University Daily Kansan / Friday, April 7, 1989
5
Bill offers solutions
I am writing in response to Mary Gentges' letter about a "deceptive proposal" on abortion. The Parental Consent Bill, SB91, is designed to lower the number of unnecessary abortions by making it mandatory for minors to obtain parents' permission to get abortions. Gentges makes three points without premise, arguing that the bill is anti-life.
1. The bill says that a minor may not obtain an abortion without parents' permission. If the parents know that their child is pregnant, they can sit down and discuss the alternatives. This is not a consent for the "murder" of an unborn child, but a means possibly come to some other decision. Some people want a legal solution, and neither Gentges nor anyone else has the right to take that option away from her.
2. Gentges states that if the minor "declines to obtain her parents' consent, she can go through court and get the abortion without it." This is not designed for minors who simply do not feel like getting the permission from their parents but for those who are not living under their parents' roof or for those who are married.
3. An amendment to the bill makes a mandatory to have counseling in the schools for pregnant minors. Gentges says that this "plays into the hands of pro-abortionists." What's wrong with discussing the girl's pregnancy with her and informing her of the problem; is the girl is young, her pregnancy probably is too early, and she may need someone to explain the alternatives, such as adoption. The purpose of counseling is not to tell the girl she must get an abortion but to find a solution she can live with.
I anges them that people like Gentes are so ready to reject bills such as SB91 that are designed to help young girls and per-
son who have difficulty with the counseling in schools and the mandatory parental consent can help many girls who think abortion is their only alternative. Gentes purports to be pro-life, but by the rejection of this bill she is in truth an ethical
Erin Allen
Erin Allen
Leavenworth freshman
Fatal delay
March 27, 1987: Four KU students are killed after a Union Pacific train collided with their car. At that time, there was no emergency response and a particular crossing on County Road 1900N
April 7, 1989: More than two years later,
no still warning system exists at this
crossing.
This is absolutely disgusting and ludicrous. As Jared Grannam definitely understates, "It shows a definite lack of sensitivity on the part of the lawmakers and the railroad." Apparently, they do not view the young lives important enough to warrant immediate action. "Oh, but we do," it seems as if the officials are saying, "It is unfortunate that it takes so long" to install a warning system, Union Pacific says. Well, actions speak louder than words, and their intent feels great deal more than their sympathetic cries.
In the case of faulty cargo doors on commercial airplanes, apparently one death in a disaster last fall was not enough. Because of insensitivity and bureaucracy, it is not safe to assume that for serious action to be taken, the airlines probably inexcessively argued that it would take million of dollars to correct such a problem. What a reassurance it is to hear that the value of 10 lives does not measure up to several million dollars! Or what about a warning system at a railroad crossing that should have been installed years ago?
It wasn't until a month after the accident that the crossing was even reviewed. It wasn't until four months later that a survey was completed! And then Union Pacific didn't even agree to install a warning system until July 1988, almost a full year before the accident! The railroad company should not even be in the position to say that a delay is unfortunate; rather, it should have mustered as much power as possible to cut through the bureaucracy. The Kansas Department of Transportation is at fault for having such a dragged-out procedure and Union Pacific is at fault for not accomplishing an immediate action, no matter how it happened. The response would have been if instead of four KU students in a car, it was 30 or so children on a school bus. I also wonder how these officials who are in position to do something can rest at night knowing that at any given moment, another carload of students could be facing the same fate as McLevitt, who worked for McDuett, and Joel Gratham did on March 27, 1987. They deserved better and so do the rest of us.
David Suroff Leawood sophomore
Unpleasant weekend
Last weekend was big for sports clubs at the University of Kansas. The Lacrosse Club won both its games, and the Ultimate Frisbee Club had its annual April "Fools Fest!" tournament. But, thanks to Recreational services, it was also somewhat of a disaster.
Both the Lacrosse and Frisbee clubs planned games against opponents coming from across the country.
ing the procedure in the Sports Club Hand-book of the Recreation Services, the clubs requested, and were granted, permission to play their games at the university's fields. This happened in early March that its field be lined before its first home game last week.
So, what happened? For starters, the people at Recreation Services never got around to lining the lacrosse field, despite weekly — sometimes twice weekly — reminders from the club's officers. Team members ended up having to line the field themselves early Sunday morning. But five minutes before scheduled game time, Allan Hebbins and his coach Debbie Center, told the teams that because the field was wet, they would have to play lacrosse somewhere else. The Ultimate Club got the same message.
The Lacrosse Club had to forfeit one game due to the delay while it looked for a public field in Lawrence to play. The Frisbee Club found a field before having to sacrifice a game, but it now faces reprisals and has been facing on the field without permission.
If you walk past the lacrosse field between Robinson Center and the Computer Center, or the softball fields near Watkins Memorial Health Center which were to be played there, you can see why Heinze didn't want games be played there. The fields have huge patches where a half-hearted effort to resend last year failed. Almost ironically, Recreation Services on Monday asked members of Lacrosse Club to stop using the practice and games because players were bringing mud into the building.
Last weekend some questions were raised about the usefulness of Recreation Services as a support organization for sports clubs: Why doesn't Recreation Services take better care of its fields, so that sports clubs can rely on their use? Why were people allowed to play soccer in the fields on Sunday to play soccer after the clubs were kicked off? And, is keeping mud off the floor in Robinson more important than being able to use the facility?
