hit irlian DatAj
Eighty-two years of editorial freedom
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan
420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Mich.
News Phone: 764-0552
Editorials printed in The Michigan Doily express the individual opinions of staff writers
or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints.
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 1, 1972
II YM IIIIIYd A I M YI I MI I A 1 I
Closed selection in SGC
Racism and
By JAMES WECHSLER not mean.
MUCH CURRENT talk about the Demo- Charles Ei
cratic Party's future sounds like aT
program for rehabilitation through re- THE SP
spectability. The popular analysis is that is discerni
the Democrats were caught hanging out tion for a
with a lot of shabby characters in 1972 he and a
and fittingly punished by the solid citi- formed w
zenry. Now, we are told, they can regain Meany an(
their status at the political country clubs son. As de
only by disassociating themselves from dispatch,
the riff-raff. poses Mc(
deep cuts
Thus Ben J. Wattenberg, whose brood- systems i
ing search for the all-American center sytemi
led him to espouse the desultory primary and mora
candidacy of Henry Jackson, has render- and moras
ed this judgment: Nixon was
"When the perception came across that It is wha
George McGovern was the candidate of t esten
the militant women's libbers, the mili- the need
tant gay libbers, the stop-bombing- might exte
the-dikes people, the lettuce boycott, the
pro-school-busers and pro-welfare-rights thecampai
people, he got tarred with a heavy brush from the s
and there was no way to get the tar But there
off'" behind the
This is a diverse gallery of liabilities, matter ho'
seemingly embracing Cesar Chavez, Roy elaborate r
Wilkins and Gloria Steinem (among oth- blur the n
ers). Wattenberg's essential concern, he racial. Mr
emphasized, is to find "a party leader- achieved b
ship and an image that the Southerners the Wallace
and the ethnics and the middle-of-the- appeals tol
roaders can look at and say 'well, by quotas, sut
God, I am a Democrat after all.'" black vote
By "Southerners" he presumably does the Nixon
IT IS VERY apparent that Student Gov-
ernment Council totally reneged on
their responsibility to the students in
their selection process of a legal advo-
cate.
When the students last Spring en-
trusted to SGC the funds to establish the
advocate they expected that an efficient
structure would be filled by the most
qualified person.
Instead SGC did its best to continue
a buddy system that is not only typical
of itself but of all bureaucracies. Their
selection procedure was established with-
out considering alternatives and was
manipulated so that only a few "bud-
dies" who 'are familiar to the council
members would know the position was
available
Quite by accident they chose a com-
petent lawyer, Tom Bentley, who has
been active in student causes for several
years. But Bentley has had very little
experience as a lawyer, having practiced
for only two months this past summer.
And even Bentley, has shed doubts on
the present struature of the advocate
system. A good portion of his duties, ac-
cording to Bentley, are in the fashion of
ombudsperson. He acts as an interme-
diary between groups and sees that the
solution satisfies the complainants.
AN ALTERNATIVE structure to the
present one would be a full-time om-
budsperson and a lawyer on a retainer
basis. According to Bentley, an arrange-
ment with a law firm might have been
made. SGC should have at least investi-
gated this possibility.
A number of questions have been raised
by Council members and a former wo-
men's commission member concerning
the manner in which Bentley was chosen.
Placing ads in The Daily is not suffic-
ient notice for prospective candidates.
Public Interest Research Group in Michi-
gan (PIRGIM) advertised all over the
country and in several legal journals
when they hired a lawyer.
For their efforts PIRGIM obtained a
highly qualified and highly experienced
lawyer who was making $20,000 before he
accepted the job with PIRGIM. Yet his
present salary is $3,500 less than that
paid by SGC.
The most vexing aspect of the whole
question is the closed procedures in
which SGC did their selecting. Only
SGC President 1BillJacobs and John
Koza (who is not on Council) inter-
viewed the candidates.
Council did not discuss the candidates
because the vote was taken by mail. Even
one member of Council who defended its
actions said the procedures were "hap-
hazard."
THE TRUST that the students put in
their government w a s severely
abused by the "back-room" procedures
used by SGC to select it's advocate. It
merely perpetuates a "buddy system"
which is neither effective nor fair.
-ROBERT BARKIN
Julian Bond, Andrew Young or
vers.
