York Sunday News from York, Pennsylvania • 82

Dennis Hetzel Editor and Publisher James McClure Managing Editor Earl McDaniel Editorial Page Editor November 25 1990 York Daily Record -1 -zztj FOE! THE RECORD Rowland Evans and Robert Novak are syndicated SUDUDOirt Randy BishPermsytvania Newspaper Publishers Association Patrick LaForge covers state government from the York Daily Capitol Bureau in Harrisburg His column appears Sundays State GOP regroups in Pa US considered snatching Mrs Saddam rr7ASHINGTON For i I just a moment the Unit-W ed States considered the possibility of snatching Saddaih wife when Western intelligence agencies discovered in mid-November she was staying incognito at the Iraqi house in Geneva Switzerland But the delicious turnabout of the Iraqi wife turning up as an American hostage was dismissed almost immediately It would have dragged the United States down to Iraq's level The Reagan administration sanctioned kidnapping several years ago but the targets were terrorists not wives of terrorists Mrs Saddam was not disturbed At first US officials surmised that wife and daughter visited Geneva because of nothing more than a desire to get out of sanctioned Baghdad to do a little shopping But later information suggested Mrs Saddam has health problems and needed special care Mitchell for president? The word spread through lobbyist circles that Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell had his presidential candidacy when he greased the way for Senate passage of an airport tax bill desired by Mayor Richie Daley Mitchell talked Sen Wendell Ford of Kentucky chairman of the aviation subcommittee into putting through the bill in the closing days of the session The bill is essential to the third Chicago airport desired by Daley whose support for president would be helpful in Illinois Mitchell viewed as the most politically astute Democratic floor leader since Lyndon Johnson is regarded as a real presidential prospect by Washington insiders Outside the Beltway he is better known to the television viewers than the usually mentioned presidential prospects NY Gov Mario Cuomo and Sen Bill Bradley of New Jersey antenna Senate Minority Leader Robert Dole recognized a swing to the right by Republican senators and quietly named conservative freshman Sen Trent Lott of Mississippi to head the committee that handles GOP committee assignments a post that is highly sensitive politically Dole had not been on warm terms the past two years with Lott a supporter of Jack Kemp for president in 1988 against Dole Lott angrily opposed the budget deal that Dole played a key role in forging Accordingly Dole feared an attempt to oust him as Republican floor leader might be engineered by Lott No such effort was made to depose Dole But in other contested races for the Senate GOP leadership conservatives defeated moderates in every instance close collaborator in the budget deal Sen Pete Domenici of New Mexico was defeated for Republican Policy Committee chairman by a foe of the agreement Sen Don Nickles of Oklahoma Senator Carla? US Trade Representative Carla Hills who has never run for public office and has not lived in California for 15 years is regarded as the front-runner' to be appointed by Gov-elect Pete Wilson to the US Senate seat he is vacating Wilson insiders say he probably make a choice until January but confirm that she is on the list Having defeated a woman for governor (ex-San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein) Wilson might be inclined to appoint a woman to replace him Living in Washington for many years as President secretary of housing and later as a practicing attorney before becoming President trade ambassador Hills has maintained her California voter registration A footnote: Having scored heavily with the Hispanic community in the election Wilson might go there for a successor The best prospect would be 35-year-old Orange County Supervisor Gaddi Vasquez eeling from the disastrous candidacy of Auditor -1 General Barbara Hafer Republican conservatives are launching an effort to reform the way the state party selects its nominees James Pickard president of the York Saw and Knife Co Emigsville has announced the formation of October an organization of Republicans who want to return the party to its conservative principles Pickard a former commerce secretary under Gov Dick Thornburgh was passed over by party leaders last fall in favor of Hafer Rep Fred Noye R-Cumberland County is one member of group which met for the first time shortly before the Nov 6 debacle hence the name panel of music professionals picked by Eddie Khoury and Ronnie Bonner of Philadelphia out of 200 entries what the song would sound like at doublespeed: mighty name steeped glory tradition acclaim brave men fought foe of freedom tyranny decried bell independence filled countryside Pennsylvania future filled honor everlasting blessed by own hand birthplace keystone flag freedom voices tomorrow glorify your When you play it backward the song demands that we all bow down and worship Mr Ed So that leaves New Jersey all alone without a state song assuming Casey signs this bill Perhaps New Jersey is not as mighty as we are Maybe we should march into Trenton and let the bell of independence fill their countryside They are not glorifying us enough and here we are blessed by own hand Anyway let me be the first to make up funny lyrics to the same tune: Pennsylvania You are mighty vain To think you need a state