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Show Page A14 TheSalt LakeTribune OPINION THURSDAY,JUNE3, 1999 OUR VIEW TheSalt Latke Tribune’s Editorial Position Hand Off to Europe President Clinton told the American People on Memorial Day tha’! the Euro- Deanallies of the United States would Provide most of the peacekeeping groundforces in Kosovo and mostof the moniey to rebuild the countr y. His duty now is to ensure that th ese words amountto more than wishfu thinking. “I know that many Am ericans believe that this is not our fight,” the Presidenttold his audience ¢ it Arlington National Cemetery. “But remember why manyofthe people ale laying in these graves out here — bec¢ 1use of what happened in Europe and because of whatwas allowed to go on too long before people intervened. Wht at weare doing today will save lives, including rican lives,in the futw re.” The president's analog sy to World past time for them to step forward. As the leading NATO ally, the United States must share the burden, but it should play a secondaryrole. Todate, the United States has done most of the heavy lifting, supplying three-fourths of the air force that is bombing Yugoslavia. The president said Mondaythatthe United States “has bornea large share of the burden . because we have a greater capacity to bear that burden.” That is true. But by that samelogic, the United States should take on the job of supplyingthe bulk of the 50,000 troops that NATOestimateswill be necessary to ensure the peace in Kosovo if Milosevic first agrees to withdraw his forces. The American people would not and should not stand for a huge com- imagination, threaten the» established mitment of U.S. groundforces to this mission, consideringthatthe conflict in Kosovo doesnotthreaten vital security or economic interests of the United democracies of Western E urope as the States. War II and Nazi Germany ‘is a gross ex- aggeration. Yugoslavia isa small nation which cannot, by any st retch of the fascist powersdidin the 19: 30s and 1940s. Yes, Slobodan Milosevic’s policy of ethnic cleansingis evil br utality, butit could have been contai ned without massive intervention by7 the United States. Stopping Milosevi c is a responsibility that the Europear allies of the United States should shouilder, andit is President Clinton's message to the other NATOallies should be forthright: The United States has shouldered the burden of the air war becauseit had to, but whenit comesto runningtheball on the ground, the United States will hand THE PUBLIC FORUM off to Britain, France, Germany and the other European membersofthe team. _ Punish Repeat Offenders A May16incident in which a Salt Lake City manallegedly driving drunk hit and seriously injure +d three bicyclists riding along Hig] away 89 near Fruit Heights already has spawned somecries to toughen Utah’s drunken driving laws a predic :table reaction which widely misses the point, namely ian inability of the judicial system to take drunken driving ser ‘ious! Utah's drunken drivir ig laws already are among the toughest in the nation, largely because lawmal <ers in recent years havetaken the soc ial problem seriously — soseriously t hat they some: times compete with eac h other to win acclaim for being the n nost zealous of anti-drunken driving p artisans. As a result, the laws are ple) aty tough. Fur- ther strengtheningis ov erkill, an exer. cise in stupidity and at sasement of the law and its purpose. However, a different attitude about drunken driving laws ‘ 2merges from a perusal of the sentence :s handed down against the 48-year-old. jefendant in the At the end of this Letters from The Tribune’s readers Privatize Schooling recent Fruit Heights case for prior ar- rests and convictionsforthisoffense. In only oneofthese cases, and one of the early ones, was the man sentenced to jail time 10days. Later offenses, once even the most stolid judge could clearly see a track ued to operate motor vehicles while intoxicated despite earlier judicial chas tisement for same, resulted in such punishments as periods of probation, rehabilitation, andstill moreprobation. These sentences, especially for later offenses in 1994, 1995 and 1996, did not reflect the punishments legislators, goaded by such groups as Mothers Against Drunk Driving, have provided law enforcementandthejudiciary. Until legislators or someoneelse can get the judiciary to take this crimeseri- ously, especially repeat offenses, piling on morelaws andstrengthening existing ones is nothing more than cheap political posturing. Over the past 18 months,atleast six similar government school shootings have occurred, killing 14 people and woundinganother46. So, whatis it about public education that seems to foster thesekinds of tragedies? Perhaps it’s the massivesize of manypublic schools,the lackof parental control over schoolpoli: cies, and government regulations that makeit difficult for schools to enforce standards of conduct and remove dan: gerous, unruly studei from the government’s educational factory. Certainly, schools should provide an @ Keep it short. Concise letters developing a single theme are more poweron our trails for the following reasons: Thegoalsaretotally contradictory. Motorized recreators seek speed &§ Letters are condensed and edited. @ Because of the volume of mail received, not all submissions are blished. Mail to Public Forum, The Salt Lake Tribune, P.O. Box 867, Salt Lake entirely unequal. Thenoise of a single motor disrupts the tranquility and serenity that muscle-powered recreators seek; a single motor can do so over a youlive are kept confidential. likely to be published. 