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Show Hi A 1 hr Salt Lake I mjiiiI.h, Jaiiuaiv I'l. rib unr r 1986 Hie Public Forum Tribune Readers Opinions Sumo Side hi Inch nt k i ni4 t lif ol Ha' ( nsoi '.h j posit inn against tobacco aij m lining there arc issues not being eon-arod I lie ultimate goal ol the AM A is not to han tobacco advertising from the meju-- t dia tmt to ci cate a smoke free society This would have devastating effects (in all of us ( i MA s pi m opo-a-- i d d First, consider the employment eorise-ipicnic- s by such a han The tobacco cause oinpdiiics employ vast numbers of people tiom far mers to sales people Then console! he loss id tax icvenue Tobacco products are heavily taxed and the lost revenue would have to lie made up somehow Finally, consider the quality ol material contained in newspapers of magazines. the lost revenue here would be hard, il not impossible, to re-a i e. and would probably cause a change in quality as it did when tobacco ads were tak-- i n off the air a lew years ago Considering these things, along with protecting out First Amendment rights, should be enough to cause us to speak out against he AM A s proposed ban i i p i LINDA WYNN Sandy Replies to (bin Reply My thanks to Susan Is Seiden of the National Rifle Association for shedding light on my ignorance. I'm touched that one in her position would deign to inform a contused provincial of the truth about the McClure-Volkme- r Act Naturally. I'm now convinced its vital social legislation that will rid us of armed r nimnals for good Opposing it would be if not treasonable That it comes just as the courts are reducing prison overcrowding with early parole and incarceration only for a major crime, shows the foresight of the bill's sponsors This means there will be room for a huge influx of convicts starting mandatory r sentences for armed felony under the new law. If needed, we'll build new prisons to show em we mean business, by golly' I apologize for my stubborn, misguided opposition to the bill And I ask forgiveness of our ministers, lawyers, educators, Democrats and social-issugroups, all of whom I accused of ignoring what seemed like proof of NRA's political hanky-pankand indifference to 22,000 annual handgun deaths. Now I know they were telling me, tacitly, that it's not nice to defy our tradition relating to the guns that won the West. Furthermore, if Utahs congressional delegation and, by extension, the Mormon Church are for it. who can be against it? CHARLES FREED 'ft rs e Gretchen Clark STEVE Fublic Forum letters must be submitted exclusively to The Tribune and bear writers full name, signature and address. Names must be printed on political letters but may be withheld for good reason on others. Writers are limited to one letter every 10 days. Preference will be given to short, typewritten (double spaced) letters permitting use of the writers true name. All letters are subject to condensation. Mail to the Public Forum, The Salt Lake Tribune, P.O. Box 867, Salt Lake Citv. Utah 84110. I- - CLLERTON Sandy wStri p' fas Solution I've come up w ith a way to finally get rid of the notorious Nephi "Death Strip." It might be a little rough on Utah's congies-siona- l delegation, but considering the number of lives that have been lost on that ugly stretch of highway, the pack of ninnies richly deserve it First, we refuse to let them go on any more junkets to China, South Africa or outer space, we revoke their right to vote extrava- gant sums for their pet military projects, and we refuse to fund the paving of obscure backroads such as the Burr Trail until the murderous stretch of Interstate 15 is completed. Next, every week we take a different congressman or senator and strap them. to the front of a diesel "Mad truck traveling up and down the "Death Strip." We can do this in all sorts of weather, sometimes at night, and in all states of undress. Maybe then theyll wake up long enough to do what they should have done years ago pave the Nephi Trail. WILL BAGLl.Y Max-style- Forum Itules I am frustrated with the lack of enforcement of the child safety-sea- t law. In fact, I would be amazed if even a single citation has been issued for infractions of this law. While driving downtown, a police car pulled alongside my car and the officer had a small girl unrestrained in the car. She was only three or four years old and was either standing or sitting forward with her arms and head resting on the dashboard. In addition to the neglect of this law by the local police, I also have difficulties with the airlines. I travel frequently and I often take along my daughter. Every time I fly and try to check her car seat, I always get complaints from the agents that it needs to be wrapped or boxed. They also have me sign a waiver of damages. If I travel with my skis, they provide free bags and are glad to help wrap them for me. The priorities seem quite wrong here. Airlines make it difficult when traveling between two states having child safety-sea- t laws (Utah and California) yet go out of their way to assist with