Al ditgau DBaily Seventy-First Year EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN "Where Opinions Are Free UNDER AUTHORITY OF BOARD IN CONTROL OF STUDENT PUBLICATIONS Truth Will Prevail" STUDENT PUBLICATIONS BLDG. * ANN ARBOR, MICH. * Phone NO 2-3241 Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the individual opinions of staff writers or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints. THURSDAY, JUNE 29. 1961 NIGHT EDITOR: PETER STEINBERGER IN MACLEISH DRAMA: Mystery Answers Mystery Threat to Kuwait Challenges U.S. Commitment IN A LETTER to the Arab states-including Iraq-President Kennedy has made a com- mittment to give aid and assistant to "all states determined to control their own destiny." From Indo-China to Korea to Laos the United States has maintained the policy of defending the sovereignty of independent states whose security is being threatened by a foreign ag- gressor. In each cases, however, our intervention has been directed against Communist activity. When Iraq, a non-Communist and essentially pro-western state, plans to seize the sheikdom of Kuwait, forcefully if necessary, it places the United States in an odd political position. If we truly mean to uphold our committment, we should, of course, defend the newly inde- pendent state of Kuwait. But since our relations with Iraq are extremely tenuous, the protection of Kuwait would mean disaster for the success- ful continuation of our diplomatic relations with Iraq. IS IS A relatively new dilemma for Ameri-1 can foreign policy makers. To help main- tain Kuwait's independence against its Iraqi aggressor would be to seriously damage our re- lations with Iraq and perhaps lose the balance of power. The adventure is indeed risky, but it is the only maneuver which would save the United States from hypocrisy in view of the week-old Middle Eastern committment by President Kennedy. Such an idealistic step, however, is certainly not in keeping with foreign policy precedent. In the past our idealism has only paraded itself when it paid to do so. When it has not been profitable to do what we felt to be right, we haven't; we have kept tight hold on our moral- istic paroxysms. It pays, for example, to call Castro a despot, a fascist, a communist; for Castro suppresses the "dignity" of human in- dividuals-and suppression must be fought by "freedom" fighters. Indeed our idealism surges to the fore where Cuba is concerned because it doesn't pay to have ICBM's 90 miles from our shores and United Fruit lobbying again. T HIS IDEALISM, however, has been only sporadic. Time and again we have shown the world our concern is not "freedom" but only that which is most economically and politically fruitful. If the "real" reason we blast Cuba is that Castro suppresses individual freedom, why is it that the United States has not equally chastised other dictators in Latin America? On the contrary, we have supported every dictator in Latin America-if it was to our benefit. When Trujillo showed signs of being pro-West- ern and allowed American businesses in the Do- min4can Republic, we heard nothing of the rot- ting lower classes, mock elections and illiter- acy. If the new government of the Dominican Republic wished to break economic and diplo- matic relations with us, we would probably put on our idealism and send new freedom fighters to the Dominican Republic to wipe out the fascists. THIS IS THE precedent American policy will . probably follow in the Kuwait affair. Ku- wait doesn't pay. We need to maintain our al- liance with Iraq, and therefore, will allow Ku- wait to be swallowed. We may as well fold up President Kennedy's committment to defend all states determined to control their own des- tiny and pull it out at a more opportune time. If our position is actually challenged we will probably use the traditional rationalization that Kuwait is "strategically indefensible." It is very unlikely that we shall practice what we preach. Kuwait is doomed. -JEROME KROTH ARCHIBALD MacLEISH's play "J.B.," which began its four- day run at the Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre last night, is a rather strange piece of writing. MacLeish himself has always been concerned with dilemma, just as his poetry has shuttled back and forth between the opposed po- sitions of art for art's sake and public responsibility. It is, then, no surprise that in his most ambi- tious and mature play, he turns to the ultimate dilemma posed by the Biblical story of Job: "Why should one be virtuous if the innocent must suffer?" So far as I know there is no answer to the question. Nor does MacLeish offer one, ex- cept to say that "We are." How- ever, the richness and depth of MacLeish's