In the Public Interest

“The central question is: Who owns this House?” These words were spoken by a veteran member of the House of Representa­tives at a recent meeting with Speaker Tip 0′-Neill and a large number of consumer, elderly, union and community groups gathered, to support the upcoming consumer protection legislation. The House vote this month will bring…

We are at that time of the year when Superhype of the Super Bowl forms over the communications media. More than a professional sports event, it is viewed by large corporations as an occasion to peddle their influence. Celebrities, politicians and promoters adorn the glistening, well-lubricated pre-game parties underwritten by companies. Television advertising goes for…

In 1904, during the massive Baltimore fire which destroyed over 1,500 buildings, firefighters from surrounding cities and towns rushed to help only to learn that their hoses did not fit Baltimore’s hydrants. Those frustrated fireman were reminded of the importance of standards. It is time for consumers to be more aware of the uses and…

Every day we receive inquiries from people all over the country asking for information about their consumer programs. Motorists want to know whether their car model has been recalled for a defect. Worried householders ask what rights they have against commercial movers that they believe treated them unfairly. Other consumers want to report a hazardous…

Jimmy Carter should meet Freddie Laker. The jolly chairman of Laker Airways could re­gale him with stories about the differences be­tween capitalists and corporatists. As a British capitalist, Mr. Laker is making heaps of money these days by transporting people back ‘and forth between New York and London at less than half the price the…

Washington has been described as a place where many people work to complicate the simple and postpone the complicated. In a recent article on the role of former public interest advocates in the Carter Administration, David Cohen, president of Common Cause, did a good job of complicating the simple. He distinguishes a different role for…

The business trade press is full of self-congrat­ulatory articles these days at the success which well-financed corporate lobbies are having in Congress. Although these articles point to larger staffs, computerized mailing systems and per­sonal visits on Capitol Hill by the heads of large corporations, the influence behind much of this lobbying is how much money…

When Herb Denenberg was Penn­sylvania’s Insurance Commissioner during the year 1971-1974, the insur­ance companies dubbed him “Horri­ble Herb.” There is even a story that some insurance executives, while out on the golf course, would roar “DENENBERG” instead of an expletive whenever they muffed a swing. Well, the former University of Pennsylvania insurance scholar now turned…

Anthropologists have long had an image problem. Are they not the scholars interested in the odd and the exotic, the totems and taboos of primitive tribal groups in faraway jungles, islands and deserts? Correct. So the image is in accord with reality. Which is what troubles a new group of young anthropologists who want to…

The months-long swirling controversy over the federally subsidized flood insurance-program between the insurance industry and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is highlighting these two major issues: Can the government defend the taxpayer by re­quiring corporate contractors to be either more efficient or be replaced in subsidized activities? Will the government stand firm…