OPTNTON NebDrayskan
\AJPf f | lyy l Thursday, Novambar 4,1993
Nebraskan
Editorial Board
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Jeremy Fitzpatrick.Editor, 472-1766
Kathy Steinauer. .Opinion Page Editor
Wendy Mott. Managing Editor
Todd Cooper.Sports Editor
Chris Hopfensperger.Copy Desk Chief
Kim Spurlock.Sower Editor
Kiley Timperley...Senior Photographer
Danger zone
Fans should think before storming field
The scene of fans storming football fields after a big win is
a common sight. Unfortunately the crowds sometimes get
out of hand and people get hurt.
Such was the case last weekend in Madison, Wis. About 70
people were hurt when fans stormed the field after Wisconsin
defeated Michigan,
What happened at Wisconsin could have happened at many
other schools across the country. Hundreds of Cornhusker fans
have been known to take over the field after big wins. Each time
it happens, it is lucky that many fans aren’t seriously hurt.
Ken Cauble, director of university police, said security at
football games has focused on controlling the crowds rather than
stopping them from taking over the field. Guards are supposed
to watch for fans on the ground to prevent anyone from getting
trampled.
Preventive measures are the best option to take in this case. If
stadium security asked fans to remain in their seats after the
game, they would probably be more likely to storm the field.
Cauble said the number of guards patrolling the crowds after
the games is less than during the game because some leave to
patrol traffic. University police should increase the number of
officers patrolling the fans inside the stadium after the game.
More security guards controlling the fans can only increase
security.
Most importantly, fans need to be aware of the danger they
cause when storming the Held. If fans and security officers aren't
careful, what happened in Wisconsin could happen here.
In pieces
Administration can’t forget Middle East
Although the crises in Haiti and Somalia have captured the
attention of the United States, the struggle for peace in the
Middle East should not be forgotten.
Delegates from the Palestinian Liberation Organization and the
Israeli government met Wednesday to discuss resuming peace
talks that broke down Tuesday when the PLO walked out.
The Israelis and the PLO arc negotiating an accord on the
removal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank
city of Jericho. An agreement signed in Washington in September
calls for some Palestinian self-rule in these areas.
It is essential the U.S. government do everything in its power
to keep the talks going. It is in the direct interest of the United
States to see peace between the PLO and Israel become a reality.
The United States has been forced to play a role in keeping
peace in the Middle East since Israel’s creation in 1948. If an
effective peace could be worked out, the United States would be
relieved of some of the pressure of keeping the region secure.
Chief Palestinian delegate Nabil Shaath said after breaking off
the talks that a summit between Israeli prime minister Yitzhak
Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat may be necessary for negoti
ations to resume. Israeli officials said that although they did not
think a summit was essential, they would participate in one if
necessary.
President Clinton and the U.S. government should put whatev
er pressure they can on both sides to continue the talks. If the
Middle East is not secure, neither is the United States.
SUfT editorials represent the official policy of the Fall 1993 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
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.
—-1 -
The Daily Nebraskan welcomes brief letters to the editor from all readers and interested others.
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
should run as a guest opinion. Letters and guest opinions sent to the newspaper become the
property of the Daily Nebraskan and cannot be returned. Anonymous submissions will not be
published. Letters should included the author’s name, year in school, tnojor and group
affiliation, if any. Requests to withhold names will not be granted. Submit material to the Daily
Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St., Lincoln, Neb. 68588-0448. .
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Justice
I think the execution of whomev
er is found guilty of killing Candice
Harms is a far cry from the wishes or
prayers of the Harms family. I don’t
believe they are blood-hungry for jus
tice as some would like to believe.
As Catholics, we believe that capital
punishment is unjustified in any form,
when you toy with life and death,
you tread in waters solely reserved
for God. Roger Bjorklund’s trial is
not about justice, it is about proving
who raped and murdered Candy
Harms.
I remember Stan Harms’ touching
words at Candy’s memorial service
last year at Pius X High School. His
address was not bitter; rather, it gave
the rest of us hope. He told us Candy
had woke him up early the morning
of the memorial service. She had
plenty to tell us that she wanted him
to say that day. At the service, he
conveyed to us all how she didn’t
want us to turn away from God; she
wanted us to embrace Him by at
tending Mass and offering our prayers
to Him. Although choked with emo
tion, Mr. Harms dutifully finished
Candy’s message, afterward return
ing to his seat to embrace his wife.
Judging from what I have seen
and heard, I don’t feel Mr. and Mrs.
Harms are looking for vengeance.
Moreover, they are trying their best
to forgive.
