The Michigan Daily - Thursday, March 26, 1992 - Page 3
Judge
riticizes
liability
lawsits
by Alan Susser
Daily Staff Reporter
State's budget, deficit
Citizens who cause harm to
themselves can't come crying to the
court expecting it to pay for their
mistakes, Judge Alex Kazinsky told
about 50 people at the Law School
yesterday.
The "Toyota Principle" - the
idea that "you asked for it, you got
it"- served as the framework for
Kazinsky's speech.
Kazinsky is currently on the
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in
California and has been considered
for the position of Supreme Court
Justice, said Michael Warren, a
third-year law student and vice pres-
ident of the Law School Federalist
Society.
In his address, sponsored by the
Federalist Society, Kazinsky dis-
cussed his concern for the number of
cases in which irresponsible individ-
uals have won money for injuries
sustained while participating in ille-
gal or "ridiculous" activities.
Kazinsky said he was upset that the
courts have been awarding large
amounts of money in these cases.
Kazinsky cited examples which
he said he felt should have been
"governed by the Toyota Principle."
The first case, involved Ronald
Roy Henderson, an environmentalist
who attempted to recycle some ma-
terials beyond the fence of a gov-
ernment facility in a barren section
of California. As a potential source
of recyclable material, Henderson
victims of
LANSING, Mich. (AP) - counting
Michigan's budget problem wors- rainy day
ened yesterday as Republicans and and one-
Democrats stepped up their partisan the red in
charges while doing nothing to ad- Howe
dress the state's $785 million deficit. nated by1
Budget Director Patricia Democrat
Woodworth lashed out at House "The
Speaker Lewis Dodak (D-Birch lessons fr
Run), accusing him of welshing on in Congr
deals and being the biggest obstacle Sen. Jac
to an agreement to balance the
books.
Democrats decried the attack and
called again for Gov. John Engler to The s
issue an executive order to show ex- check
actly how he'd trim spending.
Both sides were quick to issue
news releases and hold news confer-
ences to press their arguments and
blast the opposition. The rhetoric on
both sides frustrated and embar- Hills), ac
rassed some lawmakers. frontation
"If we've ever made a case for forum to
term limitation, we've made it here tack the s
today," said Sen. Jon Cisky, a first- As at]
year Republican from Saginaw. watched
Majority Democrats in the House Democrat
boycotted a joint House-Senate and rhet
Appropriations Committee meeting accused t
designed to let Woodworth spell out "the brin
the budget woes and propose ways stalling a
to balance the books. "This
She did issue a "deficit reduction essary,"
strategy" including budget cuts, ac- ing and
party
changes, use ofithe state's
fund and other reductions
time adjustments to erase
k.
ver, the meeting was domi-
her criticism of Dodak and
its' quick defense.
speaker must be taking
om his check-ki~g friends
ess," she said at one point.
k Faxon (D-Farmington
dispute
sport here in Lansing."
"We cannot continue to let House
Democrats continue to put the
budget in deficit year after year."
But she noted that Democratic coop-
eration is needed if the budget is to
be cut as part of the effort to balance
the books.
Democrats bristled
ments.
"It is not productive
at her com-
to come here
peaker must be taking lessons from his
-kiting friends in Congress.'
-Patricia Woodworth
state budget director
Judge Alex Kazinsky discusses the increasing volume of liability cases
yesterday at the Law School.
tried to remove some cables con-
nected to utility poles 40 feet above
the ground. le soon realized they
were live, and injured himself after
falling to the ground.
Henderson subsequently sued the
government citing unsafe conditions
and won.
Kazinsky mocked the case's ver-
dict. "Thieves are people too and
their workplace should also be safe,"
he said.
Kazinsky also cited a recent case
of two teenagers who killed them-
selves after listening to the music of
Judas Priest, a heavy-metal rock
group. Their parents argued that
subliminal messages in the music led
to the suicides.
An important factor in this case,
Kazinsky said, was the parents'
knowledge and condonement of
"heavy drug use" and the possession
of an "arsenal of weapons" in the
teenagers' room. Regardless, the
parents sued Judas Priest and won.
"These parents managed to ab-
solve their guilt by finding someone
else on which to lay the blame, "
Kazinsky said.
