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Mondav. April 15, 1991 / University Daily Kansan
Opinion
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Answering students
One year after the submission of a reform plan, the administration's lack of response is sobering
African-American students a year ago submitted a 12-point plan of reforms to the administration.
The reforms were intended to help provide a better campus climate for minorities.
All this in only a year.
One point has been accomplished satisfactorily so far. Now students can obtain the minutes from meetings they attend with the administration.
The administration stated it was committed to working with students to discuss their concerns. But students say the University's action on important issues such as minority recruitment and retention is inadequate.
Tired of listening to empty promises, about 40 African-American students protested Thursday to show how seriously they were committed to these reforms.
According to a flier handed out at this year's protest, what African-American students have received from the University in response to the 12 points is "empty rhetoric, several powerless committees and a handful of worthless promises."
In a letter of response from the administration describing what action has been taken
with the 12 points, jargon such as "exploring the concept" is used.
One of the points submitted in April 1990 is that a coordinator should be hired to oversee all recruitment and retention programs.
The administration's response is that the position of coordinator is being advertised and will be filled in the near future.
Another point is that the University should have a commitment to increasing the number of African-American students at the University. A grand total of two more African-American students now attend the University
The administration said that the office of admissions was committed to working toward recruiting certain numbers of new African-American students each year.
A goal was not met, but the administration still just makes more commitments about how things will improve next year.
It became clear that the administration needed to do more in response to the 12 points when an African-American student, who spoke at the protest said, "It will possibly be a miracle if I stay here."
Amy Zamierowski for the editorial board
Tasteless effort
Game wager to help homeless was a weak stunt
In addition to the many office pools, group wagers and personal betting that went on around the nation for the NCAA Final Four, a truly tasteless one took place among four governors.
The governors from the states with schools represented in the Final Four held a wager among themselves. The losing teams' state governors were to help feed the homeless from the winning team's state. It was a minimally noble effort to legitimize the gambling aspect. It was a decent idea gone bad when their efforts transformed from good intentions to an obvious public relations stunt
Gov. Bob Mills of Nevada sent a case of shark steals to honor the UNLV club, Jerry "Tark the Shark" Tarkianan, Gov. Joan Finney sent 10 pounds of Kansas City strip steaks, and North Carolina's governor, Jim Martin, sent trout fillets which, when specially seasoned, are called "trout devils."
carly seasoned, are careless to do a good deed for the homeless, they should have done one with some substance. The money spent on the shark steaks, strip steaks and trout fillets could have been spent more wisely to benefit more people. A one-night feeding of KC strip steaks, shark meat and trout fillets for the homeless in Durham is like sending champagne and caviar to Ethiopia.
The bet itself, although it probably had good intentions, yielded poor results, making a mockery out of homelessness. Homelessness is a problem that needs to be combatted not with frivolous bets that are thinly disguised moves for public relations, but rather with careful planning and intelligent allocations of donations.
Juli Watkins for the editorial board
The Case for Dumber Bombs
MKEENA Chicago Tribute
Soldier remembers importance of fighting for valuable beliefs
Editor's note: Billy Baxely, a soldier now stationed in Iraq, wrote this letter, postmarked March 24, to a friend in
LAWRENCE. A picture was not available.
My name is Billy. I am a soldier involved with Operation Desert Storm. The fighting for us is over now, and we wait to see what happens about this operation. I have seen and learned much about war. I have also heard and learned much about our country. I know, as I always have, that American people are a truly special breed. I was once told that if Americans were dogs, you wouldn't be able to get papers on them. That is humorously true, since we Americans are from all walks of life. But thinking back, some of the best dogs I have ever known have been mutts. Now, to what's on my mind.
There is a certain group of Americans in our country that I find hard to understand. This is the group that burns our flags and condemns our military action in the Persian Gulf. Further more, there are those that think this whole situation is over the price of oil. That reminds me of a child who loved to buy over the price of tea. Or have you forgotten about that little tea party. Anyway, to move on, let me tell you about a country I know.
Anyway, to move on, let me tell you about a country I know.
The country is Kuwait, and what I know about it assures me that this war was not over oil. You see, this country was evolving with its own population and slowly but surely growing democratically. Sure, it had problems. The women were treated like second-class citizens, and only certain people allowed to vote. Two of my problems. Thinking back, I know of another country that had those problems a few decades ago. Sound familiar?
Anyway, Kuwait stopped growing on Aug. 2, 1990. When Iraq invaded Kuwait, not only did they remove the freedom to grow as a nation from the people, they killed children, raped women and brutally tortured scores of civilians. They stole a country's wealth and tried to wipe out its existence. If that's not enough, they pumped millions of gallons of oil into the sea and set fire to almost all of Kuwait's oil wells.
Yesterday it was dark all day, with the only light coming from the blazing oil wells off in the distance.
their heads removed by the Republican Guard units. These soldiers did not want to take part in the immoral acts committed against their Arab brothers. For their stand, they lost their lives. Saddam Hussein had to be stopped just as Hitler had to be stepped! After all, we could have tied sanctions against Hitler for a couple of years, but the Jewish population in Europe would be slightly smaller today to save the least.
Kuwait wasn't the only victim in this act, either. The Iraqi people are torn and shattered. There are still Iraqi soldiers lying in the sand with
Let me sum up what I'm trying to say with something I read a while back:
War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feelings, which thinks that nothing is worth war, is much worse.
People who have nothing for which they are willing to fight, and nothing they care about more than their own personal safety, are miserable creatures.
