| OCR Text |
Show She Salt Lake Tribune TUESDAY, September 5, 1995 SECTION D FOR THE RECORD CLASSIFIEDS Page D-2 Page D-4 Poll Shows Defense of Utah’s Abortion Law Is Not Popular By Dan Harrie © 1995, THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE The continued court battie to defend Utah's 1991 anti-abortion law is not popular amongstate residents, according to a Salt Lake Tribune poll. One-half of Utahas oppose spending additional tax monies appealing the abortion case to the U.S. Supreme Court, according to the random-sample poll conducted statewide. Only one-third support the continued litigation. About 16% of respondents said they were unsure. Males oppose spending more public dollars on abortion appeals by a slightly larger margin than females. About 60% of the 450 respondents questioned were women. The survey has an error margin of plus or minus 4.5%. Young adults, 18 to 25, were the only age group in which support for continued appeals out- weighed opposition, 43% to 38%, respectively. Since its enactment in 1991, Utah has spent $1.1 million defending the restrictive abortion law from legal challenge. Hundreds of thousands of dollars moreareat stake in contested at- torney fees, Gov. Mike Leavitt, in consultation with legislative leaders and Atty. Gen. Jan Graham, must decide whether to appeal the Utah law to the nation's high court. State attorneys have estimated the cost at $200,000. State attorneys are requesting a rehearing before the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver after that court struck dowa remaining portions of the antiabortion law. Issues being appealedare a ban on abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy, restrictions on the methods used in late-pregnancy emergency abortions and a prohibition on fetal experimentation. Attorney fees owedbythestate also are on appeal. Luci Malin, president of the Utah chapter of the National Organization for Women, said the poli shows ‘‘what we've been saying all along. We have someof the mostrestrictive legislation in the nation here, people know it and they're satisfied withit.” Utahns are tired of abortion battles in the courts and in the political arena, she said. Gayle Ruzicka, headof the anti- Should Utah spendadditional tax monies appealing court decisions againstits anti-abortion law? 0 1 2 3 40 SomeUtahlegislators wantto 3 enact new lawsto restrict abortions. The Utah Legislature oughtto: Enact new resrictions on Leave the current laws where they are and move on to otherissues Enact less restricting [7 T 32% By Mike Gorrell THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE A State Street pawn shop was the backdrop chosen by low-income advocates for a Labor Day plea to alleviate the hardships facing the working poor. A blood bank would have been an equally appropriate setting, said the Rev. Ronald Thomas of Cross- roads Urban Center, for both are sites where the working poor turn whentheyare desperately in need of cash. “People will do what they need for money. They will sell their possessions, maybe even their own blood,” Thomassaid. ‘People who work should not { abortion laws Unsure be that poor. They should have a standard of income 34 112%mat 450 people Tribune abortion Utah Eagle Forum, could not disagree more. “It's all a lack of understand” Ruzickasaidof the poll findings. Speakers: Help Working Poor Stop Selling Blood, Belongings “How can a person say they’re pro-life, which most Utahnsare, but say we shouldn’t have any laws to restrict abortion?” Ruzicka insists that if the state prevails on the attorney-fees issue, it could stand to save $500,000. that supports them .. It’s a moral outrage.” He and three other speakers decried the low wagesandinsufficient housing that makeit hard for the workingpoorto escape poverty To rise above the povertyline, the wage earner for a family of three must makeat least $6.05 an hour. That goes up to $7.28 an hourfor a family of four. “That's a plum job in this market,” said Thomas. The upshot? “Sixty-six percentof all personsin poyerty belong to a household with at least one worker.” To make matters worse, he added, “the ranks of uninsured workers are growing,asis the instability ofthe workingclass dueto a lack of affordable housing. Conditions only will worsen if Congress follows through onefforts to cut 50% of the funding now available for low-income wage earners through the Earned Income Tax Credit, said Ana Archuleta, cochairwomanof JEDI (Justice, Economic Dignity and Independence) Women. The tax credit is critical to “helping the working poor keep working,” she argued, contendingits reduction or repeal will be ‘devastating to families across the nation.” The Rev. Dave Barnes of Shared Ministry challenged churches and synagogues across Utah to take uptheplight of the working poor. “Service makes faith come alive,” he said, contending modern religious communities should pay closer heed to biblical condemnationsofsituations that impoverish people and establish great disparities in wealth. “Greed and selfishness are the main culprits,” added Barnes, imploring churchgoersto write letters and exert otherforms of pressure on political leaders who advocate policies that “trample the voiceless” and ignore “nobler principles” that should guide the way people treat each other. Besides idealism, there are also practical reasons