4 - The Michigan Daily - Friday, November 21, 1997
ct I e firtdituan ])a7tltl
420 Maynard Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Edited and managed by
students at the
University of Michigan
FR
JOSH WHITE
Editor in Chief
ERIN MARSH
Editorial Page Editor
Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials reflect the opinion of the 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 DAILY
New set of values
Cantor's budgetary changes will benefit 'U'
is
NOTABLE QUOTABLE,
'If Michigan wins, we should go hog-wild nuts.'
- LSA first-year student Jason Kohler; on rushing the
field after the Michigan-Ohio State game tomorrow
'If somebody rushes the field, they will be arrested.'
- Department of Public Safety spokesperson Beth Hall
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LETTERS TO TH E EDITOR
little brown stujJ]
oan your nose
A while back. I was reading about
this television journalist who had
a syndicated interview show out of
California in the mid- to late '60s.
This guy was known for being
incredibly bel-
ligerent to his
guests, who were
generally publici-
ty-hungry minor .
celebrities or
extremist political
figures.
He raked every-
body over the
coals, played no
favorites, and took PAUL
no prisoners. SERILLA
Some people said SERILLA
his surly attitude WARFARE
grew out of the
pain of losing a leg to amputation dur-
ing the war.
Others said he was just a jerk.
In the late '60s, this journalist hap-
pened to have the musician Frank
Zappa as a guest. It was still a tim4
when men with long hair were pretty
unorthodox, and of course, Zappa was
never particularly a mainstream fig-
ure.
think there is a
0
Excuse me, I
s President Lee Bollinger and Provost
Nancy Cantor formulate the adminis-
trative philosophies with which they will
guide the University, campus will see sever-
al changes. Many of the policies that the
two already implemented included efforts
to increase communication across campus
-characterizing their administration as
personable. On Monday, Cantor met with
meembers of the Senate Advisory
Committee on University Affairs, the facul-
ty governing body, to discuss possible
changes to the University's budgetary sys-
tem, Value Centered Management. VCM is
fraught with problems and is a point of con-
tention for many faculty members -
changing the policy would serve the
University community well.
Before VCM, the Provost's Office allocat-
ed all general funds to departments - all
parts of the University got approximately the
sime amount of money with a few adjust-
ments. Former Provost Gilbert Whittaker
implemented VCM to allocate dollars in
accordance with academic unit size. Under
VCM, larger enrollments and more programs
lead to bigger allocations from the
University's coffers and as a result, more free-
dom to create diverse academic initiatives.
As a result of the change, University
departments found themselves in a race for
funds. Deans and department heads must
compete to maintain student enrollment and
programs in order to support the bottom line.
Because of VCM's lack of financial support
for interdepartmental projects, cooperation
and communication between academic units
suffers greatly - as a result, faculty mem-
bers creating programs with other depart-
ments do not have any financial backing
from the University's central administration.
By forcing departments into competition
for money, VCM takes business world bud-
geting ideas and places them in the
University's academic setting. But academia
is not a business, nor should it be run like one.
The University must enhance the academic
environment - VCM forces departments to
shift their focus to financial concerns.
Cantor's plan for budgetary change
includes encouraging collaboration
between departments with financial sup-
port. Furthermore, the new budgetary sys-
tem will pay for many basic things that all
departments need - such as janitorial ser-
vices - freeing up additional funds for aca-
demic purposes. In addition, Cantor will
have a pool of funds to support programs
that benefit the University but have no out-
side financial help. Cantor's planned
changes will prevent budgetary processes
from harming smaller departments and
increase interdepartmental cooperation.
Cantor deserves credit for her insight
and willingness to change this important
policy. Many members of the faculty have
expressed concerns about VCM since its
implementation. Furthermore, the new bud-
get will reduce the competition between
academic units and foster a greater sharing
of academic resources. The new budgetary
plan is also more in line with Bollinger and
Cantor's administrative philosophy: foster-
ing better communication and sharing acad-
emic resources on campus.
Administrative change takes getting
used to, but the provost's budgetary plan
will benefit the entire University communi-
ty. It cuts competition while benefiting stu-
dents. Bollinger and Cantor should follow
through on her discussion with SACUA and
change the University's budgeting policies.
0
Showdown
Action must be supported by United Nations
nce again, there is a showdown in the shoot these planes down, which would like-
" Persian Gulf. Saddam Hussein has ly elicit an American response. But Saddam
tempted fate and laughed in the face of is confronting the United Nations' sanc-
established international law. However, the tions. Therefore, the entire international
situation is not George Bush vs. Saddam. It community needs to agree before any sort
is a complex web of Iraq, the United States of U.S. retaliation.
