4 -- The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, March 20, 1996

420 Maynard Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Edited and managed by
students at the
University of Michigan

RONNIE GLASSBERG
Editor in Chief
ADRIENNE JANNEY
ZACHARY M. RAiMI
Editorial Page Editors

NOTABLE QUOTABLE,
'it will be 16 years this fall. It's long enough.
It's time to move on and let some new
people and fresh ideas in.'
- Regent Nellie Varner (D-Detroit), explaining her
decision not to seek re-election in 1996

Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials reflect the opinion of a majority of the Daily's editorial board. All
other articles, letters and cartoons do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Michigan Daily.
FROM THE DAly
Two years too ate
Medical School must recruit, satisfy minorities

JIM LASSER

SH ARP AS TOAST


thoughtheUniversity'sMedicalSchool
as earned a world-class reputation, a
significant portion of its students and faculty
say more can be done to improve the atmo-
sphere in the classrooms and laboratories.
The Medical School released a report last
week that indicated minority students and
faculty were discontented with the Medical
School'shandling ofminority affairs.Asepa-
rate report was released in June 1994, which
cited similar problems. Since there has been
no noticeable improvement, Medical School
administrators must act to confront the com-
plaints of minorities constructively.
Medical School Dean Giles Bole should
have done more when the first report was
released in June 1994. At that time, Bole
received letters of discontent from minority
Medical students about their discomfort at
the school. One student told The Michigan
Daily that "the attitudes of some of the fac-
ulty seem to deter minority students from
succeeding."
Despite previous exposure of the prob-
lems, the Medical School has taken more
than two years to formally investigate the
possibility of discrimination. The school has
done little in the meantime to bolster minor-
ity students' and faculty's confidence in the
Medical School.
Last week's report captures the same feel-
ings of discontent. The report said, "Black
students/House Officers, work in an institu-
tion where a significant number of people
believe they were admitted under different

(or) lower standards and consequently are
not as smart as their white colleagues." Ironi-
cally, the report may create a friction be-
tween white and minority students -adding
to the discomfort rather than alleviating it.
Also, the report recognizes one of the
main reasons for the current ethnic imbal-
ance: Minority representation of faculty is
well below the national average. Without
role models and mentors, minority students
areunlikely to succeed among white students
with plenty of support. But with more minor-
ity faculty support, students would feel reas-
sured that Medical School faculty and ad-
ministrators were listening to their concerns
and opinions. Bole and others must work to
actively recruit minority faculty members.
Furthermore, the Medical School should
design aggressive programming to more di-
rectly address the students' concerns. "Lun-
cheon dialogue groups," which were dis-
cussed in 1994, seemto have had little impact
on the students' confidence. The schoolcould
develop peer mentor programs. The Medical
School must improve existing programs -
which are obviously ineffective - as well as
explore other new initiatives.
A spokesperson for the Medical School
said school officials are willing to develop
ways to make minority students and faculty
feel more comfortable. And the Medical
School deserves credit for putting some tough
realities into print. However, identifying the
problem is not enough - it must act quickly
to improve the atmosphere.

SAVE PL-ACE . .. :Tv
AN EAR IY RELEASE.
y5 a

JS

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Busted
Justice Department stops the Mafia again

president Clinton is keeping one of his
biggest campaign promises - his pro-
grams for a war on crime have come to
fruition as the federalgovernmenthas cracked
down on organized crime in the United States.
The administration's latest accomplishment
was its arrest last week of Jack William
Tocco. The Clinton administration deserves
praise for its relentless pursuit of criminals,
and particularly for busting up organized
crime.
Tocco, believed by the government to be
the head of the Detroit Mafia, was arrested
without incident at his vacation home in
West Palm Beach, Fla. Federal authorities
also arrested Anthony Zerilli, the alleged
under-boss for the Detroit family.
In addition to Tocco, the administration
has arrested Mafia chieftains in Boston, New
Orleans, Chicago, Philadelphia, New York
City and Newark over the past few years.
Organized crime specialists with the FBI
claim to hold 10 percent of the Mafia leader-
ship in jail. Moreover, the FBI has said that
the remaining Mafia leadership is regroup-
ing to consolidate their power.
The Clinton administration has a solid
record of being tough on organized crime.
During the past three years, the Justice De-
partment has either arrested or successfully
prosecuted 42 top figures in the Mob. This
figure does not, ofcourse, includethe numer-
ous foot soldiers of the Mafia who have been
taken in conjunction with operations directed

