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About Herald and news. (Klamath Falls, Or.) 1942-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 15, 1963)
PAGK-A HI RALD AND NEWS, Klamilh Falli, Oregon Friday, November 15, 196J Goldwater diioucd (paqs?. Oregon voters need not think they are some kind of a fiscal Frankenstein because they turned down the recent oversized tax increase proposed by the legislature. This state was one of 22 that rejected one or more tax proposals during the year. In North Dakota, voters rejected five increased levies enacted by the legislature. Nevada voters turned down a one per cent Increase in the sales tax. Sales tax increases were also turned down by the voters in Connecticut, Iowa and Rhode Island. Newly proposed sales taxes were rejected in Idaho, Massachu setts, New Hampshire and New Jersey. An increase in the Income tax law was turned down in Iowa, Massachusetts and " New Mexico. In 22 states the voters, the lawmakers themselves or the governors turned down some 40 to 50 proposals to Increase tax yields. Altogether, the amount turned down iipresented about $945 million. However, the net result was still a los ing, battle. :; While voters were rejecting some $945 million in new tax proposals, other states were adopting new taxes totalling $1,036 million. , Some of the new types of taxes adopted included a one per cent tax on all highway and bridge contracts in Alabama; one per 1 cent gross receipts tax on subscription tele vision in California; a five per cent tax on 'sales, use and storage of sporting equipment in Florida. Keeping (New York Timtt) The 1953 United States military agree ment with Franco Spain has been extended for another five years. A few sweeteners were thrown In, or simultaneously an nounced, to make it seem that the United States was giving the Generalissimo some thing for permission to keep on using the air bases and naval base that cost this coun try more than $500,000,000 to build not to mention the economic aid that, accom panying the military expenditures, has also exceeded an additional half billion dollars during the past decade. Many Americans and Spaniards feel un comfortable about this continuing relation ship with the Franco dictatorship. But the Pentagon considers the bases, especially Rota near Cadiz, to be militarily valuable. This is a technical matter on which the Tru man, Eisenhower and Kennedy Administra tions have all agreed. Once the decision was made, the price had to be paid. Part of the cost was to assume a posture of friend ship despite the widespread political criti WILLIAM .. By WILLIAM S. WHITE "WASHINGTON What's the matter with Congress, and es pecially the Senate, and why isn't it "doing more?" There are several answers. Tlie session has been far ton long, the President having asked far too much, and H looks that the present Congress will still be sitting here struggling with old problems when the new Con gress is called to assemble next January. Members, thoretore, are tired and Irritable and un duly afraid of a bitter and sus tained attack on Congress, as an institution, that is not being met by Congress it-elf with courage or common sense. This strictly bipartisan assault cmiics from an odd collection. Tliere are political theorists w ho believe both the Senate and House are mere horse-and-bug-gy nuisances which should be retired to eome dusty national museum while the White House so long as they like its cur rent occupant runs all (lie show. Tliere are violently "pro Kennedy" men who think any thing Uie President proposes is unarguably good and thus that any Congressional resistance, or even delay in meeting his de mands, is unarguably "obstruc tive" and evil. Tliere are other well-intentioned people wio, through long brainwashing, have com to be lieve that Congressional perfor mance is to be measured like in dustrial prod iK-t ion or the sales rate of livorwurst at the super market. So many thingajimmiej off tlx assembly line this month; to many packets of sau fcKK.iiiiiil.i m.l Oregon Not Alone A tax levy at the rate of 8-100ths of one per cent of gross revenue of public utilities in Illinois; a five per cent severance tax in forest products in Hawaii; a five per cent of net income for banks privilege tax adopted in Kansas; a 10 cent per pound tax on colored oleomargarine in Minnesota. A privilege tax of four per cent of value of motor vehicles in Nevada; a 10 per cent excise tax on cigars and tobacco products at wholesale level in North Dakota; a one and one-half per cent gross receipts tax on soft-drink bottlers; a $10 per table tax on billiard tables in Texas, and a license fee on small loan companies also in Texas, and an individual income tax filing fee of $2 in Wisconsin. There seems to be no end to the rapa cious appetite of the spenders as they reach and reach for more areas to tax and tax. While 22 states rejected their efforts this year, it will take more than hat to call a halt to spendthrift government at the na tional