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Saturday, April 14, 2012

Top 5 Bizarre But True Drugs And Their Effects

5. DDT  



Yes, this pesticide – which has now been made illegal in many countries, can produce feelings somewhat like Ecstasy (Hear that environmentalists?? You inadvertently banned a great hallucinogenic-drug!) A popular cocktail was made during the ’50s (called the Mickey Slim) was made by adding a small amount of DDT to gin! In the image above we see two women getting utterly stoned on DDT.

4. DIPT   


DIPT is a tryptamine that affects auditory (sound-based) functions. Users experience things such as voices on the radio being lower in pitch than usual, music sounds distorted, and some people experience light hallucinations. The drug can cause the odd feeling of being bloated, but if you take an antacid immediately after consumption, it usually solved the problem. During the drugged experience, some users also claim to hear a constant ringing in their ears – this can (unfortunately) last for up to two weeks.

3. Saffron   


Saffron is a flower used as a food additive. The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Substances states that the orange-yellow flower “…is known to have…narcotic effects similar to those of opium.” Saffron actually has an ancient history of use as a drug – the Ancient Minoans used to drink a tea infusion of it to get high and the Persians and Greeks considered it an aphrodisiac. The Romans and Egyptians used it in various medicines.

2. Catnip   


It’s not just for cats anymore! Many who have smoked it say that it gives a mellow, pot-like buzz. Though most warn that you should not get your hopes up too high. It leaves a minty aftertaste and is apparently much easier to smoke than pot (and doesn’t cause coughing).

1. Xenon (Xe)   


Xenon is a heavy, odorless, inert gas that can be found in the Earth’s atmosphere, lasers, gas-discharge lamps, medical imaging, in the process of creating nuclear power, for protein crystallography, in the production of MEMS (microelectromechanical systems), and for anesthesia. Naturally, most anesthetics – like nitrous oxide and Novocaine (which is made from cocaine), have hallucinogenic side-effects. It’s effects are said to be like that of nitrous oxide, except without the auditory-effects and the “headachiness”. One anonymous user on the web-site “Lyceaum” said that it gives the user an ability to, “…zero in on ‘singularity’ thoughts and memories and hold them for ‘sentimental orgasms’…”




Top 5 Strange Legends And Images Of Saints

5. St Dymphna  




St Dymphna’s story is truly sad, but one that parallels many popular folk legends. Dymphna was a virgin daughter of a pagan king. She secretly baptized into Christianity. After her mother died, her father became insane with grief, and declared that he would only marry another woman as beautiful as his wife. Eventually he noticed that Dymphna his own daughter, shared his wife’s beauty. He determined to marry her, but the girl fled from him in horror, accompanied by a trusted priest. They sought sanctuary elsewhere but were found by her father’s men. The priest was promptly killed, and her father once again proposed to her. She refused to marry him, and he himself struck off her head. Dymphna is depicted as a beautiful, virginal, young girl. She is often holding a holy bible and white flowers. She is the patroness of incest victims and the mentally disturbed.

4. Simon Zelotes   


Simon Zelotes (or Simon the Zealot) was one of the twelve disciples. He had previously been a violent man but was converted by Jesus. Not much is known of his life after Jesus’ death, but he is believed to have travelled widely preaching the gospel. Legend has it that he was martyred in Mesopotamia by being hung upside down and sawed to death – longitudinally. He is often depicted holding the saw that was the instrument of his martyrdom.

3. St Apollonia   


St Apollonia was an old deaconess who fell victim to the persecutions of Christians in Alexandria. As Christians fled the city, Apollonia was seized by a mob. They beat her and knocked all her teeth out. They then lit a huge fire to burn her if she did not renounce Christianity. Begging for time as though she would comply with their demands, instead she jumped into the flames herself and died without renouncing her faith. She is the patroness of dentists, and is depicted holding pincers containing her tooth or with a gold tooth on a necklace.

