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The BigApple: Rotten to the poor
By MICHAEL BECKMAN f
(H1, HOW THE MIGHTY have fallen! The once proul city of f
New York, largest city in America, symbol of United States d
power and the American dream, the city paved with gold, has f
officially admitted that it can't handle its own financial affairs, tr
and has turned over the keys to its rapidly emptying vault to d
the State of New York. For the city it represents a last ditch
chance to stay afloat, for the state it represents a gamble that
if lost, will place it in an even deeper pool of quicksand than l
its new foster child. T
To most people from outside the Metropolitan area, it seems T
incomprehensible that an entire city, any city, let alone New e
York could become broke. But to native New Yorkers like f
myself, who have been able to watch the entire tragedy unfold m
day by day, the downfall was expected. How did the once aptly o
named Big Apple fall prey to the worm that is rapidly eating t
away at its insides? f
II
THE CITY'S DOWNFALL can be traced to three major p
factors that have occurred over the past three years. The first t
and most obvious being the total degeneration of the American u
economy. While the entire nation has been greatly affected, the be
New York area has been by far the hardest hit. The area was in
a recession long before the term became denied by the Presi-
dent. When the Federal Government finally acceded to the fact to
that America was indeed in a recession New York was offi- i
cially in a depression, the only part of the country to be so t
classified. When the unemployment rate in the country was j
reaching seven and eight per cent, the rate in Newark, New 0
Jersey was soaring to well over 10 per cent, and New York had ej
nearly as high a rate. Why New York was hit harder than the
rest of the nation can be attributed to the other two factors. L
se
THE FIRST OF THESE factors involves the taking over by G
the new Democratic regime in N.Y.C., after the election of de
1972. And the second has to do with the incredible series of t?
blunders, both politically and economically that were made by
these men. In 1972, Abraham Beame became mayor of the city, so
replacing John Lindsay. What Beame inherited was something w
akin to what Herbert Hoover received when he became Presi- o
dent in 1928. An outward look of prosperity and well-being, with st
~1~ 3f 4gian yD
Eighty-Five Years of Editorial Frees
Edited and managed by students at the University of
ew indications of the cracks in the financial dam.
oundation that supported N.Y.C. was beginning to crui
er the weight of years of mismanagement. Abe B
ormer comptroller of the city and a noted accountant
rusted with plugging the leak. But the dam has colla
er his administration.
THERE ARE NUMEROUS causes for the collapse,
east of which is the poor choice of subordinates by th
he best, or worst example of this involves the case of
rack Betting Corporation (OTB). OTB was created
xpress purpose of bringing in revenue for the city. I
ounder, Howard Samuels, it did exactly that. This
nostly to hard and honest work by Samuels and his ha
rganization. What was amazing about the organizal
hat throughout the ranks, there was nary a political hE
ound in a key position, which is contrary to New York
n 1973, Samuels left OTB to run for governor, and
laced by his top assistant, Paul Screvane. Immediate
ering out of the ranks began. Screvane began replaci
el's top quality men with his friends and political ha
egan eating up money for their personal comforts.
THE NEXT BLUNDER was made by Beame, who
o implement a five per cent surcharge on all OTB pays
ntent was to raise even more money for the city, as
appease the critics of legalized betting parlors. The ef
ust the opposite. The surcharge drove a large prop(
TB patrons back to their bookies or the race track;
arnings dropped drastically.
And to make matters even worse, Screvane, like
uther King, was a man with a vision. Only his vision u
elfish. Specifically, he wanted OTB to buy Madison
arden. His justification for this transaction was that
en's present owner, Gulf Western Corporation, was in
rouble.
What he didn't say was that to them, financial trot
omething like canceling their quarterly divident. So h
as to spend money meant for the people of New Yorl
it a bunch of millionaires. Well, the whole thing caus
ink, and for awhile at least, Screvane backed down.
n !FBI
By DOC KRALIK
domn WASHINGTON - The Fed
ation of Bungling Imbeci
(FBI) today found Presid
fMichigan Gerald Ford. Agents captui
'hone: 764-0552 Ford quietly in a large w-
house on Pennsylvania Aven
not far from their own he
quarters.
Earlier in the day the I
captured Ford's cohorts Hei
and Nancy Kissinger while tl
were jogging on a streetcor
not far from the house. Unli
fan ly as it may seem, they w
out jogging.
