Today is Sunday, June 22, the 174th day of 2008. There are 192 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 22, 1945, the World War II battle for Okinawa ended with an Allied victory; some 13,000 Americans and 90,000 Japanese soldiers, plus 130,000 civilians, were killed in the nearly three-month campaign.

On this date:

• In 1944, President Roosevelt signed the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944, more popularly known as the “GI Bill of Rights.”

Today’s Birthdays: Singer-actor Kris Kristofferson is 72. Actor Michael Lerner is 67. Fox News correspondent Brit Hume is 65. Singer Peter Asher (Peter and Gordon) is 64. Singer-musician Todd Rundgren is 60. Actress Meryl Streep is 59. Actress Lindsay Wagner is 59. Singer Alan Osmond is 59. Actor Graham Greene is 56. Pop singer Cyndi Lauper is 55. TV personality Carson Daly is 35.

Thought for Today: “If a man cannot be a Christian in the place where he is, he cannot be a Christian anywhere.” — Henry Ward Beecher, American clergyman (1813-1887).