Editorial
(Daily
Nebraskan
Editorial Board
University of Nebraska-Liricoln
Eric Pfanner, Editor, 472 1766
Victoria Ayolte, Managing Editor
Darcie Wiegert, Associate News Editor
Diane Brayton, Associate News Editor
Jana Pedersen, Wire Editor
Emily Rosenbaum, Copy Desk Chief
Lisa Donovan, Editorial Page Editor
Quibbles ’n’ Bits
Lack of computers shortchanges students
One of the first questions most job interviewers ask is,
“Do you have experience with computers?”
Those who answer “No” often see a similar reply on
their applications. Computer experience is essential to almost
any profession these days.
One purpose of college is to prepare students for the real
world. That means they at least should be familiar with some
of the equipment they will encounter when they graduate.
Nationwide, many students at universities about the size of
the University of Nebraska-Lincoln are receiving that kind of
access to computers.
A study released last week by the University of Southern
California indicates that the average ratio of students to com
puters at those universities is about 1 to 45.
But UNL continues to lag behind.
Although it has closed the technology gap somewhat, UNL’s
ratio is still only about onc-lhird the national average — about
1 to 136, up from about 1 to 200 last year. UNL also has the
fewest public-access computers in the Big Eight.
As long as that shortage continues, UNL students’ future
careers arc being shortchanged.
— Kric Pfanncr
for the Daily Sebraskan
Racist actions punished by slap on wrist
For two Los Angeles Counly sheriff’s deputies, racial dis
crimination merited a mere slap on the wrist.
The Los Angeles Daily News reported that the two
white deputies, fired more than a year ago for burning a cross
in front of black inmates in a local jail, quietly were reinstated
as deputies last month and given partial back pay.
The deputies were asked to leave after sheriff’s officials
found that two black prisoners had been taken to a special jail
module, where they listened to racial remarks and were forced
to watch a paper cross bum.
Today, one deputy works in a sheriff’s station outside of Los
1 Angeles and the other is back working at a counly jail.
It is difficult to understand how these deputies, who appar
ently took lessons about justice from the likes of the Ku Klux
Klan, are of any use to law enforcement.
What’s worse is that blatant discrimination in what should
be a controlled environment sends a message that intolerance is
acceptable and institutionalized.
When law enforcement officials are allowed to break the
rules, how can they teach others to abide by the law?
Makes you wonder who should be behind bars.
—Lisa Donovan
for the Daily Nebraskan
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Students: Show opposition
to lid at Colorado game
Though TV exposure for the Ne
braska vs. Colorado game will finally
show that the Huskers arc for real,
there is a more important aspect that
needs to take advantage of this TV
exposure. On Saturday, Nov. 3, three
days before we vote, a very high
percentage of Nebraska’s voters will
concentrate on Memorial Stadium.
This may be the best opportunity thus
far to show opposition to the 2 per
cent lid. We as students understand
the drastic ramifications that Meas
ure 405 will have on education and
the state’s future, but unfortunately
there arc a great many who can’t see
past the fact that their pockcibooks
may get falter. This college student is
scared as hell that this nonsense actu
ally has a chance to pass! Here is my
proposal. All organizations, fraterni
ties, sororities, clubs, etc. should make
banners showing opposition to the
lid. Instead of saying “Elvis lives in
Nebraska,” say “Please vote against
Measure 405,” or ‘‘Preserve your
children’s future in Nebraska, vote
against the 2 percent lid.” I think that
statements like “The 2 percent lid
sucks” would be ineffective. We need
to appeal to the voters sense of secu
rity for their family. Use your own
judgment here, but we as students
have a prime opportunity to make one
last-ditch effort to sway voters to the
obvious choice and save this great
state.
Please consider this proposal and
pass the word on. With your help,
there will be all kinds of celebrating
to do next week. The Huskers will
finally move up instead of down in
the polls after gaming revenge on the
Buffs, and we’ll all breathe a little
easier knowing that the “Good Life”
will continue.
Darron M. Aril
senior
Wayne State College
601 D£RN those RM5 SINGIM’
StiRRlN’ UP RACIAL ANGER
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Sample ballot offers trial run
Voter homework necessary for understanding ticket wording
My roommate brought home a
sample ballot Friday,and we
spent a couple of hours try ing
to figure out what the initiative expla
nations really meant.
They're long and confusing and
irritating, and it's a good idea to study
them as if you were preparing for the
LSAT.
