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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 14, 1994)
Opinion Nelnaskan Monday, March 14,1994 Nebraskan Editorial Board University of Nebraska-Lincoln Jeremy Fitzpatrick Rainbow Rowell. . Adeana Left in. . . . Todd Cooper. JeJfZeleny. Sarah Duey. William Lauer. . . . .Editor. 472-1766 .Opinion Page Editor .Managing Editor ..... Sports Editor Associate News Editor Arts <£ Entertainment Editor .Senior Photographer KOI IORI \l Question remains Report doesn \ resolve engineering debate A report on the possible need for a separate engineering college at the University of Nebraska at Omaha will be released today. The report, commissioned by the Universi ty of Nebraska Board of Regents, is expected to recommend the building of an engineering college at UNO. There is no hurry to act on the report. The Nebraska Legisla ture, with only one month left in its session, should not rush to resolve the issue with quick and hurried legislation. The NU Board of Regents and the chancellors of UNO and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln also should not rush to judgment. Despite what the report recommends, there still is considerable debate about whether the University of Nebraska needs two engineering colleges only one hour apart. In an ideal world, UNL, UNO and the University of Nebraska at Kearney could all have engineering colleges. But in tight budget times, NU can afford only one engineering college. Omaha businessmen have said they would help pay for the building of the college. That would be helpful. But who would pay the costs for the college once it is built? If an engineering college is built at UNO, the money to pay for it would have to be taken from other programs. It cannot be built for free. Few people have said they oppose the idea of UNO having an engineering college. The addition of quality programs to the University of Nebraska would help all campuses. But as the NU Board of Regents and the Legislature consider the recommendation to build a separate engineering college at UNO, they need to ask how much it will cost, from where that money will come and exactly why it is being built. Choose sides Be aware ofJJ.S. policy toward China The United States is deciding whether to try to make itself a major player in China, a country that seriously limits the rights of its human citizens. Hello, out there. Does anyone care? A common attitude now indirectly reflects the attitude of Americans following World War I —that of isolationism. Ameri cans then and Nebraskans now are not eager to learn about the affairs of other countries. Most students, in fact, probably don’t even know who the chancellor of Germany is. We say we don’t care because we say we can’t do anything about the world problems. But we can make a difference. Should the United States deal closely with a country that doesn’t allow basic human rights to its own citizens? Secretary of State Warren Christopher says it’s a question of standing up for “core American values.” But is maintaining trade in the Chinese market necessary for our world position? China is certainly one of the largest markets and one of the fastest growing economics in the world. Would renewing Most Favored Nation trading status for China mean the United States condones human rights violations? The questions are many. Uncertainty prevails. But that doesn’t mean that we as U.S. citizens can’t take an active part in our government by voicing our opinions. Even showing a genuine concern is at least a start. After all, participation is something we’re lucky to have the right to do. Take a stand. i m i<»ui \i r<>i i< \ SlafTeditorials represent the official policy of the Spring 1994 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 I I I 11 l< I’t >1 l< \ 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, major 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 OUR PROFESSIONAL STAFF STANDS ULAWTbTfMc. R£SPoNS\B\UTY FOR YoUR PROBLEMS. 1.1 I IFU'n l<> mi I.DIIOK Trigger finger A man cuts off his trigger finger in front of the Connecticut State Cap) tol. Therefore, we need more gun control laws. He didn’t shoot off his finger, did he? He didn’t shoot anyone else, did he? No. He cut off his finger, so obviously he won’t be shooting a gun for quite a while. Everyone in the United States has a constitutional right to bear arms. Everyone who attempts to purchase a firearm legally must fill out paper work concerning whether or not he or she has ever been convicted of a felo ny. If they have, they may not legally purchase a firearm. Gun control laws simply take aim at the law-abiding citizens, not real criminals. Anyone can go and buy a gun out of the trunk of somebody’s car. These arc the people we need to worry about. These are the people who use their illegal firearms to commit crimes. It is not the hunters, not the sportsmen, not the collectors and not the law-abiding citizens. Timothy Miller freshman meteorology Gun control As a proud gun owner, I must respond to the March 10 editorial in the DN regarding gun control. The editor makes the point that he or she cannot understand the emotions that would