level. Because, the amount saved in the 22 states (about $945 million) is slightly more than the Senate is trying right now to lpp off the president's foreign aid requests. The states, you sec, are only pikers when it comes to taxing. Uncle Sam is the giant spendthrift of them all. Until the time comes when something can be done directly by the people on this tax Frankenstein, the efforts of the stales to hold the line are something akin to spit ting against the wind. The Spanish cism in the United States not to say ab horrancC of the Franco regime. Thus, for ten years, the Franco Government has re ceived important economic and financial support from the United States. As an add ed bonus, the international standing of the Franco regime has been immeasurably en hanced by this American connection. The 1953 treaty terms provided for an automatic extension for five years from Sept. 20, 1963, but General Franco evident ly wanted more than a mere extension, be cause last January he asked for a reconsid eration of the agreement. In real terms he seems to have got nothing. There is to be a joint United States-Spanish consulative com mittee on defense that will meet in Madrid, but meetings have all a'long been held in Madrid without formality. In addition, the Export-Import Bank announced its willing ness to consider new financing in excess of $100,000,000, but Spain's economic situation and credit standing arc easily good enough now to get such credit in any case. The same old bitter pill that 1953 military treaty has been given a new sugar coating. S. WHITE Congress Needs Defense sage across the supermarket counter. In many minds the sole stan dard of Congressional achieve ment has come to be how many bills have been passed in what period. This extraordinary foolisluiess w holly overlooks the fact that negative inaction on unwise proposals is quite as Important as positive action on wise proposals and also hap pens to be tlie constitutional ob ligation of an independent con stitutional body called Congress. And, finally and most Import ant, there Is a highly articulate splinter group within Congress Itself which for two years has been making its own wild at tacks on the very constitutional body to which it asked to be elected. Those fellows in nearly every case are disgruntled legislative failures in a forum where their political abilities fall sluirl of tlieir ambitions. L'nnble to im press their colleagues, tliey look about for Hie reason. Invariably, they find that re;ison not with in themselves but within the "shortcomings" of Congress it self. It is "archaic. " Its rules needs vast, if somewhat ambig uous, "reforms." It is run by tome sinister "establishment." Tliey are like second-rate ball players wlio blame everything in sight tlie manager, the um pire, tlieir associates, tlie rules for Uieir embarrassing inabil ity to hit mora than .150. In sports, nobody is fooled by such fellows. Sour grapes, in ordin ary life, are sour grapes, ami few need a degree in advanced horticulture to know Uiem for Bases what they are. When, however, attacks upon the institution of Congress come from among presumably respon sible members themselves, they stir the interest of the outside citizen and. finally, his support. Quite understandably, he cannot believe Uiat men elected to Con gress would demean it without cause After all, tliis is no Fri day night ball game and beer and hoi -iog romp. Neverllielcss, Congress gener ally not only has failed to an swer tliese attacks from within. Worse, too many members w ho know better give shamefaced ami crawling countenance to them, lest they be branded as not "modern" enough. To cite a notable example, Sen. Joseph S. Clark of Pennsylvania has made a positive career of denouncing the Senate in which he sits and of complaining in private of tlie betler committee assign ment unaccountably given to others, without once being chal lenged on the center of his philosophy. Hut when a good man of Con gress uko Sen. Thomas Dodd of Connecticut blows up in momen tary frustration to crilicie not Congress but simply some lead er or leaders of it. tlie roof (alls in upon him, Wliat Congress needs is to pull up Its socks and defend itself as part of the con stitutional structure of Uiis coun try. It is often wrong and it has all the human sliortconiings of a human assembly. But It is sure ly not always wrong. And in dc Icnding its constitutional Inde pendence, it can never, neier be wrong. Sees By HARRY FERGUSON' WASHINGTON (UPI) - Sen. Barry Goldwater regards tlie federal government as a spend thrift giant who devotes too much Ume to poking hU big nose Into the private affairs of the taxpayers who support him. He wants the giant to flex his muscles a bit and slap down the Communists. "The farmer is told how much wheat he can grow," Goldwater says. "The wage earner is at the mercy of na tional union leaders whose great power is a direct consequence of federal labor legislation. The business man is hampered by a maze of government