1975 News and Interesting History Tidbits

Oil Reaches $13.00 per barrel
Price controls on oil at $11.30 per barrel ( current market price 1975 is $13.00 per barrel )to come into effect when the current oil price controls run out have been voted on by Congress and have been passed , but President Carter is likely to veto the bill which would allow gas to rise by 7 cents per gallon as he is concerned that the increased reliance on foreign imports by as much as 350,000 barrels per day would not be in the long term interests of America. The current price controls are due to expire at the end of August. ( Oil Price currently over $100.00 barrel )

1975 US Economic Woes
President Gerald Ford on his very first state of the union address painted a grim portrait of America's economic woes. Millions of Americans are out of work. Recession and inflation are eroding the money of millions more. Prices are too high and sales are too low.

Inflation at 9%
The Nations Consumer Price Index has been published today which shows that the yearly inflation is currently running at 9% , but in some areas such as the cost of food running at close to 1.5% per month and gas at whopping 3% with premium Gas prices reaching 60 cents per gallon.

Personal Bankruptcy On The Increase
A growing number of people are filing for personal bankruptcy which is more than ever before, the reasons can be traced through to any number including


Inflation


Pay rises not matching expectations


Increased use of Credit Cards


Shop-A-Holics


Gas Price Increases

Britain's National Front Party
Right wing opponents who are member of Britain's National Front Party and oppose Britain's entry into the common market rally in Islington, North London.

Dutch Elm Disease
Dutch elm disease spreads from North America and has now destroyed more than three million trees in Britain and is continuing to spread according to Forestry Commission officials. The disease is believed to have spread from North America to Britain in infected imported timber.

By the end of the decade nearly 1/3 of all Elm trees in Britain were destroyed by the fungal disease which was spread by the elm bark beetle.

King Faisal Assassinated
King Faisal is fatally wounded by his nephew Prince Faisal Ibu Musaed when he fires 3 shots directly at the king from a pistol during a royal audience .


Prince Faisal bin Musaed was later found guilty of the murder of his uncle and was beheaded in public in the capital Riyadh.

Tuvalu Gains Independence
Tuvalu a group of nine Coral Atols in the South Pacific Gains Independence from Great Britain in 1975

Arthur Ashe Wins Wimbledon
Arthur Ashe becomes the first black man to win the Wimbledon mens singles championship beating the legendary Jimmy Connors .

Moorgate Underground Crash
A London underground train crashed into a brick wall at Moorgate during rush-hour killing the driver and at least 29 passengers in London's Financial district.

Angola Gains Independence
Angola in Africa gains independence from Portugal in 1975

Indira Gandhi found guilty of electoral corruption
Indira Gandhi , the prime minister of India, is found guilty of electoral corruption in her successful 1971 campaign. Gandhi refused to give up India's top office and later declared martial law in the country when public demonstrations threatened to topple her administration.

British Voters Vote YES to Stay in the EEC
In the national referendum in June British voters back the UK's continued membership of the European Economic Community with just over 67% of voters supporting the campaign to stay in the EEC, or Common Market.

The Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef the world's largest coral reef system is protected as the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park by the Government of Australia in 1975. The park is now managed, jointly with the Government of Queensland, through the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. The biggest threat to the Great Barrier Reef is coral bleaching caused by rising ocean temperatures through climate change.

End Of Vietnam War
US Involvement in Vietnam is now complete as helicopters and marines bring out the last US Citizens and parents of thousands of South Vietnamese children are begging the US to save the children as US Marines are using pistol and rifle butts to smash the fingers of Vietnamese trying to climb over the walls and enter the US Embassy compound .

President Nguyen Van Thieu of South Vietnam is forced to resign accusing the United States of betrayal by not providing the money and support to continue the battle. Nine days after his resignation, the Vietnam war ended with the fall of Saigon to the North Vietnamese army.
Saigon, Vietnam Changed Its Name To Ho Chi Minh City in 1975

US Pull Out of Cambodia
The US admits defeat in Cambodia and removed its remaining embassy personnel from the capital, Phnom Penh

Terrorist Bomb La Guardia Airport
A terrorist bomb is exploded in the main terminal of New York's LaGuardia Airport, killing 11 people.

Mozambique Gains Independence
Mozambique in Africa Gains Independence from Portugal in 1975

Beirut Street Battle Beginning Of Civil War
At least 17 people are left dead and 30 wounded in an ambush by right-wing Lebanese forces on a bus carrying Palestinians in Beirut.
This signals the beginning of 15 years of civil war in Lebanon between The Maronite Christian groups and the Muslim militias.

