*I
Page 4-The Michigan Daily- Tuesday, February 18,1992
(Iitor:in Chief
(M~AWIV,,11 s IHO'-ECLINT6N45
15P! e- MAKES ME ~Slick!t
I-rHsE -rA S'i De5 E~X ST
Sol-Et.y-r a APP-9-45 r-
- $IGc k E t-E M ErNTc-
of:So CIgE-y/
420 Maynard Street
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
764 - 0552
MA I'HIEW I).R1ENNIE;
Opinion Editors
YAEL CITRO
GEOFFREY EARLE
AMITAVA MAiUMDAR
Edited and Managed
by Students at the
University of Michigan
Unsigned editorials represent a majority ref the Dally's Editorial Board.
All other cartoons, signed articles, and letters do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Daily.
New MW laws aimed at students
ollege students drink alcohol. They always ing down the street with a can of beer, a first-time
have and always will. This is not an earth- offender may see their driver's license suspended
shattering realization, nor does it weaken the infra- for a minimum of 90 days.
structure of society, as proponents of a new Minors This brings up the question: Why would one's
In Possession of Alcohol (MIP) bill would have us license get suspended for a completely unrelated
believe. The new bill, which recently passed in the offense?
state Senate and currently on the House floor, This bill was obviously directed toward stu-
iposes ridiculously severe penalties for MIP of- dents, a sentiment echoed by State Rep. Perry
feses. Bullard (D-Ann Arbor), who is currently lobbying
-As if the 21-year old drinking age of this state against the bill, and David Cahill, legal counsel for
as not enough, the new bill, penned by Sens. Bullard's House Judiciary Committee. "The main
iSes Barcia (D-Bay City), Jack Welborn (R- point of the bill package is to show how terrible
Kalamazoo), Joe Conroy (D-Flint), and Arthur young people are and how tough the liquor lobby
Adler (D-Warren), calls for enormous increases in is by using unusual methods," Cahill said. Further-
flies for even first offenses, from the current $25 more, in a state with a variety of crime problems,
tI*a whopping $100. one has to wonder why the Senate is so concerned
ff students were concerned at all about MIP with alcohol possession. This is a case of confused
livs, the current fines of $25 to $100 would be priorities.
Mdre than enough to deter them. The new $100 to At this rate, the penalty for drinking a beer will
$$O range will do little more than keep the alcohol soon draw a hefty fine and 90 days without getting
btiind closed doors, and will have no effect on the behind the wheel. This law couldn't be more mis-
*iflountof alcohol consumed on college campuses. directed. Look out. The next step may be prohibi-
In addition, for the catastrophic offense of walk- tion.
I~
. L Z Z
.. ' -t I- ,
GOM -. I'2a/ "
j u 1" Mc~t~~rt AILY 2.
<;
/,
7777
.7
I- - --iiiiskiii"
:":ti': }. :......1 ...........:......................1. ..1 .....".:.V:.'.".1'::::."::.1 :.... :1.1.1."....1
. :.V: Y::'.:.1:":1".': 1'::. :.1":........ " ".Y:::.:1"i:ti":". 1:ti".".":': 1".1 ".1. 1".1
::ti"::... ..1 ........... .M: }i:":1 .............1.......1..'...1.
....1 ... " ....... .................... ....."....."................................ ...................... ..............: :'"::.1 :. ................. .................... ........ ...... 1 :...............:..:.::.....:..1111:'::. :.:":......1 ..
Jeffries represent
n honor of Black History Month, the Black
IStudent Union (BSU) is sponsoring Dr. Leonard
Jeffries, Jr.; a man who has received much public-
ity for making racist and anti-Semitic comments.
Jeffries chairs the African-American Studies De-
partment at City College in New York. The BSU
hag a right to bring any speaker it wishes to campus
and Jeffries has a right to say anything he wants.
These are not the issues. The real issue is that it is
important to see what Jeffries is talking about and
how heuses scapegoating techniques as old as time
itself.
