APRIL 3 — 1882 Jesse James assassinated, killed; 1729 Exacctly 200 years before stock market crash, Franklin publishes Nature and Necessity of a Paper Currency; 2015 St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars going on record scoring spree
APRIL 3
1882-Jesse James is shot in the back
by his own teammate, trying to collect the bounty on James head. He was a ruthless killer, a Bushwacker during the American Civil War, and was glamorized by spin magazines and newspapers as a sort of…Robin Hood who stole from the rich and gave to the poor. HHAHAHAHAHAHA! He Stole alright, but the only poor suckers he gave anything to was himself.
Legend has it, Jesse James was nicknamed Dingus after shooting off the tip of his middle finger while cleaning his gun, and since he never took the Lord’s name in vain, he said that was the “dingest darndest thing.” By far, the most famous member of the James Gang, He stood side-by-side with fellow Bushwhacker William T. Anderson in executing 24 unarmed captured soldiers in the Union army the Centralia Massacre in 1864. Dinga got into the train robbery/stagecoach/banks business, but legend has it, didn’t actually take anyone’s money or jewelry.
The Pinkerton Detective Agency, which was a quasi-FBI that supposedly protected Abraham Lincoln, was unable to stop James as well. The james gang got caught in 1876 in Northfield Minnesota, after trying to take over the town in broad daylight. Jesse and his brother Frank were captured, sentenced to death, and escaped to Tennessee. Jesse took it easy for a few years, but Pinkerton never forgot. Jesse got some new gang members, including Robert Ford (not to be confused with today’s mayor of Ontario), who shot Jesse in the back at Jesse’s mother’s house during breakfast when Jesse was going over the new plans of attack. Rob and his brother Charlie really didn’t like Jesse.
The Wildest Gun in the West currently has a tombstone which reads, “Jesse W. James. Died April 3, 1882. Aged 34 years, 6 months, 28 days. Murdered by a traitor and a coward whose name is not worthy to appear here.”
1729 — 200 years before the stock market crash, Dr. Benjamin Franklin publishes The Nature and Necessity of a Paper Currency.
I wouldn’t advise that you read this book in a horizontal position with fuzzy warm blankets and a nice fluffy pillow under your head because you probably won’t make it past page 2. However this book is so important if everyone read it and listens to what Franklin was saying we wouldn’t have stock market crashes. If you don’t have a copy, let me know and I’ll buy you one.
Beginning in the 12th century, the British used a very easy economic system made only of tally sticks. It was a simplistically brilliant plan that flourished the mightiest country on Earth for over 700 years, until the money system changed and banks began loaning money to Parliament in the 18th century.
Meanwhile in the American colonies during the 1600s, New Englanders used wampum as their main barter and trade, Virginia and Maryland used tobacco, South Carolina corn, wheat, pork, cheese, whale oil and a bunch of other commodities. You get the idea. Later on in 1690, Massachusetts became the first colony to issue a government-sponsored American paper money, followed by Pennsylvania in 1723, the year 17-year old Ben Franklin arrived to Pennsylvania.
The fact that Americans were using their own paper currency was bad business for British bankers. Franklin was actually designing and printing money for the colonies.
“There is a certain proportionate Quantity of Money requisite to carry on the Trade of a Country freely and currently; more than which would be of no Advantage in Trade, and Less, if much less, exceedingly detrimental to it.” So if the quantity of money is carefully controlled, then the economy will flourish. Franklin pointed out it isn’t the legal tender laws or fixed exchange rates between paper money and gold and silver but the quantity of paper money relative to the amount of commerce within the colony that governs the value of paper money. Heck put an expiration date on it even to ensure it retains its value! Such a great system, Ben Franklin travelled to London in 1766 and delivered his speech to the House of Commons. He said to them, “Between the years 1740 and 1775, while abundance reigned in Pennsylvania and there was peace in all her borders, a more happy and prosperous population could not perhaps be found on this globe.”
1948-Truman signs the Marshall Plan.
Since Western Europe was a complete chaotic mess after WWII, they needed quick help. Money was scarce, and unemployment was high, not to mention starvation and homelessness. Give em hell Harry! The goal of the European Recovery Program, aka the Marshall Plan(since it was named after Secretary of State George Marshall), was to rebuild Europe’s war devastated regions, remove trade barriers, modernize industry, and make Europe prosperous again.
Sounds easy enough, right? Wrong. Since the Soviets were playing a different game, the encroachment of communism, specifically in Germany, was causing a threat to this. But domestically it was very popular, winning bipartisan support from a Republican controlled congress and Democratic controlled White House. Of the $12 Billion that the US gave out (which would be $160 Billion in current dollar value) The United Kingdom got 26% France got 18%, Germany got 11% and the rest went to 18 other Western European countries. The Eastern countries, namely East Germany and Poland, didn’t get anything because the Soviets blocked it.
But regardless, did it work? For the most part, it did work, with the exception of inflation in some real bad areas due to the large and sudden influx of dollars coming their way. Besides that, hell yeah it was a success as it stabilized and revitalized the area. As a matter of fact, according to Brad Roberts who wrote in his book “The New Democracies: Global Change and US Policies”, he Marshall Plan is synonomous with a large rescue planBritish Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin called it “a lifeline to sinking men.”
Moving on to NHL news…
1976 – The Flyers win their 20th consecutive home game, which is cool since I love almost everything out of Philadelphia
2015 Blues and Stars go on a scoring spree.
The St. Louis Blues would beat the Dallas Stars that night 7-5, but during the end of the first half and beginning of the second, it looked like it was all offense. The Stars tied the game 1 all when Travis Moen scored a penalty shot in the final seconds of the first half. Second half both teams came out firing like an old western.
Fifteen seconds into the second, Big Patrik Berglund, who played for Sweden in the 2014 winter Olympics, struck a high swat redirection in for the Blues, then Jaden Schwartz launched a quickie 17 seconds later to make it a 3-1 game. Jamie Benn would get around Schwartz six seconds later to haul one in, tightening the score 3-2.
If you count they 38 seconds to start the second half, that was a record right there with three scores. But in all, if you consider the time on the clock including the end of the first, it took 49 seconds for two rivals to fire away into the record books with the most shots scored in the shortest amount of time since 1983, when the Chicago Blackhawks and the Toronto Maple Leafs scored that many points in 53 seconds.