Correspondents' Correspondence

...Correspondents' Correspondence BRIEF TAKEOUTS OF MORE THAN PERSONAL INTEREST FROM LETTERS ANDOTHERCOMMUNICATIONS RECEIVED BY THE EDITORS TURNED-ON GENERATION Cambridge-As if attempting to disprove the charge that its coverage of the college scene focuses almost exclusively on the unruly minority, the mass media have been giving widespread attention to the fact that there is a cooler mood on campuses across the nation this year And at meetings of university administrators there is much hopeful talk about the new decade ushering in a more peaceful academic era To add to the illusion of change, articles and books being written about the student revolution of the '60s appear to be taking on the style of a eulogy or dissection—depending on the author's attitude toward the rebellion to begin with But reports of any immediate return to campus passiveness are merely wishful thinking or self-delusion While the period of mass confrontations and university shutdowns may be coming to an end, two significant vestiges of the hotter days remain The first is a relatively large core of ideologically committed revolutionaries on a great many campuses What there is of a cooler mood this year is the result of a decline in the political participation of hangers-on and moderates, who were always necessary for any long-term successful disruption But the number of hard-core rebels has, if anything, grown, and they provide a continued potential for campus violence-particularly the non-Worker-Student Alliance factions of sds Here at Harvard, no more than 50 students have taken part in any confrontation this year, a large recession from last year—yet there have already been five building "liberations," albeit never lasting beyond an afternoon The second vestige of the "violent '60s" is the alienated moderates, who have not become any more content with American society under President Nixon Their threshhold of interest in protracted political activity has simply dropped sharply, and this year they seem to be increasingly engaged in the drug-oriented "youth culture" There is little prospect of this larger group becoming traditional "college Joes " The '70s are more likely to see the beginning of a turned-on "silent generation "-Steven Kelman AS OHIO GOES...

...Washington-In any assessment here of national political trends, the state of Ohio counts for more than its 26 Electoral College votes in Presidential elections It is seen as a barometer of the American political temper And with the silent majority remaining silent-sending those who face 1970 election campaigns in search of all reliable indicators of the public mood-Ohio takes on immediate importance because of its senatorial and gubernatorial primaries The state Republican party, long held secure in the pocket of Governor James Rhodes, now finds itself engaged in a divisive battle for the U S Senate nomination that threatens to end gop domination of Ohio politics Seriously challenged by Congressman Robert Taft of Cincinnati, Rhodes is trailing, and second place in May would spell his political death Interestingly, Taft's present lead may be attributable not so much to his more active campaigning as to Rhodes' armtwisting of county party chairmen In addition, a recent poll indicated that fully a half of Ohio's Republicans doubted Rhodes' "integrity"-apparently as a result of last fall's Life magazine article on his alleged misuse of campaign funds and shady dealings with a state Mafioso Rhodes has strenuously protested his innocence But he has yet to bring suit against Life In fact, he only recently retained the services of Louis Nizer, the attorney who, says Rhodes, will decide when and whom to sue Taft's nonchalant comment on the whole affair has been "He keeps bringing it up, I don't " As for Ohio's "other party," it is running a more subdued senatorlal primary John Glenn, a previous Democratic hopeful, is trying to convince party leaders that he has more drawing power than his opponent, Howard Metzenbaum Although Glenn has the publicly recognizable name, Metzenbaum, a Cleveland millionaire, has earned the respect of the politicos He managed the campaign of the man he intends to replace, retiring Senator Stephen Young And he has the cash to buy time on television, in which he comes across well In the gubernatorial primary, the wrestling in the gop arena is similarly drawing greater attention The Democrats post a rather colorless race between John Gilligan, a solid Cincinnati liberal, and Robert Sweeney, a former Congressman with a fluctuating political philosophy On the Republican side, however, the battle lines are more clearly drawn There, Congressman Donald "Buz" Lukens, a favorite among conservatives everywhere, is holding a "surprisingly strong second" position to party man Roger Cloud, the state auditor Lukens earned the nickname "Buz" by tireless campaigning On the day he announced his gubernatonal intentions, he appeared in seven different towns He is also receiving impressive financial backing Prior to settling his sights on the Governor's mansion m Columbus, Lukens had been eyeing the Senate Insiders report he collected at least $100,000 for that campaign before switching his goals And since then, they say, the young (38) conservative has received monetary favors from such out-of-state Right-wingers as H L Hunt Should Lukens' youth and bankroll overwhelm the less visible Cloud, Governor Rhodes will be faced with the bitter chore of handing over the reigns ot the state party to a long-time nval Just as Rhodes managed to control Ohio's electoral votes with a stem hand, so might a Governor Lukens, national political figures would no doubt find Lukens, with his strong conservative streak, a difficult man to please But of more relevant interest, as astute observers of Middle America will note, a crucial political barometer may soon indicate a significant shift Right-ward-Rudy Maxa HAUNTING MELODIES Tel Aviv-One of the more striking developments in Israeli popular music these days is the marriage of Hasidic or other religious melodies with modern rhythms Several groups now play variations on this new theme, indicating not only the versatility of the contemporary musical idiom but also that Hasidic music still has something to say to Israeli youth The best-known-and most successful-example of this revival is the musical review There Once Was a Hasid now in the fifteenth month of its run To their own guitar and piano accompaniment, three boys and three girls relate tales from the ghettoes and Jewish villages of 18th- and 19th-century Poland and Russia The setting is a colorful, Chagallesque backdrop, the costuming, jeans and turtleneck sweaters The tales are told in an easygoing, relaxed style, evoking the warm atmosphere of the pious relating the miraculous deeds of their rabbis-or simply the bittersweet character of everday life It is interesting that neither the performers nor the audience could be described as Orthodox Of the six on stage, only one comes from a religious home, the patrons, too, appear to be as secular as any in Israel Yet the music, and particularly the lyrics, seems to carry some special meaning for the post-Six-Day War audience It is not quite clear what young Israelis find appealing in some of the schmaltzy songs that are part of the program But there can be little doubt about why they identify with the more dramatic and profound pieces Indeed, the story of one, "The Baal Shem Tov's Neighbor," is symbolic of the mood of the embattled Israeli The Lord grants the saintly Baal Shem Tov the privilege of meeting his heavenly roommate in this world The man turns out to be an uncouth glutton-but a very special sort of glutton As a child, he had seen his father burned to death by the Cossacks His father was a small man He burned with a small flame, he burned for a short time Then the glutton says "And at that moment I decided to eat, and eat and eat, to become bigger and bigger and bigger, so that if the Cossacks come to get me, I'll burn big, and I'll burn long, with a flame that will be seen to the very edges of the world"-S Peters LOW PROFILE SALESMAN Washington-secretary of State William P Rogers, a handsome, quiet-spoken, disarmingly frank man whose stock has been rising steadily in this town, returned from his tour of Africa last week to find that it had gone up several additional points The feeling here is that he did an excellent job of outlining the new U S "low profile " In part, his success would appear to stem from his often stated conviction that the U S must be less "impudent" in its relations with other countries In part, his skill as low-profile advocate is no doubt due to the circumstances he is fond of describing as the inspiration for the Nixon Administration's foreign policy posture Always the lawyer, he explains that he took his cue from the courtroom He has noticed, he says, that whenever a lawyer with a flair for the dramatic vies with a low-keyed opponent before a jury, the man who puts on the show wins over the spectators while his adversary wins the case-B S J...