Creatures who have no chance of being free unless made and kept by the exertions of others better than they are!"
Billy Baxley is a soldier with the HMC 1st armored division now stationed in Iraq.
WWII vets think gulf war hoopla is amusing
They're getting up there in years,the World War II vets.
1 But they're still my choice as this century's most remarkable generation of men.
Most came of age in the Great Depression. Because of hard times everywhere, men who had the brains to be physicists or engineers were happy to get jobs as apprentices and work on building bugging ditches, if that's all there was.
Then they won the biggest, bloodiest war in the history of this planet. And when it was over, they came back and went right to work, making this country the most powerful industrial and economic force in the world. Recently I wrote about how a few of them felt about the homecoming hoopla that followed the abrupt ending of the Persian Gulf War. They were generally amused when they compared the TV coverage of festive airport reunion scenes with their own quiet arrivals.
That column brought a small flood of mail from other World War II vets, sharing their memories. None begrudge the gulf war troops their due. But some are skeptical about flag-waving politicians; others think they are too brave to around too free; and most have良, amused memories of their own
Mike Royko
Syndicated columnist
homecomings
So I thought I'd share some of their views.
An Indiana man, who preferred that his name not be used, said, "I was in the Pacific for three years. Took part in the fight for two and some other islands. Came home on a stinking ship and hot bus. My mom made me dinner. Now a town near where I live is planning a big parade for one of the local boys there three months and they sent him home because he has a kidney infection. Hey, come on!"
A physician, David Berner of Condon, Mont., took note of a proposal by a congressman that all gulf war troops be given a $10,000 bonus. Berner fired off a letter to the congressman, and sent me a copy:
"As a combat infantryman (New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Luzon). I decided to join you in the orgy of killing the enemy." Admittedly, this war was a pushover
"Anyway, your idea to break the bank on behalf of the gulf vets should logically apply to us who served before — generally longer, bloodier and with less media and public education. Your idea for a $10,000 bonus sounds swell, and I would like mine in one lump sum — with interest, of course, dating from December 1945. Furthermore, though I witnessed ample grape vine errors, I haven't yet needed 'readjustment counseling', which I know is obligatory for all inconveniences. But I'd like Congress to send me a lot of money for the counseling I'll doubtless need in my old age.
and most of the troops saw no combat, experienced little danger and weren't 'over there' very long, as wars go, but that shouldn't detract from their all being 'heroes' in the eyes of the multitudes. Some may feel that the genuine heroes of the world are belittled by such a mass anointment, but they're obviously soreheads.
"I confess that I would be embarrassed to accept this money. You see, I never really thought of myself as a hero. I did think of myself as just another in that endless series of poor slobs paying the repetitive penalty for failure of national or tribal leaders.
"However, I heartily join the bandwagon. I will accept your payoff, I'm practicing a here's swagger, and I'm going to have to sort some of maladaptation."
Agree or disagree, you have to concede that Doc Berner knows how to write a zinger.
Jacqueline Jefferson of Hinsdale, Ill., said of her husband, "He remembers only one conversation after his return from the war. He met a close friend in a neighborhood bar and asked him where he'd served. The friend told him and asked the same question, "Why did you?" His husband said, "Yeah, some. How about you?" The friend said, "Yeah me, too."
"And that was the total extent of his discussion of his war experiences."
That's another quality I've seen of the World War II generation. They were doers, not talkers.
Another homecoming memory, from David Dander, of Tiffin, Ohio: "Had four-and-a-half years, most of it in the Pacific. Comback, it was 21 days on a troop ship. Then five days on a troop train to New Jersey. Then a train to Pittsburgh. My older brother, who survived his destroyer beined up on D-Day, picked me up at the train station at 2 m. But
that was OK. I hate parades, anyway."
Ken Morris of Council Bluffs, Iowa: "Thank goodness the desert war was over quickly and with few losses. But all this euphoria has a movie atmosphere. I was in World War II and Korea. Two of my brothers were killed in World War II and buried at sea. They called us 'The Lost Boys' and don't think some of the people putting up yellow ribbons and waving flags could tell you much about the reality of war and how bad it can really be."
Maybe dim Hill of Arkansas sums up the feelings of his generation best: "I was attached to Patton's Third Army. I seldom talk about the war, the freezing days and nights, the fatigue, the fear, the dirt, the mud and the smell of dead bodies. There was no big welcome for us guys. The welcome was in our hearts, our thankfulness for being back alive. Our welcome was seen in the smiling, joyous faces of our parents, brothers, sisters and sweethearts or wives. We didn't need parades."
didn't need parades.
Maybe Jim Hill didn't need parades. But today's politicians do.
Mike Royko is a syndicated columnist with the Chicago Tribune.
Other Voices
Book debunks Reagan
It's an unfaltering commentary on the U. S. voter that only a truth book of dubious integregation can help to debunk the Reagan myth.
If Kity Kelly's kiss-and-puke "biography" of the former first lady is eroding that image, she's opening the wrong reasons.
The real scandal is that Ronald Reagan was leader of the free world for eight years. Any real or alleged bedroom pacilloids or crystal-ball fantasizing are irrelevant compared to the fact that the U.S. people elected him not just once, but twice, gleefully tolerating eight years of Dr. Feelgood plattitudinizing while the economy staged to decline, the economy stagnated to a degree that we eventually must come to terms with, and U.S. citizens of privilege were having a ball.
The Reagan legacy would take decades to overcome even if we were taking steps to overcome it — which we aren't.
That's the scandal.
From the Philadelphia Daily News.
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