1984-1985 Facts & History

[NerdiestKen]

All facts and history from the 1986 World Almanac can be read here.

[NerdiestKen]

Gandhi Visits U.S. - June 1985
For the first time since he became prime minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi visited the United States. The U.S. trip, June 11-15, was part of a 5-nation tour that included Egypt, France, Algeria and Switzerland. Welcoming Gandhi, June 12, Pres. Ronald Reagan gave his support to a united India, a pointed rebuff to the Sikh separatist movement. Sikh extremists had assassinated Gandhi's mother, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, and other Sikhs had threatened to kill Rajiv Gandhi during his U.S. visit. Gandhi reportedly told Reagan he was concerned that Pakistan would develop nuclear weapons with U.S. aid. Addressing Congress, June 13, he sought to meet U.S. concern about India's failure to oppose Soviet intervention in Afghanistan by calling for a political settlement that would preserve Afghan independence.

[NerdiestKen]

Thousands Killed in Mexican Earthquake - September 1985
A powerful earthquake sent deadly shockwaves through central and southwestern Mexico, September 19, taking more than 5,000 lives and causing widespread destruction. Heaviest devastation was in the capital, Mexico City. The epicenter of the quake was placed 230 miles southwest of the center of Mexico City. The quake measured at a high of 7.8 on the Richter Scale. A second earthquake, lesser in force but still severe at 7.3 on the scale, struck some of the same areas, September 20, that 250 buildings had been destroyed in Mexico City and 50 more had been damaged beyond repair. In the days after the quakes, more buildings collapsed. Rescue efforts concentrated on saving living persons trapped inside the wreckage, and thousands of people helped remove the rubble, using their hands, picks and shovels, and larger equipment where it could be employed safely. Tens of thousands of people were made homeless, and most of them had no choice but to live and sleep in the open.

[NerdiestKen]

U.S.-Soviet Summit Set for November - July 1985
Anatoly Dobrynin, the Soviet ambassador to the United States, met with the U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz in Washington, July 1, and it was announced, July 2, that Dobrynin had conveyed the USSR's agreement to a summit conference. The summit meeting, between Pres. Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, was scheduled for Geneva on November 19 and 20. U.S. administration officials sought to diminish speculation that the meeting might lead to a significant breakthrough in resolving the differences between the 2 countries. The second round of U.S.-Soviet arms control talks ended in Geneva, July 16. No tangible progress was reported, and each side criticized the other. The White House said that the Soviet delegates preferred not to "deal in concrete terms and with hard numbers," and the chief Soviet negotiator, Viktor Karpov, said that the United States was marking time while it pushed its military buildup. Gorbachev, in a statement issued July 29, declared a unilateral moratorium on nuclear tests, to begin August 6. U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz rejected the freeze, saying it did not have any provisions for verification.

[NerdiestKen]

British Coal Miners Vote to End Strike - March 1985
The long violent strike by British coal miners ended in March when they voted to return to work. The end of the strike, which had lasted almost a year, represented a defeat for the miners. Their principal issue---the decision by the National Coal board to shut down 20 pits that it said were "uneconomic"---was not resolved. By March 1, more than half of the miners had already returned to work. On March 3, the delegates to a conference of the National Union of Mineworkers voted to go back to work, and by March 5, the strike had formally ended. Union leader Arthur Scargill, who opposed the decision, blamed the failure of the walkout on the refusal of most other unions to support it. Nearly 10,000 persons were arrested during the strike, and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher said, March 5, that there would be no amnesty for those who had committed "serious criminal offenses."

[NerdiestKen]

Statue Honoring Vietnam Veterans Unveiled - November 1984
The addition of a statue completed the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in November, and it then formally became a national monument under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service. Three days of ceremonies began in the Washington, D.C. area, November 9, with the unveiling of Three Servicemen, a sculpture by Frederick Hart. At a distance of 80 feet, the 7-foot tall figures faced the V-shaped wall of black granite inscribed with the names of 58,022 Americans killed or missing in action in Southeast Asia. A candlelight vigil was conducted at the monument, November 10, and on November 11, Armistice Day, Pres. Ronald Reagan dedicated the sculpture and addressed 150,000 persons.

[NerdiestKen]

Albanian Leader Hoxha Dies - April 1985
Enver Hoxha, first secretary of the Albanian Communist Party since 1944, died April 11. Active in the resistance to Italian rule during World War II, Hoxha never yielded power once he attained it upon liberation. He supported Soviet leader Joseph Stalin without reservation and, after the USSR turned away from Stalinism, Hoxha broke with the USSR. He had later formed an alliance with China, only to withdraw again and lead Albania into almost total isolation. Albania, on April 12. rejected condolences from the Soviet Union. Radio Tirana announced, April 13, that Pres. Ramiz Alia had been chosen to succeed Hoxha as first secretary.

[NerdiestKen]

Greek Premier Wins National Election - June 1985
Premier Andreas Papandreou retained power in the Greek national election, June 2, by a larger margin than had been forecast. His Pan Hellenic Socialist Movement won 46 percent of the popular vote and 161 seats in the 300-member parliament. The conservative New Democracy Party, led by Constantine Mitsotakis, got 41 percent of the popular vote and 125 seats. Two communist parties received most of the rest of the votes. Mitsotakis had promised improved relations with the United States, which had been rebuked on occasion by Papandreou. The left-leaning premier had once threatened to close U.S. military bases in Greece. The 18 percent inflation rate and the growing foreign debt were other issues. But abusive language had dominated the campaign, and Papandreou hailed his victory as one of "democracy, progress, and change" over "reaction" and "authoritarianism."

