidi, Chinese Emperor of the Jin Dynasty, is poisoned and succeeded by his son Jin Huaidi.
871 – Alfred the Great leads a West Saxon army to repel an invasion by Danelaw Vikings.
1297 – François Grimaldi, disguised as monk, leads his men to capture the fortress protecting the Rock of Monaco, establishing his family as the rulers of Monaco.
1455 – The Romanus Pontifex is written.
1499 – Louis XII of France marries Anne of Brittany.
1734 – Premiere performance of George Frideric Handel's Ariodante at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.
1746 – Second Jacobite Rising: Bonnie Prince Charlie occupies Stirling.
1780 – An earthquake of estimated magnitude 7.7 hits the city of Tabriz, Iran, killing about 80,000 people and causing major damage.
1790 – George Washington delivers the first State of the Union address in New York, New York.
1806 – Cape Colony becomes a British colony.
1811 – An unsuccessful slave revolt is led by Charles Deslondes in St. Charles and St. James, Louisiana.
1815 – War of 1812: Battle of New Orleans – Andrew Jackson leads American forces in victory over the British.
1835 – The United States national debt is 0 for the only time.
1863 – American Civil War: Second Battle of Springfield
1867 – African American men are granted the right to vote in Washington, D.C.
1877 – Crazy Horse and his warriors fight their last battle against the United States Cavalry at Wolf Mountain, Montana Territory.
1889 – Herman Hollerith is issued US patent #395,791 for the 'Art of Applying Statistics' — his punched card calculator.
1904 – The Blackstone Library is dedicated, marking the beginning of the Chicago Public Library system.
1906 – A landslide in Haverstraw, New York, caused by the excavation of clay along the Hudson River, kills 20 people.
1912 – The African National Congress is founded.
1918 – President Woodrow Wilson announces his "Fourteen Points" for the aftermath of World War I.
1920 – The steel strike of 1919 ends in a complete failure for the Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel and Tin Workers labor union.
1940 – World War II: Britain introduces food rationing.
1945 – World War II: Philippine Commonwealth troops under the Philippine Commonwealth Army units enter the province of Ilocos Sur in Northern Luzon and attack Japanese Imperial forces.
1956 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. missionaries are killed by the Huaorani of Ecuador shortly after making contact with them.
1961 – In France a referendum supports Charles de Gaulle's policies in Algeria.
1962 – The Harmelen train disaster killed 93 people in the Netherlands.
1963 – Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa is exhibited in the United States for the first time, at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
1964 – President Lyndon B. Johnson declares a "War on Poverty" in the United States.
1971 – Bowing to international pressure, President of Pakistan Zulfikar Ali Bhutto releases Bengali leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman from prison, who had been arrested after declaring the independence ofBangladesh.
1973 – Soviet space mission Luna 21 is launched.
1973 – Watergate scandal: The trial of seven men accused of illegal entry into Democratic Party headquarters at Watergate begins.
1975 – Ella T. Grasso becomes Governor of Connecticut, the first woman to serve as a Governor in the United States other than by succeeding her husband.
1977 – Three bombs explode in Moscow, Russia, Soviet Union within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
1979 – The tanker Betelgeuse explodes in Bantry Bay, Ireland.
1981 – A local farmer reports a UFO sighting in Trans-en-Provence, France, claimed to be "perhaps the most completely and carefully documented sighting of all time".
1982 – The break up of AT&T: AT&T agrees to divest itself of twenty-two subdivisions.
1989 – The Kegworth air disaster. British Midland flight 92 crashes into the M1 motorway killing 47 people out of 127 on board.
1989 – Beginning of Japanese Heisei period.
1994 – Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov on Soyuz TM-18 leaves for Mir. He would stay on the space station until March 22, 1995, for a record 437 days in space.
1996 – An Antonov 32 cargo turboprop powered plane crashes into the central market in Kinshasa, Zaire killing more than 350 people.
2002 – President George W. Bush signs into law the No Child Left Behind Act.
2003 – Turkish Airlines Flight 634 crashes near Diyarbakır Airport, Turkey, killing the entire crew and 70 of 75 passengers.
2004 – The RMS Queen Mary 2, the largest passenger ship ever built, is christened by her namesake's granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II.
2005 – The nuclear sub USS San Francisco collides at full speed with an undersea mountain south of Guam. One man is killed, but the sub surfaces and is repaired.
2010 – Gunmen from an offshoot the Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda attacked the bus carrying the Togo national football team on its way to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, killing three.
2011 – An attempted assassination of Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and subsequent shooting in Casas Adobes, Arizona at a Safeway grocery store kills six people and wounds 13, including Giffords.

