The FReeper Foxhole's TreadHead Tuesday - Leclerc Main Battle Tank- Feb. 22nd, 2005

The Leclerc tank is a recent weapons system, in full production. The manufacturing methods are adapted to the technological level of the vehicle. The LECLERC has not yet reached its full growth potential. It has an operational life up to 2030 and beyond.

Open-ended electronic architecture, a significant weight margin and armour system that can be renewed guarantee great possibilities for further developments, and easy implementations. Leclerc MBT is the only one in tanks history that will change the technology of its integrated armour devices, in the same conditions that the simple upgrade of an equipment. Present research concerning firing functions (automatic detection of targets, identification of friend-foe etc), protection (counter-measures, active protection etc), mobility (semi-active suspension etc) and communication (onboard user manual, vocal command etc.) ensure the Leclerc tank will be the leader for many years to come.

The Leclerc tank will ensure operational superiority for the coming decades. Its innovative solutions have set the standard for future battle tanks. All the functions of the tank work in synergy to obtain the best destructive power whilst being the best protected. The Leclerc tank allows armoured units to fight, win and survive even when outnumbered by enemy forces.

Real high rate firing capacity whilst on the move, exceptional mobility and FINDERS (Fast Information Navigation, Decision and Reporting System) make it possible to impose the rythm of the Leclerc tank on its adversary. The Leclerc can engage the enemy at a speed of 50 km/h in any terrain. It can engage combat day or night, in any weather and in a contaminated area. Its modular multi-purpose armour plating, its stealth features, its agility and its long-range engagement guarantee an unequalled survivability.

The Leclerc is in full production to satisfy its French and foreign customers. It is presently deployed within KFOR by the French forces and by those of the United Arab Emirates.

CHARACTERISTICS

Crew: 3

Weight in combat order: <56.5 t

Clearance class: 62

Power rating: 1500 hp

Power /weight ratio: >26.5 hp/t

Engine: Hyperbar Wärtsilä SACM-V8X diesel

APU TURBOMECA integrated gas turbine

Transmission: Automatic SESM ESM 500 gearbox, with 5 forward and 2 reverse gears

PERFORMANCES :

Maximum speed :

on road 72 km/h
cross-country >& 55 km/h
in reverse 38 km/h

Acceleration: 0 - 32 km/h in less than 6 s

Fuel capacity :1,300 litres (1,700 including external fuel)

Refuelling: 8 min

Maximum range on roads: 550 km with external fuel

Length (chassis): 6.88 m

Width (with skirt): 3.71 m

Height (roof of turret): 2.53 m

Vertical obstacle :

in forward gear 1.25 m
in reverse gear 0.6 m

Fording :

without preparation 1 m
with preparation 4 m

Suspension: hydro-pneumatic

ARMAMENTS

Main armament: NATO standard smooth bore stabilised 120 mm / 52 calibre gun

Muzzle velocity: 1,790 m/s (armour piercing shell)

Munitions loading: fully automatic system in isolated compartment in the neck of the turret

Gun laying : electric motorisation

Coaxial machine gun : 12.7 mm

Roof-mounted machine gun : 7.62 mm

Ammunition : 40 rounds x 120 mm (including 22 ready to use) with combustible casing and detonator
+ 950 12.7 mm rounds

Observation :

Panoramic 360° HL 70 stabilised commander sight, 2 magnifications ratios IR CCD or image intensifier
HL 60 gunner sight, stabilised, with ATHOS thermal camera, laser rangefinder, day and video channels.