regula tions, and often by direct gov ernment competition ... in creasingly the federal govern ment sets tlie standards of edu cation, health and safety." It would require a small book to set down in detail Goldwa ter's entire political philosophy. A Visitor To The 1 iufffir When Heine asked his coach man, "What are ideas?", the coachman pondered a moment and answered: "Ideas? . . . Ideas are the things they put into your head." Even today, most people might answer as the coachman did, for our formal system of education seems to consist of things put into our heads names and dates and battles and multiplication tables and the three principal sources of raw material in the Malayan Peninsula. Of course, tliese are not ideas. Ideas arc w hat come out of the head. Nobody can put them there, although a good education can stimulate them, organize them, and give them a solid basis in reason. Education, if it means any Uiing, is a drawing out; it is not a pushing in. The human mind is not a sausage casing into which we can stuff knowl edge; and. usually, the harder we try to stuff, the more resist ance we encounter. This is why so much formal education is a waste of time and energy. A human being is a repository of ideas; the whole trick is to get those ideas out in the open, tu test them against reality, to expose tliem to other ideas, and thus to sharpen and toughen tliem. The greatest flaw in formal education, in my opinion, is that BERRY'S WORLD " t bicomt 'Grammar School Drofout', will oh mmrry mti" Government As Spendthrift Giant But here is a summary of how he stands on the big issues to day. FOREIGN POLICY Favors breaking diplomatic relations with Russia and all other Communist governments. Lukewarm toward me United Nations and would advocate withdrawing if Communist Chi na were admitted. A tight block, ade against Cuba, establish ment of a single Cuban govern ment in exile and the equipping of a Cuban exile army. Supplies and equipment to be supplied by air by the United States if the exile army attempted to overthrow Fidel Castro. Foreign aid is too "scatter gun" and should utilize a "rifle approach" aimed at specific areas where we could gain advantage over Die Russians. Approves of tech nical assistance to foreign na tions and the concept of the Peace Corps. More foreign aid money should be put into loans. Smoke-Filled Room STRICTLY PERSONAL By SYDNEY J. HARRIS it has little respect for ideas and too much for information. Children can get easily bored w ith information, when it seems to have no relevance; but they are excited and interested in ideas. I vividly remember how the subject of zoology was ruined for me in school by teachers who were concerned only with' classification and memorization of insects and such. No attempt was made to relate the subject to the other links in the great chain of life. Any real curiosity was considered almost an im pertinence. As a result, the bright students quickly lost in terest, and only the dutiful par rots scored high marks. Nor was tins merely a defect in the teachers. It was, rather, tlieir general attitude toward learning in my day; there is some evidence that it has im proved a little, but su'l not enough. The "dropout problem" is largely economic and social hut a part of it is also pedagog ical. in that dead teaching turns students away from the class room and toward more animat ed aspects of tlie human scene. Every child's mind is teeming w ith ideas. Too often these ideas are systematically throttled or strangled in the school system, which looks only for the "right answers" that are in Uie back of the book. What is in the back of the head is rarely encouraged to move to the front. less into grants. Against the nu clear test ban treaty. CIVIL RIGHTS Goldwater personally is an in tegrations. The Goldwater De partment Store in Phoenix em ploys about 25 Negroes and as adjutant general of the Air Na tional Guard he was instrumen tal in desegregating the organ ization. Opposes the civil rights bill now before Congress and believes there are already enough laws on the books if the executive branch of the gov ernment would only enforce tliem. Favors leaving, as much as possible, all civil rights mat ters to the individual states within tlie framework of the Supreme Court decision on schools, and would not go any further, than "moral persua sion." TAXES Opposed in theory to the graduated income tax but, re Letters To The Editor Praise For Recent Publisher We want to take our hats off in a salute to Bill Sweetland, departing publisher of your newspaper. The undersigned arc but a few of his many admir ers, all of whom regret to see him go from our wonderful high country and from Oregon be cause he has served well this community and this state. Sometimes people gloss over public service by private citi zens and make the terrible er ror of thinking that only folks on the public payroll serve the community, stale and nation. Sometimes we fail to appreci ate service such as Bill has ren dered