4 University Daily Kansan / Tuesday, March 24, 1992 OPINION Finger-pointing Jail the kiddie Congress The dog ate my son's checking account statement. Signed, Rep. Foster's mother That is about the only excuse the American public hasn't heard from the rubber-check-writing members of the House of Representatives. Some Congressional members have taken responsibility for their mistakes, but most have placed the blame on the now defunct House bank. Indiana Representative and overdrather Frank McCloskey said the bank had faults "as big as the San Andreas." Rich Bennett Staff columnis' Another Congressman complained that his deposits "took too long to claim." "I am a victim of sloppy bank management, "insisted another. 1 may have inadvertently had a minimal overdraft," whined yet another, "but no one ever called." No one ever called? Banks aren't supposed to have to check in with their customers to make sure they're balancing their checkbook on a regular basis. That's grade school stuff, and it's why banks only allow adults to have checking accounts. I banks did give accounts to little kids, inevitably a child would write a check for an expensive toy, like Super Duper Nintendo Plus, and then when the check didn't clear the child would say, "But nobody told me I didn't have any money. No one ever called." Coming from a child, maybe that excuse would sound kinda cute. But coming from a member of Congress, that excuse makes me kinda want to talk. Other Congressional members blamed their wives' inept banking habits and even attempted to make excuses for them as well. Rep. Jim Bacchus of Florida said one possible reason his wife wrote bad checks was because she was distracted by a crying baby. Try that excuse at your local bank. "Well, uh, you see Mr. Banker, sir, my wife wouldn't have written that check for the convertible Porsche if the baby hadn't been crying." And your kindhearted and unde- standing banker would gently respond, "Don't let the cell door hit you on your way into prison." Sympathy has been a ploy as well. Georgia Rep. Charles Hatcher blamed his 819 — that's DCCCXIX in Roman Numbers — rubber checks on costs connected with a heart attack and a divorce. Hatcher's personal troubles are truly unfortunate; his rabid overdrafting is inexusable and potentially punishable by law. According to Washington, D.C., statutes, any person who deposits a check for more than $100 "with intent to defraud" could be guilty of kiting — a felony that carries a maximum three-year sentence or $3,000 fine. Maybe prison would do Mr. Hatcher's herd good anyway. The biggest buffoon of all is Texas Rep. Charles Wilson who, along with Hatcher, is one of the 24 worst offenders according to a list released by The Associated Press. One of Wilson's 81 overdrafts was a $6,500 check to the Internal Revenue Service. Worse still, he excused his behavior by saying it was "nobig deal." It's not like molesting young girls or young boys," he added. "It's not a show stopper." Those comments, and probably Rep. Wilson himself, are disgusting. Even Texans probably aren't silly enough to re-elect him come November. Hopefully, Rep. Wilson, and the rest of the 24 most flagrant offenders, will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Perhaps the members that used the bank to receive interest-free loans should cut an album to pay back the money they owe and finance any potential court costs. Sonow, follow the bouncing check as our delinquent Congress members sing this song to the tune of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." Take me out of the House game, take me out of my seat. I bought me some jewels and a Cadillac, I told myself that I'd pay the bank back; But I spent, spent, spent like a mad dog, and now I feel quite ashamed; For it's one, two, three bum checks you're out of the *LOUSE GAME!* Since many Congressmen act like such children, they should be treated as such. If the habitual check-bouncers are one day sent to prison, their constituents should send them super balls to play with in their cells. That way, they'll never forget why they're there. BOING! Rich Bennett is an Overland Park senior majoring in journalism. THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN Records should remain open State law cutting public access to driver's license information would do more harm than good Kansas Sen. Gus Bogina is sponsoring legislation that would prohibit public access to information in driver's license records. Though intended to counter recent abuses, the law would, in effect, close a door on information to the public. "These records do not belong to the government," said Kansas State University journalism professor Harry Marsh. "It seems to me they belong to the public." One of Bogina's concerns was that abortion opponents had been obtaining people's addresses from license plate records of cars parked in front of clinics. Though clearly an abuse of the