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Today in History 12/08 (World War II)

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President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the declaration of war at the White House in Washington, DC, December 8, 1941 (© AP)(1941) US declares war on Japan a day after Pearl Harbor attack
In one of the most stirring speeches of his presidency, Franklin Roosevelt asks Congress to declare war and calls the day of the Pearl Harbor attack, “a date which will live in infamy.” The House soon approves the war declaration, while Japan’s allies, Germany and Italy, will then declare war on the US, bringing the US into WWII.
On December 8, 1941, the United States Congress declared war on the Empire of Japan in response to that country’s surprise attack on Pearl Harbor the prior day. It was formulated an hour after the Infamy Speech of US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Japan had sent a message to the United States to its embassy in Washington earlier, but because of problems at the embassy in decoding the very long message – the high-security level assigned to the declaration meant that only personnel with very high clearances could decode it, which slowed down the process – it was not delivered to the U.S. Secretary of State until after the Pearl Harbor attack. Following the U.S. declaration, Japan’s allies, Germany and Italy, declared war on the United States, bringing the United States fully into World War II.
United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt signing the declaration of war against Japan, in the wake of the attack on Pearl Harbor
President Roosevelt, wearing a black armband, signs the Declaration of War on Japan on December 8, 1941
wiki/United_States_declaration_of_war_on_Japan
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(1941) US declares war on Japan a day after Pearl Harbor attack.
Also on this day,

1980 | John Lennon is murdered by crazed fan in New York City
Ex-Beatle John Lennon, 40, is shot four times at close range by Mark David Chapman as the singer walks to his apartment with his wife, Yoko Ono. Hundreds of fans will keep vigil for a week at the scene of the shooting, and on what would have been Lennon’s 45th birthday, Ono will dedicate a memorial in the park.
1991 | Bergalis who contracted AIDS from her dentist dies at 23
Kimberly Bergalis is one of six patients who likely contracted AIDS from a Florida dentist and represents the first known case of a person contracting the disease from a health care worker. During her battle with the disease, Bergalis called for mandatory AIDS testing of health care workers, prompting intense public debate.
1993 | President Clinton signs NAFTA into law
The North America Free Trade Agreement between the US, Canada, and Mexico eliminates tariffs and other barriers to trade among these “most favored nations.” NAFTA will be blamed by some Americans for losing US jobs to Mexico, but will be wildly successful in reducing costs on goods.

Today in History 12/08/17

President Clinton discusses the North American Free Trade Agreement ( NAFTA ) November 15, 1993, at the Museum of American History in Washington, DC (© Win McNamee/Reuters)(1993) President Clinton signs NAFTA into law
The North America Free Trade Agreement between the US, Canada, and Mexico eliminates tariffs and other barriers to trade among these "most favored nations." NAFTA will be blamed by some Americans for losing US jobs to Mexico, but will be wildly successful in reducing costs on goods.
The North American Free Trade Agreement is an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada–United States Free Trade Agreement between the U.S. and Canada.
Founded: Jan 01, 1994
Founder: George H. W. Bush

NAFTA Initialing Ceremony
Back row, left to right: Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari, U.S. President George H. W. Bush, and Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, at the initialing of the draft North American Free Trade Agreement in October 1992. In front are Mexican Secretary of Commerce and Industrial Development Jaime Serra Puche, United States Trade Representative Carla Hills, and Canadian Minister of International Trade Michael Wilson.
wiki/North_American_Free_Trade_Agreement
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Today in History 11/28 (Ferdinand Magellan)

A print of Ferdinand Magellan discovering the path to the Pacific (© Hulton Archive/Getty Images)(1520) Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan reaches the Pacific
The navigator is the first European to reach the Pacific Ocean after sailing the treacherous waters around the tip of South America. Magellan had left Spain in search of a western route to the Spice Islands. His expedition will be the first to circumnavigate the globe.
Magellan’s expedition was the first to circumnavigate the globe and the first to navigate the strait in South America connecting the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. Magellan’s name for the Pacific was adopted by other Europeans.
After sailing through the dangerous straits below South America that now bear his name, Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan enters the Pacific Ocean with three ships, becoming the first European explorer to reach the Pacific from the Atlantic.

On September 20, 1519, Magellan set sail from Spain in an effort to find a western sea route to the rich Spice Islands of Indonesia. In command of five ships and 270 men, Magellan sailed to West Africa and then to Brazil, where he searched the South American coast for a strait that would take him to the Pacific. He searched the Rio de la Plata, a large estuary south of Brazil, for a way through; failing, he continued south along the coast of Patagonia. At the end of March 1520, the expedition set up winter quarters at Port St. Julian. On Easter day at midnight, the Spanish captains mutinied against their Portuguese captain, but Magellan crushed the revolt, executing one of the captains and leaving another ashore when his ship left St. Julian in August. On October 21, he finally discovered the strait he had been seeking.

French map of the first world circumnavigation of Ferdinand de Magellan and Juan Sebastián Elcano, from 1519 to 1522
The Magellan–Elcano voyage. Victoria, one of the original five ships, circumnavigated the globe, finishing 16 months after Magellan’s death.
wiki/Ferdinand_Magellan
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(1520) Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan reaches the Pacific.
Also on this day,

1582 | William Shakespeare marries Anne Hathaway
Eighteen-year-old William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway, age 26, pay 40 pounds for a wedding license in Stratford-upon-Avon. Six months later the couple will have a daughter, followed later by twins. Scant details will be known about the Bard’s marriage.
1943 | ‘Big Three’ allied leaders Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin meet in Tehran
US President Franklin Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, the so-called ‘Big Three,’ come together to discuss strategies for winning the war against the Nazis. The Tehran Conference is the first time Roosevelt and Stalin meet in person.
1974 | John Lennon joins Elton John in NYC
After losing a bet, John Lennon performs three songs with Elton John at New York’s Madison Square Garden, including Lennon’s hit ‘Whatever Gets You Thru the Night.’ It would be one of Lennon’s final performances, and his last in front of such a large audience.

Today in History 11/28/17

(From left) Soviet Union Premier Josef Stalin, US President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill at the Teheran Conference, November 28, 1943 (© British Official Photo via AP)(1943) Allied leaders Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin meet in Tehran
US President Franklin Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, the so-called 'Big Three,' come together to discuss strategies for winning the war against the Nazis. The Tehran Conference is the first time Roosevelt and Stalin meet in person.
The Tehran Conference was a strategy meeting of Joseph Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Winston Churchill from 28 November to 1 December 1943, after the Anglo-Soviet Invasion of Iran. It was held in the Soviet Union's embassy in Tehran, Iran. It was the first of the World War II conferences of the "Big Three" Allied leaders. It closely followed the Cairo Conference which had taken place on 22–26 November 1943, and preceded the 1945 Yalta and Potsdam conferences. Although the three leaders arrived with differing objectives, the main outcome of the Tehran Conference was the Western Allies' commitment to open a second front against Nazi Germany. The conference also addressed the 'Big Three' Allies' relations with Turkey and Iran, operations in Yugoslavia and against Japan, and the envisaged post-war settlement. A separate protocol signed at the conference pledged the Big Three to recognize Iran's independence.
Start date: Nov 28, 1943
End date: Dec 01, 1943

Mohammad Reza Shah, Stalin und Molotov, Tehran Conference, 1943
The Shah of Iran (center), pictured to the right of Joseph Stalin at the Tehran Conference (1943)

wiki/Tehran_Conference
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