On this day in history – May 15
1252 – Pope Innocent IV issues the bull Ad extirpanda, authorizing the use of torture by the Inquisition, a grim milestone in European religious persecution.
1796 – Italian physician Edward Jenner administers the first smallpox vaccination, laying the groundwork for modern immunology and vaccination worldwide.
1940 – The first McDonald’s restaurant opens in San Bernardino, California, pioneering a fast‑food model that will spread around the globe.
1948 – Egypt, Transjordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq invade the newly proclaimed State of Israel, marking the start of the first Arab–Israeli war.
1988 – The Soviet Union begins withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan under the Geneva Accords, a major moment in the late Cold War and regional politics.
2013 – A spire is installed on One World Trade Center in New York, bringing it to 1,776 feet and making it the tallest building in the United States.
Canada politics – yesterday & today
Yesterday: Canadian politics was dominated by reaction to U.S. President Donald Trump’s new 35% tariff on Canadian goods, with Prime Minister Mark Carney insisting Canada remains committed to CUSMA while preparing responses.
Today: The Carney government is expected to focus on trade and economic stabilization measures as businesses, provinces, and Ottawa assess the impact of the tariff hike and possible retaliatory steps.
(Trim or split that second line if you need it even shorter for Facebook.)
United States politics – yesterday
Yesterday’s biggest U.S. political story was the continued fallout from House resistance to granting formal war‑powers authorization for the Iran conflict, with signs of Republican unease over President Trump’s strategy.
Worldwide – what yesterday is likely to be remembered for
Globally, yesterday will likely be remembered for the sharp escalation in U.S.–Canada trade tensions after President Trump signed an executive order raising tariffs on Canadian goods to 35%, a step with long‑term implications for North American supply chains and alliances.
(If you want to feature another major global story, you can swap this with a significant diplomatic, economic, or conflict‑related development from your usual news sources.)
Quotation of the day
“History is not a burden on the memory but an illumination of the soul.” – Lord Acton
(This is a well‑known attribution to the British historian Lord Acton.)
Ottawa, Ontario – today’s sky & fuel
Sunrise: 5:33 am
Sunset: 8:25 pm
(Ottawa, May 15, 2026, from a detailed sunrise–sunset calendar.)Moon: Waning crescent phase on May 15, 2026, with only a few percent of the lunar disk illuminated.
Regular gas: Forecast average about 192.9 cents per litre (approximately $1.93/L) in Ottawa as of May 14, 2026, with current prices fluctuating around that level.
No comments:
Post a Comment