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GOP candidates face backlash as workers squeezed out of jobs by Trump's tariffs
Nelson Vandermeer voted Republican for decades but balked at supporting President Donald Trump, fearing that the Republican’s plan for tariffs on imports would hurt workers more than help.Last year, Vandermeer’s premonition came true in a very personal way. The 62-year-old lost his job as a product designer at Howard Miller, a clockmaker that relied on parts produced overseas. After a century in business, the company in Zeeland, Michigan, closed its factory, sold off its inventory and brand name and laid off nearly 200 workers."So much for bringing jobs back," Vandermeer said. Next month, he plans to vote straight Democrat in the midterms.As if an unpopular war with Iran and persistent inflation were not enough trouble for Republicans, they are confronting a backlash over the tariffs that Trump made a cornerstone of his economic agenda. He promised that charging higher taxes on imports would spur a factory renaissance in the United States, but that has not come to pass. Although the country has added manufacturing jobs so far this year, the sector has fewer employees than when Trump returned to the White House in January 2025.White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers insisted that a factory boom is underway, citing increases in manufacturing output and more work in certain nonresidential construction trades. "Factory construction jobs of today mean more manufacturing jobs down the road once those factories come online," she said.Even before the tariffs, Howard Miller struggled as Americans lost their taste for fancy timepieces such as its signature grandfather and mantel clocks. So the company broadened its offerings years ago to include bar carts, cabinets and consoles.But those products also depended on glass and other parts from abroad, and diversification did not ensure survival. "I could still have a job, but now I don't because of tariffs," Vandermeer said. "It was like taking a knife to the back."Job losses pile up in battleground statesVandermeer lives in Michigan’s 4th Congressional District, which is represented by Republican Bill Huizenga, who is running for a ninth term in the Nov. 3 election. Before Trump implemented his broadest set of tariffs last year, on what the president called "Liberation Day," Huizenga was supportive. "Is it going to be easy? Not necessarily. Is it the right thing to do? Absolutely it is," he told reporters at the time.A spokesperson for Huizenga said last week that the congressman "sees a potential role for tariffs" for boosting domestic manufacturing “while recognizing the need to address their broader economic effects." His Democratic opponent, state Sen. Sean McCann, has criticized the incumbent for opposing legislation that would rein in tariffs that Trump imposed unilaterally. There are similar issues in competitive races in Kansas, Iowa and Ohio, where Republican acquiescence could hurt the party on Election Day as their constituents face factory layoffs, farm foreclosures and higher prices. Tracy Chew, 55, voted for Trump in 2016, then for Democrat Joe Biden in 2020 and Democrat Kamala Harris in 2024.She used to work for Case, a backhoe manufacturer, but the company announced before the tariffs that it would close its plant in Burlington, Iowa. She lost her job in April, as did her daughter, followed by husband and son-in-law over the next few weeks. Chew is leaning toward voting for Democrats again this year, feeling that Trump let them down."I'm furious he isn't doing enough,” she said. "Tariffs are not targeting the right companies, the right amount.”Layoffs in Iowa have piled up elsewhere. Winnebago Industries, which produces recreational vehicles like campers, cut 200 jobs last year after the cost of importing aluminum, steel and electronics increased by tens of millions of dollars. "It's a day to day battle," said Michael Happe, the company’s chief executive.In the tight race for an open U.S. Senate seat in Iowa, U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson faces Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek. There is a close contest, too, in Kansas, where Democrat Adam Hamilton, the pastor of the largest United Methodist Church in the U.S., is trying to unseat Republican Roger Marshall. Cole Hoppock, chief executive of appliance maker Vornado Air in Wichita, Kansas, said Trump’s tariffs "impacted virtually everything." The company known for its retro household fans laid off more than 70 factory workers in February, blaming higher prices for imported parts.Trump’s trade policy could force cutbacks soon at another Kansas employer, Canadian jet manufacturer Bombardier. Trump has threatened to ban the company’s sales in the U.S. if Bombardier does not start making all its planes in the U.S. Bombardier said it buys parts from 2,800 companies in 47 states, including in Kansas, where it employs more than 1,000 people Trump’s approach to trade is unpopularTrump has spent years complaining that other countries are ripping off the U.S. when it comes to trade. Most economists say he is wrong and that his remedy — broad universal tariffs — would cause more pain than help.Now most Americans disagree with Trump’s approach, according to The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. A September poll showed only about 3 in 10 U.S. adults approve of Trump’s handling of trade negotiations, compared with 4 in 10 in March.Some of Trump’s tariffs have been haphazard. He targeted Brazil because of political differences and he jacked up tariffs on China to levels so extreme that they risked a recession and forced the president to retreat. The Supreme Court in February ruled against Trump’s declaration of an