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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 9, 1972)
Dakan campaigns for Lincoln ecology by Mary Voboril If an effective ecology club had existed even a year ago, I la Dakan believes that the condemned trees along Holdrege Street could have been saved. That is why she and other Lincoln ites are sponsoring a community gathering Thursday "Although nothing can be done to save the Holdrege Street trees now, there are other local ecological issues that should ' concern Lincolnites, Dakan said. One issue the first meeting will focus on is the soil situation in Lincoln. Dakan says the soil is "sick." "Everything we eat comes directly or indirectly Trom me soil, so it has to be healthy in order to grow healthy food. We cannot get nutrition from our food if our soil doesn't have it, she said. , . ., . . . , A group at the meeting will describe why the soil is sick and what can be done to improve it. Another issue is the use of biological control against insects instead of using herbicides and pesticides. "Anything put on plants that will kill insects cannot possibly do the world any good," Dakan said. For example, birds die after eating insects, seeds and fishworms that have been poisoned by herbicides and insecticides. She also said she cannot understand why the city sprays parks with herbicides to kill dandelions and other weeds, and said she will bring this up at the meeting. She said the people who use parks the most are children and their pets. Herbicides can be harmful to these children, she said, particularly if they try tastingfallen leaves. She said she didn't know of any children who minded weeds in the parks. Fallen leaves and other natural fertilizers could be put to better use, the mother of four said. "We throw away as much fertilizer as we buy. Leaves do not belong in the city dump," she said. She would like the new ecology club to establish a oTSe X things the city has ever done is plan to cut down t trees along HoWrege Street while planting others downtown 8,o young tree could survive very long under downtown conditions " she said. For example, she said the tree roote will ?be able tf ge? enough moisture and auto fumes are likely t0Z: trees will be al. over 0 Street in the fall " Dakan said. "This is dangerous because both people and cars can elsily slip on wet leaves. In high winds, there will be a danger of branches falling on pedestrians. UWrMO She said using the number of accidents along Holdrege Street as an excuse for widening the street and destroying the trees is not adequate. A four lane street will not reduce the number of accidents, she said, because more people will use the street and drive faster on it. Other problems result from people using detergents. She said there is no ecologically safe detergent. Just because manufacturers are still allowed to sell known pollutants like detergent does not mean the public has to buy them, she said. She admitted Nebraska's pollution problem is not so serious as it is in other areas of the country. "But we cannot ignore the problem until it gets as bad as it is in the East." she said. She added that Nebraskans who think the state is free of pollution are "pretty naive." Other issues that will be brought up at the meetings include organic gardening, conditions at the Lincoln city dump and sewer systems, and a monthly newsletter called Green Power. The new ecology club meets for the first time Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at the Victor E. Anderson Library at Fremont and Touzalin Streets. y County conventions grassroots of party system ' a imi uiA i ik! i ctiiHpnts olan to run for seats in The following is the second in a series of three articles by Daily Nebraskan staff writer Steve Arvanette on election year activities. by Steve Arvanette Friday is the final day to file for election in the May 9 primary. If past primaries are any indication, there will be hundreds-perhaps thousands--of country party offices throughout the state for which no one files. . Few voters are aware of the importance ot delegates to the county political conventions. That race is elected on the smallest voting district-by precinct. The election of delegates to county conventions is the grassroots beginning of the party system in Nebraska. After their election in the May primary, delegates meet for one day, usually in June, to elect county off icers and delegates to the state convention. The potential for a minority interest group taking control of the county party organization would appear entirely possible. It appears the Lancaster County Democratic Convention may be preceecLd by a lively, competetive election. Numerous political groups on the UNL campus have urged their supporters to cash in on the opportunity and participate in the party organization. Groups supporting the presidential candidacy of John Lindsay, Edmund Muskie and George McGovern have seen the possibility of getting their political philosophy into the county and even the state party organization. The Nebraska Youth Caucus, Women's Political Caucus and Lincoln Gay Action Group have urged their people to file for county delegate positions. A surprising fact to many is that the county delegate post is the only office on the ballot which costs nothing to file for. All that is required is that the individual go to the county clerk or election