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University Daily Kansan
Monday, Feb. 22, 1965
Professors Condemn U.S. Viet Nam Policy
Two political science professors speaking in the International Club's discussion of the Viet Nam war Saturday night agreed that America cannot negotiate until she stops loafing, and starts winning the war.
The professors, Acting Assistant Professor Klaus Pringsheim and Assistant Professor Herman D. Lujan, spoke before about 150 people in the Union's Big Eight Room.
"We are a bunch of hypocrites!" Pringsheim said. "Most of our failures in Viet Nam have resulted from our own ineffectiveness. We said that we were going to drive the Communists out of Viet Nam but instead, it's we who are being driven out.
"WE SAY WE are defending freedom," he continued, "But what type of freedom are we defending? The freedom to be nothing else but democratic? Why don't we fight for their freedom to have an election and to determine their own course? As it stands, we are fighting for our own interests; not those of the Vietnamese.
"When only Vietnamese are killed in a Communist attack, we hear or read very little if anything about them. But whenever two Americans are killed and a piece of American property damaged the newspapers print headlines about the event," he said.
Pringsheim said that our defenses in Viet Nam have been very poor. "The guerrilla attack at Plei Ku would not had been so successful if the guards had been on their toes. The responsible personnel must have been asleep or away having a good time. Otherwise, how was the enemy able to get so close to establish their attack? Geographically the area is flat and one could see aggressors easily," he told the group.
"There are many honest and dedicated Americans working in Viet Nam," Pringsheim continued. "I admire these people. But there are obviously some leaders who are not doing their best to improve the defense of the South Vietnamese."
PRINGSHEIM WENT on to say, "We set up poor defenses. The Communists attack and beat us. Then we bomb North Viet Nam out of spite, not knowing for sure if the attack was originally launched from Cambodia or from Laos.
"According to Hans Morgenthau, political science professor at Chicago University, the United States was formerly seen as maintaining a balance of power in East Asia so that no one country could be the dictator of the others," Pringsheim said.
State Positions Sought for KU Undergraduates
Tom Snyder, Independence senior and sponsor of the resolution, said the purpose would be to interest students in state government work with the hope that this interest will continue after graduation.
A resolution was passed recently by the All Student Council urging William H. Avery, governor of Kansas, to establish a state government internship program for undergraduates at KU.
Students who are accepted in the 11 week summer program would be paid and given college credit, Snyder said. A similar program has been established by the University of North Carolina.
Snvder said students would be assigned jobs in state agencies and required to attend two evening seminars and one noon session each week.
Toward the end of his work, a student may be asked to do research for his department.
"However, it became apparent to some that we were mainly interested in seeing that no country get stronger than we were." Fringsheim said. "China was seen as a country gaining in strength; while we were seen as becoming weaker. Thus, Southeast Asian countries began excluding the U.S. in their policies. Indochina, Cambodia and Burma are examples.
The mechanics of setting up the program, Snyder said, are being worked out now by the governor's office, university officials, and the political science department. He said an exploratory program could be operational this summer with three or four interns taking part.
"However, the main emphasis is to get ready by 1966," said Snyder.
"So far as negotiations are concerned, we cannot negotiate until we start winning the war and at the moment we aren't," he added. "The Communists feel that they are winning and thus don't see the need for any negotiations."
Robert Emery Sears, Kansas City sophomore, was named student coordinator for the program at the last ASC meeting.
PROF. LUJAN AGREED that "We cannot negotiate until we either start winning the war or create a stalemate where no one is gaining anything.
"There are two types of views on Viet Nam." Lujan continued. "One is the Continentalists; the other, the Internationalists. The former is interested in problems at home and non-involvement in outside affairs unless we go all the way militarily. A popular Continentalist is Mr. Goldwater who speaks about Viet Nam from the military point of view." Lujan said. "He feels that we should get out or go all out militarily.
