~iw £ fr4igprn Di1 Eighty-Seven Years of Editorial Freedom 420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Friday, February 11, 1977 News Phone: 764-0552 Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan Thaw in the Caribbeanl E OPPORTUNITY now presents itself for the United States to end 17 years of hatred and bad feel- ings and open the way for complete relaxation of tension with Cuba. Fi- del Castro indicated in an interview a few days ago that he would be open to meeting with President Car- ier, But the Cuban leader did not end there. He also pointed to the mutual economic and cultural benefits both countries would receive. Cuba, only 90 miles from the U.S., would be a good source of sugar and nickle, two products we use ,in large quantities. This warm statement comes from Cuba at a time when relations with our sland neighbor have been cool- ing, after a short thaw, and with a change in leadership in Washington. Castro's remarks could also be a sign that Cuba is tired of being almost completely dependent on the Soviet Union for foreign trade. The time is now right for Carter to take the next step and return Cas- tro's offer to confer. Not only does Cuba offer the United States many economic benefits, but the opening of full relations with Cuba could eventually lead to a new ally in the Caribbean. Besides, as Castro himself put it, "I personally would like to see our Cuba baseball team play your New York Yankees." In defen By DAVE BURGETT IN HIS COLUMN of February 8, Chuck Anesi states that specious arguments can be made against capital punishment; the rest of his article provides overwhelm- ing proof that the arguments in its favor can be equally atrocious. It is difficult to know where to begin in re- sponding to this remarkable document, since nearly every line contains a factual misrepresentation, absurd reasoning, a contempt for democratic values, or some combination of the three. The writer's first target is the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which is alleged to be devoted to "minority rule and miscreant rights." The ACLU's long record of defense of democratic institutions and principles shows the first part of the allegation to be ridiculous. The second is absolutely correct. Although totalitarians would deny the principle, democrats recognize that liberty requires that mis- creants, along with everyone else, do have rights, and that it is the duty of the state to protect thoserights. Although I am tempted to defend my fellow "effete snobs" of the ACLU, this is unnecessary, since the rec- ord of the ACLU speaks for itself. What is more serious is the assault on the rule of law mounted in the name of defending capital punishment. ANESI STATES that the fact that the ACLU presents legal arguments before the federal courts "shows that their case is so pitifully weak that it cannot possibly impress the people." This assertion shows a profound and frightening misunderstanding of the nature and role of the rule of law in a democracy. When a case is pre- sented before a court the purpose is not to establish what the law ought to be in that case, but what it is. The -immediate question is legal, not normative. If public opinion decides that a law is bad, it can act to change it through the legislature, but what the public thinks at a given moment has no bearing on what the law actually is; that is for the courts to decide. It is doubtful whether the public is as well informed on the subject of the effects of the death penalty as Anesi says it is, but we can' be certain that it is not well versed on the questions of law brought up in cases like that of Gilmore. American history provides ample and terrifying evidence of what trial by public opinion does to civil liberties. Personally, I would prefer questions of guilt to be decided on the basis of fact and questions of law to be decided on the basis of statutes and pre- cedent, not by Gallup polls. But Anesi suggests that this defeats the will of the majority. He ignores the fact the Constitution, as duly ratified and amended, also represents the will of the majority, and that this will is the foundation of statu- tory law and takes precedence over it. By invoking the Constitution, the ACLU was not challenging the will of the majority but appealing to it. AT NO POINT does the writer address the actual arguments employed by the ACLU in the Gilmore appeals. He is not attacking the arguments used but the very right of litigaton, by implying that the litigants were wrong even to present their case. This right is not only constitutionally protected, it is essential if the legal system is ever to perform its function of inter- preting general rules in light of specific