Ballistic protection : Modular & removable multi-purpose armour plating : allows technology upgradings

GALIX protection system : 2 x 9 launch tubes (smoke apparatus, close defence and IR decoy)

EQUIPMENT

Air conditioning : electrically controlled system

Radio : frequency hopping

Navigation : inertial

STATUS

Production for the French Army and for export

The Leclerc tank is not simply a tank within the classsic meaning of the term, but rather a weapon system. As a tank incorporating the products of the most recent technologies, it reaches a level of excellence on each traditional quality: mobility, protection, fire power. As a system of weapons it integrates these functions in a unit whose management is optimized in particular by electro-data processing and the capacities of the communication systems. The essential capacities of Leclerc are the following: a very great effectiveness in the duel against all the adversary armoured tanks in day or night (any time) at ranges of more than 3000 meters. It includes a gun of with an automatic loading system which make it possible to quickly select the type of ammunition, capable of firing when the tank be moving and which improve appreciably the rate of fire of up to 6 shots/minute. The long-range fire control system stabilizes the sight, and the gun remain permanently pointed at the target selected. There are two sights: one for the commander of the tank and the other for the operator. The turret can acquire the target with gyrostabilisers, and a video recopy of the images allows sharing of information between the two.

Unequalled mobility is obtained by the synergy between the motor, the kinematic chain, and the hydropneumatic suspension. A very balanced general protection is obtained not only by modular shieldings but also by compactness and thus low visibility, which combined with the very great agility of the tank makes it a difficult target to hit. Centralized management is performed on a large number of parameters of a tactical or logistic nature: the digitalization of the data forward by a bus and are exploited inside the tank which optimizes the entirety of its functions. Also outside, via the radio operator station, it is possible to better employ the whole of the tanks engaged in an operation in particular by the use of the system of control and command installed on board.

Being able to resist the most severe stresses of combat of high intensity and to attack the most hardened targets, it is a powerful tool able to assume all the missions reserved for the units of the armoured forces whatever the environment, the type and the form of engagement (traditional, chemical or nuclear, high average or low intensity). The principal armament is a gun of 120 mm with a smooth bore and a length of 52 calibers, drawing all types of ammunition with combustible casings with standard NATO. A total of 40 shells can be embarked, including 22 in automatic loading. The secondary armament is one 12.7 mm machine-gun and one 7.62 mm machine-gun in the superstructure.

Additional Sources:

worldatwar.net
www.fas.org
www.ixarm.com
www66.tok2.com/
www.exordio.com
www.britannica.com
perso.wanadoo.fr
henk.fox3000.com
www.network54.com
defence-data.com
www.eurus.dti.ne.jp
worldweapon.ru

General Philippe Francois Marie LeClerc de Hautecloque

1902, November 22th Born on family estate near Amiens, Picardy, France
1947, November 28th Killed in a plane crash at Colomb-Bechar, Algeria

General de Hautecloque entered St. Cyr 1922 after which he was commissioned as a cavalry officer. Between the world wars he gained combat experience fighting tribal rebellions in Morocco.

Jacques-Philippe Leclerc

He began WWII as a captain in the 4th Division which saw its first action on May 10, 1940 when it moved into Belgium to counter the German advance. The division was one of several driven back to Lille and encircled by the Germans at the end of the month. De Hautecloque was granted permission to make his way through the enemy lines and joined an armored division under General Buisson. The captain was seriously wounded on June 15th during a skirmish on the River Aube and was evacuated to hospital in Tonnerre. He was successful in evading capture after the armistice and reached Paris on June 25th at which time he received the news of General DeGaulle’s call for resistance. Captain de Hautecloque joined his wife and six children near Bordeaux for brief visit before beginning a three week journey to London via Spain and Portugal on July 3rd. It then that he adopted the nom de guerre of Jacques Philippe LeClerc in order to protect his family from German or Vichy reprisals.

Upon reporting to DeGaulle he was immediately dispatched to Africa with a small group of officers tasked with bringing Equatorial Africa and Cameroons into the Free French camp. The mission was a success and in November LeClerc was appointed military commander of Chad. LeClerc’s troops marched into the neighboring Italian colony of Libya in January 1941. The campaign ended with the capture of the oasis of Koufra two months later. The captain was promoted to General de Brigade in August.