IRIT of Wattenberg'3 position
ble in the newly-formed "Coal-
Democratic Majority" vhich
number of intellectuals have
ith the blessing of George
d Sens. Humphrey and Jack-
scribed in an Associated Press
"its appeal for members op-
Govern's positions on making
in the defense budget, quota
hiring and what CDM calls
that American society is sick
lly bankrupt.'" Or, as Mr.
saying, let us discuss what's
America.
rdly intended here to dispute
of the McGovern defeat and
for critical retrospect. One
nsively debate the nature of
ign's failures - differentiating
unders and inept presentations
ubstance of issues.
e is a deep underlying conflict
public Democratic scenes. No
w many polite phrases and
rationalizations are offered to
natter, the explosive issue is
. Nixon's large margin was
y successful manipulation of
e vote through thinly-disguised
prejudice and fear (on busing,
burban housing). Conversely,
ers overwhelmingly resisted
tide.
The inescapable question confronting
the Democrats in this period of reorgai,-
ization is whether they will tacitly de-
sert (under cover of Nixonian rhetoric)
the cause of civil rights in deference to
"the mood of the country."
IN A SPEECH deserving wider notice
than it received, Vernon Jordan, able
successor to Whitney Young as e:ecutive
director of the Urban League, has de-
clared:
". . . These are days that test men's
faith in progress and racial equality. The
country seems to be entering a period in
which the cycle of history takes a down-
ward plunge, battering the hopes and as-
pirations of black people. The 1970's, like
the 1870s, may come to spell the end
of a reconstruction period of reform and
hope."
He assailed liberals who, "in the name
of pragmatism and realism," have stead-
ily retreated under fire - discovering
new virtue in the "work ethic" while
ignoring "the unavailability of jobs for
the unskilled, for the young and for the
poor," succumbing to the busing hysteria
"while we seek equal educational op-
portunities," downgrading scattersite
housing "because of the rush to com-
promise with extremists." Decrying the
quota furor, he said:
"No one has argued in favor of rigid
quotas to overcome inequality of oppor-
tunity, nor has anyone argued in favor
of total reliance upon the goodwill and
giod faith of employers and government
a.'encies. lnste)d there has been develop-
ed a flexible system of guidelines for
progress, goals to assure eventual equal-
ity of opportunity and timetables to as-
sure progress. When we hear these rea-
sonable mechanisms for insuring the suc-
cess of affirmative action programs la-
beled as 'quotas' and attacked, we can
only conclude that the artificial issue of
'quotas' is another wall raised to exclude
black people."
Any reader of Edmond Newton's series
on discrimination in this city's construc-
tion trades, published in this newspaper
last week, will recognize the urgency of
Jordan's words. Will the new "Demo-
cratic coalition" mute the issue to pla-
cate labor statesmen who perpetuate the
barriers?
"IF THE SECOND Reconstruction does
come to a tragic close," Jordan said, "it
will be with a bang, not a wimper. It
will end with the nation enveloped in
grief and in tragic eruptions appalling
even to contemplate. But it need not
end. There can be no freeze on social
justice and racial progress."
Will any, practical politicians hear him
as they reassess the Democratic Party's
course? Or has benign neglect become
a bipartisan gentlemen's agreement;
James Wechsler is editorial page edi-
for of the New York Post. Copyright
1972, The New York Post Corporation.
'the mood of the country'
a
41
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Letters: Jacobs reacts to article
New cabinet: Le an and mean
THE PRESIDENT'S recent cabinet and
budget office appointments present
a series of rather humorous, or if you
look at it differently, distressing set of
contradictions.
Roy Ash, who comes to the key White
House Office of Mtesvaament and Budget,
stresses "cost-benefit" analysis in gov-
ernment operations, for example. Yet as
president of Litton Industries, his meth-
ods have had very little cost-benefit for
taxpayers.
Tuesday Senator William Proxmire (D-
Wis.) charged that two Navy contracts
awarded to Litton under Ash's presidency
are "two of the most highly inefficient
and mismanaged military procurement
operations," reportedly far behind sched-
ule and likely to result in massive cost
over-runs.
Elliot Richardson, who is moving to
the Defense Department after two and a
half years as Health, Education, and
Welfare (HEW) Secretary, is an able ad-
ministrator but has proved a cock in the
wind on major policy decisions.
After working hard to get a higher
education bill through Congress, he ca-
pitulated without a whimper when Nix-
on vetoed the money for it. He voiced no
objection when the President scuttled a
coimpromise welfare reform package
which his own aides had negotiated with
Senate liberals. And although mildly
liberal in tendency himself, he has failed
to speak out against the President's blat-
ant manipulation of the busing issue.
