In the Public Interest

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…

Legislators often speak with, forked tongues on inflation. They relish campaigning before the folks against the “cruel hidden tax” of inflation. But after the election their dreams often turn inward–to raising their own salaries. The latest action started in Ohio and Illinois. There the lawmakers decided to beat the inflation of the ’80s right now.…

Imagine a situation where the criminals are denouncing the police, who in turn either look the other way or simply beg the crooks to sign agreements not to violate the law in the future. This spectacle is cops and robbers in reverse. And it’s happening in Washington, D.C., where the regulatory police are running for…

WASHINGTON–The call came from President Carter at Camp David last month for Margaret Mead, then a seriously ill patient in New York Hospital. The famous anthropologist, in great agony from cancer, was under sedation and could not take the phone. The following Monday she sent a message to the White House saying that she considered…

The Journal of Commerce is a daily (Monday-Friday) commercial newspaper with substantial national circulation and advertising. Its editorial columns frequently rail against inflation which it blames on the government. About three years ago, the Journal sold for 25 cents a copy at the newsstand. Two months ago it was still selling for 50 cents a…

Joe Egle is a classic car collector in Kansas City, and he is very upset with General Motors’ Cadillac Division. His 1976 Cadillac Seville started rusting about a year after purchase. A $15,000 automobile, advertised as “one of the finest production cars built anywhere in the world” and possessed of “zincrometal to help fight rust…

SAN FRANCISCO–A few days ago at a news conference in Los Angeles, economist John Kenneth Galbraith and his conservative counterpart, Alan Greenspan, replied similarly to a question put by a reporter. They both said that there was little an individual could do about this inflation. Apparently, some people in California disagree. Two former housewives here…