ditorials
Springtime for Reagan
What a difference a recovery makes. A few short months
ago, Ronald Reagan was down on his uppers, marked by
friends and enemies alike to be the fifth president in a row to
get trampled in a stampede for fresh leadership. He was down
in the polls. House elections had gone wrong and even some
of the lightweights in Congress were yelling, "Let me at
him!"
But a subtle change has occurred. The president has just
carried off a summit meeting that was a marvel of decorum,
goodwill and even commitment to generally sound policies;
heads of state, aided by their instincts and the diplomatic
grapevine, know whether one of their fellows is up or down,
and they treated Mr. Reagan with deference, which means he
is up.
In the Senate there are fewer and fewer volunteers available
to lead an assault on the president's tax cuts. Even on that
thorniest of all issues, Central America, the congressional
critics of covert action are less confident than a few weeks ago
that they want to be identified with communist efforts to
overthrow the government of El Salvador and suppress the
rights of the people of Nicaragua. The presidential popularity
polls for what they are worth, are looking rosier.
Economic recovery has been central to the president's
recovery. The April index of leading economic indicators,
made public yesterday, was up again for the 10th month in a
row. U.S. industry is gathering steam. The world outlook is
brightening as well. Gloriously, the summiteers agreed in
principle on trying to achieve the first recovery in ages free of
a new outburst of currency inflation, an effort that will cer
tainly benefit from genuine political commitment.
Politicians forget a lot of things but they remember election
years; for one thing, they have early campaigns by Messrs.
Mondale, Glenn and Cranston to remind them. There is a
strong suspicion, reinforced by some remarks the president
made to King Hussein and relayed by the king to our Mrs.
House some weeks ago, that Mr. Reagan intends to run off
reelection.
If he plans to run, that means he plans to campaign, the
thoughtful politician reasons. If he plans to campaign, he has
the full power of the office backing up what is already a for
midable capacity to communicate to the voters. With all that
and a robust economy too, does this look like someone I want
to slug it out with? I have seriously considered the issues and
have solemnly concluded the tax cuts and a stand-up foreign
policy are not such a bad idea after all.
None of this means that the president is home free. While
the recovery is for real, it remains uncertain how non
inflationary it will be. We have urged him to reappoint Paul
Volcker to a new four-year term in August to give himself
good odds for warding off a new inflation outburst. In
foreign policy, there remain serious threats of a new outbreak
in the Mideast that would require adroit handling and of fur
ther embarrassments in Central America. Those are among
the more predictable dangers.
But being up is always better than being down. Whereas
Mr. Reagan was on the defensive last winter, vulnerable to the
charge that Reaganomics had gone awry, he now is well
positioned to take the offensive. His policy team has had the
seasoning of office and has been strengthened with the addi
tion of George Shultz. He has demonstrated anew that when
Reagan acts like Reagan, as he did with his "star wars" and
Central America addresses to the nation, he is a powerful
political advocate.
He is beginning to take a harder line with Congress, sug
gesting that he might be inclined to get really tough as the elec
tion draws nearer. Now it is the congressional leadership that
suddenly looks vulnerable. The economy has recovered
despite the congressional incapacity to manage the federal
budget, but that incapacity remains glaringly evident, lying
exposed for a skillful president to attack as the campaign
season heats up. Remember "Give-'em-hell Harry"
Truman?"
For a good many years it has been easy to believe that the
:nation is more fearful of being led astray by presidential
hubris than of not being led at all. That fear can never be
totally discounted. But again we turn to Mr. Reagan's fellow
?heads of state at Williamsburg. If our reading is correct, they
found the president's new confidence contagious and en
couraging to the prospects of the Western alliance. We have
;to admit that we too find the White House spring refreshing
?after so many winters of discontent.
? From The Wall Street Journal
euu - ^o?nwl
illif
NATIONAL NEWSPAPER association
ASSOCIATION
PahMaM Evtry Thantfay by
DMim Prw, lac., Faai Dtcfcsoa, Pre*.
119 W. Elwoo* A VMM*. P.O. Im SM
Harford, N.C. 2*37*
Sabacrtptioa Ram la Miiwi
la Coaaty Pw Ynr-SM.N f Maatfca? S5.M
Oat of Coaaty Pot Ymr? SUM t Moatfca ? M.M
Give iAe fa* m vasies, 1our resncipes.-foUR woj<in, acip raw, solWts,
NoamWAsiepaMft.mewwcHepReFUse oF^ouRieeMWG s?we....
Letters To The Editor
Ambulance company
should pay bills
Dear Editor:
A great deal has been printed
concerning the Hoke County
Ambulance Service, Inc. in this
newspaper. I hope you will
tolerate one more letter because
something has disturbed me,
and I would like to present it
for your consideration.
Let me say first, 1 have
nothing personal against
anyone connected with the am
bulance service company or any
of the elected officials who
decide on the funds which go to
subsidize the ambulance enter
prise.
I had some reservations in my
mind earlier when it was
reported that the company
would get nearly $106,000 of
tax dollars, but the owners had
already decided to quit at the
end of the contract. Maybe
there was good reason behind
that.
