Vpe £irtaan aibj Eighty-two years of editorial freedom Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan Grade gallows: Gird up for a gut issue r 420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Mich. News Phone: 764-0552 Editoriols printed in The Michigan Doily express the individual opinions of staff writers or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints. SUNDAY, OCTOBER 29, 1972 Vote 4 A WEEK FROM Tuesday America will go to the polls to elect a President, and the choice facing the voters will be the most explicit in four decades. The choice is a fundamental one-be- tween a man who desires to preserve the status quo, and a man who would like a substantial reordering of national priori- ties. It is a choice between a man firmly aligned with the powerful interests that presently dominate the economy and so- ciety, and a man who questions whether those interests deserve their positions of power., The choice is clear, and our choice is George McGovern. Let us take a look at the performance of the incumbent - a performance that rates, in any terms, as a national disgrace. THE VIETNAM War has continued - only now there are thousands more lying in graves, millions more uprooted from their h o m e s, and billions more poured through an ever-widening drain. The latest news is that a peace settlement is near-four years too late. In the field of economics, the record speaks for itself. It doesn't take a coun- cil of economic advisors to know that prices are g o in g through the ceiling. Meanwhile, our b o o m i n g "recovery" doesn't seem to have lowered unemploy- ment significantly. But the administra- tion's economic policies have done one thing-they have raised profits to heights unscaled for a decade. While the economic policies have been benefitting the wealthy few at the ex- pense of people who are trying to make an honest living, the administration and the office of the President have been tainted with the odor of malfeasance and corruption. Among the more dubious actions of the administration have been the ITT affair, the $10 million secret re-election fund, the Watergate break-in, and the Soviet wheat deal. In his line of official duties, the Presi- dent also has a scrapbook full of sad "accomplishments." He vetoed a day care bill because it would have established too big a bureauc- racy. He vetoed a water pollution bill because it was too extravagant. He pocket vetoed nine more bills, in- cluding a $30 billion health, education and welfare appropriation, just last week. And he's considering vetoing the edu- cation bill-but will probably wait until after election day. He has debased the Supreme Court with incompetent nominees such as Clement Haynsworth and G. Harrold Carswell. One Today's staff: News: Prakash Aswani, Tammy Jacobs, Diane Levick, Paul Travis, Ralph Vartabedian Editorial Page: Arthur Lerner Arts Page: Gloria Jane Smith Photo technician: Karen Kasmauski c Govern wonders if he could have done better by throwing darts at a phone book. While he harangued about the need for law and order, he approved the illegal arrests of over 10,000 people in May, 1971. ON THE ELECTION trail this year, the President has sought to inflame and expand the issue of school busing. In- stead of trying to promote unity and un- derstanding in the American people, the President exploits their fears and pre- j udices. In the one area where he has seem- ingly done something constructive and praiseworthy-in our relations with the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union-a closer look will reveal that the President has been forced to move be- cause of a changing international scene. His choice would have been to maintain exclusive world power for the United States-not only in the political, but in the military and economic spheres as well. But times have changed since the days when, as a U.S. senator, he tracked down "Communist subversives." So now he must seek friendlier relations with these countries - again with maximum exposure to the American public. Now let us look at the alternative. GEORGE McGOVERN is certainly no knight in shining armor. Indeed, his recent endorsement of Chicago's Edward Hanrahan - involved in the slayings of two Black Panthers there three years ago --his support of parochiaid, his waffling on the issue of abortion, and other actions have led many to turn away from his candidacy. But G e o r g e McGovern represents a fundamental alternative to Richard Nix- on-he is a person who would act in the interest of the citizens, rather than one whose every move is made to further en- trench his power. In the international arena, a President McGovern would end our support of cor- rupt dictatorships, and would reduce the present mania which says we must be the "supreme power." We would no longer have a President reinforcing racism with harsh opposition to busing; a President more concerned with football strategy than with impor- tant issues; a President who feels that it is his prerogative to throw people out of work in order to "stop the inflationary spiral." WE WOULD HAVE a President commit- ted to the notion that every American capable of working be guaranteed a job, and dedicated to the idea that the gov- ernment should operate for the benefit of all Americans, and not just the wealthy few who contribute to the incumbent's campaign coffers. Although McGovern is far behind in the polls, every vote for him is a vote for a rational reordering of national priori- ties-either now or in the future. We wholeheartedly urge you to cast your vote on Nov. 7 for George McGovern. This endorsement represents the unani- mous opinion of The Daily's editorial staff. e4 -' l EDITOR'S NOTE-This is the third in a series of