emergency to roll out his "Liberation Day" tariffs last year, leaving foreign trade unsettled as the administration continues to adjust with new levies and threats. Tariffs are far from the only reason for the lost of manufacturing jobs, and factories have cut workers for decades with or without them. Even some Republicans who dislike Trump’s approach will not split with the party. Bicycle Corp. of America, which closed its factory in South Carolina last year, blamed rising prices for imported parts. Koby Bird, who retired after working in quality control, likes tariffs but was frustrated by Trump’s habit of raising and lowering them seemingly at whim."It was all over the place," Bird said. "Businesses couldn’t plan."Next month, Bird is likely to stick with Republicans, including U.S. Sen. Darline Graham, because tariffs are only one issue and he believes Democrats would spend too much money on the wrong things.Ernie Goss, an economist at Creighton University in Nebraska, said manufacturing woes may not convert to Democratic victories. He said some people may "think the tariffs in the long run will work."Some workers may be turning on TrumpWendell Young, a union leader in Pennsylvania, where several factories have had layoffs, said he senses a backlash among workers. Last summer, Young said he got a firestorm of angry responses to his email blaming tariffs for a decision by Post Holdings to cut 160 jobs at a local pet food factory. "Keep politics out of this,” wrote one of workers at the plant in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. “President Trump isn't the reason.""People used to beat me up for not supporting Trump. I haven't heard that in a year,” said Young, president of Local 1776 of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union. "Some of these people are red Republicans and they are shocked. They expected more jobs.”Post Holdings ultimately agreed to reduce the head count by offering severance for people to leave, but lower production had a ripple effect. Local can manufacturer Trivium Packaging decided to cut several jobs because they were getting less orders from Post and other companies, according to Young’s union. "I understand the mindset behind tariffs, but I just don’t know if it’s working,” said former Trivium worker Heather Kingston. She left for another company before the layoffs, and her husband is still working at Trivium. "There doesn't seem to be many manufacturing jobs moving into the area," she said.Kingston said she voted for Republican Dan Meuser in the 9th District last time but is having doubts this year. Meuser’s seat is considered safe, but other races in the state are up for grabs, including in the 7th and 8th districts, which are near the Post and Trivium factories.
Middle East crisis: Riyadh airport hit again as Houthis claim attacks, including strike that killed 12 – as it happened
This live blog is now closed. You can read our latest full report here:Riyadh airport hit again after deadly Houthi missile attack, Saudi authorities saySome more Gulf reaction to Houthi's deadly airport attack and continued threats to target Saudi airspace. In a significant message, the United Arab Emirates has issued a statement in solidarity with Saudi Arabia – expressing support for "all measures aimed at safeguarding the kingdom's security and stability".The UAE message is improtant given the major rupture in relations this year between the two oil-rich kingdoms, first sparked by lingering divisions in Yemen, and made worse by the Iran War and arguments over oil prices which led to the UAE quitting OPEC (currently led by the Saudis) after six decades of membership.Saturday's incident comes amid an escalation of missile strikes by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis ⁠on the kingdom. The airport has already been attacked twice this ​week, leaving four people dead and ‌others wounded, and ‌badly damaging an aircraft.The Houthis have repeatedly attacked Saudi airports, oil facilities and tankers after a truce in their long-running war with Yemen's Riyadh-backed government unravelled in July. Continue reading...
Pope Leo to have surgery to remove nodule on his lung
Pontiff says it was detected at an early stage and procedure will take place in the coming daysPope Leo XIV has said he will undergo surgery in the coming days to remove a nodular lesion on his lung that was recently discovered during medical checks.The 71-year-old said the nodule was found at an early stage and was "circumscribed" or well localised. The Vatican later said Leo would undergo surgery in the first days of this week, with an expected recovery time of a week. Continue reading...
A Trump impersonator and opera singers: CPAC was a spectacle, but the right still can't agree how to take down Labor
Preferences proved the sticking point at the conference as conservatives face the prospect of a third successive election defeatGet our new political email, free app or daily news podcastMany mainstream Australians would feel as if they'd been dropped in a foreign country at the Conservative Political Action Conference, lost amid oblique references to transgender swimmers, blue hair, women's bathrooms, jokes about falling off stages and Matt Canavan in hi-vis and speed dealer sunnies.It's an interesting spectacle. At this year's conference in Brisbane, rightwing campaigner Monica Smit was deep in conversation with a Donald Trump impersonator, opera singers belted out the national anthem (the first verse, twice, for unknown reasons), senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and her folk singer husband sang the anthem again, and Karl Stefanovic jokingly thanking CPAC for "rudely interrupting my unemployment".Sign up for Guardian Australia's Politics, really newsletter here Continue reading...
