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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 2, 1968)
k .. ■ ■ v ' : ■ ■ Wa,7a«riV:2?W’iW',’7- ■ • •_ THE BATTALION Page 2 College Station, Texas Tuesday, April 2, 1968 Peace Could CADET SLOUCH byJimEarle Bombing Pause Result From Futile Attempt LBJ Decision In a dramatic 40-minute speech Sunday nig-ht the Presi dent told the nation he had ordered the cessation of bombing in all areas of Vietnam except that area just North of the Demilitarized Zone. “We are prepared to move immediately toward peace throug-h neg-otations,” he said. The President challeng’ed the North Vietnamese to se riously consider negotations but warned “If peace does not come now through negotations, it will come when Hanoi understands that our common resolve is unshakeable, and our common strength invincible.” The timing of the announcement made the probability of its success doubtful. A bombing pause was applauded by many “doves” as an important first step toward peace, and for the time being it has placated those seeking an alternative to the administra tion’s previous war policy. According to the South Vietnamese government they were not consulted before the President made the move, and have apparently interpreted the pause as a sign of weakening U. S. determination. The Soviet government said Monday it would make no effort to aid the British in their attempt to arrange negotia tions between the U. S. and North Vietnam. A North Vietnamese official in Paris unofficially said that his government would reject the offer because the United States had not completely stopped “all acts of aggres sion” against the North. This would include any air action along the DMZ, any ground movement or any naval bombardment. The President had stated that he could not “in all con science stop all the bombing” because it would endanger the lives of Allied forces along the DMZ where continuing enemy buildup continues to threaten Allied forward positions. The area free from attack includes “almost 90 per cent of North Vietnam’s population, and most of its territory,” including heavily populated and food producing areas. The President did not set any time limit on the bombing pause but the administration will probably allow three weeks for some sign of de-escallation from the Communists. The move appears to be a sincere attempt by the Presi dent to begin negotiations, and a political move to demon strate to our foreign critics and those critics at home that this country has taken the first step. This is the tenth time in three years that there has been a bombing pause. The enemy has always taken advant age of the situation to regroup and resupply. Pilots who regularly fly North are disappointed and from their personal viewpoint it can only mean rebuilt missile and anti-aircraft sights. For the next three weeks the Ho Chi Minh trail will probably look like a Los Angeles freeway with fresh supplies moving South—after this country expended so many lives to effectively leave the foe rice and gun hungry. The most important psychological reason for failure is that the President used the same speech to announce that he would not run for reelection. Why should the enemy negotiate now when a new ad ministration next January might give them a better opportu nity—a peace on their terms? If the same pattern of rejection follows this latest announcement, the result will be a bloody May with enemy troops in the South well supplied and bridge, railroad, and manufacturing sights in the North rebuilt. President Johnson’s twin bomb shells, his withdrawal from the presidential race and his cutback in the bombing of North Viet nam, come at a time when there are suggestions that the North Vietnamese population has be come bone-tired of the war and perhaps more difficult to handle. If that is the case, the President’s actions could lead to peace ne gotiations. One way or the other, the President’s announcements prob ably landed with stunning force in Hanoi. IN ONE WAY the Communists are likely to be discomforted. The announcements lob the peace ball into their court, and world opinion will await their response. The President’s decisions present a challenge to Moscow — he has asked it to use its role as co- chairman of the 1954 Geneva conference to further the cause of Vietnam peace. The President’s suspension of bombing of 90 per cent of North An AP News Analysis Sound Off Editor, The Battalion: I am Charles Hoffman and I am a run-off candidate for Vice- President of the Class of '71. I feel qualified by past experience. I have served in numerous leader ship positions in various organi zations. As for our class, I advocate class meetings where class mem bers can express their ideas and can participate in the planning of class activities. Often, we find ourselves on campus over a weekend with not much to do that is entertaining. I believe it is time for our class to plan some extra activities for some of these long weekends. Specifically, if elected, I pledge my efforts to carry out the voters’ wishes and to work with them so that more class members will have a voice in their student government. I need each member of the class of ’71’s' vote and support in this Thursday’s run-off election. Charles Hoffman ’71, Candidate for Vice-Pres. Vietnam goes a long way toward meeting a major condition laid down by Hanoi for talks. The pause is open-ended. It provides a lever, if they choose to use it, for the Russians, and perhaps the French, to apply pressure on Hanoi to respond. Only two weeks ago, in the name of President Ho Chi Minh, Hanoi published a 22-article de cree promising Draconian punish ment for North Vietnamese op ponents of the war. The decree listed as punishable “counterrevolutionary crimes” such activities as “opposition to the fatherland and the people’s democratic power, sabotage of So cialist construction, undermining national defense and the struggle against U.S. aggression.” Activi ties against “security and order,” defecting or abetting defection to the enemy, attempts to destroy the political power in the North, “counterrevolutionary propagan da” and a long list of other offenses are punishable by death or long imprisonment. THIS WAS NOT the first time that North Vietnamese internal announcements indicated trouble arising from weariness with the war. Others in the past have dealt with manpower shortages plus transport and distribution problems. The question now is whether, in the light of the dramatic de velopments in Washington and the new pressures likely to be generated by them, Hanoi will begin to see possible long-range profit in responding to the Ameri can overture. The removal of President John son from the American election campaign might encourage Hanoi to hang on and accept the hard ships of the next seven months until after the U.S. balloting, to see what that might bring. Meanwhile, Hanoi propaganda could claim that the U.S. Presi- APRIL 6 DEADLINE FOR Make - Ups For All Sophomores and Juniors UNIVERSITY STUDIO Proofs to be returned by April 21. Land Is At Your AGGIELAND FLOWER AND GIFT SHOPPE North Gate Cards Party Goods Baby Albums Invitations Personalized Stationary (See Johnson, Page 3) PARDNER You’ll Always Win The Showdown When You Get Your Duds Done At CAMPUS CLEANERS Billards Jointed Cue Sticks Pinball Wildwest Ray Gun Shocker Machine Gripper Machine Magazines Magic Supplies Bumper Stickers Decals Novelties Comic Cards Sundries Also AGGIE THEATRE AGGIE DEN “The Home of the Aggies” (Next to Loupot’s) 8 a. m. til midnight 7 days a week THE BATTALION Opinions expressed in The Battalion The Associated Press is entitled exclusively to the use for t. r i 1 i i i •• 7 __. repuiblication of all new dispatches credited to it or not %JiTe those of the StudeTlt WVlteVS OTlly. 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Address: Titus, College of Veterinary Medicine; and Hal Taylor, Col- The Battalion, Room 217, Services Building, College, Station, lege of Agriculture. Texas 77843. The Battalion, a student newspaper at Texas A&M is EDITOR CHARLES ROWTON SSSSV5 M»S. SSSMr?^tSS^ , «SSS Managing Editor 1A John Fuller May, and once a week during summer school. r eatures Editor Mike Plake TE—7. ——7. —F - Editorial Columnist Robert Solovey Servhies^inc.^New^York'city^chTc^o^'Lo^Aiigeies^arid'^an News Editors Steve Korenek, Jim Basinger Francisco. Sports Editor Gary Sherer Asst. Sports Editor John Plat r MEMBER Staff Writers Bob Palmer, Dave Mayes The Associated Press, Texas Press Association Photographer Mike Wright Read Classifieds Rail SQUIRT IS (JOT A CAM Di DATE “Fve decided that since I’m not running for office, I might as well not run for th’ biggest of them all, like everybody else!” PIZZA INN TUESDAY SPECIAL * 1 FREE IF YOU LIKE GOOD PIZZA . . . 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