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Show The Paper That Dares To Take A Stand March 3, 1977 The Utah Independent :Page 5 IUI Biggest Big Brother OSH A. Two of them, which 1 am with TESTING OUR UNDERSEAS MISSILES Senator Bartlett, would remove from As astonishing examples of OS HA jurisdiction all businesses government overregulation con- - with fewer than 25 employees and tinue to make the news, all farms with fewer than 12 the Occupational Safety ployees. Such concerns, although Ad- - they can boast a significantly better and Health ministration appears to have accident record than their larger emerged as the biggest Big Brother counterparts, are more vulnerable of them all. In one recent case, to OSHA interference. In the first place, they may OSH A ordered the operator of a small feed mill in Wisconsin to need expensive legal counsel to make expensive safety im- determine how the regulations ap- HATCH DISAPPOINTED provements to his facilities. He ply to them. Then they are often ON PAY RAISE could not afford them, but of faced with a cruel dilemma: either course he did not want to be closed comply with the regulations at Lake Salt City Senator ruinous risk down as an unsafe employer. He expense, or equally Orrin G. Hatch solved the problem by firing his ruinous fines. expressed his frustration and This week, I shall introduce a disappointment at not being able two employees. To some, such episodes may third bill which would allow em- - to cast his vote against the seem comical, and they certainly plovers who successfully contest automatic pay raise for members of are ridiculous. The nations OSHA judgments to recover their Congress because of stalling tactics businessmen and farmers, legal expenses. Such a measure by the Democratic leadership of In would encourage those with a the Senate. however, are not laughing. 1975, 66,000 of them paid S9.5 legitimate grievance but limited Sen. Hatch said, The pay million in OSHA fines, and an es- - means small raise is wrong when were asking primarily and farmers to the rest of America to buckle their timated $3 billion more in com- - businessmen stand up for their rights. belts. Congress must set the examSmall employers are the ple. em-OSH- Bv Washington: Jimmy Carter Paul Scott President is con- seriously ordering the Defense Department to conduct a text exercise that would pit the Navys missile-firin- g nuclear submarine fleet against the nations antisubmarine defenses. Known in Navy circles as the new Billy Mitchell project, the dramatic' confrontation is being pushed by Admiral Hyman Director of the Navys Nuclear Power directorate, with strong backing from key members of the House Armed Service Committee. The maverick Rickover, who established a close relationship with the President when the latter served as a nuclear submarine engineer, proposed the military exercise at a private White House sidering Ric-kov- er. dinner. Admiral Rickover used the special occasion to stress that such a realistic test was needed to determine whether U.S. nuclear submarines are capable of penetrating Soviet defenses and whether the Russian nuclear submarines could do the same to U.S. defenses. Noting that the minimum deterrence plan against Soviet nuclear attack, now under study by the National Security Council, would only involve missile-firin- g submarines, Rickover cautioned the President that before even considering such a proposal the effectiveness of such a limited nuclear missile force should be determined. This information could only be obtained, according to Ricoffensive vs. kover, by a full-scadefensive submarine exercise of the size that he has been proposing without success for several years. While there has been limited missile-firintests involving nuclear submarines, Rickover reported, the Navy high command had blocked all realistic exercises involving the entire fleets of both suboffensive and defensive marines. When the President expressed concern that the Russians might become alarmed over so sweeping a naval exercise, Rickover pointed out that the Russians in 1975 connaval exercise ducted a world-wid- e their missile-firin- g including nuclear submarines. After Rickover informed the President that there was strong support in congress for such a military test exercise, the President said he would give it serious consideration and discuss it with members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. PREPARING THE WARY One of the congressional advocates for such a test is Rep. a ranking Charles Bennett ( le gs D-Fl- a), member of the House Armed Service Committee. The Florida lawmaker is now lining up other members of congress to support the Rickover proposal. As part of his campaign. is Bennett Rep. circulating Rickover previous testimony a to House Armed presented Service Subcommittee calling for such a military exercise. Highlights of this testimony is as follows: I would like to see an exercise conducted our where an- tisubmarine forces are pitted against our nuclear submarines. Let us realistically test what these forces can do. Maybe then we can finally resolve some of the claims being made by both sides. We have not had a realistic exercise. We have had some exercises, but they have generally been to prove a specific