QrM'tr Lirl!an 4ai Eighty-Four Years of Editorial Freedom Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan INFORMATION BOARD On access to administrative information 420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Mi. 48104 News Phone: 764-0552 WEDNESDAY, APRIL 17, 1974 Once again the salary issue By JOHN LANDE INFORMATION is incredible stuff. You can't see it, touch it, smell it or any of that, but spies live and die for it; govern- ments set up massive bureaucra- cies to collect and protect it; cor- porations run their entire opera- tions on it and LSA is in the pro- cess of setting up several sophis- ticated information systems of its own. COUNSELING The Counseling Office has re- ceived a grant of approximately 1$200,000 to create an informa- Ition system which will automati- ,cally check students' records each term for satisfaction of their grad- uation requirements, 2) aide in multi-term student planning of their programs and 3) serve as a list of faculty interests which could help students find and contact fa- culity who share their interests. This system should begin full op- erations by 1977. The Checkpoint system of phone- in academic information has been an important improvement in pro- viding us with relevant and up-to- date information. You have already payed for it. Use it. Both of these systems provide the possibility of much improved academic advising. Two notes of caution: These and other informa- tion systems are worthless to you unless you use them. When you do use these facilities, remember that they are fallible. If you have some reason to doubt them, there is us- ually some place where you can check the information. The Stu- dent Counseling Office (1018 An- gell Hall, 763-1552) and 76-GUIDE are good places to start. If you do find inaccurate information, help other students by calling in to correct it. TEACHING While great progress is being made in providing students with good academic advising informa- tion, nothing is being done to pro- vide students with good informa- tion about teaching. The Student Counseling Office provides some help here, but is unable to provide complete in- formation because of its size. Some but not all departments collect student course evaluation information, but it is generally not designed to serve students' inter- ests nor is it generally available to students. A College Information System now in the planning stage is being designed to include information about faculty for budgetary a n d hiring purposes. Preliminary in- dications are that student course evaluation and other information relevant to students is not being planned into the system, although feasible both in terms of economics and design. The System is currently being planned on a relatively small scale, with the intention of building it up in steps, and it is therefore legi- AST MONTH, Eastern Michigan Uni- versity (EMU) became the fourth iblic college in the state to announce ill disclosure of its employes' salary. in- rmation. The resolution by Eastern's oard of Regents was in accordance with n opinion issued last August by Michi- an Atty. Gen. Frank Kelley. The action by EMU brings the heat of 1e law a little closer to Ann Arbor, here our own Regents will vote Friday i a newly reintroduced proposal from erald Dunn (D-Livonia) to publish all ,lary data, including names, numbers, des, sexes, and terms of services for all. niversity employes. Regent Dunn first offered his proposal the September 1973 meeting, following elley's ruling that salary information at ate schools is "subject to examination, spection and copying by any member the public for any lawful purpose." At that time, neither President Robben .eming nor the Regents appeared moved r the attorney general's opinion. Uni- rsity General Counsel Roderick Daane Hinted out that such a ruling from elley does not carry the full weight of w, and can be superceded by the de- sion of a state or federal court. Fleming rgued that the two private audits of all niversity funds, conducted annually, re all the "public inspection" that a ate university needs. Regent Deane Baker (R-Ann Arbor) ven suggested in September that stu- mts demanding salary data publication Zould be equally willing to publish their wn grades. But foremost in the ad- .inistration's defense of nondisclosure as the faculty Senate Assembly's re- peated objections to lists. published salary SOME OF THE University's arguments bear consideration and some do not. It is true that open salary information may not promote harmony among sup- posedly "competing" faculty members within departments. But the University is supported by the state of Michigan; salaries are not paid out of the profits of private