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TIL that the city of Denver was originally awarded the honor of hosting the 1976 Winter Olympics. The people of Colorado, however, voted against funding the games, and Innsbruck ended up hosting them. This is the only time in history that a city has been awarded the games, but rejected them later.

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jN5ZQ TIL an Army Ranger got a confirmed kill using a spoon from his MRE.
m15Zp TIL there is a very small (9-inch-tall) aluminum pyramid on the very top of the Washington Monument, because at the time it was completed, aluminum was considered more precious than gold or silver
XNvj TIL that watching Home Alone is a national tradition in Poland at Christmastime. When the network owning the rights opted not to show it in 2010, there were national protests. Over 10% of the population of Poland will watch this broadcast live annually.
5Yx59 TIL that the word Boycott is named after an Irish landlord named Charles Boycott. After Boycott attempted to evict 11 tenants, the local community decided to shun him. Workers would not work for him, traders would not trade with him, and the postman would not deliver the post.
LQgrQ TIL The White Australia Policy messed with one of the first major oil spills