against the leadership.
While not every mob bust is as highly
publicized as Tocco's or New York crime
lord John Gotti's, the Clinton administration
continued its assault on organized crime.
The Department of Justice, led by Attorney
General Janet Reno, developed a new strat-
egy to stop organized crime. Although the
department has not released many details, it
has said that the strategy involves the lulling
of criminals into complacency while work-
ing toward an arrest.
Clinton's success on stopping crime does
not end with his crackdown on Mafia bosses.
He passed the Brady Bill in 1993, which
requiredpotentialgun owners to have a back-
ground check before purchasing the gun.
Furthermore, he has consistently supported a
ban on assault rifles, which often are in-
volved in gruesome crimes.
Clinton has not been soft on criminal
behavior. Opponents may rail that the presi-
dent has not acted decisively, but their claims
seem false in the wake of Tocco's arrest.
Clinton has kept his promises to get tough on
crime - the Detroit arrests are a sterling
example of his dedication to action. Al-
though the Tocco arrests come at a time
when Clinton is kicking off his re-election
campaign, it is clear that the crackdown was
not purely political.
Clinton's actions are reflective of his
administration's deep commitment to law
enforcement.

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.st ri an military power to divert the
free will of the Taiwanese
w as people.
Whether Taiwan is a pa
and led ofChina is a complex
problem. There perhaps doe
not exist a simple resolutiot
AILY: to this issue. Despite the
tiele "ast U to elose relationship that
edestrian mall" (2 existed between Taiwan an
)ws how the China in many aspects, suc
is run by fools. as history and culture, there
people see why has been a myriad of
School of Natural differencesbetween them,
and built up in the past hundred
ent's Landscape of years. For example,
ire Department for although Chinese culture is
t would have been a dominating portion of the
, for two reasons? Taiwanese culture, the latte
final product will has developed for a suffi-
back yard. Two: I ciently long time on her ow
agine a department way. In the past few
University that is hundreds of years, Taiwan
ified to comment has continually separated
ject. from China. Moreover, the
a clear case of were actually ruled under
y the University different authorities from
tion. How much 1895 to present.
t going to con- The difference between
en is the Univer- Taiwan and China makes a
to divorce itself significant portion of the
Mess bureaucrats Taiwanese consider
al administration? Taiwanese independence a
trian mall is a a choice for Taiwanese
but excluding the future. Nurtured by the
m participating in recent progress of democ-
ng stages is a joke. racy in Taiwan, seeking
t one of many Taiwanese independence h,
re the people who become more and more
snrant decisions popular in Taiwan. Under
same people who the Chinese threats, the
with those portion of people expresses
I applaud Prof. their approval for indepen-
and others who dence in recent polls varies
against the between 30 and 40 percent.
e University The numbers, however, are
ttion. expected to increase greatl)
the Middle Ages, if the Taiwanese people are
s were groups of allowed to vote with their
to gathered to free will.
s and skills. These Being afraid of this tren
)ved frequently in toward Taiwanese indepen-
better living dence, the Chinese govern-
Today, we seem ment reacts by showing the
es to one location, military power in areas that
roup of people are less than 40 miles from
istration - who Taiwan's coast. Many
ectly involved in nations, including the
Are we better off United States,ahave con-
demned such a terrorist
ELLIOT JAY FAVUS activity. The University
community should support
LSA SENIOR the Taiwanese people's rig
to develop democratic
S us systems.The Taiwanese
a mustpeople should have their
Taiw an right to choose their own
future, including indepen-
n omy dence or unification. No
Susdecs should try to
inappropriately affect the
AILY: free will of the Taiwanese
bliged to poit out people.