managers, but by the tax- payers. Moreover, Michigan State University, Delta College, and Saginaw Valley College have all published full salary information, and to date there have been no visibe signs of infighting or outcry from the faculties of those schools. Regent Baker's comment on concurrent disclosure of students' grades, which President Fleming more recently echoed in a speech on ethics in University decision-making, has no place in an in- telligent debate on this issue. Baker and Fleming suggest that students' compara- tive academic records-achieved while paying to attend the University-are no different from the records and salaries of state employes paid out of monies contributed almost solely by the taxpay- ers. This is ludicrous; it is as if to say that the records of a hospital administrator should only become public when the medical records of the hospital's patients become public as well. The contention that Kelley's ruling does not yet hold force of law is a correct one, but the only court actions in this matter-those taken to force disclosure at Saginaw Valley College-were clearly opposed to the University's position. IN THE PAST few years, The Daily and other concerned campus groups have argued that full disclosure would bring public attention upon salary inequities based solely on race, sex, and professors' occasional "big name" status-fat pay- checks given to staffers whose main function is publicity for the school. Repeatedly we have been offered the Watergate defense: the inequities do not exist, but it is not within the University's obligation to present the evidence, we are told. Faced with this rationale, we can not help but be suspicious Hopefully the University will not choose, like President Nixon, to await prosecution before opening its records. We urge the Regents to vote in favor of the open salaries proposal. THE DAILY STAFF TODAY'S STAFF: News: Barb Cornell, Ted Evanoff, Cindy Hill, Judy Ruskin, Stephen Selbst, Sue Stephenson, Diane Tremblay, David Whiting Editorial Page: Paul Haskins Arts Page: David Blomquist, Sara Rimer timate to exclude important in- formation initially. It should be designed now with the capability of including various kinds of in- formation when the system be- comes fully operational. It is there- fore important to make suggestions as to what kinds of information should be created and maintained while the system is still being de- signed and press to include it when the system beings operating. Sen- ior Administrative Assistant Caro- lyn Copeland (2512 LSA, 763-3275) is directly responsible for this pro- ject and if there is any informa- tion about this College that y o u think ought to be regularly collect- ed, call her. AVAILABILITY OF ALREADY CREATED INFORMATION In the process of researching this series we attempted to get a num- ber of different documents. Some that are publicly available include: the University Financial Report which includes an accounting of revenue and expenditures (avail- able in the Controller's office, 3032 Administration Building); the Registrar's Report, which contains information describing registered students (available in the Office of the Registrar, 1528 LSA); the Report of the Committee on the Underslass Experience (CUE), available in the dean's office, 2522 LSA; and regular reports of the College Executive Committee (available at monthly faculty meet- ings, the first Monday of every month of the academic year). Some of the information n o t available to the public includes: ,* information compiled by the .Office of Institutional Research in the College Resource Analysis System (CRAS) that could be used to compare instructional cost inputs between different levels of stu- dents (e.g., graduate and under- graduate, and freshperson and sen- ior), between departments and much more, presumably because it it not in the "College's interests". * the College budget, because it contains individual faculty sal- aries (to give you an idea how much the University does not want to disclose faculty salaries.) * the College's Annual Report, presumably because it was written for the President and was not in- tended for students (a public re- lations pamphlet of excerpts from the 1973 report is available from the Dean's Office, 2522 LSA, 764- 0321), and * the outline of information to be included in the new College Information System, because it is still in the planning stage. There is no formal policy on the disclosure of academic informa- tion on either the College or Uni- versity level. These decisions are made entirely by the Dean and the Vice President for academic af- fairs, respectively on the basis of their understanding of the Col- lege's and University's