motivate a person to cut ofThis own finger to show opposition tost i(T er gun control legislation. Apparently the editor does not val ue his or her right to keep and bear arms. 1, on the other hand, value this right above all others, for it is the only mechanism that can prevent the geno cide like what has occurred in Otto man Turkey, Nazi Germany and oc cupied Europe, China, Guatemala, Uganda and Cambodia in this century alone. Some estimates put the death loll from these massacres at nearly 56 million killed by their own govern ments. I agree something needs to be done to curb violent crime, but confis cating guns from the general populace is a dangerous step toward a police state. Gun ownership is the right of the law-abiding and carries with it great responsibility. Contrary to the edi tor's opinions, I know of no instance in which a person was killed by a firearm. A firearm is an inanimate object, capable of no action of its own. People have been killed with fire arms by the untrained and the crimi nal. A better solution to firearms acci dents is more accessible training (pos sibly in the public school system). Laws are already on the books to deal with firearm violence. What is needed is strict enforcement of these laws, not additional laws to punish the law abiding. Kevin Jones senior mechanical engineering o rJ James Mehsling/DN Loudon I would like to offer congratula tions and condolences to Association of Students of the University of Ne braska president-elect Andrew Loudon. He certainly deserves con gratulations for achieving a lofty goal to which he has aspired since he first came to the University of Nebraska Lincoln. However, Loudon’s narrow victory was soured by minuscule voter turnout and by a shameful campaign. Loudon should certainly feel re lieved that he won, but he has nothing to be proud of. Given his “insider” status, his inestimable experience, his powerful party backing and his in credible funding, Loudon should have run away with a landslide victory. Instead, Loudon mustered votes from only 6.6 percent of the student body and only 57 percent of those who voted. Loudon estimates his VISION par ty spent about $2,000 to get its 87 candidates elected. His opposition, RESUME, LETTUCE and Vote for Dave, combined, recruited only about a dozen people and spent only $50. Yet these inexperienced and unorga nized outsiders pulled 43 percent of the vote away from Loudon. Loudon had every advantage going into this election, yet he won with a margin smaller than 2 percent of the student body. This pitiful lack of support will make Loudon’s job as ASUN presi dent difficult. With only 7 percent of the student body behind him, Loudon has no popular mandate to back his actions. Instead his administration will perpetuate the image of ASUN as a separatist and nonresponsive institu tion. However, there arc things Loudon can do to change this. First ot all, he must accept respon sibility for his campaign. It is a sad testimony to Loudon’s popularity that he felt it necessary to wage a $2,000 campaign. Now that the election is over, Loudon must face the mistakes his followers made. It is utterly irre sponsible leadership for Loudon to deny responsibility for campaign vio lations. He should face the charges and either put forward a defense against them or accept the penalty. To simply refuse to pay campaign violation fines is to make a mockery of the institution that Loudon desperate ly needs to bring respect to. Loudon is putting what little respect he has at risk by refusing to face the conse quences of a campaign that was obvi ously carried much too far and was geared only to cover the electoral fail ings of VISION candidates. If all of Loudon’s presidency follows this pre cedent, ASUN will lose what little effectiveness and respect that it now has. The students that ASUN is sup posed to represent deserve much bet ter than that. Justin C. Fisher sophomore math, political science Perspective In response to Christopher Winkclmann’slcttcr to the editor (DN, March 11,1994), I must agree that all people deserve the Bill of Rights, but let’s put things in perspective. Tocompare homosexuality to rape, necrophilia and pedophilia shows not only a lack of compassion for your fellow human but also a major lack of understanding. Those who engage in rape or pedophilia gain pleasure from the psy chological and physical empowerment they have over their victims. The plea sure, thus, becomes the control they have and the helplessness of their victims. An act of homosexuality, as much as this disturbs you, is a natural act between two consenting parties. 1 too have lived in California, but that doesn’t mean anything. People are the same everywhere. The key to living in harmony is education. If no one teaches you these natural aspects of life, then it is your responsibility to go out and learn them on your own. Murder and rape were made illegal because they were destructive to soci ety. Although homosexuals cannot reproduce, they are not really destruc tive either. As long as they are not harming you, iust let people live their lives freely. This is what we call “nat ural life.” Jon Nockels sophomore psychology