Page 4-The Michigan Daily-Tuesday, April 2,1991
~be Bibijun1~a4I
420 Maynard Street
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
Edited and Managed
by Students at the
University of Michigan
ANDREW K. GOTTESMAN
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.
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Conservatives:f"?} should";. ., hold%. to campaign} r r p romises, refo::v.:.:Y:Y: a:rm MSA:.Y:r::
Last week, the Conservative Coalition (CC) won
14 out of 24 seats in the Michigan Student
Assembly elections, as well as capturing the ex-
ecutive leadership positions for the next year. It is
now time for these elected representatives to enact
the needed changes and work to implement the
promises of their campaign.
Unfortunately, CC's actions in the past have
not been exemplary of a party that campaigned on
"getting things done" - in fact, for the past two
years, CC representatives on the assembly-many
of whom were re-elected last wva
week - have earned a reputa- .~~
tion for calling early quorumss
and adjourning meetings early.
At the same time, it is these CC y
representatives who continually
complain that MSA does not do
anything. Now that CC has
greatly increased its power on
the assembly, it is imperativeu
that these new reps align their
ideas and actions to abolish their
historic hypocrisy. These con-
servative public servants do not
have a good reputation for ad-
ministrative efficiency, and
must make great efforts to ful-
fill their campaign promises if
they want that reputation
changed.
In an interview with the Green
Daily, MSA President-Elect
Green claimed that his top three
priorities were reorganizing MSA's bureaucracy,
bringing MSA funds back to students, and better
communication between MSA and the other stu-
dent governments. All three of these areas desper-
. ately need to be addressed.
MSA's current bureaucracy is a disaster. There
-are five committees, and eight commissions, each
with budgets in the thousands of dollars. The Peace
and Justice Commission is a good example - the
commission, when not issuing arcane statements
on U.S. foreign policy, contents itself with funding
any anti-establishment propaganda it can get passed.
Much of the funding for Students Against U.S.
Intervention In The Middle East (SAUSI) was
supplied by the Peace and Justice Commission,
despite uproar from dissenting representatives,
who argued that the assembly should not be so
closely aligned with a student activist movement.
Regardless of the legitimacy of the viewpoints
expressed, such committees could be severed from
MSA with little grief, and less harm to the student
body as a whole.
MSA also needs to reevaluate it funding pri-
orities. While the Academic Affairs Commission
was given a mere $500 for fiscal year 1990-91, the
Peace and Justice Commission had a budget three
times that amount, and the
Student Rights Commission-
that supposedly advocates stu-
dent concerns at the Univer-
sity, - spent $2,665 on anti-
deputization protests. Mean-
while, MSA continues to fork
over approximately $25,000
each year to the University
administration for a loan fi-
nanced several years ago to
rescue the assembly from a
$60,000 deficit. Certainly, stu-
dents' money could be put to
better uses than supporting
radical partisan viewpoints,
both on the left and the right.
The new CC leadership should
take care to avoid the partisan
politics that have plagued the
assembly for the past year.
Most importantly, since
students are paying MSA's
bills, they deserve to have a say as to what the
money is spent on. President-elect Green has
claimed that only $27,000 of MSA's budget - in
excess of $500,000 - comes back to the students.
Green and newly-elected CC cohorts should move
to correct this inequality by going out of their way
to solicit student feedback, and students' sugges-
tions as to how MSA could better serve all of the
students on this campus.
CC was elected on a platform of MSA reform.
Green and his team are now in the position to either
make those desperately needed reforms, or destroy
the last remains of respect that students may still
have for their student government.
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Readers respond to Greek Week attac
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Readers respond to Greek. Week attack.
