TIME: Almanac 1995

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<text id=94TT0660> <title> May 23, 1994: Chronicles:The Week:May 8-15 </title> <history> TIME--The Weekly Newsmagazine--1994 May 23, 1994 Cosmic Crash </history> <article> <source>Time Magazine</source> <hdr> CHRONICLES, Page 13 The Week: May 8 - 15 </hdr> <body> NATION It's Breyer for the Court Ending weeks of intense speculation, President Clinton on Friday nominated Boston Federal Appeals Judge Stephen Breyer to succeed retiring Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun. Breyer, a former chief counsel of the Senate Judiciary Committee, drew immediate praise from key Republicans and Democrats in the Senate for his brilliance, moderation and consensus-building skills. He was passed over last time in favor of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Getting a Grip on Haiti? Amid increasing tension and rumors of a possible armed intervention, the U.S. took steps to focus its policy toward Haiti. President Clinton appointed a new special envoy to the country: William Gray, a former Congressman from Pennsylvania. The White House also announced that Haitian boat people would now be permitted hearings at sea to determine whether they should be allowed political asylum. Meanwhile the Haitian military government named Supreme Court Justice Emile Jonassaint, 80, as President, a move the U.S. denounced as "cynical, unconstitutional and illegal." Senate: The Party's Over Seeking to dispel voters' perceptions that politicians are the slaves of special-interest groups, the U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly (95 to 4)--and in many cases grudgingly--to ban gifts, meals and recreational travel offered by lobbyists. The House passed a similar but slightly less restrictive measure in March. Execution by the Numbers? In an effort to influence the final shape of the crime bill, the Senate voted to oppose the Racial Justice Act, a House proposal that would permit death-row defendants to fight their sentences by invoking statistics showing racial disparities in sentencing. Proponents of the Senate's nonbinding resolution described the House measure as a "quota bill" that would be used by opponents of the death penalty. Big Wins for Abortion Clinics The Senate approved, 69 to 30, a bill that makes it a federal crime to attack or blockade abortion clinics. The vote came in the wake of a Houston jury award of more than $1 million in punitive damages to a Planned Parenthood clinic that claimed its business had been disrupted by Operation Rescue and Rescue America. The organizations are appealing the decision. Dr. Death Recharged In two seemingly contradictory rulings, Michigan's Court of Appeals reinstated murder charges against Dr. Jack Kevorkian for assisting in the suicides of two women in 1991, but declared the state's ban on assisted suicide unconstitutional on technical grounds. One in a Series Joel Rifkin, a landscape gardener from Long Island, New York, who has admitted killing 17 women, was convicted of second-degree murder in the death of Tiffany Bresciani--the first of the slayings to come to trial. Rifkin's insanity plea was rejected. The Skipper Had a Few Testifying in an Anchorage courtroom as part of a civil lawsuit against the Exxon Corp., Joseph Hazelwood, captain of the Exxon Valdez, admitted he was less than candid with a Coast Guard investigator immediately after his ship ran aground in 1989 and spilled 11 million gal. of oil. Hazelwood testified that instead of just one beer, he had had three vodka drinks before leaving port, and that Exxon had known about his drinking problem. WORLD Palestinians Begin Transfer Vanguards of an eventual 9,000-strong Palestinian police force arrived in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. They were boisterously welcomed by Palestinians as the first tangible sign of the transition to self-rule. The armed, uniformed force announced that its first priority will be to disarm thousands of civilians. Meanwhile, the P.L.O. began to set up the governmental structures that will control the two areas. Mandela Inaugurated In a joyous ceremony attended by representatives of more than 150 countries, Nelson Mandela became the first black President of South Africa. "Never, never and never again shall this beautiful land experience the oppression of one by another and suffer the indignity of being the skunk of the world," he said. On Friday, however, township violence broke out again, resulting in 12 deaths. Rebels Shell Rwandan Capital Tutsi rebels continued their advance on the Rwandan capital of Kigali, shelling positions held by the Hutu-dominated Rwandan army. The