4 - The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, October 14, 1997
aloe wtichigum jDtfllu
420 Maynard Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Edited and managed by
students at the
University of Michigan
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
Tim for aras
SACUA should approve compensation policy
U nlike most professionals working for Student evaluations of professors' quali-
large companies, University faculty ty, filled out at the end of each semester,
can never be certain when their next raise play a large role in determining faculty pay
will come. The University's current policy raises. But these evaluations have consider-
regarding faculty raises is vague - and able biases. In particular, women tend to not
does not have an allowance for annual cost- fare as well as their male counterparts,
of-living increases. A proposal presently especially in engineering and science class-
working its way through the Faculty es. Similarly, large-class lecturers tend to
Senate's Committee on the Economic get poorer ratings than professors who
Status of the Faculty would establish a stan- teach small classes - a function of the'size
dard policy for professors' pay raises. of the class and relative distance, rather
Establishing such a policy could solve some than quality of teaching. While it is impor-
of the present evaluation process's problems tant to increase student-faculty contact, the
and help make recruiting high-quality fac- present problem must be dealt with. Since
ulty easier. the professors' financial health is dependent
The continuation of the University's aca- on the evaluations, it is important that the
demic strength is dependent on the recruit- University devise a scheme to alleviate its
ment and maintenance of a strong, academ- inherent biases. Such a process should be
ically diverse faculty. In order to maintain part of a faculty compensation policy.
the University's reputation as a strong Presently, the Faculty Senate's policy has
research institution, the faculty must also be yet to make it out of the committee. After
NOTABLE QUOTABLE,
'Sad to say, many American citizens fall to recognize
the direct relevance of art to their lives.'
From a federal study of fimding for the aris and the
lack of support in the public and private sectors
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LETTERS TO) THE EDITOR'
The ,ode -
with ill its faults
and nystery -
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research-oriented with a commitment to
teaching. A strong faculty will enhance stu-
dents' education and their University expe-
rience - it is imperative that the adminis-
tration work to develop a strong faculty.
Faculty satisfaction with the University is
heavily dependent on the financial rewards
they reap. If the University has no compre-
hensive plan to determine under what cir-
cumstances professors will get pay raises,
they may find high-quality professors hard
to recruit. In addition, the University should
reward professors who excel at their jobs.
Innovative teaching methods, commitment
to student concerns and strong research all
help the University's overall picture -
administrators should reward it.
the committee passes it, the full Senate, the
University administration and the
University Board of Regents must approve
it in order for it to go into effect. It is impor-
tant for the faculty to play an integral role in
the development of the policy as they are
the ones whom it would affect the most.
Academic excellence is a University tradi-
tion that must continue. Without a plan to
establish when faculty will get their raises,
some professors may flee the University com-
munity in order to be a part of a community
that offers them a better financial guarantee.
Administrators and faculty leaders must work
together to ensure that the University retains
high-quality professors and maintain the
University's educational strength.
Soapbox politics
Legislators should not decide medicine's fate
Last Wednesday, a two-thirds majority
of the U.S. House of Representatives
endorsed a ban on a form of late-term
abortion, known in medical circles as
intact dilation and extraction. Termed'
"partial-birth abortion" by opposing
groups, the procedure has elicited public
disapproval from pro-life crusaders, and
has become a central issue on Capitol Hill.
Though Congressional opponents of the
bill deem the abortion practice brutal and
unnecessary, the final assessment of the
surgical procedure's medical and ethical
validity should not come from politicians
- a group untrained in the realm of med-
icine. Instead, the medical profession -
the group with the most comprehensive
understanding of the procedure - should
decide for themselves the suitability of
performing or undergoing the surgical pro-
cedure.
In the two years since the debate over the
late-term abortion procedure first received
national attention, the core issue has
become diluted by the political maneuver-
ing of candidates for public office and by
sensationalism. In fact, supporters of the
ban have used graphic pictures of doctors
performing the procedure to strengthen
their argument for abolishing the proce-
dure. Bills over the past two years have even
proposed stipulations requiring doctors to
display such images to women considering
the procedure. Such tactics appeal mainly
to the emotional component of decision
making and treat the need for a true under-
standing of the issue as secondary.
The use of the late-term abortion proce-
dure as a political weapon further under-
scores the need to remove the debate from
Congressional jurisdiction. Even after
Clinton vetoed an earlier version of the bill
public office contenders. Illustrating the
use of the issue as a vote-getting tactic,
Rep. Joseph Canaday (R-Florida) told
reporters that he and other supporters of the
ban would publicize the issue before the
1998 elections. Indeed, the fair treatment of
the issue is at stake as the debate stands to
peak with elections looming on the horizon.
In contrast to the mishandling of the
late-term abortion debate in Washington,
the medical arena stands as one of few - if
not the only - forums where arguments
and debates are tempered with true knowl-
edge of the surgical procedure and its impli-
cations. Some physicians have, for instance,
deemed dilation and extraction one of the
safest means of late-term abortion and have
argued that it should remain available to
those few women who require a late-term
abortion to preserve their health or their
lives. Neither graphic pictures nor political
campaign can alter their thorough under-
standing of the issue.
