FEATURES
The performing group Chen and Dancers uses its art to educate. Page 4B.
CAMPUS
KJHK's student sports director resigned recently when his nonstudent status was discovered. Page 5A.
SUNNY High 57° Low 42° Weather: Page 2A.
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VOL.104.NO.61
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
ADVERTISING: 864-4358
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 1994
Now in her third term in the U.S. Senate, Nancy Kassebaum has earned a reputation as a thoughtful and independent legislator not given to knock-down, drag-out battles with colleagues. The reputation is deserved, observers say. Whether
Yumi Chikamori / KANSAN
she's working to overcome a presidential veto or pushing for an overhaul of the welfare system, her modus operandi has always
been ...
(USPS 650-640)
IRRESISTIBLE PERSISTENCE
Nancy Kassebaum sits down in her office for a meeting with Peter Coors, CEO of Coors Brewing Company.
Story by David Wilson
Coors, 47, and his two assistants begin to tell Kassebaum about their company's efforts to curb underage drinking.
Suddenly, Kassebaum's expression changes. She remembers the time when the drinking age was 18 in Kansas but 21 in Missouri. Teenagers from Missouri crossed the border to buy beer, she tells her guests. The practice left behind a trail of mangled metal and mangled bodies.
"There were just all kinds of horrible accidents," she says with a motherly gaze, leaning forward in her chair.
Coors squirms in his chair and sits wordlessly for a moment. His assistants look down and shuffle their papers.
As CEO of the third-largest brewing company in America, Peter Coors is used to hearing about the irresponsible use of his company's products. But this time, with the observation coming from Kassebaum, he isn't about to respond.
Kassebum, 62, is a 5-foot-2-inch wren of a woman whose calm, disairing meeanor stays unruffled amidst the overpowering swirl of activity in the Senate office building. She operates behind a wall of good will so thick that she can afford to make politically uncalculated remarks in front of beer barons looking for political support.
Now in her third term in the Senate, Kassebaum has earned a reputation as an independent and thoughtful politician who avoids mudslinging, posturing and
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media sound-bite battles.
With her moderate stance and low profile, Kassebaum contrasts sharply with Kansas' nationally known senior senator, likely new majority leader and all-around pit bull, Bob Dole.
And to think that the University of Kansas might have had her for a chancellor
This summer, when Gene Budig resigned as chancellor of KU to become president of baseball's American League, Kassebaum's name came up as a replacement.
But after a brief flurry of media speculation, Kassebaum asked the search committee not to consider her for the position, citing her lack of a doctoral degree as the reason.
"It was tempting," Kassebaum said. "But I knew that not having a Ph.D. was of some concern in the academic community."
Too much concern,some said.
Members of the search committee deny that Kassebaum was ever snubbed this summer.
"At no time was there any discussion about any individual candidate, and that includes Sen. Kassebaum," said T. P. Srinivasan, professor of mathematics and a member of the search committee.
demic credentials — not Kassebaum's — that prompted her not to seek the position.
In outposts of academia like KU, the editorial said, "the tendency is to value academic credentials above all else — above a superior intellect, above meaningful experience in one of the world's toughest political arenas, and above the respect of men and women of substance all over the world."
However it happened, KU may have blown an opportunity to send in a giant to do battle with the illiputians of the state legislature, said Roger Myers, a reporter and columnist for the Topeka Capital Journal.
"She is fiercely independent. She strives for
common
common ground. "
Edward Kennedy U.S. senator,D-Mass.
"They've lost a really effective spokesperson," he said. "I don't think they could have done better."
Following in footsteps
Kassebaum was born to politics. Her father, Alf Landon, governor of Kansas from 1933 to 1937, won the Republican nomination to run for president in 1936. He lost in a landslide to Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Like his daughter, Landon didn't hesitate to buck the party line. He once infuriated fellow Republicanists by supporting the unsuccessful 1924 gubernatorial bid of William Allen White, editor of the Emporia Gazette, who was running for governor because the Republican and Democratic candidates would not take a stand against the Klu Klux Klan.
Like his daughter, Landon didn't
See KANSAS SENATOR Page 8A.
