Opinion Wednesday, August 24, 1994 Page 4 Nebraskan Editorial Board University of Nebraska-Lincoln JejfZelenv..Editor. 472-1766 Kara Morrison....Opinion Page Editor Angie Brunkow.. .Managing Editor Jeffrey Robb .......Associate News Editor Rainbow Rowell.Columnist/Associate News Editor Kiley Christian..Photography Director Mike Lewis.. . Copy Desk Chief James Mehsling.Cartoonist 1 .1>11 OKI vl Pavement for pizza UNL fails in attempt to repay neighbor It seems almost ironic that 17 years of pizza, pasta and pesto were replaced by 17 asphalt parking stalls at the comer of 13th and Q streets. After nearly two years of threatened demolitions and last-minute reprieves, daVinci’s finally met its maker in May. The only folks to benefit from the restaurants’ razing are 17 fortunate university faculty and staff members who can temporarily park in the Area 10 lot. The rest of the university and downtown community who first enjoyed Pontillo’s and later daVinci’s are left hungry. But the university, which eventually plans to turn the lot into a grand entrance to City Campus, had a chance to pay daVinci’s back this summer when a spot in the Nebraska Union food court opened up. DaVinci’s lost again when a nationally franchised restaurant was awarded the bid over the locally owned and operated store. Never mind what daVinci’s has given to the Lincoln community. In the past 10 years, the restaurant has served Easter dinner to more than 5,000 homeless people, according to co-owner Kent Knudson. That community spirit apparently couldn’t cut through the universi ty bureaucracy. “You can’t change the roles on the bids,” said Darryl Swanson, director of the Nebraska Unions. . We all want to see the university grow and prosper. And at times that means turning businesses and property into parking lots, perform ing art centers and parks. But UNL had a chance UNL had to repay a community neighbor, and it let them down. Safe housing New officers worth added cost On Feb. 25.1994, a man entered an unlocked door at Alpha Chi Omega Sorority, made his way to a students' room, hid in a closet and waited. Luckily, the suspect fled soon after, but not until one woman suffered cuts and bruises to her face. With the addition of two new community service officers and expanded patrol routes to include grcck houses at the University of Ncbraska-Lincoln, such incidents may not have to be repeated. University Police Chief Ken Caublc said the new officers and routes were added because campus administrators wanted more security on campus. The grcck system will pay a total of $8,000 annually to help cover new expenses. Though it is sad such security measures are becoming necessary, the change will undoubtedly be worth the cost. Cauble said the community service officers, unlike police officers, are unarmed and cannot make arrests. The officers must ask for the house director’s permission to walk through sororities and must alert house officers before entering fraternities. Cauble said the new officers were added to increase campus safety and not to catch students drinking in grcck houses. If. in the meantime the presence of the new officers encourages more responsible behavior, the added security will be a plus. All in all. the additional officers and expanded patrol routes seem to benefit everyone. i IH I < >l1 K \ 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 fti / AHb« \S \T THM Yoo THESE St »A\kv5TotANT|C \ ASSNOLT WeM t^oR? TT--—I!-1 OH-ERl SELF MxjR secoA^ KVvE^nv^t At najorK Ml< II \KI .1 ( Ml( I Violence hits dose to home Where I come from, crime is common. So common, in fact, that most incidents go unmenlioned — or worse, unnoticed. I suppose that’s bound to happen when you put 8 million people next to each other. But with all the murders and rapes and every other conceivable inhu mane act that occurs in Chicago, none of the violence alTccted me. Two weeks ago, the random disbursement of misfortune caught up with my family and paid us a most peculiar visit. Like all the strange events that seem to find their way into my life, it could have been worse. On the night of Aug. 9, in a church parking lot three blocks from my house and just one block from a police station, an undercover officer arrested a man on charges of trying to arrange the murder of my sister. At 3 a.m. we received a phone call from police informing us of the arrest and the details involved. The man was in custody, and the potential for harm was eliminated, but the police would send a car around our block throughout the night—just in case. I’ve learned that a person plotting to kill usually knows his or her victim. In this case, the man in question was someone we knew; in fact, he had been close to our family. Surprisingly to us, though maybe not to you, the man arrested was my sister’s ex-boyfriend. His name is Kevin Schwall, and if you lived in the Chicago area or if you watched WGN on cable, you would recognize the name. He has become a household conversation piece — not only for what he was charged but also for what he is: a young, white male who lives in a prominent North Shore suburb. Kevin is educated (the high school r On the night of Aug. 9, in a church parking lot three blocks from my house and just one block from a police station, a man was arrested by an undercover officer on charges of trying to arrange the murder of my sister. he attended consistently is ranked among the best in the country, and he was to attend Loyola University at Chicago in the fall), disciplined (he has worked after school since eighth grade) and respected by his peers and ciders. This is what has everyone in the ana dumbfounded. According to many locals, this sort of thing doesn’t happen in their neighborhood. Since this whole thing began. I’ve noticed a certain attitude about crime that exists in many Caucasian minds that is both naive and stupid. Horrible things aren’t limited to black. Hispanic, poor, inner-city neighbor hoods. My family has found that out firsthand. We are fortunate — my sister especially—that the possible hit was prevented. The thought of what might have been can keep you up at night. What if he had found a legit hit man? What if he had decided to do it himself? He has been behind bars up until last Thursday. That day his parents put their house on the line to make Kevin’s $50,000 bail. He can’t leave the house, but he lives fewer than 10 blocks away. The most disturbing and defining aspect of this situation, however, is the method he is charged with using to plan her execution. You see, he said he wanted not only my sister killed but also his 7-month-old child, which she was carrying. He told the police during questioning that he didn’t want to be a father. I guess at any price. The police have it all on videotape and audio tape. How he wanted it to look like a robbery attempt because she worked late at a restaurant. How he wanted her shot in the stomach so, just in case she lived, the baby definitely would be killed. He said he didn’t want a drivc-by — too uncertain. And it had to be done by the 12lh of the month—the day he was to begin child support responsi bilities. It comes down to Kevin apparently not wanting to take responsibility for his actions, but it stretches into much more — the unborn child’s rights, for instance. The way we try to make problems go away instead of facing and working through them. The breakdown of the family unit in America. Kevin has 25 to 50 years, if convicted, to think about what he did and where he went wrong. My sister has two months to think of a way to tell her child that its father is charged with trying to steal away its life. Jntttee h a Juaior aewi-edltorial aad broadcaitiag major aad a Dally Ncbraikaa colu maiit. 1 The Daily Nebraskan wants to hear from you. If you want to voice your opinion about an article that appears in the newspaper, let us know. Just write a brief letter to the editor and sign it (don’t forget your student ID number) and mail it to the Daily Nebras kan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 R Street, Lincoln, NE 68588-0448, or stop by the office in the basement of the Nebraska Union and visit with us. We’re all ears.