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Thursday, April 19, 1990 / University Dally Kansan
Opinion
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Fiscal 1991 budget
Hayden approves Legislature's increased budget rather than choosing to make spending decisions
After making overtones about vetoing legislative overspending, Gov. Mike Hayden began singing the song of compromise last week in an effort to pull the 1990 Legislature to a close.
For the past week and a half, lawmakers have been preparing for the veto session, which is scheduled to begin April 25. The House Appropriations Committee and the Senate Ways and Means Committee are working to complete the omnibus spending bill that includes financing for the Board of Regents.
Hayden said earlier that he would veto any spending bill that substantially overspent his budget recommendations. However, Tuesday he increased the proposed budget for fiscal year 1991 by $20.6 million. The increase would leave the state with an ending balance of $113.5 million June 30, 1991, or 4.6 percent of total state expenditures.
Compromise is part of every political process, but it seems as though Hayden chose to
give the Legislature a bigger check than expected, instead of forcing both sides to make tough spending decisions.
But the increase in spending is not going to make the session end any faster. Both the governor and the legislative leadership must come to an agreement on a tax relief measure and reappraisal amendment soon. Voters have requested that the state move away from its reliance on property taxes as the sole contribution for operating government.
Citizens should not be held hostage by the Legislature or the governor with increased budgets and no solutions. It is not too late to put a solid measure together for the voters to decide on. The Legislature and the governor must reach an agreement, find reliable and stable ways to finance the state and leave money in reserve to maintain stability for next year.
John P. Milburn for the editorial board
Briefly Stated
Census deadline
The deadline for turning in your 1990 U.S. Census forms was April 1. But don't let that stop you if you have not yet returned one. The number of returned forms was lower than census officials expected, and they need an accurate count. Also, your returned census form will benefit the community because representation and money are assigned on the basis of population. Send it in; it's the law.
Soviets show force
The Lithuanian independence movement soon may literally run out of gas. After the deadline to fall into place expired, the Soviets have shown that they mean business when it comes to secession. Lithuania soon will be forced to seek a slow, thought-out approach to regaining the freedom it lost 40 years ago. Cutting off oil and natural gas shipments will be the way the Soviets show force in preserving their splintering union.
THUNDERING ACROSS THE PLAINS THEY CAME, THE SPAWN OF HELL. THE SOURCE OF GOD, ATTILA AND HIS HUNS RAVAGED EUPEE, SOWING TERROR, TRIBULATION AND BANJO TUNES WHITHERSOEVER THEY ROAMED.
Netting practices
Starkist sets precedent for all seafood companies
Following Starkist's announcement, other
When tuna fishermen reel in their bounty, they sometimes hook more than they bargained for. With the financing of the world's seafood companies, they catch and kill about 200,000 dolphins a year.
That number is about to go down. Officials at Starkist Seafood Co. announced last week that they no longer would purchase tuna caught along with dolphins.
With a 35 percent share of the U.S tuna market, Starkist is the world's largest tuna canner. By instigating their policy, Starkist officials have taken one of the biggest steps that could be taken to preserve dolphins in the Eastern Tropical Pacific.
seatoid companies rushed to jump aboard the save-the-dolphins bandwagon. While environmentalists heralded the move, tuna fishermen warned that the result of such environmental consciousness would be higher tuna prices for all.
That could be one consequence, but with luck, shoppers will not notice the few extra cents a can they will have to pay. And if they do, perhaps they will realize the greater good that could come from investing their pocket change in the world's dolphin population.
For only then will the world's less-enlightened fishermen realize that they do not need to kill haphazardly in order to make a profit.
Chris Evans for the editorial board
LETTERS to the EDITOR Wrong headline
Give us a break! The headline of Eric Gorski's and Jonathan Plummer's Page One story covering the protest at Strong Hall was absolutely false. The April 12 Kansas headline read "Budig outlines steps to end racial discord," when in reality he did everything but outline specific steps.
