Self Governing

Nor is our Government to be maintained or our Union preserved by invasions of the rights and powers of the several States. In thus attempting to make our General Government strong we make it weak. Its true strength consists in leaving individuals and states as much as possible to themselves - in making itself felt, not in its power, but in its beneficence; not in its control, but in its protection; not in binding the states more closely to the center, but leaving each to move unobstructed in its proper orbit. - Andrew Jackson

The Bond Between Twins

The psychic bond that twins seem to share has been documented extensively and is understood almost not at all. Sonograms often show twins seeming to hold hands or cling together in the womb. Mothers often report that infant twins sleeping in separate rooms will lie in the same positions, roll over at the same time and be disturbed by nightmares simultaneously. - Exploring The Unexplained by Time Inc.

European Jews In Palestine

Since the 1890's European Jews had been immigrating to Palestine, fired by Zionist dreams and fleeing pogroms and discrimination. The emigrations or aliyahs, took place in a series of waves; by 1925 there were 160,000 Jews in Palestine. As Arabs claimed their lands were being overrun by foreigners, Britain clamped down on Jewish immigration. As tensions rose, Arabs rioted in Jerusalem and elsewhere.In response, the Jews created an underground military organization, the Haganah, to protect themselves. - The Middle East by Time Inc.

The Eye Is Everywhere

The Eye of Heru is also known as the Eye of Ra. Both symbols represent Netcherw associated with the sun and express the divine omnipotence of the creator. When used as an amulet, it places the wearer under the protection of God, and when incorporated into a logo it has been used to represent the omnipotent objectives of that particular company. the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) has used a modified version of the Eye of Heru on their television stations for years. As recently as 1991, an eye was used in an equilateral triangle as a backdrop during their station identification breaks. - Anthony T. Browder

Black People In The Revolutionary War

There were two all-black units in the Continental Army and a third which voyaged from Haiti with the French. Colonel Christopher Greene's First Rhode Island Regiment distinguished itself for efficiency and gallantry throughout the war- perhaps the war would have ended sooner if its examples had been heeded. About the Bucks of America, a Massachusetts company, little is known except that John Hancock chose it for special honor. The Black Brigade of Saint Domingue, Haiti, in this day of Pan-African aspiration, needs to be better known. - Sidney Kaplan

I Am A 3rd Class Citizen

The new nation being created in America was dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal-and all women are not. For even in this new "egalitarian" society some things had not changed: women and non-property holders were second class citizens; blacks and native American, third. Yet the age promised to end old constraints. - The Making of America by Time Inc.

Birds And Skyscrapers

These 2,000 birds didn't survive their migration through downtown Toronto last fall: Tall buildings stopped them cold. At night artificial light draws the birds; during daylight birds see reflections such as trees in windows and fly into them.
one remedy: "Turnoff the lights at night" says Michael Mesure, executive director of the Fatal Light Awareness Program (FLAP), which collected these victims and counted nearly as many dead birds during the spring migration. More than a hundred skyscraper owners in the Toronto area have agreed to minimize their lights. - John L. Eliot