Anniversaries and commemorations come and go daily. Most of us, even the best historians, miss most occasions. If we think of history as events then we are faced with a continually showering in the grains of sand. Nevertheless, we do pick out certain patterns in the remembrance of historical dates. The blog here reminds us of some dates where the local, state, national, and global perspectives entwine.
What Time is It? It is flow of a sandstorm that will on each day compress somewhere into a structure – sandstone, selected and only remembered in the longue durée.
On Friday, 3 December 1920, The first successful flight from Melbourne to Perth is completed.
On Friday, 3 December 1920, Following more than a month of the Turkish–Armenian War, the Turkish-dictated Treaty of Alexandropol is concluded.
On Monday, 3 December 1945, Communist demonstrations in Athens presage the Greek Civil War.
On Thursday, 3 December 1970, October Crisis: In Montreal, kidnapped British Trade Commissioner James Cross is released by the Front de libération du Québec terrorist group after being held hostage for 60 days. Police negotiate his release and in return the Government of Canada grants 5 terrorists from the FLQ’s Chenier Cell their request for safe passage to Cuba.
On Thursday, 3 December 1970, Burgos Trial: In Burgos, Spain, the trial of 16 Basque terrorism suspects begins.
On Monday, 3 December 1990, At Detroit Metropolitan Airport, Northwest Airlines Flight 1482 (a McDonnell Douglas DC-9) collides with Northwest Airlines Flight 299 (a Boeing 727) on the runway, killing 8 passengers and 4 crew members on Flight 1482.
On Monday, 3 December 1990, Mary Robinson begins her term as President of Ireland, becoming the first female to hold this office.
On Sunday, 3 December 1995, The Anzac Bridge in Sydney is opened to traffic.
On Sunday, 3 December 1995, Strikes paralyze France’s public sector.
On Thursday, 3 December 2015, Former Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane announces that he will leave the Liberal Party to join the National Party.
On Thursday, 3 December 2015, The Federal Government strikes a deal with the Australian Greens to push multi-national tax-avoidance laws through Parliament.
On Thursday, 3 December 2015, A Queensland Parliamentary Ethics Committee report finds that Queensland Police Minister Jo-Ann Miller demonstrated a pattern of reckless conduct that was not of ministerial or Parliamentary standard. Ms. Miller resigns as Police Minister and from Cabinet the following day after the Government signals its intention to remove her.
Images Citations in Composite: ID 17208541 © Anhong | Dreamstime.com; ID 35001957 © DiversityStudio1 | Dreamstime.com; ID 156394527 © Gerd Zahn | Dreamstime.com
Neville Buch