JANUARY 28th - The Maybe of Coincidence



On this day, also in 1984, a then-record 295,000 dominoes were toppled in Furth, West Germany. The present record is over 4 million dominoes, but I doubt those dominoes could claim the cultural significance that could be attributed to the West German dominoes. Do you think it a coincidence that the Berlin Wall fell a mere five years after those 295,000 dominoes showed that things could be toppled in Germany? You probably also think it a mere coincidence that Clark Kent and Superman are never seen standing next to each other. Or that the Cold War started to thaw after Rocky IV came out. Maybe you think that the Curse of the Bambino was merely a string of really bad luck. Perhaps you think that OJ Simpson simply took the Bronco for a joyride at a most inopportune time. Or that Arnold Schwarzenegger made it in Hollywood because of his mastery of the English language. Or maybe, just maybe, one thing, seemingly unrelated, can actually cause a different thing. Maybe it’s chance. Maybe it’s luck. Or maybe it’s fate. Maybe a young politician was present to witness those record-setting dominoes fall and something clicked in his brain inspiring him to work tirelessly behind the scenes to grease the wheels that needed greasing in order to get Mr. Gorbachev to tear down the wall. Of course maybe they were just 295,000 dominoes that fell. Not everything has to mean something.

This day has been Marked.

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