22 January 2013

spieler

[spee-ler]

noun
1. a barker, as at a circus sideshow.
2. a person with an extravagant line of talk.
3. (Australian) – a swindler.
4. Slang. an announcer for radio or television, especially one who gives commercials.

Origin:
1885–90; < German; see spiel, -er1

Example sentence:

‘Shoe-makers, barbers, mechanics, carpenters, wardsmen from the local hospital, wrestlers, spielers, and even one with a Bachelor degree – they were all told to assemble at Port Madryn, at a date, to embark on a coastal vessel to meet the ship at Talcahuano in Chile, that would take us to Australia’.

– Emilio Duran, Memoirs, Chapter 3.

Today’s aphorism

‘Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter’.

– Martin Luther King

On this day

22 January 1973 – In the landmark ‘Roe v Wade’ case and decided simultaneously with ‘Doe v Bolton’, the United States Supreme Court rules that abortion is a Constitutional right because of the application of the due process clause of the 14th Amendment to a woman’s right to privacy, which includes the right to abortion. This was to be balanced with other state interests, namely the right to protect prenatal life and the protection of women’s health.

22 January 1930 – construction commences of the Empire State Building. It was completed 410 days later and was the world’s tallest building at that time.