4 - The Michigan Daily - Friday, December 10, 1993 ct 3icign Liug 420 Maynard Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan JOSH DUBOW Editor in Chief ANDREW LEVY Editorial Page Editor Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials reflect the majority opinion of the Daily editorial board. All other cartoons, articles and letters do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Daily. THE FIRST 5'AE6TIER r=VtL~mc*4 OF THE STu)EN'r: MO pro~th6A7QS A//r AU/.S f?/ALS4q ,44/6 rhogj5 w-EVERyTHfING,'$ coo}L - RAL 1 y SET 6 t N; ,-.WoPJ-o CoMI4 1*0AN EM'D; - CAN t aL. IC; /f ~-A'-O"UAEL~YVrAY IN TIRE'E HWRS of 5L E'P,, NoLA/Ai o0AT ONE N'&cHr Ou~toNG LOTS13 M ~ vrAN JQ W yOe'NCi. WEK-N ' lb jY.AND A C606053EA1~ufr. J 4 Remove obstacles facing students with disabilities To the Daily: I would like to commend the Daily and especially Michele Hatty for the week-long series "Overcoming Obstacles 101." As a member of the University community and the parent of a disabled person, I would also like to respond to Marni Raitt's letter (12/ 3/93). Ricky Bernstein has may fine accomplishments to his credit as Raitt points out. He is to be commended especially since he is visually impaired and had to overcome many obstacles. The point is - why are there so many obstacles in the path of students with disabilities? Ricky and others with disabilities shouldn't have to overcome obstacles to their education since equal access to education was mandated 20 years ago by the U.S. Congress. Why does a student at this university have to spend hours arranging for access that should already be in place? If you are visually impaired you can spend hours arranging for readers who, since they are volunteers, can decide at the last minute to quit and leave the student unable to do the readings. This has happened many times at the University. If you are hearing impaired you have to explain to your professor why you are asking them to speak only when you can see their mouths or to accept a signer in the classroom. There are faculty here who are very ignorant of the needs of disabled students and those very students have to spend the time and energy to educate them. Imagine having to adjust your choice of classes around which buildings and classrooms are accessible to your wheelchair. Would the University expect a student to get an education via radio waves but without a radio? A student who can't see or hear doesn't have that "radio." Would the University expect a student to fly up to the second floor? A student in a wheelchair might as well be asked to do that when a building is inaccessible. So what I'd like to make clear to Raitt and others who agree with her is that although it may be inspiration to read about success, it is also very important for the public to be aware that many of the obstacles in the path of people with disabilities needn't be there and indeed are illegal. Think how many people with disabilities have been thwarted in their goals because of these obstacles! It is articles like Hatty's that will help educate the public so that they can support the disabled community to gain equality. DONNA ESTABROOK School of Education Cure AIDS for Innocent victims, 1not Immoral ones To the Daily: I am writing in response to Mark Chasteen's letter (12/7/93). His statement that the campus Republicans' proposal is a rear- guard action taken while they watch from afar is ridiculous. What would you have them do? The traditional liberal "fix-all" of throwing money at a problem and then ranting to anyone who will listen to what a wonderful job you're doing and. how big a help you are? It's a little late to prevent AIDS. It's already here, so all we can do is stop other people from contracting it. Contrary to what you apparently believe, AIDS is not the number one cause of mortality in the United States, or even in the world. Yet, somehow, it receives more money than any other disease. I'd like to hear your. explanation of that one, Mark. I also question Chasteen's source that states, "a significant portion of the world's population has become infected..." What constitutes a "significant portion" in your mind, Mark? I think you need to look at the numbers provided by someone else rather than the militant gay-rights group from which you apparently got your figures. As for the statement that we need to look for a medical cure, I would agree, but with one caveat. The cureeis needed for the innocent victims of AIDS (hemophiliacs, newborns), not for those who contract the disease due to immorality. The innocent victims are paying the price for the immorality of others. That's the real crime, not the terminology used by those brave enough to stand up and state the real answer to AIDS. You say that we should find a cure and treat AIDS victims regardless of their "moral mistakes." What were laws first based on, Mark? MORALS. While some of the behavior that led these people to contract AIDS isn't illegal, some was (intravenous drug use) and it all was certainly immoral. Why should we excuse this kind of behavior? TOBY BREVITk LSA first-year student Daily romanticizes JFK To the Daily: The Daily's editorial on "Remembering JFK" (11/22/93) was a remarkable piece of drivel, filled with misleading generalizations that showed no regard for history. There can be no doubt that Kennedy did represent something different in American politics, but as with most examinations of his time, theDaily becomes consumed with generalized and sticky nostalgia. The difference between Kennedy's over-promoted image and reality has always been huge. Kennedy was certainly not a civil rights crusader. He ignored the predicament of African Americans during the first two years of his presidency, providing no moral lead on the issue and affording no protection to African Americans being beaten in the South for merely exercising their constitutional rights. In Southeast Asia, Kennedy escalated a futile war that in the next decade would see the deaths of many Americans and the killing of many more Vietnamese. It is sad that the Daily has chosen to participate in the continued glorification of Kennedy and ignored the real evidence that exists. , SAM PILGER LSA junior The Daily would like to wish all students good luck on finals and an enjoyable break. aK The Daily will return on the first day of class, Jan. 5, with full coverage of the Hall of Fame Bowl. r m the University President Work together for a safer 'U' campus To the Daily: Last week's rape on Monroe Street has horrified and angered all of us in the University of Michigan community, and has heightened our awareness of the brutality of such acts. We are all angry and concerned about sexual assault, As a University, we aspire to be a place where everyone, women and men alike, feels welcome and safe. And last week's rape is a painful reminder - if any of us needed one - that we are far from reaching that goal. We all must work together to make that goal a reality. To do that, we must channel our ,y%£ f f , y,/ y , q.; . :. ,7 >.g;,, m E'