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Show n!i!;iiiiii;iiiiiiiHiiii'ii::i!iininiiiii.ii!iiiii!i!itii!iii!iiii!iiiiiniii!iiiiii'HH!!!ii!iiiiii DESERET NEWS LETTERS TO THE EDITOR SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!i;iiiiiiiiiiiitiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiit;iiiiiiii!iiiiiii:iiiiiii:iini Inflation Hurts We Stand For The Constitution Of The United Stales As Having Been Divinely Inspired 7, 1968 MONDAY, OCTOBER 18 A EDITORIAL PAGE Mr. Milton L. Weilenmann, Candidate for the Senate recently stated He is grateful to b part of the free enterprise system. So am I and millions of others likewise greatful to be part of the 6 per cent of the earths population, living on 7 per cent of the land area, prcxluc- ing one third of the worlds goods and services and enjoying the highest standard of living man has ever known. This is what capitalism and fiee en- -' terprlse have accomplished. Florida Shows How We Can Consolidate However, since 1939, things have been happening to our system which most people will agree indicate a very dangerous trend. The power and in- -' fluence and size of government have become dan-gerous. The dollar has decreased 59 per cent untij its worth or purchasing power is now 41 cents. More than eight months ago Mayor Lee and two city commissioners suggested that Salt Lake City discard its outmoded commission form of government in favor of the mayor-counc- plan. il At the time this page urged that the county ought to move in a similar direction, too, with the ultimate aim of consolidating the two units of government and eliminating considerable duplication of effort. Since then little has been heard of the mayor-councproposal as the University of Utah has sought to mount a study into how Salt Lake Valley can and should go about streamlining government. With this weeks report that the study seems on the verge of getting under way certain financial arUtahns can take rangements have yet to be worked out heart that study is not just being used as a means of sweeping needed reforms under the rug. Meanwhile, theres encouraging news out of Florida that consolidation and streamlining can be carried out on a significant scale with overwhelming support of the citizens, whose approval is the key to eliminating familiar but obsolete ways of running local government. Last August the voters of Duval County adopted a new charter, consolidating Jacksonville and the county, by a margin. New government officials were selected in a succeeding election, and last W'eek the consolidation formally took effect. With a consolidation that extended Jacksonvilles government to 827 square miles, the Florida area became the largest city in terms of land area in the United States, and perhaps the world. il city-coun- $700,000 Outrage ty long-awaite- city-coun- The Demos ty two-to-o- ne At the same time the hpw charter creates a single government based on a system, with its checks and balances, ease in pinpointing responsibility, and greater understanding and participation on the part of the citizens. county-wid- e mayor-counc- il Moreover, because of the efficiency, economy, and elimtax inequities made possible by consolidation, Jacksonville reports it is working toward red"ction of ad valorem taxes. What Jacksonville has done can and should provide Salt Lake Valley both a pattern for improvement and a stimulus to action. Now lets roll up our sleeves and go to work. ination of How Not1 To Lend The failure of the federal government to collect more than 11 cents on each dollar invested in Utah by the Area Redevelopment Administration raises disturbing questions about the agency and its successor, the Economic now-defun- ct Development Administration. Is the poor repayment record in Utah typical of the experience with such loans around the nation? If not, why is d about these operations? Washington so Before making such loans, shouldnt the government have provided the firms involved with managerial guidance to safeguard the taxpayers money? Moreover, wheres the sense in Congress killing an agenloaned money only to replace it with a bureau, the that cy Economic Development Administration, which gives money away in direct grants? If government is to be kept accountable to the people it and serves, the taxpayers should demand an explanation funds frittered are before further away. fast, closed-mouthe- Signs And Savings A Utahns proposal that the government acquire as a package each advertising company's signs not conforming to the 1965 Highway Act, rather than condemning each sign individually, looks like a good solution to a difficult problem. The savings to the taxpayers, if the plan is adopted nationwide, has been estimated as high as $300 million. Whatever the exact figure may be, certainly less red tape and duplication of effort would be involved in removing signs, for single purposes of highway beautification, on a contract basis than Since the proposal originated in Utah with advertising executive Douglas T. Snarr, how about trying it out in Utah? First, as is noted by Charles M. Pickett, general counsel to the State Road Commission, it would enable Utah to remove nonconforming signs at a great savings to the state. Second, it would provide a pilot program for studying the effectiveness of the Snarr plan on a statewide and nationwide basis. Third, it could help establish a precedent for acquiring nonconforming signs on a cost basis, rather than on the more expensive basis of the income involved as some billboard interests insist. Fourth, it could help encourage cooperation, rather than strife, between the government and the outdoor