Page 4-The Michigan Daily - Monday, September 21, 1992 41, I e ttttgttn tlg 420 Maynard Street Ann Arbor. Michigan 48109 764 - 0552 I lol ii i e MATI'IIW D. RENNIE Opinion Editors YAEL CITRO GEOFFREY EARLE AMITAVA MAZUMDAR Edited and Managed by Students at the University of Michigan Unsigned editorials represent a majority of the Daily's Editorial Board. All other cartoons, signed articles, and letters do not nece.sarin represent the opinion o the Daily. -- zct ~cZZr, RP l , ,, , I rAgml. SPECIAL ,. ft A al 0 A r Hospitals should clean up their act i) _. ,_G" G .a , _ t . ._ _ ,r,.. (~ ; 1 0 ' ' y . - r" . 10* Thr-- violations the Michigan Bureau of Envi- ronmental and Occupational Health (MiOSHA) has slapped on the University Hospi- tals are serious and demand immediate attention. Rather than paying the fines and complying with needed safety regulations, the hospital has ap- pealed - on shaky grounds - that the target dates for remedying the situation are too soon. This appeal may result in years of costly legal battles and continued unsafe working conditions. The hospital would best serve its patients, employees and the community by paying the fines and insti- tuting needed reforms. Among the health code violations cited by MiOSHA were: "...unnecessary splashing, spraying, spatter- ing... of blood"; "... regulated waste was placed in red bags which were ... not closed prior to removal from an area"; "It was apparent efforts have not been made to ensure waste handlers and cart washers used the available personal protective equipment"; "... cart washers were not prohibited from picking up directly with their hands broken glass- ware, which may have been contaminated with blood or other potentially infectious materials"; "... two custodians who performed cart wash- ing were not trained at all as required by the bloodborne pathogens standard"; "The waste handling corridor, the logistics room and the robo-system elevators were not routinely cleaned and decontaminated"; This laundry list of violations includes some of the worst examples of negligence. Some of them - like prohibiting custodians from touching po- tentially contaminated materials, or properly seal- ing waste disposal bags --should take little effort or money to correct. The others would surely be cheaper to correct if the hospital dealt with them now, rather than continuing to pay steep fines or fighting loosing battles in court. But, hospital officials have yet to adequately address the issue, even though the violations have been brought to their attention. One worker reported that he was forced to mop up "blood and pee" that spilled from an improperly sealed bag. These types of problems shouldn't require major bureaucratic changes; just simple regard for safety. Additionally, workers have reported that hospi- tal officials have been indifferent to their com- plaints. According to another employee, when he was pricked by a used needle, the hospital refused to test the needle for contamination. During a time when AIDS awareness and edu- cation has increased considerably; when citizens are encouraged to be tested for the HIV virus regularly, it is tragic that the University hospital has been unable or unwilling to meet the most funda- mental safety requirements to protect its employ- ees. The Hospital administration should admit that it made a mistake, pay for that mistake, and solve the waste disposal problem as quickly as possible. Until then, community members have little reason to trust hospital safety procedures. Dragging this issue out in court will undoubtedly cost a great deal of money, and will not insure that University Hos- pital patients - or employees - remain healthy. pj / 1" I.E7EJERS .. 0 SMOKING vur WfE Ht I&L SAFTY PROCEDURES AROUND ttt 0 U 2 MAI1C1l Joke went overboard To the Daily: Y'know, I'm not the world's biggest George Bush fan, but even I balked at "Bury the draft issue," (9/16/92). You marred what was an otherwise well-written and incisive editorial with the com- ment that George Bush's war heroics were based on his "single- handedly crashing his plane into the Pacific and killing his entire crew while flying his first mission." First of all, I don't think it was single-handed, unless you don't count the guy who shot his plane down. Second, do you really want to accuse the President of "killing his crew." Again, what about the little matter of the Japanese bullets' role in the affair. Lastly, it wasn't his first mission. If you are going to bash Bush, get your facts straight and don't use such stupid exaggera- tion just for the effect. The last thing you need is for fewer people to read your editorials. Brian Kalt LSA junior Boycott Dollar Bill To the Daily: Today I was again subjected to bad treatment from Dollar Bill Copying. They get away with treating students like this because we are not going to get that