esday, September 27, 1977-The Michigan Daily
Eighty
Vol. LXXXVIII, No. 17
Lirbigan
194t,*1V
y-Eight Years ofEditorial Freedom
420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, MI 48109
News Phone: 764-0552
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan
Dorm safety:Locked doors
and a sorry sense of loss
I T IS ALWAYS with a sense of as-
tonishment that the University
freshperson realizes that this is not an
especially safe place to attend college.
At orientation, one hears the warn-
ings to be cautious, the recommenda-
tions to lock one's dormitory door,
even when just popping down the hall
for a moment to see a friend. But the
warnings seem to strong to take seri-
ously. The dorm corridors seem like
home, and who gets ripped off in their
own home?
Then the clock-radio is gone. Or the
silver necklace.
What's the problem? According to
University security officials, non-stun
dents are strolling into the large dorms
near the Diag and grabbing stuff at
their leisure, even from behind the,
backs of students sitting at desks in
their rooms. More ominous are the ru-
mors of unreported rapes in dorms.
Young women, afraid to tell police, are
keeping such tragedies to themselves.
The Daily is not in the business of
security. Few safety measures come to
mind which have not already been
thought of by the administration. Yes,
we urge additional security patrols.
But the problem seems to call more for
prevention than for cure.
There are dorms which do not suf-
fer such problems '- Betsy Barbour
and Helen Newberry, for instance.
These are small residence halls in
which nearly everyone knows
everyone else, where the' unfamiliar
Fce stands out. Guests are escorted to
d from rooms. hstdormshave thael
@ TD X'STAF~ F':-
NEWS: Ann Marie Lipinski, Patty
Montemurri, Mike Norton, Keith
Richburg, Bob Rosenbaum
EDITORIAL: Jim Tobin
ARTS: Jeff Selbst,
Renee Shilcusky
SPORTS: Paul Campbell,
Henry Englehardt
Photo Technician: Brad Benjamin
flavor of a private boarding house.
Compare them for a moment to hos-
pital-sized giants such as South Quad
and Markley. In these places it is the
familiar face that jumps out of the
crowd.
Is there a solution? How can there
be when the essence of the problem is
the University's great size and imper-
sonality? If we all knew each other
here on campus, we could rest easier in
the midst of friends. We may lock our
doors every moment of the day and
night. But only when the doors may
stay unlocked are we really safe, and
that time seems lost.
7 he 01t xga E 1
EDITORIAL STAFF
ANN MARIE LIPINSKI
JIM TOBIN
Editors-in-Chief'
LOIS JOSIMOVICH... ................. Managing Editor
GEORGE LOBSENZ.........Managing Editor
STU McCONNELL ..........%............. Managing Editor
JENIFER MILLER. . .. . . Managing Editor
MIKE NORTON Managing Editor
KEN PARSIGIAN...... ........... Managing Editor
BOB ROSENBAUM.. Managing Editor
MARGARET YAO ..................... Managing Editor
SUSAN ADES ............ Magazine Editor
JAY LEVIN .............................. Magazine Editor
ELAINE FLETCHER............Associate Magazine Editor
JEFFREY SELBST. .......................Arts Editor
Weather Forecasters:
MARK ANDREWS and MIKE GILFORD
STAFF WRITERS: Susan Barry, Rick Berke, Brian Blanchard,
Michael Beckman, Lori Carruthers, Ken Chotiner, Eileen Daley,
Ron DeKett, Lisa Fisher, Denise Fox, David Goodman,
Michael Jones, Lani Jordan, Janet Klein, Garth Kriewall, Gregg
Krupa, Doblilas Matunonis, Patti Montemurri, Tom O'Connell,
Karen Paul, Stephen .Pickover, Kim Potter, Martha Retal-
lick, Keith Richburg, Julie Rovner, Dennis Sabo, Annmarie
Schiavi, Paul Shapiro, Elizabeth Slowik, Mike Taylor, Pauline
Toole, Sue Warner, Linda Willcox, Shelley Wolson, Mike Yellin,
and Barb Zahs
SPORTS STAFF
"v THY E G k(H >N.w ,,. .Spot E
OTT LEW S.. ..... ..Managing Sports
ng Spor( 'jtor
NIGHT EDITORS: Paul Campbell, Ernie Dunbar, Henry Engel-
hardt, Jeff Frank. Gary Kicinski, Rick Maddock, Brian Mar-
tin, Bob Miller, Brian Miller, Dave Renbarger, Cub Schwartz,
Errol Shifman and Jamie Turner.