song whose lyrics are so Back to the earlier subject: Why did Hafer lose all but one county in mighty Pennsylvania? Should she have proposed her own state song? by Madonna? Instead of answering that question give you a story: When New York City Mayor Ed Koch ran for governor of New York back in 1982 he made the mistake of saying life is a in a Playboy interview Somebody did read the articles in issue because Koch lost the primary to Mario Cuomo and rural upstate votes made the difference The day after the election my rural college paper ran a picture of cows in the editorial column with a headline something like on That was one of my favorite editorials of all time Rather pointed take all morning to figure out (Some newspapers these days not this one but I name names are afraid to get to any point at all urge you to wear a hat in rainy weather and to support education reform on the one hand but not without further study on the other hand And usually boring stale rhetoric that nobody reads beyond the first paragraph Ask any person on the street: you favor leaden editorials that everyone agrees with or interesting ones that you despise as misguided and foolish with every ounce of your Most would say the latter if you promised not to put their pictures in the paper) Fast forward to Barbara Hafer who hails from that upscale cosmopolitan city of Pittsburgh where no one owns trucks or guns first and fatal stumble in the race came early when she declared to a Philadelphia crowd a pro-choice Republican from the west and Bob Casey is a redneck Irishman from The remark probably confirmed rural suspicions that folks from big cities like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia look down on them as rubes hicks bumpkins The on Barb Moo! Christopher Lyon a spokesman for Pickard and The October Group said Hafer tried to run as a Democrat to the left of Gov Robert Casey By coming out for increased taxes she jettisoned the economic conservativism Her pro-choice position alienated social conservatives in the party Lyon said The October suggested reforms: Creation of a state party platform Eight-year term limits for state committee members fie say it much better than said in a pamphlet: agriculture needed wagons York built wagons When industry needed turbines York built turbines And when the war effort needed tanks York built The pamphlet is a promotional tool for the proposed Agricultural and Industrial Museum of York County While we have a couple of minor reservations about the idea we think of a better way to combine the York special history and heritage into a public attraction that will enter- tain and educate those of us who live here while i providing a boost to the central city where so much of history was made Organizers have set an ambitious goal of raising $14 million Plans are to renovate the old Motter building along Codorus Creek into an industrial museum and the old Eastern farm- market building on East Market Street into an agricultural museum Museum Director Warren Smith says that the market building could be open as soon next summer in time i for the 250th anniversary celebration with the Motter building opening in 1992 What started as a germ of an idea more than two years ago is now before the public Much depends on the success of the fund-raising effort in the coming months is not a classical Smith told us appeals to everyone The heritage of this community is Smith describes a hands-on museum where things really work either in miniature or fullblown reality Visiting children would get a cardboard car shaped and formed on a miniature version of an old assembly line There would be printing presses agricultural equipment and turbines He and the organizers of this effort many of the York most prominent citizens offer much to dispel the cynical view: so special about Reaching out to schools organizers hope to teach area children the value of our industrial heritage and remind them of what a strong work ethic can create Operating funds would come from corporate sponsorship of exhibits matching grants and memberships with a small percentage coming from admission fees kept low enough so that anyone can go Is there some risk attached? Of course It could be that funds will fall short or the museum live up to its billing We believe that is doubtful because of the thoughtfulness and creativity of the plans Additionally the museum project offers an opportunity to rejuvenate some central city areas that need a shot in the arm While one expect out-of-town travelers to go out of their way to see one relatively small York museum not hard to envision the combination of the museum farmers markets downtown historic sites and other attractions luring a visitor for a day or two ironic that Lancaster County has prospered and become an international tourist attraction by promoting the presence of a people the Amish who seek publicity We need to be ironic Surely York County situated in such proximity to popular tourist stops in Lancaster and Gettysburg has tourism potential Our reservations are twofold One is a concern that trying to refurbish two buildings at once is too much it be better to concentrate on one site at a time making it as good as it can be and then decide whether to go on to the other site? And some ask why two sites are necessary Smith agrees that in an ideal situation one site would be good but there is such a symbolic connection between an agricultural museum in an old farmers market and