Skip to content
Art Bell Archive Logo
Art Bell Archive

Journey into the unknown

From the High Desert book cover

From the High Desert

A Cultural History of Art Bell

Buy DirectAmazon
Thumbnail for December 5, 1995: Open Lines

December 5, 1995: Open Lines

Dec 5, 1995
2h 48m
0:00 / 0:00
Art Bell opens the phone lines on a night dominated by two major stories. The first is the rapidly escalating U.S. troop deployment to Bosnia, where numbers have already crept beyond official reports according to the BBC, and General Norman Schwarzkopf warns that a military one-third smaller than Desert Storm may be stretched dangerously thin. Art Bell reads in full the 1969 letter Bill Clinton wrote to Colonel Eugene Holmes explaining his evasion of the Vietnam draft, drawing a pointed contrast with the president now ordering thousands into harm's way.

The second story captivating callers is a CNN report from Kalamazoo, Michigan, where a premature baby declared dead and held by its grieving mother for over three hours suddenly gasped for breath and began to live again. Art Bell calls it nothing short of a miracle and challenges the audience to find any other word for it. Callers weigh in with theories ranging from divine intervention to the concept of walk-ins.

Between these threads, callers debate the court-martial of Specialist Michael New for refusing to wear U.N. insignia, the nature of lawful military orders, and whether rockets launching eastward are slowly decelerating the Earth.

Key Moments

  1. Schwarzkopf warns Bosnia force is 30% smaller than Desert Storm: Art relays Norman Schwarzkopf's warning that the U.S. military deploying to Bosnia is 30% smaller than during Desert Storm, asking what happens if Kim Il-sung crosses the DMZ or Saddam moves while we are committed.

  2. Art reads Clinton's 1969 anti-draft letter to Col. Holmes: Art reads, in full, Bill Clinton's December 3, 1969 letter to ROTC Director Col. Eugene Holmes thanking him 'for saving me from the draft' and explaining his decision to accept ROTC 'to maintain my political viability within the system.'

  3. Kalamazoo baby revives after 3.25 hours declared dead: Art relays a CNN report from Kalamazoo, Michigan: a premature baby stopped breathing, was declared dead, turned purple and cold, and was held by the grieving mother for three and a quarter hours before suddenly gasping back to life. As of the broadcast, the child is on life support and stable.