4A - The Michigan Daily - Monday, December 4, 1995 fE £idCiuu natilg AMEs M. NASH ON THE RECORD 420 Maynard Street Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan MICHAEL ROSENBERG Editor in Chief JULIE BECKER JAMES M. NASH Editorial Page Editors Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials reflect the opinion of a majority of the Daily's editorial board. All other articles, letters, and cartoons do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Michigan Daily. Speak up Students must p articipate in president fru Most at the University agree that stu- dents must have a say in the selection of their next president. The question now is not whether students will be given this right; the question is whether they will take advan- tage of it. Tonight, the regents will hold a forum for students about the upcoming presi- dential search. Regents encourage students to attend and listen and especially to offer their advice. The regents have rightfully ex- tended the invitation: Now students must decide to take an interest in the future of their institution - or, at the absolute least, to avoid embarrassment. Students must not underestimate the in- fluence the president wields. The president ultimately governs interpretation ofambigu- ous policy such as Bylaw 2.01. The president has the final or most influential word con- cerning issues on which regents vote. And the president sets the tone for the entire University. In effect, the office has such power over student life at the University that student apathy in the selection process is unforgivable. Most students have demonstrated little concern - if not complete apathy - for past administrative issues of vital importance. To demonstrate the consequences of feeble stu- dent response, one need only mention the Code - that dreaded four-letter word that is noW permanent policy. During the three years of the interim policy, students had ample opportunity to express concerns and offer suggestions, but most remained silent. There was a small group of students who spoke loudly and frequently, but it remains the responsibility of every student on campus to speak as an individual. If the students allow a handful of people to do their bidding for them, the resulting policies are nearly guar- anteed to be inadequate and non-representa- tive of all student concerns. That would be the case if the regents selected a University president with input from only elite student "leaders" or a vocal few. Student action is required to preserve and improve the regents' regard for the student voice. Regents are beginning to show long- awaited recognition of student opinion. From last year's appointment of a student repre- sentative to the board to the attempted cre- ation of student forums during code delibera- tions to the current presidential search fo- rums, the regents have demonstrated a will- ingness to sit up straight and pay attention to the student voice. For the student population to decline comment not only would be irre- sponsible, but also would provide little in- centive for the regents to solicit student input in the future. Tonight's student forum will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Kuenzel Room of the Michigan Union. Students may secure speak- ing time in advance by calling the regents' officeat 936-2255, or they may sign in at the door. The Office of the University Secretary is also welcoming written comments. It is the students' turn to take responsibil- ity for the future ofthe University. Left in the hands of a few, the decisions made may not be satisfactory to the majority. But then, of course, students would have no one to blame but themselves. resident Clinton, just II mon from defeat or re-election, has n mitted the bigges gamble of his pre sending US. troops to a farawa) protect vaguely defined America ests" there. Clinton's decision to 32.000 soldiers to Yugoslavia in th enforcing a peace accord coinciden lows a revel ton ii th U in Granada in 1983 was not nccessa tect American students on the isl served only to sho're up Presider Rcag'an's cr dentals among forei1 hawks. The disclosures on Grenada years overdue, ar sobering evid history will not look kindly on an tration whose foreign policy is di instant gratification in public-opin That's not to say Clinton has d thing wrong. lie dchcd pols sayin had no business in Bosnia to affir principles - like our role in p senseless carnage around the wo Clinton chanced , cata:tnr phe in 3 could poison his reaelection prosT of this for -our fundamental va people," Clinton told a sk eptical pr president knew he had a difticultj of him invoking these values to risking U.S. lives in a country w h many Americans can't spell. (i'1 Cibiton must resist the u/g towave the bloody shfrt ths away faces the unenviable task ofleading the most was intimetely involved in planning for the tow com- media-unfriendly sort of war:fought on rug- invasion now admits that it was unneces- esidency: ged terrain whose name practically trans- sary. The Communist-leaning government y land to lates from Serbo-Croatian to "quagmire" that came to power in Grenada had intended n "inter- among combatants who all have blood on to repatriate the Americans without inci- dispatch their hands. Even so, some cynics have sug- dent. But that wasn't enough. Still stinging e name of gested that Clinton is employing that time- from the failure of the American deploy- ntally fol- honored tactic of sending troops abroad to ment in Lebanon the year before. Reagan vasion of rally common folks around the flag and the wanted to show that the United