4
vwenesday, November 4, 1987 / University Daily Kansan
Opinion
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Take a look
Kansas is at a crossroads in determining the direction of education in the state.
Several ideas are on the table, from the Margin of Excellence to financing new classroom equipment.
The issues are vital. But when the problems seem overwhelming, a look to another part of the world can help put things into perspective.
The University of Chile is having problems with its budget just as KU is. But in Chile, the new rector of the university is recommending a 40 percent budget cut for its teaching and research hospital.
And money isn't the only crisis at the University of Chile.
The rector says the institution should pay its own way Since 1982, the university's budget has been cut 40 percent, according to one former official.
The rector says the institution should pay its own way.
This new rector, who is a businessman, was appointed by Gen. Augusto Pinetoch. He has fired eight deans and 120 professors since he stepped into his position in August. He recently suspended all professors' salaries.
Opponents decry the military control of the university Pinochet had appointed all rectors since 1973. Few classes have been held in the midst of the controversy.
So, certainly, problems plague the status of education in Kansas.
But a calm sense of perspective can only help in solving the problems here at home.
No defense
Students are often perceived as an easy target for those seeking to turn a profit, from landlords to textbook companies. Because they are not usually in a position to protest unfair conditions or unreasonable prices, students are left holding the bag by more powerful elements.
Add Uncle Sam to the list of those taking advantage of students' subordinate position.
To meet the requirements of the Gramm-Rudman deficit reduction law, the federal government has increased the fee assessed on student loans from 5 percent to 5.5 percent. Thus, for a $2,500 loan, an additional $12.50 will be withheld by the government to reduce the federal deficit.
Already, students are more susceptible to the effects of an unstable economic climate than many other segments of society.
Certainly, the deficit is a staggering problem; its existence is casting a lengthening shadow over the economic prospects of the nation. Students, however, can hardly afford to bear an increased burden to lessen the severity of the crisis.
But because they are not a politically organized group capable of exerting pressure on lawmakers, and because they cannot generally afford to refuse the loans, the nation's university, college and vocational students are convenient targets for budgetary adjustments.
Students represent the future strength of the country. We cannot afford to add more obstacles to the already difficult path of higher education.
Deficit reduction should be accomplished by addressing the tough questions directly, and through the courage of legislators to make difficult but unavoidable choices. To further burden students is to skirt the issues by picking on the politically defenseless.
Stop the shock
The National Coalition Against Pornography has launched a war against pornography. Residents of Kansas City, Mo., are participating in the battle through STOP, or Stand Together Opposing Pornography.
Although battling to end pornography is a noble and worthy cause, the coalition's means to that end are questionable. The group is accused of overstating the scope of the problem to evoke fear and is also overly graphic in its descriptions.
By employing scare tactics, the campaign aims to arouse the people's emotions instead of appealing to their reason and logic. The tactics of the campaign are degrading to the audience and defeat the purpose of logically and legally stamping out pornography.
The campaign should be aimed at the pornographers and lawmakers instead of targeting unsuspecting citizens. True reforms will only be made through these channels.
Extremism is never effective, nor is it justifiable.
Shocking people with explicit claims will not solve the abominable problem of pornography. The scare tactics of the STOP campaign reduce the anti-porn crusaders to the level of the pornographers themselves. The issue needs to be dealt with maturely and through the correct channels. The coalition must continue to fight pornography but not by the present means.
Editorials in this column are the opinions of the editorial board.
News staff
Jennifer Benjamin...Editor
Jill Warren...Managing editor
John Benner...News editor
Beth Copeland...Editorial editor
Sally Streff...Campus editor
Brian Kelburnline...Sports editor
Dan Rieuthmann...Photo editor
Bill Skeet...Graphics editor
Tom Ehlen...General manager, news adviser
Business staff
Bonnie J. Hardy ...Business manager
Robert Hughes ...Advertising manager
Kelly Scherer ...Retail sales manager
Kurt Messermith.s ...Campus sales manager
Greg Knipp ...Production manager
David Derftel ...National sales manager
Angela Clarkk ...Classified manager
Ron Weems ...Director of marketing
Jeanne Hines ...Sales and marketing adviser
Letters should be typed, double-spaced and less than 200 words and must include the writer's signature, name, address and telephone number. If the writer is affiliated with the University of Kansas, please include class and hometown, or faculty or staff position.
factility
Guest shots should be typed, double-spaced and less than 700 words. The writer will be photographed.
