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Show The Salt Lake Tribune COMMENTARY Sunday, Dec ember31, 1995 Working Good Samaritan Project Sprouts From Surplus Beans Ps UNITEDFEATURES WASHINGTON — This talestarts w a sack of green beans. Notexactly and fishes, but close enough After the Persian Gulf war ended so quickly, the army was left with huge stocks of dehydrated food, which theyoffered free to communities around the country. The South Plains Food Bank in Lubbock, Texas, eagerly brought in seven truckloads. The supplies included a sack of dried beansabout half the size ofa pillowcase. The directions said that adding five gallons of water would make 100 servings We cooked them up,” remembers Caroline Lanier, executive director of the food bank, “and my goodness, they were wonderful. It was oneof those‘light goes on in your head’ kind of moments.” Like all food banks, South Plains was too small or ripe to sell. Lanier ran back into the office, called Mrs. Campbell and begged, ‘Please stop praying.”” Even divine intervention hasn't solved the hunger problem in America. Some- times people aren't even aware of domestic hunger, because it’s hidden,” says Christine Vladimiroff, president of Second Harvest, a Chicago-based organiza- tion that coordinates food distribution for 184 food banks around the country “We don’t have famine, but we have malnutrition and low-weight babies.” Second Harvest feeds 25 million Americansa year, almosthalf of them children, and Vladimiroff says manyare in working families who just can’t make ends meet. “Theywork for the minimum wage and theyhave no benefits.” she says, “so if the car breaks down, or achild has to go to the emergency room, they find them- struggling with a supplyproblem: lots of fresh produce in season, then long stretches with nothing coming in. The light in Lanier’s head told herthat by dry- ing fruits and vegetables when they were plentiful, they'd be available year-round Not just in Lubbock but everywhere. Manyhurdles and morethan $7 million later, the Breedlove Dehydration Plantis up and running. It's capable of producing 40,000 servings of dried food a day, at a cost of about two cents apiece. “We've dried everything,” says Lanier, who has turned into a gospel-preaching mission- Moneyis tight in Washington, and proposed cuts in federal feeding programs would push these families even closerto the edge. But Vladimiroff says the federal government can do things to ease hun- ger that don't cost much: anational “good Samaritan” law protecting food donors from liability, a tax write-off for farmers whogive away excess crops. bright orange. like the Texas sun whenit It would benice to report that all is well in Lubbock. but that’s not quite true. Somefood banksarestill uncertain how to use the dried foods. Manyother feeding centers want the supplies, but can't afford the transportation costs. The result: More than 500,000 poundsofdried food sit in Lubbock, undelivered Soif you're in a giving moodthis season, here's an idea: Help the needyin goes down.” If American communities are voting for smaller government and lowertaxes, then theyhavean obligation to take care of their own, to patch up thesocial safety net through private charity. And that’s just what Lubbock is doing Two local businessmen donated the building for the dehydration equipment — a former factory once used to make missile guidance systems. One family gave a plot of land near theairport that was turned into an orchard, and the Rotary Club planted 1,552 apple trees that should start producing fruit next year. your community enjoy some of those zesty zucchinis and technicolor carrots from Texas. If you need help finding your local food bank, call Second Harvestat 1800-771-2303. Turn your dollars into loaves and fishes. And beans. Year’s End: Time Once Again To Affirm Beefs and Bungles readers’ compr she rightly said. A bit more nitpicking was the correction offered by myfriendsat the Heritage Foundation. The Seniors Coalition, they wrote, is not “housedin the conservative Heritage Foundation,” as I had reported. “It is a tenantin the Heritage Foundation building, as are a numberof otherindividuals and organizations.” Back in February, before those Contract bills became roadblocked in the Senate, and shortly after Jack Kemp and THE WASHINGTONPOST been writing annual year-end rev: the goofs made in this column have prepared me, I honestly thought, to alibi anything. Errors of grammar,errorsof fact, errors of history, complete misjudgments, bum prophecies — I have been through themall and have never run out of excuses But this year I did something that astounds even me. I mislaid a Queen. In a news story about President Clinton, I mentioned that he