The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current, March 20, 1967, Page Page 2, Image 2
THE DAILY NEBRASKAN Editorials Commentary Page 2 AvAONDAY, MARCH 20, 1967 The ASUN Mockery Some 20 senators and executive lead ers either knowingly or unknowingly tried in the Daily Nebraskan's opinion to make a mockery of student government last Tuesday night. Bill Of Rights The situation is surrounded with disbelief and confusion, but apparently someone called a meeting at Abel Hall last Tuesday for certain senators to dis cuss the Student Bill of Rights. The Nebraskan has nothing against political caucuses or gatherings of peo ple who have similar opinions, but we feel that this meeting was obviously meant to represent only one side of the issue and to influence as many unin formed senators as possible. We cannot see how these student gov ernment members thought they could pos sibly represent effective and meaningful student government when they met for this meeting. Apparently the senators went to be in ormed on the Student Bill of Rights, but the Nebraskan fails to understand who at that meeting besides the Student Conduct Committee chairman could possibly have known what they were talking about in re lation to the document. Non-Attcndance The Nebraskan feels that every sen ator there should have noticed the ob vious non-attendance of the majority of the Student Conduct Committee and oth er student government leaders who had been working on the document for al most seven months. Furthermore the Nebraskan must ask these senators why if they were so in terested in the document didn't they at tend the Student Conduct meetings or the Bill of Rights assemblies? How could the majority of these sen ators have ignored the Student Conduct meetings all year long and the Student Bill of Rights assemblies and then at tended a selective meeting to be told all about the bill in less than four hours? The Nebraskan feels that a majority of the people who took part in this meet ing owe a great many apologies to the senators who worked on the bill all year long and weren't even invited to the meeting. We feel this meeting exhibited the worst kind of student politics. A Silly Situation This campus may soon be famous for something other than the "Big Red" foot ball team. It's notoriety may in fact any day make nationa news. Pentagon Halls Certainly the halls of the Pentagon or the offices in the White House could never have approached the activity orx confusion which has recently engulfed stu dent politics on this campus. No doubt the national political parties will soon be flying observers to this campus in order to study the conflicts, the mud-slinging and the issues now bombarding the University. The ASUN elections several weeks ago looked to the Daily Nebraskan like they might be relatively quiet and well-mannered. Important issues would be dis cussed, but for the most part it promised to be a quiet campaign. Recent Split However, with the recent split in the Party for Student Action and the di vergence of opinion between the experi enced student government leaders we feel that anything could happen. The Nebraskan feels that the spilt in this party is extremely unfortunate since it promised to provide the campus with much responsible and progressive leader ship. We feel that everybody in the ori ginal party plus the campus itself was badly hurt when the party divided The student political atmosphere has now changed from a constructive move ment toward bettering student govern ment to a confused, emotional conflict between all the candidates. Very Unfortunate The Nebraskan is not sure who is responsible for this situation. nor do we expect that most people will ever understand exactly what has happened or what will happen during the ASUN elec tion but we feel all of this confusion is very unfortunate. Some how we strongly feel that mis understandings and ignorance have forced all parties in this year's ASUN elections to take ridiculous stands and do things that they otherwise would not do. The Nebraskan really feels that this campus should be notorious for creating one of the most unreasonable, silly situ ations that ever existed. Other Elections Applications for the College of Agri culture, Teachers College and Arts and Science Advisory Boards are due Friday in the ASUN office. The Daily Nebraskan encourages stu dents to file for these advisory boards and considers the elections to these positions almost as important as the ASUN elec tions. The advisory board elections will be held April 12 at the same time ASUN elections are held. The advisory boards, if effectively Our Man Hoppe- managed and well supported by the stu dents, could be extremely important in giving students a larger role in Uni versity classrooms and education policy. It is extremely important that students support the advisory boards and insist that they play an important part in the University community. The boards could be extremely helpful and effective in making needed changes and improvements for the students' bene fits in the areas of curriculum and faculty-student relations. Jay Turns Over Old Leaf Washington Howdy, there, folks. How y'all? Time for another