Banner Graphic, Volume 5, Number 300, Greencastle, Putnam County, 20 February 1975 — Page 4

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THE RUTNAM COUNTY BANNERGRAPHIC, FEBRUARY 20/ 21/1973

(c) 1975 New York Times News Service Washington-Any day now, a special representative of the President of the United States will sign a “covenant” that will ultimately make 14,000 native residents of the Marianas Islands-Saipan, Tinian, Rota, Pagan and the rest-citizens of the United States. The little island empire will affiliate with the U.S. as a commonwealth, like Puerto Rico,, and as night follows day, we will soon be hearing angry cries for independence as well as demands for statehood. What are we getting into, and why? Do we really need these 14,000 new citizens, many of whom would soon qualify for

)* panncr-#raj)l)tc OPINION PAGE

Letters to the editor Wants I. U. ceremony

To the editor: Being a Hoosier hysterical fan, I think that we should start planning now for some kind of recognition ceremony for the Indiana University basketball team. Certainly some kind of recognition could be paid to these boys to show them our support of their team. Possibly we could get this recognition ready before they leave for tournament play.

Letters are welcome

The opinion page of The BannerGraphic is open to anyone in the community who wishes to express an opinion on a subject of public interest. We welcome each opinions We welcome such opinions in our letters to the editor column. However, we request that certain guidelines be followed. Please write clearly and limit letters to

Solomon says Favoring delay in reassessment

Bills in the current session of the General Assembly would postpone the 1976 reassessment, and their supporters argue that if a postponement is not made property tax bills will skyrocket. Albert Solomon, Putnam County Assessor, is among those favoring a delay in the reassessment. In his view, taxes on property would zoom by 40 to 60 percent if the reevaluation of property, starting in 1976 takes place as the law now specifies. Under Indiana law, Solomon said the value of real property and land is determined by replacement cost, less certain amounts for depreciation. Replacement costs take into account the price of building materials and labor, which have risen markedly. Solomon said politics is not the main point as far as he is concerned, “the primary purpose of the delay,” he said, “is to give the economy a chance to get back to a normal pricing structure and to update plats and soil surveys to run a successful reassessment.” The last reassessment was done in 1969. In Putnam County cost was $84,000. Solomon estimated the new one,

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welfare payments? Isn’t the ownership of nearby Guam good enough for our aviation needs without spreading American territory all over the Far Eastern Pacific? In 1824, Andrew Jackson described the U.S. as “a country manifestly called by the almighty to a destiny which Greece and Rome, in the days of their pride, might have envied.” This was turned into the slogan, “manifest destiny” by diplomat John O’Sullivan, to rally support for the annexation of Texas in the 1840’s, and was revived in 1898 by William McKinley for his takeover of the Hawaiian Islands. But “manifest destiny” doesn’t have the

We could send them a letter of support from the county signed by all the county officials. This could be one way of doing it. There are other ways, hopefully we could come up with something. Although I know others may not share my enthusiasm for the project, some kind of community effort could be made, I think. D.A. Greencastle

one subject. Letters limited to 300 words have the best chance of appearing in our column. Writers must include full name and address, although their letters may be published with initials if so requested. Although we reserve the right to edit letters, we will try to limit editing as much as possible.

with as many as 4,000 more parcels in the county could be as much as $140,000 or more. The large metropolitan areas want the higher valuations brought on by reassessment to bring in additional revenue. “If you do not want reassessment next year,” added Solomon, “You should let John Thomas or Joe Harrison know your feelings, and it should be now. Either SB-164 or HB-2045 would postpone the reassessment. “The power to tax is the power to destroy, and we’d be destroying a lot if we have to assess at today's prices,” he concluded.

