The San Francisco Examiner from San Francisco, California • 32

William F. liuchlcy Jr. EnrroiiiALS COMMENT 'nnJTrantlsro $xmnfitctr Tuesday, July 11, 1972 I.ETTEKS Page 32 McGovern' Tax Loopholes The Judge's Role airs rubiic ah THREE DECISIONS in federal courts, all occurring last Friday, illuminated sharply the difference between activist judges eager to meddle in everything and wise judges who remember they have no mandate to run this country. The first decision was that of the U.S. Supreme Court turning the delegate fight of the Democratic National Convention back to that convention where it belonged.

Of all the affairs of this mWq: 4 all of them, however, more complicated than those Senalor McCovern come up with. That lax law reduced the rata of income taxation by B2 percent for those earning $3,000 or less; by 43. percent for those earning $3-5 thousand; by 27 percent for those earning $5 7 thousand, and soon, with a reduction of 1.7 percent for those earning $f() 100 thousand; and an increase of 7 K'i cent for those earning $100 thousand and over. Rut the figures are tiresome, when put beside the principal point, which is that over the years Congress and the Executive have done what they thought best to affect the allocation of resources. The Mellon Rank's economic newsletter sums it up: "For example it (the tax law) is used to encourage home ownership, to lower the cost of borrowing to state and local governments, to increase the value of retirement and unemployment benefits, to lower the cost of medical care, and to encourage private philanthropy.

Reasonable men can disagree on whether or not the individual income tax law is the proper vehicle through which such objectives should be accomplished. But it is clear that proposals to abolish the existing set of tax preferences, unless accompanied by other positive measures, imply a repudiation of the objectives which originally led to the establishment of the preferences." Candidate McGovern will in due course need to face up to the consequences of his rhetoric. WHEN HE HOES SO, for one, wish that he might say something truly radical. Namely that it is not the proper business of Government to attempt to manipulate human economic behavior by a tissue of built-in biases in the tax law. The trouble with the idea of making justice via tax laws is that one never really knows what it is that one is accomplishing; who it is that one is hurting.

A FORTNIGHT AGO Mr. Stewart Alsop reported that a big McGovern. backer from California, who had made a fortune In computers, consulted his computers, feeding them one of Senator McGovern's formulas for bringing wealth to the needy, and discovered that $12 billion was missing, i.e., that just one of the redistribulionist proposed by Senator McGovern was underfinanced by a mere $42 billion. The backer was not the man best suited to question the reliability of computers so it is not known whether he will finally back off from his computers or from his candidate. NOW THE economics division of the Mellon Rank in Pittsburgh, in its news letter, makes a few gentle comments about the loopholes Senator McGovern is forever talking alout.

Do you remember the one about all the people who reported gross incomes in excess of $200,000 in 1970 who paid zero taxes? High indignation set in every time Senator McCJovern mentioned the matter. What he did not mention is that there were exactly 10( such cases, and that a st udy of them reveals that the overwhelming majority either (a) paid taxes to foreign countries receiving the usual tax credit; or (b) paid state taxes, or tc) had deductions sanctioned by law. Senator McCovern also did not mention that there are in fact 15,000 American citizens who reported incomes in excess of $200, (XX) who did pay income taxes at an effective tax rate of 44 percent. Nor does Senator McGovern stress the use of loopholes to people who are not necessarily rich. For instance, the joint return permitted husband and wife, in the absence of which loophole the government would realize six to ten billion dollars in additional revenue.

The new tax law of 19, regularly disparaged as a rich man's tax law, deserves to be criticized for any number of reasons, litical convention is the most obvious. Yet a federal court of appeals had attempted to do so. Reversing that court by a 6 to 3 vote, the Supreme Court pointed out that "for nearly a century and a half the national political parties have determined controversies themselves regarding seating of delegates to their conventions." The high court majority also noted "the large public interest in allowing the political processes to function free from judicial supervision." If the Supreme Court majority was being "strict constructionist" la derisive term to some) in its refusal to try to dictate to the. national political process, then we say let the country have more strict constructionism. THIS APPLIES ALSO to the second of the Max Lcrucr Editor's Mail Box Looking Toward November Skyjack A flernialhs three cases decided nday.