articles discussing academic reform-including both faculty and student problems-in the literary college. By JOHN REVITTE HIS TUESDAY in a college-wide referen- dum, students will be asked to indicate the grading system they consider the best for the literary college. Then, at the No- vember faculty meeting, a vote will be taken on whether to send this same referen- dum to all of the faculty members for a final decision. These events are occurring after years of consideration by committees of students and faculty members of the college, from which various proposals for grading reform have been produced. On the referendum, there will be four policy proposals to choose from, and addi- tional space for individuals to suggest their own recommendations. Except for the pro- posal to retain the present grading system, they all suggest that failing grades not be recorded on students' transcripts in the future, and that pass-no record grading be utilized more in the college. However, be- yond this there are important differences. THE CURRICULUM COMMITTEE pro- posal envisions a policy of multiple choices for instructors (pass-no record, and A, B, C, D-no record, with optional pluses and minuses and student choices concerning the method of recording grades by the regis- trar-including A, B, C, D-no record, A, B, C-no record and pass-no record. The proposal of the Committee on the Underclass Experience (CUE) recommends instead that all 100 and 200-level courses be pass-no record, that students in their first two years be allowed to take upper- level courses either pass-no record or A, B, C, D-no record, with a limited pass-no record option available for the junior and senior years. The proposal called the "merger" (cur- rently being studied by the Student-Faculty Policy Committee) combines these two pro- posals by instituting pass-no record in all 100 and 200 level courses and adds the mul- tiple options for instructors and students in all other courses. While all three have merit, CUE feels that its proposal is the only one that effec- tively answers the most important questions regarding grading and education, while at the same time not raising new problems that might become counter-productive in the future. course of action is at this time unwise. graded student will not be so likely to limit WITH ITS PROPOSAL, CUE has advo- cated a coherent, non-graded environment for the first and second years of the literary college experience-work that is of lesser importance to future job, career, or gradu- ate school admission, but of tremendous importance to the goal of a liberal arts' education. Presently the fear of low grades often prevents students from f r e e ly exploring areas of interest and obtaining needed skills when they feel ill-prepared in a particular discipline. On the ,other hand, the non- "Well, I'm not sure if I should take 101 or 303. 101 is graded on a A, B, C, D-no record basis and I could take it pass-no record, but maybe I might get a B in it ... But then again, 303 has pluses and minuses and I might be able to pull a B-plus or something . Y::::: "T :A 1 :"M : tit :{":L"::{T Y:":'."'.": :::"::"! :1111111;::: : ;.:: ;:: ::::::::: :: :a :. : : -::::-:a.....:.::: . .. ..... ....:................ ..........:...... rather than the pursuit of grades. Such a change could only improve relationships among students and faculty as it reduced the adversary aspects of grading. Unfortunately, a system of options, as in the Curriculum Committee proposal, while improving conditions in some courses, would make the over-all four year situation much worse. In addition to the problems of stu- dents balancing their graded and non-graded courses, confusion would increase as - in- structors and students tried to decide which grading scheme they would use in their particular courses. Time is now wasted with counselors on questions like "How can I get out of this requirement?" Instead, there would -be long discussions on grading systems: "Well, I'm not sure if I should take 101 or 303. 101 is graded on a A, B, C, D-no record basis and I could take it pass-no record, but maybe I might get a B in it. . . But then again, 303 has pluses and minuses and I might be able to pull a B-plus or some- thing ." Such a process would produce a new and even greater focusing on the grade rather than on learning. THE CUE PROPOSAL is a deliberate attempt to improve the educational en- vironment of the literary college, not an administrative move to reverse current trends toward higher grades. Though it does not go as far as other positions (and somenmay favor the "merger" for this reason), it does present a well-reasoned, coherent alternative to the present system. Students can learn more about these pro- posals at Monday night's forum in Aud. A at 8:30, and also make sure they vote on this important referendum issue during this week's student elections. John Revitte is an educational change advocate in the Office of Special Services and rograms. In particular, the multiplicity of options (of the Curriculum Committee and "mer- ger" proposals) may turn out to be a step away from improving education, since they will still place students in the position of having some courses pass-no record while others are graded in the traditional manner. As is the case with the present limited pass-fail option, the student is forced to give the graded courses her primary atten- tion even though they may not be the ones the student feels are most important to her education. Obviously the way to completely alleviate this problem would be to have all courses non-graded. H o w e v e r, since graduate schools still attach so much importance to grades in the last two years of undergradu- ate work, especially