28 th September

1066 William the Conqueror invaded England and claimed the English throne. (See October 14th entry.)

1820 Friedrich Engels was born.

1920 A grand jury indicted eight members of the Chicago White Sox. (See

July 16th entry.)

1996 The U. S. House of Representatives passed legislation to reduce the number of illegal immigrants.

The reason why Karl Marx’s name is known everywhere is largely because of a man who is relatively unknown. Friedrich Engels co-authored the Communist Manifesto

Along with Marx, and edited a considerable portion of Marx’s writings. This German author was born on this day back in 1820.

What price could you place on your honor and reputation? It was on this day in 1920 that eight members of the Chicago White Sox were indicted in the infamous Black Sox scandal: charged with throwing the 1919 World Series in exchange for bribes. They received the money, but it cost them their right to play ball ever again. It cost them the victory they would surely have earned had they played the way they had all season. And worst of all, it stripped their fans of the heroes they’d idolized.

America may be the land of opportunity. But it seems that along with seizing an opportunity comes the desire to prevent any more newcomers from joining the competition. With few exceptions, we are a land of immigrants. Yet throughout our country’s history, there has been discrimination against new arrivals by their predecessors. People emigrating from third-world countries are more likely to need public assistance, and it’s been that way from the start. Thanksgiving itself is a symbol of gratitude to the Native Americans who supplied the first Pilgrims with food to survive their first winter. But with burgeoning welfare roles, overcrowded public schools, and expenses landing on the shoulders of taxpayers it’s understandable that on this day in 1996, landmark legislation to reduce the number of illegal immigrants was passed in the U. S. House of Representatives as part of a federal-spending bill.