On June 28, 1947 the news was all about the threatened Coal Miner's strike, set to go on July 8th unless a new contract was approved. Union Prez John L. Lewis was holding fast and the doomsday scenario was being bandied around Washington with threats of chaos and only a one month supply of coal above ground before it all went straight to hell. But a lot could happen between this day and July 8th when the Miners were scheduled to return from Summer Vacation and negotiators were burning lots of midnight oil over this one.

Weather wise, it was the same old-same old as far as the Mississippi River was concerned. It was flooding and taking a goodly chunk of Illinois along with it. After all this time you'd think . . . . . never mind. South Dakota was having it's special brand of disorientation with a rash of Tornadoes touching down and wiping out all over the state. Summer time and the livin' is nervous.

In other news this day - the last of the former Japanese fleet got parceled off by way of lottery with the last 93 ships destined for other ports or, in our case, target practice. Russia scooped up their winnings and wouldn't tell anyone what they were planning on doing. Meanwhile, the Paris Economic Conference reconvened and that's all they were saying as far as Ernest Bevin was concerned. Still the Press blackout and agitated Fourth Estate folk milled around, looking for rumors.

And what most likely came as a shock to people on June 28, 1947 and probably not at all today was the report from The Population Bureau that American's just weren't getting any smarter and, in fact were getting a bit dumber all the time.

Well now you have proof - it's official. A little known fact that's been with us for 63 years.

And that's what they said via NBC Radio's World News Roundup for June 28, 1947.

(The Paris Economic Conference of June 1947 - an endless drone of hammering things out)

Not one of the more exciting days in history, but nevertheless one where things happened as was reported on this installment of the NBC Radio series "World News Roundup". On the domestic front, June 28th 1947 was looking at threatened strikes and work stoppages from Steel workers and Coal Miners. The Mississippi River was flooding and was the highest in over 100 years. Overseas, the Paris Economic conference was underway and a cautious eye was kept on the civil war in Greece and tensions in China while the former allies were busy parceling off the remainder of the Japanese Navy.

And to top it all off, a report was issued that indicated Americans were in fact, getting a little stupider over the years.

One can only imagine what that report would say now.

And so went June 28th.

(1970 Captured Syrians in the Golan Heights - A few appear to be smiling)

Sometimes the news just never changes. Take for example this June day, the 26th, forty years ago. The Israeli's were fighting the Syrians this time over the Golan Heights. It was reported the fighting was the worst since the 1967 war. Cambodia was our predicament, with Defense Secretary Melvin Laird introducing a new favorite word into the lexicon of WashingtonSpeak: Interdiction:

Melvin Laird: “After the Cambodian operations, which will end as far as Americans are concerned on the ground on June 30th, we will carry on an air interdiction campaign. And any air power that’s used in Cambodia will be based upon the interdiction of supplies, of personnel that threaten the Vietnamization program, that threaten the Americans that are engaged in military operations in Vietnam. The primary emphasis will be on the interdiction of supplies, material and personnel.”

Vaguely reminiscent of the truly annoying and overused "Gravitas" during the last two elections, Interdiction failed to become the "go-to word" around the Defense Department - though God knows, Melvin tried.

Bankruptcy reared its monetarily bereft head on June 26th, with the announcement that Penn Central was filing for protection in what would be the biggest bankruptcy filing on record (until Wall Street). Eventually enough railroads would follow suit that Amtrak would be born. Drunk drivers continued to be a problem in 1970 and Coal Miners went on strike over safety rules that went ignored.

You get the picture not much has changed. The players have, the technology has - but the situations and the outcomes stay pretty much the same.

At least this day in June, 1970.