[edit]Births

1556 – Uesugi Kagekatsu, Japanese samurai and warlord (d. 1623)
1583 – Simon Episcopius, Dutch theologian (d. 1643)
1587 – Johannes Fabricius, German astronomer (d. 1616)
1601 – Baltasar Gracián y Morales, Spanish writer (d. 1658)
1628 – François Henri de Montmorency-Bouteville, duc de Luxembourg, French general (d. 1695)
1632 – Samuel Pufendorf, German jurist (d. 1694)
1635 – Luis Manuel Fernández de Portocarrero, Spanish Archbishop (d. 1709)
1735 – John Carroll, American Roman Catholic archbishop (d. 1815)
1763 – Edmond Charles Genêt, French diplomat (d. 1834)
1786 – Nicholas Biddle, American banking executive (d. 1844)
1788 – Archduke Rudolph of Austria (d. 1831)
1788 – Pavel Kiselyov, Russian general and politician (d. 1874)
1792 – Lowell Mason, American composer (d. 1872)
1805 – John Bigler, American lawyer, politician and diplomat; 3rd Governor of California; and former United States Envoy to Chile (d. 1871)
1805 – Orson Hyde, American religious leader (d. 1878)
1812 – Sigismond Thalberg, Swiss virtuoso pianist and composer (d. 1871)
1817 – Sir Theophilus Shepstone, South African statesman (d. 1893)
1821 – James Longstreet, American Confederate general and diplomat; and former United States Minister to the Ottoman Empire (d. 1904)
1821 – W.H.L. Wallace, American Union general (d. 1862)
1823 – Alfred Russel Wallace, British naturalist and biologist (d. 1913)
1824 – Francisco González Bocanegra, Mexican poet (d. 1861)
1824 – Wilkie Collins, British novelist (d. 1889)
1830 – Albert Bierstadt, German/American painter (d. 1902)
1830 – Hans von Bülow, German pianist and composer (d. 1894)
1836 – Lawrence Alma-Tadema, Dutch artist (d. 1912)
1843 – Frederick Abberline, British police investigator (d. 1929)
1843 – John H. Moffitt, American politician (d. 1926)
1852 – James Milton Carroll, American pastor and author (d. 1931)
1854 – John Rahm, American golfer (d. 1935)
1860 – Emma Booth, daughter of William and Catherine Booth (d. 1903)
1862 – Frank Nelson Doubleday, American publisher (d. 1934)
1864 – Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale (d. 1892)
1865 – Winnaretta Singer, Princesse Edmond de Polignac, an American patron of French music, and of the arts, sciences, and letters (d. 1943)
1866 – William G. Conley, American politician and 18th Governor of West Virginia (d. 1940)
1867 – Emily Greene Balch, American writer and pacifist, Nobel Peace Prize laureate (d. 1961)
1870 – Miguel Primo de Rivera, Spanish politician (d. 1930)
1871 – James Craig, 1st Viscount Craigavon, Irish politician (d. 1940)
1873 – Elena of Montenegro, queen of Italy (d. 1956)
1873 – Iuliu Maniu, Romanian politician and Prime Minister (d. 1953)
1879 – Charles Bryant, British actor and film director (d. 1948)
1881 – Henrik Shipstead, American politician (d. 1960)
1883 – Pavel Filonov, Russian painter (d. 1941)
1883 – Patrick J. Hurley, American soldier, statesman, and diplomat; 51st United States Secretary of War and former United States Ambassador to the Republic of China (d. 1963)
1885 – John Curtin, Australian politician, 14th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1945)
1885 – A. J. Muste, Dutch pacifist and activist (d. 1967)
1886 – Thomas January, American soccer player (d. 1957)
1888 – Richard Courant, German-American mathematician (d. 1972)
1888 – Matthew Moore, Irish-American actor (d. 1960)
1891 – Walther Bothe, German physicist, Nobel Prize in Physics laureate (d. 1957)
1891 – Storm Jameson, English writer (d. 1986)
1891 – Bronislava Nijinska, Russian choreographer (d. 1972)
1894 – Saint Maximilian Kolbe, Polish martyr (d. 1941)
1896 – Arthur Ford, American medium (d. 1971)
1896 – Jaromir Weinberger, Czech-American composer (d. 1967)
1897 – Dennis Wheatley, British author (d. 1977)
1899 – Solomon Bandaranaike, Ceylonese Prime Minister (d. 1959)
1900 – Dame Merlyn Myer, Australian philanthropist (d. 1982)
1902 – Georgy Malenkov, Soviet politician (d. 1988)