Third -year law student Daniel
Plants, president of the Federalist
Society, said he agreed with the is-
sues Kazinsky discussed. "I think his
speech was important because it was
about a broader theme of weaning
people off the dependence of others
in government."
ccused her of "direct con-
n" and said she "used this
do nothing more than at-
peaker of the House."
least three top Engler aides
, Woodworth blasted
tic "political gamesmanship
oric" over the budget. She
hem of pushing the state to
k of fiscal disaster," and of
nd bickering.
is irresponsible and unnec-
she said. "Political postur-
gamesmanship make great
and yell and scream about somebody
else," said Sen. Joseph Conroy (D-
Flint).
"I have never seen a department
head speak like you spoke today. I
don't know if we're paying you to
get along with somebody else. Just
do your job. I'll not sit through it
again."
Dodak said he "must have hit a
nerve in the front office" with his
comments the day before saying
Engler is required to issue an execu-
tive order to cut the budget.
RSG approves funding
for student organizations
Speaker says communication is
key to ending sexist attitudes
by Gwen Shaffer
Daily Staff Reporter
Fans of the legendary jazz artist
Miles Davis were in for some shock-
ing news last night.
Davis exemplifies the sexism
which confronts women of color and
helps perpetrate violence against
them, asserted Pearl Cleage in her
presentation, titled "Mad about
Miles: A Black Women's Guide to
the Truth," last night at the Union.
* The speech title was taken from
her recent book of the same name. In
Davis' autobiography, he openly
admits to using violence against
women, causing Cleage to urge
people to "break his tapes, burn his
albums, and scratch his CD's until
he acknowledges, apologizes, and
agrees to rethink the woman ques-
tion."
Cleage, who is a performance
artist, author of several books, and a
drama professor at Spelman College,
read ten excerpts from "Mad About
e.
WTHE LIST
IWhat's happening in Ann Arbor today
Meetings
ACT-UP Ann Arbor, meeting,
Crofoot Rm, Michigan Union, 7:30
p.m.
Institute of Electrical and
Electronics Engineers (IEEE),
1311 EECS, weekly luncheon
meeting, 12:30-1:30 p.m.
I'ntervarsity Christian
Fellowship, weekly group mtg,
1040 Dana Bldg, 7 p.m.
Islamic Circle, weekly mtg, 3rd
floor Michigan League 5:15.
Pro-choice Action, weekly mtg,
MLB Rm B118, 7:30 p.m.
Pre -Med Club Meeting,
Pendleton rm, 6:30 p.m.
Korean Students Association,
officer elections, weekly meeting,
Pendleton Rm, Michigan Union, 6
p.m.
Amnesty Int'l, letter writing. East
Quad, Greene Lounge, 7-8 p.m.
Bachelor of Fine Arts
Exhibition, Rackham Galleries, 9
a.m.-8 p.m.
Hunger Clean-Up Meeting,
National Student Campaign Against
Hunger & Homelessness,
Dominick's,
"Burial Storage, and Header-
Cultivator Duality: towards an
Archaeological Definition of
Living Landscapes in
Precolumbian Highland Peru,"
2009 Nat Sci Museum, 12:00 p.m.-
1:00 p.m.
Detroit Summer '92 Speaker
Series, UM Greens, Grace Lee
Boggs, Kunzel Rm, Michigan Union,
7 p.m.
International Shipping
Workshop, International Center,
Rm 9, 7 p.m.
Peace Party, Hillel, 7 p.m.
Hindi Discussion/Class, M L B
9115, 8 p.m.
Speakers
"Distorted Molecules: besign,
Europe," Lane Hall Commons Rm,
4:00 p.m.
"A Symposium on African-
Americans in the Military: A
Modern Perspective," Angell
Hall Aud D, 7:00 p.m.
"Breaking Free From Inner
Gloom," Michigan Union
Ballroom, 7:30-9:00 p.m.
"In Search of the Hidden
Christ," Jewish Students, CIA,
IVCF, MSA, LSA-SG Michigan
Union-Anderson Rm, 7:30 p.m.
"Federal Death Penalty
legislation," Federal Prosecutor
Jill Price, Greene Lounge, East Quad,
7 p.m.
Furthermore
Anthropology Club, Norma
Diamond on: Ethnic Minorities in
China," 7 p.m. Dominick's
Federal Tax Workshop for
International Center Students
and Scholar, Rm 9, International
Center, 10:00 a.m.
