The Michigan Daily-Saturday, May 26, 1979-Page 15 Carter asks for help from Democrats WASHINGTON (AP) - President Carter conceded yesterday that the public sees its political leadership as suffering from "paralysis, stagnation and drift" and asked Democrats to close ranks behind him in dealing with the nation's problems. In an appearance before the Democratic National Committee's spring meeting, Carter said the country faces severe problems and that the public obviously has doubts about whether elected officials are equal to the challenge. THE PRESIDENT also said he looks forward to the 1980 elections, despite the problems he faces. Carter told the Democrats he was not announcing his plans to seek re- election, "but I have never backed down from a fight." The president said if he does run, he will take his effort to every precinct in the nation "and I have no doubt it would be successful." IN A BLUNT address to the party leaders, Carter warned the Democrats that the public sees the government, which the Democrats dominate, as stricken with "paralysis, stagnation and drift." "The American people do not like it, and neither do I," he said. "You are leaders of our party. I need your help and support. If those of us in positions of responsibility are unwilling to take the heat, to make unpopular decisions, to stand up and fight for them, to offer answeres to complex questions, then we will have failed in our hour of history. "WE HAVE NEVER failed our coun- try, as Democrats, and I don't believe we will fail it now," he said. Carter's comments came at the close of a turbulent week of intra-party squabbling, including the beginnings of a movement to dump him from the Democrats' 1980 ticket. Earlier in the week, the House Democratic Caucus rejected Carter energy policies in harsh language. And five House Democrats announced plans to seek an alternative to Carter for the next presidential nomination. Democrats in Cleveland also were putting together a movement to draft Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), for the party's presidential nomination. Adequate gas predicted for weekend motorists From AP and UPI Michigan motorists should have few problems getting gasoline for the Memorial Day holiday weekend, but they might find themselves waiting behind a State Police patrol car at the pump in some areas of the state. Troopers at the Rockford post in western Michigan said yesterday they had only 100 gallons of gasoline available for the 30 cruisers that will be patrolling the highways over the long weekend. OTHER POSTS around the, state, especially those in the Detroit area, said they were either low on gasoline or out altogether for patrol cars. And that means they'll have to go to retail stations along with the rest of the motoring public for a fill-up. The Automobile Club of Michigan said yesterday its spot check of 243 stations along the state's main travel routes found all planning to be open during the daylight hours today, 71 per cent tomorrow and 86 per cent on Memorial Day. In the Detroit area, the Auto Club said all 98 of the stations it surveyed plan to be open during the daytime today but only 38 per cent tomorrow and 47 per cent Monday. HOWEVER, ONLY four of the 19 Shell stations in the Grand Rapids area said they expected to have enough fuel to last through the weekend. Three said they expected to run out by last night, 10 were planning to close today, tomorrow and Monday. PUBLIC CONFERENCE SCHEDULED: Experts plan for June Gasohol Day LANSING (UPI) - A statewide, public conference is planned for June 20 to win support for the use of gasohol as an immediate solution to dwindling gasoline supplies. Sen. Richard Allen (R-Ithaca), a key supporter of the gasoline-ethyl alcohol blend, told a news conference yester- day a number of gasohol experts and advocates will attend the Gasohol Day conference to present evidence in favor of its use by the average motorist. "UP UNTIL now, no coordinated ef- fort has been put forth to convince the legislature that gasohol development and production is feasible and necessary," Allen said. "Hopefully, as a result of Gasohol Day, we'll be able to gather support to show that the public is willing to use gasohol and wants to have this alter- native," he said. Gasohol is a blend of 90 per cent gasoline and 10 per cent ethyl alcohol distilled from crops or crop residues. PROMOTERS SAY it has no adverse ca tiv no th Ye ra vi Ti co Di Cc fr Ml th Gc hi Tr m jua is he ci lo dr ki an Plutonium-carrying truck crashes in N. Michigan CADILLAC (UPI) - A truck or 1,436 grams, of plutonium-238, which rrying about three pounds of radioac- has an 86.4-year half-life, said Donald ve plutonium crashed into a car on