| Show - L- -- -- - - - - 00mi&400410WFWMMPiftUft - Mt Editorial Desk: C0MMENT IttZi ZhcfialtfaktZribunt 10 trZ t41p Eastern Europe's Disintegration Spawns A!::Resurrection for Nightmarish Bigotry violence in Germany is the ci :resurrection of a nightmare Fortunate ty there are signs that a majority of the liGerman people may be rising to exor-ALcis- this demon Massive demonstrations against me- Ism in Berlin and Bonn over the past ' two weekends are cause for hope Although the government of Chancellor Helmut Kohl has been much too 4 slow to put down attacks on foreigners -!!and asylum-seeker- s the show of force r by police at Day of Mourning demon-0 strations in Halbe and Hamburg over i the weekend may signal a more active LIgovernment policy Ultranationalist violence is not to Germany Skinheads have at - con-'"'fin- I 'tacked foreigners In Poland Czechoslovakia and Hungary Jewish cemeteries have been desecrated in France HoweI ever in every nation the number of liard-cor- e rightist criminals is thought to be quite small generally fewer than —2000 in any given country The cause of the violence across Eastern Europe is pretty much the -csame regardless of location People are suffering hard times in the chaotic gLwake of the fall of the Soviet empire tUnemployment is high in some urban ghettos of the former East Germany it is 40 1 1 Young people especially are an- - gry and confused They have nothing to do and they don't see any prospects for themselves When foreigners fleeing even more 'brutal hardship elsewhere — in the for mer Yugoslavia in Romania Africa Afghanistan or the Middle East show tup and compete for jobs and government benefits with the local population these newcomers become ready targets for the frustrations of unemployed locals In Germany refugees are not al lowed to take jobs though some do work illegally in the underground econ ! v till Me Need John McGann thought he had health insurance but it turned out that he wasn't insured at all His disturbing case which the US Supreme Court last week refused to review amplifies the need for dramatic reform in this nation's health insurance practices so that there are no more cases like John McGann's Mr McGann now deceased discovered four years ago that he had AIDS Ile figured that the avalanche of imminent medical bills would be covered by —the insurance plan he had with his employer HMI Music Co of Houston But his employer pulled a switch: It announced it was discontinuing its health insurance plan and instituting a one The net effect to Mr McGann was devastating: Instead of being covered for up to $1 million he was now covered only up to $5000 He decided to sue Two courts found in favor of the employer ruling that under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 companies like H&H Music were entitled to change the terms of their coverage plans in midstream so that one expensive illness AIDS canself-insure- self-insure- I territory returned As a result of that bitter experience and out of concern for humanitarian values the German constitution proclaims that "persons persecuted on political grounds shall enjoy the right of asylum" However many Germans contend that today's refugees are abusing the right to political asylum in an effort to flee economic conditions in their former homes It is an argument that parallels the US position on Haitian refugees During the first 10 months of 1992 some 369000 people sought asylum in d d cer or whatever — wouldn't bankrupt them In refusing last week to review the case the Supreme Court allowed the lower court rulings to stand What makes the McGann case so alarming is that countless other Americans could easily find themselves in his of all predicament Roughly American employees covered by health insurance at their workplace are in company plans — like H&H two-thir- self-insure- d From The Miami Herald Panamanians' rejection of a package of constitutional reforms reflected the Endara government's divorce from Panama's political reality The reform package's reratio Sunday was exjection by a most Panamanians except per pected by haps by the small group of members of Parliament who stitched it together Lamentably the central question — whether Panama should abolish its army and create a national police force modeled on Costa Rica's — was framed so that it was bound to be rejected overwhelmingly To many voters the vote was a plebiscite on President Guillermo Endara's administration but both the government and the Christian Democratic opposition are to blame for the reforms' defeat beset by political and - Endara has been since taking office afeconomic problems ter the 1989 US invasion ousted Gen Manuel Antonio Noriega Ever since then En dara's improvident administration has A: x--1 4' 4" - - e e- 111 P01-11- Germany The political debate in Germany today centers on whether to amend the constitution to tighten its requirements for asylum probably in accordance with the 1951 Geneva Convention on refugees However responsible politicians of all German parties concede that a constitutional change alone will not solve the refugee problem or the bitter feelings it is creating among Germans Only the economic recovery of all of Eastern Europe including eastern Germany will do that and there are no quick fixes at hand hard-presse- d Music's In other words of the American workers who think they are covered at work can be uncovered at the snap of an employer's fingers This isn't insurance this is an empty two-thir- promise As unfair as this is the situation looks almost as untenable from the employer's standpoint Presumably H&H Music could have found itself in deep financial trouble if compelled to pay all of Mr McGann's health expenses during his illness — so much trouble that it could have affected the firm's ability to keep other workers employed So there is a precarious balance here between the employee's perceived right to health insurance at work and the employer's right to do what is financially sound to protect the jobs of its workers Since the maintaining of this balance can lead to such unfair decisions as the one in the McGann case it makes sense to question some age-olassumptions about health care in Americ a such as the extent of responsibility