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Almanac for Oct. 7, 2026

Today is Wednesday, Oct. 7, the 280th day of 2026. There are 85 days left in the year. Today in history: On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel from the Gaza Strip, killing nearly 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages. Israel's retaliatory offensive and the ensuing Israel-Hamas war killed tens of thousands in Gaza, displaced about 90% of its population and destroyed vast areas until major combat subsided with an October 2025 ceasefire agreement. Also on this date: In 1765, the Stamp Act Congress convened in New York to draw up colonial grievances ...

Trump’s Populist Image Is Dead

As predictions of a blue wave swell, it's worthwhile to remember that polls are sometimes wrong, that surveys have tended to undercount Trump voters (though they have been better in midterms), that professional prognosticators can err, and that Allan Lichtman is only right when he's lucky. And ...

Almanac for Oct. 6, 2026

Today is Tuesday, Oct. 6, the 279th day of 2026. There are 86 days left in the year. Today in history: On Oct. 6, 1981, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat was shot to death by members of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad while reviewing a military parade. Also on this date: In 1927, the era of talking pictures arrived with the opening of "The Jazz Singer" starring Al Jolson, a feature film containing both silent and sound-synchronized sequences. In 1949, Iva Toguri D'Aquino, a U.S. citizen commonly known as "Tokyo Rose" for participating in Radio Tokyo propaganda broadcasts during World ...

Almanac for Oct. 5, 2026

Today is Monday, Oct. 5, the 278th day of 2026. There are 87 days left in the year. Today in history: On Oct. 5, 2011, Steve Jobs, the Apple founder and former chief executive who invented and master-marketed ever-sleeker gadgets that transformed everyday technology, died in Palo Alto, California, at age 56. Also on this date: In 1892, the Dalton Gang, notorious for its train robberies, was practically wiped out while attempting to rob a pair of banks in Coffeyville, Kansas. In 1947, President Harry S. Truman delivered the first televised White House address as he spoke on the world ...

The tyranny of one man’s opinion

Thomas Cromwell was the Lord Chancellor of England for much of the reign of King Henry VIII. He engineered the convictions and executions of many whom Henry wanted out of the way, including his two predecessors in office — one of whom was St. Thomas More — and even the king's second wife, ...

Almanac for Oct. 3, 2026

Today is Saturday, Oct. 3, the 276th day of 2026. There are 89 days left in the year. Today in history: On Oct. 3, 1990, West Germany and East Germany ended 45 years of postwar division, declaring the creation of a reunified country. Also on this date: In 1873, Modoc leader Kintpuash was hanged at Fort Klamath, Oregon, after being convicted of his role in the deaths of U.S. negotiators during the Modoc War, a conflict in which his people resisted relocation. Kintpuash was the only Native American leader charged and convicted of a war crime by the U.S.. In 1944, during World War II, ...