4
Monday, October 17, 1988 / University Daily Kansan
Opinion
0111111 5.5
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Two to 10 minutes is also how much slower the KU police say their response time is to some emergencies on campus because of traffic and other factors.
Expansion of 911 service expensive, but necessary
Two to 10 minutes in an emergency can mean the difference between life and death.
Residents at Jayhawk Towers, Stouffer Place and Sunflower Apartments must have their 911 emergency calls channeled through the Lawrence Police Department, which then notifies campus police of the emergency. This delay is unnecessary and potentially fatal if someone required attention two to 10 minutes sooner than help could arrive.
The delay is caused because campus telephones at these locations use Southwestern Bell instead of the University telephone system. Except for pay telephones, other telephone campus directly connect to KU police when 911 is dialed.
The telecommunications planning committee decided not to include these areas when the University switched to a separate telephone system in July 1987. That mistake, made by the former housing director, J. Wilson, created the problem.
Ken Stoner, the current housing director, said installing direct 911 service to KU police in these areas depended on how soon the University's phone system could be equipped with the additional capacity to route the emergency calls.
Although the incidence of rape on campus hasn't noticeably risen recently, the rumors of rapes on campus have risen drastically.
And so has fear.
The approximately 1,880 tenants living in these locations now use a different number, 844-6100, to obtain emergency help. The remaining 936 tenants live in emergency. But in situations where a life is in danger these tenants would only waste time dialing 911 because of the delay
University housing officials took some action to curb the rumors by giving residents of Gertrude Sellars Pearson-Corbin Residence Hall information sheets that listed one reported abuse and told sexual assault or attempted assault on campus this semester.
Stoner said one of housing's objectives is to convert these locations into the University system.
Carrying out that request today would cost approximately $40 could also save lives. Saving lives makes it worth the price.
Lighting is way to ease fear
Tony Balandran for the editorial board
LI. Jeanne Longaker, KU police spokesman, said that the rape had been reported in the GSP-Corbon area Sept. 19.
The best way to accomplish that is what the University has been overlooking for years: install more lights
The only place on campus with close to adequate lighting is Jayhawk Boulevard. The darkest and scariest places on campus at night are any of the sidewalks one must take to enter the stadium. In addition, the GSP-Corbin and Memorial Stadium also are noxiously lighted.
The unhilarious sheet may have squeaked some wild rumor that the reported rape, but it doesn't make students feel any safer.
Dimly it areas or areas not lighted at all only increase the possibility of an assault. The fear of being assaulted on campus is one of the reasons for this.
Christine Martin for the editorial board
What is the University waiting for? *If* isn't fear enough? *Let's* hope that it doesn't take a grisly crime to persuade officials to stop it.
The editorials in this column are the opinion of the editorial board.
The editorial board consists of Michael Merschel, Mark Tillford, Todd Cohen, Michael Harak, Julie Adum, Jay McMahon, Tony Goffe.
News staff
Todd Cohen...Editor
Michael Horak...Managing editor
Jill Adams...Associate editor
Stephen Wade...News editor
Michael Merschel...Editorial editor
Nail Gordon...Campus editor
Craig Anderson...Sports editor
Scott Carpenter...Photo editor
Dave Eames...Graphics editor
Jil Jones...Art Features editor
Tom Ebn...General manager
Business staff
Greg Knipp Business manager
Debra Cole. Retail sales manager
Chris Cooper Campus sales manager
Linda Procton National sales manager
Kurt Messerramm Promotions manager
Sarah Higdon Marketing manager
Brad Lenhart Production manager
Michelle Garland Asst. production manager
Michelle Glasser Marketing manager
Jeanne Hines Sales and marketing adviser
Letters should be typed, double-spaced and less than 200 words and must include the following information: *Name* is affirmed with the University of Kansas, please include class home or hometown, or *Address*.
Guest questions should be typed, double-spaced and less than 700 words. The writer will be photographed.
The Kanian reserves the right to reject or edit the newsletters, guest columns. They can be mailed or brought to the Kanian newsletter. 111 Staffer-Fint Hall. The manuscript is the writer's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the University. Daily Kanian. Editorials are the opinion of the Kanian editorial board.
The University Daily Kansan (USSP 650-640) is published at the University of Kansas, 118 Stuffman-Staff Hall, Lawrence, Kan. 60045, daily during the regular weekdays. The University Daily Kansan is posted Wednesday during the summer session. Second-class postage is paid in Lawrence, Kan. 60044 Annual subscription by mail are $350 Student subscription by mail are $29.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to the University Daily Kansan, 110
Staffer FInl Hall, Lawrence, Kan. 66045
"HE'S NOT HEAVY...
HE'S MY RUNNING MATE.
KLiNe
An easy way to make a difference But if you don't vote,don't complain,because talk is cheap
Nov. 8, all things considered, is going to be a pretty important day for this country. It is a day that will affect our nation for years, perhaps decades, to come.
On that long-awaited day, the multitudes of the U.S. electorate, such as it is, are scheduled to rise up and issue forth a sweeping mandate for change, ushering in the candidate of their choice for four at the helm of our nation. Sort of takes your break away to think about it, huh? I know *I*'m *excited*.
Oct. 18, all things considered, is another very important day, because if you do not register to vote by then, you will not be able to claim your vote, place among the aforementioned multitudes.
