Page 4-The Michigan Daily-Thursday, March 21, 1991 be Mlicrboan JailI c(1' " I( 420 Maynard Street Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109 Edited and Managed by Students at the University of Michigan ANDREW GOTESMAN Editor in Chief STEPHEN HENDERSON DANIEL POUX Opinion Editors Unsigned editorials represent a majority of the Daily's Editorial Board. All other cartoons, signed articles, and letters do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Daily. * .. _. {r{{;E;:{ ":';~ier{{{r.Y"' i ' {. YV}Y:Jr":'v: ".'r;;i"{" ~} r; .:: ": .::}:::"".:::::;v:::v:: :i "?{: i:}} ;;" s ;, '?;"":":: rAY" r f .r.. r } + 4:;... " Yr t";};, d"r.}":..:Y";."S. *{ " No newtax cts! Lawmakers need:v to"$;},balance:{;; state,'s;":°books befo . ^, "" ' . re cutting::}: taxes:".:::%%{i::"v i ::{: L L neG e Y kc\ " ov 'f ~ON 5 " (IITc51 0 0 Taxpayers don't usually argue when politicians talk about cutting taxes. But Michigan residents need to speak out against the 20 percent property tax cuts currently being discussed in the state legislature. Michigan's school property tax is one of the highest in the nation, and state legislators are debating several plans that would alleviate this problem. The average state taxpayer may be relieved to hear this news, but in actuality, now is one of the worst possible times for the legislature to discuss this issue. The state of Michigan is facing an estimated $1 billion deficit at the end of the 1990-91 fiscal year, and in anticipation of this deficit, Gov. John Engler and members of the legislature have been working for four months to make program cuts before the money runs out. In the beginning of 1991, a 9.2 percent across- the-board cut was instituted. As a result of this cut, huge reductions were made in programs across the state; social services and general assistance pro- grams were particularly hard hit. While these cuts are still being debated in the hope that more equitable solutions to the state's budgetwoes can be found, the legislature is debating two plans that would reduce state revenue by more than $1 billion over the next two or three years. Englerhas proposed one plan whereby property taxes would be reduced by 5 percent in the first year, 10 percent the following year, and 5 percent in the final year. It is estimated that this plan would "save" the taxpayers $1.2 billion. A second plan, proposed by Republican Rich- ard Headlee, would reduce property taxes by 20 percent in the period of two years. This plan is estimated to "save" taxpayers $1.5 billion. Although lawmakers in Lansing are examining every inch of the budget forplaces to trim the fat off state spending, many continue to push for tax cuts, using the tried and true "supply side economics" argument, based upon the trickle down theory. These lawmakers believe that if money is re- turned to the taxpayer, it will be reinvested in the economy. While this is an attractive idea, Michigan's economy is unable to wait for this process to run its course. Adding an additional $1 billion debt to the state's budget without proposing alternative funding sources could be deadly for the state's economy. In order to make tax cuts honest, so that people dependent on state programs will not suffer any additional losses, new revenue sources must be found. New state monies could be raised with a more progressive income tax or by instituting service taxes on legal counsel, car repairs, or banking transactions, as in other states. New taxes would obviously be a unwelcome prospect for state residents, but if Engler and Headlee truly want to do something about property taxes, they must take responsibility for the consequences. But to truly aid the needy people of Michigan, lawmakers should focus their attention on issues besides cutting taxes. Residents who recently sustained a 17 percent reduction in their welfare checks will not benefit from a tax break. A property tax cut does nothing for those - like the poor - who have little property to begin with. While state legislators are to be commended for attempting to cut taxes, the timing is wrong. Michigan tax payers must tell their legislators, "Thanks, but no thanks," until more burning state issues are resolved. f ( J.,/ yti;: Let Nicaragua live Washington continues to sabotage self-determination 'u' professors must support TAs To the Daily: My mom - who works on the medical campus - told me not to come here for college. "Wait until grad school," she said. "After all, it is a grad school; that's all they care about." But as a die hard Wolverine fan, I disregarded my mother's advice and decided to come here anyway. And I can't say I've been disappointed. Until now, I did think this was prima- rily a grad school - one compari- son between Rackham's ampitheater and the Natural Science Building's lecture room confirmed my belief. Alas, I was wrong, and my mother was wrong. Undergrads are