Judge Lloyd tfurke ot the U.S. District Court here upheld the right of San Francisco's school board to maintain Lowell High School as an academic high school. Then he went further and chided those who had brought the attack on Lowell to his court. "The federal courts," said Judge Burke, "cannot become the supervisors over every aspect of municipal government its schools, its redevelopment, its planning, its welfare." True words, those. The federal courts have neither a constitutional mandate nor the expertise to run municipal affairs.

Some of Judge Burke's colleagues on the federal district bench unfortunately think otherwise. Sq does Justice William 0. Douglas of the Supreme Court. He dissented in the Democratic Party delegate case. On the same day he also put a judicial lock on San Francisco's vitally important Yerba Buena Center redevelopment project.

DOUGLAS ACTED in a lawsuit claiming that Yerba Buena is subject to the requirements of the Environmental Protection Act, even though Yerba Buena was started in 1966 and the act was not passed until 1970. Both the U.S. District Court and U.S. Court of Appeals here had refused to halt Yerba Buena pending a trial of the issues. But Douglas did.

He did so after a cursory examination of the issues and despite the obvious fact that Yerba Buena will improve rather than hurt the environment. Ironically this is a fight within the federal family, with San Francisco the innocent bystander who gets hurt. Needlessly hurt, let us add, by an activist judge. THERE ARE SOME GROUNDS for guessing that the present heavy odds against Sen. George McGovern in an unequal contest with President Nixon (four to one, according to that reader of the auspices, Jimmy the Greek) will narrow considerably before November.

One is the important role that McGov-ern's youth supporters will play. A second is the possibility that he will continue to make inroads into the blue-collar voters, and may get a toehold even among the rank-and-file blacks. A THIRD IS THAT the George Meany labor hierarchy, which on record would be expected to vote for any Democrat except McGovern, is also so fed up with Richard Nixon that it will opt out of the campaign, except in the state races. A fourth is the Emersonian principle of compensation which Americans share to see an untout-ed horse beat the favorite, to take the lame dog into the house. All of these will have to operate if McGovern is to have a serious chance of victory.

There is always also, of course, the possibility of a political disaster in Vietnam that can be blamed on Nixon. Rut failing that, the serious bets will be on Nixon. Assuming no separate Wallace candidacy, as now seems safe, it will be hard for Nixon to lose a Southern state. There is a strong defection to Nixon from the Catholics, and an even stronger one from the Jewish voters. My own impression, is that Nixon will carry some 40 percent, of the Jewish vote, and in megastates like New York, California, Michigan, Pennsylvania, it might be enough to swing the electoral vote.

I've left to the end of the calendar of Democratic griefs the potentially suicidal split in the party between the force-in-being of the Democratic organization, and the new militia-muster of young organizers and practical party ideologues. This is a minus element in the calculus of a McGovern victory, comparable to the youth element as a plus factor. A sharp critic of McGovern might say that he didn't have to engineer this confrontation between the Daleys and Singers, the Espositos and Lowensteins that he could have kept the organization people mollified if not happy, and brought in his own young people as an auxiliary to the organization, to cement the cracks that have developed in it, and perhaps in time to take it over. But McGovern may not be the unmoved mover who could do this. A new book on "Youth Politics," by Sydney Hyman (Basic Books), rests in part on a college survey of political attitudes by Jack Dennis and Austin Ranney.

