4 - The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, October 13, 1998

04tw SC[I iun FIgt}tt

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

LAURIE MAYK
Editor in Chief
JACK SCHILLACI
Editorial Page Editor

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
Voces in the city
Students inject 'U' concerns into politics

NOTABLE QUOTABLE
'It is becoming so bitter that we are looking
to play another frat in the Mud Bowl.'
- Jamie Whetzel, member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, on
his fraternity's relationship with Phi Delta Theta
THOMAS KULJURGIS TEN TAP VEIN SPEAK ING
FUN TNN S TO P oc CAMPUS:
RiPE T, Lg LvAIoRS to t004Lko NALL.
LET'TERS TO THE EDITOR

A nn Arbor's mayoral election may not be
quite as tumultuous as the race for gov-
ernor this November, but University students
will have a different type of candidate to con-
sider on the municipal level - another stu-
dent. Architecture and Urban Planning junior
Elizabeth Keslacy might not appear to be a
politically powerful or intimidating candidate
to incumbent Ingrid Sheldon, but her place in
the election is nonetheless vital.
As a student, Keslacy has the ability to do
what no middle-aged Republican or
Democrat running for mayor can do: invoke
the voice of her student peers on a variety of
issues. Whether her positions as a Libertarian
fall in line with a majority or a very small part
of the student body, she has a unique perspec-
tive as a University student. Regardless of her
ideology, she will introduce student perspec-
tive into the debate that have been overshad-
owed in Ann Arbor's municipal government in
recent years.
Amidst the turmoil of the Vietnam War
and other political conflicts from the late '60s
to mid '70s, many progressive students ran for
election and won municipal positions in Ann
Arbor. By winning seats on the Ann Arbor
City Council, these student activists
impressed the progressive ideals ofAnn Arbor
on the decision-making politics of the city.
During a time in which old men were sending
their boys off to war, it was especially neces-
sary for students, many of whom were regis-
tered for the draft, to voice their opinions. But
students' opinions in 1998 are by no means
any less important than their predecessors'
opinions in 1968 -by running in the election
for mayor this year, Keslacy could inject stu-

dent issues and values back into the city's
political structure.
Despite the media's frequent claim that
young people are apathetic and unmotivated
to change the status quo, Ann Arbor remains a
hotbed for political student activism. By
merely taking a walk through the Diag on a
sunny afternoon, one can see the dozens of
groups that daily promote important causes.
The main reason that students' ability to
win municipal offices is very weak is that the
district boundaries are biased against any who
want to participate in city elections. In the
1970s, most students were clumped into a few
districts, making it easier for student candi-
dates to appeal to a familiar audience. But
since then, the city council redrew the district
lines to take power away from the students.
The new lines in Ann Arbor cut the city into
shapes resembling slices of a pie, plotting the
University campus in the center and placing
the University's residence halls into a number
of districts. Thus, though East Quad and South
Quad are about three blocks away from each
other, students residing in those dorms vote in
different districts. The district lines make it
almost impossible for students to win seats on
city council and have any notable influence.
All Ann Arbor community members
should support students running for municipal
positions. One should not necessarily vote for
a candidate just because he or she is a student,
but rather because he or she is the best person
for the job. If there is any issue that Keslacy
can push for in the upcoming election, it is
that students need a greater voice in govern-
ment and that one of the ways to ensure this is
to return to the old district lines.

