OPINION
The University Daily KANSAN
The University Daily KANSAN
January 30, 1984 Page 4
Published since 1889 by students of the University of Kansas
The University Daily Karnaa (USP$ 600-640) is published at the University of Kansas, 118 Staffer-First Hall, Lawrence, KS 60043, daily during the regular school year and Monday and Thursday during the summer session. exe-
mptions are $15 for six months or $27 for two months by mail
DON KNOX
Managing Editor
SARA KEMPIN
Editorial Editor
Editor
DOUG CUNNINGHAM
JEFF TAYLOR ANDREW HARTLEY
Campus Editor News Editor
DAVE WANAMAKER
Business Manager
CORT GORMAN
JILL MITCHELL
Retail Sales Manager National Sales Manager
PAUL JESS
JANCE PHILIPS DUNCAN CALIHON
Campus Sales Manager Classified Manager
FAULTJESSE
General Manager and News Adviser
JOHN OBERZAN Sales and Marketing Adviser
The key question
Ronald Reagan based his campaign in 1980 on one key theme. "Are you better off than you were four years ago?" he asked Americans as he solicited their votes.
The theme was a winner for Reagan. And, indeed, many people were not better off in 1980. Inflation had skyrocketed. The nation had been humiliated in Iran. The office of the presidency seemed to have weakened after four years under a vacillating Jimmy Carter.
President Reagan announced his desire to run for another term yesterday in a nationally broadcast address. He likely will make his question, "Are you better off . . . ," a cornerstone of his campaign.
But this time around, many Americans will have a difficult time answering "yes" to that question.
Millions are out of work. A bitter winter in many parts of the country has accentuated the problems of the homeless and those of the needy, who don't have money to pay for heat.
Thousands of people are hungry, yet the administration has the temerity to call ketchup a vegetable.
Reagan's dealings with organized labor have been like ice when at
Indeed they have.
And abroad, American soldiers lost their lives in a Beirut bombing and in the invasion of Grenada. Reagan is under fire for a troubled policy on Central America. His hard line against the Soviets has won praise only from conservatives.
their warmest. And many think that the economic and social gains of the past two decades by blacks, women and other groups have been dealt a severe setback by the president.
So this year presents a clear choice. Reagan seeks to run on his accomplishments and the Democrats are united in their desire to remove him from office. The race has finally started. Let's hope that the results are clear. And that the campaign will be mercifully short.
Reagan's accomplishments are noted by few people. Mainly, his triumphs have come by way of a better economy. The inflation rate is the lowest in years. Interest rates are down. And although unemployment remains high, it has moderated in recent months.
As Reagan said last night from the Oval Office, "Well, things have changed."
THINGS TO DO:
ATTORNEY GENERAL EDWIN MEESE III
Romantic legends of this cycle of growth dwell not only in the land itself, but in the children it bore -- for the land and the people have become one.
So as Kansans view their statehood with justifiable pride, they cannot see themselves as their own creators. They cannot forget the land that bore them.
Even a bearing, seemingly confident and optimistic president sporting a deep red tie could not dispel the underlying tension in the enormous House of Representatives chamber Wednesday night.
not knowing the unevitable change of seasons.
The University Daily Kansan welcomes letters to the editor. Letters should be typewritten, double-spaced and should not exceed 300 words. They should include the writer's name, address and phone number. If the writer is affiliated with the University, the letter should include his class and home town or faculty or staff position. The Kansan also invites individuals and groups to meet his columns and letters can be mailed or brought to the Kansan office, 111 Stauffinger-Fall Hall. The Kansan reserves the right to edit or reject letters and columns.
protect the U.S. government from terrorist attack.
The uneasiness was not blatant, but neither could it be ignored. Police were haunted by the idea that if a bomb went off during the State of the Union address, the president and all those in line to succeed him but one cabinet member would be killed or wounded.
But the Depression spread unhindered in its summer guise, a winter for those Kansans. Humility grew with this winter, breeding in the hearts of the people. For the land could take away the fruits it had so willingly discarded. The people had matured.
Protecting government
World tension is increasing. The threat of terrorist activities is never far away. While it is regrettable that so much manpower has to be used to guarantee safety during the meeting, it certainly is necessary to
Sharing exotic meals
I learned many facts about ... America in geography classes. Say "lama," "coffee," "the Andes," or think of our neighbors to the south,
But I had to stop and think the first time a Colombian told me that I should specify North America as my country, because really meant just the United States.
The large number of foreign students at the University of Kansas makes this kind of cultural exchange possible. More than 1,500 young people from 97 countries study here.
To protect the almost entire line of presidential succession, police swarmed over the 131-acre Capitol grounds and inside the building. Although officials refused to say whether specific threats against the president had been made, the recent Senate bombing and the terrorist attack on U.S. Marine Headquarters in Beirut have made those in charge of government security increasingly nervous.
