RUST COMMENTARY: NNA CONVENTION SHOWCASES MISSOURI

I attended the National Newspaper Association annual convention in Fort Worth last weekend. A less-than-seven-day-advance-purchase of a round-trip flight from St. Louis was $950, and $850 from Memphis.

So I flew myself to Little Rock (1 hour, 15 minutes) where I elected to land and fly commercial for $159 to the Dallas-Fort Worth airport (which doesn't relish small, general-aviation airplanes).

I had a major business meeting on the airport premises, and this seemed to be the best option. Got a little instrument practice (50 minutes worth) on the return flight.

DALTON WRIGHT, president of Lebanon Publishing Co. in Lebanon, Mo., was sworn in as the NNA president. Quite an honor for Dalton, who became the first national president from Missouri.

I was proud that our newspaper received more awards than any other daily entered in the judging. In all, the newspaper received six first-place awards, two second-place awards, two awards for third place and four honorable mentions ... 14 awards in total.

Judges praised the Southeast Missourian for "lots of information in an easy-to-read package."

It was also a boost to the associates of our scheduled newspaper acquisition and their state associations in Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Nebraska and Idaho.

They could see our dedication to quality presentation and content ... along with advertiser service and satisfaction (which is never judged nationally).

It's a team effort here at the Southeast Missourian, which only achieves victory when you, the readers, appreciate, benefit and enjoy our seven-day-a-week effort to bring you information -- contributing to 19 consecutive months of circulation gains.

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Look for lots of pork in upcoming fast-track trade legislation ... giving the president the power to make trade agreements Congress can't change ... but can vote up or down.

Bill Clinton will trade new roads in congressional districts, environmental projects and the like to get the necessary votes for the fast track he does not currently have (according to many reports).

Also, forget again about approval of product liability changes this year, as the American trial lawyers have Clinton's ear ... and are major contributors. The same scenario plays out under Mel Carnahan's leadership in the Missouri Legislature.

A 1994 liability-relief law which reduced the length of time from manufacture that lawyers could bring suits has generated a good year for aircraft sales, especially business jets and single-engine planes.

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A Bad Day for China Optimists: Stories breaking last week should be a wake-up call to those who have been basing our China policy on dreams rather than reality. While America's foreign policy elites in both parties continue to sleep, here is what happened since last Thursday.

* Chinese President Jiang Zemin ousted Qiao Shi, the leading reformer from the Communist Party Central Committee, sending a clear signal that meaningful political reform is not in the cards. Some top generals were also removed and reports this morning indicate that Gen. Zhang Wannian will be appointed. Zhang personally oversaw the missile tests fired off the shore of Taiwan last year when China tried to intimidate the island democracy.

* A top Pentagon analyst told the Senate Intelligence Committee that his translations of Chinese military publications show they are planning on war with the U.S.! China's military, according to the analyst, sees America as "a declining power with but two or three decades of primacy left." The Pentagon official also said he was astonished about how much China already knows about the weaknesses in U.S. weapon systems.

* For those hoping for an economic bonanza in China, the news was no better. The Commerce Department reported that U.S. exports to China in the first seven months of this year rose a meager 4 percent, while imports into the United States from China exploded by 25 percent -- the result is a $25 billion deficit with China alone through the end of July.

Will any of this change the current direction of our China policy? Probably not. Believe it or not, the Clinton administration is signaling that it will soon authorize the selling of American nuclear technology to China -- mostly because of pressure from U.S. companies who think they will make big profits. They will be disappointed. China's pattern is to buy a little, steal the technology, and then copy the product.

There is absolutely no sign the Republican Congress will do anything to get our policy on a more realistic course. In fact, I was shocked when I testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, because some of the Republican senators were just as bad, if not worse, in arguing for what can only be called a policy of appeasement. They actually made a witness representing the Clinton administration look tough.

The American people have to rely on their leaders in the arena of foreign policy. Right now those leaders are failing to look out for our basic security when it comes to China. The next century can be a great one with a strong America abroad and a morally rearmed America at home. Or it can be a disaster, if we forget how to react to tyranny and continue down a path of relativism. These are the two great challenges of the years ahead. -- Gary Bauer in Washington Update

~Gary Rust is the president of Rust Communications, which owns the Southeast Missourian and other newspapers.