because wo are individu ally so busy raising a family, pursuing our hobbies and earn ing a living. Sometimes we think a newspaper is just' a news gathering and news-dispensing medium, supported by ad vertising. A newspaper can be just a business but Bill's news paper has been more than that. His kind of publisher sets the community to looking at itself. He examines our relations to the state, the nation and the world. Bill's editorials stimulat ed readers to look, to think, to reappraise and to act. They were incisive editorials which could not always win a popular ity contest; yet if you read them with real understanding, you recognized that they were kindly too. Critical? Yes! con structively critical! We citizens of Klamath Falls are not losing a stay-at-his-desk editor and publisher. Ever since he came in May, 1960. Bill has been all around town. Soon he will be all around in Chester. Pa. That is his way. It is a good way for a man who is willing to become a servant of the community. A good servant can certainly become well-informed about those whom he serves. A publisher must be well-informed to be a good pub Too By MARQUIS CHILDS WASHINGTON How much nuclear killer capacity is enough? Wi shaping the new de fense budget Uiis is a deeply puzzling question Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara will in the end have to put up to President Kennedy. A big industrial development with payrolls in a half-dozen states depends on conUnuing to produce fissionable material for nuclear weapons. Yet, as it is often put, we've got the stuff running out of our ears. Secretary McNamara would like to cut back production. The Atomic Energy Commission is agreeable to some cutbacks. But the decision is complicated by a proposal bound to generate pres sure as the results of a cut are seen in a loss of jobs, the mothballing of plants and Uie dispersion of highly skilled tech nical staffs. The proposal originating with Sen. Clinton Anderson iD.. N. Mcx.. chairman of the Joint Congressional Atomic Commit tee, is to stockpile plutonium. Tlie raw material, uranium, would be mined, processed at groat cost and put back in the earth On the face o( it. with a pres ent capacity to destroy every target area in the Soviet Union several times over as the Presi dent has stated at least twice, this would seem to be a lunatic form of makework. But the as tute Anderson makes a case for the stockpile. It is true, he says, that there is a large oversupply. In the United States aresenal are many old-fashioned nuclear bombs so alistically speaking, realizes it cannot be abolished. Opposes any tax reduction without a substantial cut in federal expen ditures. Believes the proposed top corporation tax of 48 per cent is too high and tlie top of 70 per cent on individual in comes is confiscatory. Believes present tax laws are too com plicated and favors a complete new tax code. Strongly favors reduction in federal expendi tures and deplores Uend toward giving more power to federal government which he says has been going on for 30 years. Be lieves the agricultural program would be one of the best places to cut federal expenditures. WELFARE Does not favor repealing any of the existing welfare pro grams, but would bar the in troduction of any new ones. Would try to persuade the states that they should gradual lisher. Bill has seen Klamath Falls in many different ways, including the view points of sev enteen worthwhile organizations which recently received his let ters of resignation. They will all miss him. Few men in Klamath Falls have accepted so many speak ing engagements in so few months. Many times Bill spoke on behalf of our new hospital. He was well-informed about it because he has served on the hospital committee of the Klam ath County Chamber of Com merce and he was also a mem ber of the board of directors of the Presbyterian Intercommuni ty Hospital. Bill was a director of Uie chamber of commerce, of United Fund and of Community Concert. He was a founder of the Klamath Symphony and of the Herald & News parade to put Christ back into Christmas. Byjl initiated the Christmas par ty at the Klamath Nursing Home. Bill is an active Rotar ian. Bill is in many things; he is many persons: a founder, a mover, a hard worker, a ser vant of the public whom he loves. We're gonna miss Bill! Recognition of his talents came early in his residence here in Oregon and he was promptly appointed to the state's Constitutional Revision Committee. Bill was also ap pointed to serve on a regional Recreational Advisory Board of the United States Forest Serv ice. Both of these important groups learned a Uiing or two from our Bill because more than most members Bill decs his homework. He attends the meetings. He makes the field trips like the one to Waldo Lake, high in the Cascades (and beautiful and valuable to us all). How many who have lived in Oregon much longer than since 1960 have ever been to Waldo Lake how many, among numbers who profess to be out- WASHINGTON CALLING . Much