4A
Thursday, January 25,1996
OPINION
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
VIEWPOINT
Templin needs renovations
Renovation of Templin Hall, Daisy Hill's oldest residence hall, is scheduled to begin this summer. But that doesn't mean it will happen.
In February 1994, the initial construction date was delayed. Renovation was supposed to start in Summer 1995. That didn't happen, and renovation was rescheduled.
If the renovation happens, Templin's rooms will be changed into suites. Planned suites will use the space of one and a half, two or three of the present rooms. Suites will include private baths, areas for microwaves and refrigerators, ethernet connections, cable TV hookups, new heating and air conditioning systems and new thermopane windows.
Construction on the $5.8 million project is scheduled to begin July 1, but problems could arise again. The bond issue that includes the renovation has just been given the goahead by Gov. Bill Graves. But, even with Graves' blessing, it still is not clear
THE ISSUE: Residence halls
Postponement of the residence hall's future room upgrades echo deeper problems with money and time.
The delay in Templin's renovation shows that the University is not serious about creating better living accommodations for students. The University's residence halls have needed major renovations for years, and because of setbacks and reschedulings, it is doubtful that the project will be completed by its scheduled date, Fall 1997. The University should take care to see that this latest start-date is not missed.
whether the project will be financed. It still must be approved by the state legislature.
MARK POTTER FOR THE EDITORIAL BOARD.
Plans have been made, designs have been created and architects have been hired. For almost two years this project has been in the making and scheduled to begin.
City should spend funds wisely
It is surprising that Lawrence city officials are contemplating increased spending for the Percent for Art Program. The program's purpose is to heighten appreciation for the arts.
Beginning in 1987, the city decided to allocate two percent of the budget for the arts. In 1996, the city finds itself with almost $30 million targeted for capital improvement projects. The city already has launched plans for a dozen new parks, a recreation center and improvements on the Lawrence Arts Center. In all, these projects will cost about $502,000. At present, only $31,700 is set aside specifically for purchasing works of art, but this is nowhere near two percent of the city budget. Under the 2-percent policy, as budget surpluses grow, so will the 2-percent cut for the arts.
Mike Wildgen, city manager, notes that the city commission has set down a policy that places a high priority on the arts. He says that Lawrence traditionally has placed interest in the arts. Wildgen says that the $502,000 is merely a "projection of what might be spent." He also says that
THE ISSUE:
City arts funding
City of Lawrence's Percent for Art program spends too much for purchasing artwork.
not all of this will go merely for a few murals and sculptures. Given that it is just a projection, it is conceivable that more than $31,700 will be spent on acquiring works of art. Within the projected $502,000, the actual total could be quite high. Moreover, Wildgen does not deny that spending on the arts is increasing.
Practical considerations should outweigh aesthetic ones. Public money should be used carefully and wisely. Commissioners such as Allen Levine, who hopes to increase public expenditures on the arts, should remember that fixing and improving existing structures has a more quantitative effect on the community than a few more picturesque landscapes hanging in City Hall. A picture might be worth a thousand words, but a thousand potholes surely deserve more attention.
CHARITY JEFFERIES FOR THE EDITORIAL BOARD
KANSANSTAFF
ASHLEY MILLER
Editor
VIRGINIA MARGHEIM
Managing editor
ROBERT ALLEN
News editor
TOM EBLEN
General manager, news adviser
Editors
HEATHER NIEHAUS
Business manager
KONAN HAUSER
Retail sales manager
JAY STEINER
Sales and marketing adviser
JUSTIN KNUPP
Technology coordinator
Marko Fields/KANSAN
campus...Jenn Birk
Phillip Brownlee
Editorial...Paul Todd
Associate editorial...Craig Lang
Features...Matt Wood
Sports...Youth Brandon
Associate sports...Bill Petulla
Photo...Andy Ruellet
Matt Flicker
Graphics...Noth Mauser
Special sections...Navy Commissary
Jen Humphrey
Wire...Tara Traney
On-line coordinator...Tina Fassett
Campus mgr ... Karen Gersh
Regional mgr ... Kelly Connelys
Bachelor's degree mgr ... Norm Blow
Production mgr .. Rachel Cahill
Marketing director .. Heather Moffitt
Public Relations dir .. Angle Adamson
Creative director .. Ed Kowsakl
Internship/co-op mgr .. T.J. Clark
Fast food, TV commercials keep us from eating healthy
This year, however, I have decided to do something about it. Starting this month, I have chosen one day of the week that I will refrain from eating junk food. And at the beginning of each month, I will choose one more day of the week where I will eat nothing but healthy foods. I will add one more weekday to my plan every month until the majority of the week I am resisting the call of the fast food restaurants and potato chip commercials.
There's no guarantee that I can keep this up, for I myself have been a victim of the junk-food craze. However, I just hope that more people will take a look at themselves and try to find a way to make this a thinner America.
But since I started college, the golden arches have become my kitchen away from the kitchen, where I can get my fried meat and potatoes when I'm too lazy to make something. Unfortunately, these visits have become too frequent, and my waist is paying the price.
It happens to the best of us: On the way home from a hard day of classes, we can think of nothing better than eating a well-balanced meal complete with a salad and a cold glass of milk. However, by the time we get home, the idea of spending the time to make dinner just doesn't sound appealing.
When I was growing up, I would go to McDonald's when my grandmother visited. Not only did that keep me from eating there every other day, but it also made trips to McDonald's more meaningful.
slave over an oven when they can get a full meal just by pulling up to a drive-through window.
