Seventy-Sixth Year
EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
UNDER AUTHORITY OF BOARD IN CONTROL OF STUDENT PUBLICATIONS
University
Theatre: Past and Future
here
Tru
Are Free, 420 MAYNARD ST., ANN ARBOR, MIC.
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NEws PHONE: 764-0552
Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the inidividual opinions of staff writers
or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints.
SATURDAY, JULY 23, 1966
NIGHT EDITOR: MICHAEL HEFFER
Yes LBJ,
T here Is A Third War
PRESIDENT JOHNSON is wrong; we are The solutions are made up of peren-
fighting three wars, not the usual two nial promises and insubstantial evidence
that he boasts of in Viet Nam. supporting their existence. You have no
While Johnson has been engrossed in doubt heard of the Job Corps, the Civil
his meteoric polls the country which elect- Rights Acts and various other legislative
ed him to presidential power is smoulder- bonuses, but have you seen them in oper-
ing in the heat of summer and unleashed ation?
tensions. The rioting war on the home Evidently the rioters have not. There-
front could prove more disastrous than fore, it appears that to fight this war
any fought on the Asian mainland; there Washington must do at least two things.
is no McNamara to promise victory. The
signs of defeat are written on the face of PRESIDENT JOHNSON must recognize
every National Guardsman, policeman that a domestic state of war exists and
and wounded rioter. The parents of the he must battle it with much more than
dead weep in frustration; after years of ineffectual slogans and legislative acts.
resignation they are loosing through the We must fight it with more efficient
violence the centuries have reaped. weapons than troops or tear gas. We must
use our minds, hearts and the tools
WATTS USHERED IN the new war just which The Great Society can afford.
one year ago. The country shook with -PAT O'DONOHUE
foreboding and shame, but with the hope
of a song expressed the general feelings D rop
at the time, "Stay in your homes, please
leave us alone, we'll be glad to talk in In The Bucket
the morning."
But morning never came. Watts has
been re-written countless times this sum- CONGRESS' JOINT committee on Con-
mer but the ghetto setting and the slum- gressional Reorganization has complet-
ridden participants remain the same. The ed its job-but far from its duty-by pol-
policemen still use their tear gas; the ishing off a blueprint to redo the legisla-
rioters are still armed with the tradi- tive branch's time-worn machinery.
tional weapons of radicalism; frustration, Many outstanding complaints were
unfulfilled hopes, burning desires, broken quite ignored by the group, not always
bottles, fire bombs and lack of official by its own fault. The committee was
support. barred, for example, from dealing with
Almost any resident of Cleveland, Oma- the seniority system of assigning commit-
ha, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and tee chairmanships.
Jacksonville, Fla., can tell you what hap-
pened but it is doubtful' whether even the IT'S UNFORTUNATE it could not have
rioters could tell you what it's all about. gone further. No one expects Congress
to accept even all the reforms that have
THE RIOTS are made up of many in- been proposed, and with that sort of an
gredients; racial inequality; inhu- attitude it would have been nice if the
man living conditions, inferior education, committee could have proposed a good
and the pressing lack of decent job op- deal more than it did.
portunities. -L.P.
Ann Arbor in 1975:
No Tlime for Reminiscence
FOR ALL the trouble and ma-
neuvering that marked the his-
tory of its development, it ap-
pears that the new University
theatre will be completed on a
pleasing note of pride of accom-
plishment.
The design for the theatre, re-
leased yesterday, shows all the
imaginativeness possible in mod-
ern theatre construction design.
The sponsors of the theatre have
chosen designers of unquestionable
competence and experience, for
both the exterior and the inter-
nal stage plan. Preliminary indi-
cations are that the theatre will
combine the traditional majesty
of the proscenium stage with the
flexibility of the currently-popu-
lar thrust stage.
Yet, despite the triumph that
apparently will accompany its
completion, the troubled history of
the theatre, without full explana-
tion, may hang like a dark cloud
over it. And, because The Daily
figured so prominently in that his-
tory, it is only right that a re-
view of those events be done on
these pages.