1 Please typeand doublespace. City, Utah 84110 @ Ourfax numberis (801) 237-2316. Aid Police education, not a death sentence, but as long as public schools are run by bu: reaucrats, taught bypolitically powerful most of the community, taken the sad blocs of unionized teachers, funded by mandatory tax payments, and populated and disappointing idea that all crime fighting is upto the police. Nash needs to whoare requiredby law to Fred Nash (Forum, May 3) has, like From The Washington Post at Hollywood, guns,video games,surfing Of course, many will point the finger Watch. In the training each participant spends oneshift in dispatch. During that Exit Strategy the Internet, or the fact that both parents have to work to support excessive gov. ernment taxation. Many will cry we need school uniforms, metal detectors and po- worse,notbetter. his investigation in order possibly to indict President Clinton after he leaves office. It is clear that the Whitewater portion of his investigation has not yielded adequate evidenceto justify prosecuting the president. Starr can simply announcethat he intends no completed. In our view, Starrs hould wrap up his the FBI files or White Housetravel of- time the statute expires. Thefruitful y art of his lengthy probe is over. Contin uanceofhis office sther thanto erode \ity of independent htheir tasks. last weeknottore- try Susan McDouge Ul and Julie Hiatt Steele, Starr has or ily three items of business remaining All can either be adequately address ed quickly or re ferred back totheJu istice Department Thefirst of these is the two pending indictments of Wel oster Hubbell. The Starr team handlin g th ases could partment formally present a was, after all, the as. sociate attorney ge!nei theproblem is moretheoretical than real. Thecases against Hubbell ha’ v ady been filed, and the political pressure on the department to prosi x ute them adequately would ensure that they would not be punted. Similarly, Star *r should not maintain further indictments in that area or on licemenpatrolling school grounds. Nevertheless, | believe the solution to the recent epidemicof school shootings is in the direction of a free market educational system where better educational standards, discipline and safety take precedent over head counts, school turbedkids. the Monica Lewinksy matter. He should announce that he has nointentionof than manyof his detractors will acknowledge. Using the expiration of the statute to cede his remaining business back to the Justice Department would be a graceful exit strategy 1 commend therelief caravans that are in Oklahoma and on their way to Oklahoma from Salt Lake City. It all started with Tom Harrison from Park City wanting to do something tohelpall thetornadovictims in Oklahoma. Seeing all thedestruction, andbeing ascientist, he was aware of the tremendous damage and loss of both life and propertyin that hard-hit area. He made a call to a local bakery and asked if they would donate 1,000 loaves of bread so he could fill up his full-sized van and take it and other things on his ownto help the people of Oklahoma. As KAl 8 Fisher, Todd and Erin got wind ofthis, they broadcastfor help and offered to let Harrison park his van there. The goods came pouring in from all over. Then came more than the van could carry. Trucks were then donated, more and more goods from the great The Salt Lake Tribune | STAH’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1871 PASTPt JBLISHERS John F. Fitzp atrick (1924-1960) John W. Gal livan (1960-1983) Jerry O'B) den (1984-1994) cle powered individuals seek silence and tranquility. They can’t coexist. The impact of each upon the other is large area. A single snowmobile in the Cottonwood Canyons disrupts manyski- ers and snowshoers. Thereverse is not andearsofourlocalpolice, ROBERT RAWLINGS Salt Lake City u During manyyearsin the outdoors as a muscle-powered recreator,I haveoften encountered motorized recreatorsin areas where they are prohibited. They knowthat patrolling does not exist, and there is no chanceofpenalty. I have had some tense confrontations, where I was clearly right, but they were contemptu- ousof both the law and the environment, and hostile towards me andall others whorespect the law and havea right toa noise- and smoke-free outdoor experience. Thesolution? Concentrate motorized recreators in controlled areas where their noise footprints overlap to the greatestdegree possible. Restrict them to those areas. They canstill seek their speed thrills without disturbing those who value tranquility. These can be large areas, but motor use must be re- stricted to those areas. Enforce all other areas as “motorfree zones.” Patrol these areas adequately to ensure “respect” for the laws, even amongthose whodon't. LAWRENCE R. NILSSEN It is all so simple. Politicians could simply make it unlawful to wear black Bountiful oO trench coats. Noblack trench coats, and Caring Gesture trying, and he cancertainlyleaveit to prosecutions, particularly those of Hubbell and Steele, have seemed exces: sive, and some measures taken inthe Lewinsky investigation seemed unnec essarily