TthDal:adtemblztoof1,0AtakIn reply to the letter March 28, people in a fundraising activity Atc pa rano id,
1991, titled "Greek Week Only cannot be overlooked. Greeks on 'factually barren'
Another Hypocrisy," several this campus recognize the efforts
accusations that Wagner and that other organizations make To the Daily:
Foote made need to be addressed toward philanthropy, with many, I am writing in response to the
and corrected. in fact, being members of those 3/28/91 letter "Greek Week only
First, their assertion that Greek philanthropic groups. Nobodyantehyors.Teser
Week is the only "humanitarian" seems to care that Greeks are another hypocsy.' The sheer
act a fraternity or a sorority members of Safewalk, S.W.A.T. audacity Deon Wagner and
member takes part in is com- Hunger, SAPAC, and countless pKristain Foote demonstrated in
pletely baseless. Individually, other groups, not to mention preaching on a subject which they
many Greek members just like Alpha Phi Omega, whose main obviously know nothing about left
non-Greek members actively purpose is to provide philan- de thyrmunly soutrtereand
participate in volunteer work that thropic services to other organiza- self-righteously assert that
is challenging, rewarding and tions in need. whatever form of volunteer work
beneficial to the community. However, the efforts as a wte orsmeowoler than
Secondly, the assumption that combined system cannot beathey do somehow nobler than
volunteer work is not required of ignored either. Not only did that which the Greek community
the pledges is another incorrect Greek Week raise a considerable performs!
misconception. Most fraternity amount of money, but it did so in Their comments were intellec-
and sorority houses individually just one week. Organizing 10,000 tually desolate and paranoid in the
sponsor philanthropic events people is not a simple task, and extreme. Their childish emm-
throughout the year that members each Steering Committee works bership in a Greekhouse isn't
are required to participate in. intensely to ensure its success in worthy of my scorn. My house, Pi
Perhaps Wagner and Foote are philanthropy and enjoyment. Kappa Phi, admits men solely on
unaware that most Greek houses In addition, Greek Week is not Kpars amitnmersole s'
each have a particular philan- the only philanthropy that Greeks personal merit, not their "parents'
fo09yatheat ardscu r~hiln- h ly i tp tht reks income tax statements." A person
thropy that they support. do all year. For the other 51 cncome xsabte n myeso
Finally, the cheap remarks of weeks, chapters individually raise can become a brother inmy
Greeks with "shallow conversa- money and give time to and for fraternity no matter how thin his
tion" and "wooden paddles" again numerous charities. Adding up all wallet may be.
demonstrates the lack of sub- the money that Michigan fratemi- If Wagner and Foote are so
stance of Wagner's and Foote's ties and sororities raise in a year concerned about help g the less
claims. It is quite easy to fall back equates a sum of over $500,000, toeytnate whatever income tey
on Revenge of the Nerds cliches not to mention the countless hours have to charity in addition to
when trying to ignore the facts put in on other service projects. performing volunteer work?
that no sorority house on campus These are figures not to be Wouldn't meetin euirements
may incorporate any type of slouched at. Yet, since we ask for suhdastheetn reaumremesocal
hazing in their pledge program no press or recognition for any dsuchabltesperonaltyr itsla
and it is only a small number of other efforts throughout the ya, theirabprsnlir sthanto
fraternities who participate in the Wagner and Foote choose to attitudes and shallow, seudo-
mattress" or "hockey stick" type ignore them.titecalfatallywbapsen
antics they described. Citations of the "date rapes interwiectua, factually barren
As Wagner and Foote chal- and drunken brawls" on this letters wit ktohe Daily r
lenged Greek system members to campus are not made, yet the Greek Week deserves every
disprove their accusations, I accusations remain, unsupported bit of publicity it gets because it
challenge them to open their eyes as they are. In addition, "white represents the concentrated effort
to the proof and the truth. wash" obviously intended to of hundreds and hundreds of men
nd wn t b h--fit hnity W
comment on the racial composi- dontdoit for self-aggranize-
Catherine Obeid tion of the system. These refer- men t, noi or se agttemptet
Engineering senior ences are insults to the Greek "whitenowash" tepicWto i
member, Alpha Delta Pi community when they go unsup bease wh menwish tohe te sc W
sorority ported and undocumented. This is fortunae!w iht eptels
G reek s' ch arity just aoteriexaleofl Wgnereoy -Every semester our pledges
ind Foote isitou. slereort- raise hundreds of dollars for
work goes all year ins Gre int oe asic cat- various charities. These activities
V egory. There are members of the are mirrored by the members of
Grek sse of all races and other houses on campus on a daily
To the Daily: religions and this backhanded basis. Since when is membership
In response to the letter comment is just another faulty . in a Greek house and volunteer
entitled "Greek Week only point that the authors used in their activity mutually exclusive?
