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Show Friday LCllCrS! Sfauid be ltfi toil feus, iix: puakii4.. Lwel QuntMa r tyjiti feaOrttt to hat tUa 6uutae-ts- fcad t r. pbttir fcimtirr feiKbrf eOiur. tlial Sirffcra. tamml (at Op unions bgitt4 uc t br Ti-i- t Ortega not leaving all that peacefully Daniel Ortega his prorr3ed to hand over power peacefu-I- y on April 25 to Presidentelect Violela fcamos ce Cnamorro Bit even as Ortega manes that promise, he is using his last das n ofr.ce to place obstacles in Cfcimorro's path. str;pp.r.g tr incoming government of crucial powers and strengthening fcu own political base. leaders of the outgoing regime are taking disturbing steps to arm their supporters and er.act legal changes giving away large amounts of government property to Sandirasita followers. In addition, immunity is being provided against purush-mefor al! u.nproaecuted cnmes committed during a aecad of Sandirusta rule, including crimes b ntmbers of Uie Sandi-nist- a govenrment. g Sandinista officials at first denied that the army was delivering truck-load- s of aasauit rifles and ammunition to civiliaris in poor neighborhoods populated ujostly by .Sandinista supporters. When confronted with the evidence, however, they maintained Uiey were merely creating network. This cynical manipa ulation of military power poses a serious threat to the new democratic government, creating potential instability and sowing the seeds of another revolution. Even without Ortega's deliberate attempts to thwart her, Chamorro will have her hands full when she assumes office. Given her limited administrative experience, she faces a rocky lime at best in attempting to institutionalize democracy in a nation devoid of democratic tradition. In the National Assembly, the Sandinistas will still retain the strongest position of any single party and maintain control over powerful labor unions. A permanent cease-firobserved by nt High-rankin- e, I rarely By PALL MKRO myself in the middle of a find" dispute. My beliefs usually land me firmly on one side or the other of an issue. Yet, there I sat in my living room in suburban Washington, D.C., chatting with some good the friends visiting from Provo when name" reared its ugly head. The name of Joe Cannon, of course. The chatter stopped arid the conversation began. You see, Joe Cannon is an old and dear friend of mine. Our company are newer friends, but they are dear nonetheless. They believe the existence of Geneva Steel in Provo is unfair to the populace who must breathe the garbage it pumps into the air. And worse, Joe Cannon is making millions doing it. As I sat with our good friends from Provo (he is a political science professor at BYU), I soon confirmed a suspicion. The saints are no closer to the community of Zion than Washington Mayor Marion Barry is to good sense. This community of saints in Utah Valley cannot even agree on the efficacy of a local business, let alone come together as one in a consecrated society. Yes, the air pollution of Geneva Steel is a problem. Who can deny it? You can see it for heaven's sake. That can't be healthy. But, then again, the people of Utah Valley are kidding themselves if they think that Geneva Steel is their only problem, or even their chief problem. The fact that a local business has seemingly polarized the community suggests, to me anyway, that Provoans, especially the saints, have a bit too much discretionary time on their hands. Why can I seem to hear the faint mutter of a steelworker suggesting that some of the Geneva opponents need to get ' real" jobs which might keep them a little busier and a bit more appreciative of their livelihoods? The people of Utah Valley land for six years my family and I were part of the on people! need a good dose of reality at least five counts. long-standi- First, and an impartial observer can see this, closing Geneva Steel will not make Utah Valley a better place to live. As mentioned earlier, the people of the .valley have many personal and social problems which will destroy the community from within, notwithstanding Geneva Steel. Second, Geneva Steel has the right to exist. It does not, however, have the right to government subsidies. Nor does BYU. Not does any other business in Utah Valley. But each has the right to exist. We still live in America, not Amerika. The notion that Geneva should be forced to close or relocate is in every way. Perhaps opponents of Geneva Steel would be a bit more responsible in their demands were they to be the ones to singly and directly bear the costs of closure or relocation? Third, Geneva Steel has the right to prosper. To object to Geneva because Joe Cannon is a successful businessman is both Contra guerrillas and the Sandinista army, will