Thursday, September 7, 1972.
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
Page Eleven
actve, ncapus
veterans unite
to end the war
most a complete bust" and that
it was "stagnating and disinte-
grating."
But Reade, undeterred, said
that he plans to expand VVAW's
activities. "We will be doing
more guerrilla theater, and real-
ly get going this fall."
For the national VVAW, post
Christmas activities last year
included the taking over of the
Statue of Liberty in New York
and the barricading of the Bet-
sy Ross House in Philadelphia.
An injunction filed against
the veterans by the government
succeeded in routing them from
the statue, while 25 arrests were
made in Philadelphia.
These symbolic protests, ac-
cording to the Ann Arbor vet-
erans, were meant "to put the
war on the front page where it
belongs and tell people that it
is still going on."
In absolute terms, there
have been more people dying in
the war under Nixon than un-
der Johnson," stated Reade at
the time.
"There may not be so many
Americans dead anymore," noted
another VVAW member, "but
there are more Indochinese be-
ing slaughtered than ever." The
members believe that as long as
the bombing continues American
POWs will remain inaccessible.
"The air war is escalating,"
explains, Mike Lewis. "It's the
mass killer. It's more important
to drop a certain amount, of
bombs than to find out that
you're firing on Laotians who
live in caves and who could care
less about the war."
By DAVID STOLL
"Last year membership was a
disgrace - about 55," says Bob
Edgeworth, grad, member' of
the Executive Board of the local
chapter of College Republicans
(CR). But this year "I'm shoot-
ing for 500, and I think we can
make it."
Edgeworth, who is also vice-
Chairman of the College Re-
publicans National Comnittee,
-attributes the low membership
to uninspired leadership, but
thinks that an election year and
an active effort to inform stu-
dents of CR's existence will
swell its numbers.
Although the club is affiliat-
ed with the Republican Nation-
al Committee, CR does not run
candidates for office itself. The'
'club invites speakers. to cam-
pus, encourages members to
work for candidates who are to
their liking and to run :for of-
fice themselves.
In November many CR mem-
bers will work for the re-elec-
tion of President Nixon, U.S.
Sen. Robert Griffin (R-Mich.)
and Congressman Marvin Esch
(R-Ann Arbor), says Edgeworth.
Mike Renner (Law), a former
president of the club, is run-
ning unopposed in the August
primary for the Republican
nomination to the seat of State
Rep. Ray Smit (R-Ann Arbor).
On campus CR members have
run for Student Government
Council under such labels as
that of the Responsible Alter-
native Party and the Student
Caucus. Four CR members cur-
rently sit on SGC, as well as
five on the LS&A Council and
two on the Rackham student
'government.
Nextnspring Edgeworth ex-
pects that CR members will
run in the Republican primary
for Ann Arbor City Council
seats.
Tle club occasionally makes
issue stands. For example, CR
publicly opposed the funding
proposals for the Public Inter-
est Research Group in' Michi-
gan (PIRGIM), not because it
opposed the goals of the organi-
zation, but because it question-
ed the compulsory nature of
the assessment upon students.
At the same time, three club
members ran for and won
places on the PIRGIM Board of
Directors in order, explains
Edgeworth, to provide a "va-
riety of viewpoints."
When members are seriously
divided in their opinions on an
issue, the club will often set up
machinery for each side to work,
for what it feels best. Commit-
tees both for and against pas-
sage of the abortion referendum
on the November ballot may be
set up, according to Edgeworth.
the enigma of
student go0v't.
"The club used to be more
liberal, now it's is more conser-
vative," he says. When the Chi-
nese ping-pong team came to
Ann Arbor in April, CR and the
Young Americans for Freedom
(YAF) organized a demonstra-
tion to protest the visit. As
Alan Harris (LS&A '73), sum-
mer director of CR, explains:
"we were opposed, not to the
ping-pong players themselves,
but to the general air of accom-
modation with the mainland
Chinese government that sur-
rounded the visit."
Edgeworth notes, however,
plicity of governments," Koza
warned.
But then, while SGC was striv-
ing to attain more power, they
suffered several internal prob-
lems that brought their claim to
power into question.
Early in the fall, left-wing stu-
dents circulated . a petition to
recall SGC member Brad Tay-
lor, '74. They managed to gather
enough signatures to place the
issue on the fall all-campus elec-
tion ballot, but Taylor won by a
closenmargin and remained seat-
ed on the council.
The effort to recall Taylor was
significant in illustrating even
deeper problems that loomed
within SGC. The council was
split between radical and con-
servative viewpoints, and deci-
sions were difficult to come by
because of this political division.
A referendum appearing on
the fall, election ballot asked
that SGC receive an increased
student funding.
