Birthday Articles I tried my hardest and couldn't to seem to find any significant events on my birthday. But there was a wide variety of events that occurred in the month of January in 1990. Everything from problems with the Leaning Tower of Pisa to the merger of two large entertainment and communications companies to form the powerhouse company we know as Time Warner Inc. This was also a time in which equality was showed by the first African American was voted in to office as a governor. January 7, 1990: The Leaning Tower of Pisa is closed due to safety concerns. The public was not allowed to go into the Leaning Tower because the authorities were worried about the continuous movement of the tower. Throughout the decade in which it was closed the authorities removed 38 cubic meters of soil underneath the tower. This straighten the tower by eighteen inches. The authorities later stated “ The tower would be safe and stable for up to 300 years.” Soon after the tower was reopened to the public. But their projection was a little off, the authorities in 2008 had to remove another 70 tons of earth. This was the first time in the history of the Leaning Tower of Pisa had to moving. January 10, 1990: Time Warner Inc. ,the third largest media and entertainment conglomerate, was form by joining Time Inc. and Warner Communications Inc. Before the two companies joined together Time Inc. was a leading book and magazine publisher with many cable TV holdings, Warner was a major movie and music producer and also had a large cable-television operation. This merger would ensure Time Warner was going to be a large part of the entertainment business in the 1990's. The companies combined stock market value was upwards of 15 billion dollars and they had a yearly revenue of 10 billion dollars. One reason said for the merger was the inevitable formation of a united European market as stated by the chairmen of Warner, Steven J. Ross. The boards of both companies had a unanimous vote to merge the companies. But one board member was absent for Warner. This left many people scratching there head. “Neither of these companies was forced into doing anything,we both could have survived alone. But this gives us a very strong balance sheet. We won't have to fire anybody, we don't have to sell anything and we don't have to borrow to accomplish this. It gives us a very large treasury - and we have plans to use it.'' J. Richard Munro said defending the merger. January 13, 1990: The first African American was elected Governor in Virginia. L. Douglas Wilder takes office in Richmond, Virginia. This wasn't the first time that Wilder had made history, thirteen years he became the first African American to serve in the United States senate since the reconstruction. Even though he had won the senate vote thirteen years earlier Wilder was still an outsider in Virginian politics. He took a stand by going to lunch at the Commonwealth Club in Richmond. It was the hallowed temple of the democratic power in Virginia, but everyone knew it was a white only club. So he went and ate even though all his friends, one by one, left his side. He stayed and finished his lunch, Wilder today is still a political legend . Some of these event are much like events that happen today. As in the case of the first African American governor we now have our first African American president. Wilder very well could have helped paved the way for president Obama to take office. The strides that were taken in the past leads for greater ones in the future. The civil rights movement is forever changing and forever progressing. Even with all the hate and prejudice people still stand strong and move ahead. The closure of the viewing deck of the worlds tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, in Dubai. This shows that no matter the year that buildings still are not made perfectly, and need to be fixed. Man still tries to push the limits of the structures they build. But some of mans most famous building are famous because of the mistakes like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The buying out of J.P. Morgan by Bank of America is just another example of how the combination of two companies forms one of the largest companies in its field, like the merger of Time Warner. These articles show me that history tends to repeat itself. With all that is going on today similar events were happening twenty years ago. I think these event are because we learn from the past but the same obstacles keep showing up again. And we continue strive and push ahead into the future of technology, business and civil rights. I feel that the events of that time help to influence the the present time the strides may be similar but the events are of greater magnitude and importance.