Jeffries has lectured in his classes that people of
gropean ancestry, whom he calls "ice people" are
Ouidamentally materialistic, greedy and intent on
f1ltination. He claims that people of African de-
coit, "sun people," are essentially humanistic and
communal. This same connection between climate
and character was made by slave owners who
ch1pimed that the African climate made Blacks less
intelligent than whites, but made them well
equipped to work in hot cotton fields. These com-
ments have no historical or scientific credence at
At the Black Arts Festival in Albany, N.Y., on
:,ily 20, 1991, Jeffries attacked Diane Ravitch, an
asistant education secretary, whom he referred to
is "The ultimate, supreme, sophisticated, debo-
nair racist." Later he referred to her as the "Texas
Je V"
In that same speech, Jeffries spoke of the con-
s hate and racism
spiracy "planned, plotted and programmed out of
Hollywood," by people with names like "Greenberg
and Weisberg and Trigliani," which intended to
portray Blacks negatively in the movies. He also
said that, "Russian Jewry had a particular control
over the movies, and their financial partners, the
Mafia, put together a financial system of destruc-
tion of Black people."
Although supporters of Jeffries say that he is
targeted by the media and his comments are taken
out of context, there is no context under which
these blatant lies could be viewed as anything other
than purely anti-Semitic.
The BSU has invited Jeffries to speak in spite of
the fact that Jeffries has been criticized for being a
race-baiter by Hazel Dukes, the president of the
New York Chapter of the National Association for
the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
What is really scary is that those people who have
not studied history for themselves listen to Jeffries
as an expert on Black history. Jeffries is not an
expert on history, Black or otherwise.
Jeffries has said, "It is not about anti-Semitism,
anti-gay or anti-white. It's about the truth." The
truth is that Dr. Leonard Jeffries is a man who is
trying to scapegoat Jews and distort the facts. He
uses hate and stereotypes - something that Black
people have been struggling against for centuries.
Dr. Leonard Jeffries Jr. has sunk to the level of
those people he professes to be against. He embod-
ies the very racism he claims to hate.
Obsessed women
To The Daily:
I want the first sentence of this
letter to get across the idea that I
believe that men and women
should have the same opportuni-
ties in life, and for all intents and
purposes are equal. However,
there are some women who have
become so obsessed with the idea
of letting men "hear their voice"
that their voice is no longer
effective.
I cite three experiences.
When talking after class one
day last week, I overheard a
woman say, "The problem with
men is that they are too quick to
stereotype." A tad hypocritical,
wouldn't you say?
Another time, I was
speaking with a woman who
complained about the lack of
publicity and attendance for U-M
women's sporting events. I
offered a theory based on the idea
that the men's basketball team is a
better team than the women's, so
there is a bigger demand to see it
play. For this I am a "sexist pig."
Yeah how dare me? Does she
really believe that Trish Andrew
could beat Chris Webber in one-
on-one? (See - how many of you
even had heard of Trish Andrew)?
I asked a very good female
friend of mine if she wanted to do
dinner. Neither of us had money,
so I asked her if she could make
this great dish she makes. A
passerby decided that our conver-
sation was her conversation, and
deemed me "no better than a
primitive hunter who kept his
wife in the cave." Doesn't she
realize that she is doing the
stereotyping in that case?
Why do some women (or
womyn should I say? Nah - I
won't even touch that ridiculous
idea) believe that it is an insult to
be a good cook? Or to be told that
they have cleaned the place up
nicely? Why do some women
seemingly want only to be labeled
good at something men are
stereotypically good at? I have
many more complaints, but this is
already long enough, and there's a
White Sox feature on cable soon,
so that's it.
Joel Shapiro
LSA sophomore
Abortion rights
To the Daily:
I concur with your editorial
("Back Alleys or Safe Clinics," 2/
11/92) about the pressing threat to
a woman's right to an abortion.
The public should know that the
Michigan Legislature will be
voting on House Bill 4280 later
this week, which includes the
mandatory 24-hour waiting period
and misinformation act. These
laws are built on the premise that
women are not capable of making
autonomous decisions about their
own bodies and lives. If passed,
every woman who chooses to
have an abortion would be forced
to endure an unnecessary waiting
period.
Medical professionals would
be forced to read an anti-choice
script detailing unverified health
and emotional complications from
an abortion and to show women
fetal pictures. Low-income
women are entitled to the same
comprehensive care as wealthy
women.