Andrea Vuko
sophomore
international business
Stickers
When will we end this absurdity?
“The College Republicans’ stick
ers serve no function.” Exactly! But
are they really offensive?
To remain politically correct, they
should have stuck with pink hearts,
yellow moons, orange stars, green
clovers and blue diamonds.
Mark T. Voss
junior
business administration
Capital punishment
•
In response to Mark Cederlind
(DN, Nov. 3); Yes, let’s not execute
the man found guilty of killing
Candice Harms. We should show him
love and compassion, and we should
help Candice Harms’ parents and
boyfriend by showing our love and
caring.
We should forgive the killer and
not execute him. Perhaps as a public
we should just put him in prison for
the rest of his life so he can soak up
thousands of our tax dollars for the
next 60 years. Perhaps we could let
him go; that way he could do it to
someone else’s daughter and we could
do this all over again the same time
next year.
Perhaps we could walk out in front
of the County-City Building, throw a
rope over a tree and have us a good
ol’ fashioned lynching. That way
we’ll save thousands of dollars on
jurors, lawyers, judges and prison
time, and justice will be done.
Courtney Parker
senior
criminal justice
David Badders/DN
Hat
I had intended not to write this
letter. I suppose I had not foreseen
anyone writing in response to Chris
topher Woemer’s letter (DN, Nov.
1). It was a letter with no obvious
intent — no logical arguments, no
definite opinions were stated. Indeed
the very subject matter seemed un
worthy of any amount of serious
thought. Now I feel 1 should end this
travesty.
This is it — the expose. Christo
pher Woerner is the boy in the hat.
The joke was on the reader, and the
punchline is that, in responding, we
have given Mr. Woerner that which
he craved — he obviously wrote the
letter to create a controversy about
himself and his beloved hat. Sadly,
in writing this letter, I am contribut
ing to the success of the boy’s ambi
tion.
However, the joke is on you, Mr.
Woerner. Keep wearing your hat ev
ery single day. Keep making your
plays for attention. You can expect
some heads to turn, but do not antic
ipate the respect of the vast majority
of grown men and women who will
not condescend to your relatively low
and extremely boring level.
Michael Munn
sophomore
philosophy
Lutheranism
I would like to make a clarifica
tion concerning the report from the
leadership of the Lutheran Church
__*
about masturbation, homosexuality
and the use of condoms contained in
an editorial reprinted from The Min
nesota Daily (DN, Oct. 26).
The Lutheran Church of Australia
has responded quite differently from
the impression the article taken from
The Minnesota Daily gives concern
ing the Lutheran perspective of ho
mosexuality. The LCA is a partner
church to the American group called
Lutheran Church Missouri Synod.
The position of the published LCA
document on homosexuality is also
accepted by the LCMS. The Austra
lian document states, “God’s Word
is silent about homosexuality as a
propensity. In view of this and in J
light of medical and psychological*
evidence, the church may not con-1
demn or judge homosexual propensi- 1
ty. Homosexuality is part of the mys- 1
terious disturbance and distortion that
has entered God’s creation and His
created social structures. Like dis
ease, it may be seen in the context of
the fall and the resultant intrusion of
disruptive and abnormal forces which
have upset and perverted God’s orig
inal design. God’s will expressed in
His Wond is clear regarding homo
sexual behavior. Such behavior is
against the will of God and hence is
sin.” The Australian article distin
guishes between the “propensity” to
ward same-sex attraction and the “be
havior” of the homosexual lifestyle.
Regardless of the theory one ac
cepts regarding homosexuality, an
attraction toward someone of the
same sex is not considered sinful, as
we view God’s Word. The same-sex
attraction becomes sinful when it is
entertained, gives way to lust or is
acted out in homosexual activity be
tween two individuals. This is the
distinction between propensity and
behavior.
If someone is bom with a physical
deformity, we do not say the defor
mity is sinful. The deformity, as well
as all “disturbance and distortion that
has entered God’s creation” is the
result of the general sinful nature that
infects all of humankind. So it is
with the propensity toward homo
sexuality; the basic attraction is not
sin but a “deformity" of God’s origi
nal intention and natural inclination
of the attraction between men and
women.
The question as to whether the
deformity of a propensity toward the
saqie sex can be changed or not is not
the central focus. The most impor
tant issue is that God can redeem
every one of his children who are all
filled with the propensity to sin by
faith in a personal relationship with
Jesus Christ. Homosexual propensity
is no different than a propensity to
lie, cheat, steal or gossip.
Jim Pennington
graduate student
Minister of the Word
University Lutheran Chapel
