I " Page 4-The Michigan Daily-- Thursday, April15, 1993 ri C'IoA/ o&7, /'/ ss /N PR/AIF b 'A G- T'A1 P0 r .-. dit (/ "o 4, p 4-K &r-b, I l-I-rc- f-r (AHEN 7itjF tMACH 1NE . /-.LT'S .J ST 420 Maynard Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan JOSH DUBow Editor in Chief ERIN LIzA EINHORN OpinionEditor Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the Daily editorial board. All other cartoons, signed articles and letters do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Daily. As the seems end of the semester approaches, it as if more and more people have ideas and issues that need a place to be heard. We on the Daily staff use this page every day to display our own political convictions, but all ideas deserve a forum. It is for that reason the Daily donates the entire opinion page today to the opinions and perspectives of the community. 74r 84cFA2 BAN! 0l L° ALWAYS I~a SORE 'You HAVE Y'OUR~ D06- tSFoFEE you 66 T, THE DiA6- Students Against Coffee Shops oppose arabica bean, promote good for all Students Matt Bennett and Peter Dresslar raised a significant amount of concern about the CSACS organization,and its premises recently in letters to the Daily. I, as president of CSACS, would like to address these concerns and hope to straighten this undertaking out, so all can understand what CSACS is for and about. First of all it is obvious to me that neither of these students attended our rally or read the article in the Daily (March 29). CSACS, in response to Dresslar, is not trying to destroy the economy of Ann Arbor by targeting the coffee shops, although our main argument does hinge upon coffee shops and the beans they use in their beverages. There are two types of beans used in the coffee industry, the arabica and the robusta beans. The latter of the two is the type you buy off you local grocers' shelf. The arabica is the gourmet of the two and it is the sole bean used in the produc- tion of beverages in Ann Arbor's cafes. This bean, versus the robusta, is very difficult to grow. It must be germinated in steep hillside terraces which makes it very hard to cultivate, often resulting in the exploitation of third world coffee bean workers. It is also, because of its weak immune system, very susceptible to disease and attack by varying insects. Therefore it is often treated with ecologically unsound chemicals such as DDT, a chemical not yet forbidden by these underdeveloped nations. The robusta bean, on the other hand, is grown on flat terrain and has a much heartier immune system. It is not the coffee shops that we are directly attacking, but the use of the arabica bean. These coffee shops have the alternative to use the robusta bean in their mixes but ont not to do so. it produces the same beverages, but with not quite as smooth or rich of taste. Our main goal is to further promote the switch from the one bean to the other by asking students to be conscious of what they are drinking. Bennett stated that it is amazing that we are concerned with something such as coffee instead of "protesting against those who are clearly a larger threat to our society." This miscon- strued garble is far off base. The coffee industry represents the second highest import on basis of volume in the world and the first in terms of value, representing one percent of total world trade. So, as you can see, this is a threat to our society. Finally I would like to address the criticism received about the use of Christian in the acronym CSACS. Its intention was not to offend those believers of the Christian faith, nor omit those from our group who were not. The Christian was added to the name because all the founding members happened to follow in the footsteps of the Christian beliefs. We welcome all who intend to make a difference in the world through change in a big way, it is not in our beliefs to preclude those with varying beliefs from our own. There are obviously some misunderstood facts about CSACS and hopefully this clears many of them up. As for Jesus not drinking coffee, this is a true fact. Coffee wasn't discovered until 300 A.D. We believe that Jesus, if he were around today, would support our cause unconditionally. Without him here we can only be his disciples and try our best for the promotion of good for all. Tony Jenkins Christian Students Against Coffee Shops 'U' officials way too restrictive University Towers Apartments responds toe resident concerns about safety, water To the Daily: Over the last four years, I have grown increasingly disgusted with the attitudes that the University's administrators and Regents seem to hold towards the students. Where to begin? Two years ago, an incredibly expensive campus police force was deputized without regard for any student opposition, and when the administration felt compelled to comment, they mailed their argu- ments home to students' parents, rather to the students themselves. This year, the Code of student conduct was implemented with little student input. Arbitrary tuition hikes occur nearly every summer. Regent meetings regarding items objection- able to students are held during exam times, vacations, and holidays. Today, the University is still fighting to justify its closed-meeting searches for President Duderstadt. And for three years in a row, the University has demonstrated its commitment to free speech and diversity of opinion by illegally attempting to prohibit NORML's Hash Bash rally. Is there any recourse for students as appalled by these actions as I am? Protesting is obviously ineffectual and seems to just add fuel to the adminis- trative fire. Fortunately, as a graduat- ing senior, I have discovered that the University does indeed care for my opinion - in the form of alumni donations. I was delighted to receive a mailing asking me to have my "gift" ready when University solicitors call. Well, once I have the University's ear, I hope they enjoy my gift of one Acerbic Tirade. If anyone else shares my disgust for the University's attempts at in loco parentis decision- i making, then I encourage you to demonstrate that their heavy- handedness does indeed have consequences. It would be a shame if it took a financial threat to get the administration to wise up, but they have done nothing to encourage me to add to the exorbitant sums I have already given them. Lee Ranieri LSA senior To the Daily: On behalf of University Towers Apartments I am responding to the letter regarding University Towers concern for the safety of its residents, "'U' Towers disregards tenant safety" (3/30/93). The letter stated that the water at University Towers contains "heavy metals and poisons." This statement is in fact, grossly untrue. University Towers has Ann Arbor city water. The fact is, water traveling through