› added 8 years ago

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TIL of John Clem, a drummer boy in the Union Army during the Civil War, who at age 11, shot a Confederate colonel who had demanded his surrender. Promoted to sergeant, he became the youngest NCO in Army history. He retired in 1915 as a general and the last actively-serving veteran of the Civil War.

yQGp8 TIL that Bill Niman, founder of Niman Ranch and pioneer of humane animal farming, stopped eating Niman Ranch products after his farm was bought out by a corporation that dropped his humane treatment and sustainability standards in order to make a profit.
P1bJn TIL there has never been a case of fentanyl overdose through skin contact or accidental inhalation by police that was confirmed by toxicology reports. Police coming into contact and reporting getting an accidental overdose were actually psychologically induced: panic attack vs. opioid overdose.
5Yykn TIL that one of the principle deniers of the Cambodian Genocide of 1975-1979 (the British Academic Malcom Caldwell) was (almost certainly) killed by the Khmer Rouge (probably under the orders of Pol Pot) shortly after interviewing Brother Number One on Dec. 22 1978.
yVQXM TIL that in the summer of 2017, Mike Meyers hosted 10 episodes of The Gong Show in full makeup as a character named Tommy Maitland - the show's emcee. It wasn't revealed that it was him until the following January.
wo67 TIL: Chuck Feeney, a billionaire, donated most of his fortune anonymously and with no recognition, while flying coach, owning a $15 watch, no homes and no cars.