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Show THE VOICE OF BUSINESS New party ... otder feces... bailed idieos By Richard L. Lesher, President Chamber of Commerce of the United States In case you missed the breathtaking announcement, a new group-the Citizens Party-has just laid claim to the presidency in 1980. The "Washington Post" reported the party was conceived in part by Barry Commoner Com-moner and blessed by none other than Ralph Nader who called it "progressive." Mr. Nader's praise follows his criticism of the present two-party two-party system as, "...a political conspiracy con-spiracy against the citizens of this country." coun-try." Mr. Commoner is an ecologist known for his love of solar power. Less well-known, well-known, perhaps, are his political views. In his book, "The Poverty of Power," he writes: 'Economists and other students of capitalism will recognize that the basic ideas I have discussed are among those first put forward by Karl Marx. "All this suggests that it may be time to view the faults of the United States economic system from a vantage point of alternative-to debate the relative merits of capitalism and socialism." And now, Mr. Commoner has gone beyond debate to outright advocacy. His Citizens Party platform calls for: Nationalizing the energy industry; expanding ex-panding government control over other industries; mandating price controls and government planning, and, initiating in-itiating both "and immediate, sharp reversal in the rate of military spending..." spen-ding..." and, the "conversion of the armaments ar-maments industry to productive ac- tivity." . These last two proposals would place the security of America and our allies in grave peril, even as the Soviets engineer a massive military build-up. That's for openers. Then of course we would be saddled with some form of . socialism which has never worked, no matter where, when or how it has been tried. It disappointed our British friends even in their modified democratic form, and the Soviet totalitarian version has been an outright disaster. As writer George F. Will recently mused: "Amazingly, for the 62nd straight year, unusually wet (or is it dry?) weather prevented Communist Com-munist agriculture from flourishing." Actually, Mr. Commoner and company com-pany are clever enough to smell the danger of unpopular political labels. So where we would say "government control," con-trol," they neatly substitute "public control." This little rhetorical trick is so simple any child could master it. But look at the results: One wave of their wand and-Voila-all the bureaucrats magically disappear, replaced by shining populist heroes who tirelessly promote citizen representation throughout the economy. It all seems almost too wonderful to believe. It is. Logic has its way of piercing silly sil-ly myths. How, for instance, will even bigger bureaucracies at HEW, HUD, DOE and DOT give us more control over our lives and our economy? How, wonders the Wall Street Journal, could a government controlling prices and running major companies from Washington also leave room for citizen involvement and local autonomy? Obviously, Ob-viously, consistency will not be a Citizens Party trademark. Nor will its respect for individual rights, for treasured values like tolerance and freedom of choice will not long endure in this party's coercive Utopia. Forget for a moment Mr. Commoner's Com-moner's socialist views. Consider those of someone equally influential who will use his power to support Citizens Party goals: Ralph Nader. As we are constantly reminded, Mr. Nader only works for what he says consumers con-sumers need. Yet we seldom hear how hard he also works against what the great majority of consumers really want: Proposition 13 in California; across-the-board tax cuts nationwide; legislation linking federal tax and spending spen-ding cuts, and a reduction in suffocating suf-focating regulations. But encouraging individuals to succeed, suc-ceed, to live their own dreams, and, should they prefer, to swim against the tide- that is not what Ralph Nader is all about. No, he expresses an admiration for China's ability to marshall massive numbers of people in a common cause. And he told the New York Times: "I'll tell you what the real problem is. We ask people to think instead of asking them to believe. And history has always gone to those who ask people to believe." So believe in Nader, believe in Commoner, Com-moner, just don't think about what they say. But history warns what happens when too many believe in too few... who want everything their way. |