The Kansan reserves the right to reject or edit letters and guest shots. They can be mailed or brought to the Kansan newsroom, 111 Stauffer Flint Hall.
can be mailed or brought to the Kansan. Letters, guest shots and columns are the opinion of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of the University Daily Kansan. Editorials are the opinion of the Kansan editorial board.
The University Daily Kanan (USPS 650-640) is published at the University of Kansas, 118 Stairfur-Flint Hall, Lawrence, Kan. 6045, daily during the regular school year, excluding Saturday, Sunday, holidays and finals periods, and Wednesday during the summer session. Second-class postage is paid Lawrence, Kan. 6044. Annual subscription by mail are $40 in county and $50 in county. Student subscriptions are $3 and are paid through student activity fee.
the University Daily Kansas, 118
Staffer-Flint Halt, Lawrence, K6. 80454
Swap football for an arts center
When I was growing up, I always admired my friend Charles. He was the tradingest fool around, and he always came out on top. Trade him a worthless trinket and the next day he would have bartered it away for a motorcycle. Trade him a broken-down motorcycle and the next day he would have bartered it away for a good car. Charles never lost when it came to trading.
For a long time, I thought Charles was some sort of an aberration to my childhood, an abnormal blip on my boyhood scope. But as I grew older, I noticed that certain adults seemed to be gifted in the same way. These people tended to be the movers and shakers of the used car and life insurance businesses, and I was always amazed at their ability to come out ahead on trades.
Later in life, I began to see that certain nations also possessed this skill. Neville Chamberlain, for example, traded with a German fellow. In the end, Chamberlain got a signature, and Hitler got Europe. A little later, the East European countries needed some foreign policy assistance and traded help for authoritarian rule. And in the 1970s, the United States gave up its firstborn child to the Soviets in return for a pretty piece of paper.
I have decided it is time for the University of Kansas to do a little trading. We can give away something that has little value, and in return get a very important item. We can barter away with the best of them and come out on top. This is my proposal! We dump the football program permanently and exchange it for a new performing arts center.
On the face of it, this sounds like a bad trade. After all, KU has a tradition of football, tailgate parties and riots after the KU-K.State game. We also have a tradition of massive vandalism at the Jayhawk Towers, particularly in the towers where our proud athletes are housed. It would be a shame to lose those traditions.
On the other hand, we have a minimal tradition of support for the performing arts and their associated facilities.
I couldn't help but think of that tradition toward shodiness (maybe it should be called the margin of shodiness) one evening as I watched the Central Philharmonic of China perform at Hoch Auditorium. In the midst of the great and historical performance, my eyes kept wandering to the ceiling, fixtures and physical reality of Hoch.
HOCI
I know it is not proper to look around during such highbrow affairs. One is supposed to cross and uncross one's legs with style, concentrate on the music, breathe softly and on rare occasions scratch one's head. And one can never, ever belch or fall asleep during such events. But I just couldn't help but stare at my surroundings.
While the orchestra played selections from Chen Yi, I looked down at the seating arrangement. While musicians strummed away with a selection of Tan Dun's piano concerto, I gasped at the walls. When they arose for an encore, I was mesmerized by the substandard state. And during the lifting finale of Dvorak, my eyes automatically rose from the rust-encrusted house lights, up the rusty chains and finally toward the water-stained ceiling.
I was embarrassed, but in fairness, the Central Philharmonic of China probably thought this was an OK place to play. After all, they were silenced
during the Cultural Revolution, and it is quite possible that they practiced and played in leaky basements and attics. So in the relative sense, Hoch may have seemed like a very nice place to play. At least the Red Guards didn't burst in with machine guns and smash their instruments.