advertising per-compa- sign-by-sig- n. industry. Two years have passed since the proposal was outlined to the U.S. House Public Works Committee, and time for action on removal of nonconforming signs is growing short. Let 8 move forward on at least a pilot study as soon as possible. . Few Afterthoughts in modern times than By ROLAND EVANS d words have become which is the more corrupted devoted time meant for and school, word Greek originally communin moral and and to mental participation development ity life, not mere relaxation and recreation. Fewer than 10 percent of the 2,500 varieties of snakes in the world are dangerous to man, and more persons die annually from bee and wasp stings than from snake bites; yet snakes are more greatly feared especially by women than any other creature, for reaso u that have lurked deeply in of the race since Eve's day. leisure, theun-conscio- INSIDE REPORT and ROBERT NOVAK WASHINGTON - A tantalizing $700,-00- 0 Democratic PartyTunds sequestered somewhere in a secret Manhattan bank vault is being kept away from the threadbare Humphrey campaign, despite its desperate need, by command of Lyndon in B. Johnson. This startling fact is widely known and bitterly resented among tire chieftains of the Democratic Party. They do not for a moment aecept the official explanation that the kitty cannot be spent for partisan purposes because of legal impediments. Substantial though it is, the $700,000 wont make the difference between victory and defeat for Vice President Humphrey. But the odd little mystery surrounding this money reflects the surrealistic relationship between the White House and the Humphrey campaign. It also symbolizes the mess at Democratic party headquarters inherited by Humphrey from his boss. The stcy begins in the autumn of 196?, when Mr. Johnsons consensus politics was relatively undiminished and corporate fat cats w'ere eager to pay tribute. Richard Maguire, then treasurer of the Democi atic National Committee, cooked g gimmick as his valeup a the job. before quitting dictory about $1.5 million by Having raised in advertisements selling the 1964 national convention program, Maguire published a book called Toward an Age of Greatness with ads sold to cor$15,000 a porations at a page. The take was around $600,000. fund-raisin- But even befere the money came in, unfavorable publicity was generated. The advertising gimmick was quite properly condemned as a device to circumvent two troublesome federal laws one barring political contributions by corporations, the other prohibiting tax deductions for political contributions by anybody. Moreover, eyebrows were raised at tbe high percentage of defense contractors and regulated corporations (railways, airlines, a pipeline company) that chose to buy the ads. As a result. The money was not spent but put in trust in New York its exact whereabouts and trustee still a deep mystery. During the 1966 campaign, a detailed plan to spend the funds on nonpartisan voter registration was vetoed by the White House. Subsequently, no attention was paid to the fund until after the Democratic-conventioin Chicago, W'hen Humphreys severe money woes became obvious. Reports circulated at Humphrey headquarters that some $200,000 would be released for voter registration on a nonpartisan basis. In fact, four separate schemes for spending the money in a supposedly nonpartisan way on voter registration thereby freeing desperately scarce party funds for other objectives were presented to Mr. Johnsons operatives. Actually, there Is substantial legal opinion that the money, now amounting to around $700,000 after drawing 5 per cent annual interest, could be spent for avowedly partisan purposes without fear of prosecution. Lawrence F. O'Brien, the new Democratic National Chairman, even dispatched a personal emissary to New York to see if at least a small portion of the money could be released. But the word from LBJ men has been that not one cent will be released until the President the Presisays so, and up to now dent doesnt say sc. Just w'hat Mr. Johnson does have in mind for the money no one can be sure. A report that he is saving the funds for n rehabilitation of the Demo-carti- c party is scarcely credible. More likely, though unsubstantiated, is the report that it will eventually find its way into the Johnson library in Texas. The only hard fact is that Mr. Johnson denies it to the Humphrey campaign. Official explanations for this travesty coming from the Humphrey men now in command at the Democratic National Committee are pathetically lame. The claim that the money was never really the National Committees is patently absurd. The Committee on Voter Education and Registration which published the 1965 book was from the start a paper creation of the Democratic National Committee. More genuine mosity toward Humphrey men. that Mr. Johnson is the anitiie White House by Some actually believe has withheld the money because his political protege, John Criswell, was dumped as National Committee Treasurer by Humphrey. That seems too bizarre, but it would not be out of keeping with the continuing mystery of the deep-seate- d disappearing $700,000 and the Presidents sometimes curious attitude toward his own partys presidential candidate. 