in'vestigation make us at least temporarily willing to ac- cept the mystery itself as the an- swer to the mystery. In this fun- damental respect, MacLeish's play does not differ from the Biblical story. But J.B. has, of course, been modernized. His God and Satan are circus employes-a balloon salesman and a popcorn sales- man. His Job is a business man. So far, so good. But the modern equivalents of Job's trials, for the reason that they have to be more "real," seem excessive and even absurd. What was good clean cos- mic fun in the Old Testament comes perilously close to farce in MacLeish's play. * * * YET this is the only real weak- ness in a play which does per- form better than it reads - per- haps because some of the more hot-dog-I'm-a-poet lines have been dropped from the acting ver- sion. And MacLeish does bring something new to the story - a very interesting pervasive puritan- ism which appears to suggest that optimism is soft-headed and pes- simism is fascinating but satanic. Prof. William Halstead, who di- rected the University players in last night's presentation, does not seem to realize that MacLeish has an almost awe-inspiring flair for overwriting, with the result that the production gets off to a cer- tain tarnished intensity from which it has a hard time recov- ering. Indeed, the squirt-gun joy of J.B.'s family at their Thanks- giving Day dinner, is just giddy enough to make one impatient for the tribulations. Later on, the di- rection is sensitive, and the play moves very brilliantly into its cli- max. The roles of J.B. and his wife, Sarah, are demanding, always in danger of turning lugubrious, and Marvin Diskin and Barbara Sit- -Daily-Larry Jacobs tig turn in credible performances. But C. David Colson as Mr. Nickles (Satan) and Albert M. Katz as Mr. Zuss (God) easily steal the show. Oddly enough, Mr. Katz looks startling like the Vatican statue of the Emperor Hadrian and Mr. Colson looks very much like the Vatican statue of Anti- noous. Even more oddly, Mr. Katz's God, despite his lofty obscurant- ism, seems nevertheless to be con- solidating the boundaries of the Empire, while Mr. Colson's Satan is wonderfully mercurial, some- times sullen, sometimes cute, and always as graceful as ballet. Ralph Duckwall's setting is ex- cellent, and the five nice kids who play J.B.'s family are entirely charming. -Prof. Radcliffe Squires Department of English AT THE CAMPUS: Symbols Burn, Drip In 'Virgin Spring' INGMAR BERGMAN (softly on the g's, please) can do no wrong. His retelling of a 14th Century Swedish legend features vivid and ab- sorbing vignettes of pagan ritual, rape, violent murder and infanticide, and an unmarried mother-to-be whose own sire is unknown. Unlike American-made films with similar contents, "The Virgin Spring" does not suffer abuse as a second rate, trashy entertainment appealing to the frustrated livers and loins of our movie viewers. For "The Virgin Spring" carries the magic name of Bergman. His work is art, allegory or mystical experience--whatever you may think of it personally. Bergman has brought to the screen a new intelectual dimension S PROPOSED BILL: Student Exchange Peace Corps Policy Awkward . SARGENT SHRIVER, director of the Peace Corps, has announced that corps members will not be sent to countries that practice racial or religious discrinmination. Such a stand is commendable, of course, in the sense that it is an objection to discrimina- tion. In fact such a stand would be most wel- come in domestic affairs.I However, international affairs and domestic affairs cannot always be conducted upon the same principles. Although the federal govern- ment has a moral right to denounce and eli- minate discrimination within its own boundar- eis, one questions the advisability of its assum- ing a positon of moral dictatorship over Arab CORE Rides THE ANN ARBOR Direct Action Committee, local branch of the Congress of Racial Equality, is making a big mistake in sending freedom riders to stage sit-ins in Dearborn. First, the purpose of the freedom rides is to draw national attention to racial segregation in areas where little else has any effect. Both freedom rides and sit-ins will soon be over- worked as publicity devices-if they are not al- ready. Since this is the case, CORE ought to concentrate its efforts in those areas such as the South where both local and state govern- ments support segregation. These are the most difficult barriers-barriers which actually re- quire national publicity. In Michigan, AADAC has access to many state and union officials who are strongly committed to integration. There are anti-dis- crimination laws which could be enforced. It would be easier and more effective to work through