deep greens and blues
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Eighty years of editorial freedom
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan
Failure No. 3: The return of the stranger
by larry lempert1
420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Mich
News Phone: 764-0552
Editorials printed in The Michicon Doily express the individual opinions of staff writers
or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints.
THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 1971
NIGHT EDITOR: LYNN WEINER
The research referendum
IN THE wake of Senate Assembly's decis-
ion not to support the abolition of
war research at the University, opponents
of such research seem to be showing a
disturbing tendency to consider the issue
dead.
And to many of the students who back-
ed the anti-military research effort, the
Student Government Council referendum
on the issue has now become something of
a moot point.
One can understand the dejection
which naturally ensues when weeks of
organizing, fasting, and debating fail to
give the faculty representative body the
same. perception of classified research
that its opoonents have.
Yet it would be incorrect to assume that
the 31 Assembly members who opposed
an end to classified research have had
the last word on this crucial matter.
Such an assumption will only serve to pro-
vide supporters of war research with a
victory they have not yet won.
OVER THE next several weeks, the class-
ified research issue will continue to
be investigated by two faculty commit-
tees which will make recommendations to
the new Senate Assembly that convenes
in May.
With 20 new and undoubtedly younger
members being seated on Assembly at
that time, it is quite possible that t h e
political makeup of the faculty body may
shift slightly leftward. This has parti-
cular significance in light of Monday's
close vote on the research issue: Defeated
31-26, supporters of an end to classified
research would have won if only three
of their opponents had changed their
votes.
Thus, even though it is unlikely the
faculty committees will recommend any
substantial change in the current Uni-
versity guidelines on classified research,
the new Assembly might conceivably be
moved to do so. But such la move is un-
likely without a clear indication that the
views of their 31 colleagues in March are
not representative of the feeling in the
University community on the question of
classified and military research.
IN THIS LIGHT, the fact that over 30,-
000 members of the community will have
an opportunity to express their views on
the research issue in next week's refer-
endum has not declined, but actually in-
creased in importance by virtue of Sen-
ate Assembly's actions.
It is now imperative that all students
who oppose military and classified re-
search at the University clearly indicate
their beliefs in the referendum, recog-
nizing that the student body must give
a strong indication of its opposition in
order for that view to have weight with
the faculty and the Regents.
It seems fairly clear that a substantial
majority of the student body bears an
antipathy for the actions of American
forces in Indochina and would desire -i
end to University research which makes
U.S. soldiers more efficient killers in that
conflict.
Nevertheless, a similar referendum on
classified research was placed before the
student body in 1967, and was defeated
by a 4-3 margin, due to two major factors:
The traditionally low turnout of voters
in SGC elections (about 7,000 in 1967) and
an intensive effort by conservative groups
to mobilize all students not opposed to
classified and military research to vote in
the March, 1967, election. This effort was
not matched by tl3e opponents of such re-
search, and with less than a quarter of
the campus voting, the referendum lost.
If next week's referendum were simil-
arly defeated, there would clearly be no
chance for removing classified and mili-
tary research from the University in the
forseeable future. If the student body
is unable to demonstrate a concern for the
role of the University in the Indochina
War, the rest.of the campus can certain-
ly not be expected to.
IN A SENSE, therefore, the student body
is being put on the spot. This year,
as in 1967, a minority of students with
conservative leanings is attempting to
gather supoort for defeating the refer-
endum and thereby placing the student
body on record as being in favor of class-
ified and military research.
Their attempts can only be blocked by
a large turnout of student voters, com-
mitted to the belief that their university
should cease being an arm of the U.S.
war machine.
And only with an overwhelming pas-
sage of the research referendum will it
be nossible to prevent Senate Assembly's
decision to continue classified research
from being made permanent.
--ROBERT KRAFTOWITZ
Editor
JUSTIN THYME was s i t t i n g
behind his desk at The Daily
when Rege walked into the office.
Justin smiled at his skinny
friend but Rege Just sat down, de-
jected. His bearded face was
clouded by worry, as if he had just
destroyed an important exam or
gotten back a failing paper.
"He came back again," Rege an-
nounced. "And I got back my coat,
the one that was stolen."
"You don't seem too happy
about it," Justin observed.
"It seems empty now. It's my
third failure, Justin - I think,
somehow, I've blown it again."
Some words of explanation. As
Justin knew, every few months the
stranger parachuted into Rege's
world. He would appear out of no-
where t h en walk away, usually
dropping a remark as he went to
puncture Rege's confidence a n d
leave him confused and ashamed.
The stranger came in different
forms. The first time he was a
jumpy young man from Detroit
who broke up with his girlfriend
and wandered into Rege's room
looking for someone to talk to.