Jacques-Philippe Leclerc, during the liberation of Paris, August 1944

LeClerc’s march from Chad to the Rhine began on Dec. 16, 1942. His ragtag army consisted of slightly more than 3000 troops: Le Regiment de Tirailleurs Senegalais du Tchad, an African camel corps, a small French armored unit, a few British officers and a squadron of pilots from Brittany flying a dozen old planes. LeClerc’s force quickly crushed the Italian defense in southern Libya and marched 1500 miles north reaching Tripoli on Jan. 23, 1943 just as the British arrived from Eygpt. LeClerc placed himself under the command of Field Marshal Montgomery and his corps played a major role in the advance of the 8th Army on Tunisia. He was promoted to General de Division on May 5, 1943 and ordered to Morocco to form the 2eme Division Blindee (2nd Armored Division). The 2eme DB was assigned to Patton’s American 3rd Army and landed in Normandy on Aug. 1, 1944. The unit saw its first action in the effort to close the Falaise pocket and liberated Argentan on Aug. 12th. News reaching Allied headquarters of the Paris insurrection and General von Choltitz’s orders from Hilter to destroy the city in advance of a withdrawal precipitated a political crisis in the Allied camp. Finally after meetings between DeGaulle and Eisenhower, LeClerc was given a command to proceed with the liberation of Paris. The 2eme DB began its 100 mile drive towards the city on Aug. 23rd under orders from DeGaulle to, "go quickly, we must not have another commune." The next day the phone rang in the de Hautecloque family apartment in Paris. "Hello father this is Philippe. I’ll be calling on you soon and thought you might like to know." The General’s startled father hadn’t heard or dared mention his son’s name for four years asked where he was. "I’m just beyond Fontainbleau. I expect it will take me a couple of days to get to Paris but you can expect me then." That evening a gap was found in the German lines and at 9:22 p.m. Captain Raymond Dionne’s tank, "Romilly" and two other Shermans pulled up in front of the Paris City Hall. The main body of the 2eme DB entered the city the next morning and that afternoon LeClerc accepted General von Choltitz surrender. The 2eme DB was later given the honor of being the first unit to enter Strasbourg on Nov. 23, 1944 keeping a promise many of its men had first made at Koufra 3 years and thousands of miles before. The 2eme DB finished the war in an advance on Berchtesgaden that ended May 4, 1945.

LeClerc left France on Aug. 18, 1945 as Commander in Chief of French Forces in the Far East but by the time he reached Indochina his only action was to accept the Japanese surrender. LeClerc was killed in a plane crash at Colomb-Bechar, Algeria on Nov. 28, 1947. He was made Marshal of France, posthumously, on Aug. 23, 1952.

Veterans for Constitution Restoration is a non-profit, non-partisan educational and grassroots activist organization. The primary area of concern to all VetsCoR members is that our national and local educational systems fall short in teaching students and all American citizens the history and underlying principles on which our Constitutional republic-based system of self-government was founded. VetsCoR members are also very concerned that the Federal government long ago over-stepped its limited authority as clearly specified in the United States Constitution, as well as the Founding Fathers' supporting letters, essays, and other public documents.

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UPDATED THROUGH APRIL 2004

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************Snippy, I bequeath to you the FR TH PL.

148 posted on 08/24/2004 11:39:45 AM PDT by Cannoneer No. 4 (I've lost turret power; I have my nods and my .50. Hooah. I will stay until relieved. White 2 out.)

Good morning Cannoneer. Is it still cold and wet over there?

Have the French done a good job with this tank?

The claims are grandiose.

It is obvious from the photos that the machine has very good outward visibility.

The rest of the stuff claimed requires specific knowledge I don't have. The spaced armor looks about the correct thickness, though.

Machine sounds very complicated. Easily could be hard to keep in service while in the field.

I did not know that LeClerc had worked for General George Patton. Patton would not tolerate anything less than 110% from his subordinates.

I had not realized that LeClerc's 2nd Armored Division was at the Falaise Gap. The attempt to close the Falaise Gap was very rough. The Wehrmacht was desperate to hold the Gap open, and was successful enough that too many Germans escaped.

Hitler would not let the Wehrmacht disengage from Normandy until it was too late. What a military doofus. What a bloody minded destroyer.

The Gap was closed, by the way (as much or more so than any other unit involved), by the Polish 1st Armored Division.

