OPTNTON Nebraskan
I I I ^1 lY yj Monday, November 15, 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 llopfensperger.Copy Desk ChieJ
Kim Spurlock Sower Editor
Kiley Timperley.Senior Photographer
Guns kill
Victim s parents petition for gun control
The parents of a Japanese exchange student who was shot to
death in Baton Rouge, La., when he went to the wrong
home looking for a Halloween party plan to give President
Clinton a petition signed by about 1.8 million people urging
stronger gun-control laws in the United States.
President Clinton did not ignore the shooting; lie called the
student’s parents to express his condolences. He and other law
makers should not ignore the petition and the strong feelings
behind it.
When a domestic issue such as gun control affects enough
people around the world that a Japanese couple organize a petition
and 1.8 million people sign it, there is an obvious problem with
guns in the United States. Not only Americans are affected by our
terrible crime rate; it is felt by victims around the world. Families
and friends of the tourists killed in Florida would likely agree that
gun-control laws arc strongly needed in the United States.
The House of Representatives passed the Brady Bill last week.
This is the first positive step on the road to passing tougher gun
control and other crime-control bills. The petition shows the
desire for stronger gun control, and American lawmakers should
keep this in mind when voting on legislation such as the Brady
Bill.
The Brady Bill was first proposed nearly a decade ago after
James Brady, President Reagan’s press secretary, was injured in
the assassination attempt on Reagan. Possibly it is finally becom
ing obvious, after thousands of deaths because of handguns, how
badly gun control is needed in the United States.
America entered the age of genetically engineered food
Friday when federal officials approved the use of artificial
ly produced bovine growth hormone in milk cows. This
technology benefits the few at the cost of the many. Also, it raises
troubling questions as to the limits of science in determining what
innovations arc best for society in general.
The hormone, called BGH, is not the first genetically engi
neered product to come onto the market — but it is the most
controversial. It took almost a decade for the Food and Drug
Administration to give its blessing to BGH, and we arc satisfied
that the agency has done its job in putting the safety issue to rest.
But the economic and social costs of BGH do not pencil out.
By 1995, this hormone will lower annual cash income per cow by
more than $30, according to a study conducted by the National
Milk Producers Federation. This will drive smaller Midwestern
dairy farmers off the land at an accelerated rate until only a
relatively few large factory farms remain. Fewer farmers will
mean the demise of rural America.
Congress has slapped a 90-day moratorium on the use of BGH,
and biotech boosters are upset that “politics” are playing a role in
getting new technologies onto the market. Maybe politics should
have no influence on the approval of technology, but the good of
the public should play a crucial role in determining what makes it
from the lab to the supermarket. As other genetically engineered
products await the FDA’s approval, we urge Congress to create a
national biotechnology policy that puts economic, environmental,
social and even ethical factors on the same plane as scientific
ones. „ ..
— The Minnesota Daily
University of Minnesota
Stall editorials represent the olTicial policy of the Fall 1993 Daily Nebraskan Policy is set by
the Daily Nebraskan Hditorial Board. Hditonals do not necessarily reflect the views of the
university, its employees, the students or the NU Board of Regents Hditorial 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 interested others
Letters will be selected lor 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
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Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St., Lincoln, Neb. 68588-0448
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Gun control
Unfortunately for the Daily Ne
braskan and its readers, the editorial
staff has chosen to not only believe
the rhetoric of gun control advocates
but champion their cause as well. In
an editorial (DN. Nov. 1 1), the Daily
Nebraskan shows the results of a sur
vey that claims public approval for
gun control and support this by say
ing it is a step in the right direction.
This is only a step if you believe
in regressive rather than progressive
crime control. The public perception
of gun control is that it equates crime
control, hence you will find over
whelming support for such legisla
tion. However, this is the wrong view
to hold, as the National Rifle Associ
ation has been trying to tell Congress
and the public ever since the Brady
Bill was first introduced. In cities
where handguns arc banned complete
ly, such as Detroit and Miami, crime
has not been reduced. In fact, hand
gun-related crimes have been on a
steady increase since the enactment
of the legislation.
This is not crime control; rather, it
fosters an environment whereby law
abiding citizens can do nothing to
protect themselves, their families or
their property from those people who
have no qualms about denying them
life or property.
Granted, a five-day waiting peri
od is not excessive. However, crimi
nals do not go to the local sporting
goods store to buy their weapons.
