Pag* is

The Herald And The Lantern

£

editorial

Thanksgiving And Gratitude THANKSGIVING — Ttif day on which we gorge our*elve* with turkey, get together with far-scattered family, go to church, watch football games. It is a day of relaxation, closeness and most of all gratitude. Ciratitude for the many blessings granted in getting the Pilgrims through their first harrowing winter and establishing their American colony is what prompted founding of the holiday at the outset. Today, with inflation making the thanksgiving turkey a luxury, the siege of the American embassy in Iran tensing the nation and a seeming wealth of other problems to preoccupy us. we may well wonder where our gratitude should lie. • Day-to day events, especially when they do not bode wr|? can indeed be mesmerixlng. They can rob us of a higher perspective, one that appreciates the overall picture and holds to the things that really count in life. True gratitude is not an obligatory expression of thanks AFTER something is received. It is the conscious recognition of the truth that always exists in every situation, no matter how darkly obscured. It is the recognition of the ultimate power of good and the sway it holds over every event. Gratitude is trust and confidence and conviction. And. it is as important to voice BEFORE results have been evidenced as after. This Thanksgiving day as every day we can sincerely express gratitude for the indomitable rights of man: life, truth, freedom, happiness. And. in showing gratitude for such a steadfast bounty, not only willsve rise higher in the scale of being but we will fit ourselves more ably for continued blessings. A jovous Thanksgiving to all our readers. —KCS

Tougher Windfall Profits Tax Sought

Letters To The Editor

'Hughes Seeks Aid To Small Businesses

WASHINGTON - Sen. Bill Bradley. D-N.J., and several other Finance Committee members plan to boost revenue of the •'Windfall Profits Tax" on oil companies. "We plan to offer a number of amendments to strengthen the committee bill," Bradley said in a statement over the weekend, "and three of them alone would increase revenue more than 30% without impeding domestic oil production at all. We have to get a sizable tax to cushion the impact of higher prices for the poor and the elderly, and to develop alternate energy sources.” Noting that Senate debate is expected to begin next week, the New Jersey Democrat said he would be working closely with Sens., Abraham Ribicoff. DConn.. Gaylord Nelson, D-

Wis., and Daniel P. Moynihan, D-N.Y., among others. Increased revenue resulting from decontrol of prices on oil produced domestically will amount to hundreds of billions of dollars for the oil industry by 1990, the windfall profits tax passed by the Senate Finance Committee wffcild take about $138 billion of that, and a bill approved by the House would collect about twice as much. In a statement, Bradley also laid out brief arguments in favor of the strengthening amendments on tier two oil. stripper wells and permanent tax. In conclusion, Bradley said: "The decontrol of oil prices will transfer an enormous amount of wealth to the oil companies alone. It should be spread throughout the population."

To The Editor: If a nation’s,productivity is good, its enmomy can withstand many varied assaults such as incresed fuel prices, higher wages and strong foreign competition. When productivity remains the same or decreases, each of these outside forces has a doubly deleterious effect on ther economy resulting in higher inflation. American workers still outproduce most of their foreign counterparts but the gap is closing fast. In fact, American productivity has failed to grow since the early igTO’s and we are beginning to lag behind our major trading partners. It is now imperative that the government offer incentives to American business and industry so that we can reverse this downward trend and make our economy strong and vital again. There are many ways to accomplish this and I would like to take this opportunity to tell you about some of the measures that I am taking to encourage Americari productivity. Small businessmen have a difficult time coping with burdensome regulations. That’s why I have sponsored legislation known as the Small Business Regulatory Relief Act. This bill is designed to reduce the amount of paperwork a small business will have to

Senate has approved a "Residential Energy Efficiency Program” sponsored by Sen. Bill Bradley, D-N.J., as part of a conservation package in the synthetic fuels development bill. The Senate authorized a total of $500 million for the program with a limit of $100 million in the current fiscal year, and if the House concurs, the Energy Department is expected to test Bradley's plan in about 10 areas before implementing it nationwide. “Homeowners and tenants everywhere want to reduce their energy consumption to hold down their fuel bills," Bradley said after the vote November 8. "And there is no doubt that sophisticated new techniques can save at least 50% of energy used for heating and cooling a tygkal home. That means the residents could cut their fuel bills in half by boosting efficiency. “But many Americans are hard-pressed to pay for conservation measures, to know which ones are appropriate, and to find reliable firms to do the job. This legislation is designed to overcome those obstacles - by establishing a systematic program offering profitable opportunities for private industry without imposing major new financial burdens on homeowners, utility companies or the

government.

contend with. It’s simple, concise and a commonsense approach for keeping American small businesses alive and prosperous. Many of you have contacted me about the need to return control of the government to its elected officials, officials elected by the American people. Because I, too, feel strongly about this, I have wbrked with my colleagues to drafk legislation calling for a sj«ematic procedure wherebjr Congress would review and even veto unsound »and unnecessary regulations issued by unelected bureaucrats in the executive departments and agencies. These are just two important ways in which Congress can change the status quo and do away with non-productive and expensive requirements that have been stifling small businesses. Enactment of these two proposals won’t Solve our productivity problems overnight, but they will be a step in the right direction. I’d like to hear from you and learn your views on these important issues. If you have any suggestions on ways to increase American productivity, please take a moment ami contact me with your idea£. Sincerely William J. Hughes Member of Congress Second District New Jersey

