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Show iHium Halt nke tribune Saturday Morning, June otion A 2fi, 1976 Pag 1 ignored as Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County continue to argue over how to repair and replace those hydrants. Last April the Salt Lake County Commission agreed to do the repair work and then sue the city, present owner of the formerly private water system, for the cost. A new wrinkle has developed in the controversy since the County Commission acted. It has been recognized that the Salt Lake City Water Department has been installing and repairing fire hydrants for many years; something private plumbing firms dont do regularly. It is obvious then that money, and more particularly time, would be saved if the city crews did what they are expert at repair the bad plugs it now owns in the county. Salt Lake City, apparently, is willing but only if the county agrees to al pay raise based on an idea derived from the incentive theory. Generally, the increase is five percent, hence the five percent widely used term: increase. merit However, thiough the years, the phrase has become a misnomer. City commission attention was directed to the situation by a municipal radio shop worker, Charles Brown, who observed that anyone who thinks he must do a better job to earn a merit increase is laughed at per-torman- by fellow public employes. Mr. Brown is describing a common condition: merit raises are usually given annu- regard to a good improvement. There reason for that. During years soon after merit systems gained popularity, the annual five percent raise was often the only way public workers could cope ally without on-the-j- w-a- s Vnotlier iurtoiis over the support Jimmy ecetved Irotn people who, m her view, ought to know better Not just surprised, or astounded, hold harmless clause in any contract. The county has balked, contending instead that it will pay the city for the work, but will also sue to ht any suit. Should the county lose its suit, the city already has its money. If the county wins, and the city is found liable for the repair and maintenance of lire dugs it acquired in 1973 (like all other water system owners in the county are) then the money will be returned to the county. During all this maneuvering and negotiating those 94 malfunctioning or non functioning fire hydrants continue to deceive area residents; making them believe they have adequate fire protection. While allowing the city to repair fire hydrants it owns is the cheaper and more practical approach, the county may have to do what it planned originally: fix the plugs and sue the city. This will be more expensive, but it will get the plugs working properly and provide the level of fire protection citizens in the area are entitled to and that state law' demands the county provide. Salt Lake City Commissioner Glen N. Greener, anticipating The Public Forum have Imn turn him down, not just once three anguished calls he made to him Triple KerqtoiM Editor. Tribune I lead with concern the recent article regarding injured illegal aliens and their unpaid hospital hills in Utah. The article recited that most ot these 'illegals were migrant tarm workers who were injured had three responses to the artic It. First, the Utah Legislature has previously across-the-boar- Mr. Browns comments, proposed reducing merit increase money in next years city budget by half, using the remaining amount for raises based on actual, demonstrable merit. Its an idea whose time may have returned. Certainly all public employers should reiew merit pay policies in the light for helping civil mutch strides with service workers inflation. of new procedures ieHint rejected legislation which vvoulel place some resKnsibihty tor employment of illegal aliens on employers. The proposal would require farmers and other potential employers to make at least a reasonable check to see if their employes are legally in the country. The Legislature should reconsider this. Second, the U tah Legislature should consider the1 application ot the workmen's compensation laws to tarm workers. Currently, tarm workers whether local, migrant, legal or illegal are not required to he entered by any kind of workmen's compensation insurance. This is wrong. The Legislature should reconsider this. Finally, one of the injured illegals. Anisito Huerta, owes $.30.1100 in medical bills plus he owes 45 pints of blood used during a senes of amputations of both arms and his left leg. The blood bank of the Red Cross here in Salt Lake is open several days each week. I have an appointment to donate a pint ol blood for tile account of Amsito Huerta at the University Hospital and I would ask others to join me K. RENEE DcLUT Editor, Tribune: Mr. and Mrs. Taxpayer had better brace themselves. The Washington Wizards are preparing another tax reform bill. So here we go again, and again, with the story of our lives. The Wizards raise their own salaries and benefits, and those of government employes, the welfare, the social security, etc., etc., when this continued method deflates the dollar more and more. We are not living in inflation, but deflation. Cost ol government and its bureaue-racieis the reason, and only reason for ripping olf the taxpayer The government rips off the taxpayer, the taxpayer rips off the government, the merchant rips otf his customer, the customer rips oil the merchant v ia shoplifting, not paying his lulls Nobody trusts any body and it all begins in H ashmgton. and continues in the State Capitol, s ity hall. ( Wallaces senatorial godfathers, the Senate last week accepted an amendment to Energy Administration legislation that pices Mr. W. 