'Nixon Looks Like The Only One In the weeks that have passed since the Democratic convention in Chicago, it has become painfully clear that the Demo- . .. cratic Party is too disorganized to run the country. No if A doubt it is theoretically possible, though it is highly improbable, that Hubert Humphrey can do what Harry Truman did in 1948. But its getting late even for that. Mr. Lippmann QllAllI? La by some fluke or miracle, there is still no doubt that he would go to the White House as a minority President, opposed by a great heferogeneous majority consisting of Republicans, Wallaceites and disaffected Democrats. It seems to me clear that the Democratic Party today is unable to offer the country the genuine prospect of a coherent government. All this is even more true of what George Wallace has to offer. He does not have and has never had an organized party behind him. He has only an angry crowd behind him, and if he could be elected which he cannot be he would be at a loss as to what to do next, not having the supporters or the program or the experienced men to form a genuine government. Wallace does not offer the country a choice, only an expression of part of the peoples discontents. This leaves us with Nixon as the one and only candidate who can be elected and shows the promise, like it or not, of being able to put together an administration to run the government. Wallace is not a real alternative to Nixon because Wallace cannot put togetner an administration to govern the country. Humphrey would be an alternative to Nixon were it not for the fact that the Democratic Tarty, as it has existed since Franklin Roosevelts time, has come apart at the seams. It is now a disarray of discordant minorities. It has as its candidate a man who is inextricably bogged in the failures of the Johnson Administration. It would be one of the curiosities of politics if the voters chose to give a mandate to Lyndon Johnsons creature. Neither of Nixon's two opponents is able to offer the prospect of a party sufficiently strong and united to govern the country. Tiius, the actual choice before the voter does not lie among three candidates. The choice is between Nixon and some sort of abstention from the presidential con'est. Abstention, if I understand him correctly, is Sen. McCarthy's choice. It is a quite respectable choice for a mar who is in a special position, which is that of a professional Democratic politician who wishes to keep his party affiliation for work in the futuie. But abstention means that the abstainers aie not going to intenere w.ik the choice of those WALTER LIPPMANN who do not abstain. It means that they will not make a positive choice of the President and of the party which is going to govern the country in the next four years. Apart from abstaining, there is no choice but to support Nixon. It is generally agreed that there is a movement, probably of landslide proportions, away from the liberalism of the past 40 years and toward, relatively speaking, a more conservative posture at home and abroad. This is not surprising and is not in itself deplorable. It does not mean that all the good things that have been accomplished will be repealed and undone. But it does mean that the virtues and ideals which conservatives cherish particularly disciDline and authority and will for a time prevail over the liberal alternatives of permissiveness and largesse and environmental improvement. The liberal era has lasted for some 40 years, and if it has now provoked a reaction, it must be that it is not now working sufficiently well to command general support Leaders of the party in power have in some considerable measure run out of ideas. In any event the country is turning to the conservatives and this means that Nixon and Spiro Agnew will almost certainly be elected. I regard the selection .RICHARD M. NIXON of Gov. Agnw as a serious mistake which could have tragic consequences. But all the disintegration of things eoyside ed the Democratic Party after the colossal mistakes of the Johnson Administration I do not shrink from the prospect of Nixon as President. He is a very :.iuch bettor man today than he was 10 years ago, ard I have lived too long myself to think that men are what they are forever and ever. Franklin Roosevelt in the White House was a quite different man after he had passed through his long illness than he was to those who had known him when he was a young man about town. Few who knew Mr. Truman as senator tore-sathat he would preside over such great measures as the Marshall Plan and NATO. The John F. Kennedy of the Came-lo- t legend was not visible to those who knew him in the 50s as a young Boston politician. So I do not reject the notion that there is a new Nixon who has outlived and outgrown the ruthless politics of his early days. Having argued that he alone among the candidates brings with him a prospect of an administration that can govern, I go on to say th&t the country wdl need a government that can govern in the troubled days which lie ahead of us. Much as I believe in the justice and wisdom of laige-scal- e reconstruction and reform, there remains the fact that our social order cannot conceivably be reconstructed quickly. Yet the injustices and the miseries are obviously painful Thus there will probably remain a considerable body of irreconcilable revolutionary dissent. There are no easy and there are no quick solutions for the discontent that will have to be dealt with, and we would be hiding our heads in the sand if we refused to admit that the country may demand and necessity may dictate the repression of uncontrollable violence. My view is that it will be in all ways better if the conservatives are in power should these necessities arise. It would be a disaster. I think, if a man like Humphrey had to do what is against the whole grain of his nature. It would be another example of President Johnson adopting Barry Goldwaters war policy in Vietnam. It is better that Nixon should have the full authority if the repression should become necessary in order to restore