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Show "A nun who is good enough toshedhis blood forhis country is good enough to be given a square deal afterwards. More than that no man is entitled to, and less than that no manshallhave. "-Theodore Roosevelt (185S-1- 9 19) Pres. Monday, February 1,1933 The Daily Herald ise energy totes? ni;ri m-- 'mummi-matm- . HE'S HOT Apparently the Clinton administration is considering a broad-base- d enerfor dual the tax gy purpose of raising revenues and encouraging conservation. What are the implications of such a plan? For starters, a wide-reachi- energy tax, instead of simply increasing taxes on gasoline, would have much more affect on consumption patterns. Transportation absorbs only about 25 percent of all energy used in the United States. Major conservation measures are possible in other areas. Real estate is one prime example which comes to mind. A broad energy tax could serve to encourage more efficient design in new structures. Also remodeling or retrofitting existing buildings would supplement the efforts of utilities to encourage conservation. Some industries have already taken steps to reduce energy consumption. They should not be penalized or have their international trade position jeopardized by any new tax scheme. Talk about new energy taxes seemed to start with Lloyd Bentsen, secretary of the Treasury and a Texan. Texans, of course, are known to be born with oil rather than blood running through their veins. That being the case, it appears that maybe the primary objective of such a tax would be to cut the federal deficit. ng las 0 SPEEDING, BUT LETS TICKET We have frequently said more taxes are a poor way to stimulate the economy or to reduce the deficit since they frequently tend to depress the economy and result in less net income for the not to mention ingovernment creased demands for government services such as welfare and unemployment benefits. But if any new taxes are worth at least considering, energy taxes might fit the bill. There is no question that Americans tend to squander energy. There is no question that many of us jump in our cars to drive a block and a half to church or the convenience store. Editor: Why a stand on religion? Why a stand on the fact that there either is, could be, should be, or if we don't know, it is still all right to think there is a deity or many deities. The minute interpretation or the slight deviations of interpretation of Bible, Koran, Hinduism, Judaism, whatever, is not the important thing. The important thing to the welfare of the world population is that religions of any kind, translate into ethics and morality. The morality is knowing and understanding the difference between right and wrong. It is the morality or the ethics, where we as individuals take the responsibility for our actions. This is possibly philosophical, but here is societal a impact when we do not behave and stand for those things which absolutely differentiate between right and wrong, moral and immoral, ethical and unethical. Therefore, religion, in whatever form, needs to be laced into everthing that we do. Our family, our schools, our government, our public meetings. Religion creates or supervises the instinct to know intuitively those things that have value and those things that have no value. When you believe in something, you have a quality of ethics. When you believe in nothing, you actually believe in everything, and all things aren't good. This is far from a speech on religion to any specific organized religion or body of religious beliefs, but it is an attempt to defend prayer in schools, public meetings, governmental affairs, and all other places that it seems to be being chased out of. I encourage all of you who have religious beliefs of any kind through any religion, or even if you claim no specific religion, but believe in a greater and more omnipotent power, to demand and hold to those demands, that the ethics of religious standards be reintroduced into this state. Without those standards, we cannot have the decency, the morality, the knowledge of right and wrong that must be instinctive. For all of you who want to make prayer legal again count me in. value-adde- Getting sued for being a really nice guy must be a legal rarity. But that's what appears to have happened to Dr. William Klipfel, 36, a pediatrician. Klipfel used to work at a clinic in Frankfort. 111., in the far south suburbs of Chica- 1991, when he came to (The Constitution Will Be Hanging By a Thread), made a flippant remark that some people think that if their taxes are raised, their garbage isn't collected or if they get into a boundry dispute with their neighbor that their Constitution is hanging by a thread. Who the hell hired a man like him to run a church college? He stupidly believes that go- CFR, Trilateral Commission member, Brent Scrowcroft is a good American and church member. Bill Clinton is not only a longtime member of the CFT and the Trilateral Commission, but he also was an attendee at the secretive Bildcrberg Conference in 1991 an entity considered far more powerful and influential than the CFR. Bill Clinton was also a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University in England. In the Chicago Tribune July 14, 1951 there was an article by William Fulton "Rhodes Goal, Return