The almanac

Today is Monday, Feb. 6, the 37th day of 2012 with 329 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Aquarius. They include England's Queen Anne in 1665; statesman Aaron Burr in 1756; baseball great George Herman "Babe" Ruth in 1895; former U.S. President Ronald Reagan in 1911; Eva Braun, mistress of Adolf Hitler, in 1912; actors Zsa Zsa Gabor in 1917 (age 95), Patrick Macnee in 1922 (age 90) and Rip Torn and Mamie Van Doren, both in 1931, (age 81); French film director Francois Truffaut in 1932; actors Mike Farrell in 1939 (age 73) and Michael Tucker in 1945 (age 67); TV newsman Tom Brokaw in 1940 (age 72); handgun control activist Sarah Brady in 1942 (age 70); singers Fabian Forte in 1943 (age 69), Natalie Cole in 1950 (age 62) and W. Axl Rose in 1962 (age 50); Jamaican reggae singer/songwriter Bob Marley in 1945; and actor/director Robert Townsend and actor Kathy Najimy, both in 1957 (age 55).

On this date in history:

In 1788, Massachusetts ratified the federal Constitution, the sixth state to do so.

In 1819, Singapore is founded with the establishment of a British East India Company trading post.

In 1865, Gen. Robert E. Lee was appointed commander in chief of the armies of the Confederacy.

In 1933, the 20th Amendment, changing the dates of terms of some federal offices, to the U.S. Constitution went into effect.

In 1943, U.S. Army Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower was named commander of Allied expeditionary forces in North Africa. He later became World War II Supreme Allied Commander in Europe.

In 1952, Princess Elizabeth became sovereign of Great Britain upon the death of her father, King George VI. She was crowned Queen Elizabeth II on June 2, 1953.

In 1987, broad no-smoking rules took effect for 890,000 employees in 6,800 U.S. federal buildings nationwide.

In 1992, a military transport plane crashed into a restaurant and hotel in Evansville, Ind., killing 16 people.

In 1993, U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali asked NATO for authority to order airstrikes against Serb artillery positions in Bosnia.

In 1997, the head of Mexico's leading anti-drug agency resigned after evidence emerged that he took bribes from a drug cartel.

In 1998, U.S. President Bill Clinton said he would never consider resigning because of allegations that he had an affair with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky.

In 2001, Ariel Sharon was elected prime minister of Israel.

In 2004, a female suicide bomber detonated explosives in a suitcase on a Moscow subway car killing 39 people and injuring about 200.

In 2005, the New England Patriots won their third Super Bowl in four years, defeating the Philadelphia Eagles 24-21.

In 2006, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales told Congress that President George W. Bush was within his legal rights when he authorized warrantless surveillance of people in the United States by the National Security Agency.

In 2008, storms spawned tornadoes across the U.S. South, killing at least 54 people and injuring nearly 100 more.

In 2009, Pakistani helicopter gunships killed 52 militants in clashes near the Khyber region to fight off efforts to disrupt a supply line for U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan.

In 2010, a raging storm with heavy snowfall left nearly 90,000 homes without power in Maryland and Virginia and forced much of the nation's capital to a standstill.

In 2011, threats of human rights demonstrations and possible violence led former U.S. President George W. Bush to call off a speaking engagement in Geneva, Switzerland.

A thought for the day: it was U.S. President Ronald Reagan who said, "You can accomplish much if you don't care who gets the credit."