Fanaticism
and the
press
Dropping
the
bomb
There are a lot of frustrated
people walking around these
days. Many of them happen to
be on this campus.
For example, today's letter
to the editor is exemplary of
how s ome people in this
University feel (with emphasis
on the word feel as opposed to
think).
Then, of course, numerous
groups are voicing, more
precisely, screeming, views
diametrically opposed to those
stated in the letter to the
editor.
However, one thing seems
to be clear: the polarization is
increasing. And historically
the press is usually one of the
first social institutions to feel
the effects of fanaticism.
What is happening on the
campus and in the state
legislature, especially in
regards to the Daily Nebraskan
and LB 70, surely
substantiates the point made
in the report by the College
Press Service. That is,
censorship is on the rise, and it
is bound to continue.
How all of this effects
individual students,
particularly the average,
middle-of-the-road student,
remains a question.
Hypothesizing about these
results is definitely in order.
What happens if the Daily
Nebraskan closes down? First
of all, it's doubtful that it will
make this University a better
place, despite pronouncements
to the contrary.
Consider for a moment
where student opinion,
whether it be to the right or to
the left, will be channeled. If
you try to hold back the views
of the leftists and moderates,
Another topic, which most
assuredly does not belong to
any class of aesthetics, is the
university budget.
According to preliminary
estimates, very few members
of the university will be
pleased. And it appears that
the Lincoln campus will be hit
hardest.
Governor Exon has
delivered more than a promise.
He has dropped an austerity
bomb.
If the Governor has his
way, and the Unicameral
you encourage the burning of
buildings. (In fact, you
guarantee it!.)
To further aggravate
right-wing students is to also
guarantee increased
fanaticism.
But more important than
any of those reasons is one
which deals with the efficacy
of this institution: its right
and responsibility to pursue
Truth.
Unfortunately, many
persons refuse to listen to any
arguments. Certainly, many
more cognet and compelling
arguments can be presented in
defense of freedom of the
press than those presented
here but ultimately reason is
no match for vicious
repression.
There is no question but
that the students own this
newspaper. And if those
opposed to this organ of
information have sufficiently
(in their own minds) tried to
change those aspects of it
which they do not like, then
their decision to kill the paper
is probably justified.
Assuming students are
capable of possessing
intellectual honesty, which is
demanded of them if they
attend this University, it is
highly unlikely that closing
down this paper is justified by
anyone.
But if the "people" prefer
to believe in the rhetoric and
demagoguery of one
white-haired old man, then
those who support him must
share the responsiblity for the
consequences.
Regardless of the political
arena in which you stand,
those consequences will not be
beautiful.
voting procedures for
appropriations pretty much
guarantee that he will, the
university is, in no uncertain
terms, going to suffer and
suffer badly.
For the students: increased
tuition.
For the faculty: increased
teaching loads.
For the administration and
Regents: disappointment.
For the university itself:
perhaps disaster.
And if you put them all
together, for the Governor:
political success.
ear editor
Dear Editor,
The vicious, racist assults on
black doctors and black
medical students casts a slur on
the human race worthy of a
Goebbels or a Mussolini.
For years in this desperate
capitalist economy there has
been a quote on rich, often
stupid, incompetent, far right
medical students who turned
out to be quacks but had the
money to attend medical
school and purchase a degree in
medicine while many a black
man who might have made a
brilliant physician was turned
away for lack of funds. The
vice-president of this pig ruled
country has tried to begin a
trend in our thinking that can
lead only to race-hatred and
furtherance of a dying
capitalist empire.
The modern Goebbels has
Pre - programmed
President
by FRANK MANKIEWICZ
and
TOM BRADEN
WASHINGTON--If the
strategic arms limitation talks
(SALT) continue as they are
now going and no new
American initiative is
forthcoming, it is possible that
this country will soon have
what the defense planners call
a "pre-programmed President."
It is even conceivable-given his
re- election that the first
pre-programmed President
might be Richard Nixon. This
so, he might behave someday
as follows:
The President is speaking to
an airport crowd-let us say-at
Colorado Springs. In
mid-sentence, a man wearing a
brown hat steps from the circle
behind him and grasps his
elbow. The President turns,
looks him full in the face, and
without a word of apology
turns his back on the
microphone.
"We verify 100 SS-9s
incoming, Mr. President," says
the man at his elbow,
'indicated response is Code
1."
Code 1, the President
knows, is to fire a specific
number of Minuteman missiles
at Russian ICBM sites which
have not been emptied by the
"100 SS-9s incoming"-or
maybe at a Russian city.
In what time he has to
think, he might be grateful that
the indicated response is not
"Code 2" or "Code 3,"
contingencies for meeting
larger incoming forces. But the
President does not have much
time to think.
Certainly, you cannot
exercise a human desire to get
back aboard Air Force One and
make a few telephone calls. He
would already have
decided some months
previously-that his response to
the man in the brown hat
would be "Code 1" and that he
would not ask for time.
In approximately 20
minutes, if the man in the
brown hat is right those 100
SS-9s will be crashing down
upon the country. Response,
counter-response and
counter-counter-response
would follow. Depending upon
what these were, the question
as to whether the man in the
also attacked black lawyers
indirectly and fat Japanese
newsmen... it could lead to
attacking black construction
workers, Jewish pawnshop
operators and harmless hippy
students, as lazy worthless
bums fit only as cannonfodder
for the army or material for
concentration camps and
political prisons.
Finally, as to quota systems
of idiots, the rabid conservative
Goldwaterite, William Buckley,
it now taking up space that
could be used by an honest
liberal or radical columnist. It
is absurd to carry fair play to
such an extreme that a liberal
paper should include his
feverish drivelwhileconservative
papers attempt to monopolize
public opinion.
Thank you,
C. M. Dairy mple
brown hat was reporting an
accident - or even a false
alarm-might be as relevant as
the question of whether a tree
crashing in the forest makes a
sound, if there is nobody to
hear it.
The pre-programmed
President will be necessity
whenever the arms race with
Russia reaches the point of
"launch on warning"-that is to
say, at that future point where
we believe that the Russians are
capable - with one strike - of
destroying not only our bases
but our ability to strike back as
well.
At the moment, it is likely
that a Russian premier will be
pre-programmed before our
President is because the United
States is reaching that
first-strike capability much
, faster than the Russians are.
But this is not something to be
thankful about; it only means
that the Russians will arrive
logically at a "launch on
warning" status before we do.
What is happening at the
SALT talks which makes
"pre-programming" and
"launch on warning" thinkable
thoughts for the first time is
that our side is resisting any
limitations on MIRV, the
multiple independently
targeted re-entry vehicles.
We are suggesting instead a
limitation on the number of
nuclear weapons with on-site
inspection as a guarantee. This
has all the earmarks of being
put forward so that it will be
rejected, since it is almost
meaningless.
It is meaningless because the
Russians know we are now in
production on MIRV and that
once we have equipped our
missiles with MIRV we have
the capabilities of a
pre-emptive strike.
The Russians are not yet in
production on MIRV, nor do
they have a nuclear submarine
force of real deterrent
capabilities. That is why they
will be worrying about "launch
on warning" before we do.
So what we should be
talking about at SALT is MIRV
- ceasing production, testing
and deployment-in return for a
Soviet pledge' not to begin.
Somebody is going to have to
say, in effect, "Let's quit." The
alternative is the day of a
. pre-programmed President.
PAGE 5
FRIDAY: FEBRUARY 5. 1971
THE DAILY NEBRASKAN