Opinion
The University Daily Kansan
Laura Roddy, Editor
Sarah Hale, Managing editor
Kristi Elliott, Managing editor
Tom Eblen, General manager, news adviser
Shauntie Blue, Business manager
Brad Bolyard, Retail sales manager
Matt Fisher, Sales and marketing adviser
Scott Valler, Technology coordinator
Tuesday, February 15, 2000
Editorials
Uniformity lacking in enforcement of zero-tolerance alcohol policy
There is a zero-tolerance alcohol policy at the University of Kansas. That means that the possession, manufacture, distribution or use of alcohol by students or University staff on campus as part of University activities is prohibited.
Residence and scholarship halls residents bear most of the brunt of this policy. If students are caught with alcohol on University property, they face severe consequences — or at least they're supposed to.
Despite one's opinion about this policy, it is a policy. And that means that it should be uniformly enforced, no matter what the event.
A couple of weeks ago at the Rock Chalk Ball, part of the KU Alumni Association's fund-raiser honoring
Drinking at special events should be subject to scrutiny received by Housing residents
Rock Chalk scholars, there was underage drinking with no reprimand by University officials. On account of the stature of the event, wine was served with dinner to all who wanted some. There also was an open bar. Some underage students were allowed to drink at the event, while socializing with administrators.
This seems awfully hypocritical in light of the University's strict enforcement of the zero-tolerance alcohol policy in residence and scholarship halls. By failing to enforce the policy at this
If the University is serious about enforcing its alcohol policy, as well as other stringent policies, it should make its actions consistent with its words. If underage students are not allowed to drink anywhere on campus, they shouldn't be allowed to do so at an University event.
event, the University sent a confusing message — administrators at least tacitly condoned underage drinking at special events.
If the administration is serious about zero-tolerance, it should not allow alcohol to be served at events with underage students in attendance. This would be a small sacrifice by the administrators, faculty and staff. It would send a clear, consistent message about alcohol to the student body.
Tabatha Beerbower for the editorial board
Spending limits should be mandatory
As Student Senate elections draw near, the issue of campaign spending limits should be at the forefront of campus debate.
The spending limit up for discussion in Senate certainly is a step in the right direction, but because it would be voluntary severely limits its possible effectiveness. If a candidate may choose whether he or she would abide by the limit, the point of even having such a limit is fairly moot.
In national politics, the constitutionality of campaign spending limits has been the subject of much heated debate. While one side argues that spending money on a political campaign is akin to constitutionally protected free speech, the other responds with the charge that true democracy
Fair elections require that Student Senate candidates have equal resource bases
only can be achieved when there exists relative financial parity between rival candidates.
While both sides no doubt have strong arguments, the fact that no one disputes is, all else being equal, that the candidate with more financial resources often has a substantial advantage.
from other institutions. Because the primary goal of a university is the education of its students, all facets of university life should be considered from that viewpoint.
In the case of student elections, the overriding concern should be that students are given a chance to hear all perspectives in order to judge for themselves which candidate would best represent them. To the extent that some candidates have a far greater resource base with which to propagate their views, this opportunity is lessened.
Regardless of the outcome of this debate on a national scale, a university environment is distinct from the outside world and should, in some circumstances, regulate itself differently
Only if all candidates are restricted to a preset amount of money and are held to that standard by effective enforcement can our elections truly serve as instruments of our educations.
Kansan staff
Tom Broderick for the editorial board
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Broaden your mind: Today's quote
"Law and order exist for the purpose of establishing justice and ... when they fall in this purpose they become the dangerously structured dams that block the flow of social progress." — Martin Luther King, Jr.
flow of social progress." - Martin Luther King, Jr.
How to submit letters and guest columns
Letters: Should be double-spaced typed and fewer than 200 words. Letters must include the author's signature, name, address and telephone number plus class and hometown if a university student. Faculty or staff must identify their positions.
All letters and guest columns should be e-mailed to opinion@kansan.com or submitted to the Kansan newsroom, 111 Stauffer Flint Hall. The Kansan reserves the right to edit, cut to length or reject all submissions. For any questions, call Nadia Mustafa or Seth Hoffman at 864-4924.
**Guest columns:** Should be double-spaced typed with fewer than 700 words. The writer must be willing to be photographed for the column to run.
If you have general questions or comments, e-mail the page staff (opinion@kansan.com) or call 864-4924
Perspective
Political game not same as that on playing field
In Nebraska, where football is religion, former Cornhuskers coaching legend Tom Osborne recently announced his entry into politics. One of his opponents for the district's House of Representatives seat likened the race to running against God — a statement not far from the truth.
Osborne joins a long list of sports legends, such as presidential hopeful Bill Bradley, Oklahoma Reps, Steve Largent and J. C. Watts, Jr., and Kansas Rep. Jim Ryun, who decided that they could run the country better than politicians could.
These sports field warriors are similar to war heroes of the 1800s, such as William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor and Ulysses S. Grant, whose campaigns
Julie
Wood
columnist
opinion@kansan.co
Osborne has name recognition that will far outpace any of his opponents. His name in Nebraska is greater than Roy Williams' is in Lawrence. The Omaha World-Herald called Osborne the most recognizable living Nebraskan. It will be difficult for his opponents to compete with that.
ignored all of the issues and rallied around their successes on the battlefield. These athletes have a distinct advantage that makes the outcome of the elections almost inevitable.
Sports stars have the luxury of having their sports star friends campaign for them. On the day of Osborne's announcement, Kansas State football coach Bill Snyder and former Oklahoma quarterback turned-representative J. C. Watts, Jr., endorsed his campaign. A load of other famous Nebraska football heroes can be expected to come out in droves for their beloved coach.
