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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 1, 1984)
V Thursday, November 1, 1834 Pago 2 Dally Nebraskan Election Supplement o 'Q) Hi (Till (I ? MA. Oi Belief in 'meritocracy leads columnist to cast Reagan vote By Kevin Wcmcke Di!jr Nebraska Senior Editor Americans point to many concepts when explaining the success of our nation. Democracy perhaps being the most im portant concept of all However, one concept that is almost always forgotten is meritocracy which means basically, that you get what you deserve. In other words, those who work hard and achieve are rewarded. Meritocracy, while at times flawed and still in need of improvement, has given people the incentive to strive to be the best they can be. The main difference between this year's presidential candidates is that one can didate, President Reagan, understands this concept, the other Walter Mondale, does not. Mondale's solution to our economic problems is simple. Tax those people who have worked the hardest even more. To those one in ten households, which have gross incomes of $50,000 or more and who pay 3 12 times more taxes than their numbers, Mondale says, "You simply haven't paid enough." And how did those eight million house holds get the chance to pay 3 12 times their share of taxes? Very few inherited their success. Most got where they are by investing and sav ing what they have earned and by work ing 60 to 70 hours a week. Instead of taking pride In these people, Mondale has scorned them for being "rich." Few would argue, including President Reagan, against the safety net of social responsibility. We simply can't allow our citizens to live in poverty. Yet, to quote Newsweek guest columnist John Adams, "There comes a point when progressive taxation becomes confiscation and soc'al responsibility becomes plain old social ism." Apparently, the United States reached that point in the early 1980s. President Reagan asked the Congress to pass the famous tax cuts part of which stated that government simply couldn't take more than half of what a person earns. He understands the realities of our time. He understands the lessons to be learned from the invasions of Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Czechoslova kia, Hungary and Afghanistan. He understands the lessons to be learned from SALT I unilateral disar mament simply doesn't work. He understands that the Soviet people are like you and I, but he also under stands that their government is not of the people, but of something different. Many have criticized the president for the dramatic increase in the defense budget. While the budget has increased dram atically, a few facts need, to be pointed El ecwion forces decision etween opposing values Eegardles of who we elect president Tuesday, we can expect certain things to happen in the next four years. The recovery will end, or at least level off, and taxes will be raised. According to UNL professor of eco nomics Wallace Peterson, no peace time economic boom since World War II has lasted more than three years. The current boom, built by looser money policies, the deficit and defense spending, is on its last leg. Exactly when it will end is impossible to pre dict, but history places that date in the near future. Better off or not, Americans will be paying higher taxes. Although Presi dent Reagan vows he can and will pre vent tax increases, the facts make that promise about as believable as his 1C3 vow to bolster defense spending and balance the budget The American public and its legislators are becoming increasingly agitated in opposition to the spiraling federal deficit. Tax cuts have reduced revenue, while spending cuts in some areas (such as domestic programs) have been offset by increases in other areas, most notably defense. The next Congress will have to pass some sort of tax increases and the next president will have to sign them to quiet the anti-deficit crusaders and possibly just to keep the government operating. Elondale's tax program would be as close to a progressive program as we're I1I: to see. A family of four earning fcttween t25,GC0 sad $35,000 would pay no mora than an additional 135 In taxes in the plan's final year, 1S33. A f.:jr7 earning between ZZo.CCO and t I5.CC0 would pay about $200 mere, and the balance of the $C3 tiHica tax increase would come fcozt wea-lhy exists the values we are returning to include greed, macho ethnocentrismv intolerance and militarism, yet the pool of values also includes fairness, tolerance, and a desire for interna tional understanding and peace Mon dale refuses to admit that the latter set, which is as traditional as the former set, has evaporated from the pool of American public throught His candidacy is testing that theory. Reagan, on the other hand, would interpret an election victory, especially a landslide, the same way he inter preted his victory in 1930 as a man date from the American people to pursue policies based on the values of materialism and militarism. Those pol icies would mean several things for America First, the arms race weald continue to spiral, taking defense spending up with it. That policy would make even more dramatic what Peter son called the "greatest transfer of wealth in history from the average taxpayer for interest on the deficit It would continue to prevent meaningful arms talks, and intensity the itch to use military force' already presenf in :' the current administration. That itch would draw the United States deeper into Central American conflicts, where we are already active militarily. The rise in "American spirit after we clubbed Grenada (the equi valent of Mr. T clubbing Woody Allen) could inspire larger enterprises, like even more direct intervention in El isarvaaor or an invasion or Nicaragua. llondale proposes demllitari and ccrpcr anions. Throe.? all this" economic machin- of Central American trouble spcts and constructive collaboration with Ccn tadcra nations and other countries to gain a peaceful solution to the rcan'a problems. Mondale is also ccmri;tcd to serious talks with the Satlcts en a mutual and vsriuable nudea? tsmzz and subsequent arms reductions. We may choose between the vshiss cry runs the cu zs v;I:::a Thcss ara select vah:j t!,: zi frcra a pcI cf vr'.sra breaker t". ' t2 i i ttI; v.z::t ti sirii cf shcrt-tem self service, elitism snd .