Eighty-Six Years of Editorial Freedom
420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Ml 48104
Wednesday, March 3, 1976
News Phone: 764-0552
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan
-x
M KE U
THE MILWAUKEE JOURNAL
Scandal
By AKIO YAMAKAWA choosinj
and MARTHA WINNACKER isters i
TOKYO (PNS) - The Lock- as a m
heed scandal is more than Now
a Japanese Watergate. If it has be
breaks open, it could destroy agent s
the political coalition that has million
ruled Japan since World War annual
II. sent she
A thorough investigation of an, glui
Yoshio Kodama, the man who TV sets
passed $7 million in Lockheed scandal
bribes, could blacken the image
of Japan's ruling Liberal Demo- R ATH
cratic Party (LDP) beyond re- a
pair, exposing a world of col- Kodama
lusion between government and ernmen
underworld. on Locl
But it could also loosen a
backlash of violence against the
governing LDP by its militant mm".
right wing supporters - succes- 'Not
sors to the prewar nationalists
who pushed Japan to militarism Locki
with frequent and dramatic po- $7 m
litical assassinations in the
1930's. ary
Kodama - considered by ma- throu
ny the undisputed "godfather"
of Japan's two-million strong sets as
underworld - is also a key
figure in the right wing of
the LDP. If Kodama is dis-
graced along with his power curities
base, the right may again re- sion, pr
sort to force to gain access the nam
to power. who re
In an
KODAMA HEADS two federa- the low
tions including some 30 (parlian
underworld organizations-from subpoen
dedicated nationalists who train cluding
rigorously for future military chairma
action to gangsters running to testif
prostitution rings and hotels. If the
Active membership is estimat- the imp
ed at 120,000. resign,c
His money helped found one out bri:
of the two LDP predecessors political
- whose platform was support Mean
for the wartime emperor and of Koda
many of whose members were bribe re
on lists to be purged by the despite
U.S. occupation for their war- ma's te
time role. to Marc
And he was instrumental in question
g at least two prime min-
n the. 1950's, continuing
ajor financier and pow-
ker in the party.
the revelation that he
een Lockheed's secret
ince 1958 - handling $7
in bribes and taking an
salary of $166,000 - has
ock waves through Jap-
ng the Japanese to their
as the Diet debates the
.
ER THAN carrying out
vigorous investigation of
a, however, the LDP gov-
t is focusing its attention
kheed and the U.S. Se-
threatens Japan's
by the lower house's Budget
Committee Feb. 16 and 17 pro-
duced little more than a series
of "I don't knows" and "I don't
remembers."
POLICE RAIDS on Lockheed's
Tokyo offices and Kodama's
home Feb. 24 netted four tons
of documents, but came after
a week of press speculation
about searches, making it un-
likely that incriminating mate-
rial was still on hand.
LDP officials may well fear
more than public exposure of
corruption. Kodama was active
in terrorist bands agitating for
military expansion in the 1930's
w the revelation that Kodama has been
heed's secret agent since 1958-handling
illion in bribes and taking an annual sal-
of $166,000-has sent shock waves
gh Japan, gluing the Japanese to their TV
s the Diet debates the scandal.'
sta mamen:... .:.:.::.::.::.:....:.::...:.,:.::..:.;.:r.>:.a
visit to Japan. The visit was
cancelled, but few here doubt
the shock troops were serious.
Kodama's early history is well
known in Japan. Rising rapidly
in the ultranationalist right dur-
ing the 1930's, he was made
head in 1941 of a special unit
assigned to procure strategic
materials for the Imperial Navy
in Shanghai.
When the war ended, Kodama
controlled a stockpile of copper,
bauxite and industrial diamonds
worth about $3 million. By the
time U.S. authorities moved to
confiscate the hoard, he had
managed to conceal enough to
form the basis of a personal
fortune.
Immeriately after Japan's sur-
render, he became an advisor
to the caretaker cabinet which
took over the reins of power.
But in late 1945, as the U.S.
occupation began to purge those
responsible for the war from
public life, Kodama was arrest-
ed as a class A war criminal.
B UT BY 1948, U.S. zeal for
prosecuting war criminals
had waned and the Cold War
had become an overriding con-
cern. For Japan, this meant re-
lease of most of those imprison-
ed and an emphasis on building
a strong anti-communist govern-
ment, regardless of its wartime
background.
Kodama was set free in this
new atmosphere.
In prison he had become the
confidant of his fellow inmate
Nobusuke Kishi, who became
prime minister in 1956. Kodama
rulers
is known to have played an
important part in bringing Kis-
hi to power.
Twice during Kodama's
stretch on the Lockheed pay-
roll - and once during Kishi's
rule - Japan's Air Self De-
fense Forces abruptly switched
order for aircraft from other
corporations to Lockheed.
