PAGE-
HERALD AND NEWS, Ktanuth Falls, Ore.
Tuesday, March S, 1961
EDSON IN WASHINGTON
"These Days We Call It
Free Collective Bargaining"
Congress Still Mulls
President's Requests
Mc v
Finding Out What's Going On
The continuing flurry of charges that
the Kennedy administration-seeks to "man
age the news" needs to be put in some balance.
': The President himself has taken a hand,
trying to minimize the issue by treating it
wittily as he often does when under some
fire.
' Yet there are probably few responsible
newsmen in Washington and elsewhere who
doubt that management of the news is tak
ing place.
What has to be understood is that this is
not something unique to President Kennedy.
The Eisenhower administration practiced
news control, as did the Roosevelt and Tru
man regimes before. In fact, this is a technique
as old as memory.
Nor is it limited to the national govern
ment. Sleuthing reporters have been complain
ing about "invisible government" at the state
level for decades.
The fact it is both commonplace and old
does not justify it as a policy. Within the
limits dictated by security, the proper needs
of diplomacy, and the effective operation of
'govermcnt, the public is entitled to know
what its elected and appointed officials are
doing and saying.
But the record of history, right up to the
most current events, indicates that govern
ment officials have a strong self-protective in-
stinct. They are not about to hand out grace
(Portland Oregonian)
,; Oregon's individual income tax law was
adopted by the voters originally, after many
defeats at the polls, as a property tax relief
act. It was so considered for many years. But
the relief afforded was to state property
taxes. When the growing earning power of
the personal income lax, plus the smaller
corporation excise tax, made it unnecessary
for the state any longer to collect property
taxes, in 1940, the income taxes look over the
main job of supporting state government.
Local real and personal property taxes,
cMef source of revenue for counties, cities,
'.schools and special districts, continued to
-grow, however. Slate income tax funds were
.diverted, to some extent, to reduce the impact
of burgeoning school costs on property tax
payers. But local property taxes now raise
twice as much money as the state income
taxes. And the school burden continues to
get heavier.
This is the reason Rep. Richard Eymann
and Sen. Boyd R. Overhulsc, Democratic
chairmen of the House and Senate Taxation
committees, have joined in a bill to increase
IN WASHINGTON
jjfflh Red
By RALPH de TOLKDANO
American scientists arc express
ing serious doubts that a salaman
der, frozen in the Siberian tundra
S.OOfl years ago, was brought
back to li(c or bad hibernated.
This is a healthy attitude and sci
is. Hie "why haven't the Russians
lc.t us see it" response to the So
virt claim. H would lie nice if they
were as dubious about other So
viet scientific boasts and applied
to thein the same criteria.
But in thus ease, I believe Ilia!
the arc Rood pounds lor con
sidering the Soviet claim seri
ously and lor doubting American
scientific skepticism. If our sci
entists admit Uie possibility of the
resuscitated salamander, they
must also accept the Velikovsky
Hypothesis and tliey would rath
er turn in their l'hi Beta Kappa
leys than do this.
C The Velikovsky Hymthcsis is
feiiHthcma to American scientists.
When the distinguished scholar.
r. imniantiel Velikovsky, Issued
his findings, the scientific com
munity was so incensed that it
forced his publisher to (Imp the
book, tear up Uie contract with
Dr. Velikovsky, and fire the edi
tor who had worked on tlie manu
script. Without answering Dr. Vc
likovsky's arguments, outraged
fdenlisus simply (hiratcned to
put the publisher on a blacklist,
thereby destroying its (cxtliook
business, unless the book, "Worlds
In Collision," were consigned to
Outer darkness. Among those sci
entist responsible or this cen
sorship were several who have
made a career of shouting about
academic freedom.
: Now what i the Velikovsky Hy
pothesis and hnw does it fit in
w-iuj Uie Siberian salamanders?
fully and ungrudgingly information which in
any way will damage them personally or po
litically. They do iTTi need,, al tlin, iialioiui ito'tci,
to tell themselves they are deliberately with
holding information for these reasons. The
great emphasis on defense and security gives
them an easy way of rationalizing news con
trol. On top of this, there is a natural tendency
for men in office to believe they know better
than anyone what is wise and proper and safe
to disclose.
As a matter of fact, men in government
are not the only ones who set themselves up
as judges of what the public should know.
Giant business corporations, affected
with a public interest to the extent that gov
ernment concerns itself with their disputes,
their pricing policies, and the like, are ex
tremely guarded in what they tell the public.
Their excuse, also often a rationalization,
is that to disclose too much may be to give
valuable information to their competitors.
