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_ J _ Today, partly sunny with a
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* ^ r M. 1 ■ r 80s. Tonight, partly cloudy
with a low in the 50s. Wed
nesday, partly sunny and a
1_little cooler._
Kerrey kicks off
presidential bid
Supporters watch
announcement in
downtown Lincoln
By Jeremy Fitzpatrick
Senior Reporter
Declaring his intention to lead a
renewal in America, Sen. Bob
Kerrey, D-Neb., kicked off his
presidential campaign Monday in Lin
coln.
“I am running for president be
cause America urgently needs better,
bolder leadership that will build foi
greatness again,” he said.
Greeted by Bruce Springsteen’s
“Bom to Run” and cheers of “Go Big
Bob,” Kerrey addressed an animated
crowd of about 3,000 on Centennial
Mall between P and Q streets.
He spoke of the United States’
domestic challenges.
“I believe Americans know deep
in their bones that something is terri
bly wrong and that business as usual
— the prescription of the ’80s —
cannot work for our future,” he said.
“In our hearts, we all know that the
unchecked selfishness and greed that
dominated the policies of the ’80s has
taken its toll on our nation.”
Kerrey voiced concern over the
legacy that his generation will leave
its children.
“I am running for president,” he
said, “because the future I fear for my
children is already a reality for far too
many Americans.
“I am running for president be
cause none of this, none of this, has to
be. It is time for leadership focused
on posterity rather than popularity
and focused on the next generation
instead of the next election.”
Kerrey criticized President Bush,
comparing him to a business manager
who is well-liked but ineffective.
“It’s time for America to change
managers,” he said.
Kerrey was joined on the platform
by Gov. Ben Nelson, Nebraska demo
crats Sen. Jim Exon and Rep. Peter
Hoagland, Rep. Tim Penny, D-Minn.,
and Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M.
Kerrey is the first Nebraskan to
make a run at the presidency since
William Jennings Bryan ran in 1908.
Robert Spire, Kerrey’s chief of
staff, said Kerrey will try to force a
-44 -
I am running for presi
dent because the fu
ture I fear for my chil
dren is already a reality
for far too many Ameri
cans.
Kerrey
presidential candidate
-»* -
discussion of specific issues in the
campaign.
“This won’t be a rerun of ’88,” he
said. “There won’t be a repeat of that
trivial campaign and the racial poli
tics of the Willie Horton ads.”
Spire predicted that Kerrey will
not be found in a flag factory or riding
in a tank — two celebrated events
from the 1988 campaign.
Instead, Spire said, Kerrey will
focus on issues such as health care,
education and the environment.
He said he did not agree with criti
cism that it is too late for Kerrey to
enter the race.
“There’s an old Chinese proverb
that says ‘Man who says it can’t be
done should not interfere with man
See KERREY on 6
Shaun Sartin/DN
Sen. Bob Kerrey, D-Neb., waves to the crowd after his speech Monday announcing his
candidacy for president of the United States on Centennial Mall.
Lighting declared insufficient
there’s nothing he can do.
Complaints from fans about the
lighting conditions in Memorial Sta
dium prompted an examination. It
was determined that the stadium lacked
proper hallway and emergency light
ing.
State Fire Marshal Mike Durst said
because the stadium was built for day
games, it wasn’t designed to have
proper lighting for night or rain games.
In the development of emergency
preparations, he said, “this is one that
just slid through the cracks.”
If a panic situation started in insuf
ficient lighting, Durst said, it could be
almost as dangerous as a fire.
He said that in a panic, people
would run, trip and fall on each other,
similar to the situations at European
soccer stadiums.
The vendor that provides stadium
See LIGHTS on 3
Rise in suicide gestures troubles officials
By Wendy Navratil
Senior Reporter
Chousing official cited five in
stances of suicidal gestures or
severe mental health problems
in the University of Nebraska-Lin
coln residence halls so far this year.
During the course of last year,
there were six or seven gestures of the
same magnitude, said Doug Zalechka,
UNL housing director.
Zalechka said he could not pin
point any factors that would explain
the rise in the number of suicidal
gestures.
“It’s an increase in a very short
period, and I have no idea why,”
Zalechka said. “My assumption is
that it’s just one of those random
events.”
He said he is concerned about the
increase.
"Some of these gestures required
hospitalization. Just because they were
gestures does not make them a whole
lot less serious" than actual attempts.
An attempt “generally involves
some sort of deed on the part of the
person," said Gary Gollncr, a psychi
atric social worker at the Mental Health
Center in the University Health Cen
ter.
“Gestures can be much the same
thing" as attempts, Gollncr said, “but
they’re usually less dramatic — it
could be people giving away posses
sions or making cryptic comments.
One’s verbal, one’s action."
“I tend to use the terms inter
changeably," he said.
Although Zatechka did not want to
identify the nature of the five indi
viduals’ gestures or mental health
problems for fear of exposing their
identity, he said three of the individu
als were hospitalized for observation
and further treatment.
Even if there is no physical injury,
Gollner said some individuals may be
hospitalized if their gesture demon
strates mental instability.
Ken Cauble, chief of the UNL
Police Department, said no suicide
attempts have been reported to the
UNL police department so far this
semester. Only one suicide attempt
has been reported in 1991.
“If it is a gesture, then we may or
may not be called — if there is no
injury/’Cauble said. “If they actually
needed some kind of medical treat
ment, we should be notified.”
But friends should not wait for
gestures to turn into injuries before
doing something to help, Cauble said.
“It’s not right to take a gesture
lightly,” he said. “There are some
people who have no intent of doing
any harm to themselves, but then you’re
going to run into people who might
do something a bit more. I don’t think
we should ignore them.”
Gollner said he thought suicidal
gestures and attempts are under-re
ported. He said statistics show that S
See SUICIDE on 3
Top Soviet diplomat dispatched for
arms-control talks. Page 2.
National Science Foundation awards
grant to Nebraska to improve mathe
matics education. Page 3.
“The Fisher King" lets audience
escape from reality. Page 10.
INDEX
Wire 2
Opinion 4
Sports 7
A&E 9
Classifieds 11
Only 15 percent leave suicide notes. These
notes reflect ambivalence of the act by saying, in
effect, "Dear t hate you! love,_
.QWcalty depreeeed people rarely commit
’ ' ' Ami, DrfraWON
a*
By Adeana Leftin
Senior Reporter
Athletic department officials arc
in the dark about lighting de
ficiencies at Memorial Sta
dium.
Gary Fouraker, assistant athletic
director for business affairs, said that
until he receives information from
the state fire marshal about where
lighting problems in the stadium are,