Good morning.

Whitewater’s Sunday looks to be cloudy with gradual clearing, and a high of fifty-four. We’ll have 9h 14m of sunlight, and 10h 17m of daylight. Tomorrow will be one minute shorter/.

On this day in 1954, the U.S. Senate voted to censure Wisconsin Senator Joe McCarthy. Here’s how the New York Times reported McCarthy’s politically fatal day:

Washington, Dec 2–The Senate voted 67 to 22 tonight to condemn Joseph R. McCarthy, Republican Senator from Wisconsin.

Every one of the forty-four Democrats present voted against Mr. McCarthy. The Republicans were evenly divided–twenty-two for condemnation and twenty-two against. The one independent, Senator Wayne Morse of Oregon, also voted against Mr. McCarthy.

In the ultimate action the Senate voted to condemn Senator McCarthy for contempt of a Senate Elections subcommittee that investigated his conduct and financial affairs, for abuse of its members, and for his insults to the Senate itself during the censure proceeding.

Google’s puzzle for today brings a geography puzzle: “What “autonomous region” includes nine major islands and an islet cluster, in three main groups?”

Good morning.

It’s an even chance of Saturday rain for Whitewater, with a high of fifty-two.

On this day in 1824, Congress decides the outcome of a presidential election:

….Congress acts to decide a presidential election for the first time in history, giving the presidency to John Quincy Adams. A clause in the Constitution’s 12th Amendment puts the power of deciding an election in the hands of Congress if no candidate receives a majority of the Electoral College votes….

On Election Day, Adams and Jackson led the pack in electoral votes, but Clay and Crawford had garnered enough votes to prevent either from winning a majority. Adams received 84 electoral votes; Jackson won 99. By the terms of the 12th Amendment, Congress was tasked with deciding between the two candidates, who could not have been more different in style or policy. Adams, described by his opponents as a cold, calculating Yankee elitist contrasted with Jackson, who was portrayed (not inaccurately) as hot-headed and hell-bent on destroying federal institutions (such as the National Bank) that George Washington and the Federalists had worked hard to establish.

In the end, Speaker Clay used his influence to convince fellow lawmakers to cast their vote for Adams and he emerged victorious. Not surprisingly, Adams chose Henry Clay to be his secretary of state, an act that enraged Jackson and helped to unite what had been a fragmented Democratic Party. In the election of 1828, Jackson easily beat the incumbent Adams, and went on to serve until 1837.

On 12.1.1884, a fire changed life (temporarily) for students at UW-Madison:

1884 – Fire Destroys UW Building
On this date fire destroyed Science Hall on the UW-Madison campus. As a result, engineering students were forced to use the cramped space of the former dormitory, North Hall, for the next four semesters. [Source: College of Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison]

From Google’s daily puzzle, a question of bio-science: “What animal uses several layers of chromataphores to change its color based on its emotional state?”

Good morning.

Whitewater’s week ends with mostly cloudy skies and a high of forty-eight.

Tonight at 6 PM, Whitewater will hold her annual Holly Days Christmas Parade, beginning at Main & Whiton, traveling down Main, and turning on Whitewater Street toward the Cravath lakefront.

On this day in 1954, a truly rare misfortune befalls Mrs. Elizabeth Hodges of Alabama:

The first modern instance of a meteorite striking a human being occurs at Sylacauga, Alabama, when a meteorite crashes through the roof of a house and into a living room, bounces off a radio, and strikes a woman on the hip. The victim, Mrs. Elizabeth Hodges, was sleeping on a couch at the time of impact. The space rock was a sulfide meteorite weighing 8.5 pounds and measuring seven inches in length. Mrs. Hodges was not permanently injured but suffered a nasty bruise along her hip and leg.

Ancient Chinese records tell of people being injured or killed by falling meteorites, but the Sylacauga meteorite was the first modern record of this type of human injury. In 1911, a dog in Egypt was killed by the Nakhla meteorite.

Google’s daily puzzle asks about a famous canine: “In 2005, Variety magazine issued its list of “100 Icons of the Century.” What was the name of only canine entry on the list?”

Good morning.

Thursday brings a sunny day and a high of forty-eight to Whitewater.

This afternoon at 4:30 PM, Whitewater’s Community Development Authority meets.

On this day in 1942 as World War II raged, rationing hit Americans in a specific way:

On this day in 1942, coffee joins the list of items rationed in the United States. Despite record coffee production in Latin American countries, the growing demand for the bean from both military and civilian sources, and the demands placed on shipping, which was needed for other purposes, required the limiting of its availability.

Scarcity or shortages were rarely the reason for rationing during the war. Rationing was generally employed for two reasons: (1) to guarantee a fair distribution of resources and foodstuffs to all citizens; and (2) to give priority to military use for certain raw materials, given the present emergency.

At first, limiting the use of certain products was voluntary. For example, President Roosevelt launched “scrap drives” to scare up throwaway rubber-old garden hoses, tires, bathing caps, etc.–in light of the Japanese capture of the Dutch East Indies, a source of rubber for the United States. Collections were then redeemed at gas stations for a penny a pound. Patriotism and the desire to aid the war effort were enough in the early days of the war.

But as U.S. shipping, including oil tankers, became increasingly vulnerable to German U-boat attacks, gas became the first resource to be rationed. Starting in May 1942, in 17 eastern states, car owners were restricted to three gallons of gas a week. By the end of the year, gas rationing extended to the rest of the country, requiring drivers to paste ration stamps onto the windshields of their cars. Butter was another item rationed, as supplies were reserved for military breakfasts. Along with coffee, the sugar and milk that went with it were also limited. All together, about one-third of all food commonly consumed by civilians was rationed at one time or another during the war. The black market, an underground source of rationed goods at prices higher than the ceilings set by the Office of Price Administration, was a supply source for those Americans with the disposable incomes needed to pay the inflated prices.

Some items came off the rationing list early; coffee was released as early as July 1943, but sugar was rationed until June 1947.

Google’s daily puzzle asks a history question: “Only one man was twice honored with the “Thanks of Congress” during the Civil War. To what rank was this individual promoted after the war?”