Uranium big that they would not be dropped under any circumstanc es. If these were remade and the fissionable material put into up-to-date weapons we would have at least a 10-year supply. But the big surplus is in "yellow cake" uranium oxide being process from uranium lby mills such as those of the Kerr McGce Company under long term contracts. What Anderson contemplates is a cutback in the mills, leaving a few large, efficient plants like that of Kerr McGce to go on turning out "yellow cake." This, together with the huge current surplus, would be processed into pluton ium that keeps indefinitely. "We might," as one expert put it, "want to take a look at it after a thousand years." Plutonium in the stockpile could be made up very quickly into bombs and warheads, An derson points out. It would also le available for peacetime uses in power reactors if and when nuclear power production comes to be more nearly competitive with other power sources. That would mean maintaining Oak Ridge in Tennessee. Savan nah River in South Carolina and Hanford in the state of Washing ton in operation in part if not in entirety. Hanford has a pay roll of 8.000 and while this is small as compared to Boeing it is important to Washington. Tlie scale of the overkill in America's nuclear arsenal pro duces highly technical and vio lently emotional arguments. In his courageous speech last Aug ust calling for substantial cuts in arms spending Sen. George ly take over the welfare pro gram because they can do it cheaper. Social Security should be made "flexible and volun tary." A man who thought he could provide better retirement for himself should not be forced to pay Social Security taxes. LABOR Union leaders have too much power derived from federal leg islation. Would hot propose a national "right to work" law but has an amendment to the Taft-Hartley law giving the states the riglit to decide wheth er there should be an open shop. In the absence of state legislation calling for a union shop, there would be an open shop. POLITICS Would support a liberal Re publican for president in 1964 and would expect liberal Repub licans to support him if nominated. doorsmen? Ask about Bill's hob bies? Fishing? Hunting? Per haps he hasn't had time; pos sibly he has been too busy in serving all of us, to serve him self through personal recreation. Bill Sweetland is a family man whose six children are: Bill Jr., 19; Chuck, 17; Ruth, 12; Brian, 11; Mary Beth, 9; Judy, 4. Bill attends church and supports his church generously, in Keeping with his basic prin ciples. Family, church, commu nity, slate, country tliese are the important concerns to this serious, devoted hard - driving man. Don't forget that he also displays a sense of humor which many of us have seen in mo ments of serious debate with him. Recall some of his many delightful columns. "Nothing Special." Therein we found a homey approach to everyday affairs. There he was calling attention to sometimes over looked values in things and people around us; reminding us what a privilege it is to live among similar and dissimilar folks in this community which is basically peaceful, favored, thriving and sometimes humor ous as well. Goodbye to you, Bill Sweet land! We wish you well. We declare that you have earned our good wishes. Signed: James D. Monteith G. Nicholson. M.D. James F. Stilwell Rev. Robert C. Groves Vcrn Owens Harry Boivin Carrol Howe Fletcher F. Conn, M.D. Noel Flynn Mike Balsiger Donald Bauer, M.D. George T. Callison Bob Gotshatl Norman Duffy Chuck Bailey Robert E. Veatch McGovern (D., S.D.) was con tent to use the phrase "several I limes over." But along w ith oth- W cr members of Congress he has heard the presentation of Profes sor Seymour Melman of Colum bia University who contends that overkill is 1.200 times what is necessary to destroy all Com munist target areas. The Pentagon says that such far-out figures arc based on the impossible assumption that ev ery single nuclear weapon would be used. They ignore the de struction of a part of the arse nal in a Soviet first strike. And thev also overlook the fact of a wide disparity of weapons, in cluding tactical battlefield wea pons, not all of which would be zeroed in on the major target. But certain Pentagon officials are deeply concerned with a stockpile so overflowing that storage has become a major problem. An indication of this was tlie deliberate leak last summer that defense would like to cut bac k its weapons require ments with the Atomic Energy Commission by a billion dollars. During the fiercely fought controversy over the nomina tion of former AEC Chairman Lewis Strauss to be Secretary of Commerce charges were put in the record showing the in terlocking relationship of power ful financial interests, including Kuhn Loeb and Uie Rockefellers, in uranium. The late Sen. Rob ert Ketr ID., Okla.i, through Kerr-McGee, was a major fig ure in this gold rush. It was part of tlie complex that brought abundance with the inevitable growth of deeply vested interests.
