V \l I KOI Sll K
Paul’s potpourri of ponderings
My writing career at the Daily
Nebraskan will soon end.
There is so much to write
about, it’s difficult to decide on a
topic.
I considered writing about that
young man in Singapore who chose to
spray-paint cars and is going to get the
whippin’ of his life, and how if he was
smart he would have come over here
and done it, for in the United States
one can simply buy a “good” lawyer
and get off scot-free. How embarrass
ing it is that an American citizen went
into another country and vandalized
its property, and more so that our
nation has the nerve to request he
receive special treatment. He chose to
break their laws, knowing the conse
quences.
vjoou thing wc Americans are so
humane. We’re so compassionate, we
simply cage people up like animals.
I could write about that woman
who was struck by a Domino’s Pizza
truck that ran a red light. She spent a
few hours in the hospital for minimal
injuries and sued the company for $78
million. .$78 million! They should
have given her a couple grand and
given the rest to the sick and homeless
or to the environmental movement, or
they should have used the money to
form a new support group for people
who have been so deeply traumatized
by minor accidents.
Speakingofjuslice, how about that
Barney/Bjorklund trial? Typical case
of the inconsistencies and injustice of
the death penalty, 1 say. One man gets
off because he turns in his accomplice
fi rs t, wh i le t he other man acts as scape
goat. We’re sure quick to hang in this
country and slow to change the under
lying causes of violence.
Another good topic would be Judge
Endacott and his intimacy with the
jury. 1 believe Bjorklund received a
fair trial, but what’s the judge doing
praying with the jury? And why is he
hugging them? And what’s this about
Typical case of the
inconsistencies and injustice of
the death penalty, I say. One man
gets off because he turns in his
accomplice first, while the other
man acts as scapegoat.
the jury giving him a chocolate pie
after the trial? Sounds a little fishy, if
not a little above and beyond the call
of duty. Yum, yum, this talk about
pi/./a and pie is making me hungry.
Speaking of food, I could write
about the commercialization of our
football team. This came to mind to
day when I heard the new Runza
advertisement featuring that hero Trev
Alberts. How about that huge salary
Tom Osborne receives while his uni
versity falls apart? How about those
poor seats students continue to pay too
much for? If I were Association of
Students of the University of Nebras
ka president, fdcall for a boycott and
make a national scene — picketing,
protesting, the works. They’d catch
on. Don’t worry, though; Loudon is
gonna tell ‘cm to quit that, and with
the vast authority the regents have
given him, things will change. Sure,
he gets no vote, but they’ve been so
kind to let him represent 24,000 stu
dents by coming to their meetings.
Those nice regents.
Where was the university band
during the Orange Bowl? I guess Hol
lywood stars are more exciting, be
cause our band received minuscule
TV coverage at halftime. To further
commercialize football, the universi
ty is going to install multimillion
dollar video screens to be paid for
partially by advertisers. Now football
games can be as good as TV. with
commercials and all. Cool!
I could write about Clinton’s health
care plan, and how it continues tc
assure that billions of dollars will be
channeled through the health-care
leeches, the insurance companies. I
say we bypass these parasites, remove
the loopholes from the rich in the
upper tax brackets and use that money
to pay the doctors directly for health
care. Also, there is no need to help the
wealthy with their health care—only
those in need. In Clinton’s program,
employers will be required to insure
all employees. Layoffs will result from
his plan, but not in the insurance
company offices.
1 could write about the new world
wide trade agreement, and how it will
result in rampant environmental de
struction worldwide, as powerful cor
porate interests go into Third World
nations and freely exploit their re
sources more than they already are.
The rich nations will prosper at the
expense of the less developed. At last,
the final frontierofthc corporate world
is here.
Another option was to write about
the abuse of our national forests by
elite logging, mining and ranching
interests, and how the government is
losing money subsidizing these
nonsustainablc practices.
1 even considered writing about
those sophisticated fraternity party
shirts. Can those guys party or what?
Then again, 1 could just write about
a little of everything.
Rooster is a senior soil science major and
a Daily Nebraskan columnist.
P\l I \ L.\\'I(«NK
Lincoln’s meat not just steaks
More than nine months ago, 1
arrived in the capital city
with a zillion boxes, sham
poo, enough computer equipment to
launch a small jet and a prayer.
I also came with some skepticism
that I wouldn’t be able to find any
thing in Lincoln. It wasn’t thejigsaw
puzzle of one-way streets and con
struction barriers; it was my lack of
hope for this pseudo-city. I wasn’t a
Lincolnite. I thought, and I’d never be
one.
Like any peon freshman, I missed
home. It was more than my best friend,
my dog, my mom and my own shower.
It was the big “O” fading off into the
distance as I traveled down Interstate
SO to a foreign land.
Living on the outskirts ol Omaha
for more than 1S years, I grew fond of
this metropolitan oasis on the prairie
and came to realize we did more than
“make meal.”
There was more between Denver
and Chicago than a few hundred rest
areas and Stuckey’s. There was Oma
ha. Lincoln was just another tourist
attraction, like Chimney Rock or
Carhcngc.
I always thought of Lincoln as a
large suburb, kind of a scale model of
Omaha, full of senators, college stu
dents, grandparents and psychotically
obsessed Huskcr fans.
In the big petri dish of Nebraska,
Lincoln was a little germ, and Omaha
was a full-blown virus.
