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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Z4sr 1Micriigan Dail
Seventy-nine years of editorial freedom
Edited and managed by students of the University of Michigan
'The wind-up
New
Mobe member doll'
420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Mich.
News Phone: 764-0552
Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the individual opinions of staff writers
or the editors. This must be noted in oil reprints.
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9, 1969.
NIGHT EDITOR: JUDY SARASOHN
Judge Crockett revisited:
Keeping the law in order
'HITE DETROIT'S favorite scapegoat,
Recorder's Court Judge G e o r g e
Crockett, is "making trouble" again. As
usual, Crockett has outraged the Detroit
Police Officers Association with his strict
adherence to law and order--the real law,
that is,
On Saturday, Crockett ordered the re-
lease of two suspects who were being held
without warrants in an armed robbery
case. Their attorney asked him to sign a
write of habeas corpus and hold an open
hearing to determine if there was prob-
able cause to believe they were guilty.
The officers involved claimed they
were holding the men until a "show up"
--identification from a line up-could be
arranged. The suspects had already been
held over night without a "show up," and
Crockett said he had no legal choice but
to hold the hearing.
AT THAT hearing, Crockett offered the
police every possible chance to prove
probable c,, se for holding the suspects.
But for sonre reason, perhaps stupidity,
p e r h a p s a desire to discredit Judge
Crockett by creating more "trouble," the
officers involved simply refused to go
along with the hearing.
Court records show that Crockett asked
Anapple
KUDOS TO psychology Prof. Richard D.
Mann, who managed to become $10,000
richer yesterday for --- of all things --
teaching. By AAUP standards, Prof. Mann
would now rank in a salary category com-
parable to that of those professors who
spend most of their time in Washington
cloisters or Defense Department labs.
In this age of publish or perish, it is
comforting to know that the Danforth
Foundation sees fit to reward a teacher
who says "I'd rather have the kids learn
a few things in a way they'll never forget
than a lot of disorganized stuff they'll
soon forget,"
Preparing for the coming exam week,
we wholeheartedly agree.
--H.G. and J.S.
I- j,/rtirl StrrfT
HENRY GRIX Editor
SIEVE NISSEN RON LANDSMAN
City Editor aninEditor
STEVE ANZALONE Edtori Page Editor
CUIISST EEdIitorial Pa.'e Editor
JlNNY STILLEREitorial Page Editor
M ARtCLARA%MSO.....soiaeManaging Editor
LAME LIPPINCOTT A.. ociate Managing Editor
LESLIE WAYNE Arts Editor
JOHN GRAY .Literary Editor
PHIL BL.OC K .. Contributing Editor
DRFEW Fk-T!G Al ..contributing Editor
MARY RAn'imE .Contributing Editor
TwRENCE RUII3INS .. Photo Editor
WALTER 5H1APIRO Daily Washington Correspondent
a detective how he planned to prove
probable cause, and the detective replied
that witnesses were at that time "on the
fourth floor of police headquarters wait-
ing for a show up."
The judge then suggested-not once
but three times-that the witnesses be
brought to court to make identification
of the s u s p e c t s. But the police, who
brought in an assistant county prosecutor
for a reinforcement, insisted they had to
hold their own, private show up.
"We were not prepared to do it that
way," was all the detective involved would
say afterward. The same detective also
told Crockett he did not understand the
legal procedure of the writ and the hear-
ing.
WHY DID THE police refuse to allow
their witnesses into Crockett's court-
room? This is an interesting question
that raises serious doubts about the con-
duct of police "show ups." The detective
refused to discuss it with the press.
Crockett couldn't understand it at all,
and he decided that, since probable cause
could not be proven, the men had to be
released.
Of course, the police began to yell about
that, and racially - divided Detroit was
quick to break into the usual camps. For
the white conservatives, Crockett is a ir-
responsible militant who uses the law to
unleash black criminals on the law-abid-
the whites. Only the black community and
the few enlightened whites understand
how important Crockett's attempt to
make the law fair really is.
