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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 22, 1978)
page 4 daily nebraskan friday, September 22, 1978 opinioneditorial FSA To BUY A f Supreme Court's dealings not favorable to the press The press probably won't look forward with confidence to the Supreme Court's next term. New York Times reporter Myron Faber got a raw deal when the New Jersey Supreme Court upheld his comtempt convictions for withhold ing notes in the murder trial of Dr. Mario Jascalvich. Jascalvich is charged in connection with three murders at a New Jersey Hospital. The court has ordered Faber back to go to jail next Tuesday unless he hands over his notes. The fact that Faber signed a contract with a book publisher should have no bearing on the de cision. The notes belong to Faber and what the issue boils down to is: Should the press be an extension of Their praise runs free, buffaloed by Ali Many heavyweight intellectuals let themselves get punch drunk over Muhammad Ali. Wilfrid Sheed, a literary critic, wrote a cerebral biography of Ali that called him a genius who had achieved "pure fame undifferentiated and unqualified." Norman Mailer wrote a "hymn" to Ali's exquisite soul titled The Fight, that a Washington Post critic calls a book of "remarkable perceptivity." Colman ITIcCarthLj Other cornermen eager to sponge Ali with their praise include George Plimpton of The Paris Review and a writer of the New York Times Magazine whose article calls his hero "the king of all kings, the lonely man of wisdom." None of these love taps to the ego cause Ali to blush in modesty. "It ain't no accident," he said in 1975, "that I'm the greatest man in the world at this time in history." Hero stuff If respect for winning-and making money-is what determines our support of heroes, then Ali's self-assessment as being "The Greatest" is accurate. In his chosen trade, he has been on top for 18 years and has earned more than $50 million in gate receipts alone. The appeal to intellectuals first sprang from his ability to leak secrets about his own subconscious. 'See how I take care of you, Bob," he said to Robert Lipsyte, a novelist-sports-writer. "When you're around me you always have something to write about." The same routine prevailed with Mailer and Sheed. This was no aloof DiMaggio or vapid Nicklaus. With mother wit and instinct, Ali could talk for hours about religion, sex, money, politics, justice and freedom and then tell the ambassadors from The New York Review of Books: "There, I filled up your pads." 'Put-on cult' The evidence suggests that Ali. caught on early to what lively sport sparring with the intelligensia could be. When he noticed the persistent intensity which Mailer or another projected wisdom and kingly status onto him, Ali-the Louisville Kid who had a reading problem-went along and made it part of his show. He per fected what the late sportswriter Jimmy Cannon called "the cult of the put-on." Unlike nearly all the other put-on artists, Ali openly talks about it. "I just said I was the greatest," he explained a few years back. "I never thought I was. "A long time ago, I saw Gorgeous George promote a wrestling match he had coming up. He promised blood and guts. He promised to kill his opponent. He said anything to sell tickets. And (it) sold out. The Greatest' "I saw an opportunity to do the same thing. So I started with the 'I Am The Greatest' thing. I began with the poetry and predicting round. And it worked. They Continued on Page 5 1 T-5 7 the police? There cannot be any deals made or exchanging of reporters' notes if journalists are to remain credible. The problems of the press are further compounded by the poten tial losses in the U.S. Supreme Court. The press has no champion on Chief Justice Warren Burger's court, according to Lyle Denniston, Supreme Court reporter for the Washington Star. There aren't any absolutists in defense of the First Amendment rights like former Justice William Douglas or the late Hugo Black. There are higher risks for the press, Denniston said, because the press is finding itself in court much more often. "The trend ran strongly against First Amendment claims" in the last term in which press law was a dominant, recurring issue, he said. "Within the broad sweep of that trend there are a number of threatening undercurrents: "A testy mood is emerging in regard to the press's role in society, a mood that nurtures suspicions on the court about the constitutional claims of the press. "The court has no consistent view of press freedom, embraced by a clear majority. "There is an easy willingness to allow experimentation in lower courts on the newer questions of press law." If Denniston 's predictions are correct, the next court term looks gloomy for journalists. The press needs an absolutist. The press is another check on the government and responsible reporting cannot be done if laws rule against it. 1 IS TV Vlfr If (h The story of Nam-Xuong; helpingshed light on a culture By Nghiep Huynn The best way to understand a people is to come to know their culture. A people's literature offers unique insights into their cultural character. Vietnamese literature is a challenging subject of study, because our history goes back five thousand years. During this long, long journey of our people, our country was dominated by the Chinese for one thousand years, and by the French for another hundred. Twenty years of prolonged battle forced the removal of the French forces. The Geneva agreement divided Vietnam into two parts, North and South. In the subsequent war these two parts of our country became a terrible battleground, in which over one million Vietnamese lost their lives. The three world superpowers were heavily in volved in the war; and for a time Vietnam became a crossroads for international cult ural exchange. How have the Vietnamese people con tinued to exist though this long period of heartbreaking warfare? One answer is that they are a strong, brave people who have been willing to endure great hardship and struggle in defense of ideas they believe in. A second answer is that they have pos sessed a cultural heritage that is old and beautiful. Ancient folk tale This is an old folk tale, dating from the period of Chinese domination. It is one step in our long journey as a people. Walk with us through the opened door, listen to the Vietnamese talking about their country, their beloved country. guest opinion A young couple fell in love and wished to get married. They had just been married when war came to their country. The young husband had to leave immediately to defend the border against the Chinese. A couple of months later the wife, Nam Xuong, realized that she was pregnant. And nine months after her marriage she gave birth to a boy. Her husband had not returned, so she had to manage by herself, working in the fields and raising her little boy. Years passed, and still her husband didn't return from the war. Nam-Xuong continued to wait and to work to support her family. One day her young son asked her who his father was. Nam-Xuong did know what to say. At last she pointed to the shadow made by the candle on the wall, and said that that was his father, satisfied the curious boy. Finally one day her husband returned. He was very anxious to see his wife again. Nam-Xuong was at the market, however, and when he reached his home he found the boy was there alone. His first thought was that the boy was his son and he called the boy to come and see his father. The boy stayed back though, saying that he was not his father; that he had never seen him before; and that his real father came every night to see him. Furious with wife The husband was amazed and angered by what the boy said. When Nam-Xuong returned from the market, he did not go to her and embrace her. He was furious with her and shouted at her, asking her what kind of woman she was, being visited every night by another man and bearing another man's child. Nam-Xuong couldn't believe what she was hearing. The man she loved, whose child she had borne and was waiting for and had raised all alone, whose return she had been awaiting for so long, happily looking forward to the day when they would be a whole family again; this man was here now, saying these things, shouting at her, not letting her say any thing in her defense. Commits suicide Nam Xuong was heartbroken. She turned and ran from the house. She went to the river and threw herself in. She drowned before they could save her. Greatly saddened now by his wife's death, the husband took the boy home with him. That night when the sun went down, the father lit a candle, and the boy pointed to the shadow on the wall, saying there, there was his real father. Too late the man understood his wife's faithfulness. Hopefully this sad story is an open door that American readers can step through to learn more about our Vietnamese culture, and to appreciate it. Editor's note: The author is a junior mathmetics major from Quaug-Nqui, Vietnam.