6 OT
clad, unemployed philoso-
phers discuss the meaning of
life. Or possibly her column
rt is directed around drunken,
three-in-the-morning dorm
es room discussions that we all
n have with our roommates
and friends during our first
year. No matter her source of
d inspiration, every week I
ih look forward to reading her
fresh, inspiring and yes,
humorous view of male/
female relations, the
s University, society and even
life itself. It always gives me
a good laugh. If, however,
Dalton really wants some-
r thing to complain about, he
need look no further than
n Jean Twenge's "The
Erasable Pen," which every
Tuesday pollutes the Daily
with the exact type of anti-
y intellectualism, irrationality
and fascist-leaning radical-
ism that Dalton so obviously
has a problem with. For
example, in a recent column
"Fight with your significant
other about anything but the
movies" (3/12/96), she
s mocks and insults not only
those who "think culture
means watching 'Ace
Venture: Pet Detective,"' but
also those who date their
as identical twin, those who are
so unfortunate as to have a
.Small Dick ...", and
those who own chainsaws.
She finishes her column
with an unwarranted attack
against Parcheesi players
worldwide. It's all there in
black and white; obviously
y, Twenge thinks she can get
away with insulting and
discriminating against large
segments of the population.
d A suggestion - give
Katie Hutchins the column
space reserved for Jean
ir Twenge. In fact, I believe
the Daily should dedicate an
entire issue (with the
exception of the crossword,
of course) to Hutchins and
those Hutchins-esque writers
who would emulate her
hysterical, biting outlook on
life and writing style. The
ht University could use alittle
more humor on its campus.
STEVE STANHOPE
LSA SENIOR
Rose for

MSA pres.
TO THE DAILY:
I am voting for Fiona
JU Rose for MSA president
NT because she is working on
real student issues. Rose's
dedicationto student well-
being is more than ideology:
Her concrete ideas for
protecting students' financial
aid, expanding child care and
increasing students' institu-
tional representation will
come to fruition by means of
her practical experiences and
effective work.
The opposition said it
3/ best: "Fiona Rose has a lot
of great ideas." The concern
r of whether she alienates
people inside the MSA
seems irrelevant when
compared with the issues she
o- stands for and goals she
achieves. Rose's candidacy
represents a chance for
important student issues to
move forward on the
University agenda. Let's
. help her do that by voting for
Fiona Rose and the Michi-
is gan Party.
,a-
GRIFFIN LINDSAY
LSA JUNIOR

LAST-DITCH APPEAL
Good teachers*
not sets of
guidelines, are
key to learning
he National Council of Englis
1 Teachers released last week
set of "guidelines" for the teaching
ofEnglish in American schools. The
word guidelines
is in quotes be
cause, as every- 1
one knows, the
word normally
implies pre-
scription and/o
proscription
When you sit
yourself down
and get all ready
to look at a new
setofguidelines, JORDAN
you expect to STANCL.
read about what
someone should and should not do.
Thenewsetofguidelines, however,
does not do this. Its vagueness ren-
ders it meaningless, and any good
English teacher would need an ex*
tra supply of red pens in order to
grade it.
Thedocument says that"Students
(should) read a wide range of print
and non-print texts to build an un-
derstanding oftexts ... Amongthese
textsarefictionandnonfiction, clas-
sic andcontemporary works." Italso
says, "Students (should, could,
would?) use a variety of techi-
logical and informational resoures
atogather and synthesize infor
mation and to create and communi-
cate knowledge."
Now, I thought I was literate, but
thesewords have no meaningto me.
Probably, they're not supposed to.
It is safe to assume that one of the
chief goals of the Council was to
avoid an uproar of the sort that
greeted the publication of the na-
tional history standards last year.
The Council was so afraid ofspec-
ficity that theguidelines never men-
tion the word "book." There are
plenty of references to "texts," as in
"print and non-print texts." Is
possible that Americans-English
teachers no less - can't agree that
educated people shouldread books
What if they had to decide which
books?
Trying to establish national csri
A national curriculum
would restrict teachers
individuality and style
riculum standards is misguided. It
has little to do with education and
leads to meaningless political bick-
ering. Besides, we learn from ded.
cated teachers, regardless of the
specific information they impart.
Think of your favorite professor
at this school. Would your educa-
tion be the same without this spe-
cific person? You probably could
have learned the same information
from someone else, or from a book
orevenfromoursavior,theInternet.
At Michigan State, you could have
watched the whole thing on televi-
sion. But wouldn't you be missin4
something?Goodteachersgivestu:

