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THE WHITE HOUSE They aren't as WASHINGTON July 7, 1970 INFORMATION Roper Survey, January 1970, of 1,000 Male College Seniors MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT Highlights The "typical senior" is "by no means complacent" but he describes himself as "moderately optimistic about the direction in which American society is moving." The war in Vietnam is not the overriding issue. Among the reasons for personal concern, he puts "race relations" (63%), "poverty and slum conditions" (44%), "crime and lawlessness" (44%), and "avoiding future wars" (40%) at the top of the list. Nearly one in three plans to take a "very active" role in tackling these problems; more than half plan to participate at least moderately. In appraising four basic national institutions, highest marks for confidence go to "our system of business and industry; "our system of administering justice" and "our system of higher education" tie for second; and a poor last is "our political system.' Only one in ten feels that a fundamental social overhaul is called for. As Roper puts it: "Today's student bodies are not divided between those who think things are all wrong and those who think they are all right. It is rather a difference between those who think our problems can be solved within the system as now consti- tuted and those who think radical revisions are needed." Other Views in Brief 1. More than a third of those eligible for the draft say they will try to find a way out of military service--with 2% willing to resort to illegal means if necessary. 2. One in four says he has tried marijuana, only 15% more than once. Fully 46% think it should be legalized, but only 7% favor public sale of LSD. 3. The college senior is "skeptical about organized religion." Most are "believers" but only a third regularly attend religious services. and Robert H. Finch E