2. St Margaret of Antioch   


St Margaret of Antioch was a popular saint in the middle ages. Legend states that she was the daughter of a pagan priest, but decided to convert to Christianity. This angered her father as well as a suitor whose advances she rejected. They had her reported to the authorities as a Christian, and she was jailed. In jail she met the devil in the form of a dragon, who proceeded to swallow her whole. The cross she carried however, irritated the dragon’s belly and she was able to tear her way out using the cross and emerge whole from the dragon. Several attempts were then made to execute her by drowning and fire, all of which failed, leading many who witnessed her tortures to be converted. She was finally beheaded. She is often depicted emerging from the dragon’s belly, cross in hand. Appropriately, she is the patroness of childbirth.

1. Saint Bartholomew   



Saint Bartholomew is one of the Apostles of Christ. After Christ’s death he travelled the world as far as India, evangelizing and preaching the gospel. He fell afoul with the pagans in Armenia where he was martyred. Legend states that he was flayed alive (removing the skin from the body while keeping it as intact as possible), and then crucified upside down on a cross. He is the saint invoked by those who deal with skins and leather. He is depicted in art as a man holding his flayed skin.




Top 5 Odd Superstitions About Food

5. Hollow Bread  



It was once (and perhaps still is) a superstition that if you found a hole in a loaf of bread you cut, it symbolized a coffin and meant that someone was soon to die. If a person found a loaf in this state, there would be days of discussion to guess who it might be that would be stricken down. Of course, these days we are less likely to cut our own loaves of bread, so this one is likely to die into obscurity.

4. Egg shells  



It was once a superstition that if you did not crush the ends of an egg after eating it, a witch would gather the shells and use them to craft a boat that she could use to sail out to sea to raise storms. This is a very ancient superstition which seems to originate in the 1580s. If you shattered the end of the shell, it would create enough holes to make it useless as a boat. We won’t even go into the logic of how a full-sized human might be able to stand in an egg shell – that was obviously not on the minds of our superstitious forebears.

3. Crossed Bread  




This innocent old superstition dictated that all loaves of bread must be marked with a sign of the cross before baking. The idea was that the cross would prevent the devil from sitting on the loaf – and thereby prevent him from cursing or spoiling the bread. The upside to this superstition is that bread rises much better in the oven when crossed – though obviously not from the influence (or lack thereof) of the wicked one.

2. Salt   



We all know of the superstition surrounding the spilling of salt, but here is a slightly more unusual one. It used to be considered bad if you helped another person to the salt – there was even a little phrase that evolved from the superstition: “help to salt, help to sorry.” Salt is such an important part of human life that it is no wonder that it appears so frequently in the history of superstition.

1. Tea Rituals   



It used to be considered bad luck for two people to pour tea from the same pot. In addition, if you left the lid off the teapot while brewing tea, it was meant to mean that a stranger would visit soon. There were even a series of small rituals you could perform to determine the exact day, hour, and gender of the visitor by means of tapping the wrist.




Top 5 Fascinating Graveyards You Must See


5. La Recoleta Cemetery
Buenos Aires, Argentina



Always topping lists of places to visit in Buenos Aires, the Cementerio de la Recoleta is a fascinating glimpse into Argentine history. The most famous tomb is undoubtedly that of Eve Peron’s, but there are many more Argentinean politicians, poets and personalities. The cemetery is designed much like a city, with wide avenues branching off into alleyways, all lined with “houses” for individuals and families. Many are exceptionally well maintained, but there are many more that no longer have family members to maintain them and have thus fallen into disrepair. There are stories of crypts being used as maintenance closets, with cleaning supplies stored on top of coffins. Among the tombs that have been maintained, you will find many sculptures that have been declared national historic monuments, as well as a myriad of styles, from Egyptian to Gothic to Art Deco. Another interesting note: among Argentina’s rich and famous deceased, you may also find a colony of feral cats that have made Cementerio de la Recoleta their home, and who are often fed by the locals.

