Opinion NetSkan
X, ^m\ 1 1 lyyl ^ Thursday, March 4,1993
Net?raskan
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 Kep field.Columnist
-1 |
Who cares?
Not enough accept valuable opportunity
So what’s it going to take?
A free lunch obviously wasn’t enough to get students on
this campus to talk about how they feel about the future of
the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Wednesday afternoon, a number of state senators met with
several UNL students to discuss whatever the students wanted to
talk about.
Since the event was sponsored by ASUN’s Government
Liaison Committee and because the proposed $13.98 million
budget cut is looming over the university, the luncheon was a
perfect opportunity for concerned students to air their grievances
with people who will have a hand in the university’s future.
Unfortunately, there aren’t that many concerned students. Or
so it seemed.
Official estimates for attendance at the luncheon loomed
around an optimistic 60 people. But take into account the state
senators who were there as guests and the university’s student
leaders, and the number of average students in attendance was
pitiful.
Anyone who deals with the government knows that having the
ear of a policy-maker held hostage is a valuable occasion. UNL
students should have seen the same sort of opportunity Wednes
day afternoon. The luncheon brought the senators to the campus,
offered a free lunch and guaranteed that anyone’s idea — no
matter how harebrained or silly — could fall directly on the ear of
a state senator.
Students need to realize that the time to speak up is now — not
after the March 9 budget hearing. If students don’t like how the
budget cuts end up, they will have only themselves to blame if
they don’t make their voices heard now.
Pitching in
Bake sales held to reduce national debt
When the going gets tough, the tough get baking.
The Associated Press reported Wednesday that several
groups around the country, following the example of a
teen-ager from North Dakota, are holding bake sales to help
reduce the federal debt.
Larry Villella, 14, sent President Clinton $1,000 to reduce the
debt with money he earned from a device he invented to water
trees. He received a personal phone call last week from President
Clinton thanking him.
Now fifth-grade elementary school students in Oxford, Ohio,
the staff of the Crosby, N.D., Divide County Journal, and Quakers
in High Point, N.C., have followed suit. Each arc holding bake
sales and sending the profits to Washington.
Even corporate America is taking part. The Eskimo Pic Corp.
has pledged to give 5 cents to reduce the debt for every box of its
chocolate-coated vanilla ice cream snacks on a stick sold between
March 8 and April 4.
The nation’s debt, which now totals $4.2 trillion, will obvi
ously not be greatly reduced by bake sales and donations from ice
cream companies. But it is heartening to see people recognizing
that they have a role to play in helping retire our massive debt.
Bake sales and donations from civic-minded citizens cannot
take the place of good government policy and our willingness to
make the tough choices in cutting federal programs. But we can
start down that lough road with optimism, knowing Americans
are willing to sacrifice and work to reduce the debt.
Staff editorials represent the official policy of the Pall 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 or the NU Board of Regents. Editorial columns represent
the opinion of the author. The regents publish the Daily Nebraskan. They establish the UNL
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its students.
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Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St., Lincoln, Neb. 68588-0448.
Being cold is better than option
Weekends are work to me.
It’s hard schlepping to de
liver those pizzas. At least
I have the comfort of my car to get me
and the pizzas most of the way to the
customers’ doors.
My car is my means of transporta
tion and more. It is a safe haven from
the cold and wet weather outside, as
well as other people — whether they
be bosses or just those who would
distract me from my own thoughts.
While on the job then, even driving
frantically as I do, I am allowed soli
tude to think things through in the
relative comfort of my car while it
eats up the miles for me.
That peace has been unsettling
though, as of late. It seems my car’s
exhaust system is not working prop
erly. Some of the noxious exhaust
circulates inside the car, rather than
orderly going out the tailpipe to pol
lute the outside environment like it
should — instead of innocent me.
For the past weekend, I was forced
to inhale noxious fumes, despite my
best efforts to avoid them. Holding
my breath was an exercise in futility,
so I had to throw out that strategy.
I knew I had to have my windows
open, but I didn’t want to freeze to
death. I hit upon a compromise: I
leave my windows about a fourth of
the way open and then open them a
little more when the car was idling to
compensate for interior exhaust
buildup.