tee-vee visit with the rootin' tootin' Jay family starring ol' Elbie Jay, who believes a feller ought to be himslf. Unless it ain't doing him any good. As we join up with ol' Elbie today, he's a-settin' in the parlor all alone, smilin' kindly. S mil in' kindly? That's right, smilin' kindly. His pretty wife, Birdie Bird, enters, notices his expression and is so surprised she drops her garden trowel. Birdie Bird: Elbie are you sick? There's not a photographer in miles. Elbie (smiling kindly): Now, Bird, I know folks think I put on a little in pub lic. And maybe that's been true in the past. But we all have our human frailties and I sure am no exception. Birdie Bird (shocked): You have hu man frailties? Let me take your temper ature. Elbie (smiling kindly): No, Bird, it's true. I used to have a mighty bad tem per. And I used to push folks around. And I used to take no back talk from anybody. And maybe I wasnt as humble as I might've been. Birdie Bird: Whe did you decide that, dear? Elbie (frowning): Actually, I've al ways loved everybody in the whole wide world. Only I never let on (smiling kind ly). But then I decided to turn over a new kJ. I decided to be gentls, humble end soft-spoken at all times. Birdie Bird: When did you decide that, dear? Elbie: Right after the last elections. Why, everj' body around here talks of nothing else but the New Elbie, that Arthur Hoppe sweet, unruffable fellow. Hadn't you no ticed? Birdie Bird (hastily): Oh, yes, dear. I just wasn't sure that was the real you. But if it is . . (calculatingly) my, not to change the subject, but did you see that editorial saying your nitwit off-again, on-again tax policies are wrecking the country? Elbie (smiling kingly): Well, we all make mistakes. I just try to do the best I can. Birdie Bird: And did you see where Senator Fulbright says you're some kind of nut? Elbie (smiling kindly): Well, we all make mistakes. I just try to do the best I can. Birdie Bird (nervously): I guess, then, that I can tell you the news from Myna Bird. They aren't going to name the baby "Elbie." Elbie (visibly controlling himself and smiling kindly): Well, now, I reckon it is sort of an old-fashioned name. And that rascal, Myna Bird, she's always been a rebel. Bui anyhow, I love every name in the whole wide world. What's she go ing to call the tad? . Birdie Bird (screwing up her courage): Bobby. Elbie (turning pink, red, purple and exploding): Why, that's the ugliest thing I've ever heard. Birdie Bird ( w r i n g i n g her hands) : Please, dear, be kind and gentle and . . . Elbie (thundering): I am, damn it And don't you forget it. Well, tune in again, folks, and mean time, as you mosey down the trail of life, remember what Elbie's ol' granddaddy used to say: "It takes a big man to ad mit his mistakes. But it's better not to get caught" The Peaceful Sroaftch ...BY STEVE ABBOTT Recently Columnist talked to Dick Shugrue, former Daily Nebraskan editor who taught political science here last year. Since Dick is a professional politician, and since Columnist was once a national officer in the Teenage Democrats, it is not surprising that we discussed the fu ture of American politics. But is there a future to politics as we know it? That is the question I would now like to pose. Traditional Answer Most people aren't interested in pol itics (are you?). Everybody realizes this situation but the traditional answer of teachers and politicians has simply been, "Well, people should be interested, they should be involved." I think that this an swer misses the boat. If people aren't involved, there must be a few reasons why, because we are involved in affairs we feel concern us. It has become too easy to lay problems at the doorstep of apathy and leave it at that. The task of educated men is not to whine around about apathy (as do so many NU intellectuals) but to investigate the reaons "why" beneath this apathy, to describe the nature of the situation more clearly and exactly. One must know the enemy before he can effectively fight it. Columnist suggests three causes behind current American political apathy. First, our major political parties are ir relevant to us because they are ideolog ically bankrupt. They don't stand for anything. Oh, Democrats can claim to be the party of the poor. They can mouth a few New Dea1 slogans, but as 1984 ap proaches, these are not only irrelevant, they are repugnant and frightening. New Names As each new candidate coins new names for old cliches we become in creasingly sickened, (the definition of a progressive is "one who rewords cliches," eg. Fair Deal, Square Deal, Big Deal, et al- to the New Frontier and Great Society) Republicans, unfortunately, are even more irrelevant. The Conservative sticks his inveteratejiead in pre-Roosevelt sands (wouldn't be so bad if he'd learn from the past instead of merely relive it) while the Liberal parrots progressive Democrats (though from "Federalism" to "creative Federalism" is no fundamental change in vision). Republicans who squawk "states rights" usually do the least for states they control, and the label "party of busi ness" isn't valid anymore as so many corporations have gone Democrat. If fur ther proof, be needed of our