'N 1958 JAPAN decided to buy
fighters from Grumman. A
year later the order for 230
planes, worth $300 million, was
suddenly switched to Lockheed.
In addition to Kishi, those pub-
licly involved in the decision
were all close associates of
Kodama.
In 1972 another sudden switch
occured, this time from McDon-
nell Douglas to Lockheed.
Even more critical for Japan,
however, was a 1972 decision to
drop plans to produce anti-sub-
marine reconnaissance planes in
Japan and buy Lockheed PC-3s
instead. Though Kodama's role
in the affair remains unproven,
the order was cancelled after
the scandal broke.
Now Kodama is in the spot-
light, and his dual role as un-
derworld leader and behind-the-
scenes political manipulator
threatens to bring the entire
post-war relationship between
the right-wing underworld and
the LDP into the open.
Akio Yamakawa is a regular
writer in Japan for regular per-
iodicals there and Martha Win-
nacker is a PNS editor.
and Exchange Commis-
ressing them to reveal
nes of Japanese officials
ceived Lockheed bribes.
unprecedented move,
rer house of the Diet
ment) voted Feb. 26 to
a three Americans, in-
Lockheed's former vice-
an A. Charles Kotchian,
fy on the case.
e names are revealed,
licated individuals could
closing the scandal with-
nging down the whole
structure.
while the investigation
ama and other possible
ecipients has been lax,
much fanfare. Koda-
stimony was postponed
h 1 due to illness, while
ing of seven individuals
- and. an attack on him now
could trigger a new wave of vio-
lent assaults on politicians con-
sidered hostile to the right.
Since the war the extreme
right has allied itself with the
LDP, some of whose factions
call for revision of Japan's
U.S.-imposed constitution to re-
instate the emperor as head of
state and rearm Japan.
But occasional violent inci-
dents - such as a face-slapping
attack on Prime Minister Miki
at a public ceremony last June
- remind the public that the
militant right still exists.
JN 1960 KODAMA himself or-
ganized an armed force of
10,000 to 15,000 to fight demon-
strators during President
Dwight Eisenhower's scheduled.
I~TS A GR.AT CONVER&SATION PIEce AN ONLY COS' $20 5I7uLIO
Ford's school fundin:.!!?
7
PIRGIM REPORTS:
State ut~lity reform
PRESIDENT FORD this week pro-
posed to Congress a new educa-
tion funding program which would
allow the states to decide how feder-
al school money should be spent. Up
to now, federal aid for the education
of the poor and handicapped has been
spent in programs designed at the
national level.
In attempting to throw this eco-
nomic power into the hands of the
states, Ford is pushing for a pro-
gram which would increase the like-
lihood that some of the funds will be
spent in a discriminatory fashion.
Those who might suffer are blacks
and other groups without much legis-
lative clout in certain states. With
each state drawing up budgets and
programs, some of the authority may
well fall into the hands of officials
with less than enlightened views on
the educational needs of deprived
persons.
With the funding plans made by
the federal government, the level of
fairness in the distribution of t h e
money would be more even.
Bu federal grants are not sufficient
to ensure that schoolage children in
America get decent educations. As
TODAY'S STAFF:
News: Barbara Jordan, Lois Josimo-
vich, Andy Lilly, Pauline Lubens,
Rob Meachum, Tim Schick, B i I I
Turque
Editorial Page: Stephen Hersh, Karen
Schulkins, Tom Stevens
Arts Page: 'Jeff Selbst, James Valk
Photo Technician: Steve Kagan
our school systems now stand, the
more affluent the area in which the
pupils live, the more money is usually
spent per pupil by the schools.
THUS POOR children are apt to
suffer educational handicap:
Their home environments may put
them at a learning disadvantage, and
their schooling will probably be in-
ferior because their regional mone-
tary resources will probably be slim.
This is clearly unfair. Qhildren
should not suffer due to economic
factors beyond their control, as long
as the means exist to help them.
Educational funding for elementary
and secondary schools should be rout-
ed through the federal government,
and distributed equally to all of the
nation's schools on a per-pupil basis.
~.94
Editorial Staff
ROB MEACHUM EBILL TURQUE
Co-Editors-in-Chief
JEFF RISTINE ................ Managing Editor
TIM SCHICK , . Executive Editor
STEPHEN HERSH Editorial Director
JEFF SORENSEN ............... Arts Editor
CHERYL PILAT? . Magazine Editor
STAFF WRITERS: Susan Ades, Tom Allen, Glen
Allerhand, Marc Basson, Dana Bauman, David
Blomquist,; James Burns, Kevin Counihan,
Jodi Dimick, Mitch Dunitz, Elaine Fletcher,
Phil Foley, Mark Friedlander, David Garfinkel,
Tom Godell, Kurt Harju, Charlotte Heeg,
Richard James. Lois Josimovich, Tom Kettler,
Chris Kochmanski, Jay Levin, Andy Lilly, Ann
Marie Lipinski, George Lobsenz, Pauline Lu-
bens, Teri Maneau, Angelique Matney, Jim
Nicoll, Maureen Nolan, Mike Norton, Ken Par-
sigian, Kim Potter, Cathy Reutter, Anne
Marie Scbiavi, Karen Schukins, Jeff Selbat,
Rick Sobel, Tom Stevens, Steve Stojic, Cathi
Suyak, Jim Tobin, Jim valk, Margaret Yao,
Andrew Zerman, David whiting, Michael Beck-
man and Jon Pansius.