'lace $1 million a month m government subsidies. The amendment cuts him in on the petroleum allocation program as if his refinery were already built and producing Hi.tHKi barrels a day. While Mr. Wallace does not have the Hue million, he does have an agreement with Venezuela for a supply of 10,090 barrels a day ol c rude Refiners v ho refine high-cos- t lugh-eos- t of crude are entitled to an "allocation domestic crude, which the government keeps a barrel. In practice, this means priced at refiners who refine domestic crude make out a check to refiners who refine imported crude The new amer.div nt allows Mr. Wallace to import his 10. non barrels a day. run them through a Mobil Oil Co retnierv and collect his cheeks for the allocation How fortunate lor Mi Wallace that the federal government, lor the good oi the emint y, is fixing domestic oil prices and allocating petroleum When the marketplace alone m doing tin-- - work. Hiliticians can't indulge their compassionate1 natuies so easily by instructing the Imivuuciaiy to assist the Holladay H , in edv Hut once1 the government is involved 111 tunning an industry, .1 kinds of opportunities piosent themselves While we know nothing almot Mr W all kc, we lee sale in assuming he is especially deserving, at least, that is usually tin ease with the lii-- t heiietieiary of such largess According to The Washington Post. Senator Javits was said to haw- a' ted out of concern that small enterprises without large reserves ol cash or credit Imd it difhe ull to break in to businesses like rebniiig that requnv a lot of I - llionev Isli t tills a heal tv. arming Rde- - Jf yon hear ol .me otin r deserving, came st elltrepic Hears who would have a belter chance of success if only someone would give ttiemi St million a month se'iiif their name1.-- , along to Senators due lleg Two me'i1 guys i lcl 1 Editor. Tribune; We face this lluoride being put in our water again. A poison so vicious that it can completely change the body of all who use it in a mineralized torin, such as waste product ol aluminum. It changes even the power to control ones own mind by destroying the lobe in the brain that gives us the will to resi't When will we learn that we cannot trust our government ottieials? They do exactly as Forum Kill. Public Forum letters must be submitted exclusively to The Tribune and bear writer s full name, signature and address. Names must be printed on political letters but may be withheld for good reasons on others. Writers are limited to one letter every Id days Preference will be given to short, typewritten (double spaced) letters permitting use of the writers true name. All letters are subject to condensa.ion. Mail to the Public Forum. The Salt Lake Tribune, Box H67, Salt Lake City. Utah. Xltltl. Nixon it seems somehow wrong tor people to vote their instincts and their viscera rather than their bruins. But is it? Do even those of us who fancy ourselves intelligent choose our candion the basis of their stands on issues? Or do we make "issues" the test for others after weve made up our own minds? dates they want to do no matter what the voice of the people is. I tor one vv ill resist putting fluoride in Hie water to the bitter end With such a catastrophe as our water being poisoned lacing us, why has Austin Belnap issued orders that Betty Hates was not to have any lluoride petitions to work on or circulate? We need all the help we can get to fight this destroy ing ev il I was in thi1 governor's hoard room when Hetty Bates announced her candidacy for governor ol Utah and keeping fluoride out of ir water was onco! her promises and pledges sue also is a veteran in lighting against this aioi ide ivil and helped la orgamc this here we go. ripping olf each other again The great American pastime ripping olf tin older guy. Well. I say. let's rip otf a lot ol that execs . baggage hanging around Washington, the State Capitol and city hall F E. DRAPER lllov ellletlt IK (oiimnm Practice iWIF HRl CF Editor. Tribune' It seems common practice a politician in trouble to blame bis problems on the Irce press We saw it with Nixon; we sei it again with Iiep Howe's vicious attacks on I ue mass media, charging them with having "an used, tried, and convicting" linn Well Fve r ad every news article m the paper I can ,,et my hands ml concerning Mr. Howe s ea .e to a radio news station all (lay al and ,.ork