VOL.101,No.129
KANSAL
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
(USPS 650-640)
HURSDAY, APRIL 11, 1991
ADVERTISING: 864-4358
County orders external audit of reappraisals
NEWS: 864-4810
Property owners outraged by skyrocketing county appraisals
By Vanessa Fuhrmans
Kansan staff writer
Public outrage over properly reappraisals came to a boil last night, prompting the Douglas County Commission to order an external audit of the county reappraisal program.
Disgruntled property owners, most with notices in hand, packed the county commission chambers and voiced their anger about inflated property appraisals they received Saturday.
“But you’ve got to understand something too, he said. “I will promise the start this. We will work together.” But maybe more that we get this audit done.”
Commissioner Mike Amyx told the full-house audience that the county acknowledged that errors had been made in many of the reappraisals and that they would be corrected.
Chris McKenzie county administrator, said he would contact the Property Valuation Division of the Kansas Department of Revenue today to request the audit.
said much of the problem stemmed from drastic increases in land-value assessments. Although appraisals of land value have jumped, they were balanced by decreases in building value.
But Ray Polk, who presented the commission reappraisal notices for several properties that be own land reappraisals had doubled
In addition, the commission passed a resolution to conduct an internal audit. As a board, the commissioners will look at property appraisals on a neighborhood basis to determine whether property values match that of neighboring lots. McKernie said.
"Louie, that doesn't go with what you are saying." Polk said to McElhaney. "This is just one big mistake."
James Drury. 1906 Marvonne Road, said. "We can't accept that all this was computer generated. That is not true in the broadest sense. Somebody instructed that computer."
Although county officials attributed some of the problems to state statutes and the computer software, which also is mandated by the court, Don Gordon received much of the heat for the reappraisal program.
A few property owners commended Gordon and the ap praiser's office for handling questions and appeal requests, but more criticized him for patronizing property owners who had complaints.
Gays protest military ban
Although the commission's resolution met with approval from the public, any attempts to justify skyrocketing increases in property values were countered by bots and holsters from the audience.
Russell Getter, whose county appraisal was more than 50 percent that of that a private appraiser, said, "Please don't make any more excuses, point the finger or blame someone in the legislature. You've got a problem here and you've got to deal with the problem here."
GLSOK rallies for change of Department of Defense policy
Polk said, "Your office has been run very shabby. If you all worked for me, I'd be handing out pink slips."
Commissioner Lotie McElhaney
By Lara Gold Kansan staff writer
The deadline for reappraisal appeal requests is April 26, but McKenzie county might be overloaded the deadline in an overload of requests were made.
Four additional telephone lines have been opened in the appraiser's office since property owners received their notices Saturday. To accommodate the influx of telephone calls, the commission has expanded telephone service at the county appraiser's office to 5:30 to 8 p.m. weekdays and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays.
"We're here. We're queer. We're fabulous. Get used to it."
That was the message members of Gay and Lesbian Services of Kansas chanted yesterday in protest of the Department of Defense.
"It's going to take a war of protest to stop this discrimination," said Mike Sullivan, co-director of GLOSK. "About 60 people in front of Strong Hall."
GLOSK the administration and students took part in the National Day of Action, a nationwide protest condemning the Department of defense or buming gays, lesbians or homosexuals in the military and ROTC programs.
Sullivan said the protest was to increase awareness about the discrimination inflicted by the policy.
"It is a policy that forces our administration to discriminate," he said.
Sullivan, however, praised the administration for working with students to overturn the policy.
Del Shakel, interim executive vice chancellor, said the administration would continue to work with the University to expand the Department of Defense policy.
"We do support the change you are seeking in the Department of Defense policy," Shankel said at the rally.
Greg Hughes, University Council and University Senate Executive Committee member, read the Council's response to the Department of Defense policy.
Women's Student Union members Jennifer Boyle (left) and Michaela Hayes demonstrate against the Department of Defense policy banning lesions, lesbians and bisexuals from the military.
"This discriminatory policy is inconsistent with the equal opportunities that are consistent with higher education," he said.
Hughes said the change would come if everyone on every campus across the country worked together.
Ami Hyton, Topeka sophomore, said the exclusion of gays, lesbians
"As long as discrimination exists on this campus, education cannot be a reality for everyone," he said.
GLSOK circulated a petition for members of the crowd to sign protesting the Department of Defense policy.
and bisexuals from the military was ludicrous
"It is ironic that the Army, which is designed to preserve freedom, is actually undermining it," she said. Caverly Smith, president of the
Native American Student Association,
said that, as an American
Indian, he understood concerns about
discrimination.
Smith said society had tolerated too much bigotry, hatred, prejudice
and narrow-mindedness.
He said, "We must continue to address the issues of homophobia, racism, sexism, anti-Semitism and all other social illnesses."