The attack on late-term abortion proce-
dures also represents a redirected crusade
against abortion. If the ban becomes
approved into law, the pro-life movement
may seek to limit abortion on a procedure-
by-procedure basis. So, even if the majority
of Americans have not explicitly stated their
will to do away with abortion, anti-abortion
crusaders may seek to legislate abortion out
of existence by prohibiting available surgi-
cal procedures.
Politicians should not approve the ban
on abortion into law - doctors constitute a
group better suited to treat the debate sensi-
tively and effectively, without the influ-
ences of sensationalism or politics. Though
it possesses the power to decide this issue,
Congress should defer jurisdiction to the
medical arena to ensure a fair decision that
U.S. must
conserve
energy now
TO THE DAILY:
On Monday, Oct. 6, stu-
dents and faculty had the
unique opportunity to watch a
live satellite broadcast of the
White House Summit on
Climate Change. In prepara-
tion for the Kyoto Conference
in December, in which more
than 160 nations are expected
to sign onto an international
treaty on greenhouse gas
emission reductions, the
White House held satellite
feeds and local mini-confer-
ences at 30 cities nationwide.
The United States and the
American people play a criti-
cal role in international ener-
gy and environmental policy.
Thiough we make utp only 4
percent of the worlds popula-
tion, we consume more than
20 percent of the world's
energy supply. In fact, we are
so wasteful and careless
about energy that we use
twice as much energy to cre-
ate a unit of GDP as Japan
and Germany do. One key
component in reducing
greenhouse gas and carbon
dioxide emissions is cleaner,
more efficient technology.
At the local panel discus-
sion Monday it was immi-
nently clear that industries
like the auto industry prefer a
gradual shift into energy-effi-
cient technologies. However,
many of these technologies
have been available for years
but have not been available
for public consumption
because of our dependence on
petroleum. Panelists at the
White House gave examples
of technology already being
used like solar-powered tele-
phones on highways and in
National Parks. These techno-
logical advancements, howev-
er, have yet to become com-
monplace in American house-
holds. Our petroleum-based
economy has dug us into a
hole - a pit filled with pol-
lution and resistance to
change. Polluting industries
such as the auto industry, oil,
gas and utilities have spent
more than $13 million on a
massive public misinforma-
tion campaign. While more
than 2,700 of our top scien-
tists and more than 2,500 of
our top economists have
called for the United States to
take a global leadership role
in climate change, polluting
special interest groups are
still trying to discredit the sci-
ence on global warming that
the overwhelming majority of
Americans believe to be true.
Global climate change is
real. It is already happening.
The 10 hottest years in the
human record have all hap-
pened since 1980. Glaciers
worldwide are receding and
melting. Outbreaks of tropi-
cal diseases such as malaria
and its inhabitants.
MONA HANNA
SNRE SENIOR, MSA
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
COMMISSION CHAIR
Stereotype in
cartoon was
inaccurate
TO THE DAILY:
I am writing to point out
the gross injustices commit-
ted by Daily cartoonist
Jordan Young in his cartoon
of a male drinking countless
beers in front of a clock that
says "frat time." As a mem-
ber of a fraternity, I feel that
the cartoon is offensive, inac-
curate and misrepresentative
of the image fraternities are
trying to convey.
The cartoon, for example,
depicts a fraternity member
drinking many bottles of
beer. This is terribly wrong.
The container of choice for
frat guys is the keg, not the
bottle. The keg, after all,
allows us to drink more, at a
lower cost, and it allows us to
utilize the beer bong more
effectively. Plus, it provides
us the opportunity to perform
"keg stands," a ritual which
demonstrates our manhood
and conveys our status.
Furthermore, you may
recall that the fraternity mem-
ber is sitting down, looking
somewhat haggard, as if to
imply that he is feeling the
negative effects of the alco-
hol. What slander! Did we
forget that,membership in a
fraternity is synonymous with
invincibility? True frat stars
have the supernatural ability
to drink excessively without
the slightest decline in physi-
cal prowess. An accurate por-
trayal would not have the boy
sitting down, but rather, danc-
ing wholeheartedly to the
songs, "Boom Boom Boom,"
or "Let Me Clear My Throat."
Finally, I ask myself, what
the heck are these so called
frat guys wearing? Certainly
they were not wearing khai
pants. And I don't believe I
recall seeing a button-down
Abercrombie shirt. Dirty
white hats? None. C'mon
Jordan, are these frat stars or
Greenpeace activists?
My point is this: those
who are not in fraternities
often get a distorted image of
them. Perhaps if Jordan Young
would join a fraternity, or
even spend some time at one,
he would come to understand
that frat boys are not just
about drinking beer, but a lot
of it. Seriously, if you're going
to stereotype, do it well.
gation, but it doesn't seem
that the Code panel went any
further or perhaps even as far
with its own search for the
truth.
How could this case be
resolved if so much was left
in doubt? Did the Code panel
make an effort to produce
evidence and testimony that
would have corroborated or
contradicted their testi-
monies? If the defendant had
ripped her blouse, could
someone testify that it was
the defendant who ripped it?
