News stories from Sunday December 26, 1982

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

Selective tax increases In 1983 are being backed by Treasury Secretary Donald Regan to shrink the huge budget deficits being projected for 1984 and beyond, according to senior administration officials. Mr. Regan is said to be skeptical that non-military spending can be cut further. [New York Times] A conflict of interest question focuses on Secretary of the Navy John Lehman who pledged in his Senate confirmation hearings that he would sell his interest in a consulting company that does business with Pentagon contractors. According to public documents, Mr. Lehman did not sever all his connections with the company, the Abington Corporation. [New York Times] Corporate non-cash gifts to needy community organizations are increasing and range from new computers to frozen foods. Some items cost millions of dollars, such as the 200 new specialized reading machines for the blind given by the Xerox Corporation of Stamford, Conn. Chevron U.S.A., the oil company, gave a 20-year-old petroleum tank truck to a volunteer fire department in Alabama. [New York Times] A flood-devastated St. Louis suburb will be examined by teams of technicians, sent by federal and Missouri authorities, to determine if the recent flooding in suburban Times Beach has spread deadly dioxin pollution. The new tests are to be made after a warning by the Federal Centers for Disease Control, which urged a complete and immediate evacuation of the town. Many residents are ignoring the warning. [New York Times] Mississippi's biggest tax increase will pay for a major education program that Gov. William Winter persuaded the legislature to adopt on the third try. The action, at a time when the rest of the nation is reducing social and educational programs, was seen as resounding victory for the Governor, who pledged in his campaign that extensive changes would be made in public education. [New York Times] A New Jersey tax plan to close a $150 million budget deficit will be sought as a special session of the legislature ordered by Governor Thomas Kean opens tomorrow. Mr. Kean vetoed an increase in the state income tax, approved by the Senate and the Assembly, that would have raised at least $280 million. The Governor has said that, if the legislature fails to find an alternative, he will cut the budget by $150 million and lay off state employees. [New York Times] Peking told Moscow that the Chinese leadership acknowledges the necessity for compromise by both sides if they are to progress in efforts to reduce tensions. The message took the form of a greeting on the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Soviet Union. [New York Times] Most South Koreans feel betrayed by the United States, Kim Dae Jung, the South Korean dissident politician who arrived in Washington from Seoul last week, said. Mr. Kim said the United States had failed to demand a return to democratic government in South Korea, but he said he was "very grateful" that the Americans had welcomed him to this country. [New York Times] A peaceful solution in Afghanistan was urged on the Soviet Union's new leaders by President Reagan on the third anniversary of the Soviet military intervention. He said the occupation was not a success and that "the United States does not intend to forget these brave people and their struggle." [New York Times] Japan's military spending would rise by 5.1 percent to $11.4 billion, a far smaller increase than the United States has hoped for, under a draft budget approved by the cabinet. Foreign Ministry officials said, however, that Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone was likely to add to the military budget before he approved a final 1983 budget by Dec. 31. [New York Times] Lebanon and Israel said talks on the withdrawal of foreign forces from Lebanon would start Tuesday in Lebanon. [New York Times]