| President Clinton decided to keep Janet Reno as attorney general, despite the widespread belief that he would rather not. (See earlier " Week/Spin" column.) (posted 12/13) |
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Franco-American war erupted on two fronts. At the United Nations, France led the unsuccessful campaign to thwart a U.S. veto of a second term for Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali. Now France defiantly stands alone against the U.S.-favored candidate, peacekeeping-operations chief Kofi Annan of Ghana. The French reportedly oppose Annan because the United States likes him and because he doesn't speak French well enough. Meanwhile, the French foreign minister walked out of a NATO luncheon during a toast of U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher, evidently because France and America are squabbling over who will control NATO's southern flank. The Washington Post noted that France has been testy elsewhere lately, accusing the United States of trying to undercut French influence in central Africa and the Middle East. In an elaborate national psychoanalysis, the New York Times explained that the French are lashing out at the United States because they're in a social and financial shambles and are simmering with "repressed envy."(posted 12/13) | | A national advisory council suggested three ways to shore up Social Security. The council's members agreed that inflation indexing should be reduced and benefits should be less exempt from income taxes. But they disagreed about three more-sweeping proposals: letting workers invest the money for their own retirements, having the government invest some Social Security funds in private stocks, and raising the payroll tax. The first alternative, privatization, generated the most controversy: Liberals warned that people's sense of mutual obligation would be eroded. Conservatives replied that Social Security is already eroding the sense of mutual obligation because Generation Xers expect it to go broke before they retire. The Wall Street Journal touted the privatization debate as another triumph of the capitalist Zeitgeist. (See S |
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LATE's take on privatization and on inflation indexing.) (posted 12/13) |
Michael Ovitz resigned from the No. 2 job at the Walt Disney Co., confirming predictions that the arrangement would never work. It lasted 16 months. As head of the Creative Artists Agency, Ovitz had been known as "the most powerful man in Hollywood." He reportedly couldn't make the transition from deal maker to corporate second fiddle. An anonymous Disney executive told the New York Times, "[H]e was like a crazy uncle at a family reunion, and nobody ever talks to him." Among the Disney debacles blamed on Ovitz were the departure of the company's chief financial officer and the run-in with China over the Dalai Lama biopic. Early in the week, Ovitz was rumored to be in line to run Sony's entertainment division, but his departure from Disney without a job only fueled the Schadenfreude of his many friends in show business. Ovitz's severance package topped $90 million. (posted 12/13) | | Congress accused military officials of covering up mismanagement of two recent debacles in the Middle East. Gulf War soldiers told a House subcommittee that they had detected nerve gas on the battlefield using sophisticated equipment, but that higher-ups had ignored the evidence. Committee members chastised Veterans Administration officials for refusing to diagnose Persian Gulf syndrome. Meanwhile, lawmakers in both parties blasted the Air Force for deciding not to censure the general who was in charge of the Saudi base where a truck bomb killed 19 American soldiers earlier this year. "For organizations that stress the importance of honor and duty," chided the New York Times, "America's armed services too often excuse the failures of their top officers."(posted 12/13) |
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| Chinese Defense Minister Chi Haotian arrived in Washington to improve Sino-American relations. Monday, Chi met with President Clinton and explained that China wants peace and stability. The Defense Department congratulated Chi for agreeing to preserve the U.S. Navy's access to Hong Kong. Then Tuesday, Chi ruined the mood by saying that "not a single person lost his life in Tiananmen Square" during the 1989 Beijing uprising, in which about 3,700 people were killed under Chi's direction. Critics pounced on Chi's lie as yet more proof that the Chinese regime is morally unreformable, and that Clinton is either too naive to see it or too cynical to care. (posted 12/13) |
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| An Oregon grand jury indicted Rep. Wes Cooley for allegedly lying about his military record. In his 1994 campaign, Cooley claimed to have served in Korea. Under Oregon law, the alleged deception is a felony because Cooley inserted it into official state voter guides. Cooley's wife may also be indicted for continuing to collect veteran's-widow benefits from a previous marriage even after she married Cooley. The Washington Post marveled that at long last a politician "has actually been indicted for lying" in a campaign. (posted 12/13) |
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| The Teamsters voted on whether to keep union president Ron Carey or replace him with James Hoffa (son of). Observers largely portrayed Carey as the candidate of reform and Hoffa as the candidate of the counterrevolution. Each candidate said the other would weaken the union, but analysts concluded that the union would end up weaker either way, because the bitter election has alienated each candidate from half the rank and file. (posted 12/13) |
