1823: The Monroe Doctrine

 

It all started as a message to Congress and became one of the most important foreign policy doctrines in US history.   We know it as The Monroe Doctrine.   

The declaration, drafted by Secretary of State John Quincy Adams intended to keep European powers from colonizing territory in Central and South America.   The US was also looking westward and did not want to compete with Europeans in North America.

"America for Americans" was the message.    Naturally, it had its critics and supporters over the years.   On balance, it worked well and kept European powers out of America, from North to South.

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1973: The day that Gerald Ford became VP

On this day in 1973,  Representative Gerald Ford became Vice President of the US following the resignation of VP Agnew.   

David Shribman wrote an article reminding us of just how fortunate we were that Gerald Ford was the man who assumed the office.

Put me down as one of those who believes that President Ford was a great president.  He did not fight a war or deal with an economic depression.  He did restore the presidency and that's no small achievement.

As President Carter said after taking the presidential oath:   

"For myself and for our Nation, I want to thank my predecessor for all he has done to heal our land.."

Yes, we should all thank President Ford for healing the nation.  It was no small task.

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The week in review with Bill Katz the editor of Urgent Agenda...

Guest:  Bill Katz the editor of Urgent Agenda...The DC shooting and vetting immigrants; Venezuela and destroying boats; "Illegal orders" video; What's next with Ukraine; A scandal for Governor Walz in Minnesota plus other stories.

The week in review with Bill Katz the editor of Urgent Agenda..

 

Guest:  Bill Katz the editor of Urgent Agenda...The DC shooting and vetting immigrants; Venezuela and destroying boats; "Illegal orders" video; What's next with Ukraine; A scandal for Governor Walz in Minnesota plus other stories....click to listen:

Listen to "The week in review with Bill Katz the editor of Urgent Agenda___ (1)" on Spreaker.

When a man (pretends to be) a woman

When a man (pretends to be) a woman: Sorry, Percy Sledge, for exploiting your song title. I couldn’t help it. Well, it turns out that the strongest woman in the powerlifting world is a man. Yes, one of those modern guys who has transitioned into “gal-hood”.

Click to read:

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2025/12/when_a_man_pretends_to_be_a_woman.html

When a man (pretends to be) a woman - American Thinker https://t.co/9uFnu96E3q

— Silvio Canto. Jr. (@silvio_canto) December 1, 2025

Happy # 77 to George Foster

We remember George Foster, one of the power bats of The Big Red Machine of the 1970's.     Foster was born in Alabama on this day in 1948.

Foster broke with the Giants in 1969 but was traded to Cincinnati in 1972.   

It took him a couple of years to get going but he became a big HR hitter:  52 in 1977 and 40 in 1978.   

Overall, he hit 348 HR with 1,239 RBI.     Foster was the NL MVP in 1977 and came in second in 1976.

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Happy # 57 to Larry Walker

Let's wish a very happy birthday to Larry Walker, arguably the best Canadian hitter ever.    He won 3 batting titles:   .363 in '98, .379 in '99, and .350 in '01.   

He also won 7 gold gloves, an MVP ('97) and member of the 30/30 club.

He retired with a .313 batting average, 383 HR's and 1311 RBI's    

Why isn't Larry Walker in the Hall of Fame?   

Some say because he played in Colorado.  It's true that he did play 8 years there and that's where he put up some amazing numbers:  a .334 average, 258 HR, 848 RBI in 1,170 games!

He also played in Montreal for 6 seasons where he hit .281 in 674 games!  And he finished in St. Louis: .286 in 144 games.

He should be in the HOF!  

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1990: They started digging "The Chunnel"

It's incredible but true.   You can get on a fast speed train and go under The English Channel.   Here is the story:

After workers drilled that final hole on December 1, 1990, they exchanged French and British flags and toasted each other with champagne. Final construction took four more years, and the Channel Tunnel finally opened for passenger service on May 6, 1994, with Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II and France’s President Francois Mitterrand on hand in Calais for the inaugural run. 

Still sounds incredible many years later!

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1824: Presidential election went to the House.....and John Quincy Adams won

On December 1, 1824, the unresolved presidential election of 1824 went to the US House.  It was required by the US Constitution because no candidate had a majority of the Electoral College.  

John Quincy Adams won eventually…………here it goes:   

In the November 1824 election, 131 electoral votes, just over half of the 261 total, were necessary to elect a candidate president.
Although it had no bearing on the outcome of the election, popular votes were counted for the first time in this election.
On December 1, 1824, the results were announced. Andrew Jackson of Tennessee won 99 electoral and 153,544 popular votes; John Quincy Adams–the son of John Adams, the second president of the United States–received 84 electoral and 108,740 popular votes; Secretary of State William H. Crawford, who had suffered a stroke before the election, received 41 electoral votes; and Representative Henry Clay of Virginia won 37 electoral votes.
As dictated by the Constitution, the election was then turned over to the House of Representatives.
The 12th Amendment states that if no electoral majority is won, only the three candidates who receive the most popular votes will be considered in the House.
Representative Henry Clay, who was disqualified from the House vote as a fourth-place candidate, agreed to use his influence to have John Quincy Adams elected.
Clay and Adams were both members of a loose coalition in Congress that by 1828 became known as the National Republicans, while Jackson’s supporters were later organized into the Democratic Party.
Thanks to Clay’s backing, on February 9, 1825, the House elected Adams as president of the United States. 

And we think that our politics is crazy.

It was not pretty but the candidates were willing to abide by the rule of law.  In other words, no one was happy with the outcome but the opposition accepted the results and the country moved on.

Four years later, Andrew Jackson easily defeated President Adams to become the 7th president of the US.  

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World War II: German invasion of USSR 1941-42, part 2 with Barry Jacobsen

World War II: German invasion of USSR 1941-42, part 2 with Barry Jacobsen.....Listen in now

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Listen to "World War II: The road to Stalingrad and Marines land on Guadacanal" on Spreaker.