News stories from Monday July 20, 1981
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- Postal contract talks continued past a 12:01 A.M. deadline in an attempt to reach agreement on a new three-year contract and avert a threatened strike. Nicholas Findandis, a federal mediator, said shortly after midnight, when the old contract expired: "We have decided to stop the clock. Bargaining is continuing." He declined to say whether new proposals had broadened the talks. [New York Times]
- The prosecution of draft evaders was set in motion by the Selective Service System. It sent to the Justice Department a list of 134 names of youths who had failed to register for conscription and asked the department to decide who should be prosecuted. [New York Times]
- The movement for children's rights, a stepchild of the liberation struggles of the 1960's, faces what its leaders call its greatest trial from the policies of the Reagan administration. This follows an unparalled decade of judicial and legislative efforts to define the rights of children in relation to the state, the family and the juvenile justice system. [New York Times]
- Efforts to guard the minimum benefit guaranteed by the Social Security System planned by House Democrats have touched off a major dispute with the White House. On the eve of the vote, President Reagan accused the Democrats of "opportunistic political maneuvering, cynically designed to play on the fears of many Americans." He warned that he would go on national television "as soon as possible" to present his case. [New York Times]
- Reconciliation of the budget cuts adopted by the House and Senate is being sought by 45 groups of legislators meeting all around Capitol Hill. One group will seek to reconcile differences over the food stamp program. The Senate has sliced $1.8 billion from the program, which would otherwise cost about $12.6 billion in the next fiscal year, while the House has reduced the program by $1.4 billion. [New York Times]
- The tragedy of the Jonestown cult will be recounted, beginning Wednesday, at the San Francisco trial of Larry Layton, who is accused of plotting murder as his last work for Jim Jones, the People's Temple leader who conducted the mass suicide of most of the cult members. Mr. Layton is charged with conspiring to kill Representative Leo Ryan and with plotting the attempted murder of Richard Dwyer, deputy chief of the United States mission to Guyana. [New York Times]
- A Turkish terrorist testified on the first day of his trial in Rome that he intended to kill Pope John Paul II in St. Peter's Square on May 13. The prisoner, Mehmet Ali Agca, was guarded by five policemen as he spoke in Turkish from a witness box enclosed on three sides by bulletproof glass and open only on the side facing the two judges and the jury. [New York Times]
- Splits among the major democracies over political as well as economic issues were said to be increasingly apparent at the Ottawa economic summit meeting. Leaders of the seven major industrial powers endorsed an American proposal to discuss the possibiliity of further curbs on trade with the Soviet Union. [New York Times]
- Plane deliveries to Israel were halted indefinitely by President Reagan in an effort to promote a cease-fire in Lebanon. Meanwhile, leaders of six other major industrial nations joined Mr. Reagan in issuing a statement deploring the escalation of fighting in the Middle East and calling for restraint by Israeli and Palestinian forces. [New York Times]
- Yasser Arafat vowed to fight back against the "barbarian war" that he said had been started by Israel. As Israeli artillery and jets pounded Palestinian positions in southern Lebanon for the 11th consecutive day, Mr. Arafat, the head of the Palestine Liberation Organization, said in Beirut: "We have nothing to lose." Lebanon said it would seek sanctions against Israel in the United Nations Security Council unless the Israelis agree to halt their attacks. [New York Times]
- Limits on the tenure of Polish leaders as well as unusual provisions making them more accountable to rank-and-file members were approved at the final session of a Communist Party congress in Warsaw. [New York Times]
|
Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 940.54 (-19.36, -2.02%)
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* |
| July 17, 1981 | 959.90 | 130.76 | 42.78 |
| July 16, 1981 | 955.48 | 130.34 | 39.01 |
| July 15, 1981 | 954.15 | 130.23 | 48.95 |
| July 14, 1981 | 948.25 | 129.65 | 45.23 |
| July 13, 1981 | 954.34 | 129.64 | 38.10 |
| July 10, 1981 | 955.67 | 129.37 | 39.95 |
| July 9, 1981 | 959.00 | 129.30 | 45.51 |
| July 8, 1981 | 953.48 | 128.32 | 46.00 |
| July 7, 1981 | 954.15 | 128.24 | 53.55 |
| July 6, 1981 | 949.30 | 127.37 | 44.59 |