In selectively addressing the list of questions from concerned students (avoiding questions 10, 11 and 12, which concerned the SAE house, Matthew Willenborg and concrete repercussions), Budig made his way to question 13, which suggested a mandatory class on racism, sexism and other forms of oppression. The chancellor's reply, according to the Kansan, was, "There will be a mandatory program for new students in Fall 1990 about racism and sexism." This is extremely misleading.
The FILM! That is point number two. When Gorski and Plummer wrote about this mandatory program, only those actually present could know Budig simply mentioned a film.
First, Budig didn't say it was mandatory. He simply said it would be shown to all incoming freshmen — presumably, that is, if they all come to orientation and all stick around for the film.
Finally, Budig never said the film or part of the film really dealt
with racism or sexism at all. He said it accented the diversity we have at KU — very different from a cold, hard look at racism, sexism or other forms of oppression.
Jeff Listerman
Lawrence junior
This film or part of a film that will be viewed by many incoming freshmen is not an adequate substitute for an academic class on the subject, and it cannot be taken as part of a serious "outline" of "steps to end racial discord."
Censorship right
The Kansan's April 13 editorial on the Robert Mappleton展览 in Cincinnati was completely absurd. The people of this country have every right to restrict obscene art when their tax dollars pay for it. We have to consider the value of the National Endowment for the Arts when it funds this kind of trash. Many Americans resent having to pay for such an exhibition, which includes a photo of a crucifix submerged in a jar of the artist's own urine. I imagine that if there was a Star of David or the symbol of some other minority group depicted in this way, the Kansan editorial board would take a different position.
As for the assertion that freedom of expression would be in "grave danger" by the restriction of this garbage, they might do well to remember that the Constitution does not protect pornography, nor does it say that taxpayers have to pay for it.
John Campbell
Winnetka, Ill., senior
News staff
Richard Brack...Editor
Daniel Nieml...Managing editor
Christopher R. Raiston...News editor
Lia Mosa...Planning editor
John Millburn...Editorial editor
Candy Niemann...Campus editor
Mike Consalde...Bronze editor
E. Joseph Zurga...Photo editor
Stephen Killip...Graphics editor
Kris Bergquat...Art/Features editor
Tom Ehlen...General manager, news adviser
Business staff
Margaret Townsend ... Business manager
Tami Rank ... Retail sales manager
Misey Miller ... Campus sales manager
Kathy Stattler ... Regional sales manager
Nina Lahnoone ... National sales managers
Mindy Morris ... Go-op sales manager
Nate Stamos ... Production manager
Jane Luckman ... Assistant production manager
Carrie Slantike ... Marketing director
James Glenapp ... Creative director
Janet Rorholm ... Classified imagery
Wendy Starks ... Yearbooks manager
Jennie Hine ... Sales and marketing adviser
Earth Day: 'Think globally; act locally'
Take Earth to heart
Yet, before people can start solving environmental problems, they must understand the scope of the situation. All parts of the environment are interconnected. Actions in one area have worldwide implications. DDT used in Mexico poisons fish in the Great Lakes. Coal burned in Ohio kills forests in Canada with acid rain. Destruction of rain forests in Brazil could alter the climate and turn Kansas into a desert. An ecologically destructive act is not a local event. You cannot hurt one part of the world without hurting the whole. That is what is meant by thinking globally.
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 start position.
**Guest column** should be typed, double-spaced and less than 100 words. The writer will
The preparations for Earth Day, globally and here in Lawrence (big party at noon Sunday in South Park) have caused quite a stir. I hope this attention signals a serious commitment to preserving Mother Nature. Earth Day is an appropriate platform for launching a populist environmental program because, beneath all the hype, it has a crucial message: Think globally; act locally.
That can seem like a dismal message. The list of global environmental problems, including the greenhouse effect, ozone depletion, toxic waste, mass extinctions and more, is staggeringly large and seemingly insurmountable. But each one of these can be effectively addressed by people remembering the second half of our catch phrase: act locally (indeed, as long as people like George "Lip Service" Bush remain in power, it seems like local action will be all the action we get).