cases, and ferreting out laws which conflict with Constitutional se of principles. - Frankly, I find it amazing to see a conservative rail- ing about people seeking to find redress of injustice in court. Right-wingers spent most of the sixties ranting about anti-war and civil rights activists who used civil disobedience to rectify officially sanctioned wrongs. Having denounced peaceful extra-legal means, it now seems that at least one of their number finds that legal means are no good either. It must be that things are so good that advocating change is wrong no matter what means are employed. Anesi's views on capital punishment are no better founded than his position on the rule of law. He defends retribution as a justification for killing convicted of- fenders. Certainly the victims of crime have a right to be angry. But can an act of violence against a convict be justified on the grounds that it satisfies the victim's. or the public's craving for vengeance? The desire for vengeance is a human frailty, not a virtue, and although we may deeply sympathize with the victims, the state should not condone or encourage retribution. THE COLUMNIST does identify one worthwhile goal:' the deterrence of crime. Unfortunately, his attempts to show that capital punishment has a substantial deter- rent effect rest on faulty evidence and weak reasoning. It is certainly true that homicide rates have increased greatly in the decade since the last execution before that of Gilmore. However, without further evidence we cannot attribute this to an alleged deterrent effect of the death penalty, since there is no reason to think that the rate would have been much lower with capital punishment in force. During the years when the penalty was in use, states that repealed it did not experience significant increases in crime. Anesi's "abundant proof" of a deter'rent effect is that death row inmates don't want to die, Gilmore being the most notable exception. The opinion of men who have already been caught and face certain death if capital punishment is reinstated is irrelevant to the question of deterrence. What matters is the effect of the death penalty on the person who is about to commit a violent crime and does not know if he will be caught. The deterrence argument assumes that the potential criminal will be rational and use forethought when he acts violently. Police records show that most assaults occur among people who know each other-friends or family-and often the scene of the crime is the home. These acts are most frequently the result of mental instability or momentary passion, not rational calculation of the po- tential consequences. BUT THERE is little reason to anticipate a deterrent effect even on those who plan a crime like armed rob- bery, which may lead to a shooting. Except for a hand- ful of masochists or suicidal cases, no one commits a crime with the expectation of being caught and brought to justice. The criminal intends to elude punishment. and often this expectation turns out to be justified. The essence of deterrence is not the nature of the punish- ment, be it the death sentence or any other, but the expectation of punishment-the certainty, rather than the severity of punishment. Mandatory sentencing is not necessarily the best way to increase the certainty of punishment, but at least its advocates understand the civil libertieS key to deterrence. Finally, Anesi states that in "any legal system based on reasonable doubt or probability, convicting innocent people is unavoidable," and that this is "the price we will have to pay for an effective justice system." If the author were simply observing that humans are fallible, his statement would be unobjectionable. But he apparently means more than this, since he implies that punishing innocent people is somehow due-to the prin- ciple of reasonable doubt, not of the frailty of those who try to apply it. The doctrine of reasonable doubt is not the same as probability. Our legal principles demand that where there is uncertainty judicial decisions are not to be made on the basis of whether or not guilt seems more pro- bable than innocence. Any reasonable doubt is to go to to the benefit of the accused. By so asserting. the legal system affirms a simple but crucial principle of jus- tice: that innocent people should not be punished, even if a few of the guilty may get away as a consequence. Not punishing a guilty person may be undesirable for instrumental reasons, but it is not a moral fault; punishing an innocent person is. If killing criminals, along with a few inocent people, with little or no deterrent effect on crime is what Anest * has in mind by an "effective justice system," then I'll settle for an ineffective