Pacific Daily News from Agana Heights, Guam • 11

11 LEER WEBBER Publisher Sunday News JOSEPH MURPHY Editor Opinion GWENDA I IYECHAO Manogmg Editor (73 yi 3 GWERNCRi PLA "SSXfl iww U0TAHY OUr I Of THIS WTO to CO co Editorials Cameras in court Some local judges and attorneys last week expressed concern about a bill that would allow photographic and electronic coverage of trials in the courtroom Though the proposal has been around for several years and has the backing of Superior Court Presiding Judge Paul Abbate many other members of the legal community feel the island is not ready for the public exlosure cameras in the courtroom might bring Courtroom coverage is a new and probably controversial issue but the added dimension the coverage would provide the public expanding and bringing to life the workings of the islands judicial system outweighs the possible damage from public exposure The technology of still and video cameras as well as lighting and recording equipment is advanced enough that the media could be made inconspicuous while the entire island is provided with more thorough and realistic coverage of how the courts manage justice for all i If the bill is signed into law by the governor the committee formulating the guidelines for coverage should give the idea a chance to prove or disprove itself Few of the media here have had much experience with the idea but it is being given increasing use in the mainland United States Cameras in the courtroom should be regarded as an experiment tried tested evaluated and modified for local conditions if possible Then the media and legal community will have something on which to base a decision about the continued and future use of close courtroom coverage vie was win rr ww? Ellen Goodman Guam loses a leader Guam residents were shocked yesterday to learn of the tragic death of Sen Gene Ramsey in Tokyo The island will definitely be the poorer for his untimely death Ramsey was one of the new breed of Guam leaders who was expected to lead the island out of its political doldrums He was highly intelligent educated motivated and a fighter True Ramsey was controversial but that was part of his charm He certainly had the best interests of Guam at heart His work in the first Bordallo administration showed his potential as an astute politician He was articulate and wasnt afraid to fight the powers that be Were going to miss Sen Ramsey very much Proud achievements As small -as Guam is and as insignificant as we sometimes feel next to the giants of the world there are times when one of our own steps up and manages to lift the island into a class above the rest And nothing not the jokes on the late night TV shows nor the comments of ill-informed individuals can take away the glow we get from such accomplishments We have to give a big hand or more appropriately a salute to the men and women of the University of Guam Army ROTC unit which recently was named the top team in a nationwide competition The group of 20 from UOGs Reserve Officers Training Corps topped units from 300 US universities in bringing home the Warrior of the Pacific Trophy Were also happy and excited that a Guamanian 28-year-old Jesse Lujan won the Mr America contest another contest involving hard training and discipline Twq different awards one group of people ours Congratulations! Once in the late 18th century Dr Samuel Johnson remarked about the threat of execution: Depend upon it sir when a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight it concentrates his mind wonderfully In the late 20th century every one of us lives with the prospect of mass execution But this nuclear doomsday has no deadline So we pay homage to it in grim jokes and bumper stickers One Nuclear Bomb Can Spoil Your Whole Day and go about our daily business Now comes the ABC movie The Day After a story of sorts about nuclear devastation and its aftermath The view of survival in a post-nuclear age sanitized as it must be for television is vivid and tough enough to resonate through daydreams and nightmares This is a movie that concentrates the mind wonderfully So its not surprising that during the past few weeks The Day After scheduled for Nov 20 has emerged from television show to national event The program screened extensively across the country has brought on a heated debate about the proper level exposure for children to the TV holocaust Parents who are notorious for lax supervision over the television set are anxiously asking: Should we keep them away from the set? Educators are sending home notices advising parents The Portland Ore school board says no child should watch at all The National Education Association says no child should watch alone Viewing groups are being set up in hundreds of communities and psychologists are offering advice to teachers about likely student reactions: fear depression hopelessness Dr John Mack a psychiatrist who has done extensive work on nuclear anxiety among children and adolescents says: Most parents are not ready to be confronted by the raw emotions of their kids A great part of the fear of the kids watching is a fear of the questions they'll ask You can be sure that they will ask: What are you doing to stop this? And we will feel ashamed The problem says Dr Mack isn't that we get upset There are lots of people in the psychiatric wards who are not upset about anything In the movie itself there is a vivid portrait of a woman carefully making a bed with full knowledge that missiles are on the way The point says Dr Mack is what we do with that upset Do do our children fall into despair or into action? What is the route to hope? asks Dr Mack It's a question he has been exploring for some time: It may be through facing reality If everyone is not upset we wont stop this thing Is a nuclear-war film kid stuff? I would still shield younger children from The Day After Its too overwhelming But I am less certain about adolescents and teen-agers Perhaps the best decision can be made in concert with them with an understanding that this is rough emotional material Material that will make them afraid as we are afraid But whether the young become viewers or not we have to be willing to ask ourselves the question they would phrase: What are we doing to stop it? The Day After concentrates the mind wonderfully And it is still the day before Boston Globe.