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Page 4 -The Michigan Daily- Monday, December 2, 1991
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420 Maynard Street
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109.
747-2814
Edited and Managed
by Students at the
University of Michigan
ANDREW K. GOTTESMAN
Editor in Chief
STEPHEN HENDERSON
Opinion Editor
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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BYOB
IFC and Panhel should support
f and when the Panhellenic (Panhel)/
Intrafraternity Council (IFC) imposes apolicy
of BYOB on its member houses, it will stop the
flow on the Greek system's open beer taps. And
that's a good thing.
The policy, which will be presented to Panhel
tomorrow and to IFC on Wednesday, would prevent
fraternities from supplying large numbers of Uni-
versity students with alcohol by banning parties
with kegs and other kinds of communal alcohol
containers. Panhel/IFC should move quickly to
implement the change.
Currently, many fraternities serve as a link
between suppliers of alcohol and consumers. Ev-
ery weekend, thousands of students - many of
whom are under-age - flock to Greek houses,
where they are liberally served their fill. Not only
does the fraternities' participation in this practice
conflict with state laws, it is morally questionable
as well.
Students will always find ways to indulge
themsleves on the weekends, and many times that
may involve consumption of alcohol or otherdrugs.
BYOB proposal
But the Greek system shouldn't be a conduit for
that activity.
Unfortunately, some members of the Greek
system do not feel that way. Already, many have
voiced opposition to the proposed policy, flagging
it as an infringement upon fraternities' enjoyed
autonomy. That just isn't so.
Panhel and IFC are voluntary organizations
that, in light of contemporary pressures, protect the
Greek system more than they hurt it. If they don't
institute a BYOB policy, it's likely that either the
fraternities' individual national organizations or
the University would.
Clearly, these policies would be imminently
more restrictive and less palatable to Greek
members. self-imposed regulation may very well
prevent outside intervention.
Fraternities don't have to be about irresponsible
drinking. And while a BYOB policy won't solve
all of the Greek system's problems, it's an important
step in the right direction. Panhel and IFC should
keep this in mind as they consider the proposal in
the coming week.
Faculty dismayed
To the Daily:
We have encountered before
the kind of anti-Semitic mentality
that concocted the outrageous
advertisement questioning the
facts of the Holocaust.
We are dismayed but not
entirely suprised that students, in
their desire to practice a much-
valued "fairness," might be lured
into thinking there exists a
legitimate alternative opinion
concerning those facts.
But we are astonished and
disappointed that the president of
a great university should himself
have found it impossible to
criticize the Daily for not recog-
nizing the difference between the
practice of First Amendment
rights and the prerogative of any
publication to refuse to print
advertisements it deems offen-
sive. Although he made his own
revulsion clear, Mr. Duderstadt's
"open-mindednes" in defending
the Daily's right to aid and abet
the bought-and-paid-for dissemi-
nation of noxious ideas shows a
lamentable absence of moral
standards.
In fact it was just such an
abdication of judgment and
courage marked the failure of
German intellectuals more than
fifty years ago to stem the Nazi
tide rising around them. While
they fiddled with justifications
and refused to see the ugly
handwriting on the wall, millions
burned. Mr. Duderstadt ought to
have made it ringingly clear that
the Daily, whatcver its internal
communication problems, owes
the University community a firm
apology for its dangerous confu-
sions. We hope he will still do so.
Rosellen Brown
English dept.
Marvin Hoffman
School of Education
This letter was signed by 1Oother
University faculty members.
Albert Herring
To the Daily:
I was surprised, as were many
of my colleagues, by Ms.
Frieden's review of Albert
Herring on November 18th.
Artistic criticisms aside, many
questions arise as to Ms.
Frieden's perception of opera as
an art form. First, she states that
"opera is known for its simple
characters and almost cartoon-like
plots," and that in Albert Herring,
the "characters never achieve the
maximum potential of caricature."
Caricature? Cartoon-like? Does
Ms. Frieden mean to imply that
opera is not a valid theatrical art
form?
If so, wouldn't any attempt at
making the characters more
human, believable, and easier for
an audience to relate to, be a valid
step in bringing opera into the
'90s and on into the 21 st century?
Ms. Frieden then goes on to state
that "broad comedy... pratfalls
and buffoonery were used in place
of inspired staging." Totally
acceptable. But surely "carica-
ture" (which Ms. Frieden wanted
more of) falls into the "broad
comedy" category.
I have never replied in print to
a critic before and, believe me, I
have been roasted worse than this
in bigger publications. However, I
felt that this review was so
unaware of the basics of a
theatrical performance, let alone
an opera performance, that
something had to be said in
defense of the art form.
Ken P. Cazan
Lecturer of Opera
Free speech?
To the Daily:
By running "CODOH attacks
unfounded" (Insight 11/13/91) the
Daily has firmly established its
policy of printing hate
propoganda in the name of the
First Amendment. While the
CODOH had to pay for an
advertisement, Thomas
Marcellus, director of the Institute
for Historical Review, is given
free space under the heading of
free speech.
Perhaps this is just a case of
free speech and perhaps the Daily
is an unbiased paper trying to
promote debate by opening minds
of students.
