morality and the microprocessor.”nThe exploration of space will actuallynfoster traditional values, we’ve beenntold, by presenting the old Protestantnwork ethic with a new challenge. Wenshould have been suspicious of thisnthesis after reading Tom Wolfe’s RightnStuff, in which John Glenn emerges asnthe only astronaut with any principlesnhigher than those of an alley cat. Butnany lingering hope for microchip moralitynis quite dashed by a report in thenChicago Tribune that as a few NASAnofficials and university professorsnbegan contemplating “intimate behavior”naboard space stations, ethical concernsnoften seem to have droppednaway, like a no-longer-needed boosternstage.nYvonne Clearwater, a NASA consultant,nsuggested in a recent PsychologynToday article that NASA might neednto construct private quarters in spacenfor the “significantiy related couple.”nWhen it was suggested to NASA officialsnat Ames Research Center that thengovernment ought to permit only marriedncouples to have sex in space, anpsychologist responded, “Come on.nThis is California.” Stephen Sapp, anprofessor of religion at the Universitynof Miami, would prefer to see marriagenas the extraterrestrial norm, but isnconvinced that fornication in spacenmight not be as bad as its earthyncounterparts:n”Here you’ve got people in closenquarters, working together for a longntime. Obviously, these people wouldnhave relationships. It wouldn’t be asnbad as a one-night stand. Then again,nwhat is a one-night stand if you’rengoing around the Earth every twonhours? If the Russians and Americansndocked in space and switched partners,nthat would be a one-night stand.”nWhich naturally leads the ChicagonTribune to patriotic anxiety: “Are Russiansnahead of us on exploring sex innspace?” So far, the Trib reports, thenSoviets are saying nothing on the subject.nBut given the panic that broke outnin the public schools in the I950’snwhen the Soviets got their satellite upnfirst, we can only imagine the pedagogicalnhysteria in today’s grammarnschools if it was ever announced thatnthe Russians had beaten us at “doingnit” in zero gravity. ccnLetter From thenLower Rightnby John Shelton ReednFood for ThoughtnCORRESPONDENCEnOne of the dumber remarks of then1984 Presidential campaign—a campaignnnotable for its dumb remarksn—came from Joe Frank Harris, governornof Georgia. Asked if he approvednof Geraldine Ferraro, he replied: “Yes.nI asked her if she had eaten grits andnliked them, and she said, ‘Yes’—andnshe passed the test.”nHe should have asked if she knewnwhat they were. Most politicians willneat anything for a vote.n* * *nHere in the South, we don’t like ournpoliticians red, but hot dogs are anothernmatter. Hot dog trials at the ChicagonTribune put the ruby-red “Rebel”nbrand dead last, but a weenie expertntold the paper that bright red varietiesnare popular throughout the South.nConsumers in other regions prefer andog with a brownish cast; on the WestnCoast they like a coarse grind andnheavy smoke; Northeasterners like ansoupgon of garlic.n* * *n”Southern-fried chic” has recedednsomewhat from its high-water mark innthe first year of the Garter Administration,nbut it is still to be found here andnthere. A Raleigh News and Observernreporter found, to her dismay, a NewnYork restaurant called Carolina, wherenthe “barbecue” is grilled on mesquitenand served on a bed of leaf lettuce withnnnDijon mustard. A side order of slawncosts $2.25. The owner, a native NewnYorker who concocted his recipes himself,nsays the restaurant’s name camento him in a dream. Maybe he shouldntry red hot dogs.nMale bourbon-drinkers beware! In thenworst news for Southern taste since thendiscovery that snuff-dipping causesngum recession, Judith Gavaler of thenUniversity of Pittsburgh has reportednthat your Julep contains betasitosterol,nbiochanin A, and genistein.nWhat (you might well ask) arenthose? Well, they are phyto-estrogensn—estrogens derived from plants. Mennwith healthy livers probably havennothing to worry about, but if younhave cirrhosis, these chemicals maynproduce the same unfortunate effectsnas animal (or steroidal) estrogen, tonwit: your voice may change, yournbeard may thin, and your figure maynbecome more . . . voluptuous. (Andnyou thought white wine did it, didn’tnyou?) Of course, if you have cirrhosis,nyou have more important things tonworry about.nSpeaking of food, an AP dispatch innthe Norfolk Ledger-Star reports thatnSouthside Virginia tobacco growers, inna move about 200 years overdue, arendiversifying into crops like broccolinand cantaloupe. It is absurd that Richmondnhouseholds have been payingnpremium prices for California cantaloupesnthat average two and a halfnpounds and are grown with thick rindsnto protect them in transit. Now thatnthey can buy thinner-skinned, sixpound,nlocally grown melons, wenmust hope they haven’t forgotten whatncantaloupes are supposed to be like.n* * *nIn other agricultural news, a UPI dispatchnreported that the 21,000 poundnsatellite carried into orbit by Challengernin April 1984 contained (amongnother things) kudzu seeds from thenPark Seed Company. The seeds werenDECEMBER 1985 / 37n