Today’s highlight in history
On Dec. 8, 1941, the United States entered World War II as Congress declared war against Imperial Japan, a day after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
On this date
In 1854, Pope Pius IX proclaimed the Catholic dogma of the Immaculate Conception, which holds that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was free of original sin from the moment of her own conception. In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued his Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction for the South.
In 1940, the Chicago Bears defeated the Washington Redskins, 73-0, in the NFL Championship Game, which was carried on network radio for the first time by the Mutual Broadcasting System.
In 1949, the Chinese Nationalist government moved from the Chinese mainland to Formosa as the Communists pressed their attacks.
In 1980, rock star John Lennon was shot to death outside his New York City apartment building by a fan who was later found not guilty by reason of insanity.
In 1987, President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev signed a treaty at the White House calling for destruction of intermediate-range nuclear missiles.
In 1991, Russia, Byelorussia and Ukraine declared the Soviet national government dead, forging a new alliance to be known as the Commonwealth of Independent States.
Ten years ago: A gunman went on a rampage inside a downtown Chicago law firm specializing in intellectual property and patents, killing three people before being shot dead by police.
Five years ago: The 161-day NBA lockout ended when owners and players ratified the new collective bargaining agreement.
One year ago: China declared its first ever red smog alert as poisonous air quality forced the government to close schools, order motorists off the road and shut down factories in and around Beijing.