U.N. Security Council is set to vote on a plan that would impose an arms embargo on both sides and send an all-African force to intervene. Maneuvering for Bosnian Peace Foreign ministers from Europe, Russia and the U.S. agreed to urge the Serbs and Muslims to begin peace talks within two weeks. A proposed settlement would give the Serb aggressors 49% of Bosnian territory, with the remaining 51% going to the new federation of Bosnian Muslims and Croats. Meanwhile the U.S. Senate passed a measure requiring President Clinton to lift an embargo on arms sales to the Bosnians despite the objections of American allies. Yemeni Civil War Rages On Soldiers from Yemen's conservative North were reported to be bogged down along the former border between North and South Yemen 60 miles from the strategic southern port of Aden, as the formerly Marxist South claimed to have repulsed the latest attack in the civil war that broke out May 5. A Scud-missile attack launched by Southern forces killed two dozen people in the capital of San`a. Widely varying reports of the war's casualties range from a few hundred to 12,000 killed or wounded. New Italian PM Sworn In Millionaire businessman Silvio Berlusconi, 57, took the oath of office as Prime Minister of Italy's 53rd post-World War II government. He named a Cabinet that included, as expected, members of the neo-Fascist National Alliance. China Human-Rights Moves China gave permission for a legal scholar to travel to the U.S. and paroled another dissident held since 1990 on charges of attempting to overthrow the government. Both moves appeared to be part of an effort to persuade President Clinton to renew China's most-favored-nation trade status. At the same time, China's legislature announced 18 new grounds for detaining and arresting dissidents, and at least six people were detained in Shanghai. BUSINESS Interest Rates: Up? Although figures released for the month of April show that the U.S. economy is not growing at an inflationary pace, analysts still expect the Federal Reserve in the U.S. to raise interest rates for a fourth time this year in order to stabilize global markets. Deal of the Century In what was announced as the largest telecommunications contract for an American company abroad, the Saudi Arabian government awarded AT&T a $4 billion contract to modernize its phone system. Intense lobbying from the Clinton Administration, including visits from Secretary of State Warren Christopher and Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown, contributed to the success of the deal. SCIENCE Screening Debate In a controversial finding, the National Cancer Institute last year concluded that regular mammograms, while recommended for older women, don't reduce mortality rates for women in their 40s. But Swedish researchers issued a report last week that concluded the opposite. The study tracked 24,000 Swedish women for 10 years and found that those who had mammograms in their 40s had a 40% lower death rate from breast cancer than women who weren't screened. Dioxin Danger An alarming preliminary report issued by the Environmental Protection Agency warned that low levels of exposure to dioxin, an environmental contaminant already linked to various cancers, may also impair the immune system as well as fetal development. Dioxin is a product of burning chlorine-based chemicals. THE ARTS & MEDIA Art Depreciation Impressionist and modern art auctions continued to disappoint. At Christie's and Sotheby's, artworks that were estimated to reap between $160 million and $215 million instead brought in $101 million--a stunning setback for the already shaky art market. Although works by a few artists sold at higher-than-expected prices, the surprises were not enough to offset the embarrassments. By Leslie Dickstein, Christopher John Farley, Lina Lofaro, Michael Quinn, Jeffery C. Rubin, Alain L. Sanders, Anastasia Toufexis and Sidney Urquhart UNCONVINCING DEMOCRAT OF THE WEEK Haiti's military commander, Lieut. General Raoul Cedras, shows his support for the country's newly installed President, Emile Jonassaint INSIDE WASHINGTON What Do College Football Players Have in Common with the Executive Office Staff? At least 10 employees of the executive office of the president have been targeted for drug tests to be conducted at random times, according to Patsy Thomasson, director of the White House Office of Administration. Congressional Republican sources claim the tests are necessary because background checks uncovered recent or extensive drug use among the Executive Office staff--a group totaling more than 1,000, ranging from clerical workers to senior officials. WINNERS & LOSERS Winners MIA