aggressive. Still, he has done a better job underdifficult circumstances Magna u be folly totry to dosoin the context of andactionsStarr has taken, Someofhis officers are busyfrom start to finish of their shifts, responding to any number of calls, This isn't Mayberry and Barney Fife is a TV fantasy sitcom. Take some personal initiative and become the eyes Simplistic Solutions DON W. JOHNSTUN prosecuting asitting president, it would the Justice Department (under what ever administration) to decide whether Clinton should be prosecuted for per: jury or obstruction of justice after he ea es office. We have disagreed with decisions shift he would cometorealize that police funding and turning ablind eye to dis. fice matters. Moreover, whatever Starr believes about the constitutionality of andthethrill of kinesis — motion. Mus- true. attend, the problem will only grow month, the inde- be shifted to the J usti private schooling or homeschooling by students butit also seemsto gi ve him discretion to refer back to the Ju istice Department matters he regards as substantially While this might conflict Hubbell: thanthe alternatives of In responseto the story about sharing the Bonneville Shoreline Trail (Tribune, April 26), as a formerdirt biker and snow mobiler, I feel that motorized recreation is completely incompatible with muscle ANOTHER VIEW Kenneth Starr and h is fellow special prosecutors as statut ory orphans.The law permits him to co ntinueoperating, serveslittle purpose¢ confidencein theabil counsels evertofinis With his decision em to be more vulnerable ingly commontrend of @ When submitting letters to the Public Forum, please include your full name,signature, address and daytime telephone numbers. Information other than your name andthe city in which get involved in his community council meetings andjoin Mobile Neighborhood pendentcounsellaww ill expire, leaving investigation by the schools, I must face the reality that government schooling cannot assure my kids’ safety. Evidence suggests govern- record in which the defendant contin- Incompatible Partners Whereto Write Following thehorrific massacreat the Columbine High Schooland as a parent with two children attending public people of Utah, All kinds of supplies, chain saws, emergency items, clothing, food, Mashlights and whateverelse could be gathered. Then Fisher, Todd and Erin decided they were also goingand driving a vehicle, no moreLittleton tragedies. We may want to declare a comprehensive and formalwar on guns. Then, the entire gun problemwill simplygo awayin the same False Assertions Anti-gun groups have declared that people and specifically children have way that the war on drugs eliminated Next, politicians should simply a law requiring all family units to eat at least onedaily meal together. moreaccess to guns than “ever before,” andthat this is the causeof the Colorado incident. This is not true. Never in the andall cleared up, Orrin Hatch could history of this country have wehad more gun control laws. Those who know the real history of After these problems are outlawed promote a new lawwhich simply re quires U.S. citizens to always respect the American flag. I love our country and respect our flag, but I revere our Consti tution. The American revolutionaries who defeated the government of King George III frequently burned the British flag in protest and demonstrations of in: justice. The Founding Fathers recog nized the importanceof free political ex pression in the First Amendmentto the Constitution. The First Amendment is not a simple law, It is a fundamental right, fully intendedto protect all man ner of political speech, including flag burning and demonstrations against the monarch. During the U.S. government's tragic war on Vietnam, flag burning was a strong, visual «(atenent of our immo: this country know very well that before 1968 anyone could order a gun through the mail and haveit shipped to any address. No Bradylaw backgroundchecks, no age verification, no gunregistration. Wherewerethe school attacks back then? Where were the armed gunmen storming publicplaces? Did any students in the 1950s, 1 , or eventhe197 bring 50 bombs to school? No. E all of the attempts to outlaw guns, these incidents not only still occur, but they are increasing with every new wave of gun-controllaws. AmI the only one whostill remem: bers Sarah BradyandBill Clinton telling us that their Brady bill would end gun violence and make our schools and our streets safe? AmI theonly one whostill PUBLISHER What an outpouringof love to our Dominic Welch will gesture from Utah and our commu rality and di .tr ss came into power, After Adolf Hit his government created a simple law providing Uis anyone desecrating the Nazi flag would be summarily put to EDITOR nity. I just wanted to say thank-you for restoring my faith in Utah and Salt Lake City. death. Simple solutions by simple tion and otherstelling us that the Brady bill wouldnot stop criminals from com: mitting crimes? The events of this last month have proventhat the NRA was minded politicians. God save us from ourselves. right and that the anti-gun groups are dead wrong. WARREN PAUL, Salt Lake City STEVEN F. LOWE Murray JOHN NEWSOME Salt Lake City James E. Shelledy KEAR! TRIBUNE CORPORATION, 1408, MAIN ST. SALT LAKE CITY, MITE neighbors in Oklahoma. What a good remembers the National Rifle Associa POOR CO |