European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 26, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday August 26, 1994 commentary the stars and stripes Page 19 read my lips stand Strong on health Reform like George Bush s fateful ready lips promising  taxes Bill Clinton s memorable gesture of taking his pen out of his pocket and waving it before the Congress threatening to veto health legislation that fell Short of his goals must have seemed like great idea at the time. Abandonment of the tax pledge led television news editors and political spot makers to replay the Bush clip time and again driving Home the Point of his terminal Fuzzi Ness. Now Bill Clin ton faces similar trial by film  producers Are William Safire ment imposed monopolies no nursing Home subsidy no free drugs. Cuing up that moment of Clinton and his waving pen in his irretrievable inescapably visual Promise to stand on Prin Ciple. Every pundit has a save get on his word processor mine is Alt full that makes possible to write that gesture has come Home to haunt him with a single Keystroke. Hold that thought in mind As we re View alternative Clinton strategies be tween now and election Day 94. Infuriated by the revolt of the demo cratic satraps against his crime Bill Clin ton at first reacted with jejune jitters. He culminated against republicans for join temporary Fallback. This far Back Anding the gun controlled dissenters within no a he said president.  ranks to Block the pork sen g Mitchells ploy was to in Laden legislation. Duce Republican John Chafee plus abut after communing with reality a couple of gop lame ducks and one or chastened president came before a press softies and a spy to submit a less lib ised taxpayer Assumption of a huge pen corps drawn up in vast cumbrous array Era mainstream / Nelson Rockefeller s Sion liability of workers who retire at 55. To record his acquiescence with political euphemism for moderate proposal. Aside from the tax boost there s not necessity. Invited belatedly by the Rump whole lot Here for liberals. Out went much of the social spending group to hear the Chafee Fallback Bob Here comes Clinton up to his re in went some criminal bashing prow pole responded caustically before i " " .-.�._. Sions and on the record went some kind make any decision i be got to talk to the Linton words for the Republican Minori read  in the House who would pass a much when he did some noted that aside improved bipartisan Bill. From unacceptably adding $81 billion in we draw from that a Clinton will taxes in 10 years the Chafee Fallback is if he does he would be politically ingress to Compromise when defeat not far from Dole Packwood insurance obligated to sign the mishmash that looms. Most of us expected his sensible Reform which forbids pre existing con emerges buffing it up with half a Lofback Down on the crime Bill. But what edition Cherry picking and provides in rhetoric claiming Triumph Over gridlock does that crime Deal Tell us about health Durance subsidies to the poor and pen with at least something passed. That s is legislation Sion portability. Senti ally what he did with the crime Bill to red. When the Hillary plan Sank like a Gall no backdoor taxation by mandate no and in t it working nothing would be Stone liberals floated out the Mitchell pretensions of universality no govern lost save Honor. Fear of violence Breaks the heart of our City however such a Compromise on health the soul of his Agenda would be the Thun no wonder Hillary hates it. Big Busi de clap that starts the Avalanche of joint Ness and big labor lobbyists hate it too session film clips of Liberal cries of betrayal they had been bought off by her prom and pundits pounding Alt full. Clinton s alternative to denounce the Chafee Fallback now to stand on Prin Ciple to remind the Congress of his waving pen warning and to stump the nation telling old folks and autoworkers to Send him sturdier democrats. Keep your most famous Promise or. President. Do something ostentatiously unstick. Listen to Hillary refuse to be nibbled to death by minnows. Take it to the people. I think the majority will reject your vision of centralized health care. But better to lose while daring greatly than to be remembered As the president who kept get c new York times icon. Does he Tell Mitchell to make that Deal perhaps liberalizing Chafee by amendment hoping a More Liberal Bill inthe House would tilt a House Senate conference leftward this time of year millions of americans wit Money in their pockets or adventure in their hearts quit these shores for Distant places. When they get to them they often see a Mirror image of life Back Home. As darkness Falls the great capitals of Asia and Europe hum with human vitality. At the Hub of these Urban Cen ters streets swarm with people enjoying the gentle augus nights. They stroll. They talk. They eat and they drink. By contrast As evening approaches the capital of the last superpower on Earth takes on the feel of a ghost town. Places where by Day lawyers and lobbyists ply their Craft remain All but forsaken. An occasional watering Hole with a Good name May attract a following. But the Outlook for the average downtown Washington restau rant that seeks a dinner hour clientele is pretty Bleak. On the other hand every evening Many of the bes eateries in the suburban malls Are jammed. Some of the trendier places even Issue beepers to their would be patrons that Buzz after an hour or More when their tables Are finally  also surround Paris and Rome Tokyo and Hong Kong. But in those great cities nearly All thereal action is to be found much nearer to what the lat ins used to Call the centrum. There poor folks tend Tolive far from the Center of town precisely the reverse Andrew j. Glass of the Normal Urban inner City scene in the unite states. Traditionally Large . Cities in the East and mid West served As a base for Industry much More so than overseas. Often when those industries left nothing moved in.  South and West newer cities have acres of Concrete the better to move their ears at fightback to suburbs. Sometimes such cities even Lack a True centrum. Fear of crime however Marks the real difference. Pinpoint of fact most Industrial nations now have crime rates that closely track those in the United states. The exception however is murder where America is no. 1. Social scientist James q. Wilson notes that between1985 and 1992, the homicide rate for Young us. White males went up by about 50 percent. For Young Blac males it has tripled. Much of that violence is apparently aimless. As Wilson  in the september Issue of commentary we Are terrified by the Prospect of innocent people being gunned Down at random without warning and almost without motive by youngsters who a Ter Ward show us the Blank a remorseful faces of feral Presocia  Wilson sees the underlying state of american life too Many guns drugs cars neighbourhoods in disarray As the Root cause of the problem. Even at that  that Only 6 percent of male youths Are behind More than half of All the serious crimes committed by Young  answer to the crime problem in Wilson s mind is to train More of our resources on that wild 6 percent Bunch. That in t something that the big crime Bill Dur ing its Long roller coaster ride through Congress has done _ politicians in the nation s capital like to talk about the need to strike at the real Root causes of crime. But when it comes to the crunch they often Back  they leave an empty downtown to enjoy a Mur Der free european vacation. C Cox news service