The almanac

Today is Thursday, May 30, the 150th day of 2002 with 215 to follow.

This is the traditional Memorial Day.

The moon is waning, moving toward its last quarter.

There are no morning stars.

The evening stars are Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Gemini. They include Mel Blanc, the voice of Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Porky Pig and many other cartoon characters, in 1908; bandleader Benny Goodman in 1909; restaurant executive Bob Evans in 1918 (age 84); Christine Jorgensen, who gained notoriety for undergoing a sex-change operation, in 1926; actors Clint Walker in 1927 (age 75), Keir Dullea in 1936 (age 66), and Michael J. Pollard in 1939 (age 63); NFL Hall of Fame running back Gale Sayers in 1943 (age 59); actors Colm Meaney ("Star Trek: Deep Space Nine") in 1953 (age 98) and Ted McGinley in 1958 (age 44); and "South Park" co-creator Trey Parker in 1972 (age 30).

On this date in history:

In 1431, Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in Rouen, France, at age 19. She had been convicted of sorcery.

In 1783, the "Pennsylvania Evening Post" became the first daily newspaper published in the United States.

In 1922, the Lincoln Memorial was dedicated in Washington, D.C.

In 1937, a battle between police and strikers at the Republic Steel Corp. plant in Chicago killed 10 people and wounded 90.

In 1943, the Aleutian Islands of Kiska and Attu off the Alaskan coast were retaken by U.S. forces after being occupied by Japanese troops during World War II.

In 1972, three Japanese terrorists killed 22 people with automatic weapons at the airport in Tel Aviv, Israel.

In 1982, Spain became the 16th member nation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

In 1993, Ross Perot ran a 30-minute commercial on television denouncing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which President Clinton supported.

In 1995, the United States announced it had moved seven ships and 12,000 Marines and sailors to the Adriatic Sea in response to the Serbian hostage-taking of U.N. peacekeepers.

In 1997, the National Transportation Safety Administration announced it was setting up a privately funded airline disaster response center in New York City to coordinate the release of information to the victims' relatives and the public following an air crash.

In 1998, Pakistan conducted another underground nuclear test, despite condemnation from many leading countries and the imposition of U.S. economic sanctions.

A thought for the day: Harriett Beecher Stowe wrote in "Uncle Tom's Cabin" that, "No one is so thoroughly superstitious as the godless man."