of reluctant employers to provide health insurance for employees As the Clinton team prepares to launch its new administration in a couple of months it should be examining America's ineffective health insurance system from Square One The way it is now John McGann was never really insured and II&H Music might have gone under if he was Neither should have been placed in that situation Only dramatic reform can prevent future cases like John McGann's d been the butt of jokes and trenchant criticism from all sectors of Panamanian society His administration favored the constitutional reforms which centered on the abolition of the army However the Christian Democratic opposition also joined the constitutional reform parade adding dozens of intricate floats of its own The result was a package designed to displease a great majority of Panamanians Voters were asked to approve or to reject 58 changes in the 1972 constitution Thus the pivotal question of abolishing the Panamanian Defense Force depended on voters' approval of 57 other questions Though the referendum's defeat leaves things as they are the "reformed" PDF is being downsized by budget cuts and manpower allocations Thus it will in effect become a Costa Rican-styl- e national defense force anyway Yet its constitutional abolition would have signaled a powerful and desirable symbolic rejection of the past As they smart from their defeat both the Endara government and its opposition ought to use this lesson to bring themselves closer to the concerns of the people whom they purport to govern - 1 ' ' :i RNirrig 1 l'iNf' Vlas '''' 401 I --- -- -- --- ? V--- --- --- r-- -- de-- - ---- Akvi 241 All 111 -- -- o' j - - 1111111111 - - 1-- 4fri N qtt IR ‘-- TA (tT MIND 11r- ‘411'1 51 r7 Camle-ru-p PACK 1 N gel go iAY - 1 6 A vAg c-t-3) ------ i i d Voters' Decision Should Alert Panama Leaders Another Viewpoint 'At -"- case-by-ca- Nazi-occupie- joe11:px1 lika '" iff L-v itgi law That process which proceeds on a basis can take years Under its constitution Germany has the most liberal refugee policy in Europe a legacy of World War H Under the Nazi regime many Germans who opposed Hitler were forced to flee the country and seek asylum After Germany's defeat these political refugees together with millions of Germans who were expelled from former German or for Health Insurance Reform -- 111 I 6 j I A0 pagt N ttz ObIli 04- 4ti : ' )° - oloN determines whether applicants for political asylum qualify under German A10 -- ji omy doing menial work that many Germans refuse Asylum-seeker- s do receive government benefits however until the German immigration system if) I i ai pgcla otETRIttealls"- P r---- ": °4 ILO Neo-Na- zi ts 0 all ITORIALS !: of 4 November 18 1992 WEDNESDAY 237-201- 9 AA A - If Clinton Heeds Lessons of '92 He Could Win Again CHICAGO TRIBUNE SERVICE WASHINGTON — It may have sounded like classic Jesse Jackson bravado who had become disenchanted with what they perceived as elitist or "special inter est" politics (including black interests) by -- 0- f— ) lea"! Clarence Page when he declared in a news conference opkv shortly after Election Day that President- - it elect Clinton owes a big debt to black voters But an updated analysis of exit polling by Voter Research Surveys the consortium that collected the data for ABC CBS NBC and CNN shows Jackson may be onto something and in the world of pragpresident-elec- t Initial calculations reported in the mamatic politics that's all that counts Winjor media (including this humble column) indicated that Clinton received about the ning ugly is still winning no matter where the votes come from same percentage of the vote from whites inteStill it saddens an that President Bush did and that black voters who gave more than 80 of their grationist like me to see how resiliently our racial political divide endures Ever votes to Clinton were just icing on the since Democratic presidential candidates cake became linked with racial justice and by But after comparing exit poll results connection black empowerment in the with actual election results to trim down the margin of error VRS concludes Bush early '60s only one Democratic presidential candidate Lyndon Johnson in his clearly beat Clinton among white voters anomalous landslide against Barry GoldBlack voters gave Clinton his margin of water in 1964 has received a majority of victory the white vote Warren Mitofsky VRS executive diAnd Republican presidential candirector reports the president received dates haven't mounted a real contest for 43 of the white vote compared to 38 the black vote since the days of Dwight for Clinton and 19 for Ross Perot Eisenhower Black voters who were 8 of the total So it was refreshing to imagine that vote put Clinton over the top with 82 of their vote compared to 11 for Bush Clinton finally had staked out a true common ground between the Southern "Buband 7 for Perot And David Bositis research director bas" the black "brothers" and the urban for the Washington-baseJoint Center ethnic "Archie Bunkers" Well not quite Maybe next time Clinfor Political Studies a think tank on ton might yet win a majority of the white black issues notes that newly registered vote if he heeds the lessons offered by black voters alone provided the margin his victory this time around of victory in states like Georgia (where Clinton's victory was a victory of coali88000 new black voters helped Clinton tion politics over the divisive brand of win by only 16000 votes) and New Jersey consensus politics recent Republican (where 96000 new black voters helped Clinton win by only 57000 votes) presidential campaigns have practiced Ronald Reagan showed how the GOP So what one asks before these numcould build a consensus around a firm bers become too numbing does it all core of conservative beliefs then enlist mean? an circle of mostly white Most important at the risk of stating the obvious it means Clinton is still the middle- - and working-clas- s swing voters 57 d ever-widenin- g Democrats Democrats since at least the days of FDR when even Reagan was‘a Democrat have built their strength through racial coalitions that ethnic and turned minorities into winning majorities Jackson's declaration illustrates the pressure that