in the student's area of concentration, CUE feels that such a herself to the areas in which she has pre- viously succeeded; thus the student will be able to take courses according to interests, not just according to expectations of suc- cess. Additionally, by making the first two years of college a non-graded experience, students and faculty would be given the opportunity to direct more attention to the content of education, and less to its forms. ("Would you recommend this course or not?" "Well I got a B-plus out of it." Too much time and effort is wasted- on this grading process-and an education that means only a 3.7 or 2.8 is of little use to students' lives and a misuse of faculty time and taxpayers' monies. A NON-GRADED ENVIRONMENT would re-direct student interest, motivation, and energy toward the pursuit of knowledge Spinning the strategic spending wheel By RICHARD WEINBERG DAVID FRADIN, in the Oct. 14 Daily, tried to show that there has been a change in federal pri- orities, suggesting that a lower proportion of government re- sources is devoted to the military than at any time since 1951. The Nixon administration has claimed credit for being the first in 20 years to spend more on "so- cial" than military goods. He presented a mass of statistics on the share of the nation's re- sources devoted to the military. The set of figures was so expan- sive that a reply must focus on one key element of his analysis. Fradin wrote: "This year social and economic spending will be $145 billion and defense spending will be $44 billion." He has since indicated that this is in "1958 dollars," though this was not mentioned in his article. Moreover, regardless of w h a t year's dollars it is in, his citation of $3.30 of "social spending" for every "defense dollar" is a gross misstatement of the facts. A GLANCE at the federal budget for fiscal year 1973 yields the fol- lowing breakdown: -Military related expenditures, $78.3 billion; -Human resource programs (veterans benefits, health, educa- tion and welfare), $54.4 billion; -Social Security, $56.4 billion; -Physical resources (commerce and transportation, agricultural, rural and community develop- ment, environment), $25.7 billion; -Interest on the national debt, $21.2 billion -International affairs and fi- nance, $3.8 billion -Space research and technolo- gy, $3.2 billion; -General government and reve- nue sharing, $10.5 billion; and -Net deductions, -$7.3 billion This yields a total budget of $246.3 billion. If everything other than de- fense, interest on ' the national debt, and space research is classi- fied as ' "social goods", $1.92 is spenta"socially" for each "de- fense" dollar - vastly different from Fradin's ratio. And if one considers only those funds over which Congress and the President have some say (Social Security, the Highway Trust Fund, and vet- erans benefits are somewhat im- mune from presidential tamper- ing), about half of whatrremains goes to defense-related programs. ADMITTEDLY there has been a reduction in the proportion of fed- eral funds going to the military. In the decades of cold war, the United States spent billions for an immense nuclear arsenal, and maintained a conventional force to contain "communism" and to intervene in the affairs of other countries. It has been the labor of peo- ple who have devoted themselves to exposing the military - indus- trial complex and the horror of Vietnam that has produced what changes there have been in the national priorities. Richard Nix- on has demonstrated in his pro- posals and his vetoes what his priorities are. The Pentagon asks for over $10 billion "worth" of Tri-dent sub- marines, but the administration cannot find the money for a $141 million anti-pollution program for the Great Lakes the the Environ- mental Protection Agency has recommended. Sen. William Fulbright has es- timated the overrun on the 45 weapons systems under develop- ment at $36.5 billion. This sum, which Fradin dismisseshis more than the federal expenditures for health programs in 1972 and 1973 combined. With flashes of "impending peace" on the scene day after day, there is danger of complac- ency over the military's major drain on our resources - and casual, sloppy reviews of federal spending. The military, Vietnam or not, is still the number one "bad guy." FOR FRADIN does not confront the most basic question. What kind of defense policy should the United States have? How much is enough? The comments of Gene La Roque, a retired Rear Admiral and now head of the Center for Defense Information, are to the point: "In 1968, Robert McNa- mara estimated that a force of 400 one - megaton nuclear warheads could provide an adequate deter- rent to general war. Such a force could destroy up to 74 million of the Soviet population and up to 76 per cent of Soviet industrial ca- pacity. "In 1972 the United States has . i v- ,!f- r "° ,r I } L. .f. . csc ... .see.. is /{ J t " -. n ..1.