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Show 4A Wednesday, December 30, 1981 Sun Advocate Keep booze intake within sane bounds Its that time of year when revelers don their party hats, break out the booze, take whistles and horns in hand, get ready to send old father time off into the pages of history and to greet the hopes and promises of a youthful New Year. Before we get caught up in all that revelry and boisterous fanfare, however, lets pause for a moment and get our feet and senses firmly on the ground. Have fun, sure, even if you must have a drink or two, but whatever you do, be conservative. Keep your alcoholic consumption within sensible limits (See story page 1). A doctor friend of ours, on call at Utah Valley Hospital over the Christmas weekend, told us about one senseless tragedy of alcohol. A husband that resulted from came home drunk and in a fit of anger struck his wife with the back of his hand, hitting her in the larynx. The woman, gasping for air, was rushed to the hospital, where it was discovered her larynx was broken. Permanent damage was inflicted, and the womans voice will never be the same again. Its just senseless, our friend said, shaking his head. Both husband and wife are now in misery because of one night of drinking. Thats just one example out of legions that could be told We wonder how many about the evils of deaths and broken lives will result from this New Years revelry. Hosts and hostesses, whatever you do, dont allow your guests to go on the road if theyve been drinking. For your own sakes, dear readers, whatever you do, dont drive if you drink...and you drinkers, even if you dont drive, keep your liquor and your tempers within the bounds of decency and sanity. over-indulgen- ce over-indulgen- Preserve integrity of record access -- AND OMt FOR THE The Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the U.S. Conchaired is constitution, by Sen. Orrin Hatch in some of revisions the Freedom Information sidering major Act, which for more than 14 years has given the public access to their federal government and discouraged secrecy among (R-Uta- Ditch 1981 Coflty Nrwt Servie bureaucrats. A bill introduced by the Reagan beef-up would the acts exemptions the however, to the point where it would be almost useless and secrecy would be encouraged once again in the federal bureaucracy. The FOIA became law July 4, 1967, and was strengthened by amendment in 1974. It gives everyone, not just the press, the right to obtain any federal document, except those specifically exempted by the law. If the agency denies the request, petitioners can seek redress in the federal courts. Since FOIA went into law, journalists, historians, scholars, and literally millions of Americans have been given access to federal documents that previously, for no good reason, had been denied to them. And not only has waste and inefficiency in government been exposed, but the public has been much better informed about the functioning of the federal body politic. The Administrations bill was introduced at the urging of agency heads like William Webster, chief of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who have always opposed the FOIA in both the spirit and the letter of the law. Webster, in testimony before Hatchs subcommittee, claimed criminals, terrorists and foreign agents are using the FOIA to unearth the names of confidential sources and to subvert the U.S. government. He cited the example of the Weather Underground obtaining more than 60,000 pages of documents from the FBI under FOIA. The Society of Professional Journalists, which has taken a firm stand against any major revisions in FOIA, finds Websters testimony quite interesting in view of repeated, unsuccessful attempts by scores of journalists to obtain information from the FBI and the often creative delaying tactics used by government agents who defy the FOIA. Can it be that the Weather Underground is more successful than the press in extracting information from the governments investigative agencies? We think not. Webster is, in the words of former Society of Professional Journalists President Jean Otto, merely crying wolf. CORK HIM Uff in the Senate Exemptions do exist The LtT'S truth is, exemptions already exist which give the FBI the right to withhold information on current investigations. In all, there are nine separate exemptions which protect national security, insure any individuals right to privacy (such as medical records), trade secrets, certain y memos, current investigations, etc. If the FBI releases information to the Weather Underground or any other criminal element and then has its confidential sources blown, it has only itself to blame, not the FOIA. Sen. James Sasser conducted an study of FOIA misuse for the Senate Committee on Government Affairs. Earlier this month he issued a statement which concluded no major changes in the act are needed. He recommended some minor overhauling, including several sets of government-wid- e regulations dealing with fee waivers for journalists, assessments of attorneys fees and cost analysis of the act. He also suggested that a panel of private individuals advise agencies in implementing the act. But he recommended no major overhaul. Sasser commented on recent drives by some opponents of FOIA to exempt business, law enforcement and intelligence records from the act. These, he said, are the same agencies that have opposed FOIA from the outset. Congress has been the champion of this statute, Sasser said, and in view of the Executive Branch distaste for the Freedom of Information Act, must continue to be in the intra-agenc- (D-Ten- (Continued on 1aRe 18-mo- 5A ) tf t. castle country ObsSPVSP 'Your mission: Halt World War III!' By DON VETTER Staff Writer Bombs, missiles, boxers and space invaders are probably blazing across dozens of Castle Valley television sets tonight. Video games and other sundry electronic entertainment devices have become top contenders on gift lists and are setting a trend toward a future that might turn homes into combination penny arcade-spac- e station control centers. Video games are on the low end of the drug scale. I know, Im addicted. The games inhabit a lot of other homes too. Rumor has it that LDS Church officials have been searching doctrine to find out if the games can be included in family home evenings. Moral majority leader Jerry Falwell is probably programming his own Bible invaders game. For a $100 plus investment and $15 to $50 for cartridges, I can ski down the Alps, box Sugar Ray Leonard or defend my cities from invading aliens. The games usually include a pamphlet with playing tips and a scenario to set the stage. Your mission is to defend the peaceful planet Electro from missile bombardment by enemy aliens. Good luck, were counting on you! Ive spent hours shooting at alien missiles, world from protecting my destruction. If the good guys get blown up, theres always another adventure. The future of video games boggles the mind. Im waiting for someone from the Silicon Valley, where Atari, ActiVision and other youthful electronic engineers design the latest toys, to create the ultimate video game. This ultimate game would not only put you into a mock adventure, but also recreate the physical and emotional traumas of actually going through the endeavor. If you miss a turn on the race car game, the house goes up with the car. If skiing is your favorite, better check those bindings, one wrong turn and there goes the leg. This game isnt in production yet, but five years ago it was harder to believe the games we now play on the living room television. All is not fun and games on the old tube. Home computers can figure out the grocery budget, teach music and even show the kids how to draw Santa Claus. Someday, the Sun Advocate could be projected through home computers with cable television. In fact the technology is already there, but costs are prohibitive except in large urban areas. Electronic gifts were not limited to the television this season. No longer does the mild-manner- ed pocket calculator, add, subtract multiply and divide, but it can play Yankee Doodle Dandy and chart your biorhythm. I saw a lot of pocket stereos the day after Christmas. In fact a whole family had little earphones protruding from their skull while waiting for a bus. I wonder if they each played their personal music at the dinner table? The new little stereos are great for those of us despising shoulder packing youngsters jiving to Kool and Gang and you can hear them five miles away. Bane or boom, computer chipped games and toys are here to stay. Pretty soon, giving a good book or a pair of socks will be passe unless they can program argyles to dance. |