EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN UNDER AUTHORITY OF BOARD IN CONTROL OF STUDENT PUBLICATIONS The Tragicomic Elections in ere Opinions Are Free, 420 MAYNARD ST., ANN ARBOR, MICH. Truth Will Prevail NEws PHONE: 764-05521 Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the individual opinions of staff writers or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints. I; SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 1967 NIGHT EDITOR: STEPHEN WILDSTROM i . _ Mr. MeNamara' s Wall: A Very-Offensive Idea IN ONE OF HIS infrequent press con- ferences Defense Secretary Robert Mc- Namara warned Thursday of a growing "frustration" and "lack of patience" in this country that could lead to "irrespon- sible actions" that could in turn widen the Vietnam war. The potency of these pressures was il- lustrated a few minutes later as McNa- mara unveiled his latest Vietnam toy- an anti-infiltration barrier of barbed wire, mines and electronic gimmicks stretching across South Vietnam just south of the formerly demilitarized zone- which to be even minimally effective must expand the conflict to Laos. It is difficult to believe that the great administration historians so familiar with the "Munich Analogy," could not have heard of the "Maginot Line Analogy." For if as the government insists the Ho Chi Minh- Trail in neighboring Laos is as busy as the Gov. Thomas E. Dewey Thruway, there is no reason why the ene- my would not bypass this new "impene- trable" barrier. McNamara, however, refused to com- ment on whether the barrier will even- tually be extended into Laos. Using a ploy which must be envied by bureau- crats everywhere, the. defense secretary turned aside virtually all questions on the ground that any elaboration would aid the enemy. Those "informed sources," so dear to the New York Times, however reveal that such an extension is not contemplated "at present." The key words, "at present," indicate that the smart betting among "informed sources" is that the govern- ment will announce a decision to extend the barrier in Laos before the New Hampshire primary. HE IDEA of extending the Berlin- type wall into Laos has almost an pnotic fascination for mini-doves who ave grown tired of General Gavin's en- lave theory. For example, Mike Mans- ield, the Senate's phlegmatic majority eader, said Thursday, "I have advocated that a defensive barrier be built across Vietnam and Laos as an alternative to an extension of the ever-expanding aer- ial bombardment." Even if Mansfield is not incredibly naive in believing that anything can halt the air war, he tragically errs in under- estimating the consequences of attempt- ing to stretch a barricade across Laos. Such a barrier would have to be de- fended. And here we would not only have to engage the North Vietnamese troops in Laos, but the indigenous Pathet Lao as well. Here, as in Vietnam, America would have immense difficulty in win- ning. "the hearts and minds" of the Lao- tian people. For our exceedingly ran- dom bombings in the vicinity of the Ho Chi Minh Trail have won us few new Lao- tian friends. A massive injection of American man- power will probably not be tolerated even by Souvanna Phouma, the, ever-obliging Laotian premier. For while he permits the presence of U.S. "military attaches," he insists America keep her violations of the 1962 Geneva Accords limited and co- vert. While the 1962 settlement has not been rigidly observed, it has served a very use- ful function in keeping the conflict lim- ited and most foreign belligerents out. Even more importantly, the Geneva Ac- cords by taking Laos off the front pages, have destroyed the fiction that virility demanded American participation in that civil war. With over 40,000 troops in Thailand, untold members of "military attaches" in Laos, and a major war in Vietnam, the Great Laotian Barricade could serve as the trigger to touch of the Asian land war to end all land wars. HOWEVER, THERE IS a possibly more comforting rationale behind the anti- infiltration barrier. For it is conceivable that the Pentagon envisions it merely to serve as a massive turnstile in order to accurately assess the amount of infiltra- tion from North Vietnam. While such an action would show a rare concern for dispelling the adminis- tration's "credibility gap," such a barrier would be far more usefully placed around this nation's suburbs to keep, the middle class in. -WALTER SHAPIRO Tran Van Dinh is a free-lance journalist working out of Washing- ton, D.C. He is a doctor of politi- cal science and holds a professor- ship at Buddhist University in Hue, South Vietnam. A former Vietna- mese acting ambassador to the United States, Dinh writes reg- ularly for the New Republic (most recently, September 2 issue), appear- ed bi-weekly in the past summer Daily, and is now syndicated through Collegiate Press Service. He has been active in the Vietnam Summer project, and spoke at a University Law School symposium last spring. His background in- cludes service in the anti-French nationalist movement in the late 1940's, and he has the distinction, in later years, of being Vice-Presi- dent Ky's