not getting fat with the administration's attention; we are all getting screwed big time! It just happens to be the graduate students' turn to ride the Duder-Go-Round. How can the administration justify what they're trying to do to TAs? For those of you who don't know, the administration is only offering the TAs a four percent increase for each of the next two years, and only five percent the following year. Meanwhile, University officials are getting increases of 11, 13, even 16 percent. On top of that, the administration is trying to do away with limits on class sizes - so we undergrads can get even less attention - and take away the TAs bargaining powers. I don't know where the professors stand on this issue. It seems to me that it would be in their best interests to side with the Graduate Employees Organiza- tion, especially with the possibil- ity of a GEO strike looming overhead; there will be nobody to grade those nasty midterms and papers. It also seems to me that the administration doesn't give a flying f--- about their professors anyway, as evidenced by their not granting tenure to Drew Westen, the best undergrad professor on campus. What do you know ... a Readers defend Women's Studies Dept. To the Daily: SG) asked the Women's Studies The Women's Studies department to sponsor their Department is under no obligation Student Soapbox, if, as they to sponsor the Student Soapbox claim, politics has nothing to do debate. Why was it the only with sponsorship. Why not ask department asked? Every Univer- the Economics department, or the sity department is flooded with Mathematics department? And, if requests to sponsor various LSA-SG's motivation was events. Each department - not political, who are they to con- only Women's Studies - has demn the Women's Studies certain views it upholds, and department for their alleged sponsors events accordingly. So political motivation in refusing why is the Women's Studies the sponsorship? Freedom of program targeted as being part of expression goes both ways. "PC thinking?" LSA-SG can bring in an And why was the Women's admittedly sexist speaker like Studies department the only Phyllis Schlafly, and anyone who department asked? Why wasn't wants to can go and listen to her the Sociology department, the speak. But the Women's Studies School of Social Work, or the department, or any other group or Law School asked to sponsor the individual, has every right to same event? All of these schools choose not to associate their name have a stake in the question of with the event. abortion, yet only Women's I doubt LSA-SG would have Studies was asked. asked the African American Once people begin to realize Studies department to sponsor a that abortion effects all of us, only debate in which one speaker was then will we begin to see some a blatant and admitted racist. The settlement of the issue that does condemnation of the Women's not reflect only one interest Studies department is one of the group. most immature displays I've seen nKi*sten'Mo*re W ith Manuel Noriega safely behind bars and the "Butcher of Baghdad" largely relegated to the sidelines, the Bush administration has been searching for a new enemy it can love to hate. Displaying a characteristic lack of imagination and originality, President Bush has decided to concen- trate on his predecessor's favorite target: Nicara- gua. - When Violeta Barrios de Chamorro wrested power from the Sandinistas a year ago, it appeared that Washington was finally going to leave Nicara- gua alone. After a decade of U.S.-sponsored counterinsurgency, which claimed 50,000 Nicara- guan lives and led the World Court to condemn the Reagan administration for mining Nicaraguan har- bors, Nicaraguans looked forward to the peace they believed they had won by voting against the Sandinistas. But it was not to be. Already the third poorest country in the Western hemisphere when the Sandinistas took power in 1979, Nicaragua had slipped further throughout the 1980s under the combined pressures of the CIA-funded contra war and the U.S.-sponsored trade embargo. Although the Bush administration - trying to bribe Nicaragua's voters - promised $300 million in economic aid if Chamorro won the election, little of the money has materialized. Bush has refused to fork the money over be- cause Chamorro, while clearly to the right of the Sandinistas she replaced, is nonetheless a national- ist who refuses to let Washington strap her country over a barrel. Though Chamorro did implement many of the austerity programs demanded by Washington - Nicaragua's national currency, for example, has been devalued over 60 times since last April- she also refused to smash the Sandinistas' trade unions or the Sandinsta-led Army which would have plunged the country back into a civil war. When Chamorro helped forge apact last October pledging thather government, the army, the unions, and