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TIL after losing the 1996 US presidential election, Bob Dole was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in January 1997. He began his acceptance speech with "I, Robert J. Dole, do solemnly swear... Sorry, wrong speech"

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nWV5G TIL that Mansa Musa was so wealthy, he crashed Egypts economy for 12 years after his visit, by giving gold as a gift on his way to Mecca in the 13th Century.
78eWp TIL the earliest known reference to a red carpet is from 458 BC, in an Ancient Greek play. After defeating Troy, the king Agamemnon is welcomed home w/ a carpet of crimson tapestries & silk. He's uncomfortable with it, since to him, only gods walk on such luxury, while mortals should be more humble
8bnZ TIL ESPN won an emmy for the creation of the superimposed yellow line representing the first down line for American football games.
ObMa TIL that the US Constitution still allows Congress and the President to issue and sign off on Letters of Marque, essentially allowing a private citizen to become a pirate in the name of the US
4yPR TIL in Florida suffered catastrophic wildfires during 1995. Florida’s Division of forestry later discovered that the underlying problem was the cessation of controlled burning, which was stopped at the behest of homeowners.