4 - The Michigan Daily - Friday, September 13, 1996
UIje Sidlgatn PaiIg
420 Maynard Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Edited and managed by
students at the
' ,
°
ss
RONNIE GLASSBERU
Editor in Chief
ADRIENNE JANNEY
ZACHARY M. RAIMI
University of Michigan Editorial Page Editors
'Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials reflect the opinion of the majority of the Daily : editorial board. All
other articles, letters and cartoons do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Michigan Daily.
FROM THE DAILY
a
The c Of pporis
City, KKK should re-evaluate positions
A nn Arbor erupted into violence June group's freedom to protest, desp
22, when the Ku Klux Klan came to inconvenience such freedom may bri
town to rally. Angered by the Klan's views, The KKK's response
the National Women's Rights Organizing The KKK is not quietly accept
Coalition and the Ann Arbor Organizing city's actions. In fact, the KKK has
Against the Klan staged a counter-demon- ened to sue the city of Ann Arbor f
stration. Emotions flared and violence million. Klan National Imperial Wiz
erupted. Now, several months after the Berry told The Michigan Daily that t
incident, the city is opening the issue Arbor police did not provide adequa
again. tection. Berry's wife was injured by
Paying the bill throwing protester during the incider
Officials billed the KKK and NWROC The KKK chose Ann Arbor, w
--'for services rendered. The city spent in known for its liberal and tolerant
excess of $72,000 on the more than 250 phere. The KKK must have expected
police officers at the scene. As a result, the ological clash, at least, as well as a hi
city billed the KKK and NWROC more sion level. Hence, the Ann Arbor
than $36,000 each. Department prepared for the rally b
City Administrator Neal Berlin told The ering local, county and state law e
> Ann Arbor News that the city's action is jus- ment agents to provide for the safet
tified because the fines are ''... basically an participants and spectators. Moreov
assessment of the responsibility for the police escorted the Klan around the
amount of involvement that the city had." unmarked vans and allowed the K
Berlin also said that "both groups con- hold its rally on the patio of City
tributed significantly to the level of city better protect its members.
NOTABLE QUOTABLE,,
'I almost died after the first class.'
-Agata Dichev, explaining her reaction to
Jonathan TVmans ' new power Yoga class
Jim LASSER SHARP As TOAST
TF WE IIVF THEM FTE HAD -OUTS
THEY'LL NEVER DEVELOP A WRK ETH C!
.s e o
o -o
PESS CLIPPINGS
High tuition threatens education
SMOKE .& MRORS
The benefits of.
tabloid culture
Showi me a hero and I will write
y'ou a tragedy)
- F Scott Fitzgerald
With these words, Fitzgerald may
V have captured the essence of
popular culture in America, both in his
era and today. It seems that our s
called heroes are
built up, praised
and admired, and
then they are
demon ized and
destroyed. Some
deserve it; others
do not. .'' '
As we watch : :
ite the
ing.
ing the
threat-
or $1.6
ard Jeff
he Ann
ate pro-
a rock-
nt.
hich is
atmos-
an ide-
gh ten-
Police
y gath-
nforce-
y of all
ver, the
city in
Klan to
Hall to
this process, we
focus on the char-
acters and their
7" A /"L! A nw
involvement and services."
The KKK's views are - obviously -
controversial. However, the First
Amendment guarantees any group or per-
son the right to free speech and assembly.
Moreover, the city has an obligation to pro-
tect its citizens and visitors without charge
- this includes protesters. After all, police
protection is a public service and charging
the groups for the cost of the riot goes
against the pathos of public service.
If the the city can charge the KKK and
NWROC for exercising their First
Amendment rights now, they can use this
incident as an example to charge future
demonstrators. The city must respect the
Hence, the KKK's lawsuit seems
unfounded. The police went to great lengths
to provide a safe environment; they should
not be blamed for the eruption of violence.
