JULY 28TH

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Today is Monday, July 28, the 210th day of 2008. There are 156 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

• On July 28, 1945, a U.S. Army bomber crashed into the 79th floor of New York's Empire State Building, killing 14 people.

On this date:

• In 1540, King Henry VIII's chief minister, Thomas Cromwell, was executed, the same day Henry married his fifth wife, Catherine Howard.
• In 1821, Peru declared its independence from Spain.
• In 1868, the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, guaranteeing due process of law, was certified in effect by Secretary of State William H. Seward.
• In 1914, World War I began as Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia.
• In 1928, the Olympic games opened in Amsterdam.
• In 1932, federal troops forcibly dispersed the so-called "Bonus Army" of World War I veterans who had gathered in Washington to demand money they weren't scheduled to receive until 1945.
• In 1945, the U.S. Senate ratified the United Nations Charter by a vote of 89-2.
• In 1965, President Johnson announced he was increasing the number of American troops in South Vietnam from 75,000 to 125,000 "almost immediately."
• In 1977, Roy Wilkins turned over leadership of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to Benjamin L. Hooks.
• In 2002, nine coal miners trapped in the flooded Quecreek Mine in Somerset, Pa., were rescued after 77 hours underground.

Ten years ago:

• During a day of official mourning, President Clinton praised two slain police officers at the U.S. Capitol as heroes whose sacrifice "consecrated this house of freedom."
• General Motors Corp. reached a tentative agreement with the United Auto Workers to end an almost two-month-old strike.
• Bell Atlantic and GTE announced a $52 billion merger deal that created Verizon.
• Monica Lewinsky received blanket immunity in exchange for providing "full and truthful testimony" to a grand jury investigating President Clinton.

Five years ago:

• Rebels in Liberia captured Buchanan, the country's second-largest city.

One year ago:

• Vice President Dick Cheney, with a history of heart problems, had surgery to replace an implanted device that was monitoring his heartbeat.

Today's Birthdays:

• Movie director Andrew V. McLaglen is 88.
• Actor Darryl Hickman is 77.
• The former president of Peru, Alberto Fujimori, is 70.
• Rock musician Rick Wright (Pink Floyd) is 65.
• Former Sen. Bill Bradley, D-N.J., is 65.
• "Garfield" creator Jim Davis is 63.
• Singer Jonathan Edwards is 62.
• Actress Linda Kelsey is 62.
• TV producer Dick Ebersol is 61.
• Actress Sally Struthers is 60.
• Actress Georgia Engel is 60.
• Rock musician Simon Kirke (Bad Company) is 59.
• Rock musician Steve Morse (Deep Purple) is 54.
• Broadcast journalist Scott Pelley is 51.
• Actor Michael Hayden is 45.
• Jazz musician-producer Delfeayo Marsalis is 43.
• Actress Elizabeth Berkley is 36.
• Singer Afroman is 34.
• Country musician Todd Anderson (Heartland) is 33.
• Rock singer Jacoby Shaddix (Papa Roach) is 32.
• Country singer Carly Goodwin is 27.
• Actor Dustin Milligan is 23.

Thought for Today:

"He who is learned is not wise; He who is wise is not learned." —
From the Tao (dow) Te Ching, the sacred book of Taoism.

"Let's all be careful out there!"