Trump sticks with tariffs even as U.S. voters turn against them before the midterms
Maybe President Donald Trump really does believe that "tariff" is the most beautiful word in the dictionary.Despite higher prices, criticism from trade experts and displeasure among voters, Trump holds fast to his belief that imposing the highest import duties on U.S. trading partners since the Great Depression is a winner.A recent poll suggests that is a big gamble with less than a month before the Nov. 3 midterms. Most U.S. adults disapprove of his trade policies, with more than 64% saying he has gone too far with his latest tariffs, compared with 58% in January.A look at the political, legal and economic challenges to the Republican president’s approach to trade.Where Trump’s ever-changing tariffs stand todayThe United States has set taxes on imports from most countries in the low double digits, although the rates have gone up and down because of legal setbacks as well as Trump’s habit of changing them seemingly on a whim.In the biggest round last year, Trump levied what he called "reciprocal" tariffs and other duties on dozens of countries. He cited a 1977 law that he said allowed him to act without congressional approval in an economic emergency.After the Supreme Court struck that down in February, Trump turned to an array of other trade laws to accomplish his goals.The primary one he is using now, Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, allows him to impose tariffs on countries that he believes are engaging in unfair trade practices, such as not adequately enforcing a ban on forced labor. The new duties range from 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 economies, including big U.S. trading partners such as the European Union, India, Japan, Canada and Mexico.Why trade experts think Trump is causing more damage than goodTrump is taking a sledgehammer to a relatively open global trading system that many mainstream economists think has benefited the U.S. enormously. It has helped boost growth, keep prices low and make U.S. businesses more competitive and often dominant in global industries.The U.S. is the second-largest exporter in the world, after China. It exported $3.4 trillion in goods and services last year, far ahead of third place Germany's $2.3 trillion.Although Trump claims foreign exporters are paying tariffs, it is mostly Americans who are footing the bill. Studies, including ones from New York Fed and Harvard, have shown that overseas companies have largely not lowered their prices to offset the tariffs that U.S. businesses pay at the border. Those businesses are absorbing the added costs or passing them along to consumers through higher prices.The White House responds that the factory boom is already underway and points to statistics showing that manufacturing jobs, after falling last year, are on the upswing and work in certain nonresidential construction trades is rising, too."Factory construction jobs of today mean more manufacturing jobs down the road once those factories come online," said White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers. U.S. & World Trump administration 12 hours ago GOP candidates face backlash as workers squeezed out of jobs by Trump's tariffs China Sep 28 U.S., China release $60 billion product lists for tariff cuts after Trump-Xi meeting China Sep 23 Trump welcomes China's Xi to D.C. with planeside ceremony, extension of trade truce Mixed evidence that countries are 'ripping off' the USIn the four years after China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, nearly 3 million U.S. manufacturing jobs were lost, accelerating a shift away from factory work. Even global trade enthusiasts recognize the damage. Many U.S. companies struggled to compete with an influx of discounted products from China, which has suppressed consumption to encourage exportsIt also is true that some countries have higher tariffs than the U.S., manipulate their currencies lower to ensure to make their exports to the U.S. cheaper and help industries with subsidies.But tariffs among U.S. major trading partners are low, often comparable to U.S. rates and sometimes lower.Before the trade war, the U.S. rate averaged 1.47% for goods from the European Union, slightly above the average 1.35% imposed by the EU on American products, according to the Brussels think tank Bruegel. Europeans are big buyers of what America wants to sell. About 30% of European imports are from U.S.-owned companies, according to the European Central Bank.The relationship with Canada, America’s big trading partner to the north, was also similar before trade talks broke down this summer. Canada’s effective tariff rate on U.S. imports was about 2.4%, less than half the 5% that the U.S. had on Canadian imports, according to calculations by Oxford Economics.Now the countries are mired in a tit-for-tat dispute, with both countries escalating tariffs on each other.
