Ed Bobit's Publisher's Page

Injustice, suave, erect, and unconfined,

Sweeps the wide earth, and tramples o'er mankind -

While prayers to heal her wrongs move slow behind. - Homer: The Illiad

My name is Barbara Bobit. I'm still 19 and am helping Pop out during the summer before I head into nurse's train­ing. Pop is so busy covering conventions, working (we sure­ly do not call those convention cocktail parties work), hit­ting the golf courses and tennis courts; so, will try again to handle this page.

The 'injustice' referred to in the above quote is better known to our generation as 'ripoff.' And everyone knows that between Washington, Detroit and Akron, there is plenty going on; and it affects all of us in so many ways. You may have read recently that the U.S. Justice Depart­ment sounded a warning to police departments stating that steel-belted radial tires were dangerous for use at high speeds. It shook up a lot of people, including the men in blue. The ripoff was that most media and the public did not see or hear the second part of the warning which stated: "unless they (steel-belted radials) are manufacturer-certified for police use at speeds over 125 MPH." The fact is, and police fleet buyers know it, there are properly certified steel-belted radials available to cover the higher speeds. Rip­off.

The seatbelt ignition interlock that rankled the public also cost them millions. Do you recall the sticker cost for the interlock system was about $90; when they came off and we got a credit, it was only $13. Ripoff.

How about the headrests? They are supposed to be de­signed to help prevent whip-lash in an accident but they have to be properly adjusted for each driver or they may not work. Not really what you would call a cost-effective safety device. Ripoff.

Now, a new bill has passed the Senate Commerce Com­mittee (and the House Commerce Subcommittee has ap­proved a similar measure) that would call for a 50-percent better fuel mileage (over 1974) and a full 100-percent bet­ter by 1985. That is based on the 14 mpg average in '74 making it a mandatory average of 28 mpg by 1985. Detroit indicates that the only way they can do it is to make smaller, lighter cars and improve the engines. Smaller cars; okay. But as GM Chairman, Thomas A. Murphy, has point­ed out, 23-percent of American families have five or more people. And there are literally tens of thousands of fleet drivers who need the larger trunk space for samples, dis­plays, and working materials. Where does that leave those who have to have the bigger car; or will we see the return of the business coupe? Ripoff.

EPA now says that the catalytic converters are emitting dangerous sulfuric acid mists and the converter may not be the answer to reducing car emissions. When EPA first an advocated the converters, GM followed and has spent $300 million (including a $100 million plant to make them) and has a ten year contract for $500 million worth of platinum and palladium used in them. Chrysler has a five-year supply no-break contract to pay $20 million a year for their supply of converters. Ford has had to make similar commitments. Who is and will be paying for all this? You know; it is the car buyer. Ripoff.

Many have called the entire fuel shortage a ripoff; and with certain justification. With the current disparity be­tween regular gas and unleaded, the old differential of a couple of cents for ethyl now looks good. And we are not getting a lower octane. Ripoff.

One final item. Almost everyone knows that Pop has a strong affinity for Juniper-juice; better recognizable in a Beefeater bottle. A bit of news comes out of the Depart­ment of Transportation in the form of a study recently released. It shows "that the high school students surveyed participate in unsupervised social-drinking situations almost as often as adults, that half of all high school students surveyed drink regularly, that a surprising number of them report getting drunk at least once a month, and that they do a significant amount of their drinking in driving-connect­ed situations." Now this could also be a ripoff; a ripoff from pot and other drugs. It is 'sobering' to get these statistics, however.

Perhaps if we can get Pop and many other parents to go on the wagon we can reduce the extreme hazards on our highways created by those who drink and drive.