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Show TheSaltLakeTribune PINION THURSDAY, NOVEMBER22, 2001 OUR VIEW Giving Thanks ‘Thanksgivingis usually a time to rememberthat change doesn’t neces- reflect, however briefly, on the im- sarily require a heroic act. An indi- portant family, vidual maynotbe able toendviolence friends, good food. This Thanksgiving is nodifferent, except that there are or anti-American sentiment in the matters in life: world, but a person can do something many more reminders of just how good Americans have it and how to make his or her immediate world more just. Serving at the soup kitchen, donating to a food bankorcloth- much Americanshavetogive. A look at the daily newspaperillustrates the point. Afghan refugees with nothing but theclothes on their backs,violence aroundthe world and natural disasters destroying lives in mere moments are constant remind ers of just how fickle life can be. For families across the nation, the reminders are containedin the blocks of devastation and debris in ‘New York. There are also more immediate reminders. Poverty and violence can be found right here in Utah. The news can be overwhelming, particularly when the wounds from Sept. 11 are still wide open. But Thanksgiving is also a_reminder. As Americans and Utahns experience feelings of helplessness - and uncertainty, it is important to ing drive, shoveling a neighbor's walk, or simply beingpolite to a fellow shopper, improve the world at home. Small acts may seem like a drop in the bucket compared to the many problemsin the world, but deeds of kindness dofar more good than fretting about the bigger picture, especially when those deeds involve human contact. Money donations are always welcomeat aid centers, but becoming personally involved helps a both the donor and the donee feel into how they are made” holds true THE PUBLIC FORUM for the Olympics as well. Utah's healthy 1995 appetite for the Games. turned to heartburn during asix-year diet of scandal, PR blunders,political opportunism and seemingly endless construction. If the Games are like sausage, many one-time supporters turned vegetarian long ago. It's time to cleanse your palate, Utah. The lighting of the Olympic flame in Greece on Monday means the events themselves are finally on their way. Whatever the faults of the process that steered that flameonits course for the Beehive State, the reason for Utahns’initial excitement is close at hand. ‘The athletes who have worked all their lives to compete in the 2002 Olympics will arrive before you know it, and they deserve all the support and enthusiasmthat you can muster. They had nothing to do with the bribes, the outrageousticket schemes and the decision of U.S.. Olympic Use Less officials to deprive competitors” par- ents of tickets to the Opening Ceremony. The skaters and skiers, biathletes and bobsledders knew nothing of that broken record that seemed to play forever in the mindsofUtah politicians: “But we have to do/spend/ endure this; the Olympics are com- ing!” They had no part in that fouryear construction nightmare that turned Utah’s transportation system into a modelof 1945 Germany. The athletes have been toiling in weight rooms and lacing up skates before dawn for hours of tedious practice, preparing themselves to put on a show that Utah can be proud of for years to come. If Salt Lake Organizing Committee trustee Ken Bul- lock is right that the Olympic flame symbolizes “the purity of what the Olympics stands for,” its light is surely fueled by the shining examples of international youth who will compete in the 2002 Games. Fire up, Utah. The flameis on its way and the athletes aren't far behind. When Aid Makes Sense At the meetingsof the World Bank and International Monetary Fund over the weekend,Britain's finance minister called for a $50 billion increase in annual aid to developing countries. The World Bank president, James Wolfensohn,said that support for a big increase among donor coun- tries was the strongest he had ever seenit. But the United States struck a different note. Treasury Secret Paul O'Neill declared that “over the last 50 years the world has spent an awful large amountof money in the nameofdevelopment withouta great of success.” Meanwhile in Washington, Congress is considering a foreign aid bill that betrays no hint of a renewed commitment to development. x O'Neill's skepticism is understandable, as much aid has indeed been wasted. But he goes too far when he implies that waste andfailure are the general rule. Since 1960 life expectancy in poor countries has risen from 45 to 64. Since 1970 the illiteracy rate has fallen from 47 percent to 25 percent. Andsince 1980 the numberof poor people has fallen by about 200 million — this at a time when world population increased by 1.6 billion. these bers reasonable economicpolicies, it has greatly reduced humanmisery. The problem comes when aid is thrown at countries with