event-T ahird Year EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN UNDER AUTHORITY OF BOARD IN CONTROL OF STUDENT PUBLICATIONS Vherc Opinions Are Free STUDENT PUBLICATIONS BLDG., ANN ARBOR, MICR., PHONE NO 2-3241 Truth W 11 PrevirI"jr a Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the individual opinions of staff writers or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints. FUTILE ATTEMPT AT VICTORY? Nasser Faces a Dilemma in Yemen JRSDAY, JUNE 17, 1965 NIGHT EDITOR: JOHN MEREDITH Computers-The Coning Way To Relate Mounting Knowledge [HE PROBLEM of dispersing knowl- edge is one with which universities ave had to contend for some time. Num- rous techniques such as teaching by ma- hines have been introduced with the :ea of acquainting students with infor- nation more quickly, efficiently, and ef- ectively. Organizations have also arisen with the xpress purpose of finding a more effec- Lve way to disperse information than ven the latest scientific journals. Con- ress has been literally deluged with re- uests for grants to help carry out these ursuits. Basically the problem of this explo- ion of knowledge can be considered on wto levels: that of the student who is ac- uiring an education and that of the raduate who is finding himself less and ess acquainted with the expanding mass f material on different subjects. 'HE MASS OF INFORMATION which has been accumulated has had numer- us effects on universities. In the first place there in the past has een overspecialization in many depart- ients of the universities. Courses con- ucted on the introductory level cannot ope to give a comprehensive cross-sec- on of work being done in one specific eld because of the quantity of material vailable for coverage. All they can do is hope to teach the asic principles in the field. However, ven this is not possible if a single disci- line spans a large number of sub-areas hich have in turn been created by the iereased amount of knowledge. 'HE ABUNDANCE of knowledge affects, to a large extent, the research inter- sts and specializations of the faculty. And these in turn determine what >urses are offered. This is basically because the amount of laterial and knowledge in specific areas study is so great that specialists have I they can do to keep up with the cur- nt literature in their fields. 1r t t por JDITH WARREN ......... ...... .... Co-Editor DBERT RIPPLER ..,... . ...... ....Co-Editor SWARD HERSTEIN ......... ... .. Sports Editor DITH FIELDS................Business Manager FFREY LEEDS........... Supplement Manager [GHT EDITORS: Michael Badamo, John Meredith, Robert Moore, Barbara Seyfried, Bruce Wasserstein.. rhe Daily is a member of the Associated Press and Ileiate Press Service. rhe Associated Press 'is exclusively entitled to the e of all news dispatches credited to it or otherwise edited to the newspaper. All, rights of re-publication all other matters here are also reserved. Subscription rates: $4 for IA and B ($4.50 by mail); for IIlA or B ($250 by mail). second class postage paid at Ann Arbor, Mich. Published daily Tuesday thru ugh Satufrday morning. ON THE PROFESSIONAL level the prob- lem of the knowledge explosion is bas- ically the inability of professional people to assimilate all the material in their specialties or general area of interest. Another problem is the time lag be- tween the publication of an article and the time when it can be assimilated. In the area of medicine, for example, where the turnover of knowledge is greatest, the dissemination of informa- tion is difficult. Under existing condi- tions, it is extremely difficult for a doc- tor to be acquainted with all the latest scientific advances in the field of medi- cine. THE COMPUTER is part of the answer to coping with the knowledge explo- sion. A communication network of com- puters which stores not only sources of information but also the information it- self would be invaluable. Basically this is the plan of the Inter- university Communication Council. Inter- com, as it is called, intends to set up a network of computers capable of relay- ing information from one computer to another. THIS WOULD HELP solve one big prob- lem in industry and other professions: that of not having current material to work with. However, there would still be a need for education-imparting of ability to understand and utilize material. The computer can aid in the educating process by providing current publications of work being done at other universities. It can give teachers current information to give to their students, it can give grad- uate students and scientists information to help design experiments. As