Ohndn
Nebraskan
Editorial Board
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Chris Hopfensperger. .■>..Editor, 472-1766
Jeremy Fitzpatrick..Opinion Page Editor
Alan Phelps.Managing Editor
Brian Shellito.Cartoonist
Susie Arth.Senior Reporter
Kim Spurlock..Diversions Editor
Sam Kepfield.....Columnist
Red flag
Economic interest shouldn ’t cloud decisions
The United States spent over 40 years fighting communism
to win the Cold War. Now, ironically, we arc doing little to
fight China, the last major communist nation.
We have even partly supported the Chinese regime by provid
ing it with mosl-favorcd-nation trade status. That status is aiding a
government that commits atrocities against its own people.
Chai Ling, a leader in China’s 1989 student democratic move
ment, spoke Friday in the Nebraska Union. Ling, who has fled her
country, said the United States could help bring democracy to
China by putting pressure on the Chinese government. She
expressed optimism President Clinton would provide that pres
sure.
China is an excellent test of America’s resolve to help people
wishing to be free everywhere — not simply where it is beneficial
to us.
We were willing to help Kuwait because our vital interests
were threatened. If we really believe in freedom, we should be
willing to help the people of China as well.
China is a powerful nation, and it will not simply be made to
change because of pressure from the United States. But we can do
our part to push the Chinese closer to democratic reform.
We can at the very least not prop up the Chinese by providing
them with most-favored-nation trading status.
A nation is defined by its actions, not its words. The United
States say it wants freedom in China. If we really do, we should
make it clear by not trading or dealing with the Chinese govern
ment, no matter how much that might be in our economic interest.
Search still on
Clinton administration takes easy way out
Hopefully the Clinton administration’s next candidate for
attorney general won’t have any children.
Judge Kimba Wood, the oncc-apparcnt replacement for
Zoc Baird, was told by White House officials to withdraw her
name from consideration Friday because she hired an immigrant
from Trinidad as a baby sitter seven years ago.
The situation was reminiscent of the Baird case, which caused
a good deal of public outcry. But significant differences remain.
Wood hired the baby sitter in March 1986, months before the
federal law that would have made it illegal. Wood also filed the
proper documents and paid the proper taxes during the time she
employed the baby sitter.
Clearly something went wrong in the selection process. But the
mistake was not Wood’s. She did nothing wrong. The mistake
was made by the Clinton administration.
Instead of explaining the differences between the two cases, the
administration decided to duck the issue. Instead of telling the
American public that Wood didn’t break any laws, the administra
tion decided to cloud the circumstances before anyone could get a
clear picture. Instead of pushing to fill the attorney general
position with an obviously qualified candidate, the administration
is heading back to the rdsumds.
Obviously the administration wants to avoid the same sort of
controversy that surrounded the Baird case, but they should not
assume the American public can’t understand the differences in
Wood’s case.
More importantly, they shouldn’t force out a clearly qualified
candidate because of the public’s attention to a non-issue.
Staff editorials represent the official policy of the Fall 1992 Daily Nebraskan. Policy is set by
the Daily Nebraskan Editorial Board. Editorials do not necessarily reflect the views of the
university, its employees, the students orlhe NU Board of Regents. Editorial columns represent
the opinion of the author. The regents publish the Daily Nebraskan. They establish the UNL
Publications Board to supervise the daily production of the paper. According to policy set by
the regents, responsibility for the editorial content of the newspaper lies solely in the hands of
its students.
The Daily Nebraskan welcomes brief letters to the editor from all readers and mterestedothers.
Letters will be selected for publication on the basis of clarity, originality, timeliness and space
available. The Daily Nebraskan retains the right to edit or reject,all material submitted. Readers
also are welcome to submit material as guest opinions. The editor decides whether material
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Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St., Lincoln, Neb. 68588-0448.
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Bikes
The passage of the resolution which
would consolidate the bike racks on
campus to five main areas has con
firmed the long-standing fear that
ASUN is completely apathetic and
uncompassionalc to the concerns and
needs of students who live in off
campus housing. The quick passage
of this resolution indicates a clear
unwillingness to examine the impact
of policy decisions upon students who
live outside the wallsofUNL’s frater
nities, sororities and residence halls.
Considering every biker on cam
pus translates to one more available
parking place, the student govern
ment should seek to facilitate bicycle
riding. If bikers arc not allowed to
park in the area of their choice, no real
incentive exists not to drive to cam
pus.
