GASP alert 1/30/2006 The World Peace Bell

If you ever go to Newport KY. just accross the Kentucky river from Cincinatti, OH be sure and visit the World Peace Bell at York and Fourth streets. You can't miss it. It's the largest free-swinging bell in the world! It weighs sixty-six THOUSAND pounds and it is REALLY, REALLY, BIG! You will be awe struck when you see the World Peace Bell for the first time. It really stands out from the other attractions Newport has to offer such as the used furniture stores, the emasculated storefronts, and the occasional panderer...

The World Peace Bell was installed in 1999 thanks to the Verdin company, the largest manufacturer of bell and clocks and stuff. The Peace Bell commemorated the new millinium in 2000 and is rang every year on September 21 for the International Day of Peace established in 1981 by the United Nations where bells all over the world ring to remind us of our goal for world peace.

Big fancy smancy, huh? It just puts a whole other angle on the term, 'bellringers'.

Newport is also home to another fancy invention-- the Thompson submachine gun aka the 'Tommy gun'.

The Tommy gun was designed to 'sweep out the trenches' for our boys across the pond in the big one, dub-ya dub-ya one (WWI). General John Thompson finally got a prototype produced and don't you know the day the first shipment was supposed to be shipped the war ended, on November 11 1918. This day became Armistice Day in 1919 by President Woodrow Wilson. It is now called Veterans Day.

The Tommy gun became notorious during the prohibition period and was mass produced for dubya dubya two(WWII). But then it became obsolete because it was so damn cumbersome-- just like a huge bell!

I have a great idea. Lets create a new holiday. Lets call it 'The Day That Santana Got Strapped to Huge Bell in Newport KY. and Was Shot Up with a Tommy Gun Machine Gun'. But before we did that we would shoot up his guitar and watch poor Santana cry. Yeh, now that would be fancy!