Editorials
Thursday, October 9, 1997WHILE paying lip service to the goal of combating global warming, President Clinton is wisely refraining from an endorsement of calls for increases in U.S. energy prices. At a conference sponsored by the White House, some participants argued that price increases would be necessary to achieve a reduction in U.S. emissions of so-called greenhouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide. But Clinton responded that higher prices were politically unacceptable. Don’t take rash action
on global warmingIt's more than politics. In order to create an effective deterrent for motorists and other users, prices might have to be raised so high that they would severely damage the economy and bring the current prosperity to a crashing halt. Economist William Nordhaus warned that steep price increases could have a devastating effect, much like the oil-price shocks of the 1970s. The result, Nordhaus recalled, was the worst economic period in the United States since the Great Depression.
Despite all the dire warnings, the facts about the extent and the causes of global warming are still in dispute. As recently noted here, some scientists now believe that cycles in sunspots and solar flares may be a major, even the principal, factor in the rise in temperatures over the last century.
In addition to uncertainties as to the cause of global warming, the remedies are equally uncertain. The exemption of China and India from reductions in emissions, for example, could nullify any lowering of emissions in the developed countries.
This is no time to heed the Chicken Littles crying that the sky is falling. Before drastic action is taken that could wreck the current economic boom, it would be prudent to be sure that the facts and the remedy are right. We aren't.
THE arrest of 10 Bosnian Croats charged by an international tribunal with war crimes signals a more aggressive effort at rounding up suspects and possibly gathering evidence implicating higher officials. Tightening the economic vise on Croatia led to the arrests. While Serbia and the Serbian leadership in Bosnia are less likely to succumb to pressure and honor international warrants, NATO should go ahead with plans to arrest Serbian war-crime suspects with or without Serbian cooperation. Bosnia war crimes
The 10 Croatian suspects turned themselves in to authorities after the United States blocked loans to Croatia from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. They will be tried in The Hague on various charges of an "ethnic cleansing" campaign that included the 1993 slaughter of Muslim inhabitants of a valley in central Bosnia. The arrested suspects include Dario Kordic, a Bosnian Croat leader accused of engineering the campaign but who may have been overseen by senior Croatian officials.
The arrests bring to 20 the number of suspects brought into custody to be tried at the United Nations court. Most of the 57 at large who face war-crime charges are Serbs, including former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and his wartime general, Ratko Mladic.
Western diplomats say NATO commanders are considering a plan to arrest Karadzic and Mladic, although the Belgrade and Bosnian Serb governments continue to ignore the indictments. Such a plan presumably would be put into action sometime after the Bosnian Serb parliamentary elections on Nov. 23.
Any NATO plans to forcibly arrest Karadzic, Mladic and other Serbs in defiance of regional authorities must be carefully drawn to avoid inflaming the region and upsetting Bosnia's delicate stability. That may be a difficult mission, but it is one worth pursuing to give the war crimes tribunal the credibility it has lacked.
THE SS Constitution, which used to sail between Hawaii's islands until it was taken out of service two years ago, has been sold for scrap. The 46-year-old liner, which carried Grace Kelly to Monaco for her wedding, was supposed to have been refurbished, but the owners learned that the ship needed more than $60 million in repairs and gave up on it. Interisland cruises
Since the Constitution was withdrawn, American Hawaii Cruises has been operating just one ship in the islands, the SS Independence, which is the same design and age as the Constitution. The parent company of American Hawaii Cruises, American Classic Voyages, has been looking for a replacement for the Constitution. But under U.S. law, only ships built in the United States are eligible, and no suitable ones are available.
How long the Independence will remain in operating condition is unknown, but it may not long outlive its sister ship. If nothing is done, Hawaii interisland cruises could soon be history. To some extent this prospect is offset by a boom in world cruises that is resulting in more calls in Hawaii ports -- 198 visits scheduled for 1998, more than double the number for this year. However, interisland cruises are a valuable asset.
A bill passed by Congress and awaiting President Clinton's signature would allow American Hawaii Cruises to acquire a foreign-flagged ship if it committed to building at least two ships in the U.S. by 2008. Under the bill, once the company signed a contract to buy the ships, only lines already operating here could compete until the new ships wore out -- which would mean a monopoly for several decades at least.
Senator Inouye, who sponsored the proposal, says it would provide 700 seafaring jobs, growing eventually to 2,000, plus jobs at ports and in service industries.
Contrary to critics' claims, we have no interest in further enriching the owners of American Classic Voyages. Our interest is in keeping the cruise ships operating in Hawaii. Although the measure is anti-competitive, it seems necessary to preserve interisland cruises -- and they are worth preserving.
Rupert E. Phillips, CEO
John M. Flanagan, Editor & Publisher
David Shapiro, Managing Editor
Diane Yukihiro Chang, Senior Editor & Editorial Page Editor
Frank Bridgewater & Michael Rovner, Assistant Managing Editors
A.A. Smyser, Contributing Editor
