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In the
European press
Eighty-four years of editorial freedom
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan
Friday, December 6, 1974 News Phone: 764-0552
420,Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Mi. 48104
Maximum John rides herd
"MAXIMUM JOHN" SIRICA has
spoken. Richard Nixon will not
be appearing in this, the first Water-
gate cover-up trial. He has taken a
risk of reversal by an appeals Court
by refusing a defense request that
was not entirely unreasonable. Except
for twelve ruined Christmases, why
not delay the trial one insignificant
month to hear the former president?
Judge Sirica probably doesn't care
that much . about the personal dis-
comfort of his jurors, therefore he
must feel that Nixon's untaped testi-
mony would not be valuable enough
to justify stopping the trial. Or, he
could be laying a strategy guaranteed
to get results.
He must know any defense the de-
fendant's lawyers draw up will not
hinge on new Nixon verbiage. It's im-
probable that on the stand, Nixon
would have accepted all the blame. So
if Maximum John wants to wrap this
affair up by Christmas, by God, he's
going to do it. And the jury had better
not waste any time with that guilty
verdict either, or they will face the
Judge's righteous wrath. "Aren't the
TODAY'S STAFF:
News: Dan Biddle, Ken Fink, J u d y
Ruskin, Jeff Sorenson, Jim Tobin,
David Whiting
Editorial Page: Marnie Heyn, Debra
Hurwitz, Steve Ross
Arts Page: Chris Kochmanski
Phato Technician: Karen Kosmauski
facts rather OBVIOUS?" he will
scream at the doubtful. Nobody goes
home for that famous Christian holi-
day until the Watergate Three are
convicted.
HALDEMAN, EHRLICHMAN AND
MITCHELL could be holding re-
serve tickets for the tennis matches
at Lompoc Prison, California, before
Santa comes down a single chimney.
Not that anyone would be obligated
to serve any real time until all the ap-
peals had failed. Some tough, conser-
vative Republican judge might want
to overturn John's conviction but it
could take a few years.
That leaves Richard Nixon plenty
of time to get better and review all
the tapes and documents he can find.
When he is called to the stand, Nixon
should be the healthiest, most Wat-
ergate informed private citizen in the
entire country.
During the appeals, however, some
official precautions should be taken.
For instance, we don't want to get up
in the morning to a photo of Mitchell
and the Germans sipping tea with
Vesco in Costa Rica. Land of the En-
chanted Investor. That would mean
they got a total pardon, a totally un-
satisfactory ending to this mess.
This isn't John Sirica's first Water-
gate trial, of course, and he perform-
ed admirably the last time. If he says
Nixon is unnecessary this round, then
let the Defense begin!
-WAYNE JOHNSON
The Nixon pardon
As in the American press, the
pardon accorded to Richard
Nixon by his successor contin-
ues to provoke considerable
commentary and criticism in
the European news media. Here
are some examples of the reac-
tions found in the European
press:
"The most powerful demo-
cracy in the world, which on
many occasions has showed a
certain pity for the poor Euro-
pean nations that haven't y e t
gotten rid of the vestiges of the
feudal era, today gives us a
magisterial lesson in princely
absolutism. There is no repub-
lic on our continent which ac-
cords its president a right of
pardon as large and irrevocable
as that which Mr. Ford has ex-
ercised to the benefit of Mr.
Nixon.
"Mr. Nixon had a narrow es-
cape, but' at the price of a new
humiliation. Nixon, who hinted
the day after his resignation
that he could do without favor.
able treatment, now seizes the
perch which is offered to him
to help him climb out of the
abyssintowhich hs sank deep-
er every day."
(from Le Monde, Set. 10,
Paris)
"The day be became presi-
dent, the mission which M r .
Ford had to accomplish was
very clear: reunite a peole
which racial crisis, the protest
era, Vietnam, and Watergate
have been dividing for ten years
now; and show for the country's
institutions a most scrupulous
respect. The (Nixon) r,ardon
went against this program."
(from Le Quotidien de Paris,
Oct. 10)
"When will America learn
that "presidential gangs" are a
privileged few who must be the
first to give the example of
integrity? Is that why cur
founding fathers fled from poli-
tical and religious persecution
of monarchal Europe?"
