Friday, January 29, 1982
Daily Nebraskan
Page 7
Scholastic society looks beyond applicant's GPA
Grade point average is not the only criterion for accep
tance into the Scholastic Ail-American Socict", according
to Kurtis li. Smith, the only UNL student in the society.
Smith said there arc several guidelines to be met, in
cluding previous honors, extracurricular activities, leader
ship qualities, academic performance and employment
Surplus land, vehicles for 'dirt cheap'
Would you like to purchase a jeep, truck or car for as
little as $200? Have you thought about picking up some
land for a paltry $350 an acre?
These offers sound unbelievable, but if you arc inter
ested in buying surplus government land or vehicles, it is
possible. Two government surplus directories are available
to the public by contacting a government-hired informa
tion service (3 12-742-1 1 43).
The two directories arc available for $22.50 or $16.50
apiece. One directory lists available government land and
the other lists vehicles and other miscellaneous govern
ment equipment.
To obtain the directories one must be at least 18 years
old and not registered in any branch of the armed ser
vice, according to the information service.
Land is available in every state of the union, although
most of it isn't as "dirt cheap" as $3.50 an acre. The in
formation service said the lowest prices are indicative of
land that has been tax-forfeited or ruined. Some of the
less expensive cars don't work either.
Buyers must send in scaled bids and buying through
the catalogs is somewhat like gambling. You can never be
quite sure what you'll end up with, the information
woman said .
records.
Smith said a large part of the selection process is based
on a one-page essay regarding what the applicant hopes to
be, and how a college education will help fulfill that goal.
The society is a new organization, with membership
approaching 1 ,000 members. Smith said there is only one
other member besides himself in Nebraska.
According to Smith, membership in the society is bene
ficial because the society sends out letters of recommend
ation to prospective employers.
The society has no local chapters. Those belonging to
the society arc called "members at large," Smith said.
The members pay a $10 fee per semester. A society news
letter is published each semester.
Students need to have completed one semester of col
lege to apply, Smith said. The deadline for application is
May 31, those interested should write the Scholastic All
American Society, Clinton, NY, 13323. Smith said he
would help potential candidates in the application pro
cess, lie can be reached at 474-1634.
Professor's book compiles human rights notions
A UNL political science professor has written a book
he thinks will help bring together ideas about internation
al human rights.
David F. Forsyth? describes Human Rights and World
Politics, as the "pulling together" of different ideas about
the human rights issues popularized during President
Jimmy Carter's administration.
"It is an attempt to make a very large and complex
subject simple and interesting," Forsythe said. "I think
there's a need for some clarity about human rights. I'm
trying to make sense of all this."
His primary reason for writing the book, he said, was
to give students a source that synthesizes the academic
and governmental literature on human rights.
During the Carter administration, "we had all sorts of
things being said about human rights," Forsythe said. But
for classroom use, few appropriate readings are available.
The book, which might be available for use in internat
ional relations courses in the spring 1983 semester, covers
human rights in terms of its many meanings - economics,
social, cultural, civil and political human rights.
Broad subject
Human rights, regarding treaties among nations, are
broader than the Bill of Rights definition or the general
ideas most people have. .
The book includes chapters on numan ngms ea,
implementing the law and American foreign policy under
Carter. It includes sections on Reagan, private groups
lobbying the American government for human rights and
political philosophies behind the debate on human rights.
Forsythe tries to balance the ideas. In the final chapter,
he provides a "sum total of efforts to protect people's
economic and political rights."
"Human rights is a part of the political process, so
there is a strong political cast to the book," Forsythe said.
"The broad scope of human rights also includes how laws
get made and what happens to them after that. We have to
look .at private as well as governmental organizations."
"The Carter administration," Forsythe said, "was not
very good at explaining human rights. What did Carter
mean by human rights, and how important were they?
Many people were left with a great deal of confusion.
Things are not much clearer under Reagan."
The book is the culmination of five years of work and
Forsythe's own experiences as a consultant to the Inter
national Red Cross. He researched for a year at Yale Uni
versity. Prison Work
Based on Geneva intermittently from 1972 to 1977,
Forsythe worked for the Red Cross in Africa and the
Middle JEast. The work included prison visits and searches
for persons who naa aisappearea aunng pimwm
"Human rights became very real, since 1 was dealing
first hand with armed groups, seeing prisons," Forsythe
said. "It was a very unique experience."
From Yale, he interviewed officials in Washington,
augmenting his first-hand encounters.
"I had some very useful experience in seeing the real
world - both in the Third World and in Washington," he
said.
The book will be published in late 1982 or early 1983.
It includes cartoons and drawings by UNL student Dave
Luebke, art director for the Daily Nebraskan.
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