Tuesday, January 30, 1996 Page 4
Daily
Nebraskan
Editorial Board
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
J. Christopher Haiti.Editor, 472-1766
Doug Kouma .Managing Editor
Doug Peters. Opinion Page Editor
Sarah Scalet.Associate News Editor
Matt Waite.Associate News Editor
Michelle Garner.Wire Editor
Jennifer Mapes....Columnist
■ '-•'•Vv'y'-' __:___:_;_
_ _ _ ^ 3ret Gottschall/DN
Waterworid
New sculpture will outsplash Broyhill
It isn’t easy to say goodbye.
Broyhill fountain is a spot where memories have been made, and
some students are upset, understandably, about its looming destruc
tion.
But preliminary design plans released last week for the new union
plaza are encouraging.
Fond memories aside, it seems that future University of Nebraska
Lincoln students will have something even better than Broyhill foun
tain.
They II have something that is useful — and attractive — year
round.
Something that draws people to the green space, and encourages
them to enjoy it.
Something with a permanent stage, for more concerts or just for
hanging out.
And, let’s not forget, something that works as it should and may
even run all year long.
Kim Todd, campus landscape architect and interim director of
physical campus planning, presented three design plans last week
to different student groups.
The first of the designs is a circular fountain with jets shooting
water into the center. The second is a bed of rocks interspersed with
jets. The third is a more uniform bed of rocks, again interspersed
with water jets, that could possibly extend the width of the Ne
braska Union.
But these plans aren’t set in stone, not yet anyway. Todd and her
associates seem to be asking for feedback, and listening to it.
And they have all their bases covered.
Like seating, in the winter and the summer. And what kind of
noise the fountain will make. And how the stage will fit in.
Beyond that, they’re looking at the bigger picture. They’re think
ing about what the fountain will look like when approached from
different directions.
Calling Broyhill’s replacement a “water sculpture” isn’t just a
’90s way of saying fountain. The new design will be part of a com
plete, well-planned union plaza, with water as the centerpiece.
The day Broyhill is torn down will be sad indeed. But, if plans
continue as presented, the next generation of UNL students will
have a more practical place to make memories, all year long.
Editorial policy
Staff editorials represent the official
policy of the Spring 1996 Daily Ne
braskan. Policy is set by the Daily
Nebraskan Editorial Board. Editorials
do not necessarily reflect the views of
the university, its employees, the stu
dents or the NU Board of Regents.
Editorial columns represent the opin
ion of the author. The regents publish
the Daily Nebraskan. They establish
the UNL Publications Board to super
vise the daily production of the paper.
According to policy set by the regents,
responsibility for die editorial content
of the newspaper lies solely in the
hands of its students.
Letter policy
The Daily Nebraskan welcomes brief letters to the
editor from all readers and interested others. Letters
will be selected fra- 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 mate
rial as guest opinions. The editor decides whether
material should run as a guest opinion. Letters and
guest opinions sent to the newspaper become die
property of the Daily Nebraskan and cannot be re
turned. Anonymous submissions will not be pub
lished. Letters should include the author’s name, year
in school, major and group affiliation, if any. Re
quests to withhold names will not be granted. Submit
material to: Daily Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union,
1400 R St. Lincoln, Neb. 68588-0448.
-'Y f
\ yrtBlLTHH® fioes MUfflEK Alle-wj /a
COliHE V)HC> CaroNY HNYK PETER.
lT , Jr
x-n ! _'-A
sNOw kidding
In response to your article
printed Monday entitled “Snow
Daze,” I agree that the lack of
response from both the city and
UNL in cleanup after last Friday’s
snow storm is both upsetting and
frustrating. I am more concerned
with the school’s apathy toward the
safety of its students. Most elemen
tary schools’ classes are canceled
not because of snow, but because of
the horrible wind chill factors and
the danger of the children walking in
them. Just because we are no longer
children does no mean that we are
not just as affected by walking to
our classes in minus 50 degree wind
chills. It may not even be so bad to
walk in after the snow has stopped,
if a good job of snow and ice
removal followed. Even walking to
classes today posed a threat to the
well-being of the students. Both the
school and sorority/fratemity houses
need to do much better jobs of
making the sidewalks safer to use.