THE DAILY first became aware
of plans to build a University the-
atre late last summer, after pre-
liminary work on the project was
approved by the Regents. After
some inquiry it was learned that
money for the theatre had been
donated by then Regent Eugene
B. Power, and that it could pos-
sibly be named the Power Theatre.,
However, Power was contributing
only part of the money needed to
build the theatre, the rest to come
from the University's General
Fund.
While the idea of a University
theatre was widely applauded, by
many, including The Daily, the
paper found it necessary to ob-
ject to the manner in which it
was being financed.
A University theatre was under
consideration as one of the Uni-
versity's long-range projects, but
was far down on the list of prior-
ities. Now, it seemed, other more
important projects such as an ad-
dition to the library and a new
classroom building for the literary
college would be delayed in order
to build the theatre. This The
Daily found objectionable.
IT WAS FOR this reason that
early last fall an editorial to this
effect by the then senior editors
of The Daily appeared on the front
page of the paper the morning be-
fore the plans for the theatre
were to be announced at the
Association of Producing Artists
(APA) opening performance for
the fall repetory season.
The editorial was fairly specif-
ic in stating its objections, that is,
objections to the method of fi-
nancing of the theatre and the
somewhat undercover manner in
which it was being done. But, as
The Associates
by Carney and wolter
often occurs, the intent of the-
editorial was misunderstood in
many circles.
Some interpreted it to be an
attack on the performing arts,
which it certainly was not as it
made the desirability of a Univer-
sity theatre quite clear-but not
at the moment with the pressing
financial problems of the Univer-
sity.
BUT, MORE unfortunately, the
editorial was interpreted as a per-
sonal attack against Regent Pow-
er.
And, despite disclaimers from
The Daily, the belief of some that
it was a personal attack persisted.
The charge is unreasonable, be-
cause the personality of a partic-
ular donor hardly figures in the
financing arrangements of a dona-
tion, yet the charges continued.
Eventually, the furor over The
Daily's objections to the theatre
subsided, and the whole idea seem-
ed forgotten while plans for its
financing were quietly completed.
The Daily continued to defend
its position that the theatre should
not be financed from the General
Fund. Its position was made diffi-
cult by the fact that no official
announcement had been made
concerning the source of funds;
and, although it was widely known
that General Fund money origin-
ally was to be used, no confirma-
tion of this fact had ever been
made.
WEDNESDAY'S announcement
that the theatre would be financed
through funds from the $55 Mil-
lion Fund Campaign, then, was
something of a victory for The
Daily, although this move had
been expected for quite some time.
It is important, however, to ex-
plain the nature of this "vic-
tory."
Perhaps the word "victory" is
not the correct choice in this in-
stance. If victory means that The
Daily was able to persuade the
planners of the project that their
funds should not come from the
General Fund (which, indeed, was
the purpose of the whole action in
the first place) then it is a "vic-
tory" of some sort.
But if "victory" to some means
that The Daily tried to damage
and delay a valuable project or
that it tried to smear the name of
a Regent, and succeeded, they are
sorely mistaken.
Yet, this is the cloud that may
hang over the theatre and the
man who so generously has con-
tributed- to its construction and
the support of numerous other ar-
tistic projects at the University in
the past.
THEREFORE, if the theatre is
to be the complete achievement
that its planners envisioned, it is
necessary that the charges and
counter-charges of the past be for-
gotten, that the misconceptions
surrounding The Daily's initial
action be changed, and that the
members of the University's ar-
tistic community and their sup-
porters now look toward the fu-
ture of the theatre and what must
be done to complete the success.
It is obvious, from yesterday's
announcement, that the theatre is
still in need of financing-to be
exact, it needs almost $3 million
for completion. This money must
be donated to the $55 million drive
either specifically designated for
the theatre or for an undesig-
nated project.
In the furor over the theatre
it became obvious that many peo-
ple were concerned about the need
for a University theatre. If these
same people would now throw
their efforts behind a drive to fi-
nance it, it is highly likely that
they will be able to raise the nec-
essary amount.
IF THIS I DONE, the theatre
would truly be the community
achievement that it should be.
And, with the troublesome events
of the past hopefully placed in
their proper perspective, the the-
atre will be the personal and com-
munity triumph it deserves to be.