1902 – Carl Rogers, American psychologist (d. 1987)
1904 – Karl Brandt, Alsatian Nazi war criminal (d. 1948)
1904 – Tampa Red, American blues musician (d. 1981)
1905 – Giacinto Scelsi, Italian composer (d. 1988)
1905 – Franjo Šeper, Croatian Catholic cardinal (d. 1981)
1908 – William Hartnell, British actor (d. 1975)
1909 – Willy Millowitsch, German actor (d. 1999)
1909 – Bruce Mitchell, South African cricketer, Wisden COY 1936 (d.1995)
1909 – Nikolaos Platon, Greek archaeologist (d. 1992)
1909 – Evelyn Wood, American educator (d. 1995)
1910 – Galina Sergeyevna Ulánova, Russian prima ballerina assoluta (d. 1998)
1911 – Tom Delaney, British racing driver (d. 2006)
1912 – José Ferrer, Puerto Rican actor (d. 1992)
1912 – Lawrence E. Walsh, American jurist and 4th United States Deputy Attorney General
1915 – Walker Cooper, American baseball player (d. 1991)
1921 – Herta Bothe, Nazi concentration camp guard
1922 – Jan Nieuwenhuys, Dutch painter (d. 1986)
1922 – Abbey Simon, American pianist
1923 – Larry Storch, American actor
1923 – Giorgio Tozzi, American bass
1923 – Johnny Wardle, English cricketer (d. 1985)
1923 – Joseph Weizenbaum, German-American author and computer scientist (d. 2008)
1924 – Benjamin Lees, American composer (d. 2010)
1924 – Ron Moody, English actor
1925 – Helmuth Hubener, German activist (d. 1942)
1926 – Jani Christou, Greek composer
1926 – Evelyn Lear, American soprano (d. 2012)
1926 – Kelucharan Mohapatra, Indian Odissi dancer (d. 2004)
1926 – Hanae Mori, Japanese fashion designer
1926 – Soupy Sales, American comedian (d. 2009)
1927 – Charles Tomlinson, British poet and translator
1928 – Slade Gorton, American politician
1928 – Gaston Miron, French-Canadian poet and editor (d. 1996)
1929 – Saeed Jaffrey, Indian actor
1929 – Wolfgang Peters, German footballer (d. 2003)
1931 – Bill Graham, German-born American music promoter (d. 1991)
1931 – Chuck Metcalf, American jazz double-bassist (d. 2012)
1933 – Charles Osgood, American journalist and commentator
1933 – Jean-Marie Straub, French film director
1933 – Ko Un, Korean poet
1933 – Nolan Miller, American fashion designer (d. 2012)
1934 – Jacques Anquetil, French cyclist (d. 1987)
1934 – Gene Freese, American baseball player
1934 – Roy Kinnear, English actor (d. 1988)
1934 – Alexandra Ripley, American writer (d. 2004)
1935 – Lewis H. Lapham, American writer
1935 – Elvis Presley, American singer (d. 1977)
1936 – Zdeněk Mácal, Czech conductor
1936 – Robert May, Baron May of Oxford, Australian-born British scientist
1937 – Dame Shirley Bassey, Welsh singer
1938 – Bob Eubanks, American game show host
1938 – Yevgeny Nesterenko, Russian bass-baritone
1939 – Carolina Herrera, Venezuelan fashion designer
1941 – Graham Chapman, British comedian (d. 1989)
1941 – Boris Vallejo, Peruvian illustrator
1941 – Yoshinori Watanabe, Japanese mobster (d. 2012)
1942 – Valya Balkanska, Bulgarian folk singer
1942 – Stephen Hawking, English physicist and author
1942 – Junichiro Koizumi, Japanese politician
1942 – Yvette Mimieux, American actress
1943 – Charles Murray, American author and pundit
1944 – Terry Brooks, American writer
1945 – Yvonne Kennedy, American politician (d. 2012)
1945 – Jeannie Lewis, Australian actress and singer
1945 – Kojo Nnamdi, Guyanese-born American radio host
1945 – Kathleen Noone, American actress
1945 – Kadir Topbaş, Turkish politician
1946 – Robby Krieger, American musician (The Doors and The Butts Band)
1947 – Don Bendell, American author & karate master
1947 – William Bonin, American serial killer and sex offender (d. 1996)
1947 – David Bowie, English musician
1947 – Samuel Schmid, Swiss politician
1947 – Terry Sylvester, English singer and musician (The Escorts, The Swinging Blue Jeans and The Hollies)
1947 – Laurie Walters, American actress
1948 – Gillies MacKinnon, Scottish director
1950 – Jos Hermens, Dutch runner
1951 – Kenny Anthony, Saint Lucian politician
1951 – John McTiernan, American director
