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Dear editor, !
A serious error has been made in the publication "The
Lively Arts at UN-L."
I.F Stone is not "gone". He no longer publishes his
weekly newsletter, but he is a regular contributor to the
"New York Review of Books."
I realize the Daily Nebraskan is not at all responsible for
this error but it needs correcting.
The film about Stone should be required viewing for
every student who studies journalism.
Y'j - j;j . Max Holland
Mrs. Ford defense
Dear editor,
This letter is in objection to Del Gustafson's article on
puns, I just happen to have a great deal of affection for Mrs.
Ford and her frank attitudes. I feel I ought to defend her
against the sort of illogical attack on her integrity presented
in the column.
It wasn't the actual denunciation of what Mrs. Ford said
that offended me. (Everybody has a right to their own
opinion; as, I'm sure, Del would be the first to agree.
Freedom of speech and all that?)
Nor was it the conservative irrational tone of the article
that prompted me to take pen to paper (so to speak). After
all, some of our greatest American comedies are based on
the irrational foibles of people.
No, what I thought it worthwhile to point out is that
opinions, even editorial ones, (perhaps particularly editorial
ones) ought to have some foundation in objectivity, fact
and logic.
Del pointed out that Mrs. Ford condoned premarital sex
as a deterrant to divorce; and, in fact, that promiscuity had
taken an upward turn in the past few years.
But, he triumphantly contends, the divorce rate has not
decreased! So what? Del is dealing with the divorce rate as a
whole, while Mrs. Ford was dealing with a small part of it.
Del has not taken into account that the entire divorce
rate deals with all couples, including those married under
the Oid Morality (vs. his equally nebulous term "New
Morality").
Mrs. Ford's statement only deal3 with a fraction of those
couples, and then only with the possibility of decline. In
fact I was unable to find any accurate comparative figures,
but my personal opinion would tend to concur with Mrs.
Ford's based on the observation that in a marriage
situation, any marriage situation, there are certain
adjustments to be made in living together and establishing a
household..
If the problems are insurmountable a marriage situation
would end in divorce; a non-marriage relationship merely in
separation. Problems which may seem insurmountable
under the compounded pressures ' and obligations of
marriage can be more easily worked out in the less strained
atmosphere of a non-marriage relationship.
Then of course there is the changing status of women,
families and men within society, all of which can have a
very drastic effect on the success or failure of the proposed
marriage. The problems in marriage and the pro's and con's
in the premarital relationship approach are endless.
The problems are dismissed (by Gustafson) within a four
line paragraph, and then Mrs. Ford's intelligence is
questioned. And what, may I demand, as long as I'm in a
state of outrage, does sex or the lack thereof have to do
with detente?
Manners and morals are the glue that binds society
together, are they? I certainly hope not, because manners
and morals vary quite drastically from individual to
individual. So much so, that it would make for a very
inadequate society if that was all that prevented it from
falling apart.
I can t imagine what fundamental moral quality there is
present in Marlon Brando, Richard Nixon, Gloria Steineim,
Harry Reasoner and the Town Drunkard that would make
for a binding force in society.
Excuse the tangent. What I'm really trying to suggest to
Mr.Mrs.MissMs. Gustafson ii, the next time, before
making a judgment and having the audacity to print it for
people to believe; consider aU the angles, be sure of the
logic and do homework.
Debra Oaks
Dont panic
Dear editor,
I share with my colleagues and others in the academic
community the sense of loss at the departure of the fine
adminstrators and excellent faculty members who have left
for other positions recently. Certainly, we will miss them.
Let us not panic, however. Whatever their motivations,
we should note that all the administrators left for higher
positions and, I am confident, higher salaries. We should
also note that the experience of Nebraska is not an isolated
phenomenon nationally.
Advancement in an administrative career usually involves
a move out as well as up. The past few decades have seen
very few administrators' effective lives in one position last
longer than five or six years. .
Let us be concerned, but let us also be thankful for
those who have stayed. Without attem-ting to be
comprehensive we should be happy that faculty members
such as Robert Knoll, Henry Baumgarten, Wes Meierhenry,
Norm Cromwell, Mike Daly and Erv Goldenstein have
already spent twenty productive years at Nebraska.
People like Ned Hedges, Richard Gilbert, Royce Knapp,
Bob Fiibeck, Dave Levine, and Lois Schwab have been in
Lincoln over fifteen years. Vern Williams, Dave Wysong,
Royce Ttonning, Ken Orton and Dewaine Alcorn have spent
more than a decade at the university. (I am of course
omitting scores of others who have been here for similar
periods). -
These are people who have made a significant
contribution to their profession and to the state. They have
not lacked opportunities to go elsewhere. Nevertheless,
they have decided to stay in Nebraska, perhaps not always
for alt ruisitic reasons alone.
But I would wager that most, if not all, have made a
commitment to working with Nebraska students and the
people of the state. The late Bud Hough was a prime
example.
Though I cannot speak for them, I suspect they are not
fully content with the level of support they have received.
But they are still here.
Best wishes and success to those who have left. A small
garland of flowers to those still here.
-. Bob Brown
The Daily Nebraskan welcomes "etters to the
editor and guest opinions. Choices of material
published will be based on timeliness and originality.
Letters must be accompanied by the writer s name,
but may be published under a pen name if requested.
Guest opinions should be typed, triple-spaced, on
nonerasable paper. They should be accompanied by
the author's name, class standing and major, or
occupation. All material submitted to these pages is
subject to editing and condensation, and cannot be
returned to the writer.
C- - Ji '- ' JL
III i7 r J 13 f,l
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...in
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10 URSfftl
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