They are purchased through pawn
shops, garage sales, want ads or the
“black market.” The Brady Bill
makes no provisions for these cir
cumstances. If the Brady Bill is
passed, much to the DN’s wishes,
then those who legally own firearms
and do not use them with malicious
intent will realize the truth of an old
adage; Outlaw guns and only out
laws will have guns.
John W. Copeland
freshman
criminal justice, political science
Barney bash
I was personally offended by the
University Program Council’s Barney
Bash and the message it sent about
the acceptability of lashing out phys
ically at an object or individual, and
also the negative way it portrayed
the university.
I am a non-traditional student with
a 4-year-old son, and yes, he docs
enjoy Barney. I hope he learns from
Barney and me to treat others with
respect and understanding, a mes
sage UPC and the UNL students par
ticipating have failed to understand.
I feel UPC used incredibly poor judg
ment when planning this activity that
promotes physical violence to those
things or people that we don’t appre
ciate.
The only thing the media did was
expose this stupidity to the whole
country. Hopefully they will also take
the time to let the whole country
know that many UNI. students have
better things to do with their time
and better ways of dealing with stress!
Also, some of us have a good value
system, similar to what Barney tries
to teach young children.
Daina Samuclson
sophomore
business management
David Badders/DN
‘Facts’
Good ol’ Daily Nebraskan. You
never let me down. No matter what
the issue, you always take the liberal
side. I usually tolerate it, but what I
read in the editorial Thursday (DN,
Nov. 11) made me laugh. The piece
read: “The man whose wife cut off
his penis was found innocent
Wednesday of sexually assaulting her.
Looking at the facts presented by the
media about the case, it seems the
jury did not come to a fair conclu
sion.”
Excuse me? Looking at the facts
presented by the media? Well, those
silly jurors! Who do they think they
arc, basing their decision on actual
facts? Where do they get off using
that crazy thing called the criminal
justice system? Why arc they doing
that when they could be using actual
media facts?
Come on DN, it’s about time you
started seeing both sides instead of
automatically jumping clear to the
left.
Dallas M. Beshalcr
sophomore
broadcasting
Hazing
Mr. Bombergcr (DN, Nov. 12),
it’s great to sec that we have such an
expert as yourself here at UNL. It
appears you know everything from
Brent Burmood’s personal feelings
(DN, Nov. 9) to the operation of fra
ternities. You wrote with such star
(ling insight that it’s plain to see that
you must have lived in every frater
nity on campus.
Why can’t you comprehend that
Mr. Burmood could possibly be up
set with both fraternities who ha/e
and critics like yourself who assume
since one hazes, they all must. Of
course we all feel bad for Jeff Knoll,
but we don’t need any across-the
board slander because there are many
fraternities that don’t ha/e. To group
non-hazers and hazers together just
because they are fraternities is like
grouping Protestants and Catholics
together because they arc religions.
1 happen to be a member of a non
hazing fraternity, and I resent being
grouped that way. To add to the ar
gument against the fraternity image,
my wife lived on Abel 12 a few years
ago. I saw more drunk, rude morons
roaming the halls there than I did in
my fraternity, Chi Phi. Your letters
make it clear that people like your
self can’t face the fact that fraternity
guys aren’t any different from you.
Jeff Moran
senior
biology
‘Truth’
Mr. Robert Tobin (DN. Nov. 11).
I’m glad you are a strong enough
person to publicly make known your
belief in Jesus Christ and the messi
ah. It takes courage and great inner
power to speak against the norms of
society. I respect your belief but do
not agree and am just as willing to
brave the norms as you were in order
to defend my beliefs.
Tobin claims the messiah was to
make things better after his coming.
Does he believe this to be in a spiri
tual or a material sense? Multitudes
have found their salvation in Jesus
Christ. His supreme sacrifice and
God’s undying love personified on a
cross of earthly material has touched
the hearts and saved the souls of bil
lions. For these billions things are
definitely a lot better.
Obviously Tobin views the deliv
erer on a more worldly level, a level
that God warned us about. If the mes
siah were to come to “make things
better” in the sense Tobin describes
them, then I guess Thomas Edison,
Henry Ford and the guy who invent
ed Velcro have legitimate cases. II
the Lord’s nature were that much
like ours that his son will only “make
things better for us,” then I guess
Tobin figured him out.
Being in a scientific field, it sad
dens me to see people use their gifts
of knowledge and reason to chal
lenge the truth when instead it was to
be used to find it. Work to find your
hears, for here will appear the truth.
Tony Fulton
senior
mechanical engineering
