Often J £ CoUTT
1978: A Mirror For 1979
disappointing, Allan Bakke "reverse
discrimination" decision;the pas
sage of the weakened Humphrey
Hawkins "full-employment" Bill;
U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young's
continued push for human rights;
and Muhammad Ali's loss and re
gaining of the Heavyweight boxing
championship from Leon Spinks.
Furthermore, death claimed Gen.
Daniel (Chappie) James (Ret.), the
only black four-star general in the
U.S. Air Force, U.S. Rep. Ralph
Metcalfe, Senator Hubert Hum
phrey and baseball superstar Ly
man Boetock.
In other sports developments,
Houston McTear set a new world
indoor record when he ran the
60-yard dash in 6.11 seconds; Larry
Doby had a short stint as manager of
the Chicago White Sox; Darryl
Stingley, a outstanding wide recei
ver for the New England Patriots,
was paralyzed from the waist down
—trom a fontnaii raiatprt neck injury;
-and Reggie Jackson led the N.Y.
Yankees to their second straight
World Series Championship.
Political Scene
Returning to the political scene,
blacks re-elected Congressman
Charles Diggs, despite his convict
ion for mail fraud. On the other
hand, Calif. Lt. Gov. Mervyn
Dymally and Calif, state attorney
general candidate Yvonne Burke
both lost in the general election;
another black Lt. Gov. George
Brown of Colorado, did not seek
re-election; and Ernest Morial was
elected as the first black mayor of
the city of New Orleans. In addition,
Congresswoman Barbara Jordan,
chose not to seek re-election. These
developments however, left un
changed the number of blacks, 16, in
the U.S. House of Representatives.
In the entertainment field, Eartha
Kitt led the smash Broadway
musical '•Timbuktu" on a tour of the
U.S.; a new three-some,"The Emot
ions" won a "Grammy" award; and
Diana Ross led an excellent cast in
the $30-million movie production of
"The Wiz," now playing to packed
movie houses across the U.S.
On the international scene, black
Americans demonstrated against
the U.S. visit of Rhodesian Prime
Minister Ian Smith, the policies of
his nation as well as that of South
Africa. Blacks were also dismayed
by the act, meaning and implicat
ions of the Jonesville, Guyana sui
cide-murder of 691 blacks out of a
total of 921 Americans.
On the national scene, taxes,
inflation and unemployment were
issues that were of concern to blacks
in 1978. Specifically California's Pro
position 13, a property-tax rollback,
threatened many social programs
oirliminr Klo/ilre *>·* —
spread to other states. In addition,
while many national black leaders
were opposing President Carter's
anti-inflation plan because it might
affect job prospects for blacks, a
CBS-N.Y. Times survey concluded
that blacks also listed inflation as
the nation's number one problem.
In other developments in 1978,
Richard Nixon reappeared on the
national scene, Betty Ford had a
face-lifting; the City of Cleveland
slid into default; the flamboyant
president of Kenya, Joma Kenyatta,
died; and the U.S. renewed diploma
tic relations with mainland China.
Historical Evente
This summary of the historical
events of 1978, should help us, to use
Machiavelli's words again, "to fore
SCO the future" at least in part. They
should enable us to recognize that
during 1979, the Carter Administrat
ion will continue to struggle against
inflation and unemplpygqgnl^ while
attempting to meixF some political
fences in planning for the 1980
elections.
Rlflnlrc will olon Κλ norH/ni1oi*l«f
concerned about these issues be
cause of their implications for unem
ployment, already twice that of
white Americans. Furthermore,
since the anti-inflation fight will
have serious implications for the
Carter urban policy and program, if
any, blacks will be watching these
developments too.
Using the past to consult on
the future too, has led many econo
mists to conclude that in 1979, the
U.S. will experience a mild recess
ion beginning in mid-summer. This
also will be of particular concern for
blacks because it could mean sub
stantially higher black unemploy
ment.
Finally, each of these events in
1978 will in some way influence,
guide and direct many events of
1979. What is important is that we as
a nation have the skill and ability to
learn from the past so that we might
have a better and more prosperous
tuture.
DOING β THE GREAT THING.
FOR IF, RESOLUTELY. PEOPLE
DO WAT IS RIGHT, iltf TIME _
THEY COME TO UKEDOHetT.
TfteKEYS !
'SELF-HELP
SELF-IMPROVEMENT
SELF-DETERMINATION
COMMUNITY CONTROL
POWER TO THE POWERLESS
^ ft Τ
This Is One Job That Can Be Done Only By You
U.S. Economy Reaches Turning Point?