coursepack anywhere else. Although it's true that I can't take my business elsewhere, I can. encourage my professors to take their business elsewhere, and I will as long as Dollar Bill Copying continues to concern itself more with fleecing students than doing good work. I would say that I'm overly vindictive after being mistreated by some nasty clerk following a ridiculous wait-but it's not their first offense. My colleagues and I have been dealing with surly clerks, incompetence, long waits, and inconvenient paying policies ever since being students here. So, I am acting on a desire to see that changed. I encourage other dissatisfied students to do the same. Chris Lunt LSA senior To the Daily: Aaron Hamburger ("Ridley's rehash is still the same Blade Runner," 9/15/92) says he was "confused" by the director's cut of Blade Runner. "There is a moment," he writes, "in which one of the replicants mourns over the body of one of his friends, then suddenly confronts Harrison Ford, and then, just as suddenly, is back to his mourning again." This "strange lapse in continuity" isn't that hard to understand, though, for those who pay attention: after confronting Ford, the replicant tells him that he will have time to run before he comes after him, and then returns to his mourning. I bring this minor point up because it shows, better than anything else, what a lazy reviewer Mr. Hamburger is. He mentions that Ford's Steve- Martin-style narration from the original version of the film is gone, but doesn't bother to list any of the ways in which this changes the movie - by shifting from one viewpoint character (Ford) to many, for example. He doesn't describe the other changes to the picture at all - most obviously, the fact that there is now a different ending. He doesn't even bother to discuss theme, symbolism, or even much of the plot - even though Blade Runner is full of all three. We don't even get an explana- tion of how this cut of the film came to be, or any mention at all of Philip K. Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, the brilliant novel the movie was based on. This may amount to a "review" - but one that, for those of us who saw and savored Blade Runner, is kind of "confus- ing." Ridley Scott's movie deserves better. Jesse Walker 1992 University graduate Lazy 'Blade Runner' review University Document and Supply? T he original purpose of coursepacks was to allow students to read excerpts from neces- sary texts, without having to purchase all the books. The price (and inconvenience) of coursepacks, however, has increased dramatically since a federal court ruled last year that Kinko's Copies was not reprinting copyrighted material within "fair use" guidelines. Depending on the interpretation of "fair use," students may pay any- where from one to 30 cents per page in royalties. Since then, Michigan Document Services has stumbled upon similar problems. Clearly, the laws regarding coursepacks need to be clarified to pro- tect students from sky-rocketing prices. Beyond that, however, the University should open up its own non-profit printing service and distribute coursepacks at cost. Michigan Document Services is suing three publishing companies regarding the factors defin- ing "fair use." The term is intended to judge whether it is appropriate to use copyrighted mate- rial on the following criteria: 1) whether it is for commercial or non-profit educational use; 2) the nature of the work to be copied; 3) the amount and substance of the material copied; and 4) the effect of the copying upon the value and market for the copyrighted work. Michigan Document Services says that if its use doesn't count as "fair use," the law is unconstitutionally vague. Because Michigan Document Services neither wishes, nor intends, to drive down the value of published texts; and because its services are for educational - and not commercial - purposes, the copy shop appears to be right in its criticism of publishing houses and the law. And if the court rules against Michigan Documents, the law ought to change. Until the dispute goes to court next April, stu- dents will still have to pay excessively high royalty fees when they buy coursepacks. To forge a long- term solution -regardless of the court's decision, the University should open a University copy shop. Since the University print shop would be a non- profit service, it would have to pay few royalties, and would significantly reduce the price of coursepacks. Moreover, all students and instructors could take advantage of the centralized service, without having to traipse around Ann Arbor, searching for the proper copying service. Open letter to. Provost Gil Whitaker has recently initiated a search for the position of Vice Provost of Academic and Multicultural Affairs and appointed an Advi- sory Committee to assist him in this effort. I write to youas Chair of this