But Rege failed that first test -
he didn't trust the stranger and
kicked him out of the room.
So the next time, nearly a year
later, the visitor transformed him-
self into a mysterious crasher and
THEN, AFTER his two new
friends stayed over one night, Re-
ge's coat was missing in the morn-
ing. It was not out of spite, Jus-
tin said, when Rege came to him
bitterly. He preferred to see it as
retaliation for Rege's initial lack
of trust.
But-Rege was disillusioned and
started locking his door at home.
And he thought the issue was set-
tled until, several months later,
Bill returned.
"He came to the door at 6:30
a.m., hardly coherent and breath-
ing heavily. My roommate let him
in and when I came downstairs
this morning, there he was.
"Somehow, I looked at it as a
third chance," Rege told Justin.
'But I just didn't know how to
handle it. And worst of all, I felt
my lack of trust coming back and
even turning into fear."
"Why were you afraid?" asked
Justin.
Rege toyed with a glue bottle
on the d e s k, carefully avoiding
Justin's eyes, and went on without
answering.
"I called home for some advice.
My father put it pretty bluntly.
'You're a soft-hearted dope,' he
said. 'Ask him if he took the coat
and tell him you don't want him
to come around again.'
"SO I DECIDED to be brave.
Making sure that at least two
roommates were on call in the
kitchen, I woke Bill up and asked
him about the coat.
"'Oh yeah,' he said in a matter-
of-fact way. 'That was the other
guy who took the coat. You want
it back?'
"I was totally thrown off guard
"'I
'Let's4
get it
"We went, but I insisted that
my two roommates come too. We
drove to a large house, not run-
down but not in real good shape
either. And the three oftus waited
outside while Bill went in to get
the coat.
"Five minutes passed, ten min-
utes. I paced b a c k and forth,
wondering what we would do if he
didn't come out again.
"But he did, bringing the coat
with him. It had been lying in a
heap for a long time; it was all
crumpled up, and there was a
large tear where onepocket had
been partly ripped away.
"But Bill was still unabashed.,
He asked us for a ride back to
main campus. We drove b a c k
without speaking and, when Bill
jumped out of the car, my room-
mate said (much to my dismay at
his choice of words), 'We'll see-
ya.'
"'Yeah,' Bill answered, looking
at me wryly, 'now that you know
I'm honest.' And he walked
away.
"He had no right to say that,
Justin," Rege said defensively. "I
had good reason not to trust him.
Didn't I?"
"Yes, you did."
"But I still feel like I should
have."
"Well," said Justin, "at least
you're not a soft-hearted dope."
know where it is,' Bill said.
go get it now. You wanta go
now?'
by his manner. There was a little
bit of scorn in his voice but most-
ly he was laughing at me.
"'Yeah, I guess I do,' I said,
almost apologetically.
returned to take Rege's good win-
ter coat. Rege walked in at 5 a.m.
one morning and found him sound
asleep in the living room. Once
again, the immedidte reaction was
mistrust. He felt guilty and tried
to c o v e r up by welcoming the
stranger.
Oddly enough, the stranger ac-
cepted the half-hearted welcome
and came back several times. He
brought a friend named Bill, an
understanding seemed to develop'
and Rege thought his meager at-
tempt at trust had been well re-
warded.
4
t
'
Letters to The Daily
Senate Assembly
To The Daily:
WE LEARN the same ,esson
again and again. Working on the
not unreasonable assumption that
information will set us free, a sub-
stantial body of faculty and stu-
dents welcomed Michael Knox's
confirmation of what many of us
long suspected: despite the con-
promise of 1968. the University of
Michigan is still building up a
body-count in Indochina. A.med
with this knowledge, confident that
only a tiny fragment of either stu-
dents or faculty continues to sup-
port the war, making ourselves
visible through fast and red bend.
we framed resolutions of the ut-
most moderation and moved with
no little grace through the chan-
nels of the system.
Last Tuesday night was chas-
tening, but not absolutely disas-
trous. The rigid unresponsiveness
which characterizes "representa-
tive" government at the national
level was, not unsurprisingly, re-
flected at the level of the Senate
Assembly. Over 400 people watched
as membersdebated fractions of
phrases concerning another mat-
ter, despite their 'certain aware-
ness of what we had come for. And
the Assembly adjourned befoi'e a
vote could be taken.
So we workedhardfor the next
few days - more signatures (from
faculty, for was this not a repre-
sentative body?), more armbands.
On Monday afternoon we were
answered. The members of the as-
sembly know that research direct-
Ily related to the killing of human
beings is conducted at this Uni-
versity.