Dy Η· Jack Kunmoo
The U.S. economy reached a
turning point in the fall of 1978,
when the Federal Reserve and
the Administration mounted
an all-out effort to protect the
declining value of the dollar
by raising reserve require
ments and short-term interest
rates, and by raising the
groundwork for the U.S. Trea
sury to borrow foreign-deno
minated debt. These initiat
ives followed other inflation
fighting steps announced by
the Administration.
These actions, while greatly
needed, and which have suc
ceeded in enabling the dollar
to show moderate strength,
also had the effect of increas
ing the dolls that this tighten
ing of monetary policy and
increase in interest rates will
weaken the economy into a
recession 9oaaeUme»*t year. ■)
From the present perspect
ive, this anticipated downtown
in the business cycle-the first
one in more than throe-fulL
years of business expansion
may reach the level of a
formal recession, but it would
be of much less magnitude
than the experience of 1974-75.
This is primarily because
there existed in the 1874 eco
nomy a number of imbalan
ces, such as speculatively
based construction activity
and excessive accumulation of
inventories which aggravated
the worsening economic con
ditions even further. These do
not exist today to the same
extent.
The recession of 1974 was a
consumer-based recession,
and to the extent that we have
one next year, it will also
probably be consumer-based,
although we do not see the
level of inventory accumulat
ion that precipitated the down
turn in 1974, when declines in
final sales had a disproportio
nately large effect on product
ion because there existed such
a large supply of finished
goods which had to be used up
before production could be
tapped again.
The prospect of another con
sumer-led recession has spec
ial ramifications for North
Carolina, with its dependence
on textile and other consumer
goods industries and its vul
nerability to consumer buying
patterns. In 1974, the state
actually suffered more
severely in terms of unem
ployment levels than the nat
ional average, for the first
time in modern history.
The state also responded
more quickly than the rest of
~ the country as a whole when
growth resumed, and as a
result, today North Carolina
has a lower level of unemploy
ment, than the national aver
age. While some of this differ
ences due>to structural un
employment-where there are
segments of the population
with very high unemployment
-North Carolina's employ
ment picture remains favor
able compared to the nation,
even with the structural un
employment factor removed
.from the national average.
— -Induetrial Development· —
The North Carolina econo
my has exhibited substantial
growth and diversification of
industries relocating into the
state over the last two years.
This special growth potential
should cushion the effects of
any overall business decline in
1979. Duri.:? the past 18
months. North Carolina has
attracted an impressive $3.5
billion in new and expanded
industrial investment. A num
ber of these new facilities are
currently in progress and can
be expected to be completed
regardless of the general level
of the economy next year.
Construction of such addition
al plants and regional bead
quarters buildings represents
a permanent investment in the
state and is a good antidote for
declining levels of business
activity in .other industries. ...
Economists will be closely
watching the effect of Christ
mas sales on the attitude and
morale of those in commercial
and retail-commercial busi
nesses, for these attitudes will
have an imoortant bearing on
the timing of the downtown
next year.
If Christmas sales are high
this would tend to postpone a
recession; if they are disap
pointing, the economic clim
ate might be expected to give
way sooner to other pessimis
tic signs, such as high interest
rates and the squeeze on the
mortgage market. The odds
seem at this time to favor a
moderate récitai on, probably
beginotaflL about· the middle λ
parU^fjSW.'A' severe winte£j
bringing signflcant disruption*
of wwwimir arlivifv wmW
cause an earlier downturn
A good Christmas season
combined with a not-too
severe winter could postpone
such a drop but make the
decline deeper when it does
occur. An earlier recession
would likely be milder than a
later one, aad therefore be
preferable. Given the age of
the current expansion which
has been underway since
March 1975, some contraction
in the business cycle can be
expected as a natural occurr
ence in the coming months.
However, it should be noted
that the economic news of late
has been mixed, with some
good as well as bad reports.
Employment continues at re
cord and growing levels. Re
ports of Christmas season
spending seem to be improv
ing. Housing starts remain
above the two million mark.
Money seems plentiful if ex
pansive. Such factors tend to
contradict the more pessimis
tic forecasts and add to the air
of uncertainty in the outlook.
Vernon Ε. Jordan, Jr.
TO
BE
EQUAL
Carter's Judge Appointments Due
President Carter is about to make the largest
number of new appointments to the federal
judiciary in history. Because of the horrendous
backlog in the federal courts, Congress created
152 new federal judgeships.
