Seventy-Sixth Year
EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
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Barnstorming in Southeast Asia
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Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the individual opinions of staff writers
or the editors. This mus t be noted in all reprints.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1966
NIGHT EDITOR: MICHAEL HEFFER
New Directions for Literary
College Steering Committee
ONE OF THE OLDEST. and most pres-
tigious student academic advisory
groups at the University is the literary,
college's Steering Committee. For years
and years its members have sat in week-
ly meetings intelligently discussing var-
ious student problems-but only discuss-
ing, and nothing more.
The Steering Committee for years and
years has also had representatives sit-
ting on various faculty curriculum, ad-
mission and administrative committees
within the literary college-but only sit-
ting, and nothing more.
OBVIOUSLY-as is true of most time-
tested institutions - the Steering
Committee's prestige has come from the
'fact that it has lasted, that its appoint-
ed members are of high intelligence and
academic achievement, and that it has
not aggravated the faculty too much. Its
prestige has'not' come from its accom-
-plishments in the realm of solving stu-
dent academic problems.
Suddenly, however, the Steering Com-
mittee seems to have come alive, to have
abandoned its purely theoretical role as
a student philosophical committee, and
to have taken on an activistic spirit wor-
thy of the University community. Exact-
ly what clicked at the last meeting to
bring about this transformation is un-
clear.
Maybe the personalities of the new
chairman and committee members made
the difference this year. Maybe the fact
that activism is in vogue this year has
brought about the change. Or maybe the
academic problems of the University stu-
dent have become so monstrous that
the committee can no longer ignore them
and still salvage its reputation.
HATEVER THE IMPETUS, the Liter-
ary College Steering Committee is to
be congratulated on its current plans
for examining such University malfunc-
tions as counseling, pre-registration,
,ourse quality and student-faculty-ad-
ministration communication. The com-
mittee is to be encouraged to follow
through their investigations with con-
crete actions and suggestions.
There are other academic advisory
committees functioning on campus, and
still more-such as those proposed for
individual departments within the liter-
ary college-will be established in the fu-
ture.
But, the Steering Committee has a sig-
nificant advantage over any other aca-
demic advisory committee: it is a long-.
established institution and has the re-
spect of the faculty. This, however, will
not remain such a distinct advantage if
the committee does not capitalize on it.
The members must begin now to make
their presence on faculty committees felt.
They must be heard-and worth hear-
ing-and not just seen.
THE STEERING Committee has it with-
in its power to execute every research-
ing and investigating task it has set for
itself. It has a large and competent com-
mittee already; it has enthusiasm--at
least this week. All it needs now is effec-
tive coordination, communication, and
follow-through within the committee it-
self.
There is not much point in re-hashing
the role which the faculty must play-
they must be open to suggestion, recep-
tive to student opinions and criticisms,
and generally flexible.
Undoubtedly University administrative
bureaucracy will provide a few maj'or
stumbling blocks for the Steering Com-
mittee. But with perseverance and con-
tinued acceptance of responsibility, the
Steering Committee may be able to over-
come these obstacles.
Right now the Steering Committee is
sounding a lot better than it ever has
before. Its voice which in the past could
only speak in conversational tones may
be a scream before long.
BUT ACTIONS speak louder than words.
The plans for action the Steering
Committee made audible this week are
potentially volatile. They are geared for
re-humanizing the students' association
with the academic side of University
life.
A fuse has been lit; what is at the
end of the fuse is still questionable-if,
indeed, it does not go out before then.
-MEREDITH EIKER
By DAVID DUBOFF
PRESIDENT LYNDON B. John-
son is in New Zealand today
on the fourth day of a 17-day tour
of Southeast Asia designed to
spread good will among our allies
and show our desire for peace and
prosperity in a region torn by
ideological conflict and civil war.
But common sense tells us that
there is much more to the trip
than a desire to spread good will.
The time that Johnson has chosen
to be out of the country and the
circumstances under which the
tour is being conducted indicate
that it can do much to improve
his image at home as well as
abroad.
THIS IS THE first time that
Johnson has been outside the
country since he became President.
The elaborate preparations that
have been made for receptions at
each of the six places he will be
visiting (he has already stopped
at Honolulu and American Samoa,
and from New Zealand will pro-
ceed to Australia for three days,
then a four day conference in Ma-
nila with the heads of state of the
countries aiding us in Viet Nam,
and finally Thailand, Malaya, and
South Korea) will serve to keep
the President and Mrs. Johnson on
the front pages of virtually every
newspaper in the country for the
next two weeks.
