The almanac

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Today is Friday, Sept. 7, the 251st of 2012 with 115 to follow.

The moon is waning. Morning stars are Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Uranus. Evening stars are Neptune, Saturn and Mars.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Virgo. They include England's Queen Elizabeth I in 1533; American primitive painter Anna "Grandma" Moses in 1860; financier J. Pierpont Morgan Jr. in 1867; pioneering heart surgeon Dr. Michael DeBakey and football Hall of Fame member Paul Brown, both in 1908; film director Elia Kazan in 1909; physicist and rocket developer James Van Allen in 1914; actor Peter Lawford in 1923; U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, in 1924 (age 88); fashion designer Laura Ashley in 1925; rock 'n' roll pioneer Buddy Holly in 1936; pop singer Gloria Gaynor in 1949 (age 63); actors John Phillip Law in 1937, Julie Kavner in 1950 (age 62) and Corbin Bernsen in 1954 (age 58); political commentator Peggy Noonan in 1950 (age 62); rock musician Chrissie Hynde in 1951 (age 61); and entertainer Michael Feinstein in 1956 (age 56).

On this date in history:

In 1822, Brazil declared independence from Portugal.

In 1892, James Corbett knocked out John L. Sullivan in the 21st round of a prizefight at New Orleans, the first major fight under the Marquess of Queensberry Rules.

In 1901, the Boxer Rebellion in China ended with the Boxer Protocol, a peace agreement between China and other world powers, including the United States.

In 1926, Hollywood studios closed for the day in honor of the funeral of Rudolph Valentino, the silent movie superstar who had died after ulcer surgery.

In 1940, Nazi Germany launched the London blitz, a bombing that Adolf Hitler believed would soften Britain for invasion. The invasion never materialized.

In 1963, Pro Football Hall of Fame opened in Canton, Ohio. The inaugural inductees included George Halas and Harold "Red" Grange.

In 1977, U.S. President Jimmy Carter and Panamanian leader Omar Torrijos signed a treaty agreeing to transfer control of the Panama Canal from the United States to Panama at the end of the 20th century.

In 1986, Desmond Tutu was installed as the Anglican archbishop of Cape Town, becoming first black titular head of South Africa's fourth-largest Christian church.

In 1992, black soldiers in the South African homeland of Ciskei killed 23 people and wounded nearly 200 others when they fired on thousands of African National Congress supporters.

Also in 1992, 12 people were killed when a twin-engine plane carrying skydivers crashed in a soybean field in Hinckley, Ill.

In 1993, South Africa's ruling National Party agreed to share power with a multiparty council that would be established within two months.

In 1996, rapper Tupac Shakur was shot four times in Las Vegas. Shakur died six days later.

Also in 1996, "Dr. Death" Jack Kevorkian assisted in a reported 40th suicide in Michigan.

In 2004, September's third hurricane, named Ivan, struck Grenada with 150 mph sustained winds, killing about 40 people, and headed toward the United States.

In 2005, authorities report finding 32 bodies drowned in a New Orleans nursing home where people didn't evacuate in face of the rampaging flood waters from Hurricane Katrina.

Also in 2005, a report to the United Nations cited alleged corruption in the U.N.'s administration of the oil-for-food program in which Iraq under Saddam Hussein could sell a limited amount of oil ostensibly for humanitarian needs such as food and medicine.

In 2006, British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced he would resign within one year.

Also in 2006, Richard Armitage, former U.S. deputy secretary of state, confirmed he was the primary source for revealing the name of CIA agent Valerie Plame in a 2003 Robert Novak column.

In 2007, a U.S. judge ruled that Iran must pay billions of dollars to 241 families of victims in the 1983 Marine barracks bombing in Lebanon. The judge said Iran provided material and aid to the actual bomber, the terrorist group Hezbollah.

Also in 2007, the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego agreed to pay almost $200 million to 144 people who claimed sexual abuse by clergy.

In 2008, Hurricane Ike left a path of destruction as the Category 2 storm struck the Caribbean. At least 61 people were killed in Haiti and four more died in Cuba with 80 percent of homes destroyed on Turks and Calicos islands.

In 2009, the British government convicted three men of plotting to blow up seven trans-Atlantic flights, smuggling explosives aboard in soft drink bottles, a plan that led to tighter airline regulations on carry-on bottles of liquid.

In 2010, U.S. President Barack Obama renewed his opposition to an extension of the Bush-era tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans though some congressional Democrats were said to be in favor of it.

Also in 2010, as many as 3 million people turned out across France to oppose the Sarkozy administration's pension reform plans.

In 2011, in an unexpected move, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad urged long-time ally Syrian President Bashar Assad to end his crackdown on the uprising challenging his rule.

Also in 2011, a plane crash in Russia kills 43 people, including several members of the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl Kontinental Hockey League team.

A thought for the day: American lawyer and statesman Daniel Webster said, "Knowledge is the only fountain both of the love and the principles of human liberty."