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4 "NORTHWEST HERALD Sactlon B Monday, September 16, IMS Opinion GorbachevJThe Great? V *•' >>? * K\ *• i* A,* *> >» • » ' -U * * The journalistic run-up to the Reagan-Gorbachev summit in Ge­ neva on Nov. 19 has begun, and the American public had better fasten its seat belt. If preliminary com­ ments are any indication, we are about to be subjected to a torren­ tial barrage of favorable publicity concerning Mikhail Gorbachev ( and, in due course, concerning his wife), coupled with Veiled hints that Mr. Reagan, in comparison, looks old and tired, and capped, when it's all over, by declarations that Gorbachev adroitly cleaned Reagan's clock.- The pro-Gorbachev line in the liberal media has been developing ever since he took over as general secretary of the Soviet Communist Party on March 11,1965. His three immediate predecessors all looked as Jf they had been recruited from an old folks' home, and the last two, Andropov and Chernenko, each assumed power only when he manifestly already had one foot in the grave. But the Politburo was bound to run oi|t of acceptable septuagenarians sooner or later, and when it did Gorbachev (who Is only 54) inevitably looked good by comparison. He smiles readily, fa­ vors a Western-style fedora, and has a wife who is reasonably trim and dresses, at least by Soviet Standards, almost modishly. That, as any student of our liber­ al media could have predicted, was all they needed. This slightly overweight Communist bureaucrat with the unsightly birthmark on his bald head has blazed forth as a superstar: a cross between Clark Gable and Laurence Olivier, with the public relations skills of P.T. Barnum. And mind you, this is only September. It doesn't take a genius to figure out who is being set up to take a fall. The liberal media are sick unto death of hearing Mr. Reagan described as "the Great Communi­ cator," not to mention being forced to acknowledge him as the most popular president of modern times. Their eagerness to treat Gorbachev as a challenger in the same league is some measure of how profound their suffering has been. What, precisely, is the evidence for Gorbachev's alleged brilliance as a "great communicator"? Both Serge Schmemann, a New York Times reporter in Moscow, and William Rusher Tom Wicker on the Times' op-ed page specify the sam^three mas­ ter-strokes: 1. Gorbachev granted an inter­ view to the editors of Time -- a feat of public relations roughly as difficult as it would be for Garbo to find a reporter ready to listen to something she had to say. Accord­ ing to Schmemann, Gorbachev used this golden opportunity to ac­ cuse "Washington of making mat­ ters worse while the Russians were trying to act with 'restraint'" -- a tired old scenario that has been the centerpiece of Soviet global propaganda for 40 years. 2. Gorbachev also granted an interview to eight U.S. senators, led by Democratic Minority Lead­ er Robert Byrd, who were in Mos­ cow during the congressional re­ cess to try to engage in a little Summit foreplay on behalf of Con­ gress. To the senators Gorbachev hinted that the Soviets might offer "radical proposals" to reduce nu­ clear missiles at the Geneva arms talks if only Mr. Reagan would abandon "the militarization of space" (i.e., Star Shield). Might, shmight. If Gorbachev has some­ thing specific to propose, Mr. Rea­ gan will gladly listen -- and make a few proposals of his own in retufn. 3 Tass (not Gorbachev) warned that, if America insists on testing an anti-satellite rocket, the Soviet Union will deploy a system of such rockets that it devised and fully tested years ago. Exactly why the United States should not be al­ lowed to test, as the Russians have done, is unclear (or perhaps not/so unclear). / All this, says the awe-struck Schmemann, is evidence of Gorba­ chev's "ability to take his case to the American public." It's bad news for Reagan, chimes in Tom Wicker: "Mikhail S. Gorbachev has been running rings around him." Maybe so; but if his "tri­ umphs" to date are all that Gorba­ chev can accomplish; with the massed media of American liber­ alism on their knees in front of him, my guess is that at Geneva the Gipper will make him look like he's standing still. (William Rusher is a columnist for N e w s p a p e r E n t e r p r i s e Association) r 0»WfHWlS6WK» National Editorial Sampler By United Press International Montgomery (Ala.) Advertiser Although efforts to collect stu­ dent loans have increased in re­ cent years, their default is rising at an alarming rate. Secretary of Education William Bennett pre­ dicted last week that 11.7 percent of the easily obtained, below-mar- ket interest rate loans will not be repaid this year -- a full 1 percent increase over last year. The Department of Education estimates that for every $10 loaned, taxpayers are stuck with $1.17 as a bad debt. At that current rate of increase,defaults could hit $12 billion within five years. ... but the department is only now considering prohibiting loans to students