one. If all that was at stake here were Anesi's personal opinion of the death penalty or his dedication to demo- cratic values, his article would hardly have merited a resnonse. But he and others with similar values are called upon to sit on juries, and some are even elected or appointed to the bench. Contemporary history pro- Irides evidence'that such values may in fact; be widely held. Although the Constitution establishes a good basis for the protection of civil liberties, and groups like the ACLU will continue to fight in defense of those liber- ties, such principles must still be applied by people. Since the Constitution can be amended; new laws can be made, and courts take account of changing popular conceptions and standards of behavior when they de- find words like "reasonable," "obscene," and "due care," public dpinion does have an effect, though not in the way Anesi implies it should. DE TOCQUEVILLE, a most perspective observer of, A merican self-government, pointed out that the success of democracy ultimately rests not on laws or institu- tions, but on values of the governed. Do we in fact defend the principles ofjustice and democracy which we nominally affirm in our speech and in our Con- stitution? Do we defend them only when it is conven- ient and when it serves ours personal interests? Do we demand the protection of the rights of all, miscreants included. or only of those with whom we sympathize? These questions only seem abstract until they are made unmercifully real when one is accused of a crime or seeks to use the legal system to redress an injus- tice. Upon their answers rests the fut'e of democracy and civil liberties in America. Dave Burgett is a senior in political science and an ACLU member. Wr ins It's about time IN THE LATEST in a series of dip- lomatic feelers to Eastern Europe, the Spanish government, headed by Prime Minister Adolfo Suarez, re- sumed relations with the Soviet Un- ion last Wednesday. This effective- ly closes the cold diplomatic breach between the nations that has existed for over 38 years, since the institu- tion of the Franco regime directly after the Spanish Civil War. This caps a rather drawn-out pro- cess undertaken by Spain to estab- lish full relations with the Soviet bloc. Suarez's government has also announced the impending establish- ment of relations with Hungary and Czechoslovakia. Though expected for some time (Spain and Russia already have trade relations), the announce- ment still is a relief to those of us committed to Spanish freedom. For one, this action ought to help consolidate the Suarez government's position. If assured of its effective- ness in the future, this cabinet can continue to steadily lead their coun- try out of the neanderthalic fascism imposed by the Franco coterie. The Spanish people have yet to regain all of their lost liberties and there are still reforms to be won, but the progress to date is continual and appears to be headed towards Span- ish freedom, despite the trenchant opposition of the Francoist hangers- ons., ALSO, THE OUTLAWED Spanish Communist Party now has renew- ed hope of gaining a certain and legal status. Not only does it now have a powerful advocate, but the more secure Suarez government has less to fear from Communist "subver- sion." The outlawing of any politi- cal organization grates against the consciences' of freedom-minded indi- viduals, and the prospect of legal Communist activity brings the Span- ish nation a step closer to full politi- cal freedom. The resumption of Spanish-Soviet relations brings other more minor benefits as well, such as the probable return of $2.1 billion in gold shipped off to Russia by Spain during itsj civil war, with the obvious economic benefit to recession-ridden Spain. But over all of these aforementioned gains from this action towers the bringing together of the Russian and Spanish nations. With the development of in- ternational cooperation engendered by, the pact, the cause of peace is furthered a bit more, and only in peace can prosperity and liberty ger- minate and survive. e; Editorial Staff Co-Editors-in-Chief ANN MARIE LIPINSKI............JIM TOBIN KEN PARSIGIAN .............Editorial Director Managing Editors JAY LEVIN, GEORGE LOBSENZ, MIKE NORTON, MARGARET YAO LOIS JOSIMOVICH .............. Art' Editor Magazine Editors SUSAN ADES . .. ELAINE FLETCHER STAFF WRITERS: Gwen Barr, Susan Barry, Brian Blanchard, Michael Beckman, Phillip Bokovoy, Linda Brenners, Lor Carruthers, Ken Chotiner, Eileen Daley, Ron DeKett, Lisa Fish- er, David Goodman, Marnie Heyn, Robb Holm- es, Michael Jones, Lani Jordan, Janet Klein. Gregg Kruppa, Steve Kursman, Dobilas Matu- lionis, Stu McConnell, Tom Meyer, Jenny Mil- ,er, Patti Montemurri, Tom O-Connell, Jon Pansius, Karen Paul, Stephen Pickover, Kim Potter, Martha Retallick, Keith Richburg, Bob Rosenbaum, Dennis Sabo, Annmarie Schiavi, Elizabeth Slowik, Tom Stevens, Jim Stimpson, Mike Taylor, Pauline Toole, Mark Wagner, Sue warner, Shelley Woison, Mike Yeliin, Laurie Young and Barb Zahs. Business Staff Deborah Dreyfuss............Business Manager Kathleen Muinern Assistant Adv. Coordinator David Harlan ................ Finance Manager Don Simpson..........Sales Manager Pete Peterson..........Advertising Coordinator Cassle St. Clair........:..Circulation Manager Beth Stratford.......Circulation Director. Photography Staff PAULINE LUBENS........Chief Photographer ALAN BILINSKY...............Picture Editor BRAD BEN.JAMIN .......... Staff Photographer ANDY FREEBERG..........Staff Photographer CHRISTINA SCHNEIDER .... Staff Photographer Sports Staff' Bill Stieg ...................... Sports Editor Rich Lerner. .Executive Sports Editor Andy Glazer ......... Managing Sports Editor Rick Bonino........... Associate Sports Editor NIGHT EDITORS: Tom Cameron, Enid Goldman, Kathy Henneghan, Scott Lewis, Rick Maddock, Bob Miller, Jonn Niemeyer, Mark Whitney. Letters to the AFSC31 E To the Daily: Local 1583 of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFS- CME), AFL-CIO represents over 2300 service-maintenance work- ers at the University of Michi- gan. We are the dietary workers, custodians, aides, d r i v e r s, groundskeepers, printers a n d others who ketep the University going. Despite the fact that we play such a vital role at the Univer- sity, our wages and benefits are minimal. Our average wage of less than $4.40 per hour is less than the U.S. Government's low budget standard for a family of four. We have no Jental or presecription drug coverage like many other unionized workers have, and we still pay for our medical insurance if we have family coverage. Our cost-of-liv- ing clause in our contract has a 15c "cap" and because of it we lost 36c in 1974 and 1975 and another 21c is owed us for 1976. We too, would like to send our kids to college but can't con- sider it on our wages. Somc of us are college age and would, like to work our way through college, but that is also an im- possibility when we barely earn enough to live on. Our food service workers make $3.75/hr. and our ustodians make $4.15/hr. That sounds great compared to what tempor- ary student workers make, but it's not so hot when compared 'I, -1 * . -4 THE MALE ROLE AND IMAGE by NIC and KAREN TAMBORRIELLO Editorial positions represent a consensus.of The Daily Editorial staff. TODAY'S STAFF: News: Lisa Fisher, Lani Jordan, Gregg Krupa, Ann Marie Lipinski, George Lobsenz, Mike Norton, Elizabeth Slowick, Margaret Yao, Michael Yellin Editorial: Marnie Heyn, Ken Parsigian Arts: Lois Josimovich, Mike Taylor Photo technician: Andy Freeberg ENE ' j WAS CERTAIN that today would be a good day - a win- " ning day. I had just showered with "manly" Irish Spring Soap, "protected myself like a man" with Old Spice deodorant and splashed on Jovan's Sex Appeal cologne so I could "attract women at will." (Yesterday I was "peppery and potent" with Aramis After Shave.) I sat down to my own personal "breakfast of champions" and began thumbing through the latest issue of Saga Magazine. "Don't be a 97 pound weakling! You can have a super Atlas body in 7 days!" This particular ad was oh, so familiar. It's been running in comic books and men's magazines completely' unchanged for at least twenty years now. I still like the part where the 97 lb. weaking punches out the bully. (Oh, Mac! You are a real man after all!) Wouldn't you know it. I got so lost in the magazine that I had to speed along a side road to get to work on. tiime. I don't feel too bad about speeding though, especially since I noticed an article in Playboy (Entertainment For Men) Mag- azine called "55 Be Damned!" That was the same issue that had the Whole Hero Driver's Catalog that first told me about my. Super Snooper Radar Detector ($149.95), my UHF/VHF/ police band scanner ($169), and my Pearce-Simpson CB ($419.95). Like they said, "Eat your heart out, Smokey." Be- sides, I'm driving a Charger that's Double-Tigered. (I've got one in my tank and Tiger Paw tires.) ONE OF THE first things I discovered at work was that I was out of cigarettes. I was thinking of switching from Marlboro because I saw a Winston ad that sounded sensible. "When your taste grows up, so should your cigarette." After all, me and those cowboys had been together in Marlboro Country a long time and I didn't want to get in a rut., Then I saw in big, bold letters, "How to Influence People." The main part of the ad said, "Nothing makes a man look more per- suasive