S OPINION Page 4 Wednesday, October 14, 1981 The Michigan Daily Edited aann Ui Edited and managed by students at The University of Michigan Weasel By Robert Lence Vol. XCII, No. 30 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Editorials represent a majority opinion of the Daily's Editorial Board End RA grade requirement FRED~! ALRIGHT t G=xs To HIAVE Yoo. BACK. ARE coU CURED of YOUR AMPC-Tio,4 To / . / !I NO MORE E I NO (15PAYCep! pERS '>R ME ! r 1 1 50, WlAAT WAS T14AT SPACE INVA17M PEPROWAWA6 CLINIC" LIKS ? NOW DID "UE ( MANAwE 1b CURE (M? coLP riaKI:K? 4ENtAL? NOPE. StanTTUTIC1N. SUSSTITUTION ? 1 -1 YEAH. WOULD You LIKE A HiT? HE NINE resident advisers and 'T'resident directors who do not have greater than a 2.5 grade point average were given a reprieve by the Univer- city Housing Office Monday and now have until the end of the term to bring their grades up. While it is pleasing to see that the RAs and RDs will not loose their jobs yet as a result of low grades-a factor that really should have little to do with an advisor's ability to counsel-it is unfortunate that, in the future, grades most likely will continue to play an important role in the RA and RD selection process. The RA and RD problem springs 1 om a change in this year's selection jtolicy. In the past, applicants needed a , grade point average when they ap- ied; under the new policy, they eded that average when they began 'ork in the fall. Housing officials Vfeieved this would allow people an op- jortunity to bring their grade point qverages up. Unfortunately, some people's averages dropped, making it necessary, under the rule, to fire them. ' Housing officials have shown visdom in notimmediately firing the J(As and RDs because of the ill-advised f Be~kize's unc ELIZE, A TINY Central American nation only about the size of Maryland, last month celebrated its long-awaited independence from Great Ifjtain. After decades,'London finally rIlinquished its rule over the small country, turning it from colony to nation, and leaving it to guide its own political future and to build its own economy. But, the future of Belize-facing repeated military aggression from its powerful neighbor, Guatemala, and struggling to overcome its economic over-dependency on colonial businesses-is uncertain. Belize's moderate, democratic government, which enjoys the strong support of its people, could very well succeed in in- dependence given enough assistance during the difficult transition from Britain, the United States, and other affluent nations. Temporarily at least, Britain has already pledged military assistance to protect Belize from a possible Guatemalan invasion and Belize's government has attempted to attract foreign investments to bolster it s economy. But, if Belize is to truly establish it- self as a self-supporting nation, wealthy foreign nations must give the country enough economic assistance in the transition to allow it time to build is own domestic economy. : Sadly, guided by President Reagan's rule. It certainly could be detrimental to dormitory residents to have their resident counselors fired at the time of the year when they are just getting acquainted. Housing officials have made it clear that putting the RAs on probation is only a one-shot deal. They have said the 2.5 grade point average requirement is not at issue here-only the way it was implemented for this term. It should be clear to the officials, however, that the requirement is needless. Nine individuals were selec- ted for RA and RD positions last spring because of their inter-personal com- munication abilities. Their abilities have not changed because their grade points have dropped-there is no reason for their jobs to be terminated. The Housing Staff Selection Commit- tee will review the new policy this year. The members of the committee should amend the policy, eliminating the grade point average requirement entirely. Selection committees should be able to focus more on those qualities that have bearing on a candidate's ability to perform on the job. ertain future philosophy of pulling oneself up by one's own bootstraps, industrialized western European nations are following America's example and are scaling down aid to developing coun- tries. This trend will not merely make it harder for Belize and countries like it to build economic and social indepen- dence and stability, it may make it im- possible. Deprived of enough assistance to maintain adequate economic growth and to improve the general welfare of their people, governments of developing nations may begin to top- ple. In the case of Belize, inadequate foreign assistance could mean a Guatemalan invasion. For other emerging nations in Africa and Asia, the discontent spawned by the gover- nments' inability without aid to make significant gains toward affluence could mean internal strife and possibly revolution. In short, the Reagan ad- ministration's dramatic cutbacks in foreign aid realized by the United States and other affluent nations may well serve only to destabilize Third World nations whose stability and growth are key to American interests. And, for emerging countries like Belize, the opportunities and challenges of the future may seem overshadowed by a growing hopelessness and seeming inability to overcome the obstacles of poverty on their own. S -- ,A, _ _ ... The EPA begins to crumble By June Taylor WASHINGTON, D.C.-In the wake of the resignation of two top Republican officials from the Environmental Protection Agency, and the leaking of a proposed agency budget that could reduce staffing and, funding by almost half, serious questions are being raised in Congress about the ability of the agency to function at all. The problem is also of growing concern to industry, which depends on EPA for a variety of legal functions. THERE ARE signs of organizational deterioration at EPA which should not be permitted to develop further," wrote Sen. Jennings Randall (D-W.Va.) in a letter to Sen. Robert Stafford (R-Vt.) head of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.- That committee has scheduled oversight hearings tomorrow to look into charges of EPA mismanagement. Randall acknowledged that the new ad- ministration had the right to select people sympathetic to its viewpoint to run executive agencies, but added: "We are concerned, however, when conditions within an agency prevent it from functioning in a professional, effective way."