Readers make pleas for public actions
Pro-education Jackson
gets reader’s praise
I am very pleased with the way the
Associated Students of the University
of Nebraska and the NU Board of
Regents have taken on the sole task of
improving the quality of education at
the University of Ncbraska-Lincoln,
but it’s a shame that the federal gov
ernment isn’t also taking great strides
in the same direction.
The Education Department’s
budget request for 1988 had an 8
percent decrease in spending from the
previous year. That amount is $400
million below the 1980 appropriation
when Reagan came into office. These
figures arc not something that can just
be ignored.
The future of this nation is in the
education of today’s youth, and this is
why I feel it is extremely important to
elect a president that proposes a solid
plan to improve the overall quality of
education in this nation. Presidential
candidate Jesse Jackson is the only
candidate that proposes the doubling
of the federal education’s budget
when he gets into office.
By casting a vote for Jesse Jackson
during the May 10 Nebraska primary,
I am confident that a man who is
concerned with the issues involving
the young adults of America will be
on his way into office.
Troy Huffman
sophomore
life sciences
Remaining prejudices
deserve much attention
What does it mean to be black in
America instead of white? Surely it is
just a matter of color, or is it? Accord
ing to Webster’s Dictionary, black is
associated with death, unclcanlincss
and evil.
On the other hand, white is defined
as pure snow, clean and pertaining to
angels. So what is this telling us? It is
telling us that the word black is a
1980s word for Negro and Negro is a
1960s word for colored, and colored
is a word from the ’40s and ’50s that
replaced the word darky, and the story
goes on. Whereas the “black man” in
America is of African ancestry, let it
be resolved that he is an African
American. In the same sense, an
American-born Japanese who has
never seen Japan is a Japanese Ameri
can and a Chinese who has never seen
China is a Chinese American and a
Jewish person who has never seen
Israel isa Jewish American. With this
thought in mind, the African Ameri
can not only has a country but a
continent with a rich history, a history
that goes beyond the plight of the
slave trade.
So let it be known that the history
of the African American is American
history; more precisely, American
history is the history of the African
American. And let it be known that
this story of a people is not a pretty
one, because a story of a people never
is. In fact, this story is of struggle that
still exists today: worldwide, nation
wide, statewide, citywidc and cam
puswidc.
This struggle still exists in the
sense that we still live in a world that
supports slavery by way of apartheid;
in a nation that would rather buy
weapons than feed the poor; in a state
that harasses a state senator for his
dress code and for speaking out on
issues others choose not to speak on.
We still live in a city where Jim Crow
is dead but blacks live on one side of
town and whites on the other; we live
on a campus where there arc no black/
African Americans on the Board of
Regents or on the student senate —
and whereas there are more than
20,000 students at the University of
Ncbraska-Lincoln, there are less than
20 black instructors on staff. No, the
struggle is not over yet! We still live
on a campus where most people think
that there arc no black students on
academic scholarships, just on ath
letic scholarships — and the ones on
athletic scholarships are often ex
ploited without even knowing it. No,
the struggle is not over yet! The black
students on this campus need to rise
up and get involved. If you are not
helping solve the problem, then you
are part of it. It’s about lime for the
sleeping giant to awaken.
Terry Goods
president
Afrikan Peoples Union
black student government
I
Reader says courtesy
is no law, but needed
This letter is in response to Bryson
Bartels’ pro-smoking letter (Daily
Nebraskan, March 14).
A very astute first-year law student
you arc. Correct, there arc no laws
against smoking in the Magna Charta,
Bill of Rights or the Constitution.
However, there also arc no laws
against spitting in other peoples’
faces, defecating on someone’s front
porch or drooling on other peoples’
food. Common courtesy and a sense
of decorum dictate that people keep
those habits to themselves. Maybe
you will learn th is i n your second year
in law school.
Rachel Pred
senior
English
cx-smokcr
Reader says student
may not have ‘right’
In regard to Bryson Bartel’s letter
(DN, March 14): shouldn’t a law
student know better than to make the
claim that he has “every right in the
world to smoke?” It seems to me that
he is implying that smoking is abso
lute right. I’m surprised to hear that
from a future lawyer!
As citizens of this country, we
have a right to do certain things, as
long as they don’t harm or seriously
affect other people. Take freedom of
speech, for example — we can say
whatever we want to, as long as it
isn’t slanderous to some person or
group. In that same way, Bryson
Bartels has a right to smoke, as long
as he can prevent all of his smoke
from getting into other people’s
lungs and stinging their eyes. That
means that if he wants to smoke, he
had better go to his own private room
(where no one else ever sets foot in.)
If he smokes in public place, or in
another person’s home, he is affect
ing the health of others.
Don’t give me that lie about sec
ond-hand smoke not being harmful
either. If smoke inhalation was such
a great thing, fire fighters wouldn’t
wear oxygen masks.
No, Bryson Bartels, you don’t
have every right in the world to
smoke.
Larry Stetz
freshman
agriculture honors
-1
St. Patty’s Day
Specials
from “Lincoln’s Own Fa
mous Hot Philadelphia
Steak Sandwich”
KchartrooseI
CABOOSE
I^AMOUS STEAK SANDWICHES/
475-3015
Southwest Corner
15th & “O”
Eat In, Carry Out or Delivery
Diamond Solitaire
Special
Diamond Solitaire in a Platinum &
18 Kt. Cold Ring
Reg. NOW
1/8 ct $250 *195 j
1/5 ct $345 *295
1/4 ct $415 *325
\ 1/3 ct $515 *395
3/8 ct $995 *795 |
1/2 ct $1295 *995
1 ct $2695 *1995
Diamond Pendant
Reg. NOW j
1/16 ct $165 *95 j
1/8 ct $210 s145 |
1/4 ct $365 ‘295
1/3 ct $485 ‘375
1/2 ct $1695 *995
V 1 ct $2495 ‘1995 I
* **
Diamond Earrings
Reg. NOW
1/10 ct $165 *99 j
1/8 ct $215 *145
1/5 ct $285 *195 j
1/3 ct $405 *298 j
.< ■.
JEWELERS
12th & O Gateway Mall
476-8561 467-2509
(North of Centrum) (By the escalator)