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Time - Man of the Year
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Time_Man_of_the_Year_Compact_Publishing_3YX-Disc-1_Compact_Publishing_1993.iso
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1988-12-31
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GRAPEVINE, Page 17
By SOPHFRONIA SCOTT GREGORY
Tempting the Truth Squad
Ross Perot says he's not a politician, but he certainly
has a talent for causing political controversy when he starts
talking. Last week when Perot told C-SPAN that President Reagan
had encouraged him to accept a 1987 invitation from Vietnam to
go to Hanoi and that he delivered an important report to the
President when he returned, some former White House officials
were outraged. They say that everyone -- the President included
-- was totally opposed to Perot's trip but that the tenacious
Texan could not be dissuaded. Once in Hanoi, these former Reagan
aides say, Perot inappropriately contradicted American policy
by talking grandly to the Vietnamese of major development aid
programs. Some of the insiders even groused that he had come
close to violating the Logan Act, which forbids civilians to
conduct diplomacy. "Perot set us back by months with the
Vietnamese," says a former official.
Ours Is Better Than Yours
The missile men at Raytheon could hardly cheer about
Pentagon reports that its wonder weapon Patriot was less
successful than briefers claimed during the gulf war. Now they
have to contend with Almaz, the Russian makers of an anti
missile system called the SA10B "Grumble." The boys at Almaz
believe their system is faster and better than the Patriot, so
they're proposing an international shoot-out between the two
systems to prove it. Raytheon, however, refuses to deal in "p.r.
gimmickry" and says the Russians are only trying to elbow in on
a hot product: complete Patriot systems sell for a cool $55
million, and they're moving fast.
That Could Buy a Lot of Pamphlets
Take one calculator, some political financial experts and
the estimated campaign budgets needed to elect California's
statewide candidates this year, and what do you get? The
costliest state election year in U.S. history -- about $100
million. Several factors converged to make it so: two state
senate races going full blast, a reapportionment that added
seven new congressional seats, and the highest expense of all,
TV time. Television has become an absolute necessity for
statewide election, since it's the only way to reach huge
numbers of voters quickly. "We are putting our elected officials
into hock the day they are sworn in," says veteran political
consultant Joseph Cerrell. He also notes that a 1954 state
assembly campaign cost just $6,000. But then, not too many
people had TV in 1954.
Banished by the Queen?
Alan Dershowitz should check out his client list these
days. It appears to need a little updating. The famed appellate
attorney is denying rumors that he is no longer on the team of
hotel queen Leona Helmsley and saying he continues to work
behind the scenes for the Queen of Mean, who is now in prison
after being convicted of tax evasion. But Milton Gould, who
heads Helmsley's new legal effort, bluntly says Dershowitz is
out of the picture. "He is not acting for her any longer,"
Gould says of Dershowitz. "He is not doing anything that I know
about, and I'm supposed to know." Maybe Dershowitz is working
pro bono. He just doesn't know it yet.
The Blame Game
Tagging responsibility for the L.A. riots has spiraled
into a full-fledged parlor game. No one can guess who will be
"it" with the next flick of the spinner. First it's Daryl
Gates, then it's L.B.J. Imagine Murphy Brown's surprise,
emerging from the delivery room to find herself a suspect. Who's
next, the Japanese? It was, after all, a Sony HandyCam that
recorded Rodney King's beating and stirred up this turmoil in
the first place.
FORWARD SPIN
Summer's coming, and so are the gadget makers, displaying
their wares in Chicago this week at the 1992 International
Summer Consumer Electronics Show. Among the offerings:
MY BANK TELLER
The piggy bank of the '90s is a tyke-size home ATM machine
that handles withdrawals and balance quotations and even tells
little Ashley or Justin how much to deposit in savings each
week. Next: My Little Broker, the pint-size Charles Schwab doll.
BEEPERKID
A high-pitched signal lets you know when Junior has
wandered more than 35 feet away. If he's not in sight, just push
a button and activate the child's homing device. Next:
TeenFence, an invisible electronic barrier that keeps teenage
daughters in and teenage suitors out.