1952 – Vladimir Feltsman, Russian-American pianist
1952 – Mel Reynolds, American politician
1953 – Bruce Sutter, American baseball player
1955 – Karine Kazinian, Armenian diplomat (d. 2012)
1955 – Spiros Livathinos, Greek footballer
1955 – Mike Reno, Canadian musician (Loverboy and Moxy)
1957 – Nacho Duato, Spanish classical dancer and choreographer
1957 – David Lang, American composer
1958 – Rey Misterio, Sr., Mexican wrestler
1959 – Paul Hester, Australian drummer (Crowded House and Split Enz) (d. 2005)
1959 – Duk Koo Kim, Korean boxer (d. 1982)
1961 – Keith Arkell, English chess grandmaster
1961 – Calvin Smith, American athlete
1962 – Chris Marion, American musician (Little River Band and Western Flyer)
1964 – Ron Sexsmith, Canadian singer-songwriter
1965 – Michelle Forbes, American actress
1965 – Maria Pitillo, American actress
1966 – Igor Vyazmikin, Russian ice hockey player (d. 2009)
1966 – Andrew Wood, American singer (Mother Love Bone and Malfunkshun) (d. 1990)
1967 – Willie Anderson, American basketball player
1967 – Torsten Gowitzke, German footballer
1967 – R. Kelly, American singer
1968 – Keith Mullings, American boxer
1969 – Jeff Abercrombie, American musician (fuel)
1969 – Ami Dolenz, American actress
1970 – Rachel Friend, Australian actress
1971 – Jason Giambi, American baseball player
1971 – Mike Süsser, German chef
1971 – Pascal Zuberbühler, Swiss footballer
1972 – Giuseppe Favalli, Italian footballer
1972 – Sean McKeever, American writer
1973 – Mike Cameron, American baseball player
1973 – Sean Paul, Jamaican reggae and dancehall musician
1973 – Henning Solberg, Norwegian rally driver
1973 – Jason Stevens, Australian rugby league footballer
1974 – Maria Matsouka, Greek politician
1975 – DJ Clue, American DJ and producer
1975 – Harris Jayaraj, Indian music composer
1975 – Tift Merritt, American singer-songwriter (The Two Dollar Pistols with Tift Merritt)
1976 – Jenny Lewis, American actress and musician (Rilo Kiley and Jenny & Johnny)
1976 – Josh Meyers, American actor
1976 – Carl Pavano, American baseball player
1977 – Amber Benson, American actress
1977 – Ron Pederson, Canadian actor
1977 – Melanie Seeger, German race walker
1977 – Lee Yoo-jin, Korean actress
1978 – Boris Avrukh, Israeli chess grandmaster
1978 – Marco Fu, Hong Kong snooker player
1979 – Torry Castellano, American musician (The Donnas)
1979 – Seol Ki-Hyeon, South Korean footballer
1979 – Mirella van Melis, Dutch track and road cyclist
1979 – Adrian Mutu, Romanian footballer
1979 – Stipe Pletikosa, Croatian footballer
1979 – Sarah Polley, Canadian actress
1980 – Rachel Nichols, American actress
1981 – Jeff Francis, Canadian baseball player
1981 – Carmen Schäfer, Swiss curler
1981 – Xie Xingfang, Chinese badminton player
1982 – Emanuele Calaiò, Italian footballer
1982 – Wil Francis, American singer (Aiden)
1982 – Gaby Hoffmann, American actress
1982 – John Utaka, Nigerian footballer
1983 – Kim Jong-un, North Korean leader (year disputed, possibly 1984)
1983 – Felipe Colombo, Argentine/Mexican actor and singer
1983 – Chris Mordetzky, American wrestler
1984 – Jeff Francoeur, American baseball player
1985 – Rachael Lampa, American singer
1986 – Jessica Parker Kennedy, Canadian actress
1986 – Jaclyn Linetsky, Canadian actress (d. 2003)
1986 – Maria Ozawa, Japanese/French-Canadian pornstar
1986 – David Silva, Spanish footballer
1987 – Carmen Klaschka, German tennis player
1988 – Allison Harvard, American artist and fashion model
1988 – Michael Mancienne, English footballer
1988 – Adrián López Álvarez, Spanish footballer
1989 – Aaron Cruden, New Zealand rugby player
1989 – Kristján Einar, Icelandic racing driver
1991 – Jorge Enríquez, Mexican footballer
1991 – Asuka Hinoi, Japanese singer (Hinoi Team)
1992 – Apostolos Vellios, Greek footballer
1993 – Brooke Greenberg, American child who has remained the size of a toddler
2000 – Noah Cyrus, American actress
2011 – Princess Josephine of Denmark
2011 – Prince Vincent of Denmark