Isaias moves north into Appalachians and mid-Atlantic, Southern California battered by Rachel
People in the Florida Panhandle and southern Alabama cleaned up after Isaias swept through as the storm’s remnants brought the risk of flooding to the central Appalachians and the mid-Atlantic region on Sunday. Meanwhile, significant waves from Rachel, a former tropical storm, battered the coast of Southern California.In western North Carolina, rivers overflowed as heavy rainfall raised the risk of flash and urban flooding, according to the National Weather Service. Tornadoes were possible in parts of Virginia and North Carolina, and life-threatening surf and rip current conditions were expected along the Gulf and southeastern Atlantic coasts.At least four deaths were linked to Isaias, the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, which came ashore as a Category 2 hurricane Friday near Destin, Florida, a Gulf Coast vacation spot filled with high-rises and tourist shops. The storm then roared into Alabama with tropical-force winds before heading farther north. In Florida's Escambia County, Sheriff Chip Simmons said a woman was killed when a tree fell on her home and a man died of carbon monoxide fumes from a generator running in his garage. One person died when a tree fell on a house in Birmingham, said Cory Moon, the city's fire chief. A second storm-related death in Alabama was attributed to a motor vehicle crash involving a downed tree in Barbour County, said Josh Johnson of the state's emergency management agency. Heavy rains cause problems in North CarolinaIn Burke County, North Carolina, an unhoused male and female were camping when floodwaters from the Catawba River caught them off guard. They were rescued, along with their dog, according to a spokesperson for the county emergency management agency. Separately, a woman trapped inside her car in floodwaters was freed outside of Morganton.In McDowell County, North Carolina, just west of Burke County, first responders said they dealt with five landslides and voluntary evacuations overnight Saturday into Sunday as they responded to flooded roads and streams overflowing their banks."Despite a challenging night, we are thankful to report no known injuries or loss of life. We call that a success!" the county emergency management agency posted online.Nearly a dozen local weather stations in the western North Carolina county reported torrential 24-hour rainfall totals at 9 a.m. Sunday, from about 5 inches to as much as 9.57 inches at the fire/rescue station in Enola. The National Weather Service said rainfall was diminishing in the area but that rapid river rises and flooding remained possible.Dealing with Isaias aftermath in FloridaHurricane-force winds in the Florida Panhandle blew the roof off a Pensacola hotel, and the city's mayor said the airport "took some damage." The storm flattened a boathouse in Destin and ripped away part of the facade of a high-rise in Panama City Beach.At a church in Pensacola where the United Cajun Navy was distributing supplies Sunday morning, a line of hundreds of cars stretched around the block. Yvette Haro said she arrived at 5 a.m. after being turned away the previous day because supplies had run out. With a 10-year-old son and a 5-year-old daughter at home, she said it’s hard to go to stores and wait in long lines. She was looking for water, paper towels, toilet paper and cleaning supplies."Anything that they're willing to give us is helpful," she said.While her home didn’t suffer any damage, the loss of electricity was making things difficult, Haro said. "The biggest thing is our food going bad. It's really hard to keep grilling everything and then where do we store all this food?"Roughly 356,000 customers were without power Sunday at 2:30 p.m. ET in southern Alabama and the Florida Panhandle, according to poweroutage.com.Sarah Gatewood, a spokesperson for Florida Power & Light, said workers from all over Florida and from more than two dozen other states were mobilized to help restore power. Hurricanes Oct 10 4 dead from storm as Isaias brings threat of floods across the Southeast Hurricanes Oct 10 Puerto Vallarta boards up as Hurricane Simon hits Category 4 strength Hurricanes Oct 9 At least 2 dead after Hurricane Isaias slams Gulf Coast with powerful winds, dangerous flooding Rachel brings wind and rain to Southern California and the SouthwestRachel became a post-tropical cyclone overnight, bringing unusually big waves to Southern California, and it dissipated over Las Vegas as it drenched deserts across the Southwest.An inch of rain fell in Las Vegas by early Sunday afternoon, leading to about 10 water rescues.Video posted on social media showed gushing water and flooded streets on the Las Vegas strip. The footage also showed partially submerged shopping carts strewn about the street and water pouring into a concrete channel.In California, waves battered a century-old wooden boardwalk on the Long Beach peninsula and forced homeowners to evacuate. The strip of multimillion-dollar oceanfront properties, along with much of the Southern California coastline, was already reeling from Hurricane Marie in September."This area is completely shattered and vulnerable," Jack Gordon, a Long Beach real estate agent, said. "The fact that Rachel came and gave it the knockout blow — I don't want to say it can't get any worse for these houses, but it's really, really sad."The Pacific Ocean is abnormally warm, about 7 to 8 degrees F warmer than normal for this time of year, due to the El Niño weather pattern, said Joe Sirard of the National Weather Service in Oxnard, California"When we have this warm water, it actually causes the ocean to rise above the normal predicted tide levels," Sirard said. That’s affected by Rachel’s ocean swells and wind gusts.Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson said that the storm would affect the whole city, and urged city residents to avoid the peninsula through the weekend as crews worked to clean up the area. More than half a dozen houses along the coast were declared structurally unsafe."It is not normal that we see this type of activity, especially for our residents in the peninsula," Richardson said Saturday. "These kind of impacts are not normal, they are unprecedented for our community."And in the Pacific, Hurricane Simon was a Category 4 storm as it pounded Mexico's Pacific coast Sunday, its eye remaining just offshore as its most powerful winds and rain slammed people living between the Sierra Madre and the ocean.___Brumback reported from Atlanta. Walker reported from New York. Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, Jack Brook in New Orleans and Josh Kelety in Phoenix also contributed.
