4
OPINION
Page 4 Friday, September 27, 1985 The Michigan Daily
48 arrested at Pursell's office sit-in
One University professor and 23 students, p ,A Academic Affairs to become dean of Emory cording to available figures, tops the list Cole is a former LSA representative to the
including a Daily photographer, were University's graduate school and vice with $132,000 a year. University of Min- Assembly and served on the University's
trespassing at USRep Carl Pursell's local president of research. nesota President Kenneth Keller also tops Budget Priorities Committee As vice
office during a protest of his voting record Frye disclosed last Friday that he is Shapiro, bringing home $120,000 a year. president of MSA he will act as chairman of
on Central America. taking the post following Emory's Board of Northwestern University will not disclose MSA's Steering Committee and the Board of
The protest was specifically aimed at a t Trustees approval of his appointment last how much its president, Arnold Webber, Directors of Student Legal Services, which
foreign assistance bill pending in Congress Thursday- earns. But University of Michigan Regent absorbs the majority of MSA's funds.
which would send $483 million to Central Frye said his leaving had nothing to do Thomas Roach (D-Saline) estimates he is
America. Some of that money would with any negative experience at the Univer- paid over $150,000 a year.
probably be sent to El Salvador and sity. "That's the hardest part," he said, Shapiro's pay hike came as no surprise
Nicaraguan rebels. The demonstrators "I've been in here for 25 years." Shapiro said, since the regents usually vote
sang peace songs and brought 50 loaves of With Frye's departure, the University on some type of pay increase at its Septem-
bread bearing the message: "Send bread Cynthia Hudgins, a Pursell aide, faces the loses a key member of its budget planning ber or October meeting. The amount of the
rotest forces. Frye is the architect of the Univer- increase, Shapiro said, however, was a sur-
sity's five year plan, which has been prise. Shapiro last received a raise last Oc-
LSA senior Chris Faber said the media at- redistributing $20 million from low priority tober when his salary was upped by $11,500.
ry y1 tention the arrests received made it worth- areas - such as the art school - to such Roach said that Shapiro, a renowned
while. "The reason we all got arrested is to high priority fields as business and economist, could make "what he gets here
publicize the bombing of El Salvador, he engineering. At present the fourth year of several times over" in the private market.
+ T^ w. v&veefj +~z said.sid
sOne person who was not happy to be the plan has redistributed $16.5 million so "He's obviously not doing it for money," he
arrested was Dan Habib, the Daily's chief far, Frye said.
photographer, who was on assignment when
the incident occured. Dankert said he would Search 1s over
not press'charges against Habib although In the money
not bombs. Stop U.S.-sponsored war on the the other demonstrators face up to a $50 fine
people of El Salvador." and 30 days in jail.
Pittsfield Township police arrested the All 48 demonstrators were released on University President Harold Shapiro is a Following weeks of speculation and
protestors at the request of Ron Dankert, an their own recognizance. richer man this week, but still not quite as discussion, the Michigan Student Assem-
agent for the owners of Pursell's office. rich as some other presidents in the Big bly's vice presidency has been filled by LSA Cole: MSA's new vice-president
The protestors seemed anything but Ten. junior Phillip Cole.
disappointed with being arrested. Peter Bye, bye, bow tie The University's Board of Regents voted Tuesday night MSA voted to endorse Cole,
Rosset, a biology teaching assistant who last Friday to give Shapiro a $10,000 raise, in confirmation of a nomination made by
lived in Nicaraugua from 1982 to 1984, said, hiking his salary up to $117,000 a year. MSA President Paul Josephson last Friday. Week in Review was compiled by
"I'm upset that I had to be arrested for Pur- The halls of the Fleming Administration However, a survey made by the Daily this Josephson has been under significant Daily editors Jody Becker and Joseph
sell to hear what we're saying, but given Building will be shy one familiar bow-tie week shows Shapiro trailing at least two pressure from campus minority groups to Kraus, and Daily staffers Eric Mattson
that he wouldn't listen otherwise, then I'm next May, when Billy Frye leaves his post other Big Ten presidents in salary. Purdue replace Mickey Feusse, who resigned the and Kery Murakami.
glad I was arrested." as the University's Vice President for University President Steven Beering, ac- post Sept. 8, with a minority candidate.
Edited and managed by students at The University of Michigan
10
Vol. XCVI, No. 17
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Editorials represent a majority opinion of the Daily's Editorial Board
I
Uninvited guests
R EP. CARL Pursell's failure to
respond to community con-
cerns over his voting record in
Congress on Latin American issues
seems to have served as an "in-
vitation" to uninvited guests in his
Pittsfield office.
This time there were 48 of them.
With Congress taking up a $483
million Foreign Assistance bill
next week, 48 members of the Latin
American Solidarity Committee
staged a sit-in at Pursell's Ann Ar-
bor office on Monday, and were
arrested.
Pursell has a record of strong
support for the Reagan Ad-
ministrations policies for the
region which calls for continued
U.S. support of Nicaraguan "Con-
tras" and the beseiged El
Salvadoran government. Part of
the aid to the El Salvadoran gover-
nment is purportedly used to sup-
port bombings in the countryside
where Salvadoran peasants are
supplying rebels.