In that case, I eagerly await a
time when I will be reading
propoganda from the Klu Klux
Klan, Neo-Nazis, skinheads, the
Arm of the Lord, and various
other hate organizations. Or is
only anti-Semitic journalism
allowed to be printed under the
heading of "Insight?"
Eddie Weinstein
LSA junior
Check the facts
To the Daily:
This a letter to Thomas
Marcellus and Bradley Smith,
men associated with CODOH
and the Institute for Historical
Review. Men also associated
with the Ku Klux Klan, neo-
Nazis, and Waffen SS (former
Nazis under Hitler). Millions of
Jews were killed by the Nazis,
the figures have been calcu-
lated by different people.
I cannot give you the facts,
but if you have such a strong
desire to see the truth, you can
contact Professor Hank
Greenspan of the Residential
College or Professor Sid
Bolkowsky of the University's
Dearborn campus. They will give
you references from historians,
not Northwestern's professor of
computer science, Arthur Butz,
and not from the so-called gas
chamber expert, Fred Leuchter.
Dr. Bolkowsky will tell you
that Fred Leuchter has no
credentials with gas chambers.
When the death penalty was
reinstated in several states, he
applied to design their gas
chambers. When the states
checked his background, they
found out that he was a charlatan
and told him to get lost.
I read "Night" by Elie Wiesel,
and I don't understand how it
"actually serves to discredit the
generally accepted Holocaust
story." His story as a survivor,
and all the other stories serve to
prove it true. I assume that people
Good debate
who associate with the KKK, neo-
Nazis, and former Nazis think that
white people are superior to all
others. I won't debate such a
ridiculous assertion any more than
I will get into an "open debate" on
the extent of the Holocaust.
People of the above organiza-
tions only want to institute their
own fascist regime, where in the
end, open debate will be dictated
by the Nazi party.
Jordan Shavit
LSA senior
Safe sex
Distribution of condoms protects health of New York youth
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To the Daily:
I read with some interest your
paper's story (10/24/91) and
editorial (1O; 2 5/91) about our
recent Chines ..as at. I
note that you agree( . ' n. us that
holding the event vA a orthwhile.
You also encouraged us to raise
human rights and other issues
with Chinese officials during the
event.
I am pleased to report that
those discussions did indeed
occur. The event was held with
approximately 60 alumni partici-
pating. We heard first Minister/
Counsellor Qi Mingcong of the
Embassy, who spoke for about 15
minutes concerning China, its
problems and its aspirations.
Then, as promised, Minister Qi
took questions from the alumni
group.
Among the issues raised were
the crackdown on students during
the Tiananmen Square events of
1989; China's illegal foreign trade-
of consumer goods produced by
prison labor; how communism in
China can possibly survive in the
face of worldwide rejection of
that form of government by nearly
every other communist nation;
and the role of women in China
and the problems they face.
Every alum I spoke to was
glad he or she had come to the
reception. As I was leaving, one
alum came by to thank me for not
cancelling the event.
I told him that the club's board
and I believed it was important to
have an opportunity to learn more
about China and raise these issues
with Chinese officials. He agreed,
saying he enjoyed hearing both
"what they said and what they
didn't say."
Your editorials hit it right on
the head. This event probably
won't change the world or change
Chinese policy. But 60 Michigan
alumni now have a better under-
standing of the issues which
separate our two countries. We
also had a chance to confront
those issues face to face with
leaders of the world's most
populous nation. In turn, the
Chinese Embassy officials have
learned more about Americans
and our thoughts about China and
political situation. I think there is
something to be said for that.
Mike Waring
President,
U of M Club
of Washington, D.C.
A t John Dewey High School and City-as-school
in New York City, public school officials
made condoms available to students without any
requirement of parental consent. Later, condoms
will be offered at all 120 public high schools to
combat the spread of AIDS and other sexually
transmitted diseases. This program is long overdue
and desperately needed.
New York City has 20percent of the AIDS cases
for 13 to 21-year olds, while only 3percent of the
nation's 13 to 21-year olds live there. In response
to this overwhelming evidence of an unchecked
epidemic, the New York City Board of Education
passed the distribution of condoms policy over the
objections of the Roman Catholic church, which
charged that this policy would condone and en-
courage teen-age sex.
The arguments of the Roman Catholic church
are without merit; the school system is not advising
teenagers to have sex but is giving them the option
of practicing safer sex. The church's position is
similar to the argument that bulletproof vests
condone shootings of policemen since policemen
are protected.
Condoms and bulletproof vests do not condone
the act simply because they protect.
Regardless of the objections of those who are
against the use of condoms, the alternative is the
continued proliferation of the AIDS epidemic
among high school students. In the United States,
sexual contact is the leading cause of transmission
of thi AIDS virus behind blood transfusions, the
sharing of needles, and other types of non-sexual
contact.
In addition to the prevention of AIDS, the
distribution of condom programs will reduce the
number of teenage pregnancies in New York City.
More than 100,000 teenage women have babies
every year in the United States. Many unplanned
pregnancies among teenagers could be prevented
with the use of condoms. In New York City, where
the birth rate among 13- and 14-year-olds is the
highest in the country, the distribution of condoms
policy may lower the unplanned birthrate among
teen-agers.
