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Wednesday, February 8, 1978
University Daily Kansan
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Comment
Unused editorials represent the opinion of the Kannan editorial staff. Signed columns represent the views of only the writers.
Bus board must grow
A proposal that would alter the management of KU on Wheels deserves speedy action by the Student Senate.
The bus system currently is run by the Senate Transportation Committee, which happens to be just one man—Senator Steve McMurry. McMurry is proposing that future management of KU on wheels be handled by a board of 10 students and a salaried director. The Transportation Committee would be abolished under the plan, which is now pending before the Senate Services Committee.
At least one part of McMurry's plan is appealing. No one person, regardless of his ability, should be running KU on Wheels by himself.
Whether the proposed board's director should be paid is another matter entirely. The question hinges not only on the amount of pay and work performed by the director but also on the precedent it would set in paying senators for their work. At present, no Senate committee chairman receives a salary.
KU on Wheels has experienced growing pains and should be supervised by a number of qualified individuals. Problems, such as the continual overcrowding on buses, must be alleviated as soon as possible.
The new board also would be charged with reviewing recommendations from a consulting firm that studied KU on Wheels last December. It is important, as McMurry has pointed out, that a new group consider the recommendations because it would be responsible for making any changes in the bus system.
Although careful study of the proposed board is in order, time is of essence in acting on it. McMurry plans to leave the Senate soon, and new management must be developed. Such management, whatever the details of plan, should include more than one person.
The Douglas County appraiser's office has made a big mistake.
Tax appraisals not up to par
Somehow 87 valuable and taxable acres west of Lawrence have gone unnoticed and practically deserted for five years. Those 87 acres were converted from pasture land into a nine-hole golf course by Alvarnar Hills County appraiser's office the land remains recognized and taxed as pasture. Obviously the county has been too slow in re-establishing the change—five years too slow.
In addition to the county's having overlooked Alvaramar's nine-hole expansion project, called Hidden Acres, it has taxed the entire Alvarmar course at a surprisingly low
THESE ERRORS are frightening. Before the questionable Alvamar taxing policies were enacted there was no public discussion of the matter. There were no attempts by county officials to establish a clear, fair policy on the tax rates of Alvamar.
it reasonably can be argued that Alavamar should, indeed, pay lower taxes because the city has already established and functions as an environmental greenbelft for the city. In fact, many cities the size of Lawrence finance their own property but would any other city park open to the public, or assess privately financed golf courses open to the public at very low levels in the city a recreational service.
But such matters as these must be discussed and decided in full view of the public. Taxation policies, especially if a specific policy should restrict business, must be established openly and by the proper unit of government. The county appraiser's office does not have the power to set policy arbitrarily in the way it sees fit, as appears to be the case in the county's handling of Al-amar.
property assessment for tax purposes in Douglas County has been done arbitrarily, or at least without any formal and public policy backing it up. Excluding buildings, the average acre at Alvamar is appraised at $1000 an acre. Lawrence Country Club is appraised at $600 an acre—nearly 25 percent higher.
Green cane is valued at $1,000 at Alvamar and $1,600 at the state appraisal office. These appraisals at six courses in other Kansas cities surveyed by the Kansas Department of land ranged from $14,000 to $25,000.
If there are such large discrepancies involved with two pieces of Lawrence property, how can Lawrence taxpayers be assured that there are not more cases of appraisal fouls? It is time for the county to step back and check the property is being assessed. Property taxes hit everyone hard, and it is vital that taxation be proportioned fairly and above board.
FORTUNATELY, the county appraiser's office has been told by the Douglas County Commission to begin carrying out a
county-wide reappraisal so the county can be ready for an expected state order to update all counties. We are exactly what the county needs to do because present appraisals are based on values prevailing in the mid1860s, when the county-wide reappraisal was conducted.
The outdated values probably were a key factor in the inconstienses that surfaced last week with Alvamar.
Darwin Rogers, county apraiser, said last week that the Alvamar assessment was too low. Later in the week, he said that the disparity between apraisifs for Alvamar and the country had never changed. He said he had never changed the value of one property in relation to another and wasn't about to in this case.
ROGERS conceded that there had been a mistake in not appraising Alvamar's Hidden Valley course property as a completed course. He said the problem was an overweight tie incurred in 175, and the course was already two years old.
Although it is the property owner's responsibility to notify
the appraiser of property changes that would affect taxation there is no excuse for the county appraisal office's overlooking the Hidden Valley property for five years.
On the other hand, allowing Alvamar a lower tax rate might be necessary and even desirable for the city of Lawrence. If Alvamar were forced to pay a higher rate in for the average private golf course, it would put a tremendous financial burden on the golf course. And Alvamar does offer recreational benefits for Lawrence citizens by being open to everyone, including students who probably are unable to afford high annual fees that joining the Lawrence Country Club would require.