interests. If there is information about the op- eration of the College or Univer- sity that you think is important, remind them that we are neither a government at war nor a business in a competitive market. This is a public University. CREATION OF NEW INFORMATION The new College Information System should begin operating by the beginning of 1975. No plans have been made for the adminis- tration of this system, which can be of great importance to students. As another example of its poten- tial to further students' interests, a measure of general satisfaction with the College might be included in the system. A police board of equal student and faculty membership should be established to constantly monitor and improve the quality of the sys- tem. If you want to help ensure the creation of the Information Board with student-faculty parity, or if your would like to serve on the board, call John Lande, LS&A Stu- dent Government, 763-3242. Two Palestinians in Israel: No hope in the promised land mir4t,"galt Batly Editorial Staff DANTI BIDDLE Editor in Chief JUDY RUSKIN and REBECCA WARNER Managing Editors TONY SCHWARTZ.................Sunday Editor MARTIN PORTER.................Sunday Editor SUE STEPHENSON.................Feature Editor MARNIE HEYN.................. Editorial Director CINDY HILL.................... Executive Editor KENNETH PINK. ............ ...Arts Editor STAFF WRITERS: Prakash Aswani, Gordon Atcheson, Laura Berman, Dan Biugerman, Howard Brick, Bonnie Carnes, Charles Coleman, Barb Cornell, Jeff Day, Della DiPletro, Mike Duweck Ted Evan- off, Matt Gerson, William Heenan, Steve Hersch, Jack Krost, Andrea Lilly, Mary Long, Jean Love, Jeff Luxenberg, Josephir* Marcotty, Beth Nissen, Cheryl Pilate, Ann Rauma, Sara Rimer, Jim Schuster, Bob Seidenstein, Stephen Selbst, Chip Sinclair, Jeff Sorensen, David Stoll, Paul Ter- williger. DAILY WEATHER BUREAU: William Marino and Den- nis Dismachek (forecasters) Sports Staff MARC FELDMAN Sports Editor GEORGE HASTINGS Executive Sports Editor Managing Sports Editor ..........ROGER ROSSITER Associate Sports Editor ...............JOHN KAHLER Contributing Sports Editor ......CLARKE COGUSJILL Contributing Sports Editor .......THERESA SWEDO Photography Staff THOMAS GOTTLIEB Chief Photographer KEN FINK ...................... Staff Photographer STUART HOLLANDER...........Staff Photographer KAREN KASMAUSKI ....... .... Staff Photographer DAVID MARGOLICK............ Staff Photographer ALLISON RUTTAN.............. Staff Photographer JOHN UPTON..................Staff Photographer By PAUL O'DONNELL "WE ARE Palestinians, but our homeland is occupied by the Israelis. We are Arabs, but we aren't permitted to travel to other Arab nations . . ." These were among the comments that came out in the course of my conversa- tions with a Palestinian couple, citizens of Israel, who live and study in Barcelona. When told that I intended to develop our conversations into a newspaper article, their only requests were that I not use their real names, and that no picture of them be included in the article. "What should I call you, then?" was my first question when they explained that the Palestinian or- ganization in Barcelona had ad- vised them against using their real names, for security reasons. "Call us Nuha and Huseen. They are typical Palestinian names." Nuha and Huseen are in their early twenties, and like myself, study at the University of Barce- lona, she in the Literary School and he in the Medical School. The conversations upon which I bas- ed this article took place at the University, asd later in their ap- 4rtment in Western Barcelona. My interest in them as Palestin- ians stems from a desire to un- derstand the Mideast conflict in as many of its facets as possible. Though a number of events, among them the "Black September" kil- lings and the last Arab-Israeli war, it has become increasingly evident that the Mideast conflict is not only a confrontation between Is- raeli and her allies and the Arab nations and their allies. The prob- lem is not, however, recent. The Palestinians have been living in what they call "occupied terri- tory" since the late 1940's, when the state of Israel was first creat- ed by United Nations proclamation. According to one Spanish source, Israel occupied over 70 per cent of Palestine territory in 1948. How Palestine became Israel, the fu- ture of the Palestinian people, the ^rsonal feelings of these two Palestinians with Israeli passports; these and many other subjects were touched upon during the hours we spent talking, having lunch, and drinking Palestinian tea in their apartment, often in the com- pany of other Arab friends. O'DONNELL: You are both Is- raeli citizens, but what were