superior officer. This is the first of a number of special articles which will appear on The Daily editorial page throughout the year. By TRAN VAN DINH POLITICS IN South Vietnam in the recent years have always had elements of a tragi-comedy: the main theme of the play is "democracy," the interested audi- ence "American," the actors have to wear a mask which suits the purpose. The mask is "elections." Balloting would take place, over 80 percent of the people would vote, and Washington would call it a success until the stage col- lapses leaving dead bodies and broken furniture scattered around like so much debris. For the seventh time (two Pre- sidential elections in 1955 and 1961, and four Legislature elec- tions in 1956, 1959, 1963, 1966) since Vietnam was divided "tem- porarily" by the 1954 Geneva Agreements, the tired people of South Vietnam went to the polls. ON SEPTEMBER 3, 83 percent of 5,853,251 voters proceeded to 8,824 polling places to cast their ballots and elect a president, a vice-president and 60 senators. The number of registered voters increased by 300,000 in the last month before the election. "We are prolific in Vietnam. but not that prolific," said Tran Van Huong a civilian presidential candidate who finished fourth in the balloting. Replied General Nguyen Van Thieu, the head of state and military candidate, with touching candor: "Some soldiers have been given two voting cards." The voter was given first eleven ballots, one for each presidential ticket (two names, President and Vice-President, one symbol) then 48 other ballots, one for each senatorial slate, (10 names on each). He had gone over 502 names (22 presidential, 480 sena- torial) scrutinized 59 symbols (11 for presidential, 48 for senatorial). PRESIDENT-ELECT NGUYEN VAN THIEU has makeup applied as he prepares to "Meet the Thieu refused to appear with Vice-President-elect Nguyen Cao Ky, and a Ky aide commented, is number two now." The voter could hardly be that fast a reader, but he did not care. He looked at the familiar police- man who will be around in his lo- cality long after the election day. General Nguyen Ngoc Loan, the Chief of Police, often called "The Saigon Himmler," had declared on August 23: "National police- men would be stationed inside and outside booths all over the coun- try. As the national police are the people in closest contact with the lowest echelon, there will be po- lice telling them where to vote, how to vote and when to vote." (Saigon Post, August 23). The Vi- etnamese voter is a captive voter: the police have stamped his status on his registration card and any- one subsequently searched - a routine in South Vietnam - and found without the election day stamp on his card will be in dan- ger of automatic classification as a Viet Cong and subjected to pri- son or death. BUT EVEN WITH these pre- cautions, the military junta was not sure. Dictators everywhere, and at all times, are afraid of their own people or even of their shadow. On the eve of the election day, two dailies in Saigon, the Than Chung (Sacred Bell) and Sang (Light) were closed; three weeks earlier, another newspaper, the Dan Chung (People), was shut down. All this occurred despite the fact that officially censorship was abolished and the Constitution guarantees the freedom of the press. Several officers, among them, Brigadier General Phan Trong Chinh, commander, 25th division near Saigon, and Colonel Pham Van Lieu, former Chief of Police, were put under house ar- rest. Several students, mostly Buddhists, disappeared from their homes. Some were imprisoned, some liquidated. General Thieu, when asked about the closure of the news- papers, declared: "Even in a de- mocracy, one has the right to suppress newspapers that aid one's enemies." Echoed Chief of Police Loan: "Democracy is fine for the politicians, but me, I fav- or national discipline." (Wash- ington Post, September 3). Earlier General Ky had been more spe- cific on "democracy" and had stated that he "might respond mil- itarily if a civilian whose policies he disagreed with won the elec- tion. In any democratic country, you have the right to disagree with the views of others." And on July 27, General Ky re- peated, "If any opposition ticket in South Vietnam's presidential elections should win by trickery, I will overthrow it." Who else in South Vietnam could use trick, but the junta itself? General Ky's threat came at the time when, at his instigation, a committee" was formed as a kitchen cabinet for government if the Thieu- et won. All these unnecessary tions and threats were ta even possible competitors cluded in advance from1 General Duong Van M: Minh) former chief of s Dr. Au Truong Thanh Minister of Economy and who planned to run on platform, were banned f ning. SO THE STAGE was a the September 3 show. V ton put the final touch by a 22-man Presidential guided by former Am Henry Cabot Lodge who enly favored previous mil gimes in South Vietnam.r sion members, feted by government and U.S.1 escorted by government communicating with p government interpreters half a dozen polling stat 824 in all) and has passe dict: Good show. "Good wholesome," Ambassado