Yet many North American students have a cultural bias that
It was a shame that government officials had to be so careful Wednesday night. One is bound to wonder about today's world when the State of the Union address must be given under armed guard.
The land bore the world's excess. And when she did, she ceased being merely ground. The people had found their home.
MARGARET
SAFRANEK
Eventually, time saw prosperity and unmeasured wealth in the genesis of this great century that had come with the harvest. Summer and fall came to the people and the land gave. Kansans took in elation,
Remembering Kansas
But war came with the spring in those early days. And as the land had adapted to the mystery and force of spring, the people adapted to war and dreamed of their days of harvest.
Staff Columnist
Like a mother, she gave what she had — personality, durability and life, which lay hidden in the soil and the seasons.
But getting to know some foreign students is a chance to broaden a view of the world. The experiences that you have in a new way, that no geography book can.
Reading about foreign affairs can provide background into the United States' relationships with other countries, but few of these articles insight that can come from actually talking with foreign students.
My Colombian friend and I had interesting discussions about how South Americans did not appreciate people from the United States using the word America as though it applied exclusively to the Northern continent.
Just give me the regular North American music and food and lifestyle. Please don't ask me to try this other stuff.
makes them avoid people of other beliefs and countries. They prefer instead to associate with people who come from backgrounds more closely resembling their own.
The point my friend made was not something I had learned when studying about South America. It came up because he and I had several conversations in which I had naively taken license with the word, clearly decided to explain how he felt about it as a South American
Because of different cultural backgrounds, the idea of living with a student from Kuwait or Hungary can in itself be a foreign concept to many North Americans. Many students tell tales of foreign students who eat strange foods or have different living habits.
We often build on these small contrasts, making them into such monumental differences that the viewer sees the wearer seems too difficult to handle.
toms and other facets of their countries that require little in the way of mental exercise. What is required is a willingness to participate in new experiences and to consider unfamiliar ideas.
The thought of giving up a hamburger and french fries for a spicy Indian dish is unpalatable to us. And why be in a situation where we are forced to politely decline or explain away the food proffered? Better to just avoid the situation all together.
Their perspectives can shed new light on age-old issues. Their points of view may sometimes provoke anger, or they may make us confused about what we thought was our understanding of a political issue. But such discussion can also contribute a great deal to education.
Listening to African music when we want to hear some modern tunes on the radio is irritating, especially when it sounds so exotic.
Discussion with a foreign student may also require swallowing some pride. There have been several times I have had to ask a foreign student to explain my own country's position on an issue. But I have been humble enough to accept the chance to learn about issues I should have studied in a classroom somewhere along the way.
'Many students tell tales of foreign students who eat strange foods or have different living habits.'
Foreign students also can benefit from making the effort to meet North Americans. This often requires foregoing the temptation to spend much of their time here with friends or colleagues, seeking the familiar in much the same way that students from the United States do.
Foreign students have taught me about lifestyles, dance, dress, cus-
The opportunity to learn from other people's life experiences, to understand history more clearly from sharing another's culture is a different way of learning. The teachers are not certified but they are certainly qualified. And the learning doesn't take a lot of diligent study or require passing difficult exams.
What's generally required is a willingness to listen, to discuss and to question. And occasionally, it might not be a bad idea to agree to join a foreign friend for a meal of his native land.
Ruling is a comfort to voters
WASHINGTON — A new Supreme Court ruling means it is legal for owners of video cassette recorders to tape presidential candidates who appear on their television screens at home.
Although the entertainment industry was uphappy, the 5-4 decision came as great comfort to the electorate.
If large numbers of them choose that means of becoming better acquainted with the large number of presidents are running for president, so be it.
It is my personal feeling that consenting adults should be free to tape anything they choose in the privacy of their own viewing rooms.
The justices heard testimony that most viewers use videotape ma-
DICK WEST
The Democratic forum—a sort of televised debate earlier this month is a good example of how government employees be employed to good advantage.
United Press International
It was a Sunday afternoon when the candidates began their "live" discussion of each other's positions on the great national issues.
But these fortunate enough to have videocassettes could record the debate for monitoring at a more congenial hour — say about 2 a.m.
In my neighborhood, several campaign fans gave forum parties, inviting friends to drop in and watch the debate on tape. Refreshments were served and a jolly time was bad by all. I understand.
If time-shifting helps a voter get a better line on the office-seekers, then 1 say the Supreme Court has struck a bloc for educated suffrage.
Taping the candidates must be especially helpful in states such as New Hampshire, where the nation's primary will be held in February.
Wintry conditions make it doubly tough to form thoughtful impressions of the candidates, and hence to make up one's mind who to vote for.
Nobody enjoyns standing around on cold streeteyears, hoping a candidate will show up to shake hands. But it isn't always possible to be in front of a warm television set when a candidate is expounding.
