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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 21, 1983)
Wednesday, September 21, 1C33 Pens 4 Dsily Nebraskan United Nations becoming shattered dream Charles Uehenstein has a good idea. The American delegate to the United Nations sug gested to reporters Monday that U.N. delegates "seriously consider removing themselves and this organization from the soil of the United States." State Department officials have since retracted the statement, saying Lichenstein wa3 not repres enting U.S. policy. But the United Nations seems to be little more than a shattered dream whose time has passed. If other nations consider it a necessary organiza tion, then let them shoulder the burden of being the host country. And let them foot the bill for it The U.N. operations budget for last year was just more than $1.5 billion. The United States, by agree ment written into the UN. charter, had to pay 25 Letters -n llf,mmM i i" ii ii m mil i m mil i Mismatches 'predatory ' Jim Rasmussen's article (Daily Nebraskan, Sept 10) about football mismatches revealed that money is everything in big-time college football and that the players who, ; unlike other students, generate rather than consume revenue should be paid. ; Mismatches don't "just happen". Some are the direct result of a guaranteed cash "bounty" (in the nature of a bribe) offered to entice athletic directors of weaklittle schools to sacrifice their young play ers to major Meatgrinders. While swelling the collec tive ego and padding the statistics of nationally ranked juggernauts, the ethically questionable practice results in humiliation and loss of self esteem for the pulverized victims. An object lesson m Sportsmanship"? ;;::. i,:W'V:,'A'- - The "sport" adhering in degrading mismatches is akin to that of pulling wings off butterflies, poison ing fish in a barrel or pitting Muhammad Ali against a lightweight While the predatory exercise gener ates cash and plays to the blood lust of fanatics, it does something bud to the psyches of the bullying victimzers as well asahe humiliated victims. Athletic directors at New Mexico State and Wyoming, after admitting sending their players into the NU meatgrinder for money, said they wont do it again. NU athletic director Bob Devaney, discussing such scheduling said frankly, "one of the main prior ities ... is to get a good deal financially." For whom? All of it b about money. Even at NU. Make no mistake about it. Take away the money, and youll clean out the entire NU athletic department Finally, if the time, effort and hazards connected with football work are not sufficient justifications for paying the workers, being forced into the roles of athletic surrogate sadists and masochists certainly is. . : . i ' . , " ' , ' - . Ernie Chambers . state senator " ' 11th District BirfliaMtwlpreferable - I am writing in response to' Greg Schleppenbach's letter (Daily Nebraskan, Sept. 19) about the proposed film from Planned Parenthood, "Condom TV 1 irrc; In principle, I agree that some people are isible in their approach to sex, I have d on campuses long enough to realize that more Is needed to change this attitude than just withholding contraceptives or information about CO works tteceptives. It be I was walMrg ccrcas campus trvo v.ee!i3 ega when itzra a rca;3 stuc :nt say to res r.vo inzzes, 'i r.zxi cn here two whs! 2 weehs end I haven't t: 1 tzz yet." ' cr Such behavior would surgect to r.e that ft h pre- mm m m m . a t . . cr.y ether ciuidliy they ir:y ce: fer.e Arter.'en '- t:c:.:,:.:,l:.-i T;r:!:r.e:y 3 percent of the bilL No other nation pays even half that much. The Soviet Union picks up 1 1 percent of the tab, Japan 9 percent, West Germany 8 percent and France, China and Great Britain about 5 percent each. Many smaller nations, which share equal voting privileges with the superpowers in the U.N. General Assembly, kicked to little or nothing to pay for this costly organization. Still, the cost would be worth it if the United Nations produced the results it was intended to produce. But let's be realistic. Since it was created at the end of World War II, the United Nations has not played a major role to preventing any conflict Even a casual glance at the television news or any major newspaper provides more than enough proof of the United Nations failure. Achieving world peace is, of course, an ideal goal. But maybe it is time for us to take a simpler approach to that goal - 0 ; It would seem to be just as effective, and much less expensive, for nations to work out their diHer ences on a one-to-one basis, using a neutral country as a mediator, if necessary. Most recent settlements the Egyptian-Israeli peace accord and the Iranian hostage release for example seem to have evolved this way. Somehow, that seems to be a more reasonable method of preventing war between two nations than involving all 157 members of the United Nations. IJEV, WA (i jrovernor ider U.N. mission The United Nations was formed at the end of World War II, mainly in an attempt to prevent armed conflict by providing an alternative method of solving international differences. The United States, fresh from making the world safe for demo . cracy, became the host country for the new world council, which has met in the United States since 1945. It seems natural that, as host country, the United States should make every effort to facilitate access Christopher ' . Burbach 1 to UN. headquarters for delegates to that body. In fact, the United States signed an agreement with the United Nations to 1947, promising that American authorities would not impede the travel of delegates.' "' Last week, however, the governors of New York and New Jersey, to direct violation of the aforemen-!- tioned agreement, announced they would not allow Andrei Gromyko, head of the Soviet delegation to the General Assembly, to land at either Newark or New York City airports. These venerable heads of state wished to express their outrage at Soviet bar barism in the Kcrcan Air Ur.cs FTght 007 incident and, no doubt, to impress voters, lheir move was a petty one, yet it hp produced significant and dis- : Grcrsyko h net atter.dg the General Assembly ' tree.--:?, tho CovJets sey, the csvcrncrtf action made it imp seen: I e fcr his delegation to get there. Although that la ur.trus, (Gromyko cedd have br.ded cf a nezrby.Ahr Force base), the Zbviet cieer.ee cen t e tree: i directly to the pverncrs. The ceturJ rceren fer the Csvicts' rcfueil to tter.i ii ur.hr.en. Fcihes they v;l:h to cvcidlha cr..zrrrrrr.:r.i.th2 ttrr.s ir.e;i:t cculi-cr- th:n rt the G:.:re! A::::!y ar.d needed en czzzz2 to t!.:n it, cr r-rhr-s they receded a' ,r----'l r;-:.;-..'i t::L lha fret rer.fbe: lied Gromyko's plane been allowed to land in Newark or New York, he probably would be at the assembly. It seems quite unlikely that the protest of two cr any number of American governors will significantly alter Soviet policy or prevent another attack cn a civilian airliner. What the governors have done, without affecting Soviet policy, is cause the absence of a major country delegation from the U.N. General Assembly. That absence represents a lessening of dialogue between nations, which can only detract from the mission of the United Nations. The governors of New York and New Jersey also have given the Soviets a new tool in the propaganda war between the superpowers; the Soviets can and will claim, however inaccurately, that the United States prevented them from attending the General Assembly. The US. government should pressure the gover nors to reverse their decision and allow the Soviet delegation to land at New York or Newark. It may cost them a few votes, but neither polities nor public opinion should be allowed to afTect the United States' role as host country to the United Nations. Daiiv . EDITOR Irryf-trH GENERAL MANAGER i "U I " J PRODUCTION MANAGER TC :i ADVERTISING MANAGER Tr;;? L L.';:ri eo by tna UNL PubSicstions Ccerd Mane"'? t':re,"!i Friday In tht fail end iprlnj t'---"ni:i 7v -C2ys end Fridays In tha vjrr-f z c j during vacstlons. Sutreristlen;: 'c ' V ' -"vr Wiwo csrneiters. S:sy r. Pc:t.r.::t;r: Send tiitzzz c.-r i n f-, C'V