pipes will pick up sediment as it moves and when the water has been turned off and then back on, even more sediment breaks loose and will come through the faucets. This sediment is not harmful. After the water runs through the pipes for a short period of time, this condition corrects itself. There was never, at any time, a need to warn our residents not to drink the water. Mr. Camp, in his letter, also stated that University Towers rents had been raised "exorbitantly" for new leases. In fact, the opposite is true. On average, new leases for the 93/94 school year have been decreased by one half a percent for 12 month leases and slightly more than that for eight month leases. I understand that free speech is a right in our country and am pleased that the Daily gives University of Michigan students the opportunity to state their views. However, it is disturbing to me to have a letter Daily editor appear which, because of its lack of accurate facts, could damage the reputation of an area business. University Towers cares a great deal not only about the health and safety of its residents, but also about their well-being and happiness while living in our building. I would also like to take this opportunity to assure all present and future residents that the manage- ment of University Towers does and always will do its best to create a safe and happy environment for students while studying in Ann Arbor. Joyce Maschke Office Manager, University Towers ial on SS rally misrepresents RWL, TL Frankly, I think some people around h'ere take you all for granted. They don' appreciate you or care about what you do for their institution. The one thing some people do seem to care about is how many games you win. They act as though because you have a title, "The Fabulous Five," and that the media and the university gives you much atten- tion, that every time you step on the court you are supposed to win a game. It is expected of you. Somewhat de- manded. These people treat you as if you are robot ball players specifically designed to play basketball and provide entertainment. Sometimes I wonder if people see you as human beings with feelings-joys, pains heartbreaks etc.- just as they have? Where does the re- spectcome in? Even though you may be bombarded with autographs, followed by groupies and superficial women ready to drop their panties on sight, most of these people see you as one dimensional cartoon-like figures, dis- pensable, viewed as unintelligent and not taken seriously about anything other than basketball. This is why brothers you must keep your head on straight. We all under- stand what you are here for, but please don'tallow yourself tobe niaved (taken To the Daily: Your editorial of March 22 attacked anti-Nazi demonstrators for "violating the free speech rights" of the SS Action Group and the so- called National Association for the Advancement of White People (David Duke-ites) by attacking them with iceballs, rocks, machine parts and fists when the fascists tried to rally at City Hall on March 20. We of the Revolutionary Workers League (RWL) never made it a secret that we wanted the Nazis to be run out of town by militant action - that is why we made "No Free Speech for Fascists" a central slogan in our efforts to mobilize people for the demonstration. By "No Free Speech for Fascists" we mean there must be mass mobili- zations of Blacks, Latinos, Jews, lesbians and gay men, organized labor and all progressive people to smash them ourselves. As you say in your editorial, the anti-Nazi demonstrators "... imposed their own censorship law on SS Action and enforced this law with violence." Yes, our own law, the law of workers and the oppressed struggling for their survival in the face of an organization building a movement for genocide. But what about "the marketplace of ideas" asks the editorial. 'The marketplace of ideas" did not stop Hitler's Nazis fmm P..raminntin a Amllimes Clearly, the fascists in the United States are nowhere near ready to take power any time soon. This is not Germany 1932. But the alarmingly rapid growth of the fascist movement in Europe, the United States, and throughout the world should be a wake-up call. The cops protect the fascists now for a reason. At some future point in time, the capitalist ruling class may have to turn the reins of power over to the fascists when its usual means of rule over workers and the oppressed no longer suffices. This is what they did in Germany, Italy, and Spain. The fascists are struggling to build a mass fascist movement that can take power in the future by offering false, racist answers to the problems of unemployment and declining standards of living which can attract disaffected white youth. Those who would oppose the fascists must offer a truthful answers to the economic crises - the necessity for whites, Blacks, and all working people to unite against capitalist oppression. And we must deliver tactical blows to the fascist now to inhibit their growth while they are still small. Ironically, your editorial places the blame for all that happened on the Trotskyist League (TL). While the RWL and the TL disagreed in coalition (along with other forces) to build the demo, we disagreed strongly* mwih thi-1.r nerke.41vheene they chose to dwell on the negatives (losing the championship, the miscall etc.) These people were so busy focusing on the idea of losing, that they overlooked the point that only winners could have made it to the championship in the first place. I was a bit upset those first few minutes after the game, not because of the outcome, but because of the silence and long faces that greeted me on my way to South U. I was pissed because I felt that for all the time and effort you five asd the rest of our team put forth, mnmi neonle cnnld do nothing more that society has purposefully unedu- cated people to overlook this most ob- vious fact. Donotforget where you came from; But at the same time don't allow where you came from to get mixed up with where you're at and most importantly, don't allow it to hold you back from where you want to go. Please under- stand that you all are not simply players in a game, but products in a business; And we all know what that means, its all aboutcustomer service-buying, sell- DOUGLAS KANTER/Daily treat us, to think about how important it is that we walk around stressed jeopar- dizing out psychological well being attempting toattain goals that we should accept are beyond our reach. Time out to consider our values, morals and be- liefs how they shape us as individuals the choices we make and the control we have over our lives and others. Time out to think about how important it is that we win or lose or how well we play the game. In essence, we need to take time out