Page 4-Thursday, October 18, 1979-The Michigan Daily Ninety Years of Editorial Freedom I .L. U7T.L 7 HATO~ 1H f3, 9 t 4 Z /-, / /7/ F A WLAY my1L1 W Tl6~M AT A T 2 Rn M'S 9WSf %n~~: i" Jik BACKC TO MY 'FIRS FAJAIU( ,-. THATb 36, Vol LXXXX, No. 37 News Phone: 764-0552 Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan FAMU-, AT 31 0p - 45' Faculty salaries disclosure ends cloud of secrecy / / . _. 4.- 5A2 A % . FAHIL-'( AH A7.41A my& - 4 AT IT FC-V' Rtt, t1'? r tA T HAS TAKEN a decade of debate , and a bill from the state capital to pry out of the University ad- ministration that which common sense says belongs in the realm of public in- formation-the disclosure of faculty ',alaries. Once Senate bill 504 is signed by the governor, the Univeristy's shroud of secrecy over professors' paychecks can finally be lifted, paving the way for a close public scrutiny that can hopefully end both the blatant inequities among departments and the atmosphere of mistrust that the University, by its intansigence, helped foster. The University administration and faculty that battled against faculty salary disclosure cited, of all things, 'the right to privacy. But those public servants who chose to evoke privacy frights in the face of the public demands for acountability chose to forget the simple fact that, as public employees, their salaries are paid out of every citizens' taxes. Fortunately, the state iegislators acted appropriately to jar their memories. It. is not, as University Interim President Allan Smith suggested, that F public employees are second-class citizens. It 'is a fact, however, that those who voluntarily choose to enter the public sector sacrifice certain liberties of private citizens in the name of public service. Just as public em- ployees wave most of their rights to protection against libel, so are many rights of privacy made secondary in the overriding interest of the right of public knowledge. It is not that public employees are second class citizens, but they are more deserving of close public scrutiny than private citizens,. since the very salaries they sought to cover- up and conceal are salaries paid by the public. And what's more, the suspicion of inequality -among departments and within departments is right now high, and only full disclosure of all salaries can help clear the air. Imbalances are sure to exist, and public disclosure of salaries surely will not correct inequalities or even end the debate. But a debate carried on in the public forum is healthier and more helpful than a debate based on guess, estimate, averages, and figures known only to an elite few. I C i Dissension in gay ranks threatehs battle with Straights' Perhaps I should find some solace in being included within the ranks of a minority, a status that has become somewhat fashionable. Solace might come easier if my thinority status were of an ethnic, political, racial, or religious nature. I am linked to a group of people for no reason other than a shared sexual orien- tation. Some people might be sur- prised to learn that there are homosexuals who do not wish to be identified with the gay com- munity as a whole. We are not trying to portray ourselves as hetersexual or even as more ac- ceptable to heterosexuals, but we do not share the values and tastes that typify the gaylifestyle. HAVING ACKNOWLEDGED my own sexual orientation at the age of fourteen, I have had twen- ty-one years to acquaint myself with the world of gays from the inside. I have learned that social success in the gay world required unchallenged conformity. From the trendy vernacular to dress codes, to sexual behavior, con- formity is the name of the game. The fact that I am sexually fulfilled by one person seems totally alien to most of my gay fiends. Because I am not "ready and willing" to participate in the gay parade of changing sex par- tners,' I confess to be the gay bar scene, the' baths, "Cruising" the streets in tight jeans. I am not a prude. I just happened to have grown up. Some years back I became sadly aware of a large number of unhappy, middle-aged homosexuals who shared their By Jack Pearson lonely lives with only a handful of gay acquaintances. Their earlier years had been spent pursuing sex and superficiality. Substance had escaped them and they had turned into despondent older men for whom "gay" would be the classical misnomer. While still a teenager,rI learned the ins and outs of the relentless pursuit of gay sex. The pressing of young gay flesh is quite popular sport, as I learned in numerous places, private and public, from choir loft to the back row of the local movie theater. Sexual exploits of