with lousy credit histo­ ry, and making the banks that issue the loans collect for bad loans they handle. Bennett ... wants Congress to extend the statute of limitations for bad-loan collection and give those involved in the loan process a financial stake in collection of bad loans.... Millions of Americans who bene­ fitted from student loans and then repaid them will cheer his efforts. ... Deadbeats should not be al­ lowed to ruin it for those who would be grateful for'the help, and would be proud to pay their debts. Dallas Morning News An unsettling aspect of the pro­ tectionist debate emerges from fol­ low-up interviews of respondents to a New York Times-CBS News poll. The poll itself revealed that most Americans think the Japa­ nese work harder and make better products, and that U.S. complaints about unfair trade practices are a form of scapegoating. ... Nobody's for being a patsy in the face of unfairness, but neither is anybody for driving up prices, which tarriffs would surely do -- among other undesirable things. iwatar HONDA TWDTA saunas UP* NORTHWCST HERALD "The only thing neces­ sary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." Edmund Burke ? ROBERT A. SHAW Editor and Publisher ' LEONARDM. INGRASSIA MICHAEL E.MORSCH Executive Editor News Editor/Regional 'We're replacing the SgLYork gun with something that's better at shooting down Russian helicopters... the AFGHAN REBEL." w 'Time' handles Gorby gently In the approach to the Summit Conference, there is a big propa­ ganda battle going on between Ronald Reagan and the Soviet Union's General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev. It's an interesting competition, with the press play­ ing a leading role. Suppose I told you that the No. 1 news magazine in America -- Time -- had just run an exclusive interview with Reagan. Time pre­ cedes the interview with a portrait of Reagan. He has -- we are told -- "naturally controlled energy." Reagan, Time tells us, "dominates a meeting with three extraordi­ nary tools." What are Reagan's remarkable tools? Why, his eyes, his hands and his voice. His eyes -- oh, his eyes. They will "lock into a listener and not let go until the listener gives some sign of acknowledgment, agree­ ment -- or flinches." What else about those eyes? They "are nei­ ther harsh nor kind. They are big and strong, and sometimes quick, too." How about Reagan's hands? They "have a variety of specific functions." (Stop the presses!) The right one holds his glasses. But "the left hand talks." It can "lecture" or "declaim" or "thump.!, karate style" -- but "al­ ways quite gently." (A gentle ka­ rate chop?) And his voice? It is "deep, but also quite soft... melodious." But sometimes, "without warning, his voice can cut across the room... not angry or bullying, just stron­ ger than any other sound in the room." Ben Wattenberg Reagan! What a man! Put it all together: "Occasionally the eyes, the hands, and the voice reach peak power at the same time, and then it is clear why this man is president." Oops, sorry. That should read "general secretary" -- not "presi­ dent." All of the above is from Time's cover story on Gorbachev, not Reagan. Time submitted six puff questions in writing in ad­ vance to Gorby -- a practice al­ most never offered to American politicians. Then five top Time journalists spent two hours talking to this remarkable leader w.ho ac­ tually has eyes, hands and voice. Their questions make a slow-pitch Softball pitcher look like Dwight Gooden. Here are some of them: What are your impressions of President Reagan? Do U.S. anti-satellite testing and spy-dust charges dam­ age the summit? Do you enjoy mingling with workers? Are peo­ ple afraid of you? Only one ques­ tion -- about why the Soviet Union is taking an all-or-nothing position on space weapons -- even half- challenges Gorbachev. Time did not ask a question about Afghanistan, and why the Soviets are committing genocide there -- a million people have al­ ready been killed. They did not ask about human rights in the Soviet Union, did not ask about the health of Andrei Sakharov or Anatoly Scharansky. Time did not ask why the Soviets feel it is all right for them to have space weapons, but not us. Time did not ask about the Soviet repression of Poland. They did not ask why communism has lost its appeal around the world. Time's editors did not even have the sense of decency to laugh out loud when Gorbachev -- who came to power as the protege of former KGB chief Andropov -- said that his policies "have led to a... flow­ ering of our democracy." They did not laugh when Gorbachev sorrow­ fully noted a global condition where "hundreds of millions of people go hungry" -- including those in Afghanistan whose food supply is being scorched by the, Soviet military. Would Time interview Reagan without challenging him about his problems -- South Africa, deficits, civil rights? It has been noted that there is an unfair aspect to the propaganda battle between us and the Soviets. We have a free and critical press; they