4. Saint Louis Cemetery
New Orleans, Louisiana


This is actually three cemeteries. Each is worth visiting, though Saint Louis Cemetery #1 is, in my opinion, the most interesting, and the one I will be referring to. The tombs in Saint Louis are above ground, and the stone buildings are actually concealing bodies only a few feet away from the visitor. The reason for this is supposedly because the ground water level in New Orleans is impractical for burials, though there is some dispute of this. Saint Louis #1 is more than a little run down, and a tour guide is strongly recommended. Voodoo is alive and well in New Orleans and the tomb of Voodoo Queen Marie LaVeau is supposedly located in the Glapion family crypt in Louis #1. When I visited, graffiti made this particular tomb hard to miss, but that was a few years ago, and I can’t vouch for what it looks like now. As an aside, when I visited I did not go with a tour. Aimless wandering through the one square block cemetery found many tombs that had been broken into, and more than a few remains scattered. This cemetery is not for the fainthearted.

3. Forest Lawn Memorial Parks
Glendale & Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles, California


Also: Hollywood Forever (Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.) Three places for the price of one! First, Forest Lawn: A unique entry… The creators of these parks wanted to approach the creation of a final resting place with a sunnier outlook. The result is practically a theme park for death. Traditional headstones are ditched in favor of markers set into the ground, and replicas of artwork –paintings and statuary- and famous buildings from all over the world, abound. If, for instance, you want to see the complete collection of Michelangelo’s sculptures but can’t afford to bounce around Europe, look no further. This cemetery contains the only complete collection in the world that is made from casts of the originals and marble from the same quarry Michelangelo used. Between Glendale and Hollywood Hills you can find the final resting place of what may seem like most of Hollywood (and you’ll find the rest at Hollywood Forever). Curiously, some of the graves are in a restricted section, among them Hollywood elite such as Humphrey Bogart, Nat King Cole and Mary Pickford, but most are available to the public. Some of the more visited markers are those of Walt Disney, L. Frank Baum, Errol Flynn, James Stewart, Spencer Tracy, Tex Avery, Scatman Crothers, Bette Davis, Marty Feldman, Buster Keaton, Fritz Lang, Liberace, Telly Savales (buried with a lollipop!), and many, many more. Hollywood Forever is located nearby, adjacent to the north wall of Paramount studios. It is less popular because it spent the latter part of the 20th century being run down and financially mismanaged. It was purchased by its current owners in 1998 and refurbished. Movies are screened there in the summertime, drawing hundreds of visitors. Famous occupants include Mel Blanc, Cecille B. DeMille, Douglas Fairbanks, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., George Harrison, Johnny and Dee Dee Ramone, Rudolph Valentino, and my all time favorite actor, Peter Lorre.

2. Green-Wood Cemetery
Brooklyn, New York


Boasting 600,000 graves spread out over 478 acres, this site is a popular tourist attraction for those visiting New York City. Like Père-Lachaise, there was a campaign to promote the cemetery involving moving famous bodies there and donating monuments. Unlike Père-Lachaise, the plan didn’t really work, and from the time it was opened in 1838 until the building of the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883 made it easier to get there, the cemetery did not get that many permanent residents. Those that did come to stay had plenty of room to do so, however. There are hundreds of ornate tombs for famous and non-famous residents alike, but the site still seems wide open. Most New Yorkers who made their name in the second half of the 19th century (a prolific chunk of time for famous New Yorkers) can be found here. There are also war memorials and monuments, including an Obelisk that serves as a grave marker for 103 of the nearly 300 victims of the Brooklyn Theater Fire.

1. Old Jewish Cemetery
Josefov, Prague, Chzech Republic


Easily the oldest cemetery on this list, with the earliest discernable headstone dating back to 1439, the Old Jewish Cemetery operated until 1787, which means it closed before most of the entries on this list had opened. The headstones bear this out, jumbled at strange angles and deeply weatherworn. Ropes divide the walkway from the headstones, and tickets can be bought to see the cemetery individually or in addition to visiting the surrounding synagogues. Interestingly, while many Jewish cemeteries were destroyed during the holocaust, Hitler specifically requested this one remain intact, as he apparently intended to build a museum here after his assumed victory.






Monday, April 9, 2012

Top 5 Amazing Coincidences

5. Twins




The twin brothers, Jim Lewis and Jim Springer, were separated at birth, adopted by different families. Unknown to each other, both families named the boys James. Both James grew up not knowing of the other, yet both sought law-enforcement training, both had abilities in mechanical drawing and carpentry, and each had married women named Linda. Both had sons, one of whom was named James Alan and the other named James Allan. The twin brothers also divorced their wives and married other women – both named Betty. And they both owned dogs which they named Toy.