skis. There was a lot of hype and fanfare that - made five-yea- Safety Frustration St wont along with the passage of the child t law, but with the ignorance ol many parents, neglect by the police, and inflexible air carriers, what difference has it safety-sca- Low-Intens- ," By Gretchen Clark am writing in response to the fine editorial that appeared in Tin Tribune recently. I was gratified to see that the paper took the initiative to bring attention to the need for Utahns to approve the designation of Martin Luther King's birthday as a national holiday. It has been gratifying to me that last year we finally, gave some official appreciation for our Vietnam veterans who were so sadly neglected upon their return from war. It is hopeful that this year we might well see some action that would rectify our official ignorance of the beneficial impact upon this nation from the life of this man. I 1 Today 's Common Carrier author is Gretchen Clark. 5166 Cottonwood Lane. Salt A natie of MassachuLake City. I tah setts. Mrs. Clark has been a Salt Lake City resident for the past 20 years. She is a housemaster's degree student at wife. a the I 'Diversity of I 'tab and the mother of six children. She bas been acti e in various ciic affairs including I 'tabns Against the Nucle-a- r Arms Race. Parents Against Drunk Drivers and the League of Women Voters. The iews expressed in the article are the personal views of the author. full-tim- e The reading of the editorial brought to events. I want my mind some to share these. Forgotten in detail, but the circumstances surrounding those events have been regarded through my life as a standard of behavior to which I could never be a part, personally or philosophically. Il was in the early '50s. I was a sophomore in a Massachusetts high school and I a Holiday g r How to Submit Articles Carrier Board of Lay Editors cell-betn- . . what you said last time!" y g tention. Thus all levels of people in the troubled society, not just a select group such as the business community or the military, would feel that progress is being made People involved in different aspects of such conflicts fail to see the interrelationships. For instance, the military and business communities sometimes fail to see social justice and political plurality reduce violence, and vice versa. The human and financial costs of con-flic- F. Andy Messing Jr., executive director of the National Defense Council Foundation in Alexandria, Va., recently visited 13 countries. full-scal- ashamed and impotent to do anything but suffer for the miles and miles that we traveled north. I was equally stunned to discover that there was a line (a line as real as the Berlin Wall, where I later stood in front and experienced a similar rage). The line, Mason-Dixowas so real that as quickly as one passed it, the situation changed visibly. Blacks could, but not many did, sit in front of the bus and the facilities became mixed again. Life returned to normal for this northern teen-age- conflicts is Dealing with similar to a juggler with four balls to throw. The first thrown usually is a military ball, to provide for basic security; it is quickly followed by social, economic and political balls in order of immediate importance. But once the balls are in the air, the juggler must devote equal attention to each. It is as important for a campesino to receive justice for a stolen chicken as it is for there to be an adequate supply of bullets for the military forces that protect him. Concentrating on just one or two aspects of the problem may suppress it, but eventually it will reappear. In the case of El Salvador, the lack of momentum on social justice and the lack of a dynamic right will prolong the internal conflict. The Philippines economic inequities and political operating extremes only fuel violence. Nicaragua's onesided political system and aberrant social programs only serve to promote the counter- revolutionary insurgency. The list goes on. war by war. If the United States were to plot a grid that showed the economic, military, social and political factors of countries, it would be a good indicator of each countrys problems and what should be done to correct them. Areas where there is a significant discrepancy would indicate where the United States should focus its at increase dramatically when governments fail to integrate the four fac- tors. In the Philippines during the late lfJ40s and early 1950s the Communists and other insurgents were beaten because a farsighted leader. Ramon Magsaysay. concentrated equally on all four aspects and got all elements of society to pull together Retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Edward G. Lansdale. who worked with Magsaysay urged the use of a similar approach in Vietnam, which he believed "would take the cause away from ihe guerrillas. When President John F. Kennedy died, the military-industricomplex cast Lansdale aside and steamrolled ahead to 58.000 dead Americans and failure. conOther flicts do not have to end this way But. as Lansdale noted recently, "it requires us to