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TIL President Truman was opposed to McCarthyism, which was a means of deplatforming suspected communists without technically violating the first amendment, largely by barring them from employment. "In a free country, we punish men for the crimes they commit, but never for the opinions they have."

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pjlZ TIL In 1992 rapper Mac Dre was charged with conspiracy to commit robbery and sentenced to 5 years in prison after he refused a police deal, which was informing law enforcement about his partners. While awaiting trial Mac Dre recorded a full album over the phone, taunting law enforcement officials.
Yp0X7 TIL of the PETS act, a bipartisan bill introduced after Hurricane Katrina, giving FEMA the authority to provide rescue to household pets and service animals in major disasters. The bill aimed to save those who would have otherwise remained and perished with their companions.
loeK7 TIL that movie trailers were originally shown after the feature film. That's why they are called "trail"ers. Theaters quickly noticed that people would simply leave when the main feature was complete, so they began showing the trailers before the movie instead; the name just stuck.
XExj8 TIL that an acre was originally a rectangle made up of furlongs, which were the distance a pair of oxen could plow before resting
rNkk0 TIL the hanging boxes on power lines are called Stockbridge dampers and mitigate specific vertical movement (called Aeolian vibration) in the cables that would otherwise result in stress fatigue and potential separation. This is the same vibration that destroyed the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in 1940.