As the major Allied offensive masterminded by Robert Nivelle was failing miserably on the Western Front, British forces in Palestine make their second attempt to capture the city of Gaza from the Ottoman army on April 17, 1917.

In the wake of the failed British assault on Gaza of March 26, 1917, Sir Archibald Murray, commander of British forces in the region, misrepresented the battle as a clear Allied victory, claiming Turkish losses to be triple what they actually were; in truth, at 2,400 they were significantly lower than the British total of 4,000. This led London’s War Office to believe their troops were on the verge of a significant breakthrough in Palestine and to order Murray to renew the attack immediately.

Though the previous assault had caught the Turks by surprise, the second one did not: the German general in charge of the troops at Gaza, Friedrich Kress von Kressenstein, was by now well aware of British intentions. By the time the British launched their second round of attacks on April 17, the Turks had accordingly strengthened their defenses and extended their forces along the road from Gaza to the nearby town of Beersheba.

Still, as in the First Battle of Gaza, British soldiers outnumbered Turkish troops by a ratio of two to one. Moreover, the British employed eight heavy Mark-1 tanks and 4,000 gas shells (used for the first time on the Palestine front) to ensure victory. The tanks proved unsuitable for the hot, dry desert conditions; however, three of them were captured by Turkish forces, which again put up a blisteringly effective defense despite their inferior numbers. After three days and heavy losses—the British casualty figure, of 6,444 men, was three times that of the Turks—Murray’s subordinate commander, Sir Charles Dobell, was forced to call off the British attacks, ending the Second Battle of Gaza with the city still firmly in Turkish control.

As a result of this second failure to capture Gaza, the Allies called in reinforcements, including Italian and French troops, which arrived from Europe in time to join the third and final Battle of Gaza that fall. Under the new regional command of Sir Edmund Allenby, the Allies finally broke through and gained control of Gaza in November 1917, leaving them free to move ahead toward Palestine’s capital city, Jerusalem, which fell into Allied hands on December 9.

Source: history.com

Dr. George Logan of Pennsylvania attempted to normalize relations with France. He entered into negotiations with France, without authorization, in the hopes of resuming normal relations. In 1799, Congress passed legislation outlawing such contacts between foreign governments and private individuals. The law remains in the books to this day.

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In early 1807, a British squadron was stationed off the coast of Virginia. They were there primarily to intercept French frigates, which had taken refuge in Annapolis, Maryland. From time to time, the British vessels made use of American port facilities. British sailors were constantly deserting their ships. This became a major irritant to the British. Three deserters were said to have enlisted on the American naval frigate “Chesapeake.” The British protested, and the Secretary of Navy ordered an inquiry. This inquiry confirmed that three deserters from the “Melampus” had indeed enlisted on the “Chesapeake,” but it was determined that the sailors were Americans who had been illegally impressed. This was transmitted to the British, and the matter seemed to be at an end.

Nevertheless, the British commander in charge of the North Atlantic issued an order to search the “Chesapeake” for deserters, if the ship were encountered at sea. The “Chesapeake” was commanded by Captain Charles Gordon, and had Commodore Barron on board. On June 22, the ship departed from Hampton Roads, headed for the Mediterranean Sea. At 3:30 p.m., the British frigate the “Leopard” came down before the wind. The crew hailed the “Chesapeake,” stating that it had dispatches for the Commodore Barron. Barron replied “We will heave to and you can send your boat on board of us.” At 3:45 p.m., the “Leopard’s” Lieutenant Meade arrived with the following note demanding that the British deserters be turned over.

Since the deserters from the Melampus were not on the list submitted, Captain Gordon believed that his assurance would suffice, and sent back a stern reply to the British.

After the British officer had departed, Barron showed the notes to his other officers. While he felt that the matters was closed, he realized that some show of strength was appropriate. Therefore, Barron ordered Gordon to clear the gun deck. Unfortunately, it took 30 minutes to prepare the “Chesapeake” for battle, and the British officer returned to the ship only five minutes later. Barron was hailed. Trying to obtain more time for his crew, Barron replied that he did not understand. The “Leopard” then fired two shots across the “Chesapeake’s” bow, followed by whole broadside at nearly point blank range. The “Leopard then poured two more broadsides into the “Chesapeake,” while it was still unready to respond. Commodore Barron then ordered the flag to be struck. Several British officers then came aboard and seized the three Americans deserters from the Melampus. They also found a true British deserter, named Jenkin Ratford, who was serving under an assumed name. Ratford was later hanged.

The attack on the “Chesapeake” stirred America into a war fervor. If anyone but Jefferson had been President, this incident would probably have been enough to begin a war.

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Source: Historycentral.com

I went through old posts and found hints of an increase in data centers, at least in the early 2000s. This company tried to tell a story of why we need them and created a mural project; they also bought a 1960s power plant. In

In 2010, Greenpeace posted a warning and petition re:

The Internet is how we connect, learn new things, and share what we love. But right now, much of our Internet is also dirty, no matter how we use it.

Data centers are where Internet companies store our photos, messages, and music, and many are powered by coal and dirty energy sources that pollute our environment and harm our climate.

What’s worse — the Internet’s demand for energy is only growing bigger. If the Internet were a country, its electricity use would already rank sixth in the world.

I have to say that this is embarrassing to know that the warnings were there, just not given a decent amount of airtime or a good platform to inform the public, now, here we are in 2026, some parts of our country is suffering from droughts, others have had their land squandered by DataCenters, which we all now know use an enormous amount of Energy … and Water!

Following a seemingly routine burglary, five men were arrested at the National Democratic Headquarters in the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C.

However, subsequent investigations revealed the burglars were actually agents hired by the Committee for the Re-election of President Richard Nixon.

A long chain of events then followed in which the president and top aides became involved in an extensive cover-up of this and other White House-sanctioned illegal activities, eventually leading to the resignation of President Nixon on August 9, 1974.

Sources: britannica.com, wiki

The idea that those in prestigious positions, such as those in Congress, have no idea that People Of Color just want the same things they do… is hard to fathom