They know this and, by sending
the issue back to the old commit-
tees, they voted to support its con-
tinuance. Some of them will be
able to hide behind sophistical ra-
tionalizations, pretending not to
have done what they did. Others,
more honest, will affirm the duty
of this University to aid the gov-
ernments in its practices and poli-
cies no matter what they may be.
THE VOTE ON Monday was not
by roll call. It would be good to
know the names of those who feel
death should be financed and pro-
tected. I should like, at the very
least, to send them each Robert
Bly's poem, "The Teeth Mother
Naked At Last". In the hope that
some of them may read the Daily,
may I send them this one stanza.
to sweeten their days, , efresh their
sleep:
But if one of those children came
near that we have set on fire,
came toward you like a gray barn,
walking,
you would howl like a wind tunnel
in a hurricane
in a hurricane,
you would tear at your shirt with,
blue hands,
you would drive over your own
child's wagon trying to back up,
the pupils of your eyes would go
wild-
If a child came by burning, you
would dance on a lawn,
trying to walk intothe air, digging
into your cheeks,
you would ram your head against
the wall of your bedroom
like a bull penned too long in his
moody pen-
If one of those children came to-
ward me with both hands
in the air, fire rising along both
elbows,
I would suddenly go back to my
animal brain,
I would drop on all fours, scream-
ing,
my vocal chords would turn blue,
yours would too,
it would be two days before I could
play with my own children again.
--Marilyn B. Young
Lecturer, History Dept..
March 23
RIP on SGC
To The Daily:
I AM A member of the steering
committee of the Radical Inde-
pendent Party writing to express
our viewpoint on the upcoming
Student Government Council elec-
tions. First of all we feel that the
SGC election is important in the
fight for increased self determira-
tion of students and therefore en-
courage everyone to vote.
In evaluating the candidates we
urge voters to choose those who are
most radical, using our platform
as a guideline. Finally, we strong-
ly implore students to vote yes on
referendums three and four advo-
cating the end of classified
and military research at the Uni-
versity.
-Tami Minnich
Grad
March 24
Peace Treaty
To The Editor:
U.S. POLICY in Indochina is
an integral part of the global im-
perial strategy of the Nixon ad-
ministration, the Pentagon, the
multi-national corporations, and
their allies. As one means of ex-
pressing our condemnation of the
pattern of American foreign pol-
icy, we have signed the J o i n t
Treaty of Peace between the peo-
ple of the United States and the
people of South Vietnam and
North Vietnam - the "Peoples'
Peace Treaty"..
The American and Vietnamese
people ars not enemies. The war
is carried out in the names of the
people of the United States and
South Vietnam but without our
consent. The Americans must.
agree to immsdiate and total with-
drawal from Vietanm, and end the
imposition of the Thieu-Ky-Khiem
regime on the people of S o u t h
Vietnam in order to insure their
right to self-determination.
The strategy for the political,
military, economic and cultural
domination of Third World people
must be defeated.
By ratifying the agreement, we
pledge to take whatever actions
are appropriate to implement the
terms of this joint Treaty and to
insure its acceptance by the U.S.
government.
-The Brain Mistrust
March 22
JAMES WECHSLER.
Moynihan vs. press'
Ar
Improving on Anew
RETURNING TO HARVARD after his tour of duty on the good ship
Nixon, Daniel Patrick Moynihan has drafted a lengthy indictment
of American journalists, and especially those engaged in the business
of covering Washington.
His central charge seems to be that too many contemporary news-
papermen are too damn educated.
Writing in the current issue of Commentary, with a supportive ac-
companiment by editor Norman Podhoretz, Moynihan observe's:
"One's impression is that 20 years and more ago the preponderance
of the 'working press' (as it liked to call itself) was surprisingly close
in origins and attitudes to working people generally. They were not
Ivy Leaguers. They now are or soon will be." The profession has be-
come "elite," or "attractive to elites." And the "political consequence"- *
so Moynihan tells us with some ambiguous logic- of "the rising so-
cial status of journalism is that the press grows more and more influ-
enced by attitudes genuinely hostile to American society and American
government."
As one who left the Washington press corps just a little over 20
years ago, I find it hard to recall any proximity to the proletariat among.
those with whom I fraternized at the Press Club bar. Certainly most
of the men who were considered the elder statesmen of that era there
-Arthur Krock, Walter Lippmann, David Lawrence, Frank Kent, to
cite only a few-were never accused of being "surprisingly close in
origins and attitudes to working people generally." Nor was there any
conspicuous number of correspondents who had made their way from
the factory to the typewriter without pausing to obtain a college de-
gree.:
Funding student government
TRADITIONALLY, THE impact which
student governments have had on the
student body and University community
has been minimal and has come slowly.
