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Show DOUBLE TAKE Review Editorials . Augi : !!, I966X'552SV' 7 11 Censorship In Highway Unit The Runaivay by Jim Baldwin 1 was an adult. . .a' a father, a student at the University of Utah, that I learned that my own state of Pennsylvania is one of toe great tobacco growing states of our Review attempts this week to varify the questioned quali- -. fications of Utah State Highway Department right-of-wappraisers produced nothing more than evasive responses executives of that public agency after two full days of i, from frustrated effort. Governor Calvin L. Rampton and executive personnel !iJ spun themselves into a tizzy last week because they objected to Review headlines which declared that the state was J1 already in a tizzy because of right-of-wappraiser policies. The director of the Highway Department, apparently re-z- n fleeting the administrative policies of the states chief executive, responded to the accusation by inflicting speech-squelchicontrols on department personnel. Reestablished a ridiculous system of thought control over his department , that pointed in Banner Headline character to the probability to: that Mr, Helland and his crew have very much to hide or to be ashamed of in right-of-w- ay personnel. That system involved the technique made famous by Mr. iff Stalin and Mr. Kruschev.... preparing written questions in Vc advance and presenting them to a press relations corps for ay nation. . I learned, as an adult student in Economic Geography, that my own state of Pennsylvania is a great agricultural state. It was good to learn these things about Pennsylvania. But in nurturing my love for Penns Woodland, I prefer to recall more important features. I prefer to remember acres of Flowering Dogwood In bloom over toe Pocono Mountains. I prefer to recall that rhododendron grows wild and in such masses of rich pink that toe eyes refuse to believe that such a scene is not painted on the sloping canvas of toe ay ng ; Challenge is a Review feature which explores our times and our eomracmity through toe views of citizens living here. Its purpose Is to stimu&te thought and, hopefully, action on vital issues. The views expressed may or may not be those of toe editors of toe Review. This Weeks contributor is Don R. Harker, editor, Elmco Empire, toe Eimco newspaper. Mr. Harker is the assistant to the director of advertising and public relations for the Eimco He is a former commissioned officer of the U. S. Army and Corporation. is a graduate of George Washington University. 5 me Mr. Helland did permit response ,to the queries as to pay scales. The 21 appraisers cost $84,003.42 last fiscal year. At the same time, the state paid fee appraisers $82,002.50. Governor Rampton has declared that the staff appraisers are not to blame for the withholding of federal funds. Then, we wasting money hiring unqualified private industry? political comment Suicide, C ut And Dried by Don Harker 0f,JinKim:- - Ubf' - -- M r ff by Norman .Rosenblatt i - ' J' Vtff ivi Governor Rampton must be worried, hed have to be worried. This pastweek has been a mess for the Democrats -and just when things were starting to cool off. We would almost swear that a few elected officials are trying to help their party commit political suicide - Good heavens - did anyone ever suppose that Marv Jenson might be a spy from the GOPII Henry Helland is another case in point The Governor says in a letter to the Review this week that the facts in a 33 r, Review story on highway appraisal proei cedures are correct. Mr. Helland isnt upset because the Review reported a He - but because the Review reported the ,U truth - and because the Review - having -13 to "try harder is brash and blunt. The Review reporter who filed the story on the highway department last week is capable. She was chosen for our staff because she is capable - and because she fits into the Review pattern - which respects no office because of its titie -but greatly respects persons who fill the Oi J. titles professionaUy. But this week Mr. Helland chose to relations impose a sort of system on the Review - now Mr. Helland must know this will bring him bad press - at least from the Review. It won't help his situation any. The Republicans are largely responsible for the mess in the highway appraisal difficulty. We are surprised that Governor Rampton hasnt made more political hay out of that feet. Our attempt has . been to see how the mess came about -how big it is - and what has been done to correct it. Despite the fact that no other media has covered the story it is a anti-pub- lic mess. It has been difficult to find out first and in detail exactly what the Demdone to correct the situation. We have Governor Rampton s explanation - in a letter covered elsewhere in this Issue. Thats fine and we accept it at face value. But we hope that as curious journalists the Governor would expect us to go into detail. The plain feet, with no frill, is that Utah wUl lose over one million dollars because the Republicans were careless in their appraisal practices. Why is Mr. Helland so upset then? hand1 ocrats have Meanwhile down the hill the circus goes at 'i on. On Monday Marv Jenson made some childish insults in John Greers direction. Worse yet on both Monday and Wednesday Marv shut John up in the middle of a sentence - which is not only rude but bad government John Creer was criticised tor Marv for not going over the miU levy situation before the hearing. This is a valid criticism. Creer sent his assistant and his secretary over for a copy. He should have called in Davy Jones to discuss the whole matter with him - or gone over to Davys office. On the other hand Davy should have presented to the commission some further detail on the reasons behind the mill levy and the countys present financial structure. 