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Economic
crisis no
fairytale
mak b rosmussen
right turn
Once upon a time there was a country that was
f iahlinc for its economic life.
Prices were going up as fast and as high as Jack's
beanstalk, and not even tho sky appeared to be the
limit. Wage and price controls had been tried by the
. country s government in several forms and at several
different times during the previous few years, but to no
avail.
In addition to the croblems of inflation, the wicked
shieks from Arabia had brought an evil energy crisis
down upon the people of the land, causing a severe
strain on meir aireaay weanenea economy.
As if all of this was not quite enough, the threat of a
nationwide coa! strike had further damaged the
country's economic confidence. '
Through all of this, the nation's confidence in the
government's ability to deal with the many and van'ed
economic problems had dropped almost as low as the
level of its stock market.
Many people hoped the election to be held in the
autumn of that dreadful year would solve all of their
problems. But alas, before any elections there must be
a campaign. And alas again, during any campaign
, there must be promises.
Many "champions of the people" campaigned
during the election. They were in favor of more pay
shorter hours, better jobs, mote financial security and
more governmental health care.
They promised end they talked, and they talked and
they promised, and they promised and they promised
and they promised.... The people were very happy.
Of course, a few mean old ogres ran for office too.
They had the nerve to say they would cut governmental
soenuing, oaiance ine Duagei anaon, my some
even said they would raise taxes. What's more, they
even seemed proud of their utterances.
I will not tell you what the end of the story is. If is so
much more fun to visualize tho ending in our own
minds. But 1 will tell you the moral of the story. It'is a
quaint American expression I often hord as a child. If
you don't know what it means, perhr-pr, your Mummy or
Daddy will take the time to explain it to you (and to
themselves): "There is no such thing as a free lunch."
Fairy Tale Post Script: Elections have just been held
in the United Kingdom and voters qave the Labor Party
a narrow majority. It promised increased governmental
services and the nationalization of free enterprises.
The British economy rivals Italy's as the sickest in all
Europe and now seems guaranteed to surpass even the
Italian plight. If one cannot seo the historical similarity
between our own country and England then he
probably does not possess the word "mirror" in his
vocabulary.
One may ask the question, "Which counhy, the U.S.
or Great Britain, H the above fairy taie about?" The
answer does no' really matter, but the question should
be rephrased.
"Which country, the U.u. or the boiled Kingdom,
does this story concern?" Tho nnswer here matters
very much. It concerns the h;turf of both.
Ombudsman vital
to UN L community s
If bosses or superiors could solve problems by.
waving a magic wand, UNL Would not need an
ombudsman.
At the NU Board of Regents meeting Friday,
Regent Ed Schwartzkopf said the Office of the
Ombudsman should be abolished. Persons with
complaints or problems should go to their
superiors or to committees set up to handle those
problems, Schwartzkopf said.
Fortunately, the other regents did not agree
with him. They approved the appointment of Dan
Babcock to fill the ombudsman position vacated by
James Suter last summer.
In recommending the office be abolished,
Schwartzkopf overlooked the most important,
reasons behind hiring an ombudsman.
Students who have complaints about professors
often hesitate to criticize them directly because
they fear their grades will be penalized, Faculty
and staff members, likewise, hesitate to criticize,
their superiors because they might lose next
year's raise or be given a bigger teaching load.
If persons complain to an ombudsman, he can
protect their privacy while working to solve their
problems. As an outsider, the ombudsman often
can see both sides of the problem more clearly and
fairly than the involved parties can.
When committees handle complaints, the
process i: often much more complicated than it
rweu be. i ,,-
Various student, faculty and staff organizations
first must appoint committee members, then a .
convenient meeting time must be chosen. In the
past, these meetings have been either unneces
sarily delayed because of scheduling conflicts or
held without a quorum. Neither method is good for
solving immediate problems.
In addition, committees often seem impersonal
and surrounded by red tape to tho person with a
complaint.
Tho ombudsman, in contrast, has regular office 1
hours and is readily available to handle problems.
The complainer feels more reassured his
complaint will remain confidential because ho is
talking to only one person .rather than to a
committee.
And, instead of having to track down the proper
group to hear his problems, the person can bring
almost any concern to the ombudsman. In the
past, the ombudsman ha3 handled complaints
ranging from "rip off" landlords to the University "
Health Center. , 1
In 1973-74, about 1,150 persons used the Office
of the Ombudsman, according to a report made by
Suter. That seems proof enough tho office
provides a valuable service to the University.
Jane Owens
monday, October 14, 1974
t
page 4,
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