be essential to the Chamorro government's plan to extend amnesty to political diss. Cents. This includes thousands of Contras iiwng in camps in Honduras. To smooth Chamorro's path as much as posai-b.the Contras need to disband as soon as she is sworn in and return to Nicaragua to take part in the political process. As a further aid to political stability. Chamorro must follow through with her promise to abolish conscription and deg crease the size of Nicaragua's army. This will prove no easy task. She can expect fierce resistance because of the army's loyalty to the Sandinista cause. Nevertheless, asserting control over the army is essential to her success. The United States which spent millions to finance the Contras, now has a special responsiblity to provide aid and technical assistance to bolster Chamorro's democratic government. Lifting the U.S. trade emas soon as Chamorro is inaugubargo rated ought to be the first step toward rebuilding the shattered Nicaraguan economy. h efforts to sway the Ortega's balance of power will greatly hinder Chamorro's efforts to transform Nicaragua from a discredited Marxist nightmare into a pluralist democratic society with a free market economy. It is up to the United States and Nicaragua's democratic neighbors to provide all the help they can. 1426 Also in the House of Representatives. Rep Jim Hansen represents individuals in Juab and other counties in north and southern Utah f r. . e, TO.Ouo-stro.n- "I wish Bush would quit this transportation system user fee thing!" last-ditc- c Community Forum Paul Mero is a staff assistant to Congressman William Dannemeyer, a California Republican pridefully ludicrous. To object to Geneva's profits because they "are made at the expense of others" is provincial thought. The allocation of scarce resources Econ 101) is always at the expense of something else or someone else. Perhaps opponents of Geneva Steel should formalize a committee to determine how every resident should make a living and how much each resident should earn? Fourth, Joe Cannon and the owners of Geneva Steel have the obligation to be good stewards over this earth. Is the existence of Geneva a direct threat to the earth or the population? It pollutes the environment and that pollution can make people sick. But so do cars, wood stoves, airplanes, methane from cow dung, and the refuse from all humans. Intrinsic to mortality is the environmental denigration of the earth. So the issue is not whether or not pollution should exist. It does because we do. At issue is whether or not we are minimizing the pollution within our stewardships and how these reductions in pollution weigh against their economic costs. Geneva will be spending double what the plant cost to buy on pollution control devices. Maybe Geneva opponents will or gladly pay twice what their mini-van- s BMWs cost to reduce some of the pollution within their own stewardships? And fifth, discount private and public studies regarding pollution. They are all political documents. Bobby Redford can buy one just as easy as Joe Cannon. To my good friends back in Provo I would suggest that they concern themselves more with truly direct threats on the polltion of the mind their and of the soul. Bobby Kedford and the environmental lobby won't help you with that one. On those counts they are all industrial polluters of the worst kind. To my good friend Joe Cannon I will only worry when he buss that boat, dons a baseball cap, and starts having sacrament services down on I.ake Powell. well-bein- Community Forum commentaries are unsolicited articles from readers about subjects of current interest. They are 400 to 1.000 words in length and must include brief biographical information. Where to write lawmakers Following are Utah s elected officials in Washington. D C. In the House of Representatives. Rep Howard ' Nielson represents individuals in the Utah County area and other areas of Central Utah. Nielson s Washington address Is 1122 Longsworth Building Washington D C. 205 5 The Washington phone number is (202) 225 7751. In Utah County the number is The toll-fre- e number within the state but outside Utah County is In! iWj Herald comment Reality lessons needed I March Hi. Hansen s Washington. DC, Address is 1113 Longworth House Office Building Washington 3 D C. 20515 His phone number is (202) Both Senators Jake Garn and Orrm Hatch represent individuals throughout the state. Sen. Garn s Washington address is 5207 Dirksen Senate Office Bu, ding. Washington. D C. 20510; his Washington phone number is. (202) 224 5444 Sen. Hatch s Washington address is 125 Russell Senate Office Building. Washington. D C. 20510; his Washington phone number is (202) Saving oil no longer high priority - WASHINGTON