OPINION
Page 4 Tuesday, December 8, 1981
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The Michigan Daily
Edited and managed by students at The University of Michigan
An unknown you should.know
Vol. XCII, No. 73
420 Moynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Editorials represent a majority opinion of the Daily's Editorial Board
There's a beast in my mind who thinks
SEX all the time
A lone I can'tfight his command
When Isay something clean, he makes me
sound obscene,
We could beat him if you'd lend a hand.
Now let me say right off that I'm something
of a Philistine when it comes to music. I used
Fighting hazing
A T LAST, more than a year after
the brutal hazing of a freshman
hockey player became public, the
University seems ready to adopt a
formal policy condemning hazing.
This evening, the Michigan Student
Assembly will decide whether to en-
dorse a proposed University policy on
hazing. If the Assembly votes to endor-
se them, the guidelines could even-
tually go before the Regents for ap-
proval and adoption as University
policy.
The proposed statement is a strong
one: It condemns not only the more
glaring hazings like that committed by
the hockey team last year, but other,
more subtle and pernicious forms of
hazing such as the indignities to which
fraternity pledges are sometimes sub-
jected. In spirit, at least, the guidelines
seek to ban nearly all forms of hazing
and, more importantly, commit the
University to taking action against any
groups that indulge in hazing.
In short, the proposed policy is just
what the University needs: a clear and
unequivocal statement that hazing is
unacceptable to the University com-
munity.
The proposed policy is largely the
work of a group of students - in-
cluding several fraternity and sorority
members concerned about the
proliferation of hazing on campus -
and of Chris Carlsen from the Univer-
sity's Office of Student Activities,
Organizations and Programs. As a
result of the group's diligent efforts,
the policy may now be adopted.
Few people suggest that enacting a
policy will itself eradicate hazing; the
University will have to follow through
with enforcement and will have to
demonstrate that it is indeed deter-
mined to "impose appropriate san-
ctions" - as the guidelines promise -
on any group which engages in hazing.
Nevertheless, the proposed policy is
a vital first step toward eliminating,
hazing. It merits quick and en-
thusiastic endorsement by MSA.
Howard
Witt
to think The Plasmatics were big city winos
who sold their blood for a few bottles of Annie
Greensprings and I only discovered
Pachelbel's "Canon in D" after seeing Or-
dinary People.
But I do know what I like. And I think I've
made a big discovery.
His name is Peter Alsop. I know, I
know-there are probably a few die-hard
Peter Alsop fans out there groaning "Oh,
wow-where has he been?" After all, Alsop
has been recording music now for about six
years.
BUT JUDGING FROM the selections in
most local record stores-where there is nary
an Alsop album to be found-and the small
audience at one of his local concerts earlier
this fall, most of you haven't heard of Peter
Alsop.
How to describe his music-that's no easy
proposition. When a store does carry his stuff,
you'll usually find it under "Misc. Folk," but
that is misleading. Alsop is only a folk singer
sometimes. Often he'll swing into jazz, or
bluegrass, or rock. At times he's a latter-day
Tom Lehrer.
But always he's a poet-irreverent here,
serious there-creating warm ballads and
zinging ditties about human caring, changing
sex roles, single parenting, atomic waste,
homely people. How can you gloss a man who
skewered "The Waltons"-that most
wholesome of television families-with a song
of attrition in which everyone dies of freak
accidents while the father rejoices "That's
one less mouth to feed"?
THE LYRICS I excerpted at the beginning
of this column are from a song titled "You
Make Me Stand In The Corner," a twangy
country-like tune about sexism. There are
more double entendres here than you can
shake a stick at (sorry), but they combine in-
to a gently humorous song about a serious
subject.
This is no syrupy Mamas and Papas ab-
stract about answers blowin' in the wind. Nor
is it knock-'em-over-the-head Joan Baez
polemicism. Peter Alsop produces music with
a message, all right-but it's fun.
How about a children's song dealing with
the constraining sex roles society forces upon
us? Put that subject in the hands of most
songwriters and you'd end up with some
godawful boredom. The chorus of Alsop's in-
terpretation, sung by ten kids:
It's only a wee-wee, so what's the big deal?
It's only a wee-wee, so what's all the fuss?
It's only a wee-wee and everyone's got one
There's better things to discuss!
Wouldn't it be refreshing to hear that on the
radio instead of Cheap Trick or Blondie?
OR A LIGHT song about the frequently
awkward relationships between gays and
straights titled "Hopelessly Heterosexual."
Or one about machismo and chauvinism. Or
trying to find companionship in a one-night
stand.
Peter Alsop
Alsop has written them all. Nor is he afraid
to venture into such taboo areas as incest:-
"Look at the Ceiling" provides the chilling,
plaintive, confused, desperate words of a little -
girl horribly abused by her father.
Alsop simply exudes caring. And he's real. "
No artificial pop star could pull an audience
from tears to laughter and back again, as
Alsop did in September when he played to an
intimate group of 40 at Canterbury Loft.
And no artificial star could be so humbly
non-commercial. He records-on Flying Fish,
a small Chicago label; he advertises booking,
information right on his album covers; he
sells his records in person. Even his publicity '
photo is warmly self-effacing.
I almost hope Peter Alsop doesn't get too
famous, for something of his genuineness
would surely then be lost. In the meantime, go,
ask your favorite record store to order his
latest album, Uniforms. Makes a great
Christmas gift.
Witt's column appears every Tuesday."-
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4'
Creation and science
O PENING ARGUMENTS began
Monday in a federal district court
in Arkansas to determine the con-
stitutionality of the state's "balanced
treatment" law. We hope the court will
rule against this ill-conceived plan.
