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TIL that during the U.S. Civil War, former President John Tyler became a Confederate and was elected to serve in the Condeferate congress. He is the only U.S. President to not be mourned officially in Washington D.C. due to his being a Confederate supporter.

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grrLX TIl - There's no evidence that the word hoser was ever actually used by Canadians before appearing on SCTV's "Bob and Doug McKenzie" sketches
ZplEo TIL the origin of the word "bear" is "brown one". It's believed that there was a taboo around saying its name directly for fear of accidentally summoning one.
e0ao6 TIL of Distributionism, an alternative to both Capitalism and Communism. Distributionists criticize the centralization of assets either under a state or private individual, and instead advocate for the redistribution of the means of production themselves, rather than the wealth they produce.
R5v77 TIL about the "de Lackner HZ-1 Aerocycle" which was expected to become the US' standard reconnaissance machine. Unveiled in 1954, it required the unlucky user to stand on a platform above four whirling blades, which he then steered by tilting his bodyweight in the direction he wished to move.
jlev TIL Sewer Socialists got their name from their perpetual boasting about the public sewer system in Milwaukee. They fought to clean up the pollution of the Industrial Revolution, setting up new sanitation systems, city-owned water and power systems, and improving education in Wisconsin.