-gee I iI a strategic. arsenal many times in excess of that needed to deter enemy attack. We have 5,700 stra- tegic nuclear weapons compared with 2,500 for the Soviet Union. Yet, the MIRV missiles from one Poseidon submarine could destroy about one-quarter of the industry of the Soviet Union. "Limitations of ABM defensive systems assure the continued mu- tual vulnerability of both coun- tries to nuclear attack and pre- serve the effectiveness of each country's forces. With the aban- donment of all but token strategic defense capabilities, each super power could devastate the other." ENOUGH? Richard Weinberg is a senior in the literary college. '1 I c ii i i 1 I 1 Letters. fo The Daily: WE ARE writing this letter to express our frustration about the rock concert situation in Ann Ar- bor. We cannot understand why UAC has not sponsored any super groups for Homecoming weekend. We think that with the availability of a large arena like Crisler that we can support nyuch higher qual- ity music than we are getting. If each and every student at the University pays $1.50 a term to- wards such a worthless organiza- tion as SGC, why isn't this money better spent to provide the large advancerdeposit needed to ob- tain super groups? If UAC does not feel that Ann Arbor can support such groups as Jethro Tull, Traffic, Moody Blues, etc., we think that they are great- ly mistaken. We have heard rumors that there may be some ogre booking agent in Detroit who, for some unknown reason, refuses to send good groups to Ann Arbor. Ignor- ant of the exact situation, we would like to know the details of UAC's booking arrangements. Looking to the future, we would like to see some corrective action taken in order that we as stu- dents at this university will have some good vibes to look forward to. Rock la as to literacy, consider the many students who are unable to follow a set of directions and complete the election forms properly. Does Mr. Leavitt think that there is open enrollment in all, courses, or even that the Regis- trar places limits on enrollments when in fact it is the department or the professors? Does Mr. Leav- itt think that with the volume of election requests we handle that we can do any more than attempt to decipher some of the incredibly cryptic forms we receive, or that some mistakes might be made by even the most well-intentioned, lit- erate workersp? We do not intend to defend the system as it stands. We are react- ing only to Mr. Leavitt's crude ad' hominem attack on those harried individuals who do their best with the system they have to deal with. Mr. Leavitt has more experi- ence at employing fertilizer tech- niques than we do. -Sandra Kay Fine and 12 others Oct. 26 On capitalism To The Daily: THIS LETTER is a reply to the "Special Feature" published in the Sunday "Daily" of 22 October 1972, entitled "The U.S. free enterprise myth: A joke on the middle mass- es." To dissect completely its er- ing industrialists, "predatory price competition" in quest of monopoly. The author's source for this bit of misinformation is not given (though not hard to guess); however, Mr. Chaney ought to know that this policy is fautly in theory and his- torically an unsubstantiated charge. Should the author be unaware of this, I would be glad to point him to the appropriate information. Paragraph 11 contains a pecul- iarly worded statement about An- drew Carnegie and his "biggest steel monopoly in the world" in 1898. It is doubtful if the Carnegie Company produced more than 30 per cent of the nation's steel out- put; indeed, Carnegie did not even manufacture "finished" (consum- er), steel products. Carnegie had not a monopoly in the American market, and certainly didn't have one in the world market. And the notion that competition was de- stroyed in the late 19th Century is patently false. Finally, the author ought to know that the act establishing the In- terstate Commerce Commission was passed in 1887, and no "shortly af- ter the turn of the century." (para- graph 16). The "largest corporations'" "don't tell the public" that t h e y have "abandoned free enterprise altogether" for the simple reason that they haven't. Despite the dil- rck reeks: block knocked There are other noteworthy er- rors in this feature, such as the misinterpretation placed on the mesage contained.in the "rags to riches" precept (paragraphs 14- 15) which wrongly equates "suc- cess" in the marketplace with be- ing "number 1"; and the crude equivocation fallen into when "freedom" is discussed in para- graph 19. ipdeed, one could go on and on. But astonishingly, the essay never really speaks to the important issue raised, which is that of free en- terprise vs. the "mixed economy. ' It is *true that the crazy-quilt of government intervention, regula- tion, and controls have made it increasingly difficult to succeed and prosper on any level: but if one values success and prosperity, the direction of change called for is toward the "true 'free-market' " an insight totally lacking in this, essay. -Howard.Dickman Oct. 26 Harvey 'incompetent' To The Daily. WHILE I was pleased to see your editorial endorsing Fred Postill for sheriff, there was one rather vague statement in the litany of D o u g Harvey's incompetence which be- comes absolutely shocking upon, clarification. I am referring to the passage that "the department's. Washtenaw County had the highest crime rate for its size of any coun- ty in the state. Serious crime rose over the previous year by 15 per cent in Ann Arbor, six per cent in Ypsilanti and an astounding 104 per cent in the rest of the county- all of which is patrolled by t h e Sheriff's Department. Harvey claims to have signifi- cantly increased the department's response to calls over the 1 a s t several months. But what has really happened is that he is now counting dog complaints and other "gar- bage calls" in with larcenies, rap- es and assaults.ws The above facts are clear. proof of Harvey and Owing's incompe- tent stewardship. In the last four years, command officers have been increa'sed from 10 to 22, with no similar increase in road patrol of- ficers. Fred Postill sees that area as one of the department's main areas of "fat," and would divert the money wasted on a top-heavy bureaucracy to increasing r o a d patrols, setting up a juvenile pro- gram and other law enforcement needs so long ignored by Haivey and his administration. -Rob Bier Oct. 26 In making its endorsement of Student Government Council candidates yesterday, The Daily VI --David Sanders '74 Jame sLne1 '74 ' I_ ' I