*
A'
Viet Nam: The
Victims of Technique
By DAVID KNOKE
ONE MORE MONTH will mark
the second year since the Gulf
of Tonkin incident, which esca-
lated the Viet Nam conflict into
a full scale war. In that time,
the world has seen many victims
of the war: slaughtered soldiers,
napalmed civilians, the unbiased
press coverage, and woefully per-
sistent peace attempts.
One victim which has gone un-
noticed is the freedom for parti-
cipant governments of both sides
to control their own adtions in the
I war.
The President of the United
States would like to believe that
he can control the course of the
war and win it militarily by more
bombing. The president of North
Viet Nam would like to believe
that his countrymen can indefi-
nitely outlast the bombers' at-
tacks. Various political-moral forc-
es, such as the Pope and the UN
secretary-general, hold out against
hope that the war can be brought
to the conference table and ended
by peaceful negotiation.
THE PROPORTIONS of the war
and the course it is taking are
tending against all these "ideal"
solutions. The war has assumed a
life of its own, independent of the
participants' willtochange it sub-
stantially. The reason is that as
the war comes to increasingly de-
pend upon technical means of con-
duct, questions are reduced from
complex ones of the rationale for
involvement and the ends desired,
into the very simple question of
"what is the most efficient way
in which the war can be ended?"
This makes the means of wag-
ing war become the purpose of
the war. sufficient reasoning unto
itself to justify the conflict.
As "technique"-the most effi-
cient way of getting things done
-assumes an overriding import-
ance in the decision-making proc-
ess, one finds both sides coming
to the tacit realization that their
war machines will operate on iden-
tical principles.
THE MOST obvious instance of
technique is in the military facet
of the war. By military tech-
nique, I do not include merely
the innovations in hardware de-
signed to fit the particular en-
vironment of' the war, but the
basic strategy of the war and ap-
proaches to its implementation.
One example is not viewing the
enemy and incidental victims (civ-
ilian casualties are much higher
than military casualties currently
in Viet Nam) as real human be-
ings, but as pawns in a complex
chess game. The statistics of the
newspapers and the. numerical
jargon of thenMcNamara press
conference tend to push the real-
ity of human agony out of the
picture.
Similarly, in the Viet Cong-North
Vietnamese war front, a persistent
adherence to formulae-the Mao-
Giap four-stage guerrilla war-is
an example of military strategy
becoming a self-perpetuating end
in itself, instead of a flexible
means to some other end, like
gaining ground politically.
The United States has been
locked in an upward spiral for
quite some time, by which fail-
ures to achieve a solid military
gain by bombing do not insure
abandonment of that method in
favor of some other tactic. Bomb-
ing is increased instead on the be-
lief that the technique would be
perfect if only it is implemented
more forcefully.
THE POLITICAL techniques re-
sulting from the involvement in
the war are a remarkable illus-
tration of how the search for the
one best method will cause -sup-
posedly diametrically opposed en-
emies to employ similar means.
The totalitarian states have long
been known for the suppression of
dissent and the free press. But it
should not come as a surprise that
the United States President be-
comes angry over critics of his pol-
icy, or that a crisis of confidence
should result from the govern-
ment's attempt to control the in-
formation leak to the press. After
all, the prosecution of the war
can be most effective only when
the whole country is mobilized
behind the leadership and internal
dissent does not endanger the
war machine or comfort the ene-
my,
The fact that a strong organiz-
ed dissent does exist in this coun-
try is only proof that political
technique has not reached the lev-
el of efficiency that it has in North
Viet Nam. The Communist party
apparatus has evolved to 'such a
point that the leadership can live
in willful obscurity, projecting an
image of near-divinity. The sys-
tem has gained the unquestioned
support of the majority of its citi-
zenry such that a changeover in
leadership provokes no rapid basic
change in the allegiance to the
structure. North Viet Nam in par-
ticular has been able to keep its
population in a semi-war state,
culminating last week in a partial
mobilization of the whole state.
WHICH BRINGS up the as-
pects of propaganda technique,
perhaps the biggest sustaining fac-
tor of the war. Propaganda con-
cerns itself with the ability to get
humans in a psychological state
of mind to participate willingly
in actions directed by the prop-
agandist. Even if. the military
techniques be resolved, the politi-
cal elements of both parties see a
war of nerves being a final deci-
sive element for the ultimate vic-
tor.