The law requires that "balanced
treatment" be given to the teaching of
evolution and the theory of creation in
public school science classrooms.
Creation-science, as its supporters
have called it, is the view that the
universe and man were created 6000
years ago.
Creation proponents have argued
that there are other theories besides
Charles Darwin's to explain the
existence of man. And indeed there
are. But Darwin's theory is by far the
most plausible scientific explanation
at the time and therefore the most
logical one to present in a science
classroom. There are numerous other
beliefs on where man came from,
ranging from some primitive East In-
dian tribes' notion that man came from
the creators' rubbings and fingernails,
to the ancient Greek belief that man
was created after Prometheus molded
him from the ground. But none of these
theories would be presented in a scien-
Weasel
By Robert Lence
ce classroom because they are founded
on religious dogma-as is the theory of
creationism.
The Arkansas law is currently being
challenged not only by that state's
Education Association and the
National Association of Biology
Teachers but by clergy from several
denominations as well. They argue
that they theory could not be taught
without injecting religion into the
schools which violates the First and
14th amendments.
Clearly, giving students religious in-
struction in a science classroom-or
anywhere in a public school-infringes
on. the civil liberties of all school
children. Not only does it violate the
rights of students who choose not to
practice that religion, it can also cause
a dilemma among those who do
ascribe to the same beliefs. Inter-
pretations of religious events differ
dramatically from individual to in-
dividual and teachers who are not
trained in theology do not have the
skills or the right to determine for their
students which is correct.
In the interest of protecting the civil
liberties of school children, the court
should rule against the unbalanced
"balanced treatment" law.
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LETTERS TO THE DAILY:
Sweden acted wisely with submarine
To the Daily:
A Russian submarine loaded
with nuclear warheads wandered
into Swedish waters and ran
aground. The way that the
Swedish government handled this
sticky situation deserves praise
from the rest of the free world.
According to Captain Gushin,
his guidance system failed and
the submarine accidently wan-
dered into Swedish waters.
However, this was one point that
the Swedish governmentpCared to
differ with. Although Moscow
demanded the return of the sub
and sent ten Soviet warships to
crusie the area, the Swedes would
not budge. This standoff lasted
for ten days until the Soviets
allowed the inspection of their
sub.
During the inspection of the
submarine, the supposedly defec-
tive guidance system was found
-smashed. Its destruction made it
impossible to inspect it for defec-
ts. Ordinarily, the captain would
be the highest ranking official,
but, higher ranking Soviet of-
ficials were also found aboard the
ship. The sub was armed with
nuclear warheads which made it
obvious that the Russians weren't
out for a stroll. Why? The answer
lies in the fact that Sweden had
been testing a new anti-sub-
marine torpedo. These tests were
being conducted at Karlskrona, a
base situated to observe the
movement of Russian ships.
Sweden, a virtually neutral
country, handled the situation
with the kind of audacity that is
needed to put the Russians in
their place. The United States
should praise the Swedes for their
shrewdness and realize that the
containment of communism can
Diag evangelist offensive
be a much easier task if the coun-
tries in the free world work hand,
in hand with each other.
-Steven Corcoran
November 23
--A-
Kudos for coyote edit
To the Daily:
Now that the cold weather is
upon us, perhaps we can feel con-
fident that the evangelist who
plagues the Diag will have disap-
peared with the Indian summer.
As a student who frequents the
Diag, I find the evangelist's reac-
tionary rhetoric not only an-
noying, but insulting as well. His
inability to convert the Diag into
a place to be avoided rather than
to be enjoyed is remarkable.
Along with the populace of
homosexuals, blacks, Jews,
Catholics and every other race,
color, creed and denomination, I
have been verbally assaulted too
many times.
What ever happened to the
days when we could go to the
Diag to relax, listen to the chimes
of the bell tower, or just to sack
out on the grass? Sure, we can
still do this, but, due to the ab-
normally loud voice of the-
Is apathyc
To the Daily:
Thi ilpt,.r is n,.P.nnCP to
evangelist, our activities are not
as enjoyable.
Instead, the student who is en-
tering the library is shouted at for
being too book-minded and not
mindful of God, while the person
smoking marijuana on the grass -
is accused of being a degenerate.
I feel that the evangelist on'
campus is abusing the First
Amendment. He has converted
the University's Diag into a Billy,
Graham training ground. Gran-
ted, the evangelist ought to be
able to voice his beliefs, but why
not where his listeners come on a
voluntary basis? Perhaps if the
evangelist came and went as
quickly as Jed (the campus'
renowned evangelist) I would not
be so bitter. However, this one
has managed to become a per-
manent fixture, and a lingering
nuisance. Is there no end?
-Dana Visker
December 1
dangerous?
involves some breach of
oblieation. and nowhere in his ar
To the Daily:
Congratulations on your
editorial (Nov. 21) condemning
Interior Secretary James Watt's
coyote "control" program.
It is indeed time that we re-
examine our ethics regarding
wild creatures and realize that
they are not renewable resour-
ces, but living, unique beings.
Unfortunately, the Watt concep-
tion of nature continues to
dominate our policies towards
animals, even in ecologically
aware Ann Arbor.
Last summer the Universitv
protest the proceedings), the
highly visible suffering provoked
a public outcry which led to the
city council's formation of a task
force to study alternative control
methods.
It remains to be seen whether
the task force will opt for non-
destructive techniques of control
(i.e., pigeon proofing buildings,
using repellants and birth control
chemicals) or poison. The
committee will announce its
decision at the city council
meeting Dec. 14, in time for