1 am convinced that although Marv Jenson and Bill Larson undoubtedly understood to .ndividual department thousands of rhododendron bushes on toe fringes of Camp Akahela, a Boy Scout Camp where my nose was shattered one day because I stuck it too far into someone else s affairs. , .Camp Akahela where in my mid -- teens I was a swimming champion , and assistant swimming instructor. Cat-Fishi- From n needs - they and Creer had no more idea of the total picture of county finances than my daughter. Creer is Commissioner in charge of finance. He regards this as a mere title, and when challenged claims he would need a staff of experts to do anything about county finance. I disagree with him 100 percent on this as commissioner of Finance he could take the intitative and question some of the basic antiquated financial He could try for the coprocedures. operation of Davy Jones, Sid Lambourne and Cliff Cockayne (the three elected officials who handle the countys money) and make some sense out of the hodgepodge of county finances -- but he refuses on three grounds: 1. He doesnt have the staff 2. The measure would be stop-ga- p 3. There isnt enough time In the simple matter of handling revenue I think a cooperative effort between Mr. Creer and the elected officials -without any action from the other two commissioners could save the county doUars now. If Creer is to be criticised on this ground he at least can be praised for trying to keep the mill levy down for this year. It is sad that in all the hearings on taxes and budgets Marv Jenson talks about new sources of revenue - and how well the highway department has done. But Marv rarely talks about ways of saving money. The public didnt have a chance last Coe quiet little woman from, Monday. South Salt Lake walked out of the meetIts ing and whispered to her friend She was right. all cut and dried. I was shocked to find that Marv Jenson overestimated his class B road funtoreceipts by $145,000, and that the Halrof Justice is running $600,000 over the estimate. But knowing these fe&ts, does the public want to keep on getting taxed more and more? Theres not much of a chance to say, when the mill levy is passed before the budget hearing. There are ways to save money. The Review has suggested several examples such as the $21,000 the sheriffs department spends on high price gas - such as auto allowances that have no elation to use - such an antiquated fimacial procedures - such as employee staffing that has little relation to overall need -such as purchases for luxury items with no control. But these are generally ignored by a body of elected officials that are convinced that service makes an electorate happier than savings. BiU Larsons campaign posters claim a $1.5 miUion savings for Salt Lake taxpayers. The basis is that this savings comes from fuU utilization of toe County Complex. To some degree this claim is valid - although it wasnt aH Bills idea. But it amazes me how BiU continually goes along with Marv on every thing even if it could weU mean political curtains, just to get John. We had a phone call last week asking why we didnt pick on the Republicans once in a while - if the Republicans are elected (and it looks more likely aU toe time) and they do this bad a job weU treat them equally - without prejudice. has finally . expected.?, Some fortunate employer make use. of his professional .abilities and toe citizens of Salt Lake County will be leftholding toe bag, as usual. The Important thing to be learned from this mess is the need for some kind of selective processes for the hiring of county employees. The county of Salt Lake is now burdened with providing support for many of our local political Instead of. hiring people with qualifications to perform fairly technical assignments with toe county government, toe County Commissions majority -- of --two, toe conductor and fight promoter, have proceeded to hire many political derelicts. These poU-tic- al aroointees have been hired for what rnustobviousjy be their political in- Apparently the way to a soft joti paid for by toe taxpayers of toe county, is to be a defeated Incumbent. For instance; the County Highway Department, under Commissioner Jenson, has found choice positions for Murrays defeated mayor, Ray Greenwood and L. E. Defend, former Murray Chief of Police. Joe L. Christensen, former Salt Lake City Commissi oner, has also found his little niche in toe same department, along with A Canoe Pennsylvania is table sized, freshwater catfish hauled