While the KKK's anger is understandable, a
million-dollar lawsuit is not. A more rea-
sonable sum of money - such as $36,000
- and legal fees would be more appropri-
ate, if the KKK pursues a lawsuit at all.
The city is punishing the KKK for exer-
cising its First Amendment rights; however,
the Klan's large countersuit is unjustified.
The police were not negligent. It would
behoove both sides if they work together to
resolve their dispute; this would save time
effort and aggravation.
BY MATr FERGUSON
During the first week of
classes, students have many
things to worry about, such as
getting phone numbers from
recently moved friends, pick-
ing classes for the next four to
five months, decorating
pathetically small apartments
with the most basic of human
necessities and spending their
last few hours of warm weath-
er in the basement of the
bookstore. For many students,
one worry that overwhelms
these smaller dilemmas is the
rising cost of tuition.
A recently issued report by
the United States General
Accounting Office said that
tuition at four year public
institutions rose nearly three
times as much as median
household income from 1980
to 1995.
The increases over the last
decade and a half have
stemmed from higher school
expenditures and shrinking
percentages of state funding.
We are not immune to this
problem. The 1997-1999 bud-
get passed last week by the
(University of Wisconsin's)
Board of Regents has the
potential for a 10-percent hike
in tuition over the next few
years. Though college
remains the best investment
for a secure future, rising
costs of tuition will price
many qualified and diverse
students out of a college edu-
cation.
University officials have
made these decision in order
to cope with the changing
financial and competitive
demands of public and private
This article was printed
recently in the University of
Wisconsin s The Badger
Herald.
institutions.
Public universities cur-
rently receive far less support
from state governments than
in 1980, through the number
is still sizable. U.S. public uni-
versities derive 40 percent of
their revenues from state
funding, falling from 55 per-
cent in 1980. The shrinking
percentages are a reflection of
states' rising costs and expen-
ditures in Medicare,
Medicaid, welfare, prison
building and infrastructure. In
short, shrinking demograph-
ics in the college-age popula-
tion have shifted spending to
older and dependent popula-
tions.
Dwindling state support
has not helped schools
respond to a highly competi-
tive atmosphere, forcing offi-
cials to shift costs to students
and their parents. Efforts to
recruit and keep top-notch
faculty and research profes-
sionals and improve universi-
ty building s and labs have
fueled rising costs. The total
faculty salary, as a percentage
of university budgets, has
nearly doubled because of
aging educators and adminis-
trators.
Despite the increased
spending, students often see
the results of these costs with
better educators, well-main-
tained university gourds and
technological improvements.
Higher costs have unfortu-
nately kept many qualified
students from gaining the eco-
nomic rewards of a college
degree. Many students have
compensated by seeking
financial aid. Federally sup-
ported finical aid for
American's college students
has swelled to $31 .4 billion,
nearly three times as much in
1980.
Some schools have devel-
oped innovative programs to
help parents and students pre-
pare for college education.
The state of Michigan and the
University of Virginia have a
program where parents can
pay current tuition the year
their child is born.
Under this plan these uni-
versities have greater flexibil-
ity with their investments
while students could more
clearly see the benefits of
their tuition when they actual-
ly attend the university. The
money is refunded if the child
does not choose to attend uni-
versity or is transferred to
another sibling.
These and other flexible
financial plans are crucial to
greater access to higher edu-
cation. Universities with new
and innovative tuition options
are more likely to be con-
cerned with rising and waste-
ful administrative costs
because of their responsibili-
ties to future students.
Rising tuition threatens
manse students of today will
likely harass future students
more. Universities must main-
tain slowly rising tuition
costs, while providing high
quality undergraduate educa-
tion, attracting and keeping
energetic and committed fac-
ulty and maintain a positive
out-of-classroom learning
environment.
A Board of Regents and
administration committed to
its students must be willing to
keep costs reasonable. They
can do so by identifying and
eliminating wasteful pro-
grams and excesses, hiring
faculty with long-term com-
mitments and continuing to
privatize non-university man-
dated functions, such as the
hospital and food service.