The way the Michigan House
now stands, a majority of our
representatives are allied with the
anti-choice stance. People can call
Speaker Lewis Dodack (D-86th
District) at 517-373-0837 or their
representative to oppose the
passing of this bill. A woman's
body must remain her own
property, not that of the church or
the state.
0
01
Mimi Arnstein
LSA sophomore
Feature could have been better
To the Daily:
In response to Ms. Vines'
piece on men in the Feb. 6th
edition of "Weekend, etc.": When
I opened the Daily the other day
to find an article about men,
frankly I was excited. I am one of
the male students in the Sociology
class called "Men and Masculin-
ity" (and I know Vines is as well).
As I read through the article,
though, I found myself increas-
ingly annoyed. First, the central
graphic, a collage in the form of
the sign for male, was predomi-
nantly images of beer and
condoms. Army figures and a
man reading a Playboy were also
included. I'm sorry, if that's all
you think men represent. I do like
beer and sports, and I do practice
safe sex, but what about music
and books and dance?... oh yes,
those are only for women and gay
men. Seriously, this kind of
limited, stereotypical portrayal of
men is just as bad as some men's
sexist remarks about women
being barefoot and pregnant. If
both sexes don't stop stereotyp-
ing, we aren't going to get
anywhere.
The article seemed to portray
the men's movement as a bunch
of whiners. Well, could you
sincerely say that some feminists
in the world don't whine? I'm in
no way implying that all men in
the "men's movement" are doing
positive things.
Some don't recognize the
power they hold and some do
some real whining, but why
belittle a group of men who are
potentially, constructively and
critically thinking about their
power and identity in a sexist,
homophobic and racist society?
It's articles like yours that
provoke the very backlash that
you seem so afraid of.
Kyle Macdonald
LSA junior
0
:
a
'"a
"z
'.9
:+
M
i
+!
; i
i
r
ai
b
4
:
d;
Y,
'H
t
i
tfy '
Y,
0
!1 i
M
1
we1.aIs#*t~r~p~ri b et........saJ fin~f~~
1Jyx e~~ euwt4f.Wt hycot~e ihte ~n fOp~akn
~ uii wabp I 4yrn~~ti wrh ~ oeute~Su4n~f10-Sfr ~u
.y(S R sy ; ; ( o( ' f r. . . .... df i ~ ~ t t~
:;';;':': ::ty. m::rntm:idaton w t:'Itliepotester&..........; dnstrt. "i.nseut
4 :: '} li4 M>::"::":p ?:":: }::C :":
.:; ... ..wih ..e. s f"ty vrn rn "T.W "{I de 414 S4^u .".l ."RHF."+1:
btJnurath '00.Caiie~m~~n n
~Dep~e p~tstatasedbystuens tatth th Mii~ R~v~w d~ite a ~4~ I(' t
.W~Wrnt1 i~~ bAwe avtg, ie ~gesi~ ea~u~~ ~nias.~10. .ORt -
~*e ~ he ssu a thir unemetin. Tey ut~Uo .: A 2-pr"
th# TSR ::. :: :: .. d!Q ........ ................ n.stration wa ..
4~ Jumped ' CY ./ '^j " ' 7 + '}. ", wi: }"h
] ' ii ' W"( ;}w " " "S .Ffis.Dep ." its:67 7i :i ~ ti!Yhe . : :R: J hi' 0 " x :"::'.~ep ni
" t' Th yd o et e c hti .°{"r recv y}:;}"}:ny:: j ::':{$? i :{: "r,:::1:{: J: i: r:?: ;with L::$ :k'r; .:;;He$:}::i y' i kecti :i th
..,}gt.:''1..;":::.':;:i . ce&4 lt! .......that ' ". ~ :i40i '! i Wifa~ :7if~k .ii:F <#k.:
ju"uit nbl c 20ws:sedb"h hedp akr uis wp ote ~iriy
.: tFe~ 1 . ."1" is'tl !: 1!i: F .. M . . ion ..',,, W,.t;ns Rd Ie .r Y.F?'i."". ":: ...... ! ."." ....
