Page 4
Daily Nebraskan
Thursday, February 5, 1987
o o
Jeff Kurholik, Editor, 472-1766
James Rogers, Editorial fttije Editor
List' Olscii, Associate Ni'ics Editor
Mike Ri'illcy, Niyht News Editor
Jean Rczac, Copy Desk Chief
Nebraskan
- t
University ol Nebraska-Lincoln
Quips amdl quotes
Ice cream hot, tuition bill cold
Lincoln Sen. Jim McFarland's
bill, which would have allow
ed the children of university
employees to attend university
classes for free, died a quick
death last week. The Legisla
ture's Education Committee
voted 0-2 to kill the bill, LB157.
It's not really surprising that
the bill didn't make it past
committee. Opponents said that
since the university is facing
$3.1 million in budget cuts, it
cannot afford to establish a
tuition-remission program that
would cost $500,000 to $1 million
a year.
The bill would not have been
so expensive if McFarland had
not added an amendment to
allow any full-time employee
who has been employed by the
university at least five consecu
tive years to be eligible.
The bill intended, among other
things, to help in faculty reten
tion. The idea seemed to be lost,
and that's too bad. McFarland
had a good idea if only the bill
had been geared toward faculty.
Then it would not have cost so
much. Maybe next year.
OIn other legislative news, the
bill to start a state-funded work
study program providing finan
cial assistance and educational
experience to college students
received no opposition in tes
timony in front of the Education
Committee Tuesday. Let's hope
the committee decides to move
it to the floor next week.
OThe Committee for Fees
Allocation and the University
Program Council reached a favor
able compromise in allowing $40(i
for a safe-sex seminar. CFA voted
6-3 against granting $882 to the
GayLesbian Programming Com
mittee but reinstated nearly half
for the seminar.
Supporters for the committee's
formation said the programming
is needed to educate students on
AIDS and the gay culture. The
seminar should help in these
areas.
The remaining $476 was added
to UPC's Special Events fund,
which CFA members suggested
be used by the GayLesbian Com
mittee for chosen events. Another
good idea.
OThe Dairy Store in the Ne
braska Union is hot . . . well,
actually cold, but it has caught
on. Students can be seen toting
ice-cream cones and other ice
cream delights around the union.
The store is a pleasant addition
and students are encouraged to
check it out.
Ho
mem
show center
facts
I am replying with factual know
lodge to the false accusations put forth
by ex-graduate Sen. Tim Howard in the
guest opinion of Jan. 30. Howard claims
that ASl'N is raping the university by
pursuing the proposed student recrea
tion center and night bus service be
tween City and East campuses. I hold
t hat the only political crime facing this
campus is the repeated gross misrepre
sentation of t he facts by Howard.
Guest Opinion
Let's examine the facts. One, is
there a need for more recreational
facilities on this campus? The answer
is obviously yes. NU is last in the Big
Eight when it comes to recreation for
its students, faculty and staff. To throw
more salt in the wound, UNO has a
virtually new facility costing nearly $13
million at the time of construction. Not
to mention the state-funded recrea
tional center recently provided for
Chadron State College. But I guess
AS UN should simply ignore these facts
and protest that the administration not
tear down the Men's P.E. Building for
that fine facility can certainly last until
the state is finally ready to subsidize a
recreation center at UNL.
Moreover, there seems to be a feel
ing on this campus that the proposed
recreation center is a good idea, but
that the timing is all wrong.
This is how it really goes: A majority
of the students on this campus want a
new recreation facility and are willing
to pay a minimal amount to have one
these facts come from ballot surveys
done in 1979, 1981, 1983 and 1985, all
showing a solid majority in favor of the
center and fees.
The athletic department will place a
$5 surcharge on non-student football
tickets to pay for the total building
cost of the new recreational center
(roughly $12 million), and the adjacent
indoor practice field (roughly $5 mil
lion) will be funded by private "foot
ball" donations. Interestingly enough,
it is much easier, apparently, for the
athletic department to raise funds for
football than it is to find funds for
academics; most of the private dona
tions for the indoor pract ice field have
come from contributors out-of-state
who solely earmarked the donations for
the betterment of the football team
it's hard to fight reality.
Moreover, the athletic department's
indoor practice fieldtrack is tenta
tively scheduled for at least 75 hours
per week of open recreation time, and
most likely be used by the Cornhusker
Marching Band in the early mornings
when necessary. Further, not only is
the Coliseum going to be totally reno
vated for students, but an additional
structure is to be built. For example, it
will house at least three new basket
ball courts and a new volleyball court.
The university tennis team will have
four new tennis courts in direct prox
imity to the locker rooms, not like the
current situation where the locker
rooms are in Devaney, but practices are
near the Coliseum.
So please make an educated deci
sion before throwing your support for or
against the new center. More details
relating to cost, access and the specific
facilities offered will be out soon for
your consideration; until that time an
open mind is obviously more produc
tive than the current, continual, unin
formed, cynical whimpering on this
campus.
But I can understand the cynics'
point of view: If we proved to the uni
versity community that we are actually
doing something productive, what would
people have to cry about? Their own
ignorance and apathy?
Dan J. Hofmeister
senior
journalismpoli. sci.
TV ( i
V -ANDS0TD
lis
I I?
r v
devolutions slkow contact
Filipinos show Nicaragua what revolution should accomplish
Filipinos just consummated last
spring's revolution by overwhelm
ingly ratifying a new constitution.
