May 10, 1979 EXTENSIONS OF REMARKS 10763 relationship between the level of violen<:e de­ H. Res. 161. March 14, 1979. Rules. Amends legislation on the taxes of the individual tax­ pict~ on television and a distored view of the Rules of the House of Representatives to payer. social reality held by heavy viewers of tele­ establish a standing Committee on Internal H. Res. 163. March 15, 1979. Foreign Affairs. vision; and (2) further investigation of the Security to investigate and report on Com­ Extends congratulations to Tunisia on its correlation between the level of violence de­ munist and other subversive activities affect­ twenty-third anniversary of independence. picted on television and aggressive, including ing the internal security of the United H. Res. 164. March 15, 1979. Ways and violent, behavior in children and adults States. Means; Interstate and Foreign commerce. should be pursued. H. Res. 162. Ma.rch 14, 1979. Rules. Amends Expresses the sense of the House of Repre­ H. Res. 160. March 14, 1979. Interstate and the Rules of the House of Representatives to sentatlves that any legislation providing for Foreign Commerce. Declares a state of war require that reports accompanying public the r:nodlflcatlon or federalization of medical between the people of the United States and bllls or joint resolutions which authorize or assistance programs include optometric serv• amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's appropriate specific sums for a fiscal year lees and that the States be urged to seek to disease). contain a computation of the effects of such include or continue optometric services. EXTENSIONS OF REMARKS CIVIL DEFENSE Uninformed Citizen: There you go, about up another point which ls very important. the mythology of Civil Defense. Look, we've We want peace and we want to avoid any got a Civil Defense program and agency that provocative actions-avoid anything that HON. BOB WILSON keeps us prepared and takes care of these tends toward further escalation of arms on OF CALIFORNIA matters, so what's mythological about that? both sides, don't we? Informed Citizen: That ls probably the IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 'Uninformed Citizen: Yes. I suppose so, greatest myth of all-that we have a real, though we have a right to prepare to arm Thursday, May 10, 1979 an adequate Civil Defense program, since ourselves as well as our opponents-yes, we we do not. I'll go into this later on. We do want to avoid provocation. 8 Mr. BOB Wil.JSON. Mr. Speaker, have a pretty substantial defense budget, Informed Citizen: Well any argument that civil defense is one of the most little of course. building up Civil Defense ls provocative ls known and talked about facets of our Uninformed Citizen: We certainly do, and unsound since the passive defense measures national defense system .. yet I'm not sure whether I agree with those concerned are the least provocative things Recent articles, together with the who say it should be decreased or with those one can do. The final proof is that the classic who say it should be increased. $116 blllion neutral and pacifist countries, Sweden and televised analysis by ABC News pre­ ls a lot of money. sented on the subject of defense point Switzerland, have both developed Civil De­ Informed Citizen: Tell me now, what per­ fense systems far superior to ours. very definitely to the fact that Russia centage of that budget do you think ls being is far ahead of the United States in as­ spent for Civll Defense? Remember, we are Uninformed Citizen: Well I can agree that suring that that country's population talking about the protection and survival it ls high time that we start building a real of over 215 mlllion people. Would it be 20 Civil Defense system, as reluctant as I am to could and would survive a nuclear at­ start up another one of those big Washington tack. I believe our own people are sadly percent, 10 percent, 5 percent or perhaps 1 percent? deals. lacking in information about the real Uninformed Citizen: Come on, 1 percent .Informed Cl tizen : Chalk up another myth world, but an article by Col. John E. is pretty small for that big job. It's gotta be and a dangerously misleading one too; that Bex, USAFR, in the November 1978 more than that. Civil Defense is a Federal, a Washington issue of "The Officer," the monthly pub­ Informed Citizen: Maybe lt should be, but show. The real work of Civil Defense ls done lication of the Reserve Officers Associa­ It isn't. The correct figure ls less than 1/10 at the local government level, state and of 1 percent. The current Civil Defense budg­ municipal, and