Today in History: March 17

Posted on by Mark Aldrich

Today is St. Patrick’s Day. It commemorates the date that is traditionally believed to be the death date of Pātricius, a Roman-British prelate who served as a Bishop of the Church in Ireland in the Fifth Century. March 17 has been celebrated as a feast day in his honor throughout the Christian world since the early 1600s.

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On this day in 1959, the 14th Dalai Lama fled Lhasa, Tibet, for India.
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Fighting for Her Brother’s Freedom

Posted on by Mark Aldrich

Nous cherchons désespérément de l’aide pour soutenir notre frère à défendre sa cause et sauver sa vie.—a request for help by Zeinab Abu Al-Khair

“Désespérément.” Translation: We are desperately looking for help to save our brother’s life. Zeinab Abu Al-Khair wrote that today in a letter to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (Zeinab lives in Canada). She is appealing to the world community for help in rescuing her brother from an unjust death sentence.

Her brother’s story first appeared here in November, in a column titled, “A Bloodthirsty System.” Thanks to Zeinab, who contacted me on Facebook last fall, I was the first columnist to report Hussein Abu Al-Khair’s arrest, trial, imprisonment, and death sentence. His story is similar to dozens in Saudi Arabia, after all, so how else could one man’s plight attract attention?

Thanks to her tireless efforts, many more people have become aware of his story via Twitter and websites like Movements.org. The artist George Riad Krohn volunteered his time and work and created the charcoal drawing seen at the top.
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Envy? Us?

Posted on by Mark Aldrich

A Bronze level “Jim Rohn 1-Year Success Plan” is $179, a Silver is $299, and a Gold is $499. A subscription to Success Magazine, a Jim Rohn publication, is about $35 for a year. Who was Jim Rohn?

Rohn was one of a long line of American entrepreneurs who sold plans and strategies for success and achievement and leadership in one’s field, whatever that may be. If you are a fan of Tony Robbins, you are a fan of Jim Rohn by extension. According to Robbins, Rohn was one of his mentors, and he got his start selling plans like the ones cited above. (I am agnostic on the topic of self-betterment entrepreneurs, but I am a believer in the grace and beauty of getting to know oneself, which is something that all successfulness sellers sell.)

Rohn died in 2009 at age 79 and left behind a self-improvement business empire. He also left us with many quotes, such as, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” And, “Don’t wish it were easier; wish you were better. Don’t wish for less problems; wish for more skills. Don’t wish for less challenges; wish for more wisdom.” And, “Don’t join an easy crowd. You won’t grow. Go where the expectations and the demands to perform and achieve are high.” And, “Success is what you attract by the person you become.” And last, “The ultimate expression of life is not a paycheck. The ultimate expression of life is not a Mercedes. The ultimate expression of life is not a million dollars or a bank account or a home. The ultimate expression of life is living a good life.” (Apparently Rohn was a big believer in the rule of three.)
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