an "at ran- dom" nature are not only expec- ted in the gay lifestyle, but are of- ten used as criteria for measuring social success. Com- parable behavior among straights would hardly be con- sidered the basis of a solid reputation. A surprisingly small portion of the urban gay com- munity strives for the kind of fidelity that even gays expect of heterosexual relationships. THE ANITA Bryants, though abhorrent to those opposed to in- tolerance. and prejudice, have touched on some uncomfortable truths. The most obvious to straights and most unacknowledged by gay people is that we generally expect and require a different moral code for our hetersexual counterparts. Countless times in my youth I was invited to enter into a "lover" relationship, sometimes by those who had known me for a matter of days, and at. other times by someone who already had a lover at hone. The swinging singles and mate- swapping of today's straight society account for but .a small percentage of the populace. Yet, in the gay subculture a com- parably relaxed moral code is definitely the rule rather than the exception. Until gays require adherence to the same moral code for them- selves as for non- gays, people such as Anita Bryant will wield at least one sickle of truth, and will use it with a zeal that 'will never permit total recognition and acceptance by society. We gays expect straight society to exercise some control over its sexual appetite while we permit our own sexual desires to deter- mine the type of lifestyle we lead, usually one that is promiscuous and self-serving. This is one homosexual's admission that double standards born in the gay lifestyle are a more serious ob- stacle than any oppression or in- tolerance from without. I AM ALSO a homosexual who says that it is a classical cop out for homosexuals to portray themselves as an oppressed minority. Gays have, in fact, played a far greater role in separating ourselves from the remainder of society than the would-be oppressors. Living in a state of "gayness" is as preposterous as it would be for heterosexuals to live for the sake of being "straight". The basis for the minority status of gays is best The idea that homosexuals are. greatly confined and limited by the rest of society is often the, result of separatist gay attitudes.' I know many gay men and, women who go far overboardip their support of strictly gay. businesses and organizations.. Some will patronize a restaurant because it is a "gay" restaurant despite the inferiority of its food and servicedfor entertainment, should be determined by his. sexuality is ludicrous. Many gays are certain that the answer to our social ills lies in educating the public. Gay rights leaders should question them, selves as to how well educated they wish the straight public to, be. Should we tell them of the un- paralled incidence of social diseases among gays? Should we tell them of a casual acceptance of promiscuity by gays that would leave many "liberated" straights breathless? Such a for- thright presentation may well alienate many straights in the camp of neutrality. Until the scope of gay lifestyles broaders and gay vision clears, I cannot be very excited about all the work being done to achieve social acceptance of gays. I can only wish to be counted out of it. Jack Pearson, a freelanc writer from Chicago, wasane gay who chose not to associate himself with the mainstream' gay movement, which, he asserts, is threatened by' op pression from within its own ranks more than from any for- m i th f tr) iaht" ulVIl. A p MArafa The S tured app ts ~Their But 4of a c level "Union peac .have: the t sittin :subst past :sTher( Abetw( :used Prem :the K Hous But "ever stop other must ideoli to the nam. ' As :count 'muni ideol ideol :,the h quick brok( r were politi prom Russian-Chnese detente? UST A FEW years ago, the pro- ponent. Eventually, there was no room )sition seemed as likely as Yassir for a solution. t meeting with Menachem Begin. Once any close contact between the oviet Union and China were pic- two countries was ended, a new game so far apart that, their bitter began. It became a game for world in-, y. and propagan geemed fluence, in which both sides collected ble of lasting forever.,-They even allies like points in a bridge game. The ed to sit down a, try to resolve game was played in Southeast Asia, differences. Africa, and in Western Europe. yesterday in a second floor room But the most dangerous playing field central Moscow guest house, low- was the United States. Both sides used representatives of the Soviet the United States as their chief target a and Chin- began their quest for for