Another clear problem of the reso
lution is that of the five proposed
areas none offer sheltered parking to
bikers. Under the resolution the bike
racks under Love Library would be
removed. This action would force bik
ers to leave their bikes in areas which
arc never protected from adverse
weather. The bright glow offered by
the night lights underneath the library
also offer most secure night parking
on campus. Why docs ASUN insist on
offering new solutions to non-exis
tent problems?
Tom Slritikus
senior
English
Harmony
Hey! A Wendy Mott column that
doesn't inspire obscenities (DN, Feb.
1, 1993). But still, 1 think she missed
part of the point of the sharp reaction
to her blind attack on certain profes
sions, and still m ight not get it, despite
her eloquent addition to the racial
harmony dialogue.
I say this based on the very words
she used in defending the greck sys
tem as a bastion of diversity. I am not
one for blind-sided attacks against
sororities and frats — well, maybe I
am — but I have noticed about the
same level of tolerance and intoler
ance from other sectors of the univer
sity population — dormies and off
campus dwellers.
The only real assertion that I ques
tion is about her house’s effort to
“diversify.” When the house does
this, do they simply try to recruit
“others,” to entice them to join, or do
they make an effort to change house
structures to be attractive to groups
other than Midwestern Euro-Ameri
cans? If a house wants African- or
Asian-American members, do they
start by demanding attention or by
bringing their own members to the
other groups existing organizations
and activities?
Thequestion for all of us is, should
we expect someone to bend over back
ward for us or do we do some of the
bending ourselves? That is one of the
most important parts of this whole
idea of opening diversity’s doors:
learning how much we — defined by
race, sex, age, ethnicity or nationality
— can learn from them — defined
however you please.
1 write this not as a criticism, but as
a refinement. 11 is someth ing we all —
dormies, grecks and snide record store
clerks — need to work on.
Trevor McArthur
senior
teacher’s college
Sigerson
Andrew Sigerson’s most recent
comment regarding the funding of the
homosexual group, COLAGE;
“They’re not a protected minority
because, in my eyes, at least, being
gay or lesbian is nothing but achoicc,
could be simplified to say, “They’re
not a protected minority in my eyes
because I am intolerant and ignorant
about homosexuals.”This intolerance
is not only demonstrated by this com
ment, but by the recent abolishment
of funding for the COLAGE group.
Homosexualsdo nolchoose to live
a life that will result in persecution
from a judgmental society. To tell a
homosexual to be a heterosexual is
like telling a heterosexual to choose
homosexuality; it just doesn’t work
that way.
I hope our next student president
will be more educated and tolerant of
minority groups on campus.
Paul Kocstcr
senior
agronomy
Military
I would like to respond to the Feb.
3, 1993 editorial about the gay and
lesbian ban in the military. The writer
never has been in the military, has
she?
If she had, she would have known
that the time in the foxhole is not the
lime that soldiers have a problem with
homosexuals in the military. It’s the
time in the barracks where soldiers
learn to trust each other. This is where
the bonds of friendship arc formed
that arc lighter than marriage. This is
where the problems of having homo
sexuals in the military show up.
The soldiers, male and female, need
to bond without the pressure of pos
sible sexual encounters. Without this
bonding the soldiers will not totally
trust each other, and that will lead to
additional deaths on the battlefield.
It’s that trust and close friendship that
allow the soldiers to perform at the
level needed to survive combat. It’s
not because soldiers are worried in the
foxhole, but because soldiers are wor
ried in the barracks that there is a
problem with homosexuals in the
military.
Jed Marshall
senior
history
Kepfield
I am writing to you in regard to
Sam Kcpfield’s Jan. 21,1993 Diver
sions article.
I wish to address a possible misrep
resentation in a comment that ap
peared at the end of Kepfield ’ s article.
The comment identified him as “a
Diversions contributor who has pub
lished several articles in legal jour
nals on the issue of drug use and
pregnancy.” I think it is important to
tell you that a check of three computer
databases, Lexis, Wcsllaw and
LegalTrac, as well as the Index of
Legal Periodicals and the indices of
the Nebraska Law Review back
through 1982, has failed to reveal one,
much less several, articles authored
by Kepfield.
I expect you or Kepfield to provide
a list of his “articles in legal journals”
or, in the alternative, print a retrac
tion. As Kepfield has been known to
cast aspersions on the veracity of at
torneys, I feel it necessary and fair for
him and the Daily Nebraskan to set
the record straight. •
Sarah Brashears-Mactee
third-year law student
Editor’s note: Kepfield co-authored an ar
ticle In “Perinatal Substance Abuse: Research
Findings and Clinical Implications,’' pub
lished in 1992 by Johns Hopkins University
Press. He has signed consent-to-publlsh forms
for two articles to appear in the Cardozo
Women's Law Journal.