declared. The results of the elec percent of people voted as predicted by the U.S. in Saigon. The Thieu-Ky ticket won - 35 percen V(etnam votes. Already 7 out of 10 civilian candidates have lodged protest of fraud with the Constituent As- sembly, which will have until Oc- tober 2 to certify the validity of the elections. Dh. Phan Khac Suu, the civilian candidate who finish- ed third and who is also the Chairman of the Constituent As- sembly, complained that "in many, many areas, his workers had esti- mated the turnout at only 10 percent. Lots of complaints will come but it is not going to change the sit- uation anyway. ONE SURPRISE to Washing- ton: A Saigon lawyer, Mr. Truong Dinh Dzu who campaigned on the platform of peace and against the military junta in the clearest terms possible, finished second with 17 per cent of the votes. Why were Washington and the U.S. mission in Saigon surprised? If there is any indication at all of the mood and desire of the Viet- Press." namese people, it is their obvious Mr Ky concern about war and about the Mr KYcorrupted dictatorship of the mili- tary. Of all the 11 candidates, only one advocated war. Even General "military Thieu talked about peace and ne- to serve gotiations. But the Vietnamese the new have no voice in this war. La- -Ky tick- mented columnist Joseph Kraft from Saigon: "But as long as Sai- precau- gon thinks victory, it is very hard %ken, and for Washington to move toward were ex- settlement. And thus the present the race, outlook despite the new setting inh (Big created by the new elections, re- tate, and mains barren." , former Washington and Saigon do not Finance think only victory but they ex- a peace pect "representative, democratic rom run- government" to emerge even with an old cast. But the elections are only the first act of the show- ill set for there is more to come. Washing- In the coming weeks there will y sending be a deadly struggle between Gen- mission eral Thieu and Vice Air Marshal abassador Ky. Ky is not going to be a fig- had op- urehead vice-president who will litary re- easily relinquish both the prem- The mis- iership and the air command with y Saigon the attendant profits and powers, Embassy, But Thieu, cunning and less talk- t agents, ative may strike first. There will eople by be organized opposition which s, toured logically will 'join the Buddhists tions (8,- who are preparing for their com- d its ver- ing struggle against the illegal, , orderly, unjust Buddhist Charter imposed r Lodge on them by the junta on July 18. In the final act of the show, tions: 83 there will be a lone actor: the -exactly United States, with its suffocat- Embassy ing military might, against a back- military ground of dead bodies and burned at of the villages of a deserted Vietnam. FEIFFER A New Hope in Washington E APPOINTMENT of Walter E. Washington as head of the newly-re- rganized government of the District of Columbia is to be heartily applauded. In a time when increasing attention is being turned to the plight of our major cities, the nation's capital is fortunate in pro- curing an able administrator who is also a local resident for its top executive. .The city is doubly fortunate in that tlie appointment of Washington, a Negro, represents a major step-in the direction of representative government for its citi- zens. Formerly headed by three Presi- dent-appointed commissioners, the D.C. gdvernment has long been a model of in- efficiency. If approved by Congress, Commission- er-designate Washington will become the city's first single executive since the last elective government was dissolved in 1876. The President's reorganization plan, which passed a test vote in the House of Representatives August 9, provides for a commissioner to act as the city's "mayor," aided by a nine-man city council. All 10 positions are President-appointed and must be approved by the Senate. Sup- porters of eventual home rule for the District of Columbia hope that the new organization will be both more repre- sentative of the city's residents and more conducive to a dynamic local government The Daily is a member of the Associated Press and Collegiate Press Service. Summer subscription rate: $2.00 per term by carrier ($2.50 by mail); $4.00 for entire summer ($4.50 by mail). 1aily except Monday during regular academic school year. Daily except Sunday and Monday during regular summer session. second class postage paid at Ann Arbor, Michigan. 