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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 27, 1989)
Editorial __ .| Curt Wagner, Editor, 472-1766 Uglily Amy Edwards, Editorial Page Editor T U1 ^ ^ ^ne Hirt, Managing Editor I if | (I Lee Rood, Associate News Editor J- ' ^ k/A WLJXwMa I. Diana Johnson, Wir* Page Editor University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chuck Green, Copy Desk Chief Lisa Donovan, Columnist Decent burial deserved Pawnee should be allowed to bury dead The battle over the Nebraska State Historical Society’s collection of Pawnee Indian remains has gone on long enough. Few about two years now, Nebraska and Oklahoma In dians have been fighting for the return of about 20 percent of the historical society’s collection of burial remains and burial goods. The Pawnee remains were dug up in Nebraska. The tribe, now in Oklahoma, wants them returned for reburial in accordance with their religious beliefs. Members of the historical society’s board of directors, however, have said the collection is extremely valuable for its educational and scientific value — a point well I taken. But the society has had some of the remains for more than 50 years. Any research the society intended to do should’ve have been by now. Some of the bones, society members have said, are not theirs to give away — that they belong to the federal gov ernment. The Indians insist that no one owns their ances tors. A bill sponsored by state Sen. Ernie Chambers would I resolve the problem once and for all. LB340, introduced Wednesday to the Nebraska Legis lature’s Government, Military and Veteran’s Affairs Committee, provides for the return of the Pawnee remains by Sept 10,1989. The bill also regulates all unmarked Nebraska burial sites and mandates notification of the Nebraska Indian - Commission or people associated with any American Indian remains discovered in the future. “In all other cases,’’ the remains would be reburied following a one-year scientific study period - if a study is npppccan/ I The bill is fair. It gives time for the remains to be studied — a sacrifice the Indians have not been willing to consent to until now and provides that reburial is somewhat timely. If push comes to shove, the Indians will most likely win anyway. Nebraska Attorney General Robert Spire said at the committee hearing, “When all the dust settles, the courts I will determine that the Indians’ First Amendment rights I will prevail over the rights of the scientific community,” provided that the scientific community had a reasonable amount of time for research. Bob Peregoy, a Colorado lawyer representing the ■ Pawnee Indians of Oklahoma, said that the Pawnee don’t Want to go to court, but are prepared to do so. This is a 1 warning the historical society should listen to, especially f after Spire testified that the court “ ... looks at things with a moral eye.” ii siaic senators uo not rcsoive me issue, me uugaiioii could take forever. The society and the Indians have not been able to resolve the matter on their own. Further controversy would only cause additional heartache to those who believe the remains and goods should be reburied, and additional impatience of those worried for the future of the collection. More is at stake here than just a museum’s collection of 'life controversy has caused anger, frustration and I public humiliation to two important and respected groups More importantly, human dignity is at stake. The right of a person to be put to rest, in peace, should be a given. I People should not have to fight to take their relatives out of glass cases to lay them to rest. And it's tii^for the I Stephanie Cannon/Daily Nebraskan I Longsine discusses the Bible I Columnist says The Good News gives Christianity a bad namem Ive always wondered it God re ally talks in all capital letters. 1 'd ask Him but surely He is too busy to bother with me. YOU DON’T THINK THAT I ONLY TALK TO MOSES AND ART BUCHWALD? WHAT DO YOU REALLY WANT TO ASK? NOT THAT I DON’T KNOW AL READY, BUT YOUR READERS ~ WHO SOMETIMES DO CONSIST OF MORE PERSONS THAN YOUR EDITOR AND YOUR GIRL FRIEND - MAY WISH TO KNOW. Inspiration. I want inspiration. WELL, YOU WON’T GET IT, NOT FROM ME. I’VE SEEN THE PRISONER TOO, GRAND ENTER TAINMENT. HAVE YOU TRIED READING THE UNL GOOD NEWS? Honestly? I haven’t touched it for a pAiinln monlhe I hoAn to, but I always have assigned reading that I should do instead. I read Mark before I went to sec “The Last Temp tation of Christ,” but other than that, I really haven’t had lime. I’ll read the whole thing over spring break, I promise, or in the summer if I have to write papers ... YOU NEED NOT GROVEL, HEATHEN. ANYWAY, THAT WASN’T WHAT I MEANT. I KNOW YOU READ THE GOOD NEWS, THE MONTHLY CAMPUS PAPER. YOU HAVEN T