On cloud nine
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Details, page 2
Published since 1889 by the students of the University of Kansas
Wednesday
January 28,1987 Vol. 97, No. 83 (USPS 650-640)
State of the Union speech draws mixed reaction Reagan regrets failures with Iran Address impresses local parties
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — President Reagan said last night that his failed effort to reach out to Iran and win the release of American hostages in Lebanon was his "one major regret" but he urged nation not to be "obsessed with failure."
With American military ships on the move in the Mediterranean Sea, Reagan, in his sixth annual State of the Union address, also vowed not to sit idly by "if our interests or friends in the Middle East are threatened . . . by terrorist blackmail."
He said it was not wrong to try to establish contact with a nation of strategic importance, and "certainly it was not wrong to try to secure freedom for our citizens held in barbaric captivity. But we did not achieve what we wished, and numerous mistakes were made in trying to do so."
had made progress on many fronts
but that he had one main regret.
"I took a risk with regard to our action in Iran. It did not work, and for that I assume full responsibility." Reagan said.
Reagan said his administration
While pledging to find out the facts and take any necessary action, Reagan said that “in debating the past, we must not deny ourselves successes of the future. Let it never be said of this generation of Americans that we became so obsessed with failure that we refused to take risks that could further the cause of peace and ‘freedom in the world.’”
Concluding his remarks on the subject, Reagan said, "Now, ladies and gentlemen of the Congress, why don't we get to work?"
Democratic congressional leaders, responding to the president in their own televised remarks, said they were willing to cooperate with Reagan, but that he first must answer questions about the arms sale to Iran
and whether he intended to swap arms for hostages.
"The administration's recent dealings with Iran have cast a long shadow over this country." Senate Majority Leader Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia said. "The sale of arms to Iran, in direct contradiction to our stated foreign policy, raises real questions about trust."
Reagan's remarks about Iran took up only several hundred words in a 5,200-word speech that offered a description of the achievements of his first six years in office and offered an agenda of economic strength and peace leading into the 21st century.
Senate minority leader Bob Dole called the speech "an opportunity for the president to put to rest a lot of challenges, a lot of mistakes that are out there."
Dole billed it as one of the few opportunities left for Reagan "to regain control of his presidency."
By KJERSTI MOEN Staff writer
BY KJEKSH MOEN
"Impressive" was local Republicans' reaction to President Reagan's annual State of the Union address yesterday. "Impressive but evasive," local Democrats and political scientists said.
Ken Martinez, chairman of the Douglas County Republican Central Committee, said, "It was a very good speech. It was a good, strong presentation, and it was very well received."
"His commitment to the budget deficit reduction was very well put And his statements regarding welfare reform and health care for the elderly were well received."
Tom Magee, vice president of Campus Republicans, said, "I liked it. He showed the country that he was in control and that he isn't going to let the problems that have arised in the past few weeks slow him down.
"He's out there leading the country
and doing what he can to make it better.
"I liked what he said about welfare reform. I think that's a problem that does need addressing. I think there are a bunch of programs that have just been perpetuated. Congress after Congress, just out of habit."
The real problems, according to Titus, are inflation, drugs, taxation and the Middle situation. The president touched on these problems but did not offer any specific solutions. Titus said
James E. Titus, professor of political science, said, "It was a masterset snow job . . . It was a good piece of showmanship . . . a beautiful Hollywood production. He glazed over everything, but he avoided the real problems."
Mel Dubnick, professor of public administration, also thought Reagan's address lacked specifics.
"His domestic policy proposals were so vague that you couldn't
really pinpoint anything," Dubnick said.
David Berkowitz, former cmn. man of the Douglas County Democrats, said he thought Reagan's 'five years' in the Iran affair lacked substance.
"It was hypocritical to say that he was trying to promote peace by selling weapons to one party. There's no logic in that at all."
Deborah Burns, vice chairman of the Douglas County Councils, also was concerned about discrepancies between Reagan's words and deeds.