system, this still does not justify the sealing of public records. Reporters, lawyers and private investigators routinely obtain information through license records. Barring access to this data could prevent much media investigation of government offenses. Closing these public statistics would prohibit employers from checking on prospective employees' driving convictions.In many occupations, such as school-bus, taxi, and shuttle-service drivers, this information is vital. An individual could be prohibited from checking his or her own records. Does our right to privacy supersede our right to know what information the government keeps on us? Keeping information available to the public is one way of keeping our government, as well as ourselves, a little more conscientious of our conduct. Kate Kelley for the editorial board Car salesmen or candidates? America needs substance and leadership from its politicians, not political rhetoric and images. political rhetoric and images "We stood for something." That's what Paul Tsongas said Thursday as he pulled out of the race for president. Sadly, it's probably what cost him the race. Tsongas' frankness and honesty was a bright spot in an otherwise lackluster campaign. His refusal to play the political Santa Claus won him respect nationwide. Unfortunately it didn't earn him enough money or votes to keep his candidacy rolling. Now we are left with two candidates who have a penchant for telling us what we want to hear. George Bush and Bill Clinton will likely face each other in the fall campaign. They are career politicians and insiders who often sound more like used-car salesmen than leaders. Take 1988 for instance. George Bush ran on his promise not to raise taxes. Bob Dole and Michael Dukakis refused to take the tax pledge. They lost. Bush won. And he raised taxes anyway. in the 1988 campaign Bush looked like he would say anything to get elected. He ran racially divisive ads on television. He waved the flag. He said the pledge of allegiance. But be offered little in the way of substance. And Bill Clinton seems to have taken notice. So far in the campaign, he has tried to be all things to all people. Watching an interview with Clinton is a bit like watching a game of dodge ball. No straight answers, but a lot of sidestepping. Even when his candidacy seemed to be threatened by charges of marital infidelity, Clinton couldn't provide a simple yes or no answer. His ability to survive has earned him the nickname "Slick Willie." But many people wonder how long he can last. Perhaps an even better question is how long the voters can last. How long can we afford to elect politicians who don't stand for anything? As the political rhetoric grows, so do the unemployment lines. Speeches don't solve anything; tough choices on policy do. Paul Tsongas made some of those choices. He never pretended to be anything he wasn't. Now Bush and Clinton must do the same. America needs leadership; not race baiting or class warfare. America needs a genuine leader to unite the country and deal with the problems we are facing. The time has come for someone to take a stand — for America. Chris Moeser for the editorial board National perspectives The Columbian, Vancouver, Wash., on government eavesdropping: The Bush administration asked Congress to require telephone companies to build bugs into modern telecommunications technology so that the FBI and police can eavesdrop on crimi- The administration does not want to pay for the listening equipment; it expects the telephone companies to pass the cost along to all users. Moreover, it expects us to be happy to pay the higher cost as a way of winning the great war against crime, drugs and evil. The Justice Department lobbyists pushing the measure insisted it was no big deal, nothing more than existing laws that oblige telephone companies and the like to cooperate with the Those pesky civil libertarians keep on insisting, however, that liberty is a precious thing that can be eroded by the anxiety for security. Asever, when the police want a little extra edge against the crooks, even at only a very modest rate, will eventually enslave the civil libertarians are raising a fuss. It's one thing to wire a bug to a line after I receiving approval from a magistrate who has been assured of the legal grounds for the intrusion. It is quite another to prepare the whole system so that anyone can be listened to. The Morning News, Savannah, Ga., on Patrick Buchanan: The surprisingly strong primary run of Patrick Buchanan has served a useful purpose for the Republican Party and is a 1,000-volt jolt of reality for President Bush. But it's getting time to face facts. It's clear that... Buchanan won't be the nominee and that the president will reach the magic number (of delegates necessary for nomination) long before the party faithful gather in Houston for the GOP convention. The upstart candidate should do some serious