What Happened Today

The official dissolution of the Soviet Union is one of those historical events that stands as a sea change in the way the world operates. Once the USSR was ended, the very nature of international relations changed permanently. On the other hand, when the Soviet Union officially ended, the writing was on the wall. Communist government across Eastern Europe had lost power in 1989 and 1990, while the internal politics of the USSR under Mikhail Gorbachev had become constantly problematic. Soviet Republics were declaring independence left and right, while the actual power of the Soviet government was waning. After a coup attempt in August, the recently elected President of Russia Boris Yeltsin gained in popularity. On Christmas Day, Gorbachev gave his power to Yeltsin, while the Council of Republics would declare the Soviet Union dissolved on the next day.

George Washington crossing the Delaware River in the middle of the night at the head of his troops is one of the iconic images of American history. The moment's fame can often underrate the risk Washington took in moving the Continental Army across an icy river. The war was going terribly for Washington and he was looking for a way to get an important psychological victory. Yet December was the worst time to move with troops or engage in battle, so Washington's options are limited. Across the Delaware from his encampment in Pennsylvania was a large garrison at Trenton, New Jersey, guarded by Hessian mercenaries. Washington's successful crossing and victory at the Battle of Trenton made the entire American morale turn around and propelled his men to fight more successfully throughout the rest of the Revolutionary War.

Reginald Fessenden was a long term electrical and radio researcher, so when he transmitted a radio broadcast on Christmas Eve in 1906, it wasn't all that surprising. Yet he was the very first person to send out a radio broadcast featuring music and clear audio when he played a phonograph of a Handel piece, performed two hymns on a violin, and read a Bible verse. Most people at the time thought his particular form of broadcasting radio was a complete waste of time, so his transmission was also a technological breakthrough based on years of work by Fessenden. More importantly, Fessenden's broadcast would set a template for future uses of radio by making it about something more than reports, news, or weather forecasts.

When the USS Pueblo, an American naval spy ship, was captured by North Korean vessels in January 1968, officials in Washington were unsure precisely what to do. The crew was all unharmed, but now a Communist nation had spy equipment. Almost immediately, it became apparent that the crew would be returned if the US agreed to apologize for spying and promised to never spy on North Korea again. Meanwhile, the crew of the Pueblo was being tortured and the negotiations between the governments were a confusing, circular mess. The crew decided to occasionally play along with their captors, but used prepared statements and photo opportunities to mock the North Korean government right under their noses. Finally, eleven months after its capture, the crew was released into South Korea. That did very little to sort out what actually went on with the capture of the Pueblo.

When four young black men approached Bernhard Goetz on the New York City Subway, he thought he was in danger. So he pulled out a concealed revolver and fired five shots at them. Somehow, Goetz managed not to kill anyone, but he did injure them all and decided to flee. After making his way to Vermont, Goetz manages to destroy his clothing and gun before the New York City police even realize Goetz is the "Subway Vigilante." Eventually, Goetz turns himself in to police in Concord, New Hampshire. Goetz's description is that he was in fear of his life, but his statements are odd. Goetz's criminal trial resulted in a conviction on weapons charges, but Goetz is found innocent on attempted murder and assault charges. He would later be found liable in a civil trial for injuries suffered by his victims. Through it all, though, Bernhard Goetz proved to be an odd icon for the crime problem in New York City.

The Plymouth Colony began in the middle of winter in New England, after a poorly prepared trip and with limited supplies that was supposed to land much further south of where it actually did. The Mayflower had been wandering around the Cape Cod area for over a month before its passengers settled on Plymouth. Plymouth had a few advantages, as it was easily defended and on already cleared land because it was the site of a recently abandoned village. The people who settled Plymouth Colony were ardent separatists, English Christians who sought a separation from the Church of England. After they could not find refuge in Holland, they decided to go to America. This plan was almost disastrous, as over half the settlers died within six months. They managed to persevere, though, largely because Native Americans decided to help out.

South Carolina's Ordinance of Secession was the result of a very quickly assembled state convention that specifically addressed whether or not South Carolina would secede from the Union. Overwhelmigly, the members of the convention agreed to secede, although just a few years before, everyone would have thought that secession was madness. Secession had been floated for years by radical pro-slavery, anti-Union writers and politicians, but no one thought it was sensible for a host of reasons. What changed everyone's mind was the presidential election of 1860, which split the Democratic Party in two and placed Republican Abraham Lincoln in office. People in South Carolina, as well as much of the rest of the South, became convinced that Lincoln and the Republicans would end slavery, although Lincoln's campaign specifically said it would protect slavery where it existed. Nonetheless, South Carolina decided to leave the Union, kicking off a wave of secession.

Harold Holt had been Prime Minister of Australia for less than two years when he went swimming at Cheviot Beach in December of 1967. Then, the people who Holt had been with that day lost sight of him and a general panic swept the entire country. No trace of Holt was ever found, which put the Government of Australia in a tight spot. The Governor General had to declare Holt dead two days after he disappeared, just to make sure the government could continue to function. Yet the government largely did not function well in the wake of Holt's death. The coalition between Holt's Liberal Party and the Country Party was splintering before his death, and it actually fell apart in the wake of his disappearance. As the coalition had ruled Australia for decades, Holt's disappearance greatly affects Australian politics, all of which was triggered by the moment at which he was declared dead.

Oliver Cromwell, who led the Parliamentary side of the English Civil War, helped execute King Charles I, and became Lord Protector himself, upended the very nature of English politics and society. An odd preoccupation that Cromwell and many of his Puritan supporters shared was a commitment to returning Jews to England. King Edward I had ordered all Jews to leave the country in 1290, which meant there was no Jewish community in England. Yet Cromwell's desire to bring about a new religious order and more worldly political and economic concerns meant he was eager to have Jews return. His chief advisors were unsure, as clergy were concerned with bringing in non-Christians to a Christian nation, merchants did not want more competition from the Jewish traders Cromwell was talking to, and radical Puritans thought Jews coming into England would bring about the Second Coming of Jesus. So they found a lawyerly answer.

The actual first powered flight went just 120 feet, when Orville Wright took the Flyer he had designed with his brother Wilbur into the air above Kill Devil Hills near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The Wright Brothers, bicycle mechanics from Dayton, Ohio, were unlikely candidates for conducting the first powered flight. Yet they had some great advantages over other pioneering aviators. Since they were familiar with bicycle reparis, they knew how to create lightweight machines that could move easily. Since they were had studied flight from the perspective of dedicated amateurs, they realized birds banked into turns mid-air. Since they were willing to try anything, they were willing to lie face down on oversized kites with tiny engines attached to two propellers. All of this came together in 1903 with the first flight, which was followed by a series of flights that same day. They didn't really become accepted as pioneers until two years later, when their third flyer could stay up for more than a few minutes.