Introduced by President John Kennedy, carried through by his successor President Lyndon Johnson, the Civil Rights Act prohibited: discrimination on the basis of race in public accommodations, in publicly owned or operated facilities, in employment and union membership and in the registration of voters. The bill included Title VI, which allowed for the cutoff of [...]
Beginning on July 1, 1863, the farthest northern advance of Gen. Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia was halted at a sleepy hamlet in Pennsylvania, Gettysburg. 3 ferocious days and approximately 50,000 casualties later, Lee was forced to abandon his plans and head back to Virginia. Once upon a time, I was [...]
On June 30, 1953, the first Corvette was produced. Arguably the best-known American sports car, the ‘vette is an American legend. 6 generations and 57 years later, the Corvette stands as an icon of the road and a standard of the mid-life crisis. My personal preference – either the classic 50′s ‘vette or the brand [...]
While it may seem an odd choice, two things come to play here – 1) there aren’t a lot of other good options 2) we are in the midst of a weeklong tour of Missouri, Iowa and Minnesota (possibly Omaha as well), driven mainly on – you guessed it – interstates. So yeah, thin, but [...]
From Answers.com: A day set aside to reach out and teach children in America the value of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. A time to help kids learn about the great nation that they live in; adults can help them learn by demonstrating what it means to be an American. Seems like a [...]
Ah, June 26. So much to choose from! The introduction of the bar code. The 10th anniversary of the mapping of the human genome. The signing of the UN Charter. And of course, Madagascar’s Independence Day. Woohoo! But all of these pale – my little sister (well, one of them anyway) is getting married!  There [...]
For these and so many others, take a moment from the celebration and remember why we are free to celebrate. Honor the ones who came before you! My father, Capt. Richard Carl Koelle, went to Iowa State University, was a ROTC candidate, then joined the Army in 1966-67. He served a tour in Vietnam, earning [...]
