› added 12 years ago

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TIL Rifaat al-Assad, uncle of current embattled Syrian president, flaunted to Thomas Freidman that he killed 38,000 people in the 1982 Hama Massacre. He currently lives in the UK, and since there was no War Crimes Tribunal three decades ago, and the Statute of Limitations, he cannot be prosecuted.

Read more telegraph.co.uk

via reddit.com

9Yg0m TIL before the United States had an established name there was an early movement to call the country "Fredonia" after the word Freedom. Citizens would be called Fredes or Fredish. The name lost ground after it became a common form of mocking political opponents.
Dy0Y TIL that the “ZIP” in ZIP Code is an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, a name given because mail would not only travel more efficiently but also because the mail would comparatively zip right to your address.
YAYW TIL when Leah Remini was at Tom Cruise’s & Katie Holmes’ wedding, she found Suri lying on the floor in the bathroom, with three women standing around the baby and chanting her name.
j6M6M TIL the falling out between Rudolf and Adi Dassler which led to the creation of Adidas and Puma, took place during a 1943 Allied bombing attack when Adi said "here are the bloody bastards again" referring to the Allied war planes, but Rudolf was convinced Adi meant him and his family
QJPgp TIL of the "Poe Toaster", an individual or individuals who, for over seventy years, on Edgar Allen Poe's birthday (January 19) would appear mysteriously and drink a cognac toast at the author's grave. He would also leave several roses in a "distinctive arrangement."