By RICHARD CONLIN
UTILITY RATE REFORM is
often favored in the inter-
est of equity for the poor con-
sumer, to reduce the escalation
of rates, or to stretch out finite
energy resources. Few non-
scientists have considered an-
other reason for adopting con-
servation-oriented utility rates:
the human and economic cost
of environmental pollution.
The generation of electric
power is probably the single
largest cause of air pollution in
the United States. Power pro-
duction also makes a major
contribution to water pollution,
and if nuclear power continues
to expand, presents a highly
dangerous threat of radioactive
pollution.
An analysis of present air pol-
lution produced by Consumers
Power Company electric gener-
ation showed a production of
some 500 thousand tons of pol-
lutants each year, mostly in the
form of sulfur dioxide. The
amount of pollutant produced
is equivalent to a 4-ton truck-
load every 4 minutes,' 24 hours
a day, 365 days a year. To put
it another way, a household, at
the average usage of some 500
kilowatt hours per month, caus-
es the generation of 300 pounds
of pollution per year: 210
pounds of sulfur dioxide, 50
pounds of particulates, ,and 40
pounds of nitric oxides and hy-
drocarbons.
QUANTIFIABLE DAMAGE
alone, based on studies by the
National Academy of Sciences,
could be placed at $100 million
dollars for the Consumers Pow-
er area. Since Consumers Pow-
er produces about 40 per cent
of electricity in the state of
Michigatn one may estimate the
statewide total near $250 million
dollars annually.
That's a lot of damage. Some
of it can be eliminated or con-
trolled by pollution control de-
vices. But additional generation
produces more pollution, no
matter how stiff the controls.
We do not know how much dam-
age to our health, our economy,
and our environment we have
already done. And if electric
consumption continues its dra-
matic growth, that damage will
increase equally dramatically.
Electric consumption has
been doubling in the U.S. every
seven to ten years. And the
slowdown presently projected
by utilities still would result
in a doubling again by 1990.
'The real situation
we face is not how
much electric energy
we need for survival,
but, for example, how
many cases of emphy-
sema we are willing to
cause to add more air
conditioning to o u r
homes.'
Some of this growth may be
necessary. But a lot of it, and
a lot of present consumption, is
wasted in inefficient energy sys-
tems, in unneeded luxury de-
vices, or in substituting energy
for human labor ,thereby con-
tributing to our unemployment
problem.
THE REAL SITUATION we
face is not how much electric
energy we need for survival,
but, for example, how many
cases of emphysema we are
willing to cause to add more air
conditioning to our homes.
We can minimize future dam-
age, and we can strengthen our
society, by taking serious cot-
servation steps.
PIRGIM has proposed and
advocated utility rate reform as
a key aspect of that conserva-
tion strategy.
Our proposal, which has been
presented to the Public Service
Commission and recently intro-
duced as legislation (SB 1279)
by Senator John R. Otterbacher
(D-Grand Rapids), would re-
quire graduated rates for resi-
dential usage, and peakload
pricing for industrial and com-
mercial use.
Graduated rates, or "Life-
line" rates, would provide the
basic amount of electric energy
needed to run a household at a
relatively inexpensive base
price - perhaps the first 400
or 500 kilowatt hours. Addition-
al amounts over that would
be charged higher prices, to dis-
courage excessive use. Exemp-
tions could be built into the sys-
tem to protect people with elec-
tric water or space heating and
farmers, whose usage may be
necessarily higher.
PEAK - LOAD PRICING
wouldcharge premium prices
at peak times of electric con-
sumption, and discounts at off-
peak times. Since it is the peak
which utility plants must be
built to meet, a more even load
would help to curtail costly
utility construction and provide
an overall reduction in energy
usage.
We cannot continue to expand
our energy usage infinitely in
a world of finite resources, par-
ticularly when we realize the
damage which excessive expan-
sion can cause. Utility rate re-
form would provide financial
incentives to conserve energy,
using the price mechanism
rather than resorting to cim-
plex bureaucratic governmental
regulations.
If utility rate reform is adopt-
ed in Michigan, we may take a
giant step toward solving ma-
jor environmental and energy
problems. Let your legislators
know that you support SB 1279,
for utility rate reform and en-
vironmental protection.