Burns said Reagan called for educating the nation's young while he reduced loans and grants for education.
House bill defines state work-study
She also thought that Reagan's war on drugs would not work, because he was cutting funds for local enforcement.
"He says all these nice things. Then he turns around and cuts the money for it," she said.
By JOHN BUZBEE
Staff writer
TOPEKA A House bill seeks to strengthen a work-study program at state universities, but the familiar refrain of tight finances could throw the legislation off key.
"This bill would provide clarity and direction that the program needs," Ted Ayres, general counsel for the state Board of Regents, said yesterday at a meeting of the House Education Committee, where the bill was discussed.
Mark Tallman, director of legislative affairs for the Associated Students of Kansas, said, "Passage of this simply recognizes and enhances the current operation of the program."
But State Rep. Jessie Branson, D-Lawrence, said that although she would support the bill, it could face opposition in the committee because of possible added costs to run the program.
The bill would formally establish the state work-study program, which has existed at the University of Kansas and other Regents universities since 1983 in what Tallman called a test period.
Under the program, students work part time in an area related to their studies. Their employer pays half their salary, and the program pays the other half. About 80 students participate in the KU program.
The informal state work-study program is separate from the federal work-study program at KU and other universities. The bill would create uniform rules for the program at all state universities.
Tallman said the bill would not directly affect service to students.
Tailman also said the bill wouldn't require any more state money. But ASK will seek extra money for work-study later, he said.
The bill would allow universities to spend money to administer the program. Now they may only spend money for students' salaries
Branson said, "It would be very desirable for students who are finding declining sources of funding."
Federal cutbacks are narrowing students' options for financial aid, she said. Reagan's proposed 1988 budget would cut 45 percent from federal financial aid.
Tallman said middle-income students who didn't qualify for other programs but needed assistance often turned to work-study.
"It helps students who fall through the cracks," he said. "We believe this program is one of the most beneficial programs the Legislature could support for the students of Kansas."
Jerry Rogers, director of financial aid at KU, said the program needed more than $4 million.
The office of student financial aid now runs the KU program. But at some other Regents universities, work-study is incorporated into similar, larger programs and has grown faster than at KU.
Tallman said the program had probably been the least successful at KU and Fort Hays State University and that bill would help those universities.
In the past, KU hasn't always spent all its work-study money because it used stricter qualification guidelines.
Mark Turgeon came off the bench last night, scoring 12 points and Danny Manning led Kansas with 23 as the Jayhawks blew out the Iowa State Cyclones 72-48 at Allen Field House. See page 9.
The roommate hunt is on for at least 175 students living in residence halls who were left without roommates after semester break. They can't live alone without paying for a more expensive room. See story page 3.
Roommate hunt
Amv Rhoads/KANSAN
Blown away
INSIDE
Clearing the way
"It its people when they are experiencing the most wonderful days of their lives. . . All of a sudden, the rug is pulled out from under them," said Niemeyer, who, five years later, is a part-time senior.
M.S. fund to benefit from event
KU facilities operations employees Lance Endacott, left, and Wess Bernhart chip ice from a Wescoe Beach sidewalk Endacott said
By JERRI NIEBAUM
Her roommate teased her because she slept so much. She knew something was wrong when she tried to run to answer the telephone one day and couldn't.
Active females between 18 and 40 make up the largest group of M. pallidus.
Jane Niemeyer was a 20-year-old junior at the University of Kansas when her legs and fingers gradually started to tingle and feel numb.
yesterday afternoon that they had been working for about a week to clear campus sidewalks.
M. S. is a degenerative disease of the central nervous system, in which hardening of the tissue occurs. It is probably caused by a virus.
See SAMS, p. 6, col. 3
Staff writer
"My legs wouldn't move as fast as I wanted them to," said Niemeyer of Clam Lake.
When she went home for Christmas that year, Niemeyer went to a neurologist who told her she had multileus sclerosis.