4. Golden Scarab


From The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche: “A young woman I was treating had, at a critical moment, a dream in which she was given a golden scarab. While she was telling me this dream I sat with my back to the closed window. Suddenly I heard a noise behind me, like a gentle tapping. I turned round and saw a flying insect knocking against the window-pane from outside. I opened the window and caught the creature in the air as it flew in. It was the nearest analogy to the golden scarab that one finds in our latitudes, a scarabaeid beetle, the common rose-chafer (Cetonia aurata) which contrary to its usual habits had evidently felt an urge to get into a dark room at this particular moment. I must admit that nothing like it ever happened to me before or since, and that the dream of the patient has remained unique in my experience.” – Carl Jung

3. Taxi



In 1975, while riding a moped in Bermuda, a man was accidentally struck and killed by a taxi. One year later, this man’s bother was killed in the very same way. In fact, he was riding the very same moped. And to stretch the odds even further, he was struck by the very same taxi driven by the same driver – and even carrying the very same passenger!

2. Hotel Discovery



In 1953, television reporter Irv Kupcinet was in London to cover the coronation of Ellizabeth II. In one of the drawers in his room at the Savoy he found found some items that, by their identification, belonged to a man named Harry Hannin. Coincidentally, Harry Hannin – a basketball star with the famed Harlem Globetrotters – was a good friend of Kupcinet’s. But the story has yet another twist. Just two days later, and before he could tell Hannin of his lucky discovery, Kupcinet received a letter from Hannin. In the letter, Hannin told Kucinet that while staying at the Hotel Meurice in Paris, he found in a drawer a tie – with Kupcinet’s name on it.

1. Historical Coincidence


The lives of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, two of America’s founders. Jefferson crafted the Declaration of Independence, showing drafts of it to Adams, who (with Benjamin Franklin) helped to edit and hone it.The document was approved by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. Surprisingly, both Jefferson and Adams died on the same day, July 4, 1826 – exactly 50 years from the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Source



Top 5 Fascinating Last Pictures Taken


5. Wiley Post & Will Rogers
1898 –1935, 1879 – 1935




Wiley Post who was the first pilot to fly solo around the world and his good friend Will Rogers a famous comedian, humorist and social commentator were set out to fly around the world together. This photo (that’s Will Rogers in the hat and tie, standing on the wing) was taken on August 15, 1935 shortly before taking off from a lagoon near Point Barrow Alaska. During take off Post’s experimental Lockheed Explorer sea plane crashed when its engine failed killing both men.
Interesting Fact: The airport in Barrow Alaska was renamed Wiley Post – Will Rogers Memorial Airport.

4. John and Jackie Knill




On January 13, 2005 the bodies of Canadian couple John and Jackie Knill were discovered on a Thailand beach resort. They were two of the many victims killed from the December 26 2004 tsunami. Weeks later a Seattle man doing relief work found a damaged camera and discarded it but kept the memory card in the camera. After downloading the images he discovered pictures of the Knill’s enjoying their vacation, as well as shots of a huge wave approaching the shore. With each picture it shows the wave getting closer and closer to shore. The last picture taken of them before the wave hit (shown above) was shot just after 8.30 am on December 26.
Interesting Fact: The Seattle man that discovered the images recognized the Knills from a missing person’s web site and contacted the couple’s two sons in Vancouver Canada. The man then drove from Seattle to Vancouver to give the sons their parent’s last images.

3. Albert Einstein
b.1879 d.1955



The photograph above is the last known picture of Einstein, taken in March, 1955. There are not a lot of details concerning this photo but he is probably at his home near Princeton, New Jersey. A month later on April 17, 1955, Einstein experienced internal bleeding caused by the rupture of an aortic aneurysm, which had previously been diagnosed and reinforced. He went to the hospital and took a draft of a speech he was preparing for a television appearance commemorating the State of Israel’s seventh anniversary with him. Unfortunately he did not live long enough to complete it. The following day Einstein died at the age of 76.
Interesting Fact: Einstein’s brain was removed within seconds of his death (without the permission of his family) in hope that future neuroscience would be able to discover what made Einstein so intelligent. Recent scientific studies have suggested that regions involved in speech and language are smaller, while regions involved with numerical and spatial processing are larger.

