European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - December 23, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 10 the stars and stripes tuesday december 23,1986 William Safire is this a new military morality we re witnessing let s Mot Tow ally a shul Pulve this Man the right to if something does not mean that doing ii is right. Nobody denies the right of an Ameri can citizen to refuse to incriminate him self nor docs anyone sensitive to individual Liberty impute guilt to anyone who invokes the fifth amendment. Whal John Poinc scr and Oliver North officers of the armed forces on Active duly should reconsider is this does exercising their right to remain silent help or harm the country they Are sworn id serve i. Oil. North who put on his Marine corps uniform to plead the fifth has tried to ennoble his decision to put his personal interest ahead of the Public in Crest by declaring How people have died face Down in the mud. Protecting those individual Here is a Man who has won a Silver Star and two prone stars demonstrably braver in Battle than of or i saying in effect 1 will Tell you whal i did while in the Public employ Only if you Promise Noi 10 punish me. That is neither Brave nor Noble on the contrary in besmirched everything Good to accomplished at the White House before doing inc deeds thai won him his medals. He did not ask his com Mander 10 read him his rights. He had the right nut to Volunteer but he put love of country first duty came before self which k the a sconce of heroism. Now Oliver North hiding behind Adaku of counsel has joined inc me generation by pulling personal interest ahead of the needs of his country he undermines military discipline Ambar rasps pm country and cripples his presi Dent. The Man who was willing to Lay Down his life for his country is unwilling lol Pend a few months in the Brig. Sen More Dishonour Falls on adm. Pm Jedi a tar who is of an age and rank to Rei of Onize the depth of his disservice in cd fing accountability unless in comes off Jie wings of immunity. Iwas bad enough that this naval Technocrat tried to inflict disinformation As a policy on a free society now that his Mary Mcgrory duly is Manifest 10 stale forthright ? to the Congress the whole truth or what he knows about what happened on his watch John Poindexter flinches. Duty pales before the fear ongoing to jail. An they leaching this new military morality these Days at the naval facade my Don t give up the rights you might think so from the Way a flotilla orc Lirtz admirals is raising Money for the poin Dexter Legal defense. Never in our history has a tag officer refused to account for his actions to duly constituted authority instead or showing outrage at this spectacle some members of the old top brass arc rallying round their Annapolis ring Knocker. President Reagan is not showing the attention to principle that this crisis de mands. Asking the Congress to Grant immunity in the full knowledge that no such act would be forthcoming was a cheap stunt granting the two a conditional Pardon would be equally destructive of discipline. Nor is Reagan facing hospitalization capable of conducting a per Sonal interrogation. The president should direct the de sense Secretary to eel a full written report of the diversion of arms Sale funds from both men forthwith. If they disobey the lawful order a military court should be convened to try them under the uniform code of military Justice. Both men would know Ilia Conns martial would Likely be less impressed with a Chestnut of fruit salad and More concerned with the corruption of the Chain of command than would civilian juries. The Choice of a proper forum and an appropriate Lime is not up to these two officers and their lawyers. Servicemen do not give up All civil Liber ties when signing up but they do take on a greater measure of duty. Now is the time for americans in the armed services especially those Given an education at he naval Academy to lean publicly and privately on adm poin Dick scr and it. Col. North to come clean Quick at whatever Cost to themselves. Re mind them of duty Honor country nuclear issues heating up for 1988 primaries dont look now bul the presidential primary season is already upon us. And in new Hampshire the first primary stale the driving Issue has already been defined by the returns in last Munich s gubernatorial race. To the open moulded astonishment of All. Paul Mceachirn who ran on a single Issue keeping the Seabrook nuclear Power Plant closed came within six paints of defeating the incumbent Republican John Sununu. Who was vowed to open it. In his Victory speech last tuesday night a shaken Sununu promised he would make the Scab Raak Plant As Safe and economical As possible. Anti nukes who were inc fool soldiers in the Mceachirn Campaign and were among the few to spot his last minute surge say he can t do either. If he spends the Money to put in inc most advanced safeguards and the most sophisticated Eya Calion plan the Cost to ratepayers will go even higher than anticipated. Open or shut Seabrook will be the Issue in the primary says Mceachem s Campaign manager Jean Shah can who turned what was supposed to be a sure thing into a horse race. Mceachern a shy Portsmouth lawyer was a virtual unknown in the state when he began. Sununu who is As Able As he is glib had a million dollars to spend. Mceachern was unable to go on with television commercials until the last week. And the people of the Granite stale were expected when faced with a Choice Between a booming Economy and the Messy and in pensive business of closing Down a Plant to come Down hard on the Side of self interest and Prosperity. Early polls had revealed a Case of raging schizophrenia. By a 2-to-l margin the people of new Hamp Shire opposed the opening of Seabrook by exactly the same margin they favored Sununu the most passion ate advocate of nuclear Power. What made that particular Reading so strange is the fact that the people of new Hampshire had just last Winter been in a state Over having a Large Southeastern portion of its Scenic landscape torn up to make Way for a nuclear waste dump. They seemed to make no connection Between their fears and the Prospect that sea Brook would generate More toxic garbage and there by increase pressure for a Federal dumping ground. They accepted Sununu s Assurance that Seabrook would store its own waste on the premises. But in the end they came unbelievably close to saying that safety and scenery arc More important than keeping in office a governor who brought them unparalleled Good limes and excellent management two possible democratic presidential contenders would look like a million dollars on the nuclear ques Tion. In seems tailor made for gov. Mario Cuomo of new York who in 1983 ruled that slate officials would take no part in evacuation plans relating to the nuclear Plant at Shoreham . When the nuclear regulatory commission overruled him and declared that an and hoc response by Plant and local officials would be sufficient he threatened to take it to court. Further he put through legislation providing for a Public takeover of the Utility that operates Shoreham. The governor who was re elected by 65 percent of the Vole insists he has no plans to run for the presi Dency. Gov. Michael Dukakis of Massachusetts who was re elected by 70 percent of the Vole last tuesday and who also insists he has no plans to run for the presi Dency bul is said to be Temple logo if Cuomo does not is a major player in inc Seabrook drama he rejected evacuation plans for the six Massachusetts towns that lie within a 10-mile radius of the Plant. The arc can overrule him and he Tao will sue Dukakis endeared himself to new Hampshire democrats by endorsing Mceachern and raising $51,000 for him. Cuomo sent $5,000, but said nothing. Other democrats have weighed in with Mceachern if not on inc nuclear question. Delaware sen. Joseph Biden who campaigned with him gave �5,000 Gary Hart 11,000 Arizona gov. Bruce Bab Bill ,500 Missouri rep. Richard Gephardt $5,000. Gephardt also has offered to help him pay off the Campaign debt. For republicans Seabrook represents a real Puzzle. They have been oblivious to the Power of the nuclear Issue which has increased a thousandfold after Cher Nobyl. The president failed to mention the waste dump that is proposed for Washington stale and May have Cost Slade Gorton his Senate Seal. Vice president George its strength last Winter when he was dogged by anti dump protes ters it is said that he prevailed on the president to get new Hampshire off the list. Bul in will be hard Tor him and the others to dump on Seabrook with Sununu looking on. Sen. Robert Dole of Kansas has no record on the matter neither has rep. Jack Kemp of new York. Former sen. Howard Baker starts off in the presiden tial Campaign with a definite Downer he was the unrelenting Champion of the Clinch River breeder reactor. It s hard to say what form the Seabrook question will Lake by 1988. Bul All politicians Are on notice now it s radioactive. A uni Giul or tsp syndic a