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| A former secretary with carpal tunnel syndrome won the first successful lawsuit against a computer maker over injuries from using a keyboard. A New York jury awarded her $5.3 million from Digital Equipment Corp. The jurors concluded that Digital had failed to warn users about repetitive stress injuries, despite protestations from Digital and other manufacturers that they discuss the topic in their manuals. Industry analysts worried that this will inspire a carpal tunnel litigation land rush. The Clinton administration said it will seek federal regulations to prevent such injuries. (posted 12/13) |
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| Democrats won the last two contested seats in Congress. Elections to fill the two Texas seats had been delayed by court-ordered redistricting. Democrats touted the results, which reduced the GOP's House margin to 20, as proof of their momentum. Analysts agreed that internal strife crippled the GOP in both races: In one, moderates refused to support a right-wing Republican; in the other, right-wingers refused to support a moderate Republican. Liberal commentators said this strife was inherent in the GOP; conservatives, sticking to their blame-the-candidate script, said it was avoidable and stupid. (posted 12/13) |
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| Tickle Me Elmo, a furry Sesame Street muppet character, has become the rage of the Christmas toy-shopping season. He giggles when tickled; says, "Oh no, that tickles," when tickled again; and convulses with squeals of delight when tickled a third time. Elmo's inventor explained the toy's appeal in an interview with USA Today: "First comes the tease. Then the build-up. And finally, the payoff." Target stores sold out their allotment of 50,000 in two hours, and scalpers have been selling Elmo over the Internet for as much as $200, about seven times its retail price. (posted 12/13) |
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Stock markets tumbled worldwide after Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan hinted that "irrational exuberance" might have caused share prices to rise too far, too fast. The spin cycle began Thursday night, when foreign traders mistook Greenspan's comment for a signal of an impending interest-rate hike, causing Japanese and British markets to take their worst single-day plunges of the year. By Friday, American traders decided Greenspan was just playing a long-term head game, trying to persuade the market to brake itself gently so he won't have to brake it sharply. Once traders realized Greenspan was bluffing--and after a new economic report showed the economy already slowing--they resumed their buying orgy. After plummeting 144 points in the first half-hour of trading Friday, the Dow stormed back, finishing Monday 25 points higher than when Greenspan issued his warning. The NASDAQ did even better, setting a new record. By Monday afternoon, market pundits concluded that Greenspan had failed to tame the market and instead had proven the Fed's impotence in the face of the mob of speculators. (posted 12/10) | | Straws in the wind: The International Labor Organization reported that 30 percent of the world's work force is unemployed but, contrary to popular opinion, job stability hasn't declined. The Federal Trade Commission, taking a page from tobacco regulators, is investigating Stroh Brewery Co. for possibly advertising liquor to minors. Berkeley, Calif., is fighting the ACLU in court to defend its new laws against loitering and aggressive panhandling. Montana, which abolished its daytime highway speed limit after Congress lifted federal restrictions, is now trying to reinstate it because deaths on interstates have increased. Singer David Bowie is considering issuing bonds that would be redeemed from his future royalties. The Wall Street Journal reported that rabbit meat is gaining popularity at American restaurants. (posted 12/10) |
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| Miscellany: A month after the pope declared evolution "more than just a hypothesis," Cardinal John O'Connor said that God may have created Adam and Eve in the form of lower animals. Presidential adviser George Stephanopoulos said he will leave the White House in January to teach at Columbia University, become a television commentator, and write a memoir. President Clinton's latest book, Between Hope and History, is bombing: Most copies are expected to be returned to the publisher by Inauguration Day. Forbes reported that Mike Tyson has broken the record for annual income among athletes, collecting $75 million for his three fights this year. Market research shows more people recognize a silhouette of Michael Jordan's head than do President Clinton's face. A Canadian art student who vomited on a painting in New York's Museum of Modern Art says he was performing a trilogy of regurgitant statements (in each of the three primary colors) to protest "oppressively trite and painfully banal art."(posted 12/10) |
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Photograph of Kofi Annan by Peter Morgan/Reuters; photograph of Michael Ovitz by Fred Prouser/Reuters; photograph of Alan Greenspan by Barbara Johnston/Reuters
--Compiled by William Saletan and the editors of S LATE.
