This Day In 1970's History: Sunday October 15, 1978
- The cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church failed after four ballots to elect a successor to the late Pope John Paul I in their first day of voting. But the Vatican managed to confuse the world again, if only temporarily, with its failure to get its smoke signals straight. A puff of white smoke amid the black belching from a chimney made many in the crowd of 100,000 waiting in St. Peter's Square think for a moment that a new Pope had been elected. [Chicago Tribune]
- Congress passed an $18.7 billion tax cut, but the gains fail to offset next year's Social Security tax increases for many families. The wealthy, however, are assured of tax cuts. For the nation's middle classes, with incomes from $15,000 to $30,000, the cuts will range from $103 to $300 for a family of four, about the increase they will be paying in Social Security taxes. [Chicago Tribune]
- The energy legislation that President Carter had tried to get through Congress since last year finally broke through a Senate filibuster and then cleared the House this morning. The legislation contains measures regulating natural gas pricing, utility rates, coal conservation, and energy taxes and credits. [Chicago Tribune]
- Congress passed the Humphrey-Hawkins "full employment" bill, with some calling it mere "symbolism" and others a far-reaching economic charter. The bill raced through the House in 15 minutes and was approved by a Senate vote of 56-14, sending it to President Carter for his signature. Carter strongly endorsed the bill, which will for the first time set in law a specific goal to reduce unemployment -- from the current 6 percent to 4 percent by 1983. [Chicago Tribune]
- Patty Hearst will reportedly marry one of her former bodyguards in jail if she does not receive a pardon by Valentine's Day. The New York Post said that Miss Hearst, 24, plans to marry Bernard Shaw on Feb. 14, a year after she became engaged to the 30-year-old San Francisco policeman. She is serving a seven-year sentence for a bank robbery conviction. Shaw was one of 20 bodyguards who escorted her while she was out on bail pending an appeal. [Chicago Tribune]
|
