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February 17, 1984 - Image 4

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The Michigan Daily, 1984-02-17

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4

OPINION

I

Page 4

A few new

Friday, February 17, 1984
ideas for spring

The Michigan Daily
vacation

By David Spak
Spring break 1984 is upon the Univer-
sity once again. The Florida beaches
and the Colorado slopes are getting
more crowded by the hour as students
leave their books behind for a week of
wild and licentious living.
Wet t-shirts and bikinis or hot tubs
and goggles will be the fashion for a few
days. Several breweries will be working
around the clock to satisfy the soon-to-
be hung-over masses of University
students at Ft. Lauderdale, the
Michigan of the South.
How boring. Where is the spirit of ad-
venture University students are known
for? Are you looking for a change of
pace?
IT MAY BE too late to change your
plans for spring break, but if your plans
aren't set in stone or you are already
thinking about next February, here are
a few suggestions that might make you
forget Ft. Lauderdale:
" What could be better than Moscow
this time of year? The gorgeous
Moscovite comrade snow bunnies of
both genders get a little bit of cabin
fever around now especially because
their winter begins sooner and lasts a
few weeks longer. Besides, if you had
planned ahead and taken off a week
early, you could have been in on the
changing of the guard from Yuri "I was
sick while I lasted" Andropov to Kon-
stantin "I thought George Bush was a
type of geranium" Chernenko.
President Ronald Reagan blew his
chance to party with the finest from
Moscow to Montreal, why should you?
Think of all the heavy hitters you could

have rubbed elbows with. Indira Gan-
dhi, Maggie Thatcher, Andrei
Gromyko, and that playboy of
playboys, Pierre Trudeau.
Moscow is always at its best during
state occasions. The government
throws a wonderful military parade or
funeral. Imagine what the cocktail par-
ties afterward must be like. Caviar and
vodka in the land that invented them.
But don't fret. Though you missed the
mourning this time around, it may hap-
pen all over again next February. The
72-year-old Chernenko did not appear to
be in the best of health during the
ceremonies for Andropov. The new
Soviet leader could not keep his arm
raised in salute and slurred many parts
of the eulogy.
" Now that the Marines are leaving
Beirut the crowds won't be a problem in
Lebanon. Many open air hotel rooms
are available all over the city and you
can pick your faction by crossing the
street.
Dress is casual though white is
recommended if you cannot decide
where to stay. Watch out for the big
firecrackers those Marines are setting
off from their cruise ship, the New Jer-
sey, especially if you like to take after-
noon hikes in the surrounding moun-
tains.
It might be nice to pay a visit to Amin
Gemayel if you choose thishtrip. Like
Chernenko, Gemayel might not be
around next year. In fact, Beirut might
not be around next year.
" You say you don't like cold weather
or mountains? There is no better tan-
ning spot in the Caribbean than
Grenada. While you are basking in the
tropical sun you can watch democracy

parks in Central America. The games
and rides of Big Pine II in Honduras are
still going strong. The helicopter ride is
not for the weak hearted, but. en-
thusiasts say training a Contra alone is
worth the price of admission.
The roads and bridges are not in good
condition particularly in El Salvador.
But don't criticize the management
about this because their friendscan get
a little testy. They don't carry water
pistols in these neighborhoods.
Afghanistan is becoming a peren-
nial favorite for quagmire watchers. If
you thought only the United States
could get sucked into a no-win war, a
few weeks in this mountainous paradise
will change your mind. This place has
already been dubbed the "Soviet Viet-
nam."
Like Lebanon, Afghanistan is an ex-
cellent spot for a healthy afternoon
hike. Be wary of sudden yellow rain
showers and remember that the Soviets
are using more than firecrackers from
a cruise ship to soften the land for
spring plowing.
There are other places to go. A visit to
Iran is always interesting for an
American. Poland is due for some fun,
water cannon displays soon. And you
can always find a good rugby match in
South Africa.
So forget about Florida sunshine,
Colorado slopes, and Southern Califor-
nia. There's a whole world out there
waiting to be discovered.
Or you could always go home.
Spak is a formner Daily editor.

They throw the best party for you when you are least able to enjoy it. The funeral parties for Yuri Andropov may be
winding down, but Moscow is still the place to be for spring break.

get a start. The dorm food at the
medical school is better than the stuff
you get here, and it will not upset your
diet as much as the food in Beirut.
The Marines that vacationed in
Grenada last fall said that the natives

are particularly friendly. It's the stray
Cuban or two you have to be wary of.
The big problem with a vacation in
Grenada is transportation. The airport
is not finished, so the easiest way to
get on an island is either by landing

craft or - for the sporting type -
parachute. If you choose to go by sea,
remember to wear a life vest.
UNLIKE IN Moscow and Beirut,
American Express is accepted.
" Another hotspot are the amusement

Edited and managed by students at The University of Michigan
Vol. XCIV-No. 115 420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Editorials represent a majority opinion of the Daily's Editorial Board

