Show IP TUESDAY October 11 1994 i PAGE A10 ZI)taltakt'Crt-tibun-t COMMENTA Y I k OUR VIEW AL6CIRIFDPVI The Salt Lake Tribune's Editorial Position Reaction to Saddam Hussein's latest military posturing was properly measured The United States correctly joined in deterring what looked like another Persian Gulf crisis but it must be reiterated that this country won't do occupation duty in Iraq When the Baghdad bully started patching his troops in the thousands to border cause for the alarm was justified Unpredictable Saddam might have considered trying another Kuwait annexation The likelihood now is that he was mostly stirring up consternation Still seriously weakened by major defeat in the last Persian Gulf conflict Iraqi forces were sure to be mauled again by any similar miscalculation Determined to somehow slide from under the economic sanctions imposed on him after his Gulf War defeat Sad-daseems partial to flexing military from the muscle as an attention-gette- r Western alliance probably from various Middle East centers surely Ironically for him the tactic annoys and frightens more than it intimidates dis- Iraq-Kuwa- it m In seeming to comply with the tary downsizing he was obliged to do following his Gulf War debacle Sad-damade some headway in convincing foreign governments that he should reenter world markets with Iraqi oil Some previously suspicious Mideast neighbors were sympathetic as were France and Russia mili- m 5v4ATT Held firmly in place by the United States and other members of the UN- endorsed coalition that drove him from Kuwait the embargoes are nominally supposed to discourage any renewed Iraqi military ambitions but mostly they are an effort to topple an economically discredited Saddam Since the first condition appears successful while the second doesn't Saddam's supplications were reaching his traditional regional and European trade partners Impatience may have betrayed him His political situation could further deteriorate if the United States itself Weekend statedoesn't over-reaments from the White House about "not repeating mistakes" made in the last Persian Gulf War implied the Clinton administration might march all the way to Baghdad if sufficiently provoked by Saddam Occupying any sizable portion of Iraq would be as bad a mistake now as it ever was Taking on Iraq as a rehabilitation project would be the mother of all p Disclosure and Gift Ban Act with another filibuster The bill spearheaded and doggedly pursued by certain House Democrats Utah's Karen Shepherd prominent among them would have cut off the free lunches game tickets junkets and gifts that Congress members receive from lobbyists It also would have required paid lobbyists to register with a new regulatory office and report the names of their clients the purpose of their lobbying and how much they spend to influence legislation The legislation's goal of course was to discourage members of Congress from giving special time and consideration to their benefactors at the expense of the general population And to let the public know who is trying to affect federal policy and why It would have replaced a lobby law that is nearly 50 years old and full of loopholes Senators overwhelmingly favored the change last year but Republicans found a convenient excuse to deny Democrats a victory so close to the Nov 8 election a and lobRep Newt Gingrich byists themselves (the Christian Coalition and the Family Research Council) R-G- Discourage Saddam's truculence Bloody him again if he attempts another offensive against Kuwait Continue the sanctions that are clearly destabilizing his regime and his judgment But resist any notion that the process requires endless US entanglement with Iraq's domestic upheaval Iraq can be tamed without trying to make it a house pet conservatives with stirred up claims the disclosure law was a "gag rule on the grassroots" The Chamber of Commerce and other lobby groups also sprang into action and lawmakers were flooded with telephone calls Never mind that religious groups were specifically exempt from the bill's rules And that groups need not disclose memvolunbership lists and phone-banteers Gingrich and Co used just the right spin to obscure the facts g has beRepublican come part of a pernicious partisan pattern It buried health-car- e reform and campaign-financ- e reform and threatens the survival of trade legislation which has been postponed until after the talk-sho- w k road-blockin- election Most Americans support term limits as a way to impose a d sense of civic responsibility upon members of Congress who lend their ears too readily to special interests The message obviously isn't getting through As of a congressional reform task force Karen Shepherd was instrumental in squeezing lobbying reform through the House She obviously heard her constituents' concerns about this issue But Utah's other elected leaders in Washington — Democratic Rep Bill Orton Republican Rep Jim Hansen and Republican Senators Orrin Hatch and Bob Bennett — helped kill reform with their negative votes They need to clean out their ears heavy-hande- d thick-skulle- er ( t r NA lq - In days gone by the public often found time to sit in courtrooms to watch criminal proceedings Allowing cameras is only an extension of that expectation of public access Some 47 states now allow the practice To educate and inform the public regarding court proceedings would seemingly be an important facet of promoting trust in government Matters important to the public should be made accessible and open for the public to view That's what cameras in the courtroom do MINION! 