Bradley also noted that the program would help the United States reduce its dependence on imported oil. He estimated that savings would reach about 1.7 million barrels of oil a day in the mid-190O’s if his program is applied on a national basis. Under the legislation, private "energy conservation companies" would send expert? to all the homes in a designated area so that they could inspect the premises, identify problems, and recommend assorted conservation measures. If the homeowners give their permission, the companies will make the improvements suggested at no charge to the homeowners. Payments to the conservation companies will come from a federallyadministered fund which will be financed by assessments levied against utilities. The level of assessments will depend on how much a utility saves by reducing purchases of fuel or foregoing expansion of power plant capacity as a result of lower energy consumption by their own customers. The utilities win be allowed to pass the assessments on to consumers later, as a relatively small additional cost of service, and to claim a tax credit if they suffer a net loss of

revenues.

Residential Energy Efficiency Plan Masses

WASHINGTON - The

«>?Vl ,‘,i fuJlf!*** •* Wednesday, November 21,1979

CAPK MAY COUNTY

Derail!

Largot ClrcataUo* In TV Comity

OM*«t Fro* Weekly In TV Comity

Ovr Fourteenth Veer Serving Cepe Mey County P.O.Box* Avelen.NJ.MMt Phone *67-3312 Published Ivory Wedneodey By the Seewove Corporation Darrell Kopp Editor and Publisher Kathleen Cox Schaeffer . Reporter Bill Sherman Sports Editor Boyd Tylor Fishing Columnist J.A. Cunningham Foaturo Writer Cheryl Crews *... Feature Writer Peter Dunne Columnist Charles P. Lamey Columnist Cheryl Crews Graphics Contributor Gall Carlno Advertising Graphics •

DCADiIMKS Hem A Photo* Thuradoy Advertising Friday - 3 p.m. Classified Advertising Monday - Moon

nmHwr portMvmtat * »•» #1 »V HWAU> win b* r.^.mlbU or U.M* tor HOttotortMtto*. ml^rton. mttm*. ••<-, to any l«tw«. alitor immrvtt *V rlfM to •*« any UMar or TtOto« wfealtta* tor pwblltatlori.

Student Testing: Is It Fair?

Are you concerned that your child did poorly on a recent English or math test? Or that his or her IQ seems low? Or that the school district says your child is performing above or below grade level? If so. there is something you can do about these common but vexing problems, according to Henry Dyer, nationally recognized testing expert. His advice: “Ask local school personnel a lot of specific questions about thdr testing operations and h»»w they handle them.” Asking questions, he {•dds, is the only way to get a complete picture of how the school’s testing program affects children. Dr. Dyer’s suggestions are contained in a book titled "Parents Can Understand Testing" to be published this fall by the National Committee for Citizens in Education (NCCE). NCCE is a parent advocacy group, with more than 300 affiliates throughout the country and headquarters in Columbia, MD. An important point to determine, Dr Dyer says, is why teachers give a test. He urges parents to find out if tests are given for such good reasons as (1) helping to motivate a student to learn, (2) providing feedback to help teachers individualize instruction, or (3) helping administrators make decisions about which classes or programs children should be placed in. Dr. Dyer also suggests that parents discover how local tests are prepared. "The basic question to ask in test preparation," he says, "is what teachers do to ensure that their classroom tests are content . valid. That is, how do they determine whether and to what extent the test exercises they make up are in line with the agreedupon objectives of the subjects they are teaching or of the attitudes they are hoping to develop in their students.” Another question to ask.

he points out. is whether the teacher grades a test in terms of. how close a student comes to perfect mastery of the skill being tested or in terms of how the student’s test score ranks with that of other students in the class. Most important, he adds, is to determine if a test is reliable. Find out, he says, if teachers from time totime invite their colleagues to check their grading of a batch of tests to see how closely they may agree on judging Ihe quality of., student performance. Dr. Dyer also warns parents to be wary of IQ tests. "The IQ," he says, "like any test score, is nothing more than an index number that is useful for summarizing how a student has responded to a series of test questions." It Is only useful, he adds, "if the information it provides leads one to figure out right now what might be done to help the student improve his or her performance in the future." He also notes that a child’s IQ can be raised — just as his or her spelling score can be raised - by giving the student guided practice in the skills sampled by IQ tests. And. Dr. Dyer points out. it is a fallacy to be told that your child is either overachieving or underachieving on the basis of a comparison between his or her IQ score and a battery of achievement tests. Variations in these scores are more likely dde to the way In which- the tests were given, the way test norms (averages) were determined, or simple errors in measurement. Dr. Dyer also takes issue with such comments by educators as, "The test shows that your eighthgrade child is reading at the fifthigrade level." These grade equivalent scores, he says, are technically unsatisfactory because there is no way that a single score scale can take in the whole range of student achievement from kindergarten through Grade 12 in each subject.

r