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Monday, November 2, 1987 / University Daily Kansan
Opinion
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Mind games
Abuse can be more subtle than a slap across the face.
It occupies many forms, all of them charming.
In Broward County, Fla., a woman recently was found guilty in a case where she was accused of driving her 17-year-old daughter to commit suicide. The case brings forth a new angle on child abuse, and the guilty verdict sets an important precedent.
She is thought to be the first mother criminally charged in connection with her child's suicide.
The prosecutor in the Florida case argued that the woman mentally abused her daughter by making her work as a nude dancer. The girl killed herself after she had worked as a dancer for three months.
The mother faces up to 25 years in prison for charges that include child abuse.
mental and emotional methods can be used to abuse. A cutting remark, cruel pressure to do something unwise, or disrespectful treatment can all have the same effect as a physical blow.
And when it goes over the edge of toleration, that sort of incessant picking and prodding at the mind can lead to death.
Abuse that leads to death should be punished as such.
Peaceful people
People are neonle
Residents of the Soviet Union and residents of the United States are not worlds apart, according to a recent survey by the Research Center of the University of Maryland and the Institute for Sociological Research of the Soviet Academy of Sciences.
The respective times spent eating, taking care of children, watching TV, doing housework and talking were recorded by hundreds of people in Jackson, Mich., and Pskov, Russia.
Does it matter "they" spent more time reading, and "we" spent more time eating? Soviet women perform 69 percent of the housework, compared to 67 percent performed by women in the United States. What does that tell us?
More than proving our differences, the surveys highlight our similarities. Both groups spend time relaxing, working and caring for their homes. Both watch television, play sports, do laundry and sleep.
Any nation's foreign policy exists, in theory, with the best interests of its people in mind. Wouldn't a summit between the United States and the Soviet Union be in our collective best interest?
The people of the world are not at odds with each other nearly as much as are their governments. Surely the people who make up the two superpowers are equally interested in peace.
Governments must follow the lead of those they serve. The people.
Grave error
Last week Telly Savalas, of "Kojak" fame, opened the safe of the luxury ocean liner Titanic, which sank April 15, 1912, after striking an iceberg.
Viewers in the United States and 20 other countries watched the telecast that investors said netted $5 million.
The two-hour telecast reduced an international monument to a publicity stunt. Television cameras whirred as the graves of 1,500 victims were disturbed for the sake of profit.
The Titanic expedition, as it is being conducted, is doing nothing to avert future maritime disasters. The relics robbed from the dead contribute little to archaeological pursuits, unlike the excavation of King Tutankhamen's ancient tomb in Egypt.
And television extravaganzas that display diamonds to gaping audiences dishonor the memory of those who died.
Corrections
Because of an error, a paragraph in Ben Shult's column Wednesday was incorrect. It should have said, "Impeachment proceedings should have been initiated, if only to set the precedent that a president who is not running for re-election is not free of obligation in the twilight of his presidency. There must be accountability."
Because of an editor's error, Mark Perlmutter was misidentified in a letter to the editor that ran in Tuesday's Kansan. He is from Denver.
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Governing requires attendance
In response to the publicity Student Senate has received regarding its attendance policy I would like to say that the entire situation is absolutely asinine.
Kevin Pritchard is a truly nice person, a great basketball player, and if given a chance, could probably be a good student senator. He is not the target of anyone's hatred. But Brian Kramer has not given Kevin a chance to prove himself. Kevin definitely belongs in Student Senate and I'm pleased he is there.
The existing Student Senate attendance policy is one of necessity; a quorum of student senators must be present for any business to be properly conducted
As an off-campus senator, Cultural Affairs chair and a member of StudEx. I was there for the discussion of the attendance policy, which has been in existence since Senate began. We were merely setting standards for appeals. Many student senators have jobs and/or involvement in other activities that keep them from Senate meetings on occasion. Every senator has the right to appeal a suspension after either four excused or two unexcused absences. If that person is reinstated, then he or she may miss two more meetings before being removed from Senate. That means a person can miss a total of six meetings before removal. That is about one-third of the year's meetings.
If a senator is removed from Senate, he / she may apply for that empty seat just like anyone else. If that person can prove a true willingness and dedication to serve the students on Senate, that person could be selected to fill the vacant seat.
Many of the members of Student Senate spend long hours working on all sorts of projects for the benefit of the entire University. That work is being ignored in favor of flashy insanity. If you want to know what is going on, then ask, or better yet, get involved.