And with the elections coming
only six days after his return, call-
ing the trip at this time can be
seen as a shrewd political maneu-
ver. Johnson's strategy in cam-
paigning for the Congressional and
gubernatorial elections has been
erratic in the past few weeks,
ranging from sporadic speaking
tours, in which he attacked Re-
actively seeking peace through
negotiation.
"Whether he will thereby be
able to shelter Democratic can-
didates from public dissatisfac-
tion with the peace and pros-
pects of the Viet Nam war re-
mains the great imponderable
of this election."
COMING AT THIS time, the
trip will also serve to decrease the
rivalry that has become apparent
between the President and Robert
F. Kennedy. Kennedy has been
campaigning for Democrats all
over the country with huge turn-,
outs of supporters and continual
suggestions that he seek the Presi-
dential nomination. By planning
an elaborate overseas tour, John-
son is able to demonstrate his
popularity abroad without having
to contend for the turnout here
that Bobby is getting.
The trip will also serve to en-
hance the political images of sev-
eral of the Asian leaders who will
take part in the Manila confer-
ence. Prime Ministers Holyoake of
New Zealand and Holt of Austra-
lia, both of whom are facing
tough elections in the next few
weeks, have received considerable
criticism from members of their
opposition parties about their com-
pliance with the U.S. in the war,
as has President Marcos of the
Philippines.
LBJ's promising speeches for
cooperation and prosperity in Asia,
coupled with his exaltations of our
present Viet Nam policy of ward-
ing off aggression, can make these
leaders look as though they are
participating in a drive to end the
conflict and establish the prin-
ciples of democracy in the area.
WHETHER OR not Johnson will
accept Premier Ky's invitation to
visit South Viet Nam remains an
open question. South Vietnamese
news reports have stated that he
intends to do so, but as yet he has
no statement himself. In the light
of Ky's claim that it is Johnson's
duty as President to review his
troops, it seems highly unlikely that
he would refuse to accept the in-
vitation.
And, finally, there is the ques-
tion of whether any change is
policy will result from the Manila
conference. Johnson himself has
claimed repeatedly that there is
little. chance of any major policy
revision at the conference. It will
restrict itself to a review of the
military operations and chances
for bringing about an "honorable
peace at the earliest possible mo-
ment." He has also said that he
considers our present policy of
military presence correct.
WE CAN ONLY wait to see if
the President's trip will have any
effect on our foreign policy toward
Southeast, Asia. But the political
effects of the trip in this country
are already apparent. LBJ has
managed to shift the emphasis for
the coming election off of the dis-
turbing aspects of the war in Viet
Nam through his optimistic plati-
tudes about the concern of our
country for the freedom and pros-
perity of Southeast Asia. At the
same time he has built up his
image as the protector of the poor
of the earth.
In the last analysis; we may very
well find that the trip was, in the
words of the immortal bard, "full
of sound and fury, signifying
nothing."
*
0.
publican Congressmen (laying
aside his role as the leader of con-
sensus) to talks with Soviet For-
eign Minister Andrei A. Gromyko
and Prince Souvanna Phouma,
Premier of Laos.
THUS, JOHNSON has managed
to combine the images of party
leader and world leader. In addi-
tion, he now will be able to nain-
tain his dominance in the press
while removing himself from at-
tacks on his stand on the three
important election issues - the
war, inflation, and the Negroes'
push for equality-during the two
most crucial weeks proceeding the
election.
The New York Times review
of the week states the strategy
clearly:
"Since there is no way to
make a small, inconclusive war
popular except by escalating it
into a major struggle demand-
ing a total national commit-
ment, the President is trying to
offset the political ill-effects of
the war indirectly. Aside from
its diplomatic purposes, his trip
to Asia is intended to demon-
strate that while prosecuting a
limited war vigorously, he is also
Letters: Discrimination in F raternities?
To the Editor:
ALTHOUGH I DO NOT agree
with many points in Mr. Kil-
lingsworth's article onfraterni-
ties (Oct. 18), my observations
after a year at Michigan force me
to agree on two points: 1) Much
racial and religioustdiscrimina-
tion does exist on this campus;
and 2) the social orientationuof
most undergraduates is independ-
ent of and very often alien to
the educational and training goals
of the University.
But who is to blame for this
situation? As I see it, the Uni-
versity is more responsible than
the Greek system or student body
at large. I came from a university
a year ago where these prob-
lems had been dealt with at a
university level and where prog-
ress had definitely been made. At
Stanford the fraternities had been
forced to integrate and several
have dropped national affiliation.
