The almanac

Today is Wednesday, Oct. 28, the 301st day of 2009 with 64 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Scorpio. They include rifle maker Eliphalet Remington in 1793; actress Elsa Lanchester in 1902; English novelist Evelyn Waugh in 1903; Dr. Jonas Salk, a developer of the polio vaccine, in 1914; former baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn in 1926; country musician Charlie Daniels in 1936 (age 73); actors Jane Alexander in 1939 (age 70) and Dennis Franz in 1944 (age 65); singer/actress Telma Hopkins in 1948 (age 61); Olympic decathlon champion-turned-sportscaster Bruce Jenner in 1949 (age 60); Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates in 1955 (age 54); Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 1956 (age 53); actresses Annie Potts in 1952 (age 57); Lauren Holly in 1963 (age 46), Jami Gertz in 1965 (age 44); and Julia Roberts in 1967 (age 42).

On this date in history:

In 312, in a battle that marked the beginning of the Christian era in Europe, Constantine's army, wearing the cross, defeated the forces of Maxentius at Mulvian Bridge in Rome.

In 1636, Harvard College, now Harvard University, was founded in Massachusetts.

In 1846, the pioneering Donner Party of 90 people set out from Springfield, Ill., for California.

In 1886, the Statue of Liberty, a gift of friendship from the people of France to the United States, was dedicated in New York Harbor by U.S. President Grover Cleveland.

In 1919, the U.S. Congress passed the Volstead Act, over President Woodrow Wilson's veto, enforcing the constitutional amendment prohibiting the use of alcoholic beverages.

In 1962, Russian chief Nikita Khrushchev announced that all Soviet offensive missiles would be removed from Cuba.

In 1985, the leader of the so-called Walker family spy ring, John Walker, pleaded guilty to giving U.S. Navy secrets to the Soviet Union.

In 1989, the Oakland A's wrapped up an earthquake-delayed sweep of the World Series over the San Francisco Giants.

In 1992, scientists using sonar to map Scotland's Loch Ness made contact with a mysterious object but declined to speculate what that implies about whether legendary monster "Nessie" exists.

In 2001, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed a third New Jersey postal worker had an anthrax inhalation infection, bringing the total number to eight, including three people who died from the most serious form of the disease.

Also in 2001, on this date, U.S.-led forces resumed airstrikes against targets in Afghanistan, bombing the Taliban's southern stronghold of Kandahar.

In 2002, U.S. diplomat John Foley was slain in Amman, Jordan. An unknown group called the Honest People of Jordan claimed responsibility, calling it a response to U.S. support of Israel and actions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In 2004, insurgents executed 11 Iraqi soldiers in what they said was revenge for women and children killed in U.S. strikes on the guerrilla stronghold of Fallujah.

In 2005, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, chief of staff and national security adviser to the vice president, resigned after he was indicted on multiple counts in the CIA leak case in which an operative's name was revealed to the media.

In 2006, the deadly fast-moving wildfire near Palm Springs, Calif., was reported 40 percent contained after killing five firefighters, scorching about 40,000 acres and consuming 27 homes and other buildings. Authorities said the fire was caused by arson.

In 2007, U.S.-led forces killed nearly 80 Taliban fighters during a fierce six-hour air and ground battle in southern Afghanistan near Musa Oala.

Also in 2007, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner became the first woman to be elected president of Argentina. She succeeded her husband, Nestor Kirchner.

In 2008, seven in 10 Americans say they expect Democrat Barack Obama to win the U.S. presidential election next week, a Gallup poll indicated. Meanwhile, Obama had a controlling 52 to 36 percent lead over Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., in the poll from the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Harris Poll gave Obama a 6-percentage-point edge.

A thought for the day: poet Emily Dickinson wrote, "I'll tell you how the sun rose --

"A Ribbon at a time --"