Tucked away APi near the end of the administration's transportation policy is a brief and general pledge to work for oil conservation a faint echo of the energy crisis that dominated the national agenda not so long 129-pa- ago. In the era of the oil embargo, of gasoline lines and rocketing prices that spiraled inflation, energy was a major problem for two presidents and a dominant political issue during much of the 1970s. Now it is stuff despite increasing U.S. dependence on imported oil. Imports, an embargo and a cut in foreign oil supplies were comnents of the energy crises that confronted Richard M. Nixon and beset Jimmy Carter. They advocated policies to make sure it couldn't happen again. But it could. Oil imports in January were the highest years. Imports have been rising, domestic oil production falling. Prices are down, which makes foreign oil less expensive than the alternatives. But it certainly isn't inexpensive. Oil imports account for about $50 billion of the persistent U.S. trade deficit. According to the American Petroleum Institute, imported oil accounted for 54 percent of U.S. consumption in January, a record high. CIA Director William Webster has told Congress that reliance on Persian Gulf oil is likely to increase markedly over the next several years. Nixon launched Project Independence, seeking to end U.S. dependence on foreign energy sources after the Arab oil embargo. It didn't happen. Carter said in 1977 the in 12 more efficient motor vehicles have led to significant energy savings in the past two decades, and that there is more to come. Walter The transportation policy pledges "to Mears foster development and use of more vehicles and transportation operations." There are no specific recommendaASSOCIATED tions on the politically and economically 1 PRESS sensitive issue of future fuel economy standards to be required of U.S. automoCOLUMNIST bile manufacturers. The requirements were relaxed during Reagan's second term; Secretary of Transnation should declare the moral equivalent portation Samuel K. Skinner reinstated of war to master its energy problems. them for the 1990 model year, requiring Carter later was taunted with his pro- that cars produced by each U.S. manufacof MEOW. his turer get an average 27.5 miles Parts gram's acronym: per gallon program were shelved; as some others of gas. Congress may act later tlus year on not were renewed. expired they amendments to the fuel economy rules set 4 Arab oil embargo. The crises eased, foreign oil became after the that some forms of travel are Noting Ronald plentiful and relatively cheap, and more energy-efficiethan others in meetwhole the administration pushed Reagan's same the the transportation needs, ing the down the agenda, slashing issue far says that mass transit and inter city energy conservation budget and proposing, policy g rail service can serve as alterunsuccessfully, that Congress eliminate the natives to the in heaviautomobile private Department of Energy. ly populated areas. Now Bush's Department of Energy is at It also proposes to end operating subsiwork on a new national energy strategy, dies and reduce other federal spending for with the initial version due next month and mass transit and rail passenger service, so the final report before the end of the year. that passengers, cities and states will pick It will have to be a companion piece to up the cost. which tiie transportation policy statement, The theory is that those are local and observes: not national facilities, and so regional, more than accounts for "Transportation a quarter of total national energy con- should be paid for locally and regionally. of the That may not mesh with a transportation sumption and close to petroleum used in the United States each strategy in which conserving oil is a national aim. year." But then, there's no crisis now. It goes on to say that conservation and nt fj 1973-197- nt fuel-savin- two-thir- Letters There are other ways to protest in America Editor: There has teen some commotion as of late over the right to burn the American flag. Those who would claim this right link those who oppose them with Karl Marx Communism and other authoritarian ideologies that repress freedom. Not true. Above all, America has stood up and fought against the very suppressive governments and leaders who suppress freedom. From the Revolutionary War where our forefathers fought to establish our freedom, through the Civil War, where the union was maintained and the slaves took their initial step on the long road to freedom, through the two World Wars, Ix?banon, etc. With all of our own inadequacies and corruptions, America is the one light that shines with freedoms glare as an ensign to the world. Even in Vietnam, with