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Vol. 74/No. 3      January 25, 2010

 
25, 50 and 75 years ago
 
January 25, 1985
TIPITAPA-MALACATOYA, Nicaragua—In front of a huge sign reading “July victory, people’s victory, symbol of Cuba-Nicaragua friendship,” a new sugar mill was inaugurated here January 11. Called the “Victoria de Julio” (July victory) mill, the refinery is the largest in all of Central America and the largest single industrial plant in Nicaragua. It was built with extensive aid from Cuba.

Present at the inauguration ceremonies was Cuban president Fidel Castro, who gave a two and a half hour speech. He announced that Cuba is cancelling the $73.8 million debt owed by Nicaragua. Castro said Cuba is canceling the debt because of the hundreds of millions of dollars of damage Nicaragua has suffered as a result of the war Washington is waging against the Nicaraguan people.  
 
January 25, 1960
The flareup of anti-Semitic vandalism sparked by neo-Nazis in West Germany has intensified popular pressure in that country for the ouster of Nazis from the Adenauer regime. Meanwhile there have been two new cases of police reprisals against antifascist demonstrators.

In West Berlin police clashed yesterday with students demanding the removal of Nazis from government. In Hamburg, mounted police attacked antifascists who broke up a meeting of the neo-Nazi German Reichs party. Thirty anti-Nazis were arrested on charges of disturbing the peace.

During the West Berlin demonstration, students raised black posters bearing the names of two federal ministers, two lesser officials, and Chancellor Adenauer’s state secretary. All were ranking Nazis.  
 
January 26, 1935
Did anyone ever believe that the NRA codes would increase the purchasing power of wage earners and redistribute the national income?

First, the Bureau of Labor Statistics study on wages. In August 1933, when the code took effect, half the cotton textile workers earned less than 21.8 cents per hour. In August 1934, on the eve of the great strike, the median hourly wage rate was 34.9 cents.

But wait—between August 1933 and August 1934 living costs skyrocketed—because of the drought, because of the A.A.A. processing taxes, because the NRA codes permit cartelized price-fixing and production control.

The result? In that one year, real wages—purchasing power—in the cotton industry, in the north fell away 15 percent; in the south 25 percent.  
 
 
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