Letters

Dear Brothers:

Myself and another head, were very mellow on the bunker line, when we happened to glance at your paper “The Fifth Estate.”

Since then it hasn’t left our hands. Our souls and hearts would be yours if we could get more of this paper, just to keep our minds straight.” We would appreciate your free subscription as soon as possible.

Peace on Earth,

The Two Booney Rats

Vietnam

To the Editors:

The mayor of Detroit is at it again. He wants to raise the city income tax and he undoubtedly has already raised the property tax. This latter will especially work a hardship on the indigent, the disabled, and the elderly.

But the big shots who run the Establishment do not really care. Why should they? They live out beyond the suburbs and are immune to the problems of the inner city. They live better than we do in their all white neighborhoods. They are paid fancy salaries for relatively few hours of work (if you can call it that) while most of us have to really sweat for a dollar.

Witness the action of the Wayne County Board of Supervisors as an example. They voted themselves an enormous pay raise and, although public indignation and reaction made them withdraw from going through with it, one thing has been clearly proven: you cannot trust a politician.

Meanwhile, the United States Congress raised themselves from $30,000 to over $40,000 a year in salary, plus expenses. For what good purpose? What will they do to earn it? Fly to Washington every so often for a few hours meeting and coffee, all at taxpayers expense, of course. And if they become short of anything, they will, of course, raise taxes which is the politicians perennial answer to all problems.

More money down the drain. It may be about time for a taxpayers revolution. Maybe we should all march down to city hall and burn our tax forms. Who knows, it might even cause a bureaucrat to have a slight case of heart failure.

Whenever a city official leaves office, somebody just as bad takes his place. The first thing the state legislators have done one session was to vote themselves a raise. Who pays for it all? One guess.

There was once a joke whereas a congressman on a golf course was asked about a caddie who was carrying the congressman’s clubs.

“That’s no caddie,” was the reply. “That’s only a taxpayer left holding the bag.”

But maybe the citizens are getting fed up with it. Perhaps we all ought to join forces with the campus militants and organize marches and demonstrations to straighten things out. Unfortunately, it is necessary to make a lot of noise and commotion just to get the political bureaucrats to start listening. To make them budge even half an inch, it is necessary to demand a mile.

With the big shots indifferent to the sufferings and miseries of the less affluent, the time to revolt is NOW!

More power to the S.D.S. and the like. They are the pioneers showing the way to what is hopefully a society with more fairness and justice for all.

Stephen Levy

People:

While looking around one eve for an implement with which to make a hash pipe, I discovered a whistle, yes just an ordinary 10¢ plastic whistle.

Place a double thickness of aluminum foil over the top and mouthpiece of the whistle, tape it all together, and poke a very few holes in both with a pin.

Now you have an excellent pipe.

Later on I graduated to a “toy” steel police whistle. Speaking of police, if they ever come to bust you, rip off the foil and tape and blow, thereby alerting everyone in your place, cuz the whistle don’t make any noise when it’s put together.

Suzy S.

To the Editor:

A.B.M.s to protect our cities from non-existent Chinese missiles? Someone has to be kidding. By the time China gets missiles there won’t be any cities. Their destruction is assured without foreign aid.

When rich people ask for “protection” they get subsidies, tax loop holes and depletion allowances. Some even vote themselves a big raise. Guess whose taxes pay the bills?

When cities want protection they get mace, tanks and now A.B.M.s. Guess whose taxes pay the bills?

For 20 years the Pentagon screamed “The Russians are coming.” Now they’re ready to trot out a new bogeyman, China. Ready, America? By the numbers: PANIC.

It’s another Pentagon trick to perpetuate their own power and suck at the public teat.

Perhaps the credibility gap is here to stay. Who can believe anything from those Washington word-squirters!

By the way, are there to be any missile sites around D.C.?...Like near the homes of top brass and congressmen?

John G. Hathaway

St. Clair Shores

Gentlemen:

The rejection of Lloyd K. Tyler by the Federal Narcotics Hospital at Lexington, Kentucky for inclusion in their narcotics addiction treatment program highlights the segmented and uncoordinated approach to narcotic addiction rehabilitation which appears to permeate our society.

What happens to other addicts whose personality dynamics make them unsuitable for treatment by governmental facilities?

Judge Crockett’s recent decision was an enlightened one.

The essential problem appears to lie in the need for greater planning and follow-up between governmental, quasi-governmental agencies, like the Mayor’s Committee for Rehabilitation of Narcotics Addicts, and voluntary groups like Synanon, to evolve a unitary system of programs and services in providing an implementation dimension of judicial decisions.

Ivan L. Cotman

Former Instructor in Criminology, Michigan Lutheran College

Dear Editors:

On Feb. 3 the Central Michigan University Student Senate adopted the following resolution.

“Resolved:

That the admissions office of Central Michigan University make a formal public statement to the effect that applications for admission are welcome from any student who has been expelled from any other school across the nation for reasons stemming from his political activism.

And that the disciplinary action which was taken against him by the other school will not be held against him when he is considered for admission at Central Michigan University.”

This resolution is not a change in admissions policy, only an announcement of the existing policy to encourage student activists to apply here.

This is a major move for this school since CMU has been considered the conservative man’s campus and a “safe” place for parents to send their kids.

Peace,

Bill Martin

Jon Eric Childs

Daryl Holloman

Gentlemen:

I can dig it! The Fifth Estate is one of the greatest publications of our generation. As an East Coast follower of the EVO and the Rolling Stone, I was pleased to see that your paper combines the best of both and then some.

It means a lot to an infantry “grunt” such as myself to have an on-the-spot, first-hand source of information about the movements and developments that are finally coming about back there in “the world.”

I think you would be amazed at the number of guys over here that are hip to what’s really happening. I, for one, can’t wait until the day that I can cast aside these olive drab rags and take my place in the battle against the establishment.

In the meantime please begin my free subscription to the Fifth Estate so I may keep abreast of the happenings.

Thank you much,

Peace, Lovingly yours,

John Vaughan

Vietnam