9 Page 4 - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, March 1, 1990 j1iE 3rdrgat nazil EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN 420 Maynard Street Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109 ARTS NEWS OPINION 763 0379 764 0552 747 2814 PHOTO SPORTS WEEKEND 764 0552 747 3336 747 4630 Unsigned editorials represent a majority of the Daily's Editorial Board. All other cartoons, signed articles, and letters do not neces From tl .Bush 's del ':'he Cold War's over, so BECAUSE OF DRAMATIC POLITI- cal changes in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, the Pentagon is now gearing up for a projected $180 billion cumulative drop in funding in the next two years, and many of the big-ticket projects initiated during Reagan's mili- tary buildup are finding themselves r doomed to the chopping block. How- ever, the picture is not as rosy as it ,seems; a potent combination of short- sighted congressional pork-barreling, procedural bureaucratic foot-dragging, : and heavy lobbying by defense contractors used to living high off the Reagan hog is putting the kabash on rpfforts to cut the defense budget and reduce the deficit. Members of Congress have widely fhailed American "victory" in the Cold " War and the subsequent need to ag- gressively scale back defense expendi- tures. Yet when cuts which might affect their own district are proposed, enthusiasm suddenly wanes. This hypocrisy was never more glaringly exposed than last fall, when Defense Secretary Dick Cheney was rebuffed in his plan to cut 10 big defense programs out of the 1991 budget. One of these programs, the Grum- man F-14D Tomcat fighter, was on the list because the Navy had explicitly recommended its cancellation. But the New York congressional delegation and its party whips in the House went to bat for Long Island-based Grumman Corporation and managed to secure a token contract for a measly 18 addi- tional planes. To get this ludicrous ap- propriation past the Senate, the pro- Grumman forces had to abandon their opposition to increased SDI funding, the B-2 Stealth bomber, and the rail- way-launched MX missile. Billions of dollars in potential defense cuts were traded away in a political gambit for 18 planes that the Navy does not even want. But the F-14 is only one example - among many. The Michigan delegation is gathering its strength to block cancel- lation of the M-1 tank because it will further hurt the declining economy in Warren, where the vehicle is assem- bled. Though jobs would be lost, $6 sarily represent the opinion of the Daily. U. Rp-- t kfpTh A 4 P £Q '5, 10T?' N50 L{ rm icit cut defense spending billion would be saved in the next five years by cutting the M-1. The list goes on. One of the biggest pills the Ameri- can taxpayers may be asked to swal- low, the B-2 Stealth bomber at $532 million a dose, could be dropped alto- gether if it were not for bureaucratic obsolescence in the Air Force. Instead of developing relatively inexpensive cruise-missiles designed to be fired by an aircraft outside the enemy's air space (the so-called "stand-off' strat- egy), the Air Force has locked itself into spending billions on aircraft which can penetrate enemy air defenses, drop ordinance, and return to safer waters. This more traditional "penetration" strategy will guarantee the Air Force huge budgets for years to come, and is thus the only one pushed on Congress. To ease acceptance of this outmoded system, the Air Force and the B-2's primary contractor, Northrop, have staged a publicity campaign to rival Lee Iacocca's. The roll-out ceremony of the super secret weapon was aired on news broadcasts nationwide, and pictures of the plane were distributed to all the major news agencies. "The B-2. We take it personally," proclaims a two- page Northrop advertisement in Air Force magazine. "A good plane is hard to find," says another, referring to the bomber's questionable ability to avoid detection by radar. In hopes of a big appropriation, Secretary of the Air Force Donald Rice has proclaimed the bomber "the top priority in strategic modernization." All this for a plane that has made little more than a dozen test flights and which is stealth-like only in its ability to sidle past congressional opposition to its roost deep within the deficit. The changing world situation de- mands reassessment of U.S. defense expenditures, and the deficit requires slashing of flabby programs. If the deficit is to be reduced at all without further cuts to social programs, pre- cious funds wasted because of pork- barrelling, bureaucratic inefficiency, and