The Foothills View
17 December, 1981
SHOE
by Jeff MacNelly
The Foothills View is a community newspaper published
each Thursday by the Gardner-Webb College Press, Inc.
Dave Robertson Managing Editor
Commentary
The editorial page of The Foothills View
Letters To The Editor
Dear Editor,
There has been enough lead bad talk about our town and it’s time someone spoke a
few kind words about the city in which we live.
1 am very proud to say I have lived in Boiling Springs all 25 years of my life and most
everyone has always been will ing to show kindness to his friends, neighbors and
visitors. 1 have been reading letters in the Foothills View about our town officials, our
policemen and the re-zoning of property and often wonder, would you take their jobs,
put up with all the griping and grumbling, the headaches and the sleepless nights these
people do for a salary much less than minimum wage? The councilmen of this town
should be admired, not degraded because they can't please everyone. These men hold
down regular jobs but they are willing to do their best at making our town a better place
to live.
As for the police department, I hear people make statements such as I could do better
than that or, well, that officer gave some of my family or friends a speeding ticket and
I’m going to make it tough on him. If you, the people of Boiling Springs could only
realize the work load our two officers have. They can’t be everywhere at one time. When
we had a five man force the officers were told to stay out of the office when on duty
except when they were told to "clean up’’ the police station^ These men put their life on
the line for each and everyone of us who live in this city each time they pin their badge
on their chest. I guess I care a lot more than most of you do because I know at any time I
could lose my best friend and my brother, yes I am speaking of the officers that try their
boat. • • u‘
Another thing that bothers us Is that some of you don't want anything else built m this
town, especially a factory whjch could employ someone who has been laid off from their
jobs, or more trailers or apartments for people to live, I am speaking personally about
the re-zoning of land for a mobile home, I hei'e recently married and someday hope to
have a family and hopefully be able to live in,Boiling Springs. Since we aren’t rich and
can’t afford to build a fine home, or pay high apartment rent, we settled for a mobile
home which could only be placed on my family’s property after if was re-zoned which
some of you had rather not have done since it would take away the land value. It seems
that the land wouldn’t be of much value any way if you couldn’t live on it or farm it.
I realize that this letter will probably make a lot of you upset but as I said at the
beginning, it’s time to say a few kind words about this town and show a little respect for
those who love to call Boiling Springs home,
Donnis Greene
Dear Editor,
I failed to see the connection of the letter that Mr. David Hamrick wrote and the poem
sent in bv Officer Clary. I agree it is tragic when a police officer is killed, but it is also
tragic when a whole police dept, is killed too, The mayor and town will never get trained
men or women to take a police job here if they know the "revolving door policy” set up
by the major. Ask any of the six officers who went in and out that door in just four
years. And that is tragic too, because our tax dollars will be spent for that type of
protection.
W.T. Ingram
Washington Report
A Column By Rep. James Broyhill
Consumers suffered a potentially costly defeat last week
In the Congress w!;en a package of waivers was approved
lor the Alaskan natural gas pipeline project. I say
potentially costly because ratepayers across the country
can be billed for a project which might never be completed.
Even If the project Is finished, the gas might be so ex
pensive tha' no one will buy it.
First, It Is necessary to give you some background.
About 15 years ago the largest single finding of oil and
natural gas on the North American continent was dis
covered at Prudhoe Bay on Alaska’s North Slope. President
Carter, with the approval of the Congress, designated
the then-called "Alcan Highway" proposal as the one
which would be the best of the three under consideration.
President Carter's report to the Congress made clear
that his choice was determined by his view of the en
vironmental and economic factors of each of the three.
Ironically, the one chosen was the only of the three
to claim that It could be privately financed without “pre-
bllllng" gas ratepayers. The chairman of the sponsoring
group of oil companies told the Congress that the consumer
would not have to bear the hypothetical burden of the
non-completion of the project. With those assurances.
The Congress gave its approval to President Carter’s
decision.
Between 1977 and June, 1981, the sponsors had the
authority to build the 4800-mlle pipeline which will
transport natural gas through Alaska and Canada to nearly
every state In the union. However, contrary to their
testimony, the sponsors have been unable to arrange
private financing. That is why they wrote to President
Reagan to seek the waiver package. The law we passed
In 1976 does not permit the waiver proposal to be amended
by the Congress. The administration established an in
formal Congressional working grciptoadvlsethe President
on the contents of the waiver package. As the senior
Republican member of the Energy and Commerce Comm
ittee, I served as a member of the group.
