4
Thursday, February 18. 1988 / University Daily Kansan
Opinion
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Ku Klux Klan on campus raises significant questions
The events surrounding the two scheduled campus visits by the Ku Klux Klan snowballed out of control, ultimately leading to postponement.
The issue of a Klan visit to KJHK's JayTalk 91 on Monday and a journalism reporting class on Wednesday continues to generate anger, disappointment, fear and contempt.
It's hard not to be emotional about a visit by radical, violent white supremacists. But maybe it's time to step back and gain perspective on the latent issues this potential visit has brought to the surface.
Regardless of how they feel, the parties involved must realize how interrelated these issues are. And they should work together toward solutions before a similar situation arises again.
- is the media sensitive enough in dealing with and recognizing delicate stories? Like never before, society wants the media to justify the exercise of constitutional freedoms. Is fairness synonymous with sensitivity?
- Do extremist, dangerous groups like the KKK have the right to a public forum, regardless of the repugnancy of their views? Should there be restraints? Does the right to public forum change if the media pursues these repulsive organizations?
- Based on the the black community's reaction to the visits, racism still must be a volatile issue within the black community. Maybe non-blacks in the Lawrence and campus community should reassess their views on racism in Lawrence.
- Perhaps the black community needs to decide how it should deal with similar situations. Are participation and condonement insane?
- It may be possible that the University of Kansas means more to blacks and minorities than to other community members. Is the reaction to the KKK visit intensified because the University, a symbol of hope and progress, appeared to be tied so closely with the visit? It could be time for the University to re-evaluate its role in the black and minority community.
- Did the postponement of the show constitute prior restraint?
Did the advisers of the student-run station have the right to postpone the show because the situation escalated out of control? Where is the line drawn with student First Amendment rights?
■ When the media sponsor a forum with controversial content, does that sponsorship mean the media condone or support the group's views? Or is it merely a conduit for educating or exposing those views? Russell Gray for the editorial board
If people want to intentionally suck smoke into their lungs, then no one should stand in their way. But the right to breathe clean air is equally important.
Non-smokers need fresh air
The House Public Health and Welfare Committee last week heard arguments about a bill that would protect the rights of non-smokers. For the benefit of all who don't smoke, the bill should be passed.
Under current law, smoking is prohibited in passenger elevators, school buses and public transportation vehicles. In other public places, smoking is allowed only in designated areas. Also, managers of restaurants can choose how much space to designate as non-smoking.
The proposed bill would prohibit smoking in public access areas, such as where people conduct business or gain admission. It also would require restaurant owners to designate at least half of their seating as non-smoking.
The laws, however, are not enforced stricly enough. Smoking in public places is often ignored, and restaurant owners can designate tiny non-smoking areas.
In effect, the bill would protect non-smokers from passive smoke, which has been proven to be dangerous.
Marian Montgomery, president of the Douglas County Cancer Society, said one-half of the non-smoking women who live with smokers would develop lung cancer. Passive smoke also causes respiratory problems and ear infections in children.
Restaurants and other public places should avoid contributing to health hazards for non-smokers. Non-smoking areas should be large enough and well-ventilated enough to keep them smoke-free.
Passive smoke is a health hazard, and Kansas laws should be strong enough to combat it. The passage of this bill would be a breath of fresh air.
Editorials in this column are the opinions of the editorial board.
News staff
Alison Young...Editor
Todd Cohen...Managing editor
Rob Knapp...News editor
Alan Player...Editorial editor
Joseph Ribello...Campus editor
Jennifer Rowland...Planning editor
Anne Luscombe...Sports editor
Stephen Wade...Photo editor
Richard Stewart...Graphics editor
Tom Eblen...General manager, news adviser
Business staff
Kelly Scherer...Business manager
Clark Massad...Retail sales manager
Brad Lenhart...Campus sales manager
Robert Hughes...Marketing manager
Kurt Messersmith...Production manager
Greg Knipp...National manager
Sachira Schoanno...Traffic manager
Kimberly Coleman...Classified manager
Jeanne Hines...Sales and marketing adviser
Letters should be typed, double-spaced and less than 200 words and must include the writer's signature, name, address and telephone number. If the writer is affiliated with the University of Kansas, please include class and hometown, or faculty or staff position.
Guest columns should be typed, double-spaced and less than 700 words. The writer will be photographed.
The Kansan reserves the right to reject or edit letters and guest columns. They can be mailed or brought to the Kansan newsroom, 111 Stauffer Fint-Hall.
can be made available to the students. Letters, guest columns and columns are the opinion of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of the University Daily Kansan. Editorials are the opinion of the Kansan editorial board.
The University Daily Kansan (UPSP 650-640) is published at the University of Kansas, 118 Stauffer Flint Hall, Kansas, Kan. 6045, daily during the regular school year, excluding Saturday, Sunday, holidays and finals periods, and Wednesday during the summer session. Second-class postage is paid in Lawrence, Kan. 6044. Annual subscriptions by mail are $40 in Douglas County and $50 county. Student subscriptions are $3 and are paid through activity.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to the University Daily Kansan, 118
Stauffer-Flint Hall, Lawrence, Kan. 68045
PAT ROBERTSON AND THE BURNING BUSH
Renters' problems can be solved
A landlord and past president of Land-
lords of Lawrence, Inc., and recall being a
tenant for 3½ years. I lived in various houses
scattered throughout Lawrence, worked part-
time and attended the University of Kansas under
the World War II GI Bill of Rights.
I am aware of KU students' problems — and particularly that of one student living in an attic room. I lived at 711 Connecticut St. for awhile rent was $124 a month — in an attic room, similar to the ones described in Kansan articles last semester. Gradually, things began to improve financially, and I moved to better housing. Being single, I couldn't get into the Sunnyside Building just south of Stauffer-Flint Hall. These were temporary apartments set up for the large influx of married students and families that came to Lawrence under the GI Bill.