The manipulation of the enemy
image is one of the subtle ways of
galvanizing an apathetic popula-
tion. Jules Feiffer drew a cartoon
series in which he showed the in-
carnation of the Oriental Enemy
undergoing a transformation from
Chinese mandarin to" Japanese
flier in the present Red Chinese-
North Vietnamese beast; in the
multi-purpose war, the creation
of "reasons" for the conflict is
probably more important than the
real reasons why the conflict be-
gan.
The well-known truism, "Truth
is the first victim of any war,"
holds here. The Green Berets and
popular idea that "pulling out
means all our boys (are soldiers
really boys?) would have died in
vain" are the techniques used to
arouse emotional pride and illogi-
cal support in the United States.
In Communist China, where the
war is not yet a direct reality, the
distortion of the United States
as an "imperial warmonger" func-
tions as a stimulus for the Chi-
nese industrial worker to increase
his production rate.
PROPAGANDIST technique can
become an end in itself. In a
humorous incident, the Ky regime
discovered that the CIA was train-
ing armed propaganda agents
without indoctrinating them in the
necessity to support the Ky gov-
ernment. Saigon decided to re-
place the Vietnamese major in
charge with more amenable in-
structors. The case is an illustra-
tion of the means of propaganda
technique superceding the ends for
which it was created.
In these and other instances,
one sees the increasing importance
of technique in the war, to the
devaluation of human considera-
tions. In the haste to get things
done, the United States will tol-
erate the creation of concentra-
tion camps in South Viet Nam.
The fact that they do not contain
the excesses of the Nazi versions
only attests to the maturation of
a more efficient way of isolating
classes of individuals with a mini-
mum of external outcry.
WAR ECONOMICS-cost 'effi-
ciency - comes to predominate
thinking among conductors of the
war who are thousands of miles
removed from the actual killing
and dying.
The tendency, as the war be-
comes entrenched, is not to look
upon weapons as too frightful to
be used. Technique insures that
if a method is possible, it should
become necessary.
The progression from haphazard
techniques to more efficient ones
marks the course of progress of
both sides; the ironical outcome
is that the war supposedly fought
over differing idealogies becomes
a war in which both sides employ
methods indistinguishable from,
each other.
WHEN PRESIDENT Johnson
says that the war is being waged,
"Because we must show the Com-
munists that force cannot prevail,"
the irony comes full measure when
one realizes what would happen
if the United States does win: the
Communists will have been given
a very concrete example of how
force, backed by technique, has
prevailed and carried the day.
r
E WHO BELIEVE that Ann Arbor will
somehow retain a small town identity
in the future might just as well abandon
hope. The facts overwhelmingly point to
expanding urbanization and growth out-
ward accompanied by huge price in-
creases.
The city has been plugged into a neat
mathematical formula and the experts
have already cast its fate. It is inevitable,
Ann Arbor will continue to grow at fan-
tastic rates for the next 10 years.
A REPORT released by the School of
Business Administration last week re-
ports a doubling of retail business in the
city by 1975. This is to coincide with a
University enrollment increase of 16,000
students to a projected 50,000 in the same
nine year period. Also predicted is a huge
increase in urban residents with a 60 per
cent rise in per capita income, in part
due to an increased cost of living.
In a few years, individuals will prob-
ably no longer be able to purchase even
small plots of real estate in the city
among a forest of high rise buildings, if
indeed there are any plots left after the
invasion of tar and cement. This coming
growth and increasing affluence prom-
ises to make the town so high priced as
to discourage even middle-income resi-
dents.
AND THE AVERAGE citizen will have
little to say about the changes. In fact,
Editorial Staff
LEONARD PRATT,..................... Co-Editor
CHARLOTTE WOLTER .................... Co-Editor
BUD WILKINSON .................... Sports Editor
BETSY COHN.................Supplement Manager
NIGHT EDITORS: Meredith Eiker, Michael Hefter,
Shirley Rosick, Pat O'Donohue, Carole Kaplan.