Career Planning & Placement,
Education Job Search, 4:10-5:30 a.m.
Bachelor of Fine Arts
Exhibition, Rackham Galleries,
3rd floor Rackham, 7-9:30 p.m.
Safewalk, night-time safety walk-
ing service. Sun-Thurs 8 p.m.-1:30
a.m., Fri-Sat, 8 p.m.-11:30 p.m. Stop
by 102 UGLi or call 936-1000. Also,
extended hours: Sun-Thurs 1-3 a.m.
Stop by Angell Hall Computing
Center or call 763-4246.
N o r t h w a l k, North Campus
nighttime team walking service. Sun-
Thur 8 p.m.-11:30 p.m. Stop by 2333
Bursley or call 763-WALK.
ECB Peer Writing Tutors,
Angell/Mason Hall Computing
Center, 7-11 p.m.
Stress and Time Management,
Consultations with peer counselors
available, 3100 Michigan Union, $1-
3 p.m.
Undergraduate Psychology
Miles" to about 100 people.
Cleage said she decided to write
the book after talking to women
about their experiences in violent
relationships.
"One day I realized many of the
women around me were abused, but
we didn't have adequate language to
describe it," she said. "I tried to look
at the reality of what an abusive sit-
uation feels like.
"The book tries to create a lan-
guage for non-confrontational dis-
cussion. Hopefully, it will help men
make the choice between being a
good guy or a bad guy, and to see
other ways of expressing anger and
frustration."
Cleage said women must learn to
tell men the truth about how they
expect men to behave if the sexes
are to peacefully co-exist.. Cleage
said women of color need to demand
"good and righteous brothers."
"How can they hit us and still be
our heroes, our leaders, our lovers
and our friends?" she asked.
Cleage was met with a standing
ovation at the end of her perfor-
mance.
LSA junior Michelle Yates said
she enjoyed hearing Cleage's ideas.
"She said so many things I was
thinking but couldn't put into
words."
Yates said that to some extent
women contribute to the sexism pre-
velant in the Black community.
"Men will degrade women but say it
with a smile, so we accept it."
"I agree totally with Cleage,"
said School of Natural Resources ju-
nior Michael Dorsey. "You see a lot
of men here, but I wonder where the
men doing this kind of stuff are."
Colin Leach, a Rackham graduate
student, said he agreed with Cleage's
point that men need to understand
women's situations and educate one
another. "It is men's responsibility to
seek out information and do some-
thing about the violence."
by Karen Pier
Daily Graduate Schools Reporter
Rackham Student Government
(RSG) distributed $600 to student
groups at their biweekly meeting last'
night, and held an informal discus-
sion of elections.
Three organizations- Shelter
Group, Hong Kong Students Associ-
ation, and Sigma Gamma Rho
sorority- asked for funding. The
Shelter Group and Sigma Gamma
Rho received funding, but the Hong
Kong Students Association was
turned down.
The organization asked for $400
to show Hong Kong films.
RSG President Mark Buchan said
the function was "too vague."
But RSG members said if the or-
ganization ran into massive financial
trouble, they could come back for
funding later.
RSG gave $400 to the Shelter
Group to plan an international con-
ference for people to talk about low-
income housing.
The conference will include nu-
merous panels. Papers will be pre-
sented by some panel members, who
include a mix of academics, workers
in the field of low-income housing,
and activists.
The conference will be held on
May 7.
In addition, there was much de-
bate centered around Sigma Gamma,
Rho's request for money to sponsor a
fundraiser ball for the George Wash-
ington Carver scholarship:
Originally, the members thought
the money would go to pay for the
ball, since an undergraduate single
ticket would not even cover the cost
of the meal.
But various members pointed out
that the group already has enough
money for their goal of two $1000
scholarships.
RSG member and sociology
graduate student Tracey Ore ex-
plained that all fundraisers worked
the same way - putting forth a lot
of money to raise a lot of money.
RSG Vice President Nancy
Goldfarb said the ball was not just
for a good time.
"It's a celebration of Black educa-
tion," she said.
RSG earmarked $200 for the
scholarship fund.
Buchan said he plans to run again
for president.
How Sweet it is
Recording artist Matthew Sweet signs a CD jacket for his album at a local record store yesterday before
performing live at the Blind Pig.
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