victory. When President Nixon e. And though the negotiators made his famous trip to Peking in 1972, failed to agree on an agenda for . the Chinese were elated because they alks, the mere fact that they are were now recognized as an important g in the same room represents a power in the world. That impression antial improvement from the was further reinforced when President animosity between the two sides. Carter recognized China at the begin- e is a chance for "co-existence" ning of this year. een the two superpowers-a term The Russians have had their vic- widely by the late Soviet tories too. The first strategic arms ier Nikita Khruschev to describe limitation treaty in 1972, and sub- remlin's relations with the White sequent technological and trade e. agreements between the two sides have increased the chances of world t before the new "detente" can peace as well as convincing the become a reality, both sides must Kremlin of its military parity with the throwing political darts at each United States. If the Senate ratifies , and their respective allies. They SALT II, it will be viewed as another search for solutions to their own win for the Kremlin. ogical squabble, and for answers Yet, during each interchange bet- e conflicts in Cambodia and Viet- ween one of the powers and the United States, the remaining member of the close allies in the 1950s, both Big Three quickly unleashes the tries pursued the goals of cdm- propaganda weaponry-whether it be ism, deliberating often to iron out posters in Peking or news dispatches in ogical and political policies. The Tass. ogical disputes loomed so large in If the two sides are ever going to ate 1950s that relations began to resolve their differences, ly deteriorate, until ties were the propaganda warfare must end. In en in the early 1960s. Both nations addition, both sides must keep their lead by stubborn and deep ideological disputes separate and cal thinkers who viewed com- combine efforts to search for world ise as surrendering to the op- peace. described as counterteit. s The long cherished goal of meeting Midwest oil shortages with domestic crude from Alaska-a key part of Project Independen- ce-is growing less attainable even as its staunchest supporters become more adamant in its behalf. Today, due to a series of unforseen developments, less and less of Alaska's booming output of oil is'going to the Midwest, where it was originally intended to do, and more and more is going to the West Coast, where there is already an abundance of domestic and Indonesian crude. THE PROSPECTS FOR any change in this pattern depend on a long series of "ifs" and "maybes" regarding Alaska's future output, the Midwest's future demand, and the economicviability of transporting the oil. Production of crude oil at the huge Alaskan Prudhoe Bay field, the largest in the U.S., is at an all-time high today. Yet during the first half of the year, deliveries of Alaskan oil to the Midwest declined by 50 per cent. The distribution began two years ago when oil first started to flow through the Trans- Alaskan pipeline, stretching 800 miles from Prudhoe Bay to the port city of Valdez in the southern part of the state. Most of this crude is tankered down to refineries on the West Coast, while a fraction of it makes the long and costly voyage through the Panama Canal to the Gulf Coast, and from there to the Midwest and East Coast. WHEN TIlE Trans-Alaskan pipeline project was debated by Congress in the early 70s, critics foresaw that the route contained no provisions for efficiently distributing the oil east of the Sierras. Proposals were made to build a pipeline through Canada into the American Midwest. But the oil companies developing the Prudhoe Bay field-principally Exxon and Atlantic Richfield-found it would be cheaper to tanker and unload the oil at their own West Coast refineries than to. build a pipeline through Canada. The lone exception was Sohio, owner of over 40 per cent of the north Alaskan field. With no refineries of its own on the West Coast, Sohio announced plans to build a tanker terminal at Long Beach, .and to pipe most of its oil--500,000 barrels a day-through a conver- Midwest needs Alaska's 0oil By Herb Fox barrels, partly because of the unexpectedly 1 high rise in the cost of foreign oil. They also claimed they now had a better understanding ' of the refining characteristics of the heavy and sulphurous Alaskan crude, and so could increase their refining capacity. . For Sohio, the willingness of West Coast refiners to buy more of its Alaskan oil meant a reduction in the surplus that had to be ship- ped through the Panama Canal. The company