False sense
AIDS statistics must be interpreted carefully

A ccording to a report released last week
by the Centers for Disease Control, the
number of Americans dying from AIDS in
1997 dropped 47 percent from the previous
year. The disease moved down from the
nation's eighth largest killer to the 14th and is
currently at its lowest death rate since 1987.
Public health officials have attributed this sig-
nificant decline to the impact of a wide range
of new drugs that combat the HIV virus's abil-
ity to multiply. By prolonging the time it takes
for the virus to damage the immune system,
HIV-positive patients are able to live longer
lives. This CDC report is certainly great news
in the fight against the terrible pandemic, but
it must not give Americans a false sense of
security about the dangers posed by AIDS.
The CDC report simply touches upon the
fight against AIDS in the people already
infected with the HIV virus. It does not, how-
ever, mention any statistics regarding the
spread of the virus or the number of new
cases. The number of people being infected
by HIV is still increasing, especially among
people in their teens and early twenties. This
fact should be important to students when
they think about the risk AIDS poses.
HIV infection is also spreading more
among low-income and minority Americans.
In particular, many urban youth live in envi-
ronments that pose more immediate threats to
their well-being than a potential HIV infec-
tion. Consequently, any AIDS awareness pro-
grams currently being run in the public
schools of these communities may be less
effective in dealing with AIDS issues. Thus, it
is especially important not to misrepresent
this latest CDC report because doing so may
eventually worsen the problem of AIDS
awareness among young Americans, especial-
ly those in high-risk communities.
This report credits the drop in AIDS
deaths to the use of new drugs. These drugs
are expensive - about $10,000 a year to sus-
tnna e n n T-TTmrn-ti- i-limrs

Many low-income Americans are still being
denied coverage for these life-saving drugs
under Medicaid or other publicly funded
assistance programs. The fact that many low-
income patients are minorities compounds
the problem. Those Americans who are least
likely to benefit from AIDS awareness cam-
paigns are also those who are least likely to
have access to the drugs needed to save their
lives if they get infected.
The CDC report also covers the progress
of AIDS in America exclusively when the
greatest AIDS threats lie elsewhere. In sub-
Saharan Africa alone, four million people
were infected with HIV last year. Ten million
people have died from AIDS-related illnesses
there already - 90 percent of the world's
AIDS deaths. And because of lack of access
to new drugs, 20 million more Africans will
almost certainly lose their lives to AIDS in the
future. Similar lack of access to these drugs
exists in other developing regions of the world
facing skyrocketing increases in AIDS cases.
The statistics of the CDC report only show
how helpful these new drugs are in combating
AIDS. Deaths here are dropping moderately
while there is no end in sight to the alarming
death rates in the third world. The numbers in
this report do not hold any real promise that
fewer people will contract this dreaded dis-
ease, but they do show the new drugs' impact.
The CDC report may in fact have some
negative side effects. It may cause some
public health officials to feel too confident
about the struggle against AIDS. These
decision-makers may be persuaded to not
raise the funding of AIDS research, aware-
ness and treatment programs when faced
with headlines that weaken their fears about
the potential deadliness of AIDS in this
country and in the world. Therefore, it is
crucial that Americans truly know what the
statistics in this CDC report mean and how
this report only demonstrates the need for
mnr- rtnni a fitU+ n ia TTI

'U' handled
Brooks case
poorly
To THE DAILY:
I am writing with regard
to the Oct. 2 article "Brooks
sanctioned under Code." I
have to express my disap-
pointment and disgust at the
handling of this case, particu-
larly on the part of the
University Athletic
Department. The fact that
Brooks has not only been
allowed to remain on the
football team but also was
eligible to play in the Iowa
game only about a week after
"accepting responsibility," as
the article said, for his
actions, is absolutely unac-
ceptable. This man, if he can
be called that, committed a
crime against the University
community, not just the indi-
vidual victim. U of M is our
school and our home. The
fact that an incident like this
could occur right outside one
of the largest residence halls
is disturbing enough, but the
fact that the perpetrator has
been allowed to continue to
have the sort of hero status
afforded to the football play-
ers shows a disregard for the
victim's situation and reflects
badly on the University. As
the victim said in the article,
Brooks forfeited his right to
play on the team when he
chose to assault someone. In
a case like this, the priority
of the Athletic Department
should not be their own inter-
ests; They need to come out
in support of the victim and
remove Brooks from the
team.
RACHEL STEIN
LSA SOPHOMORE
Weekend
article was
inaccurate
TO THE DAILY:
I welcomed your article
about Shomari and Sean
O'Neill ("'Shomari & Sean'
set for another hard-hitting
season," 10/8/98). However, I
wish that it had not made the
major error of describing our
show as a comedy! For clear-
ly it was not a comedy,
although I have nothing
against comic relief.
Our show attempted to
deal with serious issues and
changing entertainment cur-
rents. It covered many events
on campus that might have
gone unnoticed or received
minimal attention, such as
interviews with such national
spokespersons as Cornel
West, Ronald Takaki and
Charles Ogletree. We drew
the community's attention to
such pressing issues as the
what some might deem to be
abuses of the Ann Arbor
Police Department and DPS's

