News stories from Monday February 15, 1982

Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:

Alternative budget plans were offered by organized labor in response to the challenge issued by President Reagan. The leadership of the A.F.L.-C.I.O. said that any increases in military spending should be financed on a pay-as-you-go basis and "by a progressive surtax on income" of corporations and individuals. The leaders also called for a continuation of social programs at current levels, to be financed by corporate income taxes. [New York Times] College financial plans are in turmoil because of the Reagan administration's proposal to make cuts in federal aid to students even deeper than the reductions of as much as $2.2 billion that take effect next fall. The colleges and universities are working on many scholarship and loan programs in an effort to fill some of the gap, but officials say they fear there is no way they can come close to replacing the lost federal funds. [New York Times] Losses by Minnesota Republicans are likely in the fall elections because of voter dissatisfaction with Republican economic policy. There is widespread opposition to President Reagan's latest proposals to sharply cut federal social aid at a time when lowered taxes in Minnesota have generated a deficit in the state budget exceeding $700 million. [New York Times] An effort to aid the homeless is attracting an increasing number of New York City residents. Individuals, churches, synagogues and private groups are beginning to take part, and the Koch administration has noted a recent marked increase in telephone calls from residents reporting homeless people who need assistance. [New York Times] A new understanding of fetuses and how mothers affect them is emerging from a landmark series of studies based on nearly 60,000 births in the United States. The studies raise questions about the safety of working until the end of pregnancy and explain how sexual intercourse, cigarette smoking, poor nutrition and advanced maternal age can compromise the fetus's health and survival. [New York Times] Fears over Salvadoran elections next month are being expressed by Salvadoran leaders and United States officials. They say that, far from ending the violence, the balloting is likely to presage stepped up fighting on the part of leftist-led rebels, centrists and right-wingers. [New York Times] Lech Walesa will remain in detention until Poland's crisis has eased, according to Stanislaw Ciosek, a government minister who has met several times with the Solidarity union leader. Mr. Ciosek said that there would be no negotiations with Mr. Walesa as long as he insisted on having his advisers at his side. [New York Times] Israel appealed to President Reagan to reject Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger's proposal to sell advanced weapons to Jordan. The plea was made by Prime Minister Menachem Begin, who was backed by all of Israel's major parties. Speaking in Parliament, Mr. Begin presented an array of statistics showing what he called an "almost unimaginable flow of sophisticated weapons reaching the Arab states from both the East and the West." The buildup, he said, is jeopardizing Israel's military edge over the Arabs. [New York Times] A huge drilling rig reportedly sank in a storm off the coast of Newfoundland, and all 84 men aboard were said to be missing in 50-foot-high waves and feared dead. [New York Times] The church's respect for the cultures of the world was stressed by Pope John Paul II in Nigeria on the fourth day of his pilgrimage to Africa. [New York Times]