[edit]Deaths

307 – Jin Huidi, Chinese emperor of the Jin Dynasty (b. 259)
482 – Saint Severinus of Noricum
1100 – Antipope Clement III (b. c.1029)
1107 – Edgar of Scotland (b. 1074)
1198 – Pope Celestine III (b. c. 1106)
1324 – Marco Polo, Italian explorer (b. 1254)
1337 – Giotto di Bondone, Italian artist (b. 1267)
1456 – St. Lawrence Justinian, Italian bishop and first Patriarch of Venice (b. 1381)
1464 – Thomas Ebendorfer, Austrian historian (b. 1385)
1557 – Albert the Warlike, Prince of Bayreuth (b. 1522)
1570 – Philibert de l'Orme, French architect (b. c. 1510)
1598 – John George, Elector of Brandenburg (b. 1525)
1642 – Galileo Galilei, Italian astronomer and scientist (b. 1564)
1664 – Moses Amyraut, French theologian (b. 1596)
1707 – John Dalrymple, 1st Earl of Stair, Scottish politician (b. 1648)
1713 – Arcangelo Corelli, Italian composer (b. 1653)
1775 – John Baskerville, English printer (b. 1706)
1789 – Jack Broughton, English boxer (b. c. 1703)
1794 – Justus Möser, German statesman (b. 1720)
1815 – Edward Pakenham, British general (b. 1778)
1825 – Eli Whitney, American inventor (b. 1765)
1853 – Mihály Bertalanits, Slovene (Prekmurian poet and teacher in Kingdom of Hungary (b. 1788)
1854 – William Carr Beresford, 1st Viscount Beresford, British general and politician (b. 1768)
1865 – Aimé, duc de Clermont-Tonnerre, French general (b. 1779)
1874 – Charles-Étienne Brasseur de Bourbourg, French writer and historian (b. 1814)
1878 – Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov, Russian poet (b. 1821)
1883 – Miska Magyarics, Slovene poet in Hungary (b. 1825)
1880 – Joshua A. Norton, "Emperor of the United States, Protector of Mexico" (b. 1811)
1896 – William Rainey Marshall, Governor of Minnesota (b. 1825)
1896 – Paul Verlaine, French poet (b. 1844)
1901 – John Barry, Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross (b. 1873)
1916 – Rembrandt Bugatti, Italian sculptor (b. 1884)
1916 – Ada Rehan, Irish-born American actress (b. 1860)
1918 – Johannes Pääsuke, Estonian photographer and filmmaker (b. 1892)
1918 – Ellis H. Roberts, American politician (b. 1827)
1925 – Fernand Sanz, French racing cyclist (b. 1881)
1932 – Eurosia Fabris, Italian Catholic (b. 1866)
1934 – Andrei Bely, Russian writer (b. 1880)
1934 – Serge Stavisky, French financier and embezzler (b. 1886)
1938 – Johnny Gruelle, Creator of Raggedy Ann and Andy (b. 1880)
1941 – Lieutenant-General Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, British soldier, author, and founder of the Scout movement (b. 1857)
1942 – Joseph Franklin Rutherford, American religious publisher (b. 1869)
1943 – Richard Hillary, Australian Spitfire pilot and author (b. 1919)
1944 – William Kissam Vanderbilt II, member of the Vanderbilt family (b. 1878)
1945 – Karl Krafft, Swiss astrologer who was manipulated by the Nazi regime (b. 1900)
1948 – Kurt Schwitters, German painter (b. 1887)
1948 – Richard Tauber, Austrian tenor (b. 1891)
1950 – Joseph Schumpeter, Austrian economist (b. 1883)
1953 – Admiral Sir Hugh Binney, British naval commander and Governor of Tasmania (b. 1883)