~ Ontthe House side, Rep. Toby Moffett (D- Conn.) has scheduled later hearings of his Government Operations Subcommittee to ad- dress EPA's lack of progress on hazardous waste disposal regulations. CONFUSION, distrust of existing professional staff, lack of flow of information and decisions, and declining morale have marked the transition to the new team at EPA. Part of this has been due to the personal style of EPA's new administrator, former Colorado legislator Anne Gorsuch. That style is to retain tight control at the top, working with a group of trusted aides. Some of the agency's apparent problems also are due to the slowness of the White House in nominating key people for EPA posts. Now nine months into his first year, President Reagan has yet to nominate three of the six assistant administrators at EPA. Only two have been confirmed by the Senate. Since nominees cannot begin to exercise policy and management authority until con- firmed, this delay has left the agency in an administrative limbo that promises to persist for many months. IRONICALLY, REPUBLICAN ad- ministrations generally are noted for better management ability-perhaps because they can draw on experienced executives from large corporations as well as party members who have served in past administrations. But the new EPA has not taken advantage of any of these traditional Republican strengths. The new political appointees are noteworthy for being young and largely inexperienced in either environmental issues or running large organizations. They also are being selected by the White House, not Gorsuch herself. Some of the current problems of com- munication and mistrust at EPA were presaged in Gorsuch's decision to sit out the period of her confirmation process at the In- terior Department with her Colorado ally James Watt-rather than at EPA as is usually done. The normal process provides some overlap of the deparetment and arriving teams which can smooth a tran- sition, bringing the newcomers up to date on pressing issues and allowing them to get to know key professional staff. REAGAN ADMINISTRATION changes in the Environmental Protection Agency may allow industries, like this Detroit manufacturer, to excessively pollute the environment. Gorsuch's confirmation dragged on for more than three months, throwing the agency into a management limbo. At the same time, the administration's freeze on new regulations stopped momentum on major emerging rules. Many of these are important public health and industrial problems, not blue-sky environmentalist concerns. FOR EXAMPLE, the agency must come up with rules on safe disposal of chemical waste and licensing of disposal sites. Until it does so, federal law prohibits new waste disposal sites or expansion of old ones. This is an urgent problem for the chemical industry, especially in the Northeast where existing storage and disposal sites are almost at capacity. This issue is the focus of House hearings set for Oct. 21. Gorsuch did not arrive at EPA until mid- May, but within a month she had selected her personal staff and annonced a major reorganization of the agency. The com- bination of transition and reorganization has been blamed by some observers for the present state of inertia at the agency. A management consultant familiar with the EPA noted: "What they are doing is almost a textbook case in how not to run a transition." IN HER REORGANIZATION, Gorsuch abolished one division and with it one assistant administrator post requiring a presidential appointment and Senate ap- proval. She created two important new "associate administrator" positions which would not require presidential appointments or Senate confirmation. Many people felt that in establishing the two associate administrator positions, Gor- such was doing an end run around the political appointment process and would fill the posts with longtime trusted associates. However, either by choice or under instruc- tions from the administration, she filled the posts from the White House personnel list. Nolan Clarke, a Washington lawyer, was named to a policy and resource management job, and Frank Shepherd, a Miami attorney who had worked on President Reagan's 1976, and 1980 campaigns, was named to a top legal job. Both men resigned in late September, sparking added concern about management of the agency. I CLARKE, AT 40, was one of the old appoin- tees at EPA. He had an impressive background in regulatory issues, although no experience with EPA-related rules. In an in- terview a few weeks after he came to EPA, - Clarke said he believed there was a "clear need for EPA and environmental regulation," but he was concerned about the cost effec- tiveness of certain rules and programs. Economics analysis and regulatory reform were to be under Clarke's purview. Repor- tedly one of the major discrepancies between Clark and Gorsuch was that he wanted to study proposed regulations for their economic effects, but what he was being asked to do was supply economic justification for decisions that already had been made by Gorsuch and her immediate staff. In his letter of resignation, Clarke sited "irreconcilable differences of style" as his motivation for leaving. SHEPHERD'S RESIGNATION followed in a few days, citing the more standard "per- sonal reasons." Shepherd, 35, had no en- vironmental background or experience in large organizations and was described as being "out of his league" at EPA. Reportedly, he also was frustrated by lack of access to Gorsuch and the attitude of her select staff. Those sentiments and frustrations are shared by many, and many of EPA's career professional staff are leaving for consulting firms and industry and business positions. While a cutback in staff levels is desired by the administration, in many cases it is losing the wrong people-those most familiar with programs and procedures. This could hurt the agency later on, for example, in efficiently getting out industrial permits, a concern in an administration that courts corporate ap- proval. Taylor wrote this article for Pacific News Service. e ; t ! . LETTERS TO THE DAILY: Forum a front for U. S. warm akers To the Daily: Will Hathaway's letter (Daily, Oct. 9), "Forum for Everyone", takes the Spartacus Youth League to task for building a "lively picket line, " at the "What is National Security?" forum, which he characterized as a "misdirected, counterproductive disruption." ning that the forum would be a cynical public relations hype for the architects of mass murder.,jt was also a spearhead for in- creased military "research" and recruitment, coinciding with the Defense Intelligence Agency's at- tempt to establish itself on cam- pus. TodayReagan is pushing an an even cheaper way to kill. He had a hand in the planning of the Phoenix assassination program in Vietnam. So in a less expensive and less provocative ?manner these warmakers would like to accomplish the same goals as Reagan. They only disagree with Reagan on how to carry on his down his kind offer to participate. This is ridiculous! What he doesn't say is that he was so "confident," he threatened to strangle our L.SA funding if we didn't see things his way and his letter is an attempt to give him- self the basis to do it. What Will is really angry about, I