ONLY RECENTLY, Crockett was cleared
by a 5-4 vote of the state judicial
tenure commission on charges of im-
proper conduct in the New Bethel Church
shoot-out affair of last spring. At that
time, and under similar circumstances,
Crockett ordered the release of a small
group of men being held without probable
cause. All Detroit was in a uproar over
that, and the vote to clear him was close
--much too close.
With one less human being on the
tenure commission (which includes, of all
people, the University's dear departed
Harlan Hatcher), Judge Crockett would
have been out.
THERE ARE not very many encourag-
ing signs in this society. If there are
any arguments at all for the preservation
of the established system, Judge Crockett
is the only one that means anything in
real terms.
But there are not very many Judge
Crocketts, and hard-core white Detroit
keeps trying to make it one less.
-MARCIA ABRAMSON'
Associate Managing Editor
To the Editor:
THE NEW MOBE steering com-
nmttee has a pre-Christmas sale
going on right now for any of its
20 members. They're selling, at
bargain prices, that new mechan-
ical toy, "The Wind-Up, New
Mobe Member Doll." The instruc-
tions with it are simple; merely
use it for whatever you like.
Suggestions are added at no ex-
tra. cost:
1. Petitioning. The New Mobe
Doll will run out and knock on
doors, answer any old questions,
keep pencils sharpened, and basic-
ally bust its ass for new candidates
dedicated to peace - men like
Johnson in '64 and McCarthy in
'68 (that fellow who gave his seat
up on the Foreign Relations Com-
mittpe for super-hawk Gale Mc-
Gee).
2. Teach-Ins. First, this item is
expansively covered in the sug-
gestions, mainly because the Dolls
will be forced to do a lot of men-
ial work for the steering commit-
tee without any of the glory fil-
tering down upon their busy little
heads.
Second, teach-ins, as most pro-
fessors are tired of talking about
this 20-year war, will need speak-
ers, and toy manufacturers like
Gene Gladstone lust for the op-
portunity to perform in front of
the thousands of people who so far
have yet to hear about Vietnam.
3. Concerts. Dolls love concerts,
as they directly affect the War
Machine in this country. As it will
be difficult to get fresh singing
talent these days for such ven-
tures, the steering committee
members are advised to wind the
Dolls up extra tightly, for perhaps
a group of them will get together
to sing songs for peace.
One should be careful, h o w-
ever; the Original American Bar-
bie Dolls, the "Up With People"
group, may see the Mobe singers
as a threat and storm the show.
Gosh forbid anyone would get an-
gry!)
IT'S OBVIOUS that the New
Mobe steering committee will buy
th i s commodity without hesita-
tion. After attending a so-called
"General Membership" meeting
and one steering committee meet-
ing, I have noticed an incredible
condenscension on the part of the
Mobe leaders toward its so-called
constituency.
Two "leaders" said that a gen-
eral meeting to discuss policy was
impossible, for nothing would get
done. One said, that their mem-
bership would go along with what-
ever these 20 decided to do.
To top it all off, the committee
vetoed the one motion passed at
the previous general meeting -
to have a large policy-deciding as-
sembly for all members to air their
views -- saying the "real" mem-
bership didn't feel that way. In
other words, if you disagree, you're
not a member; if you agree, even
though you haven't expressed
yourself or been consulted on de-
cisions, you're a Doll.
WHAT THE steering committee
doesn't realize is that people who
are against the war, those who
have marched, and sang, and be-
come angry at the reasons why
blood comes splashing across their
tv screens nightly, those people
are not dolls. They think, they
feel and they react. And they will
destroy the Toy Industrial Com-
plex that is attempting to exploit
them, too.