forall of society to care for the working poor, said Steven Andersen, president of Salt Lake Schools Credit Union. “Better wages and benefits attract and retain better employees,” he said. ‘Turnover and errors are minimized ... Experienced workers are more productive, they make fewer errors and are moreefficient. Experienced workersalso provide better quality service.” Sandy Man Won’t Take Vandalism Lying Down ... Stores Mailbox Underground By T.J. Quinn ‘THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE SANDY — First, there was the morning it had a few dents and bumps. Escalation was not far behind. Cherry bombsblew it to pieces. Replacements were beheaded. “Our poor mailbox,” said Gracie Toval. “It was a disaster.” The Tovalsrealize the assaults on their mailbox were somebody's idea of fun, probably teen-agers with a lot of spare time andatleasta little booze. it was annoying. It was maddening. It was expensive. But to Fred Toval, a former U.S. Marine Corps officer who served three tours in Vietnam,it wasa call to war. “T was mad as hell,” he said. “I'm not going to let theselittle [thoughtful pause] people dothis to me.” Iastead, he got to work. Among the rows of fortified brick and concrete mailboxes in this upper-middle-class neighborhood, there is only a gap in front of the Tovals’ home. Their mailbox now is a postal bunker,a motorized testamentto how far a manwill go for an exeuse to build something complieated. It rises and sinks with a dull roar, visible only four hours a day to give the letter carrier enoughleewayto do his job. Whenabove ground, the mailbexis a 4-foot-high column with a drawer at the top big enough for small packages. It has Fred Toval had had his mailbox battered, blown up and even beheaded.Butinstead of staying angry, he got creative. worked flawlessly on an auto- matic timer for two months now, attracting attention frompassing motorists when in motion. Neighbors are amazed, Fred Toval is pleased, and the letter carrier said he doesn’t care as jong asit’s up when he comesby. “Tt’s the peace of mindthatI know when I’m out of town my mail is under 18-gauge steel,” Tovalsaid. He becameanelectrical engineer when the Marine Corpssent him to college. He is a manager for Loral Communications. Naturally, his response to ran- domsuburban vandalism was to spend $2,500 and countless hoursdesigning andbuilding the invincible mailbox. “T’'ve had every neighborin the area say, ‘Good grief, Fred, what the hell are you doing?’ Toval said. But some of the same neighbors who questioned his sanity began to wonder aloud whatit would cost to buy one because Toval is not the only resident plagued by vandals. Hethinks he can get the price down to about $500 (the prototype of something is always the most expensive model, he explained) andis talking with a patent attorney. There will be more revisions. Toval knows technology is often obsolete as soon as the enemy studies it. They will find new waysto attack, and a secured target is even more inviting. Even the rosy-cheeked, wellgroomed 12-year-old riding by onhis bike could be a scout. “Did you see the way he was eyeing it?” Toval said with a grin. State’s Plan to Police Anasazi Sites: Sell Them By Mike Gorrell THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE Since the lands contain ancient Indian ruins, they should be more valuable on the open market. And chances are good that the type of people who would buy land for its ruins would appreciate the artifacts’ intrinsic value and would protect them, not exploit them. Butjust in case a buyer is not so high-minded, deed restrictions will stipulate thatviolations of antiquities law will invalidate a sale, with ownership of the property andreverts to the state. So goes the thinking of State Office of Trust Land Administration officials as they explore the idea of using the presence of Anasazi artifacts as a tool to boost the sales prices of a half dozen parcels of land between Torrey and Teasdale in southern Utah. “There is a significant market of people whoreally want to [buy land] for the mystique of preserying Anasazi sites or the adventure of being Indiana Jones and doing a dig on their property in a controlled setting,” said Kevin Carter, Trust Lands Administration assistant director. “That's a market niche that would pay significantly more for property like this than for raw land.” Carter's agency is mandated by the state Constitution to maximize the economic return from scattered sections of land deeded to Utah at statehood to generate rev- enuefor the public-school system. Cerverting aimost 60 acres around Torrey/Teasdale into a half dozenlots andselling them at auction would accomplish that goal — with a bonus if artifacts inflate the highest bid Still, Trust Landsofficials are implementing the strategy with caution, knowingthatif it is done wrong the state could end up looking like shills for pothunters. What's more, evenif no abuses take place, accusations of cultural insensitivity uadoubtedly will be lodged by those who deplore the conceptof capitalizing on the ancestral remnants of modern American Indian tribes. That's how it looks to Alfonso Ortiz, a University of New Mexico anthropologist and formerpresident of the Association of American Indian Affairs “It's really macabre to advertise lands, using the presence of Indian artifacts as a come-on,” said