The biggest thing that
troubles me is while all that was
going on, Mr. Jim Henley, the
owner of the Hoke County Am
bulance Service, made a point
to get the state legislature to
pass a law to get people to pay
their ambulance bills.
I gathered that our represen
tatives undertook to get this bill
pushed through Raleigh on
behalf of the Hoke County Am
bulance Service because the ser
vice was having trouble collect
ing from people. They succeed
ed and soon it will be a misde
meanor for anyone to fail to
pay an ambulance bill.
My question is this: Is there
any way we (citizens) can get a
bill passed to compel the Hoke
County Ambulance Service to
pay their bills? I do not mean
this in a sarcastic or derogatory
manner, either.
If you will go check the
public records in the courthouse
you will find several
judgements against the Hoke
County Ambulance Service
taken out by local merchants
like myself, who are owed
money and unable to collect
through other means.
In my case, I obtained a
judgement in the amount of
11,000, plus court costs, for
materials bought in the name of
the ambulance company. The
judgement is still not satisfied,
which in court jargon means I
still don't have my money.
Raeford Hardware also ob
tained a judgement against the
Hoke County Ambulance Ser
vice, but the file on that also in
dicates "not satisfied."
Little St Pulley Office
Machines of Fayetteville took
out a $472 judgement against
the Hoke County Ambulance
Service. That too is listed as un
paid.
In fact, the only action that
the Ckrk of Court'* office
h shows ha been paid ofT'eoo
W corns a lien that the Employ
ment Security Commbston of
; North Carolina obtained In
1982. But then you go to the
1983 file and there's another
. one taken out by Ik- B-S.C,
service and it's marked unpaid.
If you want to know how
Hoke County collected the
delinquent taxes owed by the
ambulance company, the tax
collector's office has the
records. They got their money
by having it deducted from the
subsidy check the ambulance
service gets from the County
Manager, James Martin. That
avenue is apparently not open
to a private individual!
So, again, is it really all that
absurd to see if we can get
another law passed to make it a
misdemeanor for an ambulance
service not to pay its bills?
If the ambulance service was
having all the financial pro
blems dragged out in the
newspaper, then there probably
was a genuine need for some
sort of "bail out."
I am a businessman, too, and
I know the problems of cash
flow and taxes etc., and times
have been rough. But I feel I
have an obligation to myself
and my customers to conduct
my affairs in a responsible and
businesslike manner.
Frankly, I am disgusted and
very discouraged that our
system of local government
allows these abuses.
If my thinking is wrong on
this subject, I'll be glad to listen
to anyone who has more
knowledge about it.
In the meantime, I think I
had better start taking more in
terest in local politics and the
next election.
Thank you,
J.R. Kennedy
Society opened
To the Editor:
In order to best meet the
needs of the pets and stray
animals in our community it is
necessary to have as many will
ing hands and hearts as possi
ble.
To accomplish this, we are
opening the Hoke/Raeford
Humane Society for general
membership so we can continue
the work we have started and
expand our effort further. It is
not our intention to impose on
members by making extraor
dinary demands on them, but
ours will be a group effort.
The Hoke/Raeford Humane
Society has essentially adopted
the By-laws of the United States
Humane Society.
A copy of the By-Laws will
be provided at our first
meeting. We feel that these By
Laws are comprehensive and
fair to all members and in keep
ing with the Hoke/Raeford
Humane Society's views.
Our first and primary con
cern is the humane and compas
sionate treatment of the
animals in our community.
Upon full consideration of all
recommendations the following
membership fees have been
Adopted: Active Members -
S 10.00 or more per year,
Associate Members ? less than
$10.00 per year and children
$140 per year.
Input from members will
always be welcome and we will
fNiccme your suggestions con
cerning ways to achieve our
goals.
Our initial meeting will be
at 7:00 p.m. in
the Hoke County Library.
Thank you so much for' your
interest in the animals of Hoke
County With your help we can
help those who can't help
themselves.
. Sincerely,
Sheryl McGinnis, Director
Hoke/Raeford
Humane Society
Praise for Lee
To The Editor:
The citizens of Hoke County are
aware, I'm sure, of the fine law en
forcement staff we ahve. Mr. R.V.
Lee with the State Highway Patrol
deserves honorable recognition.
On many occasions he has taken
the t, me to come to Scurlock and
talk to my students concerning
bicycle and bus safety. Thursday
June 2, he visited us again.
He is sincerely concerned about
our children and their welfare. We
should be proud to have such a
dedicated gentleman serving our
area.
Sincerely,
Faye Williams
Puppy Creek
Philosopher
Dear editor:
What 998,991,923,919
multiplied by 998,991,923,919
comes to is something I've never
thought about. Whatever the
answer is, I couldn't find a place
tor it out here on this farm.
But a computer can give you the
answer by the time you punch the
last numeral. Scientists, however
aren t satisfied with that. They are
now trying to build a computer
that can talk and think like a
human. They call it "artificial in
telligence."
The first step, as 1 understand it,
is to build a computer that talks.
Thinking will come later.