an industrial museum in an old factory that this plan is worth extra effort He also said that at some point shuttle buses will carry visitors between sites so that driving be necessary Our second concern is that big projects such as this have a tendency of drying up funding for other worthy causes The community for example invested a lot of money and time into the Historical Society museum in recent years t)ur hope in particular that the relationships between the museum backers and the historic society are strong so that efforts complement one another without causing the other to suffer But despite those cautions we believe the plan deserves support Residents may look back in 10 years and owe a lot to those with the vision and foresight to dare to dream about such an ambitious and exciting way to present a ma-J jor part of York heritage If you wish to make a contribution to the museum write the campaign office at 15 Market Way East York 17401 or call 852-2224 Abolish the leadership endorsement vote A rigid endorsement timetable An open forum for all candidates before the entire state committee A formal secret ballot Committee staff to remain neutral Lyon blamed Senate President Pro Tempore Robert Jubelirer R-Altoona and others for backing Hafer Pickard said party leaders guided by a foolish pragmatism that told them to sell out our Republican principles (That) ripped apart the Republican natural constituencies and caused historic These reforms are intended to ensure that the candidates who are endorsed represent the true views of the party which are presumably conservative Hafer made plenty of blunders on the issues Still one wonders if her race was more of a personal failure than an ideological one Well the -Legislature finally adopted a state song last week It took years Pennsylvania was a strong contender for a while Finally an impartial i I Dennis Hetzel is the editor and publisher of the Daily Record His column appears Sundays no shortage of things to cover from family farms real estate offices and grocery stores Businesses (and potential businesses) and the communities in which they operate face serious questions of growth and survival in a rapidly changing world And those questions just involve industry When Giant opens a large supermarket off South Queen Street or Wal-Mart comes to town it affects us as consumers and profoundly influences parts of the business communty And we must try to make room for little stories about new businesses in town people being promoted and the other items that are big events in individual lives The challenge of doing all this in parts of two or three pages a day rests squarely in the laps of our business editor and her staff of two reporters So meet our new business editor Eloise DeHaan Eloise joined us about a month ago from the Bucks County Courier Times where she was a reporter and business editor following stints on the business staffs of the Bradenton Fla Herald and the Philadelphia Business Journal I think the revival of this position in ca- -pable hands means find more good things in the months ahead What you think is more important though As consumers of our product you vote for us every time you buy our paper or renew your subscription counting those votes and taking your suggestions hesitate to let us know how doing When it comes to improving our coverage we mean business contributions targeted to mutual funds And many people follow mutual funds with as much fervor as a stockbroker maybe more because that money is for retirement or a college education But a trade-off For us it was American Stock Exchange listings We cut them back The research seen suggests that American stocks rank fourth among readers with interest in financial listings preceded by New York stocks mutual funds and NASDAQ listings Of course continue to report useful data like mortgage rates certificate of deposit rates and auto loan rates on a weekly basis To be frank our decision was accelerated after the other daily paper in York dropped its daily stock market listings My intent today is not to criticize that decision because there are many other ways to use that precious space in an afternoon newspaper But their action reminded us of a void in our coverage that as a morning newspaper we needed to fill That mean we intend to be the Southern Pennsylvania Wall Street Journal We have a more important mission here which is to tell you going on in York County and report on the events outside York County that affect or interest you Adding mutual fund listings is only a small part of the effort making to upgrade and improve our business coverage and certainly not the most important I like to say in talks that sections aren't just for businessmen For one thing businessmen are more likely to be businesswomen today And all workers and consumers the major part of the turf in a good business section 4 New listing editor for business section Trnax apologies to Capt I Kirk space may not be L- the final frontierat a newspaper but it surely is a precious commodity So while adding listings of mutual fund prices to the York Daily Record akin to boldly where no one has gone still hot a decision to make lightly You may have noticed last week that something new appeared on our second business page: a daily report of closing prices of selected mutual funds been talking about doing that for some time in large part because mutual funds just for big investors these days Many employee pension funds allow i.