It suggests what has been amply confirmed by the primary campaign that the young voters are not committed party members, although they strongly favor the Democrats over the Republicans, that they care deeply about liberal programs, but that mostly they are unmoved by the traditional loyalties. IT IS ONLY A STEP, from being unmoved by loyalties, to an effort to smash the loyalty structures. That is what happened in the key symbolic event, the expulsion of Daley from the convention by the young McGovern militants. Whether McGovern will have to pay and pay for this, or whether it will enroll and arouse new loyalties toward him not only among the young but beyond them that will the campaign question if he is the nomine. Indian Influence I take strong exception to the letter June 29i proposing that people with Spanish surnames or people with ethnic groups in Spanish-speaking countries be united under the term "Spanish-Americans." Throughout a great portion of Latin-America it is the Indian who predominates racially and culturally.

Look at the facial features of the majority of Mexicans and Central Americans and you see the features of the various Indian groups found in these regions. It should also be pointed out that in parts of Central America and throughout the whole Carribbean area there is a strong black African influence. These racial and cultural qualities can be seen in the faces, heard in the language and music of the majority of the Spanish-surnamed groups living in the Mission District. When Santana or Malo play it is the sound of Indian Mexico and Central America and Afro-Cuba and Puerto Rico you hear. These groups do not play Spanish music by a very long shot.

The young Mexican-Americans who call themselves Chicanos have boldly asserted their Indian heritage By using the term they have turned the tables on an old insult and created a new and proud reference to themselves Indeed in Mexico, "Indianismo" la conscious awareness of Indian racial and cultural roots) is manifesting itself AXTOXIO VARELA, Jr. San Francisco To the Editor: In the light of the most recent air piracy, it is difficult for me to comprehend that nothing can be done to curtail. this most dangerous and outrageous act against the public. It seems that before anyone does anything in the country, a lot of people have to be killed first. It is not necessary to take a chance on getting anyone killed if more strict measures would be taken at the airports My husband and I have just returned from a vacation trip to Tennessee.

Neither the airport in San Francisco nor the airport in Nashville gave a personal check of hand baggage or a detecting device. My husband and I walked into the American Airlines plane. The door was wide open in the pilot's compartment. There were two pilots talking. The airline stewardess greeted us aboard.

While her back was toward me I could have easily walked in and closed the cabin door with a gun in my purse or a bomb Something better he done right now. ESTHER SCIIEELE San Francisco Remember that Southern Pacific ad "Next Time Take the Train9" What with all this skyjacking nowadays that ad might just come back into vogue. (RET SCHWARZKOPF Atascadero On Thursday, July 6. at 7 p.m. my friend sent a 13 year old son to lm Angeles via PSA plane for a summer visit with relatives.

The hoy had found a railroad spike, the kind used to fasten the. rails to the ties, which he wanted to take along. His mother did not let him put it in his luggage but ho slipped it into his hip pocket. Ho showed it to me at the airport just before boarding. This big hunk oi metal on a passenger went undetected.

This was the day after the "Siberia" skyjack and during the very time that another PSA skviack was A Chess Game American chess champion Bobby Fischer, notorious for his cantankerous egocentrics in long Marianne Means tournament play, really outdid his nasty reputation when his stalling tactics almost wrecked the current world championship match in Iceland. Chess enthusiasts everywhere were exasperated by the challenger's behavior and demands for more money. He was widely condemned as a venal, unsportsmanlike bad guy -a sorry contrast to the title holder, Russia's Boris Spassky, who was seen as a gentleman tried beyond endurance. We think the whole chess world actually owes Bobby Fischer some kind of gold medal, and eventually will realize as much no matter how nasty and cantankerous he may continue to be. Never has one person done so much to promote public interest in chess, or to elevate its rewards.

Chess has suddenly been glamorized with an importance heretofore unimaginable. Bobby Fischer did it all. LB Back at the Ranch I in progress Is this kind of laxity fair Insurance Plan Re: letter Employes," June 2h on life insurance group plans for state employes, the following facts are correct. There are over 240. (Ml state employes in California.