Ah, a Foxhole on the Falaise Gap!!! Major battle, many Corps involved, whole Army Groups.

Good morning Snippy.

Treadhead Tuesday Bump for the Freeper Foxhole

Regards

alfa6 ;>}

Good morning, Snippy and everyone at the Foxhole.

G'morning! We survived the three-day weekend! The house is quiet again. Ahhhhhhhhhh, peace.

Good morning

February 22, 2005

A Reason For Optimism

Read:
John 16:16-33

A merry heart does good, like medicine. -Proverbs 17:22

Bible In One Year: Numbers 18-20

cover The Bible isn't a psychology textbook, but it gives us the wisest counsel for experiencing happiness here and now. Proverbs 17:22, for example, assures us that "a merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones."

That simple statement was recently corroborated by the extensive research of Dr. Daniel Mark, a heart specialist at Duke University. The New York Times article that reported his findings carried this headline: "Optimism Can Mean Life for Heart Patients and Pessimism Death." The article begins with these words: "A healthy outlook helps heal the heart."

But Dr. Nancy Frasure-Smith, a heart specialist who has studied the effect of depression, anxiety, and anger, admitted, "We don't know how to change negative emotions."

Faith in God, however, can produce that change. People who look beyond their present difficulty and put their trust in God's goodness cannot help but be joyful.

It's significant that our Savior said on several occasions, "Be of good cheer" (Matthew 9:2,22; 14:27; Acts 23:11). Knowing that life is filled with many crises, He encourages us with this word of reassurance: "Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). -Vernon Grounds

All your anxiety, all your care
Bring to the mercy seat, leave it there;
Never a burden He cannot bear,
Never a friend like Jesus. -Joy

No matter what happens, you can find joy in the Lord.

FOR FURTHER STUDY
Do I Have The Right Kind Of Faith?
Knowing God Through Proverbs

Morning Snippy.

Mornin, snippy.

Still plenty of water laying around, but now we are having a minor dust storm. Gets real cold in the morning.

It supposed to be the equivalent of the newer MBT's like our Abrams, the German Leopard II and the British Challenger II. I haven't heard of the Leclerc being invovled in any actual combat so all the claims they make are just that, claims. I think I found a typo in the specs though

Transmission: Automatic SESM ESM 500 gearbox, with 5 forward and 2 reverse gears

I think it's supposed to be

Transmission: Automatic SESM ESM 500 gearbox, with 2 forward and 5 reverse gears

;-)

Morning Iris7.

I'm with you, it looks good on paper, but until it sees actual combat who knows how well it will perform.

On This Day In History

Birthdates which occurred on February 22:
1403 Charles VII king of France (1422-61), drove out English
1514 Tahmasp I shah of Persia (1524-76)/author (Tazkire-i Shah)
1599 Anthony Van Dyck Antwerp Belgium, painter