Having rich, recognizable friends also makes fund raising easier. Osborne said he would not take big money from individuals or groups and would have a lower limit on individual donations than federal law allowed.
While this is a noble gesture. when Tom
Osborne come looking for money, it would be blasphemous in Nebraska not to give it to him. Probably Osborne's toughest competition, longtime Republica insider John A. Gale, said that since Osborne announcement, contributions to his own cam sign were harder to find than a Colorado fan in Nebraska.
The ability to raise funds also has made it possible for Osborn to forge ties to a political party. A self-professed non-partisan, Osborne admitted that he didn't understand partisan politics. He plans on siding with whichever side rings truer to him dependi ng on the issue.
This independ lent spirit makes it difficult for voters to know what Osborne believes. And the other candidate t es can't risk attempting to pin down Osborne stance on the issues for fear of raising voters' indignation.
Osborne's cel brity status makes him immune to answering tugh policy questions. If he ever gets stumped in a debate, he can pull an anecdote from 'Husl elgory days and have the entire audience clapp ing and cheering for him. Quite an easy way to a void a tough question. And no candidate will a attack Dr. Tom — that would be as heretical as inst ting Nebraska football itself.
Name recognition, the ability to raise cash, big name friends aided protection from attacks means that Osborne voted on the election before his campaign even stated. This formulaic approach sports stars employs it makes it easy for them to win for all the wrong reasons. Their accomplishments on the sprints field overshadow their political agendas. In fact, they really need not have an agenda at all.
Until voters skmore from their elected officials, this tren d will continue. Voters need to realize that a candidate's ability to win three national cham pionships or play in seven pro bowls has no b aring on ability to be an effective leader.
May the voter of Nebraska elect the best candidate based on his or her stance on issues, and not his or her stance on the playing field.
Wood is a Dav nport, Iowa, senior in journalism and political sci nce. She attended high school in Omaha, Neb.
Even with clenched fists, ACLU fights for rights
The American Civil Liberties Union. To some, it's an organization dedicated to 'the'
Free speech. Separation of church and state. Equal protection. Privacy. Due process.
These are ideas we learn about in high school government. We read about them in the newspapers. You might even hear about them at a Student Senate meeting or a lecture on campus. But these are more than just abstract concepts of political theory. These are our rights.
1 defending skin heads, atheists and murderers. To others, it's an organization dedicated to defending skin heads, atheists and murderers.
The difference? One of the groups believes the ACLU is doing the right thing.
The ACLU actually fights for what so many of us just talk about — in the courts, in Congress and in public opinion. And it doesn't just fight the easy fights. It doesn't fight only for non-offensive free speech, or for separation of church and
Erin Simpson columnist opining@kansan.com
state only when most people seem to mind. They don't just defend the upstanding citizen whose rights are violated by an overzealous government.
The ACLU fights the fights that no one else will take on. It protects the speech we hate, attacks the traditions that many love and defends the basest of criminals. And well it should. Because it's also defending the Constitution.
It's not the non-offensive speech that needs protecting. It's the speech that makes your skin crawl, your jaw lock, your fists clench. It's the criminal whose crimes are so abhorrent, so vicious, who is so undeserving of anything but death itself who needs defending. These are the burdens of our Constitution. Everyone has the
right to free sp ech. Everyone is entitled to due process. Ther is separation between every church and ev ry state.
Maybe that's too black and white. What if we softened it up little bit? We could let Congress draw the lines, or if you'd prefer, each community could defineermine which rights apply to which people. And nobody would be offended, nobody would be denied their traditions ... and nobody would be free. It's all or nothing, folks. You either have free speech or you don't. You either separate church and state or you don't.
The ACLU is here to see that we do. Since 1920, it has been fighting for individual civil liberties, and w hile it rarely fights alone, it frequently has led the charge. It fought McCarthyism and won. It fought racial segregation and wo n. It fought coerced prayer in school and wo n. It fought for abortion rights and won.
Like the ACL U or not, most of us have been the beneficiaries from its efforts. If you lived in a residence or scholarship hall, you benefited from the "reasonable expectation of privacy" doctrine. Those in public schools were the beneficiaries of numerous Supreme Court decisions that determined that the Bill of Rights, and free speech in particular, applied inside school walls. And with Miranda warnings, rights to an attorney, etc., the list goes on and on. There's a good chance that when you say, "But they can't do that!" it's because the ACLU fought for it.
But none of these battles are through. Every day somebody challenges the principles of the Bill of Rights: A rally is prohibited, a book is banned, an unful search occurs, a person is discriminated against.
I'm not exact the biggest fan of the United States. But I believe with great conviction that the U.S. institution is the greatest in the world. The A CLU is the one dedicated to defending it.
Simpson is a nexa junior in political science and internation al studies.
Feedback
University recognition of heritage not vital to self-image, identity
Rarely does a story touch me as deeply as Kami Bremyer's feature in the Feb. 7 edition of the Kansan, entitled "Multiraciual students struggle to identify heritage at University." As a freckled white girl, this is an issue that I've struggled with since I first came to the University of Kansas.
While my freckled status is hardly considered a race, it only adds to my difficulty in
It is very difficult for me to stay at a University that refus-
being proud of my heritage. Rarely do we take time out to sort through the long line of important freckled people in history. Freckled folk are allowed no special scholarships. We have no acknowledged freckled history month. Because one's pride and identity obviously should come from characteristics that are inherent in oneself, rather than qualities that are developed through proper choices and hard work, we freckled people have to find quiet pride in the skin color that is overlooked by much of the world.
es to acknowledge my state as not just a tan, but a nearly albino girl. I'll never be able to form a proper self-image until the University has labeled me by the greatest aspect of my character — my skin color.
Rachelle Cauthon
Overland Park freshman