Craig Lang is a Springfield, Mo., junior in Journalism.
That's when we turn on the television, only to find Charles Barkley trying to sing the Big Mac song, and darn it if those two cheesy beefies look too good to resist.
These days it's becoming easier to sacrifice good health for fast foods and snacks.
This trend is prompting America to grow. Unfortunately, it is growing through its citizens' waistlines.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture released the results of a survey that showed the number of overweight Americans is up 36 percent since 1977.
While we have cut back considerably on produce — 50 percent of us don't eat fruit on a given day — we have increased our intake of snack foods by 200 percent and have increased our frequency of eating out by 50 percent.
It's not entirely our fault. These days, it's impossible to cross the street without running into some sort of snack vendor — and how many campus vending machines offer apples or bananas?
The influence of television also is a component. We're much more
likely to see commercials for potato chips and candy bars than we are to see ads by organization such as the National Carrot Council or the Celery Growers of America. Junk food distributors only strive to make their products look good. They don't emphasize the actual nutritional
ASSOCIATE EDITORIAL EDITOR
value of their foods, and so we don't consider it either.
When we see commercials like the ones for Pringles potato chips, with the slim men and women dancing and getting excited about those cylindrical containers, we usually don't consider that they probably didn't get so fit by eating the chips.
Instead, we just think, "Boy, they must really like those chips," as we stuff our faces with handfolds from our own containers, not thinking of the consequences it will have on our bodies.
This problem of an overweight America also is intensified by the increasing number of fast-food restaurants. Because a fast-food restaurant is on almost every street corner in America, people are becoming too lazy to stay home and
Students give kind help through storm
As temperatures plummeted into the single digits Thursday, the University of Kansas did anything but cool down. I could feel the warmth of KU students as I watched them push out cars stuck in the snow in various locations on campus.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Thinking it wouldn't happen to me, I was driving across the University campus on Memorial Drive when my car became stuck in a snow drift. Assured I was on my own to free my car, I was greeted by a fellow student offering his help. After a minute, to no avail, more students came to offer their assistance.
In just a few minutes, about eight or so students were virtually carrying my car up the hill. To all those who helped free my maroon Eclipse and all the other cars, I offer all my thanks.
Barry Whitley Topeka Freshman
Web sites needed to connect to stories
I am pleased to see that the University Daily Kansan is giving coverage to Internet resources. However, in two recent articles about resources available through the World Wide Web from the University Placement Center and the
The web site address is crucial to locating resources on the World Wide Web, and any article referring to the benefits of a particular site should at least include that site's address so that readers may access the site themselves. It is disappointing that last semester ended with a listing of pornographic Web sites and that now, when potentially useful information is covered, the Web sites have been omitted.
Lana Tibbetts
Topeka senior
AU Police Department, something vital was left out: the Web sites. The e-mail address was given for the KU police, but that is not how to connect with the World Wide Web.
Sound familiar? Wasteful buying causes family financial woes
I don't usually share my problems with total strangers, but due to conflicting financial priorities, I am having trouble balancing my familial budget this year. I'm out of options and taxes will be due in April. I just don't know how I am going to pay them.
I can look back on the past year and see where I have made some bad decisions. For example, I spent
40 percent of my annual income on personal defense. In retrospect, that seems a stupid decision, but my testosterone simply couldn't resist the over-the-shoulder antitank missile system I found in the Guns Are Us catalog. I realize now it was much cheoverindul-
gence and in all likelihood it will just sit in the closet next to the laser-equipped home protection system I bought last year. Next year I'll be more frugal.
My family really doesn't eat that well. Some of them have to go hungry for long periods of time. And we don't have enough room in the house for everybody to sleep. I know I should have used the missile money for an addition, but I can't look back now. Uncle Joe is just going to have to sleep outside for another year. Maybe we can buy him some new plastic and fix the wheel on his shopping cart.
But back to my original dilemma: I don't have enough to pay the government by April 15. Obviously, I have only one option. I must file for the automatic extension which will give me four more months to cut back on defense spending, grocer subsidies and my personal space program. The government simply will have to do without in the meantime. Maybe some of you have the same problem and would like to join me. After all, the government did it to us.
Unfortunately, a tax protest wouldn't hurt the politicians responsible for the failed budget agreement. It would hurt only those already hurting — the workers, Gingrich, Dole, Clinton and all the greedy self-serving politicians on the Hill still would get paid just as they did during Christmas when hundreds of thousands of federal employees were going broke.
My hobbies are starting to be exorbitant as well. I have taken up model rocketry, which is costing more with every launch. It does provide me with some personal space away from the family, however, and I do get a great deal of personal satisfaction out of knowing that I am launching more rockets than any of my neighbors. But sometimes in my darker moments I wonder if the benefits really outweigh the costs. My family thinks my newest idea of building a personal space station in the backyard is the craziest thing yet. But I think it will work. And I need it.
One thing you could do to relieve a certain amount of stress would be to fax the big three and any others you feel contributed to the shutdown with a message conveying your sentiments.
I prefer cutting the word "Scrooge" or "Cold-Hearted Greedy Backstabbing Scum" out of black construction paper and faxing that. Maybe that will get their attention. You can e-mail me for the fax numbers. My address is ionto@falcon.cc.ukans.edu.
Todd Hiatts is a Lawrence senior in social welfare.
OUT FROM THE CRACKS
By Jeremy Patnoi