Wednesday, May 11, 1994- The Michigan Daily - 5
tSAneeds more student involvement
Ic n nI TIAIcrtlr%-ci
By Julie A. Neenan
Michigan Student Assembly - the
University's student government - has big
plans for the upcoming year. Presently,
we're in the process of organizing our
lobbying efforts on the state and federal
*vel. We'd like to see an increase in higher
education funding, as well as the passing of
the Campus Sexual Assault Victims Bill of
Rights. We also hope to join Michigan State
University and Wayne State University in
lobbying against formula funding, which
hurts large research institutions like ours. In
the fall, we will have a solid basis and
platform for student lobbying and we hope
to involve University students in our efforts.
obbying in Lansing or Washington, D.C.,
on behalf of the University is a great
experience for everyone, particularly
political science and pre-law students. This
opportunity, however, is open to all
interested students.
Additionally, MSA is looking to get
more involved on campus. We intend to
plan campus-wide activities and events on
t ur own, as well as in conjunction with
her student groups. Our involvement in
events such as Welcome Week, Escapade
'94, Michigan Madness, and Senior Days
will continue; however, we'd also like to
hear the student body's suggestions for
future programs or additional events that we
could sponsor in the upcoming year.
Increasing allocations and funding to
student groups is one way in which we
hope to help student organizations
further their goals and increase their
involvement on campus, as well.
MSA is also very concerned with
improving campus safety. Therefore, a
task force has been developed to address
this issue. Currently, we are working with
the City Council and with the administra-
tion to improve lighting on and off
campus. We hope to expand services,
such as NiteOwl, Safewalk, and
Northwalk, as well. We also have
organized a task force that will examine
the University budget so that we may
hopefully find ways to halt the drastic
increases in tuition. A third task force
has been established to address the issue
of student representation on the Board of
Regents.
Yet another topic of concern and
controversy is the Statement of Student
Rights and Responsibilities (a.k.a. the
code). The Michigan Student Assembly
remains dedicated to fighting the code,
the Alcohol Policy and the Diag Policy,
and the portions of these policies that
infringe upon students' rights. (MSA
will hold an informational meeting in the
fall to respond to student concerns and
questions regarding the code and similar
policies.)
There are so many facets of MSA and
so many opportunities and commit-
tees in which to get involved. Every
topic, effort, task force and issue that
I've mentioned thus far (as well as
many others) could use additional
input and support. This is where you
come in. Student involvement is the
key to our success as the student
government at the University. Feel
free to drop by our offices located at
3909 Michigan Union (third floor) or
call us at 763-3241. MSA is a great
way to get involved in campus issues
and activities. Watch for increased
MSA involvement on campus this
term, and in the upcoming year, and
look for an informational mass
meeting in September.
MSA is looking forward to a
productive and exciting year - come
get involved.
Neenan is thepresident ofthe Michigan
Student Assembly.
S. .
Wrt o
THE ERASAB NC'
Texas Journal: on
Academia, Dentistry
tthe end of April, as soon as school let out, I made the
istake of going home to Texas. One of the things my
parents force me to do when I come home is to go to the
dentist. This isn't unpleasant for the reasons you'd think-
it is just that after five years spent haunting college cam-
puses, a dentist's office is like an overdose of the main-
stream.
"Why, hell-o," croons the receptionist at the front desk.
She's the dentist's wife, and has done the same job for 25
years. The first little colored tab on my folder reads 1979,
and in my opinion it is dangerous to hang around anyone
who remembers what you looked like when you were 13.
"So how is school?" she continues non-stop. "What are you
studying now? Psychology, oh, yes, and what do you want
to do with that? Well, youknow my Jared is still at UT, he's
studying engineering, you know that takes longer..." Not
seven years, I think, but hold my tongue. "Now you just
take a seat over there and we'll call you," she ends, finally.
The speakers in the waiting room pipe in a country
music station, a far cry from the Pearl Jam and Nirvana I
hear floating out of the windows in West Quad. The station
is sponsoring a contest for couples - the women bring in
their urine samples and take their pregnancy test on the air.
The first to get pregnant will win a crib set and changing
table (Ilam not making this up.) The magazines on the table
in the waiting room are the usual - People, Newsweek,
Ladies Home Journal, Sports Illustrated, most over a year
old. Ipick up the People -surreptitiously, looking around
until I realize that here everyone is reading mainstream
trash, and nobody will make fun of me for it.
