Page 4- The Michigan Daily- Tuesday, October 15,1991
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420 Maynard Street
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
Edited and Managed
by Students at the
University of Michigan
ANDREW K. GOTTESMAN
Editor in Chief
STEPHEN HENDERSON
Opinion Editor
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Unsigned editorials represent a majority of the Daily's Editorial Board.
All other cartoons, signed articles, and letters do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Daily.
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TA Contract
Resolution of contract is welcome, but long overdue
ne week ago, the members of the Graduate
Employees Organization signed a two-year
contract with the Administration, ending seven
months ofconfrontational negotiations. GEO over-
whelmingly supported the new contract. Ninety-
seven percent of the 524 that voted endorsed the
hard-fought agreement.
The resolution is welcome but long overdue.
GEO's frequent threats to walk-out or strike, while
supported by the Daily, were clearly detrimental in
the short term for University students.
The efforts of the union and its leadership
should be commended. Despite great resistance
and odds created by an Administration unwilling
to budge on reasonable requests by the union, GEO
" had the resilience and endurance to continue nego-
tiations while employing enough agitation to expe-
dite the process.
While GEO calls the agreement fair, the Uni-
versity community should remember the tactics
the Administration used to quell GEO's attempts to
negotiate a fair contract. At one point, the Admin-
istration threatened to do its part to see that striking
foreign TAs would be deported by rescinding their
'student visas - a tactic more worthy of 1920s
union-busting corporations like United States Steel
than a prominent University. Such terrorist tactics
should never be employed by the University Ad-
ministration again.
Even after the April walkout - which had
widespread TA support - the University refused
to concede to legitimate GEO demands. They
refused to grant a reasonable salary increase to
TAs, and would not agree to the proposed enroll-
ment cap of 25 students - a gesture geared to help
both TAs and students get a better education.
The new contract includes provisions to reduce
class sizes and creates a grievance process -
which will allow graduate teaching assistants to
vent their frustrations with teaching conditions in
the future - and hopefully prevent future con-
flicts. The teaching assistants received smaller
salary increases than they had originally demanded.
The union accepted the smaller raises to ensure
that low-fraction teaching assistants - those that
teach less than ten hours a week- received partial
tuition waivers.
Despite the support for the new contract, 60%
of the voting members of GEO wisely supported a
contingent plan to strike, in case the process goes
awry. Hopefully the union can learn to make use of
the new grievance procedures and will not resort to
use of a strike. The University must heed this
warning, and act responsibly in the future to ensure
that the lines of communication do not break down
again.
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State health care
Proposal is a great step toward
ne million people in Michigan have no health
care program. In the event of serious illness or
injury, one million Michigan citizens, unable to
afford treatment, have nowhere to turn.
But state representative Perry Bullard (D-Ann
Arbor), looking out on their behalf, has proposed
_ an innovative universal state health care program
to the Michigan House of Representatives. The
tax-based program aims to extend insurance to
everyone and is a long-awaited move toward a
similar program on the national level.
r The need for an improved health care system is
urgent. If this program proves not to be the best
possible solution, it is the closest the Michigan
legislature has seen and may act as a catalyst for
a effective changes in the future.
Proponents believe the bill has little chance of
approval by the House, but Bullard's suggestion
will force legislators to think about the idea and
may encourage further discussion and thought.
The proposal, replacing private health insurance
as well as Medicaid and Medicare would cover
everyone in the state. Similar to Canada's national
universal health care plan, if enacted,the bill would
establish a state commission to set an acceptable
salary for doctors, including specialists and other
health care professionals. An annual budget, paid
universal coverage
through taxes, would determine hospital revenue.
Arguments that socialized medicine would drive
young doctors away and eventually lower medical
quality may have some validity. But considering
the one million people in the state who are presently
unable to consult any physician, the difference is
negligible.
I feverybody could see a doctor when necessary,
the infant mortality rate would stop skyrocketing
every year. The idea of enduring pain to avoid
robbery by greedy doctors would fade into oblivion.
Lawmakers in Ohio, Missouri, Colorado and
Hawaii are also considering such legislation. Each
state attempts to provide for its own citizens, but
states with traditional costly health care programs
would disproportionately draw young doctors in-
terested in making money.