The sit-in culminated a three
month campaign by LASC and
several other community
organizations to persuade Pursell
to change his stance on the issue.
When a series of lobbying visits,
and letter-writing campaigns
failed to bring Pursell to reconsider
his position, the group decided that
it would have to engage in civil
disobediance to get the message
across.
It was not the first time the group
has staged a sit-in at Pursell's of-
fice, but it was the largest group
who agreed to be arrested. Last
summer, 17 people were arrested.
Like any civil disobedience ac-
tion, the Pursell sit-in would be
ineffective if it had taken place in a
vacuum. It is only because the
group had exhausted all legal
channels, and because other
groups in town had used those
same channels, that the act has any
credibility and significance.
It would be ludicrous to imagine
that a single action such as the sit-
in will change Pursell's vote. But
the action in concert with the many
other legal actions that have taken
place might.
Even if they do not sway Pur-
sell's position, however, the actions
remain important because they
keep the issue of U.S. involvement
in Latin America in the public eye.
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LETT-E-RJ(S)'9; t A-TI
LETTERS
-----
Author should let his argument talk
Lens capped
To The Daily:
The recent article by Mr. Peter
Rosset (Salvadoran Anguish:
"Why We Did It") provided a fine
explanation of the motives of
those who were arrested for
trespassing in the offices of Rep.
Carl Pursell last Tuesday. The
actions of the protesters were
taken in the most honorable
tradition of civil disobedience by
citizens in opposition to a gover-
nment policy. The willingness of
some U of M students to endure
arrest, jail, and fines in support
of their beliefs evidences a
passion seldom seen on today's
college campuses.
However, Mr. Rosset loses
many of us who might support his
position and sign his Pledge of
Resistance by playing fast and
loose with the facts. In his article,
Mr. Rosset speaks of "countless
bombs and planes" supplied by
the U.S. and "hundreds
of thousands of college-age
American men" who died in
Vietnam. Both estimates are
grossly exaggerated. According
to Mr. Rosset, quoting "the U.S.
Congress," the Salvadoran govern-
ments"maintains 900,000...
citizens in absolute
poverty." From the context of the
story, it appears as though the
government has an established
discern between a reasoned
argument and one sprinkled with
hyperbolic exaggerations.
Frankly, I tend to agree with Mr.
Rosset in his opposition to U.S.
military involvement in Central
America. His mistake is his over-
statement of the argument, let-
ting his passion get in the way of
his facts, as so many passionate
believers are wont to do. Those
students who do not share either
Mr. Rosset's passion or his
beliefs cannot help but find his
arguments tainted by the
misrepresentations, delioerate or
Regents wrong to take political stand
To The Daily:
We the undersigned members
of Campus Against Weapons in
Space' (C.A.W.S.) are disturbed
at the regent's adoption of a
resolution that endorses Star
Wars research on Campus. This
action is objectionable on several
counts. By making such a strong
public statement on just one side
in the sensitive and controversial
situation about the Star Wars
(SDI) program, the regents have
politicized the issues. Surely
there ought to be opportunities
for legitimate debate on campus
over issues of such grave con-
cern. We in C.A.W.S. strive to
facilitate open debate. The regen-
ts politicization works against
free inquiry and thoughtful objec-
tive discussion, and that is
lamentable.
At the same time, the regents'
I(M MOINTY
Star Wars resolution comprises
an unprecedented break with the
tradition that our university ad-
ministration should remain
politically neutral. It is too bad
that the regents choose to ignore
the very strong arguments in-
support of this tradition.
The adoption of regent Baker's
resolution is damaging and un-
fortunate. We feel that the cam-
pus community also has a right to
know what reasons the regents
have for approving the
resolution. Andwhydid the board
scheme to evade the possibility of
a much needed forum on Star
Wars?
Lastly, we would like to put to
rest the notion that present con-
cerns about Star Wars have som
connection with questions of
academic freedom. Currently
members of the academic com-
munity are not limited on what
research they may do, except for
the stipulations of the official
university guidelines. Regent
Baker's ludicrous misrepresen-
tation of the Star Wars situation
as an issue of academic freedom
is a sham.
-Roberta Bernhai
Eric Caplan
J.E. Taylor
September 25
not, in his article. I urge Mr.
Rosset to keep the faith, continu
to protest and believe. If you have
a good argument, it will stand by
itself without any need for em-
bellishment.
-Michael M. Grover
September 25
THE POLICE in Pittsfield Town-
ship rarely have to deal with
controversial issues or major
crimes, but this week they violated
this nation's most important law:
The United States Constitution.
As the police arrested four dozen
people on trespassing charges,
they also arrested Dan Habib, the
Amendment to the Constitution.
The people who were arrested
were accused of trespassing. The
Daily assigned a reporter and
photographer to cover the event,
and if the protesters were
trespassing then the journalists
may have had to trespass in order
to cover the story.
Letters to the Daily should by typed, triple-
spaced, and signed by the individual authors.
h Berke Breathed
w