legal, local channels with individual test cases rather than to descend on Dearborn merchants en masse causing a great deal of unnecessary ill-will. Such direct, extra-legal action is simply in- appropriate. --D. MARCUS nations, for example. The United States, in de- nying these countries aid, is passing moral judgment of tangible consequences upon their beliefs. Thus, the issue is more complex than simple tolerance or intolerance of discrimina- tion. SHRIVER DEFENDS his policy as being in line with a Congressional policy against dis- crimination, It must be noted, however, that the nebulous policy to which he refers has con- cerned itself with domestic rather than foreign discrimination. Is the position of moral judgment so assumed in accord with Peace Corps objectives? The corps is dedicated to assisting a country's de- velopment. It is a good-will effort-no strings attached. Those countries requesting aid are to be equipped with trained personnel upon request. The corps complexion changes with the new restriction. The original generous, unqualified offer becomes one extended only to those coun- tries of whose beliefs and customs the United States approves-and a rather unpalatable string becomes attached. THE PRACTICAL EFFECT will be the denial of aid to countries which are in particular need of assistance. This is hardly compatible with the corps' purposes. It may even appear to some of these coun- tries that the United States is being hypocriti- cal. Those underdeveloped countries with a largely Negro population are not unware of the Negro's status throughout the United States, and particularly in the South. Yet the United States has decided not to give aid to her col- leagues in discrimination. The new policy puts the United States in the awkward position of passing moral judg- ment on nations following practices of which she herself is guilty. And in so doing, the suc- cess of the original objectives of the corps is endangered. -RUTH EVENHUIS By FLORENCE SISKIND Daily Staff Writer PROBLEMS hindering foreign student exchange are being considered by Congress as part of a bill which would codify and co- ordinate existing laws dealing with student exchange. The bill, stepping up govern- ment activities in the exchange of persons has recently been in- troduced in both the House and the Senate. Prof. James M. Davis, director of the International Center and chairman of President Kennedy's pre-inaugural task force on ex- change of persons, testified on be- half of the proposed Mutual Edu- cational and Cultural Exchange Bill before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs early this month. The bill, a modernization and extension of the present Smith- Mundt and Fulbright Acts, was written in part by M. Robert Klinger, counselor at the Inter- national Center and an expert in immigration problems at the re- quest of the Government Liaison Committee of Foreign Student Ad- visors. ** * THE BILL deals with three main areas of existing difficulties. The first of these is the role the fed- eral government plays in offering scholarships to foreign students to study in the United States. The bill calls for an expansion of this role and an increase in the num- ber of scholarship grants the gov- ernment offers. The second problem is the heavy expense of educating foreign stu- dents which now largely falls on universities and colleges in the United States. It is proposed that funds be authorized to aid uni- versities in the cost of educating foreign students beyond what the student pays in tuition. The third and perhaps greatest area of difficulty concerns those great numbers of foreign students who, like American students, come to our universities with no support other than what they receive from their parents or earn themselves. There are now in existence strict regulations which greatly hinder foreign students or their wives from working while in school or from dropping out of school to strengthen their finances. * * * KLINGER feels that a modifica- tion of these regulations is needed so that students who find they are no longer able to finance their incompleted education will not be forced to return home. He has incorporated into the bill plans for new regulations which would permit foreign stu- dents to work provided they can prove financial need and are not taking jobs from American stu- dents. There are also in existence "minor irritants" in the areas of social security and income tax which Klinger feels hamper the ability of foreign students to sup- port themselves while studying in the United States. Foreign students now pay so- cial security out of their weekly pay check, but unlike other work- ers can receive none of the bene- fits. Foreign