| OCR Text |
Show fir per -- j. "vaaaw pkif S??s f n il rv km! ILijf EfciJ LaM LssssJ femj LhmJ LkmmJ saBij Lm! O-- 'fdstsrblisS and madmen never lia ve doubts, " J -- G.K. Stt" Chesterton, Englishauthor(1874-1936- ) mmw Friday, AprS 3, 1M& The Daily Herald TO Orem City Council entered a closed-dosession Tuesday night to discuss property acquisition in regards to the X - rVA or Rick Warner project to develop a three-lo- t auto mall. If the city council discussed purchasing the homes surrounding the proposed development in the closed-domeeting, it was proceeding legally and correctly. And if the city officials discussed the purchase of the Dick Burr- - property, then they were within their rights in holding the executive session. State law allows for city councils to meet privately in strategy sessions for property acquisition. But, and this is the question of the day, if the city council entered the session to discuss selling its 3.2-ac: redevelopment parcel adjacent to the proposed project, it was not acting in accordance with the law. There is no exemption in the Open : and Public Meetings Act for private discussions concerning the sale of real property. And if the city council discussed the development of the property and any future agreements with Rick Warner, it was not in compliance with state statutes. The closed meeting law is clearly established to provide for strategy sessions in regards to specified subject matter. If the city council discussed items regarding the development, i.e. whether the homeowners' property should be walled off or purchased by or re . the developer,-i- t was out of line. The Rick Warner Auto Mall proposal was discussed, reviewed and a proposed contract read in open meetings in December and that proposal was eked. It is our belief that the Orem City Council may now be negotiating contracts with developers in closed-dosessions. The city manager's job is to act as a negotiator with the developer, then present his findings to the council, which represents the public. Unfortunately, it appears the same pattern of negotiations is being followed that was established in the failed expansion of Cascade Fairways. In the Cascade Fairways project, and apparently again with Rick Warner, it seems the council has been given information from City Manager sessions Dafyl Berlin in closed-doo- r regarding contracts and negotiations. We believe the city council is obliged to conduct its business negotiations in an open and public setting, getting public inpufeand comment. If a project is right and good for the community it' should be able to withstand close public scrutiny. Representative government must be open government, even in Orem. mam : Editor: A great irony exists in Utah County . Having recently moved here from Phoenix, one thing I noticed quickly is that air quality is an issue of tremendous concern to this county's residents. But I've also never seen a populace so apathetic about doing their share to improve pollution problems. Everyone I asked, it seems, mentioned the county's steel mill. So, hearing that they offered free tours, I went to check die place out. I saw some interesting things, all installed within the past two years: 80 million bucks worth of modem furnaces which use g oxygen instead of air as a combustion source and an enclosed system to catch particulate emissions. A bunch of green tanks with little Ninja bugs to eat ammonia, the only one like it in the world.A benzene gas system which, as I confirmed with my Utah-nativ- e, neighbors, has gotten rid of the benzene smell. And a bunch of colored pipes and stuff which by this fall will get rid of a lot of the sulfur oxide clean-burnin- ; ng emissions, which eventually turn into PM 10. All the stuff, they said, has added up to well over $ 1 00 million. . On my way home from visiting Utah County's "bad guy," I had to pull over because the car in front of me was pouring out a pretty horrible cloud of stuff and I could neither see nor breathe. Last weekend, I saw what I thought was a forest fire at 8th North and State in Orem (strange, I thought, in a desert). When I approached the intersection, I saw a lovely blue 70's-is- h Nova leaving a literal wake of carbon monoxide. What kind of emissions laws do you people legislate? Don't you have ethanol gas yet? The only place I've seen natural cars here was in the Geneva Steel executive parking lot. And no incentives for carpooling? OK, there's no money for hightech mass transit, but how about exercising a little public virtue and taking the bus? I got on one to go to Salt Lake this week and my only companions were two old ladies. ed All this is very curious. I found some information from Utah's Department of Air Quality showing that exceedances of EPA's carbon monoxide standard only register at the downtown and uptown Provo monitors, not the ones by the steel mill in the north part of the county. Five of seven violations were days of BYU home basketball games! And even PM 10, supposedly Geneva's problem, peaks within an hour after the 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. rush hours (it takes that long for elements to combine in the air and form particulates). What's up, Utah County? Do you just like ' to gripe, or are you ready to put your money where your mouth is? Geneva may be a convenient scapegoat, but shutting it down will put thousands out of a job, not solve our air quality problems. AlishcsK.Fay Provo Pandemic killing Editor: Child killing is now pandemic in the United States and we are told mat no one knows why. Veteran law enforcement personnel and their clinicians confess puzzlement and yvv,. J or mm Air irony sum... I . very famous veteran stated, "This is die only time in man's history when children have resorted to killing each other for no apparent reason. When asked why they kill they seem baffled and have no motive or even emotional impulse mat suits murder. 