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Friday, April 22, 1988 / University Daily Kansan
Opinion
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Lawrence should follow KC by creating a recycling plan
Six neighborhoods in Kansas City, Mo., will experiment this summer with curbside collection of recyclable trash. Lawrence could use a similar system.
In the Kansas City plan, special trash bins will be provided to collect aluminum cans, newspapers and clear glass containers. The recyclables will be picked up as trash crews make their regular rounds, and money earned will go into the city's trash disposal budget.
Places in Lawrence will collect recyclable trash. For instance, the Community Mercantile Co-op, 700 Maine St., receives glass to be recycled, and local grocery stores pay for aluminum cans. In addition, the Lawrence High School Biology Club and the Lawrence Boys Club collect recyclable newsprint.
But even though these businesses and organizations are providing collection services, individuals still must make the effort to go to these places and drop off their recyclables. For many, the effort is too much.
If, on the other hand, Lawrence residents could merely drop aluminum cans, glass and paper on the curb with their garbage, much more trash could be recycled. Instead of being buried in landfills, recyclable trash could provide profit that could be used as donations to needy organizations.
Alan Player for the editorial board
With a little effort, Lawrence residents could reduce the city's trash load while making money for worthy causes.
Scholarship fund is good idea
The proposed Educational Opportunity Fund is a perfect example of students reaching out to help other students.
The proposal would put an additional $150,000 into financial aid programs at the University of Kansas. The money would come from 1 percent of the proposed tuition increases for fall 1989. That amounts to $6 from each KU student's tuition.
The Board of Regents, Associated Students of Kansas and student leaders should get this fund going so that it will indeed be ready for fall semester 1989.
With increased tuition and costs, more and more students are in need of financial aid. The money in the fund could be used in work-study programs, salaries for student workers, stipends, grants and fellowships. The fund would be governed locally, so the program would be tailored to best benefit the University.
This proposal by the student body leaders from the Regents schools is a commendable one. The sooner this proposal is implemented, the sooner KU students can have the money in their pockets.
Jody Dickson for the editorial board
Editorials in this column are the opinions of the editorial board
Editorial decisions are made by the editorial board at meetings twice a week. At these meetings, issues are discussed and stances are voted upon. The editorial board consists of Alison Young, Todd Cohen, Alan Player, Jody Dickson, Russell Gray, Katy Monk and Van Jenerette.
Other Voices
Officials are not solving dorm problem
The occupancy problems in the dorms may be no laughing matter for the relegs or dorm administrators, but some of the one-liners they have reeled off make the 'crisis' seem more like open-microphone night at the local comedy club.
The latest entry comes from vice president of student services Ron Beer. In a story in April 15th's O'Collegian, Beer said that on the average, only "very disciplined" students can live more cheaply off campus than in the dorms.
Ha-ha, very funny
Concrete proof of this statement would rely on what definitions of "average," "off campus" and "very disciplined" are used. Beer implied that off campus students who try to live at the same spending levels as dorm residents will end up dumpster diving and living in
Administrators' attempts to save the dorms have pitiful enough without resorting to economic terrorism. Don't be fooled; an outdated visitation policy isn't the only reason many students leave the dorms. It is easier to scare people from moving off campus, maybe the
instead of trying to scare people from moving in or people in charge should realize that they're not dealing with rats deserting a sinking ship, but rather people who are fed up with paying for a system that consistently denies them what they want.
The Daily O'Collegian Oklahoma State University
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Even liberal fat cats feel tax pinch
Compassion for the poor isn't enough to deter the Internal Revenue Service
It was clear that my liberal friend Moonbeen was upset about something the other day. His hand shook so badly that he almost spilled his Chablis on his power-red tie.
I took the next stool and asked the nature of his problem. Social injustice? The plight of the underclass? The overcrowding of the prison population? The miseries of the Third World?
"No, it's a personal disaster." he said. "I have
left my accountant's office and now must
ensure I have an accountant to help me."
"Yes, and I have never been so badly gored. I can't believe it."
You mean the biggie? Your taxes?
Oh, well, you're in the upper income brackets.
You can afford it.
"But it's unfair. I mean, there should be a limit on how much they can grab. This is . . . this is . . ."
Economic violence?
"Yes, that's the perfect phrase for it. The government has committed economic violence against me. Where have I heard that phrase before?"
Jesse Jackson uses it to describe what is being done to the poor by the rich.
"Oh, Well, don't get me wrong. I'm sympathetic to the poor. I always have been. You know that?"
Yes, Moonbeam, I've heard you agonize in their behalf at many a cheese-and-wine party.
"Right. But I think there are limits to even my compassion. Why, I just read an article that said about 5 percent of us, who are in the upper income brackets, have been paying the lion's share of the income taxes. But about half the country is in the lower income and is paying only 0 or 7 percent of the taxes."
I read that, too. Seems fair to me.
