%eAir tga wBatt Seventy-First Year EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN UNDER AUTHORITY OF BOARD IN CONTROL OF STUDENT PUBLICATIONS STUDENT PUBICATIONS BLDG.* ANN ARBOR, MICH. * Phone NO 2-3241 Great Debate hen Opinions Are Free Truth WIl ePmal Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the individual opinions of staf writers or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints. AY, OCTOBER 4, 1960 NIGHT EDITOR: ANDREW HAWLEY 1 1 I _ , , /, 7 .- . ' r _2' F7 'r' ~ .ip ROADSHOW MOVIES: Bonus Pictures Cut Hollywood rodiwion (EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the first of two articles on the effects of the roadshow engagement on the economic stability of the motion picture medium. Tomorrow the article will question the legitimacy of some of the current en- tries to reserved seat engagements.). By MARC ALAN ZAGOREN Daily Reviewer -HARD ticket" motion picture engagements where all seats 'are re- served in advance for abnormally high prices are currently jeop. ardizing the already severely maligned climate of the local film houses throughout the country. Motion pictures given the roaidshow pattern of. release such as Detroiters Pass Petition I To Replace Speakers' Ban If all mankind minus one were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary pinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had he power, would be justified in silencing mankind. -John Stuart Mill THE lifting of a ban against Communist speakers at Wayne State University two weeks ago has triggered a protest petition cam- paign by two fanatical Detroiters who aim to collect 25,000 signatures opposing the Board of Governors decision. The sadly ironic part of this militantly fas- cistic attempt is that the signatures are com- ing in so fast the organizers cannot even esti- mate their number, Throughout Michigan, the name of Senator McCarthy is being sounded again, and too frequently it is in tones of praise. The leaders of this new movement are Anne Byerlein and Donald Lobsinger who believe "that to grant Communists or pro-Communists permission to speak on the Wayne State Uni- versity campus is to openly cooperate in the latest Communist campaign, laid bare by FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover, to capture and use stu- dents and youth groups and' that the Commu- nist Party is a conspiracy which insidiously plots the violent overthrow of our government." What these two have failed to understand is the nature of the Board of Governors ruling. More importantly, however, they are attempt- ing to stifle the educational process and deny free speech to a minority. FOR the first time in a decade, it is possible for a Communist or a pro-Communist to speak before a public group in university fa- cilities at Wayne State. It is still very unlikely that one will, however. To do so, he would need the permission of President Clarence B. Hil- berry. Permission would probably be easily granted in the case of a Russian scientist lecturing on nuclear physics or biochemistry. Here the subject area is restricted, the audi- ence small, and educational value of his talk clear. If a political science professor wanted his class to gain a first hand statement of Com-r munist doctrine, he would probably give ap- proval to have a Communist speak before the group. With the sareguards of a forewarned (hence forearmed) class, and the limitation of his speech to the advantages bf communism, this might be possible. ANYONE legally qualified to speak as a be- liever in a communal state would have to exclude the "violent" displacement of the poli- tical structure. He might retain every other be- lief of the Soviet Union, even as Mr. Lobsinger claims, that "the state should control man and his environment completely," but he could not hold this one view. Thus anyone who believed in communism would have to restrict his words to stay within the law. Thus, there must be some other ra- tional reason to support the reestablishment of the ban. Mr. Lobsinger, again, charges that the "Com- munist Party in America is stronger thin ever before, thus I can see no logic in lifting the ban against Red speakers. Communism is a ter- rible evil. It is godless." NOW, whether or not communism is a godless evil, people have the right to express it, and not be condemned for their beliefs. As Mill wrote, "We can never be sure that the opinion we are endeavoring to stifle is a false opinion; and if we were sure, stifling it would be an evil still." Miss Byerlein is a registered nurse who drew upon her medical experiences to liken commu- nism to bubonic plague. "The more contact you have with it," she said. "the more your immunity wears down. Your body builds up no antibodies against it." A statement such as this one denies any strength or truth to the American concept of a democratic team. Although as a nurse, Miss Byerlein must stand ready to evaluate the potency of an attack upon her patient, she must also be aware of the patient's strength. Her concern here is the American state and the proponents of its democracy. THOSE who fail to credit democracy with the ability to debate openly with communism and succeed in the debate have no real faith in the American political system. They are so susceptible to an ideological attack upon their weak intellects that they will do anything to aooid hearing an offer of the advantages of a rival way of life. Their trust in the faith of others is likewise so feeble as to