If he had gotten into a fight
that night or broke a window,
where was the person he got
in a fight with and where was
there evidence the window
had been broken and/or
replaced? Was there anyone
who was a witness to these
events? If the accuser had
been pulled toward the door
in an effort to throw her out,
where were the people who
saw this? Did the two or
three people who asked her
to leave testify to doing so'?
The only "facts" that can
be deduced from this case are
that a woman had gone to a
party at a frat she had been
banned from, the frat presi-
dent had been drinking, and
she left at least once. If the
criminal justice system has
lower standards then the
University, as Mary Lou
Antieau says, then shouldn't
its investigation, trial and
judgement of the cases
brought before it be compa-
rable or of even greater stan-
dards? A student's expulsion
and the validity of a sexual
harassment claim seemed to
depend on little more than
the arbitrary decision of five
students as to whose story to
believe, and I wonder if this
would have turned over to an
actual court if either of those
conclusions had been
reached.
MICHAEL GALLOWAY
LSA JUNIOR
Photo of
anthem was
confusing
TO THE DAILY:
The Oct. 6 edition of the
Daily had an article on the
celebration of Gandhi's birth-
day ("Tree recognizes
Gandhi"). The article had a
photo showing an Indian
American singing the the
Indian national anthem. I was
puzzled by this, since as citi-
zens of the United States, the
national anthem for Indian
Americans is the "Star
Spangled Banner" and not
the Indian national anthem.
Doesn't it seem unpatriot-
ic for citizens of one country
to sing the national anthem of
another? Moreover, the photo
showed the singer with her
hainds together nalms facing
is 'hee to stay
F or those ho don't know what it
is, recer coverage and a long
explanation bably won't do very0
much to cony what The Code of
Student Condt is all about or even
what its funn
is on camp.
Years of read
about it d
watching it fr
afar probal
won't do mu :m
good either, a
absorbing t
University's pu
lic relations sp
on the Code's pu JOSH
pose won't tui WHITE
any heads all th. JUMPING
quickly. THEGUN
As evidenced
a Daily editorial sterday, this news-
paper has been sptical of the Code
since its incepti in 1993, and for
good reason. Athe chants of "no
cops, no gunsjo code" roared
across campus arin these pages just
a few years agthis campus was
given the Deptment of Publics«
Safety, the office were then armed
and a Code was deloped. While the
argument still c be made (and
should be made that the Code
should nottexist atiis University or
at any other colge campus im-
America, perhaps It is not where
our energy shou be focused
According to the prrs that be, the
Code is here to stay.
In a recent discusm, Mary Lou
Antieau said that e University
Board of Regents ward a Code, has
a Code and will alwahave a Code.
Antieau, who adminirs the Code
and has spent several yrs of her life;
working with it, is ovinced that
there is no way the reits will ever
back down on their stte. Becaus
the students have limitevoice on the
board, and because Psident Lee
Bollinger has all but sit down the
idea of obtaining a studt regent by
not supporting such a easure, the
possibility of overturnin ie Code in
its entirety is a futile 4z tiresome
battle at best.
So instead of wastinbreath on
arguments that have no'uture, we
should look at the proci itself an
hope to make it better,
A group of students, adinistrators
and others reworked the C min 1995,
with the charge of making a simpler
document that clearly ates the
University's principles andilues and
reflects the community's tandards.
While the Code was ref-med (it'
earned its current simpler, ey-to-cite
name and lost several pages text) its'
most destructive elemer, wer
retained. The University'sjudicial
process - one that Antiea says is
focused on education rather ian pun-
ishment - remains mysterio, secret
and utterly confusing.
Antieau explains that the Cte is an
"umbrella" process that overes sev-
eral other judicial processes n cam-
pus, including but not limite to the
rules and regulations . ;fTD.
Housing, and each individualschoo
and college on campus, amgother
If you break a rule in one arna, watch
out. Antieau meets with th heads of
each other group to decide ven cases
need to move out of smalle processes
and into The Big One. When an
"eppropriate" punishment cannot be
levied at a lower level, the cad of that
x~ea may hand the case ovr for Code
] :view.
After the initial contact the Offic
(f Conflict Resolutioi decides
vhether to pursue the case as a medi-
ition or an arbitration- and from
here the process slps belind a black
:urtain. From the moment a case
begins, all parties are requred to sign
a statement that forbids them from
ever discussing what happens in the
case. Proceedings, discussibns, find-
ings and punishments are dl hidden'
in a Daily article this past Thursda
('The Code: Case 97-39"), one cas
wins revealed from its beginnings;
thoughthe process, to today. And the -
on thing it clears up is that no one
kniws what is going on in the hearing
rooni.
TNo sources, who wanted to remain
namless due to the possible conse-
quer:es of breaking their imposed
silene, revealed what they observed
in thtCode hearing room: from juve
nile pnelists to pizza parties to a
feelin of helplessness. Neither had
an attrney nor any legal representa-
tion. 3oth the accused and the
accuse felt they were defending their
positios and that they had no idea
what thy were doing. With expulsion
as a posiblity (albeit extremely rare),
SAM SWARTZ
SCHOOL JUNIOR
BUSINESS
'Facts' of the