into a canoe near sundown on Bear Lake in the Poconos. O1 in Woolas Macey, former Fair Board head. She is vast fields of blueberries of toe lake. She is one at aid August Charles Smurthwaite also has had any rows of bushes of orange-tint- ed raspnumber of political appointments, from mountain roadside. the berries along to office in the clerk County Clerks She is Blue Coal. She is mountains OtheUo County Purchasing Agent. of clean, black crystals of coal stained of head the InspecBuilding Pierce, tion Department, also has come up toe blue to tell the nation that the railroad cars moving across our land heaped with hard way, via political appointments. mounds of blue stones also are tinted If anyone is looking for some' ideas with the blood let when horse-mount- ed to about how make our county governtoe skulls of state ment more professional and efficient, toe black-stain- police once battered striking coal miners. above ought to Incite some ideas. Poli- Pennsylvania is a silk mill near the tical hackery and patronage have no railroad tracks at toe west side of place in our county government. This town. . .a slave labor factory inhabited, too with overburdened is county already at by young, sensuouswomen taxes to be forced to run a senior-citize- ns wholowarewages, a burden to toe community moral rest camp for defeated politiwhich harbors them. cians. With no standardized procedures It state where Railroad Rosie, for toe selection of county employees, not is the enough for toe silk mill. . . intelligent toe County Commissioners are at liberty living across the tracks from toe mill, to select whomever they wish for whatwith her demented mother, has ever jobs fall within their areas of living her baby on the kitchen floor one evening responsibility. as she did the wash over a Qualifications for a given job obviously washboard .thrust into toe corrugated suds in a not toe are first considerations. (me of washtub. corrugated It is about time the citizens of this Pennsylvania, long before she became county raised the sword of righteous known to me as toe center of a steel toe of heads the County indignation over . .before coal was anymore than Commission and trimmed away some of empire. Blue Coal and toe livlihood thatsustair vd mx.family. ,i ,s$e was Harvey Lake 5 where the American Tragedy, was re Dreiser toldctf netdsto toacc omnUshStotheMimtv2'' enacted as real t?8 it. . .and the reenactment brought sudden success in depression years to a lake- -' side beach resort. ed appraisers from amidst bird-watchi- ng Political Incest JFeakens Government replies. are wooded hillsides. I remember CHALLENGE The Review succumbed to that procedure this week and wasted two days learning that Mr. HeUand has adopted not only the Soviet technique of press questioning.,.. he also has That is: EVASION. .... adopted their technique of reply. The Review wants to interrogate personally the 21 appraisers on the Highway Department staff. This request was denied and a question as to individual qualifications brought a printed brochure citing the merit system qualifi- cation established for the position of appraiser. Gov. Rampton has admitted in an interview that the merit l for appraisers is stretched just a tiny in order system K to retain long-tiemployees. to -- wasnt until It husband, toeS has-bee- ns. ice hole that had for a long time growing beneath us. No More Blue Coal 'beai v course, Pennsylvania isnt that .kind of a state now; for Coal is no Of longer King. Blue Coal is no longer a The State Police no proud symbol. longer thrill youngsters by riding by on tall red horses. a dozen blue-uniform- ed .or riding by with troopers on a on the Fourth of . single motorcycle July. So seldom anymore do you ever hear of a Pennsylvania Trooper bludgeoning the coal miners that old John L. Lewis made famous. Pennsylvania is such names as N anticoke, Shickshinney, Wanamie, Shenandoah and Nescopeck, Wapwallopen and Mocanaqua. . .all vestiges oflndianwars and battles fo civilization in coal mines. and Kingston Names such as Forty-Fo- rt and Plymouth and toe town of Wyoming, named after toe great Wyoming VaUey; the valley for which a vast western state was to be named. Pennsylvania was playing base drum in Wyoming High School band - not that I was jnusically inclined. I was noisy, and the base drum was good as a free ticket into toe football games, most of which Wyoming High managed to lose. Pennsylvania also was being on the school wrestling team. . .for wrestling was a free pass to the basketball games if I would wrestle in half-timatches, most of which I managed to lose. My state is a preachers son who stripped me of my trousers - with toe help of at least a dozen other seniors -during freshman initiation rites one evening. . .a preachers son who delivered my trousers cm toe front porch with the newspaper, the Wilkes-Bar- re Record, early toe next morning. The Delinquent Me I was a delinquent then. I have been reminded since, on occasion, that I d, shared with freckled Matty Farrell the dishonor of being the most delinquent among only a few bad boys in our town. On the night my trousers were stripped from me at toe corner of 