(Christian Joubert of Mar-
seille, from a letter to the
Herald Tribune)
"The question arises whether
in any circumstances, and wnat-
ever the consequences, a man
should be put above the law
becausebhe is president. "The
granting of the pardon to Mr.
Nixon could set as terrifying a
precedent as his exposure and
sacking has set a good one."
(from the Daily Telegraph,
London)
"Ford does not have it in
mind to give unconditional am-
nesty to Americans who oppos-
ed the Vietnam war and were
forced to leave their coury.
But Nixon - guilty of tie Viet-
nam war, Watergate, and other
big crimes - shall be protect-
ed, otherwise the system w'uld
break down ...'
(from Aftonblaet,
Stockholm)
President Giscard
"The laziness of (French
President) Giscard is beginning
to provoke gossip. At the
Elysee Palace, they no longer
keep track of the number of
audiences he has refused to
grant to cabinet members and
civil servants who wished to re-
ceive some guidelines or simply
to get their names in the paper.
Giscard doesn't like to receive
visitors; he hates, busy sched-
ules; he wants to be able to
leave the Elysee Palace when-
ever he wants. And without a
(secret service) escort.
(from an article titled "The
Lazy King" in Le Canard
enchaine, Paris)
Ford's economics
"In the eyes of many ob-
servers, Richard Nixon merely
maneuvered around inflation,
and economic policies had no
boss. Gerald Ford was reputed
to be a man of simple but
straight ideas, who would
adopt pure and hard attitudes
that would be sufficient to do
away with the inflationary mcon-
ster.
"The new tenant of the White
House began by f'orming the
commendable project of inform-
ing himself about the matter
and consulting the experts. At
the end of his consultations, he
seems to have drawn two con-
clusions which aren't necessar-
ily foregone:
1) There is no miracle solu-
tion. Many economists
think that monetary restric-
tions and budgetary controls
will have only a medbcre ef-
fect upon the price of wheat
and oil.
2) There exists a great danger
of recession. This forecast was
completely confirmed by the
upsurge of unemployment dur-
ing the month of September .. .
from 5.4 per cent to 5.7 per
cent."
Euroeconomy
"In these days of soaring in-
flation, British millionaire Jim
Slater advises investing in cans
of baked beans. You cannot eat
stock certificates or fine art,
but even if the bottom falls out
of the baked bean market, you
won't go hungry, Mr. Slater
claims.
"In Aquino, a small town
near Rome, grocer Antonio del
Duca complains: 'People here
now raise pigs and hens n their
back yard. They buy their own
grapes and make their own
wine . . . and even manage to
prepare a homemade kind of
soap.
'Believe me, we're back :o a
war economy like in 1943. It's
come to that.' "
(from an article by Fred
Coleman, Associated ress-
Europe, HT)
Trudeau in France
"Ten years have passed since
the last visit of former Canadian
Prime Minister Pearson, and in
1967, General DeGaulle echoed
to a large crowd in Montreal
the battle cry of Quebec separa-
tionists: 'VIVE LE QUEBEC
LIBRE!' (Long Live Free Que-
bec). Franco-Canadian rela-
tions have never recovered
from this 'scandal.' In 1971, Mr.
Schumann, then minister of
foreign affairs, renewed friend-
ly relations with the Ottawa
government. It is now up to Mr.
Trudeau, (Canadian P r i m e
Minister), to reconcile any af-
terthoughts which might r e -
main."
(Le Monde, 22 October, Paris)
Cojnmentary Chile
Both the Spanish magaznle
Triunfo and the New York
Times, among others, have re-
ported that the CIA tried to
spend several millionhdollars Ro
support extreme right wing
(i.e., neo-fascist) oposition
groups in Chile, among them
the National Party and its af-
filiate, Patria y Libertad, a re-
actionary group which openly
boasts of having contributed to
the military destruction of the
constitutionally elected Alen-
de government. An article dat-
ed October 21 in the Times
states that one million dollars
was authorized for ontribrion
to these anti-Allende groups in
August, 1973, but that the mili-
tary takeover the following
month caused he total contribu-
tion to be 50,000 dollars at most.