2. Marilyn Monroe
b.1926 d 1962



Many believe Celebrity photographer George Barris took the last pictures of Marilyn Monroe. However, it was actually Life Magazine’s photographer Allan Grant. The pictures were taken July 7, 1962 during an interview at her home. Six pictures appeared in Life including the one pictured above.
Just under a month later on August 5, 1962, the LAPD received a call at 4:25AM from Dr. Hyman Engelberg proclaiming that Monroe was dead at her home in Brentwood, Los Angeles. The official cause of Monroe’s death was classified as “acute barbiturate poisoning”, and was also recorded as a “probable suicide. Many questions still remain unanswered about the circumstances of her death and the timeline from when Monroe’s body was found.
Interesting Fact: The Life Magazine issue featuring Monroe’s interview was dated August 3 1962, just 2 day before her death.


1. Bill Biggart
1947-2001



Photojournalist Bill Biggart was covering the events of September 11th and was Tragically killed as the second tower of the World Trade Center came down. Four days later Biggart’s body was recovered from the rubble and his personal effects, including his cameras were given to his wife. Biggart’s widow later handed over the camera bag to a good friend and fellow photographer. She was convinced that no pictures had survived because the falling debris had blown off the backs of the two film cameras and the lids of the film canisters had been peeled back. His friend turned his attention to the digital camera that was covered by ash. The lens had been sheared off but when he opened the chamber that held the flash card he discovered it was in pristine condition. The card contained 150 pictures including the last picture taken shown above which is time stamped 10:28 am and 24 seconds. The time was 10:30am when the second tower came down.
Interesting Fact: When Biggart’s wife reached him on his cell phone shortly after the first tower fell. He told her not to worry, and would meet her in 20 minutes at his studio. “I’m safe,” he assured her, “I’m with the firemen.” It was the last time they ever spoke. About 20 minutes later, the second tower collapsed.

Source



The 5 Most Brutal Deaths in the Bible

It’s common knowledge that Jesus was a bit of a softy, pushing his peace and love agenda until his death and well after his foray into zombie-ism, but people tend to forget that His father operated on an absurdly short temper. God’s Old Testament policy can be summed up succinctly with “talk shit, get hit.” What follows are five of the most brutal deaths you’ll find in the Bible.

1.King Eglon


The Who: As far as biblical douche bags go, Eglon’s name isn’t exactly memorable. He wasn’t quite a power player, but the dude was still a dick: during the time of the Judges he suppressed the people of Israel because hey, why not? He was also a bit of a glutton, which while not always the ear mark of a tyrant, it is still a sin, so we’ll stack that against him, too.

The Death: Jolly Old Eglon was approached by Judge Ehud, who claimed to have a very important message for the king. Eglon sent all of his aides away. Ehud then uttered the most bad-ass line in the entire Bible, “I have a message from God for you,” and stabbed Eglon right in the stomach. The grievous wound combined with his Fat Albert physique lead to the dagger being swallowed by his girth. Depending on which translation you’re reading, excrement also leaked out of the wound, so there you go.

Ehud escaped and locked all the doors. When Eglon’s aides returned they assumed that their king was relieving himself and waited to enter. Finally, unable to wait any longer, they broke in and found their king a bloated, bleeding, unpleasantly feces-soaked corpse.



2.Samson


The Who:

Samson is pretty much the Old Testament equivalent to the Incredible Hulk. Though born during a time when God was punishing the Israelites by having them live under the rule of the Philistines, Samson was blessed with unparalleled strength so he could brutally slay the captors of his people and return them to God. Throughout his narrative he’s prone to fits of anger that leave thousands of people corpsed. To put it bluntly, Samson was metal.


The Death:

The catch to Samson’s fists of fury was that he wouldn’t cut his hair. Naturally, that had to happen; his lover Deliah was bought out by the Philistines to discover his secret, and though he did lead her on for quite some time he eventually told her. She cut his hair and he was promptly captured and blinded by swords, because that’s really the only way to avenge the deaths of thousands.

