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Monday, March 19, 1990 / University Daily Kansan
Opinion
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
A memorable time
Season-ending loss should not erase high points accomplishments of 1989-90 basketball team
The season is over, but what a season it was.
With their 30-5 record, the Jayhawks proved the basketball world wrong by going further than expected. And as it has been said time and again, the team did it with class.
The loss yesterday to UCLA was tough to swallow for the players and fans. Kansas stayed the entire game, only to come up a point shy. It wasn't the best game the team played all year, but it was reminiscient of the year the Jayhawks had.
After being shackled with probation after the 1988 season and missing last year's tournament, the Jayhawks were expected to finish near the bottom of the Big Eight.
They didn't. Instead they finished tied for second. And when the Jayhawks did not appear in the preseason national polls, stumbling victories against LSU, St. Johns and UNLV gained
the team will Coach Roy Williams, the players and the assistant coaches deserve credit for proving everyone wrong. Williams has been named Big Eight coach of the year and stands to be named national coach of the year. Kevin Pritchard was named All Big Eight and is likely to be an NBA draft pick.
the team credibility
Though the season is over for the Jayhawks, they should hold their heads high. They have nothing to be ashamed of by losing to a good UCLA team. The Jayhawks were a class act on and off the court in sportsmanship, academics and caring for others as exemplified by the treatment of Chris Lindley after his accident.
treatment of Congratulations to you Coach Williams and to your team. You represented KU well and gave everyone a season to remember.
John P. Milburn for the editorial board
U.S. military cuts Soviet reforms remove threat of nuclear war
The sweeping changes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe have stirred debate in Washington about the United States' proper military response. Virtually everyone agrees that cuts in defense spending are necessary. The question is just how much money should be cut without sacrificing preparedness.
The argument in the Bush administration hinges on the possible reversal of changes in the Soviet Union. Defense Secretary Dick Cheney has adopted a cautious stance that sees Moscow returning to a combative posture. Other officials say the changes are permanent and make further cuts in defense spending not only possible but desirable.
Unilateral cuts in Soviet troop strength and a report by the Joint Chiefs of Staff concluding that the United States and its allies could defeat the Soviet Union in Europe without nuclear weapons support the latter argument. The Soviet threat has weakened permanently and the United States has nothing to gain by
stockpiling more weapons systems.
In fact, the United States has much to gain by slashing about $10 billion from the defense budget instead of the proposed $3.2 billion. A $10 billion cut would put the budget at $296 billion, roughly the same as this year. This would ensure an adequate defense, and the additional savings could be diverted to deficit reduction or other pressing budget matters.
The events that have transformed Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union are hardly superficial. They have radically changed the foundations and structures of those countries. The threat of armed conflict has been reduced and the United States has an obligation not to throw money at a nonexistent problem.
The United States must maintain an adequate defense, but the plain truth is that it costs less than it once did. The administration should be relieved it can spend less time and money worrying about a military threat and allocate resources to more important concerns.
Daniel Niemi for the editorial board
Trade footing must be equal
one of the biggest problems facing the United States today is the ever-increasing trade deficit. Something has to be done to slow the flood of money out of the country. A good place to start is to determine why U.S. goods are not selling overseas and remedy the problem.
The federal government has determined that certain "unfair" trading partners are at least partly responsible for the woes. At the top of this list is Japan.
It surely is not true that U.S. goods are so inferior to foreign-made goods that they are undesirable. There are exceptions, but overall, goods produced in the United States are about as good, or better, than those produced anywhere in the world. It also has been argued that unions have driven up production costs to the point that the goods produced are not marketable. Certainly it costs more money to assemble something when the assemblers are being paid $20 an hour than it does at 30 cents a day, but it is doubtful that this alone could account for the inability to sell goods overseas.
For many years now, the United States has maintained a policy of not giving in to protectionist sentiment. Free trade is seen as one of the most significant causes of continued growth in the U.S. economy. Fortunately, free trade works properly only if all nations involved abide by the principles of free trade. Japan has long enjoyed free trade in moving Japanese goods into U.S. markets. For this we have been repaid poorly. U.S. goods being imported into Japan meet all sorts of impediments. Japanese tariffs on foreign goods are high. Many items, from wood products to satellites, cannot be imported at all.