States ry to pro- president. wouldn't be pushed around on the interna- and - it That shouldn't bee too surprising to a tional stage. If trouncing a tinpot Thirld, it Ronald public by now accustomed to leaders using World dictator makes for a convincing show gn-policy the military as just another political tool. of force, Reagan succeeded. But the latest , while 12 George Bush did it in 1989 by invading word on Grenada -- added to older revela- ence that Panama and again in 1991 by invading Iraq. tions aboutthe U.S. role in supplyingarmsto adminis- The latter endeavor flooded the American Iran and Iraq and propping up the corrupt, ctated by body politic with a rush of patriotic adrena- drug-peddling Panamanian government - ion polls. line that had sufficently waned by the 1992 show Reagan as less ofa Cold War hero than done any- election to see Bush out of office. Bush's once thought. g the U.S. strategy in the Persian Gulf war was per- Clinton is now putting personal and na- rm higher fectly calibrated to the political mood of the tional prestige on the line in the former reventing time,andit pushedhispopularity rating over Yugoslavia. While his motives seem most )rld. And 90 percent. But the gains were so much a noble, Clinton can't help but feel the tug of osnia that desert mirage, gone by sunset. public opinion on every military consider- pects. All Reagan's luck had lasted longer - 12 ation in the Balkans. Only as long as that pull lues as a years to be precise - in the afterglow of guides him toward a prudent middle ground ublic. The Granada. The president ordered the invasion -and not toward dishonest posturing about ob ahead of the Caribbean island ostensibly to rescue phony American "interests" - should justify a a contingent of American students stranded Clinton be swayed. ose name there when a leftist government seized power. - James Nash can be reached over e- nton now But a Reagan adminsitration official who mail atjnash(,zumnich.edu I JIM L A HEY!I W5 E AiE SER SHARP AS TOAST HIXTJ - i w NOTABLE QUOTABLE '... Newt Gingrich is really the Republican Party ...everybody is either a femi- newtle or a newtold, and if they vote Republican they are getting. Newt.' - Retiring US. Rep. Patricia Schroeder (D- Colo.) Caught in a bind Clinton right to compromise on defense bill LETTERS In an compromise to provide funding and congressional support for deploying troops in Bosnia, President Clinton signed the de- fense spending bill last week. While the bill clearly contains excessive spending for un- necessary projects, signing it was Clinton's only real choice under bad circumstances. Among other provisions, the bill desig- nates $2.4 billion for eight cargo planes, $2.2 billion for F-22 fighter planes and $3.4 bil- lion for missile defenses. The president has made it clear that these projects are no longer needed for the nation's defense. The billions of dollars would be better spent to fund domestic programs currently being slashed by the GOP-led Congress. In the spirit of compromise, GOP leaders did say they would consider softening cuts in domestic initia- tives such as education, job training and the environment. While such concessions are hopeful, they do not excuse the shameful politicking that linked the defense bill to Bosnia. The two issues should have remained separate, and the efforts of leaders on both sides of the aisle to connect them amount to playing games with the nation's foreign policy priorities. Clinton apparently signed the bill to avoid bitter partisan confrontation in the debate over the Bosnia mission. This conciliatory measure correctly shows where the foreign poicy priorities lie. For Congress not to support the Bosnian mission could tie the president's hands - with disastrous conse- quences. The opportunity for peace in Bosnia will be greatly enhanced with the help of the NATO peacekeeping initiative. The legiti- macy of the NATO alliance also hangs in the balance of full U.S. commitment in Bosnia. Many critics argue that the president should have rejected the compromise-they claim not only that the defense bill is a disaster for the nation, but also that Clinton could have achieved his goals in Bosnia without it. However, given the thin congres- sional support for the Bosnian mission, fears of its collapse are entirely justified. With the president publicly and irreversibly dedicated to U.S. action in Bosnia, the political risks of not signingthe defense bill-the document's flaws notwithstanding - were too large. Clinton faced the unfortunate possibility of losing his Bosnia goals to haggling over defense dollars. Pragmatism thus guided the compromise to provide funding for Bosnia. Considering the prospects for a bruising battle over the federal budget, compromise on both sides of the aisle, as well as between the White House and Congress, is desper- ately needed. The overzealous GOP majority should heed Democratic concerns over do- mestic spending cuts. The defense spending bill doles out more money than the Pentagon requested. With the end of the Cold War, while it is important for the United States to remain the strongest force for peace in the world, excessive spending for defense tech- nology only impairs the domestic vitality of the nation. The signing of the defense bill, however unfortunate, must not be viewed in isolation. It is a part of the ongoing budget-balancing process, and was key to the U.S. Bosnian mission. The president did the only the only thing he could have done - even if it went against his principles. The priorities of foreign policy today are in Bosnia. Support Latino/a