Students approved continuing,
but refused to increase funding.
SGC allocated $1500 last fall
to help establish a Washtenaw
County print cooperative. The
money fell into the control of
the A m e r i c a n Revolutionary
Media (ARM) and it became
questionable whether or not SGC
would play an important role in
the cooperative.
This and many other SGC al-
locations to student organiza-
tions received severe criticism
from students.
In addition, both SGC and .RSG
encountered accusations that
their elections were invalid.
that the "opinion stance of the
club is not fixed. It's determin-
ed by the members, and if new
members join, you can expect
the opinion stance to change."
He feels that it is neither the
political boss nor the masses
who have the most influence on
the political process today, but
rather the activist in the mid-
dle. "These are the people who
determine who the nominees
will be and which campaign
will be able to get its message
across to the voters. This is the
reason for joining a group like
HRP or the Young Democrats
or the College Republicans."
inpublic
interest
By JIM O'BRIEN
"Give yourself $1.50!" is the
slogan used this fall by the
Public Interest Research Group
in Michigan (PIRGIM) in an
attempt to enroll new members
during registration at the Uni-
versity.
PIRGIM is a student-run,
non-partisan organization with
a staff of full-time professional
researchers to investigate con-
sumer frauds, dangers to the
environment, racial and sexual
discrimination, and all areas
which concern public welfare.
The method PIRGIM used to
solicit memberships here is call-
ed a "positive check-off": stu-
dents who wish to join, and re-
ceive voting privileges in the
group must sign an authoriza-
tion for the University to add
the $1.50 membership fee to
their tuition statement.
The organization at this Uni-
versity began more than a year
ago at the urging of Ralph Na-
der, head of a national group of
public interest investigators. In
an unprecedented decision,
By ROBERT BARKIN
As one of the few remaining
activist organizations left at the
University, the Vietnam Veter-
ans Against the War (VVAW)
hold a unique position in com-
munity life.
The organization consists sole-
ly of veterans of the Vietnam
conflict that have returned to
the United States and are op-
posed to the continuation of the
fighting there.
The members are not exclus-
ively students. Many are work-
ers who are not attending school.
The organization started 1 a s t
year when four veterans met at
a demonstration in Washington.
Today there are 80-100 members
that correspond on 'their activi-
ties.
Mike Reade, speaking for
VVAW, said that the purpose of
the group is "internal reinforce-
ment among the members. We
want to show the people that
even the guys that fought it
(the war) are against it."
He said that the group "does
not sponsor demonstrations, but
rather works with other groups."
The main activity of VVAW is
educating the people, he said.
One of the more spectacular
events of the group was an anti-
war demonstration performed at
campus organizers for PIRGIM
gained the approval of the Re-
gents last winter to include
membership fees in student's
tuition statements.
Next fall, this money will be
used to open a state office in
Lansing with a staff which
may include doctors, attorneys,
economists a n d engineers.
There will also be a campus of-
fice, located in the Student Ac-
tivities Building.
Past areas of PIRGIM inves-
tigators include a survey com-
paring prices at city grocery
stores, compiled weekly by stu-
dents.
Members of PIRGIM on this
campus will be able to share in-
formation and resources with
similar groups forming at Mich-
igan State University, Wayne
State University, and other area
colleges.
A joint study on the problem
of abandoned houses in the De-
troit area has already been
planned by members at Wayne
and this University.
the halftime of the Homecoming
game last September.
The demonstration was part
of the theme of last year's
homecoming: "Bring all the
troops home now. Let's have a
real homecoming."
The crowd of 75,000 observed
a moment of silence then as the
VVAW and Veterans Against the
War (another anti-war group)
released 100 black balloons -
each representing 15,000 Asian
and American war deaths - to
the accompaniment of Taps.
Another activity of the group
is performing guerrilla theatre
on the Diag rallies. The group,
according to Reade, plans to ex-
pand theirtguerrilla theatre ac-
tivities.
Reade said that the basic pack
of activity in the anti-war move-
ment last year was due to "de-
featism and resignation" among
the students.
"The students don't realize
that the war is just one part of
American imperialism," he said.
"It is not enough to just move
the troops out of Vietnam while
the bombing of Asians contin-
ues."
He also said the students were
not "as apprehensive about be-
ing drafted and subsequently
don'tdgetas riled about the war."
He admitted that the move-
ment itself last year "was al-
52
DELICIOUS
VARIETIES
THE DIFFERENCE
IS FRESHNESS!
The perfect Snack for
Parties-Meetings-Luncheons
-SPECIAL DISCOUNTS TO-
CHURCHES, CLUBS, GROUPS,
FRATERNITIES, SORORITIES, ETC.