60 years ago Miss Susie Talbott and Miss Lelia Talbott were in Indianapolis. For Sale: Rubber tired phaeton and single harness. Had only little use. Call Herald office. Henry O’Hair, president of Greencastle Garage Co., announced that he had hired Cyrus Hummel, an expert automobile repairman. 20 years ago Pat Bless of Greencastle and Marilyn Asher of Roachdale had pledged Sigma Kappa at Indiana University. Mr. and Mrs. Carl Borden of Fincastle had been in Crawfordsville. Allen D. Dennis, son of Mr. and Mrs. John Dennis, had been promoted to corporal while on duty in Germany. 10 years ago

William Satire Do we really need Bikini?

old zing any more, which is fortunate: Under the whatsis name doctrine, enunciated at Guam six years ago and still the basis of U.S. foreign policy, our commitments abroad are limited to the aid of those whom it is in our interest to help defend themselves. Why, then, are we turning territory 5,000 miles from the continental United States into U.S. soil? Most of our trusteeship of Micronesia-the Carolinas and the Marshals, with familiar names like Turk and Bikini-will ultimately be given “free association” with the U.S., a form of alliance that provides US military bases without locking us in forever. The first reason given for the first territorial aggrandizement of this nation since we purchased the Virgin Islands from Denmark is that it is necessary for our military security. Think of what we went through, in lives and naval vessels, to wrest control of Saipan from the Japanese in World War 11. Certainly, if our defense establishment wants to be ready for a future conventional war against Japan, it would make sense to secure our hold on Saipan; but in remembering Pearl Harbor, perhaps we are forgetting strategic concepts and weapons that have been developed since that time. The same argument holds for those who might like a resupply point for a land war with China. Another reason advanced by special Envoy F. Hayden Williams, head of the Asia Foundation who is avidly waiting to sign on behalf, of the U.S., is that-the people of this portion of our traces hip have freely chosen this political status. That’s nice; the people of the Marianas, who have become totally dependent on the U.S. defense establishment already, show good taste in their selection of a patron country. But under this theory, the people of Bangladesh would deserve to become part of America, if they freely so chose, and Adm. John McCain would probably then make a military case out of the need for a foothold on the Indian Subcontinent. Readers whose emotions are easily stirred by demogogic essayists are demanding to know “why wasn’t I told about this?” You were; this latest conquest was engineered with the full

William Buckley Will Conservative Party leader take a bow

Mrs. Thatcher There are a number of rather mean interpretations floating about Great Britain to account for the astonishing victory of Mrs. Thatcher, the most pointed of which is that the Tories have no prospects whatever of taking power so they may as well have a spell of tokenism under a woman leader, after which, when the next election contest looms, she can be dumped and replaced by someone serious. Another is that the Conservative Party has really become a vermiform appendix of British politics and, under the circumstances, it makes no particular difference who is the Opposition Leader, and Mrs. Thatcher is superbly qualified to serve as a Nobody. Mr. Malcolm Muggeridge, who is terrifyingly skilled in the art of disparagement, was asked on television a few days before Mrs. Thatcher’s victory to account for it. “Her victory is the direct result of a medium,” he said, remarking yet again the frequently remarked absence, in Edward Heath, of telegenic charm. “Does Mrs. Thatcher come through on television?” he was asked. “Well, he said with his dangerous, angelsmile, “she has a certain imbecile charm.” The English approach to politics is these days entirely hedonistic. Inasmuch as the country is headed toward the cliff, and

Turning back the clock

Dr. and Mrs. Forst Fuller had attended “Pirates of Penzance” at Clowes Hall. Mr. and Mrs. Richard Borer of San Jose, Calif, were parents of a son. Putnam County grandparents were Mr. and Mrs. Ed Adams. Mrs. Ronald Harkness had been dismissed from the Methodist Hospital following surgery. 5 years ago Mr. and Mrs. James Plummer were parents of a baby girl born on Valentine’s Day and received prizes from the Chamber of Commerce. The new arrival was named Laura Lee. Pfc. Michael W. Quinnette, son of Mr. and Mrs. Ray E. Quinnette, was stationed in DaNang, Vietnam. Mrs. Dorothy Toney had undergone surgery in Putnam County Hospital.