'Because' or, 'I don't know' is frequently their response." "Governor, I have another question about your admitted use of marijuana in the past." ' 'I thought we had put that behind us. As I explained, I tried it once many years ago. Took two puffs, didn't inhale, didn't like it and haven't tried it since." "Yes, Governor, but there are still some points that should be cleared up to satisfy the public's right to know what the New York media believe they have a right to know." "Such as?" "Do you know if the marijuana was MauiWowee?" "I have no idea where it came from." "Stoyou cannot deny it was Maui Wow-ce- The reasons seem too obvious to be arcane. The last few generations in this country ahve been fed a constant fare of murder from scripts that don't sell well unless vio"No, but I can't confirm it, either. ' ' lence and murder arc the central themes. No "In other words, it could have been other culture has been exposed to theater MauiWowie." hour after hour,' day after day, to the point "I suppose so. It could also have been that young miads must cope with unreality oregano, for all I know." while trying to differentiate the realities. "Are you now changing your position After a life of this passive ennui, excitement and claiming that you did not smoke maricould look tempting to a youngster. but only oregano?" juana, guns and other weapons are vir"No, I don't know if it was oregano. ' ' tually thrust at them from an insecure home "Could it have been Acapulco Gold?" and a paranoid society. In some of these "As I said, I don't know." lives everyone must seem angry and hostile. "Then you aren't ruling that out?" Fear becomes a constant companion. "I am not ruling it out or in. " "Governor, were there any seeds in the Of course, the National Rifle Association reefer you claim to have taken only two and certain overly righteous groups insist puffs from?" that "guns don't kill people, people kill "I have no idea." people. ' ' Politi !ans possibly understand the "Well, when you took the two puffs, problem but they understand PAC's better. did you hear any snap, crackle or popping Law makers also understand the seriousness noise that would indicate the presence of of these problems but curbing theater and seeds?" "I have not heard any snap, crackle or initiating absolute gun laws brings a howling host of ACLU rightists in to play. Also, popping noises since I consumed Rice folks like those reading mis essay would Krispies." never permit changes in their own life style "You say you consumed Rice Krispies? and would likely be among the first to regisWas this as a result of having the munchies ter their objections. at the gathering where you smoked mariLet's forget Die whole tiling (again) and juana? let the innocents go at it. "No, I had Rice Krispies as a child." "How old were you when you had Rice Eugene J. Faux M.D. A.A.R.P. Volunteer Krispies?" Provo "About 7 or 8. Maybe 9." ?" Conci-dentall- y, , . , "You mean, just plain 'wow'?" "That's right, Governor." 1? "Well, I suppose there have been tunes when I have used the word 'wow.'" ,yt, "Then can you say for certain that yoji did not use the word 'wow' the evening you say you took only two puffs from a marijuana cigarette and did not inhale ) them?" "I don't remember using the Worji 'wow,' but, no, I can't flatiy say I dkhset TT'. use it." : Syndicated Cqlumnist w that evening." PTJ "Can you be more specific than that?" "I suppose it is possible. I might lave "No, I can't." "Then, Governor, don't you think it is also said 'golly,' I use 'golly' more tfj&ii J ; inconsistent that you can remember taking use 'wow.'"- "But dia if two of but say can't 'wow,' you only GovegrBf, puffs marijuana, you remember how old you were when you ate could it have been while you were staring blankly at a flickering candle in a darkalel Rice Krispies?" room, marveling at the strange and "Weill...." ! "Governor, has your wife's, law firm drous color formations?" ever represented the Rice Krispies compaaCESh did not stare I "No, blankly ZSSI ny?" flickering candles. ' ' "To the best of my knowledge, no. " "How about light bulbs?" ,mr? "But if the law firm had represented "No, I did not stare at any light boftgj ' them, Governor, would not your having either." Rice eaten "Governor, do you recall giggling that Krispies be considered a conflict of interest?" evening?" "I am not inclined to giggle." "No, because I ate the Rice Krispies before I met my wife. ' "Are you saying you never giggle? 1$ "Governor, to get back to your claim that what you are telling the New Yorlj that you took only two puffs of marijuana press, Governor, that you never giggle?" ' on that one occasion in England. After "I didn't say I never giggle. But I am taking these two puffs, do you recall using more likely to grin." the phrase, 'Oh, wow, groovy, man'?" "Then is it possible that after tgyng' I remember those don't two puffs which you now claims "No, saying, 'Oh, the only puffs you ever took, you might wow, groovy, man.'" "You say you don't remember. Does have grinned foolishly? While at the gajne that mean you could have said, 'Oh, wow, time saying 'wow'?." "If I grinned, somebody might have groovy, man'?" "No, I definitely did not say that. It is thought it to be a foolish grin, but that not the kind of phrase I would use . " foolishness would be in the eyes of the "Then you deny it?" beholder." t "So you don't deny the possibility "Absolutely." "What about the word 'wow'.?" you grinned foolishly while saying "What about it?" 