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OPINION

Page 4

Sunday, October 30, 1983

The Michigan Daily

A glimpse of the 60s

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tradition

in

1983

"! I-±
TRIKE UP THE slogans and roll out the
si banners, it was time once again to protest
V.S. imperialism and the Reagan ad-
ministration.
This time around nearly 400 angry souls
:flarched from the Ann Arbor Federal Building
tto-North Hall, which houses the Reserve Of-
ficer Training Corps, in the name of self-
,determination for the tiny Caribbean island-
nation off Grenada.
!The protestors did all the nifty things
protestors do at anti-war rallies: They flashed
}peace signs, carried anti-administration ban-
ners, chanted anti-administration slogans, and
listened to the obligatory rousing speeches.
}They were the expected "U.S. out of
Grenada" and "U.S. hands off Latin America"
banners and one tailored to President Ronald
Reagan reading, "President Reagan: It's not a
movie - it's reality and it's murder." The chan-
ts;went something like "Self-determination for
the people of Grenada" and "Hey, hey, Uncle
Sam, we remember Vietnam."
TheWeek
inRevew
Then came the speeches. History Prof.
Rebecca Scott pleased the crowd when she an-
nounced, "It should be the purpose of this rally
to tell the government that they are isolated
from the American people." She added that the
inlvasion was "an affront to the world."
At North Hall, Vietnam veteran Walter Klipp
told the gathering, "The government is saying
that we will use military force, whether it is
legitimate or not, to overthrow any gover-
nment that does not coincide with the prin-
ciples and thinking of the U.S."
Boy, people can sure get worked up quick
over a little invasion. Bet a good number of
those at the Grenada rally didn't even know
what Grenada was before Monday. Isn't it a
Ford?

The little shiver
Looking somewhat drained after more than a
month of promoting his latest hit move, writer-
director Lawrence Kasdan returned to Ann Ar-
bor for what turned out to be a none-too-
relaxing week of meeting with students.
Kasdan, who made oodles and oodles of
dough during the last few years through his in-
volvement with such box office smashes as
Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Empire Strikes
Back, and Return of the Jedi, came back to his
alma mater at the invite of the English depar-
tment to run a screenwriter's workshop with a
score or so students.
Much to his surprise, his schedulers figured
they could squeeze a bit more out of this kind
old alum. What he found on his arrival was a
jam-packed week filled with discussions in all
sorts of classes in which he knew he would be
asked the same old questions several dozen
times.
In the meantime, his hosts made every effort
to discourage media coverage of his trip - at
his request - figuring that thebetter they
policed those intrusions, the more they could
intrude themselves., Fortunately for the Daily,
Kasdan made a special exemption, as he said

he came "for the students," which includes the
student press.
Although somewhat disappointed by the lack
of activism among students these days, Kasdan
was pleased to see students on the Diag
protesting the invasion of Grenada. If things in
the world keep going the way they are, said the
pseudo-character of the 60s, activism will
"come back suddenly and strongly."
Staying alive
Dear Mom and Dad,
Please send $400 so I have some chance of
passing my upcoming grad school entrance
exam. You see, in order to be competitive in
scoring these days, you either have to study
everything you think may be on the test in
detail, or take a professionally-coached prep
course. These courses range from $250 to $600,
so I think I got a good deal.
Just this week I learned from a University
study, that these courses help the average
students raise their score by 50 points.
The first day of the course was very in-
teresting. My new instructor explained to me
that vigorous and extensive preparation is
necessary for a good score in such exams. I
sure wish I had talked to her three years ago;
all those tough undergrad classes I took that
were designed to prepare me for post-graduate
study seem now like such a waste of time and
money. Do I ever pity the people who don't take
the courses. I hope they don't expect to get into
a decent grad school.
I also found out that some people qualify for
scholarships from these coaching
organizations. (about 10 percent of all ap-
plicants). My instructor told me that their
program has never turned away someone who
asked for help. Think of that; everyone taking
the test can also take the course, and only 90
percent have to pay for it.
You know, come to think of it, wouldn't the
scores be in the same ratio if such programs
didn't exist? But then how would Stanley
Kaplan and all those organizations make any
money? That Kaplan sure is a smart guy!
Well, I have to go study last year's exams
now, so I am ending my letter. I would ap-
preciate the money as soon as possible. After
all. you invested this much in my education,

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44

Daily Photo by TOD WOOLF
400 students and Ann Arbor citizens marched from the federal building to the Diag waving signs
and banners protesting the U.S. invasion of Grenada.

