2-The New Lebanese American Journal, Jan. 5, 1981

The New
Lebanese American Journal

(Published weekly on Mondays)

Registered as second class matter in Post Office of
New York, N.Y., under Act of March 3, 1879

34 West 28th Street—New York, N.Y. 10001
Tel: (212) 686-7398

FARES STEPHEN—Publisher & Managing Editor

LINDBERGH GOLDSON—Editor

Subscription: $20.00 per year (By Mail)

editorial

'Mr. K' In The Middle East

So former secretary of state Henry Kissinger visited the Middle East, met with Israeli leaders and came up with a formula for keeping the Soviets in check in the area. The statesman was talking like he was part of the Reagan administration, yet so far we have not heard that he holds any official position in the new government of the United States. He did go to great pains to say that his visit was a private one, yet it appeared to us like he was on a mission for President-elect Reagan.

Kissinger said he is going to suggest to the new administration that the United States station troops in the Middle East (to take care of the Russians). He said that he is against the European initiative for settling the Palestinian problem. He is opposed to King Hussein speaking up for the Palestinians. He talked tough: If the Russians don't like what he is suggesting, then what? They will deploy troops to places like Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Chad. In other words, if U.S. troops go to the Middle East Russia may not like it, but they won't do anything about it. After he said all this, it is reported that the Israeli officials were pleased. Obviously the Israelis want U.S. troops close by, so that the Arabs can be kept in line and refrain from attacking her.

The way we see it however, Mr. Kissinger seems to have his priorities mixed up. Russia, with her communist ideology is a threat anywhere on this earth, but we note that not a word was said about the privations that the Lebanese people are suffering, because of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

When Mr. Kissinger was secretary of state, he shut
tled around trying to get the Arabs and the Israelis to sit
down and talk to each other. He failed. It was his job then,
now we don't know what his job is. He seemed to have at
last hit upon a solution to the problem: send U.S. troops
over there. We hope this is not a pretext to make the Israelis
become more belligerent. We hope that when he meets
with Mr. Reagan he will tell him that the nation of Lebanon
is in disarray because the Arabs and the Israelis are at each
other's throats.

When we supported Ronald Reagan for president, we
did so with the hope that he will address himself to the
Lebanese problem along with those of the United States.
We are not judging him now, because he has not taken over
the reins of government as yet. But God forbid, that he
listens to the likes of Henry Kissinger, who had his chance
and failed.

## LEBANON
Report

Monday, December 1, 1980

* Three Shiite ministers of the Wazzan government offered their resignation to President Sarkis, thus implementing a decision taken by Amal (Shite militia).

* In an interview on Monday Morning, an English-language Lebanese magazine, Mr. William Quandt, resident scholar at the Brookings Institute and a former member of the National Security Council, said that he is convinced that the Arabs can obtain a new, separate peace from the Reagan administration, including partial Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Concerning Lebanon, he stated that the Reagan Administration will support the Lebanese government and perhaps the Christian militias.

* The joint Lebanese-Israeli Armistice Committee met at the headquarters of the UNIFIL Command in Naqoura (South Lebanon). The nature of the discussions was not made public but will be examined later by Lebanese high-ranking Army officers.

* Over one thousand inhabitants of Bcharre (North Lebanon) participated in a peaceful march protesting the implantation of a bomb in a governmental school in that town. The bomb had been discovered before it exploded.

* Clashes broke out in Bourj Barajni (West Beirut) between Amal and Palestinian elements of the "Arab Liberation Front" (pro-Iraqi guerrilla organization). Two Amal members and one Palestinian were wounded.

* The Kataeb radio "Voice of Lebanon" announced that forty members of the Special Syrian Forces were killed or wounded following an attack launched by the Muslim Brotherhood on a military convoy in Bab El Naira in Aleppo, Syria. The Syrian Army, in retaliation, sent a helicopter squadron which bombed the area, killing and wounding many civilians.

Tuesday, December 2, 1980

* The European Council, meeting in Luxembourg, stated in their final communiqué: "The sovereignty of Lebanon should be respected and its territorial integrity is essential for stability and the independence of the nine countries of the European Community reaffirmed that the respect for the unity, independence and territorial integrity of Lebanon is an essential condition to enable the legal government to reestablish peace over all the territory of the country. Lebanon belongs to the Lebanese and only they are responsible for the definition of the rules for their coexistence."

* In response to a call for Lebanese national unity on Lebanon's Independence Day made by Bashir Gemayel, Commander-in-Chief of the Lebanese Forces, the Shiite leader Kazem El Khalil stated that this appeal has dissipated the false perceptions and distortions used to harm the interest of the nation.

* Othman El Dana, a Sunni leader, emphasized that there is no problem between the Lebanese if the strangers, who are the real cause of our sorrow, will let us meet and initiate a dialogue among ourselves.