1- - f '04ii- William Godbe ELT Harrison Fred T Perris (1872-187Fred Lock ley George Prescott Alt Hamilton (1873-188Patrick Lannan CC Goodwin ) Perry S Heath ) Joseph Lippman Frank I Serfrit (1905-191- (1880-1902- ) ) (1902-1904- (1904-1905- Ambrose N McKay ) ) John F Fitzpatrick John W Gallivan (1960-1983- ) Dominic Welch EDITOR James E Shelled (1911-1924- (1924-1960- Paul J G O'Brien (1983-199- CORPORATION KEAILNS-TRIBUN- E 7 2 0w 64)13 EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR Harry E Fuller Jr 143 S MAIN ST SALT LAKE CITY 84111 j ' 4 4 VI id 4 - - t- - r i SO ie) el tn) " ::: e 0" 7'48CIi0 1 !::::- - kelt ri - 4:1111!11M! I 9 'IliltilJr - pi e7 ::- e of - ‘fclitil 12r) Il -' - r OcamuAL AlouO- 4MII ifx iia imdllifficeto db 101400b:7 -- griclit AV 'll 1:444 070 a tx - - 't 00' 46 2''7'5" 11 )11 e ' - '1 f4 'Li I' I 'I r 1 v- ty orr it kJ THE PUBLIC FORUM Letters from the Tribune's readers ) 1'0 '1 Earth Worship I have respect for the religious views of others but the religion of radical environmentalism which advocates the reduction or complete cessation of ranch- ing timber harvest mining water development some agriculture and the production of oil gas and electricity is destroying the foundation of this country I consider myself an environmentalist because I care about the quality of the air water soil and land management But earth respect is far different than earth worship Radical environmentalism is much like some religions that hold unusual beliefs about bow the body works and feel doctors and science are evil Like them environmental religions use charismatic leaders who spout pseudo-scienc- e in attempts to convince others of their beliefs And where some religions center around the workings of the body radical environmentalism centers around the workings of the earth They use junk science scare tactics and an underdog imto age gain sympathy As they gain followers they gain fame political power and money which lend credence to their cause The most insidious of groups are not on the fringe like Earth First they're the mainstream groups like the Sierra Club The National Wilderness Society and the Audubon Society These groups have a public persona that paints them as benign and caring and many of their followers are Unfortunately the leaders of these groups have a far more expansive mission than most realize Every natural resource that humans depend on to survive such as food shelter water and heat are under attack in the name of protecting the earth We need more real science and less religious beliefs when making important land management half-trut- anti-huma- n JEANNIE HUNT Fredonia Ariz I 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 Keep it short Concise letters developing a single theme are more likely to be published Please type and double space Letters are condensed and edited Because of the volume of mail received not all submissions are pub lished Mail to Public Forum The Salt Lake Tribune PO Box 867 Salt Lake City Utah 84110 Our fax number is (801) 237- 2022 Don't Wake Me Doc Following the publication of "Only Thing Worse Than the Fear of Surgery is Horror of Waking Up While It's Happening" in The Salt Lake Tribune Sept 25 I received numerous inquiries from patients concerning the problem of mental awareness that they may experience during anesthesia and surgery This increased my personal awareness of the high incidence of such concerns in patients undergoing surgical procedures As physicians entrusted with the comfort and safety of all patients under our care anesthesiologists are trained in the art and science of vigilance during surgical procedures Your concerns are taken seriously by us Please express any concern about your care during surgical procedures to your physician anesthesiologist We will listen THOMAS R MEULEMAN President Utah Society of Anesthesiologists Salt Lake City Get Tough With Gangs Vote for Conservatives gangs were becoming such a problem in Utah I feel that we need to take some drastic action in fighting gangs I agree with Judge Andrew Valdez that we need to kids" We "get tough with hard-corshould build more youth prisons Most judges can't come down hard on youth offenders because there is nowhere to put them to serve time If we build more youth prisons then kids who commit crimes won't get off so easily If teens get harsher punishments for their crimes they might think twice about committing them again Kids in juvenile jail get off much too easily They find it no big deal to get caught by the police as long as they don't get charged as an adult We should make it so they don't want to get charged as a juvenile either! I LEHTO Salt Lake City 0 Working in Washington Pat Shea in his recent television campaign commercial asks people if they have seen Orrin Hatch He then says something to the effect "Neither have I can't find him to debate If you see him tell him I'm looking for him" If Shea had been paying attention to what was going on in Congress he would know where Sen Hatch has been He has been in Washington tending to the business we elected him to do LYNN F PRICE Salt Lake City i‘ :n When most people consider the punt? sector and government employees they sometimes think of bureaucrats growing fat at the public trough As one affiliated with local government I can say that picture doesn't ways fit I'd like to tell you about one person in public service who has gone far beyond the call of duty Her name is Joyce Leach and she been the driving force in establishing they Salt Lake Valley Recycling Information Office For the past four