Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 17, 1993 TAG: 9310170225
SECTION: HORIZON PAGE: D-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: COX NEWS SERVICE
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
A: "Technically, the year 2000 is the last year in this century, because the number of a year itself represents the year that has just gone by," explained John Pierce, publisher of the Farmers Almanac. The calendar started out with the year 1, with 365 days to get to the year 2. When it got to one second after midnight in the year 2, only one year (365 days) had passed, but it was year 2. If you follow this all the way to the year 2,000, it makes sense that 2,000 actually is the last year of this century. Popular usage, however, will have us considering the year 2000 as the start of the new century.
Q: Did the guy who won the New York state lottery a few years ago and just won it again use the same numbers both times?
A: No. Although he picked his own numbers, as opposed to "quick pick," they were different.
Q: Does the president have to pick a physician to be surgeon general, an attorney to be attorney general or a judge to be a Supreme Court justice?
A: No, no and no.
Q: Are U.S. troops in Somalia getting any additional pay?
A: Yes. In addition to their base pay, soldiers can receive "imminent danger pay" of $150 a month. That extra pay goes to service members sent to dangerous countries, including Somalia. Enlistees also get "foreign duty pay" and a $75-a-month family separation allowance if gone more than 30 days. There also are per diem allowances for temporary duty locations. And there are tax breaks and 10 percent interest on accumulated pay in savings accounts.
Q: I read where a golfer was arrested for cheating after giving his score as lower than it was. He could get up to three years confinement and a $10,000 fine. This seems harsh for shaving a few points. What was his crime?
A: Attempted felony theft. First place in the American Diabetes Association golf tournament paid $75; second place paid $50. Charles D. Carey said he shot a 67, good enough for second place, but detectives who followed him during his round at the Hanging Tree Golf Club in Indianapolis said he had shot an 80. The winner shot a 66.
Q: Who was the fattest president, and the skinniest?
A: William Howard Taft was our fattest chief executive, weighing in at 350 pounds. He once got stuck in the White House bathtub and ordered a new one installed - one that could hold four average-size men. Dolley Madison called her husband "Little Jimmy," because James Madison weighed just 100 pounds.
Q: Why can't the United Nations make some sort of temporary protectorate out of Somalia - name a temporary head of state; then, after order is restored, grant independence?
A: Somalia is a sovereign country. Also, Article 78 of the U.N. Charter, which sets forth rules of the international trusteeship system, says that any territory or country that is a member of the United Nations, which Somalia is, cannot be made into a trusteeship or protectorate.
Q: Were Vice President Al Gore and actor Tommy Lee Jones roommates at Harvard?
A: Yes.
Q: In all my years of reading about the Soviet Union and Russia, I never heard the term "White House" used to describe their parliament building until recently. When did they start calling it that?
A: Until recently, nobody really paid much attention to - much less had a nickname for - the place where the Supreme Council of the Russian Federation met. Built about 15 years ago, it is about a mile from the better-known Kremlin complex. The name "White House," based on the color of the building, came into use during the August 1991 coup attempt.
Q: Is everything the pope says considered infallible?
A: No. Through the centuries, the Roman Catholic Church has established rigorous conditions to determine what could be considered an infallible statement by a pope. Under the first formal definition issued at the First Vatican Council (1869-70), the pope had to be speaking ex cathedra, or "from the chair" of Peter, and explicitly define a doctrine as an "article of faith" or dogma. The pope's encyclical letters, apostolic exhortations, speeches, sermons and comments are not considered by the church to be infallible. In recent times, only the doctrines of the immaculate conception of Mary, stated in 1854, and the assumption of Mary into heaven, stated in 1950, have been considered infallible statements.
Q: I was told by the Army that only family members can write to troops in Somalia. Can you help?
A: Logistics have not been set up to deal with "Any Soldier" mail to Somalia. In the meantime, a Pentagon spokesman told us the following hopefully will get there: "Any Soldier" 75th Ranger Regiment UNOSOM II, Deployment, Fort Benning Attn: ATZB-PAO Fort Benning, Ga. 31905-5065 or "Any Soldier" 10th Mountain Division UNOSOM II, Deployment, Fort Drum Attn: AFZS- PAO Fort Drum, N.Y. 13602-5000
Q: Could you please give an update on what was found aboard the sunken German U-boat recently raised between Denmark and Sweden? It was thought there might have been Nazi treasure.
A: The publicity surrounding the items found in the German U-boat did not approach the hype of the opening of Al Capone's vault, but the contents were no less disappointing to salvagers and historians who were hoping to find a mother lode of documents, treasures and art abandoned by fleeing Nazis. The U-534 submarine was sunk by the British in 1945, the day after German troops in Denmark surrendered. It contained such items as binoculars, gas masks, clothes - and condoms.
A: The State Department's definition of terrorism is: "Premeditated politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience." The situations in Bosnia and Georgia are classified as civil wars. But certainly when violence reigns, chaos looms or law and order breaks down, specific acts of terrorism can be committed.
Q: A political candidate said he had "the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval." Is Good Housekeeping magazine aware of the use of its name in a political campaign?
A: They are now. The Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval, which is issued to products that are tested and advertised in GH, has existed for 101 years, and has entered the American vocabulary as a way to express confidence in something. So long as the seal is not reproduced, the folks at GH don't mind at all.
Q: I've noticed in football games that there are both referees and umpires on the field. What is the difference?
A: The referee is the head of the seven-man crew that officiates football games. He is the guy in the white hat who lines up behind the quarterback and explains - either verbally or by hand signal - the fouls committed. He's also the one carrying a stopwatch. The other six officials wear black hats, and one of them is the umpire. He lines up midfield on the defensive side of the ball about 10 yards off the line of scrimmage and watches for defensive infractions such as holding. The other five officials are the back judge, field judge, side judge, line judge and head linesman. The head linesman is in charge of the "chain gang," which marks first downs. Besides infractions calling for penalties, the seven officials rule on pass completions, out-of-bounders, field goals, extra points and yardage markings.
by CNB