GMT

Today in History: March 9

141 BC Liu Che, posthumously known as Emperor Wu of Han, assumes the throne of the Han Dynasty in China and rules for 54 years

1496 Jews are expelled from Carintha, Austria

1522 Martin Luther begins preaching his "Invocavit Sermons" in the German city of Wittenberg, reminding citizens to trust God's word rather than violence and thus helping bring to a close the revolutionary stage of the Reformation

1788 Connecticut becomes the 5th state.

1820 Congress passes the Land Act, paving the way for westward expansion.

1959 The Barbie doll is unveiled at a toy fair in New York City.

1964 The first Ford Mustang rolls off the Ford assembly line.

1986 Navy divers find the crew compartment of the space shuttle Challenger along with the remains of the astronauts.

2013 Asteroid 2013 ET comes within 960,000 km from the Earth’s surface

2020 Italy announces it is locking down the whole country due to a spike in COVID-19 cases with 10,040 cases and 630 deaths

2021 Brazil records its highest daily COVID-19 death toll to date of 1,972 deaths with 168,370 deaths overall

2022 Stolen notebooks belonging to naturalist Charles Darwin, including his famous 'tree of life' sketch, mysteriously returned after 22 years to Cambridge University Library

2023 Recording Industry Association of America's 2022 year-end report states vinyl record sales (41 million) exceeded CD sales (33 million) for the first time since 1987

Born on March 9

1451 Amerigo Vespucci, Italian navigator.

1918 Frank Morrison Spillane [Mickey Spillane], crime writer (Kiss Me, Deadly, The Erection Set).

1943 Bobby Fischer, first American world chess champion.


JOTD
Alabama Pastor

An Alabama pastor said to his congregation, "Someone in this congregation has spread a rumor that I belong to the Ku Klux Klan. This is a horrible lie and one which a Christian community cannot tolerate. I am embarrassed and do not intend to accept this. Now, I want the party who said this to stand and ask forgiveness from God and this Christian family."
No one moved. The preacher continued, "Do you have the nerve to face me and admit this is a falsehood? Remember, you will be forgiven and in your heart you will feel glory. Now stand and confess your transgression." Again, all was quiet.
Then, slowly, a drop-dead gorgeous blonde with a body that would stop a runaway train rose from the third pew. Her head was bowed and her voice quivered as she spoke, "Reverend there has been a terrible misunderstanding. I never said you were a member of the Ku Klux Klan. I simply told a couple of my friends that you were a wizard under the sheets."