students also pay in- come tax on their earnings but cannot make deductions for de- pendents. The proposed bill would allow foreign students to make these deductions and to stop pay- ing the non beneficial social se- curity. PROF. DAVIS, in his testimony before the House, recommended certain minor revisions in the wording of the proposed bill in order to insure elimination of dif- ficulties raised by the acts now in effect. He asked the authorization of funds to universities to provide "orientation courses, language training and other appropriate services to foreign students wheth- er or not they are receiving other financial support from the goy- erilment . ..' He also recommended that non- quota visas be made to include foreign professors as they did un- der the 1924 Immigration Act which was changed in 1952. LETTERS to the EDITOR Eichmann .. . To the Editor: MUST ASSUME that Peter Steinberger's editorial on the Eichmann trial was written iron- ically, because on the face of it almost every statement is a mis- statement. In the first place, many persons in many countries have been le- gally punished for "following or- ders, regardless of, what those or- ders were". A policeman in this state who beats up a prisoner on the order of mayor, sheriff or chief of police is still liable to both civil suit and criminal punishment. Mr. Steinberger's logic would mean that only Hitler was guilty of anything, on the ground that all the other Nazis were bound to obey him. This is a reductio ad absurdum. In the second place, to say that "the only reason we can think of to explain why we aren't facists is inertia and lack of opportunity" is to ignore history, tradition and probability. We Americans have plenty of faults, but unquestion- ing obedience to bad laws or op- pressive rulers is not one of them; on the contrary we tend more to anarchy than to slavishness, and it is hard enough to get Americans to obey even good law or respect the most benevolent governments. Finally, whatever effect the Eichmann trial may or may not have had on the Arabs, it has already had a most salutary effect on America and Europe (including Germany). The evils of Nazi ra- cism, which the world had begun to forget in sixteen years, have again become a warning to the future. The attitude of the Ger- man government and press has been admirable. Many accounts say that Hitlerism is for the first time receiving adequate attention in the German schools. "Those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it" is a wise proverb. One, might add. "those who do know history can profit by the example of the past". -Prof. Preston Slosson History Department through reinforced symbolism and In previous films, especially "The Seventh Seal," the Swedish direc- tor was able to weave a subtle symbolism and unsubtle stark- ness into an enriching experience. IN THIS FILM, winner of an Academy Award for the best for- eign film of last year, Bergman does not quite make it. The themes are there all right -Man and his relation to God, the Face of Evil, Innocence and Jeal- ousy-but there seems to be no attempt at integrating them: only repeating them again and again. The concept of the "Virgin Spring," the ever flowing pure stream of redemption, is in every scene. Except, of course, when fire is being used as a symbol for the same thing. The struggle between the purity and gentleness of Christianity (portrayed by a bratty, but beau- tiful Karin, Birgitta Pettersson; her mother who's wont to mortify the flesh; and her father, Max von Sydow, "a man of profound religious feeling stunned into acts of violence") and the revenge and hatred of the pagan god Odin is only resolved through the contriv- ance of a miracle. Von Sydow confesses his inabil- ity to understand God, begs his forgiveness and humbly says he knows no other way to live. * * * FOR THOSE who like to spot an allegory about Calvary, little re- flection is needed to discover the necessary elements: two thieves, an innocent child revulsed by what he has seen, a Jew's harp, the robe (a golden shift embroidered by 15 maidens), and the last supper. As in any allegory, the charac- ters exhibit one or a few charac- teristics to the exclusion of all others. Thus, they become figures in a Gothic drama wearing Greek masks. An exception is Gunnel Lind- blom, who portrays a bastard "spitfire," jealous of Karin who rejects Odin and accepts God aft- er the miracle. Her acting is fierce and fine and her emotive face could carry her scenes without the English subtitles. Perhaps the viewer is expecting too much from Bergman. The pre- views of "The Virgin Spring" are an extraordinary Job of mixing critical acclaim for Bergman and dramatic spots