soul-searching. He needs to look at what he's accomplished so far, and what he would gain by following the campaign trail to the bitter end. If he's honest with himself and takes a clear look at where things are headed, he should see If he's staving in to ease the party more to the right, then he's already done that to some extent. In fact, the more he pushes in that direction, the more he risks alienating those in the middle — especially the same conservative Democrats who voted twice for President Reagan and once for President Bush and who helped provide the margins for victory ... he helped provide he fight's a losing cause, the less he looks like a spooler and the more he looks like someone who's just spoiled. That's a knock he doesn't deserve, and he shouldn't want to bring it down on himself. The Dispatch, Lexington, N.C., on Nixon-Bush: Richard Nixon is right. The former president, who has tried to become America's elder foreign policy statesman with a series of books and papers released in recent years (said), ... U.S. assistance to Boris Yeltsin's government in Russia had been a pathetically inadequate response. Although the question itself was unthinkable even a couple of years ago, there is a growing consensus that the United States must do more (President) Bush ... is right when he says he doesn't have a blank check to write the Russians. Times are tight, and we must take care of our own people who are hungry, or homeless, or without medical care. But at the same time, this is a historic moment. ... If we miss the chance to help democracy to flourish in the former Soviet Union, that splintered nation may fall back into the hands of its right-wing military. And that scenario might mean an unstable and dangerous government in control of a vast stock of nuclear and conventional weapons. The Banner, Nashville, Tenn., on bounced checks: The decision of Congress, under public pressure to release the names of all members who wrote bad checks, was the proper one. Obviously, some members whose accounts were overdrawn only a few times and by only small amounts, will not enjoy being listed with those who routinely wrote bad checks on the House But the American people are not stupid. They will be able to distinguish between those who made honest mistakes or got caught in a small, temporary financial pinch and those who abused a perk ... Bank as an easy way to obtain instant, no-interest loans. The House Bank had a policy for years of cashing in overdraft checks that did not exceed the amount of a member's next paycheck. But apparently the bank didn't bounce even checks far in excess of that. to help democracy survive in Russia. All bad checks were made good by members before the bank was closed late last year. So the practice didn't cost the taxpayers. But citizens will be keenly interested to see which congressmen abused their banking privileges. The worst offenders may lose their seats over the issue. But they'll only be getting what they deserve. Maybe if a new batch of representatives — more responsible with their own money — gets sent to Washington, Congress will show a bit more responsibility with the taxpayers' dollars, too, by passing reasonable budgets. KANSANSTAFF TIFFANY HARNESS Editor VANESSA FUHRMANS Managing editor TOM EBLEN General manager, news adviser Editors News ... Mike Andrews Editorial ... Beth Randolph Planning ... Lara Gold Campus ... Eric Gorski/Rochelle Olson Sports ... Eric Nelson Photo ... Julie Jacobson Features ... Debbie Myers Graphics .. Aimee Brainard/Joe Meesey JENNIFER CLAXTON Business manager Business Staff Campus sales mgr Blair Beeckman Regional sales mgr Rich Harsbarger National sales mgr Scott Hanna Co-op sales mgr Ame Johnson Production mgrs Kim Wallace Marketing director Liam Keeter Creative director Leanne Bryant Classified mgr Kip Chin JEANNE HINES Sales and marketing adviser JAY STEINER Retail sales manager Business Staff letters should be typed, double-spaced and fewer than 200 words. They must include the writer's signature, name, address and telephone number. Writers affiliated with the University of Kansas must include class and hometown, or faculty or staff position. Guest columns should be typed, double-spaced and fewer than 700 words. The writer will be phoned. The Kanas reserve the right to reject or edit letters, guest columns and cartoons. They can be mailed or brought to the Kanas newroom, 111 Snuffer-Flint Hall. Loco Locals N≤4AUDQ1992 THAT RECEPTIONIST NEEDS...SAY...HAVENT I SEEN YOU ON TELEVISION! by Tom Michaud SHOT... YEAH BUT I GOT SO SICK OF ALWAYS HITTING A HOMERUN...SMILING... HOW CAN I PUT "PARTY" STUDY" ON A RESUME... BUT, COMPARED TO THE GUEY YOU ARE INTERVIEWING, NOW, I THINK I HAVE A MINHAIL GORBACHEN... • LEADER OF THE (FORMER) USSR... - MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS: IN TWO WEEKS. DESTROYED ECONOMY AND LOST CONTROL OF ALL REPUBLICS." WOW! WHAT EFFICIENCY!