studentsg g i rocketed. Dockers and501 Jeans in par- ticular became hot sellers, with advertising campaigns promot- ing their style, fashionability and comfort luxuries never allowed boycott tothe workers whoproduce these articles ofclothing. Instead, what To the Daily: they end up with is carpal tunnel This upcoming January will syndrome, layoffs and denial of mark thesixth anni\ crsaryofLe vi benefits. Strauss & Co.'s closing of their In support of the displaced Zarzamora Street Dockers plant, workers, Alianza is organizing a ultimatel leavin more than cut-off Levi's tag mail-in, as part 1,150 ('hicanaMeiana Latina of a nationwide call to action. workers uncmployed while de- Before you leave for break, or nying many others benefits and while you are at home for the compensation. holidays, take a minute to cut off These dis:aced women work- yourtags from Levi's 501 s, Dock- ers organized l uerza Unida to ers, Brittania, Officers Corp, Sil- win back pay owed to them. as ver Tab and Bend Over jeans. well as compensation for work- WritealetterinsupportofFuerza related injuries. such as carpal Unida. tunnel syndrome. Finally, don't purchase Levi's They hae established aid for products, either foryourselforas displaced workters testified to gifts to others. Congress about poor working Please, call Levi's at 1-800- conditionsexploitationiorwomen USA-LEVI and let them know and violations of chili la bor laws that you support Fuerza Unida. and filed two lawsuits against Send your cut-off tags and letters L S&C, in addition to launching a of support to Alianza, the Latina; boycott against L exi's prod ucts. o Student Alliance, 4319 Michi- During the same fie-year gan Union, Ann Arbor, Ml48109, time span, LS&C has seen heir or through e-mail at sales grow to over $5 bilion al mesa.directiva@umich.edu. We the while refusing to negotiate are collecting the cut off tags as with Fuerna Unida. well as letters of support through- Presentil, Le i's claims that out the next month. 260 workers left by early retire- Then, in January 1996-- on ment, 270 remained employed. the sixth anniversary of the 318 found other jobs and 170 Zarzamora Street plant closing received education or training. - we will mail in all our col- But that is not the whole story. lected tags and letters of support The abrupt closing of the to Levi Strauss & Co., demon- Zarzamora St. plant devastated a strating the wide-reaching scope whole community: not just the of Fuerza Unida's boycott and lives of the workers but those of reminding Levi's such injustices the area busein s who re liedon against Chicanaand Latina work- their wages.the well-being of their ers in the name of greater profit families, the care and education margins are not permissible. of their children n hirftrs Levi's doen't telltewoesty Wayne Alejandro Wolbert nor do their numbrs nie uS a RC junior compl Co-Chair, ALIANZA: The I1wn tlih tme sincLevi's skht lown r hy; i:r'anLtheiru)rofits skv- Laino/a Student Alliance 1 1L }1* 1 i t r f s S V S (t M t e S Il e d s it Law school questionnaire offends alum To the Daily: Law School Dean Jeffrey S. Lehmanjust sent me a copy of the Law School Class of 1979 sur- vey, which offended and dis- gusted me. How much money do you make, how big a firm are you with, how quickly did you make partner, just how big of a bigshot are you now? ls that really what Michigan Law was and still is all about? I forgot how alienated I was from the arrogance, rigidity, competi- tiveness, authoritarianism, mate- rialismandconformism I thought I saw in my instructors and co- horts. Apparently Dean Lehman's agenda now is to rekindle that alienation, and to point out to me how errantly out of proper ca- dence I have chosen to live the last 16 years of my life. What purpose was this Class of 1979 survey supposed to have served? What are you trying to do to me, Dean Lehman? E. Kenneth Snyder LSA '71, Law '79 Fix classism: Cancel class To the Daily: There is a serious problem on campus. It is classism. It is with us every day, except weekends. The University of Michigan en- courages this problem. Especially at this time of year, when not only are there classes today, but we have to think of classes for next year. There is but one solution to this dangerous predicament. The administration must cancel classes for the rest of the semes- ter. Time is not on our side in this struggle. The administration must act now. Russ Abrutyn LSA senior Complaints about football seating policy unconvincing To the Daily: As I read "Football seating policy breeds confusion" in the Nov. 30 issue of the Daily, I was moved to tears by the author. Imagine, purchasing a ticket of admission for any event and be- ing forced to sit in your assigned seat. The shame of it all! And to have the nerve to come and claim the seat rightfully as- signed to you that has been paid for by you and finding that it has already been usurped by some- one wishing to be with their friends - why, the gall of the person deserving the assigned seat! It seems to me that this "pro- posed" policy can be used in other venues such as smoking in a no- smoking section of a restaurant because your friends are there or crowding 12 people intothe room of a hospitalized person because you are their friend. I thought college was a time to put away your childish behav- ior and assume the role of an adult in this world, accepting the responsibilities of that role. Per- haps I'm mistaken. Dan LaBumbard Information Technology Division staff How TO CONTACT THEM Send written comments about the presidential search to: WHAT'S AFFECTING 'U' THIS WEEK E I''