News stories from Wednesday February 11, 1970
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- Lt. William Calley's defense attorney lost two battles today. The judge, Col. Reid Kennedy, rejected a dismissal motion and also rejected George Latimer's motion to request that top Pentagon officials testify to prove that there was high level pressure to have the trial. The only dismissal motion left is based on pre-trial publicity. [CBS]
- Defense Secretary Melvin Laird rejected a firm timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Vietnam; Democrats want it done in 18 months. Enemy troops attacked a U.S. artillery base west of Saigon today, killing 8 Americans. [CBS]
- The war in Laos is not often heard about, but Democrats are now questioning the administration about U.S. involvement there. This off-and-on war has created new refugees. People leave, fearing the Communist offensive and U.S. bombings. Refugees are being airlifted out by U.S. planes run by the CIA; there are no markings or identification on the planes. [CBS]
- Avalanches and blizzards continued around Val D'Isere, France, where 39 people died in an avalanche yesterday. A youth hostel was hit. Rescue work is difficult but the probe for bodies continues. [CBS]
- Egypt crossed the Suez and claimed to have ambushed an Israeli patrol, causing heavy losses; Israel denied the story. Secretary of State William Rogers in Ethiopia discussed the Mideast crisis with President Tito of Yugoslavia. [CBS]
- The Atomic Energy Commission is facing charges that the Rocky Flats atomic bomb plant in Colorado endangers the people of Denver. After fires at the Rocky Flats plant, the A.E.C. and Dow Chemical stated that no radioactivity escaped. Environmentalists ran a test and found that the plant has released plutonium, which causes lung cancer; they criticized the plant's safety standards. Dr. Edward Martell says that the level of plutonium in the vicinity is 100 to 1,000 times greater than if there were good containment practices and safety standards. [CBS]
- President Nixon announced plans to expand safeguards for the anti-ballistic missile system. The radar system emits powerful radiation which could endanger launch crews. [CBS]
- Last summer defoliants like those in Vietnam were used in Arizona to kill shrubs. Damage to plants and wildlife was reported outside the spray area. Women in the area reported damage to their reproductive organs. The Agriculture Department has begun an investigation. [CBS]
- The White House reported that Charles DiBona has withdrawn himself from consideration as Selective Service director. [CBS]
- Pan Am lost over $25 million last year and will lay off 2,000 employees this year. Chrysler cut its quarterly dividend; the company lost $4.5 million last year. [CBS]
- Los Angeles schools have been ordered to integrate and were given 19 months to do it. Meanwhile, efforts in the South are being taken to prevent forced school busing. Governor Robert Scott of North Carolina refuses to authorize the spending of state funds for busing. The state of Tennessee passed an anti-busing measure. [CBS]
- Senators Edmund Muskie and Eugene McCarthy announced that they will vote against G. Harrold Carswell's nomination to the Supreme Court. [CBS]
- President Nixon loses a neighbor, but gains office space. Vice President Spiro Agnew is moving out, across the street instead of down the hall from the President. [CBS]
- A demonstration in front of the White House has started, and is expected to last over two months; it is a daily fast against the Vietnam war. The demonstration began at an interfaith Lenten Passover service, where participants burned symbols of the war and the Army, then marched to the White House to set up a vigil and fast. [CBS]
- There are no portraits of President John F. Kennedy in the White House. He sat for only two portraits and the owners refuse to give them up. JFK's widow has not approved a posthumous portrait. [CBS]
- President Nixon announced that America's third nuclear-powered aircraft carrier will be named the U.S.S. Dwight D. Eisenhower. [CBS]
- Philadelphia police say that former graduate student Robert Kantor shot and wounded two University of Pennsylvania professors and then killed himself. [CBS]
- In Seattle, a Soviet translator at the United Nations who was accused of being a spy was released on $75,000 bail. [CBS]
|
Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 757.33 (+10.70, +1.43%)
Arms Index is the ratio of volume per declining issue to volume per advancing issue; a figure below 1.0 is bullish. | |||||||||||||||
| Market Index Trends | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | DJIA | S&P | Volume* |
| February 10, 1970 | 746.63 | 86.10 | 10.11 |
| February 9, 1970 | 755.68 | 87.01 | 10.83 |
| February 6, 1970 | 752.77 | 86.33 | 10.15 |
| February 5, 1970 | 750.26 | 85.99 | 9.43 |
| February 4, 1970 | 754.49 | 86.24 | 11.04 |
| February 3, 1970 | 757.46 | 86.77 | 16.05 |
| February 2, 1970 | 746.44 | 85.75 | 13.44 |
| January 30, 1970 | 744.06 | 85.02 | 12.32 |
| January 29, 1970 | 748.35 | 85.69 | 12.21 |
| January 28, 1970 | 758.84 | 86.79 | 10.51 |