than taking a cigar out of a tube," and since I'm bucking for a promotion, I sent my secretary to find me ten Royale Cigars. THEN I CONTEMPLATED going to a movie instead. What's playing? "Rocky" (Picture of the year), "Network" (too real to be entertaining), "Twilight's Last Gleaming" (Possibly. I like war movies.), "Seven Per Cent Solution" (Oh yeah. My best friend loved it. Sword fight, Sherlock Holmes, and Sig- mung Freud. Sounds great.) What's on campus? OH WOW! "Maltese Falcon" is back again! Hmmm, The New York Erotic Film Festival. All the guys who have seen it are talk- ing about the movie about the two queers. They.seemed pretty, upset by it. They said there was a movie just like it about two young lesbians, but that didn't bother them because they see that in Penthouse all the time. I wonder what all that means? I hate to be seen at movies alone and it's too late to call anyone so I decided to catch up on some reading. (Gotta stay current, ya know.) I wonder if "The Final Days" will be as good as "AiW The President's Men"? Then there's John Dean's "Blind Ambition," and I've been dying to read "Why Not The Best?" Oh, yeah, here are the books Sandy got me last Christmas: Fasteau's "The Male Machine" and Farrell's "The Liberated Man". Maybe I'll get to them one of these days. But right now I think I'll have a drink. I'll have some Bushmill's Irish whiskey because "you can tell a lot about an individual by what he pours into his glass." IN CASE YOU haven't,.noticed, we've been quoting some examples of how males and the masculine image are portray- ed. Advertising offers images of sexy and successful man. It creates a perfectionist, aloof, impeccably dressed, "natural" smelling; a man who smokes, drinks, and drives a distinctive automobile. Does this sound like a man who would be easy to like or love? Does it allow for the man to be humble or, unassuming? Does it seem as if he would be interested in your needs, in exchanging experiences, in being a friend? A contrast in advertising depicts a man who is a bumbling idiot, who wakes his wife in the middle of the night to ask what medicine he should take for his cold, who doesn't know how to add detergent to a washing machine, and who gets in- digestion from overeating because he is too nice or too gluttonous to refuse any one's cooking at the family reunion. This man obviously has no self-respect, intelligence, or asser- tiveness. He is regularly berated by women and children in commercials and presented as a fool. Another characterization, or de-characterization, is the hero in commercials. This could be a mythical figure like the White Knight from Ajax or the Drano plumber who is always to the rescue. These are usually obnoxious, know-it-all men who appear to get an inordinate amount of pleasure from accomplishing menial tasks, the same tasks that ordinary. men to other public insritutions Wayne State University custod- ians make over $1.30/hr. more than we do and even tiny Grand Valley State College pays its janitors almost 40c/hr. more than Michigan does. It is for these reasons that we place great importance on the current negotiations with t h e University. Our three-year cen- tract expired Dac. 31, 1976. We gave the University a full month extension to Jan. 31. Then we voted a second extensio1 to Feb. 15. The University didn' even make their first economic cffer until recently, over a month af- ter the expiration date of our old contract. Our union is as opposed row as we have in the past to a tui- tion hike. We do nat feel our demands should be linked to an increase in tuition, dorm fees, or hospital expanses. Funds must be redirected from bloat- ed administrative budgets to meet the human needs of work- ers and students alike. We want to continue serving the student community. We also hope you will s&ind by us in our efforts to achieve dignity and justice. -Joel Block President AFSCME, Local 1583 grunts To the Daily: With due respect to the Daily I must observe: 1. that the original title of my piece (given by me) w a s "Morality and grants" (and not 'U' profs 'intelle'-nal prostitu- tes'?, the title given by the Daily). 2: that nowhere did I say :hat "I would like to know how oth- er profs feel about 'intellectual prostitutes' 3. that I disapprove of any form of prostitution, including pro- stituting my text by any oulIsh- ing agency; includig the Daily. --Henry Skolimowski Professor of Humanities College of Engineering Editor's note: Professor Skolimowski indica- ted to me that he wished his piece to be an "open challenge" ,to other profs. :asumed that meant he was intere;ted (as I was) in eliciting resonse from other profs on the subject. The reason I used he. term "intcl- I IOU II W 'a HI