FORGOT TEN? Oh, the one published by that pro fessor? Do you chat with hint? YOU READ THE GOOD NEWS. WHAT DO YOU THINK? I’M GOING DOWNTOWN. FIND THE CURRENT ISSUE. I’M RATHER EXTENSIVELY QUOTED THEREIN. IT SHOULD PROVIDE SOME INSPIRATION. KEEP IN TOUCH. Wait! I just found my list of things to ask about. What’s the meaning of life7 How do I know if 1 really love ..omcone? Is there life on other plan ets? Where is Jimmy Hoffa? How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie-Roll Tootsie Pop? PATIENCE. MY SON. YOU HAVE WORK TO DO. WELL MEET AGAIN. Thanks, God. YOU’RE WELCOME. And the Lord said, Go forth and read the uoodnews and /nou snail find inspiration in heaps and bushels. And behold, the columnist went forth and did read The Good News and did find inspiration in heaps and bushels. After reading every story, save one, 1 declared excitedly to my lemon trees, “Perhaps they are growing, at least there is no gay-bashing article in the latest issue!” But I was wrong. “The Company You Keep” upholds the tradition of having at least one anti-gay story in every issue since its first big gay bashing issue in 1985 or 1986. This is the latest in a series of testimonials and editorials that offer advice on how to quit being attracted to mem bers of your own gender. i iwi ia.—-a -jz—i The thesis of this truly pious ar ticle is that, as a recovering homosex ual, one should go to great lengths to avoid other homosexuals who have nothing holler to do than to plot and execute plans which culminate in rejection of Jesus Christ and rever sion to the former life of gay love. This, as all Gtxxl News readers know, is a heavy-duty sin for which one can be sentenced to eons, if not eternity, in hell. Sometimes, this advice seems to be general and apply to all sinners. “Paul is adamant about not wanting us to have fellowship with .. . sin ners.” Is that so? Jesus was always ada mant aboul things like not judging others and casting the first stone only if you arc without sin and things like that. I wonder if HE knows w hat Paul is up to? I know some of The Good News staff and I hereby declare that 1 am significantly more adept at sinning than possibly the whole staff put to gether. However, none of them has ever once suggested that I was un worthy of sharing fellowship with them. Do they read this garbage be fore they print it? A glance at two omer major ica® lures assures me that indeed no on® reads The Good News before publi® cation. The first of these is a rather inter® csting, and lengthy piece on ho\® various groups conspired to keep ih® undeniable fact of die Bible’s math® matical perfection from the gencr®® population. Groups like Catholic® Jews and Fundamentalist Christiar® are determined to prevent you IroiW knowing that the original Greek tex® of all the Bible’s books arc based o® the holy number seven. i# This fact, someone claims (I al® ways get lost in their touched-u® reprints because parenthetical edilo® rial comments arc seldom clearly® separated from the original work ) can® be used to prove that portions of the® Bible were not added later or lam-® pered with. Unfortunately, not all of the® Bible’s earliest texts are in Greek,® and probably none are the original ® The crown jewel in the eclecli ® cism of The Good News is the “pro- ® phelic message given this last year on M IVII. v Ullll^l U DllllVIV viim tian who received it from God" -- presumably in American, the lan guage of HIS chosen people. God is going to use Israel to crush the Kremlin and the Islamic revolu tion. And out of the ashes of the nuclear inferno will rise a fountain ol heart-bursting joy. I can hardly wait. Interestingly, I could find no sig nificant correlation between this pro phetic text and the number seven. Presumably, it would appear if it were translated into ancient Greek. Psychopathic paranoid delusions like those in The Good News that purport to be the true Christianity cast a gloomy shadow on what’s left of a religion that for centuries dominated the world. Sadly, as a people we may reject the ideas offered by Christian ity in total - and discard the tangled mess without looking for the few golden threads that may have sur vived the corrosive effects of sell proclaimed guardians of God’s Word. Longsine Is a senior political science major and a Daily Nebraskan editorial page columnist. The Daily Nebraskan welcomes brief letters to the editor from all readers. Letters will be selected for publication on the basis of clarity, originality, tiraeli nets and space available. The Daily Ne braskan retains the right to edit ail mate rial submitted. .. i.Readers .also are •usakome la submit material as gueat opinions. Submit material to the Daily Nebras kan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St., Lincoln. Neb. 68588-0448.