community on campus a dis-
service by characterizing it as
a comedy.
I can appreciate that a
campus newspaper cannot be
The New York Times in terms
of accuracy and professional-
ism. After all, it is run by stu-
dents who have lots of heavy
matters on their brain. Yet I
can't help but feel that there
is something stereotypical
about the writer's description
of this television show as a
comedy. Given the issues and
themes it addressed, comedy
assuredly it was not
SHOMARI TERRELONGE-
STONE
LSA JUNIOR
Society says
when killing
is justified
To THE DAILY:
The Daily editorial "False
advertising" was closed-
minded. Comparing abortion
and genocide is not ludi-
crous, and both certainly are
issues of rights.
Many feel that a fetus has
a right to life; although at
what point the fetus gains
that right is debatable. In
abortion, a fetus is dehuman-
ized so that one is only
killing a underdeveloped
human parasite.
The Nazi's similarly dehu-
manized Jews, Communists
and the physically disabled to
justify their killings. Finally, I
would not take too much
moral comfort in the deci-
sions of the U.S. Supreme
Court; genocide was protect-
ed under Nazi law, and some
U.S. laws earlier this century
were nightmarish.
Whether it's abortion,
assisted suicide, the death
penalty or war, society plays
with the lines that defines
when killing is justified. The
Nazi comparison, although
extreme, is simply a warning
as to the consequences of
playing with such lines. By
the way, I am pro-choice; I
am just also open-minded to
fanatics with signs.
JOHN CLYNE
RACKHAM
Anti-Klan
groups should
not dictate to
campus
TO THE DAILY:
If the ideals of equality
and justice for all are to be
achieved, then it is time for
the anti-Klan defendants
must stepiup and finally take
responsibility for their
actions they are accused of.
Just because the recipients of
the riotous acts were the Ku
Klux Klan does not excuse

blame it on some vast racist
government conspiracy that
their phones were tapped or
something of the ridiculous
nature. Instead of childish
name-calling, let the courts
decide the guilt or innocence
of the anti-Klan rioters.
The student governments
of this school cannot let this
group of leftist radicals dic-
tate social policy on this
campus. Some of the mem-
bers of their group don't even
attend the University. It is
similar to the KKK advising
Congress on immigration
policy!
It's time the rest of the
students of U of M and the
Ann Arbor community step
up and not let a smalltminori-
ty of people overstep their
bounds and dictate to the
whole what is right, what is
wrong and what is a govern-
ment conspiracy.
And if you are an anti-
racist, doesn't that make you
a biggot against racist peo-
ple?
DAVID TAUB
LSA JUNIOR
Peltz's
arguments
were poor
To THE DAILY:
Micah Peltz wrote in
objection to a viewpoint
regarding Palestinian human
rights ("Viewpoint was dam-
aging to efforts for peace,"
10/7/98). He challenged the
writers' use of what he
deemed "fighting words"
Specifically he objected to
the term "machine-gun-toting
racists" used to describe the
Israeli Defense Forces. Do or
do not these soldiers "tote"
guns?As for the term
"racist," I do not suppose I
can attest to the inner state of
mind of every soldier in the
Israeli army, but racism is
more than an attitude held by
individuals, it is an institu-
tionalized system in which
one ethnic or racial group has
special rights and privileges
that are denied to others.
Would Peltz deny that Israelis
have more privileges than do
Palestinians in the occupied
territories?
I agree with Peltz that
Palestinians have a justified
cause. Maybe he can under-
stand why they are so angry
about the denial of their
rights. How can others under-
stand their pain when Peltz
and others would tell them
that to express their views is
damaging to the peace
process?
Finally, on the issue of the
use of the word "holocaust."
The authors of the viewpoint
piece did not say that the
Palestinians are experiencing
a holocaust. The are appeal-
ing to us to not turn our
backs on the situation of the

