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Historical Context for February 5, 1984

In 1984, the world population was approximately 4,782,175,519 people[†]

In 1984, the average yearly tuition was $1,148 for public universities and $5,093 for private universities. Today, these costs have risen to $9,750 and $35,248 respectively[†]

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Headlines from February 5, 1984

THE PRESSURE BUILDDS ON LEBANON, THE MARINES AND THE PRESIDENT

By Unknown Author

One day after President Reagan declared himself a candidate last week for a second term, the civil war in Lebanon claimed its 259th American service victim. The death of Lance Cpl. George L. Dramis in a bombardment at the Beirut airport, and the heavy fighting that persisted much of the week, underscored one of the President's biggest political liabilities - the miring of the marines in Lebanon's seemingly endless conflicts.

Week in Review Desk416 words

PROSPECTS

By H.j. Maidenberg

Explaining the Stock Slide What's been pushing the stock market down in recent weeks? Of all the reasons market analysts offer for why investors are building their cash positions elsewhere, perhaps none is as pertinent as the fact that returns on Treasury bills and bonds remain greater than the average income from stock dividends. Until recently, the market's strong advance had overshadowed the high yields on financial instruments. But now, investors appear to be comparing stock dividends with yields on competitive investments. ''With increasing signs that the market and general economy may be a bit tired, professional portfolio managers are once again shopping for yields,'' said Raymond T. Dalio, president of Bridgewater Associates, an economic consultanting firm in Wilton, Conn. Last week, short-term investors found that rates on Treasury bills were 4.7 percent above the average stock dividend yield, Mr. Dalio says, while long-term investors found that Treasury bond yields were 3.7 percent higher.

Financial Desk737 words

2 ISSUES GET EARLY START ON ASSEMBLY

By Peggy McCarthy

HARTFORD NEVER before has the issue of hospital costs attracted such widespread and powerful interests in Connecticut. On one side, the state's most influential business and insurance organizations are aligned with the state's top hospital industry regulator, elected local officials and groups for the elderly in a fight for a payment system in which hospital charges would be set in advance for all patients. Opposing them are the Connecticut Hospital Association, the Connecticut State Medical Society, the Connecticut Nurses Association and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Connecticut, which contend that the legislation would threaten the financial stability of hospitals and reduce the quality of health care. Governor O'Neill has stopped short of giving the plan a full endorsement, but said in a statement, ''We must design and support a new approach to hospital reimbursement.'' At a recent legislative hearing attended by all the concerned parties, Gardner E. Wright Jr., chairman of the State Commission on Hospitals and Health Care, which regulates hospitals in the state and which is sponsoring the legislation, said, ''Health costs in our state and nation are out of control. What we can and must do is put the brakes on hard on the entire health-care industry.''

Connecticut Weekly Desk1874 words

PAERDEGAT PROJECT

By Unknown Author

The owners of the Paerdegat Racquet Club, overlooking the Paerdegat Basin in the Canarsie section of Brooklyn, are putting about $2 million into an expansion project that will turn the eight-court facility into a threelevel swim, exercise, racquet and health club. The new Paedergat Racquet Club, expected to open early in April, will include 11 new racquetball courts, two swimming pools, a whirlpool bath, a Nautilus exercise equipment room as well as a bar and restaurant.

Real Estate Desk167 words

TOP BEIRUT SHIITE CALLS ON MOSELMS TO LEAVE CABINET

By Unknown Author

The leader of Lebanon's Shiite Moslems called on Moslem Cabinet ministers today to leave the Government and asked Lebanese Army soldiers to diso bey orders to fight. The call, by Nabih Berri, came amid street clashes in Beirut between the army and Shiite militiamen. Government sources said Prime Minister Shafik al-Wazzan, a Sunni Moslem, had told President Amin Gemayel, who is a Christian, that the Cabinet was ready to resign in the hope of paving the way for a new government representing all factions. It would be the third time since Sept. 26 that Mr. Wazzan had offered his resignation. A later report by the Christian Phalangist radio said the President had accepted the offer. There was no immediate confirmation.

Foreign Desk1108 words

GIFTED U.S. SKATERS WHO FIGHT BACK

By Neil Amdur

L AST winter, Peter Carruthers could hardly lift his sister, Kitty, during their pairs program in figure skating because of a painful shoulder injury. ''He was weak, you could feel it,'' Kitty recalled, describing their season as a nightmare. ''When he'd throw me, it was like a ton of bricks.'' In the XIV Olympic Winter Games that begin in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, this week, the Carrutherses may venture into even more demanding physical frontiers if they attempt the first quadruple throw in a competition. The move, a throw quadruple salchow, which their coach, Ron Ludington, labels ''extremely dangerous,'' calls for Peter to wind up and throw his sister high enough off the inside of his right arm for her to wheel four times counter-clockwise through the air and still land on the back outside edge of her right foot.

Sports Desk2863 words

THE SEAMY SIDE OF FLORIDA BANKING

By Penny Lernoux

Penny Lernoux is a freelance reporter based in Bogota, Colombia. Her book, ''In Banks We Trust,'' published this month, was the basis for this article. ''IVE never seen so many crooked goings-on in banks as in Florida,'' said the European head of a Miami bank. Not only had the bank's previous management been indicted for fraud, said the official, but hardly a day went by when the bank did not have to contend with forgeries, bad checks, credit card fraud and the like. While such stories might seem hyperbolic in other banking communities, they are common fare in Miami, where, in the view of law enforcement agents and many bankers, a deluge of ''hot'' money has attracted scoundrels from all over the world. Though top management in most South Florida banks does not sanction illegal activities, Federal authorities say that many banks there are being used by the underworld to siphon illegal money into legitimate financial channels. ''In Miami they have a saying in Spanish: 'The sharks are on the streets, not in the sea,' '' observed Richard Dailey, president of small Dadeland Bank.

