Unfriendly skies for Frank Lorenzo

Scan page 13

Eastern Airlines strike-buster Frank Lorenzo recently caused a stir when he boarded a Delta plane en route to the East Coast. The Delta pilot, after he heard Lorenzo was on board, refused to fly the plane. (After some delay, Delta found a replacement pilot.)

"Reagan made me do it!" That sums up Oliver North's trial defense. And his lawyers have the memos to prove it. Some papers, it seems, were saved from the shredder for a rainy day. In the eyes of the Gipper, however, North remains a 'national hero" (even if he is a dirty little snitch.)

It's been 10 years since the nuclear disaster at Three Mile Island. The cleanup at the reactor site has still not been completed, although we (the taxpayers) have already spent over $1 billion on the project. (Since TMI, incidentally, U.S. nuclear utilities have reported nearly 30,000 mishaps at other plants.) THIS IS CAPTAIN LORENZO SPEAKING.... IF THE MACHINISTS DONT ACCEPT MY DEMANDS, ILL BLOW UP THE PLANE!

EASTERN who is planning to write to the SWP for more information on the case.

The article goes on to state that "dozens" of letters have been received by the family of Demetria Morris, the alleged victim. No letters are listed in the Register, however.

The Mark Curtis Defense Committee lists 131 endorsers on its letterhead from 14 countries. Four deserters don't amount to much, especially considering the enormous flood of slanders against Curtis coming from the Des Moines Register and other mouthpieces of the capitalist class.

The Register is compelled to keep up the fight against Curtis precisely because his case continues to receive support. Recent endorsers include ILWU Local 34 in the San Francisco Bay Area, which combined its endorsement with a $200 contribution to the defense committee.

On March 4, over 150 people rallied in Des Moines to mark the first anniversary of Curtis's arrest and to pledge their continued support for his case. An event in San Francisco that same night attracted over 100 people in support of Curtis.

Nick Castle, director of the new film "Tap," announced at the Des Moines rally that his next project will be a documentary on the Curtis Case.

The Mark Curtis Defense Committee can be contacted at P.O. Box 1048, Des Moines, Iowa 50311. Telephone (515) 246-1695.

San Francisco:

Christic Institute presents: 'Behind the Headlines - Guns, Drug and the C.l.A.' Speaker: Martha Honey, U.S. journalist based in San José, Costa Rica, plaintiff in the Christic Institute Contragate lawsuit.

Sat., April 8, 2 p.m.

Booth Hall, Boalt Hall of Law, Berkeley.

New York:

Jimmy Kutcher Memorial Meeting Sat., April 22, 2:30 p.m.

Film Showing: 'The Case of the Legless Veteran' Speakers, Refreshment.

New York Society for Ethical Culture For info. call Bulletin in Defense of Marxism at 212-633-2007 NRAD FOI Over 100 million Americans may be breathing toxic chemicals and industrial waste in the air, the Environmental Protection Agency warned. EPA officials admit that the health hazard is far worse than they "expected." But even so, how accurate is the new EPA estimate? (It's based on information provided by the big industrial polluters themselves!)

"It's standard procedure," said police chief Frank Jordan. San Francisco's top cop was referring to the tactic of using undercover officers to infiltrate political demonstrations. But the plainclothesmen blew their cover at a March 20 CISPES picketline when they beat up the protesters and sprayed them with mace. (It was necessary to counter "outside agitators," Jordan explained to the press.)

These same San Francisco cops (this time in uniform) were unleashed on another demonstration last September. Farmworkers leader Dolores Huerta was left with two broken ribs and a ruptured spleen. On March 8, the S.F. Police Commission voted to take no action against the officer who clubbed Huerta. Ironically, the Board of Supervisors had declared the same day "Dolores Huerta Day." (Gee, thanks for nothing!)

The poor are getting poorer, a new Congressional study affirmed. From 1979 to 1987, the average family income of the poorest fifth of the population declined by 6.1 percent. The study also pointed out that the rich are getting much, much richer. (But you probably guessed that already.)

City council members in Plano, Texas, proposed that their community adopt a "sister city" in the Soviet Union. The debate raged for two months. Some residents warned that the "sister city" program would give the Soviets a foothold to conquer America. Today Plano, Texas-tomorrow the world! (The proposal was withdrawn.)