Several noteworthy anniversaries occur this month.October 13, 2007, will mark the 700th anniversary of the mass arrests of Jacques de Molay and the Knights Templar at the order of King Philippe IV and Pope Clement V. It is believed that this is the origin of the superstition of Friday the 13th being bad luck.
Two other anniversaries are being noted this month, too.
It was 50 years ago this month that the U.S.S.R. launched Sputnik, the first satellite. Sputnik sparked the space race between the United States and Russia. I saw former lunar astronaut Jim Lovell on television the other day; he said that were it not for Sputnik, we'd have never gone to the moon.
Also in October, 1957 Atlas Shrugged, a novel by Russian immigrant Ayn Rand, was published. Millions of copies have been sold. A 1992 survey by the Library of Congress determined that, after the Bible, Atlas Shrugged is the most influential book in the United States. It helped launch the modern free market and the libertarian movement, according to an opinion piece in today's Washington Times.
Image: Ayn Rand
Knights Templar | Jacques de Molay | Sputnik | Ayn Rand | Atlas Shrugged | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com