parties in tellectual bankrupty, recall YD and YR columns of last fail. They were just as vapid as their party's platforms. Politics Victimized A second reason we're not interested in politics today is that we know politics has fallen victim to the peaceful snatch. It doesn't make any difference who is elected, the System remains firm in con trol regardless of who is at the helm, the same national policies prevail. Bureaucracy breeds bureaucracy and only "safe" robot workers advance to con trol positions in governmental machinery. Just as even the powerful personality of Chairman Mao couldn't dislocate bureau cracy in China, so too there is no per sonality in America who can control the bureaucracy of the State Dept., CIA, De fense Dept., et. al (MacNamara might "seem" to be an exception but there are those who maintain he doesn't "control" his machinery so much as function ef ficiently as a part of it). Thus it is foolish to blame LBJ or any single leader, for the war, for CIA activities, or for anything else since they .ARE ONLY "fronts" for the System. It may even be that LBJ is a peaceful man who has been unknowingly duped by his monolithic governmental bureaucracy and if our elected leaders can't control the System, who can? Cultural Lag To even think traditional politics could be relevant to contemporary culture is to be caught in what sociologists term a "cultural lag." Our belief in the efficacy of traditional politics is analogous to Louis XIVs belief in the efficacy of Di vine Right of kings- (Marshall McLuhan refers to this as the rear view mirror theory. When peo ple are confronted with new situatations, they retreat to methods that were ap plicable in old situations, even if those old situations were basically different in kind as well as degree). I ask you to test this theory by your own experience. Isn't watching national party conven tions on TV rather like watching reruns of Gunsmoke? We're given the atmosphere of a quaint past with a few superimposed superheros (eg. Ronald Reagan, Bobby Kennedy, Tricky Dicky Nixon). The pas sive viewer doesn't bother to change channels because he knows all station: carry the same show, even commercials are the same. Still its too much trouble to turn off the set! TV Tolerable Some cling to the faint hope that TV will someday get a better caliber eater tainment. But, for the average voter a mediocre TV spectacular every four years isn't too intolerable, no worse than Gun smoke or Ed Sullivan. And that is where the relevance of traditional politics be gins and erds. I have tried to show what we're up against Professionals have only looked at politics In its outmoded, irrelevant, (albeit "traditional") framework, so natural ly their suggested solutions are outmoded and irrelevant also. An occasional intel ligent person will think up a temporary gimmick to make politics seem relevant again (eg. TV debates, giving 20 dollars to Bill Steen) but so long as these gim micks are piecemeal, their value will be shortlived. Gimmicks Not Enough What is needed is a fundamentally new framework and context for politics to operate in. Gimmicks aren't enough to meet the crisis. mnniiiiiiiiiiiiEiiiiiiiriiiiiiiiritif nitiriiiiriiiiMii iriiiiuiiJMititiMiMiiiiiiriiii tn i iiriiiiriiiiiiisMitii tiriurt mi ii I Campus Opinion Nebraskan Remiss Dear Editor: It seems to me that the Daily Nebraskan has been remiss in its duties. Its function is to inform the stu dents and to help them achieve a "total education." This it has not completely done. Improved Immeasurably Although I admit that in recent years it has im proved immeasurably, there is one area in particular where it has been a significant failure. This is in the' area of informing students of what is going on on cam pus and around Lincoln. There are many worthwhile and entertaining things which happen in town or on campus which students never find out about. I put much of the blame for this on the Daily Nebraskan. Although it is true that some events receive much support from the Nebraskan (for instance Kosmet Klub has had at least four articles on it, some on the front page), other events just as worthwhile and definitely more needy have failed to have any recognition and support or at best very little (perhaps a one-inch space on the next-to-last page). To cite an example: on Monday and Wednesday Henri Peyre, holder of the Sterling Chair in French at Yale, gave the annual Montgomery lectures at Sheldon Auditorium. In my opinion Professor Peyre gave two of the best talks I have heard on this campus. He was a very informative, witty lecturer. However the Daily Nebraskan did not even take the trouble to inform the students of the opportunity to hear this distinguished scholar nor even admit that he was here. Usual Occurrence Now, if this were the only time this has happened, one might shrug it off as a mistake, but this is the usual rather than the unusual occurrence. It is only one of an innumerable list of forgotten events which have happened without any acknowledgement or support from the Daily Nebraskan. Such things as lab plays or even regular productions; the weekly movies at Sheldon; plays, speakers and con certs around town; and numerous