In addition, many programs with-
in the housing units give students
opportunity to make use of class-
room experiences in extra-curricu-
lar settings. More than a once-a-
month dinner and discussion be-
tween a faculty member and a
small per cent of the residents is
involved.
ZETA BETA TAU was cited by
you as the one fraternity that
has taken a strong stand against
discrimination. Yet, about five out
of over 100 members are non-
Jewish. Students of mine in ZBT
point out to me that probably
less than 10 per cent of those who
come during rush are not' Jewish;
thus, I have to agree that they
are doing the best they can. Thus
the real difficulty is with the ma-
jority, WASP Greek houses who,
I am told, quickly show the back
door to any non-WASP prospec-
tive members. An intolerable sit-
uation exists which makes me
ashamed of my University and I
am afraid that only pressure at
the university level will start the
action to remedy the situation.
This is only one example of
the larger problem of student ali-
enation. The new residential col-
lege is a big step in the right di-
rection but will affect very few
students. My experience on this'
campus has been that students
only need minimal encouragement
to show genuine interest and will-
ingness to commit time and ener-
gy to outside-of-class experiences,
and it is up to the University ad-
ministration and faculty to start
the wheels turning on a large
scale.
-John W. Hagen
Assistant Professor
Dept. of Psychology
Cutler
To the Editor:
VICE - PRESIDENT Cutler's
statement in The Daily article
("Dissenters Put Down Picket
Signs, Shift Emphasis to Political
Activities," by Roger Rapoport-
Saturday, October 14) warrants
careful study by those interested
in bringing about major social
change in this country.
Cutler avers, "These kids are
finding that to get things done
you have to have a broader power
base. Hence, the shift to politics.
As you moderate your group posi-
tion, it is easier to find recruits."
This statement is significant
because it constitutes the core of
the political philosophy of the
overwhelming majority of those
Americans dissatisfied with pres-
ent conditions in American socie-
ty.
THE SUBJECTIVE reason for
this orientation is the belief that
contradictions in our society are
not irreconcilable and therefore
can be resolved by a peaceful con-
sensus. This orientation leads men
like Dr. Martin Luther King to
race madly from riot to riot at-
tempting to "quiet things down"
and in the process thoroughly dis-
crediting himself in the eyes of
large sections of the black people.
Objectively, the tendency to
moderate one's political positions
in order to "have a broader pow-
er base" is a result of extreme
pressure on the part of those who
hold the power in our society.
Recent actions by Cutler pro-
vide us with examples of the ef-
fect of such extreme pressure (e.g.,
Cutler's decision to turn in the
names of 65 students to the House
Committee on Un-American Ac-
tivities; his refusal to disassociate
the University from police intimi-
dation on the campus because of
his desire to maintain a "day to
day working relationship with the
police." ).
I WOULD POSIT that although
there may be other reasons for
such capitulationist policies (such
as personal ambition), the major
reason lies in extreme pressure
from theright. Subjectively, the
reason why he inevitably capitu-
lates to this pressure flows from
his whole orientation of "moder-
ating one's political positions."
Unfortunately, mpst politically-
oriented Americans have the same
philosophy as Cutler. Thus we can
see the reason why the majority
of reformist movements have
eventually been co-opted by the
Democratic Party.
After decades of reformist and
moderate' political movements,
what are we left with? Our so-
ciety is still essentially racist and
"our" government is still capable
of committing genocide against
liberation movements (e.g., -Viet
Nam) that seek to break the
shackles of American imperialism.
I WOULD therefore like to pro-
pose an alternative to the philoso-
phy of "moderation." If one has
certain goals that place one in a
minority, one should not be afraid
of being isolated and therefore
moderating political positions to
win more support.
The supreme test of the sound-
ness of these views (at least from
my perspective) is whether they
represent the long-range interests
of the majority of the American
people. Therefore, instead of capit-
ulating to the right, one should
wage continual, principled strug-
gle until a minority.is transformed
into a majority.
Let me conclude by warning
those so anxious to moderate their
positions, that more than once
have moderates ended their pol.-
tical careers on the "rubbish-heap
of history."
-Robert Bernard, '69LSA
1 8-Year Vote
To the Editor:
jN ABOUT THREE weeks we
Michigan voters will be inside
polling booths selecting govern-
mental representatives and also
deciding on "Proposition No. 1"
which if passed would give the
right to vote to all those 18, 19,
and 20 years old if they reg-
ister. (Contrary to The Daily's
Wednesday front page story Mich-
igan will be the fifth not the
fourth state to reduce the voting
age below 21; the others are Alas-
ka, Hawaii, Kentucky and Geor-
gia.)
