June 6 is an important date in history. The Great Seattle Fire  happened in 1889, Chrysler Corporation   was formed in 1925, and the first drive-in theater  opened in 1933. This is also D-Day , the Allied invasion of France in 1944 that turned the tide of World War II.

On June 6, 1968, Senator Robert Kennedy died in Los Angeles from bullet wounds suffered the night before. He had just won the California primary and was poised to become the Democratic Party's candidate for President. But he was assassinated, and the nation once again endured the funeral of a hero: President John F. Kennedy in 1963, the three Apollo Astronauts  in 1967, and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. , only two months before RFK's death.

Robert Kennedy was especially popular with people who felt they had been forgotten by government. His message was of peace and the American promise of making a good life for oneself, no matter what one's background. His death was mourned by so many because they felt his message was straight to them . And it likely was: Kennedy's genuineness has been largely documented.

Another message straight to the hearts and minds of ordinary people took effect on June 6, 1978. Proposition 13  in California was the key historic moment of "taxpayer revolt" fever. Within a few years, tax reform movements popped up all over the country, reducing tax burdens and tax revenues — but increasing the tension  between private property and public responsibility. The election of Ronald Reagan in 1980 was greatly motivated by the attitude that government had not only forgotten ordinary people, but was contemptuous of them.

In the news right now, Senator Barack Obama's  candidacy for President has a key message of renewing America's promise, which has excited millions. Meanwhile, a message in Senator John McCain's  candidacy warns people to guard against the imperious reach of big government and it's appetite for taxes.

All today, June 6. A strong point in any argument that the more things change, the more things stay the same .