That means the President will leave his mark
on the judiciary as few Presidents have. Five
years after Richard Nixon's resignation, the
Supreme Court still bears his stamp and carries
out his policies. Imagine the effect then, of so
many judicial appointments bearing the Carter
seal.
This is a responsibility the President cannot
take lightly. Past Presidents, including John F.
Kennedy, have used appointments to the federal
bench bargaining chips for Senatorial votqtjf
As a result, federal courts dealing with civu
rights issues have included openly segregationist
judges.
ft 1 ΤϋϊΐΤϊί ft (TM# AM M Wa t ι ι ■■ ι ■ î ι ii n * f ««.I J L·**.
• » « * vutuvtl V VMM MV IVi Τ VI^U MV VâVV4V»VO W
trade off a few judgeships for crucial votes on
key issues. But when a once-in-a-lifetime chance
to shape the future of the federal judiciary comes
along, normal political dealing has to be
abandoned.
The President and the Attorney General have
already indicated their selections will be remov
ed from the political tradition of letting Senators
nominate future judges in their states.
Citizen advisory boards are being set up and
candidates for judgeships are supposed to be
recommended on "Merit." Merit, as we should
know by now, is an elusive qualification, almost
impossible to define. Several of the citizen
boards in fact, have indicated differing stand
ards of "merit" And some lawyer's groups
define merit as including fifteen years trial
experience, as if ten or twelve years won't do.
Obviously, the new judges should be selected
on the basis of their legal competence and their
nprcnnel nrnhitv Rut inct ae ntiuinnglu KIoaUc
and minorities with those qualifications should
be included in disproportionate numbers.
Why disproportinate? Because minorities are
rarities in the federal judiciaçy. By weighing his
nej#_appQiqtoients |^^^norityr.caxvjUdates,^
the .president can rpakett£e federal bench fully
representative of this nation's diverse populat
ion.
That's especiallyjtrue of the appointments to
be made in the South, where the exclusion of
blacks is a national scandal. A recent report by
the Southern Regional Council indicates just how
widespread that exclusion is.
The SRC study found that two-thirds of federal
rmirts in thp Smith employ five ΟΓ less blacks. No
black is a magistrate, district or circuit clerk. No
blacks arè numbered among circuit law clerks,
librarians or assistant librarians.
Out of 138 federal judges in the South, only one
is black. There is only one black U.S. attorney
out of 29. Only three blacks are U.S. marshals.
Only six per cent of assistant U. S. attorneys and
eight percent of deputy U. S. Marshals are
black.
Remember-this is a region whose black
population is over 20 percent of the total. A lot
has changed in the South, but not in the federal
-courts. —
And this discriminatory pattern extends even
to clerical and secretarial jobs, where fewer
than eight percent of such employees are black.
A11 together, out of 3,000 employees of federal
district and circuit courts in the South, only six
ivkt^onf oro Klonlr
THE CHARLOTTE POST
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Happiness Through Health
Sexual Interest, Activity Can Continue Throughout Lifetime
by Otto McClarrin
Special To The Poet
Recent scientific studies of
sexual activity have shown
that the sexual urge exists for
many more elderly people
than society realizes or
acknowledges. Up to age 70,
one-half to two-thirds of men
remain potent and sexually
active. Among women, most
of whom are without partners
by this age, one in three
reporta an interest in sex, one
In (our masturoutes occasio
nally but only one in five
actually has a sexual relation
ship.
The studies show mat lur
healthy people, regardless of
age, sexual interest and act
ivity can continue throughout
life. The best predictor at
continuing sexual activity Into
old age la regular expressions
of sexuality in the preceding
years. Even if there Is a
prolonged Interruption In sex
ual activity, poasible because
of illness or deeth of the
spouse, full sexual functioning
can often be restored.
In fact, for a number of
reasons, the "golden years"
may well be the Golden Age of
Sex for aome people. And If not
for myths and misunderstand
ings about aex among the
aged, many more people than
actually do might continue to
be sexually active into their
70·. 80·. and beyond.
In their pioneering studies
of the human sexual response,
Dr. William Master* and
Virginia Johnson determined
the normal change· in sexual
, ity with age. If people know
what to expect, theee resear
chers have found, their sexual
functioning 1· far leu likely to
be Impaired by the aging
procew. In men, theee are the
gradual change· with age that
Dr. Masters and Mrs. Johnson
and other sex researchers
have elucidated:
+The penis take· longer to
become erect and more direct
physical stimulation may be
needed. Whereas in young
men erection may occur in
second·, often at the mere
thought of sexual activity, in
older men several minute· of
direct stimulation, poealbiy
with fondling of the man's
genitals, may be needed to
produce erection.