Houthi attack on Riyadh airport forces swift rethink of Trump's new strategy
US president's plan to park the wars in Iran and Yemen, while blaming Ukraine for diesel prices, looks unsustainableMiddle East crisis live - latest updatesThe reckless missile attack on King Khalid international airport in Riyadh on Saturday did not just export the death and misery inside Yemen to Saudi Arabia, it also left Donald Trump forced to reconsider his diplomatic and political strategy designed to take him into the midterm elections next month.The US president's plan had only been unveiled on Friday. He said it was the result of "a world problem" – spiralling diesel prices – which he blamed on Volodymyr Zelenskyy's attacks on Russian oil refineries. He was going to keep the political temperature down on his war of choice in Iran and its spillover in Yemen until after the midterms. Continue reading...
Mike Ditka's perfectly unhinged version of 'Take Me Out To The Ballgame' resurfaces after death
A resurfaced video of Chicago Bears icon Mike Ditka singing during the seventh inning stretch at a baseball game is giving many fans something to smile about as they grieve the football giant's death.The video features Ditka singing the classic "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" during a July 1998 match at Chicago's Wrigley Field. And he definitely puts his own twist on the song.In the clip, shared by MLB, Ditka raucously belts out the words, losing his voice several times throughout the song. Adding to his undeniable aura, Ditka also speeds up, leading the organist to attempt to match his pace.It's controlled chaos — just like the beloved football icon himself.Ditka's family announced his death Oct. 9. He was 86.The Bears icon, who led the team to its only Super Bowl victory in 1986, was known for his big personality as much as he was for his gridiron prowess. And that charisma certainly shined during that 1998 Chicago Cubs game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.That wasn't even Ditka's only famous rendition of the ballpark song. During a 2005 game at Wrigley Field between the Cubs and the Philadelphia Phillies, Ditka was joined by comedian Will Ferrell to lead the stadium in the song. The pair, who starred in comedy "Kicking & Screaming," don't exactly sing in-sync.Ditka, who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1988, has long been a source of comedy fodder. He even became the focus of a recurring sketch on "Saturday Night Live" in which a group of superfans, who look just like Ditka himself, hail the legendary coach as something of a god. Chicago Bears 6 hours ago Bears-Packers game features tributes to Mike Ditka on and off the field Chicago Bears Oct 9 Mike Ditka, legendary Chicago Bears player and coach, dies at age 86 This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:Dennis Miller's Fellow 'Monday Night Football' Announcer Fondly Recalls the 'Experiment' to Add Him to …Taylor Swift's 3-Word Reaction to Travis Kelce's 1st Touchdown of the Football SeasonInside the Wild World of Fantasy Football Punishments if You LoseThis story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.
Zelenskyy signals surprise at Trump claim of Russia-Ukraine 'energy ceasefire' but would back it if Moscow does – as it happened
Ukraine's president reportedly says Kyiv would accept a deal if Moscow does after US president posts announcement with no detail on social mediaTrump announces partial ceasefire in Ukraine war as Zelenskyy says deal is 'news to me'Sign up for the US Breaking News emailThe president of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has expressed her "full support for President Zelenskyy" amid calls for a ceasefire.In a telephone call with the Ukrainian leader, von der Leyen posted on X that she "fully supported the call of President Zelenskyy for a ceasefire that would protect global food supplies and energy infrastructure in Ukraine and Russia."Ukraine supports the ceasefire, and it's important for Russia to support it as well. We are awaiting details from the American side. From our Ukrainian side, there is always FULL support for de-escalation steps, protection of lives, and the necessary decisions to end the war and ensure lasting peace." Continue reading...