Few individuals or agencies deeply en
twined in public affairs believe they have a
duty to "tell all." In one degree or another,
they all "manage the news" they take part in.
Where the Kennedy regime went astray
was in openly avowing, even for one day, that
news management was official policy. The re
tractions and denials, however humorously
stated, probably will never catch up with that
one.
Tax Shifting Bill
state income taxes by 20 per cent and to kick
back the money to local governments and
schools. The offset would amount to about
a 10 per cent reduction in real and personal
property taxes. The 6 per cent property tax
increase permitted each year under the law,
without vote of the people, would tend to
wipe out the benefits in a few years. But
the immediate impact would be a reduction
of the property lax, and the long-term im
pact would he a lessening of the seemingly
unending increases for school and other pur
poses. This is not, however, the whole story.
The other side of the coin is that Oregon
now lias one of the highest personal income
tax schedules in the nation, having consist
ently refused to offset it and real property
taxes as well with a general sales tax, Also,
the income tax must he increased to meet the
budget increase which is sure to range from
$25 to $50 million for the next biennium.
The Eymann-Overhulse boost would have to
go on top of that. Legislative and public re
sistance to such a major increase in income
taxation ought to be considerable.
Claim May
To analyze rr. Vclikovsky's find
ings would take up many columns,
i Bit by bit, the scientific com
munity has been forced to accept
parts of the hypothesis, but I
have not heard any aKlogics
from those who called Dr. Velikov
sky names. I
Evidence was presented by Dr.
Velikovsky to show that what is
now the icy Siberian wastes were
once temperate in climate. Plants
and animals nourished there
which can no longer survive in
the Soviet icebox. Among those
animals were great herds of mam
moths These were wiped out
when Siberia became Arctic in
climate. Darwin could not explain
the extinction of the mammoth.
Theories were proposed w h i c h
held that because of a gradual
sinking of the land, tlte mammoth
was forced to Uie hills where it
was trapped and starved to death.
However, these theories did not
conlorm to the facts. As far back
ns IT'.iii. mammoth corpses were
lound in Siberia. Flesh was so
well preserved that sledge dogs
ale it with no ill ellccts One
observer noted years later that
the flesh was "marbled with tat
and looks as fresh as wcllfrivcn
beef." Examination of the ani
mals showed Uio remains of un
digested food in their stomachs.
Obviously they had not starved
hut had died suddenly and lieen
dozen immediately.
Velikovsky demonstrated, at
least to the saUsfaction of a few
scientist who were willing to
examine his evidence belore at
tacking him, Uiat large legions of
the eaith, once covered by a
heavy ice lap, suddenly became
temperate, whereas others in a
Be True
matter of hours became frigid.
He has found human records
which support his belief that at
some point in history some
5.000 years ago or more the
earth was pulled out of a smaller
orbit into its present path and
that in this process the climatic
patterns of the glolie were rear
ranged. No one. for example, has been
able to rcxplain why massive
F.gyptian sun dials, built hy a
people with n good foundation in
astronomy, should have been con
structed for a 300-day year. In
several years, these sun calendars
would have put winter in sum
mer, yet they were used success
hilly until they suddenly were no
longer accurate. Those sun cal
endars still remain to trouble Dr.
Vclikovsky's pursuers. I
According to the Velikovsky Hy
pothesis, the Siberian region was
suiklent'y encased in ice at just
about the lime that the Soviet
salamander was iuick-lro.en. This
freezing process was so sudden
that It is conceivable the sala
mander did not die but existed m
a slate of susendil animation.
I say this is conceivable. Just
recently an American scientist
suggested that those of us who die
should be thrust quickly into a
dcepfreee because science with
in a reasonable period of lime
will know how to reanimate us.
I d like to know more alxiut
lite salamander. I hope Comrade
Khrushchev deckles that it will
not endanger Soviet security to
give us mm lads. It would he
iiomc if in a country which has
contributed so much to the ait o(
death, the secret of hie may be
buried.
mm.
Africans'"
By GLADSTONE WILLIAMS
(In The Sacramento Bee)
It is becoming more and more
apparent that the colonial powers
made a great mistake whn. un
der the pressure of postwar
events, they turned their colonics
back to the native people and '
gave them freedom to organize
their own governments and op
erate as independent nations.
That applies in particular to
the great number of African coun
tries, large and small, which
have come into being since World
War II. At the latest count there
arc 27 of these and the number
is expected to go to 35 in anoth
er few years.