LETTERS POLICY
In races where the field is somewhat crowded, the odds are good that a voter will miss one or more campaign speeches. Hence, a sizable portion of the electorate may come to cast ballots, the time comes to cast ballots.
That handicap is particularly bad if the voter is participating in a pre-election survey that helps identify the front-runners.
Videotape is, of course, the answer. We can all be thankful a majority of the justices was politically astute enough to recognize the potential.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
To the editor:
I would like to direct a few comments to Ed Stamm, whose letter to the Selective Service appeared in the Jan. 18 Kansan.
Hey, do you really call yourself an American? I hope not. Signing a draft card is really no big deal.
What you are doing is telling the government that it can count on you to defend the freedom of the United States should it be endangered. Go to Arlington National Cemetery and see the statues of many bearing the word "unknown."
Those guys died to protect your freedom (so you could exercise your right of free speech), and here you are unwilling to even sign a registration card. They not only need theirs, they gave their lives too.
Sound familiar? Freedom has not come easy; it's cost the blood of millions of Americans. Today, people come from all over the world to America to live in freedom. If you have lost "all confidence in the wisdom and morality of our government." then leave.
Sure, our government has made its share of mistakes. So show me one that hasn't! We have had more than two million, which is more than most potholes.
I too consider myself a "man of peace and conscience" and don't want to fight in a war any more than you do. However, I believe in America and, if need be, I will fight and die for her.
Sure, it scares me. But I'm an American, and I, like many before me, think that freedom is worth risking my life for.
When that time come, an American will stand his ground and fight.
doing whatever he is capable of. A coward dies a thousand deaths, an American dies but one.
I'm an American and damn proud to be one.
Douglas Sikora Springfield, Va., sophomore
A sour aftertaste
Lawrence Lader's jingisotic slur-a-torial for "breakthrough" for abortion leaves a sour, comic-strip aftertaste in the reader's mouth.
To the editor:
This handing down of easy sentence on foetus and conservative alike) reeks of propaganda, not rules on guessed it — Nazi propaganda.
One could use Lader's same argument for providing mandatory abortions for "minorities" to support the need for no-monitoring or so-called social planning.
It's time people who design to put word to paper start to rely on first principles: This means examining the present mba idea that people have a constitutional right to abortion.
What utter nonsense! It is one thing to declare abortion a matter of choice, and quite another to become stewards of baby killing.
Are we returning to a savagery second only to Attila the Hun and his descendants East of the Rhine?
Time to think, think, think — journalists, cease your useless mutterings and speak like intelligent human beings.
Scott J. Bloch
After all, what is so tragic about having a baby? Why do we have such a hatred of "unwanted" children?
Brett S. Bloch
Los Angeles law student
I am responding to the editorial titled "Stop Military Related Action" by C Henry Coan in the Jan 23 action of the University Dailen Kansas.
My father spent those three years living in a day-to-day situation not knowing when he would be wounded or hurt. He suffered injuries, unlike the thousands of men who died in Vietnam fighting for their country.
I come from a military-oriented family. My father is an infantry officer in the U.S. Army. He fought for three years in the Vietnam War.
Benefit humanity
They themselves said it was a war that could not have been won. However, when they were called upon to fight for their country, they went whether or not it was against their personal beliefs.
The worst part of the Vietnam War was not the war itself but demonstrations aimed at the soldiers who risked their lives so that others could protest against them. The sad fact is that most military men questioned the manner of our involvement in Vietnam.
To the editor:
With this in mind, the question I would like to ask Mr. Coan is this: How can the ROTC units and military-related activities at KU be
I am a Midshipman 4th class in the Naval ROTC program at the University of Kansas. If I were called upon to fight for my country, I would go whether or not it was against my personal beliefs, simply because I am pledged to defend my country against all enemies that the comrade is in and Congress perceive to be a threat to our way of life.
viewed as activities that do not benefit humankind?
To the editor:
Edward W. Eidson II Lawrence freshman
I agree with c. Henry Coan's premise Jan. 23, 1984 in the University Daily Kansan that universities have a "... responsibility to operate an interactive interest by encouraging any activities that benefit human kind."
Mr. Coan obviously believes that any activity in support of the U.S. military apparatus is not in the "public interest." I cannot see how Mr. Coan can find fault with a defense system that protects his right to use a public forum to express views, even if those views are contrary to the views that our leaders have.
However, I must find fault with his conclusions.
Public interest
Must I remind Mr. Coan that this same horrid defense system, these evil men, protect the right of self-expression not only in the United States but also in other countries?
That Mr. Coan's license of expression has only been preserved with the blood and lives of these same people he no longer wishes to support?
In any event, Mr. Coan had better work fast. Yesterday, I noticed Army ROTC members digging tank traps along Naismith Drive. And I understand the Air Force ROTC kids are testing their MX missile system in the steam tunnels that honeycomb Mt. Oreand. He'd better burry up.
1
H. T. Rogers
Lawrence senior