Thus the FBI ended its sea
zler is why the gen- for Ford which began more tI
to worry. After all, a year ago when a number
ton threyte aus, large trucks with "Mayflow
on the tube, hus- written on their sides remo,
to spend the day Ford and all his belongings fr
nd children or per- his West Virginia town hoc.
od book or a Sun- "That 'Mayflower' bit re,
threw us off," said FBI dix
tor Clarence Jelley. "We kr
E prospects seems from the beginning that it i
illing - except to some kind of code, but
e who needs a fix. couldn't tell just what it me,
Now we know that he was m
sturbing about the ing to this white house in
ntion it drew over tourist district."
nportant events as F B I special-agent-in-cha
ary aid to Israel, Charles Late, who has been
whole episode did much to portray the credibility and the in-
tent of members of the Beame administration towards the
people.
ANOTHER PRIME EXAMPLE of the city government's
warped values is the case of mass transit. As of this September
1st, mass transit rates were raised for the third time in the
past ten years. A ride on the subway now costs 50 cents a
shot, where it used to be 35 cents. Along with this increase,
rates on the Penn Central and Long Island railroads also in-
creased. Tolls on all of the bridges and tunnels were raisesd
from one dollar to $1.50. While all of this has been happening,
more mass transit and rairoad workers have been laid off, there
are now less trains running, and the Port Authority, which used
to be a model of efficiency, is a shambles.
But the most incredible aspect of this saga deals with the
proposed construction of a new West Side highway. At a time
when New York is on a time schedule to meet Federal Clean
Air Act standards, they are trying to upgrade roads for the gas
burning polluting elements that it has to get rid of.
PUTTING IT IN dollars and cents, the new highway will
cost the city at least 110 million dolars and the Federa Gov-
ernment 1 billion dollars. This is interesting because the Feds
seem willing to finance a highway, but they won't allocate any
funds to save the city from default. Anyway, instead of all this
the city could apply for and receive 50 million from the Fed-
eral government for mass transit. And city officials wonder why
they are the subject of merciless ridicule.
Only a few of New York's myriad of problems have been
pointed out. To discuss all of them would require a column the
length of a doctoral thesis. Among the other things that have
effectively crippled the city over the past couple of months have
been a sanitation strike, threats to follow suit by the police and
firemen, and at present a teacher's strike.
THESE ACTIONS ARE MOSTLY over New York's policy
of laying off municipal workers. The city is digging itself into
a deeper and deeper grave. It is bankrupt, and only through
loans has it been able to survive. The rulers have finally ad-
mitted that they can't handle the city's financial affairs, and as
"WhatBeame inher-
ited was something
akin to what Herbert
Hoover received when
he became President in
1929. An outlook of
prosperity and well-
being, with few indica-
tions of the cracks in
the financial dam."
..................s;....,..:.t .s~. . . . . ..t.i " 5s**
of this past Monday, control of the city's economic affairs has
been turned over to the seven member Emergency Financial
Control Board controlled by Hugh Carey, the governor of New
York. The state has also put up 2.3 billion dollars to keep the
city afloat until December. It is only the latest in a series of
humiliations to be bestowed upon this once proud metropolis.
SO WHAT LIES in store for the city? Now the question
also involves the whole state because if the city defaults, the
state will go down with it. The next three months could very
well be the most crucial in the city and the entire country's his-
tory. New York's plight is more than just a local problem. Its
fate belies the fate of the whole country. New York sets the tone
for the entire country and if it falls, all else will follow.
America needs a strong New York, and right now New York
needs a strong America to help it through this dark period.
New York has admitted it can't cope with its probems. It is
drowning and begging for help, but so far none has been forth-
coming. It is now America's choice, do we throw New York a
life preserver and help pull it ashore, or let it fall prey to the
loan sharks.
Michael Beckman is a freshperson enrolled in LSA.
Washington
finds Ford
in
ing to find Ford from the be-
ginning said, "This effectively
puts an end to everyone we
know who was in the GOP.
There may be other members
Saturday, September 20, 1975
News P
420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Mi. 48104
Football pact calms
the case except to say, "It in-
volved interviews with a lot of
people, a lot of investigative
techniques. We had picked up
rumors of the Kissingers' buy-
ing salami in a nearby party
store."
Those rumors led Late and his
crew to stake out the white
house for 22 hours previous. to
the arrest.
Ford now faces numerous fed-
eral and state charges includ-
ing skiing too much, smiling in-
appropriately, blowing his lines
and smoking a pipe. Federal
prosecutors are trying to as-
semble enough evidence to con-
vict Ford of drinking beer in
public in addition to these
charges.
Thus the saga of the reaction-
ary GOP has come to an end.