Is Congress aware of this7 I
mean, if scientists build a machine
hat talks about thinking, won't a
bunch of Congressmen wind up no
longer needed?
? f the scientists' aim is to build a
machine equal to a human, the
first phase will be adequate, no use
spending money going any further
a.s. * machine that talks without
thinking seems about as human as
you can get.
As for the second step, building
a machine that can duplicate
human reasoning and do it as fast
as it multiplies a two-foot long
string of numbers, the question is,
whose reasoning will it duplicate?
Where will it turn for a model?
With the 10 or 15 best known
countries in the world all armed to
the teeth on borrowed money and
ready to fight, that machine may
find that reason is not in great sup
ply nowadays. I know it's not out
here on this farm. Every year I
reason that what's planted will at
harvest time bring a good price. It
never does.
Yours faithfully,
J.A.
Limn to lie
? ricomed Wwm iIhmM k?cp Mtm m ikari It
?* hf krf cuMMtMial *? IW rtflN to
rdn tatn< k> food (?>? Mtd hi o it v lawitltoaM
rtvfnc* b> /*? Vr mt-Jomrm! fcj MM n IlK
CLIFF BLUE . . .
People & Issues
REAGAN AND GLENN ...
President Ronald Reagan appears
to have moved up considerably in
the polls since the early weeks of
the year, as has Senator John
Glenn of Ohio, for the Democratic
Presidential nomination.
Recent polls showed Reagan and
Glenn about even in public ap
proval.
But, most anything can happen <
between now and convention time,
and also election time in November
1984!
MIXED BAG... The President's
struggle with Congress over budget
deficits is a mixed bag. Reagan, in
his press conferences and other
public statements, speaks out
against big deficits but really
doesn't say how they can be reduc
ed.
Now, when Reagan speaks out
about balancing the budget three
or four years from now, most peo
ple pay little attention.
Reagan needs to put more
weight in his talk about balancing
the budget now while he is presi
dent, and not after the election.
As to the Democratic nominee, 1
would suspect that at this date,
more than a year before the Na
tional Convention, Mondale and
Glenn would be the front runners.
Senator Hollings of South
Carolina is regarded as a very able
candidate, although he is from the
"Deep South." However, Jimmy
Carter was also from the "Deep
South" and he received the
nomination, and was elected in 1
< 1976.
Most Democrats have seemed to
feel that heretofore, Mondale was
out front and the man to beat.
Mondale is regarded as more of a
liberal than Senator Glenn or Holl
ings.
At this early date, I would guess
that the Democratic nominees for
President and Vice President
would be among the three, Mon
dale, Glenn and Hollings, but lots
can happen between now and con
vention time in 1984.
STATE OFFICIALS... Come to
think of it, we have a large number
of State Officials to nominate and
elect, come November, 1984.
To begin with we have a Gover
nor and Lieut. Governor to
' nominate and elect.
The Democrats have several can
didates for governor, already an
nounced:
Lt. Governor, Jimmy Green;
Attorney General Rufus Edmisten
of Watauga County; Lacy Thorn
burg of Sylva; and State Senator
Eddie Knox of Charlotte.
Also considering the governor's
race are: Cong. Charles G. Rose
III of Fayetteville, Dr. Leo Jenkins
of Grenville; D.M. Faircloth of
Clinton and possibly others.
For Lieut. Governor, State
Senator Bob Jordan of Mt. Gilead,
and Carl Stewart, former Speaker
of the House, who lost to Jimmy
Green in 1976 and others.
Secretary of State, Thad Eure,
has announced he will seek another
term, having first been elected in
1936 and every four years since.
State Auditor Harland Edward
Bowles, first elected in 1976.
Andrew Craig Phillips, first
elected in 1968.
Attorney General Rufus Ed
misten, first elected in 1974 and a
Democratic candidate for Gover
nor, in 1984.
James A. Graham, elected com
missioner of Agriculture 1964, and
every four years since.
John Claries Brooks, first
elected 1976 and again in 1980.
John R. Ingram, first elected in
1972 and each four years since,
now a candidate for Govenror on
the Democratic ticket.
U.S. Senator Jesse Helms, first
elected 1972 and again in 1978 on
the Republican ticket and a can
didate for re-election to the U.S.
Senate.
U.S. House of Representatives:
First Cong. District: Walter B.
Jones, first elected 1966.
Second Cong. District: I.T.
Valentine, elected 1982.
Third Cong. District: Charles O.
Whitley, elected 1976.
Fourth Cong. District: Ike F.
Andrews, first elected 1972.
Fifth Cong. District: Stephen L.
Neal, D., first elected 1974.
Sixth Cong. District: Walter E.
Johnson, III, D, elected 1980.
B Seventh Cong. District: Charles
. Rose, III, elected 1972.
Eighth Cong. District: W.G.
(Bill) Hefner, D, first elected 1974.
jT Ninth Cong. District: James G.
f. Martin, K etocMd 1972.
~ Tenth Cong. District: James. T.
Broyhill, R, elected 1962.
Eleventh Cong. District:
William M. Hendron, R, elected