I must confess that I have been fortunate in most cases to get the cleaning done by the tenant. The rental form "Moving In and Moving Out
I also agree with landlords regarding individuals who leave items behind and fail to clean or fail to at least pick up papers before leaving and make some effort to sweep and mop. I think that landlords try to rent an apartment or house in order to avoid having to make an attempt to return it in fair condition.
Norman
Denton
Guest Columnist
Inventories" should be used to show condition at the beginning of rental and at the end. This would eliminate many problems.
It has been my experience that roaches are the result of the tenant's neglect. Roaches are after food, and if things were kept cleaner and the food put away, roaches would not be a worry. I think the landlord should spray or have a pest control company rid the property of roaches after a tenant moves and before renting to another.
Security deposits should not be a problem. In most cases, they should be returned within 30 days after the tenant leaves, or better still, immediately upon vacating. In the many years that I have been renting, there has been only one case in which part of the deposit was kept. This was because the tenant did not clean and pick up scattered papers. Another point of interest is that rent has been paid as planned in the leases, except in four cases.
I think that there is an element of human relations that has to be present in both tenant and landlord when property is rented. Each tenant and landlord must know what he or she wants and, in a lease, an agreement must be reached between the two to make it successful. It can be done.
In the Feb. 2 and 3 articles in the Kansas that mention Holly Slaughter and Greg Stauffer, I think they have a just complaint against the Colony Woods Apartments landlord regarding parking and large electric bills. I hope they will correct both of these soon. It would be good if Stauffer, a representative from the newly organized Lawrence Tenants Association, along with other tenant members, sought a just solution to the problems they face.
I think landlords are interested in tenants' views and would discuss them. Slaughter, a resident of Colony Woods Apartments, should press for a solution to the dilemma.
Let us remember that we have city, Chamber of Commerce and county officials and employees that can help or will refer tenants to the right department with their problems. There are also several retired officials that can be of help. Norman Denton is a Lawrence resident and past president of Landlords of Lawrence, Inc.
Conformity is only for public places
It's a game we all play.
We look at the situation we are preparing to encounter and we let it dictate how we look, how we act and the manner in which we do things. Take me, for instance.
During the week, I look no different than anyone else on this campus. I have my all-cotton Oxford shirt, my 501s, my Mush Puppies. My book-laden backpack is slung over one shoulder, eschewing the two-shouldered approach reserved for cyclists, professional students and those so-called geeks who realize how much easier the load is to carry this way.
My face is clean, my hair carefully combed. There is even a hint of expensive cologne emanating from my cheeks.
In the backpack, along with the texts, notebooks, pens and other implements of academic destruction, is a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. Shocked? Wait. There's more.
If you know me, you recognize me. If you don't, you don't think twice about me. Well, folks, the joke is on all of you.
Come home with me. Watch me change into the
biltest T-shirt you have ever seen and a pair of
pants.
Laird MacGregor
Guest Columnist
on my head, the old cigarette is crushed out in the ashtray, and a new one quickly takes its place in my mouth. The radio clicked on, and it is not U2 or R.E.M. It is, in fact, the Eagles or the Dobie Brothers. If you are really lucky, I'll put in some Frank Sinatra.
Now, take a look around. Old newspapers cover the carpeted floor. Coke cans, papers, old cigarette packs, tapes and loose change hide the desktops. The bed is not made; it never has been. Two ashrettes are filled to capacity with carcinogens of the past 24 hours. You think to yourself that you have never been in a place as horrible as this. You want to leave before you are forever trapped in this silent mayhem. Then, you steal a glance at me, your congenial host, the rotten creator of this unspeakable collection of life's refuse. But I only relax on my bed, smiling
seemingly oblivious to the disgusting surroundings.
You think, is he blind? Does he not notice? Does he need professional help? Are my car keys handy?
Leave if you must, but before you do, I feel obligated to answer the questions burning holes in your face. No, I'm not blind; yes, I notice; and no, I don't need professional help.
LIKE IT!
And what's worse, on the weekends and at night, I rarely leave this sanctuary. I rest on my bed and enjoy the scenery. The only light on in the place is the dim desk lamp, and the shades are drawn. Add the constant supply of cigarette smoke, and you have a dim, dingy and divish effect. Just the stuff dark circles under the eyes are made of.
Call me sick, call me crazy, but don't call before noon on the weekends. I welcome visitors, but I don't encourage them. Visitors tend to pick up trash or open the windows to air out the place. Do I come to your home and empty the garbage in your living room?
Laird MacGregoe is a Kansan copy chief and a Medicine Lodge senior major in journalism.
Four-way stop needed
The University of Kansas and the City of Lawrence are endangered the lives of the 750 residents of GSP-Corbin Hall, employed staff
this dangerous situation is corrected? A serious
accident? Someone's death?
Last semester, I was horrified to see a blind woman crossing the intersection. She was barely missed by a car. What will it take before
members, bus riders and anyone who visits GSP-Corbin. Every day, the intersection at 11th and Louisiana streets causes near-miss accidents because there is not a four-way stop sign. Residents cross that intersection daily, walking to and from campus. KU on Wheels passes through that intersection approximately every 15 minutes, and each bus must pull halfway into the intersection before proceeding across the street.
The corner at 11th and Louisiana is a safety hazard. This situation should not be taken lightly. The City of Lawrence and the University of Kansas need to install a four-way stop, a flashing yellow light or a yield sign — something, anything! But action needs to be taken now, before it's too late.
Margaret Townsend Ames, Iowa, freshman
BLOOM COUNTY
bv Berke Breathed