The GOP, which was to have
been a vanguard for inaction on
important legislation, chose as
its symbol the now familiar
flatulent and drooping elephant.
Mrs. Betty Ford, when in-
formed that her husband had
been found in the family room,
took the news almost casually.
"Oh," she said, "I thought he
was out in the pool swimming
his laps and pushing in his sec-
retaries."
Mrs. Ford has been writing a
book about her life with Gerry,
but the publication of the book
book tells how often she slept
their daughter's affair with Ste-
phen Weird, and the real rea-
with Gerry, the inside story on
son that Ford doesn't wear
double-breasted suits anymore.
A WCTU spokesperson said,
"Suppose your daughter went
out with a creep with a mus-
tache like that? I don't even see
how they frenched."
FBI director Clarence Jelley
wanted to assure the American
citizens that what happened to
Gerald Ford could never happen
to them. "The problem with
Ford," Jelley told newsmen,
"was that he was so well known.
The average American citizen is
different. On your average citi-
zen we have a complete file."
Doc Kralik is currently un-
der investigation by the FBI
as a Stephen Weed look-alike.
He claims to have ex-fiancees
at large in all major American
ciies.
AMERICA AVERTED what may have
been a major crisis with the an-
nouncement that the National Foot-
ball League settled a player's strike
just three days before the regular
season was scheduled to begin.
The prospect that five . teams
would not take the field tomorrow un-
nerved the NFL executives, the pres-
idents of the major television net-
works, and millions of beer-guzzling
armchair quarterbacks.
Somehow a Sunday afternoon with-
out a gladiatorial confrontation be-
tween two groups of adult males play-
ing a kid's game for incredibly high
salaries just plain frightened people.
And the story became front page
news across the country.
It's fairly easy to understand why
the football management and the
television honchos were alarmed -
the cancellation of the games meant
bucks out of their pockets.
But the real puzz
eral public begant
without the games
bands would have
with their wives an
haps reading a go
day newspaper.
NONE OF THOS
' particularly ch:
the football junkie
What is most di
strike is the atte
such genuinely im
the possible milit
the revelation tha
tained an arsenal
pons, and, locally
precarious fiscal si
Still, it's vitallyi
strike was settled-
probably would ha
panic, as peoplea
turned on their te
expecting to see F
of the organization but we
haven't heard of them."
Late declined to give the de-
tails on how he finally broke
has been delayed by the Wo-
men's Christian Temperance
Union because of alleged scan-
dalous details. Supposedly the
at the CIA main-
of biological wea-
y, the University's
ituation.
important that the
- otherwise, there
ve been a national
across the country
elevisions tomorrow
FOOTBALL.
_. 1
Doobies rise for rocking
* ON i
occasioR n EU concet
11
BNTMARK
NORTH
P A separative peace
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS in the
Middle East - preliminary steps
toward the signing of a three-year
pact between Israel and Egypt and
U.S. diplomatic talk of new arms deals
with Israel and Jordan - point sadly
at what has become an ongoing series
of contradictions in our policy there.
About the pact, at least two obser-
vations should be made:
One, the stationing of American
"technicians" as part of an early
warning system in the Sinai Desert
represents a momentous change in
Mideast diplomacy. Not since the
British Mandate period has any ma-
jor outside power played so formal a
role in monitoring the goings-on of
the area.
Once again, we're committed - and
to whom, one might ask, are we really
committed? - to maintaining order
in an area of the world tvwo oceans
away. Whatever the pretenses, the
purpose of direct intervention can
only be, simply, to increase diplomat-
ic influence there.
Another of the pact's obvious defi-
ciencies is its miserable failure to
even consider what most people agree
is the real source and key to the
Middle East problem - that of the
Palestinians.
T TNTIL THOSE two-and-a-half mil-
lion people are either assimilated
completely into countries around the
TODAY'S STAFF
region or given some state of their
own, any other separate peace in the
Middle East is superficial.
And the real contradictions arise
when this pact, which still, by the
way, must be approved by Congress,
is juxtaposed with the recent talk of
giving Israel Pershing missiles, and
selling anti-aircraft Hawks to Jordan.
The transfer of arms to a variety
of countries in the Middle East is not
in and of itself without precedent.
But there are points at which that
kind of weaponry supply stretches be-
yond realistic limits. Israel is already
armed, through American loans and
gifts to fight three weeks of war un-
assisted.
THE SALE OF THE Hawks, onel
might argue, would go to Jordan1
and not Egypt. But arms in the
Middle East have a habit of turning
up in the most unlikely of places, as
the 1973 appearance in Egypt of Lib-
yan jets purchased from France,
would indicate.
