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Show - n Tlh TesfiDmoimy Volume 2 No 7 WESTERN AMERICANA Kirk Jerry' (See Page 6) r 250 Cit3 Utah 84106r' Salt Lake April 30, 1971 . iff L munist nation honored an sentatives from the important treaty commitment to the United States. Take a brief look at the record. Ostensibly, a major reason why Franklin D. Roosevelt recognized the Soviet Union in 1933 was to stop Soviet secret arrests, persecutions, and murders of U.S. citizens. The 1933 agreements between Roosevelt and the Soviets contain a clear Soviet promise to protect the legal rights of Americans. The promise was not kept. When Stalins purge was reaching a climax in 1937, our Moscow embassy was impotent to protect American citizens. The Soviets arrested Americans secretly and held them incommunicado, our embassy Ending out about it indirectly, if at all. Our embassy never knew whether it had a record of all arrests. It did learn of 134 cases, and sent formal .notes to the Soviet government. The notes were not even answered. Yet, when the Senate (respond-- . ing to the urging of President Nixon) ratified a Consular Treaty with the Soviets in 1969, we were assured-tha- t the primary purpose of the Treaty was to - By Dan Smoot On April 2, 1971, the U.S. Army issued a four-pag- e report defending the trial and conviction of Lieutenant William L. Calley as a moral and legal obligation. The Army white paper said: Even though the legal action against Calley was painful and difficult, the Army would have failed to meet its obligation to the laws of our nation had it not acted. What laws of our nation did Lieutenant Calley violate in doing what he had been trained and ordered to do? Why, none at all. The Army paper explained, however, that the Geneva Conven- tions (international agreements about the behavior of armies and treatment of prisoners in times of war) carry equal force with laws enacted by the United States Congress. The Army said the conventions constitute part of the supreme law of the land in the United States, because they were ratified by the U.S. Senate as formal treaties. We are therefore bound, the Army says, to observe and enforce all provisions of the Geneva Conventions, whether the enemy honors the treaties or not. That should give us pause, especially now when Senate ratification of the Genocide Convention is imminent. When we enter into international agreements involving Communist powers, the agreements bind us to a course of action, but have no effect on Communist nations, because Communists never honor their treaty obligations. Not once in thirty-eigh- t years has a Com assure the right of prompt diplomatic access and support to U.S. nationals in trouble with the law in the SovietUnion. In the realm of national defense, the Communists have: negotiated us into a condition that could mean disaster. During a series of nuclear tests in 1958, Soviet scientists observed that spewed out by a nuclear blast, are absorbed by the atmosphere; but, when emitted above the atmosphere, travel with the speed of light for thousands of miles carrying enormous energy. The Soviets stopped their tests and started experiments to utilize the y phenomenon for development of an weapon. To halt X-ray- s, X-ra- ys X-ra- anti-missi- le U.S. and the U.S.S.R. met at Geneva for the re-ent- er definitely. Despite objections by top Erst test ban talks, and agreed Having perfected the military men and leading sciento suspend all testing of nuclear tists, our government signed a test weapon, the Soviets weapons while the talks con- demanded more test ban talks to ban treaty with the Soviets in tinued (without inspections to prevent us from developing one. July, 1963. The Senate ratiEed it determine that the agreement was Because he was trying to negotwo months later. EisenPresident We cannot now develop the tiate a test ban treaty, President being kept). hower kept the agreement, Kennedy continued to prohibit kind of y missile killer that permitting no American nuclear American nuclear testing, though the Soviets claim to have, because testing during the. remainder of he declared (March 2, 1962) that the test ban treaty prohibits us his Administration. President Soviet developments had put the from making the necessary tests. Free World in grave danger; that So, the Soviets could well have an Kennedy continued the ban. y missile killer which may The Soviets violated the mora- the U.S. cannot make similar torium 'to the extent necessary strides without testing in the make them invulnerable to our for experiments to develop an atmosphere as well as undemissiles, but we are prevented by y missile killer. By late rground; that in many areas of treaty from developing a comparsummer 1961, they were ready to nuclear weapons research we have able defensive weapon. With the Outer Space Treaty of 1967 and set off massive nuclear explosions reached the point where our proin and above the atmosphere to gress is stiEed without experithe Nuclear Nonproliferation test the weapon they had been ments in every environment. Treaty of. 1969, ourgovernment On April 26, 1962 the Soviets has further limited our capability developing. They abruptly announced- that the morator- having refused to agree to a treaty of providing, defense for our ium was ended, and conducted ' President Kennedy permitted nation, while imposing no effecenough testing to determine that American nuclear testing in the tive restrictions on the Soviet a nuclear explosion, above the atmosphere, the Erst since 1958; Union. atmosphere, emits powerful but he allowed only a few tests By subverting our constituwhich can paralyze or before again suspending them. In tional system, the international disintegrate instantly all missiles June, 1963, Mr. Kennedy stopped social compacts or conventions within a radius of hundreds of all plans for American testing, in (Continued on page 4 ) anti-missi- le X-ra- X-ra- X-ra- - X-ray- s, THE LIBERTY AMENDMENT By Taylor Turner The Liberty Amendment is pending in Congress as 1IJ. Res. 23, having been introduced by Congressman James B. Utt of California. Resolutions that peti- tion Congress to submit it directly to the people of the States for decision, or call a constitutional convention for that purpose, have been approved by. seven states. The Amendment provides that: SEC. 1. The government of the United States shall not engage in any business , professional , the United States shall not be subject to the terms of any foreign or domestic agreement which would abrogates this Amendment. SEC. 3. The activities of the United States Government which violate the intent and purposes of this Amendment shall, within a period of three years from the date of the ratification of this Amendment , be liquidated and the properties and facilities affected shall be sold. SEC. 4. Three years after the ratification of this Amendment the Sixteenth Article of Amendments to the Constitution of the United States shall stand in the Constitution. repealed , and thereafter Congress shall not levy taxes on personal incomes, estates and! or gifts. SEC. 2 The Constitution or laws of any State , or the laws of These 136 words arc clear and precise. Their sole purpose is to our nuclear research, they commercial, financial or induslaunched a worldwide propa- trial enterprise except as specified ganda campaign for a moratorium on nuclear testing. On October 31, 1958, repre the miles, before they atmosphere to land on target. revitalize the Constitution and give il full force and effect. It restores the valid functions of Government as it removes invalid functions. Note the last six words of the first Section . . .except as specified in the Constitution . These words reaffirm every grant of power and authority given Government by the Constitution, and will restore to the states and the people those activities the Federal agencies took by usurpation. With the realization that the Liberty Amendment will not add to nor subtract from the original Constitution, one wonders why so many become frantic at the mention of this project. Surely we believe in the Constitution and want to stop the erosion of it. (Continued on page 8) THE UTAH INDEPENDENT. P.O. Box 6274 Sat L ake Second City . Utah 84106 at Serials Order Department University of Utah Libraries Salt Lake City) Utah 84112 srw,T. 873 Class Salt Lake Postage Paid City, Utah |