reduced its Panama run-and therefore, the amount of alaskan oil to reach the Mid- west-from 400,000 barrels a day to 200,000 barrels. Sohib now predicts that the surplus ' will drop to zero once North Slope production I begins to dwindle in 1990.1 AS THIS WAS happening on the West Coast, 1 Sohio received news from El Paso Natural Gas Company that the pipeline that it had planned to convert to carry oil East might not be available. Because of the reduction in its oil surplus, and the possibility of having to bear the cost of constructing a new pipeline, Sohio decided that the pipeline project was no longer profitable. In March, the oil firm dramatically announced its decision to drop the project. The timing of the Sohio announcement led critics to suspect that the giant British owned oil firm was really trying to pressure the federal government into approving a dif- ferent and more convenient scheme to supple oil to the cold regions of the country-the oil swap scheme with Japan and Mexico. This proposal involved exporting oil from Alaska to Japan, while Mexican oil ear- marked for Japan would simply be piped to the U.S. The swap would end the need for a costly transportation scheme for the Alaskan oil to the cold regions of the U.S. d THE OIL COMPANIES staked out at Prudhoe Bay would also benefit, of course, from a new, high revenue-earning export business. Ci n l rcanhrc.hvs n en Inan n.-cn~aA lO ces rn ie scracgn woria. the ban on oil exports would only be lifted "over my dead body." EXCEPT FOR DOME on-going prodding by Alaskan state officials, the three-way swap plan died at that meeting. Among the reasons for Congressional op- position to the oil swap is the fact that Mexican crude is more expensive than Alaskan, and a fear that Mexico's production output is unreliable. Congress is also aware of the public opposition that might arise were-it to approve the export of U.S. oil during an energy crisis. The only remaining prospect of delivering Alaskan crude to the Midwest involves con- structing a 1500 mile-pipeline from Port Angeles, in Washington state, to the Midwest. This is the only pipeline proposal likely to receive federal approval. This pipeline, dubbed the Northern Tier, is favored by the Department of Energy because it is the only proposed project to stay within the borders of the U.S. In mid-August, outgoing Energy Secretary} Schlesinger recommended that the Northern Tier pipeline proposal be granted an expedited review process by federal agencies. AND IT IS HERE that the "Catch 22"'-of long term oil forecasting comes in. Federal energy officialsbare now no longer confident that there will be enough oil available from Alaska-or enough demand from the Mid- west-to fill the huge projected pipeline capacity of over 900,000 barrels a day. In September an Energy Department report predicted that the "transportation deficit" that the pipeline would have to frill between 1.985 and 2000 would be "only" 130,000 barrels a day, partly due to supply to the Midwest from other areas. In addition; the Energy Department leas also forecast that the rate of return for in- vestors in the Northern Tier pipeline would-be extremely low. The backers of the pipeline proposal, led by U.S. Steel, thus might never get adequate financing for the one billion dollar project. Still, die-hard backers of using Alaskan oil in the Midwest are not about to give up even if the Northern Tier project falls thorugh. Michigan's Rep. Dingell is so convinced the idea will work that he has asked the Interstate a'ftI Foreign Commerce Committee to draw up legislation providing for a federally funded Lnna Beh .Ca -tn-Texas nineine nrniect EDITORIAL STAFF Sue Warner ................................EDITOR-IN-C(IIIEF Richard Berke, Julie Rovner...........MANAGING EDITORS Michael Arkush, Keith Richburg ..... EDITORIAL DIRECTORS " Brian Blanchard ........................ UNIVERSITY EDITOR jJudy Rakowsky ......................... ... CITY ED)ITOR Shelley Woison.................. PERSONNELDIREC'TOR Amy Saltzman ......................... FEATURES EDITOR 4 Leonard Bernstein ......... ............ SPECIAL PROJECTS R.J. Smith, Eric Zorn ........................... ARTS EDITORS rt t1 r SPORTS STAFF GEOFF LARCOM ............................... Sports Editor BILLY SAHN ..................... Executive Sports Editor BILLY NEFF ......................... Managing Sports Editor DAN PERRIN......................... Managing Sports Editor PHOTOGRAPHY STAFF MAUREEN O'MALLEY ................... Chief Photographer JIM KRUZ ................................. Staff Photographer I.A KI.AINER .......................... Staff Photographer