• People Died this day

    Robert Pilatus (Robert “Rob” Pilatus) was a German singer, dancer, and model, best known as one half of the pop duo Milli Vanilli. Drawn to show business from an early age, he began his career as a model and breakdancer. Pilatus was briefly a member of the group Wind before being discovered by producer Frank…

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  • Computers nowadays come in all shapes and sizes from a smartphone to the super computer Mira. An essential requirement nowadays is that computers are portable. It may be hard to believe but the history of portable computers goes back 45 years, even when I write it ’45 years’ I can’t  believe it . I was…

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  • A while ago, I discovered a Jewish Cemetery in Limerick. It was across from a landmark pub in the city called the The Hurlers Pub. There was a small laneway across from Hurlers leading to the small cemetery. One of the graves was of Simon Gewurz. He was originally from Bratislava in Slovakia and moved…

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  • Jules Frank was born on April 11, 1886, in Fijnaart. He was married to Flora van Beek. He worked as a butcher and was highly involved in the Jewish community. Together with his wife, he was forced to move to Amsterdam. They arrived there on April 15, 1943, and were taken to Asterdorp, a ghetto…

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  • Like most of my blogs I try to steer away from politics and religion this blog will be no exception to that. Although it may appear to be a religious blog, i is really about the historical event of the crucifixion. Good Friday is one of the key days in the Christian calendar, it is…

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  • One of the difficulties I have in telling or writing stories about the Holocaust is the sheer volume of victims. I believe the best way of keeping the memories alive is to personalize the stories. Rather then talk about millions ,talk about individuals and show that they were human beings like every one else. To…

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  • On April 1, 1933, Nazi Germany carried out a nationwide economic boycott targeting Jewish businesses, professionals, and institutions. This event was one of the first major public steps in Adolf Hitler’s campaign of anti-Semitic persecution and laid the groundwork for subsequent discriminatory legislation and, ultimately, the Holocaust. The boycott emerged in the immediate aftermath of…

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  • Dear Anne, You don’t know me, but I know you. In fact, nearly everyone knows you, and yet no one really knows you. We know you through the personal stories you wrote in your diary. We see each word, each letter and each paragraph, but we don’t see your hopes, your fears or your anxiety.…

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  • Phil Bloom in Hoepla

    This is a bit of a deviation of my usual blogs but Phil Bloom has a significant cultural meaning to the Netherlands .The name Phil Bloom will mean very little to people outside of the Netherlands. She is an artist and actress On July 28,1967 she caused quite some controversy and a scandal. She was…

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  • On April 1, 1944  the United States air force accidentally bombed the Swiss city of Schaffhausen, mistaking it for a German target. Some 400 incendiary and demolition bombs were dropped, killing 40 people and destroying large parts of the city. About 15 B24 planes unleashed their bombs, mistaking the city for the target of Ludwigshafen…

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