-Steve Burghardt, Grad
Dec. 5
Tea and sympathy
To the Editor:
AFTER READING Judy S a r a-
sohn's article on the role of resi-
dence hall educational staff con-
cerning drugs, counseling, a n d
student power (Daily, Dec. 2), I
could not help but feel that there
were at least two problems with
the article: its failure to recog-
nize the inherent problems of any
counseling process, and the in-
ference that the student's protec-
tion was due to staff "inaction"
and administrative "circumlocu-
tion."
During my telephone conversa-
tion with Miss Sarasohn I prefac-
ed my statements with the com-
ment that I didn't feel that Hous-
ing Director Feldkamp's memos
constitute a threat to student
rights or privacy.
I pointed out several modifica-
tions and clarifications of prev-
ious policies made during the sum-
mer and presented to the staff at
its orientation.
An example was the search war-
rant policy which prohibits t h e
staff from using master keys to
allow police with a warrant to
enter student rooms.
IN THE CONTEXT of staff
orientation and subsequent me-
mos, it has appeared that the in-
tention of the memos cited in the
article was to state the factors
which are inherent in the posi-
tion of Resident Advisor.
For example, the R.A.-student
counseling situation, unlike the
physician-patient situation, is not
protected by law, the legal re-
sponsibility of the Regents is de-
rived from the state constitution,
and resident advisors should not
try to handle situations in which
they are incompetent.
The R. A. is hired to serve in
counseling situations.
Since it is probable that if a
student goes to his R.A. for coun-
seling he expects good advice, it
would seem reasonable for the R.A.
to seek advice from competent pro-
fesionals when he feels incom-
petent to handle the problem him-
self.
ANOTHER CASE where it may
seem reasonable to discuss prob-
lems occurring in a living unit is
when policies are being proposed
or reviewed.
Different situations and trends
have evolved in the residence halls
and realistic policies can only be
A am the ghost of Vietnam past...
formulated through discussion of
past experiences and problems.
What this article has pointed
out is the desire of the staff to
respect student rights and privacy
while at the same time to provide
the best possible service.
It also shows the staff's commit-
ment to protect confidentiality in
policy discussions and when more
competent advice is sought. This
process is far from a threat to the
student or "mutiny" or "inac-
tion."
FINALLY, MY statement on
student power was aimed at
apathy, that there is a commit-
ment to encourage residents to
make known their ideas, needs
and convictions and to participate
in the proper channels.
The residence halls often take
on a "commuity spirit" and it
would be difficult to expect those
in decision-making p o s i t i o n s,
whether students, staff, or admin-
istrators, to know what was want-
ed unless they receive input. The
visitation policy is an example of
where this happened.
Thus, I would suggest that "in-
action" and "mutiny" are inac-
curate terms for describing the
residence hall scene. I think the
student's best security is the desire
of everyone involved to respect
the needs, the rights and the pri-
vacy of the student.
-Carl Winberg
Asst. Resident
Adams House,
Dec. 4
Director
West Quad
.JAMES WECHSLER:
Mistaking senses of duty for self-interest
FEW EPISODES more painfully
dramatize the gap between
the Nixon Administration and
many thoughtful young Americans
than the apparent assumption in
Washington that the draft lottery
has dealt a devastating blow to the
peace movement.
What the cool calculators seem
to have forgotten is that the first
major offensives against the Viet-
nam war were undertaken by un-
dergraduate leaders - campus
presidents and editors -- at a
time when they had no reason
to fear induction.
They faced the moral question
of whether to declare themselves
as draft-resisters and thereby
voluntarily expose themselves to
trouble. But nearly all of them
could look forward to indefinite
periods of immunity from actual
service or harassment if they be-
haved like scholars and little
gentlemen.
Indeed, in many cases it was a
sense of guilt about their privileged
position that intensified their in-
volvement in the protest.
IN THOSE TERMS nothing is
drastically altered now for those
to whom the war presents deep
issues of conscience. Those issues
have been cruelly confirmed by
the My Lai horror, and the hints
of other disclosures to come.
