December 29, 2020
Day 364 of 366

December 29th is the 364th day of the year. It is Independence Day in Mongolia (Монгол Улсын тусгаар тогтнол) as they commemorate their separation from the Qing Dynasty in 1911.

There are three days remaining in the year.

In the United States, today is “celebrated” as National Hero Day, National Pepper Pot Day, and Tick Tock Day.

Historical items of note:

• In 1800, self-taught chemist and engineer Charles Goodyear was born. He developed vulcanized rubber, a process for which he received the patent. The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company is named after him.
• In 1860, the launch of the ironclad HMS Warrior, with her combination of screw propeller, iron hull, and iron armor, rendered all previous warships obsolete.
• In 1916, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, the first novel by James Joyce, was first published as a book after it had been serialized in The Egoist.
• In 1928, British actor Bernard Cribbins was born.
• In 1936, actress and producer Mary Tyler Moore was born.
• In 1947, actor and producer Ted Danson was born.
• In 1965, the fourth James Bond film, Thunderball, premiered.
• In 1967, director, screenwriter and producer Lilly Wachowski was born.
• In 1972, actor Jude Law was born.
• In 1979, Mexican actor, director and producer Diego Luna was born.
• In 1987, Scottish actor Iain De Caestecker was born.
• In 1998, the leaders of the Khmer Rouge apologized for the 1970s genocide in Cambodia that claimed over one million lives.

December 29th is Constitution Day in Ireland.

The Constitution of Ireland, Bunreacht na hÉireann, asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people in the tradition of liberal and representative democracy. It guarantees certain fundamental rights, along with a popularly elected non-executive president, a bicameral parliament, a separation of powers, and judicial review.

It is the second constitution of the Irish state since independence, replacing the 1922 Constitution of the Irish Free State. It came into force on December 29, 1937 following a statewide plebiscite. It is the republican constitution that has been the longest continuously in operation within the European Union.

The Thing About Today is an effort to look at each day of 2020 with respect to its historical context.

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