I believe that class cancellations
should be looked at a little more
closely, and that a quick return to
the classrooms be made by simply
making the job of getting there a
little less risky.
Leigh Ramert
freshman
mechanical engineering
via e-mail
Gambling debate
hypocritical
I find the current discussion
regarding the expansion of gambling
in Nebraska somewhat confusing
and not just a little hypocritical.
How can one be “opposed” to
gambling, and not take a stand on
eliminating ALL gambling in the
State? Of course, that woLid mean
the end of the horse racing industry,
pickle cards for a variety of benefits,
and the keno parlors that seem to be
sprouting up all over. And it would
also eliminate the sale of the instant
winner games, as well as the
Nebraska and multi-state lotteries.
Not a particularly popular position,
considering the current tax structure,
and good old human greed.
When all is said and done, isn’t
the current discussion about
gambling centered on convenience?
Is it more convenient for Nebras
kans to gamble in Nebraska (with
the state benefiting from a percent
age of the take), or having Nebras
kans travel to South Dakota and
Iowa, and leaving their money
there?
Of course, taking the high moral
road for the sake of political
expediency, while choosing to
ignore the existing problems has
always been a popular position for
politicians.
Jerry Frobom
associate professor
University Libraries
via e-mail
1-,
I - , -w
Bret Gottschall/DN
Bible used as crutch
Amy Rager, chairwoman of the
College Republicans, said that she
opposed legal recognition of gay
marriages because “I believe in the
values of the Bible, and I think it’s
wrong according to God’s stan
dards.”
The fastest-growing Christian
denomination in the world is the
mostly gay Metropolitan Commu
nity Church. These people, as do
many other Christians and Jews,
don’t see gay marriage as “wrong.”
The two most fundamental
principles of the Bible are to love
God and your neighbor with all of
your heart, soul and energy. To deny
any group of people basic civil
rights is certainly not very loving—
even if you think the people are
“wrong.” God did not intend on the
Bible to be used as a weapon against
any of his people. It’s time to stop
using the Bible as a crutch for
homophobia.
Aren’t Republicans the ones who
are sick of being limited by the
government? Remember, this is
supposed to be a free country.
Andy Bosselman
junior
advertising
via e-mail
An Aggie on Phillips
This letter is in response to
Amanda Hiner’s letter to the editor
concerning Lawrence Phillips, and
the disciplinary actions taken toward
him. Ms. Hiner writes that “if he
was a regular student, he would
have been expelled.” Now I ask you,
if Lawrence Phillips was a regular
student, would the issue have
received the coverage that it did?
Would he have been publicly
vilified, and held up as a symbol of
what’s wrong with collegiate
athletes? No.
Before the college football
season began, Sports Illustrated’s
new division, Sports Illustrated
Presents, published a college
football preview. In it, a feature
article on Mr. Phillips. After the
incident with his ex-girlfriend, I
went back and read that article. In it,
Mr. Phillips talks about his “need to
learn to control his anger” and how
football saved him from trouble as a
youngster. Given the events that
have taken place since, that article is
- sadly almost prophetic.
A final note: This is my first time
perusing the on-line edition of your
newspaper, and I like what I see.
Keep up the good work.
James Taglienti
freshman
journalism
Texas A&M University
via e-mail
Stargazer
I would like to add to Professor
Martin Gaskell’s response to Kasey
Kerber’s article about the As
tronomy 103 class. I was enrolled in
Professor Gaskell’s class as a
freshman, along with two of my
friends. We learned a lot in the
class, and Professor Gaskell was
always available to help us when
ever we had a question. I will be
graduating in May, and I feel that
Astronomy 103 was one of the most
enjoyable classes I have taken at
UNL.
Jenny Plager
senior
accounting