a partial solution to over specializa- tion, the computer can provide an op- portunity for a student to learn more ma- terial of a more varied nature. COUPLING TEACHERS and computers together would be useful. Once the professor provided the stimulus, it would be possible for students to follow up lec- tures or recitations by readings in the most current works. It would also be pos- sible for teachers to study these since he would. have access to them also. This technique-which could go a long way toward eliminating overspecialization --would leave the teacher with two jobs. He would have to provide the basics for understanding the material in a partic- ular discipline and also discuss the cur- rent works with the student. Teaching in this sense could take on a more positive aspect for the teacher as well as the student-and could begin to cope with the knowledge explosion. --BARBARA SEYFRIED By LEONARD PRATT EGYPT'S PRESIDENT Gamal Abdel Nasser has gotten him- self into a very delicate situation in the south Abrabian nation of Yemen. His position is interesting- ly similar to the classic liberal version of the United States' po- sition in Viet Nam. In fact, the only differences that distinguish the two stem from the fact that Nasser's position embodies all of the worst aspects of America's in Viet Nam, while incorporating none of the better ones. In September, 1962, republican revolutionaries overthrew the rul- ing Hamiduddin family and es- tablished the bases of a Western- ized parliamentary government in Yemen. The Hamiduddin princes promptly went into the wilderness in the country's north and began a civil war with the aid of the sheiks there. OBTAINING, SOME small amounts of aid from the British in Aden, the princes began a moderately successful offensive against the republicians. Nasser, reportedly seeing the offensive as a British neo- colonial threat, began a program of military aid to the republicans, a program which has now soaked up some 50,000 troops and $125 million. Saudi Arabia's King Faisal, see- ing in turn an Egyptian threat to his penninsula, promptly began supplying the Royalist forces with arms, food and money. AS NOTED, Nasser's position is strikingly similar to America's in Viet Nam. He has intervened on the side of an urbanized elite which is determined to rescue its countrymen from evils from which they evidently do not care to be rescued. Intervention on behalf of a republican revolution seems at first a commendable action. But when it becomes apparent, as it has in recent weeks, that that revolution has little popular sup- port and that the opponents of that revolution have both popu- lar support and important foreign support, then the aid becomes political dead weight that must be either abandoned by withdrawal or justified by military victory. As in America's case, Nasser has chosen to try for a military vic- tory. THE FIRST development that justifies the Yemen- Viet Nam parallel is the fact that the re- publican government is almost en- tirely dependent for its existence on Egyptian aid. As Machiavelli put it in 1537, "(powerful foreign) forces may be good in themselves, but they are always dangerous.. . for if they lose you are defeated and if they conquer you remain their prisoner." And the republican government has in many ways become Nasser's prisoner. Egypt is currently subsidizing the pro-republican tribes at the rate of $1.5 million monthly; if the republicans did not have this money, they would probably also lack the tribes. In addition, government cur- rency is printed in Cairo, and the credits that back it are held in Egyptian banks. O F P R I M A R Y importance, though, is Egyptian military aid in the form of both 50,000 troops and equipment to supply the fledgling republican regular army. Were it not for this aid, indica- tions are that the Royalists could easily return to power. As it currently stands, the situ- ation seems to be militarily hope- less for the republicans and their Egyptian allies. For the last two months, Egyp- tian holdings in the central and eastern portions of the country have been steadily shrinking; mechanized warfare is turning out to be no match for tribal raiders in the desert. ANOTHER important parallel in the comparison is that, as the situation gets increasingly worse for the Egyptians, it is getting increasingly better for the Royal- ists. Faisal has recently increased his aid shipments allowing the princes to equip their irregular President Nasser Addresses -Pro-Yemen Demonstration in Cairo troops much better than in the past. Just as important as this is the remarkable cohesive effect the presence