Financial Desk2673 words

CANADA CONSIDERS HOCKEY WITHDRAWAL

By Unknown Author

The hockey dispute between the United States and Canada escalated tonight when the president of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association raised the possibility of a Canadian withdrawal from the competition at the Olympic Winter Games here if four of their players are ruled ineligible because of an American protest. Murray Costello, the association president, also suggested that as many as four players on the current United States squad have violated their Olympic eligibility. He added that Canada was prepared to disclose their identities and challenge their eligibility if the United States Olympic Committee followed through with its plans to file a formal protest against the Canadians. Costello would not name any of the players who might be involved in a Canadian counter- protest. But according to an American hockey source familiar with the situation, three of the four American players are Phil Verchota and John Harrington, returning members of the 1980 gold-medal team, and Bob Mason, the backup goalie.

Sports Desk731 words

SHEDDING LIGHT ON THE 'NOT SO STILL' LIFE OF JIMMY ERNST

By Phyllis Braff

SINCE his first one-man exhibition in 1941, Jimmy Ernst of East Hampton has participated in the great era of development for abstract art in this country, and his paintings, which blend surface action with principles of transparency, control and the visionary, are regarded as highly original achievements. Now, with the publication of his unusual memoir, ''A Not So Still Life,'' readers will discover that he is more than an artist with a distinguished career; friends, colleagues and strangers have been touched by his intelligence and compassion. Readers will follow his observations of a traumatic boyhood as a half-Jew in Cologne, where he was born in 1920; the difficulties in having an internationally famous father (Max Ernst was a key figure in both Dada and Surrealism); the agony of trying to arrange his mother's escape from Hitler's web (the effort failed; she was placed on one of the last trains to Auschwitz) and his own struggles as an impoverished immigrant, unable to speak English. His art world recollections are particularly significant, for he witnessed major developments on both sides of the ocean. ''In the book, I wanted to make the European artists human, without taking away from their genius,'' Mr. Ernst said in a recent interview.

Long Island Weekly Desk1299 words

SQUATTER HAVEN REHABILITATED

By Unknown Author

New owners are renovating a tax-delinquent, turn-of-the-century brick apartment building at the edge of a redevelopment area in Montclair, N.J., and expect it will be ready for tenants this summer. ''Most of the people who had been living there since the township took over the place were vagrants and squatters,'' said Alan F. Guillemain, a partner of Property Development Associates, the project's developers.

Real Estate Desk234 words

A NEW TOMS RIVER COMPLEX

By Shawn G. Kennedy

In Toms River, N.J., a 68-unit town- house condominium project is being built on an 11-acre site next to Dover Township's Manitou Park. The development, to be called Bey Lea Brook, will comprise two- and three-bedroom town houses with prices ranging from the mid-$70,000's to the upper $80,000's. The condominium community will have a swimming pool and a platform tennis court.

Real Estate Desk139 words

U.S. DEBT INTEREST WIPES OUT SAVING

By Robert Pear, Special To the New York Times

President Reagan's proposed budget for the fiscal year 1985 shows that the increase in interest payments on the Federal debt since he took office exceeds all the savings his Administration has achieved in health, education, welfare and social service programs. Federal officials said the increase was mainly a result of the growth of the budget deficit. If Federal revenue falls short of spending in any year, it creates a budget deficit, and the Government must borrow more money from the public. The accumulated total of such borrowing is the Federal debt.

National Desk866 words

I was wondering if anything interesting on the news was going on when I was born, and decided to create this website for fun. The purpose is to show people what was going on when they were born. With this website I've found out that it was a pretty slow news day on my birthday, but I bet it would feel cool to know a historical event happened on your birthday.

The data used in this project is provided by the New York Times API. They have by far the best API I was able to find, with articles dating back to the 1950s. There weren't any other major newspapers that had an API with close to as much data. The closest was the Guardian API, but theirs only went back to the 1990s. I decided to only use articles from the New York Times because their API was by far the best. This tool works if you have a birthday after the 1950s or so.

Some important dates in history I'd recommend looking up on this website are:

  • 9/11/2001: The September 11 Attacks happened on this day, the news articles from this date provide great context to the tragedy our nation suffered and the immediate response from the American people. The headlines capture the shock, confusion, and unity that emerged in the aftermath of this devastating event.
  • 7/20/1969: The historic Apollo 11 moon landing, when humans first set foot on another celestial body. The articles from this date showcase humanity's greatest achievement in space exploration and the culmination of the space race.
  • 11/9/1989: The fall of the Berlin Wall, marking the beginning of the end of the Cold War. The coverage provides fascinating insights into this pivotal moment in world history and the emotions of people as decades of division came to an end.
  • 1/20/2009: Barack Obama's inauguration as the first African American President of the United States, a watershed moment in American history that represented a major milestone in the ongoing journey toward racial equality.
  • 8/15/1969: The Woodstock Music Festival began, marking a defining moment in American counterculture and music history. The coverage captures the spirit of the era and the unprecedented gathering of young people.

These historical events are just a few examples of the fascinating moments in history you can explore through this tool. Whether you're interested in your own birthday, significant historical dates, or just curious about what was making headlines on any given day, this website offers a unique window into the past through the lens of contemporary news coverage.

You can read more on our blog.