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Q: Who were the four chaplains who gave up their life jackets when their ship was sinking?
A: In 1943, during World War II, a 5,649-ton former luxury liner was transporting 902 service members from Newfoundland to a U.S. Army base in Greenland when it was torpedoed 150 miles from its destination by a German submarine.
The four clergymen were George L. Fox, Alexander Goode, Clark V. Poling and John P. Washington. They were Catholic, Dutch Reform, Methodist and Jewish. The four Army chaplains provided comfort, prayers and encouragement to the men who survived the attack and to the dying. When the ship ran out of life jackets for the survivors, the chaplains took theirs off and gave them to the troops. As the ship sank, men in lifeboats could still hear the chaplains aboard, offering prayers. A total of 672 men died, and 230 survived.
Q: I have several accounts at one bank listed in my name or my sister's name that total more than $100,000. Are they all insured? These are my accounts, but I have my sister on them so she can withdraw funds if I was unable to conduct business.
A: Assuming your bank is insured by Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., an independent agency of the U.S. government, your accounts will be insured depending on certain criteria.
The basic insurance amount covered by the FDIC is $100,000 per depositor per bank. However, the FDIC provides separate insurance coverage for deposit accounts held in different categories of ownership such as single, retirement, and joint accounts. So you could qualify for more than $100,000 in coverage at one insured bank if you own deposit accounts in different ownership categories.
More information about FDIC coverage is available at http://www.fdic.gov/deposit/. Be sure to seek expert financial counsel or visit your bank to get the best information.
Q: When is the Academy Awards going to be and where? Who is hosting this year?
A: The 81st Annual Academy Awards airs at 8 p.m. E.T. Sunday, Feb. 22 on ABC-TV. The show will be held at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Calif. A host has not yet been named. Nominations for the honored 2008 films will be announced the early morning of Jan. 22.
Q: Please give me the location of President Eisenhower's museum or library.
A: The Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum is located in Abilene, Kansas, the small town where Eisenhower (1890-1969) grew up. The library is a research institution containing manuscripts and audiovisual materials documenting the civilian and military careers of the World War II Army general and postwar president.
The Kansas limestone building contains more than 30,000 square feet of gallery space and was dedicated on Veterans Day, 1954. It is part of the presidential libraries system administered by the National Archives and Records Administration. More information is available at www.eisenhower.archives.gov/.
Q: How many years did John McCain serve in the navy? What was his final rank and what were his decorations?
A: John McCain served more than 20 years in the U.S. Navy including 5 ½ years in a North Vietnamese prisoner of war camp.
McCain attended the U.S. Naval Academy from 1954 to 1958 and graduated as an ensign in June 1958. During his career, McCain received 17 awards and decorations, including the Silver Star, Legion of Merit with a combat "V" and one gold star, Distinguished Flying Cross, Bronze Star with a combat "V" and two gold stars, and Navy Commendation Medal.
Lt. Cmdr. McCain was shot down during a mission over Hanoi in 1967. He was captured by the North Vietnamese and held prisoner from October 1967 through March 1973. He retired from the Navy in April 1981 with the rank of captain.
Q: I recently read that a lightning rod may protect your home against lightning. Is it possible it would also attract lightning? Where can we purchase one?
A: Lightning rods don't attract lightning that wouldn't have struck the house anyway, says Dr. Greg Forbes, severe weather expert at The Weather Channel.
The safety devices protect a building by drawing lightning current to them from other parts of the roof. The rod's metal pole has an attached cable running into the ground. When lightning strikes, it seeks the quickest way to the ground. However, lightning rods do not protect appliances from electrical surges that come through wiring when a bolt strikes lines near a house, Forbes says.
Check with an electrician or home improvement store regarding installation and purchase of lightning rods.
Q: Do rural mail carriers wear uniforms? Mine doesn't.
A: A U.S. Postal Service uniform is not required for rural carriers, though some choose to wear one. City carriers must wear uniforms.
City residents have enjoyed free home mail delivery since 1863, but rural residents had to pick up their mail at the post office. Rural free deliver (RFD) began as a test in the United States in 1896 with five routes. Seven years later, it had expanded to 15,119 routes covering 322,618 miles. On July 1, 1902 rural free delivery became a permanent service for all citizens.
Rural carriers sold stamps and money orders, registered letters and served as traveling post offices. Carriers supplied their own transportation in the early days —usually horses and wagons. Because of the long routes, rugged terrain and mode of transportation, rural carriers have never been required to wear uniforms.
Q: Where did the saying, "The whole nine yards," originate?
A: "Facts on File Encyclopedia of Word and Phrase Origins" states the expression originated in the 1960s with construction workers. The nine yards refers to the maximum amount a cement mixer truck can carry – nine cubic yards.
Other sources claim it originated with the military, or from the amount of material needed to make a man's suit or the length of a wedding veil or a standard bolt of cloth, or the volume of a rich man's grave, or some distance associated with sports or boating. One thing everyone agrees on is that "the whole nine yards" means all of it – everything.
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