Editorial
Daily
Nebraskan
Editorial Board
University of Nebrsska-Uncoln
Amy Edwards, Editor, 472-/766
Lee Rood, Editorial Page Editor
Jane Hirt, Managing Editor
Brandon Loomis, Associate News Editor
Brian Svoboda, Columnist
Bob Nelson, Columnist
Jerry Guenther, Senior Reporter
Abortion on fine line
Veto fails to get overridden by Home
r*1 he U.S. House of Representatives Wednesday failed
to override a veto by President Bush that would
have allowed federally financed Medicaid abortions
for victims of rape or incest
The vote was 231 to 191 in favor of the override ~ 51
votes short of the necessary two- thirds margin.
Closer to home, two out of three of Nebraska’s House
representatives supported Bush’s override. Republicans
Doug Bereuter and Virginia Smith voted no on the over
ride, while Democrat Peter Hoagland voted yes.
Anti-abortion leaders consider the House vote to be a
decisive victory in the ever-controversial and heated
debate over abortion rights.
But they are not the ones who will be forced to suffer
the consequences of Bush’s successful veto.
Indigent women - who endure the kind of abuse
President BuSh will never understand ~ will.
In addition to being raped and abused physically and
emotionally, these women will be forced to carry to term
pregnancies resulting from horrendous crimes against
them.
The House cannot be blamed for this atrocity - it tried.
Had Bush kept his tongue in cheek, representatives would
have succeeded in providing these women with an option.
Now these women have no choice - even though other
women fortunate enough to have money do, whether or
not they have sustained similar abuse.
It’s ironic that Bush successfully badgered some 1988
voters into believing that Michael Dukakis was respon
sible for freeing convicted and violent rapists like Willie
Horton.
Does this mean he accepts responsibility for forcing
women to bear children from the likes of Horton? Would
he force Barbara Bush to do so?
It’s a fine line, the abortion line. But it should be
crystal clear that as long as women are legally allowed to
have abortions, poverty-stricken victims of rape or incest
should be given the same choice.
-- Lee Rood
for the Daily Nebraskan
Focus on the real problem
In response to Brian Svoboda’s
article (DN, Oct. 19) on the over
abundance of grccks on this year’s
Homecoming royalty slate, I believe
that, first of all, congratulations arc in
order.
Brian should be congratulated for
pointing out a problem that has
plagued our student government,
honorarics and other organizations
for years: misrepresentation of the
student body. Administrators, stu
dent leaders, organizational advisers,
and Daily Nebraskan editors and col
umnists, among others, have cer
tainly been aware of this perpetual
influence of grecks for decades and
have worked hard to make changes in
the altitudes and levels of involve
ment by non-greeks. However, these
campaigns and notices of social in
justice have often been perceived as a
slap in the face to greeks who were
active and involved, instead of hav
ing a positive response in terms of
increased non-greek interest and par
ticipation in campus organizations
and events.
Where docs the problem truly lie?
Certainly not upon the shoulders of
this year’s Homecoming royally.
Let’s let them enjoy this reward that
they all deserve, and focus, instead,
upon some concrete problems and
issues that can make a difference.
The difference in the Residence
Hall Association and grcck system
must first be analyzed. The greck
system, although certainly not per
fect, does a great service to their
young members, for the most part, by
perpetuating involvement in campus
organizations and providing a social
atmosphere for them to meet others
within the system.
RHA, on the other hand, does not
lend itself so adequately to the inte
gration of its young members into the
university system. The large number
of people obviously has an effect
upon the ability of leaders to motivate
such large groups.
Non-grcck student leaders must be
the motivators of younger people il
they want a change to occur. They
must positively help to integrate
younger students. The never-ending
condemnations of the greck system
and its leaders are old hat, and obvi
ously they (grccks) are able to with
stand the treatment.
Brian, please don’t condemn the
success of certain individuals whe
have worked hard and arc deserving
of recognition. Also, in the future
when you lake up your pen in though
of attacking the greck system, please
consider its success in getting people
involved.
Increasing the number of non
greek applicants to campus organiza
lions is the true challenge. If this cai
be accomplished, there will be non
greck Homecoming candidates in the
future, and maybe a conccntratce
motivational movement might ever
elect that person king or queen.
It is time to put up or shut up.
John Bcrgmeyei
business
fifth-year senioi
AxsXkW test TON.
I VOU GOTTfcG'ME
I »c <*X)R NOTES
\FOR-TOS TRIM
Elections loom on the horizon I
Studying Board of Regents campaigns will help decision-making I
So now that the all-important
Homecoming elections are
over, we can look toward
1990 and elections of real insignifi
cance.
Seriously, though, next year’s
elections for state and local offices
promise to be interesting, to say the
least. One of the hotter races will be
for Lincolnite Don Frickc’s District
One seat on the NU Board of Regents.