twhuli is not a mass media jobs and Im pozled at how lie ian construe objective reporting ol tacts and events as accusations and com ictauis. Kv on the editorial', w hie h don't pretend to he any thing tiut opinion, dont assume lie's gudty. they merely point out the possible damage that could result should lie not resign; and that's no more than Mayor Wilson and Senator Mo." have jointed out at the apparent 'hock He expl'O'-c- s abandonment ol legal and pn.pi r procedures by the premature release ol misleading had always thought information to the pi ess. that tlio public had legal access to police reports (if this ty pe I' he actually .suggesting that this aluir covered up and not should have mentioned by the ness until alter hi' corn ictiim or exmu ration in court'' lie screams about the press not treat in;; Imn like a normal citien lie certainly didn't act like a normal ciuei., and was above ins pnv ileged position and contacts m t y mg to get Uolice Chief Fillis to intercede" lor Imn 'How mutiv average citizens gel on the hot line to the police chief when they arc arrested-- lie -a,, s lie didn't ask Chief Hlhs to do am thing illegal, but whatewr it was he asked di'tn'lrliil enough to ( lnol I dll' to li-- 1 Ix-e- ) d issues were their issues, whose positions were could bring themselves only to lukewarm support of George McGovern. The reason, 1 think, is that his personality, his general "aura," left them unmoved Some ot these same people are now lambasting Carter for not being specific enough on the issues. their positions, Deadly Dangerous is because they I now enough history to understand how deadly dangerous it can he to elect to high office demagogues who play on the emotions. And they conclude that a candidate with unusual emotional appeal imi'l iieec":u lly be a demagogue They mention Hitler and M.i"uluii to move their point mention Jesus Christ and Martin I. other King Jr byway oltibuit.il My (Mint is that there can lie lunimiiniia Hon in ways more direct than woid amt policy statements and positions on livpoHiotical issues But when that communication happens Ixtvveen tile people and a candidate other than our own, we tend to dismiss it as emotionalism Hjv ing said all that, must say. too that the Carter spark, the aura" that is impelling him toward the White House, hasn't yet hit home with me. But that doesn't mean that the people who do feel it are stupid And while it may yet turn out that Carter will be a disastrously limited and shallow and plaEI-dmo- us President, it won t be because ol Ins grin. In fin .ag on the issues or any ol the oilier things that so mlun.de my li lend I su'peet that this 1 Tllclilk Editor. ihu'ie And what is so late as a day m June' Then if ever come i'tect days" lames Russell Lowell ll who participated in Through the Garden Gale Holladay Garden Club Tour for Holla-daCottonwood Heritage Bicentennial Celebration on June. 19 would agree Ue thank those who tame or contributed in any way for its success Even th weather was 1 M v jr know ix'opk who. if their issue-basehud been fed into a computer lour years ago, would have found the computer print out saying: McGovern. And yet many ol these same people, given a candidate whose I requirements I Today ii percent of the people are Imaiieinu r.o percent Irett , soon there will he even tewer taxpayers at the rate people aie forming lines to work lor some government agency ; 111 LINDSEY DEW So. From The Wall Street Journal How niee of Sen. Jacob Javits of New York .tnd Sen. James Allen of Alabama In travels among their constituents, 'hey came upon a hardworking black businessman who was hav ing a little trouble making a go of his plans. They talked it over and decided he was a worthy fellow, and got their chums in the United States Senate to give him a helping hand. The lucky man is Charles Wallace. 12. owner and operator of Wallace & Wallace Chemical & Oil Co., a New York City heating oil distributor. Mr. Wallace wants to build a refinery in Macon County, Ala . but lias had a little trouble raising the neoessai y $:HH million It should be easier now. At the be best of Mr but He accuses the media of being unfair. He suggests the xlice illegally gave untrue information to the press. He charges that the police are lying about what he said, and he asserts that some mysterious group is out to get him. Every txxly's wrong but Allan. He claims the press isnt giving his side of the story suit lcient attention, yet for a long time he refused to tell the press and public exactly what his side ot the story was. (ircat American PaMimc ind Government Capable of Unending Help Furious What gets her dander up is the tact that a one term governorot competency, un- A proven as a national politicun has been able to pull olf such a political Mr, Raspberry coup without taking 11 is hard, definitive positions on the issues sin insists, not lair. And who does she like for the Democratic nomination'1 Why Jerry Brown, of course. She will acknowledge, when you lure hello. that 'he is attracted to