ustxtxb_obs_1985_07_12_50_00016-00000_000.pdf

Invasion Vote v The Foley Amendment, meant to limit the likelihood of a United States invasion of Nicaragua, passed in the House of Representatives June 27 by a 312-111 vote. The amendment stipulates that the President may not send troops to Nicaragua without congressional ape proval unless “a clear and present danger” to the United States, its allies, embassies or citizens exists; Soviet MiG aircraft or nuclear weapons are present in Nicaragua; or. United States citizens or allies become victims of terrorist attacks. Thomas F D-Wash., de fen nt saying “It’s intended` o involve Congress in any decision to use American troops in Nicaragua except in certain stated emergencies.” But opponents of the amendment say it has turned into a list of reasons to invade Nicaragua. Party affiliation did not seem to be a major factor in determining the votes of the Texas representatives. Democrats who supported the meas ure were: Andrews of Houston, Brooks of Beaumont, Bryant of Dallas, Coleman of El. Pas De la Garza of Missiw.9041L, Antonio, Ortiz of Corpus Christi, Pickle of Austin, Stenholm of Stamford, and Wright of Fort Worth. Of the 10 Republican representatives, only Archer of Houston and Barton of Ennis voted for the amendment. Democrats who voted against the amendment were: Bustamante of San Antonio, Frost of Dallas, Hall of Rockwall, Leath of Marlin, and Leland of Houston. During the debate on the Foley amendment, an amendment was introduced to let the President send troops into Nicaragua if he determined that Nicaragua was directly or indirectly supporting armed action in a neighboring country. The amendment failed, 186-235. Of the ten Texas Republicans, nine voted for the amendment and Tom Loeffler of Hunt was absent. Of the Texas Democratic delegation, voting against the amendment were: Andrews of Houston, Brooks of Beaumont, Bryant of Dallas, Coleman of El Paso, De la Garza of Mission, Gonzalez of San Antonio, Leland of Houston, Ortiz of Corpus Christi, Pickle of Austin, and Wright of Fort Worth. Voting for the amendment were Bustamante of San Antonio, Frost of Dallas, Hall of Rockwall, Leath of Marlin, and Stenholm of Stamford. Wilson of Lufkin was absent. with the EPA.” Some waste disposal companies are pressuring EPA to issue burn permits for the Gulf so they can empty their waste disposal sites. Jacobsen explains that once something is burned and is in the air, there is no way to clean it up. She says the EPA is not using common sense. “They think that if there’s a spill out there in the ocean, everything will just stay right there.” V Three corporate officials were found guilty of murder this month in the 1983 death of Stefan Golab, an employee who inhaled cyanide fumes on the job in Elk Grove Village, Illinois. In what legal experts say is the first case of its kind, Cook County Judge Ronald J. P. Banks declared that the evidence during the eight-week trial clearly showed Mr. Golab died from inhaling cyanide under “totally unsafe” workplace conditions. His death, the judge said, “was no accident, but murder.” Those convicted were Steven J. O’Neil, former president of the nowdefunct Film Recovery Systems, Inc.; Charles Kirschbaum, the plant manager; and Daniel Rodriguez, the plant foreman. The three men were also found guilty on 14 counts of reckless conduct. V More and more employers want to know what their workers do after hours. According to an article in the Houston Post, an increasing number of private companies require employees to undergo drug tests. This is not a polygraph test; it’s a urinalysis. Companies known to require such tests include IBM, Houston Lighting and Power, Pennzoil, and Mobile Oil. The argument in favor of the tests is that companies want to have a safe working environment. But it isn’t only drill press operators and bus drivers who have to take the tests; it’s also secretaries and clerks. Houston Personnel Association president James Brady said in the Post article, “I think that if you screen any employee, you should screen all the employees.” But Jim Harrington, legal director for the Texas Civil Liberties Union, says that these mass screenings constitute an invasion of privacy. “If there is no reason to believe an employee is doing a poor job, then why perform a test on them?” asks Harrington. He believes there may be an ulterior motive behind administering these tests, like making sure employees don’t make trouble. “It’s done to keep everybody cowed to some extent,” he explains. The act is a blatant invasion of privacy, an example of one person’s imposing values on another. Most of the test methods cannot determine whether someone is a casual user or a daily abuser or addict of a drug. Marijuana can be detected up to about three weeks after use with some methods, and cocaine can be detected 24 to 48 hours after use. In February, after Harris County Commissioner Bob Eckels ordered all Precinct 3 employees to take a drug detection test, 25 people resigned. At IBM in the last quarter of 1984, every person being considered for a job had to undergo a drug test. If the test was positive, says IBM spokeswoman Maxine Yee, the person had less chance of getting hired. We Almost Lost Toledo V The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has dispatched an independent team of investigators to look into an accident, June 9, at a nuclear power plant near Toledo, Ohio, that officials have likened to the early stages of the Three Mile Island catastrophe six years ago. Commission spokesman Robert Newlin said the plant has been shut down five times this year. On June 9 it had been operating a week since its last shutdown. vi In its first decision on the issue, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled this month that it was rejecting comparable worth as a means of determining job discrimination. In a 5-0 ruling, the commission said the theory of comparable worth, or paying men and women the same when they have different jobs that require equal training and responsibility, is not recognized under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Party’s Over J., The curtain quietly came down on President Reagan’s dog-and-pony show in Grenada June 11, as two planes, carrying 66 U.S. soldiers, took off in the morning rain. The departure leaves Grenada without U.S. military forces for the first time since the U.S. invaded the tiny eastern Caribbean island nation and dissolved its strife-ridden leftist government in October 1983. Political Intelligence is reported by Dawn Albright and Richard Kallus. 16 JULY 12, 1985