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St. Cloud Times from Saint Cloud, Minnesota • Page 8

Publication:
St. Cloud Timesi
Location:
Saint Cloud, Minnesota
Issue Date:
Page:
8
Extracted Article Text (OCR)

Editorial Board lSonja Sorensen Craig, publisher Susan Ihne, executive editor Pia Lopez, editorial page editor. 25S8762 Mike Knaak, systemsvisual images editor Roger Wittenberg, citizen representative OpmidDi Times 8A Ihursday, Sept 17, 1998 1 Our View DeWayne WlCKHAM GANNETNEWS SERVICE Elections show i rural interests losing power Readers' Views How To Send Letters Those selected for publication; are edited for length, clarity and grammar. Mail letters to: St. Cloud Times," P.O. Box 768, St.

Cloud, WIN 56302. Letters also may be sent by fax' to (320) 255-8775 or by e-mail to) sctimesctoudnet.com should be very concerned. It affects the whole community. What kind of message does this send to our children who have to drive by the King's Inn on the bus to and from school? When you run back and forth to town? When you mention the name of Rice to people, they relate it to King's Inn. Everyone knows where it's at.

Is this how we want our area known? I believe it is time for people to stand up and take back what belongs to us. If the people of this area really "love" their kids like we say when we have our "Rice Loves Its Kids" week, then you will get involved. We have to stand together as a community. Please attend the county board meeting on Sept. 17 at Henry's Catering and Banquet Center, Foley.

It begins at 7 p.m. Loren Popp RICE Writer agrees with view of scandal In response to the Sept 9 letter, "Hillary should leave; we should shut up." Nobody could have written it any better. I totally agree. Thank you for writing such a great letter. Carol Nolden RICE Watch out for school buses, children With the designation of September 14-18 as Minnesota School Bus Safety Week, we all should take a moment to reflect on the importance and urgency of school bus safety.

For the motoring public, perhaps you are in the best position to make a positive impact on school bus safety since children are most vulnerable when they are outside of the school bus. Plan for short delays in your daily commute when traveling during the peak route times of 7 to 9 a.m. and again from 2 to 4 p.m. Watch for school children on residential roadways as well as busy arterial streets and highways. Remember, children can be unpredictable when near traffic, so expect the unexpected.

If you are aware of a bus stop in your neighborhood or along a street you travel, expect children to be present When approaching any yellow school bus, expect that the bus will be stopping soon, and children will be congregating toward the bus or exiting from the bus. Alternating amber lights will lead to alternating red lights with the stop arm being extended. Once the stop arm is extended call your school district or bus operator with any concerns relative to school bus safety. School bus safety begins long before any students board a school bus. School bus safety is a shared community responsibility that we all need to take seriously.

Please take moment to reflect on the impact you could have in protecting our children. Larry Nadeau SUPERVISOR OF TRANSPORTATION, DISTRICT 742 COMMUNITY SCHOOLS Rice residents should not ignore Kingls Inn To the people of Watab Township and the people of Rice, if you believe that getting involved with the King's Inn "adult entertainment" issue is not any of your concern, you're wrong. As people of this area, you Clinton struggles for rescue strategy Keep public's mind off details of affair WASHINGTON Ken Starr's tome on the sexual indiscretions of Bill Clinton is in the hands of members of Congress but not so the president's fate. Long before the House completes its consideration of the independent counsel's salacious report and acts on the question of impeachment, the American people will render a binding decision on whether Clinton should remain in office. In the end it will be their opinion, not the content of Stands report, that will influence congressional decision-making in this matter.

Unlike nuclear non-proliferation or global warming, adultery is a subject most Americans know something about Fifty percent of all marriages in this country end in divorce. Adultery, I suspect, is a factor in many of these failed unions. While most think such behavior is wrong, the polls suggest few believe the president should lose his job because he had an affair. Stan and his supporters say adultery is the least of Clinton's offenses. They argue that it is not his sexual escapades, but the things the president allegedly did to hide his infidelity that are why he should be impeached.

To be sure, the case against Clinton is a coup d'etat, American style. It is the culmination of a long-running effort by the political right to overturn die results of the last election. Clinton must convince a majority of Americans that he still can exert leadership. As more and more of the sordid details of his affair with a young White House intern become the brunt of bad jokes, that won't be easy. It isn't that most Americans expect their leaders to be without sin, only that they keep their failings from public view.