K-Mart-style advertising must be conserved. Move Nuts and Bolts to the Opinion Page To the Daily: I was surprised to find within the Daily - a publication so quick to point its fin- ger at remarks hovering near the stereotyp- ical and among the first to damn anyone making a generalization - a cartoon, Nuts and Bolts (perhaps accidentally dis- placed from the editorial page), that does exactly that regarding those heavy individ- uals who are pro-life. Is the anti-life argument so weak that its supporters must stoop to inaccurate generalizations crossing the borders of both consideration and good taste? Is the situation so bleak for those in support of abortion that they need resort to the verbal degradation of a misjudged physical charac- teristic? Really! It may just be time to gently remind those holding such maligned views to follow their own advice: If one should come across an individual with whom he does not agree, he should maintain a cer- tain level of open-mindedness. Simply be- cause viewpoints conflict does not indicate a decrease in the value of the individuals holding the opposite view of one's own. To not agree with this is to support the very evils which the Daily continually purports to eradicate. Such insulting car- toons and strong anti-anything sentiments belong nowhere but the editorial page. Emily Metzgar LSA first-year student Wrong man attacked To the Daily: As a Jewish American and a woman, I was extremely appalled, but not surprised, to read Wednesday's Daily, featuring an ar- ticle glorifying avowed anti-Semite Steve Cokely, and an editorial condemning Re- publican gubernatorial candidate John En- gler with the trumped up and empty charge of sexism (2/21/90). Cokely, while an employee of the City of Chicago, accused the Jews of infecting Black babies with the AIDS virus and spouted a plethora of other vicious anti- Semitic canards in several famed lectures throughout the Chicago area. This story was covered heavily by the national media. Yet, when covering Cokely, the Daily, which claims to be against bigotry, some- how forgot to mention this aspect of Cokely's views, choosing to portray Cokely as some great fighter for the civil rights of Blacks. Civil rights, indeed! Instead, the Daily chose to write an "editorial" on the trivial matter of Engler's use of the word "man" instead of "person" in an innocent campaign commercial. In an age when there are many more impor- twnt issues of concern to women, I am of- fended that the Daily cries wolf in this stupid debate over linguistics. Today, in a state where more than fifty percent of registered voters are women, no candidate - even if he or she came from the ranks of the Daily - would deliber- ately say things that were even marginally sexist, if he or she hoped to win. Engler's case is no exception, and the Daily knows this. This is not the first time that the Daily has decided to become a tool for ludicrous partisan Democratic charges tailored to win in an election year. This is not jour- nalism, but rather, it is all a bunch of ver- bal manure. I hope, but doubt,that the Daily will clean up its act. Just think what the right journalism could do! Debbie K. Schiussel National Jewish Coalition member The BSU should not defend Steve Cokely To the Daily: The Daily quoted Stephanie Johnson, an executive board member of the Black Student Union, as saying, "[Steve] Cokely's message is one of love. He is a man of God" (2/22/90). Johnson empha- sized that Jews are "misled and misedu-9 cated." Perhaps she would like us to turn to Cokely to "educate" us with pearls of wis- dom like the following: -AIDS is a plot by Jewish doctors to kill blacks; -There is an international Jewish con- spiracy to control the world; -Jews conspired with Hitler to achievri ethnic purity through self-Genocide, and; -Jesse Jackson (who Cokely calls "the nigger") and former Chicago Mayor Harold Washington must be attacked for having Jewish advisers. While the overwhelming majority of the American Black community denounced Cokely for these remarks, the BSU is apparently endorsing Cokely's venomous hatred. Perhaps they would like us to turn to other spouters of hate like David Duke and Minister Louis Farrakhan, who share Cokely's hatred of Jews. But the color of one's skin does not justify such hatred or tolerance of it against Jews and other mi- norities. Unless the BSU wishes to promote bigotry and intolerance on this campus;, they should be forthcoming in condemn* ing the anti-Semitism of Cokely, Far- rakhan, and other Black leaders. Harry Nelson LSA sernior Sororities should