Of the 27 autonomous tropical
African countries which have ben
admitted to Uie United Nations
sice liljti we have the word of
competent sources that at lca.-t
20 are already in trouble financial
ly. And considering the rate at
which new members are boi.ig
added to the world peace organ
ization, the same sources estima'e
the number of financially dis
tressed among them will be new
er 30 than 20 in five years.
The sad fact is these African
countries are no more competent
to lake over the responsibilities of
government than the Eskimo.;
would be if we gave Alaska back
to them. Events are proving tha
rapidly.
Take for example t! Congo,
one of Uie trouble sxLs in Afri
ca. The Belgians had held it as
a colony for years until the
wave of post-war liberation of
colonial oplcs forced them to
give it back to the natives.
Under Belgian rule the Congo
was doing very well. The coun
try's resources were being de
veloped in an orderly way, with
jobs and a degree of prosperity
taking care of the needs o( the
people. But once the colonial rul
Field of Song
L
ACROSS
1 "My
Kehtui-ky
Home"
4 Sinajnc Perrv
8 "Smith of the
Porder" coin
12 Heart
1.1 Wine vessels
14 Footless tnimal
15 Biml
Id Author
18 Wild donkeys
'-0 Arrow poisons
IM Cow s sound
'2'i Sen bird
24 Soor (or one
lit. Notion
27 Cat's sound
.10 Rubs out
a'J Recess
:i4 Hindu queens
o5 Lower
.is Conmnction
.17 Deep grooves
.in Aulo accessory
40 Rmr
41 Soak (tax
42 Musical
45 Indonesian
Rroups
49 Puis up with
M 1'nrooked
52 Feminine
appellation
53 Low sand hill
54(iindo s high
note
55. Flesh food
fifi Greek war god
57 Low haunt
DOWN
1 Kifhl
iconib. form)
2 Meal cut
i "Meet Me
Tnnichl in
4 Clem carved
tn relief
8 Persian poet
ft Assembled
7 Chemical suffix
8 PainMeleer
I 12 13 I U 15 ItS 17 I 3 19 110 111
il il
r5 is rr
121 r-pr2j 1 1 '
33 31 " H 33
n is
35 D35
4 50 ""51
3 si U
53 55 13
St .il r- (11! I . ' : t t .:?J4ir:Xiu - st-:i "cvsr
7-,
Botch Freedom Move
ers left, the country became a
shambles, with so little law and
order that it became necessary
for the United Nations to send a
large force in to police things.
Here is what a recognized au
thority on the subject said in a
recent interview published by the
U.S. News & World Report of
Washington, D.C. Dr. George H.
T. Kimble, who holds the chair of
professor of geography at India
na University, was asked h i s
opinion about conditions in the
Congo, based upon seven years of
research and many trips to Afri
ca. "You've got chaos and you are
going to have it for 30 or 40 years,
unless the Belgians go back and
finish the job they began," he
said.
"What's more ridiculous than
having 20.000 UN people in the
Congo, who aren't proving any
thing except that Uncle Sam has
got a bottomless purse? I gath
er he's putting in $130 million
ol the $300 million that has been
spent in the Congo operation al
ready. And what have we got for
it? Not a thing not even the con
fidence of the Congolese."
Dr. Kimble said it is unreason
able to expect stability in a coun
try "that is so far ill prepared
for the responsibilities of self gov
ernment, and so beset by tem
pers and tyrants."
He found the same Uiing gen
erally true of most of the other
tropical African countries. Of the
lot he was able to rate only four
or live as "viable states" capa
ble of maintaining themselves
with some semblance of success.
The inference is the others are
bound eventually to become wards
of the United Nations or surren
der their independence again to
colonial powers.
Asked about the concept, which
some of our government oflicials
Answer to Previous Puzzle
Kencins weapon 29 Have existed
riainsn i Meiroer
Probabilities
' Crand
i Tailor's
implement
1 Measures of
p.iper
I Whevs n( milk
i Algerian
seaport
: t'pshol
Checked rsdto
signals
I lujs
.11 Supplv food
.18 Staler
40 Picnic for
instance
41 Flowers
42 Stalk
43 Nat "King
44 Spanish pot
4fi Mr. Kelly
47 Story
4 " Sons"
SOCttcllhiTna ntv
seem to hold, that Africa will he
another great part of the world,
Dr. Kimble replied:
"Yes, 'wave of the future' and
all that. I confess I don't share
this confidence. I wish I could.
Now, if you are thinking of a fu
ture nearer 500 than five years
ahead, okey. It took Euroe about
500 years to shape up a civiliza
tion that you could be proud of
and I see few signs of any speed
ing up in the spritual processes
(in Africa' that bring civiliza
tions into being."