1956 – Jim Elliot, American Christian missionary (b. 1928)
1958 – Mary Jane Colter, American architect (b. 1869)
1958 – Paul Pilgrim, American athlete (b. 1883)
1961 – Schoolboy Rowe, American baseball player (b. 1910)
1963 – Kay Sage, American artist and poet (b. 1898)
1963 – Bimal Roy.Indian Film Director(b.1909)
1967 – Zbigniew Cybulski, Polish actor (b. 1927)
1969 – Albert Hill, British athlete (b. 1889)
1970 – Georges Guibourg, French performer (b. 1891)
1972 – Kenneth Patchen, American poet (b. 1911)
1975 – John Gregson, English actor (b. 1919)
1975 – Richard Tucker, American tenor (b. 1913)
1976 – Zhou Enlai, Premier of the People's Republic of China (b. 1898)
1976 – Robert Forgan, British fascist (b. 1891)
1979 – Sara Carter, American country musician (Carter Family) (b. 1898)
1980 – John Mauchly, American physicist (b. 1907)
1981 – Matthew "Stymie" Beard, American actor (b. 1925)
1982 – Grégoire Aslan, Armenian actor (b. 1908)
1983 – Gerhard Barkhorn, German fighter pilot (b. 1919)
1983 – Ron Frazer, Australian actor (b. 1924)
1983 – Tom McCall, Governor of Oregon (b. 1913)
1986 – Pierre Fournier, French cellist (b. 1906)
1990 – Terry-Thomas, British actor, comedian (b. 1911)
1991 – Steve Clark, English guitarist (Def Leppard) (b. 1960)
1994 – Pat Buttram, American actor (b. 1915)
1994 – Harvey Haddix, American baseball player (b. 1925)
1995 – Carlos Monzón, Argentinian boxer (b. 1942)
1996 – John Hargreaves, Australian actor (b. 1945)
1996 – François Mitterrand, President of France (b. 1916)
1996 – Howard Taubman, American music and theater critic (b. 1907)
1997 – Melvin Calvin, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911)
1998 – Michael Tippett, English composer (b. 1905)
2000 – Fritz Thiedemann, German equestrianist (b. 1918)
2002 – Alexander Mikhaylovich Prokhorov, Nobel Prize in Physics laureate (b. 1916)
2002 – Dave Thomas, American fast food entrepreneur (b. 1932)
2003 – Ron Goodwin, British composer and conductor (b. 1925)
2004 – John A. Gambling, American radio talk-show host (b. 1930)
2005 – Campbell McComas, Australian impersonator and broadcaster (b. 1952)
2005 – Warren Spears, American choreographer and dancer (b. 1954)
2005 – Michel Thomas, Polish linguist (b. 1914)
2006 – Tony Banks, British politician (b. 1943)
2007 – Jane Bolin, first African American female judge (b. 1908)
2007 – Yvonne De Carlo, Canadian-born actress (b. 1922)
2007 – Francis Cockfield, British politician (b. 1916)
2007 – David Ervine, Northern Irish politician (b. 1953)
2007 – Iwao Takamoto, American animator (b. 1925)
2008 – George Moore, Australian champion jockey (b. 1923)
2009 – Richard John Neuhaus, Canadian-American Christian writer and editor (b. 1936)
2009 – Lasantha Wickrematunge, Sri Lankan journalist (b. 1958)
2010 – Tony Halme, Finnish boxer and politician (b. 1963)
2010 – Monica Maughan, Australian actor (b. 1933)
2011 – John Roll, United States federal judge (b.1947)
2011 – Thorbjørn Svenssen, Norwegian footballer (b. 1924)
2011 – Jiří Dienstbier, Czech journalist and politician (b. 1937)

