OPINION
Page 4
Sunday; January 29, 1984
The Michigan Daily
I
The 'U, tries a hard sell for software
T RADITIONS TOPPLE. It used to be that
the students gave the teacher an apple, but
now students are going to be getting Apples
from the University-the kind you punch, not
the'kind you munch.
In a deal with Apple Computers Inc., Univer-
sity students and staff will be able to purchase
microcomputers directly from the University.
With the University acting as middleman,
systems will be available to ecstatic students
at discounts of up to 50 percent. And every
penny counts when you're saving up for that
first computer.
break. Sure, Apple will be able to tap a huge
market and the University will ease pressure
on its overtaxed terminal facilities, but what's
wrong with everyone being a winner.
Officials are unsure at present of how much
the computers will cost and how long it will
take the company to deliver. It is expected,
though, that a price list will be available in a
few days.
Four different computers will. be sold by the
University: the brand new Macintosh, the
Lisa, the Apple Hie, and the Apple III. The
juiciest deals will be available on the Macin-
tosh and the Lisa. The Macintosh retails for
$2,495 and will be sold for roughly half that.
The Lisa which retails for between $3,500 and
$5,500 will be discounted by 40 percent.
Greg Marks, a University computer systems
manager and chief organizer of the program,
explained that "the rationale is to help the
Macintosh and the Lisa. Apple is not nearly as
interested in selling the HIe to colleges. They
consider it a high school machine."
Considering that no respectable college
student would want to own a "high school
machine," and since the lines for terminals
here are so long, sales of the Macintosh and
Lisa should be pretty swift.
Unfortunately it will be pretty difficult to
pass the savings along to friends and family
members since customers are limited to one
computer each. On the other hand, an enter-
prising few might try scalping them in front of
the Union.
Should the deal appear so attractive that a
student impulsively buys a system without
even knowing how to use it, the Computer Cen-
ter and the School of Education are kindly
teaming upto provide technical and
educational training.
Apple and the University have been getting
along very well lately-the College of
Engineering picked up 800 computers from
Steve Job's company last term-so well that
they decided to give the students and staff a
Caucus ruckus
Many Michigan Democrats are worrying
about more than just Ronald Reagan, they're
worrying about their own caucus system.
Organizers for presidential candidates other
than that of front runner Walter Mondale say
that the state's amazingly complex caucus
system strongly favors Mondale since it caters
to party regulars.
But dissatisfaction with the system goes
deeper than that. In fact, some of the party
regulars that the system supposedly favors
have also expressed doubts about the system's
fairness. Washtenaw County Democratic
leaders wrote to the party office in Washington
to ask that the system be reviewed and
changed.
As it stands only those super-conscientious
Democrats who sent a postcard to Lansing
saying "I want to enroll in the party" will get a
mailing describing the caucus rules. The rest
will have to rely on ill-funded county parties to
provide voting instructions.
Organizers for John Glenn, Jesse Jackson,
and Gary Hart say they are considering
lawsuits to force a change of the rules. The
courts, however, will most likely say that it's
up to the state party.
Appeals have been made to the state elec-
tions office but the feeling almost everywhere
is that it is up to the party, and state
Democratic Chairman Rick Wiener says that
the rules will not be changed.
Lawsuits may still be filed but it doesn't look
like there will be any changes in what George
McGovern called "the nation's most com-
plicated delegate selection process."
Rate debate
There is only one thing more certain about
dorms than the small rooms, noisy corridors,
crowded bathrooms, and lousy food-you pay
more every year to live it them.'
The rate hike for this fall has yet to be ap-
proved, and Robert Hughes, the University's
housin director, and the "housing commit-
tees" formed to recommend rate increases are
at odds.
Hughes said he would like to hold the in-
crease to the 1983 inflation rate of 3.9 percent.
But the committees have recommended
raising the price of traditional dorms 5.7 per-
cent and the costs of family housing until 5.8
percent.
The committees' recommended increases
would result in a $150 increase for
doubles-bringing the total to $2,800. Singles
would cost $3,319-an increase of $178. The
main cause of the price' increases are rising
Michigan Stadium is empty these days, except for the snow and an occasional visitor. Come April
28, though, the stadium will ring with cheers for the University's finest-not the football stars,.but
graduating seniors-as spring commencement moves outside from Crisler Arena. Seniors now
have a chance to get in some extra commencement practice before the last-minute rush.
utility, labor, and equipment costs.
Before any increase is implemented,
however, it must be approved by Hughes, the
executive officers, and the regents-the same
regents that approved last year's 9.5 percent
tuition hike.
Pray for sunshine
Michigan Stadium is quiet now; the field is
covered with a blanket of snow and ice. Once in
a while a few visitors drop in to trod on the field
and live out their dreams (sort of) and remem-
ber heroic Saturdays of the past.
The bowl-like cavity will remain silent until
spring football practice and the annual intra-
squad battle, which serve as a half-way marker
between seasons. Ever since Crisler Arena
opened, that's about all that has happened in
the stadium between December and August
because when Crisler opened, spring commen-
cement moved indoors.