In an age when AIDS, if current trends remain
unchecked, will become the leading cause of death
early in the next century, the distribution of condoms
must continue to stop the preventable spread of the
fatal virus.
The policy implemented by the New York City
school board is a welcomed step in the prevention
of this deadly plague. Undoubtedly, dozens of
students will not get sexually transmitted diseases
this year with the adoption of this policy. Schools
nationwide must follow this example to prevent
the spread of AIDS and other sexually transmitted
diseases.
Car fumes
New California regulation helps to protect residents
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'U' education not worth the cost
Late last week, the California Air Resources
Board voted to require a new standard of
gasoline that will produce lower emissions. At a
time when California sits near the brink of an
environmental disaster, the new regulation is a
virtual necessity. Los Angeles is continually cov-
ered by a blanket of smog that has on occasion
made it unhealthy to breathe the air.
While the measure will incur a great deal of cost
for both the oil industry and consumers, it cannot
be avoided. The airqualityinCaliformiais appalling,
due in large part to an enormous number of auto-
mobiles within the state.
Although California already has the most
stringent standards for automotive emissions, these
measures have proven to be somewhat deficient.
Despite the previous measures, California's air
quality continues to deteriorate at an alarming rate.
The new measure will force oil refineries to
remove more of the impurities within gasoline and
produce a fuel that can burn up to one-third cleaner
than standard gasoline. Furthermore, the measure
will direct producers to make gasoline less prone to
evaporate.
While the California measure is a great im-
provement over current standards, it cannot be
construed as an end unto itself. Aside from the
extra costs for gasoline, the measure does not
discourage the continued proliferation of individual
automobiles or encourage the increased use of
mass transportation. The measure aims at improving
the conditions as they stand, instead of attempting
to address the fundamental issues. In this light, the
California measure must be viewed merely as a
stopgap.
While the people of California continue to seek
a long-term solution to the transportation problem
and the pollution that it causes, the measure focuses
upon what can be realistically applied at the present.
It is, in fact, a short term containment of a long-
term problem.
Meanwhile,other states are looking at the Cali-
fornia regulation to perhaps adopt a similar mea-
sure. California represents a precursor to what
could happen across the country. Otherstates would
be wise to study the situation in California and
learn by the advanced environmental maladies that
California suffers.
Hopefully, other states can learn from
California's experience. It suffers a worsening
environmental situation. But it is taking long-term
action as well short-term measures. It is depending
not only on the effectiveness of future innovations,
but on realistic changes that can be made today.
by Amy Polk
When I came to this Univer-
sity seven years ago, a Michigan
education was a bargain. For out-
of-state students, the University
offered an education comparable
to the Ivy Leagues at two-thirds
the price. For in-state students, the
University offered an excellent
education for a few hundred
dollars per term. However, over
the past decade, the University
has squandered its resources
while reneging on its educational
mission. Accounting for inflation,
undergraduate tuition has in-
creased 60 percent over the past
10 years and spending in the
University administrative sector
has increased 50 percent. Since
1989, the University's ranking
among national colleges and
universities has slipped from 17th
to 22nd. A Michigan education
has become not a bargain, but a
rip-off.
University President James
Duderstadt and Vice Provost for
"Academic" Affairs Gilbert
Witaker constantly claim that
state budget cuts are forcing
painful cutbacks. At the same
time, University administrators
spew much rhetoric about
"quality" and "excellence," even
sity administrators: the University
was a "business," and students
were "customers" who purchased
"educational services." In a Feb. 5
address to the Sigma Xi Research
Club, President Duderstadt
disbanded early this summer.
When the committee's chair,
Architecture Professor Sharon
Sutton, was asked what she
thought of the administration's
new language of "student as
Accounting for inflation, undergraduate tu-
ition has increased 60 percent over the past
10 years and spending in the University ad-
ministrative sector has increased 50 percent.
Since 1989, University's ranking among na-
tional colleges and universities has slipped
from 17th to 22nd.
presented his free-market theory
of education: The quality of
education at Michigan must not
be deteriorating, because Michi-
gan parents are still willing to the
pay the tuition required to send
their kids here.
Elsewhere in the University,
however, proponents of reform
are trying to re-examine the
University's commitment to its
educational mission. Unfortu-
nately, University administrators
are ignoring these efforts.
In the fall of 1990, the Senate
Advisory Committee on Univer-
sity Affairs (SACUA) (the
representative government for all
T Tnivercity facn1tv creanted an
customer," she replied: "I hate it.
The University is not the same as
a corporation."
Even the Michigan state
legislature has become suspicious
of the University. This March,
state representative Morris Hood
(D-Detroit) released a ranking of
faculty and administrative
salaries. Hood, who chairs the
state House Appropriations
subcommittee on Higher Educa-
tion, was "appalled by the results -
of the inquiry" and threatened to
restrict tuition increases to the rate
of inflation for state universities.
Today, you don't hear
Duderstadt or Witaker using the
"student as customer" lannouaoe'
Nuts and Bolts
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by Judd Winick
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