Monday, June 19, 2000 - The Michigan Daily - 5
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Nike treats all
Ovorkers like trash
TO THE DAILY
Don't think for a moment that Nike
Corporation's games are only in the area of
workers in Vietnam (where they have 12 facto-
ries, according to Nikebiz.com) and other
third-world countries. Nike takes its "Money
above all else" theology everywhere it goes.
I was working for Nike and was on my way
oSpain for a short-term assignment. In
France, I was involved in a car accident where
I was injured and unable to work.
Under the terms of the Nike Corporation
Employee Handbook, I should have been put
on full pay for one year. Rather than pay me the
"disability" payment in the handbook, Nike
simply took the cheap way out and terminated
my employment! Want to work for Nike?
Think about it! Firms like Nike don't just
discriminate against poor people in the third-
orld: they treat all their employees like trash.
MEl SERRAO SNIDECOR
DAUGHTER OF ALUMNUS
A challenge: Go watch a movie and hate it
T he middle of the middle of the take itself too seriously and gives a true,
summer generally means several funny and rather believable ride. know
things for me. First, it means that I That's just what is getting in the way watcl
have probably had at least one nasty of most of the films recently. They abilit
sunburn due to hubris I might never worry more about simply showing relea
overcome. Second, it means I'm still you action than they do about telling a I'nr
turning over every rock looking for believable story. The perfect example onec
the elusive summer romance. And, of of this was "A fi
course, it means I'm right in the mid- "NI i s s i o n : publi
dle of a big movie season. Impossible 2," gues
There's something almost religious where John Woo twist
about going to see the new block- gotso into show- incre
busters in the summertime - the free ing his action is on
air conditioning, the comfy seats, the sequences, that studi
smell of the expensive popcorn that I he forgot that the tentl
never buy. I make a point of trying to story was ridicu- Bu
see most if not all of the major releas- lous. studi
es of the summer, and so far, I've been Maybe I've entir
doing well this year AARON been corrupted mon
One thing I've noticed about this RICH by too many force
years releases is that none of them are film classes here start
great - well, only a few of them are at the University. may!
even good. Of the true summer releas- Maybe I've seen "For
es (anything released since Memorial too many classics and westerns and to wa
Day), I think only "Shanghai Noon" foreign films to appreciate the small naive
(seriously) has been entirely enjoy- pleasures of watching Tommy climb Th
able. It is the only movie that does not rocks in a small tank top. It might be Gum
but I still would not trade the
ledge that I have gained from
hing these esoteric works for the
ty to enjoy the banal movies
sed in the last few months.
frequently reminded of what
of my film professors once said.
Ilm that is rewarded with positive
ic response will be repeated.' I
s this is why I can foresee most
s and lines in most films. The
easing watering-down of cinema
e reason why I just can't trust big
os all the time to make consis-
y great movies.
it the problem is definitely not the
os' fault. As audiences, we are
ely to blame for buying into these
dane stories. As Hollywood has
fed us recycled bull (maybe
ing recently with "Titanic,"
be starting before that with
rest Gump") we have continued
etch them with the same uncritical
ete.
ere is no reason to like "Forrest
p," or "Titanic." Neither of them
say anything, neither of them tells a
new story, neither of them is especial-
ly interesting.
Just because something is big,
makes a lot of money in it's opening
weekend, stars actors who you love
and your friends like it does not mean
that it is good.
I challenge everyone to go out to the
theater, pay full price for a film and
dislike it. Go ahead, tear it to shreds.
It's really liberating. At such a point
you stop being simply a consumer and
turn into a viewer, a critic, a human.
When I think of the best films of the
last five years, I am struck by the
amount of good movies that have
come out of small studios with first-
time or second-time directors. Films
like "Boogie Nights" and "Happiness"
show that there are directors out there
who don't pander to their audience.
They still make films as art not simply
as sellable commodities. We have to
be film-goers with equal intelligence.
-Aaron Rich can be reached via
e-mail at arichaltumich.edu.
How Congress bans information and outlaws communities
How can our govemment ban infor-
mation and outlaw communities?
Very easily - and under the law - if
a bill makes its way out of House sub-
committee hearings.
This nasty bit of legislation, known
as the "Methamphetamines Anti-
Proliferation Act of 1999," would ban
the dissemination of all information
pertaining to the manufacture and use
of methamphetamines and all other
controlled substances. This means that
any discussion of drug use in any form
(email. web pages, books, etc) would
be felonious behavior. The Act has
already passed the Senate.
In its original iteration, the Act was a
well-meaning attempt to stop the flow
of dangerous drugs like methampheta-
mines. Whatever your stance on drigs
though, it has since turned into a mali-
cious assault on civil liberties.
The Meth Act is at once both vague
and all encompassing, leaving lots oif
wiggle room for interpretation. The
guidelines for judging ilie'al behas ior
remain indistinct, although it outlas
any information "published with
intent' to brck federal drc las. In
cannabis for medicinal purposes, to
instructions on the extraction of
codeine from Tylenol 3, could land a
person in prison under the right prose-
cuting circumstances. Even linking to
drug-related information or parapher-
nalia sites would be illegal.
Even scarier,
an amendment to
the Meth Act
allows searches
without issuing
public warrants.
That means
police (or Drug
En force men t
Agents) can sus-
pend constitu-
JOSH tional property
WICKERHAM rights to break
into a person's
space and search
their house, their
business and
their hard drives without telling them
they were there. The information they
collect oax be held without the per-
sots knotsc e tor itp to a year.
lie hil i dierus. The infor-
11atfiioiit tp> t votlstprovides
people with absolutely necessary
knowledge pertaining to correct drug
dosage and safety precautions. The
Meth Act easily bans information dis-
cussed from personal experience.
Here, the positives and the negatives of
drug use are unbiasedly extolled. By
making this information illegal, people
interested in experimenting with drugs
-- whether they can find life-saving
knowledge or not - could end tip
using dangerous illegal substances
blindly. In short, this bill attempts to
criminalize a legitimate body of infor-
mation that saves lives.
Drugs may not be socially accept-
able, but they are as much a part of the
human experience as sex. Congress, in
effect, wants to burn vast libraries of
knowledge. Information treasure
troves exist that attempt to explain the
significance of drugs in our history,
like how they have shaped civilizations
or how they have affected the evolution
of our brain.
Responsible members of the internet
cotominity contribute to this vast
body of knowledge as often as they
throw out drug use tips or engage in
philosophicatl discuissionas.Atid ibis
communication would be outlawed.
A real community is in jeopardy. A
community of knowledgeable, respon-
sible, informed, and involved citizens
faces peril at the hand of misguided
legislation. This community allows
brave experimenters and respected
elders the means to openly communi-
cate their understanding of altered
states of mind. These unconventional
groups cannot be destroyed by our
government's fear of the mystery sur-
rounding drugs. Such a flagrant, inde-
fensible affront to First Amendment
freedoms cannot be allowed to go for-
ward.
Of course, I hold out hope that the
Supreme Court will kill the Meth Act.
Not that the constitutional right to free-
dom of religion provided any protec-
tion for Native Americans who incor-
porated San Pedro Cacti as a religious
sacrament. That native plant is all but
eradicated, along with the body of
knowledge surrounding its use.
And if this ludicrous act gets enacted
into law? Well. then the Constitution
isn't 'ort' the hemp it's written on.
-- h tierlott co be tached
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