Brandt
Pasco
Staff columnist
Somehow the United States needs to convince its trade partners, most notably Japan, that unbalanced trading practices need to be eliminated. This is a serious problem. The Japanese have done well under the one-sided system of free trade. They should not want to give up an advantage that makes them so much money. Persuading the Japanese to give up their import restrictions by reason alone is as likely to happen as convincing U.S. government officials to take a pay cut. The only way the Japanese will change their trade policies is if they are forced to by the
United States
The U.S. government needs to make it clear that any trade restrictions imposed on U.S. goods entering Japan will be met by equal or more severe restrictions on Japanese products entering the United States. Without a doubt this will result in an enormous outcry from the Japanese. Good. That will mean they got the message.
The Japanese government has resolved that it must stand up to U.S. pressure for change. We, then, must also brace our resolve to achieve change. If threats of trade restrictions cannot provoke the desired response, then we must be willing to act and act decisively.
Free trade is a great thing. If, under a true free trade system, Japanese goods can out sell U.S. goods, then well and good. Japanese protectionism, however, is the equivalent of cheating. They are playing by their own set of rules, which gives them a great and unfair advantage. In the Old West, cheaters were shot. Obviously we cannot do that, but we can adapt our position to their rules. We need to shove their rules down their throats until they choke on them. That is the only way normalcy can be restored.
Brandt Pasco is a Lawrence sophomore majoring in political science.
LETTERS to the EDITOR
Racist column
I was disturbed by a column which appeared in the March 1 Kansan entitled "Racism victimizes everybody," by Stain Dial. Although Mr. Dial raises some pertinent and accurate points regarding the ugliness of racism, the opening paragraph of the column demonstrates that nothing from his unfortunate experience at the local bar on the evening of the KU-K State game in Lawrence.
By admitting that "every stereotype I've ever heard about Kansas State University was reinforced this weekend," Mr. Diel falls to rise above the group of horrible people who we know to be racists. In fact, he is just as guilty as those whom he condemns. It is unfortunate that Mr. Diel views racism differently from group stereotypes, no matter who generated them. The same observations that he made regarding K-State students can be applied to students from the University of Kansas who have come to Manhattan on game night. It would be inappropriate for K-State students and Manhattan residents to assume that all KU students are as rude, insolent, crass and destructive as those Lawrence students who get drunk and disorderly in Manhattan bars. I am embarrassed that any students from my school were described in Mr. Diel's column. I believe that you will find that those men are not the norm at K-State, just as I know that the ugly behavior exhibited by the KU students when in Manhattan is not indicative of the average student at KU.
Suzv Auten
Thank you, Stan, for addressing an issue as important as the ugly forms of racism that persist in society. I only hope that you will continue to learn from what you have observed and will adjust your attitudes and opinions accordingly.
Suzy Auten
Kansas State University graduate
student
News staff
Richard Breck...Editor
Daniel Nieml...Managing editor
Christopher R. Ratston...News editor
Lina More...Planning editor
John Milburn...Editorial editor
Cindy Mlemman..Campaign manager
Mikio Cozidia...M Sports editor
E. Joseph Zurge...Photo editor
Stephan Kline...Graphics editor
Kita Bergueli...Art/Feedmen t editor
Tillie Burr...General manager, news admin
Margaret Townsend ..Business manager
Tami Rank ..Retail sales manager
Misey Miller ..Campus sales manager
Kathy Stohlle ..Regional sales manager
Mike Kern ..National sales manager
Mindy Morris ..Co-op sales manager
Nate Stamos ..Production manager
Mindi Lund ..Assistant production manager
Curtis Skelands ..Marketing director
James Glaenann ..Creative director
Janet Rorholm ..Classified manager
Wendy Stertz ..Team Manager
Joshua Hunt ..Sales and marketing adviser
Business staff
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the PhD program, you reserves the right to reject editi letters, guest columns and cartoons. They can be mailed or brought to the Kansan newsroom, 111 Stuffer-Fall Halt. 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.