a Van Farowe, chief of the state health )rthern Michigan highway, killing department's radiological health ree persons, but authorities said division in Lansing. sterday there was no danger of a The truck also was carrying diation leak. beryllium, but Van Farowe said that Police said the car carrying the three material is dangerous only under cer- tims pulled into the path of the truck tain circumstances. hursday night just west of this resort VAN FAROWE noted that the truck, immunity. a 23-ton vehicle, is designed to THE TRUCK, owned by the Birdwell withstand strong shocks. ivision of Seismographic Services "The truck is a very large truck," orp. of Tulsa, Okla., was traveling Van Farowe said. "It was hardly even om Manistee in western Michigan to damaged. The material is so heavily ount Pleasant, 106 miles east. shielded - protected in lead and steel Killed in the crash were the driver of - even if it melts the shield melts stays e car, Harvey Kaufman, 69, of aroundsthe source. oshen, Ind.; his wife, Lillie, 49; and "This is one of those things where it is s brother, Fred, 56, of Sarasota, Fla. such a low risk it's almost ridiculous to ruck driver Richard Crane, 25, of consider it a hazardous material when ount Pleasant, suffered minor in- it's in transport," he said. ries. State police said they contacted ealth officials shortly after~ the ac- Henry IV of France issued the Edict dent, of Nantes promising civil rights to THE TRUCK was carrying oil well French Protestants in 1598. By the gging equipment which enables edict, Henry ended the Wars of Religion illing companies to determine what and granted the Huguenots freedom of nd of rock they are drilling through private and public worship, subsidies ad whether that rock contains any oil. for their schools and the right to fortify The equipment contains four curies, their towns. effect on auto performance. In some cases, performance is improved, they say. However, it is between five and seven cents per gallon more expensive than straight gasoline. Among those who are trying to promote gasohol use are Howard Liet- zke, an officer of a new corporation in- vestigating the feasibility of building a plant to distill ethyl alcohol and make edible proteins and oils from corn. LIETZKE SAID such a plant could produce 20 million gallons of alcohol a year, and more could be made available if there was a demand. "We need a more total commitment from the public than what we have now," Lietzke said. Gasohol currently is being sold at several mid-Michigan gas stations, some of them operated by a Michigan Farm Bureau affiliate. FARM BUREAU spokesman Bob Smith said the firm has found a steady market for the product. "Consumers buying gasohol in the stations that we know about are coming back," he said. The reason most customers cite for buying gasohol, he said, is a desire to stretch the nation's fuel and reduce the dependence on foreign imports. Several bills have been introduced in the legislature to foster gasohol use, in- cluding one that would require a com- plete switch to gasohol by 1984. Three stations along main tourist routes were limiting purchases to $5 $7 and $10 but none in the Detroit area, the Auto Club said. The first dollar-a-gallon gas price in Michigan - aside from isolated areas - surfaced as the holiday weekend got under way. Kildea's Kar Kare, an East Lansing Sunoco outlet, was charging $1.02 for a gallon of high-octane, unleaded gasoline. "THE PEOPLE who buy this kind of gas expect to pay for it," said owner Joseph Kildea. One customer who paid $18 for a fill- up at Kildea's station said "Sure as hell beats walking." An Associated Press survey found that many stations across the country were running low on fuel as the end of the May allocation period nears. In ad- dition, many station operators said they planned to close for part of the weekend off. A SURVEY of 5,973 stations by the American Automobile Association found that 59 per cent plan to be open today, 46 per cent tomorrow and 61 per cent on Monday. In California, where gasoline supplies have been the tightest, merchants at most popular parks and resorts said they were optimistic that the shortage had passed its worst stages. The demand for gasoline by holiday travelers led to a new idea in merchan- dising in Richmond, Va., where Capitol Floors and Decorating Inc. advertised that, through Memorial Day, it would give awaysa gallon of gasoline for every square yard of floor covering pur- chased. Billiard Room Open 1 pm Memorial Day at the UNION Reduced Rates all day. ALL YOU CAN EATI ITALIAN BUFFET $4e25 includes unlimited trips to the soup and salad bar. Every Sunday at 1M Daily Specials Sun-Thurs 114 E. Washington DOWNTOWN 665-3231