A national program would eliminate this trend
It's time we stopped turning sick people away from
hospitals because of outrageous costs. It's time
families stopped having to bankrupt property be-
cause of an extended illness. It's time for medicine
to mean health, not ridiculous bills and crippling
concerns.
Although Bullard's program may not be ideal
for America, it is a step in the right direction for the
citizens of Michigan.
Green str
To the Daily:
Generally I make it a rule not
to respond to comments printed in
the Daily which attack me'
because I could end up writing a
letter every night. However, I
must respond to Corey Dolgon's
piece entitled "SRC sells out
student interests" (10/10/91)
because Dolgon engages in
something he has devoted his
entire academic career to -
revisionist history.
In this article Dolgon alleges
that at a Student Relations Board
meeting last year I responded to
his and former MSA President
Jennifer Van Valey's inquiries
regarding the macing incident at
South Quad by stating "Corey,
who really cares?" Dolgon,
intentionally or unintentionally,
completely misrepresents the
events that transpired. I was
indeed at this meeting as an
LSA representative and I did
make this comment. However,
this comment was not in response
to the situation Dolgon describes.
The topic we were discussing at
the time was Dolgon's efforts to
have a individual from campus
security fired for allegedly
Piece shows bigotry
To The Daily:
I would like to take issue with
Julie Steiner's article entitled
"Anita Hill challenges norms"
(10/14/91).
Why does she refer to the men
in the Senate Judiciary Committee
as "white?" What does their race
have to do with sexual harassment
or the issue of the Clarence
Thomas nomination? I too am
deeply disturbed by the way
sexual harassment is being
handled in this country, and I
sympathize for Anita Hill. But I
am a white male, and I take
serious offense to Steiner's
blatant bigotry.
As director of the Sexual
Assault Prevention and Aware-
ness Center and as an influential
r ikes ba Ck a
making derisive comments about
students.
To this effort I stated: "Who
really cares!" I did not understand
how firing an individual would
address student concerns regard-
ing deputized security officers. It
I invite Dolgon to
come out of the
sixties and work, in
a constructive way,
on issues such as
the Union policy,
which I suspect will
be modified in the
very near future.
certainly did not address the
reason we were at this meeting in
the first place which was to
explore ways of involving
students more in the decision
making process at the University.
I felt the Vice President for
Student Services should know
that Corey Dolgon did not speak
for all University students.
I find it laughable that Dolgon
and his supporters routinely
leader on campus, I hope she will
give her professional insight in
the future without her very
unprofessional biases.
Shane Green
LSA Senior
More 'U'-Cop rap
To the Daily:
One afternoon about a week
ago, I waas sitting in the MUG by
the windows. My studying was
interrupted by one of University's
finest standing next to my booth.
He asked me if I had seen who
had just written on the cube.
Looking out the window, I saw
"Deane Baker is UM's #1 Bigot"
emblazoned on four sides.
Laughing, I said "No," but the
officer continued to question me
t Dolgon
accuse my party of racism. If one
attends any MSA meeting one
will notice that the vast majority
of people of color on the assem-
bly, including Mexican-Ameri-
cans, African-Americans, Native-
Americans, Asian-Americans, and
Indian-Americans, are members
of my party, the Conservative
Coalition. These individuals are
members of the party because
they share common values and
have a common vision. Con-
versely, the majority of our
opposition are upper-class, white
people like Dolgon who attempt
to hide their own racial insensitiv-
ity with trite and patronizing
rhetoric.
I invite Dolgon to come out of
the sixties and work, in a con-
structive way, on issues such as
the Union policy, which I suspect
will be modified in the very near
future after weeks of negotiation.
Change does not always occur by
simply demanding it. We must
become informed and then work
for change, which is what this
administration is doing.
James Green
MSA President
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about suspicious persons and so
on. he was evidently obsessed
with this because after leaving me
alone he went out and studied the
cube for several minutes.
Even though we have campus
cops now, I still cannot walk
home alone at night and I am still
as likely to be a victim of violence
or theft. But I rest assured with
the knowledge that the freedom of
speech of my fellow students will
be controlled so as not to bother
me.
Lynn Mittler
LSA Junior
Write the i
Write the Daily!
Write the Diy
General a ssistance?
