European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - September 6, 1978, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Poge 12 the stars and stripes wednesday september 6, 1978 Tom Wicker death penalty drive simply cheap politics Dolores Denman one of two Candi dates for the democratic nomination for attorney general of the state of new York has called on the voters to turn the race into a referendum on the death penalty which she supports. In the following perspective this can be seen for the cheap politics that it is mrs. Denman had previously said that she would not make the death penalty an Issue in her Campaign so her statement clearly reflects an approaching primary and a lagging Campaign. In new York the attorney general is the state s principal Legal officer not its chief prosecutor and therefore has Little to do with criminal Justice let. Alone executing people. The almost certain democratic Nomi Nee for governor is the incumbent. Hugh columns jul comments i Carey who not Only opposes the death pen Alty but who faces a primary opponent Jeremiah Bloom and a Republican nominee Perry Duryea who advocate . Denman disingenuously said that her proposed referendum should not apply to races for other offices but people in flamed to go to the polls to vote for the death penalty Are unlikely to split their tickets on such an Issue. She is not Only making things More difficult for Carey she is threatening an untenable situation in which if she should defeat Robert Abrams in the primary she and Carey would have to run together in the general election he courageously committed against the death penalty she demo logically promoting it. Those Are adverbs not to be used lightly in describing political behaviour. But even those who oppose him have to admit that the governor risked his political life when he vetoed a death penalty Bill while facing a re election Campaign in a state in which polls show the Public favouring capital punishment by 3 to 1. And since the death pen Alty Issue is irrelevant to mrs. Denman s Campaign for attorney general while her use of it endangers Carey demagoguery is an Apt description of her conduct. Beyond this kind of inflammatory poli tics there is a flesh and blood reality of which the nation is All too Likely to be re minded before Long. Since the supreme court upheld the death penalty Laws of three states in mid-1976, death Row has been growing to grim dimensions in All three at last count 113 condemned per sons in Florida 78 in Texas and 74 in geor Gia. This total of 265 people awaiting exe cution does not include More than a Hundred sentenced to death in states whose capital punishment Laws have not yet been upheld by the supreme court in Florida which seems More eager to execute someone than any other state death Row is being extended at a rate of about one a week. Six of these persons have already had their death warrants signed although intervening rulings have made them invalid and one of them John Spinkelink now appears Likely to be the first put to death under the new Laws. He would be Only the second person executed in the United states since 1967, when it appeared that the nation had at last abandoned the electric chair the Gas chamber and the  could go the chair in novem Ber perhaps in time to influence election results. On aug. 21, the fifth circuit court of appeals in new Orleans turned Down his Appeal and the supreme court seems Likely to do so this fall. Yet by most standards Spinkelink does not seem to have committed a premeditated first degree murder. He admits having killed a Man in a Tallahassee Motel room but the court record shows that that was after he and the Man started playing russian Roulette hold ing a loaded pistol to their Heads. Sources familiar with the Case say the prosecutor went for the death penalty in an Effort to Force Spinkelink to cooperate As to some missing funds. The state of Florida has nevertheless fought All his appeals and requests for clemency and his execution now seems  among those whose death warrants already have been signed in Florida is Leo Alford whose guilt is now being seriously questioned. An eyewitness to the murder for which he was convicted has come for Ward to swear that Alford did t do it yet efforts to obtain a new trial have so far been  should be remembered that the Florida Georgia and Texas Laws upheld by the supreme court All provide for an extra judicial proceeding to decide whether convicted persons should be sentenced to death this is supposed to avoid arbitrary capricious or unjust death sentences. But no Law can be guaranteed to do that and the Spinkelink and Alford cases alone Sug Gest that those approved by the supreme court Aren t doing it yet these Are the statutes upon which any such Law in new York would have to be modelled. Has anyone checked by the Way to see if crime has dropped in Florida Georgia and Texas because they have 265 people on death Row and is there any evidence in the bloody history of american executions to suggest that there la be less crime in Florida or anywhere else after they throw the switch on John Spinkelink c new York times William Buckley Dis is y Captain speaking. Bring a ship of state about Ted gets human rights mixed up it is not the intention of anyone who seeks also to be a practising Christian to Deal with the orbiter dicta of senator Edward Kennedy As though they were freshly minted Laws from Aristotle or pen sees of Pascal. But what he said at the National governors association is so egregious an effrontery on social philosophy that one must out of sense of obligation to reason Deal with it gravely. What he said was that National health care is a human right. The circumstances were these participants at the political meetings were considering various approaches to health care including president Carter s. Or. Carter s proposals Are More modest than the wholesale nationalization of health 01908700care. It in t that or. Carter s philosophy excludes nationalization of health care it is simply a Prudential matter with him. We can t go All the Way says or. Carter until we can afford to do so. On this gesture to moderation Ted Kennedy turned the full Force of his scorn. You can the said argue that National health care depends on the state of the Economy. Why because a conditional right is basically not a right at All. Now the trouble with that statement is that All secular rights Are conditional. So that if you accept senator Kennedy s Broad generality then it must follow that there Are in fact no rights at All. One s right to one s own Freedom indeed to one s life it self is most conspicuously conditional on the existence of Peade. During the War one of senator Kennedy s Brothers was drafted told what to do sent out on a Mission and was killed. If that brother a Brave and patriotic Man had defied the Law he d have been stuck in jail. Moreover every commonly acknowledged right is conditional in the sense that it is not permitted to impinge on another right. The inordinate Extension of almost any right bumps into the inordinately extended complementary right. Under the fifth amendment to the Constitution you have the right to decline to answer questions. Under the first amendment you Are entitled to Freedom of the press but under the sixth amendment i am entitled to a fair trial. Any putative right to National care is conditional never mind the Pru Dence of nationalizing health on the re sources of a nation. Senator Kennedy would t let it go. He d have been better off with a fallacious hit and run. We Don t condition social Secu Rity on the rate of inflation or the size of unemployment or the size of the deficit he went on to say. The answer to that is but we do exactly that. Social Security payments in fact Are automatically increased to accommodate inflation. Unemployment benefits Are universally limited to specified periods of time. The size of the deficit has a great Deal to do with social Security for the very simple reason that unless social Security is self supported which it no longer is it requires a Public  Public subsidy is Only available out of Public residue. If there is no residue there can be no subsidy. It is the Point president Carter is attempting to make that at a period when everyone is being taxed by such inflationary policies As Are routinely pursued by senator Kennedy and his colleagues the whole question of the value of a Dollar is at stake. Every time the Dollar depreciates by one per cent you have had a confiscation of income with out due process. Provisions of the 14th amendment Are also human rights. Are they being observed there Are plenty of philosophical objections to the nationalization of health care but the Prudential ones Are quite sufficient to let the hot air out of or. Kennedy s bal Loon. The american people last year spent 8.6 per cent of the Gross National income on health care. This year we Are scheduled to suffer an inflation of something on the order of 10 per cent. If senator Kennedy would vote to Cut inflation Down to Zero he will have re turned to every american the entire Cost of medical care plus a huge Bonus. I Dis Pense this advice to him out of a recognition that he has a human right to be educated. C Washington Star Syndicate the opinions expressed in the columns and cartoons on this Page represent those of the authors and Are in no Way to be considered As representing the views of the stars and stripes or the United states government