In the Public Interest

As the consumer drive to deregulate the trucking cartel builds momentum in Congress, it is useful to inquire who is supporting continued regulation. Ronald Reagan, John Connally, General Motors and, of course, the American Trucking Association favor the 45-year-old Inter­state Commerce Commission’s regula­tory maze which prohibits price competition and restricts entry into the huge non-agricultural…

CHICAGO, ILL.–George Travers of Commonwealth Edison Co.–the utility industry’s most prolific operator of nuclear plants–believes the anti-nuclear opposition in the Midwest has become more intense. He should know. His job is to represent his boss, James O’Connor, at public meetings where indignant citizens ask him hard questions. (O’Connor prefers to hobnob with Chicago’s leading politicos…

Sir Isaac Newton watched the falling apple and his observation made scientific history. A young pilot lay in the hospital in 1917 recovering from a mid-air collision with another pilot training over Texas. He, too, thought about his fallen Jenny and how he managed to survive a downward spin from 500 feet with only two…

Washington, D.C.–With bluster and paranoia, the lobbyists at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce across from Lafayette Square are grinding out background memos alerting their members to the latest cataclysmic event in their Chamber Of Horrors. It’s Big Business Day, April 17, 1980–a national teach-in on the powers, abuses and needed reforms of the giant multinational…

It was a rare scene but it may be just the beginning. A group of small business firms convened a press conference at the Capitol recently to charge Big Business with using industry standards and certifications to block innovative and less-expensive products. Sponsored by Reps. James M. Shannon, D-Mass., and Robert T. Matsui, D-Calif., the…

These are political election times and candidates are looking for formulas that work with the voters and count with the money backs at the same time. There is a feeling among too many incumbents and challengers that public mood and private money have to be captured simultaneously to win at the polls. The Proxmire model…

Presidential campaign politics these days seem be more a matter of candidates running against one another than of running on the important issues facing the country. Press reports on the primary or caucus contests cover daily scenes such as: Is George Bush just a younger version of Ronald Reagan? Will Jimmy Carter emerge from the…

His presidential decisions are costing American consumers more money than the combined actions of all previous presidents back to George Washington. So it was understandable that when he came to deliver his speech to the Consumer Federation of America’s annual assembly in Washington, President Jimmy Carter, who earlier rejected traditional pomp and ceremony, brought along…

Once again General Motors has broken its public commitments and decided not to assume the’ leadership to save a million lives and tens of millions of injuries on the highways wouldwide in the next 30 years. Last week, GM president Pete Estes telephoned the Department of Transportation to say that GM would not install air…

EUGENE, ORE.–The buttons here read “Keep Oregon Oregon.” They need no further explanation to Oregonians. Many of the state’s residents do not want California-style sprawl and one-sided development. Former Gov. Tom McCall made national news a few years ago when he invited outsiders to visit Oregon but not to stay too long. Oregon deserves to…