Worse than the obvious conflict of
interests, worse even than the obvious
inability of the United States to play
an impartial role in the Middle East,
is the notion of countries armed to
the teeth, combined with an early
warning system that cleverly informs
us of the outbreak of war. It has all
the makings of a battle theatre, and
there are many who would raise the
curtain.
Three conflicting interests seem to
emerge: the economic interest of
By CHRIS KOCHMANSKI
The Doobie Brothers have al-
ways seemed somewhat of a
"sleeper" band and their nearly
sold-out concert at Eastern
Michigan's Bowen Field House
Wednesday night confirmed that
impression.
The concert proceeded much
like the Doobies' career. It
started slowly, sparked some
falsehope for hand-clapping
jams, quited down, and then in
a wink of the eye erupted into
a first-rate show.
All concerneddwere provided
with a healthy dose of distrac-
tion. Open act The Outlaws
served no greater purpose than
to get everyone seated, the be-
tween-bands break lasted un-
Unlike the Beach Boys, how-
ever, they carry their instru-
mentals to a sound level many
decibels higher.
The Doobie Brothers have not
heretofore established superstar
status nor a rabid cult following
like other more publicized rock
bands. Therefore, their music,
especially in the concert's early
stages, elicited a surprisingly
cool response.
Yet when they brought five
members of their tour com-
panions The Memphis Horns on
stage, they immediately broke
out into their patented brand of
slick, heavy-beat rock.
At times the horns infringed
on the guitar work, but general-
ly supplied smoothness and sev-
a recent development has added
a second lead guitarist to the
entourage.
All talent was in evidence at
show's end as the Doobies mov-
ed in rapid succession from
"Sweet Maxine" to "Long Train
Runnin' " and finally to "China
Grove," all three of them su-
perb, all-out rockers.
For an encore, they jammed
long and heavily and closed with
their theme song of sorts "Lis-
ten to the Music."
All things considered, the con-
cert was less than memorable
and accurately pinpointed only
one side of the Doobies music,
their chart-busting but less com-
plex "party" music.
And yet, the concert's final
30 minutes made the price of
admission worthwhile. One pa-
tron, "Doctor" David Greer of
Ann Arbor, was moved to com-
ment: "I like the Doobie
Brothers even if they are a
girls' band."
"The concert. .
started slowly, sparked
hope for hand-clap-
ping jams . . then in
a wink of the eye
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WEST
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EAST
(Hector)
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South
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North
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rts
Declarer's optimism
leads to contract
but not to a win
FRIEDLANDER
tinuation. Instantly he returned
a third round of hearts.
Paris jumped on the trick and
pulled the fateful horse into the
city by cashing the remainder
of the suit, leaving this situation
just prior to the fifth trick:
NORTH
(Achilles)
AJ 6
f K Q 8 5
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Opening lead: King of hearts.
The plains of Ilium were hot
and dusty, and Odysseus' pa-
tience was exhausted. The siege
was not going well for either
side. The Greeks were anxious
to return home, and the face
that had launched a thousand
ships ten years earlier was be-
ginning to show its age.
Under cover of a white flag,
Odysseus sought out Paris of
Troy. Once together, they agreed
immediately that further blood-
shed was senseless, and that the
only civilized way to settle their
conflict was over the bridge
table.
"But what shall we do for
partners?" queried Paris.
At that moment Hector ran
into sight by the wall with
Achilles in close pursuit. They
stopped in front of their com-
patriots, and, sensing the fu-
tility of continuing to run around
the walls of Troy, agreed to
play.
SOUTH
(Odysseus)
4 8 4
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On the lead of the last heart,
North and South could each
shed a spade, but East was
stuck. If he discarded from
either minor suit, he would set
up either declarer's or dummy's
fourth card in the suit. There-
fore, Hector threw his queen of
spades.
Paris returned a diamond won
by Odysseus in the closed hand.
Odysseus led a spade and when
Paris played low, he finessed
the jack, taking the rest of the
tricks.
"You must beware of Greeks
bearing gifts," Odysseus cau-
tioned Paris as he scored up
.ame, rubber, match and war.
"At trick four you should have
led a spade to establish your
fifth trick and to break up the
timing of the squeeze.
comfortably long, and seeming
swarms of mosquitoes pestered
band and audience alike.
It's a credit to the Doobies,
then, that their set eventually
brought the entire crowd into a
eral jazzy interludes. Their very
presence nonetheless suggested
that the Doobies are first and
foremost a studio band.
Fortunately, the Doobies did