Complaint filed against Parking Department
Ex-employee claims she was discriminated against because she was white and disabled
By Ashley Miller Kansan staff writer
A former employee of the KU Parking Department has accused the department and its employees of discrimination.
Doris Fisher, former office assistant and dispatcher for the Parking Department, filed a complaint with the Kansas Human Rights Commission Sept. 8, claiming that the department discriminated against her because of her race and her disability.
Fisher said that she had blood clots in her legs which kept her from walking long distances. Fisher, who worked at the department for 15 years, said she resigned from the department in August because she thought her supervisors were planning to fire her.
"Maybe I was silly to leave, but I knew they weren't going to stop," she said.
Fisher said that she filed the complaint after receiving several written reprimands from her supervisor for making personal phone calls, making racial comments and using the men's restroom when the women's room was locked. Other employees who did the same thing were not reprimanded, she said. Fisher claims she was targeted by the department because she was white and disabled.
The complaint Fisher filed is against the entire Parking Department and does not list the names of her supervisors, but in an interview, Fisher said Donna Hutline, assistant director of the department, and Don Kearns, department director, were aware of problems in the department and overlooked them.
Hultine declined to comment about the allegations. Kearns could not be reached for comment.
The Human Rights Commission, comprised of seven members chosen by the governor, will investigate Fisher's complaint for probable cause that the Kansas Act Against Discrimination was violated, said Brandon Myers, chief counsel for the commission.
However, Myers said it wasn't likely that the investigation would begin for at least four months.
If the commission does find probable cause, the commission first will try to settle the case through a conference involving both parties, he said. If it cannot be settled, the case will proceed to a public hearing in front of the commission.
If the commission does not find any probable cause, the case still could go to court.
Myers said the commission was required by law to notify the Parking Department of Fisher's complaint within seven days of the filing date. Myers said the department was notified within the limit.
Donna Hultine, assistant director of the parking department, said Karen Dutcher from University General Counsel was handling the complaint on behalf of the parking department. Dutcher was not available for comment yesterday.
The Kansas men's volleyball club team will play a match against Kansas State after the women's match tonight.
Page1B.
Downtown odors can be hard on the nose
By Manny Lopez Kansan staff writer
On occasion, a not-so-pleasant smell floats through the downtown air.
"The possibility of unknown smells is endless," said Julie Greene, district environmental administrator for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. "We had not received complaints about that smell last week, but I noticed it too."
Boresow said the sewage-like smell almost made her sick as she walked around downtown last weekend. The smell lingered around the New Hampshire and Massachusetts streets area for most of Friday night.
"The smell was so bad," said Sarah Boresow, Prairie Village senior. "It almost made me not want to go outside."
Greene said her office had received a separate complaint last week about smells coming from the Lawrence Municipal Wastewater Treatment Facility, 1400 E. Eighth St. Greene said that health inspectors investigated the plant but that they did not find anything unusual.
Another possible culprit might be the compost pile that the Douglas County Department of Public Works maintains. But the inspectors also checked that out and found
everything to be in order, Greene said.
The compost pile, which is next to the wastewater treatment plant, is rusted every month to increase aeration, said Bob Yoos, superintendent of solid waste for the county.
Yoos said that stirring up the pile helped speed the decomposition process and that when turned, the pile did emit a slight odor. But, he said the odor was not strong enough to permeate the downtown area because the pile was turned only when there was a south wind. The pile is made up of about 5,000 tons of grass clippings, branches and leaves.
Dave Wagner, superintendent of the wastewater plant, said he thought the smell probably was coming from from the compost pile.
"Grass clippings can get pretty rank," said Betsy Hall of the Douglas County Environmental Health Department. She said her department received about one call a month about the smell downtown.
"Of course there is always a slight smell coming from the plant," he said. "I'm pretty used to it, but it's kind of an earthy smell. Complaints about smells have gone up considerably the last few years since the compost pile was put in."
There are three main theories explaining the smell in downtown Lawrence, none of which have
What's that smell?
Source: Kansas Dept. of Health Dave Campbell / KANSAN
So, what reeks downtown?
No one can pinpoint where the smell originated, but people can be assured that colder temperatures should stifle future problems, Greene said.
4.
"There are a variety of factors that complicate being able to pinpoint a source," she said. "It could be from another plant at another location upstream or livestock in the area."
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