420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48104. Edtofril Staff than the old scheme. A demonstration that area people can handle the city's problems might well be a maj or step on the road to self-government for Wash- ingtonians. Race relations and other District prob- lems are going to require superhuman corrective efforts. Like other cities, the nation's capital is plagued with more than its share of slums, crime, air and water pollution, poor schools, traffic chaos and other similar troubles. No one in any large urban area has come up with any "sure-fire" solutions to these problems, but it seems highly likely that a single "mayor" would pro- vide much more effective leadership in tackling the issues than a three-man Board of Commissioners. UNFORTUNATELY, no amount of ad- ministrative finesse can solve the cap- ital's chief problem, finances. Due to its peculiar statusrunder therConstitution, the city is forced to operate on...a very tight budget, since most of its funds must be appropriated by Congress in lieu of real estate taxes on some of the city's most valuable property, which is govern- ment-owned. But the Congress is notoriously tight- fisted in regard to the District, so Wash- ington, who is fortunately experienced in dealing with Capitol Hill, will have to be prepared to use all his, persuasive powers in convincing Congress to give the city a workable budget. WASHINGTON HAS a challenging job ahead of him, but it is a challenge which he is capable of meeting. If he succeeds as the District of Columbia's first "mayor" in almost a century, the success may well pay off with a model city for the nation and an elective gov- ernment for himself and his fellow-Wash- MAy I&) ON) VIETNAM K~ THAT TfN6 US. £5CAUATIOMS OF 6-67 ARE IN - CWEAR VIOL- AVON) OF OF '54, THE U 6C-C HfOWUIR LETTR ~OF KEt')EY POLICY REVATIoI) OF L.AT '63. 'M9I-9 HAVE~ ItWTR- V~lJEt7 FOE WC SHOULD ENtD OUR FRoIe6IJPOLICY 6IAS- Mil VIEWM ME -~ RAB- lS2AUI LWAR Is~ THAT V~s. imACffON)WAS N CLEAR Vk5IATION) OF TN" O.M. MMATU OF -4?AL) PtJ5 W6E WcAsOO -1015 coMAM(TN)T CF '6?: ADDP THEI C[T~l - t. Draft Counseling: A Measure of Growing Dissent By NEAL BRUSS DRAFT RESISTANCE counsel- ing is creating a newer New Left, presenting a common pro- gram for usually-divided militants, liberals, and moderates, and cre- ating a new and commanding pro- test against the war in Vietnam. The resistance appeals to pre- viously disaffected or uninterested youths whose protest can be a powerful impetus for any new po- litical thrust. And the basis of the resistance is a simple, direct belief that the refusal of thousands to make war can parry government resolve-and that everyone from blond suburbanites to black ghetto militants can participate. THERE ARE ENOUGH fears and aversions to the draft and dergraduates. But along with grad- uate students and non-students, undergraduates are increasingly seeking advice on the draft, father than forgetting about it in the comfort of their temporary defer- ments. Over 60 new counselors came out of a training seminar late last month at Antioch College, and they will work throughout the Midwest. Jim Lafferty, a prime mover of a year-old program in Detroit, says that there are counseling services' in almost every large campus and major city in the country. Student Government Council is currently developing its own draft counseling service with seven ad- visors trained this summer by the American Friends Service Com- mittee. On campus the SGC coun- seling sessions can be used by The counselors' problems are often knottier than those of per- sons who seek their advice. One Detroit counselor last year was en- rolled for graduate study in four schools at once including an On- tario school; he had moved to Canada without informing his draft board. He plans to leave the U.S. again this year, although possibly temporarily, to attend classes full-time at the University of Western Ontario. He says it would take him five years' resi- dence in Canada to become a cit- izen, and that he also wants to study in Europe next year. He isn't sure he will be able to get either an American or a Canadian pass- port although he plans to apply for a Canadian identification passports, something that generally is issued only to displaced persons cnfiliiir i r~a nfin rr a noin ,,or' Their advice is pragmatic. Even counselors who strongly believe in conscientious objection usually ad- vise persons to seek "easier" de- ferments when they can, mainly because they discourage drawing attention to a potential draft re- sistor. C.O. requirements are still difficult to meet despite court de- cisions which open the classifica- tion to persons who are outside pacifistic religions. "Don't apply for C.O. status," says a Detroit counselor, "unless you plan on spending some time in jail." Similarly, while the counselors cooperate with Canadians eager to bring draft resistors to their coun- try, they rarely advise an anti- draft exile. The counselors feel Canada-bound resistors will be arrested if and when they return- and they urge less radical resist- aneP. lers can present effective hardship cases to their draft boards. College drop-outs working in hospitals, for example, can often be deferred be- cause their work is classified as vital to the welfare of the nation. The impact on the selective service is still uncertain, accord- ing to Lafferty, and although he says up to 100 persons may be counseled in the Detroit area per week, there are no indications how many have avoided the draft. But the program has drawn to- gether various groups which usual- ly cannot agree on programs. While black power advocates-who regularly counsel Negroes on draft hLternatives-cannot agree with white liberals on some issues, they meet collectively to plan draft re- sistance tactics. COUNSELING has received sur-