* Magid Hamade, a Shiite leader, commented on the sterility of the Arab and international initiatives and their failure to effectuate reconciliation between the Lebanese factions. He added: "We support the Christian initiative, but the Muslim must be free."

* Faysal Arslan, a Druze leader, said: "We are ready to join the Islamo-Christian front called for by Bashir Gemayel on the condition that its objectives be open and clear."

Wednesday, December 3, 1980

* Bashir Gemayel met with Dory Chamoun, General Secretary of the National Liberal Party (NLP) to discuss questions relating to the restructuring of the Lebanese Forces (see November issue) and implementation of this plan developed by the Lebanese Forces.

* Israeli commandos launched an operation in the Damour area which resulted in the death of fifteen Palestinian guerrillas and injured thirteen others.

Saturday, December 6, 1980

* Yasser Arafat, Chairman of the PLO, revealed that three American religious organizations have invited him to visit the U.S. He added that one of them has its headquarters in Atlanta, one in Washington and the third in New York City.

* Anonymous pamphlets entitled "Warning to the Enemies of the People" signed by the "Organization of the Revolutionaries of North Lebanon" were distributed in Tripoli during the night. The pamphlets attacked the allies of Fatah and all other organizations which they describe as "Frangieh partisans." The pamphlet warns that the end is near for the "bloodsuckers of the people" and that they shall pay dearly for their tyranny. Fatah patrols were

(Continued on Page 5)

JAN 30 1981

Associated Press

## Kissinger in Israel

Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger checks his itinerary after his arrival at Ben Gurion Airport in Israel. He is on an un-official exploratory mission to the Mideast.

me distracted, from the daily routine of these people in the future. In?

Representative of y were not scheduled forward, vitably rich in so.

Where among us make the wire in Hostage Act? Ex-Hostage in Elected Con- President," I

are some unknown name in the war face on the pages — still a few of war or

their taste for any. Eleven — it was "vol- l's famous real half were in

ly. Their repu- ravagantly as long. One of them.

Buckley, 57, of the Conservative senator who lost his Senate seat from Co-

In his new position, under Secretary M. Haig who was in self last year as pro-Technologies Corp.

In another major nounced Thursday, Walter J. Stoessel Jr. sador to West Germany secretary of state for

Stoessel, 60, is a whose service in B- years came during a U.S.-German rela-

He won praise from administration for his handling sharp disa-

GENUIN

U.S.
Whitehall

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# Henry Kissinger has taught us all a lesson

**** JAN 14 1981

WASHINGTON — President-elect Ronald Reagan and his advisers, it is understood, have not been amused by Henry A. Kissinger's travels without portfolio in the Middle East.

No matter how insistent Kissinger may be that he is just another private citizen, the suspicion is always abroad that he is conducting his own foreign policy over there. And it is not one that Kissinger really discourages. No one ever accused him of being shy.

There is a lesson in this episode, and in the whole history of Henry Kissinger as a public figure, for the new administration and for the press corps in Washington.

Jack Germond & Jules Witcover

What we don't need are any more public officials who become bigger than their jobs, even if they have intriguing personalities. There are no indispensable men.

**THERE ARE SOME OCCASIONS,** of course, when the politicians are most responsible for this phenomenon. That was surely the case with J. Edgar Hoover in the final years of his seemingly endless tenure as director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Kissinger also has been a product to some extent of the admiration of his supposed superiors. Richard M. Nixon was always impressed by his easy facility with people, something Nixon himself lacked, and Gerald Ford with his extraordinary grasp of foreign policy issues, which he lacked himself.

**BUT CONGRESS WASN'T ANY BETTER.** When Kissinger held his breath in 1974 and threatened to resign because the press was being beastly about his role in wiretapping, 52 members of the Senate quickly signed up as sponsors of a resolution of support. The implication of that, and it was a shameful one, was that the country needed Kissinger as secretary of state whatever the facts of the case.

In the long run, however, the blame for the lionization of the Kissingers of our public life rests with the people and the press. The public seems to have some unspoken need to admire "celebrities," which seems to mean anyone who becomes familiar to them on

television. That was never more apparent than in the days when Spiro T. Agnew used to be applauded at public gatherings after he had been forced to resign the second highest office in the land because he had been taking cash in brown envelopes.

**THE PRESS IS JUST AS GUILTY,** of course, because it feeds that mindless need. In Kissinger's case, the reporters were almost universally beguiled by his wit and articulateness until they discovered that fondness for the prudently placed wiretap. By that time, most of them had surrendered their virtue.

This weakness of the press probably isn't correctable. Too many reporters seem to feel they can justify their own mundane labors only by making those about whom they write appear to be something more than ordinary people. You can see that these days in all the oh-the-wonder-of-it-all articles being written about the newcomers to the White House. If you take the newspapers and television networks literally, they are all going to be men and women with an "extra dimension," which is the term Richard Nixon used at the outset to describe the very ordinary people who made up his first Cabinet.

