The almanac

Today is Wednesday, Feb. 3, the 34th day of 2009 with 331 to follow.

The moon is waning. The morning star is Mercury. The evening stars are Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Aquarius. They include German composer Felix Mendelssohn in 1809; U.S. journalist Horace Greeley in 1811; Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman doctor of medicine, in 1821; poet and novelist Gertrude Stein in 1874; artist Norman Rockwell in 1894; gangster Charles Arthur "Pretty Boy" Floyd in 1904; author James Michener in 1907; comedians Joey Bishop in 1918 and Shelley Berman in 1926 (age 84); Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterbacks Fran Tarkenton in 1940 (age 70) and Bob Griese in 1945 (age 65); professional golfer Retief Goosen in 1969 (age 41); and actors Blythe Danner in 1943 (age 67), Morgan Fairchild in 1950 (age 60), Nathan Lane in 1956 (age 54), Thomas Calabro in 1959 (age 51),Maura Tierney ("ER") in 1965 (age 45) and Warwick Davis in 1970 (age 40).

On this date in history:

In 1377, 2,000 people in Cesena, Italy, were killed Papal Troops in what became known as the Cesena Bloodbath.

In 1690, Massachusetts Colony issues the first paper money in America.

In 1783, Spain recognizes the independence of the United States from Great Britain.

In 1870, the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, decreeing that the right to vote shall not be denied on account of race, color or previous condition of servitude.

In 1913, the 16th Amendment, allowing establishment of an income tax, became part of the U.S. Constitution after ratification by Wyoming.

In 1917, the United States broke off diplomatic relations with Germany after a German declaration of unrestricted submarine warfare.

In 1924, Woodrow Wilson, the 28th president of the United States, died in Washington at the age of 67.

In 1959, singers Buddy Holly, J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson and Ritchie Valens were killed in a plane crash near Mason City, Iowa.

In 1966, the Soviet Union accomplished the first controlled landing on the moon when the unmanned spacecraft Lunik 9 touched down on the Ocean of Storms.

In 1973, U.S. President Richard Nixon signed into law the Endangered Species Act.

In 1992, angry rhetoric escalated between the United States and Japan when Japanese Prime Minister Miyazawa accused U.S. workers of lacking a "work ethic."

In 1994, the shuttle Discovery blasted off into space with the first Russian astronaut aboard a U.S. spacecraft.

Also in 1994, U.S. President Bill Clinton announced the United States was lifting its trade embargo against Vietnam.

In 1998, Texas executed Karla Faye Tucker the first female inmate to be put to death by the state in 135 years.

Also in 1998, a U.S. Marine jetfighter, flying low over mountains in Italy, accidentally severed a ski lift cable, sending 20 people in a cable car plunging to their deaths.

In 2003, U.S. President George W. Bush sent lawmakers a $2.23 trillion budget for 2004, including major new tax cuts and a big increase in defense spending, projecting a deficit of $307.4 billion.

In 2004, the discovery of the lethal poison ricin in the mailroom of U.S. Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn., the Senate majority leader, forced the closing of three Senate office buildings in Washington.

In 2005, investigators looking into the U.N. oil-for-food program reported finding gross mismanagement.

Also in 2005, more than 50 people died when a train rammed a trailer carrying a wedding party at a railroad crossing in India.

In 2006, almost 200 people were reported dead with another 800 listed as missing after an Egyptian ferry sank in the Red Sea off the coast of Egypt.

In 2007, a truck bomb exploded in a Baghdad market killing at least 135 and injuring more than 300.

In 2008, strong earthquakes in the Great Lakes region of Africa, centering on Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, killed at least 30 people and injured more than 300 others.

Also in 2008, Serbian President Boris Tadic, a pro-Western leader who favors closer ties with the United States, won re-election over a hard-line Radical Party candidate.

In 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama was reported considering tougher sanctions against Iran after that nation's launch of its first space satellite.

Also in 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama signed a bill expanding a popular health insurance program for children.

A thought for the day: Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us."