The extent to which he can keep most Americans thinking of him hard at work in the Oval Office with his pants up and his mind focused on the affairs of state will determine the outcome of his latest crisis. Just as the authority of parents would erode quickly if their children constantly thought of how they were conceived every time they looked at them, so too the president's ability to govern will be whittled away if people's attention hovers long on the tawdry details of the Starr report To stave off impeachment or forced resignation, Clinton must get people focused on the good work of his administration. He has gotten help in deflecting attention away from his misdeeds by two of his harshest congressional critics. Earlier this month, Indiana Rep. Dan Burton, a darling of the religious right who claimed to be working to get the facts out "on all the Clinton scandals," was forced to admit he cheated on his wife and fathered a child with another woman.

Last week, Helen Chenoweth, the Idaho congresswoman who hawks family values with all the sincerity of a sideshow barker, confessed that she'd had a long-term sexual relationship with a married man that ended in 1984. And then Chenoweth lamely pointed out to reporters that she was single at the time, as if the only family she values is her own. With enemies like these, Clinton may weather this storm. This much, I think, is certain. In a congressional election year full of doubt about the mood of voters, most members of Congress will take the pulse of the American people and follow their lead when it comes to Clinton's fate.

Candidates who tout Twin Cities ties should not neglect needs, concerns of struggling small-town Minnesota Tuesday's election results reveal an ever-widening political gap between urban-suburban and rural interests in our community and statewide. 'That is best illustrated in the vote returns in the gubernatorial race. jln the city of St. Cloud and the "suburban" communities Waite Park, Sartell, St. Joseph, Sauk Rapids, Attorney General Hubert "Skip" Humphrey won the DFL Primary handily with 37 percent of the vote.

Second-place finisher state Sen. Doug Johnson received 27 percent. But step into rural Stearns County and you see the opposite: State Sen. Doug Johnson won 42 percent of the vqte; Humphrey, 28 percent. Johnson won only 19 percent statewide.

eSome analysts have suggested this is the single-issue anti-abortion vote at work. It is much more than that. Even in rural Stearns County, the single-issue anti-abortion vote never accounts for more than 15 percent of the vote. "Others have suggested that Republican crossover voters helped Johnson, but that, too, is incorrect Primary voters tend to be "true believers." They abhor voting for another party's candidates, no matter the reason. iThe fact is, significant numbers of people in Greater Minnesota believe no other candidate understands or even cares about rural issues.

Doug Johnson staked out territory as the only outstate candidate; all others, regardless of party, hailed from the Twin Cities metro area. This will be an issue in the Nov. 3 election. Republican candidate Norm Coleman hails from New York City. He and DFL candidate Humphrey will have to show that they have more than an abstract understanding of rural issues gleaned from consultants' briefings.

'The governor of Minnesota represents more than the Twin Cities metro area. jSmall town, rural Minnesota remains important to our economy and way of life and it is struggling. The candidates must show they appreciate that and propose solutions for a small town, rural renaissance. It is possible, with the right commitment and understanding. Technology and pledges of economic development resources have spurred the rebirth of rural communities elsewhere.

fact that Johnson pulled 27 percent of the vote even in the city of St. Cloud, second to Humphrey, proves that many people in regional hub cities also feel distant from the urban-suburban Twin Cities politics represented by most statewide candidates. In some ways, this shift in emphasis and power is natural. By the year 2000, the Twin Cities metropolitan area will account for 59 percent of the state's population, according to Minnesota Planning. In 1950, it was the opposite.

As the short seven-week general election campaign gears up, Humphrey, Coleman and Reform Party candidate Jesse Ventura must show that they care about the other 41 percent of the state's people. 'And Greater Minnesota residents, too, must show they understand the shift in population and power and press candidates on their issues. The days when rural interests rejgned supreme at the State Capitol are over. Be knowledgable when casting vote Incompetent GOP attorney general candidate, considering her record, should hve lost primary by larger margin Sharon Anderson, a perennial candidate currendy a fugitive from justice, received 39 percent of the vote statewide in the Republican primary for attorney general She won 42 percent of the vote in the city of St Cloud. She even beat or tied the Republican-endorsed candidate in rune of 39 city precincts.

tVip 1Q94 flprrinn she wnn the Remihliran nrimaru Starr obliterated right of The St. Cloud Times welcomes reader participation on the opinion Letters to the editor should be typewritten, exclusive to this contain no more than 300 words and include the writer's name, address and daytime phone number fa verification. with the alternating red lights, it is unlawful to pass or come within 20 feet of the stopped school bus. Failure to obey the stop arm law not only has the potential for tragic consequences, but will result in the bus driver reporting the violation to law enforcement During the 1997-98 school year the St. Cloud School District reported 220 stop arm violations to law enforcement agencies.