peace and tranquility in the land. It will be better also that the disorganized Democrats should be on the sidelines, reforming their programs and their views and offering opposition to extremism and making themselves ready for the inevitable reaction against reaction. There remains the agonizing problem of tne Vietnamese war. There is no easy and short way out of the disaster after all the entanglements which have been created. I am writing at the end of September and there does not appear today any real prospect of concluding the war. Such confidence as 1 havp in Nixons foreign policies rests on the belief that his greatest ambition will be to be elected for two terms, and that he knows just as well as anyone else that if he is bogged down in Vietnam, he will become as unpopular as Johnson and Humphrey are today. He must find a solution to Vietnam in order to be more than a President. I think Nixon's whole future will be staked on getting a cease-fir- e and a withdrawal of our land forces. That is the best I am able to hope for. But I see nothing better In Humphipy. All in all we cannot deny that the near future will be difficult, and I have come to think that on the central issue of an Inflation has become critical to our economic . stability. Does Mr. Weilenmann recognize the causes of inflation and is he ready to join the struggle against it? Is he ready to fignt for less taxes, less, government spending thus allowing more money to be invested in our Capitalist Society? Is ho for economizing the government, cutting-bacexisting programs or is he for more governmore Great Society type programs, ment more subsidies, more government interference-witsmall business and in general, more and high- er taxes to support a larger government? Control of public spending rests with the people who elect government officials. Will Mr. Weilenmann practice restraint or will he follow the current liberal ine of spend till it, hurts? It is up to Mr. Weilenmann to let us know, if elected, how he will strengthen the free enter-'- , prise system and how he will combat unwise and wasteful government spending. " -J- OHN H. WILSON, 2346 Sundown Ave. Reverse The Trend One of our great founding fathers, George Wash-- . ington, despised political parties. He feared that when the party spirit developed, politicians would put party interests above national interests and that elections would become bitter, partisan strug--' gles for power rather than a political process, the people selected the officials of their choice. Political parties have nothing to do with sfabili- ty and orderly change, because our government is designed to operate according to the fixed terms of our Constitution. It was not political parties, but the Constitution that enabled America to convert this land into the gieatest nation on earth. For many years the Democratic and Republican parties have gradually adopted the policies oT the socialist party. This is why it is important that we should not be concerned for the adaptation of the third party. We should att vote for the principles at hand. Too many people are saying that a vote for Wallace is a vote for Humphrey. This is not true. Wallace support is swelling week by week. A vote for him is just as it is, a vote for Wallace. So this year we should vote for principle instead of a political existence that has been in power much too long to achieve the needs of the people of our great nation. NORMAN L. WILLIAMS Richfield, This Is A Bargain? A certain company in the area is selling maga-- , zine subscriptions by telephone solicitors. They offer three magazines guaranteed for 48 months at a mere 28 cents a week. If you agree to buy the magazines, a representative calLs at your door, collects $2.30 and your signature. The only catch, is, the you must pay $2.30 a month for 24 months equivalent of 28 cents a week for 48 months. In other words, you are signing a contract to pay $55.20 over a period of two years. The three magazines I chose would have cost $42 for 4ear sub-- " scriptions had I ordered them directly from the subscrippublishers. The yearly cost of three-yea- r tions would be even less. The representative at the door told me I could have a fourth magazine at no additional cost which' costs $10.50 for four years, making a total of $57.50 for the four magazines for four years if ordered directly from the publishers. I would have saved a grand total of $2.30. Beware of telephone solicitors. My advice is cents a week may not sound hang up. Twenty-eigh- t like much, but $55 is a great deal more. - E. M. NORMAN 1255 2nd South. Questions Justice The Sept. 17 Deseret News carried a very small news story in an obscure corner captioned simply: Prisoner Released. The item simply stated that H former assistant Utah attorney general who had killed two women in an auto wreck in June, 1967, had been sentenced to one year in jail and had been released after serving a scant three months in the county jail. The order for his release was signed by Second District Judge Thornley K. Swan.' A few days later headlines proclaimed that our illustrious Governor Rampton was going to see that law and order would be maintained in the state of Utah. , My question: Mr. Governor, Mr. Attorney Gen- -' eral, Judge Thornley K. Swan, and others charged with maintaining law and order in Utah how can this travesty on justice encourage our police and our victimized citizenry to uphold the law or have . respect for it? - LESLIE L. WARNER-556S. 2740 West St. GUEST CARTOON one-ter- organized government, to deal with it Nixon is the only one who may be able to produce a government that can govern. Drait Free Prts |