If you’ve never seen a ballot meas
ure explanation before, here’s a
completely fictional example:
“A vote for Initiative XXX would
create a separate commission for public
education to study the possibility that
students in Nebraska arc a tad bit
stupid and finding that possibility to
hold true, to look into raising the level
of education to equal that in our neigh
boring state of Iowa.”
Joe Voter goes to the polls, reads
this explanation and is offended. He
thinks his kids arc pretty smart, and
the thought of some stupid commis
sion proposing that they might not be
smart really licks him off. Besides,
Joe thinks that Iowa is an acronym for
Idiots Out Wandering Around and no
way no how docs he want his kids to
grow up like lowans.
So Joe votes against Initiative XXX,
not realizing that raising the stan
dards of education might actually be
a good thing.
Five years later in our little sce
nario, Joe's oldest kid is applying to a
prestigious college. He wants tostudy
nuclear biophysical molecular chem
istry, and thinks he has a pretty good
shot at a Nobel Pnzc somewhere down
the road.
But competition is tough, and Joe’s
kid loses his slot to a kid from Iowa,
who’s studied twice the amount of
new material. She’s not really any
smarter than Joe’skid, but her courses
were more varied, her materials were
more up-to-date, and her state cared
about providing the best education
possible to its kids. (I did say this was
fictional, didn’t I?).
Anyway, the point is that any bal
lot measure probably will affect your
Iitc in some way. Il may not happen
Nov. 6, and it may not happen in
1992, but how you vote on initiatives
and amendments may affect how you
pay off your student loans or what
determines your child's course of
education.
So gel a sample ballot and read it
Amy
Edwards
carefully, preferably before you go to
the polls. You have a week and a day
to decide how you want to vote and
why.
If the ballot is confusing, give
somebody a call and ask for some
help. There arc plenty of people out
there who will be more than happy to
tell you how to vote.
And in case you’re afraid of get
ting some bum advice from preten
tious people trying to push their opin
ions on you, here arc three completely
objective hints to help you make up
your mind at the polls. (I’ll touch on
a few more next week):
1. Votc no on I n i t la11 vc 405. That ’ s
the 2 percent lid deal. We’ve talked
about the utter stupidity of this thing
before, but in case you forgot, here’s
a quick summary of what this initia
tive would do:
A yes vote on Initiative 405 would
create a 2 percent lid on government
expenditures (I love that word) in the
slate of Nebraska. Thai’s lower than
the rate of inflation, so the state would
fall even further behind on really cool
stuff like public education. The Uni
versity of Nebraska would be the first
logo.
2. Vote yes on Initiative 404. This
initiative would create a statewide
lottery for Nebraska. Opponents of
this initiative say it would allow people
who would otherwise spend their
money on food and shelter to blow it
all on lottery tickets and turn them
into destitute burdens on the rest of
society. I disagree. People who have
been truly bitten by the gambling bug
don’t waste their time with dollar
lotto tickets. Besides, they’re already
spending their money on lotteries in
Iowa and other states, so we might as
well bring that money home.
And if you don’t like gambling,
don’t gamble on the lottery when it
comes. But don’t vote against a lot
tery and spoil everyone else’s fun.
3. When you get to the box that
says governor, close your eyes and
point. I’m not sure I can come up with
any better advice than that. It’s all so
sad.
The only good thing that’s hap
pened is that Ben Nelson stuck to his
word (so far anyway) and took his
negative advertising off the televi
sion.
For those of you who have no idea
what I'm talking about, I'll briefly
recap last week’s events so the rest of
this column makes sense. Last week.
Nelson and Gov. Kay Orr had a de
bate. Nelson asked Orr to join him in
ending the negative campaigning
they’ve been shoving down our throats
all fall. Orr agreed and the two shook
hands. Immediately after the hand
shake, Orr asked Nelson if that meant
he would stop calling her a liar.
Yeah Kay, whatever.
The next day, Nelson removed all
his negative ads mentioning Orr. 1 he
governor kept her negative ads about
Nelson on television.
Nelson doesn’t need to call the
governor a liar. She's proving her
sincerity well enough on her own.
Never fear. There’s still time to
make up your mind about the gover
nor’s race. There’s a whole nothcr
week to figure out who’s the best
buffoon on the ballot.
towards is a senior news-editorial major
and a Daily Nebraskan columnist and l)i'» r
sions editor.
letteg—^
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