Letter to heaven answered by grandpa
When Bernie Meyers, who was 70 years old and lived in Wilmette, Ill., went into the hospital in September, his family at first did not know how serious his illness was. Thus his 10-year-old granddaughter, Sarah Meyers, was not taken to see him.
"He didn't been feeling well for some time," said Sarah's mother, Ann Meyers. "He went into the hospital for some tests — just to find out what was wrong."
What was wrong was lymphoma -- cancer of the lymphatic system. In Bernie Meyers' case, the lymphoma was advanced and irreversible. He died within two weeks.
Sarah Meyers never got a chance to say goodbye to her grandfather.
"Sarah saw him regularly, because we live close to where he lived," her mother said. "This was her first experience with death. She also assisted as she was, she was additionally upset that she didn't see him in those days before he died. She didn't get to have one last talk with him."
Sarah didn't say much about what she was feeling. But in October she came home from a friend's birthday party. The children at the party had been given helium balloons as favors. Sarah had hers with her — a bright red balloon.
"She went into the house," her mother said. "When she came back out, she was carrying the balloon — and an envelope."
Inside the envelope was a letter
Bob Greene
Syndicated columnist
addressed to “Grandpa Bernie, in Heaven Up High.” In the letter, Sarah wrote: “Hi, Grandpa. How are you? What's it like up there?” The letter ended with Sarah telling her grandfather that she loved him and
'Your letter to Grandpa Bernie apparently reached its destination and was read by him. I understand they can't keep material things up there, so it drifted back to Earth. They just keep thoughts, memories, love and things like that.'
that she hoped somehow he could hear what she was telling him.
"I'm not sure what Sarah's concept of heaven is," her mother said. "But I do know that she printed our return address on the envelope. I didn't ask her about it. She punched a hole in the envelope and tied the envelope to
the balloon. Then she let it go.
Two months passed; the weather got cold. Then one day a letter arrived addressed to "Sarah Meyers Family." The letter bore a bork, Pa, postmark, and had been mailed by a man named Donald H. Kopp.
"That balloon seemed so fragile to me. I didn't think it would even make it past the trees. But it did. We watched the balloon sail away, and then we went back inside."
The letter began:
Dear Sarah, Family & Friends — Your letter to Grandpa Bernie apparently reached its destination and was read by him. I understand they can't keep material things up there, so it drifted back to Earth. They just keep thoughts, memories, love and things like that.
Donald Kopp wrote that he had found the balloon and letter while hunting and hiking in a Pennsylvania state forest near the Maryland border. That is almost 600 miles from Wilmette. The balloon had floated over Illinois, probably parts of Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, and all the way across Pennsylvania before settling in the forest.
Donald Kopp's letter to Sarah continued:
Whenever you think or talk about your grandpa, he knows and is very close by with overwhelming love. Sincerely, Donald Kopp. (Also a grandpa.)
CAMP UHNEELY
Sarah said that after she had tied
her letter to the balloon and let it
her flow away. "At night I would think
about it. I just wanted to hear from
Grandpa somehow. In a way, now I
think that I have heard from him."
Donald Kopp, who is 63 and who is retired from his job as as receiving clerk, said the other day that the red balloon, which had almost completely deflated, was resting on a blueberry bush the afternoon he found it.
"That's pretty dense woods," he said. "It was cold and windy that day. I walked over to see what the balloon was. I could tell it was a child's handwriting on the envelope. I didn't have my reading glasses on, and I thought it was addressed to someone at 'Haven High' — a high school or something.
"I put it in my pocket. When I got back home, I saw that it wasn't addressed to Haven High. It was addressed to Sarah's grandfather, in 'Heaven Up High.' "
So he decided to write his letter to Sarah.
"Like I said in the letter, I'm a grandfather too."
"It was important to me that I write to her," he said. "But I'm not very good at writing; I don't do it that often. It took me a couple of days to think of what to put into the letter. Then I mailed it.
▶ Bob Greene is a Chicago Tribune columnist.
BY SCOTT PATTY
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