Cain Throws Perfect Game

On Wednesday Matt Cain, of the San Fransisco Giants, forever put himself in the books.

He threw the twenty-second perfect game in baseball's history, and the first for the Giants.

With one hundred and twenty-five pitches, he managed a career high fourteen strike outs.

The game was saved on two occasions by great catches from his outfield.

In the sixth, left fielder Melky Cabrera made a leaping catch at the wall, and then in the seventh right fielder Gregor Blanco made a diving catch.

This was the second perfect game of the season, a feat which has only been done twice before; in the 2009 season, and then way back in 1880.

It also marked the fifth no hitter of the season.

Obama Skips on Food Bill

Obama is really regretting this mistake.

On Tuesday he compared Republicans to people who order the most expensive stuff, "and then, just as you're sitting down, they leave, and accuse you of running up the tab".

The analogy truly didn't make a lot of sense then, but then again, consider the source.

But then Obama made it even better.

Wednesday he took four guests out for lunch, and then he and the group left, without paying the bill.

The White House paid off the bill about an hour later, but the damage was done, as the word had reached the press.

Obama's face painting was shown to be directly into a mirror.

Saudi Arabian Women Petition to Drive

Over six hundred women in Saudi Arabia have signed a petition to King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz.

The petition asks the king to make a law allowing women the right to get a driver's license and drive vehicles.


King Abdullah will receive the petition on Sunday, and many expect him to allow it.


Aziz is thanked, in the petition, for previously granting voting rights to women.

Women will get their first votes in the 2015 local elections.

Spanish Miners Launch Rockets at Police

Miners in Spain have been striking for over three weeks now.

They have been protesting austerity cuts that the government has begun.

Over the last few weeks they've clashed with police and the Spanish Civil Guard.

At times, police have used rubber bullets and tear gas to force rioting miners to back down.

But now things have escalated as the miners began launching home made rockets at the police lines.

So far no one has been seriously hurt, but things are becoming increasingly dangerous, with talks of bringing in the military to end the strike.

Remembering: The 49th Parallel

In 1818 British and US delegates agreed upon a border from Lake of the Woods to the Rocky Mountains, along the forty-ninth parallel.

They further agreed that the Oregon territory would be a jointly occupied area, shared by the two countries.

But by the early 1840s Oregon was filling up with US citizens and pressure was rising.

In the 1844 election, James K. Polk ran and won on a ticket of promising to deliver the fifty-fourth parallel as a border for the west, or he would fight.

Luckily very few wanted a third war between Britain and the US, so negotiations started again.

On June 15, 1846 the two countries agreed upon the extension of the border along the forty-ninth parallel, all the way to the Strait of Georgia.

The border between the US and Canada was now secure all along its length. It has almost ever since been the longest unmilitarilized border in the world.

High Park Fire Jumps Containment

Thursday saw the High Park Fire, in Colorado, jump containment lines and grow to over 52,000 acres.

Firefighters had been using Highway 14 as one of the containment lines, but embers crossed and the fire gained a foothold to the north of the lines.

The spread caused eighty more homes to be sent evacuation notices.

So far the fire has killed one and  destroyed one hundred and eighteen structures, many of which were homes.

Over 1,200 personnel are now fighting the fire, many from out of state, with that number expected to be 1,500 by the end of Friday.

Despite the jump, total containment is up to around fifteen percent.

The fire was started by lightning, Saturday morning, and is the largest in the country. It is nearing Colorado state records.

Remembering: The Bear Flag Republic

By 1846 the scene in California was extremely tense.

Most of the population, of the northern most part of Mexico, was made up of citizens from the United States.

The situation became even worse with rumors of war between the US and Mexico, over whether Texas could join the US.

In the spring of 1846, John C. Freemont, an officer in the US Army, began encouraging Californians to form militias and prepare for rebellion.

It is unknown if he did so on his own initiative, or under orders.

Either way, his encouragement worked, and on June 14, 1864 the revolt began bloodlessly.

The next day a flag was designed, and California was declared an independent country.

After the militias won a few small battles with Mexican forces, Freemont took command of their troops.

Rebellion spread, gaining more and more cities, but on July 7, a separate group of US troops raised the US flag over California territory.

The Bear Flaggers ultimate goal had been to join the US, and so they ended their own government to join the US as a territory.

In 1850 California would join the US as a state, bringing the Bear Flag with them.

Remembering: Old Stars and Stripes

On June 14, 1777 the Continental Congress approved a flag for the fledgling United States.

It was based on the Grand Union flag, which had been originally made by Betsy Ross.

Legend is that George Washington asked her to make it, to his specifications.

The flag was made with thirteen stripes and thirteen stars to represent each of the colonies.

At first, each time a state joined the country a star and a stripe were added.

It was in 1818 that Congress added a law that changed it to changing just the stars, and the amount of stripes was reset to thirteen to represent the original colonies.

Now, June 14 is known as flag day, in the US.

Remembering: Alexander The Great

In 356 BC, one of the most influential people to ever live was born.

Alexander, son of King Phillip II of Macedonia and Queen Olympias and taught by Aristotle, would become known as The Great well before his death.

At the age of sixteen he was leading troops in his father's army, and by eighteen helped his father conquer Greece.

Phillip was assassinated in 336 BC, and Alexander took the throne.

Two years later he invaded Persia, facing superior and larger forces, Alexander simply out maneuvered and used extremely efficient strategy to beat his foes, never losing a single battle.

By 330 BC all of Persia and Asia Minor had been made part of his empire, and by 327 northern India and much of Central Asia as well.


As he went he founded cities and spread Greek culture, political structure, and economics.

In 326 his army refused to continue, they were simply tired of fighting and wanted to go home.

Whilst back in Babylon, building a fleet to return home, Alexander became ill, and on June 13, 323 BC Alexander the Great died.

He had never declared a successor, and his only child was yet unborn.

By 322 his army and empire had split into factions, who constantly tried to conquer each other.

Much of Taiwan Under Water

Many areas of the island of Taiwan, including the capital Taipei, are under water.

Torrential rains have caused flash flooding, bringing knee to waist high standing water in some areas.

At least four people have been killed in mudslides in the hills.

More than 3,000 people have been forced to evacuate.

Rains continue to plague the island and may not stop til Thursday evening.