Stymie

Prevent or hinder.

Fact of the Day

A jester at the court of Henry II, known as Roland the Farter, was famous for being able to jump in the air, whistle and fart at the same time.

Quote of the Day

"There is only one way to avoid criticism: Do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing. "

~ Aristotle

On This Day

1830 The Manchester to Liverpool train line opened, and caused the first train death (of MP William Huskisson).

1859 The great engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel died.

1916 Tanks were first used on the Somme. They weren't ready for use in combat and many broke down.

1935 The Nuremberg race laws were introduced, stripping German Jews of their citizenship and forbidding them to marry Aryans.

1940 Hitler indefinitely postponed his invasion of Britain following a massive defeat of the Luftwaffe.

2008 The financial services firm Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, the biggest such filing in US history, causing the Dow Jones to drop more than 500 points in a day.