commissioner's office (in Lancaster and Douglas Counties) by Friday. . A short form is filled out confirming the person filing is a registered voter of that party. The individual's name then appears on the partisan primary ballot May 9 in the precinct where he votes. A number of students have decided to go a step further and file as delegates to the national party convention. ... . Mark Rubin, UNL student from Bellevue, has filed from the Second Congressional District as a Republican delegate pledged to Hichara Nixon. John Vihstadt, from Lincoln, has registered as a delegate from the First Congressional District pledged to Nixon on the Republican ballot also. Bill -Bennett, an unsuccessful city council f candidate in Lincoln a few years ago, has filed on the Democratic ballot supporting John Lindsay. Joseph (Mick) Moriarty of Omaha filed as a delegate from the second district pledged to Edward Kennedy. LB S1 enacted by the Nebraska Legislature this year changed the selection process of national delegates. Previously, an individual could run as a delegate or an alternate delegate. One could have his name placed on the state-wide primary ballot or just in the congressional district. The filing fee was $25 for delegate positions. With the change, however, all delegates are elected according to the congressional district in which they reside. The post of alternate delegate has been removed from the ballot this year. What makes the post of national delegate of even more interest this year is the drop in filing fee to $10. Before filing, the prospective delegate must get a receipt for the $10 from the country treasurer in the county in which he resides. A form is then filled out with the Secretary of State's office. A delegate has the option of pledging his support to a particular Presidential candidate or running uncommitted. The Democratic Party I" w been given 22 delegates to its convention this summer. Eight will be elected from the First Congressional District, eight from the second and six from the third. The Republicans will send 16 delegates to their Presidential nominating convention. The breakdown by congressional district is six from the first and third and four from the second district. With two days left for delegate filing, the following was the break-down of delegates who have completed the filing procedure with the Nebraska secretary of state's office as of Wednesday: On the Democratic ballot- DM. 1 Dirt. 2 DM. 3 Total Minkia Jackton Humph ray McGovarn Kannady Wallaca Chitholm LIndtay McCarthy uncommitted Total 11 7 6 2 6 4 1 1 1 11 48 9 9 8 4 S 0 1 1 0 17 St On the Republican ballot- Nixon Athbrook McCloakay Agnaw t.tcommltad Total Diat.1 33 0 1 1 4 39 DM. 2 27 2 0 0 0 29 9 6 3 3 2 0 0 1 0 22 46 Dist. 3 29 0 0 1 0 30 29 22 13 9 12 4 2 3 1 50 145 Total 89 2 1 2 0 98 At least two UNL students plan to run for seats in the Nebraska Legislature. Stan Sorensen, a graduate student in political science, has filed to oppose incumbent Sen. William Swanson in Lincoln's 27th legislative district. The 50-year-old Sorensen intends to run his campaign on two basic issues. He opposes Swanson 's stand on personal property tax exemption and has described himself as responsible to "no special interest at all." A SUN President Steve Fowler has announced his intentions to file as a candidate to the Legislature from the same district. Speculation is that a student may file for a post on the Board of Regents from the district which includes Omaha. Regent Kermit Hansen and Clifton Batchelder have filed for that post thus far. : : With two days left to file, no Democrat has come forward to challenge Rep. Charles Thone's seat in the House of Representatives. Stahmer chides students' ignorance Graduates of the University of Nebraska were accused of being "just about as ignorant as parole can be about government" by State Sen. David Stahmer of Omaha at a panel discussion Wednesday morning in conjunction with the World in Revolution Conference. He said students teemed to be more interested in dorm visitation and beer than "the total needs of society." The discussion, which centered on the theme of the university and justice, covered a wide variety of subjects and draw about SO people. Linda Pratt, chairwoman of the Faculty Senate Committee on Discrimination, pointed out several cases of sex discrimination in the University's policies regarding hiring, salaries and promotion possibilities. An attorney for the University, Ftavel Wright, commented on the increasing rights of students. He said that at one time a student was not allowed a hearing in case of suspension. Wright said that he could not comment on the Steven Rozman case because Rozman is making an appeal for a new trial. Rozman was a UNL political science teacher' who was released from his contract last year and then contested his firing in court. Sharon Crosby, chairman of Welfare Rights, said the situation in the Malone area was becoming critical because of a lack of low-income housing. 'There are about 30 students who are using housing which is badly needed by low-income families. The University is not being responsive to the problems of the community and they are causing many of the problems,' she said. Other members of the panel included Anthony Clarke, a foreign student working on his Ph.D. and Ely Myerson, Interim Dean of Student Affairs. THURSDAY, MARCH 9, 1972 THE DAILY NEBRASKAN PAGE 6