your parents? Huseen: My parents were both Palestinian citizens, when o u r country was under British con- trol. There is no problem for my mother, who is Jewish, to have an Israeli passport, but my father kept his old Palestinian passport . . . I believe it was valid until 1956 .. . O'Donnell: Do you consider your case to be unusual, being the son of an Arab father and a Jewish mother? Huseen: My parents married be- fore the Israeli occupation, in the early forties, it seems to me, and back then there was less tension between Arabs and Jews, although the parents of my mother held lit- tle affection for my father, and often wished that he would die. For the most part, however, Jews and Arabs lived in peace in Pales- ine. O'Donnell: Do you feel like fore- igners in your homeland? Huseen: No, I feel at home in Palestine, they (the Israelis) are the foreigners, the occupiers of my country. I do, however, feel a certain lack of freedom in Pales- tine. O'Donnell: Despite your opinion that Israel unjustly occupies Pal- estine, do you recognize the plight of the Jewish people throughout history, and the tremendous perse- cution the Jews have suffered in such places as Nazi Germany? HUSEEN: I'm afraid that I'm I not very favorable to the Israeli tide practiced in Nazi Germany and the situation of the Palestin- ians in Israel, but I assume that in the Arab-Israeli conflict, like in most wars, atrocities are commit- ted on both sides. Nuha: You may be right, but I've heard so much government propa- ganda involving the treatment of the Jews, that I've lost my sym- pathy for them. The atrocities committed against the Palestinians are never publicized. O'Donnell: I'm afraid that if I print some of your comments I'll be unjustly accused of anti-Semi- tism . O'Donnell: What is your opin- ion of the airplane hijackings, the "Black September" killings, and other "terrorist" type tactics of certain Palestinian commandos? NUHA: I am against them in principle, because innocent people are often the victims . . . I don't condone the killings and terrorism, but I understand why the "feya- dins" use them: it's one of the only ways to keep the world from forgetting about the Palestinians ... since the last war, in Octo- ber, people have begun to talk about Palestine. O'Donnell: In your opinion, to what degree are the English re- sponsible for the situation? Huseen: It was the Briton Lord Balfour who originally proposed the creatior nofca Jewish National Home in Palestine, back in the Jews and Arabs lived in peace in Palestine --... Huseen: Yes, a Palestinian na- tion in which Jews, Arabs, and Christians lived in equality would be the best solution, if it's pos- sible . . . O'Donnell: What about your friends? Arabs, Jews, Spaniards? Huseen: All kinds, Jews, Egyp- tians, Spanish, and of course Amer- ican. Nuha: I would have many boy- friends if Huseen would let me . . (general laughter). O'Donnell: I can see that the interview is deteriorating. Nuha: In Israel we say: Dayan: one eye in the Sinai" Huseen: If he had two eyes, he would have taken El Cairo. WHEN I stopped taking notes, the conversation flowed more free- ly. The reason was evident: as Nuha said, "a journalist scares people." After the interview was over, I researched the Palestinian question in preparation for, this ar- tide. I realized that although the factual information given by Nuha and Huseen, except cerain dates, is for the most accurate, t h e i r opinions could bewhardly consid- ered unbiased. Few persons, how- ever, have unbiased opinions about the Mideast conflict, and most of the American press seems to be extremely pro-Israel. The problem, in my opinion, won't be solved by choosing sides and sending arms .. . I have sympathy for anyone who suffers, but the Jews use their suffering in the past to justify their persecution of the Palestinians in the present . . . I've heard so much government propaganda involving the treatment of the Jews, that I've lost my sympathy for them . *,." ,vr{ .{,{ yy r:::}:ir j Atrr.. ..............rxYirst; ,r:R¢:"{"ir..