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Tuesday, October 21, 1975
University Dally Kansan
COMMENT Opinions on this page reflect only the view of the writer.
Watergate question
The final report of the Watergate Special Prosecution Force released last Wednesday is a reminder that a big question raised by that national tragedy remains unanswered. Can an incumbent president be indicted on criminal charges?
Answering that question was put at the top of the priority list in the 277-page report assembled by the last of the special prosecutors, Henry Ruth.
The question needs to be answered now and not when the problem might arise again in the future, he said.
"The worst time to answer such questions is when they arise," the report said. "Perhaps the best time is the present while the memory of recent events is fresh."
That's fine, except for the infuriating tendency of Congress to ignore or put off making important decisions until it's either too late or irrelevant. Quick action can't be too strongly urged. But Congress has demonstrated that it will take more than logic and coaxing to goad it into action.
What about the question itself? Should an incumbent president face criminal indictments? It would seem that the Constitution discourages that option.
Impeachment proceedings, dread though they are, remain the only constitutional proviso for dealing with a president who has committed crimes. Impeachment is the best method available under the check-and-balance system of our tripartite government.
Besides, any criminal charges would be filed by the Justice Department, and we have seen just how pliable that agency can be in the hands of the White House.
A permanent special prosecutor's office for corruption cases wouldn't be the answer either, according to the current special prosecutor, because such an agency outside anyone's jurisdiction might be tempted to abuse its own power.
If nothing else, the Watergate caper was supposed to teach us how to avoid similar scandals in the future. Congress now has an opportunity to take corrective action. Will Congress see its responsibility and act quickly to decide the issue or will Congress believe it is no longer a campaign issue? One idealistically hopes for the former but realistically is prepared for the latter.
David Olson Contributing Writer
Trauma of Title IX
When Title IX was passed, there was speculation that it would put an end to fraternities and sororites and to men's and women's honor societies. The women's sororites have been exempted from the law, but honor societies still exist at their hazard.
Despite the heavy attack on scholarships awarded only to members of a particular sex, it didn't seem likely that Title IX would bring about unconditional integration of the sexes.
Then in a special convention Saturday, members of Mortar Board, a woman honor society, voted 150-17 to elect men, setting a very unfortunate precedent.
Although the action was taken to prevent 25 chapters from being disaffiliated from their colleges, the Mortar Board decision was still an unwise one. By eliminating sex as a criterion for membership, Mortar Board opened a door that could lead to the death of all single-sex organizations.
Where will the line be drawn? If there can't be single-sex honor societies, can there be single-sex football teams? Can men and women have separate athletic programs? If they are forced to merge and players are selected on merit alone, will women competing against men have an equal opportunity?
What will happen if colleges and universities wish to disaffiliate social sorotiances and fraternities if they refuse membership to the opposite sex?
Mortar Board is 60 years old. Several social sororities and fraternities are more than 100 years old. Since they were founded, they have thrived and have been an important part of life for millions of college students.
If Title IX is interpreted to mean no college organizations can limit their membership to one sex, the traditions underlying these organizations will be totally destroyed. To force these organizations to abandon the intent of their founders and admit members of both sexes is to force them to become different organizations.
Perhaps a women's honor society with male members can exist, but because of the perversion of its purpose, its existence will seem ludicrous.
As long as there are equal opportunities for men and women to join single-sex organizations with similar membership, all organizations to include both sexes.
Mortar Board considered several other courses of action before deciding to admit men—disbanding the organization, disaffiliating it with colleges and universities, consolidating with a men's honor society or taking the question to court. For the sake of all other single-sex organizations, Mortar Board erred in not choosing another option, especially the last one.
Jain Penner
Contributing Writer
Tiny school fights U.S.
James J. Kilpatrick
BRADFORD, Ohio—On a recent Tuesday night, the Rev. Levi Whisner had a long distance call from attorney William Ball in Hartburg, Pa. "Say a special prayer," urged Ball. "We'll find out in the morning."
Twelve hours later came the joyful message: The Supreme Court of Ohio had agreed to hear Preacher Whisner's appeal. One more step had been taken in what now priontifies his claim, the law that governs the free exercise of religion.
THIS IS A CRIMINAL case, State of Ohio vs. Whismer, et al. The defendants are 12 parents of children attending the Tabernacle School. The facts are not in dispute. The parents are convicted and their children to the school; and the school undeniably is not accredited by the State. In Ohio, as in other states, this is a crime. The 12 parents were convicted, fined $25 each and put under bond not to send their children back. An intermediate Court of Appeals has sustained the plaintiff pending ultimate disposition in the courts, the school continues its operations.
