› added 2 years ago

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TIL that if you're a communist - or were in the past 10 years - the US prevents you from becoming a citizen

N7Lpb TIL 1996 U.S. Cables have detailed how the Saudi Royal Family members received stipends up to $200,000-$270,000 a month, and when a US embassy economics officer visited the office responsible for the distribution, he described it as a place “bustling with servants picking up cash for their masters.”
R5nGl TIL that the second fastest manmade object was a 2,000 lb steel plate cap covering a borehole for a nuclear blast. It's estimated that it reached speeds above 150,000 mph, almost 200 times the speed of sound. It most likely vaporized due to friction with the atmosphere before it could reach space.
VMPyB TIL: on tour in 1974 Frank Sinatra referred to Australian female journalists as buck & a half hookers, the resulting public outrage saw the unions black ban him. The tour resumed after future Prime Minister Bob Hawke brokered a deal over a bottle of brandy & Sinatra issued a "statement of regret"
gMYay TIL France provided 'material support' to Argentina during the Falklands War. Despite France claiming they were not helping Argentina, evidence surfaced that indicated French technical teams remained in Argentina helping them to fix and use missiles that were deployed against British forces.
XEjo6 TIL: A stray cat Scarlett risked her life 5 times returning to the burning garage to save her kittens. She touched each of them with her nose to ensure they were all alive as the blisters on her eyes kept her from being able to see them. She collapsed unconscious after assuring they were all safe.