the Democratic Party's various groups will put on Clinton now that they've helped him win in spite of whatever misgivings they may have about his centrism My advice to Clinton would be to stay the centrist course Don't bend A line from President Bush's inaugural address describes the problem: "We have more will than wallet" Now that the campaign hoopla has faded Clinton would he foolish to try the sweeping and costly social programs favored by Democrats at a time when the budget simply can't afford it Instead Clinton would be to give his most liberal supporters like Jackson their big payback in the form of social reforms that 411 cost money Roll back Reagan's culture war Pass the Freedom of Choice Act Lift the bans on aborfetal tissue research the tion pill and homosexuals in the military Sign family leave and Jackson's favorite cause these days statehood for the District of Columbia Do it all now take the heat and hope it blows over by 1996 Voters of all races classes and political persuasions appeared to agree this year on at least this much: the need for economic revitalization deficit reduction and universal health care If Clinton can provide all that or even most of it all else might easily be forgiven by 1996 If not he almost certainly will find himself joining former President Bush on the lecture circuit blue-coll- ar old-sty- le well-advise- d RU-48- 6 Smart Advisers Spouting Dumb Advice Did Bush In KING FEATURES SYNDICATE NEW YORK — I'm not one of those columnists who is going to criticize the Republicans for indulging in a lot of as they try to figure out what went wrong in the Presidential election campaign I intend to join in I enjoy ridiculing particularly dumb moves in presidential campaigns as long as the campaign is over Trying that sort of thing before the election has been held would put me at risk of being proven wrong and as everybody knows being proven wrong can reduce a columnist to finger-- wic pointing tears When the campaign is over though I'm always delighted to point a finger or two (My point feared by politicians of all stripes is done with the fourth and fifth fingers held close together and calls to mind the sort of gesture a might use to Cypriot put a curse on a competitor) Normally I point out what went wrong with the assurance of someone who knew perfectly was cerwell at the time that the goof-utaM to cause the loss of the election Actually I was willing to point some fingers even before this campaign was over — an indication of just how dumb it was For instance I began what was to evolve into a theory that the dumbest two-fing- postcard-salesma- n p Orbiting Paragraphs It must be nice to be a professional athlete and therefore able to afford season tickets The young people who don't do well on college entrance exams aren't any more numerous than those who do poorly on the exit variety There's nothing like going on a redtic- ing diet to cut down on the amount of leftovers Learning is what you get from experience when you were expecting something better Calvin Trillin :4 s: moves in a campaign are almost invariably made by people who have reputations for being smart As I have pointed out before President Bush might have lost the 1992 election at the 1988 Republican convention when he said that Democrats who pressed him to raise taxes would be told "Read my lips: No new taxes" Peggy Noonan known to all as the Republicans' smartest speech writer had made the astonishingly dumb mistake of expressing a promise Bush would probably have to break with the most memorable line in the speech When it came time to break the promise of course Bush was assured by the smartest of the smart Richard Darman that nobody would care since politicians break promises all the time Darman's partner in that negotiation was the equally cerebral John Sununu a White House disaster best described by another Republican as a lesson in the perils of telling a child that he has a high IQ According to the theory Bush still had a chance after that but unfortunately for him the campaign had on hand William Kristol often called the smartest person in the White House As Dan Quayle's chief of staff Kristol pushed the family values agenda a dead end that stalled the Republican campaign for a month He was the leading hawk in the war against the widely adored Murphy Brown — the bizarre ad venture that easily gets this campaign's award for dumbest move by smartest guy A I'm tempted to point four or five fingers at these truly dumb smart guys (When I point that many fingers at once I appear to be signaling that I have something disgusting on my hand and I've been asked repeatedly not to do it in public) I think if I had only one finger to point I'd point it at the decision a year the econago that Bush could jump-star- t omy by going out to a mall at the beginning of the Christmas shopping season and buying four pair of athletic socks at JC Penney Although I usually recognize myself in articles about what short memories voters have I couldn't seem to forget those athletic socks In New Hampshire when Bush said "Message I care" what flashed in my mind was "The man cares enough to buy four pairs of athletic socks at JC Penney" When Bush said that the White House has to be occupied by a man with the character and experience to use it effectively as a bully pulpit I thought "He used the bully pulpit to show people that athletic socks could be purchased" When Bush said that the president had to be decisive rather than a waffler I thought "The man decided with no waffling on athletic socks" But how did he decide that? A year ago I imagined a meeting of top White House aides at which Bush mused on what sort of presidential purchase would be exciting enough to inspire the general population into a frenzy of Christmas shopping that might touch a spark to the economy Forgetting what his critics often said — that his advisers were relentlessly white bread — he took a little poll of the room and not surprisingly came up with wkite socks The more I think of where fingers are being pointed now though it occurs to me that the president may have simply received the athletic socks idea from one adviser — whoever was thought of at the time as the smartest person in the room |
