News stories from Monday March 12, 1979
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- Despite the mass deaths in Guyana of members of the People's Temple, a member church, several leaders of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) said that it should not impose tighter membership policies. But the president of the 1.3 million member denomination called for annual visits by regional officials to every church to increase "responsibility" without resorting to "witch hunts." [New York Times]
- The resumption of a limited draft and compulsory registration of all 16-year-olds were urged by several representatives at the start of the first full congressional debate on the issue since the end of the Vietnam War. The debate, which is expected to intensify, centers on demands by increasing numbers of Representatives and Senators for the administration to deal with critical manpower problems, particularly shortages in the reserves. [New York Times]
- Chicago Democrats closed ranks 13 days after Jane Byrne won an upset victory in the party's mayoral primary and embarrassed the political machine. Party committeemen voted unanimously to support her in the election, and she was granted a meeting with Mayor Michael Bilandic, whom she had defeated. [New York Times]
- To curb plane collision hazards, the Federal Aviation Administration decided to speed the improvement of radar scopes at La Guardia, Kennedy International and Newark International Airports so the towers will receive data on plane altitudes. Virtually every other major field in the nation already has altitude data for handling air traffic within a range of about 6 to 10 miles. [New York Times]
- Mideast peace hopes dimmed as President Carter neared the end of his mission, still unable to reconcile all the complex issues blocking the conclusion of an Egyptian-Israeli treaty. Unless there is an unexpected breakthrough at a farewell breakfast with Prime Minister Begin and a brief airport meeting at Cairo with President Sadat, Mr. Carter will return to Washington without having achieved his goal of completing a pact.
President Carter sat stoically through a raucous session of the Israeli Parliament as a dozen legislators heckled and shouted against peace talks, Prime Minister Begin, President Sadat and Mr. Carter. The heckling came after Mr. Carter had delivered a speech in which he criticized Israeli and Egyptian leaders for failing to "take a chance" on peace.
[New York Times] - Nearly 15.000 Iranian women marched through Teheran in a fifth day of protest against what they regard as the new Islamic government's attacks on their rights, including the right to dress as they wish.
Seemingly endless rows of helicopters at Isfahan in Iran demonstrate the magnitude of the Shah's investment in the military. During his reign, Iran's defense budget often exceeded 35 percent of the total budget.
[New York Times] - New peace efforts for Namibia were begun by the United States and four other Western countries. They invited all parties concerned with problems blocking a United Nations plan for independence of the territory to meet with mediators at the United Nations early next week. [New York Times]
- South Africa cracked down on disclosures involving an influence buying scandal, ordering a newspaper to delete several paragraphs about the alleged role of the Justice Minister. The newspaper complied. [New York Times]
- Job training programs have grown rapidly, particularly for non-white youths, in the last 25 years, but at the same time the jobless rate for blacks aged 16 to 19 has risen from 16.5 percent to 35.3 percent. In the last year, the federal government provided about $12 billion for the many programs whose effectiveness is debated by specialists. [New York Times]
- Lowell Weicker seeks the presidency. In declaring his candidacy the Senator from Connecticut, who gained prominence five years ago as a leading inquisitor on the Senate Watergate committee, reasserted his credentials as an unorthodox Republican and said he planned to lure independents and Democrats to register for him in the party's primaries. [New York Times]
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Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 844.68 (+1.82, +0.22%)
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* |
| March 9, 1979 | 842.86 | 99.54 | 33.41 |
| March 8, 1979 | 844.85 | 99.58 | 32.00 |
| March 7, 1979 | 834.29 | 98.44 | 28.94 |
| March 6, 1979 | 826.58 | 97.87 | 24.50 |
| March 5, 1979 | 827.36 | 98.06 | 25.96 |
| March 2, 1979 | 815.75 | 96.97 | 23.13 |
| March 1, 1979 | 815.84 | 96.90 | 23.84 |
| February 28, 1979 | 808.82 | 96.28 | 25.09 |
| February 27, 1979 | 807.00 | 96.13 | 31.47 |
| February 26, 1979 | 821.12 | 97.67 | 22.62 |