+ Longer periods of stimula
tion are often needed to reach
orgasm and ejaculation. For
men who in their younger
years reached orgasm More
their partner· did, this delay
with age in often welcome
Some wive· who never before
attained orgasm through
intercourse are able to do so
with their aging husbands who
now have better control over
ejaculation
+There is decreased need to
reach orgasm at every sexual
encounter. Many older men
happily participate in sexual
intercourse once or twice a
week but desire ejaculation
perhaps only once every sec
ond or third time. The woman
who believes that her partner
must be "satisfied" every
time they have intercourse
may actually do them both *
disservice. A man who feels
pushed to reach orgasm may.
shy away from sexual activity
of any kind. If the man does
not ejaculate, he Is able to
become erect again sooner
and can have intercourse
more often
+The volume of the ejacula
tion and its force are dimin
ished, andlhe man la likely to
lose his erection within mom
enta of orgasm.
A man who notices ode
or more of theee changes and
thinks they herald the end of
hi· amial ahilltv mnv mut* m
self-fulfilling prophecy. Fear
of failure is-the greatest inhib
itor of potency. Accordii* to
Dr. Masters and Mrs. John
son, "low of erect!ve prowess
is not a natural component of
aging." They found that, bar
ring illness or phsychoiogical
blocks, a man should retain
ability to have erections well
intn hi· RA·
Watching Black» Drown
"Yon Γηη Savp ΪΤβ." lîmmv ΓοΗ^η
by Charles Ε. Belle
Special To The Poet
President Carter might
want to read an article in
the Wilmington, North
Carolina Morning Star
newspaper. A 14-year-old
youth helped pull a drown
ing woman to shore, and to
till dltmay discovered It
wa· hit mother. While
Jimmy Carter i· (till early in
hi* Presidential yeari
(possibly eight he hope*), a
terioui problem of Black
American* who voted 90%
plut for the President,
should be shouted out to
him for help.
While America's unem
ployment continues to go
down, latest figures fell to
3.i% from six percent in
October, "Slack Americana
and other minoritiei
continu·to grow grayer, up
from 11.2% to 11.4% during
October. Clearly the
concern of those with ■
paycheck I· to «top in
flation in order to maintain
their purchaiing power.
But Black American· and
otheri without a job link
even farther behind in the
social order when there are
no salarie·.
Rumor· running around
Washington, D.C. I· that
th· President will practice
aa old Nixon trick, hold up
already appropriated
federal budgeted money
Pew people believe the
brake· will be an the
defenie budget, betting i·
on social, health and
educional programs
Ρ re» id en t Carter ihould get
a copy of Proposition V
approved by a wide mar·
gin of the votcn'of the city
of Saint Francii. The San
Francisco Transfer Amend
ment would require that a
certain sizable portion of the
nation's highly inflated bud
get for defense expenditures
would be removed from the
military budget end be used
instead to support much
needed domestic peace
time programs, such aajob
development, houaing
improvements, education
and other healthy pursuits
geared toward improving
the quality of life in this
country.
A.W. Clausen, Président,
Bank America Corporation,
SSI billion aasats and
parent of the biggett It tit
world bank, wrot·, "The
moat complex and daepty
rooted problem we face
today il iaflatioa." Free.
Carter concur· in this
concept
by Hoy le H. Martin, Sr.
Post Editorial Writer
"Whoever wishes to foresee the
future must consult the past," wrote
the 14th century political philoso
pher Niccolo Machiavelli, "for
human events resemble those of
preceding times." Thus, if we hope
to begin the New Year with some
understanding of things or events to
come, we must start with a review of
things and events that have recently
past-1978.
Among the triumphs and trage
dies that highlighted 1978 were the
emergency of a Polish Pope, the
birth of a test-tube baby and the
training of three black astronauts;
the mass suicide-murders of 921,
largely black Peoples Temple cult
followers, the defeat of the U.S.
Senate's only black member, Ed
ward Brooke of Massachusetts, and
the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan.
. Black Americans were further
interwoven into the events of 1978.
Most pronounced in these develop
ments were the U.S. Supreme
Court's long-awaited, if somewhat