was having tea with Queen Beatrix of Denmark. She is, of course, the monarch of the Netherlands, as several thousand people, of whomthe Dutch ambassador was byall odds the most polite, were quick to point out Monthslater, I amstill wracking my brain — or what passes for it —to try to figure out how this happened, I have seen only two queens in my entire life, and Beatrix is one of them Whatis more, I saw her in her native country, when President Bush paid a state visit to the Netherlands in 1989. I have a vivid memory of the gracious speech she made in the cathedral honoring American soldiers whohad died during World WarII to help regain the Netherlands’ freedom Moreover, I knew she was in Washington to open the great Vermeershowat the National Galleryof Art. I even knewthat Vermeerwasnot a Danishpainter. So whythe hell did I pick her up and plunk her down in Denmark, where I have neversetfoot in mylife? I have not a clue. Nor can I explain mychronicinability to go 12 months without giving sensitive readersa pain in their syntax. A dear lady in Bloomington, Ind., admonished me for saying that Sen. Bob Dole “had seen manyof the Contract with Americabills that whizzed through the House become roadblockedin the Senate.” “Roadblock, a compound noun, used here as a verb, is ghastly and unnecessary,’’ she wrote. “Howmucheasier on the reader it would beto say, ‘bills blocked in the Senate.’ You should avoid putting roadblocks in the path of your . i =SS THE PUBLIC FORUM Letters from The Tribune’s readers selves going to a soupkitchen.” ary, “Our zucchini is the prettiest product you've ever seen, and our carrots are WASHINGTON — The manyy een wee Somebody else turned over a small farm. where mentally disabled young people grow salad greens. Hundreds of donors contributed “little monies’ in Lanier’s phrase, and their namesare etched in a glass partition separating the plant offices from the machinery. A funeral homedid the etching. Forfree. Others contributed in less tangible ways. Lanierlikesto tell the story of Alpha Campbell, an 83-year-old invalid who called the food bank asking for a sweet potato. Her daddy, shesaid, told her to eat a potato every fall, but she couldn't afford one. When the bank didn't have any, Campbell said she'd say a prayer Touchedby the old woman's story, Lanier wentto the parkinglot, intending to go out and buya sweetpotato. But her car was blocked by a huge truck. And when the driver threw open the back, there were 42.000 pounds of sweet potatoes, COKIE ROBERTS STEVEN ROBERTS DAVID BRODER ZZce Dick Cheneyhad taken themselvesout of the 1996 presidential race, something impelled me to suggest that “the odds have increased that Newt Gingrich will think seriously about vaulting from the speaker’s job to seek the Oval Office.” Underthe spell of somerestricted substance, I wrote that “his ideas, his rhetoric and his record entitle him to think seriouslyof doing that. The victoryhe led in recapturing the House for the GOP last autumn was extraordinary. The speech he gave the Republican National Commit- tee last month wasapresidential address in its sweep and boldness.” The potion woreoff in time for me to add the caution that ‘you can’t ignore Gingrich’s recurrent pattern of shooting off his mouth in imprudent fashion in these early weeks as speaker.” But all in all, it was a pretty foolish piece of work Not as embarrassing as the column written after that afternoon idyll in New Hampshire,the love-in on the lawn of the senior citizens center, starring Nice Guy Newtand his boon companion, President Clinton. The meeting produced a real June swoon — total collapse of skepticism on mypart. “The veryfact that a president and a speaker of opposite parties have conducted such a nonabrasive exchange, in full viewof the nation, mayencoure ,2 others in Washington to adopt a simuar tone,” I wrote. Actually, those “others” chose to become the meanestpit bulls in the dog pound — and attacked each other. Somehow, I convinced myself that “‘it is just possible that the handshakedeal between Clinton and Gingrich on a bipartisan blue-ribbon commission to reform campaign spending and lobbying laws may unlock the doorto progress on those intractable questions.’ Yeah, the door was unlocked — and out sprangthepit bulls. I even fantasized that the civil discussion of health reform up in Claremont madeit “almost certain that at the end the president's signature will be alongside Gingrich’s on the plan to scale back Medicare. If you believe that, you'll believe I’m queen of Denmark. Or wherever. , Attitude Adjustment Therecentarticles about the proposed Start of a gay, lesbian and bisexual student club at East High School is fantastic news. No one whoisn’t gay can understand thedifficulties that surround growing up “different.” All other minorities have the benefit of the support of family and friends, while gay young personsrun the risk of ostracism and worseif they so much as mention the feelings they are experiencing. Growing up is difficult enough without this added burden. Just talking with other gay and lesbian peers in a safe, healthy environment would have meant so much to those of us who hadto deal with our orientation on our own. Would the parents andteachers opposed to this club prefer that these young people seek information and support on the street? They should feel relieved that such an outlet as this will be available for their children Yes, they will no doubt be ridiculed and reviled by some for their proud stand, but thatis a reflection of the fear and intolerance of the uninformed and no reason to deny these kids an opportunity to understand themselves more fully. Those who are opposedto this action would be better suited battling the real horrors teen-agers face, such as violence and drugs, not trying to “provect” these students from becoming well-adjusted membersofsociety. PAUL A. SCHMIDT Salt Lake City Qo Logging Uintas Violates Nature I am opposed to the proposed Round Park/Lost Creek timber sale. I am appalled at the prospect of logging in this pristine, roadless area. Sending bulldozers, chain saws andtrucksinto this beautiful and unique ecosystem to supposedly enhance the “health of the forest” is ridiculous and a crime. Ournationis filled with nationalforest land managed to provide improved timber harvestat the expenseof biodiversity and naturalprocesses,andto believe that the High Uintas North Slope needs our management and improvementshowsthe arrogance and ignorance of the EmergencySalvage Timber Sale Program. I am amazed that the Republicans in Congress expect us to believe that despite their many attempts to gut environmental laws, theyfelt the need to ram through legislation designed to benefit the “health” of our national forests. There is no emergencycalling for forest intervention in the Uintas, nor in any of our rare andpreciousold-growth forests. This proposal would irreparably damage a pristine ec ‘system to the financial gain of extractive timber interests at public expense. Where to Write Americans Not So Nice @ When submitting letters to the Public Forum, please include your full name, signature, address and daytime telephone numbers. Information other than your name and the city in which you live are kept confidential. We Americans must be the nicest people in the world, especially compared to people from other Western nations. Take the French, for example. When the French governmentdecidedto tighten the budget by cutting the people's benefits, they went on strike, upsetting the whole country until the government recanted, We Americans are not that way. Our governmentis going to reduce the deficit by cutting our fewbenefits, and we just grin andbearit The Germans insisted that their wealthycitizens pay at least the same @ Keep it short. Conciseletters de- veloping a single themeare morelikely to be published. @ Please type and double space. @ Letters are condensed andedited. @ Becauseof the volumeofmail received, not all submissions are published. @ Mail to Public Forum, The Salt Lake Tribune, P.O. Box 867, Salt Lake City, Utah 84110, again. More Than Commodity Rainer Huck, president of the Utah Trail Machine Association, just doesn't get it. Many of us feel that our public lands are more than a mere commodity to be sold to the highest bidder. We have passion and compassion for the land and wantto protectit from those who see only dollarsigns. The environmental community’s only real resources are human resources. Unlike Wise Use groups whoreceive their financial support from corporations who maketheir profits from developing and often destroying the land, we seek to leaveit in its natural state. While we need acertain portion of the land developedto supportour ever-increasing consumptive lifestyles, we also need a large portion set aside in its natural state to support wildlife, ecosystems and ultimately human life. We need wilderness to survive; it's not optional. Also, contrary to Huck’s assertion that environmental groups spend a lot of moneyflying around the country conning newspaper editors into taking up the “wilderness myth,” it just isn't so, Although he mayfind it hard to believe, most Americans support having large tracts of public land set aside as wilderness, and editors are reflecting this belief. KERRI LEE ADAMS Salt Lake City Qo Hang Onto Seat Rep. Enid Waldholtz, your supporters wantyou to hangonto yourposition. You are morevaluableto us in Congress than 20 new political