Moreover, the press sometimes seems to resent any suggestion, even from the officials themselves, that they put on their trousers one leg at a time. Jimmy Carter's penchant for carrying his own garment bag when he was the president-elect was a small scandal; giants don't smash their own baggage.

**THE REAGAN PEOPLE SEEM** to be forewarned, at least in some cases. For example, Richard V. Allen, the new national security adviser to the incoming president, has made a point of promising a low public profile in an obvious attempt to assure everyone he will not be another Zbigniew Brzezinski. Other Reaganites are making similar noises.

But whether that resolve will survive the heady atmosphere of life in the bright lights is doubtful. Even if these are ordinary people — and, heaven knows, many of them are ordinary to a fault — the press and public may come to see them as larger than life.

And as for Henry Kissinger, he is probably good for another administration or two as a power unto himself. After all, there must have been some reason he went to the Middle East.

Chicago Tribune

Times Tribune staff photo by Jean Dixon

The new interest/checking account with Jim Fox this week. Rachel looked on.

## Interest accounts with care

given saver. And no one plan
everyone.

In is right for you depends on
ours: How much you like to
making, how much money you
to leave untouched in an ac-
d for how long. Other factors
are your age and whether you
deposit box, charge cards and
social aids.

Interest-on-checking ac-
iday 5.25 percent interest. But
it various institutions in min-
osit requirements, service
added features.

choice could tie up needed
ing periods and even cost you
in service charges than you
est.

Id survey all the options and
d, if necessary, to change

Id focus on three questions:

much are the service charges? What
other features are offered?

The key to the new accounts is to keep
as much money as you can in the high-
est-yielding account you can afford. If
you can afford to commit large sums to
Treasury bills or certificates of deposits,
it may be best to choose an institution
that allows those savings to qualify for
interest checking, even though the re-
quired minimum deposit is higher than
for other accounts.

If you cannot afford such high-yield
accounts, you may want the lowest mini-
mum deposit.

But if you keep little or no money in
your current checking account, the inter-
est-checking accounts may not be ad-
vantageous for you at all.

The accompanying chart provides a
comparison of plans at nine institutions.
The added features listed are only those
included in the lenders' brochures. Check
with the lenders for other possible fea-

union complaints that the company
wants too much from its workers
and government hints that the firm
should squeeze even more wage
concessions from them.

Company officials bargained
with top United Auto Workers
leaders through the night in hopes
of narrowing the gap enough to en-
tice the government to guarantee
an additional $400 million in loans
to keep the battered automaker
going at least a little longer.

At midmorning, UAW spokes-
man Don Stillman announced, "We
made progress on a number of key
issues, but a number of questions
remain unresolved, both economic
and non-economic.

"We are optimistic we can devel-
op the needed momentum to pres-
ent something to the loan guaran-
tee board this afternoon."

The government's response —
perhaps the final thumbs up or
thumbs down signal for Chrysler —
was expected later today at a meet-
ing of the Chrysler Loan Guarantee
Board.

Nobody in authority is saying
what happens if Chrysler, which
received $800 million last year, is
turned down for the additional loan
guarantee.

But most analysts expect the re-
sult would be a quick trip into fed-
eral court to seek protection from
creditors under the federal
bankruptcy law.

"Secretary Miller was very frank
and honest that they will make a
decision (today)," Fraser said
Tuesday after Treasury Secretary
G. William Miller, chairman of the
loan board, warned both sides that
"unless we have the basic principle
of a total plan, time is going to run
out."

Part of the "total plan" Miller re-
ferred to involves the company's
proposal for $673 million in wage
concessions by Chrysler workers
between now and Sept. 1, 1983.

Associated Press

Retired Gen. Alexander M. Haig, secretary of state designate, appeared today on the ABC television show, "Good Morning America." Senators in the bottom photo, Charles McC. Mathias, R-Md. (left), and Orrin G. Hatch, R-Utah, defended Haig's nomination on ABC's "Issues and Answers" Sunday.

Capitol Hill.

Considerable controversy surrounds the selections of retired Gen. Alexander M. Haig Jr. for secretary of state and of Colorado lawyer James G. Watt for interior secretary.

Haig, who now heads United Technologies Corp., will be questioned by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on his role as White House chief of staff during the closing days of the Nixon administration. Some senators also have questioned the wisdom of

But two Republican senators said Sunday Watergate should not play a major role in Haig's confirmation.

"The most crucial part of the hearings is where he wants to go ... how he would conduct the office of secretary of state," said Sen. Charles Mathias of Maryland.

Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, appearing with Mathias on ABC's "Issues and Answers" program, added: "Even if he (Haig) has some problems ... it appears to me that he has served with distinc-

ment of That will be Treasury Department, Inc.

Also, some say, it is a question of chairmanship, the chief secretarial and Cas- secretarial fare, as well as the