In the Public Interest

In a recent column, Sylvia Porter observed that “the consumer movement has strayed from the issues of greatest concern to you (the consumer).” She wrote that an independent consumer agency and other access-to-government measures do not directly affect consumers. “There is no obvious, immediately demonstrable and vivid way in which an independent consumer agency could…

The overwhelming (2-to-1) vote by Cleveland voters on Feb. 27 against the sale of their municipally owned light company was more than a rebuff to the arrogant ultimatums of the interlocked Cleveland Electric Co. and Cleveland Trust Co. It was a stunning declaration through direct urban democracy that elected governments, not the hidden unelected corporate…

What can one say about a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals judge who opens his opinion in an important auto safety case by likening the two plaintiffs on opposing sides of the issue to Scylla and Charybdis? Especially since one of the plaintiffs was this writer. Well, one can extend the Homeric metaphor to its…

If there is anything more erosive of organized society’s expectation of justice than a pattern of crime by its more powerful elements, it is a weakening of support for the standards by which such conduct is condemned. A recent issue of The Washington Monthly raises such an alarm. On the cover is a teaser: “The…

A new organization of businesspeople needs to be formed in this country. The bellows and whines of the Business Roundtable’s giant corporate moguls do not reflect the views of many entrepreneurs, middle-size companies and small businesses. For on issue after issue, big business is moving to shape an economy that socializes its costs through government…

At a recent gathering, I asked the chairman of the Federal Reserve System, G. William Miller, which practices and policies outside government he believes have contributed or could contribute to this inflation. An inadequate level of investment was the only factor he cited. Sitting next to me were the Carter administration’s chief antitrust and consumer…

Rep. Lionel Van Deerlin, D-Calif., is sitting in his office in the House of Representatives wondering out loud. As chairman of the House Communi­cations Subcommittee, he has pro­posed the most far-reaching changes in the nation’s 44-year-old communi­cations laws and over 90 percent of the American people don’t know about it. Van Deerlin is not indulging…

The other day I received a letter, as did some others, from Sen. Orrin G. Hatch, R-Utah, that set a new standard of debasement for the U.S. Senate. Beginning with a modest self-description (“As you know, I’ve led the tax and inflation battle all across our country during the last elec­tion”), Hatch invites us to…

This is the time of year when the compassionate efforts of good people and their publications deserve special recognition. Herewith a holiday shopping list for citizens and causes: 1. Maggie Kuhn, born 73 years ago, battler against ageism and founder of the Gray Panthers, publishes the “Gray Panther Network” quarterly (3700 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, Pa.…

Last spring we released a report titled “How to Appraise and Improve Your Daily Newspaper: A Manual for Readers” at the Washington Hilton, where the nation’s newspaper editors were having their annual convention. Since, to our knowledge, no similar manual had been produced before, we awaited the reaction from the press with more than normal…