In other words, if you don't register by tomorrow, you can't vote in the election
A lot of you probably are saying, "Who cares?" Perhaps the issues, or lack thereof, in this campaign bore you to sleep. Maybe you don't care for either presidential candidate.
Kelly Milligan
Guest columnist
Why? Because everybody, at one time or another, is unhappy with our elected officials and government.
Vote anywav.
Maybe you think taxes are too high or that underloans are too large. Perhaps you think it would be better to get out of the country or stand up to terrorists. You might like it if the state gave this university money. Perhaps you don't have that kind of money.
Well remember: You can talk about it all you want, but if all you do is talk, don't be bitter about it.
The only sure way to change things is to register and vote. Your vote is the best way to let your elected officials know how you feel about the issues on your ballot. You can tell that information, they can't really do much for you.
As young people, we have a vested interest in voting. Maybe if more 18- to 24-year-olds had voted a few years ago, state legislators would have thought twice about raising the drinking age. If
more students vote this year, maybe this university won't have to fight for education to obtain enough seats.
We all have things we want to see changed and
we issues we want to see addressed. But because we,
as 18 to 24 year-olds, are notoriously bad about
their behavior, our officials are not as
concerned with what we want.
Only when our generation becomes determined to make a change will they hear us and respond. There are a lot of us, certainly enough that we could make our voices heard if we chose to do so.
I'm not talking about a revolution, anarchy or any other pseudo-intellectual stuff of that nature. It's your right. You should exercise it. But until now, you have to live in every subsequent election brings more of the same.
You can register to vote between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. today and tomorrow in the Burge Union bookstore. If something about our government displeases you, you should go register.
Then go to the polls and vote Tuesday, Nov. 8.
Kelly Milligan is a Topeka senior majoring in journalism. He is campus director for the Associated Students of Kansas.
He'll drop before he needs to shop again
Besides, it's much more fun watching original Zoot Suits come back in style
The newspapers, TV stations and disc jockeys have become giddy about the store's arrival.
I still haven’t figured out why it is a big deal that Bloomingdale’s, the New York department store, sells these.
The silliness may have peaked when a gusy reporter from the New York Times called and asked if the writer had ever heard of her.
I explained to her that although certain activities excite me, most of which I would not describe to a respectable woman, the opening of a Blooming-dale's is not one of them.
Furthermore, I said, this is not Wyoming. We already have enough famous, high-priced stores in Utah to keep them going. We coke-sniffing pork-belly trader in town, as well as their wives, mistresses or any other sex objects of ours.
Not easily discouraged, the New York reporter
says, "Are you going to go shop at Bloomingdale's?"
"No," I said
"Because I don't shop."
Syndicated columnist
Because I don't shop.
"Everybody shops," she said.
Mike Royko
"Everybody shops," she "Nature takes care of us."
"Not me. I do not shop."
An interesting question. So I explained
"Then how do you get your clothes?"
About five years ago, I was in my closest looking for something to wear that did not have gravity.
As I searched the cluttered room, I realized that all enough garments and shoes in open a men's shop.
That's because I never throw any clothes away.
have suits, shoes, leathers, slacks and shirts that
are more than 25 years old
Some of the trousers are worn thin in the waist, if you wear shorts. You can put them on all of the jacket sleeves have holes at the elbows. You can get a leather patch worn on for a few buckets, then pose as a
Most of the shoes have holes at the bottom. But in dry weather it doesn't matter. And for winter we Luigi, my neighborhod shemahrer, give a few pair a rehab.
As I went through this ancient but vast ward robe, counting each item, digging some out from under old luggage, something remarkable occurred to me.
After making the count, I called an actuary anay-
ased him how long I could expect to live. He said,
based on my personal habits, a few minutes or
a week, based on his statistical tables.
A few more decades.
I did mental calculations: How many shirts per year, those shirts, slacks, sweaters, jackets
And I realized that even if I lived to a ripe,eniancr, old age, I would never again have a buy
I even set aside my least-shiny suit and a shirt
with a study collar to be buried in. (However, that won't be necessary, because I have since redone my will, instructing my wife to stuff my remains in a hospital bag for the sanitation department for a special pickup.)
One of the benefits of having all these old clothes is that every few years, some of them come back in style. If I could find my original Zool Suit, bought it myself, I'd stick to the street, Street, I'd be a sensation in the Hard Rock Cafe.
On the other hand, one of the disadvantages is that if I frequently do look like a burn. However, it doesn't matter if you are a burning one, if you look as rumpled and frayed as usual, you don't be likely to be mugged. In fact, when I walk on a street, people who see me may fear me, because to the other side, fearing I might mug them.
Anyway, I explained all this to the New York reporter. Being clever, she said, "Yes, but what about socks and undergarments. You have to shop for them."
Not so. My wife buys them for me, although my favorite brands are becoming harder to find with the rise in plastic content.
Sandra amazed, the reporter said. "You're the first person I ever talked to who never shops. 1 shop."
So I told her that I wasn't being entirely truthful. So I told her that I sometimes买机票 at a laundromat.
"Ah," the reporter said, "you do shop after all"
Of course. I said. I have loved ones, and I have to
wear clothes for Christmas and birthdays.
■ Mike Royko is a syndicated columnist who writes
for the Chicago Tribune.
BLOOM COUNTY
by Berke Breathed