Republican welfare cuts leave underprivileged out in the cold
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O n Friday, an Ingham County Judge ruled to
temporarily block welfare cuts instituted by
Governor Engler and demanded that the govern-
ment reinstate General Assistance to 90,000 Michi-
gan residents whose benefits were cut two weeks
ago. He ruled the state must first determine which
recipients were eligible for the State's disability
program before cutting their welfare benefits.
This is a welcome court ruling, especially to
those people whose benefits were hastily cut by
Engler. His cuts were aimed at single unemployed
adults, most of whom are not eligible for any other
benefits.
The judges ruling will at least provide tempo-
rary relief for these people. But unfortunately, the
ruling is just that - temporary. The state plans to
appeal the decision and implement the classifica-
tion system demanded by the ruling. Once a clas-
sification system is implemented, thousands will
still be without benefits.
This decision comes on the heals ofPresidential
Bush's veto of legislation that would have pro-
vided 20 weeks of extended unemployment ben-
efits to over 2 million Americans hardest hit by the
recession. Bush and Engler's respective decisions
mark an unwelcome trend in government to de-
crease welfare during times of recession.
This latest action by the Engler Administration
marks a widespread feeling in this country that
welfare provides support for lazy people who
prefer welfare dependency to holding a job. Noth-
ing could be further from the truth. As a nation, we
have a responsibility to aid the disadvantaged and
unemployed. There aren't enough jobs. Over half
the jobs created during the Reagan and Bush Ad-
ministrations were low paying jobs. In times of
crisis, it is the responsibility of the government to
reduce the impact of that crisis on its people.
The description that the 90,000 are able bodied
and simply refuse to work is false. At least 59
percent have no work experience and 45 percent do
not have a high school diploma or GED. Over 45
percent are over the age of 40 and at least 13
percent are disabled. These statistics provide a
grim picture of those on general assistance.
Thanks to Engler's proposed cuts and the weak-
willed Congress who decided to go along withhim,
thousands of Michigan's working class will have
an especially tough winter. Their policy was halted
by a legal technicality. To merely fix the techiical-
ity and continue the policy is an injustice to
Michigan's working class. In light of the opportu-
nity provided by Friday's court ruling, Engler and
the Congress should reverse this harmful step.
Y,
Why the Klan is free to march
"Sex, drugs, and the Neville
Brothers," Will said when I asked
him what things he couldn't live
without.
I was a bit more practical when
he turned
the question
to me.
"Food,
sleep, and
freedom of
expres -
sion," I
said.
W i llI
chuckled
for a while.
He didn't
realize that
I was com-
perception and livelier impression
of truth, produced by its collision
with error."
The quote comes from "On Lib-
erty," by John Stuart Mill. I love it
because it makes me profoundly
aware of things which I have long
felt, but could never put into words;
like why racists and fascists have as
much right to free speech as any-
one. When most people are exposed
to the Ku Klux Klan and neo-Nazi
organizations, they are repulsed to
the core. What Mill's thoughts teach
us is the value of this repulsion. Just
as no one can understand the hor-
rors of war unless they have been at
war, no one can understand the evil
of racism unless they have been
exposed to it in its purist form.
I was twelve when I watched the
Klan march in the shadow of Inde-
pendence Hall, in Philadelphia. At
the time I wished that their right to
from marching. In fact, I would
probably still go to watch, and to
voice my opposition. After all, as
Supreme Court Justice Louis
Brandeis wrote "If there be time to
expose through discussion, the
falsehood and fallicies, to avert the
evil ... the remedy to be applied is
more speech, not enforced silence."
Instead of trying to silence their
opinions, I would once again ex-
pose myself to the errors espoused
by racists, and try to learn just as I
did when I was twelve. I would
experience the "clearer perception
and livelier impression of truth,
produced by its collision with error."
We live in a racist society. One
which teaches us all to be racists to
one degree or another. Stifling the
freedom of expression of racists
and fascists will never solve the
problem. On the contrary,we would
only be denying ourselves the op-
by
Matt
Adler
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Nuts and Bolts
FOR THOSE OF14OOWHO
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pletely serious.
I felt very hurt. I thought about
my favorite quotation. "The pecu-
liar evil of silencing the expression