A voluntary mandate
'U' should not expand living-learning
circumstances. LACHARY
Actually, these M. RAIMI
sagas provide us
with a glimpse of our lives and values,
both individually and as a nation.
Over the last few years. we have wit-
nessed the Nancy Kerrigan assault, the
shocking Menendez family incident
and the O.J. Simpson trial. Currently,
however, Americans feel a void, The
is no great tabloid story to follow,r
trivial event that has captured our
imaginations.
I have felt this void lately, as the one
year anniversary of the O.J. verdict
rapidly approaches. Last year at this
time, most Americans were glued to
their TV sets, gearing up for the trial's
closing arguments and the eventual
verdict.
I confess: I desperately miss the
Trial of the Century. Don't get i
wrong: I don't miss all the hubub over
Marcia Clark's latest hairdo, Johnnie
Cochran's rhetorical tantrums or
Lance Ito's endless sidebars. I don't
miss seeing Brian "Kato" Kaelin on
every edition of "Hard Copy" and I
don't miss Fred Goldman's moving,
but hysterical, press conferences.
What I do miss are the discussions
about the underlying issues that th
Trial introduced into the AmericW
dialogue. It is customary for acade-
mics and intellectuals to denigrate cir-
cus-like events. On this campus, few
students admitted to following the O.J.
case, and even fewer admitted to its
tremendous importance in our society.
Yet the issues that lie at the heart of
all the pomp and circumstance arethe
very issues that members of university
communities vigorously debate and
study every day. Such spectacles, su
tabloid-ish events, hold great - an
greatly underestimated - value in'our
society.
The O.J. Simpson trial, for example,
raised several important issues that
gave our society a chance to assess
itself. It's likely that no other event
could have done the same thing. It
brought racial issues to the forefront,
and made us reevaluate the nation's
racial relations. Have we ma
progress since the civil rights move-
ment'?
The trial made us confront the plight
of black people in America's criminal
justice system. Can a black man get a
fair trial? Are all police hopelessly
racist, or are there just a few rotten
ones? Will black juries convict black
defendants?
The trial raised other important
issues as well, such as domestic vio
lence. Americans had the opportun*
to become better educated on the
topic. Victims of violence gained
important information and sources of
help. Again, this could not have been
accomplished so effectively if there
were no trial.
The O.J. Trial is not the only circus-
like event of late to generate such
important questions. In the winter of
1994, Americans watched the wj
and wacky tale of Nancy Kerrigan a
Tonya Harding. As you may recall,
Tonya's supporters attacked Nancy,
trying to prevent her from participat-
ing in ice-skating events.
Americans came to see Nancy as the
good, middle-class girl. And Tonya
was portrayed as the low-class, ciga-
rette smoking brute who wanted to
win at all costs. Beneath this sordid
story are important questions. Is there
class division in America? Do mid4
class people get the benefit of the
doubt? What does "middle class"
mean, anyway?
The Harding/Kerrigan affair made
us reassess the role of sports in society.
Does fierce athletic competition lead
to a sense of disorder and violence? Is
it possible to have friendly competi-
tion when everything is at stake? Do
we take sports too seriously?
It may be a sad commentary l
Americans most readily engage in
these types of debates only when they
are stimulated by trashy, tabloid-like
sagas. But that's not really the point.
types of events and milk everything w
'T he Division of Student Affairs believes
that every first-year University student
has got to live and learn - but in a shel-
tered environment. A Student Affairs' task
force recently proposed introducing several
new living-learning programs into nearly
every residence hall, touting these pro-
grams as the wave of the future.
Participation in these communities would
not be mandatory, but strongly encouraged.
Despite their voluntary nature, the plan
would undermine the University's credo of
diversity and academic exploration.