During Minnesota School Bus Safety Week, parents also have an opportunity to help keep all children safe. Increase the awareness of the school bus stop arm with friends, family and co-workers. Visit with your children about safe school bus ridership. School bus drivers need the support of parents and the reinforcement of safe ridership principles to be truly successful in their efforts. Do not hesitate to Richard Cohen WASHINGTON POST WRITERS GROUP them our country.

But what we are witnessing has a medieval quality to it Starr set out lo these many years ago looking into an Arkansas real estate deal. He proceeded to a personnel matter, the staffing and running of the White House travel office. He has looked into whether FBI files were used by the White House for political reasons. He has come out of these investigations with the conviction that Clinton is a stonewalling prevaricator. Other than that, though, he had exacdy zip.

Then Linda Tripp came along. Another prosecutor would have turned away. Another prosecutor would have said that he did not go to law school to become a private Dick, standing out in the cold and looking up at two silhouettes on a window shade. But Starr, brimming with a dangerous righteousness, plunged in. He would have wired Lewinsky and sent her into the White House, if he could have.

It is clear, he would stop at nothing, vi So now we know about some of the president's sexual practices. Now we know things about the chief executive of the United States we do not know about our best friends or, in many cases, our own spouses. Clinton has not merely been exposed as a adulterer, he has been mortified, subjected to an Orwellian intrusion by the gumshoes of the state. His interior life, virtually his fantasies, have been nailed to a wall for the populace to see. This is a AP PHOTO Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr departed Monday from his home in McLean, Va.

The report by Starr on the affair between President Clinton and former White House intern Monica Lewinsky was released last Friday. privacy UP we cannot allow presidents to lie under oath, no matter how they bite their lip and offer cocka-mamie definitions of sex. He ought to get slapped real good. But years from now, when we are no longer revolted by seamy details, when the salacious has become tiring, we may well won der what this was all about How was it that we lost a president on account of a lie told about sex? The answer is that we live in an era in which the boundary between public and private has been obliterated, where fame has become synonymous with celebrity, where personality has replaced ideology and where a prosecutor, suffused with zealotry, went where he should not have gone. This is what concerns me.

Only one of us is president But all of us have bedrooms. You can write to Richard Cohen at Washington Post Writers Group, 11 50-1 5th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20071 Clinton still did wrong, but Starr should have known when to quit prying WASHINGTON On the night of Oct. 20, 1973, 1 was in the newsroom of The Washington Post.

We learned that President Nixon had demanded the firing of the special prosecutor, Archibald Cox. We learned that Attorney General Elliot Richardson had refused to do so and had quit. We heard vague rumors of troop movement and stirrings at the FBI headquarters. This was the famous Saturday Night Massacre and for a moment here and a moment there I was deeply concerned. This government, I thought, is capable of anything.

Now, once again, I am concerned. Only this time, it is not the president who scares me, but Kenneth Starr, the independent counsel. He has used the immense, virtually unchecked, power of his office to corner the president of the United States in the darkest recess of his private life. After four years and $40 million he has proven without a doubt that Bill Clinton had an affair with Monica Lewinsky and lied about it. What next? A sordid divorce case? Stop reading right now if you want a defense of the president I have never been in love with him, always considered him to be a liar and will neither defend nor miriimize his lying to the American people, to a grand jury and in his deposition in the Paula Jones civil suit Presidents of all people do not get to pick which laws they will honor and which they will breach.

They took an oath. They give us their word, we give public evisceration. Is Clinton to blame? Absolutely. He should never have had extramarital sex. He should never have had it with a young intern in the White House.

He should never have involved others in his escapades, and he should never have lied about it all when, last January, he was essentially caught He is, as we all now know, a smarmy man. The Washington Post recently editorialized that "there needs to be the gravest of offenses" for an election to be overturned by impeachment and conviction. I agree. There are different standards for resignation, the paper said, and I agree with that, too. If Clinton can no longer govern, if the government becomes a shambles, men maybe win be time to bring on Al Gore.

Thatfs why he's there. In the meantime, an interim step is in order a condemnation of some sort by Congress. God knows, Clinton has earned censure and God knows, too, that Tom Neuville, a state senator, Bating Republican endorsee 54 percent to 46 percent Sharon Anderson is not a lawyer, was committed to a charges of terroristic threats in lental institution and faces Itasca County. That she received more than a third of the vote in the Republican primary is a sad statement on voting. People will choose a familiar name, whether they know anything about a candidate, rather than leave a spot on their ballot blank.

jThe lesson: It's better not to vote in a race when you know nothing about a candidate than potentially to elect a incompetent or worse candidate. You can write to DeWayne Wick-ham at Gannett News Service, 1000 Wilson Arlington VA 22229. 4.

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