Ortiz, a Pueblo Indian who considers the Anasazi his ancestors. “it’s kind of gruesome. “This is property that fell into its ownership by conquest,” he added. But what's more, “these are not the remainsofa lost civilization, but the living heritage of an equally living peopie [the Pueblos}, 2 people who have a future as weli as a past.” Notall American Indians completely discount the concept If private ownershipof the land helps protect artifacts from being plundered, as is occurring now, why nottry it, asks Ricky Lightfoot, vice president of programs at the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center in Cortez, Colo. The not-for-profit research and education center specializes in South- west cultures and archaeology between 1150 and 1300 A.D. “If you push it to the extreme, there are questions about the ethies of digging and long-term curation of artifacts,” said Lightfoot. “But, overall. it’s a lot better than other alternatives. Why shouldn't someone promote ruins, but as something to be protected rather than being destroyed? They [gov- ernmentofficials} already admit they can’t enforce existing laws.” The Trust Land Administration's approachis consistent with Lightfoot's thinking. “If it doesn’t look like we can provide adequate protection for ihe sites and the artifacts found there, or if it is too sensitive to just bull into, we probably won't doit,” said Carter. Utah's plan is patterned after Indian Camp Ranch, a private venture with an archaeological emphasis being developed near Cortez. Indian Camp Ranch is the brainchild of Archie Hanson, a California real-estate developer whohas fallen in love with Southwestern culture and archaeology He purchased 1,200 acres near Cortez andis turning jt into nearly three dozen homesteads, at least 35 acres apiece, with a minimum price of $145,000. Eachis replete with ruins that can be excavated as long as the buyer agrees to strict dig requirements and turns overtitle to the uncovered artifacts to an envisioned homeowners’ association museum. “We may not haveall the answers, but we're doing our darned best to do it right, step by step,” said Hanson, who applauds Utah for following suit. “There is no way the state can police this vast, vast area of ruins sitting open for plundering. There’s not enough manpower. But once you sell the land to people, you get a whole bunch of watchdogs.” That extra protection was an at- tractive feature to state archaeologist Kevin Jones. “Some of the mostpristine sites in Utah are on private land where the landowner has restricted access. There just hasn't been an ability to patrol public lands like a rancher would patrol his property.” Jones is a member of the Utah Division of State History, which is responsible for safeguarding artifacts and does not share the Trust Land Administration's money raising mission. His division's approval also is necessary fer the project to get off the ground. “It's an option we're open to trying, but we're proceeding with caution to try to cover all poten- tial pitfalis,” he said Trust Lands archaeologists are F eis Photos by Tim Kelly/The Salt Lake Tribune Fred Toval is now at peace.His mailbox, wired to an automatic timer, is stored safely underground whennotin use. Eerie Capitol Reef National Pagers ‘Wire’ Parents to Latchkey Kids By Nancy Hobbs THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE DETAIL AREA e The Sait Lake Tribune wrapping up a surveyof the acreage proposed forsale, identifying observable artifacts for inclusion in the property description when the lands are offered That may occur sometime next year, Carter said. Meanwhile, Trust Lands and History Division officials are working out deed restrictions that wili govern archaeclogical digs on the parcels. Before any excavation occurs, Carter expects landowners would have to submit a developrnent plan detailed enough to require preparation bya certified archaeologist. The archaeologist would have to be on-site whenever digging took place, and a findings report would have to be submitted to the state agencies. The artifacts themselves will belong to the Trust Land Admin. istration. “We would like to set up provisions where [landowners] could display them, but ultimately artifacts would end upine state repository,” Carter said Work would halt immediatelyif human remains are discovered Like many parents of adolescents, Lynette Rasmussen would start getting anxious if her son’s after-school check-in call did not come when expected. Andif she telephoned homeaf. ter school and did not get an answer, she was struck with panic — at least until the two connected. So when she could not reach her latchkey son one afternoon last year, Rasmussen’s maternal nerves got the best of her. She decided to reattach the umbilical cord. She purchased a pager — for him. “It gives me some peace of mind to know that I can always contact him. It makes him fee! a little more secure, too,” said Rasmussen Her family’s solution probably would not work for everyone try- ing to monitor activities and whereabouts of teen-agers after school and before working parents get home, acknowledged Rasmussen, a resource and referral specialist for the Utah Office of Child Care. With few after-school options for older students in their West Jordan neighborhood. however, the Rasmussens found telephonic @ See PAGERS, Page D-2 |