discontinue guaranteed bids Imagine the men on campus getting dressed up and being led around from fra- ternity to fraternity in small groups during Rush. Imagine men on campus being guaran- teed a spot in a fraternity so that their feel- ings won't be hurt. The recent decision by the Intersorority Council to get rid of the guaranteed bid " system for Sorority Rush on this campus is long overdue. Women on this campus are just as strong and capable of dealing with rejection as men. They are not little chil- dren who have to be led around by the hand. It is true that no one likes to be ex- cluded from a group. But that's life. No one likes it when someone is picked over them. But it happens. - The Stanford Daily Stanford University January 26 Students should support Ann Arbor's $5 pot law MrA . . ,/. In 'A---I-f ROOIEY CBST nW F N0 #-P t -.r W .1 d EVER 4 1 o W B A f F 4GOTRCY DNS OUT To the Daily: In response to first-year engineering student Scott Chupack's naive editorial advocating the raising of the $5 pot law (2/19/90), I'd. like to enlighten him on a few of his righteous arguments. Chupack audaciously and erroneously bases his position on the assumption that a higher fine will deter potential new users. Drug use is a socialized behavior; never in this country has there been a rele- vant correlation between drug laws and drug use - just look at Bush's dismal drug war today, or better yet, prohibition. Drug use will wane if and when our cul- ture's interest in drugs wanes, and the law will have little to do with it. Yet, as National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) suggested, raising the fine could actually increase interest in marijuana. Chupack finds this ridiculous when he asks, "... who in their right mind would be more likely to commit a crime now that the fine has increased?" Perhaps the same people whose lust for buying and being served al- cohol suddenly disappears on their 21st birthdays, that's who. Chupack displays ignorance with the statement: "Imagine going through high school in an environment in which you could get 'busted big time' for having al- cohol at a party, but only get a $5 ticket if you were smoking pot." As if this is such an outrageous thing to imagine, as if pot gal - the fact is that all drugs have some negative effect on the body. There is just as much horrific data on the effects of al- cohol and cigarettes. The vote April 2nd will hopefully prove again that the people of Ann Arbor are an intelligent, aware, and progressive community that has the guts to stand up to the Bush administration's drug war hys- teria that is ruining our country and much of the world. It looks like Chupack is another will- ing victim of this hysteria. I strongly suggest he take himself up on his own ad- vice: do a little research before concluding that marijuana is the satanic cigarette from hell. Maybe all Chupack really needs is some good toke at the hash bash - see you April 1st. Joe Hasselwander University graduate '89 Writers' dope debate goes up in smoke To the Daily: With its IssuesForum on the $5 Pot Law (2/19/90), the Daily has proven that the "two sides to every issue" mentality is inappropriate for the Opinion page. The authors are given the better part of the I local and state police agencies in order to "... get those troublemakers off the streets at all costs." Ann Arbor's history of buck- ing centralized state rule goes all the way back to the days of the Underground Rail- road. Ann Arborites were familiar with J. Edgar Hoover's and Richard Daley's Big Brother methods for dealing with political dissent. Ann Arborites decided they would have none of it here. In 1983, a Republican Mayor and City Council decided times had changed and spearheaded an effort to repeal the $5 Pot Law (aka: "The John Sinclair Law"). They were wrong! The repeal lost in a landslide and Kathy Edgren and Jeff Epton, two of the most progressive councilpeople this city has been served by since the heyday of the Human Rights Party in the mid-seven- ties, rode the wave of grass roots activism into City Hall. Now, another Republican Mayor and City Council have decided times have changed and are clamoring for more Big Brother authority. But times haven't changed. People of color are persistently singled out and harassed by local police departments. National TV shows such as William Buckley's Firing Line feature "thinkers" who advocate the use of drug laws to crack down on political dissidents. . v nr e ni r _ _ _acvio1n o n~ 01 r - P7rr t - 'FW4I4WIJM71NJIkJIffMMI/1I/k712*I = "' -=y - ~iunfl -, I (%W IPW-wc-- - ^ . I i