bad policies, and O'Neill rightly suggested that donors should be more selectivein their giving. Many donors already understand this point: The World Bank, for example,has tried to concentrate its efforts more on countries with good policies, and has withdrawn from someothers. But some donornations still direct aid to allies, rather than giving it to countries that will use it well. The United States, which gives a large bite ofits aid budget to ahs and Egypt, is chief among offenders. Britain is rightto call for a big increase in aid. Over the past decade, assistance to Africa has fallen from $36 per personto $20, even though the continent is home to desperate poverty. The global economic slowdown is driving more people in developi countries below the poverty line: Perhaps some 10 million more will live in poverty next year because of the economicshock of the Sept. 11 attacks, according to the World Bank’s economists. O'Neill raises fair questions aboutaid, but they have been derplay the pi dependent countries. Uganda has seen poverty fall by two-fifths during the 1990s, and big strides have been made in India, Vietnam and China. Where aid has been given to support American development. commitment The Washington Post TheSaltLakeTribune I wouldlike to thank the Salt Lake City Corporation for supplying its residents with the new blue recycling , bins to be used for recycling paper, tin, aluminum andplastic products.I am happyto makeit easier for everybodyto recycle. The very factit took so long to de- liver the new bins was due to an overwhelming demand for this ser- vice. Even so, I know that there are for to daytime telephone numbers. Information other than your name and the city in which you live are kept confidential. ® Keep it short. Concise letters developing a single theme are more likelyto be published. @ Please type and double space. ™@ letters are condensed and fe Utah. e With a deluge ofperiodical covers, newspaperserials and 24-hour television special reports focusing on “the enemy,” it is no wonder that Ameri- received, not all submissions are not how recycling only leaves less garbage that hasto be buried, but that many items of everyday use can be made from recycled. materials. Perhaps, then, more people would see the published. f @ Mail to Public Forum, The Salt LakeTribune,P.O. Box 867, Salt Lake City, Utah 84110 cans feel misunderstood and downright hated for the things andbeliefs we worship. If only they knew us better. That is what the International @ Ourfax numberis (801) 257-8950. @ Our e-mail address is letters@ sltrib.com. Visitors Utah Council ([VUC) has worked to achieve for over40 years. In partnership with the U.S. Depart- benefits, and would maketheeffort't6 recycle. However, as helpful as the recycling process is, it isn’t the first. choice. Inhis recentvisitto Salt Lake, scientist Bill Nye was quoted as saying, “It would be best to not waste the resourcesin thefirst place.It’s best to just reduce what you use.” I believe that whatBill says.is very true. Yes, companies that send you junk mail (yes, this canbe recycled, but if they don’t send it to you in thefirst place, we'll all save money). We can avoid buying food items that are doublepackaged,and we can take lunches in reusable containers. We can also avoid wasting food by ordering smaller portions at restaurants and in a cafeteria setting, only taking whatwewill for sure eat. Last summer we saw whatcould happen when there was a powercri- sis and a water shortage. When the citizens of Utah madea concerted effort to reduce consumption, we avoided drastic measures such as blackouts and water rationing. The same principle applies to food and man-made materials. If we use less, there is less waste. Weall need to reduce and recycle in orderto produce less garbage and to stretch outthe life ofour resources, both natural and man-made. THOMASSHEFFIELD Salt Lake City a Repetitive News ‘Thank heaven for newspapers. Of course we are all concerned with the developing news from the war and home front. But do we need to be inundated with the same taped story, over and over, on every television station? Someevenhavethe audacity to claim the breaking news is an “exclusive.” After day-afterday being filled with the repeating anthrax story I was about to give up completely on ‘TV news. When I was a youngster on the farm some 80 years ago, I heard mentof State, members of the IVUC have hosted thelikes of Tony Blair, Indira Ghandi and other emerging Quid Pro Quo Regarding the suggestion that teachers pay their own licensingfee, I as a teacher fully concur. It does not seem unreasonable to me that I pay this fee to keep mylicense current. It also seems reasonable that my employer pay my wage for the six or so holidays that fall within my conschool year. This includes Labor Day, ‘Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, ete. Some may not realize that teachers receive noholidayor