The point offered here is neither
an argument for or against the
lottery; it result will bring com-
fort to many anxious families and
concern to others, but it has no
crucial bearing on the origins and
significance of the campus up-
heaval.
Of course there were some to
whom the draft was a clear and
present nightmare and whose en-
listment under anti-war banners
was motivated wholly by private
dread.
But anyone who has met many
of the key spirits in the university
anti-war drive knows that these
young men were not stirred by
considerations of personal safety.
They had many easy escape-routes
open to them.
For each "lucky number" who
now regards the war as an irrele-
vance, there are likely to be as
many or more who find their good
fortune an added burden.
NO ONE CAN define arith-
metically exactly how m a n y
youths have been deeply com-
mitted to the anti-war cause, and
what their precise numerical'
strength will be now that a cer-
tain number have won a per-
manent reprieve.
For 17- and 18-year-olds the
suspense has been increased rather
than diminished.
But all such evaluations sadly
miss the moral fervor that has
animated so many of the pro-
testers.
What is so memorable about
many with whom I have talked
at length is that they are, if they
will forgive the expressions, so
"respectable" in background and
so "normal" in demeanor.
They have not been fighting
to save their own skins; they care
about their souls.
That, I think, is why they were
so enormously effective in their
political endeavors last year, why
the Moratorium originally envis-
aged as a campus exercise spread
through so many cities and com-
munities and why even the left-
swing sponsors of the Mobilization
were overshadowed by the broad
sweep of the insurgence.
THESE YOUNG people repre-
sent a new political generation,
unfettered by ancient factional
feuds and stirred by profoundly
moral impulses.
It is an ignorance and an af-
front to suggest that their ranks
will be decimated by the turn of
a wheel.
They may be only an unsilent
minority, but they have shown re-
markable qualities of leadership
and resilience. (It was largely
they who took command of the
logistics of the Mobilization when
it became clear that some of the
veteran leftists were unaccustomed
to dealing with large numbers of
people in motion.)
They will be heard from again.
IN RETROSPECT one of the
grim turning points of Mr. Nixon's
Administration may prove to be
his failure to recognize how high
a percentage of the youths who,
marched in Washington constitute
a new breed of insurgent that will
loom large in the politics of the
coming decade as well as in battles
of the immediate future.
Perhaps the clearest measure of
the estrangement was suggested
in one of Vice President Agnew's
recent addresses shrilly rejecting
any thought of amnesty for those
in prison or exile as a result of
their anti-war stand.
In the view of many of their
contemporaries, they exhibited the
courage of others' convictions, and
were ahead of their time in chal-
lenging a war now so generally
loathed (even by many who do not
favor abrupt withdrawal).
The incapacity to detect any
valor in the conduct of any of
these resisters is an unhappy por-
tent.
Were their crimes larger than
those committed at My Lal and
elsewhere by those whose defense
may be that they blindly followed
orders?
When a moral assessment of
this war is finally offered, will
heroism be easily identifiable?
Will the villains be those who
cried out against the killing?
Will we ultimately revere those
who preached prolongation of the
conflict - or those who risked
ostracism to end it?
IT IS ONE of our country's few
glories in a melancholy time that
so many young men and women
have stood up for civilized values
and protested what they viewed
as madness.
- To believe that many of the
survivors can be bought off by a
lottery is to misunderstand every-
thing they have been trying to
say.
C' New York Post
Paving the way for auto-oppression in the United Strips of
4sphalt
By DREW BOGEMA
THE SECLUDED suburbanite observes the accelerating growth of the
black population in the cities with terror, lest the crime rates of
the ghetto flood the tranquility of the periphery.
The. guilt-bound liberal cries in anguish at the maddening birth
rates around the globe and at the dwindling prospects of adequate food
and shelter to meet future needs.
The beleaguered nationalist watches the populations of China and
the Soviet Union far outstrip that of the American and pessimistically
predicts the day when invading hordes will occupy everbody's living
room.