That from a respected student
of African affairs is a pretty se
vere indictment of the program
we have adopted, in collabora
tion with the United Nations, of
trying to put the young African
countries on their feet. It prob
ably means we will be supporting
them from here out at a cost
of untold millions.
Other
Editors Say . . .
PARENTS FLUNK
The Portland Oregonian)
Parents ask themselves how
youngsters could possibly commit
some of the crimes of vandalism
and authority-baiting charged to
them. Well, here is a Portland
story that may hold a part, at
least, of the answer.
On the night of last Nov. 30,
more than a score of youngsters,
during tlie course of an all-night
party, wrecked the interior of a
penthouse apartment in Uie Trav
elers' Motel in North Portland.
Owner of the property, John Goss,
wrote a restrained letter to the
parents of those identified as at
tending (ranging in age from 17
to 21'. He said that their child
had been named as a partici
pant and asked that the parents
inquire of him (or her) whether
the information was correct. If
the answer was yes, he united
the parents to an open house in
the battered apartment to see
for themselves tlie extent of the
damage.
Mr. Goss sent 20 such letters to
patents of 21 youngsters: and the
astounding fact is that lie had
responses from only three sets of
parents. The assumption must be
that the other 17 just did not care
what their sons tor daughters'
had done. or. if they cared, they
wanted no responsibility for it.
Two youths. 19 and 21, were
convicted on larceny charges
growing out oh the party and
were ordered to jail for 20 days.
A third participant, a 17-ycar-old
juvenile, joined the Army. Thus
far. we have no word that any
of the others were disciplined
even at home. Particularly at
home, one should say. For the
most shocking thing uncovered
by this shameful incident is not
the senseless damage done to
the apartment or the larceny for
which two boys were convicted:
it is the evidence nr a lack of con
cern and responsibility on the part
of such a large group of par
ents. Is there any doubt about
where some of tlie kids learn their
contempt for authority and for
the rights of others?
QUESTIONS
AND
ANSWERS
Q What is meant hy the rltht
of assembly?
A The right of croups of peo
ple to come together peaceably
lor discussion and to petition the
government.
By PETER EDSON
Washington Corrcspondeat
Newspaper Enterprise Assn.
WASHINGTON NEA, - The
83th Congress is now nearly two
months old. But in the words of
House majority leader Carl Al
bert of Oklahoma, "It hasn't jelled
yet."
Every session of Congress is dif
ferent, he explains. You have to
wait till it gets orgar:;ct1
you can get tlie feel of it and
make any predictions or even
guesses on what it might do.
Some of the elements shaping
up the record which this Congress
will eventually make are out in
the open, however, and are worth
keeping in mind. For one tiling,
Ihe President has sent about a
dozen messages to Congress and
there are more to come.
Most important of the lot is
the tax message. It is at the top
of the White House "must" list
for action this session. And it
is the one thing that can keep the
Congress on the job (or a long
session, which this one probably
will be.
There seems to be little enthusi
asm in Congress or out for tax re
form. Without tax reform there
will have to be either a reduced
tax cut or considerable reduction
of government spending.
There is no indication yet how
economy-minded this Congress is
going to be. There is some reali
zation that a tax cut smaller
than the one recommended by
the President cannot accomplish
his objective of stimulating em
ployment, reducing unemploy
ment. With so many controversial is
sues in tlie President's tax plan
to fight over, it is doubtful if a
tax bill can be passed before
Labor Day. Other legislation, in
eluding an increase in the nation
al debt limit, will be whatever
can be passed between or after
the tax bill battles.
Nobobdy seems to know just
hnw badly the President wants
his vast programs for medical
care of the aged, general and
mental health measures, every
thing in the omnibus aid to edu
cation message, tile youth pro
grams, the farm programs.
The mental retardation and
National Service Corps proposals
are the only really new apples
in the barrel. All the others have
been taken from the freezer to
which they were consigned after
By SYDNEY J. HARRIS
"I had the jitters the other
day," said a friend, "and then I
thought to myself w hat a wonder
ful word 'jitters' is, and I won
dered how it got in the lan
guage." Nobody really knows the ori
gins of some Of tlie most vividly
descriptive words in English:
they have no ancestry, and even
no parentage: they simply ap
pear one morning, fill a real need,
and persist in the body of stan
dard language.
Ins' as the more dubious kind
of genealogist will make up a
"family tree" for the newly rich,
so will some philologists make up
a phony ancestry for words of un
known origin. Indeed, the word
"phony" is a prime example.