Official Persian Gulf cease-fire to take effect today
The Associated Press
UNITED NATIONS — An official cease-fire in the Persian Gulf War is to take effect today at 9 a.m. cst. Security Council diplomats said yesterday, as long as no council members object before then.
Also, U.N. officials said the first elements of the new 140-member U.N. monitoring force for the Iraqi war will arrive tomorrow in Kuwait City.
Members of the council received copies of the Iraqi parliament's decision on Saturday accepting the Security Council's conditions for a permanent cease-fire.
The two-line Iraqi statement simply said the body accepted Security Council Resolution 687, passed April 3, which requires Iraq to pay for war damages and destroy its weapons of mass destruction.
The council had been prepared to declare the cease-fire Tuesday but at the last minute decided it needed to see whether the Iraqi Parliament had expressed any reservations or conditions on its acceptance.
Because the Iraqi lawmakers accepted the resolution unconditionally, diplomats said they fawsaw no
problem with declaring the official cease-fire this morning
The Security Council members also have been holding private consultations on the composition of the mission, called UNIKOM. Mission, called UNIKOM.
The leader of the force has not been announced officially, but it is widely expected to be Austrian Maj.Gen. Gunther Greendl, who commanded the U.N. peacekeeping force in Cyprus from 1981 to 1988.
Greindl will arrive in Kuwait City tomorrow, but the main units of peacekeeping infantrymen, military
observers and combat engineers are not expected for another 10 days to two weeks.
The force's headquarters probably will be established at Um Qasr, an Iraqi town in the demilitarized zone near the outlet of the Shatt al-Arab waterway. A logistics base will be set up in Kuwait, and liaison offices will be opened in Baghdad and Kuwait City.
The core unit of the force is a 300 officer group of military observers. They will carry light sidearms but they are not likely to attack anyone who violates the bar.
der.
They will patrol the about 120 mile border of Iraq and Kuwait, maintaining a dermitilized zone six miles from Iraq and three miles into Kuwait.
Because that border strip was mined heavily by the Iraqis and still is littered with unexploded bombs, shells and missiles, a contingent of about 200 combat field engineers will move to remove ordnance and clear the roads.
About 27,000 refugees and displaced persons are crowded into the zone, and U.N. officials are worried
about crowd control if riots break out as U.S. Army troops are withdrawn when the peacekeepers move in.
The United Nations will send five infantry companies drawn from other peacekeeping units in Cyprus, the Golan Heights and Lebanon to enforce force, a total force of about 680.
UNIKOM is not responsible for law and order or other civilian functions in the area, however. That duty rests on the governments of Iraq and Kuwait.
▶ See related story Page 16
Speakers focus on future of higher education
Kansas Union
Watson Library
Wescoe
Lindley
Learned
Burge Union
Summerfield
Students need KUIDs to vote. The polls are open until 4:30 today.
See story Page 3
By Eric Nelson
In the first of two evening programs commemorating the 125th anniversary of KU, two nationally known speakers focused on the problems and challenges of higher education.
Kansan staff writer
About 130 people attended last night's seminar in the Kansas Union, which featured Ernest Boyer, president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and action, Yolanda King, actress and Yolanda King, civil rights activist, actress and daughter of Martin Luther King Jr.
Boyer spoke first and stressed five points that he said would shape the future of higher education, including strengthening the nation's economic standing by increasing equality of opportunity for all students.
In addition to the problems posed to minority students because of discrimination, he said many students remained faceless in the shuffle and was mistakenly asked. He suggested smaller classes as a solution.
"I've concluded many students drop out of school simply because one noticed that they had been doing something stupid."
Other points included how the United States must integrate different areas of study and strive for an overlapping academic neighborhood, how improved status must be given to the teaching profession and how more emphasis should be placed upon the importance of
language and communication.
Boyer said that although he thought the United States was still the envy of the world in terms of higher education, improvement should be the goal.
"Our task in the coming generation is to sustain that excellence, not only to serve the nation but to provide global leadership as well," he said.
King said the essential issue facing higher education was multicultural diversity. People must be willing to respect and accept all people as equals.
She stressed that the country was not a melting pot but more of a mosaic, with many different and interesting individuals who could contribute.
King also questioned the values and financial priorities of this country, mentioning the sums of taxes and government spending.
"We must understand that education is as much of a national security issue for America's survival as is military preparedness," she said.
In the spirit of her father, King was hopeful for the future. She envisioned a society in which people could live together and respect one another's differences.
"To live with this dream may be crazy, may be somewhat foolish," she said. "To live with this dream may be crazy."
During a symposium commemorating the University's 125th anniversary, Yolanda King, civil rights activist, actress and daughter of Martin Luther King Jr., emphasizes the need for acceptance of cultural diversity to ensure the future of higher education. About 130 people attended the seminar last night at the Kansas Union.