[NerdiestKen]

Brokerage Firm Admits Check Fraud - May 1985
E.F. Hutton, one of the nation's largest brokerage companies, pleaded guilty, May 2, to 2,000 federal charges related to the manipulation of its checking accounts. The New York City company agreed to pay $2M in fines and pay back up to $8M to banks it had defrauded. Under the complicated scheme, Hutton had interest-free use of up to $250M a day that it did not in fact possess. U.S. Attorney General Edwin Meese said the prosecution of the case was a signal "to the business world that so-called white-collar crime will not be tolerated." About 25 persons were identified as organizers of the plot, and 50 employees had been given immunity from prosecution. Fifteen U.S. senators wrote Meese, May 7, protesting what they called the "blatant failure to find individual liability" in the case.

[NerdiestKen]

Soviet Missile Overflies 2 Neighbors - January 1985
It was revealed in January that a Soviet cruise missile had flown over the territory of Norway and Finland on December 28. The defense ministries of the 2 Scandinavian countries reported the overflight, January 2, and officials of the 2 countries said, January 4, that Soviet envoys had apologized and had said that the object was an old Soviet cruise missile used for target practice. Finnish border guards began searching for the missile, which disappeared in the vicinity of Lake Inari, near where broders of all 3 countries meet. They found it near the lake, January 30.

[NerdiestKen]

OPEC Cuts Oil Prices Amid Discord - January 1985
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries cut prices of most brands of its crude oil in January, and its internal squabbles threatened to weaken the future effectiveness of the cartel. Meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, nine members of OPEC approved the new pricing structure, January 30, but three nations (Algeria, Iran and Libya) refused to go along with the reductions and Gabon abstained from the voting. Energy conservation and competition from non-OPEC suppliers had forced the OPEC majority to act. OPEC decided to retain its outpost ceiling of 16M barrels per day, which had been imposed in 1984 to deal with the oil glut on the world market.

[NerdiestKen]

Duarte's Party Wins El Salvador Election - March 1985
The Christian Democratic Party headed by Pres. Jóse Napoleón Duarte scored a surprising victory, March 31, in elections to fill seats in the National Assembly. In the previous assembly, 2 conservative parties, including one led by Duarte's bitter rival Roberto D'Aubuisson, had held a majority of the seats. The old assembly had thwarted many of Duarte's reforms and had resisted his efforts to make peace with leftists guerillas. In the March 31 voting, the Christian Democrats won a small majority in the 60-seat assembly despite the adoption by the previous assembly of a law that had favored the rightists by permitting them to form a coalition. Duarte pledged to continue his peace efforts and his investigation into human-rights abuses.

[NerdiestKen]

NBA Final 1984-85 Standings for Eastern & Western conferences

Atlantic Division Boston Celtics 63W/19L/GB-- Philadelphia 76ers 58W/24L/GB5 New Jersey Nets 42W/40L/GB21 Washington Bullets 40W/42L/GB23 New York Knicks [e] 24W/58L/GB39	Midwest Division Denver Nuggets 52W/30L/GB-- Houston Rockets 48W/34L/GB4 Dallas Mavericks 44W/38L/GB8 San Antonio Spurs 41W/41L/GB11 Utah Jazz 41W/41L/GB11 Kansas City Kings [e] 31W/51L/GB21
Central Division Milwaukee Bucks 59W/23L/GB-- Detroit Pistons 46W/36L/GB13 Chicago Bulls 38W/44L/GB21 Cleveland Cavaliers 36W/46L/GB23 Atlanta Hawks [e] 34W/48L/GB25 Indiana Pacers [e] 22W/60L/GB37	Pacific Division L.A. Lakers 62W/20L/GB-- Portland Trail Blazers 42W/40L/GB20 Phoenix Suns 36W/46L/GB26 L.A. Clippers [e] 31W/51L/GB31 Seattle SuperSonics [e] 31W/51L/GB31 Golden State Warriors [e] 22W/60L/GB40

[NerdiestKen]

New Orleans Fair Files Bakruptcy - November 1984
The 1984 Louisiana World Exposition filed for protection from its creditors, November 6, under Chapter 11 of the U.S bankruptcy code. The New Orleans fair had already defaulted on a $40M loan obtained from more than 100 corporate backers. Losses for the fair were reported to be in excess of $100M. The fair concluded its 6-month run, November 11, and fair officials said they did not have enough money even to dismantle the facilities. Only 7.2M persons attended the fair, far below the hoped-for 11M. Construction-cost overruns and underdecapitalization were also blamed for the huge deficit. A real-estate development company came to a partial rescue by working out a deal to purchase part of the fairgrounds for incorporation into a riverfront marketplace and entertainment center.

[NerdiestKen]

AMA Calls for Abolition of Boxing - December 1984
The American Medical Association, December 5, adopted a resolution for an end to both professional and amateur boxing. The resolution was approved overwhelmingly in a voice vote at the annual meeting of the AMA House of Delegates in Honolulu. It warned of "the dangerous effects of boxing on the health of participants." Dr. Joseph Boyle, president of the AMA, said that scientific study showed that blows sustained in boxing resulted in "both acute and long-term brain injury." He added that even short exposure to boxing could result in disabling injuries.