But in a more traditional sense, Hoch is a disgrace. It is everything a performing arts center shouldn't be, including but not limited to non-existent ventilation. In fact, Hoch has such poor ventilation that a visiting orchestra refused to wear its concert dress last year. The reason: It was too hot to play on stage in full dress.
It is impossible to gauge the cultural loss KU has suffered because of Hoch's reputation. And make no mistake about it, the word gets around. Performers talk about Hoch like people talk about unscrupulous salesmen. They know when to stay away.
The Chinese Philharmonic came to KU because Zuohuang Chen, the current conductor, is a former student and guest conductor of this University. They came in spite of, not because of, Hoch Auditorium.
My suggestion to swap the football program for a new performing arts center is a serious one. This is supposed to be an institution of higher learning, not a precursor to professional sports. We would be miles ahead to scrap a losing program and begin to support one that has more intrinsic merit.
Besides, the money we save in repair bills at the Jayhawker Towers could be put into some kind of slush fund so that when the new performing arts center needs interior paint, I won't be forced to stare at the water stains and lose my minimal concentration.
Tim Erickson is a photography instructor in the school of journalism.
K·A·N·S·A·N
MAILBOX
Cheap editorial
Some weeks ago, Fred Willer wrote a scathing editorial for the Lawrence High School newspaper about the Alpha Chi Omegas' tie-dyed pledge T-shirts. It contained factual errors, gross generalizations and bizarre hyperbole.
Nevertheless, Willer caused a big to-do, and to this I'm sure he would say a hearty, "Mission accomplished," since his intention was to titillate readers at someone else's expense.
Funny thing is that I thought the editorial staff of the University Daily Kansan was above this sort of irresponsibility. I saw that it isn't after reading Friday's piece of trash about Don Johnson's contribution to the Buddy Award.
it certainly isn't journalism in any sense of the word. Unfounded statements such as, "His admirers are primarily adolescent girls, not accomplished peers in his field," are petty and have no place in ethical public writing.
What is your problem? You not only call him a bad actor, you imply that he doesn't take acting seriously. I don't know, nor do I care, if the man is a good actor and if he is serious about his art,
but I do know that you are poorly qualified to judge his abilities, much less his personal doctrines.
Even the question raised by the editorial, "Does the theatre department want to recognize classic theatre or crass television?" is ridiculous.
The answer, of course, is neither. The department wanted to recognize a popular personality in the field of acting, which was a characteristic of Buddy Rogers. This information comes from a recent article in the Kansan. God, don't you even read your own newspaper?
Patrick Kirby, Leawood sophomore
Lost credibility
So the editorial was pointless from the beginning, but I suppose it doesn't matter. You only wanted to abuse the power of publication to defame someone, and you cheaped yourselves and the reputation of the University Daily Kansan by doing so. Mission accomplished.
The KU National Education Association obtained much free publicity recently by claiming that KU Executive Vice Chancellor Judith Ramaley may have overstepped legal bounds by commenting upon the upcoming unionization election. Now, after conferring with its legal counsel, the Association has decided it will not file a protest. Clearly, this decision can be translated to mean that its counsel did not find the executive vice chancellor's observations to
have been illegal.
Does this incident forebode how the KU-NEA would handle faculty interests if elected? Shoot now and ask questions later? Consider how such a style of representation would affect our credibility as a faculty.
Charles R. Wyttenbach, professor of physiology and cell biology
Not for Pete's sake
I suggest that Wilson check the New York Times, Oct. 26, page 11, for a prime example of national coverage and a clue that an inexperienced campaign organization is much more effective in belittling du Pont's presidential ambitions than the press.
In response to Christopher Wilson's column, Oct. 28, I would hope that Pete du Pont's anonymity has less to do with the sound of his name and more to do with his forgettable politics.
The sketch provided by Wilson omitted one of du Pont's most innovative and pragmatic ideas — mandatory drug testing for high school students before they get driving licenses.
And what sort of miracle would it take to get du Pont into the White House? Let's see . . . how about a couple of gallons of LSD in the nation's water supply.
Hey man, du Pont is really far out.
Jude Pate, Lawrence junior
BLOOM COUNTY
by Berke Breathed