January 10, 1995 – CBS World News Roundup – Gordon Skene Sound Collection –
January 10, 1995 – As the rest of the world spun quietly off on its own, SoCal was in the midst of getting soaked by a relentless series of storms, slamming in from the Pacific. Contrary to folklore that “It never rains in Southern California”, Santa Barbara and points south were experiencing some of the most torrential rains in years and flooding was scoring record highs. With damage expected to reach into the billions, California Governor Pete Wilson was preparing to declare a state of emergency, especially for those affected by the recent fires. In short, it was a mess and there was no letup in sight. And in true SoCal fashion, it went from drought to flood in a matter of days. Welcome to Sudden California. A soggy time was had by all.
Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill; less than a week after hiring her as official House Historian, Speaker Newt Gingrich promptly fired Georgia college Professor Christina Jeffrey after it was revealed that, while serving on a Department of Education panel in 1986, Dr. Jeffery argued against awarding a $70,000 grant for a High School program on the Holocaust saying “the program gave no evidence of balance or objectivity. The Nazi point of view, however unpopular, is still a point of view and is not presented, nor is the Ku Klux Klan”. When New York Congressman Charles Schumer learned of that, he demanded she be fired. And within hours Jeffrey’s short-lived career was over.
And in Chechnya; Russian and Chechen separatist forces were supposed to be observing a “time out” in order to evacuate the dead and wounded, but some didn’t get the word. Gunfire exchanges and artillery barrages were sill taking place, breaking the otherwise eery quiet that was griping downtown Grozny. Chechen fighters reportedly said they hadn’t heard about a ceasefire and others laughed when told about it, saying it made no difference to them. Moscow newspaper Izvestia was reporting that scores of Russian soldiers and officers had decided to leave Chechnya on their own.
And that’s a small taste of what went on, this January 10th in 1995 as reported by The CBS World News Roundup.