,"~nt wx:ea oe o~etz s w oie iildn OO0~t4 fh1o-ipdbJes
.C: X {td~ Ieatnen il t- 1urpst !;nd9n nt ; wsotdee
xx};( llt " ". it74h ? : "", :::Tt :iti:: :t: % ;:" i}" 'i::"1 ty:iv ' P *~i :v S + ::
=AtJhJ a; nSoato ; ;. ( .( Hlt4! £vets ha headlisyaln a
pt4str'l inplrIesdn ~rt~tsp
i. W L"(1::tr J:n . Att J: h p az rd m nn r w t n m h .~t ~ ~ ei s
,, ..' ...}.n .:iYi t s ::: V:" :: i:'':'':,, ,......f, ..i.n..... .... r.l '.:n g Y':::'.";":: T: :;: :"::":::::"y "'i$ ,g b ji: ":f":":":" ': : :":::
m A ~ ~ e ~ offr n~v~~sty tuent a naTcbu'.e t^b
.} .".. ......14 v;:f e ; 1 ': . ah . :"':{}."'.:J : '.'L1":J ": ::t :":J :..a..,.... ..r ..:::;"4,..':..:. .:. ": ':.':
Deptiztin pblc harigswil b hed ednsdsyFeb 1, fom t 6 y m inth
MicigayLegueBalrom ad o TursayFeb , from 4 "'to\.:p:.1J1m. in the .1.Michian nio
Ballroom.":R :
1
A plea to those who can reshape MSA
Dear Michigan Students,
As you know, a big, bold, proud
"M," in blue and maize, makes for
an appropriate symbol of the Uni-
versity of Michigan. The Univer-
sity has many big things to be proud
of and bold about. For example,
even if you're a student with no
athletic interests,
youprobably still
take pride in the
successofMichi-,
gan football.
Even if you de-
spise the
University's role.
in America's by Ma tt
military-indus- Adler
trial complex, A
and think that pocket-protector pen
holders are abit unfashionable, you
can still take pride in the cutting-
edge, gear-grinding, scientific re-
search thatcomes outofNorth Cam-
pus.
And, believe it or not, even if
you disapprove of the editorial poli-
cies of the Daily, you can still be
proud of the paper's one-hundred-
that has traditionally brought little
but humiliation to this campus is
the Michigan Student Assembly. It
is utterly remarkable that one of the
most renowned universities in the
world could produce, as its prin-
ciple student organization, the three-
ring circus that is MSA.
I am not writing about MSA to
produce more scathing criticism of
the impotent body for the pages of
this paper. Rather, Iam writing about
MSA because I have faith in the
students of this school. This col-
umn is a plea. It's a plea to you
students out there who are gifted
with the leadership ability and com-
petence necessary to reshape MSA
into an effective student govern-
ment, to get off your asses and run
in the next MSA election.
I know you're out there. I en-
counter you every day. I see you
making insightful comments in
class. I hear you talking about bold
research projects and complex hon-
ors theses.
Where do you hide when it
comes time to run for MSA? And,
there have been a small number of
highly qualified individuals who
have served on MSA. In general,
these students have been Progres-
sive Party members or indepen-
dents.
Getting back to the topic athand,
the majority of the current MSA
representatives are, in a word, em-
barrassing. You have to go to an
MSA meeting to really understand
what I'm talking about. Most of
these guys look as if they spent their
high-school years with the epithet
"kick me" taped to their buttocks.
And these people are your leaders!
What's more, they have the gall to
refer to you as their constituents.
For those of you who don't al-
ready know, MSA and the Conser-
vative Coalition have turned into
some sort of pathetic social club for
John Engler wanna-bes who could
never win a real elected office in
this era of high-profile, televised
campaigning, in which voters actu-
ally have the opportunity to associ-
ate names with faces.
It pains me to be so brutally
rl wrirw v v " r _
t
Nuts and Bolts
M? Ai
rWRS~C*%
5. OEOi3Q( " INRMED" Himl
OF HIS IM~.DING Gf1AD -14tIN
AD~tS!#.4cOF1rTURiE
SIMILAR. C Pr LOMM WAN'.T
E.VEN CHOSEW A MAJOR~.
by Judd Winick
YEP. NO MACR .HE'IS UNDER
HFS BED IN A FAL1osiinoN
T 'dONE