Governor Reagan's 70 cents per SI0O0 of life insurance would benefit all state workers. Premiums would remain at the same flat rate for life with the state paying half the premium, thus reducing the employe's investment to actually cents per $1000 of lile insurance. The California State Employee Asso-ciaion has a membership of about 118.000 worker s. Its plan of 50 cents per $1000 of life insurance benefits only those employes who are members of the association. In addition, the employes have to pay their own premium and these rise as they get older LOt IS LONGINOTTI San Francisco to the travelers? THEODORE H.

HOLDORF South San Francisco Commute plane operators were ordered to apply stringent searching procedures by President Nixon. Some tightening has been noted hv observers. Editor Somehow I cun get the thought out of my mind that the pilot of the plane in Saigon, where the hijacker was shot and killed, displavcd a 'Tv deep. inner weakness and not strength, Is it morally acceptable lor a man to judge, execute and discard human life for a man who Incrl to commandeer an airplane with a knife and two lemons? ROY ETTINGER San Francisco But Johnson is disturbed by what he sees as a drift in the Democratic Party toward domestic radicalism and international isolation. Those who know him believe he views McGovern as symbolic of that drift.

Johnson told one friend that "if McGovern is the nominee, I will go fishing." Johnson could be quile helpful to the new Democratic presidential nominee if he would. Vow persons excel former Presidents (except maybe incumbent ones) at the delicate art of fund raising. Johnson remains a respected and persuasive figure among older, moderate Democrats. But so long as the war remains unsettled, Johnson seems destinedtobereleg.it. ed to the shadows.

The same was true in Johnson, still an incumbent, wantpd to come to the convention but was warned sway by advisers upset by the violent antiwar demonstrations. HE IS SOMEWHAT philosophic almut it. Recently he told Lawrence O'Brien that he realizes "my time has not tome." seemed to mean that his presidency is Mill too recent and passions too high for the calm, unbiased judgment of history. But in all this Die Democratic party ha more to lose than Lyndon Johnson A convention cannot link lU past leaden hip with it present betrays a party that lill chance of uniting in sulficiPnt dcqr to defeat Richard Nixon. REACH The Democratic Party's most recent former President is not participating in this convention.

Lyndon Johnson's absence says a good deal about the serious problems that have divided his party the past six years and will continue to plague it throughout the coming presidential campaign. HIE FORMER PRESIDENT was invited by the Democratic National Committee to make a speech here but declined because felt he would not be made welcome. Friends warned him that he might be booed or otherwise insulted bv hostile delegates pledget to Sen. George McGovern. Johnson has come to symbolize the single issue of the Vielnatn War to the young activist who are eager to turn their back on the Democratic past.

But they are disowning in the process former Democratic glories as well as mistakes. Johnson was responsible for passing into law more liU-ral domestic social legislation than any President in modern history, mi biding revolutionary breakthroughs in aid 1o education, civil rights, and medical care. Johnson said in hi only newspaper in-tejview sinep retirement, held with thi col urnniM lat winter, that intended in remain a Iiemoerat despite the division in hi party. The Public Inlcrcsl MARKET STREET has been torn up bv BART and BART related projects for far too long. Now the day when the street will be put back together again is being postponed by a strike in the ready-mix concrete industry.

The strike is delaying completion of the traffic viaduct at the Market-Fifth breakthrough and of the Powell and Montgomery BART subway stations extensions, among many other projects. Other important public projects throughout the Piay Area are at a standstill. Obviously the public interest is adversely affected as long as the strike ronlinues. This public interest should hp kept in mind by employers and the striking Team ers Union. It obligates them to push harder for an agreement.

todws (i on; "I've never been a permissive father. And I've alwavs believed in discipline. That's how I was brought up. The sort of thing von svv around the movie todav is, well, shocking. The A.

lies? I'm no prude hut I'll welcome the dav hack when we get back to making movie 2ain." Actor Henry Fonda, talking about hi children and movi. Lctlcr Writer I have been bothered by phone calls and post cards concerning a letler dun Controls." 20 -i-jne(j (', sev. I did not write that letter nor do I rndorse the sentiments it contained CiERTRl'DE M. CASEY Sn Franrlsro.