The city gives tax breaks to certain new industries because they represent pluses for the community by supplying jobs. Alvansa represents a plus to county providing public recreation.
But these affairs must be presented openly by elected officials. Oversight and arbitration are essential for ensuring that hammersmith out of public policy.
Election could offer quiet choice
And you probably thought the anti-Assad government died with presidential election of 1998.
It lives on, though, in the campaign for student body president and vice president at the University of Kansas. The election this month will be a real choice.
this election is somewhat unusual. Usually, the presidential and vice presidential teams seem to be cut from the same mold, but the issue of the candidates in the same issues. But this year an independent team—Jane Calacat and David Parris—are taking a philosophical argument against the issues offered by the Standpoint leaders—Mike Harper and Reggie Rohn-
HARPER AND Robinson would act to act a previous student executive have. They would come into office with programs of the university and present the program. They wont review and possible reavipping of the campus bus services and recreational programs. Should the program for student services be revised, Harper and Robinson would take an active role in shaping the structure of the services.
The team of Calacetti and Parris takes a different approach to the executive offices.
"I think the function of the president should be that of a mediator between students," Calacci said Sunday. "My idea is to help because I see there is a room to do that."
THE TWO seem somewhat vague on what they will do, once elected and in office. Their promises to "open up the office" puzzle Harper and Robinson. The Standpoint team believes that the office is open now and would continue to be under their administration.
Her sentiments are echeed by her running mate. Parris said, "The Senate has lost touch with the students. We don't feel it's all that accessible."
John Mitchell
Editorial writer
"I think the president and vice president
have a responsibility to maintain an open door policy." Harper said. "I can't understand that objection to our accessibility. I always published a newsletter to my district."
The campaign does not center on specific issues this year, but that is because each team considers different things to be important. Calacchi and Parris don't talk about programs and legislation they want to get through the Senate.
Harper answered that argument with the assumption that the student executives would have to help construct the legal services program. But he insisted on the Senate meeting will decide whether the program will exist, but Harper said the program would actually be designed, the staff hired, and the duties assigned. Roberts and Robinson would expect to advise lieutenants.
"WHAT ARE the issues here?" Parris asked. "I think the issues are somewhat fabricated, like legal services and the ticket service." The legal services program will be decided this week.
Perhaps the question that shows the most difference between the teams is the question of experience and whether lack of experience is a handicap. Harper, a graduate is ending her first year. In contrast, Robinson is in his second year and is chairman of the Senate Rights Committee. Harper, although a first-year executive of the Student Executive Committee.
CALACCI AND Parris obviously do not regard their lack of experience as a handicap.
“It’s true we hadn't had that kind of experience,” Parris said. “Either you can be very unsure of us because of that or you can regard us as a different viewpoint. We can't get up there and rain on the ground to help the residents with their problems.”
Harper doesn't put down the Calciarci Parris team for its lack of experience, but he does think the experience that he and Robinson has is an asset. "I would say our campaign has to be the best we can get," the best most effective effects, which I think the students want," he said.
This is a curious campaign, Calacci and Parris are not spending any money on posters, flyers or buttons. They are talking to students, newsmen and anyone else who asks about their candidacy. Their opponents have gone the more traditional route of posters, with their names and those of their coalition's members prominently displayed.
THE STANDPOINT coalition team of Harper and Robinson is a more experienced team, playing the campaign game by the old rules. Their campaign is well-mounted and probably will be effective. The Calacci-Parris team is not meeting them head-on, preferring to explain its failures and refinerys and relaying it to anti-Establishment outside gain got President Jimmy Carter elected.
But it probably won't do that in this election. A campus election often is one of publicity. The independents, with their nobanner, word-of-mouth style, stand little chance of becoming widely enough known to challenge Standpoint.
Calaici said, when asked whether she thought she had a chance of winning, "I hope so, but I'm not going to lose sleep over it. We're running so that there will be a
The choice is certainly there, but the chances are that the voters won't know it.
To the Editor:
Feminist doesn't want to be man
Despite being a firm believer in the slogan, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me," it was still necessary to take several deep breaths and count
Califano defends butt-out theory
By JOSEPH A. CALIFANO
Because quitting smoking had only occasionally crossed my mind, I laughed and said, "Seriously, what would you like?"
WASHINGTON—In the summer of 1975, I was talking with my son Joe about his birthday present. His birthday comes shortly after Christmas, and he has the problem of all children not having a full birthday. I asked him what he wanted.
"For you to quit smoking," Joe said.
"It really would be a great present if you'd quit smoking," Joe repeated.
peppered.
The conversation trailed off into other things. But the thought stuck in my head. My smoking had increased to about three packs a day. When the Kents I smoked into them threw a switch to anthrofolished Salems to anesthetize it. Always I continued smoking.