Triunfo, in an article titled
"The CIA and Chile, a dictator-
ship for 11 million dollars,"
traces the contributions and in-
volvements of the CIA in the
Chilean coup, and claims that
the current policy of th1e- U.S. is
that ofrrestoring a kind of semi-
dictatorship with a democratic
front, similar to the Turkish
government.
yOne might interpret this in-
formation as meaning that de-
spite the considerable sums
contributed to the downfall of
Allende, the destruction of his
government saved America
money in more ways than one.
One might further conclude that
the defense of economic inter-
ests in South America is a more
important concern to the Amer-
ican government than support-
ing what was one of the few
democratic regimes in L a t i n
America.
-PAUL O'DONNELL
23 October
By TONY DUENAS
OUR SUMMER is now completely over with
its cans of beer, - warm breezes, topless
fellas and gals, outdoor concerts and our casual-
ties as well, thank God!
Perhaps now the casualties wil not be on as
large a scale as during the first months of
Fall term. Certainly the numbers of accidents and
reported claims should decrease markedly.
The statistic for the stretch of pavement from
Mason Hall to Waterman Gym on the Diag was
up 15 per cent this year over last. In real
figures, more than 239 students met their match
on that bloody stretch of sidewalk.
There were more serious collisions involving the
faster, bigger, more powerful gear-speed bicycles
than in previous semesters accordnig to these
same statistics. The total collisions among 10-
speeds were alarmingly high. In fact so high
the B.B.B. (Busted, Broken Bicycle Club of
Michigan) increased their insurance rates by an
average of 35 per cent last term!
The campus police reports also corrborated
the fact these high-flying demons were involved
in the severest accidents. The 10-bicycle pile-
up last month during that unusually .warm spell
was the worst in five years. Several 10-speeds
were completely totaled and several persons suf-
fered scraped knees, skined elbows; one vic-
tim landed on his nose and is now nicknamed
"pekingese". Of course, there were the usual
reports of lost combs, contacts and class notes
which were never recovered. Among the re-
covered but unclaimed debris in the Property
Division are several shoes, a tube of rubber ce-
ment, a Tiny Tim autobiography, a box of Ovral,
and a partial upper plate, although several "lids"
were quickly reclaimed, a clerk said.
THE UNTHINKING gawkers appeared to have
received the worst of it, however. Invariably a
gawker looking at a collision between a Schwinn
and a Peugeot would run over a toe, go off
to the side and into the photographers booth in
front of the North Graduate library. One gawker
missed a turn and ran straight into a kiosk last
week. In the past, gawkers have frequently tied
up all 24 lanes of sidewalk traffic going in all
24 directions causing many to be late for class.
There were many pedestrians involved in ac-
cidents as well, according to B.B.B. reports. One
female was thrown up and into a bicycle's bas-
ket and carried 67 feet before the cyclist came to
a halt. He quickly turned his bike over, dumped
her off to the side, and pedalled away from the
scene of the accident.
These hit and runs were the most prevalent
types of reported accidents, statistics indicate.
There were many run-over toes and a number
of 'side swipes" in which the bicyclist merely
turned, nooded his head and smiled back at
the victim. Rear end collisions occurred with
greater frequency during the hourly rush per-
iods between classes. One male pedestrian re-
ported being struck from behind and said the
female bicyclist looked back over her shoulder
and yelled as she pulled away:
"Why the &A4i don't you look where
you're walking!"
THE WORST recorded case involving pedes-
trians occurred during the first week of classes
when a fresh-person suddenly stopped and stoop-
ed over to tie his shoe. An oncoming pedestrian,
daydreaming on the sidewalk, tripped over him,
scattering clipboards, texts, slide rules, lip-
stick, AMUROL diet cookies, hair rollers, and
other debris across the sidewalk. Both fallen pe-
destrians were subsequently run over by a bi-
cyclist, who claimed he didn't see them in time
and catapulted over the Natural Science glass-
house, a la Evel Knievel. Another cyclist's hand-
brakes failed and he swerved over to the south-
west bound lane into a U-M band member car-
rying his tuba home from practice. Fortunately,
rescuers were able to extract the cyclist from
the tuba before his brains were blown out. In
variably the gawkers heading on the north-west
and south-east bound lanes were distracted and
caused an eight cycle pile-up on that side. One
member said he lost control when his tire blew
after running over a hair-curler on the pave-
,rrl,,-,a ,u.11.-ndnwxrd Ifemale wc' al~kin towa, tr him
Fall crash rate
thnhigher tanever
THE HIGHEST claim paid by the B.B.B. to
date was $375 for a victim's second vasectomy.