all that has come to light to discredit the morality of that war, the basic attitude of those who fought the war was to establish freedom. How man' lives have been lost? How many mothers and wives' hearts have been broken by the knowledge of their mens' broken bodies lying on a battlefield someplace? The flag is a symbol of the sacrifice made for us to bask in the light of freedom. Who cares if someone burns a piece of cloth? No one. But, when one burns the American flag, to many people, he also is burning and desicrating the heart and soul of what our nation stands for. Ask yourself who would want to burn the flag and why? Why, indeed, do some people feel compelled to burn the American flag? What is it that they are trying to say? If there is a problem with government policy or the reason for a war, or some other government policy, why not use their freedom to pick up the pen, lay down the match, and write a letter to the editor or organize a group and protest and try to affect a change in the system? When the choice is made to burn the flag, in the minds of so many of us, they are not only burning the graft, corruption and immorality that inevitably exists in America but they burn and desecrate the memory and sacrifice of all those who gave so much for us. I say find another way. Find a responsible, productive way to make things better. Don't disregard the feeings of those of us who see the meaning behind the flag. We see the immortal souls of men and women who have sacrificed everything woven in to the fabric of that one peculiar fabric adorned with stars and stripes. Why fight those who care and ask you to respect what the flag represents. Do you really think your actions will gain our sympathy or respect? Be mature. Make your point with the pen. Let's all respect what the flag represents and make our own individual lives better and affect change in a more reasonable way. tee Ballard Orem Lower gas prices Editor: I believe that oil companies should not be fined for oil spills, which they pass on to us. I believe that they should be forced to lower the retail price of gasoline to 60 cents. I also am a dreamer. Bob Bormann Provo ACLU helps all Editor: I appreciate the letter to the editor by Richard D. Poll of Provo on Feb. 28, 1990. This letter was about the American Civil liberties Union trying to protect the rights of individuals, according to the Constitution of the United States. These rights include the right to practice your religion according to your own conscience. This makes it a breach of the Constitution to have religious ceremonies at government sponsored public functions, because the first article of the Bill of Rights states, no law shall be made respecting an establishment of religion. The American Civil liberties Union and the Society Of Seperationists and many others take an interest in this part of the Bill of Rights, and for good rea-on. The founders of our Constitution did not want our government to turn into a theocracy. Theocratic governments have never been good for the people governed. The Dark Ages, with its inquisitions and persecutions are an example, Iran . another. In these situations people are not allowed to have differing religious opinions. Our Founding Fathers knew this and made it part of the law of the land. Since group prayers are a religious ceremony, they will reflect the religious majority of the area and deprive the minorities of their constitutional rights. For this reason Parich-Pixle- r of the ACLU is coming to the defense of the two Brighton High School students who objected to prayers. Apparently the ACLU will help anyone, when their constitutional rights have been violated and it is brought to their attention. Haney and Beulah Caster American Fork school-sponsor- Telethon a success Editor: The 1990 Easter Seal Telethon, held the weekend of March is now past. It was the most successful Telethon ever, raising $268,249 for Easter Seal services locally and over $42 million nationally. The support of the community is what made it happen. Local businesses, like Chevron, JCPenney, UP&L Co., little Caesar's and Matrixx Marketing, as well as individual donors giving from $1 to $1,000, all were a part of the effort. KSIi-Tprovided the facilities and the personnel who made the show a success, including Kent 3-- 4, Norton, Shelley Osterloh, Doug Wright, Craig Bolerjack, Jay Coles, Elizabeth Ren-shaand Doug Miller. The Easter Seal Society of Utah thanks the countless volunteers, sponsors, and individual donors whose lives touched those whom we serve. Thanks to the very generous people all over Utah! Artliur L. Monson Salt Iake County treasurer Chairman, 1990 Easter Seal Telethon Jolin Pinter, President Easter Seal Society of Utah Inc. |
