History in Hindsight

On May 8, 1945, WWII came to a close in the Europe, and many people may have celebrated with a Coke, which was served for the first time at Jacob's Pharmacy in Atlanta on this day in 1886 for a nickel per glass. It was sold as a medicine that could cure nervous afflictions, headaches, hysteria, melancholy and more. John Pemberton, the creator of this tonic, was only able to sell about 9 glasses a day until he died in 1888. His friend Asa Griggs Candler paid tribute to him in the Atlanta Constitution, and organized the city's pharmacies to close on the day of his funeral. Not long after, Candler bought the interests in Coca-Cola for $2300 and turned it into a global brand, selling it to a group of investors in 1919 for $25 million. It even became the fizzy beverage of choice for Germans, after beer, under the direction of Max Keith as the N**i's came to power, who ensured it was prominently featured on billboards outside party gatherings and on the back of any magazine cover that featured pictures of Hi**er on the cover. When rivals pointed to the Hebrew lettering marking Coke Kosher on its bottles, Keith adamantly denied any Jewish connection, then cozied up to N**i officials by branding it as pro-N**i while enthusiastically sponsoring the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin and many other N**i party functions, winning the approval of the Führer himself, who reportedly enjoyed drinking it on occasion. With profits at their height, import and glass bottling restrictions threatened to slow business, however Keith was able to ensure that the syrup would still flow in while aiding in the building of more glass factories to supply the Wehrmacht. With the war in full swing, he took over control of operations and used forced labor in the countries N**i's occupied to increase his profits. Eventually supplies ran out, however Keith was prepared, having created a beverage out of apple cores leftover from cider production he called Fanta which became an instant hit in N**i Germany. When the war ended, he continued to head operations in Germany as Coca-Cola continued to grow, now one of the most recognizable brands on the planet and worth nearly $200 billion. @ Atlanta, Georgia

On May 7, 1984, the lawyers representing US veterans and their families in a class action lawsuit against Monsanto, Dow Chemical, and 5 other manufacturers of Agent Orange accepted a $180 million settlement, the largest award for injury damages at that time. The suit asserted that dioxin present in the chemical mix caused a higher rate of cancer, nerve, digestive, skin and respiratory disorders for the vets, and higher rates of miscarriage or birth defects in the children they bore after returning home. The companies were not forced to admit any liability or wrongdoing and continue to deny the association to this day despite the CDC's confirmation of the heightened instance of symptoms after exposure. The settlement outraged many vets who wanted these companies to be held accountable. They also had concerns about how payments would be made. Of the 105,000 claimants, half were paid out at an avg of $3800 each. Those receiving assistance were barred from receiving pensions or other kinds of government benefits such as food stamps. A totally disabled person was eligible to receive a total of $12000 over 10 years. Widows of exposed soldiers were awarded $3700. Agent Orange had initially been developed by the US and Brits during WWII as an herbicide to clear covered enemy positions and to destroy agriculture in order to starve their enemy. The Brits became the first to use it while fighting communists in the "Malayan Emergency." Their precedent provided JFK the cover to use it in Vietnam at the request of the South Vietnamese President in 1961, though the US government did not acknowledge its use until 1966. Between 1962 and 1971, 20 million gallons would be sprayed in Vietnam, destroying about 12% of its land while sickening up to 3 million people and rising due to its remaining presence in the ecosystem/food chain. It remains beyond the scope of the UN's regulation of chemical and biological weapons on the grounds that it was not meant as a weapon, but rather as an herbicide. Vietnam, its neighbors, and countries like Australia where testing was done, continue to pursue action against it's manufacturers and the US government. @ Supreme Court State of New York