THIS IS AN unlikely place for the building of landmarks. Bradford is a mere dot on the map of western Ohio. This is farming country, flat as a phonograph record; a bus driver knows it and never misses 80 miles of it and never miss a thing. But hard by the highway that runs between Pique and Greenville is an unpretentious brick church, and behind the church is a square schoolhouse. The question now before the Supreme Court of Ohio is whether a private School must comply with standards set by the State Board of Education or close its doors for work.
BEFORE IT ENDS, the case of Preacher Whisner is likely to find its place in the line of cases that stretches back to Pierce v.
Society of Sisters, decided in 1925. It follows in the footsteps of Wisconsin vs. Joder, decided just three years ago. Ball did a brilliant job in that case, successfully defending a group of students who had been upset upon their right to educate their children in the "old ways."
The same principle is at stake here in Bradford. Preacher Whisner's flock is a fundamentalist flock, partly Dunkard in its origins, composed of persons who love God and fear God. The fear comes first. To expose their children to the horrors of nonreligious instruction, in their view, to invite the wrath of God. They live by the Bible. They teach by the Bible. In every ordinary way, they are inoffensive, law-abiding people.
This is a classic confrontation between the rights of the people and the powers of the state. The people have a right to the free state, but the state has a power to fix minimum standards of education. Preacher Whisner and the brothers and sisters of Tabernacle Church want their emancipation, he said. Know God; State Ohio wants them reared to know some other things also.
On the Friday morning that the word came from Columbus, the 62 pupils of Tabernacle School were quietly at work at the church. Fourteen-40 feet by 48 feet, is weldwood-paneled and carpeted wall-to-
wall; the building, only two years old, is spotlessly clean. The pupils sit at little cubby holes, in the fashion of graduate students in their carols. These students work in the office in works in his office at his own speed. The three teachers circulate among them.
The children learn chiefly from "Packets of Accelerated Christian Education," known as "paces." A boy or girl may be working simultaneously at a fifth-grade pace in math, a sixth-grade pace in social studies and an English. All instruction is Bible-oriented. Posters on the wall warn the children against anger, jealousy, deceit, pride, selfishness, cheating and coveting. The school runs for the standard 180-day term.
Library books are few; scientific equipment was not in evidence. Pupils bring their own lunches, and at restice they tumble toward the playground or school. Children relief of children anywhere.
to control the education of their own children? Does the State of Ohio have the power to impose some 500 "Minimum Standards" on school? The State insists that all "activities" of the Tabernacle School "shall conform to policies adopted by the Board of Education." The parents of Preacher Whisner's fook instill in their students a freedom of religion still has meaning, in the end the parents will win.
(c) 1975 Washington Star Syndicate inc.
Film series restraints outlined
BvSTU MeDONALD
JUA Popular Film Chairman
Most films that come to universities are a least six months old and have
I very much appreciated Mr. Sack's commentary, "Foreign Films Alien Here" (Oct. 10 Kansan). The article pointed out some of the curious aspects of Student Union Activities films which may be puzzling the minds of many KU students. Of course, foreign films are not really alien to the University of Kansas, but I wonder why they are being question, "Why are we having these foreign films and not others?"
The primary constraint over a college film program rests in the agreement that commercial theater owners have with the producers. Commercial theaters, understandably, protect and therefore ask distributors not to release new films to colleges which are usually willing to charge half the price of an ordinary admission ticket. The industry simply because commercial theaters make up the bulk of their business.
already been exposed to students. Bearing this in mind, it should be pointed out that SUA is immune to criticisms of not scheduling such films as Bertoluczi's "1900" which are much too new to be made available to any college campus.
Time is an awesome constraint on scheduling. A well-planned film series for the fall must begin the preceding May. There are numerous reasons for this. Literally hundreds of colleges and universities are poised, waiting for the list of popular films. The number of film prints is not inordinate. Often, if a film is not ordered early, it might never reach the campus as a contemporary model.
When this is completed, the various booking agents are contacted and it is not
T tedious conferences precede scheduling, further necessitating the need for early bookings. Once a tentative schedule is made from the list of available films, it is often advisable to confer with other film chairpersons who may or may not want to coordinate their films.
unusual to have to modify the tentative schedule to meet the desires of the film distributor or neighboring commercial theaters. Even when these steps are taken, a film distributor may back out of a contract as was the case with "Chinatown."