Richard Conlin writes for
Public Interest Research Groups
in Michigan (PIRGIM).
*--:-The Lighter Side ;. .
Nixon and Mao
reminite... sort of
.,r,-a nr:iM..w". Dick W est
WASHINGTON (UPI)-No event in recent times has whetted
more curiosities than Richard Nixon's tr. +, China
this week.
Not even the CIA appears to have a very clear idea as
to why the Chinese invited the former President over for a
visit. But CIA Director George Bush made a stab at explain-
ing it anyhow.
He said on a television program that the Chinese recog-
nized in Nixon someone "who was very understanding of the
threat in the world, which they conceived largely to be the
Soviets."
Asked if the Chinese realized Nixon had resigned "in dis-
grace," Bush said "Watergate makes no difference" to the
Chinese. "They aren't dwelling on Watergate."
This may provide some clue as to what was, discussed
during the hour and 40 minute "friendly conversation" be-
tween Nixon and Mao Tse-tung, the 82-year-old communist
party chairman.
A CHINESE GOVERNMENT spokesman said Mao asked
Nixon to convey his regards to President Ford when he re-
turned to the United States, but gave no other details.
The reason no elaboration was given may have been be-
cause the rest of the talk went something like this:
Mao said he was glad to see Nixon again and asked what
brought him to Peking.
Nixon said he was there at the invitation of Chinese
leaders.
Mao said, oh, yes, he remembered inviting him now. He
said he was getting on in years and tended to forget little
things like that.
Nixon said that although he wasn't as old as Mao, his
nmemory wasn't as good as it once was either.
Mao asked Nixon how things were going back in America
and whether he anticipated any trouble getting re-elected.
NIXON , REMINDED. MAO that he was no longer in office.
Mao said he was sorry to hear that and asked if Nixon
had been forced out by a cultural revolution.
Nixon replied that he had resigned because of the Water-
gate investigation.
Mao said he had forgotten about that, but this time it
wasn't a case of faulty memory. He said he had simply put
it out of his mind because he didn't believe in wallowing in
Watergate.
Nixon said it was too bad the folks back home didn't feel
that way. He said it was worth flying all the way to China
just to find someone who had forngotten about Watergate.
Mao said as he recalled Nixon's last visit they also' had
something else in common and that was an understanding as
to who was really the threat in the world.
NIXON REPLIED THAT if Mao could be understanding
about Watergate, he certainly could be understanding about
the Soviets.
Mao asked who had replaced Nixon as President.
Nixon said it was a chap named Ford.
Mao said now that Nixon had mentioned it, he recalled
having met Ford last year. Nice fellow, although a bit un-
gainly. He said he hoped Nixon would pass along his regards
when he got back home.
seabed missiles
To The Daily:
I AM A MEMBER OF the
Global Issues Forum, the group
responsible for bringing Tony
Hodges to Ann Arbor. Hodges,
an Hawaiian environmentalist,
alleges that the United States
and the U.S.S.R. are deploying
nuclear missile sites in the
ocean bedr This is a violation
of two major treaties, which
could endanger the lives of ev-
Or hilm" hin
Letters
Nations, and the Department of
Defense. While we did not get
any response to our invitations
from the government officials,
we did have numerous confir-
mations from the media. Some
of these confirmations were
made three or four times -
even on the morning of the lec-
ture itself. However, finally,
only three of them showed up-
WXYZ-TV 7, the Michigan
Daily, and the Ann Arbor Sun. .
As a person pursuing the field
of communications T fee lioite,
to
The
gations, the media may have
been either too skeptical, for
one, or secondly, afraid to scare
the public needlessly, before he
has been proven right or wrong.
Further, media send their peo-
ple out to stories which they
think are most newsworthy: it
is possible that they did not
think Hodges was enough of a
priority in relation to other
events of the day. A final pos-
sibility is that the media were
informed not to cover the story.
Because the government and
Daily
it is difficult to surmise who
controls who. I once thought
that the media were "the safe-
guards of the people." I am no
longer sure who the people are
-the average U. S. citizen or
the top governmental official?
Communications are vital to
our country; without them each
of us would exist in a vacu-
um. But the present media con-
trols and maninulates our lives.
This is frightening to me be-
cause I do not trust their pre-
sent nriorities
been part of this process. Like-
wise, my work has brought him
one step closer to obtaining the
justice he seeks. Our reward
has been the increased aware-
ness we have stimulated on this
campus. To many people his
work is distant and removed
becalise the ocean is thousands
of miles away. But the media
is right here - it is an integ-
ral part of our lives. We can-
not pretend that it is as far
off as a distant ocean. If we
do, then neonle like Tony Hod-
ti' . I . ../s4.ri dIA ii ,{tpii! " ;:.
I