Committee to invite your participation in and assistance with this search. The responsibilities of the new Vice Provost will include provid- ing leadership in the planning, development and implementation of instructional and research programs and other services to promote multiculturalism within and on behalf of the University; conducting periodic reviews of University policies, programs and procedures that influence multiculturalism; providing leadership in the recruitment and retention of faculty, staff and students of color and underrepresented groups; and assisting the Provost in the administration and general supervision of academic pro- grams. Qualifications include a distinguished record of scholarly research and publication, related teaching experience, extensive administrative experience in 'U' students higher education, and qualifica- tions for a tenured appointment in an academic department. This individual will play a major role in refining institutional policies, programs and procedures regarding multiculturalism, and should have a record demonstrat- ing a firm commitment to affirmative action and equal opportunity. The Vice Provost should also exhibit a knowledge of and commitment to the diverse ethnic constituencies which constitute an academic commu- nity. I invite your nominations of candidates for this position, which will become available in January, 1993. In view of this timetable, I would appreciate receiving your nominations at your earliest convenience. Nominations,applications, inquiries and requests for a copy of the position description should be sent to me via electronic mail or in writing in care of the Office of the Provost, 3060 Fleming Administration Building, 1340. Thank you very much for your assistance. Harold R. Johnson Advisory committee chair 0 I COItIIINSI:CpaGHTi n..mpeti.n Abortion: Cooperation vs. competition, 01 ng the staving carivres achfall semester, men suffer from "my mother nity Rush offers good, meaty food - for free. asn't such a bad cook after all" anxiety. In the Some houses provide pizza. dorms, the dining service mass-produces chicken Others cook hamburgers, and still others serve chow mein, cheese souffle and meatloaf with such genuine, grade-A steak. We encourage all students alarmingly bad results that even the most die-hard to take advantage of this free meal deal. The more Ineat eaters regress into the organic, neo-hippy the merrier. slosh diet of granola, yogurt and pita bread. Simi- In addition to eating vast quantities of good larly, off campus, the daily diet of most residents food, male students will learn more about the consists of Meijer mac-n-cheese, cereal, yogurt Greek system and have ample opportunity to tell a and pita bread. few brothers just how much their fathers make, and Alrandv alarg echunk of the Universitv's male what kind of cars they drive.Surelv. the fraternities by Irving W. Knobloch The abortion issue has created a rift in the Republican Party, among American Catholics, and among the population in general. One wonders how many of the electorate will consider abortion issues important enough to over- ride other issues. Probably the most important point that I would like to make concerns the matter of human free- doms. As the population increases in the world and civilization be- comes more complex more and more of our freedoms are eroded by "thou shalt not" laws. Most people feel that these laws protect us from exploitation. However, the geiicnal rule states rope many of the freedoms that we enjoy now (such as those in the Bill of Rights) were not enjoyed by the general population who chafed un- der continuous political and reli- gious pressures. Millions of people left their homes and farms and spent most of their money to seek free- dom in the new world. We should be the last ones to forget this tragic series of events. We should not pass a law which repeals Roe vs. Wade and take away an almost universal right, that of being able to have an abortion. There is no need for such an edict because no crime is being commit- ted. This brings us to the second source of confusion. Pro-life advo- cates have been led to believe that fused by this arrogant move. The right-wing religious faction holds that the developing baby is really a child but the medical books say that it is still in the development stage and is properly called a fetus. It may never complete the cycle and society throughout the world generally agrees with the medical people: a "child is born" when the fetus exits from the birth canal, breathes air, is given a name and a birth certificate. The word "mur- der" is only applied to to an act committed upon a named person already born. No Bible passage clearly supports right-wing theol- ogy about abortion and murder; prominent Jewish leaders agree with what has been said above about the onset of "childhood." 0 I