U.S. to the British Empire. Scholars Work to That End." The a: tide reads, in pertinent part: (Cecil John Rhodes, the empire builder, held a lifelong burning ambition to bring about "the ultimate recovery of the United States of America as an integral part of he British Empire." Today many American Rhodes Scholars are working assiduously to make the dream of their imperial patron come true.) This is a mad man's dream. If you would care for the whole article send me a large self addressed, stamped envelope and I will send you a copy. Bob Bormann 48 W.314N.,Provo,UT 84604. Bob Borman Provo . His clinic was a small satellite of the big Suburban Heights Medical Center in Chicago Heights, which is run by a board of directors made up of doctors. Last November, Klipfel was fired. But not because he was incompetent, lazy, disliked by his patients, or dropped kids on the floor. To the contrary, his patients thought highly of him. He got the boot because he wasn't charging enough and didn't order tests he thought unnecessary. "Where I work," he says, "a lot of families are in trouble. With the economy, many of my families didn't have the money to cover the expensive tests and immunizations. a J r.lilio Royho L ZU Syndicated Columnist reasonable for the patients, and they threw me out on my ear." But firing him wasn't enough for his former employers. When he left, he received two months' severance pay. His contract included a agreement that said he wouldn't practice within 10 miles of the Chicago Heights clinic. So he opened his own office in Frankfort. He says he thought it was more than "So I ordered fewer tests than the other 10 miles away because he had seen a highdoctors, and if a patient came in for a way sign that indicated it was. recheck, for example, I wouldn't charge them anything. However, his new office was about 8 "Look, some of these people had a miles from the Chicago Heights clinic. If large deductible or a large And his former associates were upset in wait come to couldn't pay it, they'd they because hundreds of his loyal and devoted or sometimes not come in at all. I'm a patients followed him. But for some, finddoctor, you know." ing him wasn't easy. Klipfel says the clinic officials warned "When they phoned the clinic, it was as him that he wasn't charging enough. if I had dropped off the face of the Earth. I "They raised their rates a year ago. The had left forwarding phone numbers, but quality didn't go up. They just wanted us the clinic employees were told by the to jack up the fees. The average office fee board not to say where I was. So it was went from $33 to $45. ThaVs a lot of implied that I'd abandoned my patients, money during a recession, when people which is terrible." are losing their medical coverage." But many of the patients had his home The main clinic has its own lab and phone number or found it through directofacilities. "Because I ordered fewer ry assistance and were able to reach him tests, I brought in less money. The more when the clinic wasn't helpful. tests, the more money you make. They (A reporter called the clinic and asked said what I was doing was wrong. But how for him. A woman said: "We don't have a much I should charge was not in my con forwarding address or number. Try direc tract. I came up with what I thought was tory assistance. We don't have anything." X-r- ay Letters policy yt doctor treated in sick way Low-co- st Difficult situation K f We worry, however, that broad application of energy taxes might serve as a prelude to a more general consumption tax like those of Europeans d on products. Such a move would be a radical revolution in the American tax structure and should be preceded by serious and careful debate. There is room for a better tax system. We doubt there is room for bigger bites out of the income of The Daily Herald welcomes letters to the editor. Address letters to Letters to the Editor, POBox 717, Provo, UT 84603. Letters must be signed and include the writer's full and a daytime phone numname, address ber for verification. Letters should be typed, double spaced, Met Johnson and less than 400 words in length. Letters New Harmoney are usually published on a first come first sened basis. The most common reasons for not publishing letters are: too long, unsigned, illegible, obscene or libelous. Editor; Sometimes numerous letters will each say and hard rock a a place, We're between the same things about the same When is a basically Constitution hanging by rope. our Rex Lee talked to BYU students on the topic. In such cases, a representative samConstitution and the Bill of Rights, Jan. 15, pling of the letters will be published. HERE.