and the United Nations. What is essential to Secretary of State Madeleine Albright has
the understanding of this conflict is the been touring the Middle East to solicit sup-
players, problems and possible solutions. port for the U.S. stance, but as of yet, little
The public should not take this week's support has been forthcoming. In fact, only
events as a precursor to war - the empha- Britain has expressed support of the possible
sis must focus on diplomatic efforts and not U.N. action. Russia has outlined a plan of
the military buildup. compromise between the United States and
This debacle began as an effort by Iraq that includes relaxed sanctions toward
Saddam to dictate U.N. policy. By forcing the Iraq in exchange for the readmittance of the
American inspectors off the U.N. inspection American inspectors. A week ago yesterday,
team, Saddam tried to hand pick who could the American delegation to the Geneva
:ihspect his country's weaponry. This consti- Conference stated that Iraq must permit
tutes a clear violation of the sanctions that inspections without any strings attached.
placed Iraq under strict surveillance after the Yesterday, Saddam announced he would allow
Gulf War. Saddam claims that five years after Americans to perform weapon inspections,
the war, these sanctions are obsolete. But if but whether he will follow through on his-
there is nothing to hide, there should be noth- promise has yet to be seen. The United
ing to fear. Secretary of U.S. Defense Nations should exercise great care when con-
William Cohen has mentioned intelligence sidering decreasing sanctions against Iraq.
reports of biological weaponry within Iraq. This situation, while ambiguous and com-
'herefore, every day inspectors are prevented plex, must be simplified. Saddam broke
from completing their job, Saddam has the international sanctions placed upon his coun-
tption to develop or move more illegal try by the United Nations. It is therefore the
weaponry. Consequently, the threat is imme- responsibility of this same international com-
diate and American officials have intervened. munity to retaliate against Iraq. The United
By expelling the American members States, even though explicitly threatened,
from the U.N. team, Saddam threatened the needs to solve this diplomatically and pursue
United States' credibility as an internation- the best option for the entire world. A strike
al actor. Time and again, Saddam has on Iraq without allied support could portray
implied that America uses the cover of the Saddam as a martyr while an American with-
United Nations to-promote its own agenda. drawal would portray Saddam as the winner
He specifically mentioned U2 flights -- in this showdown. While U.S. credibility is at
Amperican planes piloted by members of the stake, the safety of the international commu-
U.S. Armed Forces but used solely for the nity must be placed first. This situation calls
'M' fans
should not
chop, but
make a fist
To THE DAILY:
As a University alumnus
currently living in
Massachusetts, I have thor-
oughly enjoyed the success of
Michigan's football team this
year. Thanks to Big Ten tele-
vision contracts, I have been
able to watch every game. A
significant factor in our suc-
cess has been the dominating
performance of the defense.
This impenetrable body has
been responsible not only for
holding other teams in check,
but giving our offense great
field position, which they
have taken advantagetof quite
nicely. Something I particu-
larly enjoy are the many
times that our defense stuffs
a team on third down, and the
band begins playing a portion
of "Temptation."
A disturbing trend, how-
ever, seems to be spreading
through the crowd. Many
fans are extending their right
arms and doing some form of
chop to the beat of the music.
Rather than emulating the
fans at Florida State
University, I would encour-
age the students to close their
hands into a fist with the
same arm motion as the
chop. By this, we show that
the Michigan defense has just
brought the sledgehammer
down on yet another feeble
attempt by the opposing team
to move the ball down the
field. I am sure that there
will be plenty of opportuni-
ties to put this into action
against the nuts at Ohio State
University. Remember, it's
not a chop, it's a hammer.
Hail to the Victors and Go
Blue!
MIKE SCHULTZ
UNIVERSITY ALUMNUS
Diversity
makes
learning and
living better
To THE DAILY:
I've quietly sat back and
read various articles for and
against affirmative action and
never intended to get
involved, but Kevin
Cavalieri's letter
("Affirmative action is
'absurd,"' 11/12/97) touched
my last nerve.
Maybe he wouldn't be
able to suit up and play with
the football team, but I say to
him and every other oppo-
nent -he should at least be
given the chance! Once he
power we are and have to
communicate with cultures in
business and finance in other
parts of the world, how can
we succeed if we can't com-
municate on their level?
Who is to say that their
level is lower than ours and
has to be raised? Are people
afraid that someone knows
more than they do or can
come up with the better
mousetrap, that someone
else's knowledge exceeds
their own?
When business executives
invest, they don't put all their
eggs in one basket and
believe it's better than all the
rest - they diversify and get
a little here and a littlethere
to make the end product bet-
ter. That's exactly what diver-
sity is; we get a little here
and a little there and it makes
the end product - life, living
and knowledge - better.
DAVE STOCKSON
UNIVERSITY STAFF
Daily should
have run
review earlier
TO THE DAILY:
I would like to commend
Stephanie Love for her
review of Saturday's perfor-
mance ("Operas Reign at the
Power Center," 11/18/97).
She aptly captured the
delightful and compelling
qualities of Ravel's work and
pointed out the weakness in
the staging of the otherwise
visually beautiful and musi-
cally interesting Stravinsky
piece.
What I'm disappointed
about is the timing of the
review. It's safe to say that no
one on campus outside the
confines of the School of
Music had ever heard of
these operas. So who would
plan to go? I went because
I'm a real fan of opera and I
had a friend in the cast. Then
I sent my husband thenext
evening because the perfor-
mance was so rewardingly
entertaining. The Daily could
have provided a true service
to its readership by squeezing
the review into Friday's paper
and giving people a chance to
be informed about an oppor-
tunity they would otherwise
miss. Who else but the Daily
can make that kind of differ-
ence on campus?