It is therefore unlikely that Richard-
son will be able to stand up to the mili-
tary brass unless the President stands
behind him. And although this nation
is supposedly dedicated to civilian control
of the military, Nixon has never shown
any inclination either to stand up to his
generals or to stand behind Richardson.
CASPAR WEINBERGER, who is moving
from the budget office to HEW, is
such a vicious budget-slasher that
around Washington he is known as "Cap
the Knife."
As budget director, Weinberger or-
dered 10,000 people cut from the HEW
Today's staff:'
News: Robert Barkin, Pat Bauer, Judy
Staschaver, Sue Stephenson, David
Unnewehr, Ralph Vartabedian
Editorial Page: Lindsay Chaney, Marcia
Zoslaw
Arts Page: Richard Glatzer
Photo Technician: Tom Gottlieb
C1Ijg Aiit"ja Bat~ir
payroll, although Secretary Richardson
managed to resist the reduction at the
time.
It seems unlikely that he is coming to
HEW in order to advance the cause of
social progress.
PETER BRENNAN, the construction un-
ion chief who is likely to be our new
Secretary of Labor, is most notable for
the massive hard-hat rally in support of
the President's war policies which he
organized in New York City two years.
ago. The rally followed an incident in
which construction workers beat up
anti-war demonstrators on Wall Street.
The construction unions are also noted
for their discrimination against blacks
and other minority groups. While Bren-
nan has urged the unions with which he
is affiliated to hire qualified minority
members for apprenticeships, critics have
called his efforts hopelessly inadequate.
Although labor unions were once the
spearhead of progressive change in this
country, Brennan's appointment is ob-
viously an attempt by the President to
hold on to the blue collar support he re-
ceived in the last election. It is also
clearly an appeal to the most illiberal
part of the labor movement.
The new cabinet appointments indicate
that progressive causes appear certain
to take a back seat to the lean and mean
Nixon administration dogma.
-DAVID STOLL
Election reform
RESULTS OF A recent Gallup poll re-
veal that seventy per cent of Ameri-
cans are disgusted with the present style
of political campaigns.
Leading gripes are the high cost of
campaigns and "too much mudslinging."
Voters are also asking for shorter cam-
paigns and a clearer definition of the
issues.
The changes demanded are valid
changes, especially in view of the fact
that per centage of voter turn-out Nov. 7
was the lowest since 1948.
While the call for clearer discussion of
the issues sounds idealistic, practical re-
forms could help shift the emphasis from
the present image-oriented "selling" of a
president.
Over seventy per cent of those polled,
for instance, favored a proposal for a
law that would limit campaign spending
more effectively than do present laws
and restore that principal of equal op-
portunity supposedly so intrinsic to
American politics.
Furthermore longstanding demands
To The Daily:
IN AN ARTICLE in the Novem-
ber 30 issue of The Daily, Robert
Barkin raised a number of ques-
tionsconcerning the SGC L e g a 1
Advocate, Tom Bentley, as well as
the manner in which he was hired.
Unfortunately, Mr. Barkin printed
a large number of half-truths and
blatant lies.
* Barkin states that Ms. Zeta
Zumeta charged that the procedure
used to hire Bentley was discrim-
inatory.
FACT. During the summer, Ms.
Zumeta came to my office and
asked if the person we were going
to hire was a male. I told her we
were suggesting Tom Bentley at
which time she told me that she
intended to sue SGC if we did not
hire a woman for the position. I
told her at the time that I refus-
ed to be coerced or blackmailed in-
to discriminating against a person
eminently qualified for the job be-
cause of sex. To my mind, there is
a substantial difference between
discrimination and affirmative ac-
tion.
* Barkin charges that SGC did
not adequately advertise for t h e
position because we did not run
ads in the New York Times, the
Detroit Free Press, the State Bar
Journal and Detroit Legal N e w s
as did PIRGIM.
FACT - The type of person SGC
was looking for was not at all sim-
ilar to what PIRGIM was seek-
ing. SGC was looking for a quali-
fied young lawyer who has had : x-
perience with student government,
preferably on this campus. It
should be obvious that a person
with these qualifications would not
be job hunting in the New York
Times.
0 Barkin insinuates that Bentley
is being overpaid because his sal-
ary is slightly above that of the
average lawyer with similar exper-
ience in the community.
FACT - The primary considera-
tion when determining a person's
salary is the responsibility the posi-
tion bears. Mr. Bentley's position
requires a great deal of know-
ledge, hard work and long hours.
There are probably very few law-
yers in the Ann Arbor area with
responsibilities commensurate with
those Bentley must bear.