employers would work together to pull Nica- ragua back from the brink, Washington responded by turning off the aid spigot and trying to sabotage the agreement. Now that Bush has once again decided to make Nicaragua a cause celebre, the petty harassment is escalating. Earlier this month, Washington began leaning on Soviet President Gorbachev to stop selling the Nicaraguan army spare parts. Hoary stories about the dangers Nicaragua posed to de- mocracy throughout the Central American isthmus were dusted off and given new life. But the only real danger to Nicaraguan democ- racy is the United States. Since 1979, three suc- cessive U.S. presidents have done their best to make sure that the Nicaraguan government's ef- forts to implement literacy programs, health care, enforceable minimum wages, and land reform would all fail. As Bush knows all too well, the only danger Nicaragua poses to U.S. interests is the threat that it will offerexamples of successfully-administered social welfare programs to the other impoverished countries in the hemisphere. Since concepts like profit redistribution and giving the workers a fair shake are anathema to U.S. business interests, countries promoting such programs must be sub- dued. Once again, Washington supports self-deter- mination and social justice selectively, both at home and abroad. Kirsten Mowrey Residential College senior LSA-SG guilty of playing politics Td the Daily: I can't help but wonder why LSA Student Government (LSA- on this campus in a long time. It seems that LSA-SG would have better things to do than to exploit the political climate in order to gain extra free publicity for their event, at the expense of the reputation of a seemingly blame- less academic department. Julie Lyons LSA senior i worthwhile protest. The 60s might not be dead after all. Lee Bowbeer LSA junior Can CC define 'un-American'? To the Daily: As a student with a potential vote to cast, I'd like some clarification on the Conservative Coalition's MSA platform. When you claim you will end funding for "anti-American rallies," how do you propose to define "anti- American?" Will you set up a committee to judge the patriotism of every group that applies for funds? Will you call this body the "MSA Committee on Un- American Activities?" Does the ghost of Joe McCarthy design your campaign posters? Eric Baumann Rackham graduate student 0 TAs shouldn't get pay hikes I by Tom Vestergaard Do TAs really deserve more money? That seems to be the question these days. The TAs seem to think so. We, the students, have to sit there in class and hear it from these so-called "underpaid" TAs. We have to watch them picket in front of student-populated areas. We, the students, are supposed to feel sorry for them. Well, this student is one who does not have much of any compassion for the TAs. I spoke with the picketers last Friday during their protest at the cube. I wanted to hear their point of view and possibly debate with them if our views differed. The TAs seek a pay increase to match inflation and day care for their children. I, as a student, demand a more reasonable tuition rate. Since an increase in the TAs' wages would raise my tuition, we found ourselves on opposite ends of the spectrum. One TA voiced, "But I have kids to think about and I have to I know I bust my butt during the summer and here at college to have enough money for my living expenses, plus tuition. Many guys on my hall work 15 or 20-plus hours a week just to have enough money to survive. And the TAs want me to feel bad because they have to work 12 hours a week? affect TAs, but almost everybody at this University. What I am wondering is how TAs got through undergraduate studies. If they were anything like they are now, it must have been tough focusing on their studies when they were constantly looking for a free ride. 0 The TAs seek a pay increase to match infla- tion and day care for their children. I, as a student, demand a more reasonable tuition rate. Since an increase in the TAs' wages would raise my tuition, we found ourselves on opposite ends of the spectrum. ...... . . . . . . ........... .:":.. I::::...:.....::..... i_ Nuts and Bolts by Judd Winick:'::"::: Bl But, of course, the difference is that the guys on my hall or I do not have children to take care of or support. Well, I also see all those single parents living in University housing. I see them surviving and they even have to . pay for their own tuition. How are they surviving? Probably a lot of hard work and student loans. The TA then voiced, "I have What I am most worried about is that if the TAs get a raise each time we reach a new inflation level, tuition will be driven to a level where it will be impossible for many students to afford. The only stipulation to attending the University of Michigan.will be whether you can afford it or not. 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