President Ford issued a conditional amnesty to American draft evaders and military deserters provided that they agree to work for 24 months in alternative service.
In my view, this was a mistake.
President Carter would compound the mistake in 1977 by issuing a general pardon to most evaders, but not deserters.
None of this should have been granted. People died in the place of those who deserted and evaded. If a person had a genuine objection, and more than a few did, the honorable thing would have been to refuse to serve and to take the consequences. Muhammed Ali provides an example of this, as does Walt Whitman from an earlier era.
The legacy of the Vietnam War in this regard continues to haunt us. The same generation that reviled their parents, went on to brand their parents "the Greatest Generation", and never made peace with the largescale evadence of the call of duty. Examples of course, abound, including Donald Trump, who was excused priority in the draft due to shin splints, and Joe Biden, who had multiple deferments including health related ones.
The first female Royal Canadian Mounted Police began training.
The Provisional IRA assassinated Martin McBirney QC, 56, and Rory Conaghan, 54, both judges in Northern Ireland.
Argentinian terrorist set off fifty bombs, killing four people.
The Bay Area Underwater Rapid Transit Tube, the first tunnel underneath the San Francisco Bay, opened to the public.
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