The door opens and the hygienist calls my name. I don't
recognize her, but then I rarely do. The fake smile, the
mascara heavy on the eyes, the perfectly clean pink outfit
are all the same anyway. When the engagement ring ap-
pears on the left hand, she'll be gone when I come home
again. This one looks young, probably younger than I am,
and is even chattier than usual. She makes the mistake of
asking where I go to school, and I make the mistake of
saying I'm a graduate student at the University of Michi-
gan. I'm quite sure she doesn't know what graduate school
is, because she then asks me what I'm majoring in "in
college." "I'm not in college - I graduated," I say. "I'm
in a Ph.D. program in psychology." Now I feel like a stuck-
up fool, and wonder why I felt the need to demonstrate my
intellectual snobbery to someone who's going to be tearing
at my bleeding gums for the next half-hour.
Silenced on the topic ofmy educational attainments, the
hygienist gropes for a new topic. I briefly consider beating
her to the punch by saying "Yes, it is pretty cold in
Michigan," but she probably already thinks I'm too smart
for my own good. And she says it anyway: "So - isn't it
cold up there?"
I mutter something about it not being that bad or some
other lie to prove I'm really not sacrificing my personal
comfort to get a good education. If I don't say this, she'll
probably ask me why I didn't go to Texas A&M. Pretty
soon she really is scraping at my bleeding gums, and I
promise myself that next time I'll say I'm on the Kilgore
Rangers Drill Team at Southwest Texas State and that I'm
not wearing any makeup today only because I overslept.
When she's done she tells meIreally should floss more.
I just nod, suppressing a momentary urge to say I'm too
busy getting my Ph.D., or too busy buying winter coats, or
too busy practicing with the Kilgore Rangers. The recep-
tionist tells me to say hello to my mother as I leave, and I
climb into the car in the Texas heat. When I get home my
parents have on the evening news, and I look around their
perfect suburban house and wonder if my distaste is a good
thing or just the product of so much academic arrogance. I
retreat into my room with a book, flip on the alternative
music station, and write a note to myself to buy dental floss
tomorrow.
~1
South African Blacks not free yet
To the Daily:
This is a response to the article ("South
Africa - Free") that appeared on the
opinion page of May 4. After 300 years of
Apartheid rule, how can you in good faith
say that South Africa "has completed a
stunning transformation from an exclusion-
ry, white-run government to a free democ-
racy?" Just because there was an election
and there was a change on the surface does
not mean that Black South Africans are
"free" or that the "democracy" will do them
any good. Freedom is the ability to pursue
your dreams and desires from a footing that
is relatively equal to the next man's
position. The slaves in this country were
"freed" by the "democracy" of America.
But where are we as persons of color in this
*ountry? Are we "free" and do I feel that
this is an effective "democracy?" No.
Secondly, you speak of Mandela's
"remarkable lack of bitterness toward the
politicians who jailed him." You cannot
attack the morals of a system and power
structure that put him in jail, and for the
benefit of his people, he must work within the
current framework.
So, your conclusion that "another bastion
Of oppression has finally fallen" is inaccurate
and flawed. Only with time can we properly
assess and evaluate these events.
Greg White
LSA junior
The Freedom War
By Jerry Moore
Abuses of freedom call forrestrictive
measures, or so says President Clinton
who contains himself in briefs instead of
boxers. That's a good first step, and it's up
to us, American citizens, to provide even
more support (in the war against freedom
abusers).
Let's begin with the new crime bill
currently incongressionalcommittee.
Now is the time to let elected officials
know that the preventive measures
contained in the bill, which include high-
crime community grants, outreach
programs and the allocation of several
billion dollars to prevent violence against
women, are largely a waste of money.
On paper, the punishment portions of
the bill look much more effective and, in
my opinion, merit the whole economic
enchilada (or seven-layer bureaucratic
burrito if you prefer). Three strikes, a far-
reaching provision which requires only
three violent crime convictions for a life
sentence, could be easier than a slot
machine; never mind that pesky stipula-
tion requiring the three convictions be in
federal court.
Another punitive possibility, building
more prisons, looks effective because it
would enable us to lock up more of those
non-human bad guys. I mean, let's face it:
they'll never be reformed, and our
society will be much safer without
them. Banning federal Pell Grants for
inmates (a provision included in the
House version of the bill) is another
choice idea. Why give them access to
our educationalsystem when they'll
only try to assimilate themselves into
our society?
Somethingcriminals stillhave
access to are guns, and current restric-
tions, such as the Brady bill and the
newer semi-automatic assault rifle
bans, won't accomplish much. We
need to get all the guns out of the hands
of criminals and into the hands of
police. If it turns out that some of the
police are criminals, we'll have to hire
more police (that is, if they let us:
they'll have all the guns).
According to the omniscient media
which does our thinking for us, and the
omnipresent opinion polls which speak
for us, we, the American public,
consider crime to be an issue of grave
importance. Hence the zeal of elected
officials, those Republican and
Democratic strongmen who have
engaged in a fierce battle to show us
who is toughest on crime; all of this
one-upmanship to protect us and win
our love and support (and votes).