News stories from Wednesday February 17, 1971
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- President Nixon held an unscheduled news conference in which he warned that time is running out for North Vietnam to negotiate with the United States and declared that U.S. air power may be used against North Vietnam. The President allowed for the possible use of U.S. air power anywhere in Indochina, as he expects heavy resistance to South Vietnam's attempt to cut off the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Laos. [CBS]
- The South Vietnam attack in Laos is meeting increasing resistance. North Vietnam is attacking U.S. support forces in South Vietnam; one base has reportedly been cut off. [CBS]
- According to a report, 700,000 North Vietnamese troops have been killed in Indochina since January, 1961. [CBS]
- There was an anti-American incident in Saigon today, in reaction to the Laos operation. [CBS]
- The defense admitted for the first time that Lt. William Calley took part in the My Lai incident, but a psychiatrist testified that Calley could not have formed the plan to kill. Calley will testify that he was following orders, and didn't consider the victims to be human. The defense will portray Calley as a loser and maintain that Calley killed, but did not intend to. [CBS]
- A federal grand jury indicted Maj. William Wooldridge and seven others for conspiring to defraud enlisted men's clubs in Vietnam; the Senate opened hearings into corrupt military post exchange operations. A Senate committee will decide whether to question the Army. [CBS]
- President Nixon directed Labor Secretary Hodgson to continue trying to get the construction industry to establish voluntary restraints to control the wage and price spiral. [CBS]
- Treasury Secretary Connally asked Congress to increase the federal debt limit by $40 billion to $435 billion. [CBS]
- The wholesale price index increased 0.7% in January. [CBS]
- Interest rates on federally-insured home loans were reduced from 7.5% to 7%. [CBS]
- Los Angeles is still feeling aftershocks from the recent earthquake. [CBS]
- Commerce Secretary Maurice Stans denied any conflict of interest in his owning stock in a subsidiary of the Penn Central Railroad. [CBS]
- Lucius Amerson, the first black sheriff in Alabama since reconstruction, was indicted for beating a prisoner. [CBS]
- Secret Service agents impounded phony $100 bill marijuana papers which are used to roll joints. Mostly cigarette papers are used to roll joints, and it is becoming a big business. The Brown and Williamson Company is marketing a "roll your own" machine, with a disclaimer stating that it's not intended for marijuana. An unidentified marijuana smoker said the machine uses far too much marijuana per joint. [CBS]
- A Russian trawler was fined $50,000 for fishing in U.S. territorial waters off the coast of Alaska. [CBS]
- The Soviet Union permitted seven Jews to emigrate to Israel but has delayed two others who were active in Zionism, in order to prevent them from attending the World Jewish Congress later in the month. [CBS]
- Foreign Minister Abba Eban declared that Israel will not withdraw from Arab territory until a peace treaty is signed, and he called for direct negotiations rather than through the United Nations. [CBS]
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Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 887.87 (-2.19, -0.25%)
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 16, 1971 | 890.06 | 98.66 | 21.35 |
| February 12, 1971 | 888.83 | 98.43 | 18.47 |
| February 11, 1971 | 885.34 | 97.91 | 19.26 |
| February 10, 1971 | 881.09 | 97.39 | 19.04 |
| February 9, 1971 | 879.79 | 97.51 | 28.25 |
| February 8, 1971 | 882.12 | 97.45 | 25.59 |
| February 5, 1971 | 876.57 | 96.93 | 20.48 |
| February 4, 1971 | 874.79 | 96.62 | 20.86 |
| February 3, 1971 | 876.23 | 96.63 | 21.68 |
| February 2, 1971 | 874.59 | 96.43 | 22.03 |