Suriname Gains Independence
Suriname in South America Gains Independence from the Netherlands in 1975

Sex Discrimination and Equal Pay Act
The Sex Discrimination and Equal Pay Acts comes into force which will prevent women being paid less than their male counterparts for doing the same job.

Coal Mine Explosion India
A coal mine explosion followed by a flood at the Chasnala Colliery in Dhanbad, India kills over 350.

New York City Bankruptcy
New York City government avoids bankruptcy when President Gerald R. Ford signed a $2.3 billion seasonal loan authorization to prevent the City from having to default and debt restructuring by the Municipal Assistance Corporation, headed by Felix Rohatyn. The city was also forced to accept increased financial scrutiny by an agency of New York State

Conservative Party Chooses Margaret Thatcher
The British Conservative Party has chosen it's first women leader, Margaret Thatcher and will be the first woman to head any British political party .

Coal Miners 35% Pay Rise
British mineworkers' leaders have agreed to accept the National Coal Board latest pay offer of up to 35% in pay increases. To put this in context the basic rate for workers at the coal face increased from £45 to £61 per week.



This was just one of the unions who negotiated massive pay rises in the 70's due to and helping to cause raging inflation in just a few years

In 1975 UK inflation continues to spiral out of control reaching 24.2% and the price of Petrol increased by nearly 70% in one year

CIA Assassination Plots Against Foreign Leaders
A congressional report accuses US officials of assassination plots against foreign leaders, suggesting the CIA used exotic weapons ranging from exploding seashells to poison cigars with presidential approval ( No proof was ever obtained of these accusations ) but following the report President Gerald Ford responded by issuing Executive Order 11905, banning the US from authorizing assassinations of foreign leaders.

Jimmy Hoffa Vanishes
Jimmy Hoffa the ex president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters is last seen in Last seen in Bloomfield Township ( suburb of Detroit ) , MI. Although presumed dead, his remains have never been found.

Transport Plane Evacuating Vietnamese Orphans Crashes
A U.S. Air Force transport plane ( C-5A Galaxy cargo plane )which was part of "Operation Babylift" evacuating Vietnamese orphans crashed shortly after takeoff from Saigon, killing 138 people, including 127 of the orphans, this was just under half of those who were on board.

North Sea Oil
The first oil pipeline to serve Forties oilfield starts pumping North Sea Oil, which the BP discovered six years ago. The Forties is the largest oilfield so far discovered in the British sector of the North Sea.

Seige of West German embassy in Stockholm
Baader-Meinhof guerrillas take hostages at the West German embassy in Stockholm, the siege ends when a cache of dynamite is detonated by the terrorists, causing the death of at least three people. The guerrillas had been holding 11 people hostage and demanding the release of the 26 Baader-Meinhof group members currently in prison in Germany .

Henry Kissinger speech in Paris Over 30 years ago

This is not aimed at any politician as I am one of those who is a great admirer of Henry Kissinger as I believe he was one of the great diplomats of our time. But while researching today in history a striking story that struck me was his speech in Paris, France in 1975 when he talked about stopping the western world being so dependent on Oil from the Arab States and how a trillion dollar plan over the next 30 years would make the problems that were occurring at that time with the Arab States raising the price of oil 6 times in one year causing a worldwide recession not happen again.

Now 30 years on we are all struggling because of much higher oil prices and we can blame the increases on multiple reasons ranging from

Greed of the oil companies

Increase of oil consumption worldwide due to new countries economic growth

The current world instability

But most of all we have made so little progress in 30 years to address the long term problem ( Oil is a finite natural resource we are using at an increasing rate ) and we have not found a viable alternative to provide for our energy needs

I believe when Henry Kissinger made that speech he truly believed with enough money spent on research and commitment to alternative energy it would happen, but for each of the alternatives the cost in terms of money ( Ethanol ), safety ( Nuclear ) , Environment ( Wind ) etc problems have stopped the breakthrough hoped for.

We have not been willing to accept as a society these other solutions.

So here we are today in very nearly the same position as 30 years ago and our politicians have not delivered on those promises ( some because they are not fully committed or because of pressure groups with business interests or just because there is still not yet a viable alternative ) let us hope that in the next 30 years we do make progress on this thorny issue.

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