The claimant charged that his potency had been
restored after he ran into a well-endowed pedes-
trian.
The Ann Arbor Environmental Safety Commis-
sion has started a campaign to urge bicyclists
to heed rights-of-way for pedestrians and to
"strap-up" for safety. Safety figures prove more
cyclists go down with their bikes if they strap
their feet to the pedals, their legs to the frame,
and their arms onto the handle-bars.
Several designs for pedestrian catchers have
been submitted by the Engineering school but all
have failed to pass minimum safety standards.
Apparently, this is why the testing and proving
grounds -have been confined to fields outside the
corporate city limits.
Several cases have been assigned to the Muni-
cipal small claims courts. Judge I.M. Pettifog-
ger II of. the 613th Court of Appeals says the
dockets have been rapidly backing up even
in his court. Negligence and public liability torts
have been the most common cases sent to his
courtroom.
ONE COMPLAINANT was awarded the de-
fendant's 50-yard line football ticket, his apart-
ment, and his girl friend all rent-free in the big-
gest judgment accorded to date. Another plain-
tiff's lawyer successively got an out-of-court set-
tlement of dinner at Win Schuler's, unlimited use
of a Fisher portable stereo and two tokes.
There is a case pending in Judge Aloysius
O'Houllihan's docket where a young coed is asking
for restitution from a bicyclist for "loss of af-
fection'. She states her young male companion
has not been the same since a head-on collision
with said defendant.
Many civil, public, and private groups have
long urged increased enforcement of th right-
to-walk laws with stiffer penalties for 20th, 30th
and 50th offenders. Pedestrians have been warned
to post illuminated signs both front and back
with peep-holes on themselves and fluorescent
bike flags in the interest of self-preservation.
However, many have also taken the added pre-
caution of wearing pre-World War I Bismark
helmets in self-defense.
Lower gear-speeds have been proposed by the
B.B.B. although tandem cyclists claim this will
increase energy used, slow down traffic over-
all, and create worse hazards than presently
exist.
QUENTIN DUCKWORTH, self-proclaimed en-
ergy czar, admitted this innovation would in-
crease energy expenditures but would more than
be made up by safer sidewalks for our walking
student body. Mr. Shimano of Fuji Cycle Re-
search and Development disagrees, however. He
says it will mean earlier starts from home, sleep-
ier, unattentive drivers, heavier traffic during
pre-dawn darkness, and a fall in efficiency dur-
ing the first three morning classes rather than
just during the first class, as is the case now.
He also feels the pile-ups could be worse during
evening rush hour darkness as well.
Several traffic associations feel that a better
cyclist education program would be more bene-
ficial to both the cyclist and pedestrian. Skidding
horizontally, front-end wheelies, and peddling with
greater scooping efficiency should be stressed for
cyclists, one authority said. Other sources claim
an educational program for pedestrians should
include dodging, darting, falling gracefully, and
spinning in place.
With newer and faster models coming out from
Japan, England and Addison there appears to
be an increasing need for some type of Side-
walk Safety program but none have been agreed
to yet. Public officials claim the rising tide
of collisions will not be stemmed until such a
program is instituted. They fear that possible
maiming, crippling injuries and even dropping
of classes may result from a lack of such a
safety program. University administration offic-
ials fear the overall enrollment may drop to the
detriment of the school's funding from the Lan-
sing legislature, and this the administration will
not tolerate!
THE MILWAUKEE JOURNAL
Publishers-Halt Syndicate, 1974
Paul O'Donnell is a European Correspondent for The Daily, who
spends most of his scholarship money sending us articles from Aix-
en-Provence, France.
I etters to
Hart
To The Daily:
I WOULD like to remind you
and your readers that in 1976
a the Opngt t a no ccnned
The Daily
that he will be defeated. How-
ever, if he. decides not to run it
is likely that he will be suc-
ceeded by a less responsive,
more conservative politician.
If this concerns you, I urge
you to watch for the petition
4W'F ~L