Sunday, March 6, 2011

demagogue \DEM-uh-gog\, noun:

1. A leader who obtains power by means of impassioned appeals to the emotions and prejudices of the populace.

2. A leader of the common people in ancient times.

Demagogue derives from Greek demagogos, "a leader of the people," from demos, "the people" + agogos, "leading, one who leads," from agein, "to lead."

Lent Trap /lÉnt træp/ noun

• In couples where one party is Catholic and the other is not, the unwilling subjection of the non-Catholic to the 40-day ritual of penitence known as Lent.

1. We were going to have dinner at this great new steak place on Friday night, but Joe's got me stuck in a Lent Trap.

2. My wife Jane decided to give up sex for Lent. Worst. Lent Trap. Ever.

Trivia

What football team was the first to play in a Super Bowl without scoring a touchdown?

• The Miami Dolphins, in 1972, in Super Bowl VI against the Dallas Cowboys. The final score was 24–3.

History

• Toronto: Canada's largest city, and one of the most livable cities in the world, was incorporated (1834)
• the Alamo: fort was overrun by Mexican troops during the Texas revolution; all inside were killed (1836)
• La Traviata: Verdi's opera premiered in Venice (1853)
• Dred Scott case (1857): US Supreme Court ruled that slaves were not citizens; the decision was overturned a decade later by the 14th amendment

Birthdays

• Michelangelo (1475-1564): artist who painted the Sistine Chapel ceiling and sculpted the David
• Cyrano de Bergerac (1619-1655): satirist; also, writers Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861), Ring Lardner (1885-1933) and Gabriel Garcia Marquez (83)
• Ed McMahon (1923-2009): long-time sidekick to Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show
• Valentina Tereshkova (74): cosmonaut who was the first woman in space; plus, astronaut Gordon Cooper (1927-2004)
• Tom Arnold (52): comic actor, True Lies; plus, comic entertainers Lou Costello (1906-1959), Rob Reiner (64), D.L. Hughley (47) and Connie Britton (43)
• Shaquille O'Neal (39): hulking basketball star; also, athletes Willie Stargell (1940-2001) and Dick Fosbury (64)