Nobody knows where it came
from, or how it got into tlie lan
guage. Eric Partridge, the Brit
ish etymologist, traces it back
to Irish slang, and who is to con
tradict him? But the truth is
that nobody knows; it has been
said to originate in "funny busi
ness," in "telephone." and in the
name of a Mr. Forney, who sold
imitation jewelry. At any rate,
"phony" has by now totally sup
planted the old English "bogus."
It will surpri.-e many that tlie
word "quiz" is less than a cen
tury old. and is an utterly fab
ricated word. A showman in Dub
lin once bet an editor that he
could have the whole city talk
ing about a new word overnight.
He sent his men out to write
"quiz" on walls and fences all
over tlie city and tlie next day
everyone was asking "What is
qum?" And thus the word has
come to mean a question of that
sort.
In his book, "You English
Words." John Miwe points out
that the word "slum" presents a
complete mystery, appearing out
o( nowhere in the l!th Century.
Dickens used it in the current
scn.-e in 1851. but nobody knows
where it came from, or why it
tik hold so firmly.
In our own time, Gcictt Bur
gess, tiie author (best known (or
his quatrain "The Purple Cow"1,
has invented two words that have
Congress ignored them last ses
sion. If the President is merely pol
ishing them off again to make
the record of his requests look
good, that's one thing. U he real
ly wants them and will make a
fight for them, that's something
else. Even so, there are many
grave doubts that measures like
the medicare plan under Social
Security, or the aid for only pjb-
can be passed uus year.
The White House so far has
shown no enthusiasm for new
labor legislation. Public clamor
for action has subsided a little,
following settlement of the mari
time strike. But a new wave of
railroad strikes or shutdowns in
the steel or rubber industries
w here contracts run out t h is
spring and summer could kindle
congressional concern and initia
tive in this field.
Congress has a bear by t h e
tail in the $500 million supplemen
tal appropriation President Ken
nedy has requested to complete
the $900 million Accelerated Pub
lic Works program this year. It
was intended to be a one-shot
emergency measure to relieve un
employment in 1,200 depressed
areas.
Some 2.900 local projects were
approved in 900 areas, but there
is a backlog of applications for
another billion dollars' worth of
projects for which no funds are
available.
Area Redevelopment Adminis
tration, in charge of the program,
has had to stop processing appli
cations from 960 areas to concen
trate available funds in the 240
areas hardest hit.
This has built up a tremendous
pressure in Congress from local
communities to get more projects
approved. It would be no surprise
if Congress extends this program
on its own.
In general, this Congress is
sized up as being a little more
liberal than the last session. But
the division is still so close that
many cliff-hanging votes are ex
pected on the more controversial
issues.
Liberals from both parties in
Senate and House are clamoring
for some action to modernize con
gressional procedures to speed
legislative action and shorten Uie
session. No such action is expect
ed this year, however. Unless
some of the all-powerful chair
men of existing committees are
recruited to this cause, no prog
ress is expected al all.
STRICTLY
PERSONAL
found their way into permanent
English "blurb" and "bro
mide." It is extremely rare, how
ever, that the coinage of a word
can be credited to any individual.
Shakespeare changed words, but
didn't invent them.
Lewis Carroll, of course. gav
us "chortle;" Thomas Huxley
made up "agnostic;" Alexander
Pope coined "bathos;" and there
are only a handful of such others
that we can be sure will stay
in the language. My own nomina
tion for the most imperishable
word-coinage of tlie 20th Century
is Stephen Potter's "gamesman
ship," which has in less than a
dozen years fathered a whole fam
ily of "manship" words.
Almanac
By United Press International
Today is Tuesday. March 5. tha
64th day of istu with 301 to fol
low. The moon is approaching its
full phase.
The morning stars are Venus
and Mars.
The evening star is Mars.
On this day in history:
In 1770. the Boston Massacre
occurred as British troops fired
on civilians.
In 1933, election returns in Ger
many gave the Nazis and their
nationalist allies 52 per cent of
the seats in the Reichstag.
In 1953. Soviet Premier Josef
Stalin of Russia died at his apart
ment in the Kremlin. The Com
munist government said the 73-year-old
dictator had been strick
en with a cerebral hemorrhage.
In I9fi2, Premier Khrushchev
warned the Soviet Communist par
ty's central committee that the
seven-year plan was in serious
danger as a result of agriculture
management. t
A thought for the day Josef
Stalin said: "In the U.S. S R.. work
is the duty of every able-bodied
citizen, according to tlie principle
nl he who does not work, neither
shall he cat."