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guage Quebec's only official lan–
guage.
On November 4, a surprising
compromise was reached. Nine
premiers agreed to the entrenched
charter of rights slightly modified
to suit their tastes. Everyone was
happy except Quebec's premier
René Levesqué, who claimed he
was ambushed by the English–
speaking premiers.
WEST GERMANY
Rising Tide of
Anti-Americanism
The rising chorus of anti-Ameri–
can ism in West Germany has
changed the mood of E urope. The
clamor focused on a December
1979 NATO decision, made at the
time of the Soviet intervent ion in
Afghanistan, to replace aging U.S.
missiles based in Eu rope with
atomic-tipped Pershing
11
rockets.
These new rockets are capable of
striking Russian cities in the event
of a Soviet move against Western
Eurape.
NATO's decision set off "an
explosion of fears" in this country, to
quote
Spiegel
magazine. Young
Germans, in particular, think these
missiles increase the chance of West
Germany ending asan atomic grave–
yard. They reason that the Russians
would be forced
to
flatten Germany
totally in case of war, to eliminate
the dangerous Pershing Us.
These fears were furtber en–
hanced by President Reagan's deci–
sion to build the neutron bomb.
6
Mr. Lévesque's Partí Quebe–
quois has already quietly revived·
tbe fight for sovereignty associa–
tion-the plan for all but total
independence for Quebec, a pro–
posa! turned down once befare by
the people of the province. To
many Canadians, it seems the
country~
is back to square one over
the separation issue. Sorne fear that
Mr. Lévesque might win a second
Many of America's NATO partners
bere believe tbe neutron bomb will
only serve to encourage an increased
Soviet nuclear arms bui ldup and
heighten the chance of war.
Pressure on the Economy
I ncreased emphasis in defense also
pu ts painful pressure on Euro–
peans' pocketbooks. West Germans
balk at plun g ing government
spend ing even further into the
red.
President Reagan's anti-infl ation
policies also set many Germans'
teeth on edge. Higb American
interest rates have radically af–
fected West Germany's already
stagnat ing economy. They bave
triggered a massive outflow of
monetary investment from Germa–
ny to the Uni ted States, fueling a
dramatic r ise in tbe value of tbe
dallar and a corresponding drop in
funds avai lable for business invest–
ment in Germany.
T he rise in the value of the dallar
has caused a sharp increase in the
cost of imports- especially oil–
whicb are paid for in dollars, tbus
worsening Germany's balance of
payments deficit. The number of
referendum, plunging Canada into
its greatest constitutional crisis
ever.
A duel of two quite different
French Canadians- Mr. Trudeau
and Mr. Lévesque- with two
quite djfferent visions of Canada,
is fast shaping up. Thus the out–
look for 1982 is none too pleas-
ant.
- Ne.il Earle
bankruptcies in West Germany is
expected to reach a record high by
the end of 1981. Unemployment is
ata 27-year high and is expected to
go even higher in 1982. As the
recession deepens, so does German
revulsion toward U .S. economic
policy.
Aware of tbe growing differ–
ences between the United States
and West Germany, the Soviet
Union staged a massive propaganda
campaign in 1981 to raise fears of
America's "militarism." Tempting
offers of Soviet oil and natural gas
were part of this propaganda pack–
age. Conservative politician Otto
von Hapsburg warned that the
Soviets aim at "detaching Western
Europe, the second power in the
Free Wor ld, from the United
S tates. "
Change in Pub lic Opinion
Based on present trends, 1982 will
bring an even further cooling off
of relations between West Germa–
ny and the United States. A pub–
tic opinion survey conducted by
Germany's Allensbach Institute
ind icated an increased reluctance
on the part of Germans to follow
American leadership. Sixty-five
percent of those asked felt that
(Continued on page 43)
The
PLAIN TRUTH