Vice President for Student Affairs
Maureen Hartford appointed the 17-mem-
ber task force about a year ago. Hartford
instructed them to create a proposal to
design a new style of residence hall life.
The task force released a proposal last
spring that called for mandatory participa-
tion in living-learning communities for
first-year students. Some opposed the plan,
objecting to forcing students into the com-
munities. The task force wisely dropped the
idea.
The new proposal would create several
new programs. For example, the University
would create an "Invention and Creativity"
theme in Bursley, a "Democracy and
Diversity" motif in South Quad and a
"Science and Mathematics" program in
Mosher Jordan. These would be added to
the six current programs, which enroll
about 1,600 students.
While the University's efforts to provide
a nurturing environment for first-year stu-
dents is encouraging, the creation of sever-
al new communities of learning is not the
right path to take. Grouping students on the
basis of narrow interests undercuts the
students have the opportunity to live with
people from a variety of backgrounds -
both ethnic and academic. The proposal
would eliminate much of this diversity and
erode the benefits of current residence hall
life.
Moreover, the plan would undercut the
University's credo of self-exploration. Alan
Levy, director of Housing public affairs,
told The Michigan Daily that "education
has to include the totality of experience."
However, Levy and the task force sound as
if they are advocating that the University
take more control over students' lives. The
task force failed to consider that students
may want to explore areas of interests inde-
pendently, and not under the guise of a liv-
ing-learning community. The University
should be investing more of its resources in
independent exploration.
The task force said living-learning pro-
grams would become the "norm" at the
University, envisioning that nearly every
first-year student would participate in the
programs. This, however, is troubling -
many first-year might not want to partici-
pate in them. The proposal did not provide
enough explanation of what will happen to
these students. They may feel isolated and
alienated but the task force did not explain
in enough depth what will happen to these
students. If the Housing devotes most of its
resources to the living-learning communi-
ties, students who do not participate may
get shafted.
Currently, the University runs six pro-
grams. Students who wish to participate in
such communities can. The University
should instead focus its resources on more
pressing problems, such as improvement of
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Clinton helps
to improve
economy
TO THE DAILY:
In this, a political year,
many different issues have
come to the forefront regard-
ing Bob Dole and President
Bill Clinton.
One that the Republicans
have set to make the defining
issue is that of the economy.
Let's talk about the econ-
omy. Since Clinton has
entered office, the annual
deficit has been cut from
around $240 billion to $157
billion, the unemployment
rate has been steady between
5 and 6 percent, the economy
has had to be slowed down
by the raising of interest rates
and consumer confidence has
risen.
Four years ago. when
Clinton introduced his eco-
This was mostly due to the
fact that the upper income
bracket had almost a 50 per-
cent tax decrease under
Reagan and Bush.
All this and the economy
only went into a depression
with seemingly no end in
sight.
Under Clinton, taxes on
the upper class were
increased about 6 percent,
taxes on the middle class
stayed the same, and taxes on
the lower class actually
decreased.
Now, the economy is
moving along steadily and
only promises to do better.
Now is not the time to have a
Bob Dole presidency.
Bill Clinton is by far the
most qualified man for the
job and deserves recognition
for what he has accom-
plished.
LUKE H. KLIPP
SCHOOL OF MUSIC
Republican Party.
But even for a liberal, I
found his views on the GOP
to be idiotic and lacking in
ethics as well.
How' dare youI refer to
Republicans wanting back to
the alleged days that blacks
referring to their masters as
"boss" and women remaining
quiet.
How is it that the doubly
false claims, but ifa conserv-
ative the same generalization
(as wrong and unfounded as
it may be) towards liberalss
he would be crucified.
And the main difference
between Hillary Clinton and
Elizabeth Dole? Tact.
While one realizes her
role of not trying to outshine
her husband presidential
hopeful while continuing to
do an upstanding job in the
community, the other has
attempted to push her social-
ist, feminist hypocritical.
white liberal guilt agenda