1732 George Washington Virginia, Father figure, 1st American President (1789-97)

1749 Johann Nikolaus Forkel musicologist/1st biographer of Bach
1788 Arthur Schopenhauer Germany, philosopher (Great Pessimist)
1797 William I Berlin, King of Prussia (1861-88)/German Emperor (1871-88)
1798 Charles Mynn Thruston Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1873
1819 James Russell Lowell poet/critic/diplomat/abolitionist
1827 James Barnet Fry Brevet Major General (Union Army), died in 1894
1828 Robert Alexander Cameron Brevet Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1894
1838 Pierre Jules Cesar Janssen discoverer of hydrogen in Sun
1857 Heinrich Hertz physicist, 1st to broadcast & receive radio waves
1857 Lord Robert Baden-Powell founder (Boy Scouts, Girl Guides)
1862 Connie Mack baseball manager (Philadelphia A's 1900-1950)
1873 Muhammad Iqbal Dutch East Indies lawyer/poet/philosopher
1879 Johannes Brønsted Danish physical chemist (acid-base reactions)
1891 "Chico" Marx New York NY, actor/comedian (Marx Brothers, Animal Crackers)
1892 Edna St Vincent Millay poet/writer/feminist (Harp Weaver-Pulitzer Prize)
1900 Sean O'Faolain [John Whelan], Ireland, writer (Murder at Cobbler's Hulk)
1901 Charles E Whittaker Kansas, US Supreme Court justice (1957-62)
1907 Robert Young Chicago IL, actor (Father Knows Best, Marcus Welby MD)
1907 Sheldon Leonard New York NY, actor/director (Danny Thomas Show, Big Eddie)
1918 Charles O Finley baseball team owner (Oakland A's)
1918 Robert Wadlow Alton IL, tallest known human (2.72 m, 8' 11.1")
1918 Don [Dominic G] Pardo Westfield MA, TV announcer (Jeopardy, Saturday Night Live)
1932 Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy (Senator-D-MA, 1962-MA gets a clue )
1932 Piper Laurie Detroit MI, actress (Days of Wine & Roses, Carrie)
1934 George "Sparky" Anderson South Dakota, baseball manager (Reds, Tigers)
1939 Steve Barber pitcher (Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees)
1949 Nikki Lauda Austria, formula 1 auto racer (world champion 1975, 77, 84)
1950 Julius Erving ABA/NBA forward (Virginia Squirers, New York Nets, Philadelphia 76ers)
1961 Mike Morris NFL center (Minnesota Vikings)
1963 Vijay Singh Lautoka Fiji, PGA golfer (1993 Buick Classic)
1966 Sheila Riggins Trussville AL, Miss Alabama-America (1990)
1975 Drew Barrymore Los Angeles CA, actress (ET, Firestarter, Poison Ivy, Altered States)

Deaths which occurred on February 22:
0606 Sabinian Italian Pope (604-06), dies
1071 Arnulf III earl of Flanders/Hainault (Arnulf I), dies in battle
1078 Johannes van Fécamp Italian mystic writer, dies
1371 David II Bruce king of Scotland (1331-71), dies at 46
1512 Amerigo Vespucci (60), Italian explorer (America), died.
1695 Robert Southwell English poet, hanged for becoming a Catholic priest
1770 Christopher Snider 11, Boston, becomes 1st martyr of US Revolution
1875 Charles Lyell British geologist (Elements of Geology), dies at 77
1832 Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (b.1749), poet, (Faust, Egmont) died in Weimar, Germany
1913 Suarez Mexican vice President, assassinated in a military coup
1913 Francisco Indalecio Madero Mexican President, assassinated in military coup at 39
1958 Michael Todd film magnate, killed in an New Mexico air crash
1973 Winthrop Rockefeller US Governor (Arkansas), dies at 60
1978 Ilka Chase actress (Masquerade Party, Trials of O'Brien), dies at 74
1983 Romain Maes Belgian bicyclist (Tour de France 1935), dies at 70
1984 David spent most of his life in a plastic bubble, dies at 12
1987 David Susskind TV host (Open End, David Susskind Show), dies at 66
1987 Andy Warhol pop artist, dies from complications following gall bladder surgery at 58
1994 "Papa" John Creach US jazz musician (Papa Blues), dies at 76
1995 Ed Flanders actor (Dr Westphall-St Elsewhere), commits suicide at 60
1997 Albert Shanker, the leader of the American Federation of Teachers who championed public school reforms, died in New York at age 68.
1998 Grandpa [Louis Marshall] Jones country singer (Hee Haw), dies at 84
2002 Chuck Jones, cartoon animator, died at age 89. His work included Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Road Runner.

Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1969 MACKO CHARLES---ENDICOTT NY.
1969 PAXTON DONALD E.---CEDAR RAPIDS IA.
1969 PEARSON WAYNE E.---WESTERN SPRINGS IL.
[REMAINS IDENTIFIED 02 JULY 1993]

POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

On this day...
0606 Sabinian ends his reign as Catholic Pope
1071 Battle of Cassel-Robert I the Frisian defeats Arnulf III/I
1281 Simon de Brion elected Pope Martinus IV
1288 Girolamo Masci elected Pope Nicolas IV
1349 Jews are expelled from Zurich Switzerland
1495 French King Charles VIII enters Naples to claim the crown
1561 William of Orange appointed viceroy of Burgundy/Charolais
1656 New Amsterdam granted a Jewish burial site
1744 Battle at Toulon English-French & Spanish fleet
1746 French troops conquer Brussels
1774 English House of Lords rules authors do not have perpetual copyright
1775 1st US joint stock company (to make cloth) offers shares at £10
1775 Jews expelled from outskirts of Warsaw Poland
1784 1st US ship to trade with China, "Empress of China", sails from New York
1797 The last invasion of Britain took place when some 1,400 Frenchmen landed at Fishguard, in Wales
1819 Spain renounces claims to Oregon Country, Florida (Adams-Onís Treaty)
1821 Spain sells (east) Florida to United States for $5 million
1825 Russia & Britain establish Alaska-Canada boundary
1847 Battle of Buena Vista US troops beat Mexican army
1854 1st meeting of the Republican Party, Michigan

1856 1st national meeting of the Republican Party (Pittsburgh)

1860 Shoe-making workers of Lynn MS, strike successfully for higher wages
1861 On a bet Edward Weston leaves Boston to walk to Lincoln's inauguration
1864 2nd/last day of Battle of Okolona MS
1864 Battle at Dalton, Georgia
1864 Skirmish at Calfkiller Creek (Sparta) Tennessee
1865 Tennessee adopts a new constitution abolishing slavery
1865 Battle of Wilmington NC (Fort Anderson) occupied by Federals
1872 1st national convention of the Prohibition Party (Columbus OH)
1876 Johns Hopkins University opens
1878 Greenback Labor Party formed (Toledo OH)
1879 1st 5¢ & 10¢ store opened by Frank W Woolworth in Utica NY
1882 With 120 miles James Saunders wins NYC's 24 hour race & $100 prize
1888 John Reid of Scotland demonstrated golf to Americans at Yonkers, NY. Reid converted his lawn to six hole for golf in Yonkers N.Y., the first golf course in the US
1889 President Cleveland signs bill to admit Dakotas, Montana & Washington state
1898 Black postmaster lynched, his wife & 3 daughters shot in Lake City SC
1900 Battle at Wynne's Hill, South-Africa (Boers vs British army)
1900 Hawaii became a US territory
1903 Due to drought the US side of Niagara Falls runs short of water
1906 Black evangelist William J Seymour arrives in Los Angeles CA
1907 1st cabs with taxi meters begin operating in London
1909 Great White Fleet, 1st US fleet to circle the globe, returns to Virginia
1912 J Vedrines makes 1st airplane flight over 100 mph-161.29 kph
1915 Germany begins "unrestricted" submarine war
1917 German Navy torpedoes 7 Dutch ships
1918 Germany claims Baltic states, Finland & Ukraine from Russia
1920 1st artificial rabbit used at a dog race track (Emeryville CA)
1923 Transcontinental airmail service begins
1923 1st successful chinchilla farm in US (Los Angeles CA)
1924 1st presidential radio address (Calvin Coolidge)
1928 1st solo England to Australia flight lands (Bert Hinkler)
1932 Purple Heart award re-instituted
1933 Göring forms SA/SS-police, shoots 40-50
1935 Airplanes are no longer permitted to fly over the White House
1941 Arthur T "Bomber" Harris becomes British Air Marshal
1941 German assault on El Agheila Libya
1941 I G Farben decides building Buna-Werke in Auschwitz Concentration Camp
1941 Nazi SS begin rounding up Jews of Amsterdam
1944 US 8th Air Force bombs Enschede, Arnhem & Nijmegen by mistake/800+ die
1945 Arab League forms (Cairo)
1948 Arabs bomb attack in Jerusalem, 50 die
1955 British aircraft carrier Ark Royal sets sail
1956 Elvis Presley's 1st hit in Billboard's top 10 "Heartbreak Hotel"
1957 Walter O'Malley says Dodgers may play 10 exhibitions in California in 1958
1958 Egypt & Syria form United Arab Republic (UAR)
1958 Indonesian air force bombs Padang, Sumatra/Menado, Celebes
1959 1st Daytona 500 auto race-Lee Petty wins (135.521 MPH)
1963 Beatles begin their own music publishing company (Northern Songs)
1967 25,000 US & S Vietnamese troops launched Operation Junction City, offensive to smash Viet Cong stronghold near Cambodian border
1969 1st female US thoroughbred pari-mutuel jockey win (Barbara Jo Rubin)
1970 "Charles Aznavour" closes at Music Box Theater NYC after 23 performances
1971 Lieutenant General Hafiz al-Assad becomes President of Syria
1972 President Nixon, meets with Chinese Premier Chou En-Lai in Beijing
1979 Billy Martin named manager of Oakland A's
1979 St Lucia gains independence from Britain
1980 Afghanistan declares martial law