I really wasn’t terribly concerned
about the carbon monoxide, however,
until I spied a newspaper-vending
machine’s display window. The lop
half of this past weekend’s edition of
USA Today concerned death facilita
tor Dr. Jack Kevorkian.
Yes, it got my attention. Not to buy
the paper, but to continue reading it
For the past
weekend, I was
forced to inhale
noxious fumes, de
spite my best efforts
to avoid them.
through the inducement glass.
Apparently, Kevorkian’s latest
hapless patient, Hugh Gale, may have
may have had second thoughts about
his pact with Dr. Death in the middle
of the procedure.
Unfortunately, the medicinal pro
cedure was not terminated. Gale was.
Completing the procedure appar
ently was more important than honor
ing the patient’s burgeoning will to
live. The method of death was carbon
monoxide gas administered through a
mask.
This new detail, death by carbon
monoxide, brought the issue frighten
ingly close to home—or car. Unwil
lingly, I perhaps had the perfect ve
hicle for fulfilling Dr. Kevorkian’s
desires.
Reluming to the car, my fear of the
errant exhaust exceeded its previous
bounds. Perhaps it was also coupled
with fatalistic truth that my father had
ended his life early in my life; not by
carbon monoxide to the lungs, but by
a shot to the head.
May he rest in peace. However, his
frightful example has never done an y
thing to ease my struggle to survive
and thrive in my life. I vow not to
follow his footsteps, but at times like
these, I sense his uneasy hold on me.
I resist. I yearn to breathe. My fear
was notjustified, perhaps. But I opened
the windows a little bit mote. Just in
case.
I had to drive the rest of the week
end of work in the car, no longer quite
so comfortable. It was cold, smelly,
smoky and just seemed to impress
death on me a little too heavily — no
thanks to my noticing Dr. Death’s
exploits by carbon monoxide.
I toe* the car up to my uncle Dan,
the mechanic, and he diagnosed the
problem. He explained to me that a
“pollution tube" had burned out.
He could not get the part at the
dealer just yet, so Irve had to wail until
my car could be fixed.
Not to worry, Dan convinced me.
“Just keep driving it."
I agreed. After all, driving a nox
ious car is better than walking. Dan
was the expert, and my uncle besides,
so I trusted him.
I have continued to drive the nox
ious beast and I am still alive to tell
about it
But I still keep those windows
open. Just in case.
I suppose I’m breathing in some of
that carbon monoxide, but I have not
suffered any of its ill effects. I’d have
to ask Dr. Kevorkian: It must be all in
the technique of that very wise man.
I don’t like the cold. My some
times red nose and ears can attest to
that, but it is better to be uncomfort
able than dead.
Or so it seems to me.
Burger is a junior philosophy major and
a Duly Nebraskan columnist.
VOICE
I would like to respond to the letter
from John Williams (DN, March 2,
1993).
VOICE presidential candidate
Keith Benes did express concerns
about his opponent' s statements in his
closing remarks at last week’s debate.
Benes stated that although his oppo
nent went on the attack in the debate,
VOICE intended to stay out of the
mudslinging. Pointing out the differ
ences between the parties and making
a case that because of those differ
ences VOICE is the more qualified
student election group is not dirty
campaigning.
Keith Benes’ public statement the
following day was intended to outline
a few of the differences between the
campaigns. Differences which were
accentuated at the debate (although
the Daily Nebraskan did not accentu
ate them). Those differences include
a VOICE slate of candidates which is
over half female, has 14 East Campus
candidates, freshman candidates, resi
dence hall candidates and off-campus
candidates.
With such a diverse group of can
didates, it is no small wonder why
VOICE’S platform includes a broad
range of issues which Keith and his
supporters plan to tackle once elected.
Chris Peterson
senior
business administration
India
Understanding and appreciating the
cultural diversity and richness of the
people and the uniqueness of differ
ent civilizations around the world is
important Enjoying the landscape and
beauty should be the purpose of inter
national travel — not exaggerating a
few isolated non-representative things
encountered during a visit and throw
ing mud on a country. I declare that
Mark Baldridge (DN, Feb. 25,1993)
has neither the knowledge nor the
vision to writeabout my country India
or any other country.
K. Anabayan
graduate student
agronomy