My view, which did not prevail, was that the sponsors
and the state of Alaska should be willing to take more
of the financial risk rather than have it hit the consummers
in the pocketbook. The working committee divided into
two camps. The House members sought further concess
ions from the sponsors, while the Senate members felt
the sponsors had gone as far as they could and the future
of the project would be in doubt If additional changes
were made.
1 found two basic problems with the project. First,
the assets of the sponsors are insufficient to make them
creditworthy for such an enormous amount of debt. This
could mean that the consumers are struck with the bill
for a pipeline which might never be completed.
This cost is estimated to be roughly $10 billion and
will be the most expensive private construction project
ever conceived.
Second, the price of the Alaskan gas, once delivered
to market, may be so high in relation to other gas that
no consumer would be willingnto purchase it. The
initial rates could be as much as five t$nes as high as
the current rates by the time the projeit is supposed
to be completed in 1987.
There are also those who believe this waiver package
could be the first step in a very expensive bailout by
the federal government. If natural gas is deregulated,
then the sponsors could come back to the Congress and
say that further financial investments neected to complete
the pipeline cannot be found. Then the pressure would
be applied to the Congress to make massive federal
appropriations in order to complete the aoject. While
1 hope this does not happen, the possiaility certainly
exists.
William F. Buckley, Jr.’s
“ON THE
RICH
The failure at this end to have remarked
rapturously on the virtues of our secretary
of the Navy is to be taken as evidence not
of his shortcomiogs, but of mine. He has
transfused much energy and intelligence
in the enterprise of rebuilding our fleet,
which suffered as much devastation at the
hands of President Carter, whose name
will live in infamy, as at Pearl Harbor. But
his prodigies as a shipbuilder are not the
subject of this column, which addresses
his stirring exchange with Bishop Thomas
J. Drury of Corpus ChrlstI, Texas.
Here is what happened. The elders of
Corpus Christ! put pressure on the Navy
Department to name a vessel after the
city, an altogether conventional request,
particularly coming from a city by the sea.
The Navy acknowledged the request by
naming a newly commissioned nuclear
submarine the “Corpus Christi.’’ The city
passed a formal resolution of gratitude and
that would have been that -- except that
Bishop Thomas J. Drury wrote to
Secretary John Lehman to protest, on the
grounds that it was not fitting to name a
warship “Corpus Christi.’’
One assumes that Bishop Drury is an
elderly bishop, and therefore recalls, from
the days when Latin was the universal
liturgical instrument of the church, what
exactly Corpus Christi means, which is
“body of Christ.’’ Twenty years after
Hiroshima, a group of modernists within
the Catholic Church ganged up against the
use of Latin, so' that the sons of Corpus
Christi are probably unaware what it
actually is that their city is named after.
On the other hand, that knowledge is
presumably not denied to the Russians,
whose KGB can penetrate most secrets,
regardless of how zealously the modernists
in the Vatican protect them.
So Secretary Lehman answered the
bishop, and began by reminding him that
naming a naval vessel “Corpus Christi’’
was not a historical preceduent, since we
deployed vessels so named during World
War II and Vietnam. The Brazilian navy
has a vessel called the Espiritu Santo -
and so on.
But then Mr. Lehnjan struck. He quoted
from St. Augustine (“To maintain peace
within the natural order of men, rulers
require the power and decision to declare
war’’) and St. Paul (“Not without cause
does he carry a sword, for he is God’s
minister’’.
“My concern is as a.Catholic with the
theme that seems to underlie this issue:
that naval ships and even military service
are somehow profane and less worthy of
association with the Sacred Name, than,
for instance, the city itself. I am_sure that
the real significance of the name of our
submarine, suggestive of unity and peace
among men, will be reflected in the
profession of her commander and crew.
They recognize that their essential mission
is to keep the peace. A noble, ethical and
virtuous mission...fully - recognized in
traditional church teaching.’’
The bishop probably wishes he had been
hit by the submarine, rather than its
commander. Let us pray for him, as we do
for peace.
The View invites all people of BoOing Springs to express their opinions in Letters
to the Editor. Letters are subject to editing for space, but the author’s thought
will not be interfered with. Preferred length is one page, typewritten, double
spaced. Anonymous and libelous letters will not be considered. Address all
correspondence to Editor, Box 982, Boiling Springs, 28017.