have courage These conflicts can be resolved without draining us of manpower, money and prestige. We can even assist in solving problems that have caused conflicts for decades, and steer these countries to democracy with a small "d." thereby thwarting communist expansion. By following this model we would be able to avoid involvement in conflicts at a much higher level of ... violence. Once liberals and conservatives join in this multidimensional approach, we will realize an enhanced power to adjudicate problems and stymie Soviet adventurism justly, firmly and with vigor r. But internally I was never to be the same. I could never remove the impact of reality from my mind. I didn't want to remove it. I wanted to understand that it really could happen here, in my country. It was impossible for me to ever, in any way, participate in any kind of act that resembled the racially discriminatory partition that I had seen in the South. It was impossible to ride those miles back to the North without seeing the deplorable condition in which those people were forced to live. There is no doubt in my mind that in this country there has rarely been a hero of the proportion of Martin Luther King. I find myself once again feeling similar shame, which will turn to outrage as I watch the todays events unfold; and once again witness the prejudicial attitude that promotes unkindness. which quickly grows into cruelty. It is appalling to me to realize that Utah is not among the first to support an appeal to note this day in our history. Any person who will stand up, speak up and put his life on the line for the benefit of others is the kind of person we need to emulate. We often hear psychologists and teachers wonder why our children do not have real-lifheroes. Perhaps the reason is that adults do not highlight well enough the lives of great men. Perhaps adults need to learn about heroes so they can teach children about people who have the greatness of spirit to exhibit a love for others that is greater than their selfish love of comfort. As long as this condition exists, we will have youngsters in this great land growing TV heroes. up with Our example in this state should be exemplary, not one of catching onto the bandwagon as it has just been filled with others and hoping that there is room. I stood clenching my fists in South Carolina years ago. Today, I open my hands in a plea to legislators, government officials and my friends to stop and think how much better this nation is, how much more proud of it we can be. because of Martin Luther King. It is my hope that on at least one day out of the year we will be able to officially stand taller, prouder and demonstrate a more human attitude to all people And, discovering how good that feels, perhaps we could each the kind that day show a greater love Christ exemplified for us all make-believ- Common er. Plumbers and Steamfitters Union. Opinions expressed Currier do not necessarily reflect those Local 111. and Robert Muldrow, a reof The Salt Lake Tribune or the Com- tired .Air Force colonel. mon Carrier Hoard of Lay editors The board seeks articles from all Articles in this dejxirtmcnt arc se- seyments of the community. Articles need rud be professionally lected by the lay board of editors which The Tribune but should be about three of independent prepared, operates and a half pa yes of double-spaceeditorial and reportonal policies typed copy They should pertain to the The Common Carrier board icprc-sentmy or social i a cross section of the commu- economic, political ot the Intermountain Articles Area n nity, is composed of Mary (ini a ict- should be timely, have a basic idea, eran federal employee; Nancy Cooper and be challengmy a businesswoman, Allen G. I runs as- promote dialoyuc should handn he mailed to Common Material apped sociate state director for sernces, Ctah Department oj So, ml Carrier. The Salt Lake Tribune, P.O. Box Services; Connie Meske, ofj ice mutiny 867, Suit Lake City, Utah, 84110. in V mean next linn'! these conflicts in economic and military terms. Liberals have tended to concentrate on the social and political aspects. Interestingly enough, both factions have been correct, but both also have been wrong. Our overall foreign-policperformance would have been far more consistent and effective if both factions had addressed all four factors simultaneously. By F. Andy Messing Jr. Special to the Los Angeles Times More than two dozen small wars are raging in the world. As a result, millions of people are being psychologically traumatized, starved and killed on our planet in conflicts that are virtually ignored by the media, Congress and the administration. Meanwhile, the Defense Department expends enormous amounts of money and preparation for a war in Europe or a nuclear war, neither of which we will ever fight. And it runs around in circles organizing for counterterrorism, which is only a small part of the conflict spectrum; such conflicts range from propaganda campaigns e to guerrilla wars. When the United States tries to focus on conflicts, it takes a