that's where the money ls tion, discusses this issue in an unusual spent too. The role of the Federal agency ls I et for the entire nation is $90 milllon. fashion. commend it to my colleagues Uninform.ed Cltiren: Okay, you've made mainly to coordinate, inform, educate, etc. as a discourse well worth noting. your point. I'll concede that is a second myth, Uninformed Citizen: From what you've THE MYTHOLOGY OF CIVIL DEFENSE that we are spending a lot of money for Civil told me, it seems to me that the American (By Col. John E. Bex, USAFR) Defense. But maybe that's all it requires, people have been strangely uninterested and Surprisingly often what separates people just so long as we're keeping up as well as we apathetic about their own interests~unln­ most is information. The gap that exists should. terest in Civil Defense. between the expert and the layman, the 1Informed Citizen: I'm afraid that's myth Informed Citizen: Not really. That the doctor and the patient, the insider and the No. 3, right there. By "keeping up" I assume American people are uninterested or opposed outsider, etc., is pretty fundamental and it you mean with the competition, in partic­ to Civil Defense ls one more myth we have to depends on the amount of information. ular, with Russians. free ourselves from. They've never been in­ Despite their differences the well-informed Uninformed Citizen: Who else? formed-the message and the parts have can reach substantial agreement in many 1Informed Citizen: Well then that's about never reached them. Once they are informed, aspects of questions while the uninformed as big a myth as one can imagine, that we they are lnterested-Uke you. cannot. Civil Defense happens to be one of are keeping up with the Russians. The Rus­ Uninformed Citizen: Like me. And It's the those fields in which this is so to a. high sians spend not twice, not three times, but mythology that gets in the way. We've got to degree. It is not as much politics or lack of about ten times as much for Civil Defense substitute facts for myths. I prefer it that good will or incompatible value systems as we do. way. which separates people as lt is the difference Unl.nformed Citizen: My God, how long •Informed Citizen: And so does every rea­ in information between the informed and the has this been going on? Talk about the mis­ sonable person.e uninformed. Accordingly, let us listen to the sile gap, the warship gap, if what you say is rather animated discussion which seems to true, the Civil Defense ga.p ls far worse than have broken out between Mr. Informed any of them. It's more than a gap, it's an MORATORIUM ON NEW CONSTRUC­ Citizen and Mr. Uninformed Citizen. The abyss. How did this develop? Informed. Citizen: It didn't develop, it's al· TION PERMITS FOR NUCLEAR two could be ordinary citizens, Federal or POWER PLANTS local government officials, or Federal or local ways been that way, more or less, for the la.st legislators-those differences count for sur­ 20 years at least. In the last decade the Rus­ prisingly little. What counts in regard to sians spent about $10 bllllon for Civil De­ HON. CHRISTOPHER J. DODD Civil Defense is information. fense while we spent $804 mllllon. They are Uninformed Citizen: What the hell do you currently spending about a blllion dollars a OF CONNECTICUT mean by going a.round trying to get people year. But what about other western coun­ IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES tries? Do you think we at lea.st lead here worked up a.bout Civil Defense? People have Thursday, May 10, 1979 enough trouble ta.king care of matters that with the best program. since after all, we are concern them. the richest nation. o Mr. DODD. Mr. Speaker, as a Repre­ Informed Citizen: But it does concern Uninformed Citizen: I don't know. I'm sentative from a district which includes them, all of us. In fact, I would put it this afraid to ask I three operating nuclear power plants and way: Seldom in our history has something Informed Citizen: Far from it. Countries which concerned so many of us vitally been such as Sweden and Switzerland are miles a fourth under construction, I have long so disregarded. Survival ls and should be ahead of us. They have things like solid rock been concerned with the issue of nuclear everyone's concern and it ls one of the myths shelters which we haven't even begun to energy. The concern of my constituents of Civil Defense that many think otherwise. contemplate for our citizens. And that brings and my own concerns have naturally •This "bullet" symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by the Member on the floor.