In deciding which way to vote
on this issue, I feel we should
keep the following points in mind:
By 18 a citizen's compulsory edu-
cation has ended; by 18 a citizen
may be tried in federal courts; by
18 a citizen must pay income and
property taxes; by 18 a citizen may
serve in federal prison; at 18 you
can be drafted; at 18 aid to de-
pendent children stops.
For the information of your
readers, the 18-year-old vote has
been endorsed by those in and
out of Michigan including Presi-
dent Lyndon Johnson, the late
President John Kennedy, Dwight
Eisenhower, Gov. Nelson Rocke-
feller, Senator Everett Dirksen,
Gov. Edmund Brown, Vice-Presi-
dent Hubert Humphrey, Gov. Mark
Hatfield, Richard Nixon, Senator
Robert Kennedy, the late'Adlai
Stevenson, Senator Abraham Rib-
icoff, Barry Goldwater, Senator
Margaret Chase Smith, Senator
Mike Mansfield, Congressman Wes
Vivian, Gov. George Romney and
Zolton Ferency.
WILL WE Michiganders over 21
'give those who are 18,19, and 20
the right to vote on Nov. 8? I cer-
tainly hope so.
-Christopher B. Cohen,
'64, LSA; '67 Law
Homecoming Spin-off
WHO SAYS Homecoming projects are
valueless and a waste of time which
could otherwise be spent on other more
academically and intellectually oriented
activities?
This fall I sat through a homecoming
+meeting of minds-a group of engineers,
architects, advertising design majors,
math, chemistry, psychology and even
political science and journalism majors.
They discussed possible ideas for a home-
coming display and the complications in-
volved in constructing their final choice.
Then they began implementing the
idea. The architects and designers drew
up renderings and sketches; the engineers
figured out structural stresses and the
distribution of power needed to keep the
parts moving. The problems took the
place of almost all other topics of con-
versation and some of the technical
knowledge of the engineers and archi-
'tects rubbed off on unsuspecting LSA
students.
AND NOW THEY'RE building it, draw-
ing the work force from their posi-
tions in front of the television and around
the card table. If they don't finish in
time they'll draw others away from their
Friday night movies and Friday night
drunks to learn a little more about engi-
neering and design and construction
principles.
It doesn't happen this way in every
house. Some houses can't generate enough
spirit for such undertakings. They either
don't enter the competition or they insti-
tute fines or some other form of coercion
to get people to work on their display. Or
else a small, enthusiastic nucleus puts the
thing up. But even so, some members still
get a chance to give their creative'skill
and knowledge a little exercise.
THE WINNER'S TROPHY says "We're
Number One! We've created something
as a group, working together, sharing our
talents." That, it seems to me, is a rare
and worthwhile situation.
-LAURENCE MEDOW
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The Drat Su rveyin the Alternatives
-4
Smog and the Death-wish
TJIE INDUSTRIAL ELITE of the state
of Michigan has been challenged by a
massive public concern over the dangers
of air pollution. With the threat that
public concern might become a legal en-
actment, industry has been forced to look
unflinchingly into its own smoggy soul.
And the response has been a remarkable
piece of sub-Christian metaphysics:
"Thou shalt not live by breath alone."
Some may quarrel with the motives of
industrial economy which have produc-
ed such an aphorism. Some might even
suspect that business leaders are reluc-
tant to implement what certainly would
be a lengthy program of pollution pre-
vention. We can have only compassion
for such minds. Those who are initiates
of a higher philosophy will recognize be-
hind the recalcitrance of industry, the
rumblnne msomstcim ,
AMERICANS IN THE PAST have at-
tempted a disassociation with mere
bodily function, but not with great or
sustained success. Even the drive to de-
stroy physical functioning through a con-
centrated program of smoke inhalation
has been but a symbolic movement, her-
alding the days that were to come. To be
complete, the action must be institution-
al.
And the federal government has shown
itself mournfully inadequate to the task
-the draft being far from universal.
Plainly, the time has come for big busi-
ness to act in the final mobilization of
the American death-wish.
But several Michigan business leaders
have expressed a slothful willingness to
arbitrate, rather than holding to their
first heroic line of resistance-the threat
to remove all operations to another state.
By PATRICIA O'DONOHUE
and STEPHEN WILDSTROM
Second of a three-part series
"HE ADMINISTRATION'S per-
sistent refusal to take the
lead in designing a fairer system
of military draft" has received
sharp criticism from Kingman
Brewster Jr., president of Yale
University.