'Gaza is a moral tear in the universe': Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor | Radical Thinking with Aditya Chakrabortty – podcast
Are we really living through 'end-times fascism'? Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor think so.In a new series from the Guardian, the pair speak to Radical Thinking with Aditya Chakrabortty in an extended interview. From Trump 2.0 and the rise of the tech billionaires to Gaza and the climate emergency, Klein and Taylor argue we are not just lurching from crisis to crisis but are in a new and dangerous moment in history. But they haven't given up hope of a fightbackYou can watch the full interview with Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor here.Aditya's suggested reading:Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor's End Times Fascism is out now and available here. It began life as a special essay in the Guardian, which you can read here.A different take on whether Trump 2.0 is fascist comes from the economist Branko Milanović on his brilliant Substack.Elon Musk gives Donald Trump millions, and Trump gives Musk vast access to power. To read more, look at Quinn Slobodian and Ben Tarnoff's long read for the Guardian and their recent book Muskism: A Guide for the Perplexed.For some phenomenal reporting on Trump's second term, look at Regime Change by Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan.How did the business class learn to love Trump and embrace chaos? Paul Heideman gives a lucid analysis in his recent book Rogue Elephant.Klein and Taylor's book regularly cites Karen Hao's Empire of AI.There's also The Nerd Reich, just out from Gil Durán.If you enjoyed Yanis Varoufakis in our last episode of Radical Thinking, check out his book Technofeudalism.As for how AI is imposing a new age of total corporate control, The Rulers by Cecilia Rikap is a must. Continue reading...
On TV

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In theaters

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Launching today

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Useless Fact

Worcestershire sauce in essentially an Anchovy Ketchup.

The loonie
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Today In History
2001 — UN and Kofi Annan Awarded Nobel Peace Prize
The centennial Nobel Prize for Peace was awarded to the United Nations and the organization's secretary-general, Kofi Annan. How much do you know about the Nobel Prize? AP/Wide World Photos
2000 — Attack on USS Cole in Aden, Yemen
While preparing to refuel in the Yemeni port of Aden, the USS Cole, a U.S. naval destroyer, was attacked by suicide bombers associated with al-Qaeda; 17 sailors were killed and 39 wounded. U.S. Department of Defense
1999 — Wilt Chamberlain, Basketball Great, Dies at 63
American basketball player Wilt Chamberlain, who was considered one of the greatest offensive players in the history of the game, died at age 63. basketball quiz AP
1998 — Attack on Matthew Shepard Spurs Hate Crime Laws
American college student Matthew Shepard was beaten by two men, left to die in the cold, and died several days later in Fort Collins, Colorado. Shepard's homosexuality was believed to have motivated the attack, which contributed to expanded federal hate crime legislation.
1968 — Equatorial Guinea Gains Independence from Spain
Equatorial Guinea gained its independence from Spain
1915 — Execution of Nurse Edith Cavell in WWI
During World War I, English nurse Edith Cavellwas executed for assisting Allied soldiers in escaping from German-occupied Belgium
1901 — TR Renames the Executive Mansion to the White House
President Theodore Roosevelt officially changed the name of the president's residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C. from Executive Mansion to the White House. Take a tour of the White House
1898 — Virden Coal Mine Riot of 1898
A landmark in labour union history, a coal-mine riot took place in Virden, Illinois, when strikebreakers were brought in
1896 — Eugenio Montale Awarded Nobel Prize for Literature
Eugenio Montale, an Italian poet, prose writer, editor, and translator, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1975. He was born in Genoa.
1866 — Birth of Ramsay MacDonald, First Labour Prime Minister
Ramsay Mac Donald, the first Labour Party prime minister of the United Kingdom—in the Labour governments of 1924 and 1929–31 and in the national coalition government of 1931–35—was born
1810 — First Oktoberfest Celebrates Bavarian Royal Wedding
The first Oktoberfest was celebrated in Munich, in the form of a horse race held in honour of the marriage of the crown prince of Bavaria (who later became King Louis I) to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen. Learn key facts about Oktoberfest Joe Viesti/The Viesti Collection
1492 — New World sighted
The New World was "discovered" this day in 1492 when land (most likely San Salvador) was sighted in the Caribbean from the Pinta, one of the three ships that participated in Christopher Columbus's historic voyage

This is today, boiled down to the essentials. The full stash lives at logicalchaos.ca. Go get lost in it.