Resistors restricted

Stewart,
t \

TODAY REPRESENTS TES.., THE
THE PASSING OF OUR STEALTH
GREATEST WEAPON LEADER
AGAINST FOREIGN
INTELLEGENCE - /
EVER, COMRADE,-,
-

College students are disrespectful,
unpatriotic citizens if they happen to
be men who oppose registering with
the Selective Service, and need finan-
cial aid. This is the gist of the premise
which led Delegate Jefferson Stafford
(R-Giles, Va.) to sponsor a bill which
would bar young men who fail to
register with the U.S. Selective Service
from entering state colleges and
receiving financial aid.
"If you're going to reap the benefits
of this commonwealth you're going to
obey the law," Stafford told the
Virginia House of Delegates which ap-
proved the vote 67-33 yesterday.
As if it isn't enough pressure on
college-age non-registrants to be
denied federal financial aid funds and
job training benefits, this Virginia
Republican and his supporters have to
make it worse,
Proponents of the bill in the House
ignored the fact that the measure could
be found unconstitutional and easily
overturned on the first court challenge.
They ignored Delegate William Robin-
son (D-Norfolk, Va.) who asked why the
Virginia House should decide on the
constitutionality of a law which is
similar to a law currently being heard
by the U.S. Supreme Court. Soon, the
high court will decide on the con-

stitutionality of this law linking federal
financial aid to Selective Service
registration. But members of the
Virginia House couldn't wait.
It is perhaps easy to forget that such
laws single out a special group of
citizens - men going to college - and
automatically strip them of their
rights to due process of law. It also
requires a person to incriminate them-
selves when they refuse to sign the
registration forms.
Opponents of the bill facetiously
suggested that to make the measure
more effective the House should deny
driver's licenses to those who fail to
register. Or perhaps one might go a
step further than this. How about
taking away a citizen's right to vote -
equally as important as a person's
right of equal access to education?
Whatever move state lawmakers
want to take, the Supreme Court's
decision on the issue will be moot to
most of those who reached the age of 18
before the summer of 1980 when the
draft registration law went into effect.
It is also thought to be a trivial concern
by the 98.7 percent of eligible men who
have complied with the law.
But for that less than 2 percent in-
volved, being born after Jan. 1, 1960 is
currently an unfair obstacle to ob-
taining a college education.

U;

I
i

LETTERS TO THE DAILY:

Stop bullying physical education

. To the Daily:
I realize this reply is a couple of
weeks late, but it has taken
awhile for the anger to subside
over your latest trashing of the
physical education department in
"Let's not get physical" (Daily
editorial, January 24).
It is amazing to see how very
uninformed the Daily
staff is on the physical education
program here at the University.
Obviously, the individual who
wrote that editoral and all those
that agreed with it are physical
education majors, knowing exac-
ting what the curriculum is like in
the department, what is taught in
the classes that are offered, and
what the staff is like, right?
No, obviously this editorial was
written by an individual who en-
joys writing about stereotypes
and not facts. So readers of the
Daily, let me paint the picture for
you - the reality of the School of
Education. I draw from personal
experience because I am a
etudnt in the denartmnt

things have a lot to do with stan-
dard deviation, the Krebs Cycle,
and how to run a class for
physically handicapped students.
They must. Why else would the
professors in my classes that
teach these things keep bringing
them up in lectures then?
Humanism is stressed in the
physical educationidepartment.
The professors? They're great.
They really care about their
students and make an effort to
get to know each one. How many
people in LSA who sit in lectures
of 500 kids can say the same
about their instructors?
The athletes? To assume they
are all just "dumb jocks" is sim-
ply ridiculous. They're people -
-and pretty nice ones at that. They
show a hell of a lot more common
sense and compassion for their
friends than some engineers and
economics majors I know.
The bottom line here is that I
would appreciate it if people
BLOOM COUNTY

would stop ragging on "physical
education" when they just don't
understand what it's all about.
Sure the school has its problems,
but what department at this
University doesn't? I have
received a very satisfying
education in this school thus far
and the influences of faculty and
my fellow students in the
program have been positive for
me. It is sad that someone such

as myself has to write this kind o
letter to defend what I study her
and why.
The students that graduat
from the school of physica
education will be successes. The
will be successes because they
have been taught about the truly
important qualities which will
carry them through life.
-Patty Donohue
February 1:

Candidates pro-gay rights

To the Daily:
The Lesbian-Gay Political
caucus of Washtenaw County has
interviewed the Fifth-Ward
Democratic candidates in the
Primary Election for City Coun-
cil. Both Doris Preston and Bar-
bara Rachelson are committed to
the rights of gay people and have
considerable political experien-
ce. It seems evident to the Caucus
that both Rachelson and

Preston would be effective City
Council members. To rate on
over the other would do a disser-
vice to both: consequently, th
Caucus urges Fifth-Ward citizens
to vote their informed judgment
and the conscience, being certair
that the concerns of Lesbians and
gay men would be well served by
either candidate.
- William Milroy
February 10
by Berke Breathed

11 -

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