The simple act of putting your aluminum cans in one of the yellow recycling barrels on campus helps fight a number of environmental problems. Cans made from recycled aluminum use 95 percent less energy than those made from virgin ore. Cutting electricity demand helps curb the greenhouse effect and keeps the air clean. The energy savings also mean less demand for new oil, reducing destructive drilling and helping prevent future oil spills. Recycling means a reduction in mining, which damages water quality and causes widespread habitat destruction.
be photographed.
The Kansan教室 has the right to reject or edit letters, guest columns and cartoons. They are allowed or brought to the Kansan newsroom, 111Ft-Stufft Hall. Letters, columns and cartoons 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.
Everyone who celebrates Earth Day and continues that celebration throughout the year by leading an ecologically sound lifestyle helps ensure the survival of the Earth. After all, "Whatever befalls the Earth befalls the sons of the Earth. Man did not weave the web of life . . . He is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself" (Chief Seattle of the Lakota
Indians in an 1854 speech to Congress before his people were exiled to a reservation).
Michael Campbell Lawrence graduate student Time for activism
Recent polls suggest that 76 percent of the United State population considers themselves environmentalists. If this percentage of the U.S. populace raised their voices in favor of environmental issues, Montana would be a national park, the White House would recycle and you could safely take a dip in Boston Harbor. It is obvious that only a small fraction of the environmentally concerned citizens take action.
Political activism plays a necessary part in environmentalism. Without a political face, the current environmental movement will fall grievously short of its goals. To a large degree, the United States decides how it will treat the environment by way of legislation. The Clean Air Act is a perfect example. Environmental groups are involved in the political process at local, state and national levels.
national levers.
Every second one acre of forest disappears from the face of the Earth. Every day one species becomes extinct. Humans have forgotten that they are connected in the most basic and natural ways to the Earth that sustains them. We pollute our air with gases and ozone-destroying chlorofluorocarbons. We foul our water systems with herbicides, pesticides and toxic waste. We look to nuclear power as a viable energy source, yet we have no safe way of containing radioactive waste. The world is finite, and human populations continue to grow, creating an even greater strain on farmlands that support them.
These issues need to be addressed by the governments of the world. U.S. Citizens, all 76
percent who are concerned about the environment, should take an active role in the political processes that shape the treatment of the environment. We should care for the children of our children and the world they will try to live in.
Earth Day represents activism for the Earth. Come be political, support Earth Day in Lawrence.
Lawrence graduate student
Support recycling
Of course, aluminum is not the only recyclable material wasted on campus. The task force also is formulating plans to save glass, plastic and the blizzard of paper thrown out each day at this school. The University cannot claim to have moved into the '90s until it has a comprehensive recycling network in place. Doing this will require active support from the administration.
You still may wonder what is being done about recycling on campus. This semester, the Student Senate/Enviros Task Force began an aluminum recycling pilot project at KU. We put 30 yellow barrels on campus as collection points. During the first week only 66 pounds of aluminum were collected, but that amount has increased to more than 300 pounds a week.
Unfortunately, a lot of pop cans still are being thrown away. To help stop this, the task force plans to add another 20 barrels for the fall semester. Eventually, we hope to make it virtually impossible for people not to recycle their aluminum.
Crises, like paisley, tend to come in and out of vogue. Judging from the media attention, it seems the environment is currently hot (yes, that is meant to be a thought-provoking pun). Much of the attention has been generated by the approach of Earth Day on Sunday. The theme of Earth day is "Think globally; act locally." Although this idea applies to many of our daily activities, it has special relevance at KU thanks to the activities of the Recyclable Task Force.
No discussion about recycling would be complete without some scary numbers. Manufacturing cans from virgin aluminum uses 20 times more energy and creates 20 times as much air and water pollution compared to cans made from recycled aluminum.
CAMP UHNEELY
Mary Jane McCool St. Louis junior
BY SCOTT PATTY
HEY, THE CLOSEST
CLOSE I'VE GAME
ENOUGH. TO KANSAS
LET'S CONTINUE... ATHLETICS
"VARSITY IS SKATE-
BASKETBALL BOARDING ON
CAPTAIN..." WESCOE BEACH.
I