8th Street and Monument Avenue, I tossed a rock from my backyard, over toe tops of five houses and across the street. That rock struck against the curb on toe far side of 8th Street and bounced right back through a red-haire- large plate glass window in Motts Barber Shop and candy store. We delinquents kept our cigarettes hidden in a cabinet with Motts hair tonics and clippers. That preachers son paid for that winddWf because' no me would believe I cffttd have tossed, that rock into wiqdow facing away from my backyard. j t Pennsylvania today, I hear tell, is changed. She is toe Pennsylvania turnpike. She is Scranton, who doesnt tfant to be president even if he could. As I remember her, Pennsylvania was In The Shade Of An Old.... in Carsonia Park in Reading, skating She is an orchard where Macintosh Pennsylvania, where toe roller skating to hand be wrapped by apples grow rink was bigger than a city block and and packaged for shipment to England and where world skaters could France. Only boys whose mothers drive skate backwardschampion and beat a motorcycle. them each summer to toe only Macintosh farm I ever heard of ever know the Kisses We Clung To flavor that makes toe Macintosh so delightfully unlike any other apple. My state was freshman and sophomore She is a state where to vote Republican wiener roasts and toe smeU of the hair was inherited and to vote Democrat was of a girl with toe impossible name of to violate heritage. She was the homed Marvette who was my girl cm school Letters To The Editor BOUQUETS AND Dear Editor: This is just a note of appreciation from as for toe very fine work you are doing in the realm of positive program in your movie commentary for toe Rocky Mountain News. Ive had occasion to check with your commentary to help our family in deciding what entertainment was most desirable, and we do appreciate your analysis. The Guide is a fine addi Dear Editor: In view of the latest crusading efforts of the Review to halt toe construction of toe Salt Palace, perhaps, the Utah Press Association should create a new award! For Efforts in toe Miracle of the Year. Awarded to toe Rocky Mountain Review Published every Thursday by Great Western News, Inc BRICK-BATS- 1 tion to your newspaper. If we can be of any help to you in any way, or if there are suggestions that you might have for us we would appreciate hearing from you. Keep up toe good work. Sincerely, Mrs. Richard F. North Coordinator, Salt Lake County Council for Better Movies and Literature for vain attempts to life again. in kicking Dennis Sylvester 905 South 2300 C - 4 115 w Phone- - 487-54- I";eihlatt and Vlaiu uts editor Norman Posenblett ' N East This letter could be entitled P.S. The Resurrection Entered a second class matter at the Post Office at Salt Lake City, Utah tmder the act of March J, 1878 2245 South West Teirpie, Salt Lake City, Uah a dead horse Subscription $120 per year Member: Uah State Press Association represented by American Newspaper Representatives forests of Gifford Pinchot, whose devotion to conforays into the Pennservation reaUy was all that made Teddy Indian Summer in November. Roosevelt famous. . .whose devotion to sylvania was eager high school kisses -not stolen ones - kisses clung to for as conservation now has become a national much as half an hour on a back roads y; a national farce. Pennsylvania is a group of boys hayride. She was the place where we swam wandering through a wooded hillside to bare-nekkid in toe Susquehanna and bare-nekkid toe into dive black, icy waters of an reservoir -- where we dove from a high bridge to cut a gash into the left side of our skull boys clothing hanging over toe sign which reads: "No Swimming. . .by Order because we forgot about the metal casing around toe pilingbelow the water surface. of Board of Health. Pennsylvania is lessons in male She is a street barely remembered anatomy given by the physician who also when an automobile operated by an was our Sunday School teacher, and who intoxicated uncle - an uncle by marriage drew diagrams of internal anatomy on the and soon to be divorced and no longer an Sunday School blackboa rd as he answered uncle - an uncle who let an automobile those questions our parents always were swerve from toe street to crush two too embarassed to respond to. small children to death against a teleAU of these things are Pennsylvania. . . There was the deep cut phone pole. she is Pittsburg, and York, and Gettysunder the left eye and stitches that seemed to stay there forever before burg, and Philadelphia and Scranton. . . but none of these places, nor the the deaths were almost forgotten. , industries or events for which they are My state is a town of sunken fields-- n . widely known, are so important to the because we could own only surface of my home state as are ttiose to making coal our because property, lights incidents small beupon which Iwasnntured own all owners is that also mine through incorrigible delinquency. . until neath our homes Sometimes our homes I r.ui away at the age of 17 years -dropo casually and with no jiartieular never to return concern to anyone lmt ourselves into a multi-color- tragi-comed- oak-shad- ed ed |