point. They have been carefully designed with all manner of constraints. I would even suggest in this regard that congress should step in and see that this is done. Pointing out that there was plenty of precedent for this type of action by congress, Rickover told the lawmakers: There is precedent for this, you know. When Billy Mitchell challenged the prevailing concept of seapower by saying that aircraft could sink a surface warship, the Navy conducted their own experiment on the battleship Indiana. The captain of the ship, William Leahy, reported that the entire experiment pointed to an of a modern battleship being either destroyed or completely put out of action by aerial bombs. Mitchell continued to reiterate his convictions and the controversy made him a national figure. When a joint resolution was introduced in Congress to permit him to conduct his experiment, the War and Navy Departments finally agreed to permit his tests upon German prizes of war, the cruiser Frankfurt and the dreadnaught Ostfrisland, the latter of which had survived the battle of Jutland and was considered by many naval experts as unsinkable. With many naval experts and congressmen in attendance, Mitchell proceeded to sink the Frankfurt in 35 minutes and 3 days later sent the Ostfrisland to the bottom in 2Vh minutes. The actions revolutionized the concept of air warfare." Admiral Rickover and Rep. Bennett now want to see if another military exercise pitting the Navys missile-firin- g nuclear submarines against the nations defenses will revolutionize the nations nuclear deterrence. A (R-Uta- h) backbone of the American A economy, providing 47 percent of higher prices, it is consumers who ultimately get stuck with the OSHA bill. They have to pay twice, in fact, for OSHA itself now consumes SI 17 million a year in taxes. OSHA was founded in 1970 with the admirable goal of guaranteeing, so far as possible, every working man and woman in the nation safe and healthful working conditions." Its first step in pursuit of this goal was to promulgate a virtual library of regulations 4400 of them, making a stack taller than a man. These regulations are so detailed as to specify the number of knots that are permitted in wooden ladders. They are written in language so technical and convoluted as to baffle lawyers and scientists. Shortly thereafter, a battalion of inspectors it now totals more than 1200 fanned out across the country. Barging in unannounced on businesses and farms, they issued citations or assessed fines for every violation they found. There were no allowances for first-tim- e or trivial offenses. Employers could not ask for consultations. The only appeal from a judgment was to OSHAs own Review Commission. Such procedure presents serious constitutional questions. For example, several OSHA victims are claiming that a warrantless search by an OSHA' inspector violates the Fourth Amendment. Nevertheless, congress should not wait for the courts to remedy a problem that it has created. Despite some recent improvement, OSHA harassment continues. Moreover, a study of OSHAs acnon-puniti- complishments A fine is a tax for doing wrong. A tax is a fine for - Wesley Izzard While we consider when to begin, it becomes too late. -- Latin Proverb The modern tendency is to consult your attorney instead of your conscience. -- Arnold Glasow Qte-rr- p ve shows only recommended the pay raise to former President Ford. However, Mr. Fords recommendations sent to the Senate on January 20 included substantial decreases. two Sen. Hatch 39 resolutions (S.R. and 50) to for raise a vote but the bring up pay the resolutions were tabled and in effect, killed because of inaction by the Democratic leadership, Sen. Hatch added. Another attempt by the junior Utah Senator to bring the pay raise to a vote as an amendment to the Senate committee reorganization The bill was also tabled. Democratic majority in the Senate has continually prevented a vote on the substantive merits of the pay raise issue, according to Hatch. our jobs. Congress must act now to protect them from government bullying. If our Big Brother at OSHA will not mend his arrogant ways, at least let him pick on someone closer to his own size. doing well. federal commission No two people are alike and both are glad of it. CX& Queud Seed q&sd tzttffj ete &bd ffimnif? Clincher ooo IfiSEJuD (hrcR 0s)cJi$V 1 GsJldSP fflZB (33r the East: Q Q?CR&ft!la310ni 0sP'0lSD 0 QSiEfiP llte iQg sbeb fiGP CEEP (life 12E0S fCEEl O minimal benefits to offset the huge cJiF I3EDI5 fiIJTiD lED & GEJTfi f&P QSP cost in money and aggravation. Cbmtaim In the field of occupational i feiSEnfli (farms 031 ifiSJuK9 fltSEH) health, OSHA has so far devised standards of control for only three of the many dangerous substances Tis the times plague when to which American workers are madmen rule the blind. exposed on the job. At the same ofShakespeare time, a former Qs Q fesBiEii (torero ficial at the Labor Department has (55 revealed that industries with good records of compliance with OSHA n Sanmaa 3IGR WJi) jp OGfiT safety standards actually have Know fltemsdh higher than average injury rates. A number of bills now before the senate would help to tame anti-submari- -- ne egi5b high-ranki- ng 0 gits itooisfl&dtefflinGlteeBGm. |