October 9, 1000 –
Leif Ericson discovered Vinland and became the first known European to walk in North America, on this date (or not). In 1964, the United States Congress authorized and requested the President to proclaim October 9 of each year as Leif Erikson Day.
The day after Leif Ericson Day in 1965, Yale University astonished the world with its Vinland Map, a 1440 transcription of a map believed to have been originally drawn by Ericson himself (or possibly Eriksson, but certainly not Eiriksson) around 1000 A.D., and which appeared to depict parts of Canada. Just a few years ago, more evidence supporting the authenticity of the map was revealed, lending further support to the conclusion that there were Vikings in North America five centuries before Columbus soiled his first diaper.
This is an exciting development, because it will almost certainly necessitate the development of Viking reservations and the establishment of Viking-run casinos.
Still more exciting are recent scientific findings that suggest Caucasians may have existed in North America prior to being displaced by the so-called native-Americans who were later visited by Vikings prior to being utterly displaced by still more Caucasians.
But this is also deeply troubling, because there was probably someone here before those original Caucasians.
In the interests of fairness, I enthusiastically endorses the endowment of every American with their own casino.
Demand Euphoria!
The Haus of Dcaligari 