› added 4 years ago

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TIL when Pope John Paul II delivered a speech to the European Parliament, Ian Paisley shouted "I denounce you as the antichrist!" The former crown prince of Austria-Hungary, 77-year-old Otto von Habsburg, punched him in the face and pushed him out of the chamber.

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6EMpJ TIL that Louisiana's Airline Highway was so named because it runs relatively straight--and only later, two major airports were built alongside it.
BrRJy TIL about the joke behind NASA's Juno mission. While Jupiter's moons are named after the god's many mistresses, Juno, the space probe sent to orbit and monitor Jupiter, is named after his wife.
jGkE TIL that 12 African nations have come together pledging to build a 9 mile wide band of trees that will stretch all the way across Africa, 4750 miles, in order to stop the progressive advancement of the Sahara.
4XYw5 TIL the goal of the 1993 WTC bombing was to collapse the North Tower into the South Tower, destroying both. The building's architect testified that the plan likely would have succeeded if the bomb had been placed slightly closer to the building's foundation.
7rOOM TIL about Kongō Gumi Co., Ltd. (株式会社金剛組), a family-owned Japanese construction company which has been in business since 578 AD.