aspirants from our 2nd Congressional District. It would take a newrepresentative years to reach your present recognition and influence. Re- member, those whoare casting stones at you are not perfect either. ALICE L. HARMSEN Salt Lake City terrelationships, and we needto protect the uniquebeautyof the remainingtracts into panic, and is now gaining renewal. We havethe opportunity to view these areas for the existing beauty and wonder of a natural, changing and evolving forest go anyway, and nowthey have ammunition to say they told us so — with the agricultural resource to manipulate and degrade. Muchof the High Uintas North Slope deservesto be saved for the future generations through wilderness designation. I encourage everyone to let their representatives knowthat they support HR 2745, which would repeal the salvage log- ging riderattachedto the Budget Rescissions Bill MARTIN J. STEITZ South Jordan we Americans are very nice F.J. KOHLSCHEIN Sandy Qo Republicans Also Rob Children Utah's Republican delegationrightfully states that the federal deficit is robbing from our children. They have no problem, however, in robbing our children’s wilderness. The Utah Public Lands Management Act, HR 1745 and S 884, will doom millions of acres of Utah wild land to roads, dirt bikes, mining claims, reservoirs and cowpies. The ironic part about the Republican final solution for our public landis the encouragementof heavily subsidized exploitation in order to save a few dying jobs. The Red Rock Wilderness Bill, HR 1500, would protect 5.7 million acres of Utah. It would create far more jobs than the Republican alternative. HR 1500 is also supported by a majority of Utahns, as well as therest of the country. If our children yet to be born hada say in this debate, the opposition to wilderness would benegligible ERIK ALBERT Salt Lake City Q of untrammeled land in the High Uintas. system, rather than as another potential Yes, people. Communists Coming Back to Haunt Us Anyone who thought Soviet communism went away several years ago didn't really understand what was happening. It merely changedits name, backed off for awhile to allow the inevitable effects of infant capitalism to frighten everyone among species. Our attempts to manipulate the system damage these complex in- The Dutchinsisted that social and medical benefits are to be for every citizen alike, including government andfederal workers. Here in America. our government and federal workers enjoy a magnificent benefit and retirement program while our lawmakersare reducing ourretirement and welfare benefits. TheItalians are prosecuting their nation's lawmakers for criminalactivities, while we are paying for ex-Sen. Bob Packwood’s retirement at the rate of $88,922 a year. Nowour “new and improved” Congress is poised to make the American people responsible for caring for their elderly and infirm while elderly ex-lawmakersaresocially covered from head to toe! Oo Anold-growth forest is a miraculous web of complexity and wonder. Natural disturbances such as fire and parasites maximize and define forest diversity, a diversity which results from millions of years of coevolution and interaction percentage of taxes as the workers, and _ their lawmakers madeit happen. We‘‘average” Americanspay our dues while our wealthycitizenspaylittle or no taxes, and our lawmakersget re-elected again and @ Our fax number is (801) 2372022. The older generation never wantedit to economies of many of the former Soviet countries in serious trouble, the ruble devalued into oblivion and crime and hunger becomingthe current greatest fear. The neo-Communist Party has already enjoyed success in several surrounding countries (Lithuania, Belarus, Poland) and may well convince distraught Rus- sians to at least go back to what they had before — bread andstability. This form ofrule represents theantithesis of our traditional American concept of God-given rights and government-pro- ¢ , tected freedom. It could be a significant and serious threatto us in the future. We should keep this foremost in our consciousness. Destroying our missile silos and submarines under Russian supervisionis insane and may be what they had in mind from the very beginning — with the charade of this orchestrated communist ‘‘meltdown” and the ensuing euphoria into which we havebeenlulled. We Americans are often too trusting. Weshouldnotallownaivete to cause our guard to be let down. If we break our swords in a ceremonialdisplay of peace, weinvite the challenge not only of restored Soviet communists but also of new threats from the Third World. To remain free and promote freedom throughout the world, we must be aware, we must be strong and we must beprepared! JAMES CARLYLE GREEN Springville a a |