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TIL that in 2001, Portugal enacted a nationwide law decriminalizing all drugs, including cocaine and heroin. In 2009, the conservative Cato institute called the policy a “resounding success.”

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YLZB TIL John Travolta, Chevy Chase, and Bill Murray all turned down the role of Forrest Gump, which was then played by Tom Hanks.
5VQvr TIL that the Toronto Pearson Airport is actually located in Mississauga, contrary to its name.
D1vZg TIL Lake Laogai in Avatar: The Last Airbender was based on "Laogai", a prison system in China that attempted to reform people with labor
0d785 TIL of the Great Leonids Meteor Storm that occurred on November 13th, 1833 in which more than 72,000 meteors per hour fell to Earth, and which according to one observer caused the night sky to radiate so bright with falling stars that “people were awakened believing that their house was on fire!”
MevwV TIL infamous cult leader Jim Jones poisoned his followers with Flavor Aid (not Kool-Aid); earlier, he'd been awarded the Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian Award for his progressive integrationist views.