years Leach hai dragged the rest of Utah willing or not into the recycling age With the support of Commissioner' Randy Horiuchi and Mayor Deedee Cor- radini among others Leach has been current swimming against the status-quthat seems to see recycling as an unneces- sary trend set aside for yuppies from Cal- ifornia Leach worked long and hard to help coordinate the state's first curbside recyr cling program in Salt Lake City She also has spearheaded recycling programs in schools and in the business sector Such things as the Christmas tree chipping program and the Salt Lake Valley Recy cling Guide are Leach's brain children Leach has worked night and day and many weekends without pay Initially- she used her own typewriter and furntture at the Recycling Office with no compensation She was never afraid to work longer harder and make every effort to go wherever needed to further the cause of recycling in Salt Lake County She also pushed hard for recycling legislation in Utah — a goal still to be met And since the state has no recycling office Leach effectively was Utah's public sector recycling expert — providing help and information to counties and municipalities across the state It is true that Utah is behind most other states when It comes to recycling But without Joyce Leach there would be far less recycling in Utah than there is today Leach is now stepping down from her post as Salt Lake Valley recycling coordinator and out of public service for pei sonal reasons But it should be noted that she gave her all to the public without thought for personal aggrandizement or profit She always took seriously her title of public servant CHRISTOPHER SMART o : 0 read The Salt Lake Tribune's Sept story about gangs I did not know that True Public Servant Where to Write 0 1871 PUBLISHER (1871-72- " es ll1 e e-- --- --- '44144 -- at5a1t gakt Zribnnt PAST PUBLISHERS IgA4 -- f- - - ciTCIVIV'S MOLLY UTAH'S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE "41 ( - ' 0 e justice" iGIrl A OMIT IS Micz Mils Iltvl cF WAR y MKS' 1GSUZ OUT cF —E- 11 Cameras Belong in Courtroom V OLD cHAI6QPKE) O'P4I- - ANOTHER VIEW Clarion-Ledge- k I NE I TeddyYentrig quagmires From The Jackson (Miss) The decision by the Judicial Confer ence of the United States to bar cameras from federal courtrooms is a setback that runs counter to experience Americans have grown accustomed to is cameras in the courtroom Court-Tonly the most recent example Cameras don't intrude they don't require excessive lighting or make any commotion Indeed the decision ran counter to the conference's own study which found "small or no effects of camera presence on participants in the proceedings court room decorum or the administration of FOR ct Pernicious Partisanship It's beyond belief Members of Congress scratch their heads wondering how they're going to improve their image with disgusted Americans But then they go out of their way to look worse It happened again last week when Senate Republicans killed the Lobbying 2r 4 40mnf 4101fap -- a wthelii no I IDEAS Avoid Iraq Quagmire l vkiBORBITT 4 Recent TV commercials are depicting Rep Karen Shepherd as "Utah's Independent Voice in Congress" Nothing could be further from the truth! Let no one be deceived Shepherd is an extreme liberal whose agenda parallels that of Bill Clinton A vote for her is a vote for bigger government fewer states' rights abortion gun control socialized medicine higher taxes a ballooning defiideals cit and a myriad of other left-win- g Is this what you want? If not practice opyour constitutional tion by voting her out next November A "No" vote for Shepherd is a "Yes" vote for Utah and its conservative values JOSEPH H EVANS term-limitatio- n Magna 0 Shepherd a Wolf Rep Karen Shepherd is the consummate wolf in sheep's clothing Her current campaign strategy is to deceive the voters in the 2nd Congressional District by running ads that name her as an "independent voice for Utah" They at no time mention her Democratic Party affiliation Shepherd is far from an independent thinker or voter in the House of Representatives She is in the top 5 percent of representatives voting a complete allegiance in support of Cli Mon and the Democrats Shepherd is now incognito attempting to distance herself from Clinton after being his most ardent supporter I wonder why TERRY B CROSBY Salt Lake City Park City 0 j Pulling Teeth 61 4 41 The Salt Lake Tribune's Sept 22 arti cle about a tooth fourvi in Africa giving evidence for evolution appalled me The first thing I thought of when I saw it was the now forgotten "Nebraska Man') When an old pig's tooth was unearthed Nebraska its discoverer touted it as be " Only longing to an ancient after some years was the mistake caught and Nebraska Man forgotten Even the infamous "Lucy" is nothing more than chimp whose pelvic bones were more opened than typical she's just a chimp: I am a creationist and find that the an gument methods of evolutionists parallel those of They considet their own arguments so powerful and enL compassing that they will not even ad dress our objections comprehensively s see abortion as mufAs we der the argument that "choice" has prk ority says to us that murder is OK it choice is at stake Likewise when creationists demonstrate that the second law of thermodynamics makes Darwinian evolution impossible we are either not listened to or given their same old argi ments wrapped up in a different fornt The same results occur when we demorr strate the mathematical imjSrobability evolutionary fundamentals "ape-man- pro-lifer- ROBERT BRUCE HAYES Salt Lake City 1 i it |