Business Stafff
SUSAN PERLSTADT.............Business Manager
JEANNE ROSINSKI ............ Advertising Manager
STEVEN ENSLEY .............. Circulation Manager
If the planners include enough parks and
commons, most people will overlook the
rapid physical changes. They will look
back to the cheap living of the '60's with
remote nostalgia, but little remorse. Stu-
dents and residents who cannot afford to
live here will decide to relocate elsewhere.
And all will revel in the splendor of the
city's success.
Yes, Ann Arbor has a lot to look for-
ward to, and, if the magic slide rules run
their course, it will be an attractive gem
in the forecast midwest strip city Megal-
opolis between Chicago and Detroit. An
intellectual as well as cultural gathering
place developing amazing proportions in
a mere 10 years.
SOMETHING WILL BE missing, though,
something which only time and tradi-
tion can implant-nice, but just not func-
tional. So goodbye to Red's Old Spot, the
musty halls of West Physics and creaky
old Waterman Gym. Their sterile coun-
terparts can serve much better.
And, who knows? In 30 or 40 years their
successors will have a history of their own
-and maybe a tradition of their own, if
anyone can tell which brick box is which.
-WALLACE IMMEN
A Theatre
For All
TE NEW THEATRE to be built by the
University for its own as well as pro-
fessional use is a valuable addition to
Ann Arbor's cultural activities. Although
there was question previously as to the
use of University funds the resolution of
this matter is enabling the realization of
this worthwhile project.
The new theatre designed to seat 1,426
will make the presentations of University
groups and professional companies more
readily available to a larger number of
people. The viewing will also be made
more enjoyable by the placement of all
seats within 67 feet of the stage. Flexibil-
ity can pose no Droblem because the fa-
LETTERS:
Real Nature of Our
Viet Nam Commitment
-- M
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To the Editor:
IT HAS BEEN a delight during
my two week stint at the Uni-
versity to read your paper. I was
particularly impressed with your
condensed coverage of pertinent
world news and with your num-
erous thought-provoking articles
on Viet Nam.
This is the most important
short-range problems in the world
today. If escalation to the Third
World War cannot be halted and
reversed, then all other plans, en-
deavours, goals become meaning-
less and a waste of time.
WITH THIS frame of reference,
it is appalling to note the ignor-
ance ad apathy of Joe Citizen on
this vital problem. You are to be
commended for shedding more
light on this problem than any
of the Western papers that I have
read.
The real distressing thing is the
misinformation provided by our
government on this subject. For
instance, we are told that we must
honor our commitment to South
Viet Nam. This implies that stop-
ping the war would be dishonor-
able, whereas the facts are that
we have had all of the following
commitments:
1) WE HAD a commitment to
Diem, who we invited to take
charge ofthe French feudalistic
government that was running the
French-controlled part of Viet
Nam.
2) We had a commitment to
abide by the conditions of the
Geneva accord that provided for
the temporary division of Viet
Nam, for the withdrawal of French
troops to the south and Vietminh
troops to the north, for no build-
up for foreign military troops or
supplies, and for national elec-
tions by 1956.
a war by slow degrees until Con-
gress is left with little recourse but
to accept or approve a fact ac-
complished.
CONSIDERING these commit-
ments, the balance seems over-
whelmingly in favor of an orderly
Viet Nam disengagement. In fact,
the only commitment for the war
has already been broken by ac-
quiescence (at least) in the re-
moval of Diem from power because
of his exceedingly ruthless and
dictatorial manner and lack of
support from the South Viet-
namese.
This is but one of several ex-
amples of an almost dishonest
position taken by President John-
son and his government leaders.
By some manner of means our
relentless trend toward World War
III must be stopped. More excel-
lent papers like yours will help.
-Stephen P. Jones
Richland, Washington
The Death
Of Art
ART IS ONLY a means to life.
to. thelife more abundant. It
is not in itself the life more abun-
dant. It merely points the way,
something which is overlooked not
only by the public, but very often
by the artist himself.
In becoming an end it defeats
itself. All art, I firmly believe,
will one day disappear. But the
artist will remain, and life itself
become not "an art" but art, i.e.,
will definitely and for all time
usurp the field.
In any true sense we are cer-
tainly not yet alive. We are no
longer animals, but we are cer-
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