[edit]Holidays and observances

Christian Feast Day:
Commonwealth Day (Northern Mariana Islands)
Earliest day on which Children's Day can fall, while January 15 is the latest; celebrated on the second Saturday in January. (Thailand)
Kim Jong-un's Birthday (North Korea)

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Spare a thought for those facing bushfires

Piers Akerman – Tuesday, January 08, 2013 (6:56am)

NSW is in a state of high bushfire alert today.

I am forty-five minutes from the Sydney GPO in a narrow strip of housing that lies between the edge of the Ku-Ring-Gai national park and the water of Towlers Bay and the sun is beating down threateningly.

At 6.45am there was a very light westerly blowing, no more than 1-2km/h.

But this is the teasing hint of breeze that threatens to build throughout the day, bringing hotter, drier air from the West with the potential to destroy huge parts of NSW should more bushfires be started today – January 9 – nineteen years to the day that massive fires last swept through the State, destroying homes and property, including in the nearby bays.

NSW Rural Fire Service Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons has bluntly stated: “This is one of the worst fire danger days on record for NSW.

“I cannot say it more plainly: the risk is real and potentially deadly. People need to act now.

“If you live in bush land or an isolated area where there is a Catastrophic Fire Danger Rating your only option is to leave early.”

In my neighbourhood, the water of the bays provides the best option.

Experienced residents have their fire pumps primed and ready on their docks, and have their hoses handy to run out.

I serviced my own pump last month, cleaning the carburettor and changing the spark plug. Yesterday afternoon I cleared the gutters.

Last night, some of the neighbours met and discussed plans for today.

During the 1994 fires, the houses that were lost were those that were occupied by tenants and abandoned when the inferno approached.

A lot was learnt from that experience.

No property is worth more than a life.

One of my neighbours (who was overseas in 1994) said his tenants had taken the items they believed he would have wished to save, and placed them in a safe place.

As it happened, his home was spared. When he later asked which possessions they had been moved to save he discovered that they chose nothing he felt was of any value and had left everything that he might have tried to save had he been present.

Family photographs seem to be the most valuable possessions. They can be saved fairly easily.

We may be spared again.

While the Illawarra, Shoalhaven and Southern Ranges have a fire danger rating of Catastrophic and widespread areas of the State have a fire danger rating of Extreme, we do have the protection of the bay should all else fail.

However, even as the brilliant sun rises over the Barrenjoey Peninsula into the cloudless sky, that little breeze is freshening.

The temperature has risen 1.4C in the past half hour and it is now 24.4C.

The digital thermometer is rising quickly.

It will be a long day here but our prayers are with those whose circumstances are less fortunate, who safety is not as easily provided for, and of course, for the hundreds who have already lost their homes and businesses in Tasmania and elsewhere this summer.

Poet Dorothea MacKellar, who once lived in the next bay, wrote of this sunburnt country and “flood and fire and famine”.

She knew Australia and it has not changed.

Today will be long, and sorely testing for some.

Our thoughts are with those who will be at the fire front.

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Green arrogance burns fiercely

Miranda Devine – Tuesday, January 08, 2013 (6:45pm)

WHEN Julia Gillard toured fire ravaged parts of Tasmania on Monday she couldn’t resist opportunism - using the calamity to push a climate change agenda.

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LIES LOVED

Tim Blair – Tuesday, January 08, 2013 (5:56pm)

“Efforts to take the Greens ‘mainstream’ will be seen by many potential voters as window-dressing,” editorialised the Canberra Times following the party’s recent attempt to appear normal. “Critics will doubtless reinforce this perception by asserting that a leopard cannot change its spots.”

Those critics would be right. Here’s senior Green Lee Rhiannon:

(Via WG)

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DREAM FOLLOWED

Tim Blair – Tuesday, January 08, 2013 (2:25pm)

Actors have the ability to change gravity and challenge reality, according to Cate Blanchett. Which should help this mob:

A Melbourne-based theatre company that has received more than $800,000 in federal government grants since December 2010 has gone into liquidation owing the Australian Taxation Office almost $700,000 …

Until the day before it entered liquidation, the company that owes the money was registered with ASIC as Follow Your Dreams.

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BE HEARD

Tim Blair – Tuesday, January 08, 2013 (12:33pm)

“Is there a problem with the words I use?” asks commenter Stuart.W. “Half my posts don’t make it.” I can’t recall any particular examples of yours, Stuart, but it’s possible that there were legal or taste issues. Here are some commentary tips.

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CAMPAL WARMING

Tim Blair – Tuesday, January 08, 2013 (5:44am)

The Prime Minister visits bushfire-ravaged Tasmania, and blames the usual suspect:

‘’While you would not put any one event down to climate change … we do know that over time as a result of climate change we are going to see more extreme weather events,’’ she said.

But at the end of that report:

A man has been accused of starting a 10,000-hectare bushfire in southern Tasmania. Police allege a 31-year-old New Norfolk man left a campfire unattended near Lake Repulse last week, sparking the huge blaze which has burned through 10,600 hectares since Friday. Police said they would proceed with a charge of leaving an unextinguished fire unattended.

