› added 9 years ago

168

TIL that in Switzerland, one of the most neutral countries in the world, when you turn 20, you are required to undergo 18 weeks of mandatory military training.

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QAZp TIL After both of the leaders of his squadron were shot down over Vietnam, Merlyn Dethlefsen flew his damaged fighter back through enemy air defenses to scare off enemy fighters, then knocked out both missile sites defending the target. Saving 70 of the 72 friendly aircraft following him.
p5A4 TIL that an English composer, Jeremiah Clarke, couldn’t decide if he should commit suicide by hanging or drowning himself. He flipped a coin and after the coin landed on its edge in the mud he went home and shot himself instead.
0wlkv TIL the Island of Sri Lanka/Ceylon only became an island in 1480, when the narrow landbridge connecting the peninsula to the Indian Subcontinent was destroyed by a massive cyclone after years of gradual erosion.
VjXm TIL during World War 1, Alvin York pretty much single handedly attacked a German machine gun nest, killing 20 and captured 132 solders. His actions made him one of the most decorated solders in the US Army, earning medals not only from the US, but also France, Italy, and Montenegro.
Y7KYZ TIL about a 1986 arcade game called Chiller in which the player uses a light gun to activate torture devices to maim and kill restrained characters who are incapable of fighting back. It was a commercial failure in the United States because arcade owners refused to purchase it due to the content.