from the film. If you can find where they're play- ing, don't miss them. -Michael Olinick Suicide 'THE BERLIN CRISIS brings forcibly to attention that the capitalist and communist systems have one charming characteristic in common. Neither asks its people whether they want to risk the suicide of the human race in a quarrel over access to one city; or indeed whether they want to go to war at all .. . Congress is locked in fierce con- tention over such momentous is- sues as whether aid to education shall include parochial schools, but it hardly looks up to notice that war clouds are gathering which could mean the end of our species. The Russians and the Americans resemble two huge herds moving toward possible con- flict; too closely packed to struggle successfully against their fate. The helplessness of human kind is the dominant feature of the planetary landscape as the crisis ap- proaches.. -L F. Stone an attempt at aesthetic violence. CINEMA GUILD: 'Sawdust' Perceptive INGMAR BERGMAN'S "Saw- dust and Tinsel" (or "Naked Night" as it was billed here sev- eral months ago) is a study of men so caught in self-delusion that to face reality is to be destroyed. The story revolves around the aged owner of a decrepit travel- ing circus-vendor of facade and illusion-as the circus approaches the town where his ex-wife and children live, The events which follow trigger his realization of his own spiritual destruction. He is unable to rec- oncile himself with his wife who exposes his false shirt front and mock elegance. His mistress is se- duced by a theatrical actor who wins her love with the promise of a worthless jewel.pn At that night's performance, the owner is publicly taunted by the actor. They fight-and when the owner looses the last illusion falls away from him. BATTERED and sore, he sits be- fore the mirror in his wagon, gun in hand. The choice is clear: he can either have reality - which means death since life holds noth- ing for him-or illusion-which means continuing life in the cir- cus with his mistress. He shoots the gun into the mirror. For him life is self-deception. He goes out into the world with false respectability. He is spiritual- ly destroyed and realizes it, but. simply retreats into lies for the lies,have long destroyed any pos- sibility of anything else. The others fall victim to the same fate. His ex-wife believes she has found peace when she is merely hiding, the actor believes himself a great lover when he only lecherously buys it, and his mis- tress thinks herself in love when she is merely looking for ephemer- al satisfactions. BUT for all of them, life itself hinges on these mendacious as- sumptions. Bergman's photography is as usual magnificent. For example, he makes use of the opening and closing scenes to symbolize his theme by portraying the silhouete of the circus caravan against the, sky, representing the shadows that are the objectives of the char- acter's lives. Also on the program was a short from a Russian. opera, "Silver Slippers" with music by Tchai- kovsky, It concerns a Ukranan lad who wins his girl by getting a pair of good Queen Catherine's slip- pers with the help of a devil. It is all very reminiscent of some story about Daniel Webster . . But the singing done by mem- bers of the Bolshol company two of whom we learn in the credits are "honorable artists" or "Stalin laureates," is excellent,. -David Marcus "C Reviewers The Daily urgently needs re- viewers for the summer. Sum- mer session students, especially those having a background in music or literature, desiring to review concerts, movies or books should talk to Susan Farrell at the Student Publications Bldg. Aid Limitation Artificial MEDICAL AID to the aged has become one of the favorite themes of both parties - and not without justification. But it has been handled as a political football with both sides failing to consider one important question: why should medical aid be limited to this particular group? It is true that older people have both re- duced income and a higher incidence of serious illness. It is also true that without some form of medical insurance many will and do become Editorial Staff MICHAEL BURNS........................Co-Editor SUSAN FARRELL .......................... Co-Editor " T nr _ . .. rnnts Editor burdens upon society. But the need for medi- cal care extends far beyond this one limited group. A serious illness can ruin even an upper middle class family, especially if it is the wage earner who becomes ill. Health insurance plans often fail to provide fully for the varied expenses which occur at such times. EXTREMISTS counter this argument with one of two viewpoints. 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