BUSINESS STAFF,
DEBORAH DREYFUsS......................Business Manager
COLLEEN HOGAN ........-........... Operations Manager
ROD KOSA1.... ......... Sales Manager
NANCY GRAe .. . ........... . Display Manager
ROBERT CARPENTER,.................. Finance Manager
PETE PETERSEN......................Advertising Co-ordinator
Whyi
By CHRIS GOODALL
The good democrat, of whatever
ideology, admires the openness of
American' politics. Its emphasis
on ethical purity, hard work, and
public responsibility is of con-
siderable value. What is intensely
disturbing to an outsider is the
apparent lack of interest in major
national issues.
Perhaps this is the inevitable
result of the political catharsis
that catapulted Jimmy Carterin-
to office without ever forcing him
to clarify his fundamental politi-
cal beliefs. If Carter the moralist
and political conservative hadn't
existed, the American voter may
well have been compelled to in-
vent him.
WHETHER THIS CYNICAL
view has any truth or not, Car-
ter's Presidency seems to repre-
sent the symbolic attempt to take
politics out of government. The.
idea was to set up a President
who seemed removed from the
cant and uncleanliness of politics
and hope that his moral fervor
would overcome the truculence of
a Congress obsessed by political
trivia.
Unfortunately, it doesn't seem
to have worked that way. That
same force which brought an
evangelical President also
brought a considerable diminu-
tion of his executive power. The
new, self-confident Congress de-
mands to be treated as equal and
is unmoved by the reformist
spirit which Carter is said to rep-
resent. What happens when two
equal and opposite forces meet?
Nothing; and, largely unnoticed
by the press, the President's leg-
islative program has been torn
up, page by page, till virtually
nothing remains.
Thus far, Carter's presidency
is no more than a symbol, and a
symbol whose meaning goes un-
recognized'by the other branches
of government. Indeed, this is
hardly surprising; the press con-
tinues to reflect only the popular
interest in financial imprudence
and other scurrilous tidbits that
emanate from the White House.
If Carter was elected to stop
politics from filling the television
screen, he may have failed in the
case of Bert Lance, but he has
succeeded admirably with most
of his major policy programs.
gx,;FACE WITH the fact that he
was an outsider (and elected as
such) and yet had to deal with a
Congress which remained a hive
of bickering politicians, Carter
had to pursue one campaign
promise above all others. The
failure to keep this promise must
cast continuing doubt over his
ability to push an executive pro-
gram through.
All that he had to do was to pick
a cabinet that could take care of
the politics for him. To achieve
this he had to choose people re-
spected by the political establish-
ment but who didn't owe a nickel
to conventional powerbroking. To
the consternation of many,. Car-
ter's cabinet didn't look any dif-
ferent than those 'of past Presi-
dents. Along with the political
cr editors came the well-
intentioned technocrats and the
Congressional stalwarts who had
accumulated enough influence to
merit a job. Most importantly,
nobody was recruited who had
the faintest idea of how to deal,
with major administrative de-
is this man'smiling?
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partments and their 'relations pushing legislation through a ever made of his competency for
with Congress. Most of those ap- very truculent Congress. Without the job. How did running a bank
pointed had served in some people capable of fighting issues or a small state highway de-
capacity in past administrations; on their own, public opinion will partment qualify Bert Lance for
none of them had ever really suc- continue to ignore the major do- one of the most taxing jobs in the
ceeded. As one columnist wrote mestic issues that should concern country?
at the time, "The last laugh is on us at the moment. Reports of cab-, It is of the first importance to
those who thought Carter might inet meetings that reach us public policy that a committee,
have the nerve or the political through even sympathetic' leaks like the Senate ethics committee,
vision to break cleanly from the stress the lack of dialogue and the , crted; n order to weed. out
past., Instead he has, revived it." .:absence "of anyone able to, con- the poitia rdtr n h
structively criticize the Presi- plain submissive from presiden-
HAMILTON JORDAN, then dent's plans. Of course, this is no tial appointees. At the very least,
Carter's campaign manager, different from past admini- this would focus popular opinion
made these comments before the strations, but the difference to- on an issue that is at present
election: "If Cyrus Vance were day is that the President faces a virtually ignored. At best, it
named Secretary of State and considerably more powerful op- would ensure that a President
Zbig Brzezinski head of National position on the Hill which is de- like Jimmy Carter won't fail
Security, then I would say we'd termined to show that it is impos- simply because his own appoint-
failed and I'd quit. But that's not sible for an outsider to govern ef- ees are not capable of doing the
going to happen." fectively., Having gained power job demanded of them. Senate
The rest of the appointments without the aid of a political es- opprobrium' may .not make him
were little better. Michael Blu- tablishment, Carter has yet to change his mind on a particular
menthal, while notably liberal prove that he can delegate the choice, but it would make him
and a successful manager, still work of law-making to those who, very much more careful in the
lacks any major government ex- unlike him, have worked the gov- future. More cabinet government
perience. Desperate efforts were erment machine successfully is what Jimmy Carter promised.
