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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 28, 1997)
' EDITOR Doug Kouma OPINION EDITOR Anthony Nguyen EDITORIAL BOARD Anne Hjersman Paula Lavigne Joshua GiUin Jessica Kennedy Jeff Randall Our VIEW Deadlocked , ' ' Jury duty stagnates students’top priorities Imagine getting mail one day, and in stead of the usual catalogs and junk mail, . an official looking envelope was within. Inside the envelope, a likewise official looking letter. The letter would request the presence of the person in a court of law to serve as a member on a panel of peers — perfect for those who want to do their civic duty and be involved in our countiy’s jus tice system. jury duty. A “dream” for some, but a potential nightmare fof the typicateollege student LB73, a bill currently before the Leg islature, would exempt foil-time college students from juiy duty. The bill would not eliminate juiy duty, but rather put it off for students until classes were finished. Sponsored by state Sen. Elaine Stuhr of Bradshaw, LB73 is sorely needed. When foe judicial system consistently requests more and more proof of hardships for juiy exemption, LB73 would provide relief for students. Full-time college students do not have foe time requirement necessary to devote to be a fair and adequate judge of their peers. The thought of missed exams, late homework and skipped classes would not benefit students forced into juiy tjqjy* The system would clearly not benefrPfrom a juror whose mind was on foe upcoming physics exam rather than the case being deliberated. More importantly, being a college stu dent is analogous to a full-time job—with a major difference. ;, j,;? '■, / We pay for our “job”—meaning we’ve paid for our classes—but in retuzh'fotthe small monetary compensanon tor jury duty we end up losing twice over. It is possible to miss class and still not lose ground. But in some courses missing one or two lectures can be detrimental. Jury duty would certainly impose a greater pen alty on students. Conversely, a full-time employed worker can accept being called for duty, because, he or she will be reimbursed by the employer. It is possible for an employer to substi tute another worker into the missing employee’s position. But there is no sub stitute available for students. Speak to a state senator and voice sup port for LB73. There might come a time when the crunch of classes is too much and the extra load of jury duty tips the scales out of balance. LB73 deserves full recog nition for what it does for college students. We don’t advocate shirking our duty as citizens. If the time is there and serving on a jury is a possibility, we say go for it. There are enough compelling reasons for us to accept a call to the jury box — a sense of civic duty, aiding the judicial sys tem and ensuring a fair and impartial trial by peers. But coupled with a full-time student’s class schedule, jury duty requires an em phatic “objection.” Editorial Policy Unsigned editorials ate the opinions of the Spring 1997 Daily Nebraskan. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the Univer sity of Nebraska-Lincoln, its employees, its student body or the University of Nebraska Board of Regents. A column is soley the opinion of its author. The Board of Regents serves as publisher of the Daily Nebraskan; policy is set by the Daily Nebraskan Edito rial Board. The UNL Publications Board, established by the regents, supervises the production of the paper. According to policy set by the regents, responsibility for the edi torial content of die newspaper lies solely in die hands of its student employees. Letter Policy The Daily Nebraskan welcomes brief let ters to the editor and guest columns, but does not guarantee their publication. The Daily Nebraskan retains the right to edit or reject any material submitted. Sub mitted material becomes the property of the Daily Nebraskan and cannot be re turned. Anonymous submissions will not be published Those who submit letters must identify themselves by name, year in school, major and/or group affilia tion, if any.- Submit material to: Daily Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1460 R SL Lincoln, Neb. 68588-0448. E-mail: letters@unlinfo.uid.edu. • ! ■ ' ■ . , Mehs ling’s • *..