FOR SEVERAL days I reflected on what Joe had said. I thought of my own health—I had acquired a persistent cough and frequent hay-fever attacks over the years—and was reluctantly given another heart attack. I began to think seriously about quitting when I reflected on Joe, his older brother Mark, who also had urged me to quit, and my five-year-old daughter Claudia. I did not want them to smoke. And how would I handle to smoke if I was puffing away at the rate of three packs a day?
I decided then to try to quit. But not with enough assurance
to tell Joe and Mark that I was going to do that.
I kept postponing the day of the attempt until two good friends of mine told me they were quitting through a break. Bradlee, Bradelee, executive editor of the Washington Post, and Vince
Fuller, one of my former law partners. Both of them had been very heavy smokers. Both of them quietly quit through this program.
At their suggestion, I went through the program and successfully quit. The early weeks of that program were
difficult, but I can honestly say that since the day I quit smoking I have had no reasons, just few, when I买了 a cigarette.
WHEN I WAS appointed secretary of health, education and welfare, the relationship of smoking to health was not very
Without exception, the public and private health people to whom I spoke said that the most significant thing we could do in the area of prevention was to find some way to encourage people not to smoke cigarettes. That and the irrefutable striking evidence that cigarette smoking causes cancer, heart disease and dead respiratory illnesses were what interested me in mounting a campaign to reduce smoking and protect nonsmokers.
much on my mind. As an ex-smoker, I was not driven by a desire to convert others. If I had learned anything during my 28 years as a cigarette smoker, it was the difficulty of stopping smoking.
As secretary of HEW, I have become deeply involved in the problems of health care in the United States, particularly in repairing unhealthy bodies and curing sickness. Numerous medical experts repeatedly directed my attention to prevention. He was also Julius Richmond about being surgeon general, he told me that one of his major interests would be prevention and that he wanted to prevent a major preventon program. I told him I was so committed.
Joseph A. Califano, secretary of health, education and welfare, says that before he quit smoking, "for 28 years he had never gone through a day without a cigarette."
And so I concluded that my responsibility to the public health demanded a major research and education effort.
to 10 repeatedly after reading Barbara Paris's letter in last Wednesday's Kansan.
I have borne many brunts in my day for being a feminist, but never has one struck so deeply as her remark that feminists "have a perverse desire to be men."
To be accused of wanting to be a man makes about as much sense as including Anita Bryant as secretary of the National Gay Task Force.
Paris is embarrassed by some of the techniques used by feminists, but, in trying to voice her resentment, has totally ignored the advice of female oppression in the world. And THAT'S what hurts.
Nothing could be further from the truth and that's my point.
I'll be the first to admit that it was an unfortunate mistake for our founding feminists to resort to tactics that alienated the very women they intended to rescue.
I mean it was a giant error for feminists to attack the contestants of the 1986 Miss America pageant, where they allegedly hugged out the male perpetrators.
She suggests forming "an organization for women who can make it as women," and asks, "Couldn't each person in our group simply respect every other person right to individuality?"
But there are no easy answers and I am immediately wary of anyone, like Paris, who offers quick exits.
Yes, of course. I will gladly become a charter member of your proposed coalition just as soon as the legal framework of our government contains a clause against the discrimination on anyone on the basis of sex; all laws against abortion are repealed; control her body) are repealed; effective and safe birth control methods are available to any woman no matter what age; women have the right to live with and love whoever they please; when there are new and humane means of giving birth to a child; the choice and procedure of method; when women bring
]
Jennifer Roblez Emporia junior
home the same paycheck for the same work as her male partner . . . the list goes on.
In short, I will confidently organize and publicize until women can wake up in the morning and be glad the face in the mirror is a woman, and not a man.
To the editor:
Exploitation goes both ways
Concerning Barbara Paris' letter of Feb. 1—was she one of those wimmin at the Houston conference wearing a "Christ, Christ," and whose females干douse such a cloudburst? Sex exploitation is, of course, applicable to males and females; the use of a scantily clad mannequin to advertise and sell sex is the kind of sex being used to sell merchandise—our bodies are not commodities.
Speaking for myself and every other feminist I know, I'm quite happy being a female. One could accuse me of being afraid and having short hair; I consider my clothing and hair comfortable and practical. It seems rather absurd that wimmin subject themselves to the "feminine dress—I cringe when I see wimmin toting across the ice in high heels. I don't adopt the male clothing to flatter them the woman I want to be a man (ladder!)."
No, I don't like the "man" in woman—sorry.
Discrimination is often subtle; good luck finding a woman who has missed against the organization called SELF. Guess I don't qualify, since I have no desire to burden myself with marriage or motherhood. I make it as a woman though.
Myself, Maggie Stolz
Unemployed KU graduate
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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