CLEARLY ALL three have gone astray, neglecting a phenomenon
that threatens to destroy us all, if it hasn't done so already. The auto-
mobile has, virtually unnoticed, conquered and enslaved the urban
industrial man.
There will come a day when the nation's spirit is not wreaked
with frustration, discontent, and anxiety. That will be the day when
we all get caught in one massive traffic jam, pull the emergency brake,
and start all over again.
And it's possible that we may get caught.
The current national figure of operable automobiles would probably
astound and defy the imagination if it were available. Way back in the
early sixties, at the time of the last attempted vehicular census, the
number was arbitrarily fixed at two per household, the three for the
upper-uppers offsetting the one for the proletariat.
Wherever you step, then, there's bound to be one in your path.
And, it is also likely that wherever you step, there will be an auto-
mobile path. Not a path designed for human scale, mind you, but one
solely engineered for these fire-breathing industrial-aged dragons
of speed.
MOREOVER, THE automobile not only daily jeopardizes in-
dividual life and limb, it also acts as a destructive influence upon the
community life as a whole.
First it siphons off half of the available land for its roads, then it
periodically demands half of the sparse political energies and resources,
simply for care and upkeep.
When the community becomes overcrowded and it is necessary for
it to expand. concrete and asphalt-pardon the pun-pave the way.
It is tragically ironic for a society that inanely vents its wrath at
alleged youth addiction to marijuana, that the obvious addiction to
automobiles escapes notice. Well, what's good for General Motors must
be good for the country.
Without an automobile, one can scarcely live, or at least live in
the manner which has been dictated by the technology of the twen-
tieth century. The shopping center and store are hardly within walking
distance, except for the fortunate few. Work is likely to be ten times
as far away as the store.
Then there are the relatives and friends, the two-week vacation,
the kids off to college or to camp, that party across town. Ninety per
cent of the members of this society spend ten to twenty per cent of
their time behind the wheel.
ANYONE WHO HAS ever spent a great deal of time walking, riding
a bicycle, tripping on trains, or enjoying the multitudinous pleasures
of the subway quickly becomes passionately committed to this most
peculiar way of life.
Anything seen from behind the windshield is only observed-it is
not felt. In contrast to the automobile, the simplest modes of transpor-
tation vastly heighten one's emotional involvement with the environ-
ment, with the community, with the region.
A walk through a park can be one of the most invigorating and
pfrpshing natirmpcm known ti man .if ony the indivianl ran alnw
One of the most powerful and persevering themes running through
such literature is that of the genius of man creating omnipotent and
omniscient machines that once and for all abolish labor from the plight
of mankind. As the society foregoes rugged individualism and the sturdy
work ethic, the machines conspire to seize absolute power and relegate
mankind back to serfdom. The theme is so powerful that it may have
even played a role in the public demise of Robert MacNamara.
It could happen. It is happening. It has happened.
Perhaps McLuhan's-and before him Marx's-most important ob-
servation was that changes in the technological environment severely
alter social relationships.
APPLIED TO THE automobile, this axiom simply observes that the
vehicle has outlived its usefulness and public control of transportation
where the public is most dense is beneficial to the happiness of us all.
There are those that refuse to accept this. If people die in auto-
mobile accidents, then it is because of bad driving, not because of'the
conflict between the vehicle and the environment.
If traffic patterns of the metropolis are congested, then we can
relieve the pressure by building more roads.
If the number of automobiles produces hassles everywhere, we can
shorten the size of the car, install electric engines, and the like.
If the automobile pollutes thet atmosphere, then install a device
that will prevent it.
If accidents occur, then improve the safety devices on the car, so
maybe only forty thousand will die, not fifty.
That there are incompatibilities they will agree, but these are only
temporary, and the fault, they insist, lies in poor city planning, too many
political fingers in the pie; and besides that is caught up in the racial
matter, wholly unpredictable, of white flight to the suburbs.
The remedy can be found in a more suitable rearrangement of the
environment to permit faster transit rather than outright abolition.