"The Internationalists, however, believe in involvement in foreign affairs for political purposes," he added. "They advocate an 'open door' policy to Asia and are for keeping Asia in a state of neutrality. They want to establish a military stalemate so that America may be able to stay in East Asia and save her face.
"A problem that the U.S. faces however, is the instability of the South Viet Nam government itself and the apathetic army there, Lujan said.
"The majority of the South Viet Nam army is not fighting for patriotic reasons, but for money. As long as they can get food, clothing and shelter they will fight," Lujan said, "but one cannot be assured of total dependability. But we must still do what we promised to do. That is our obligation. If we pull out now it will be a tremendous loss of face for us."
Commenting on the meeting, Walter Bgoya, Tanganyika senior, and president of the International Club, said, "This meeting was a great success. It brought to light a lot of facts about Viet Nam: facts we don't read in the newspapers. We didn't have the usual dancing after the discussion. It would have been anti-climactic to such a moving program as the one we had tonight. I only wish that more Americans had been here. About 70 per cent of the audience were foreign students."
Dean Marvin to Establish Journalism School in Israel
For the University of Tel-Aviv in Israel, our loss will be their gain.
According to a translation by Hillel Unz, professor of electrical engineering, in an issue of Maariv, a popular Israeli newspaper, Burton W. Marvin, dean of the William Allen White School of Journalism and Public Information, will leave for Tel-Aviv in nine months to establish and direct a school of journalism there.
"We have yet some time for planning." Dean Marvin said, "but, it is clear that much of the work will have to be done in English. I am hoping for co-operation from several of the most talented newspapermen in Israel, for this is the best way."
Marvin and his staff, who will be chosen in the United States, will lecture in English because they do not speak Hebrew. However, the work in the school will normally be done in Hebrew.
The project began last summer when Dr. George Weiss, president of the University of Tel-Aviv, selected Dean Marvin from a long list of candidates to head the school. After
consulting with American experts, Weiss decided that Dean Marvin was "his man" and immediately contacted him by telephone from New York.
"I was on vacation in a small mining camp in the Rockies when he called." Marvin recalled. "I was in the middle of the mountains when somebody called me to the phone. I talked with Dr. Weiss, and ended up going to Israel."
Dean Marvin, who has been the dean of the journalism school at KU for 16 years, will be on leave for two years starting September 1965. He will return as a professor of journalism.
No stranger to foreign work, in 1960 Marvin did work at the University of Tehran in Iran under the Fulbright program and gave seminars for reporters in 17 African states. Before that he organized a center for educating reporters in France for the UN.
"There will always be a need for reporters," Dean Marvin said. "There are 47 journalism schools in the U.S. with an enrollment of 8500 students."
Every year 2500 graduate, yet we have more positions than we can find people to fill," Dean Marvin said.
"Our main problem is to find enough newspaper reporters . . . because most journalism graduates are going over to public relations," Dean Marvin said. He attributed this to more money and faster advancement. "But we will always need someone to get out, get the news, and write it down," he said.
Born in Massachusetts, Dean Marvin and his family moved to the Midwest where his father was a physics instructor at the University of Nebraska. Dean Marvin recalled that his main experience in newspaper work came when he was working for the Chicago Daily News as a foreign news editor. "When I left the Daily News to join the Navy during the war," he said, "you might say I was the only American to receive a direct order from Frank Knox, secretary of the Navy, not to join." Knox had been the publisher of the Daily News before his appointment by President Roosevelt.
THE CLASSICAL FILM SERIES
Presents Edward G. Robinson
in
"LITTLE CAESAR" An archetype of the American Gangster
WEDNESDAY—7:00 P.M. ADMISSION 60c FRASER THEATER
SUA POETRY HOUR FIRST MEETING-THURSDAY FEB.25
The SUA Poetry Hour, active for several years at KU, is being revived this Spring. Everyone is welcome.
Dr. Franklin Nelick
Will Read Kipling
FREE COFFEE
4:30 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 25
Music Room In Union
FREE COFFEE