› added 13 years ago

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TIL slavery was nearly abolished in the USA in 1784, but the motion fell short by one vote

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DJwY TIL that Saudi Arabia has no minimum age of consent and that Clerics have fought efforts to create one. A judge refused to annul a marriage between an 8 year old girl and a 47 year old man.
BgLby TIL that the act of throwing someone out of a window is called "Defenestration".
4XAva TIL that 1972 democratic vice presidential candidate Thomas Eagleton was forced to drop out of the race after he was humiliated by the "revelation" that he had been treated for chronic depression.
XEjER TIL Captain Noel Godfrey Chavasse is the only British soldier to receive the Victoria Cross twice during WWI. Both times were for actions he committed while being wounded and under fire.
PrO TIL There’s a script for a Forrest Gump sequel called Gump and Co., based on the book of the same name, in which Forrest is seen inventing New Coke, crashing the Exxon Valdez, accidentally tearing down the Berlin Wall and fighting in Desert Storm with his orangutan sidekick.