dents more than information. That's
why national or state curriculum
standards, if it were possible to cre
ate real ones, wouldn't do any good.
Chuck Spencer is an English
teacher at my high school. During
thefouryearslIwasinhisclasses, he
had his own curriculum standards.
In writing classes, he taught stirs
dents how to write formal expos4
tory essays. The goal was to get so
good at a formal writing style that
students wouldn't have trouble
knocking off their term papers once
they got to college.
One of his rules was that yotu
couldn'thave any spelling orgrad=
maticalerrors. Ifyoudid,youfailed.
Everyone complained about this,
but hardly anyone failed. They ed-
ited their papers. And they learneg
the rules of English gramntar.
Countless students have praised his
name while suffering through
bluebook exams or typingpapers at
the last minute.
Of course, there are many other
ways to teach writing. There ark
many otherstylesofwriting toteach.
But even students who hated Mr.
Spencer's approach learned fro
him. That's because he believed tha
what he was teaching was impor-
tant and he did a good job. Sure, if
you were in his classes, youmissed
something that you might have
gained from someone else. But hoW
can you avoid those trade-offs?
Fortunately, it seems that every
school, no matter how dismal, hasa
Chuck Spencer. Youknow,the kind
of teacher everyone remembers.
Isn'tthat whateducation is allabout?
Or is it only about disseminating
information? If so, we can all sit at
home with our modems,
I doubt that the Chuck Spencefs
of the world would see much value
in bickering about what everybody
ought to know or about ways to
standardize the curriculum. Luck-
ily forus,they'retoo busy teaching.
-Jordan Stancil can be reached
over e-mail at rialto@aumich.ed

How TO CONTACT TaM
DR. GILES BOLE
DEAN, UNIVERSITY MEDICAL SCHOOL
M7324 MED SCI BUILDING
ANN ARBOR, MI 48109
763-1468
LESTER MONTS
VICE PROVOST FOR ACADEMIC AND MULTICULTURAL AFFAIRS
3084 FLEMING BUILDING
ANN ARBOR, MI 48109
764-3982
Q~ \ . to ~

an important point missing
in the Daily's report on
Chinese missile threats near
Taiwan ("China readies for
war games with Taiwan," 3/
12/96): That the current
conflict between Taiwan and
China is a result of China's
disagreement with the
current trend in democracy
in Taiwan.
The real purpose of the
recent Chinese military
threat near Taiwan is to
suppress the developing
democracy in Taiwan. China
has considered Taiwan a
renegade province. Repeat-
edly, China has claimed that
they will use whatever
methods, including military
invasion, to capture Taiwan,
if Taiwan should declare
independence. The rapidly
developing democracy in
Taiwan, on the other hand,
allows people to consider
and publicly discuss the
possibility of declaring
Taiwan as an independent
state. China considers this
trend in Taiwan offensive,
and chooses to wage its

CHAO-IN LI
EECS GRADUATE STUDE
The best
kind of
columnist
TO THE DAILY:
This is in regard to the
letter "Columnist reflects
anti-intellectual culture," (
11/96) by Andrew Dalton.
I believe that the author
misses the point of Katie
Hutchins' weekly column.
He makes the mistake of
taking seriously her pseuds
intellectual, self-indulgent
prattling, which are clearly
intended to be a witty and
humorous commentary of
today's society, much like
the columns of Dave Barry
Obviously, Hutchins,
with her rapier comic wit,i
making a satire of converse
tions overheard by her in
coffeehouses, where beret-

tE=- Y 3'20