- -. HONEY. a tdC Make prayer legal HOPTHrU HIM ANYWAV. WE MEED THE Fortunately, the reporter wasn't someone with a sick kid.) You would think that with all the hundreds of thousands of people in that part of the Chicago suburbs, there would ' ' be enough patients to go around. CenMedical But the Suburban Heights ter, which filed the lawsuit, doesn't appear to think so. "Now they're claiming I'm doing irreparable harm to their corporation, but I never made up even 1 percent of their revenue," which he said amounted to about $30 million a year. "They claim I'm violating my 'restrictive covenant.' But there are about 20 other similar doctors between my practice and the center. Also, I was fired, so the covenant isn't valid. You can't fire someone illegally, then deny them the right to make a living. And I also know of several doctors who left the clinic voluntarily and practice in the area. The corporation is mad because my patients came to me. But I didn't advertise. I did not solicit at all. But I'm their doctor. "The corporation claims it owns these patients, that I should be barred from seeing them. They're trying to take away my ability to make a living, and they want an injunction slapped on the whole com- munity from seeing me. " The lawyers for the clinic didn't return phone calls asking them for their side of the dispute. Which is understandable.. When you go into court and complain that a doctor wasn't squeezing enough money out of his patients, what more is there to say: That it takes a lot of blood tests to buy' a Mercedes Benz? A judge is pondering the issues. I wouldn't be so presumptuous as to advise a judge. But I hope he noted that quite a few of Dr. Klipfel's patients came to court to talk about what a fine, dedicated physician he is. On the other hand, there have been no reports of patients coming to court, waving their checkbooks, and saying: "HooI want to pay ray for the corporation more, more!" Powell has more than gay issue to worry about " of lacli Anderson WASHINGTON Joint Chiefs Staff Chairman Colin Powell feels like a general war. With the military fighting a and morale already stretched rubber-ban- d thin, the coming debate over the Pentagon budget may make the gays in the military issue seem like a picnic by comparison. According to a Pentagon source close to the five-stgeneral. Powell is increasingly agitated over the failure of the Clinton administration to stock the Pentagon with a new team; over the injection of gays in the military, although the process of enfranchising women in the military remains incomplete; and, most especially, over the fact that while conflicts rage in Somalia, Bosnia and Iraq, and with a watershed budget document due soon, raising the gay issue was and clumsy at best. For Powell, the mother of all battles will be budgetary. The Defense Department budget already exceeds $250 billion, and boasts a workforce of nearly 3 million uniformed and civilian employees. Defense analysts believe the Bush administration's $1.4 trillion defense spending plan 7 contains lots for the fiscal years of funny bookkeeping, such as a failure to recognize more than $35 billion in potential weapons cost increases. Also, much of the $53 billion in management savings predicted in the Bush budget are looking doubtful. Between politics and purse, Powell and Clinton are likely to find themselves alternately as allies and adversaries. Some of five-fro- nt ar 1993-199- " President Bush defending the 2 bomber manufacturing on the grounds that it sustains more than 36,000 jobs and generates over $ .2 bill ion in our state ..." Syndicated Columnist Base closings. For the members of Congress whose districts include bases to be shut, this is about as popular as cutting the looming battles incl ude : Social Security benefits. Clinton has will Dellums. How vs. new Aspin Les Defense $60 billion in cuts from the Bush of promised Secretary Aspin get along defense budget, with the new Chairman of the House administration's Armed Services Committee, Rep. Ron and many officials believe more bases will Will Dellums be the have to be closed. In 1991, some 34 bases Dellums, first peacenik chairman of the committee, were closed and nearly 50 others were exposing Clinton on his left flank? "Inter- realigned. Last FORTUNES OF FAILURE estingly, his big battle is going to be with the House and Dellums in particular," year we reported on the expensive habits said one Senate Republican. "I mink he'll of William N. Rudman, cousin of former win it. Everybody calls for these cuts. But New Hampshire Sen. Warren Rudman Aspin has the ability to say, 'we'll cut it and the head of the Defense Technology here, here and here in your district,' and Security Agency. While the agency was facing a major funding shortfall, Rudman; you'll get the (member) to back off." Procurement. Despite the end of the was charging the taxpayers for trips to Cold War, the Defense Department has Paris that included an $1 ,800 tab for a car proposed spending about $100 billion a and driver to take him around the city. But while Rudman ran into some trouble year on the development and procurement of weapons and related items through the with the Defense Department's Inspector end of the decade. Yet the new mission for General for his ways, his friends in the Pentagon were waiting with the military often seems disconnected from the sticker-shoc- k machinery being open arms. After Rudman left DTSA ,in clamored for. All major programs have November, top Pentagon brass created a constituencies ranging from members new job for him in his hometown of Bosof Congress in whose districts parts are ton. Rudman now continues his illustrious made to the defense contractors and mili- public service career as a liaison to the tary officials. Procurement as pork was on Department of Transportation, a position display last year when 19 members of the that nets him more than $100,000 pel1 California congressional delegation wrote year. B-- 1 five-ye- ar free-spendi- |