However, the Admnistration is
currently examining the alterna-
tives, both internal and external.
Several internal reforms have
been suggested by Congressman
and their constituents which would
conceivably alleviate some of the
present problems. They are not
cure-alls and do not purport to
be, but represent progress towards
"a fairer system of military draft."
* THE LOTTERY. Various
forms of a lottery, such as the one
used in World War II, have been
proposed as replacements for the
present Selective Service proce-
dures. The form of a lottery, sug-
gested by Sen. Edward Kennedy
(D., Mass.), uses an age-class sys-
tem in which all men reaching the
age of 18 would be examined by
their local draft boards. After this
examination they would be given
a number by their local boards.
The Selective Service System
lottery would take their chances,
when they completed college, with
the 19-year-old group in that
year's lottery.
THE ARGUMENT for the lot-
tery is that the discrimination in-
herent in the present system would
be eliminated. Except for certain
deferments-such as those for the
fathers of dependent children and
genuine hardship cases, which
would, of course, have to be kept
under any draft system-the lot-
tery would treat all men equally.
The lottery would also provide
an element of certainty because
one would know if he were being
called at age 19.
The lottery proposal has been
attacked by the present Selective
Service administration and the
Pentagon on both philosophical
and practical grounds. One ob-
jection raised charges that a lot-
tery would not necessarily provide
the best qualified men for military
service. (General Lewis Hershey,
director of the Selective Service
System, responded to the sugges-
tion of a lottery last spring by say-
ing that he could just see what
happened when a one-legged man
was the first name drawn.)
A MORE REASONABLE objec-
-a man who enlists gets his
choice of service and to some ex-
tent a choice of duty assignment,
making enlistment an attractive
alternative to the draft for many.
* CALLING UP THE Reserves.
A large number of men each year
seek to fulfill their service obliga-
tion by joining a Reserve or Na-
tional Guard unit for six months
of active duty and four and a half
years of Ready Reserve duty. If
a man were to know at nineteen,
that he in all probability would
not be called to serve, the induce-
ments for him to enlist or to join
a Reserve unit would be sharply
reduced. The Armed Services pre-
fer enlistees to draftees because
their longer terms of duty make
training them more profitable and
give more flexibility in duty as-
signments.
Under the present system, mem-
bers of the National Guard and
Reserve detachments have only a
six-month period of active duty
devoted to basic training. Many
legislators and their constituents
think that the Armed Services are
wasting potential man-power by
allowing 200,000-500,000 of these
eligible men to remain at home
while others are sent to potential-
ly dangerous areas where they
Ready Reserves figure strongly in
the Pentagon's strategic planning.
The Defense Department does
not feel it can allow the Reserve
structure to deteriorate. Because
the demand for troops in Asia,
particularly Viet Nam, is increas-
in, the Reserves are counted on to
back up other global commitments
if necessary.
It would seem that calling up
the Reserves. while alleviating
manpower shortages in the short
run, is not a true reform in long-
range planning.
" DRAFTING WOMEN. The
question of using women in a
scheme of national service is one
which has aroused a good deal of
controversy-much of it emotion-
ally based. Many experts feel that
by not obligating women to any
sort of national service the'United
States is leaving a great potential
manpower source untapped.
In recent times, Israel is the
only country which has used
women as front-line combat sol-
diers. In this case, using female
troops is a matter of practical
necessity. This country has suf-
ficient manpower available so that
there is no need to use women as
combat troops, and no one has
seriously suggested this move,
which would obviously entail vast
ice has been suggested as the ulti-
mate method by which present in-
equities can be abolished. A sim-
ilar plan was passed by Congress
during the Korean War. The legis-
lative body then gave it to the
Pentagon with instructions to
make the plan workable. The name
of the present Selective Service
Act services as a vestigial reminder
of Congress' intention.
The Pentagon conducted a study
and presented a costly unwieldy
outline of such a plan. It showed
that training the two million
youths who annually become eli-
gible for induction is Physically
and financially impossible with
present .Armed Services training
base capacities.
It is impossible on practical
grounds because many men make
a career out of the Armed Serv-
ices. While two million men en-
tered the army each year, a similar
number would not be leaving. This
of course, would lead to constant
expansion of the standing military
force until it reached monstrous
proportions. What?
For egalitarian purposes, it is
an excellent idea; there would be
no equities because it would be
universal.sHowever, the Defense
Department already spends $1.2
billion per year on military train-
ing. A higher budget lust is not
*
i,