Brown for reasons that have little to do with demonstrated positions on hard competence or dear-cu- t issues Atone That sail !ie say v It s an uura. a president can do anyway really , is set a tone lie doesn't run the country If you made me list some reasons uhv like Brown. I would say not in any particular that he is fresh and new and order intelligent, that he is not mixed up do my knowledge) in tins whole political hag, that tie is a human being, a compassionate human being. Maybe I'm just in tune with him." And when she sees her words in print, she II iceognize that they couid he appropriated In to any ot those infuriating Carter-backer- s describe their own man. Describe Own Man Equally reversible is her recital of why she dislikes Carter. "He shows me nothing, she says. He says nothing to me. I don't think he begins to know what's going on. or has the slightest idea of how to cure it. I don't like his grin. I see nothing in his face or his" manner to make me believe anything he says Her assessments aren't typical, or Carter wouldn't be in his present shoo in position for the Democratic nomination. But the basis tor her assessment may be a lot more typical than journalists, political leaders and intellectuals arc prepared to acknowledge. For all our talk about "the issues," voters tend to make up their minds based on general feelings about candidates. The issues themselves rarely determine an election. How many votes turned on John Kennedy's missile gup" and how many on the peoples perceptions of Kennedy and Richard Nixon as men? Was their any issue between Adlai Stevenson and Dwight Eisenhower more influential than the general's grin? Was FDR's stoned charm of no electoral consequence? In fact, the only President in recent memorv whose election turned on "the issues was Richard Nixon. Except for a hard core of Nixon loyalists, the people who voted him into office seemed not to In particularly awed by the general "aura" or "tone" of the man. It would be hard to find among them people who want their sons to he like Nixon even 1 I Through successful lobbying and unionized negotiation, public employes have been obtaining yearly cost d ol living, improvements in civil service pay plans. Utah's state workers are now entitled to regular review and pay adjustments based on local economic indicators. But, so far, the routine five percent merit raise shows little sign of vanishing. Many public employes can still get a five percent merit increase as well as a cost of living boost. Olten. the combination goes well beyond the years inflation rate. has . on the job. with inflation. Eventually, the merit raise had less to do with improved work capability than it did with keeping the work force happy. But that circumstance is changing. tarter or disappointed, determine if it owes the money. The clause would preclude Obsolete Wage Practice In the midst of current debate over wage policy covering Salt Lake City employes, a particularly relevant but previously obscured point has merit been raised. It concerns increases for public workers. Local government civil service payrolls, from city hall to state eapitol, often referred to as merit systems, normally provide an annu- The w as'.nngton Post I have a Iriend who is WASHINGTON a city-soug- rn 4Aura Usually Wins Election I City, County Squabbling Keeps Fire Protection in Jeopardy Fire protection has continued to be seriously, if not dangerously, jeopardized while controversy rages over who is going to pay for repair of 94 deficient fire hydrants in the old County Water System, Inc., service area. This fact has been almost totally Ra-plw- t pe'-fec- here were babes in arms, teenagers in jeans niul older people using eanes. They came from tie entire Wasatch Front and many brought out of state guests. All were happy and smiling. It is iini't gratifying when a dozen garden club I ladies with the help of their families and giv ing of their time, energy and talents can bring so much happiness to so many. Ue thank The Tritium for their June 13 I.ilestyle page featuring our garden dub tour The article by Hobble Snow and pictures by Van Porter were excellent. Some have asked what donations for the tour will tie used for? Environmental improvement in our community. Some is earmarked lor 2 attractive practical litter cuiituincr.s Holladay which Kent Topham designed, and s bop students at Olympus High School made Local lumber companies donated lumber. Holladay Garden Club gave hardware and Holladay Rotary Club contributed metal liners Salt Lake County will designate where they are to be placed and put them in Ue truly appreciate and smeerelv thank the hospitable, gi.11 ions ownei of the gardens we were allowed to visit Dr. and Mrs. A. Glen Humphrey.'. Mr. and Mrs Virgil Marsh. Mr. and Mrs Earl Atkinson. Mr and Mrs. Kent Topham Mr. and Mrs Carl D Davidson. Dr ami Mrs o H Johnston. Mr and Mrs. Glen R Lviikt rs Mr and Mrs William Neff and Prot ,u.d Mi s Kit11 Firriiagc mends fr 111 MRS AKV1L L. STARK liolludav Garden Club 1 |