'wow'?" "Could you have used the word "I can't deny it because, as I told yeu.il without the t remember. man'?" don wow," 'groovy, ! ' ! : 9"t . Don't mention Patriot missies around the Pentagon - To hear the PentaWASHINGTON missiles were the Patriot gon tell it, the heroes of the Persian Gulf War, intercepting incoming Scud missiles like swatting flies out of the sky. That is the only version of the story the Pentagon wants circulated. Aldric Saucier, a civilian defense scien- tist with 23 years of experience, likes die Patriots too. In fact, he has so much confidence in them, that he thinks the Pentagon should stop wasting money on the Star Wars program and put that money into the proven Patriots. The Pentagon doesn't want to hear that, so Saucier wasfired. Another civilian scientist, Theodore Postol, thinks the Patriots were grossly overrated during the war, but the Pentagon doesn't want to hear that either. They don't want you to hear it, because they have put a "classified" stamp on Postol'i article on the subject Postol is a researcher at Massachusetts Institute of Technology who published his views about the Patriots in the Harvard University journal "International Security.' Saucier and Postol are worlds apart to their views about Patriot missiles, but they are in the same camp as far as the FrattfOA is concerned experts who overstepped their bounds by contradicting the pity line. Shucier was fired by the Army ia February for "unacceptable performance.'' He says he was fired because be exposed SDI Pebbles" I lac& rrnirriiiiiron-' Syndicated Columnist as a program riddled with waste and mismanagement. His whistlcblowing activities began shortly after he joined the SDI research project. He complained to his bosses that billions of dollars were being wasted on studies that were 'thrown away without being read. He told our associate Ian Moll-c- r that he suspected the only reason the studies were done was to keep money flowing from Congress to the SDI office since the SDI program was otherwise falling short of all it original goals. Paperwork was the only weapon the Star Wars team had to show for itself . Among Sawder's allegations are that the Army has Ignored and suppressed existing, connective technology in favor of more costly methods that don t work. And Saucier nays the SDI program Ued to Congress about the merits of the "Brilliant t' ' interceptors that the fostol affair has renewed the issue of of docugovernment ments. One study estimates that the federal government makes more than 18,000 classification judgment calls every day and that there are currently more than 3 trillion classified documents in govemmentjfile cabinets. , Neither Saucier or Postol set out td be a hero, but the effect of what they have dose shows how hard the Pentagon will work to keep civilians from raising embarrassing questions about pet projects. TWO GREEKS TOO MANY -.- Paul journal published last winter was taken Tsongas could not get out of the Demofrom publicly available data, as evidenced cratic presidential race soon enough for by his 100 footnotes. He concluded that the party leadership on Capitol Hut.' He the Patriots performed far worse in the wasn't a team player. His fiscal plansW2re Gulf War than the public was led to be- much too conservative to suit the old lieve. guard. He took potshots at their taxpro Shortly after that article appeared, the posals. Most of all, he was a Greek from Defense Investigative Service came Massachusetts an unwelcome reminder ! knocking on Postal's door, telling him that of Michael Dukakis. , hu article contained classified informathe conference At a press day ue( tion. In testimony before Congress, Postol Tsongas victory in the New Hampshire later claimed that the Defense Investiga-Jv- e primary, House Speaker Tom Foley, 'rD Service was acting as a water boy for Wash., referred to Tsongas as "Senator Raytheon, the main contractor on the Pa-- . Dukakis." Foley duickly corrected MBit ! Under direction of Raytheon, the self, but sources tell us it was no acckfcut. Armycombcd through Postol's article and At the next House Democratic caucus; classified it, paragraph by paragraph, even the crowd erupted with laughter when Ifolj had already been widely pub- - ey retold the story. "It was a kgitirqaw slip of the tongue, Foley said. "In The Saucier case touched off an investi- almost called Gov. Dukakis to tpoloj gation into the waste of ! money on SDI, and gtze." space-base- d would circle the earth and destroy enemy missiles. The Pentagon finally axed Saucier when he submitted a paper last year suggesting that the SDI money would be better spent on upgrading the Patriot missile system. Saucier has since been granted protective whistleblower status at the request of Rep. John Conyers, chairman of the House Government Operations Committee. Saucier's firing is under review. Postol is also suffering for being outspoken. He says his article in the Harvard h., pipe-drea- m r "So it is possible that you did say wowv jjjg fn. |
