ABSTRACT
The Law of Cooperatives, a series of groundbreaking economic reforms, was passed as part of perestroika and glasnost in Gorbachev’s Soviet Union. In a tense exchange, CBS news anchor Dan Rather challenged Vice President George H. W. Bush about the part he played in the Iran-Contra Affair; later that year, indictments of conspiracy to defraud the United States were issued for Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North and Vice Admiral John Poindexter. The Liberal Democrats formed as a new party in the United Kingdom. A precursor to revolution in eastern bloc nations in 1989, the Candle Demonstration took place in Bratislava, followed a few months later by the Singing Revolution in Estonia. As part of the Geneva Accords, the Soviet Union agreed to withdraw from Afghanistan. Socialist François Mitterand was re-elected President of France. The 8888 “People Power” uprising led to the death of thousands of demonstrating Burmese. War between Iran and Iraq ended. Osama bin Laden founded Al Qaeda. Climatolo-gist James Hansen testified in front of Congress about man-made global warming, in an attempt to draw awareness to what he saw as an urgent issue. There were riots in Algiers and a plebiscite held for Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet resulted in a decisive “no” vote against his continued rule.