DUNKIN
DOONUTS
300 S. Main
761-7532
Ann Arbor
AND
PACKAGE PRICES
Z ~~AT a..,
GREAT SAVINGS
KN EISSL
OLIN
HOURS ROSSIGNOL 2455 S. STATE
M, W, Th, F: RG Lmite South of Campus
10-9 p.m.K662-7307
T, Sat.: 10-5:30 -2 Pkone
OPEN
24
HOURS
By GLORIA JANE SMITH
Supplement Co-Editor
By their performance last year
in the arena of University poli-
tics, student governments proved
themselves questionable as via-
ble student voices.
Strewn with disputes and
suits, the year yielded little in
terms; of meaningful . accom-
plishments, by student govern-
ments. .
Until last fall, the University
had two major student govern-
ments, the Student Government
Council' and the Graduate As-
sembly (GA). Although officially
the alb campus student govern-
ment, SOO has traditionally
s p o k e n for undergraduates,
while G 'sought to speak for
graduates.
Graduate, professional, and
undergraduate colleges also all
have their own small govern-
ments.
GA, a cumbersome body of
over 120 representatives from
various c o 11 e g e departments,
voted last fall to dissolve, re-
linquishing their powers to a
then-forming Graduate Federa-
tion (GF).
Meanwhile, a new government
with potential for power had
emerged. The Rackham Stu-
dent Government (RSG) had
been approved by students in
the Winter '71 all-campus elec-
tion. It was then widely thought
that RSG would replace GA,
since m o s t graduate students
are enrolled in the Rackham
college.
With the formation of RSG
and the subsequent dissipation
of GA, a battle began over the
power to nominate students to
University faculty-student com-
mittees of academic and general
concern. While this power had
in the past been divided between
SGC and GA, it now seemed ap-
parent that SGC would fight to
gain it all.
This would have been rela-
tively easy if it were not for
the attempted formation of GF,
a coalition of graduate student
,governments which was to claim
GA's right to nominate. students
to committees.
GF put up a hard fight to or-
ganize. Numerous lengthy and
tedious meetings were held to
resolve problems of constitu-
tionality.
And a counter-campaign to
stop the organization of GF
emerged, led by John Koza,
Grad, who was later to be seated
on SGC.
The campaign criticized GF
for its failure to adhere to SGC
rules for forming student gov-
ernments. Koza said that:
-A plan for the formation of
GF had not been filed;
-The proposed constitution
for GF was not distributed to
the constituencies involved;
-Adequate time and opportu-
nity for debate and modification
by the interested parties in the
constituencies was not allowed;
and
-The constitution was not
taken to the students for a
vote.
Federation organizers argued,
however, that GF was not in-
tended to be a government and
was therefore not subject to
SGC procedures for forming a
government.
GF nonetheless did purport to
represent graduate students and
did claim rights to the respon-
sibility of appointing student
-members to faculty committees.
And SGC President Rebecca
Schenk vowed that "SGC will
fight for the rights of students
to appoint."
SGC voiced .a concern that it
was counter-productive to stu-
dent power to provide the Uni-
versity with too many alterna-
tives for seeking student opinion.
"It is not students who gain
from the playing off of a multi-
4+ __ .... . ....® __ _ __. .^ __ ____.
i
GIVE
LISTE
to PANASONIC'
USII)
USED
'1'E X T IIOOKS
UPTO 1OFF
ANN ARBOR'S FRIENDLY BOOKSTORE
R-70
EA T PEANUTS
RF-541 RC-7021 RQ-222AS
SALVATION
RECORDS
THE STORE THAT LOWERED
ANN ARBOR'S RECORD PRICES
SA LV ATION,
With a Complete Selection of
GET
LOT
AM Radio
R-70
. Unique Design
" Battery Operation
0 Full Range Dynamic Speaker
0 Available in 5 Decorator
Colors
. Includes Carrying Chain
and Earphone
AM/FM Portable
Radio
RF-541
0 Battery Operation
* Built-in AM and FM
Antennas
0 Earphone/External
Speaker Jack
* 21/4 PM Dynamic Speaker
0 External Power Jack
and drink beer or wine
AT
At
0IEMB(FS
134 F WAIA41 JC.TW-6A7321
J
"
"
",
";
0,
AM/FM Digital
Clock Radio
RC-7021
24 hour Full Feature Clock
Illuminated Face
60 Minute Sleep Timer
Automatic Shut-off
3" Speakers
Solid State
Cassette Recorder
RQ-222AS
* Built-in Microphone
0 Digital Counter
0 AC or Battery Operation
* Automatic Stop
* Complete with Case,
Batteries, Earphone,
Demonstrator Cassette
Come in and compare our Every Day Low Prices
I 1 G- ___