A return to
hedonism begins 6
at Studio 624
he University campus is notorious-
ly clique-ish. Sororities and frater-
nities, athletes, minorities, Rackham
students, engineers - we all belong
somewhere, but definitely not every-
where.
It's so ridiculous that throughout the
course of a normal
workweek - a reg-
ular Monday
through Wednesday
- I can go about.
my business and
never bump into
anyone outside my rergop
peer group
Walking through
campus 'I'll never
see Drew HensonSARAH
not to mention get L CA R
the opportunity to
ask him out. Sitting X'1t1.E#
through class on the
rare occasions of attendance I'll stare at
faces only like mine. Running around
the bar like a drunken fool, it's almost
guaranteed thatIewon't see anyone new.
If I do have the rare privilege of an
introduction, in no less than 10 seconds
I'll also be informed of all the vital sta-
tistics: who they hang out with, what
year, where they are from and the most
important, who they were or still are
hooking up with.
To remedy this situation, a severe
change is needed. We need a new bar.
But not your run-at-the-mil bar
we need a haven of hedonism, a place
where everyone is welcome not only to
the bar but also to each other, and where
escaping from our tiring peer groups s
easy. A\ place akin to the infamous@
Studio 54 of New York City. A giant
metropolis of bliss where famous faces
danced with nobodies.
Think about it: Why should our parents
be the only lucky ones to enjoy such fun?
The majority of the baby boomers had the
best generational lineage of all time. Born
in the pleasantries of the post-war 1950s,
our parents grew up during the dawn of
rock-n-roll and had the opportunity to
protest the political pundits of their time.
They had Woodstock, free love and mul-
titudes of mind-altering substances. They
partied in the '70s without consequence
and made money in the '80s without
problems.
But we're the ones now suffering from
their play days. We don't have places
that allow us to say "whatever feels good
is good:' The partying situation at the
University is pathetic.
We shouldn't drink for fear of alco-0
holism and loss of brain cells. We
shouldn't do drugs - it has been since
discovered that they are not only bad for
you but also addictive. I mean, come on;
we can't even have sex without thinking
of the million things that could go
wrong. The only positive benefits the
baby boomers left us are the sweet
sounds of Led Zeppelin, the Rolling
Stones and countless other bands,
To remedy this sad situation someone
needs to purchase the old Pizza House
property at 624 Church Street and create
the new hedonistic palace - Studio 624.
It has to happen - we deserve a new
playground on campus. We are in dire
need of a new attraction, or rather, a new
distraction.
But to create the atmosphere so surreal
like the original, all the key elements mst
be in place. We need an ever-inspiring
king of hedonistic bliss, a big-time bounc-
er in charge of deciding who stays and
who goes, a successor to the late Steve
Rubel. This would ensure that a perfect

mix of people - New Yorkers and
Michiganders, blacks and whites,
Latinos/as and Asians - would be
upheld.Studio 624 would not be a place
where black pants are mandatory, not to
mention IDs strictly from New York. Nor
would it be a place controlled by bouncers
who seem to follow the mantra of "friends0
enter free, cute girls need no ID."
Second, picture-perfect, Playgirl-status
bartenders, those in charge of making and
keeping everyone happy would obviously
have to be imported because God-knows
there's no one that good looking at the
University. These heavenly bodies would
have the sole mission of making the rest of
us believe, no matter what (substance) it
takes, that we look just as good as they do.
Now, to attract the desired crowd, full
of all types of students is a challenge. In
order to make Studio 624 a hit, it needs
a line outside. We all know that no bar is
worth going to unless there is a line sug-
gesting that it is the place to be. Once
the patrons at Rick's or Touchdown's
find out that there is a new bar with an
even longer wait, they are sure to come
running.
Like at Studio 54, dancing (and of
course some illegal aphrodisiacs) would
be the key to getting everyone together.
With the right mix of sorority summer
mixes, frat-boy workout tapes, athletic
jock jams, alternative techno noises,
R&B bump and grind sounds and disco.
samplings, we're all sure to be pleased.
If all of these elements were com-
hined (and some others that can't he