distorted approach. The key to solving such conflicts is to address simultaneously the social, political, economic and military concerns of the countries in conflict. For more than three decades, however, American conservatives have addressed e To Common 0 - U.S. View on Small Wars Distorted Fit for a King took a trip to South Carolina with my parents. We drove there, left the car with my brother and returned home by bus. The purpose of the trip was to visit my brother serving in the Army and leave him a car. Instead of being a casual event, though, it became a conscious-raisinexperience. I still vividly remember the impact of walking into the bus station in South Carolina. I was used to bus stations and riding buses because we did quite a bit of it as we commuted form metropolitan Worcester to our bedroom community of Shrewsbury. But that previous experience did not prepare me in any way for the racial segregation I encountered in the South. I was at first stunned, then appalled and then outraged. Do you know what it is like to be very young and to become morally outraged? I recall my answer and my frustration at the deplorable conditions that I witnessed as I looked from the clean and orderly "white" area of the bus terminal into the area reserved for blacks. It was filthy from generations of neglect and abominably lacking in appropriate facilities. I recall turning to my parents and asking what this was all about. I stood in disbelief as I tried to understand how this could be, in a country that I loved so much and which provided so nicely for me and my family. All the way north I was embarrassed. I recall struggling within to overcome my desire to try in a moment to undo all that cruelty that I saw being imposed upon others, and for which my background gave me no preparation. I watched blacks go to the far end of the bus regardless of the empty seat that was available next to me. I was humiliated, Vliada 7- Conflicts Ignored ity Common Carrier Lets Create Ui e - Point of Law Law Is Specific on Injuries Due to Safety Violations When you are injured as the result of someone's failure to follow a safety law that was meant to prevent the kind of injury that happened, you don't need to prove that he was negligent. The violation of the safety statute is proof of negligence all by itself "negligence per se," as lawyers would call it. It works like this. When your cousin Liz Lovejoy joined the new health spa in your town, what she had in mind was keeping her magnificent form in its great condition. The farthest thing from her mind was the danger of doing any damage to her extraordinarily shapely body. Soon after Liz began attending s the noon class at Harry's World of Health Fitness Spa and Natural Foods Emporium, the male attendance at the noon sessions quadrupled. Lines formed to use the stationary bicycles that faced the r where the aerobics classes were mixed-aerobic- she received in the fall would take longer to heal than a broken leg. Harry told his insurance agent to pay Liz's claim promptly. "If she has to sue because you won't settle," Harry told the agent. 'Til be out of business and you won't have a male customer m Lincoln County." Nevertheless, the independent insurance adjuster hired by Harry's insurance compu ted ward McDonough til lO Edward McDonough is a law) er practicing in Salt Lake City. Harry couldn't have been happier to have Liz as a member of his health spa. The last thing that Harry would have wanted would be for Liz to get hurt. Every day after aerobics, Liz liked to soak away any muscle stiffness that might be forming. She would spend 10 minutes in the bubbling waters of the hot sauna bath in the women's shower room. The sauna was set in tile raised 3 feet above the shower room tile floor. There was a railing on the steps that went down into the pool from the poo. .ade, but not on the steps that went from the pool-sid- e platform down to the shower-roofloor. When she slipped on those wet steps after coming out of the pool, she grabbed wildly for something to hold onto, but there was nothing The doctor told Liz that the ankle sprain nv took a hard line. "We ll pay Miss Love-joy'- s medical expenses," he told Liz's lawyer. "Judge" Carruthers. "but we won t pay her claim for lost wages from her employ- - ment as an exotic dancer at Randy's Roadhouse. There simply is no evidence of negli" gence here "In a pig's eye'" Judge Carruthers explained. "You can't dance on crutches. Miss Lovejoy s loss of wages is directly caused by the accident, for which your insured is liable because he violated Section of the Lincoln County Building Code, which requires every public bathhouse or similar facility to have rails on all stairways for the safety of the public." Judge Carruthers emphasized his point by waving the Building Code book under the adjuster's nose. The adjuster got the point, and Liz got prompt payment of her claim 31-9- (Point of Law is published for information purposes only, and should not be used as' legal advice. )ou should see )otir own law-)e- r for specific legal opinion.) |