Mike
Royko
Syndicated Columnist
"Fair? Why is it fair for me to spend the first four months of the year working for the government? Do you realize that what's taken this time — more than a third of all my income? What
As it turns out, that was the reform. You got it; they take it.
"But I was in favor of it. I'm always for any
thing, but paying a lot more.
What kind of relief is that?"
It's the kind of reform that Senator Bradley the
his Project, as I tell you, is one of your heroes.
"Definitely. A great liberal. But why would he do something like this to me?"
"How dare you. I have never been a fat cat. Fat cats are, by definition, wealthy and greedy Republicans. I am a liberal Democrat."
"Yes, but why should I be punished for the greed of wealthy Republicans?"
I think I understand. You thought that only the wealthy Republicans would be clobbered but somehow wealthy liberals wouldn't?
But, Moobeen, it can't be done that way. If they're going to soak the well-off, then it has to be water.
"Yes, that was the impression I had."
"It doesn't seem fair. It's like punishing the
innocent along with the guilty. Couldn't they have established a credit or deduction of some kind for compassion and decent thoughts?$^{31}$
"I don't think what I wouldn't be legal."
"It should be. And what was all that news talk about how Reagan was going to take from the poor and give to his rich supporters?"
Just talk. It really can't be done, because the poor don't have enough to spare anyway. So when the government needs money, it has to take it from those who have it. Remember what Willie Sutton said when they asked him why he robbed banks?
"What did he say?"
He said, "Because that's where the money is." And that's the way taxes work.
"So this means that all this time I've been hating Reagan for the wrong reason?"
I don't know. Why were you hating him?
"Because he was being cruel and insensitive to the poor. Committing economic violence against them."
In terms of tax rates, no, he and Congress really haven’t done that. So now you don’t have to hate him.
"Of course I still hate him."
"Because he's being cruel and insensitive to me."
But this is what you wanted. Higher taxes for the well-to-do has been part of your liberal agenda. How can you be angry about achieving your very own agenda?
"I don't know. It's confusing. Sometimes I wish
I were poor so I would not have this inner
touch."
Just give them time, Moonbeem, give them time.
K·A·N·S·A·N
MAILBOX
Stiffen drug laws
I strongly disagree with the "nature-boy" approach to the "war on drugs" taken by Robert Scott in an April 18 letter to the Kansan. I don't understand how "our level of awareness of our relationship to nature" will help to solve the problem.
Let's not let to ourselves. No one in Washington D.C., (or anywhere else) really cares if a few hippies want to "hang out" and smoke a few joints. This is not what the "war on drugs" is about. This "war" is at the eradication of the extremely addictive narcotics cocaine and crack. In recent months, the drug industry has been accused of being acutely acute, with youths being murdered hand-over-fist. I do not believe the solution is the legalization of marijuana or anything else.
Scott's argument for legalizing marijuana goes something like this: our society permits all sorts of bad substances (i.e. tobacco and alcohol), so the control of marijuana is inconsistent because it is equally as bad. So, let not be hypocritical and legalize marijuana.
Since when did adding one more wrong to a series of wrongs make it right?
But there would be problems with the implementation of any legalization scheme. How, Mr. Scott, can you legalize substances which are so incredibly addictive? Wouldn't drug-users seek more quantity of the drugs they needed than they could purchase legally?
Wouldn't they seek more potent-than-legal forms of the drugs they are using? How would the crime rate increase with a government price rise?
The "war on drugs" and of itself is not enough. As long as there is demand, poor and desperate people will supply. This applies to the police, bank, crank and whatever tomorrow will bring.
The solution is to bring the values, laws and law enforcement into parity. I advocate stiffer penalties for those who use and those who sell. don't know whether it would be moral to shoot offenders, but our prisons are rather full, and it might just improve the quality of the gene pool.
Robert E. Hindman
Column was offensive
The following is in response to Richard Falcon's guest column (April 13):
I wonder how many people who think they are facing racism are victims of their own
conduct. For example, consider the black person who is shunned simply because people find him detestable. How does one know what is in someone's mind? Does this mean that everyone must spend time with people whom they do not like for fear of being labeled racist?
In addition, I find it even more offensive that Mr. Felton uses terms such as "slavery" and the like to describe activities such as entertainment and athletics. How dare he! Slavery is involuntary servitude in which a person is owned like an animal. Miles Davis and Walter Payton, as far as I am aware, are not owned nor even controlled by anybody. They have used their vocations as a means to achieve power, respect and admiration.
I am not so naive as to think that racial prejudice or its collateral effects do not exist. They do A quick look in the Kansas' article on blacks in the Greek system bears that out. However, such articles are supported by numerical evidence that an established system has too few blacks in proportion to the white population. That is far different from one person's subjective assertion that he is banished by prejudice.
In short, isolation and alienation are not pleasant for any person, regardless of race. The question is whether the isolation is caused by race or simply by the person.
Jonathan R. Zeko Second year law student
BLOOM COUNTY
by Berke Breathed