JANUARY 27 — 1941 FDR warned for first time about Japanese plans to bomb Pearl Harbor; 1888 NatGeo society is formed; 2016 Sunshine becomes world’s oldest cockatiel;1991 Buffalo Bills begin four game losing streak in Super Bowl
JANUARY 27
1973 – Paris peace Accords ends Vietnam War.
Nixon’s campaign promise had been to bring the troops home and bring them home he did. But the Paris Peace Accords did virtually nothing to resolve the chaos in Vietnam or to heal the awful America’s overall opinion for the War or even the Domino Theory, for that matter. Negotiations between Vietnam and the United States had been attempted going all the way back to 1965 when North Vietnam premiere Pham Van Dong had tried it. Demands were just too high on both sides – Hanoi asked the US to quit bombing the city, and Washington wanted the Viet Cong to stop escalate the conflict in the south. But finally on January 27, 1973, America’s involvement in the war in Vietnam came to an end.
The treaty stated that a cease fire was declared, and the US would remove all military units from South Vietnam within 60 days. North Vietnam promised to return all American POWs during that 60 day span. The 150,000 North Vietnamese troops who were already in South Vietnam were allowed to stay. Nguyen Van Thieu in the South was outraged by this and didn’t agree to this at all, knowing full well that the North would immediately violate their end of the agreement, which they did. But Henry Kissinger and Le Duc Tho were praised for reaching negotiations, and in 1975 the North launched a huge military campaign, crushing the South and reunifying Vietnam under communist rule.
1888 – The National Geographic Society is founded.
Founded in Washington DC, the Society was made for the increase and diffusion of geographical knowledge. It is one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, and the promotion of environmental and historical conservation. It is managed by a 21-member board of trustees that include distinguished educators, business executives, former government officials, and conservationists. Originally it was founded by 33 people that made up of a diverse group of geographers, explorers, teachers, lawyers, cartographers, military officers and financiers.
Then the magazine came out. When Gilbert Grosvenor took over as editor of the magazine in 1899 its circulation increased and was being read by 2 million people per month. It’s known for its staggering photography and always has been. These days it has a circulation of around 9 million readers. The Society sees itself as a guardian of the planet’s natural resources, and according to their website, it focuses on ways to broaden its reach and educate its readers about the unique relationship that humans have with planet earth.
1965 – The Shelby GT 350 debuts. This version of the Ford Mustang sold over 400,00 cars in its first year of production. More than 9 million have been sold and is considred a classic. Zlike Duh! It featured a 306 horsepower V-8 engine, long hood and short rear trunk. It was in production until the end of the 60s.
1991 – The Buffalo Bills begin their four game losing streak in the Super Bowl. It was in the middle of the Gulf War and as you can imagine had quite the patriotic theme to it. Whitney Houston sang Star Spangled Banner that was just brought every human being to tears of joy. The Bills were about to win it in the end until Scott Norwood’s kick was…..wide right!!!! Just when you thought things couldn’t any worse, New Kids on th Block played the halftime.