That, weather permitting, will change April
28, as the place where the likes of Anthony Car-
ter, Rick Leach, and Ali Haji-Sheikh (what a
great name for a kid from Texas) once thrilled
the masses of Maize and Blue boosters
becomes the place the University says goodbye
to its graduates. Yep, those students who will
have amassed the requisite 120 credits in the
right places will be the heroes for whom the
crowd cheers.
All the logisitics of holding ceremonies in the
101,071-seat stadium have not been worked out,
but no one-should have to worry about finding
tickets for Cousin Oscar and Aunt Luli's fourth
husband. Because attending the ceremonies is
back in vogue, finding enough tickets was
becoming a problem in the 13,609-seat basket-
ball arena. Administrators also expect a
larger turnout because the August commen-
cement exercise was cancelled last year, so
those summer graduates will be able to par-
take in the spring bash-sans diploma.
Overcrowding at Crisler had become such a
problem, in fact, that one administrator spends
late nights worrying about it. "I lay awake at
night wondering if I can accommodate all the
parents and grandparents," James Shortt, an
assistant to University President Harold
Shapiro, said. The switch was made so Shortt
could get some sleep and grandma could be
proud. Administrators made one other
change: kickoff will be at 1 p.m. instead of the
scheduled 10 a.m. tip off.
So now at least seniors have one more reason{
to visit Michigan Stadium on a winter's day-to
dream of the glories of April 28 and prepare for
that triumphant day.
The Week in Review was compiled by
Daily staff writers Neil Chase and Karen
Tensa, Daily associate arts editor Jim
Boyd, and Daily Opinion page co-editor
David Spak.
University is selling Apple Computers at discount prices.
_4
Edited and managed by students at The University of Michigan
UTOPIA
Vol. XCIV-No. 99
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Editorials represent a majority opinion of the Daily's Editorial Board
Ronald Reagan's
message is in the stars
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LETTERS TO THE DAILY:
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When you wish upon a
star/Makes no difference who
you are/When you .wish upon a
star/ Your dreams come true.
Jimm my Cricket
NE MIGHT WONDER if
-/President Ronald Reagan didn't
borrow too much magic from Walt
Disney Wednesday night. Reagan's
State of the Union address, the
president played Jimminy Cricket,
chirping of hope and prosperity while
wishing for a return to the days when
America prayed to God and was great
because of it.
'.
Looking skyward in his speech,
Reagan called upon Americans to keep
"faith with the mighty spirit of free
people under God" and said that there
is "a hunger in the land for spiritual
revival." To aid in this revival, he
called for a constitutional amendment
allowing school prayer. Never mind
the separation of church and state,
never mind religious freedom (in-
tax code many tax cheats ignore.
Makes sense, doesn't it?
His other plan for cutting the deficit
is even better: have a bi-partisan
congressional committee do it. That
way it's not his fault if the committee
fails, but he gets credit if the plan
works. That's a solid election-year
strategy.
And while the president wished for
better times at home, he added hid
prayers for peace abroad. "Gover-
nments which rest upon the consent of
the governed do not wage war on their
neighbors," Reagan said. "Only when
people are given a personal stake in
deciding their own destiny and benefit-
ting from their own risks do they
create societies that are prosperous,
progressive, and free." But if you are
not cooperative, he'll make you listen
- just ask the folks in Lebanon and
Central America.
There were other little wishes, like
hoping people will forget last year's
Students will too late see freedom gon
The following is a response to
the column, "'U' leaps at the
chance to babysit" (Daily,
January 25).-
After lunch, in South Quad,
Right before my classes,
I sometimes sit, and read the 'Daily',
If I can find my glasses.
I often read editorials,
Sometimes which are quite bitter,
Why in fact, just yesterday,
The 'U' was condemned as a 'Baby-
sitter'.
The topic of concern,
As any reader could readily see,
Was the problem of an internal court,
And the new dorm drinking policy.
The writer pointed out,
A problem quite apparent-
The Big Shots in this College,
Would like to be our parents.
They do not trust our wisdom
But all these new restrictions,
Are not what bother me,
It's the majority who don't care,
Who treat the changes with apathy.
Our freedom is declining,
We've reached the year of '84,
But no one seems to give a damn,
They'd rather study, than bitch
and roar.
Those of us who are upset,
Can not stop frustration,
W:e've got to find out why,
No one desires emancipation.
And while keeping these thoughts
in mind,
I began to'understand,
That maybe it's not unusual,
For the public to be so bland.
It's only human nature,
To let politics run its course,
And to care only 'bout private life,
It's this theory many endorse.
Only when it looks too late,
People will show their might,
The Japanese had to bomb Pearl
Harbor,
Before America was ready to
fight.
And just because we can not drink,
We're not without remedies,
We still have bars, parties, and
rooms,
And don't forget, fraternities.
But not until we're completely
restricted,
And the University has all control,
Will the majority of the students
react,
Take pride in their freedom, a
stand up tall.
And then we'll make them listen,
And listen is what they'll do,
They'll give us the respect we
deserve,
Our drinking, and Happiness too.
So yes, the students are listening now,
But won't react for quite a time,
And I too will get back to homework,
Because nothing else will rhy'me.
-John Sladkus
January 28
Sladkus is afkeshman in LSA.
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