da .... Tuesday, November 2, 1982
Page 4 Daily Nebraskan ' itt04
Ediforia
In 24 hours it will be all over but the shouting - and
the tying. Nebraskans will know who will be their next
governor, their uext legislators, and their next represents
lives on the Weed Control Board.
But before the celebration and the consolation, some,
thing very important must happen. People must vote,
This obvious fact often seems to be overlooked on
Election Pay. According to the Oct 31 Sunday Journal
and Star, Nebraska Secretary of State Allen Beerraann is
predieting a highei'-thyn-mual voter turnout - 60 percent.
While the increase is heartening it still means that 40
percent of the state's registered voters, for one reason or
another, will uegleet to go to the polls.
It isn't as if the races aren't impojtant, Nebraska voters
will choose the stated next governor, a U.S. senator, three
representatives to Me House of Representatives and 74
state legislators. Four members of the NU Board of
Regent will be elected, as will the attorney general and
numerous local officials.
Voters wiB decide whether Initiative 300, the so-called
family farm amendment, will be part of the state con
stitution. They also will decide the fate of five other con
stitutional amendments.
We've all heard the excuses for not voting, such as "one
vote doesn't count,'" Yet if just one vote had changed to
each precinct in Illinois, John Kennedy could have lost
the I960 presidential election. And. with various polls
showing the gubernatorial race to be extremely clo$et one
vote could make a big difference in it.
Another commorTexcuse is "but I didn't like either of
the candidates." While this attitude may be understand
able in some wees one of the candidates still will be elect s
ed. Making a choke between the lesser of two evUs is
sometimes necessary.
Then there's' the comment that "it doesn't really
matter who wins because ail politicians are alike " But it
does matter Candidates elected today will make decision
that will directly affect the country and the state. And of
special ' importance to students, some of these decisions
also wilt affect the university.
Unfortunately, young people sometimes are stereo
typed as being apaihette about pontics. In an article in the
Sept. 20 My Nebraskan, state Sen. Ernie Chambers of
Omaha was quoted as saying to a group of students, "Yott
can vote and you will not even do that"
The 1,23? people who signed up during a recent voter
registration drive at the Nebraska and E&st Unions went
half the way to refute that statement. By voting today,
they can complete their duty.
If you are registered, vote. If you are voting by
absentee ballot, notaries public will be available in the Nebraska-
Union MainXounge from 10 ajn. to 2 p.m. If you
are registered in Lincoln and are unsure about where to
vote, call the election commissioner at 47J?3H, Polls
will be open from $ $.m, to 8 p,m,
And if you arent registered, make a vow that this will
be the last Election Pay that you. will be ott the) sidelines.
-i
J2Bfr
RPFcurop
Republicans' recovery plan praised
The history of economic debate between conservatives
and liberals can be read with comparative accuracy in the
charts showing the swings in public concern about
inflation and jobs. Conservatives tend to stress the former,
liberals the latter.
In the 1980 presidential campaign, for example, the
Ross Mackenzie
key question was what to do about high inflation and
interest rates. Ronald Reagan insisted they could be
brought down; Jimmy Carter insisted that the cost of
doing so in losses of jobs would be unacceptable. That
was a conservative time. The voters believed Reagan - in a
big way.
Since then, largely as a consequence of Reagan's leader
ship, inflation has plummeted more than SO percent and
interest rates have fallen almost as much. Yet the un
employment rate has risen nearly 30 percent, from less
than 8 percent to more than 10. Today about II million
persons are out of work.
And in the congressional elections this year, the Demo
crats - and their allies in the factories of opinion that
count - have made jobs the central issue. Newsweek
terms jobs the one issue "dominating all others."
Virginia's Democratic candidate for the Senate, Dick
Davis, says, "Jobs, jobs, jobs . . . that's the heart of it."
We'll see after today.
About jobs, an issue deserving the full measure of com
passion that our humanity demands, it is possible to say a
number of things. Among them:
- It is insufficient to dismiss the matter of jobs as a
liberal Democratic obsession with a single statistic. To
those without a job, it is perhaps the only statistic of
importance.
- The president and his fellow conservative Republi
cans have been consistent. They have argued that stabiliz
ing the economy - bringing down inflation and interest
rates and thereby boosting investment and production -could
not be accomplished without considerable pain,
particularly in the form of a short-term increase in un
employment. Yet to say that they have been not only
consistent but correct docs not diminish the pain.