- belligerence and the values cf social' J ci peas?. Jk V W 4 'w wV W11U- Afc- V V 14 -;trik:r ft 4-...4 valuta, Cat's v;hsn the glacsa and Jsk 1 1 ..... y 0 VMM AMERICANS, M 10 MSB , huh i f i i li illJIf- - "" - if m I - i i.--. FERRARQ& T5 out. First, manpower is by far the greatest expense of the department of defense. In 1983, manpower took about took about 42 percent of the budget. We all know what type of people enrolled in the Army during the 1970s. In 1974, about 40 per cent were high school dropouts. How ever, in 19S4, the situation was improved. Only about 10 percent had not received their high school degree. During this time, re-enlistments increased as welL Another important fact which needs to be pointed out is that while the defense budget is extremely high in numbers as a percentage of the gross national product, it is a smaller budget "than that of the 1950s and '60s. While the danger of nuclear arms is obvious, it also should be pointed out that reducing them in favor of more conven tional arms would involve an increase, not a decrease, in the defense budget. Also, the defense department spends a great deal of money on research research which often benefits everyone. Ill admit that the department still has problems. In the area of procurement, we often hear of the $1,000 screws or the $500 hammer.We also need to push harder toward developing verifiable arms reductions. Reagan victory to mark start of U.S. political realignment By Jixa Eogero DitUy Nebras&an Cshssutist Every four years the politicians and political pundits seem to agree that the upcoming presidential election sets be fore the American people a choice so fundamental that its impact will be felt years down the road. Usually what occurs, though, is that scarcely few weeks pass after inauguration day and all seems to be in its proper place as the government goes bumbling along with no noticea ble turn of events. Yet, with fear of entering the com mentator's no-man's land of utter trite ness, this election does seem to hold forth some promise of being one of those his torical turning points on a par with F.D.R.s election victory in 1932. At least such an event seems more possible this year than in the years since Roosevelt won the presidency. Before considering the notion that a Reagan victory could possibly indicate one of those rare, historic points of rea lignment a realignment for the better in my view it is necessary to note in passing why a Mondale election could very well spell economic darkness to the world for the next 40 to 50 years. In Mondale's attempt to avoid a whole sale abandonment by union members similar to that which occurred in 1980, he has adopted a strong protectionists "Buy American" stance The press has typically reported this phenomenon as simply evi dence of Mondale's incessant pandering to special interest groups. However, what the press has typically ignored is the haunting specter of the potential inter national political and economic conse quences of Mondale's policy, which dwarf the domestic issues surrounding the pol icy. The world's economic recovery is not as advanced nor as deep as it is in the Uni ted States. In fact, the continual slug gishness of the international economy is evidenced by the horrendously large debts growing still larger owed by Lesser Developed Countries. Indeed, cur rently those who would be hurt the most by even a slight increase in protectionis ts practices are precisely those nations. To be fair one need point out that Mon dale's specific proposals are aimed prim arily at the Japanese. But what Mondale does not apparently understand is that domestic protectionism invites retalia tion, which in turn invites yet further response, with the distinct possibility that the responses snowball until there is a full-scale trade war. The impact of such an event, even on a modest scale, would spell ruin to the fragile economies of many LD.C.'s. Thus darkening the already bleak outlook for these nations. In a more positive vein there are some very good reasons to vote in favor of Rea gan rather than simply cast a vote against Mondale in a sort of "lesser of the two evils" calculation. Located within these reasons exists the intimation that a rea ligning election could be in the offing. First, a Reagan victory next week would indicate a ratification of sorts of the agenda change which took place in 1980. The effects of this agenda change have been felt in this campaign already. After all, who would have guessed just five years ago that the Democrats would boast of an ability to cut the deficit more than a Republican administration; or that "traditional" family values would be celebrated in the keynote address of the Democratic convention. Of course nobody really believes that the Democrats mean what they say on these issues, but simply the fact that they are even attempting to "out-Reagan" President Reagan is an indication of an amazing shift in the issues." Reagan has managed to once again bring the serious belief that there are om its to the size of a just government into the public's purview. Reagan has been able to communicate the belief that eco nomic equality is not truly an ethical con cern of just government which it is not and consequently has at least slowed down America's mad rush to a statist and violent serfdom under the perverse guise of helping the underprivileged. Even Marxist economist James O'Con nor pointed out that the poor are on bal ance harmed by the system of income transfer which Mondale so emotionally defands. Writing cf social security he Ccs2ssc3 cz Fa2 3