For e x a m p 1 e, Student Government
Council's major accomplishment of the
last few years, the establishment of a
student-run bookstore, required months
of pressure before the bookstore was ap-
proved by the Regents. In addition, most
of the student governments of the 17
schools and c o 11 e g e s remain seriously
hampered and nearly useless because of a
lack of funds, resources and student in-
terest.
Yet, with their constitutencies' support,
student governments on this campus need
not remain stifled. With student approval
of a funding proposal appearing on next
week's SGC ballot, Council and the stu-
dent governments of the schools and col-
leges will be able to meet several impor-
tant student needs.
One of five referenda placed on the
ballot, the funding proposal asks that a
$1.85 per term per student assessment be
allocated SGC and the college govern-
ments. Under the plan, SGC would receive
85 cents and the remaining dollar would
go to the student government of the
voter's school or college.
While students may rightfully balk at
any proposed increase in their already
sky-rocketing expenses, they should real-
ize that the projects toward which their
funds would be directed are in their own
interest.
SGC PLANS TO begin work on a student-
run food co-op which would break the
c a m p u s food merchants monopoly on
campus food priJces. In addition, the add-
of the depths of student commitment to
the issue.
The m o n e y the .college governments
would receive, if the referendum is passed,
would also increase their effectiveness.
Many of these bodies do not presently
receive funds and, according to many
members of these councils, their effec-
tiveness is reflected accordingly. Some
governments r e c e i v e "discretionary"
grants from their deans, a system which
further limits their autonomy.
According to a plan proposal at a re-
cent intergovernmental symposium, the
new funds to the school and college gov-
ernments would be used for direct and
quicker services for students, recruiting
projects a i m e d at attracting minority
student groups to the school, new courses
lecture series and course evaluations.
OPPONENTS OF the proposal have dis-
agreed with SGC's $1.85 allocation,
saying SGC is not able to wisely use its
present money. They point to instances
when the council has given sums to po-
litical p a r t i e s, and to radical groups
which they say are not in the interest of
the majority of students.
However, along with the funding ref-
erenda, students will also be voting for a
new group of SGC members. Students
should vote for those candidates they feel
can maturely handle the added funds. A
vote against the added money can only
limit the new council's effectiveness.
Opponents to the funding plan also
claim that some students who are re-
ceiving financial aid or supporting them-
selves are strictly unable to bear any new
assessment. To resolve this, SGC can
arrange to loan money to these students.
Yet Moynihan's view of modern journalistic history is blandly ac-
cepted by Podhoretz in his prefatory remarks:
But if Mr. Moynihan is right in stressing the influence of the
adversary culture on the reporting of public affairs, he is also right, I
think, in seeing the growth of this influence as a relatively recent de-
velopment-a consequence of the entry into the journalistic profession
of increasing numbers of highly educated people." Such characters,
Podhoretz and Moyinhan agree-and especially those exposed to Ivy
League training-are prone, in Podhoretz' words, to be "actually at
war with the values and premises of bourgeois or middle-class society."
An initial reaction to the Moynihan-Podhoretz duet is to wish that
much of it were true-particularly with respect to the scope of journ-
alistic skepticism and independence. A second thought is to wonder
whether they have lost the capacity to differentiate between Tom
Wicker and Tom Hayden or between Ed Morgan and Jerry Rubin.
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ANYONE WHO witnessed the most recent Presidential news con-
ference (in which, for example, not a single question was raised about
the oppressive censorship blanketing the Laotian operation) will find
it hard to reconcile what they saw and heard with any portrait of cru-
sading journalism at war with the government.
Certainly there have been instances of irresponsible reporting in
this and other Administrations; The Times will have to speak for it-
self with regard to Moynihan's two isolated allegations of coverage in
which he contends the Administration's racial policies were unfairly
treated.
But the crucial fact about the last six years is acknowledged by
Moynihan himself.
"How is it then thet this relationship (between President and
press) has lately grown so troubled? The immediate answer, of course,
is that war in Vietnam. An undeclared war, unwanted, misunderstood
or not understood at all, entailed a massive deception of the American
people by their government . . . the essential fact was that of de-
ceit . . "
But, having further asserted that a measure of secrecy was "en-
demic to the cold war" long before Vietnam, Moyinhan proceeds to a
lengthy discourse on other aspects of the Presidential-press problem.
Too often "leaks" are promoted by rival bureaucrats and indiscrim-
imately transmitted. Too often Senatorial speeches (as in the case of
the late Joseph McCarthy) are overplayed 'long after the veracity of
the orator has been exploded. Too often government officials fail to
answer back when unjustly criticized.
Much of that is as valid as it is unoriginal. But it muddles the
transcendent ract he has already conceded-the massive rrauds e-
bodied in the Vietnam war.
WAS JOURNALISM guilty of excessive exposure of those frauds?
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