- Shattering as that pain can be, for many, our govern
ment cushion, our system of public assistance, has made
the financial suffering less than it might be. If the
economy can be turned around, then for many unemploy
ed the pain and humiliation may be blessedly brief.
- In keeping our eye on the ball - in "staying the
course," as Mr. Reagan urges - let us keep in mind as well
that he is correct in placing the blame where it belongs.
Our current economic difficulties, which reached their
peak under Jimmy Carter, are the consequences of years
of federal profligacy and irresponsibility occurring well
before Ronald Reagan arrived in D.C. He was the modern
day Hercules who inherited the task of cleaning out the
Augean stables. So let us grant him the considerable credit
he and the Republicans deserve.
Continued on Page 5
jM Letters
Why tow cars at night?
Since the Daily Nebraskan has adopted the policy of
printing reports of the campus police activity, I thought
readers might be interested in hearing about an incident
that for some reason didn't happen to get included in the
reports.
On the evening of Oct. 21, a friend of mine attended
class from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Barkley Center on
East Campus. Upon leaving class (at about 9:30 p.m.), she
found that her car had been towed, compliments of the
University Police. Granted, the car did have outstanding
tickets, but that is not the issue.
It is very inconsiderate of the police to tow cars this
late at night. My friend had her purse in her car that
contained the identification and money she needed to call
someone for a ride home and find the whereabouts of her
car, not to mention money to get the car out of tow.
But the main issue is the hour the car was towed.
Consider the possibilities: Had my friend not been lucky
enough to obtain a ride, she would have been forced to
waik home, a good three miles from campus. I have
always believed that the police are here to protect and
help the students. In this case, they created a situation of
potential danger - the perfect setting for an assault or
rape. Fortunately, neither happened.
This makes me wonder what the priorities of the UNL
Police are. Do they value a $40 ticket and tow charge
more than the life of a student? Couldn't they tow during
the day and spend dark hours doing more important
things?
I was told that only three officers are on night duty
between both campuses. Why was one of these three so
concerned with parking tickets when obviously there are
more important or dangerous situations to be dealt with?
When my friend finally arrived home, her roommate
was so worried and upset that she called the UNL police
and asked for an explanation. Admittedly, she was upset
and may not have used the nicest language, but having
been assaulted once herself she realized exactly what
might have happened. The best answer the officer could
give was - "We have to tow cars sometime."
I hope that the UNL police will think twice about tow
ing cars at night again. I realize the job they do is difficult
at times, but when they put someone in danger for the
sake of a few parking tickets, I can't think too highly of
them. They could have easily collected another $40 from
some illegally parked car the following day, but I could
not have replaced my friend had she been hurt.
Suzy Kuhr
senior, English
Choices will be difficult
The Oct. 28 Daily Nebraskan editorial refers to all the
faculty budget-cutting suggestions reported as "preposter
ous money-savers." I'd like to know what suggestions
your own fiscal experts have that would not be preposter
ous. Do you envision a university without heat or
electricity for two or three months? How about closing
down all the residence halls for part of the semester, or
eliminating all mail and telephone service for the rest of
the fiscal year? Perhaps we could install coin-operated
toilets or have a charge for each use of university
sidewalks. It seems to me that some of the faculty
proposals are less preposterous than you think; they may
be the best possible choices in preposterous circum
stances. Frederick M. Link
professor and chairman of English
'Low standards' shown
While conversing with a friend next to the fountain on
Centennial Mall, I had a horrifying experience. A dozen or
so fraternity brothers carried out a fully dressed fellow
brother by the hands and feet and tossed him in the
water. During this outrage, screams, grunts and hollers
emerged from windows of the fraternity, occupied by
more brothers.
If that's how they get their kicks I'd rather live off
campus than with such low standards in a fraternity.
Weren't fraternities meant to promote higher moral life
styles to a young man?
On the positive side, I truly believe that all sororities
and fraternities were established to equip young males
and females with solid Christian values - self-esteem,
courage and an attitude of success. Perhaps It's time to get
back to the basics and give God and discipline first place
in life. A person living his or her life totally committed to
God and doing good works will have respect.
Dcnise A. Wiedel
senior, biology
Letters continued on Page 5