made to, provide a quota of before. It is very much in his own inter-
women and blacks for the cab- ests that we get it.
inet. In itself, this is a highly GOOD GOVERNMENT
questionable way of finding the demands not only honest people
most capable people for the task, but also people who are political- "
Carter then compounded the er- ly adept. There are still a few Chris Goodall looks at
ror by choosing as Attorney Gen- people around who possess these America through the eyes of a
eral a man whose record on race qualities in combination. It is of foreigner. He graduated from
is distinctly dubious. the greatest surprise to a fore-
There is nobody in the present igner to hear that although the England's Cambridge Univer-
cabinet who can provide the Senate confirmation hearings in- sity last spring, and now is 2-
President either with a straight quire exhaustively into an ap- Rackham student in political
answer or substantial help in pointee's morals, no mention is science.
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WASMIt4GTCA4 --BHIND' CLOSED DOORS
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Letters to
TheE
bucks
To The Daily:
Your paper could have spared us another
dreary anti-commercial diatribe. (Daily, Sep-
tember 18) I refer in this case to Tregembo's
"Star-Bucks!" article with its "trendy,"
"sumptuously ffaunted" sophomoric
cynicism.
Reading it, my initial reaction was "so
what?" So various businesses are profiting
(horrors!) on a highly successful film ven-
ture. Why is that newsworthy? After trying to,
decide what would motivate a person to write
such a piece, it occurred to me that I have
read many such articles before in one form or
another and it says a lot about the left-liberal
mentality.
At the root of this article is a suspicion,
resentment, or even hatred of success which
the movie "Star Wars" irl its content and prof-
itability amply demonstrated. Whether it be
McDonald's hamburgers or Michigan foot-
ball, it's all the same. You once printed an ar-
ticle denouncing the football program as
"dehumanizing" as if striving for and achiev-
ing excellence in some endeavor was not as
_e.+ _.^ a cia._ $_ ie , _2 ._"-+ _e4U , , i
to achieve their goals, succeeding gloriously
in this case. Unlike so many other movies
today, Star Wars did not show anti-heroes
struggling with their depraved, neuroses,
helpless victims of fate in a system that does
not automatically grant them their every de=R
sire - the collectivist image of reality. Is it so
strange that this exciting portrayal of the
human spirit is so successful when Hollywood
has for so long forgotten to nurture it? A'nd
isn't it understandable that a collectivist who
understands only misery, suffering, sacrifice,
and failure had to pettily carp about the
"grandiose style of American capitalism, the
selling of Star Wars, Qne, two, three."
It happens that I bought a Star Wars
poster. It is a happy reminder of Aristotle's
definition of art as a portrayal of things as
they ought to be and a means to teach my son
that his life is his to shape in a universe of pos-
sibilitiesIf people are getting rich by selling
such things, I say, "more power to 'em!"
Gerry Wolke
September 20
transfers
)aily
should have been written for transfers.
Michigan's rule states that transfer stu-
dents must have twenty-five approved credit
hours (three English composition hours iii-
cluded) to be eligible for acceptance. Thls
means that all transfer students have a claps
ranking of sophomore or higher. Then why do
sophomore transfer students become fresh-
men when football coupons are given out?
The unfortunate transfer student will still fie
sitting in the end zone with freshmen when )e
or she has reached senior priority.
ANOTHER INSTANCE of neglect concer-
ns drop-add procedures. Everyone knows tie
red-tape at CRISP is endless and unbbarabl .
To add to the confusion, all freshmen ard
transfer students in LSA must have a coui-
selor's signature before passing go, before
selecting new courses. Other normal sopho-
more, juniors, and seniors need not bother
with a counselor unless they desire one. Just
an extra annoyance to add to the University's
policies.
A third attraction in the unwritten rLe
book are the housing policies. In tips
category, transfer students finally receite
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