another hypocrisy" appearing on argument. Perhaps if Wagner and Foote
3/28/91, I would like to point out Greek Week is an activity that took the time to ask around in
some of the inaccuracies and everyone enjoys, and the money whatever volunteer organizations
faulty logic that its authors used and time are considerable and to which they belong, they would
to rip into the Greek system, in deserve recognition - alongside realize that the Greeks they so
addition to providing some the recognition that the other despise work along side them.
enlightening commentaries about charitable groups deserve as well. Wagner and Foote owe the
the Greek system that the authors It's not tokenism and it's not Wge n ot w h
e re fsed toa kn w ath"forced" activt. 's fun and it's entire Greek community an
mayberfehdtknwaciiyItfuanis apology for their idiotic letter.
The first point the authors philanthropy, and that cannot be We're waiting.
made regarded media coverage. too difficult to comprehend.
The fact of the matter is that the Michael Cevallos
Greek system at the University of Ryan Schreiber LSA senior
Michigan encompasses 25 percent LSA senior member, Pi Kappa Phi
of our undergraduate population,
Good riddance to Throughout the many years we
'Dooder State' have had the pleasure of reading
this remarkable paper, the one
central attraction has been the D o nt
To the Daily: comic strip Nuts and Bolts. Along
So Dooder State College is with Calvin and Hobbes, this comic
finally getting canned. Good for the strip has been our reason for lik e
Daily. It's about time that irritating picking the Daily up off the seat
trash was removed. Did anyone next to us in class. Once in our
besides the author ever read it? I possession, the many informative w h at
doubt it. and interesting articles contained
within have caught our attention.
Paul Dodd The problem we have with the
Rackham graduate student paper is "Dooder State College" on
- . - - - - then nann ti nfrAnna- A wh ,..rA n te wi.
Congressional crook
Sen. Riegle should resign after
S lightly more than a month ago, the U.S. Senate
slapped Michigan Sen. Donald Riegle's wrist
for his role as one of the infamous Keating Five.
Last Friday, it became clear that the reprimand he
received - as punishment for taking kickbacks
from a failing savings and loan - was not nearly
severe enough.
During the Keating hearings in February, Riegle.
defended his record as chair of the powerful Senate
Banking Committee by insisting that he had a long
history of advocating tougher regulations for the
chaotic savings and loan industry.
But Riegle's idea of toughness is proving rather
selective. Bribes masking as hefty campaign con-
tributions from the likes of Charles Keating were
enough to bend Riegle's supposedly tough principles
at an even heftier cost to American taxpayers.
Now information has surfaced that Riegle's lax
behaviortoward Keating's bank was preceded by an
equally suspicious intervention on behalf of Biscayne
Savings & Loan - an insolvent Florida thrift - in
1983. When the government took control of
Biscayne, Riegle protested - despite clear evi-
dence that keeping the bank in business would cost
taxpayers additional millions to pay for an even
more expensive bailout.
latest Savings & Loan scandal
As with the Keating case, Riegle's protest on
behalf of Biscayne was also a protest on behalf of a
big campaign contributor. The only difference, as
economist George Bentson has noted, is that the
Biscayne case represents an even "more blatant"
abuse of the public trust. Former Federal Reserve
Board general counsel John Hawke, echoing
Bentson, called it "outrageous."
Given the current state of the S&L mess, Riegle's
action is worse than outrageous - it is stealing,
plain and simple. As the Resolution Trust Corpo-
ration - the federal agency charged with cleaning
up this extremely expensive disaster- prepares to
take on an additional 225 insolvent thrifts this year,
estimates ofthe total cost ofthe cleanup are climbing
above $1 trillion.
Taxpayers will have to pay this bill, largely
because senators like Riegle were more interested
in lining their own pockets than in watching the
bottom line. Riegle has thereby forfeited his right to
represent the citizens he claims to serve and protect.
If he cannot recognize as much on his own by
resigning from the Senate, he should be impeached
by his colleagues and subsequently placed on trial
- as any normal citizen involved in similar thiev-
ery would be.
The Daily encourages responses from its readers. Letters should
be 150 words or less and include the author's name, year in
school, and phone number. They can be mailed to The Michigan
Daily, 420 Maynard, Ann Arbor, 48109, or they can be sent via
MTS to "The Michigan Daily." The Daily reserves the right to
edit letters for style and space.
Nuts and Bolts
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