EDITOR
DougKouma
OPINION
EDITOR
Anne Hjersman
EDITORIAL
BOARD
Doug Peters
Matt Waite
Paula Lavigne
Mitch Sherman
Anthony Nguyen
OUR MEW
Money talks
Congress takes dollars,
doesrit make change
In its October 1996 issue, Mother Jones
magazine declares Rep. Jon Christensen, R
Neb., one of “the most rotten eggs now sit
ting in Congress,” throwing him in among
Newt Gingrich and the “Dirty Dozen.”
He may be rotten, _
but he’s sitting pretty.
As a freshman
member of the House of
Representatives,
Christensen was given a
seat on the most power
ful money committee in
the House: Ways and
Means. And his re-elec
tion chances look strong.
While doling out tax
breaks to the wealthy,
the representative from
Omaha used his power
position to raise what
Mother Jones calls a
“staggering” $845,232
in campaign contribu
tions during 1995 and
the first four months of
this year.
fcfc
Money has
always
mattered
in Con
gress, hut
now it
seems
that's all
that
counts"
The magazine says
Christensen warmed to the task of fund rais
ing even before he took office.
“At a time when most newcomers hadn’t
yet unpacked their bags, Christensen raised
$60,000 in soft money for the Republican
Party from just nine Omaha-area businesses,”
the magazine reports. “Some of the contribu
tors said that the money was meant to secure
a Ways and Means seat for Christensen.”
That initiative paid off.
It’s a story of money taken and favors
returned.
It’s the story of the new breed of Con
gress members.
Money has always mattered in Congress,
but now it seems that’s all that counts.
With Christensen’s entrance and Sen.
James Exon’s impending exit, Nebraska is
ushering in a new era in congressional poli
tics.
Money talks.
It talks so loud, in fact, it is drowning out
the voices of the constituents Congress is sup
posed to serve.
(kin ban right on target
The domestic violence gun ban, which
was inserted into the spending bill that is be
fore the Senate this week, is a good example
of how election-year politicking can some
times take a back seat to common-sense leg
islation. Congressional Republicans, usually
strict opponents of gun bans of any sort,
worked with Democrats and the White House
to sort out the wording of a ban on gun own
ership for anyone convicted of a misdemeanor
involving domestic violence. Every senator
who backed the inclusion of the gun ban —
particularly the Republicans — should be
congratulated for making a tough decision
within a few weeks of Election Day, a time
when tough decisions are at their toughest.
Editorial Policy
Unsigned editorials are the opinions of die PbD
1996 Daily Nebraskan. They do not neces
sarily reflect the views of fee University of
Nebnska-Lincoln, its employees, its student
body or the University of Nebraska Board of
Regents. Acohimnissoley the opinion of its
anthoc. The Board of Regents serves as pub
lisher offeDeOyNebnikan; policy is set by
the Daily Nebrwkaa Editorial Bomd. Urn
UNL Publications Board, esuMirimdby the
sqgmss, snpcrvieci h prodnctionufdmnesw
ptfw A(Witii^tnpnKryM*liyl>i»iwit«
> reqponsibflityfcrlhcetBtorial content of the
, newspaper lies solely in the hands of Ms sta
Letter Policy
11k DsifyNebraskaa welcomes facief let
ters to the editor and guest column*, but
does not guanmtee their publication. The
Daily Nebraskan retains the right to edit
or rgect any nuRerialsubmi^d. Submit
ted material becomes property^ the
Deify Nebnukan aid cannot be retomed.
Anonymous aohmiaaions will not be
if any. Submit material to: Daily Nebras
kan, 94 Nebraska Union, 1400R St Lin
coln, Neb. 68588-0448. E-mail:
kttenfcnnlinfo.iml.edu.
MEHSLING'S MEW
OnoUGoTAVAC*R
HOW \4W wKnou '
JOST USE MvC&lUJWR
VV\CML
KBMMM'
n
1
GUEST VIEW j
Cliff
HICKS
No more prejudice, please
I’m about to say something that is
going to live with me for the rest of
my life. It is not to be taken out of
context, and don’t bother reading it
if you don’t {dan on finishing the
column.
I am a white male American, and
I am tired of feeling ashamed of this
fact.
There. Now that it is out of the
way and people are fuming and
ready to bum my effigy, let me
explain what I mean by this.
I believe that racism is indeed
still alive and kicking in America,
unfortunately, as is gender discrimi
nation. I’d also like to believe I’m
not a racist.
But I can’t be sure. Am I a racist
because I don’t have as many black
friends as I do white friends? I hope
not. My friends are my friends. Most
people don’t say “Well, he’s going to
be my friend.” You just make
friends, you know?
If I meet someone and we share
similar interests and compatible
personalities, then I subconsciously
become friends with them. That’s
the way it works.
' Now, that I have pointed this out,
I will return to my statement and try
to explain it. I watched “Malcolm
X” over the weekend, and I felt
ashamed to be white. We got into a
discussion in one of my classes
about the oppression of the Native
Americans, and I felt ashamed to be
white. I was reading a piece on the
Internet that said one in four college
men admit to having done some
thing that could be considered
“rape,” and I felt ashamed to be
male.
And as I’ve said, I’m not racist
nor am I violent man. My ex
girlfriends would tell you I’m as
gentle as can be, and I’ve got a
couple blade friends who would pick
a fight with you if you called me
racist.
But yes, I know that institutional
- ■
- - —
«
I am a white male
American, and I am
tired of feeling
ashamed of this
fact. ”
racism does exist. It’s not hard to see
that equality still isn’t here and has
a long way to go before we’ll be
even close.
Yes, I know that gender discrimi
nation, sexual harassment and date
rape are still very real problems in
America. These are problems that
America has got to deal with too.
I agree that education is the place
to start. Teach the kids about what’s
gone tm before and teach them not
to do it. Educate them about the
things that are wrong with the world
and how, when they grow up, they
can fix them, or at least start the
process.
Still, please don’t make the
children feel bad about being white.
I hope that blacks are proud of their
heritage, and I’d like whites to be
able to have some pride in theirs.
Everyone’s history is full of
skeletons in the closet, and the
Caucasian race has more than its
share. Kit the sins of the fathers are -
not the sins of die sons. We all begin
pure and the world corrupts us.
I entered the world as an opti
mist, like everyone else, but a very
astute pair of eyes has turned me
into a realist, or as everyone else
calls me, a cynic.
While there is an occasional
piece about unity between blacks
and whites, the majority of what I’ve
seen lately is about the crimes the
whites have committed against the
blacks. Or the men against the
women.
Even though I’m partly of
German descent, I don’t feel a
personal sting when I see the crimes
of the Nazis. It does make me sick to
my stomach, it makes me feel angry
at the Nazis and it makes me wish
the whole rise of Hitler never
happened. Sympathy also arises for
anyone who had to live through that
ordeal. But I don’t feel the urge to
apologize to every Jew I meet for
being part-German.
i non i warn 10 nave 10 go arouna
apologizing for being white to every
black person I meet. I’m white and I
should be proud of that fact, just like
everyone else should be proud of
their heritage.
So what am I asking for, really?
I’d just like people to remember
when they are talking about racism
in American that not all whites are
racist; when talking about rape and
harassment, not all men are guilty.
If I ever run a company, I will
hire the person most qualified for
the job, regardless of race, gender or
anything else. Any time I can fight
inequality, I will do so.
Please, though, let me be able to
say who and what I am without
expecting me to drop my head in
shame. I ask you to be proud of your
heritage, and I ask you to allow me
to be proud of mine.
Hicks is a sophomore news
editorial and English major and a
Daily Nebraskan staff reporter.