The juxtaposition of the revolution in
the Philippines with that of Nicaragua
once again demonstrates the oft-neglected
observation that all revolutions
do not spring from the same well:
Where the Utopian, Revolutionary spirit
predominates, as in Nicaragua, oppres
sion follows. Where righteous (and
proper) indignation at injustice is tem
pered by true concern for society, usu
ally fostered by a religious framework,
justice prevails.
The contrast between the revolu
tions in Nicaragua and the Philippines
is predated by the European revolutions
of centuries past. The French and
Anglo-American revolutions clearly
demonstrate the powerful difference
that the spirit of radicalism plants in a
rebellion.
In 18th-century France, indignation
at oppression gave way to terror and
horrendous bloodbaths. In 1847 Dutch
historian ami towering Christian intel
lectual G. Grocn van Prinsterer aptly
characterized the spirit of Revolution
that caused the devolution to the Reign
of Terror in France, as founded in "the
systematic overturning of ideas whereby
state and society, justice and truth are
founded on human opinion and arbi
trariness." Nineteenth-century German historian
Fr. J. Stahl observed that the distinc
tion between the Anglo experience
(here I include the American revolu
tion as well) and that of France is that
"the liberty of England and America
breathes the spirit of the Puritans; the
liberty of France breathes t he spirit of
the Encyclopedists and Jacobins."
As against the example of France,
the Anglo revolutions of the 17th and
18th centuries were, by and large, law
affirming. It was the oppression of the
rulers that was causing the social
fabric to come apart. In response to
these wars against the culture, lesser
magistrates led revolutions against the
tyrants.
Jim
Rogers
V" )
This commitment to society is not
shared by those imbued wit h the Revo
lutionary spirit. They have no mean,
venal vision of merely altering political
circumstances. Instead, they are dedi
cated to remolding the entire society
into a new creation. Their claims are
messianic and their visions are Utopian.
In his 1791 essay "Thoughts on
French Affairs," the great British states
man Edmund Burke observed the essen
tial character of the total upheaval
experienced by revolutionary France:
"The present revolution in France seems
to me to be quite of another character
and description, and to bear little
resemblance or analogy to any of those
which have been brought about in
Europe, upon principles merely politi
cal. It is a revolution of doctrine and
theoretic dogma." (You might recall
that Burke caused some scandal in the
English Parliament by, siding with the
claims of the American rebels against
the Crown.) . ' " - i 3 .? ;
Today the revolutionaries commit
ted to remaking society in.their own
image are not "Encyclopedists' and
Jacobins," but Marxists: A new body,
but the breath is that of the same
spirit. In the Philippines, for example,
the communist rebels have not embraced
the democratic revolution spearheaded
by President Aquino as their own. They
have not done so because the spirit of
democracy is not the one which
empowers them. In their eyes society
must be utterly torn down, all relation
ships "revolutionized," before the new
image of that society can be rightly
implemented.
The contrast is clear. While in the
Philippines freedom is once again begin
ning to flourish as a result of the revo
lution, in Nicaragua, dissenting voices
are being systematically stamped out.
Nicaragua needs no defense by a
would-be American apologist. The
government there is simply working
out the obvious logic of the Revolution
ary spirit that spawned it; working out
the logic as it was worked out in
France, Russia, China, Eastern Europe,
Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia and Afghan
istan. The smell of the Revolutionaiy
spirit is the scent of death. ' ' ;
Rogers is an economics graduate, law
student, and Daily Nebraskan editorial
page editor. !
Letters
Proposed state income taxes
unfair to poor, professor says
The proposed state income-tax plan may be stable and
simple, but it is not fair for low-income workers. Since 1979,
workers earning at the poverty level and below have seen
their federal income tax skyrocket because of errors in the
1981 federal tax law. For example, a single-parent mother of
three with poverty-level earnings saw her federal tax go
from $288 in 1979 to $1,369 in 1986.
Her state income tax also would have taken a big jump
during those years since Nebraska has been tied to the
federal income tax. Therefore, comparing proposed state
taxes with these grossly unfair 1986 taxes is highly mislead
ing and perpetuates the errors made in 1981.
In 1987 a mother with three children earning $11,508
(poverty level for a family of four in 1 986) would have to pay
$109 in state income tax under the proposed plan. But she
would have to pay nothing in 1987 if Nebraska continues to
be tied to the federal tax system.
Gov. Kay Orr appears to be trying to be fair in devising
her new tax plan. But asking poor people to pay more taxes
so those of us who are not poor can have a tax break is
unfair. It needs to be reworked.
Ann Coyne
associate professor
social work
Not everyone understands Rogers,
but everyone isn't his audience
I am writing in response to the letter in the Feb. 2 issue of
the Daily Nebraskan about the "competency and applica
bility" of the journalism of Jim Rogers.
I feel that the basic premise of James Feyerherm's pre
supposition is errant. Namely, that the purpose of a news
paper, including the editorials, is to serve solely the needs
and wants of the general population of readers. There are
readers who function at an intellectual level above that of
the general population, and I feel that there needs to be
some effort on the part of the newspaper to reach that
audience.
I agree with Feyerherm that a writer's foremost goal is to
relate to his audience. The question that begs to be asked,
though, is who is the audience? Is it necessarily a require
ment that the audience be that of the general population?
I enjoy the style of journalism that Rogers uses. Many of
his articles are intellectually stimulating and challenging.
They stand out in stark contrast to some of the inane and
shallow journalism that finds its way into the pages of the
Daily Nebraskan. I also find Jim Rogers' reasoning and logic
clear, accurate, and astute, and appreciate the style and
level at which he writes.
Lowell Nilson
junior
electrical engineering