The Philistines forced the blind and weak Samson to grind grain. However, they didn’t keep tabs on the whole “hair” thing. Once his hair grew back and Samson realized that he’d found a holy loophole, he prayed to God to restore his strength so he can at least go out with a bang. Samson then knocked over two pillars in a temple, bringing the whole damn thing down and killing more Philistines than every single one of his murderous rages before combined. But because God’s forgiveness doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, Samson died with his enemies having learned a lesson about keeping your promise to God but having absolutely no time to apply it.



3.Sisera


The Who:

Commander of a Canaanite army who took his turn at oppressing the Israelites, a popular hobby of the day. He commanded several hundred iron chariots and in legends outside of the Bible could shake walls and kill wild animals with his voice. He also conquered every enemy he faced. Consider him the evil, more vocal Samson, if you will.

The Death:

Sisera does have one official loss under his belt. An Israelite force of ten-thousand turned the tables at the Battle of Mount Tabor. After his own forces were swept away by a river, Sisera called it a night and fled to Heber in the Kenite’s settlement. Heber, an apparent associate of his, offered to hide him out until the heat died down. The mighty Sisera was hidden underneath a rug, and that was that.

While a rug may have been good enough to fool the average Israeli army, no one took Heber’s wife Jael into account. While Sisera was asleep Jael took a spike and a hammer and crushed his freaking skull, pinning it to the ground and killing him at once. With Sisera dead the Israelites lived in peace for forty years. Interestingly enough, some narratives claim that Jael first tried to exhaust Sisera through sex, apparently doing the deed with him seven times before doing God’s work with the ol’ spike and mallet. However, because this sin was committed so she could better carry out the work of God (i.e. killing a sleeping man with a giant nail), it’s not frowned upon. Go figure.




4.Absolom


The Who:

Third son of King David, Absolom was the most handsome man in his father’s kingdom. His good looks were framed by long, flowing hair. God’s twisted sense of irony should tell you that last bit is an important detail, so please do take note of it.

Absolom was, however, a bit of a cocky bastard and staged a revolt against his father (but not before sleeping with his concubines, because hey, rebellion). Israel and Judea joined his cause, forcing David and his own supporters to get the hell out of Dodge and flee as Absolom took the capital. But David wasn’t about to be outfoxed by his own son. Instead he sent an aide to infiltrate his son’s court and force an attack. Shit was gonna get real.

The Death:

The two armies met in the Ephraim Wood and Absolom was completely routed. While fleeing, his manly locks got stuck in a tree. His mule ran out from underneath him, leaving him to hang high and dry. David’s commander Joab took advantage of the situation and executed him – still hanging from the tree – with a group of spearmen and swordsmen. David was upset by this, but it’s kind of his fault since he did trick his son into attacking him.


5.Abimelech



The Who:


The son of Judge Gideon, Abimelech’s name is a proof of inheritance and was used to assert his right to rule after the death of his father. However, he was the son of his father’s concubine and not a true heir, so he had to claim the title by force, killing his seventy or so step-siblings. The youngest brother managed to escape before Abimelech was made king of Mannasseh.


The Death:


The town of Thebez revolted, presumably because they felt his birth certificate was a forgery. Not too fond of negotiations, Abimelech attacked the town to remind them who wears the big pants. It was during this dick-punch crusade that he met his end when a woman atop a wall threw a millstone at his skull. Once he realized he was about to give it up to the spirit in the sky, Abimelech ordered one of his soldiers to kill him so no one could say he was slain by a woman. While you may or may not agree that his technicality makes a difference, it doesn’t change the fact that his head was crushed by a freaking millstone.






Source

5 Common Myths About World War II

World War II is often touted as the most important conflict in world history (though our vote goes to “whatever conflict our ancestor was able to survive”). Given such a tall pedestal, you think people would be better at separating its fact from its fiction, but apparently that isn’t so. Much of what is taught about World War II has become distorted with time. The reasons these errors made have made it into history books ranges from simple matters of perspective to successful propaganda campaigns. What follows are five of the most popular myths.

