News stories from Saturday October 20, 1979

Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:

Politics were unavoidable at the dedication of the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston, where President Carter shared the stage with Senator Edward Kennedy. President Carter in an address said that President John F. Kennedy was a "symbol of human aspirations" and poked fun at the presidential hopes of the late President's younger brother. A passionately delivered speech by Joseph P. Kennedy II, the 27-year-old son of the late Senator Robert F. Kennedy, contained more than a hint of an attack on the Carter administration's policies. [New York Times] Some supervisors at Three Mile Island fully understood that the implications of the accident there last March were more serious than the information they were giving to the government, according to federal investigators. Testimony bearing on the actual understanding of officials at the Three Mile Island reactor on March 28, the day the accident occurred, was obtained recently by the independent investigative group established by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. [New York Times] A "right to rent" movement is gaining momentum around the country as more rental housing is converted to condominium or cooperative status. Angry tenants marched in Washington, which is believed to have the most serious problem of any major city in the nation with loss of rental housing, a day after a 180-day freeze on condominium conversions was overturned in Superior Court. [New York Times] Rescinding the Social Security payroll tax increase scheduled for 1981, partly or entirely, will be recommended to Congress by a federally appointed advisory panel, according to officials familiar with the panel's findings. Elimination of the tax rise would remove $15 billion in revenues from the Social Security trust funds. [New York Times] Whether man's capacity for language is unique is a question that seems to be developing into a major debate among scientists who have evaluated 13 years of research with gorillas and chimpanzees that were apparently taught human language. Herbert Terrace of Columbia University believes that the apes may be doing nothing more remarkable than a dog does in learning to sit or heel at his master's command, and that "much of the apes' behavior is pure drill." [New York Times] Michele Sindona has trouble recalling many details of his alleged abduction because, he told investigators, he was apparently drugged at times. Despite a gag order issued by a federal judge, law enforcement officials provided information about Mr. Sindona's account of what occurred during his disappearance. [New York Times] Korea's army took control of the fast-growing industrial cities of Masan and Changwon, 35 miles from Pusan, which had been put under martial law after anti-government demonstrations led by students broke out last week. A protest in Masan Friday was held by students of Kyungsang University. The government closed that university and Kyungbuk National University at Taejon, 60 miles north of Pusan. [New York Times] The United States seeks clarification from the Soviet Union of its recent offer to reduce the number of its medium-range missiles targeted on Western Europe if the Western allies forgo plans to put American-built missiles in place in Western Europe in the early 1980's. A senior State Department official said that despite skepticism in Washington about the Soviet proposal, a diplomatic exchange has begun to determine whether Moscow has genuine desire for mutual arms control. [New York Times]