Public Periscope

The local arms race

The subject: Semiautomatic assault rifles. The question: Should the county spend $44,000 buying several dozen for deputies? … Absolutely, said Commissioner Phil Harris, arguing the rifles are needed because bad guys tend to be well-armed … Not so fast, said Commissioner John Roskelley, arguing the traditional 12-gauge shotgun is better because it has a shorter range and is less likely to injure bystanders … “If I were in Saigon and they told me I had to go in with a shotgun when (the Viet Cong) were using AR-15s, I would have told my commander to stuff it,” said Harris, a Vietnam veteran. “But this isn’t Saigon,” said Roskelley … “Well, it’s the same thing, John. We have a war here,” said Harris, recalling the well-televised shootout between armored bankrobbers and undergunned L.A. cops earlier this year. … This isn’t Los Angeles, either, Roskelley noted.

Passing the hat

Here’s an idea that’s pretty good, albeit bitingly sarcastic: U.S. Term Limits is starting a fund drive to help “impoverished members of Congress in their time of need.” … This is prompted, of course, by last week’s votes in the House and Senate that give the honorables a cost-of-living increase. Members make $133,673 per year, plus have a free gym, free airport parking, free health care and nice pensions, notes the group, which is among the most adamant in pushing for limited terms for Congress … The organization’s cause was helped by a few impolitic comments by members about how they were strapped for cash and sleeping in their offices … This allowed the group’s executive director to put out a tongue-in-cheek call for “people everywhere to join us to save the politicians - canned goods, old winter coats, anything they can spare. When you see the faces of sad, malnourished congressmen huddled in the cold, it just breaks your heart.” The group is accepting deliveries at its Washington, D.C., office, Suite 501, 1125 15th Street NW.

Ugly by any name

What was once called “wife beating,” and later “domestic violence” now is known as “intimate partner abuse.” At least, that’s what the proclamation read when Spokane County commissioners decided October is as good a month as any to focus on the problem.

Bridging the electoral gap

Want to talk about the proposed Lincoln Street Bridge? The Citizens League of Greater Spokane thinks enough people do, so it’s holding a public forum at 7 p.m., Oct. 19, at The Met.

Just the fax

Sen. Slade Gorton was making a pretty eloquent defense of his plan to rearrange the way the federal government distributes education money, and waling mightily on President Clinton for “strong characterizations that are extremely disingenuous.” Then a typo got in his way … “More parents than ever are choosing alternatives to pubic education for their children,” the faxed statement from the Washington Republican contended.

, DataTimes MEMO: Public Periscope, which is published Mondays, is compiled by Jim Camden from staff reports. You can write us at The Spokesman-Review, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, 99210; or send e-mail to jimc@spokesman.com; or fax to (509) 459-5482.