Special treatment
Kathryn B. Anderson, Owasso, Okla., senior
What seems to have been overlooked in the Kevin Pritchard — Student Senate controversy is the corollary: "Would Larry Brown tolerate Kevin Pritchard missing basketball games because he had to attend Student Senate meetings?"
Somehow I really doubt it
Kevin's desire to be involved in Student Senate is understandable. Senate is a worthwhile organization; it does a great many things that affect the everyday life of every student on this campus. It runs the buses and Secure Cab, it finances the Watkins Health Care Center, sports clubs and, yes, it even finances non-revenue varsity sports. In total, Senate allocates over one million dollars of our money.
I was involved in Senate for three years as a Senator. I quite enjoyed the experience. This year, I chose to resign my Senate seat. I realized, given my commitments to work, to academics, and to coaching professional and club soccer, and to activities like refereeing high school soccer and participation on the KU Sports Council, that I could not be an effective student senator. After all, KU Soccer plays in an indoor league on Wednesday nights and Senate has been meeting on Wednesday nights for many years now. I never thought I merited any special accommodation by Student Senate, no matter how worthy or popular my other commitments were or how worthy I was as a senator. I puzzles me as to why Pritchard feels so entitled. Or could he just be using his popularity for political opportunism?
Effective student senators must earn their position on Senate every meeting, just as effective athletes must earn their starting position every game. If participation in one activity precludes participation in another, then the name of the game is choice. I've made that choice. I'm no longer a senator. Kevin Pritchard seems unwilling to make that choice; instead he demands that Senate accord him special privilege by changing its longstanding rules to accommodate his conflicts.
Call me crazy, but I want the senators that are supposed to be representing me on the floor of Senate fulfilling their elected duties, not bouncing a ball up and down the floor of Allen Field House.
I certainly hope that the people who responded favorably to Brian Kramer do not believe these falsehoods about the Student Senate. I think that everything Student Senate has been accused of are fallacious lies put forth in a very unprofessional and dogmatic manner.
Glenn Shirtliffe, Gloucester, Canada, graduate student
I cannot believe that people, including our basketball team, would honestly believe that the
Senate responsibility
Student Senate is out to "plot" against all athletes by using "blatant discrimination" to purposely terminate Kevin Pritchard. First of all, Kevin was fully aware prior to Senate elections that if anybody misses more than two Senate meetings he is subject to termination by the Senate. This attendance policy, I might add, affects everyone.
In my opinion, it is more than just attendance at these meetings which makes a good senator. It is dedication to committee work, and a lot of time. Has Kevin put forth "hundreds of hours for Senate?" Kevin needs to be aware of his responsibilities, and if he is not present at the Senate meetings then what good is he in representing the University's student body? Kevin made a commitment fully aware of his duties. Why should we make exceptions for him? There are other athletes on the Senate who have never complained about the attendance policy, which has been in effect for years. If Brian Kramer had addressed this issue in a more adult manner, then the lies, exaggerations and the mentioning of names could have been avoided.
Maybe Brian Kramer should propose a bill that changes the attendance policy to aid senator-athletes. Student Senate has worked hard to obtain the good reputation it has right now. I have worked extensively with a lot of senators. They are not an elite group who hate Kevin Pritchard. They encourage involvement in Senate and always have since I have attended KU. Their interests are toward the best representation for the student body.
I think it is a shame that so many people have distorted and abused the writing privileges we have to disprove this. If we would discuss this issue in a mature, adult manner then a solution common to all could be found.
Team playing
Sherri Sweers, Green River, Wyo., sophomore
In response to the Oct. 26 letter by members of the basketball team, I have the following comments:
How would you like someone on your team to be captain, vet rarely, if ever, attend practice?
The situation with your fellow teammate Kevin Pritchard is really quite similar. How can he be president of Student Senate, if he will be at practice and games all the time?
The attendance rule is not unfair at all. It states that anyone, not just athletes, missing two meetings will be placed on probation.
I think you should speak through your actions on the court, not through ill-informed letters to the editor.
Jeff Cleveland, St. Louis, Mo., junior
Athletic representation
I shy away from malicious attack and I suggest no political overthrow. At first I was supportive of the notion that Kevin Pritchard should be exempt from Student Senate due to his conflicting involvement in KU basketball. Yet, an open mind has enabled me to sort through all the accusations and tangential analysis.
Whether of not you use the voodoom term "discrimination" to describe the Senate's attempt to abolish Pritchard from their ranks, one thing is clear: without Pritchard, the athletes are left out. William Sanders wrote in a letter to the Kansan, "... a senator not present at a meeting makes it impossible to represent the opinion of the student body." If Sanders is so truly concerned about total student representation, then he must understand that the athletes deserve their say just like everyone else.