MARY CRAIG
UNIVERSITY STAFF
Students
should be
able to rush
the field
um (where several students
were trampled when they
stormed the field several
years ago) because their
poorly designed stadium has
another fence to be scaled to
get on to the field once fans
leave the stands. Michigan
stadium does not have this
and chances of injury are
minimal to nonexistent.
Instead of employing
more officers to keep us off
of the field, the University
should have people in the
aisles to make sure that we
rush the field in an orderly
manner. I was at the Virginia
game in 1995, when
Michigan won on a last-sec-
ond touchdown; students
stormed the field then and
there were no injuries. Iwas
at the Northwestern game
last year and their students
stormed the field. Once
again, no injuries. When
Missouri fans rushed the
field after they thought they
had beaten Nebraska last
week, there were no injuries.
Rushing the field is danger-
ous in stadiums that are
designed poorly. Ours is not.
Rushing the field is a
time-honored college tradi-
tion that we should be able to
participate in, especially if
we win a game as huge as
tomorrow's. Why shouldn't
we be able to enjoy this in a
safe manner? University offi-
cials and police officers are
here to serve the student
body, not vice versa. They
should not be threatening to
arrest us.
If the student body wishes
to rush the field, they should
be able to. Those students
who choose not to can
remain in the stands. I am not
advocating that students rush
the field but simply stating
that we should be allowed to
if we so desire. Go Blue, beat
the Buckeyes!
MIKE KHOMUTIN
ENGINEERING SENIOR
MSA Website
reduces
candidates'
clutter
TO THE DAILY
The concerns well
expressed by Edward Chusid
("Campaign 'hoopla' detracts
'from real issues," 11/18/97)
were the exact reasons the
Michigan Student Assembly
developed its new election
information Website.
However, its power to elimi-
nate paper waste and return
the focus of elections to
plans and ideas is contingent
on its use. Candidates made
Angell Hall an obscene mess
this week because they
believe it will get them elect-
Anyway, the first thing this journal-
ist said when Frank came on was, "
guess that long hair makes you a girl'
Zappa simply responded, "I guess
that wooden leg makes you a table'
The moral of the story isn't to rip on
the disabled (what kind of outfit did yoi
think we were running here?) or even
the old standby of "Do unto others,
yadda, yadda ... ." The real moral is
don't let your mouth write checks that
your butt can't cash - know when to
shut up. 11k
The reason I got started thinking
about that story is I realized how few
people know when it is inappropriate
for them to keep yabbering on like .the
Olson twins heaped up on cocaine an
pixie sticks (I once read that all big
Hollywood stars do drugs, and they
don't get any bigger than that adorable
duo).
Even as you read this, in avoidance
of actually paying attention in class,
someone in the room is flapping their
gums incessantly without saying a sin-
gle intelligible phrase. Every classhas
a yapper - the kind of person that
thinks any lecture with less than 800
people qualifies as a personal discus
sion section between themselves and
the professor.
The only thing they seem to remem-
ber from grade school is that there is
no such thing as a stupid question, but
they seem to forget that there is such a
thing as a stupid answer that goes on
for 20 minutes, makes no sense, and
serves only to stroke their own over
inflated ego.
The real reason these people get or
my nerves, besides the fact that they
waste the rest of the class's time, is they
really think all this brown-nosing-is
worth it. The little sycophants just keep
shoveling and even when the professor
couldn't give a peso in Denmark about
what they are saying, they don't give up.
Listen, nobody cares about how the
professor's last point relates to
Nietzche's concept of man vs. super-
man, this is "Bio for Blondes" and w
want to hear the professor we are pay-
ing good money to teach us. Could
you for once have an unexpressed
thought, please?
Don't get me wrong, an active thirst
for knowledge and a desire to get the
most out of every educational moment
can be OK. But seriously, slugger, let
somebody else step up to the verbal
bat. Take a breath between your mono-
logues and wait in the on-deck circl
for a couple of minutes.
What's almost as bad is the opposite
end of the scale - the person in the
back who is too cool for anyone and
anything. I know what you're saying,
that sounds like the modus operandi of
a college newspaper columnist: groan
and moan and complain the whole day
through, never making any real contri-
bution to the good of the whole.
Well, it is an easy distinction to miss
but let me take myself as an example.
, for example, am too cool for virtual-
ly nothing. Ask anyone who's met me
- however, I do hate just about every-
thing. It's OK because I'm not saying I
am too good for anything, I just find
fault at every turn.
Butaat least I listen before I pass my
meaningless judgments. These people
hear nothing but their own arrogance,
and I don't know how they do it, bu
they have the ability to sneer really
loud. To be honest, I don't know what
people who know everything are doing
in school, but I guess it fills the time
between drinking alone and participat-
ing in fads so vapid and boring that no
one else will ever want to participate
in them.a ,
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