Fricke indicated two weeks ago
that he plans to run for re-election to
the board. But that hasn’t seemed to
keep others out of the race. One can
didate - Lincoln optometrist Dick
Powell - already has announced his
candidacy, and according to the
rumor mill, others arc waiting in the
wings.
So why all the interest in this race?
The bottom line is that Fricke is seen
as a weak candidate. The July firing
of NU President Ronald Roskens
brought a firestorm of criticism on
the board, no doubt leaving the re
gents who arc not up for re-election
thanking God they don’t have to (ace
the voters yet.
And for Lancaster County, where
UNL is to Lincoln what the Big Three
arc to Detroit, Frickc’s six years in
office have been accompanied by
some unsettling developments. The
Kearney Suite merger and the pro
posed addition of doctoral programs
to the University of Nebraska at
Omaha have been seen by many as a
threat to Lincoln interests, and some
have called into question Frickc’s
ability as the Lincoln regent to pro
tect those interests.
So Fricke enters the race as a
weakened incumbent, and potential
challengers are seeing a golden op
portunity. But the race is far from
over. One question in particular
1 needs lobe answered: What’s the best
; strategy for a challenger in the Dis
• trict One regents’ race?
In 1990, a good, issue-oriented
: campaign can be run against the
! board in general and Fricke in par
ticular. Here are three silver bullets
available to a would-be Lone Ranger,
salient issues which could help make
1 a campaign:
1. OPEN AND HONEST GOV
: ERNMENT — Talk about this issue,
1 and the Roskens firing comes imme
diately to mind. But the secrecy sur
rounding Roskens’ firing is only one
example. The regents traditionally
have conducted much of their busi
ness out of the public eye.
An effective candidacy could
raise this point and propose specific,
concrete strategies to promote citizen
involvement, as opposed to corporate
or NU Foundation involvement --
which already is high in university
governance.
It would be relatively easy for a
candidate to demagogue on Roskens’
firing. But a sledgehammer approach
to this issue loses the main idea -- that
the regents should be inclusive,
rather than exclusive, in their general
decision-making.
2. l)NL AS FLAGSHIP CAM
PUS — Regionalism is an ugly spec
ter to summon in a campaign. It’s
short-sighted and doesn’t serve a
useful purpose. Nevertheless, region
alism is a major concern for the citi
zens of Lancaster County, since the
role of UNL is inextricably linked
with the local economy.
University growth occurring out
side of Lincoln, whether it is the
addition of Kearney Stale to the uni
versity or the addition of doctoral
programs to UNO, generally is seen
by Lincolnitcs as being at the expense
df UNL. Right or wrong, this is the
view held by hundreds of registered
voters in Lancaster County.
A candidate for regent should
carclully and thoughtfully present his
or her vision of UNL’s role in the
university system. And this vision
must place UNL at the center. A
Lincoln regent candidate who dis
tances himself or herself from the
idea of the f lagship campus is sure to
be pummeled by the olhcr candi
dates, including the incumbent.
3. THE ROLE OF THE UNI
VERSITY IN THE ECONOMY ~
The university always has done well |
by the local business elite. The Board if
of Regents, the NU Foundation and I
large corporations such as FirsTicr,
Woodmen Life and Casualty, and |
Enron often have exchanged dircc- M
tors and contracted each others' serv
ices.
But small-business people in Lin
coln may have a different attitude
toward the university. The Lied Cen
ter, along with the city’s downtown
redevelopment initiatives, have dis
rupted and dislodged a number of
relatively small, successful busi
nesses such as Ted and Wally’s, the
Skylight Bistro, Nebraska Bookstore
and others.
A candidate for regent should
promote the idea of partnership be
tween Lincoln’s small businesses and
the university. He or she could per
haps even pledge to take an active,
brokering role in such cooperation.
This idea could be coupled with a
call for a coherent, strategic plan for
UNL campus expansion. Recent
dealings regarding the old Whittier
Junior High School building, the Lied
Center and the Reunion indicate that
no such plan exists.
These issues, of course, are not the
only ones which should be raised in
the campaign. Issues such as the
quality of campus life, competitive
faculty salaries and academic free
dom should and surely will be dis
cussed.
The three issues listed here, how
ever, provide a base for some good,
creative debate in the campaign.
They also provide some good strate
gies for a challenger to Fricke -
thoughtful, hard-hitting points that
the electorate can understand and
relate to.
As for the electorate, well, they
need to get involved. Slate Senator
David Landis said last week that the
number of UNL students could de
cide the winner in the Lancaster
County regent election. He’s right.
So register to vote, watch the cam
paigns as they develop, and choose a
candidate. It’s the best way to make a
difference.
Svoboda is a senior political science and
Russian rn^or, and a Dally Nebraskan col
umnist.
kite?—i_
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braskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 14(X) R
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