of the Egyptians is re- portedly having on the Royalist tribes. The tremendous amount of aid-which makes the republicans wonder who is in fact fighting the war-is influencing the sheiks of both sides to become increasingly wary of the Egyptians: Egyptian control of the war and of the republican government is reportedly making a key sheik and Minister of the Interior have sec- ond thoughts about whose side he wishes to be on. If he should switch sides, most of the republi- can tribesmen would go with him, turning the civil war into a 'war of Egyptians and Egyptian pup- pets against princes independent of Cairo. "After two and a half years it is clear to the Egyptians that they cannot subdue the veople mili- tarily," a member of the govern- ment recently said. "The Egyp- tians are spending a lot of lives, a lot of money, a lot of resources that they could use to develop Egypt . .. peace is in the interest of us all." YET THIS IS only the opinion of a republican, and such opinions have begun to carry less and less weight compared to those of Egyp- tians. Early in May, Nasser was re- ported to have said he was willing to double the Egyptian troop commitment to Yemen's republi- can government in order to ob- tain victory there. Yet the ques- tion must be asked whether or not even such a doubling would be enough to provide an Egyptian victory. Recent Royalist gains, even in the face of an Egyptian buildup to 60,000 men, have been quite pain. Furthermore, the rainy sea- son is now under way, hurting the mechanized Egyptians far more than the mounted Royalists. EVEN LAYING this evidence aside, two questions about such an Egyptian build-up must be asked. In the first place, such an in- crease would clearly run contrary to the decrease in Egyptian in- fluence which the republicans are willing to risk compromise with the Royalists to obtain. And in the second place, even if Nasser could win with 100,000 men in Yemen, it would involve quite a'loss of face for him to do so. HE WOULD have to, in effect, take over the republican govern- ment, thus setting all of Yemen solidly against him; a victory un- der such conditions would be the military occupation of another Arab country, not likely to set well with the many Arab nations weaker than Egypt. Nasser's best move would be to accept the present Yemeni govern- ment as the best compromise solu- tion to his dilemma. To force the issue further might give him mili- tary victory, but the diplomatic price for such a victory would simply be too high to pay. But either way, Nasser seems destined to lose in Yemen. For even such a compromise will re- sult in a military backing down coupled with the resurgence of the Hamiduddin bloc within Yemen; the deeper the current Egyptian involvement, the stronger this re- surgence is apt to be. IT IS DIFFICULT to see how Nasser's reputation can emerge unscathed from the Yemeni fiasco. By the same token, it is difficult to see how his attempts at Arab solidarity cannot but be severely shaken, It remains only for him to take the path of least resist- ance of his dilemma and hope for the best. 4 4 * Nasser and Faisal Foes in Yemen LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Attitude, Timing of Teach-In Blasted ON' NS To the Editor: AS THE city of Ann Arbor and the University rolled out the red carpet for the space twins Mc- Divitt and White, the illustrious end-the-war-in-Viet Nam team at the University decided to wheel out the latest version of a teach- in, a haranguing blockade of the State St. entrance to the Union at the precise time the astronauts' motorcade was to arrive there to honor the men at the Union. I found the timing of the dem- onstration no less than revolting. It is difficult to believe that men truly dedicated to conscien- tious objection to certain govern- ment policies and intellectually charged with the responsibility of representing knowledge, truth and logic can really discover the mor- ality of the position they assumed Tuesday. CAN THEY JUSTIFY using a crowd which had gathered to see and honor these two men as a ready-made audience for their protests? Or are they so naive as to think we (and some from out of town) had gathered to see and honor them? And further, they blocked the most logical and appropriate en- trance to the building (our guests had to use the back door). I DO NOT presume to judge the righteousness of your beliefs, gentlemen, but I do know that to guests, citizens, city, university, state and nation you owe a very humble apology. -Gregory Conser To the Editor: WISH to congratulate those persons responsible for the Viet Nam teach-in on the Union steps. You