lead them to protect everyone else from the mysterious shad- ings of Russian propaganda. Our system of a representative democracy was not formed in quiet seclusion away from the rest of the world. The principles of the Constitution which guide our nation were weld- ed during a long and bloody revolution. We like to believe that our democracy has met opponents and defeated them because of the rightness of our systen. People who originate and sign petitions lim- iting the rights of- free speech do not know what they are defending when they describe themselves as noble patriots engaged in a holy struggle. What they are really doing is fight- ing in a war to make the world safe for ig- norance. -MICHAEL OLINICK e Vi "Ben Hur" and "Around The World ing joined by a slew of new produ Bello," "Spartacus," "The Alamo," "Exodus" and "Pepe." The result is causing a serious shortage of new films for the local screens. Although the bulk of the press was unanimous in its lavish praise of Metro. Goldwyn Mayer's "Ben Hur"-an opinion incidentally completely contrary to that of the gentleman in this corner-the fact still remains that Metro sank most of its assets into one motion pic- ture. And such a substantial gam- ble as this naturally caused a sub- stantial suspension of production in other areas when the local theatres have needed fresh prod- uct most. THERE CAN BE NO DOUBT that "Ben Hur" was a darfng move of brilliant financial strategy and will return a fantastic profit for its distributor, with an overall gross estimated to exceed $100 million. Nevertheless, the $25 mil- lion the company initially sank into 'the production for filming and production costs, money which has not come near its return two to three years after the initial investment--is still disastrously upsetting healthful release pat- terns for the average exhibitor. * * 0 BUT WHEN THESE powerhouse entries finally reach the home- town screens about a year after their original release, the box of- fice interest and potential for the offering has usually been com- pletely saturated in the initial roadshow engagement in a near- by large city. While such release patterns may be giving the distributor the great- est possible return on his money at the present moment, such a policy does not have economic jus- tification for the future. Surely all productions cannot be on as grand a scale as "Ben Hur" or "South Pacific." Unless the dis- tributors make available their sensational product to the smaller hometown theatre at the moment most desirable for greatest public response, these same gentlemen may soon find themselves with sturdy products but an insuffi- cient number of houses to show- case them for the necessary prof- it, d in Eighty Days" are currently be. acts including "Sunrise At Campo. DAIMYC FFICIAL BULL ETIN The Daily Official Bulletin is an official publication of The Univer- sity of Michigan for which The Michigan Daily assumes no editorial responsibility. Notices should be sent in TYPEWRITTEN form to Room 3519 Administration Building, before 2 p.m. two days preceding publication. TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4 General Noties College of Literature, Science and the Arts, and schools of Business Adminis- tration, Education, Music, Natural Re- sources, Nursing, and Public Health: Students who received marks of I, X, or 'no report' at " the end of their last semester or summer session of attend- ance will receive a grade of "E" in the course or courses unless this work is made up. In the College of Litera- ture( Science, and the Arts and the Schools of Music and Nursing this date is, by October 17. In the Schools of Business, Administration, Education, Natural Resources, and Public Health , this date is by October 19. Students wishing an extension of time beyond these dates should file a petition with the appropriate official of their school. In the School of Nursing the above information refers to non-Nursing courses only. Make-up Final Examinations: Philiso- phy 63, Prof. C. Cohen, Tues.. Oct. 10, 1-4 p.m., Philosophy =Department Of- fice, 2208 Angell Hall. Applications for Phoenix Project Re- search Grants: Faculty members who wish to apply for grants from the Michigan Memorial-Phoenix Project Research Funds to support research in peacetime applications and impliea tions of nuclear energy should, file applications in the Phoenix Memorial Lab, North Campus, by Mon., Oct. 10 Application forms will be mailed on request or can be. obtained at the Phoenix Memorial Lab, Ext. 86-407. History Make-up Exam for all courses Swill be given Sat.. Oct. 8, 9-12 a m. in Room 429 Mason Hall. You must see your instructor and sign list in History Office, 3601 Haven Hall. The last try-outs for Michifish and Michifins, the women's synchronized swimmingpgroups, will be held at the Women's Pool on Wed., Oct. 5 at 7:00 p.m. Blue Cross-Blue Shield Open Enroll- ment Period, Oct. 3-14. Third Floor Lobby, Admin. Bldg. (Continued on Page 5) WOMEN'S SENATE: Represents All Girls' Living Units By PAT GOLDEN Daily staff Writer PERMITTING women students to stay out until midnight on week nights was the last important issue in which Women's Senate took action.. Many persons feel that the or- ganization has been falling asleep ever since. Founded in 1953 as the legislatice branch of the League, Senate serves as a meeting place for all women in the University. Both affiliates and independents convene there to discuss issues which concern women and to take le