› added 2 years ago

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TIL: William R. King is the only U.S. Vice President to take the oath of office on foreign soil. King had tuberculosis and had traveled to Cuba to regain his health. Since he couldn't be in DC to take the oath, Congress passed an act that allowed him to be sworn in near Matanzas, Cuba.

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DQMWD TIL although her 27-year-old son died from cancer in 2020, a Spanish mother was still able to fulfill her dream of becoming a grandmother by using his frozen sperm. His daughter was born in 2023.
M7wrm TIL the US Postal Service's (unofficial) motto, "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers...", comes from Greek historian Herodotus' description of the Achaemenid Persian's Angarium couriers who ran a Pony Express style courier service for their king.
R7WL8 TIL Swedish diplomat Folke Bernadotte rescued hundreds of Jews from the Nazi death camps during WWII. He was later assassinated by Orthodox Jews while visiting Israel.
YpRvd TIL that in 1921, Frederick B. Banting figured out how to extract insulin from a dog’s pancreas, creating the first real treatment of diabetes. He intended to make it extremely cheap in order to save as many people as possible but private companies now charge almost $300 a single vial of insulin.
ZPWY TIL former Police Chief of Toronto Julian Fantino has illegally wiretapped police critics, conducted witch-hunts on gay men under the guise of “child porn”, hidden cases of cops assaulting and robbing drug dealers, committed bribery + more…… and is now a Member of Canadian Parliament.