When most people hear the word amber they might think about the popular Jurassic Park movies, where dinosaur DNA was discovered. But the precious stone has been prized for centuries, most especially by the former Russian Empire. Their famous Amber Room was made with TONS of it. After several back and forth “exchanges” between NaziContinue reading “The Lost Amber Room – Russian Treasure and Nazi Plunder”
Tag Archives: Russia
Podcast: The Lingering Legacy of the Chernobyl Disaster
The greatest nuclear disaster the Earth has ever known, worse than even Japan’s Fukushima, or the U.S. Three Mile Island, began innocently enough in the early morning hours of Saturday, April 26th, 1986 at the Soviet Union’s Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine. A simple safety test was about to be performed that wouldContinue reading “Podcast: The Lingering Legacy of the Chernobyl Disaster”
Poland’s SOLIDARITY Movement was the 1st Crack in Communism
Poland’s Solidarity [Solidarnosc] labor union was nothing less than Revolutionary, the 1st crack in the Soviet Union’s Iron Curtain, leading to its ultimate demise. Since the mid-1970s, Poland’s Communist economy was spiraling downward — production had plummeted, wages stagnated, and shortages were everywhere. In 1979, the new Polish Pope John Paul II famously visited Warsaw,Continue reading “Poland’s SOLIDARITY Movement was the 1st Crack in Communism”
How a Teenage Boy Started World War I
On 28 June 1914, Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his beloved wife, Sophie were visiting the picturesque city of Sarajevo.
The Many Murders of Russia’s Rasputin
How many murder attempts did it take to finally kill the infamous Siberian monk Rasputin? Five, and all in the same night! Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin, was a Siberian-born peasant and monk. At the young age of 23, he left his wife and three children to follow his calling and join an Orthodox monastery. After onlyContinue reading “The Many Murders of Russia’s Rasputin”
The Armenian Genocide – the Tragic, Forgotten Holocaust
Most know of the Jewish Holocaust, committed by Nazi Germany during World War II. But many are oblivious to Armenian Genocide, the 1st modern atrocity of the 20th century. It occurred 30 years earlier during World War I. In 1915, leaders of the Ottoman Empire began the systemic expulsion and extermination of Armenian Christians livingContinue reading “The Armenian Genocide – the Tragic, Forgotten Holocaust”
The Cuban Missile Crisis – the Day Russia Blinked
For 13 nerve-wracking days in October 1962, the Cuban Missile Crisis brought the earth close to a nuclear WORLD WAR III. It was a direct confrontation between 2 major superpowers, United States and USSR (Soviet Union) during the so called Cold War. It was the worst clash since the construction of the Berlin WallContinue reading “The Cuban Missile Crisis – the Day Russia Blinked”
America’s 1st Terrorist Attack – the 1920 Wall Street Bombing
As clocks struck Noon and the bells of nearby Trinity Church rang out on September 16th, 1920, a massive bomb exploded, tearing through New York City’s Financial District. The Wall Street bombing killed 38 people and injured hundreds more. The corner of Wall & Broad Streets was the epicenter of Manhattan’s Financial District, dominated byContinue reading “America’s 1st Terrorist Attack – the 1920 Wall Street Bombing”