Professors criticize space shuttle plans
Bv TIM HAMILTON
Staff writer
The loss of the space shuttle Challenger and its seven-member crew one year ago today has devastated the nation's space program, two KU professors said yesterday.
Thomas Armstrong, whose research project was delayed
See related stories p. 10.
because of the explosion, is critical of the space agency.
"The U.S. is still wallowing in the mess that was a result of the Challenger accident," Armstrong, professor of physics and astronomy, said. "We're really in a dilemma."
Armstrong said the Challenger accident had set back interplanetary science at least 10 years and space program millions of dollars.
After the accident, however, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration put all manned
Since 1978, Armstrong has been part of a small group from KU working on a radiation detector to be used on two deep-space probes, the Ulyses and Galileo. The probes, powered by specially designed detectors, were scheduled to be launched from space shuttles in late May 1988.
space launches on hold until it completed a thorough investigation of the Challenger disaster.
As a result of the investigation, NASA ordered a review of the shuttle's main booster rockets and also added safety features to protect crews.
Because of the changes, Armstrong said, the shuttle is no longer able to carry the deep-space probes into orbit to be launched.
"Because of the shuttle's deficiency in lift capacity, the mission will have to be done differently." he said. And the $500 million spent to develop the Centaur rockets have been wasted, he said.
"So we wait and hope by 1989 we'll see one of the launches scheduled for 1986," he said.
He also said he thought that the accident had jumbled the priorities of the nation's space program.
He criticized the administration's decision to order a complete review of the booster system and safety features. He said the decision would delay the space program for three to four years and still not achieve important safety improvements.
Jan Roskam, Ackers distinguished professor of aerospace engineering, also was critical of the political decisions made by NASA.
A letter to the people of the United States
The families of the seven men and women killed when Challenger exploded a year ago today released an open letter to the American people yesterday outlining their plans to continue the crew's mission.
One year ago, we shared a terrible loss with you. The Challenger crew were our husbands, wife's brothers, sister's mothers, father's daughters and sons - the fundamental, inexpirable people in the fabric of our lives. At the same time, they were an intrinsic part of national life too, part of that great extended family known as "Americans". They were pioneers. We mounted them, and the shortness of their lives. But, in their short time, the contributed mightily.
They were not people who cherished the soft and easy life, but people who worked hard to extend the reach of humanity no matter what the sacrifice. They raised their lives - not for the sake of amusement but, for the nation that gave them opportunity, and for the space frontier which was an extension of its spirit. They were scientists and teachers guiding us into space. Challenger's mission: to give ordinary Americans access to space, to push scientific discovery forward; to a culmination of their training, a fulfillment of their hopes, and an expression of their being.
Since their loss, we have been troubled by the incompetence of our mission. Lessons were left untaught, scientific and engineering problems were left unsolved. Perhaps sadness of all is the idea that children must once again put their trust in science and abandon the future on hold. But they cannot. We cannot accept
We wish to on Challengeer's mission by creating a network of space learning centers all over the United States, called cumulatively, the Challenge Center. We envision places where children, teachers and citizens can touch the future. We see them spending a day or week in a large space like station, consisting of flight simulators, observations, experiments and scientific experiments, solving problems, working together in space-like surroundings and growing accustomed to space technology. As a team they can practice the precise gestures and the rigorous procedures that will be required of them on the space front. They can embrace the vision and grasp the potential of space, too. Though it will take time and money to build the Challenge Center is our idea of a fitting incubation, a celebration of our future endeavors, a place where children accessible to all people, especially children, we can prepare them for the day when they will take their own place among the stars.
If they were alive and could speak to all Americans, we believe the Challenger crew would say this: Do not fear risk. All exploration, all growth is a calculated risk. Without frontiers, civilizations stagnate. Without challenge, people cannot reach their highest self. Only if we can accept our problems as challenges today's dreams become tomorrow's realities. Only if we are willing to walk over the edge can we become winners.
From Kansan wires