Clubs sponsored by the University should be responsible in their use of University and public facilities. But the University has a responsibility to provide usable facilities to those clubs it decides to sponsor. Next year, Recreation Services will be financed through the restricted funding pool. This will allow a larger budget and more freedom from the larger stake of student sports. Sports clubs should make it clear that they want some of this money to go toward an effort to improve and maintain its outdoor facilities.
It was unreasonable for Recreation Services to ask sports clubs to send home teams that had accepted invitations and traveled a long way to compete at the University simply because of rain. Sport club officers work hard to bring tournaments and games
to KU. Recreation Services should work
hard to help ensure that they run smoothly.
Mark Glassman
Secretary, KU Lacrosse Club
Lake Forest, Ill., senior
Women want equality
Michael McVeys' letter denouncing "feminist totalitarian tyrants" scarcely deserves a rebuttal. His obvious ignorance left no doubt that "poor men" would have been better off in Auschwitz. I doubt this lame attempt at sarcasm found favor with Jewish students or anyone else, for that matter.
Yes, Michael, 2,000 of your 6,000 women friends have been raped, although I seriously doubt that those women consider you a friend after reading your letter. I'm sorry no one informed you of this personally. You are someone who expresses a great deal of intimacy. Do you expect a third of the women you meet to say, "Hi, I am Jane, and I've been raped?"
No one is contending that men don't also encounter rape, harrassment or abuse. It just doesn't happen as frequently. No, men aren't "sadistic prowlers" and women aren't always "innocent victims" either. But when a woman is forced to have sexual intercourse against her will, it is rape, and that woman is a victim.
The women of KU don't want the men to "go home." We want equality, not supremacy. You, Mr. McVey, are the perfect example of why education is needed concerning women's issues. If you would expand your horizons a little, you could take advantage of the numerous opportunities to learn more about "feminist tyrans." Then you could write intelligent letters instead of misinformed, xaggared letters of trash
Middle of the road?
Occasionally you can hear comments in the barber shops and coffee shops around the Second District that "Jim Slattery is a middle-of-the-road type of guy."
The facts show that nothing could be further from the truth. Two ratings were recently published by national organizations that show that Jim Slattery is a liberal congressman who regularly votes against conservative issues.
The American Conservative Union rated Slattery at 33 on a scale of zero to 100, with zero being the most liberal. On the other hand, Congressman Pat Roberts from west-Kansas had a rating of 79 and Congressman Bill Rodgers from southeast Kansas had a rating of 88.
The Americans for Democratic Action rated slatters at 5 on a scale of zero to 100, with 100 being the most liberal. On the other hand, the Americans for Democracy and Whittaker had ratings of only 10.
If the voters of the Second District want
to send a liberal to Congress, Jim Slattery is the man. If the voters of the Second District want to balance the federal budget with higher taxes, want more governmental bureaucracy and red tape, want more protection for criminals, then Jim Slattery is the man to send to Washington. If the candidates of both national defense and another vote for Speaker Jim Wright, then Jim Slattery is the man to send to Washington.
The facts show that Jim Slattery is not a "middle-of-the-road type of guy," and they also show that Jim Slattery is not represent the interests of the Second District
Doug Martin Chairman, Second District Republican Party of Kansas
North not a patriot
Ganay Johnson Kansas City, Kan, sophomore Ending life gently Middle of the road?
I think it is important to respond to your March 31 editorial regarding Oliver North's patriotism. True patriotism, love of country and dedication to democracy should never be mocked or ridiculated. However, Oliver North held one of the central tenets of this country up for ridicule. Oliver North had the right to represent a democracy by which the people elect representatives to pass laws and review policy. Oliver North decided that a law was wrong and that he had the right to overrule that law. Then he mocked our form of government by lying to the American people about his activities. Oliver North decided that he would be to the American people whom he had served. I do not define Oliver North's actions as patriotic, and I refuse to honor his definition of love of country.
Dawn Semon Lawrence graduate student
I think that your editorial in the April 4 Kansas on the right-to-die issue is seriously flawed. The heart of the issue, I think, lies in your definition of medicine. "Medicine must provide pain and suffering," you said. But what happens when medicine cannot heal?
By my logic, what's left is to ease pain and suffering. And sometimes the best way to do that is to let the patient die. If a doctor prolongs the life of a terminally ill patient, all he is doing is prolonging the period of pain and suffering. Certainly I am not saying that we should go out and kill every terminally ill patient. But if the doctor has no patience to continue, then it is our duty as society or her or her to go peacefully. It is certainly not our duty to force him or her to continue suffering. And, as a person with the duty to ease pain and suffering, the doctor has a responsibility to make sure that the patient's life ends as gently and as painlessly as possible. If that means prescribing sleeping pillens, so be it.
Travis Butler
Lenexa junior
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Attention Minority Graduates
Are you graduating in Spring '89, Summer '89, or Fall '89?
The Office of Minority Affairs is having its annual "Minority Graduation Banquet" to honor graduating students, on Saturday, May 20, 1989 from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. In the Big Eight Room, Kansas Union. Tickets can be picked up FREE of charge for graduates in 324 Strong Hall by May 4. Parents and guests can attend for $10.00 each.
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