Without Pritchard, the athletes have no say, it's that simple. What Hutchinson, Templin, Quincy and Sanders require of Pritchard may not be possible for any KU athlete. I think that the Senate is asking Kevin Pritchard to make too great a sacrifice, one that the average senator does not have to make. The fault does not lie with Kevin Pritchard. The fault is the Senate code. Why sacrifice the potential for a great leader for the sake of a rash policy?
Make a choice
Mike Hart, Bartlesville, Okla., sophomore
I would like to congratulate Brian Kramer for running what appears to be a well-orchestrated smear campaign against Stephanie Quincy, Roger Templin and Jane Hutchinson over this over-blow, ridiculous controversy of discrimination against student-athletes in Student Senate. I have never been one to pay considerable attention to our governing body, for my interests lie elsewhere within the University.
But Brian, I am compelled to respond, for you have certainly evoked a discussion that appears devoid of any semblance of sensibility.
I do agree that there should be a channel for student-athletes to be represented in Student Senate. The allegations, however, that the attendance policies are specifically discriminatory against Pritchard and other current student-athletes certainly appears somewhat small-minded in nature. As William Sanders stated in his letter to the editor on Oct. 27, the attendance policies have been in place for a period long before Kevin Pritchard became a senator. Brian Kramer, do you, the basketball team, and the Brothers Conway seriously believe that Kevin Pritchard, or any other person — athlete or not — can be an effective student senator if he or she is not able to attend the meetings? If so, I must seriously question your collective conception of representation.
If Kevin is such an outstanding leader on the floor of Allen Field House, that's great, and I am fully supportive and admire his abilities to do so. If Kevin wants to be in Student Senate and so a good job representing the students in the process, then more power to him. Yet allow me to say that I would also like to be Cancellor, a U.S. Senator, lead my team to the final four, be student body president and be the "greatest student leader ever at KU." However, if I can't do all of these things effectively because of time restraints and conflicting responsibilities, then I, like many others, will have to make a choice.
Paul Rupp, Hays junior
New government
What with all the fighting in Student Senate now, it seems like a good time to propose a form of government to replace Senate, one that would truly reflect the balance of power at KU. I call it "The KU Junta." The seats would be distributed as follows:
Endowment Seats: one seat for $1,000,000 invested in South Africa-related companies.
Alumni Seats: one seat for each $20,000 athletic contribution.
athletic contributor
Junior Politics Sears: one seat for each pre-
Basketball Players Seats: five seats, of course.
Faculty / Parking Services Seats: one seat for each faculty member who is paid as well as his peers, and one seat for every ten parking tickets written each semester by Parking Services.
Other Students Seats: one seat per 25,000 students.
Jon DeVore, Lawrence junior
Sacrifices must be made
We must make choices every day of our lives. We choose whether to go to class or stay home. We choose whether to go out at night or study. And we choose what extra-curricular activities we want to take part in during our college lives.
Recent letters to the Kansan have stated that the Student Senate at KU has discriminated against student-athletes. This is ridiculous. The perception that the Senate has a deep hatred for Kevin Prichard is absurd. No one has come out and protested Kevin's or any athlete's place on Senate. There has been no picketing, no demonstrations and no hate mail. The whole idea of hatred is a gross figment of Brian Kramer's self-sufficiency imagination.
The attendance policy that has been mentioned has been in place since Kevin Pritchard was an infant. I seriously doubt that someone at that time had the hindsight to put the policy in to stop Kevin from growing up and becoming a student senator. A senator is given a total of six absences during his term and Kevin knew this well in advance of his election to Senate.
A choice needs to be made by Kevin Pritchard whether he wants to attend all of his basketball games or whether he wants to fulfill the duties that an "overwhelming majority of the students" voted and trusted him to do. Kevin has mistakenly been singled out as the only person who has to make this decision. Members of the cheerleading squad, basketball band and fans must also make this choice.
It has been mentioned that Kevin Pritchard has put many hours into Student Senate, but no one has been able to state exactly what he has done. And except for taping a 20-second commercial for H.E.R.O., Pritchard has never been working around the Senate office nor has Pritchard debated or spoken on any bill or issue presented in Senate meetings. So what kind of representative is Kevin Pritchard? Minus a great jump-shot, what has Kevin done for you? As many people have un-selfishly shown me, you do not have to be a senator to work for and serve the students. If Kevin Pritchard genuinely cares about helping you and representing you off the basketball court, then he can do so by making some choices.
John Cissell, Mission senior
BLOOM COUNTY
by Berke Breathed