1980 USA beats USSR in Olympics hockey 4-3 en route to a gold medal(Miracle On Ice)

1983 Harold Washington wins Chicago's Democratic mayoral primary
1983 Hindus kill 3000 Moslems in Assam, India
1989 UK physicist Stephen Hawking calls Star Wars a "deliberate fraud"
1989 US authors demonstrate against Iranian death treats against Salman Rushdee, author of "Satanic Rituals"
1991 Bush & US Gulf War allies give Iraq 24 hours to begin Kuwait withdrawal
1995 Algiers police kill at least 99 prison rioters
1995 Steve Fossett completes 1st air balloon over Pacific Ocean (9600 km)
1998 UN Sec.-Gen’l. Kofi Annan managed to secure an agreement from Saddam Hussein to allow the inspection process to proceed.
2000 Sen. John McCain beat Gov. George W. Bush in the Michigan primary 50-43% and in the Arizona primary 60-30%

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

British Commonwealth : Girl Guides Thinking Day (1857)
Central African Republic : President's Birthday
Egypt, Syria : Unity Day (1958)
India : Mothers Day
México : National Mourning Day (Francisco I Madero-1913)
Qatar : Amir's Assumption of Amirship (1972)
St Lucia : Independence Day (1979)
Virgin Island : Donkey Races Day
World : Brotherhood Day (1934) (Sunday)
US : Wine Appreciation Week Begins
US : Invite an Atheist to Lunch Day
International Twit Award Month

Religious Observances
Christian : Feast of Blessed Isabel
Moslem-Qatar : Amir's Assumption of Amirship
Roman Catholic : Commemoration of Chair of St Peter at Antioch
Roman Catholic : Commemoration of St Margaret of Cortona, Franciscan tertiary
Christian : Shrove (Quinquagesima) Sunday

Religious History
1680 Death of Thomas Goodwin, 79, famed English Congregational Nonconformist preacher. His last words were: 'Ah, is this dying? How I have dreaded as an enemy this smiling friend.'
1805 Birth of Sarah Flower Adams, English religious writer. Her most enduring verses today comprise the lyrics to the hymn, "Nearer, My God, To Thee."
1906 Black evangelist William J. Seymour first arrived in Los Angeles and began holding revival meetings. The "Azusa Street Revival" later broke out under Seymour's leadership, in the Apostolic Faith Mission located at 312 Azusa Street in Los Angeles. It was one of the pioneering events in the history of 20th century American Pentecostalism.
1944 English apologist C.S. Lewis wrote in a letter: 'Heaven enters wherever Christ enters, even in this life.'
1980 American Presbyterian apologist Francis Schaeffer wrote in a letter: 'None of us are normal, even after we are Christians if we mean by that being perfect. What is possible, however, is for us to live in the fullness of life in the circle of who we are, constantly pressing on the border lines to try to take further steps.'

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

Thought for the day :
"Make a wish, it might come true."

A Reason For Optimism

Read:John 16:16-33

A merry heart does good, like medicine. -Proverbs 17:22

Bible In One Year: Numbers 18-20

Read:
John 16:16-33