Aditionally, it has been a long-standing SUA policy to inform students early of the films that will be shown during the semester. Thus, consideration to students means that movie scenarios should be presented in order to distribute them to incoming students at enrollment. Publicity must be organized well in advance of any successful film series. Consideration must be given to holidays, basketball games, concertes, speakers or other conflicting events so that the potentially good showing. Because of these constraints, film scheduling must be done early.
Budgetes are also constraints. Many film programs cannot afford to bring a budget, and some students "shoe," and unless Kansas taxpayers, Kansas representatives, student fees or admission prices are brought to meet the increase, this is the way things are to stay.
film one has to realize that often foreign films attract very few people. There are notable exceptions to this rule, but I believe Mr. Sack was basically correct when he said that film thinkers of that aren't American made as being austere and pedantic."
I can add more force to Mr. Sack's argument by reporting that "Lawrence of Arabia" attracted more than twice as many people as Bergman's "Persona." He also cited the "Dadwig, the Mad Man From Bavaria," Bergman's "Cries and Whispers" attracted only half as many people as "The Godfather." Moreover, the student senate cut off funds for the free" foreign film series two years ago because insufficient to warrant the high expenditures that it incurred.
There are also opportunity costs. The number of playdies in a semester are finite, it must be remembered that if one makes an error, the expense of showing some other film.
Nevertheless, as Mr. Sack reported, the popular film series has brought an unusually high number of foreign films. Thus it would seem inappropriate to charge SUA with "mimicking" or not "ground breaking" in its film programs.
If Mr. Sack implied that SUA is shirking its responsibilities to the students by not bringing obscure, excluding material from campus, I totally disagree. However, if Mr. Sack was suggesting that we attend foreign films as "masterpieces in international" and not compete accountably Supporting foreign films will only encourage more of them.
Readers Respond/
I am writing this letter in response to the person who, in his Oct. 13 letter to the Kansan, bravely stood up and let himself be counted, specifically Mr. "Name Withheld by Request." I believe it is time to set the record straight.
To the Editor:
Point 1- You state that students park their cars in private lots. This is true, but couldn't that same statement be made about any place on a street where a patrol by Traffic and Security, and offenders pay for their violations.
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Student answers bar crowd critic
Finally, when considering a foreign
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Point 2-According to your letter, people urinate in the streets when "the urge strikes." I submit that this is a small minority and that John Wooden is attempting to improve his ability, even though, to my knowledge, he is the only proprietor in town who is held responsible for acts committed by people who have left the premises. (Does the owner of Kitt's Liquor have to be trained to drink time someone illegally brings a bottle to a football game?)
Point 3-You also state that students find it necessary to, and this is a direct quote, "rape women, mutate other kinds of bacteria so they can secrete scenes as loudly as possible as soon as they step outside the
bars." I sincerely doubt that anyone believes that patrons of the Wheel come there to intentionally commit acts of violence, but I know that the women of this campus will want to take issue with you for classing them with "other kinds of property." Not to mention the men who were supposed to place near the Wheel was on a Sunday when it was closed, and not one of you civic-minded neighbors attempted to aid the victim or even testify.
I have the honor of knowing I Wooden personally, and I can say without a doubt that he is one of the finest men in Lawrence. He supports the University and the city with singular selflessness. He owned and operated the Wheeled long
The Daily Kansas welcomes letters to the editor, but asks that letters be typewritten, double-spaced and no longer than 300 words. All letters are addressed according to space limitations, and according to the editor's judgment, and must be signed. KU students must provide their name, year in school and homework; faculty must provide their name and position; others must provide their name and address.
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before the zoning laws were changed, You were aware of the presence of the 14th Street bars when you moved in, so it seems to me the fault lies with you. Having said my piece, I think I will be honest about Harry Truman would say, "strike a blow for liberty."
Russell Cloon Shawnee Mission junior
Russell Cloon
In response to Miss LaPine's letter (Oct. 16), I have a question about the Biblical Biblical Judahism. Some rabbis believe in the literal Bible; some think it full of myths. Some I've heard about that. Most rabbinate only as a 9-5 job; others devoted it their life.
Rabbinate explained
To the Editor:
The basic concepts of Biblical Judaism were set forth in great detail by a rabbi named Saul of Judea. His book, *Cave of the Century* C.E. Good and evil, death penalty and much more are written about in the B'it Chadashah, "New Conventant" for which Rabbi Saul wrote half.
Miss LaPine, I call you and the rest of my kindman to realize that rabbinic and Biblical Judaism are rarely the
Bob Mendelsohn
Lawrence sophomore
SK
KU' deck betw coa Owe