participation of our Imperial Congress Especially Sen. Scoop Jackson’s and Rep. Phil Burton. Ironically, this round-the-world thrust is under the supervision of our “interior” committees. The Congress will have to ratify the agreement soon to be signed, but what is a formality. Complaisant Congressmen will recall the precedent of Hawaii; and since we already have Guam, why not the rest of the islands in that group? At today’s, prices, weren’t Alaska and the Virgin Islands worth the pittance we paid for them? That misses the point. The destiny of a nation which is manifest to one generation

nobody has the combination of will and power to keep it from going over, everybody is enjoying the parade. The “Daily Telegraph,’’ whose policital reporters are a joy to read, gave an account of the debate in the House of Commons on the afternoon just before the vote that deposed Edward Heath. Everyone’s mind was on the forthcoming vote. “What was needed,” writer John O’Sullivan solemnly noted in his dispatch, “above all in this tense atmosphere was a good joke-and that was provided by Mr. Robert Adley (C., Christchurch and Lymington) and fate working in unison. “Mr. Adley had put down a question on the order paper. Would Mr, Wilson place in the Commons Library a copy of his speech on the current economic situation delivered on Monday 20th of January to the TUC Labour Party Liaison Committee? “ ‘No,’ replied Mr. Wilson. ‘I made no such speech.’ ‘Then that,’ responded Mr. Adley, neately avoiding a bad fall, ‘would account for its absence from the Library.’ Relieved by the opportunity to break the tension, MPs on all sides laughed uproariously.”

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is not so manifest to another. It is no mark of neo-isolationism to pause in our automatic pickup of more territory to ask if this really fits into our idea of what and where our nation should be. We ought to be considering the principle of the acquisition of any new territory, even these islands that make up less than half the land area of Rhode Island. Where we firmly plant the flag, we lose the option to decide what to defend; an attack on the island of Rota would be the equivalent of an attack on New York or Peoria; there could be no flexibility to our response. The Marianas are tempting. Great bases could be built there, with officers

Another reported, Mr Adrian Berry, during the blissfully short (one week) campaign involving Mr. Whitelaw and Mrs. Thatcher, led off his story two days before the election as follows: “Mrs. Margaret Thatcher appearred to increase her chances of election victory as Party leader yesterday when she received a standing ovation of one minute and ten seconds after speaking to some 700 people at the Young Conservatives National Conference at Eastbourne. “But note the standing ovation for Mrs. Thatcher-by young Conservatives. They like her because she is wonderfully straightforward and unapologetically conservative concerning things like inflation, labor union make-work and the tyrany of the Trade Union Congress.” “Mr. William Whitelaw, by contrast, seemed to lose ground by his failure to produce a speech. “Instead, restricting himself to questons and answers, he replied to dull questions in a somewhat dull mannermainly on the fairly dull subject of the future devolution of political power.”

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clubs pitched to catch. the gentle trade winds that used to blow the Spanish galleons from Acapulco to Manila. Highrise condominia could be built to attract the tired Japanese businessmen to a tourist paradise via the new AmericanIranian Airline (fly Shan Am). And there is history on the islands. From Tinian. AB-29 named the Enola Gay took off with a 14-foot explosive device to drop on Hiroshima, opening a new age of man. But let us pause a moment to ask: Where do we want the United States of American to end?

That is good straightforward stuff, and should be emulated by all American reporters. But note the standing ovation for Mrs, Thatcher-bv young Conservatives. They like her because she is wonderfully straightforward and, “mirabile dictu,” unapologetically conservative concerning things like inflation, labor union makework, the tyranny of the Trade Union Congress. Her background is impressive in a party that has tended, when looking for a leader, to thumb through lists of unemployed Etonians. She worked her way through school and became a research chemist. In her twenties, she became interested in the law-and took a law degree and practiced. That is the kind of upward mobility the Socialists are always talking about, and always . resenting because, after all, if you rise, almost by definition you rise with reference to others who do not. Mrs. Thatcher has communicated successfully at least to the Young Conservatives, and indeed to the majority of Conservative members in the House of Commons, that she wants others in England to have the same opportunities she has had: which means an opportunity for the Kingdom to rise up from the sticky coils of egalitarian socialism. It is my guess she bears watching. Put me down as a fan.

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