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Wednesday, September 9, 1987 / University Daily Kansan
Opinion
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
The recent fight at an Alpha Phi Alpha party in the Kansas Union demonstrates yet another example of group mentality. This overwhelming force can be seen at the riots in past years at Aggieville in Manhattan.
Give up the fight
When people are gathered in large numbers, they change. When alcohol is present, people often lose good judgment. KU students should have learned this long ago. If they have not, it is blatantly obvious now.
It is not just a particular fraternity or other group that is responsible for this inexcusable behavior. The problem is that this type of thing can and should be prevented. Obviously, there was not enough security at the last party to control the crowd
But more important, KU students who exhibit this type of dangerous behavior do not deserve to be at the parties and should go elsewhere. They put others and themselves at an unneeded risk.
risk. Let's hope the lesson has been learned and similar incidents will not happen. People need to control themselves and grow up, but organizations should not forget the power of group mentality. It can kill a party.
End to Baby M
And you thought you had heard the last from Mary Beth Whitehead.
The surrogate mother who fought for custody of the baby she was paid $10,000 to bear for another couple is back in the news.
This time she is pressing the courts to outlaw surrogacy. Along with other surrogate mothers, she is joining a coalition to fight for a ban of surrogate pregnancies.
A total ban, however, is not what is needed. Surrogate pregnancies can be successful, bringing joy to all parties, if handled correctly. Legislation must be passed at the state level to ensure the rights of all involved.
to ensure the rights of the parents. In the desired law, a contract between the surrogate and the couple desiring a baby would be legally binding. The contract would call for mandatory psychological counseling for the mother to ensure she was mentally and emotionally fit to be a surrogate.
surrogate:
Counseling would also prepare the mother for the emotional taxation of delivering a baby into the waiting arms of another couple. Counseling for the entire term of the pregnancy would be optional for the mother. All counseling costs would be paid by the couple hiring the surrogate.
compulsory breasts needs such a law. With proper handling, surrogate pregnancies can be a viable alternative for an infertile couple. Legislation calling for a legally binding, detailed contract would prevent heartache for all involved.
prevent heartache for an involved. Such a law would also prevent surrogate mothers, such as Whitehead, from clogging the courts with sticky moral questions and babies named "M."
Have a safe trip
The Secure Cab system may be in jeopardy.
And that means life may be in jeopardy.
Died with five years ago by the Studer.
established two years ago by the Student Senate, the program — known to many as the "tipysy taxi" — provides free rides to students who are too intoxicated to drive or who need a safe ride home late at night.
Not only can the program save students the headache and expense of a DUI violation, it also safeguards the lives of would be drunk drivers and others on the streets of Lawrence.
be drunk drivers and others.
The Secure Cab program is not a cheap one. Last year the Senate paid the Union Cab Company more than $20,000 to maintain the service at the rate of $2.50 per ride. This represents a seven-fold increase over the cost for the first year of the program.
Nevertheless, that sum is less than $1 per student per year. Surely there is no better bargain for the safety of KU student=
The fact that the rides are free is a primary attraction for prospective users. Charging for the rides undoubtedly would reduce the number of riders and diminish the effectiveness of the program. But, because of the financial burden of the system, some fee may be necessary.
Although the appropriation of more money for the project would clearly be best, charging a nominal fee, perhaps a quarter, would be far better than cutting the program altogether.
The cost of eliminating the Secure Cab program could be far greater than the expense of keeping it.
Editorials in this column are the opinions of the editorial board.
News staff
Jennifer Benjamin ... Editor
Jul Warren ... Managing editor
John Benner ... News editor
Beth Copeland ... Editorial editor
Sally Streff ... Campus editor
Brian Kabelline ... Sports editor
Dan Riettman ... Photo editor
Bill Skeet ... Graphics editor
Tom Eblen ... General manager, news adviser
Business staff
Bonnie J. Hardy...Business manager
Robert Hughes...Advertising manager
Kelly Scherer...Retail sales manager
Kurt Messersmith...Campus sales manager
Greg Knipp...Production
David Derfert...National sales manager
Gary Clark...Classified manager
Ron Weems...Director of marketing
Jeanne Hines...Sales and marketing adviser
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Aquino too soft on communists
It appears Philippine President Corazon Aquino has evaded yet another coup attempt, the fifth since she took office in early 1986, but the problems that spurred the rebellion must be addressed if her fledgling democracy is to survive.
As displayed in the recent uprising, which was the most violent to date, Aquino has yet to find answers in her attempt to appease many unsatisfied elements in the Philippine military and elsewhere. The dissatisfaction stems mainly from Aquino's failure to hold a presidency and continually growing communist insurgency whose attacks have engulfed two-thirds of the small island nation.