what's another few hundred bucks? Besides,
with the job market as it is, I have to get accep-
ted to a good grad school in order to get a job,
don't I?
You can just include the amount for the cour-
se in the same check as my recent tuition in-
crease and application fees.
Where was Toto?
The 30 to 35 students who paid Vice President
for Academic Affairs and University Provost
Billy Frye a visit Monday were hardly mun-
chkins. But then again, the path to Frye's office
isn't exactly the yellow brick road made
famous in the Hollywood classic, The Wizard of
Oz.
The students - members of the Progressive
Student Network - did send Billy back to his
childhood with a somewhat offbeat version of
"If I Only Had a Brain," performed to protest
the University's five-year, $20 million budget
cutting plan.
Frye, who was meeting with his assistants
when the PSN members began their chorus,
only listened to a few verses, shutting the door

to his conference room as the group sang, "If
he listened to the students/He'd show a little
prudence."
But a few minutes later he emerged from his
office to chat with the students for about half an
hour. Frye, who might be considered the
wicked witch of the budget cuts, answered
questions about the five-year plan and the
University in general.
Asked if he thought the University was run
like a corporation he answered as if he did indeed
have a heart by saying, "Oh God, no!"
The PSN munchkins did not plan on staging
another overnight as they did in April. After
leaving Frye, they began a 24-hour peace vigil
in front of the West Engineering Arch to protest
defense research on campus and the planned
deployment of Pershing II and Cruise missiles
in Europe.
Frye, meanwhile, denied having any Cruise
missiles - or flying monkeys - in his office.
The Week in Review was compiled by-
Daily staff writer Pete Williams and Daily
editors David Spak, and Barry Witt.

4

Lawrence Kasdan: a trying week.



P iC tQttri c tl J

Sinclair

"

Edited and
Vol. XCIV-No. 47

managed by students at The University of Michigan
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109

Editorials represent a majority opinion of the Daily's Editorial Board
e
A personal choice

H OUSING OFFICIALS are mistaken
in their approach to deciding if
the all womens' dorms Betsy Barbour
and Helen Newberry should be co-ed.
Early this week Alan Levy, the
building director for Betsy Barbour,
and Helen Newberry, said his "per-
sonal philosophical position" was to
balance out the sex ratio in the two
dorms.
Levy said that because several
women have complained about the
dorms' all female status he should at
least throw the question out for
discussion. So residents of the dorms
met this week to discuss the issue and
voted heavily against allowing men to
move in. The vote is non-binding.
The approach everyone is taking to
the decision, however, is more than a
bit skewed. It is inappropriate for Levy
or even the residents of Barbour and
dewberry to decide for future residents
the value of co-ed living. This is a
decision which should be decided by
those residents individually.
rIf some of the residents in these
WENO W I TJC' MJLZH YOU t-M0L )
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dorms are dissatisfied it is a problem.
But the solution is not to take a vote of
residents and let males in if the
majority of residents want to. This
would just create a minority group of
dissatisfied residents - just as much a
problem as the original situation.
A better approach would be to
determine how many women in all
residence halls want to live in a co-ed
situation and how many do not, and
then put them together in one living
situation.
The fact that some residents of Bar-
bour and Newberry are not happy
where they are indicates that the
womens' dorm system is overbuilt.
If this is the case then one of the
dorms should be made co-ed. But
women who do not like that situation
should be accommodated in one of the
other all women dorms.
This way both groups would get their
way, and Levy and the majority of
Barbour and Newberry residents would
not have to project their personal
preferences on to everyone else.
UTOPIA
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I HAVE AN'

LETTERS TO THE DAILY:

1

Egypt
To the Daily:
Egypt is not a country in deep
trouble. Regarding the article
published on October 21, "Hosni
Mabarak's Egypt is a country in
deep trouble," on the political
and economic situation of Egypt
by Paul Magnelia, I am stunned
and disgusted at the ultimate
misrepresentation of the
situation which the article
claimed to report. As an un-
dergraduate Egyptian student
who just spent his full summer
vacaton in Cairo before retur-
ning to the University this fall, I
feel compelled to offer a correc-

"
improves
in military build-up, we are by no
means a starving nation. The ar-
ticle tells us that there is little
hope for improvement until the
Mubarak regime develops a
coherent economic policy. But
does Mr. Magnelia realize that
such a policy has been developed,
has been operating for more than
a year, and includes such clear-
cut points as encouraging Egyp-
tian products, limiting certain
imports, and decentralization of
management? Does he realize
that the first five-year plan
established by the Mubarak ad-
ministration has marked one of
the rare occasions where a

at second glance

people shortly after he assumed
the presidency, facts which were
not known for quite a long time.
On the political side, Magnelia
does an even worse job creating a
picture of a very tense situation
ready to erupt at any minute.
President Mubarak is by no
means isolated from the
problems of Egyptian society. In
all truthfullness, the man enjoys
a large popularity and it is not
hard to see why. Since Mubarak
came, political prisoners have
been given freedom, the media
became much more open presen-
ting an incredible diversity of
opinion perhaps never seen in

to enjoy a position of envied
political stability in the Middle
East, how can Mr. Magnelia
claim that "a situation
reminiscent of the last days of
Sadat is now in the horizon?"
Paul Magnelia's article is not
only a distortion of Egyptian af-
fairs, but is also a representation
of the Western media's con-
tinuous journalistic injustice
toward's the third world. I would
encourage Mr. Magnelia and
others like him to search and
analyze a bit more carefully
when they decide to tell the
people in the North about those in

I