Word: pardoners
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Saturday wasn't so hot to begin with, but for the four (pardon the repetition) Dartmouth teams that traveled to Cambridge, it was colder than that. Four made the journey, four lost--if you don't believe me then check out the rest of this page--and one turned greener than usual...
Coming from diametrically opposed viewpoints, these clashing voices illustrate the dilemma facing President-elect Carter as he prepares to carry out his campaign pledge to grant some kind of pardon to young Americans who evaded or abandoned service in the Viet Nam War. So far, these rising emotions are based only on what the pro-and anti-pardon groups think Carter will do. He expects to make his decision this week, but does not plan to reveal it until he takes office...
During the presidential campaign Carter said he would grant a blanket "pardon" to the 4000 or so draft resisters still wanted by the military, and that he would consider the 30,000-90,000 deserters on a case-by-case basis. He said nothing about the 800,000 Vietnam-era vets with less-than-honorable discharges, the million who failed to register for the draft and are therefore liable for prosecution, and the thousands of civilian war resisters. A fair amnesty should include all these categories...
...should be an amnesty, which makes no judgment, as opposed to a pardon, which implies guilt. Many who are eligible for amnesty or a pardon have indicated they would refuse to accept the latter, since they do not believe they committed a crime by refusing to participate in an unjust...
Jimmy Carter has nothing to lose by declaring a universal, unconditional amnesty. Groups like the VFW and the American Legion, who are adamantly opposed to any form of amnesty, will probably protest even if Carter proclaims only a partial amnesty or "pardon." But a limited amnesty would generate protests indefinitely among the excluded victims of the Vietnam tragedy. It would certainly subvert any goal of reconciliation...