On February 7, 1992, 12 nations sign the Maastricht Treaty of European Union. The treaty is mostly economic in its intentions, creating among other things a common European currency, to be introduced in 2002 and called the "euro." It also calls for a common policy on security affairs such as policing of terrorism and immigration. By 2002 the EU will grow to 27 nations, although Great Britain will vote to exit in 2016. On February 7, 1984, at an altitude of 170 miles, US Navy Captain Bruce McCandless II exits the space shuttle Challenger with a rocket pack of his own design strapped to his back, performing history's first untethered space walk. With Challenger orbiting at more than 17,000 mph, McCandless spends an hour and a half completely disconnected, venturing as far as 320 feet from the shuttle before safely returning. On February 7, 2010 in Miami, the New Orleans Saints beat the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 in Super Bowl XLIV, for the franchise's first world championship. The Saints overcame a 10-point first quarter deficit to take the lead early in the 3rd quarter, thanks in part to a daring onside kick called by Coach Sean Payton to start the second half. Trailing 17-16 midway through the 4th quarter, the Saints retook the lead on a TD pass from Drew Brees to Jeremy Shockey, completing a scoring drive in which Brees completed 7 of 7 passes to 7 different receivers. Now protecting a 24-17 lead, cornerback Tracy Porter intercepted a Payton Manning pass and returned it 73 yards for the game-clinching score. Brees was named Super Bowl MVP after being denied a well-deserved MVP award for the season, which instead went to Manning. Super Bowl XLIV: Saints vs. Colts highlights - YouTube
On February 8, 1587, Mary, Queen of Scots is beheaded for her possible involvement in a plot to murder Queen Elizabeth I. Technically the queen since she was six days old, Mary assumed her role as Queen of Scots at age 18, married an English lord at 23 to solidify her place in succession to Elizabeth, and became a suspect in her husband's murder at 25. She soon found herself at war with the Scottish nobles and was forced to abdicate in favor of her son, James. Mary fled to England and was at first welcomed by Elizabeth, but soon became a suspect in at least two plots to kill her friend. She languished in prison for 19 years before her execution. Sixteen years later, Elizabeth died, and James ascended to the throne of England. On February 8, 1971, the NASDAQ begins public trading. Conceived by the National Association of Security Dealers (NASD) as an all-electronic stock exchange (the AQ stands for Automated Quotations), NASDAQ would grow second only to the New York Stock Exchange in size and number of daily trades handled. It has also become the marketplace for most of America's tech giants, handling trading for Microsoft, Dell, Apple, Intel, Nvidia and Amazon among others. On February 8, 1924, Chinese gang member Gee Jon becomes the first American prison inmate to be executed by lethal gas. Gee was convicted in Nevada of killing a rival gang member and was executed in Carson City. In a lethal gas execution, the condemned is sealed in an air-tight "gas chamber" and exposed to either potassium cyanide or sodium cyanide dropped in a pan of hydrochloric acid, producing hydrocyanic gas. The gas renders the victim unconscious in seconds and asphyxiation soon follows. Critics opposed the gas chamber as cruel because the subjects tended to intinctively hold their breath, leading to violent convulsions for up to a minute before death. The gas chamber was replaced by lethal injection as a means of execution by most states in the late 20th century.
On February 9, 1825, John Quincy Adams becomes the first U.S. President elected by the House of Representatives. The size of the Electoral College of the day required 131 electoral votes to become president. When the final tallies were announced in December, the count was Andrew Jackson 99; Adams 84; Secretary of State William Crawford 31; and Congressman Henry Clay 37. The 12th Amendment designates the House to elect the president in such an event, and that only the top 3 candidates be considered. Thus eliminated, Clay lobbied his supporters to vote for Adams, making him president. On February 9, 1942, Congress orders that clocks in all 4 American time zones be moved forward one hour, saying the extra hour of daylight created will save fuel. It calls the move "war time," and it will be ceased in 1945. Many states choose to continue the practice (moving the clock ahead an hour in the spring and returning it to standard time in the fall), and in 1966 Congress again votes to make the switch national and permanent, calling it "daylight saving time." On February 9, 1992, Ervin "Magic" Johnson comes out of retirement to participate in the NBA All Star game. Johnson, one of basketball's most popular figures, had retired in November with the announcement that he had contracted AIDS through heterosexual contact. Until Magic's announcement, AIDS had been a stigmatizing ailment, believed to only be contracted by homosexuals and drug users. At the All Star game in in Orlando, Magic was greeted with a standing ovation, and at night's end, received the MVP Award for scoring 25 points and dishing 9 assists in 29 minutes play. 1992 NBA All-Star Game - Magic Johnson puts on a show in the final 4 minutes - YouTube
On February 10, 1763, the signing of the Treaty of Paris ends the Seven Years' War, known in Great Britain's American colonies as the French and Indian War. The war was fought between England and France over continual conflicts between the colonies and French expeditions into the Ohio Valley. The treaty, among other things, required France to abandon its holdings in Canada and cede Louisiana over to Spain. Fifteen years later, the French, still bitter over the defeat, would side with the colonies in their revolt against the English crown. On February 10, 1966, attorney Ralph Nader testifies before Congress about unsafe practices in the automobile industry. Four months earlier, Nader had published "Unsafe at Any Speed," in which he made the case that the industry was sacrificing safety for style and power in its designs. The book quickly got a sales boost, and legitimacy in the public eye, when Nader successfully sued General Motors for harassment and invasion of privacy following the book's release, claiming GM sent spies after him in an attempt to discredit him. The book, combined with Nader's testimony, led Congress to pass the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Act later that year. On February 10, 1962 in West Berlin, the U.S. and Soviet Union trade spies. On the Glieniker Bridge, the Americans released Colonel Rudolph Abel, who had slipped into the country in 1948 and operated successfully under cover until his capture in 1957. In exchange, the Soviets released Francis Gary Powers, the CIA pilot who's U-2 spy plane had been shot down over Russia in May, 1960. At another checkpoint between East and West, the Soviets also released Frederic Pryor, a student who had been held captive by the East Germans for 7 months. Powers would be absolved of blame for the loss of his aircraft and worked as a radio aerial traffic reporter until dying in a helicopter crash in 1977. Fearing he had been turned by the Americans, the KGB retired Abel from active duty. He published his memoirs in retirement and died in 1971. (below: German press photo taken the day of the exchange)
@shane0911 @Bengal B @Winston1 Away from the computer for awhile, meeting my new granddaughter. https://share.icloud.com/photos/0DWhgcI2HpEJeHFY-PpteBlIA#Chattanooga_-_Pineville