-t ..........:"i i Letters -to, Connors To The Daily: THE "ERROR" THAT Edward J. Connors committed in embez- zling $8,000 in University Hospital Funds seems to me to be closer to being a "sin" than a "mistake" (both are found under "error" in Webster's Dictionary). A man who steals $200 because his children need shoes has his day in court and frequently goes to jail. Is this man, earning probab- ly $40,000 or $50,000 a year, who steals $8,000 from a hospital which is running in the red ever to face' a court? The amount may seem petty in the world of embezzling, but many are feeding their fami- lies on less than that $8,000. It would seem that because he has offered to pay the money back he is absolved. A man coming out the back of a house with $200 in his hand would not be praised by the officer who stopped him if he said he'd give it back. Is Mr. Con- nors' major crime that he got caught? It seems to me that peo- ple given higher trusts in this so- ciety should be held more highly accountable. CERTAINLY IT is true that "few of us go through life without making a mistake," but to credit the man with strength, courage and forthrightness is really too much. Are we living in Washing- ton, D.C.? One might think we should pin a medal on him and follow his example in hopes of winning the praises of Mr. Flem- ming and Dean Gronvall. -Evelyn Bradley Clemency To The Daily: TWELVE INDIAN writer, film- makers, and journalists were se- The Dail cretly arrested last year and charg- ed with plotting to assassmnate the Shah and kidnap three members of the royal family: The arrests were not .announced by the Iranian gov- ernment until October 3, 191. Five of the twelve are senten ted to death. A group of American writers, including Kurt Vonnegut Jr. and Noam thomsky sent a letter to the New York ;Times, urging the release of the twelve Iranians obo had been "arbitrarily arrested and brought before a military tribunal solely on the basis of confessions obtained after torture." A press counselor of the Iranian Embassy in Washington resp'nded, saying t"in Iran, as in any other nation, a person who is found guilty of a crime by the courts or who is found to threaten the se- curity of a nation is treated in a manner which will insure that he will no longer be a threat to, or continue to disrupt, the society in which he lives." THE COMMITTEE for Artistic and Intellectual Freedom in Iran, who are \organizing the defense campaign to save the lives of the five condemned to death and free all twelve artists, are urging people to send letters, telegrams, a n d cables to protest this injustice. The Young Socialist Alliance sent the following telegram: "We strongly urge clemency in the cases of the twelve Iranian writers, filmmakers, and journal. ists, sentenced to death and to prison terms. Similar messages can be direct- ed to: Amir Abbas Iloveida, Prime Minister, Teheran - Iran; or, Arde- shir Zahedi, Ambassador, Embas- sy of Iran, Washington, D.C. --Deborah Mutnick Young Socialist Alliance Photo Technicion: Allison Ruttan early 1920's, or perhaps it was in 1917 . . . Many Jews talk about the "good old days" when the Brit- ish controlled the country. T h e English just wanted to get out of there at the end . . . Palestine was never hostile to Jewish immigra- tion, however; for example, there was immigration of Jews from Russia as far back as 1880, some reports say.. Nuha: I don't blame only the English. All the countries who ex- pelled the Jews or persecuted them are responsible, as well as Is- rael's allies. When the Jews were expelled from one country, where could they go? Many of them came to Palestine. Author's note: It gives added historical depth to the persecu- tion of Jews to note .that the Spanish Government - under Ferdinand and Isabel, the Catho- lic Kings, - ordered the expul- sion of all Jewish persons from Spain in 1492, the same year that the last Arab kingdom in Spain, Granada, was conquered by Christian forces. According to certain sources, Columbus was on his way to America when the Jewish expulsion was ordered.) O'DONNELL: Why did you choose Spain? Huseen: When I left my home- land, I wanted to go to a country which doesn't have diplomatic re- lations with Israel. In a country like France or the U.S., Zionist groups might try to force me to support the Israeli cause. If I lived in America, my tax money would be used for Israel's war ef- forts . . . Here, I can live cheap- ly and independently. The quality of the Medical School is not, how- ever, very high in my opinion; it's always closed by the police as well. Nuha: I had planned to go to the Soviet Union to study, then Huseen and I would have gotten married after we finished our stu- dies . . . but then he wrote me to the army of your choice. It is difficult to be pro-Jew and pro- Palestinian at the same time. Nevertheless, the importance of the Palestinian conflict in the so- lution of the Mideast crises, which have four times in the past twen- ty-five years erupted into war- fare, is unquestionable. As Hik- met El Masri, former president of the Jordanian Assembly, once said: "Nothing will ever be set- tled in this part of the world if the rights of the Palestiniansare ignored." Paul O'Donnell is foreign cor- respondent for the Michigan Daily. WPY,X CANT 1LI.. YU ANV MORE! iAr woumewI w ~ I/4cAt! 6 ~~pWILEU. PAMEIIO MILj '141 RW'\N\l