Desiderius Erasmus died today in 1536. He was perhaps the greatest philosopher of the Renaissance and the most revered of the Humanists who paved the way for the Reformation. He also spent most of his time broke and kissing the backsides of various patrons in search of work. He once said, 'I have a Catholic soul, but a Lutheran stomach.'
To steal a deathless line from the girls of Eight Bee Em - 'Yeuw!'
In other news ....
The Panama Canal was opened today in 1920. Building it had actually begun in 1881, but, in the immortal words of Smith and Jones, they were delayed because they were waiting for a skip.
