Dissent: In for outs?
Society needs protest
A panel debate at the Kansas Union Sunday night affirmed how necessary and essential civil disobedience was for the American Revolution and society today.
Martin B, Dickinson and Larry Velvel, both associate profs. of law, presented conflicting viewpoints on the topic of dissent in conjunction with the lecture series "Dissent, In or Out" co-sponsored by the University Christian Movement and the KU-Y.
Dickinson is chairman of the University Disciplinary Board (UDB) and said that his views were presented as those of a KU
law professor, not chairman of the UDB.
The entire society, acting through government, must permit and in fact protect expression of the wildest possible variety of political view points, Dickinson said. Government and the individual member of society, he said, must listen to the voices of dissent and be prepared to correct the evils such criticism may reveal.
Dickinson said that dissent is wrong if the life and limbs of the individual are in immediate danger and that physical force $ \circled{10} $
Pot control supported
NEW YORK (UPI)—Former Food and Drug Administrator James L. Goddard Sunday urged revision of marijuana laws which he said were "unenforceable, excessively severe, scientifically incorrect and revealing of our ignorance of human behavior."
But, citing the dangers of alcohol and tobacco, Goddard cautioned against making marijuana legal until the government completes studies on its possible harmful effects.
"I believe that if alcohol and tobacco were not already legal, we might well decide not to legalize them—knowing what we now know," Goddard said in a signed article in Life magazine.
Velvel referred to dissent in the terms of civil disobedience, defining civil disobedience as any violation of law and defining law in this sense as organized power.
forego such dissent must be employed only if it is completely necessary.
"In the case of marijuana, we will know in a very few years how harmful it is or is not," he said.
Noting that an estimated 12
16 KANSAN Oct. 27 1969
"Society is unwilling to listen to reason and will not listen unless forced to. This is the reason for civil disobedience," Velvel said.
million Americans have used marijuana in recent years, Goddard said immediate action was necessary to meet the "near crisis caused by ignorance and the blanket of misinformation which governmental agencies have used to cover their ineptitudes."
Goddard said federal statutes governing marijuana should be repealed and the Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act should be amended to place marijuana under its jurisdiction, "thereby automatically de-escalating the penalties for simple possession to a more reasonable level a misdemeanor, with the judge being given considerable authority to adjust the penalty to more nearly fit the circumstances."
"At the same time sufficiently serious penalties should be provided to handle the major traffickers in the drug," he said. "State laws should then be revised to conformance with a model law containing similar provisions."
Velvel said that he was against heavy punishment for acts of civil disobedience because it is socially destructive and will only create future disruptions. "A person should be punished to the point where he won't want to break the law again."
"Cycles (acts of civil disobedience) repeat themselves and punishment for them will only postpone them as they become worse and worse." Velvel said. He said that obstruction is the most valuable form of civil disobedience because it is not physically destructive.
A tape of the panel debate may be heard Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. on radio station KANU.
STUDENT HEALTH INSURANCE
Brown trout have been clocked swimming at speeds up to 23 miles per hour.
I. D. CARDS ARE READY Please pick up at Strong Hall Rotunda Wed., Oct. 29-12 noon to 4:30 p.m. Thurs., Oct. 30-12 noon to 4:30 p.m.
Use Kansan Classified
DIRTY HANDS
You bet we do! Because our watchbands are made by hand! Each piece of leather is fitted, cut, stained and rubbed the hard way—by hand. There's no substitute. No machine or factory can come near the quality, comfort, fit, or durability produced by custom crafting. So bring your watch and your wrist into Primarily Leather today. Choose a style to suit your individuality. From $3.
SANDALS : BELTS : MOCCASINS : BOOTS : BAGS
Primarily Leather
812 Massachusetts
Open at 10 a.m.