1.France Just Gave Up

There’s an old running gag among the American public that France simply pussed out when World War II was brewing in Europe. The basis of this seems to be that the Nazi’s simply rolled into France without much resistance. Of course, this isn’t true at all, and on behalf of my country I’d like to offer an apology to any French folks reading this. Also, please send more toast.


What happened between May and June in 1940 was a combination of evolution in warfare and poor planning. When the Nazi’s attacked France they did so with the then unheard of Blitzkrieg strategy, laying waste to everything as fast as they could and effectively scattering the French army. Germans referred to this as the “silver bullet” because Hitler just couldn’t let the werewolf thing go.

Anyway, at this point the French military was trained to fight using what they had experienced in World War I. Coincidentally; they had yet to experience blitzkrieg and had no time to form a proper counter strategy. British forces reached the same conclusion and fled across the Channel. France continued fighting for six weeks despite all sense of organization being completely shattered.


Many historians agree that most armies at the time (if not all) wouldn’t hold up against blitzkrieg. Not only was the strategy relatively new, but Germany was also leading the world in terms of technology, meaning new weapons like the Panzer tank.




2.Hitler Became Furher by One Vote

Continually circling the drain that is Internet e-mail forwards is an often repeated list of history changing events determined by one vote. The list is comprised entirely of disastrous results determined or narrowly missed by a single vote and is designed to encourage people to vote whenever they can, presumably because Rock the Vote was a miserable failure.

However, the list is almost always entirely false. One of the more commonly cited “facts” is that Hitler came into power in 1932 by a single vote. Ten seconds of research would tell anyone that this wasn’t at all the case, but then again, the sorts of people who pass on information they read in the body of a Yahoo! e-mail aren’t exactly known for their research prowess.

In July 1921, Hitler walked away from the National Socialists German Workers Party, presumably to work on some art school applications. Two years later he was asked to rejoin, but he would only do so on his own terms: dictatorial power. The party, apparently not great at playing hard ball, voted with this stipulation in mind. The end result: five-hundred and fifty-three in favor, one opposed. That’s… totally different. That’s the sort of thing that discourages people from voting, really.


3.Polish Horses vs. German Tanks


Germany’s invasion of Poland helped further solidified Germany’s power in Europe during the war, so you would think that an event with that much impact would be better researched. Turns out that no, no it isn’t, and Nazi propaganda is to blame.

Popular myth dictates that when German Panzers rolled into Poland in 1939 they were met by Polish cavalry units. That is to say, men on horseback armed with lances and sabers were deployed to fight tanks. It ended just as well as you would expect.

Shortly after the event, Hitler portrayed Poland as a backwards country in comparison to Germany. To this day people still cite the cavalry versus tanks thing. Problem is, it’s complete bullshit. Polish cavalry were deployed to fight the invading Germans, yes, but not to combat tanks. Instead, the cavalry were fighting infantry soldiers. When the tanks appeared they routed the cavalry. So no, no one thought a group of quadrupeds were going to out fox war machines.


4.Pearl Harbor Was Intentionally A Sneak Attack

The moment that thrust America into the war and a day “that would live in infamy,” Pearl Harbor saw Japanese pilots launch a surprise attack against an American naval base in Hawaii. After the deaths of over two-thousand Americans the public was all too ready to throw its support behind entering the war, be they real or fictional.

However, there’s a great deal of controversy surrounding that attack, much of it perpetuated by the belief that Japan disregarded the conventional rules of war by not formally declaring war on America before launching its attack as to better utilize the element of surprise. Once again, this one has been supported by popular culture for some time now, but the truth disagrees with it.


Admiral Yamamoto, the man who planned the attacks, had stipulated that the attack should only commence thirty minutes after the declaration had been made and received by the United States. This way there would still be an element of surprise to the whole thing (who could prepare for war in half an hour?) but the conventional rules of warfare wouldn’t be broken.


The famous “14-Part Message” had been transmitted to the Japanese Embassy in Washington D.C., but translating the five-thousand word message took too long and wasn’t delivered in time before the attacks. Meanwhile, Japanese newspapers ran a story on the front page about the declaration the day before. Somewhere, someone got ahead of themselves.


There’s some debate that the Japanese military intentionally disregarded Yamamoto’s orders in favor of a complete sneak attack, or that the message was transmitted late. We’ll never know for sure.