Nine months later, the cold war is
over, and my perception of Lincoln
has warmed up. The people aren’t a
bunch of clones, and it’s not the cul
tural black hole of the Midwest.
Omaha, of course, is a much larger
city than Lincoln, and things, on the
whole, arc just built on a grander
scale, with the exception of the Uni
versity of Ncbraska-Lincoln and ath
letic egos.
Omaha has larger museums, mov
ie theaters, parking lots and rats. The
Haymarket is a Barbie-esque version
of the Old Market, and the Folsom
Children’s Zoo is a fishbowl com
pared to the ocean of the Henry Doorly
I always thought of Lincoln as a
large suburb, kind of a scale
model of Omaha, full of senators,
college students, grandparents
and psychotically obsessed
Husker fans.
Zoo. Omaha has four large shopping
malls that make Gateway look like a
glorified 7-Eleven. Lincoln Munici
pal Airport is a fly strip compared to
Epplcy Airfield.
Omaha’s corporate base is larger,
and it is more densely and permanent
ly populated with larger families.
There’s a good reason for this, howev
er.
Lincoln’s population takes a se
vere beating. It’s the most nomadic
area on the map. On a given fall
Saturday, the population of Memorial
Stadium becomes the third largest
“city” in Nebraska. But, after a few
beers and bad calls, everyone goes
home. Throngs of college students
come down in the fall, and senators
mosey in when the Legislature is in
session.
But this cozy small-town atmo
sphere is kind of good. Lincoln has
less crime, I think, because people
aren’t here long enough to hate each
other. Lincoln’s streets, unlike Oma
ha’s, aren’t continually polluted with
barricades, cones and road kill.
Lincoln, being farther south, is
considerably warmer than Omaha at
significant times of the year like, oh,
let’s say the middle of January. It’s not
like traveling from Siberia to Ecua
dor, but it’s a significant improve
ment.
One of my biggest fears about leav
ing Omaha had to do with the culture
clash. I thought the most exciting
events in Lincoln would be a docu
mentary film festival on prairie dirt
(sorry, soil) and a John Denver lip
sync contest.
In the past nine months. I’ve met
some of the biggest names in jazz.
rock and classical music. Famous bal
let companies and artists have wan
dered through here. Prominent actors
and actresses, instructors and other
entertainers have all stopped in Lin
coln. And, each one talked about how
much they underestimated the cultur
al base of this city and how surprised
they were when they came.
Touring artists aren’t the only ones
responsible. Local artists and enter
tainers — from bar bands to faculty
photographers — have made Lincoln
an internationally renowned place
to perform, teach and learn to create.
Every individual and organization
assoc iated with UNL’sCollege of Fine
and Performing Arts, the Wagon Train
Project, the Lincoln Association for
Traditional Arts, the Home Concert
Association, the Lincoln Symphony
Orchestra, downtown bars and other
Lincoln groups are responsible for
fostering local talent and bringing in
new talent to the capital city.
Withall thispraise, I don’t mean to
sell Omaha short by making it sound
like some two-bit traveling fleacircus.
Omaha has a strong cultural base, and
I’ve known that for a long time, but it
does have competition down south.
Omaha and Lincoln have their
strong and weak points, and together
they generate a strong image for Ne
braska. Maybe I’d even find some
hidden notoriety in ScottsbluPf or
Ogallala if I looked beyond the corn
stalks.
Although it’s not New York, Lon
don or Paris, Lincoln does have a
stake, not just steaks, of which it can
be proud.
I.avigne is a freshman news-editorial
major and a Daily Nebraskan columnist.
NING
INTERNATIONAL
“The Make Your Own Jewelry Store”
1 0% OFF Purchase with this Ad
Fantastic Inventory of Beads • Supplies • Classes
438-2828
1637 P Streef Suite B _Next to Pickle;
"...Willv. s('\v, pl«i\till. A \(‘l\('l voice
l)i<> enough lo till <i (iinyon."
r
"...a little bit of jazz, a little
bit of rhythm and blues, and
a little bit of soul."
IN CONCERT
JANE POWELL
April 18, 1994
7:30 PM
Centennial Room
Nebraska Union
UNL Students - $3
Public $5
Tickets available at the door.
For more information call
472-8146, or call The UPC
Events Hotline at 472-8150.
With good behavior, you'll be
out in just 5 months.
With a 4 year college degree, you can begin your career in law
as a paralegal in just 5 months.
• Approved by the American Bar Association
• Free lifetime national placement assistance
• Financial aid available for eligible students
• Includes a 100 hour internship
Call today for a free video "Your Career In Law"
1-800-848-0550
DENVER PARALEGAL
INSTITUTE
1401 19th Street Denver, CO 80202
□ Please provide information on the paralegal profession.
□ Please send free video "Your Career In Law"
UNL
Name __
Address ____
City___
State_Z'P.
Phone_a9®
Graduation Date _
DENVER PARALEGAL INSTITUTE
1401 19th Street
Denver. CO 80202
1 -800-848-0550
We want you back!
• Tired of high utility bills?
• Tired of a landlord who won’t fix things?
• Want someone to cook your food for you?
• Tired of hunting for a parking space every
time you go to class?
• Want someone to clean your bathroom?
• Not as cheap as you thought to live off-campus?
• Tired of roommates who won't pay bills?
• Would you like access to more computers?
Consider living in the halls again next year.
You can receive a $150 discount for next year.
For more information, contact University Housing,
472-3561.