The widespread frustration in the military was summarized by General Edgardo Abina, a coup sympathizer, who said he could not understand why "soldiers and policemen are accused of violating human rights" by fighting communist rebels, but "no one (has) raised a finger" to stop the guerrillas from killing his men.
In December, the communist New People's Army (NPA) agreed to an unprecedented 60-day cease-fire, and there was hope for a resolution. But as many analysts predicted, the talks collapsed, as did the cease-fire, and the NPA stepped up its ambush attacks and urban assassinations. NPA rebels have recently been estimated at nearly 26,000 strong, and there are no indications that guerrilla forces are weakening.
ins news is nothing new to Aquino, because she has heard it frequently since taking office. But as time was wasted and negotiations faltered, rebel strength continued to grow while confidence in Aquino deteriorated.
ing of the rebels.
Enrile was a key supporter of Aquino in her triumph over Ferdinand Marcos, but was fired in November from his cabinet position after rumors surfaced connecting Enrile to a previous coup attempt. Enrile has denied involvement in the most recent uprising, but has made it clear that he thinks Aquino's dealings with the NPA have been botched and that many of her cabinet members are "card-carrying communists."
A primary opponent of Aquino's accommodating style in dealing with the NPA is former Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile, who is a staunch anti-communist and who has been one of Aquino's most outspoken critics in her handling of the rebels.
President Reagan, during Aquino's visit to the U.S., a year ago, pressed the Philippine president to expand her battle against the NPA. Aquino resisted the pressure, as she has done with the military leaders in Manila, and stated the only way she would resort to "the sword of war" was if all negotiations failed.
The National Democratic Front, which is a communist-controlled alliance that negotiates on behalf of the NPA, has termed Aquino's proposals a "faarse." Antonio Zumel, an NDF negotiator, said Aquino's attempts to reconcile were part of her administration's "soft tactics to countervail its naked sword of war."
The most recent uprising in the Philippines has highlighted the need for Aquino, with increased aid from the U.S., to take a hard-line approach to defeat the NPA. By taking the offensive, Aquino has the means to satisfy military on the right, while maintaining the labels on the left who, to this point, have had the luxury of choosing the time and location of their attacks.
Efforts must also be made on the part of the U.S. to pledge bipartisan support of Aquino and her fragile democracy. Not only are U.S. strategic interests high with two military bases in operation, but the Philippines' transition from a relatively oppressive government into a working democracy must be preserved to showcase how a workable democratic change could occur
how a workable democratic change?
If Aquino chooses to continue her policy of appeasement with the NPA, the recent coup attempt will undoubtedly not be the last
Advising horror stories haunt freshmen
"So what am I supposed to take?"
need to know.
"But I have no idea where to start."
"Just look in the catalog. It has everything you need to know."
"Then we've got some real problems, don't we."
"That was all I could remember about summer enrollment — something loosely termed "advising." My adviser was a professor of African studies and spoke in broken English. There is of course nothing wrong with that, except that I am a pre-med student in biology. My adviser knew nothing about the curriculum to prepare me for the Medical College Admissions Test or even the honors program in which he was supposed to be involved.
inVowed
not advising, it seems, is a common thing not just at the University of Kansas but at other schools, too. I have several friends at the University of Missouri who always have horror stories to tell about their experiences with advisers. Even a friend from the prestigious Columbia University in New York recently told me of her frustration with the advising system.
My roommate, even after designating his interest in business and economics, was stuck with a physics professor as an adviser. Both he and I realized that to find anything out, we had to go to our own departments. There was no use for someone outside of our interests with little understanding of our goals to try to help us decide what courses to take.
I quickly learned that I could not depend solely on the advice of advisers. I took mostly courses that looked enjoyable my first semester, and my adviser approved them. Unfortunately, I am now playing catch-up with difficult science courses while trying to prepare for the MCAT at the same time. Had I known better, these courses would
have been out of the way by now.
have been out of the system.
The advising system at KU needs some house cleaning. Students who have not yet decided on a major could be assigned a general adviser, but those who have an idea of what they want to do should be assigned to someone who is knowledgeable not only in selecting general required courses but in directing the student in planning for future semesters. It is not just frustrating but a waste of time taking worthless advice from someone who should be helping establish faith in the system.
the system.
I do not think it is a difficult problem to resolve, and the University administration should take care of it. But in the meantime, I have been doing some advising of my own: Freshmen and sophomores, the best advice you can get is from upperclassmen who already have been through the wringer. Oh, and if you are majoring in business, biology, physics or philosophy, stay out of the African studies department.
Brad Taylor is a junior from Kansas City, Mo. majoring in human biology.
katz
k.l. thorman
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