(Via CL)

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CAREER LIMITED

Tim Blair – Tuesday, January 08, 2013 (5:27am)

This week’s column is reviewed by Dick Smith:

Tim,

In your opinion piece [yesterday] morning - ‘Travel’s no Issue for rich, high-flying carbon kings’ There seemed to be one important person missing, Billionaire newspaper magnate Rupert Murdoch, who states “Climate change poses clear catastrophic risk”, while travelling to Australia in his mega sized corporate Jet.

Tim, Is there any reason you didn’t mention this? Or would you simply not be game knowing that your career would be limited if you wrote without fear or favour?

By the way I am completely opposed to any form of population control.

I look forward to you reply.

Regards
Dick Smith

Dear Dick,

My employer backs up his views on climate change with action. He employs a great number of people worldwide who are tasked with reducing his company’s carbon footprint. News Corporation is now carbon neutral, which must delight you. This also places Murdoch outside the group of carbon-screaming flybabies mentioned in my column.

Personally, I disagree with the entire climate change agenda, as you’d be aware from my columns published by News. We’re OK with views that don’t follow what you may perceive as the “company line”. Let’s see you similarly invest in opinions that differ from your own.

As for you being “completely opposed to any form of population control”, I’d refer you to your own words on the subject:

You might take this up with your friends at the ABC:

Australian businessman Dick Smith is offering a million dollars to a young Australian who can come up with a solution to bring the country’s population under control.

You might also mention this to the Age:

Mr Smith says we must reduce immigration levels from 300,000 to between 70,000 and 100,000 a year. He plans to donate $1 million as part of his newly unveiled Wilberforce Award, to the young Australian who comes up with the best solution for population control.

And the Sydney Morning Herald:

Smith - electronics entrepreneur, adventurer, pilot, frustrated aviation reformer, former Australian of the year, and still vocal ‘’living treasure’’ - admits he was a late convert to population control.

Cheers,

Tim

UPDATE. Further from Dick, sent yesterday:

Tim,

Great to hear you are going to mention something in your blog, what about in the actual Daily Telegraph itself? Now that would be a challenge.

By the way, my magazine of Forbidden Ideas and the censored version Aussie Grown Foods (of which 750,000 appeared in News Ltd papers) says very clearly on page 12 “Personally I am opposed to any form of population control. Some Aussie families may choose to have 6 or more kids, while others may want 1 or none. That’s their right. Australian families are sensible. Our present population growth, accounting for births and deaths alone, is almost zero.”

This has always been my view despite a couple of reports in the Murdoch press stating that I wanted a China like 2 child policy. I have never said such a thing; it’s the complete opposite of my free enterprise views.

Regards
Dick

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THEY LIVE TO LIE

Tim Blair – Tuesday, January 08, 2013 (2:19am)

The power of deceit:

Whitehaven Coal lost more than $276 million in market value after coal activist Jonathan Moylan issued a fake press release suggesting that ANZ had withdrawn its $1.2 billion loan to help Whitehaven build a new mine, because of environmental concerns. Within minutes Whitehaven shares plunged spectacularly by 31c, or 8.8 per cent, from $3.52 to $3.21 shortly after midday …

Jonathan’s been working on this look for years

Mr Moylan yesterday said his actions were justified. “ANZ customers have the right to know their money is being invested in a project which will force farmers off their land and destroy 1360ha of endangered koala habitat,” Mr Moylan said.

Moylan faces potential fines and imprisonment if charged and convicted of any wrongdoing. Meanwhile:

Whitehaven shares recovered to be down just 2c at $3.53 at close.

Too bad for SpongeJon SmugPants. Here’s how the scam was arranged:

He and and an activist group, Frontline Action On Coal, created the fake media release, using a real ANZ statement as a template, bought a website name and a dummy ANZ email address for about $25 on the internet.

When contacted by Fairfax Media, Mr Moylan initially posed as a corporate affairs spokesman for the ANZ Bank.

He later apologised for lying and tried to justify the hoax by saying it was worth it to draw attention to the environmental problems that the open-cut coalmines would probably cause …

Asked if he had qualms about lying to the public to achieve environmental ends, he said: ‘‘Our primary concern is the impact of this mine on the environment ... A lot of people were taken in by it but when you compare the cost of that to the health of our forests and farmlands, it justifies it.’’

UPDATE: “Not only did Moylan deliberately issue a hoax press release, but he included his own phone number against the name of Tony Kent (an actual ANZ employee) and then impersonated Kent when receiving phone calls. That is outright fraud.”

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Abbott wants ABC to flush out bias but Turnbull does not see its stacked deck===