* Barkin charges that the legi-
timacy of the Legal Advocate
Search Committee is in serious
question. He also quotes Bill Do:.bs,
a member of the search commit-
tee as saying that he was never
contacted.
FACT - The legitimacy of that
committee has never been ques-
tioned publicly or privately with tne
exception of Mr. Barkin's article.
All members of the committee were
notified of pre-arranged meetings
by mail or telephone. It is true
that Mr. Dobbs was only notified
by mail for the simple reason that
he refused to tell SGC his telephone
number and he is not listed in tne
telephone directory. When the de-
cision to recommend Bentley was
being considered all members of
the committee were notified by
phone or mail. At that time and
until the present no member of
the committee voiced any objec-
tion to that recommendation.
0 Barkin charges that Vic Gut-
man has been hired at a salary of
$4,000 to be Bentley's secretary
even though he has no legal train-
ing.
FACT - $1,800 has been allocated
for Gutman's salary on a per hour
basis. (Indeed, Gutman personally
informed Barkin of this fact t a e
night before Barkin wrote the ar-
ticle). While it is true that Gutman
has no legal training, it is also
true that his position requires no
legal training. The small amomt
of work that does require a legal
secretary is handled by SGC's Ad-
ministrative Secretary who has had
extensive training and experience
as a legal secretary.
Perhaps the most serious flaw
in Barkin's article is that he saw fit
to discuss Bentley's competence in
a scanty twenty-five words, and
does soyby quotingvvague unnadm-
ed observers, and a second y L a r
law student. Barkin did not dis-
cuss at all the work that Bentley
has done since he was hired. In-
deed, in the two and a half months
that Bentley has been working for
SGC he has proven himself to be
quite effective.
A question that might properly
be asked at this point is why would
Barkin print what he himself
knows to be factually incorrect and
trivial. Two weeks ago I was in-
formed that "Barkin was on ano-
ther muckraking trip." Perhaps
Barkin feels that he must employ
yellow journalism techniques to
get a front page by-line for his
portfolio. I doubt very much if stu-
dents ondthisbcampusarenserious-
ly offended by Barkin's name in
print on the front page of T h e
Daily. However, students on this
campus should be offended if the
only way Barkin can achieve this
goal is by attempting to soil the
reputation of a qualified lawyer
working hard for student interests.
-Bill Jacobs
President, SGC
Nov. 30
EDITOR'S NOTE: Jacobs is cor-
rect that SGC has so far allocated
only $1,800 for Gutman's salary.
However, the per-hour wage is
based on a $4,000 annual salary.
Zena Zumeta denies telling Ja-
cobs she would sue SGC if a wo-
man were not hired for the advo-
cate position. Zumeta says she told
Jacobs she would sue if a woman
more qualified than Bentley was
found, but was not hired.
The Editorial Directors regret that
Jacobs felt it necessary to engage
in a personal attack on Daily
reportereRobert Barkin. Further-
more, we feel the tone of his letter
indicates a hunger for vengeance
unbecoming the president of Stu-
dent Government Council. The
Daily stands by its story.
Dope co-op
To The Daily:
I HAVE VIEWED with disgust
the immature, selfish and elitist
attitudes of many of my fellow
white middle-class students on this
campus.
The recent proposal by S G C
member David Hornstein for the
establishment of a Student Dope Co-
op, and the support given that pro-
posal by some other SGC members,
adds another to the list of "far-
out", smug actions advocated by
some students.
If SGC can think of nothing bet-
ter to do with $2,500, I will help
them with some suggestions.
Give the money to a student who
wants to attend this University,
but whose parents are not wealthy
enough to send him or her. Use
the money to begin a program to
combat racism on campus. Give
the money to a day-care center,
Trotter House, or the Women's Cri-
sis Center. Finance a study to find
solutions to Ann Arbor's housing
problems. Send the money to the
parents of the students killed a
short time ago at Southern Uni-
versity in Louisiana (does anyone
remember that?)
The basic issue is that there do
exist real problems on this cam-
pus, and in this country. As stu-
dents, we have the choice of ignor-
ing them, and playing cute games,
such as Mr. Hornstein would have
us do, in an isolated 1950's-style
campus atmosphere, or we can
take up the challenge to create an-
swers to some of these problems.
The choice to make a difference
is ours.