FARROW: Her first post-Woody work in Widows' Peak is wildly praised WINNIE MANDELA: Nelson's estranged wife-felon rates post in new government DARYL F. GATES: Former Los Angeles top cop dropped from Rodney King's lawsuit Losers WOODY ALLEN: He loses custody appeal--and is forced to pay Mia's legal bills OPERATION RESCUE: Antiabortion group loses big-bucks suit to Planned Parenthood BRUCE BABBITT: It's Babbitt; it's Babbitt; it's Babbitt...um, it's not Babbitt NO SECONDS Before he was executed on May 10, serial killer John Wayne Gacy enjoyed an artery-clogging last meal of fried chicken, fried shrimp, French fries and fresh strawberries. Was he consciously emulating the final repasts of Perry Smith and Richard Hickock (of In Cold Blood notoriety)? A historical survey of last meals: TED BUNDY: Serial killer; electrocuted Jan. 24, 1989; Starke, Florida. Last meal: steak, eggs, hashed brown potatoes, coffee. GARY MARK GILMORE: Murderer; shot by firing squad Jan. 17, 1977; Point of the Mountain, Utah. Last meal: hamburgers, eggs, potatoes, coffee, whiskey. PERRY SMITH AND RICHARD HICKOCK: Murderers; hanged April 14, 1965; Lansing, Kansas. Last meal: shrimp, French fries, garlic bread, ice cream, strawberries and whipped cream. ADOLF EICHMANN: "Contribut((ed)) to" the murder of 6 million Jews during World War II; hanged May 31, 1962; near Tel Aviv, Israel. Last meal: half a bottle of Carmel, a dry red Israeli wine. BRUNO RICHARD HAUPTMANN: Kidnapper and murderer of Charles A. Lindbergh Jr.; electrocuted April 3, 1936; Trenton, New Jersey. Last meal: celery, olives, chicken, French fries, buttered peas, cherries, cake. JOAN OF ARC: Heretic, blasphemer, wearer of men's clothing; burned at the stake May 30, 1431; Rouen, France. Last meal: Holy Communion. THE 10 MOST... Vilified personalities on talk radio since July 1990, according to a continuing survey of over 100 stations conducted by Talkers Magazine <list> <item> 1. Bill Clinton <item> 2. Hillary Rodham Clinton <item> 3. Saddam Hussein <item> 4. Dan Quayle <item> 5. George Bush <item> 6. Louis Farrakhan <item> 7. Ross Perot <item> 8. Anita Hill <item> 9. Ted Kennedy <item> 10. Clarence Thomas </list> THESE FRIENDS OF MINE "Sure, he might have made eye contact with her, they might have flirted and he may have invited her up to his room...but it's not like Bill to pull down his pants." -- Gennifer Flowers, rallying to President Clinton's defense in the wake of Paula Jones' lawsuit INFORMED SOURCES U.N. Peacekeepers Keep the Press Out Zagreb--The U.N. PROTECTION FORCE (UNPROFOR) in the former Yugoslavia would rather obstruct the media than risk exacerbating tension between the warring factions. Last week it denied journalists access to an area of eastern Croatia that was devastated by Serbs two years ago and is now ostensibly under U.N. control. Said a top UNPROFOR officer: "We have a gentlemen's agreement with the Serbs. We promised not to show things that might embarrass them to journalists." Because they thought it might inflame local passions, UNPROFOR also withheld from reporters a videotape made by U.N. troops showing Bosnian Croat tanks destroying the 16th century Stari Most bridge at Mostar. White House Welfare Waffling Washington--PRESIDENT CLINTON'S vow to "end welfare as we know it" was one of his most popular campaign promises. His welfare-reform team has had a legislative plan ready for Clinton to approve for weeks, but they can't get him to focus on it. They have urged that he announce his welfare proposals on June 8 or 9. "But we can't get the White House to tell us when they want to launch it, much less how," says a frustrated official. "Part of the problem is the inability to make a decision." Wanted: Beach House for Three (Plus the Secret Service) Washington--BILL and HILLARY CLINTON, normally slow to plan their summer vacations, are getting an early start this year. The Clintons are interested in returning to Martha's Vineyard, but this time they want a spread that is a bit more lavish than the modest digs provided last August by former Defense Secretary Robert McNamara. The Secret Service has begun to do some advance checking on the island but hasn't yet found a suitable house. Apparently nobody who has a place large enough to suit the First Family wants to give it up and miss the chance to hobnob with the Clintons. DIFF'RENT VOTES Here's how a cross section of democracies rate in terms of voter turnout. South Africa might have ranked at the top if Australians weren't forced to vote by law. <table> <row><cell type=a>Australia (93*)<cell type=i>96%** <row><cell>South Africa (94)<cell>86 <row><cell>Denmark (90)<cell>83 <row><cell>Germany (90)<cell>78 <row><cell>Britain (92)<cell>78 <row><cell>Isreal (92)<cell>77 <row><cell>Canada (93)<cell>69 <row><cell>Japan (93)<cell>67 <row><cell>United States (92)<cell>55 <row><cell>Russia (993)<cell>54 <row><cell>Mexico (88)<cell>52 <row><cell>India (91)<cell>50 </table> <list> <item>* Year of most recent national election. <item>* Percentage of total eligible population. </list> GROUNDED Last week the Senate voted 95 to 4 in favor of banning gifts from lobbyists and other special-interest groups. What's been lost? Here are some free trips three of the holdouts took during 1991-92. (The fourth, freshman Robert Bennett, a Utah Republican, hasn't yet filed financial-disclosure forms.) <table> <tblhdr><cell><cell>DESTINATION<cell>SPONSOR <row><cell type=a>Ernest Hollings<cell type=a>Myrtle Beach, S.C.<cell type=a>Philip Morris <row><cell><cell>San Diego<cell>American Textile Manufacturers Institute* <row><cell><cell>Savannah, Ga.<cell>MCI* <row><cell>Frank Murkowski<cell>Edinburgh<cell>Rowan Drilling* <row><cell><cell>San Francisco<cell>Martin Marietta* <row><cell><cell>Seattle<cell>Boeing <row><cell><cell>West Palm Beach, Fla.<cell>American Medical Association* <row><cell>Malcolm Wallop<cell>Houston<cell>American Petroleum Institute* <row><cell><cell>London<cell>Enron Corp.* <row><cell><cell>San Diego<cell>Edison Electric Institute* </table> *Also paid for wife. Source: Public Citizen's Congress Watch DISPATCHES Gotham's New Outrage: Truants! By Jeffery C. Rubin, in New York City A sweet foretaste of summer hangs in the air on this hazy spring morning in the Bronx. The sun shines invitingly; the trees' buds are bursting open--in short, a perfect day for cutting school. But hooky players beware: New York City police department van No. 5932, piloted by Officers Michael DiAngelo and Walter Krajeski, is on patrol, part of a new, '50s-style anti-truancy program launched by new, '50s-style mayor Rudolph Giuliani. The officers' hunt begins in earnest at 9:30, after a stop for a bran muffin and coffee. "We always give 'em a little play," says DiAngelo. "But if they're an hour and a half late, they're fair game." Cruising along East 182nd Street, the officers describe the finer points of pursuit. Traditionally, says DiAngelo, truants were predominantly boys, "but girls are cutting more now." Girls, Officer Krajeski says, "are always `sick' or `late.' They don't run as much. Solos never run; groups usually do." First to be apprehended are Juan and Jose, spotted strolling along the sidewalk. "I woke up late," Jose explains halfheartedly as he and Juan are hustled into the van. The cops, of course, have heard it all before. "I had one girl tell me, `Today is my day to get pregnant,'" Krajeski recalls, shaking his head. "I said, `Excuse me?' I had to ask her to repeat it because I thought I heard her wrong. `I'm going to meet my boyfriend,' she said. `I want to be a young mother--I want to have four children by the time I'm 18.' She was 14." Juan and Jose settle into the backseat. "At least they got good music," Jose says appreciatively as hip-hop plays on the radio. The van rapidly fills with captives. "We've got two more right here," says Krajeski, zeroing in on a pair of loitering targets. "Look, they're smiling already." Minutes later, a girl in the back catches sight of a passing youth and shouts, "Hey! That's Anthony!" The van slows obligingly, and Krajeski calls out, "Come over here, Anthony." The startled kid climbs aboard. Soon after, two high school sweethearts, draped over each other and oblivious to the world, walk right up to the van--and into the trap. "We got Romeo and Juliet here," says Krajeski. At a red light, the van idles and a passerby slaps its side and yells, "Stay in school!" Krajeski beams. "The people on the street enjoy this. We get applause sometimes." The passengers are getting rowdy: "When are we stopping for doughnuts?" "I'll buy you lunch! I'll buy you a ham-and-cheese sandwich." The officers ignore the gibes. "We get one doughnut comment every day," says a good-natured Krajeski. "And we get offered bribes. One kid offered me a dollar to let him go, but he was special-ed." Says DiAngelo: "We try not to be too hard-ass. We try to keep the relationship open." The van unloads at the "catchment center," where the truants will fill out forms and be instructed to return to school (most do, since each one's principal is telephoned). As the kids wait to be processed, a squad of ROTC students in crisp blue uniforms marches by in formation. One truant stares, wide-eyed. "What's that?" She cringes. "That's what they're going to do to you," someone tells her. "No way!" she cries. She's right. </body> </article> </text>