vacation pay, excepting one or two personal leave days per school year. Also, I am required to work a 7% hour workday, including a half-hour, on-call Junch, yet am paid for seven hours daily. lam willing to add the cost of my ing fee to the of dollars I spend on my classroom each world leaders to get a taste ofAmerica in their businesses and homes. Although the IVUC and otherrelated groups aroundthe country pro- mote future business andcultural relationships,, the greatest benefit comes fronf heartfelt conversation around the dinner table. Just last year alone, Utahns have hosted such diverse visitors from India, Bulgaria, Indonesia, Tanzania, Yemen, Ethiopia, Tunisia, Kuwait, Algeria, Uzbekistan, Poland, Morocco, Germanyand manyothers. Thegreatest foreign policy can begin 2,000 miles away from Washington and endless miles away from the origins of many beliefs, faiths and economies, right here in Utah. Taking the timeto learn from others and perhaps share a few things about ourselves is the key to tolerance and acceptance of those whodiffer from us in superficial ways, but whose core M dis the same that we embrace as Americans. year. I believe that a few paid holidays each year is not too muchto ask of my employer. BYRON RUSSELL President, IVUC Salt Lake City LAURIE OBERG HADDEN Salt Lake City Nuclear Folly Selective Solicitude find it ironic that Brian Barnard condemns the LDS Church's advocacy of liquor advertising restrictions, claiming that the church doesn’t understandthe First Amendment. This is the same man who sued to eliminate Washington “Redskin” license plates because he found them lin’s condoms and Rabbi Sokie's pork products. Sure it’s funny, are Pollock jokes, however I wouldn't call them “tolerant” or sensitive”). Apparently Barnard believes that the First Amendmentis written in liquid that vacillates according to his own personal prejudice. It is regrettable that the state of Utah did not appeal the “irrational” 10th Circuit decision to a higher court. The federal courts have not I read an article yesterday (Tribune, Nov.7) about the “debut” of the nuclear waste container at Yucca Mountain. Apparently, some people think it’s a foregone conclusion that these poisons, which will be lethally radioactive for longer than mankind has been civilized, are going to be shipped from all over the country and dumped in Nevada(or Utah, ifPrivate Fuel Storage gets its way). We cannot let this happen! Shipping only increases the number of people who will be exposed to the extreme hazards these materials present. Allowing them to be stored (dumped) at locations remote from where they are created also enables their creators to make even more. It’s a vicious cycle which must be broken, . now,before the Great Western Desert becomes The Great Western Wasteland. MIKE CROOKSTON Lehi Q Cook’s a Joke Of course I don’t take this lightly, but we are not so stupid we cannot be told the facts and then go on to other news. ; greatest time ofneed, there is a sense of helplessness for those of us 2,000 miles away from the foreign assaults in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. Aside from giving blood, monetary donationsor simply saying a prayer,there is a way toassist in the cause of world peace right here in edited. @ Because of the volumeof mail UTAH’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1871 ‘THE SALT LAKETRIBUNE, 143 S, MAIN ST, SALT LAKECITY , 4111 In what seemslike our country’s county landfill, and could understand PAST PUBLISHERS John F: Fitzpatrick (1924-1960) John W.Gallivan (1960-1983) Jerry O’Brien (1983-1994) Knowthe World We WelcomeLetters @ When submitting letters to the Public Forum, please include your full name, signature, address and still many people who haven't taken advantage of this opportunity. I wish that everyone could see our city/ weshould recycle. But if we don’t use as much or makethetrashin thefirst place, we can help to make our resources last longer. Some ways to reduce can be as simpleasusingboth sides ofa piece of paper, using refillable pens and pencils, and getting your nameoff lists of ANOTHERVIEW 4 EMPLOYEE, | GET TO PACK HEAT TO THE OFFICE...” Fire Up, Utah The adage “those wholovelaws or sausages shouldn't inquire too deeply (Oa, ~AND WERE THANKFULT BE Livia IN. UTA WHERE, AS A STATE more connected to the world at large. Life is fleeting, it should be used wisely. This Thanksgiving, hold onto family orfriends little tighter and spend at least a moment giving thanksby givingto others. WILLIAM ROWE SMITH Salt Lake City + Merrill (Flip-flop) Cook has got to be the biggest joke in Utah. Republican, t; Independent, Republican . . . he'll run in any party to stop tinkering with legislative so- thatwill take him.If he's the best the lutions and simply follow an action from Barnard’s playbook: Sue. ‘Talipublican party can come up with, DOUG DANSIE Salt Lake City PAUL HART Sandy they're in big trouble! gj |