5.D-Day Was the Turning Point for the War In Europe

Another popular one here in the States: the invasion of Normandy was the turning point for the war in Europe that finally told Hitler to shove off. Thanks to ass-busting American pride (and some British and Canadian guys, whatever) the Nazi’s were forced into an early grave and the day was saved. You’re welcome, everyone else.

This is completely true, but only if you can somehow ignore a little something called the Eastern Front. Russian forces were responsible for the deaths of over four-million German soldiers – eighty percent of their military division – as well as crushing much of the Luftwaffe, or air force.

It would be foolish to think that this had no impact on German forces or the invasion of Normandy itself. When the Allies landed, German forces were in pretty bad shape, much of that due to war efforts being redirected to the Eastern Front. That didn’t stop them from posing a serious threat in Normandy, but they were severely under supplied and lacked the strength of the Luftwaffe’s support. Had Germany had the proper air support, things probably wouldn’t have gone so smoothly.




Source

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Top 5 the Most Expensive Things in the World


1. The Most Expensive Yacht
Eclipse
$1.2 billion

This yacht belongs to Russian oligarch and Chelsea soccer club owner Roman Abramovich. It has anti-missile system, bulletproof glass, and laser defending system.


2. The Most Expensive House
Antilla
$1 billion

This skyscraper belongs to Mukesh Ambani rupee trillioner and is situated in Mumbai. Its height is 173 meters and it includes a landing sight, recreation center and 6-level parking lot. The maintenance staff consists of 600 people.


3. The Most Expensive Car
Mercedes-Benz W196
$24 million

This car is so expensive for its exclusivity: it has won Grand Prix in 1954 – 1955. In 1990 W196 was sold by auction for $24 million.


4. The Most Expensive Motorcycle
Dodge Tomahawk V10 Superbike
$700,000

This bike has 680 kg in weight and has 4 wheels. Its maximal speed is 483 km/h.


5. The Most Expensive Hotel Room
Royal Penthouse Suite in President Wilson hotel, Geneva
$65,000 for one night

The Penthouse which consists of four bedrooms and six bathrooms occupies the whole upper floor. You can get there by special personal elevator. All doors and windows are made of bullet-proof material.

Top 5 Myths about Global Warming


1. There is no global warming at all
Unfortunately there is global warming. Facts prove that average temperature on our planet is rising.
2. Global warming is a natural process
Likely it is not. The increase of temperature since the 1970s exceeds natural increase.
3. The emission of carbonic acid is too small to cause global warming
Scientists have built graphics of carbonic acid concentration in the atmosphere and temperature changes. These graphics coincide.
4. Anyway the aftermath will be gradual
History proved that climatic conditions may drastically change during few years.
5. We are not able to prevent global warming
Anyone is able to make his contribution to prevention of global warming by at least keeping rationalism in consumer activity.


Top 5 Serial Killers


1. Jack the Ripper
This is probably, one of the most famous members of “butchers’ guild”. In spring 1888 he inspired fear over London killing prostitutes. Though 7 women became his victims, Jack the Ripper was never nobbled. He became famous due to hundreds of books and movies about him.


2. Charles Manson
Another legendary killer became famous in the 1960ths. He led a quasi-commune, which was later called Manson’s Family. In 1969 some members of the Family committed a whole number of murders and Manson was commuted to life imprisonment as he was considered to be an instigator of all crimes.


3. Harold Shipman
Also known as Doctor Death he has been killing people for 23 years. All his 218 victims were his patients, mostly aged people. Shipman killed without any reason. He just liked to imagine himself a god. His victims mostly died of heroin lethal doses. Shipman was commuted to life imprisonment in 2000.


4. Andrew Chikatilo
This Russian maniac is well known all over the word. He was executed in 1994 for 53 (65 according to some data) premeditated murders: 21 boys, 14 girls, and 17 grown-up women.


5. Anatoliy Onoprienko
This is one of the most bloodthirsty maniacs of former Soviet Union. For years he has been travelling around Ukraine and killing people mostly for no reason. He is still alive and serves his life imprisonment in one of Ukrainian prisons for murdering 52 people.