-Marcia Fishman, '75RC
Nov. 30
Workers
To The Daily:
"HE WHO PAYS the piper calls
the t-ne." He who works for pay,
under capitalism, gives more in
goods and/or services, to his em-
ployer than he gets in wages. Gov-
ernment agencies, schools and col-
leges, book publishers, advertising
agencies broadcasters and other
employers get more from their em-
ployes than they pay for.
The usefulness or non-usefulness
of the employment is not the full
or only determinant as to whether
!employment is humiliating, de-
meaning or compromising.
Mr. Castleman might answer Pro-
fesor Slosson's query as to 'what
alternative Mr. Castleman wv o u l d
suggest"v(Daily, Nov. 22) by ad-
vocating a society in which goods
and services are produced for the
use and enjoyment of all instead
of profit for a few; a society in
which the ownership and control
of the tools and other means of
wealth production will be restored
to the ownership and control of the
working class whose members
created the tools and other means
of wealth production.
Then every worker would have
the material requirements which
should be his and also enjoy, even
more fully, the satisfactions which
Profesor Slosson claims to be the
reward of useful employment.
-Ralph Muncy
Nov. 27
Prostitution
To The Daily:
IT WAS INTERESTING to notice
that the criticisms of Michael Cas-
tleman's article on prostitution
came from males.
It is also interesting that most
of the anti-abortion speakers I've
heard have been men as well.
As a woman, prostituted in many
ways, I find many good and sal-
ient points in Michael's article --
points that many men seem to find
it in their own best interests to
miss.
Claims 'ripoff'
To The Daily:
GRANTED, AS a student I am
"buried in books" and "abstract-
ed out of existence" so that about
p~ractical living I know nothing, innt
isn't there any way for me and
those of my ilk to stop the local
businesses (who aren't buried in
books and presumably have an in-
side tip about the exact nature of
existence) from ripping us 4ff?
Recently I bought a top from a
local store - just one of those m-
chine-washable, stretchy nylon
things. The first time I wore it,
the color stained onto the blouse
I had over it. I went back to the
store and spoke with the manager-
ess. She asked whether I wore
"anti-persoirant." When I replied
in the negative, she said that was
the reason for the stain - my B.O.
Patiently I exolained that I own-
ed several such tops (though not
purchased from her store) and of
those none had ever stained, though
I hadn't worn anti-persoirant with
them. I added (gratuitously I
thought) that even with deodor-
ants, perspiration invariable leaks
through. "Not a good anti-perspir-
ant," she replied (I wonder if she
has stock in "Mitchum"? S h e
sounded just like a T.V. commer-
cial).
I begged her pardon - was she
suggesting I change my life style
to suit her personal ideas about
body aroma? "You should w e a r
anti-perspirant. "None of our cus-
tomers have complained about their
purchases," she complained. I
then asked if she was implying
that the problem rested not at all
in the manufacture of the gar-
ment but in me completely, that
out of hundreds of thousands of
people my perspiration alone was
so extraordinary it harmed this
top, even though it had neve af-
fected any of my other ones?
She said, "Yes." - Insult added
to injury, I would say.
For a fact I know my "perspira-
tion problem" is no worse than
anyone else's (indeed, it is batter
than most people's, a point wnich
I can demonstrate empirically' ;
moreover, the woman's reasoning
(if so you can call it) was pa-
tently that of either a pristine
ignoramus o an unsuccessful con-
artist.
I realize how absurd my com-
plaint sounds! The episode was
trivial, but the fact that students
are being had left and right, up
and down by the "foxy" capitalists
all over this town is, I think, not.
-Doris Othy
Nov. 19
$ for death
To The Daily:
FIFTY BILLION dollars annually
for instrumentstof hate, fear and
death: enough to kill much of the
human race should be plenty. Pre-
sident Nixon recommends more
overkill. He recommends $75 bil-
lion annually.
Wouldn't it be more sensible to
use the overkillnmoney, to use $25
billion on making friends and in-
fluencing people and on a united
world? A world divided against it-
self cannot stand.
The military puts its faith in vio-
lence and brute force. It is edicat-
ed to the arts and sciences of kill-
ing and crippling people and de-
stroying valuable property.
The cruel military stands on the
neck of humanity.
-Ernie Sheffield
Minneola, Florida
Nov. 25
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-Kathleen
Nov. 28
Cook, Grad.
Mistake
To The Daily:
IN MY LETTER to The. Daily
(Nov. 28) on Advocates for Medi-
cal Information I mistakenly gave
the impression that AMI was re-
sponsible for misleading informa-
tion. In actuality, the fault lay with
the Daily because statements were
lifted out of context and in one
case virtually fabricated in the
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