Page 4-Saturday, May 17,1980-The Michigan Daily
Democrats: Do
vote May 20
IS YEAR'S Democratic primary will be a
vestige of its former self. The state
Democratic committee chose its delegates in
statewide caucuses last month. Only two
names-Jerry Brown who is no longer cam-
paigning, and Lyndon La Rouche-will be on the
primary ballot.
But Democrats should not do as Michigan
Democratic chairwoman Olivia Maynard urges
and stay home next Tuesday. Even though major
candidates President Carter and Sen. Edward
Kennedy will not be on the ballot, Democratic
voters have an important task to perform on May
20.
According to a recent Detroit Free Press article,
if candidate Lyndon La Rouche should win just 20
per cent of the vote in this "election," his campaign
will be eligible for federal funding up to several
hundred thousand dollars.
La Rouche calls himself a conservative
Democrat. A more apt description would be a right-
wing extremist backed not by Democrats but by
the U.S. Labor Party. La Rouche blames most of
the world's ills on the Council for Foreign Relations
and the Trilateral commission. He is attempting to
reach voters through the guise of conservatism,
calling for an end to drug proliferation, strong sup-
port for nuclear energy, lower taxes, and a world-
wide gold based monetary system.
He has already been given nearly a half million
dollars in federal-campaign funds. His money was
cut off after he failed to win 10per cent of the vote
in several previous primaries, but it could be
restored, retroactive to April, if he succeeds in
winning just 20 per cent of the vote in Michigan's so
called primary.
Michigan Democrats can prevent this waste of
taxpayer's money by showing up at the polls
Tuesday and writing in a candidate for the
Democratic party nomination. This gesture could
lend a hint of responsibility in an otherwise wor-
thless election.
Kennedy is the Democratic candidate most wor-
thy of a write-in vote. His 18 years in the Senate and
his liberal, socially conscious outlook show him to
be a candidate far better prepared to head the
presidency than his inept opponent.
The Daily endorsed Kennedy for the April 26
Democratic caucuses and now we urge voters to
write his name in on the ballot May 20. It will not
help Kennedy's faltering campaign, but it will save
taxpayer's money by preventing federal support of
La Rouche's senseless campaign.
Endorsements represent a con-
sensus of the Daily's Editorial
Board.
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AP Photo
SECRETARY OF STATE Muskie's meeting with Soviet Foreign Minister Gromyko is an en-
couraging sign.
Carter rhetoric blocks
U.5. -Soviet settlement
While it is still far too early to
judge rookie Secretary of State By John Goyer
Edmund Muskie, his first
statements in Brussels this week There are several possible
show a willingness to repeat ver- motivations behind the Soviet
batim Carter's rhetoric and a statement. The Soviets may want
lack of independent thinking. to pull out of Afghanistan because
Muskie's appointment, we they are worried about getting
were told only a week ago, bogged down militarily-as
reassured those leaders at home several recent analyses suggest
and abroad who feared that they are. Or they may be plan-
National Security Advisor ning a much more sinister move,
Zbigniew Brzezinski would gain lulling the U.S. into negotiating
in influence following the depar- on Afghanistan while Soviet
ture of Cyrus Vance from the troops amass on its borders for
State Department. These leaders the march into Mideast oilfields.
hoped that Muskie would con- Much more likely, they may sim-
tinue the moderate course of ply want reassurances that the
Cyrus Vance, who seems to have U.S. and Europe will not
constantly kept in mind the destabilize a Soviet puppet
maxim that, 'war is the break- regime in Afghanistan. None of
down of diplomacy.' these possible aims can be
SO FAR MUSKIE has failed to ignored and they must be ad-
follow this course in his public dressed in negotiation.
statements. BUT BY MAKING the
In Brussels on Thursday, statements and by instructing
Muskie dismissed a proposal Muskie to say the same, Carter is
from the Soviet bloc that Soviet allowing the Russians to benefit
troops would pull out of from Afghanistan in a way they
Afghanistan if the U.S. stopped probably did not count on when
covert support of Afghan they invaded.
rebels-support that our gover- Carter gives the impression
nment says does not exist. (Do we that Afghanistan is an issue that
believe our government?) would be worth rolling up our
Muskie labeled the withdrawal sleeves and stepping outside for.
plan "cosmetic and not a The Europeans don't see the
meaningful proposal," according situation as quite that
to a story written by Times repor- serious-and they have a lot
ter Bernard Gwertzman in
Brussels.
Muskie's statement smells. It LETTERS TO THE DA
sounds, in fact, like something *
Carter would say. According toH itchcoc
the story, Muskie spoke with Car-
ter on the phone three times
Wednesday evening.
STATEMENTS SUCH as U e O
Muskie's labeling the Afghan
E E T S U H a u ieMu k e s l b l n t h A f hnwi t h d r a w a l p la n " c o s m e t ic a n d
not a meaningful proposal," can To the Daily:
only serve to widen the East-West It is an outrage that you
rift. allowed Owen Gleiberman's
It would be charitable to label puerile, unknowledgeable and
what Carter has proposed to end thoroughly obnoxious article on
the brewing tensions in Alfred Hitchcock (Daily, May 13)
Afghanistan and Iran "cosmetic be printed. One would think that
and not meaningful." To with all the film-going students in
American ears, Carter's the area your paper would be
proposals for economic sanctions able to find someone with an un-
against Iran and the Soviet Union derstanding of film to write a
are comforting rhetoric in an final piece on the great Hitch-
election year. cock. Gleiberman is a fool, a
more to lose than the U.S.
' Soviet proposals such as the
one calling for hands off by the
U.S. and Europe in return for
withdraw 1 from Afghanistan
seem designed now to drive a
wedge between Europe and the
U.S. Gwertzman reported from
Brussels that Lord Carrington,
British Foreign Minister, a
agreed with Muskie that the
statement was a rhetorical reac-
tion to international disapproval
of the Afghan invasion. But
Carrington added that the fact
that the Russians "are prepared-
to talk about a nonaligned
Afghanistan is not
discouraging." Maybe the
Soviets want a way out of
Afghanistan.
Perhaps it would not be a bad
thing to pursue negotiations with
the U.S.S.R. over the future of
Afghanistan in the interest of
decreasing the possibility of
another world war, which no one
will win.
Muskie's decision to meet with
Gromyko in Vienna is en-
couraging. Meanwhile, however,
it seems as if Carter's campaign
rhetoric is getting in the way of a
true settlement with the Soviets.
John Goyer is a former
Daily staff writer.
ALY:
k article
bnOx1oUS
cheap Pauline Kael clone, an of-
fensive and disrespectful begin-
ner.
Almost everyone I've spoken to
about his article is livid with rage
that the Arts editor let that piece
of garbage be printed. And
what's more-if Martin Scorsese
or Brian DePalma could read his
article they would be even har-
sher in their criticism.
-Fred Parnes
May 16
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