others are lucky if they even get mentioned. It would seem to me that it would be more in ac cord with the Nebraskan's philosophy if it publicized some of these events rather than telling us who got pinned or unpinned to whom or telling us about the progress of some obscure legislative bill. Publicize Events I would like to suggest that if the Nebraskan is truly concerned with helping and informing the students, it shoul set aside a certain portion of the paper to an nounce and publicize events of worth on campus and in the town in the week or weeks ahead. This would pro vide a useful service not only to the students but to the events in question which often suffer from lack of support. Well, that is the problem, now what are you going to do about it? Doyle Niemann Union Defends Flight Dear Editor: Re: Benno Wymar's letter to the Editor, "Flight Too Expensive" . No Intentions The first clarification I would like to make is that the Union has never had any intentions of making a pro fit on the European Flight, and cannot possibly do so with the low rate offered. The purpose of this trip is to aid students, staff and faculty at the University who desire to go to Europe by offering them a comfortable and economical trip. Mr. Wymar's letter stated that he believed "more reasonable arrangements could be made especially in light of recent airline rate reductions". I feel that there must have been some misinterpretation of these rates. Any rates which are lower than those offered by the Union are not in conjunction with any American flight lines. In setting up the trip the committee did not feel that it was right for a University sponsored group to charter a flight with foreign airlines. All American air lines are under strictly supervised rates. If prices go down for one company, they go down for all. Of course there are many "comeons" advertised by various airlines but if one looks into these flights, he will find that any trip advertised for less that the Union price has certain regulations. Such regulations include a maximum of twentv-onfi davs in Piirnw nnrl th npppc. sity of staying with a tourist group the entire time. No Profit The following is a breakdown of costs which clearly show that the Union is making no profit on the flight: Train transportation to and from Lincoln and Chi cago $30 Air flight to and from Chicago and London ....$375 Total $405 A minimum of twenty-five people is needed to make the trip possible and if up io fifty register there may be a special governmental reduction in rates. The deadline for final registration is May 2. Hopefully, this letter has shown that this trip was arranged by the Union to serve the students at the Uni versity in the best way possible. Kris Swanson, Chairman Nebraskan Union Trips and Tours Committee Closed Doors A I Rutgers Dear Editor: In view of the present question under consideration concerning regular open house hours for the men's dormi tories on campus, I would like to quote a few sentences from a letter I received from a friend who attends Rutgers University. "The only other unusual happening at Rutgers was the Board of Governors' passage of the 'closed-door plan.' That is to say, we are allowed to have girls in our room till one a.m. on both Friday and Saturday nights with closed room doors." Previously the men were only allowed to have the girls in their rooms with doors open! I thought this quote might be of interest to stu dents and the administration of the University. Roger J. Blood Daily Nebraskan March . 19CT Vt. N Ne. 1 Second-class wlw paid at Lincoln, Neb. TEUtmoKE: 4774711. Extension Z5W. 1388 sad Z9M. ...S1'!?31?'0" rf" "re 1 """Iw or 16 for (he academic rear. Pub lished Monday. Vednesday. Thuradar and Friday durum the school year. eept damn vacations and nun periods, toy the students ol the University at Nebraska nder the Jurisdiction ol the Faculty Subcommittee on Student Publications. Publications shall be free from censorship by the Subcommittee or any person aotode the University. Members al the Nebraskan are responsible (or what tbey Mint tw iM printed. Member associated Collealate Press. National Advertietna Service, Incor porated. Published at Boom 51. Nebraska Union. Lincoln. Neb.. aBSll enrrosUAL staff Ed"' t!ucbe" Editor Bruce Giles: News Editor Jal S5i' 0! fd,tor,f'e Bcnnetti Editorial Pan Assists! Susie Pholosj Editor Ed Icenotle; Assistant Sports Editor Terry Oraamick; Senior SUtB Writers. Jnlie atoms. Cheryl Tritt. Randy Ireyi Junior SlaH Writers. Mick Loos. Davrt Sustain. Rocat Bore. Jim rSviaeer. Oaa Looker. Paul Eaton. Mark Gordon. Chris Cartoon; News Assistant Eileen Wlrth; Photocrapbera. Mik Herman. Oouc Ussier; Copy Editors Bomney Rents!. Lynn Am Gotlachaik, Marty Detrch. Jackie Glascock. Chris atoctwsU. Diana ana Hoese- mear. ciinem nerr Business Manaser Bob Omn: National AdverUslna lianaacr Roaer Soye; Production Maaaser Charlie Barter; Classified Advextieine alaauera Janet Boatman, John Flemminc; Secretary 4nu Bouska: Business Assistants Bub Carter. Glean rrtendu Buss Fuller. Chris Loucee, Kathy Scbnoley. Uad Jeltreyi buoscrl4ioo Mnnaur Jim Buna; Circurlatioa Mupaeis Lyua P-ir n Circular Ucm Aiamant Gary Merer; ""-fr rini Craif u."'"i