have a controlled applause factory. That lets them try to play our media like a violin without fear of being undercut at home. We can live with that imbalance, and even prosper. But it is not asking too much of our press to -- at least -- be as critical of our adversaries, as the press is of us. There is much talk in Washington these days about how the Soviets are winning the Summit propagan­ da battle. But sometimes it's no battle. Time has shown it can be a pushover. (Ben Wattenberg is a columnist for Newspaper Enterprise Association) Reader Forum STEVEN H.HUNTER Marketing Director KAREN A ANDROS Saturday Editor DENNIS M. McNAAAARA Editorial Page Editor RONALD L. STANLEY Circulation Director Airport congestion To the Editor: Listen to an old-timer on the air­ port controversy. I am a former pilot, author and publisher of Flying Simplified (1929), who had a pecuniary interest in Continental Airways, a profitable operation until aaarsonist put a torch to us. We flew out of Midway (63rd Street) to Dayton, Boston and Washington. There were only three runways -- N/S, N/W-S/E, N/E- S/W. To take off, we taxied to the runway against the wind and took off when the flagman dropped the flag. The port became too congested when private planes made it dangerous for the airlines to compete for landing space and time, which was the reason O'Hare had to be opened. O'Hare served its purpose for many years and would continue to do so if the airlines had not continually, over the years, added and increased the size of the ships. To purchase the newer ships they had to sell their smaller ones to the operators, who are now their competitors in flying routes and for ship and people space. This congestion has created a traf­ fic problem, with near misses rarely publicized. To add to the problem, there is a continual rate war over all routes out of the port. The operators of the acquired smaller jets, with their lower operating cost, challenge the larger operators with cut-rate a d s -- " t h e f a i r e s t l o w r a t e ' ' . . . ' ' t h e b e s t l o w fare" ... "pay less and get more" etc. Lower rates increased the number of travelers and added to the peop$mover problem, which has been publicized in the Chicago Tribune article dated Aug. 3, 1985: "three companies vying to build a people-mover system for O'Hare In­ ternational Airport submitted pro­ posals in March to build the people- mover, a system that would take passengers from remote parking lots to air terminals; the lowest was about $30 million higher than ex­ pected. And in the Sept. 5,1985, issue the gist of the article reads, "can build the system for $101,427,000 and maintain it for five years, for a total of $17,426,000. With these irrefutable facts, if we are deliberately being mislead by be­ ing told the port "will bring industry to the county," when in reality they are using this ruse to shunt the overflow of O'Hare to us With its related noise, congestion and added taxes. It is our duty to vote an over­ whelming NO to protect ourselves. Toss this possibility around in your mind: "If we can be counted into ac­ cepting the port, O'Hare might just save the cost of the people-mover system or a good part of it". The county is in no way obligated to furnish a port for private planes. Albert S.Malecki Harvard Write us! Send letters to Reader Forum, The Herald, 7803 Pyott Road, Crystal Lake IL 60014. Letters must be signed and give the author's ad­ dress and telephone number for the editor's reference. We recommend letters of 300 words or less. All let­ ters are subiect to editing for clari­ ty and brevity. Nicaragua report To The Editor: You are to be commended for publishing the lengthy and well- written article about "War Tom Nicaragua" in your August 27 edi­ tion. It seems to me that it is particular­ ly useful to hear from someone who has been to Nicaragua and seen the conditions in that country. Whatever one's personal beliefs might be, do we not need as many facts as possi­ ble in order to arrive at some reasonable conclusions regarding U.S. policies in Central America? As a means towards that end I have placed on file with the reference librarian in the Crystal Lake Public Library, a report "REPORT ON NICARAGUA" from another group of 25 observers who went to Nicaragua in February of this year. (I hope to provide the Cary and Woodstock libraries with additional copies of the same report) This group of 25 from many walks of life jointly prepared their report and had it checked for factual ac­ curacy by Central American historians and experts. The report posed and answered for me many of the major questions I've been asking about Nicaragua and our nation's relationship to it. It is the joint con­ viction of the authors that Nicaragua is trying to maintain itself apart from either Soviet or U.S. domina­ tion. Please take the time to read this relatively short and highly readable report and then determine for yourself whether the facts coming from Washington are indeed all the facts. John T. Fankhauser Cary