March 2, 1987

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COLUMN

Greed that starts at the top

All wild-eyed causes founder on their own excesses. All crazed ideologues eventually crashland on their goofy extremities. Give the sure believers enough dental floss and, in time, they will hang themselves. It all fits. If you sit on the sidelines long enough, the heavy hitters have a way of receding back to you. By Allan Fotheringham4 min

BUSINESS WATCH

Warning signs of the crash of ’88

It would have been a surprise if the members of Canada’s business world had greeted Michael Wilson’s budget with more than a yawn, even if there had been something in it: they’re all too busy counting their megaprofits from the stock market. By Peter C. Newman4 min

COVER

ROCK GO ES GOLD

The Voyager II spacecraft now making its three-billion mile journey to Neptune contains some of humanity’s best-loved sounds: a gold record sampling of J.S. Bach, a baby’s cry—and Johnny B. Goode, Chuck Berry’s rock ’n’ roll classic. Once excluded from mainstream American society, Berry and other rock ’n’ roll pioneers are beginning to enjoy the sort of respect once reserved for astronauts.

COVER

THE FIGHT OVER GOLDEN OLDIES

Even from an artist renowned for outrageous behavior, the action was a shocking sight. In August, 1984, Richard Penniman—better known as Little Richard, the flamboyant 1950s rocker—began picketing an office building in downtown Los Angeles. By NICHOLAS JENNINGS6 min

WELFARE

Too much food to share

A cross Europe, unsold stockpiles of butter, grain, wine, vegetable oil and other foods fill warehouses and cold storage vaults from the North Sea to the Mediterranean. They exist in large part because of overproduction fuelled by generous farm subsidies in the 12 European Community countries.

DATELINE: NORTH LAWNDALE

Salvation in the ghetto

The images of poverty are searing. Along the deserted thoroughfares of Chicago’s inner-city neighborhood of North Lawndale, twisted wrecks of cars lie rusting. A youth gang patrols its territory while a drug dealer exchanges a plastic packet of crack—a highly addictive form of cocaine—for a roll of bills in the alcove of an abandoned warehouse. By PAUL KAIHLA6 min

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

Campeau’s cash squeeze

It was seen at the time as a stunning financial coup. But increasingly, Wall Street analysts say that Canadian financier Robert Campeau’s New Year’s Eve takeover of Allied Stores Corp., the giant American department and specialty clothing retail chain, is seriously flawed.

CANADA

The rise of the man behind the budget

During his days on the softball diamond in a suburban Montreal gentlemen’s league, Stanley Hartt was known for his witty, nonstop verbal assaults on opponents. And his associates in the Montreal legal community remember Hartt as a brilliant lawyer who led a charmingly chaotic lifestyle.

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

Whittling at the deficit

Finance Minister Michael Wilson described it as a “breathing-space” budget. His critics called it an attack on families and the unemployed, while some economists said that the federal government’s annual tally of expenditures and revenues was simply boring. By TOM FENNELL6 min

SPORTS

The cloud over baseball’s new season

National League batting champion Tim Raines and veteran outfielder Andre Dawson are not with the Montreal Expos in West Palm Beach, Fla. Nor is catcher Lance Parrish with the Detroit Tigers, pitcher Ron Guidry with the New York Yankees or third baseman Bob Horner with the Atlanta Braves.

WORLD

The Irish Houdini

During his 30 years in Irish politics, Charles Haughey has been called everything from a statesman and a visionary to a ruthless demagogue. But both his supporters and his critics agree that Haughey, 61, has a remarkable ability to bounce back from political defeat. By ROSS LAVER4 min

CANADA

Waiting for tax reform

It was a side of Michael Wilson that few Canadians get to see. In place of his usual pinstriped banker’s suit and conservative black loafers, the finance minister was wearing a red-and-white hockey sweater, goalie pads and skates. And instead of fending off taunts in the House of Commons, he was blocking shots on the ice of the Nepean Sportsplex outside Ottawa. By MADELAINE DROHAN6 min