Tag: politics

• From telegraphs to Twitter: a short history of “wiretapping”

  One of the earliest recorded instances of wiretapping involves an anecdote about how Confederate general John Hunt Morgan bet a Union soldier two cigars if he could spell the word Lebanon. In a series of shocking tweets this weekend, President Trump, providing absolutely zero evidence, said President Obama wiretapped his phones during the 2016 campaign.…

  John Kelly

  March 7, 2017

  Feature

• From infantrymen to innovators: the etymology of “pioneer”

  The original pioneers were “foot soldiers” who cleared the way for the rest of the army. This past Monday, US Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos described historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) as “real pioneers when it comes to school choice.” Her statement came under immediate fire, though, as HBCUs were formed due to a  profound…

  John Kelly

  March 3, 2017

  Feature

• Where do the male (♂) and female (♀) symbols come from?

  With roots in ancient astrology and alchemy, the male (♂) and female (♀) symbols may ultimately derive from ancient Greek abbreviations for the names of gods.

  John Kelly

  February 24, 2017

  Uncategorized

• How the word, and title, “president” took its seat

  In Latin, president literally means “the one who sits before.” Presidents’ Day, officially called Washington’s Birthday, has been a US federal holiday since 1879, honoring the country’s first president – and subsequent ones – around his date of birth, February 22. But where does the word president come from, and why, exactly, did the US…

  John Kelly

  February 20, 2017

  Uncategorized

• The many “sist”-ers of persist and resist

  Persist and resist come from a very active, and in many ways activist, Latin verb.  “She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted,” US Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said after he silenced his colleague, Elizabeth Warren, when she was opposing now-Attorney General Jeff Sessions during his confirmation. But McConnell’s words spectacularly backfired:…

  John Kelly

  February 10, 2017

  Uncategorized