*i view i '■Vi ABTER-SKmiss: usaest. smx>Kl ANWW-W REPORTS THE. HIGHEST MTS OF SPOUSAL ABUSE. I — DN LETTERS Checkmate I have attended this institution for seven consecutive years (counting undergrad and law school) and have . never even considered writing to the DN editor until I read Steve Willey’s column on Friday. l$- C* Mr. Willey speaks for all of us > who have dealt with the frustration, the ever-increasing cost of post blete irrcpfitude of the uifc^ereitjM J bureaucracy to "handle thl needs of" its students. What the university has com pletely failed to realize in instituting its new system for disbursement of loan checks is that in order for a student to even qualify for a student loan, she or he must first NEED the money. Ljy iuiwui^ aiuuguu tu won iwu weeks or more to receive THEIR money, this institution further forces students to borrow against their future by criminally “floating checks” as Mr. Wiley put it, or by using university charge accounts to purchase books. Until students can put rent on their university charge accounts, students will be forced intothe untenable position of writing checks they know they cannot cover. The university’s new system is not without its merits. It is easier for me to open my mailbox to pick up my check then to trek down to City Campus, And a place to park and wait in line to get it. However, the university must realize that one person’s “administrative delay” is another person’s bounced check. The manner in which the univer sity has handled the disbursement of student loan checks this semester is completely irresponsible and offensive. Unless the university makes vast strides to improve the administration of its new system, its experiment in convenience will fail and a new system will become necessary. Robert A. Mooney third-year law student No More Crusades J.J. Harder’s column, “Nauseous noise,”(DN, Jan. 24) is even more of a “nauseous” pitfall of “immorality” Jason G4d than the music of Marilyn Man son. The terms he uses, such as “sexual immorality” and “anti-religious,” reflect thinking tainted by conserva tive, Christian fallout. The reason this way of thinking is flawed is that Christians, along with other monotheists, see evil as being outside of themselves. They love to accuse opposing groups, “freaks” and hosts of supernatural beings like Satan of causing evil. The problem with this is that we are looking for evil in the wrong place. Manson’s evil image is intended to mirror evils that already exist in American society. This evil does not come from “freak shows” like Manson; it comes from you, me and the millions of drones like Harder. Christians and conservatives have been on the warpath for centuries, but the evil that they speak of has only increased. Where are the “positive role models” that will supposedly purify the nation? Why didn’t they already push our youth to perfection during the good, old God-fearing days? It is because all people create evil, not only Satan or the “demonic idiots” among us. What is Manson’s true crime? Is it that people enjoy his music, that kids identify with the philosophies behind his music? Or is it something much worse, like going against popular Christian influences? America was intended for vast cultures* religions and ideas. If America is to live out its original destiny of true individual religious freedoms, then who is the real culprit? Marilyn Manson for presenting his views through music, or traditionalists for trying to eliminate Americans such as Manson? It is probably fair to say that America is in a moral decline, regardless how one chooses to define morality. If we first remove the plank concern ourselves with the splinters and sawdust that might trouble the eyes of Marilyn Manson. Learn to swim, JJ. Jason Shearer and Harris Lehl freshmen undeclared Not a ‘downer* Aaron Cooper begins his letter Friday by stating “I am astonished that...” Well, let me also begin my letter by stating that I am astonished that people exist in this world with as i heartless a view as Aaron Cooper. Is his own family so flawless? Is he himself flawless? It seems to me that women are judged far too harshly in the teen pregnancy issue. Women cannot hide a baby. Men simply go around planting their sperm and no one’s the wiser. I believe the message that Anne Hjersman was attempting to get across was that we are all not simply * statistics as Cooper would have us believe. i We are all human beings, indi viduals, with differing motivations and histories. Teen pregnancy is not * glamorous and it is not fun. But it appears to me that Ms. Hjersman’s sister is doing what the majority of people do when faced with this situation—taking responsi bility for it and getting on with her life. She may be viewed by the heartless in our society such as Cooper as the “downfall” of our society but I say she deserves our support and encouragement. Prove to me that you’re a virgin Mr. Cooper and without flaw. Then we’ll talk. Kim Hansen graduate student animal science —C \a / ^ Ibraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 "R" St, Lincoln, » Vy..O—^ to (402) 472-1761, ilin&ronLedtf:. t must be £ ‘ .' erification _ ^ ^ / / '