have overwhelmingly portray- ed to the country, to the world, and to Col. White and Col. Mc- to science, but also exemplify the characteristics, courage, and high ideals that we as students and Americans should be striving to- ward. Tuesday was a day set aside to show our respect and gratitude to these men, yet your lack of taste, consideration, and courtesy hon- ored them by forcing them to use the back door of the Union rather than subject us all to the em- barrassment of your senseless pro- test. I trust you have won many to your ranks. I personally am revolt- ed. I am proud to represent the maize and blue, but today I was ashamed. Michael R. Hallman, '67 To the Editor: LIKE ABOUT one out of three of the people of this country, feel that our government should make greater efforts than it has so far to try to settle the Viet- namese war by conciliatory means. (Personally I would strongly favor offering to negotiate with the Viet Cong, although I would be oppos- ed, at the least, to letting the city of Saigon come under their con- trol.) For this very reason I feel com- pelled to beg for forgiveness for those persons who also are quite disturbed by this war who took part in what seems to me the tragically ill-advised activities on the Michigan Union steps toward noon of this Tuesday. I hope most people realize that not all of us who more or less oppose the Vietnamese war con- sidered these activities appropri- ate to the occasion. I don't want to offend the people who spoke on the Union steps, and I don't doubt their noble motivation. BUT I WOULD beseech them to consider whether their impas- sioned words and tone of voice didn't sound to most of the crowd venting a little child from seeing or re-seeing his beloved astro- nauts may not in itself have been an unwarranted act of cruelty- besides perhaps being inexpedient for the future of the world thus to give such an unpleasant first impression of the "peace move- ment" to a person who (unless a nuclear holocaust occurs before then) will still be living and vot- ing when we are all in our graves? IN SHORT, whether we who dare hope ultimately to soothe the fury of homicidal expansionist Pe- king-school Communism through greater reconciliation and under- standing and satisfaction of sits subjects' and leaders' better as- pirations and emotions shouldn't try on future occasions to show better understanding of, and har- mnony with, our own people's emo- tions and ideals than some of us seemed to this Tuesday? Perhaps those who tend to agree with me about both Viet Nam and t h i s Tuesday's demonstration might like to send a petition of apology to Cols. McDivitt and White or Cape Kennedy or NASA headquarters. -Ken Morris, Grad Arabs and Israelis To the Editor: THROUGHOUT the whole ar- ticle "Israel-Namer's Ration- alization" of June 12, one can eas- ily sense "sarcasm" and "happi- ness" by the writer. Mr. Berkowitz unveiled his biased opinion and his deep-rooted prejudices. He dis- played his satisfaction over the disunity of the Arab States, a situ- ation which helped Israel enjoy its prey, the Arab refugees and their properties. There is nothing strange, Mr. Berkowitz, to conclude that the League of Arab States is weak and its members-have "diverse and divergent interests." The League was inspired, as you probably know, by Mr. Eden, during World War II in order to curb the genuine Arab National Movement and to divert its ef- forts to serve British interests through their puppets among, the Arab rulers. SEVERAL ATTEMPTS have been undertaken to revolutionize the League. This is evidenced by the fact that the Arab National Movement is in continuous strug- gle. Regarding "hatred," which Mr. Berkowitz used frequently, I would like to raise some questions. Could it be pointed out when and where the Jews have ever been hated or persecuted by Arabs? The Jews have always found better refuge under Arabs' rule throughout his- tory. They held cabinet offices in more than one Arab country in the 20th century. AFTER 1948, the date of usurp- ing Palestine, the Holy Land, who is to blame if there is any hatred? The displaced Arabs or the in- truding aggressive Zionists? Mr. Berkowitz boasts of "de- moccracy" in Israel-forgetting that Israel was founded, supposed- ly, on race and religion. Jews who were converted to Christianity were denied admission to Israel, not to mention the severe dis- crimination between Western and Oriental Jews. IN CONCLUSION I would like to hope that the privilege of cri- ticizing the Arabs, quite often, in the Daily's editorial, is being done without malice and rancour. -Ahmad Joudah History Department 7 ~2.~ ry