Jessica
KENNEDY
Out on a lamb’
Season when a girl's or boy's fancy turns to love
Our yearly liberation has begun.
The robins are back, the air is
warming, the flowers are beginning
to grow.
Campus has again been infused
with life — bustling activity,
fraternities’ music blaring, bikers
roaring through campus.
Goodness, I love spring!
Everyone feels great — they’re
smiling and walking with a slight
bounce in their step. People are just
friendlier.
It seems hard to stay upset this
time of year. How could you possibly
think nasty thoughts when the sun
reaches down, warming you while
the breeze caresses your face?
Spring is about attitude adjust
ment, reflection and hope.
Everywhere, niceness abounds;
jocundity permeates everything and
everyone.
During this season of rejuvena
tion and rebirth, it’s a great time to
look for the good — either in people
or the things around you.
Here’s the perfect example: Two
weeks ago was “Write a Letter of
Appreciation Week.” What a
fantastic way to make both you and
whoever receives the letter feel
great!
If 1 were going to write some
letter of appreciation, Mom would
probably get one, so would my
adviser Rick Alloway and Lisa, my
best friend from high school. The
great thing is that these are only
three of the many people I’ve
appreciated over the years.
People like my boss or my
professors who give a little bit of
themselves every day. Whether
they’re conscious of it or not, that
little bit of self makes me a stronger
and better person.
The concept of making someone
else feel good, which in turn makes
you, too, feel good is completely
accurate. There aren’t many more
things satisfying than making
someone smile or perk up. Some
times making someone feel good is
as simple as taking an interest in his
or her life.
I challenge you to take advantage
of the next few weeks while the
temperatures are mild and spirits are
rising. Compliment a stranger, nave
a heart-to-heart with an old friend,
do whatever you’ve been putting off
doing. Smile at everyone you pass
on the street.
It takes so little effort to put a
smile upon a neighbor’s face! Even
less effort is required when the
environment is so agreeable.
Do you know what I saw on
Friday? A perfect reason to feel
joyous. There were crocus leaves
popping up right next to Burnett! In
my book, those premies rank right
up there with robins as indicators of
spring.
So off with the gruff faces and
bulky sweaters! On with the smiles
and spring linens!
Grouchiness begone — let
Matt Haney/DN
kindness prevail!
Sure, I’m a tad bit idealistic, but
why not? It’s spring.
That means it’s time to romp and
play and jump and skip.
Skip to your car, skip class, skip
over the puddles, whatever. It
doesn’t really matter.
Spring’s all about letting the
blues and blahs of winter melt,
making way for new life.
Let go of your prejudices, release
your grudges, forgive the unforgiv
able.
Spread the appreciation and share
the joy.
And when no one’s looking, let
your hair down to blow in the
breeze.
Kennedy is a senior advertising
and broadcasting major and a
Daily Nebraska columnist.
11
HARDER
No more Babel, please
English should be primary language of the U.S.
In a small town in Kansas in the
year 1979,1 began to utter my first
words as a human being. It does not
really matter what the exact words
were, but that they were in one
particular language — English.
I have continued to speak that
language throughout my 18 years on
this planet. However, not all people
in America speak that same lan
guage. To me, this is a problem. As
people of this one, unified nation,
we should speak one language.
Twenty-three states presently
have English chosen as their official
language, and, although I do not
think that we should have a national
measure requiring English to be the
sanctioned language of our country,
I would hope that the other 27 states
might come around soon.
The Supreme Court has yet to
decide the constitutionality of these
measures, but will probably do so in
the near future. The Supreme Court
has the obligation to deride in favor
of these laws, not only for the
purpose of national unity, but also to
help assimilate the many cultures of
the melting pot in which we live and
to save the taxpayers much needed
funds.
Our country may very well still
be the land of opportunity that it was
in the early 20th century, but we
have now defined our history and
have further solidified our place in
the world — with renowned
customs, attitudes and importantly
one language.
The hundreds of thousands of
immigrants who come to our country
each year bring with them their own
traditions, but that does not mean
that they should continue to live in
their own little individual embassies.
I am well aware that immigrants
want to hold onto their own lan
guages, but when they come to
America, they should be ready to
adapt to our culture — and that
means learning our language. They
do not have to speak English in their
homes and within their families, but
our government should not have to
allocate any funds to deal with other
languages.
Now, for all you J.J.-despising
grad students out there who think 1
am some kind of Mexi can-hating,
cross-burning, Democrat-killing
member of the dark side of the force,
I would like to clarify.
I encourage visitors to journey to
our country for education, tourism,
diplomacy or whatever else, but
those who decide to make a perma
nent domicile on our side of the
borde should at the very least not
require traffic signs and government
publications written in their native
tongue—whether it be Spanish,
French, German or Sri Lankan.
On past trips to California and
Florida, it disturbed me greatly to
see a plethora of signs written in
Spanish. I am sure that the many
daily visitors we receive need a few
instructions in Spanish near the
border, but to be honest, there were
whole sections of San Diego where
it was difficult to find signs in
English!
I do not want my already wasted
tax money spent on publications like
signs, brochures, voting ballots and
other things for people who cannot
function in our society without
carrying around a pocket translator.
The fact that Nebraska is lacking
of immigrants compared to the
border states is noted, but our
immigrant population is ever
growing, and if it does come to the
point of needing signs in some other
tongue — I dearly hope that I am
out of this state and in one that can
make competent governmental
decisions. ^
I really don’t think that it is too
much to ask to be able to go through
a McDonald’s drive through in the
southern United States and not be
forced to break out my pocket
Spanish-English dictionary, but for
some, this might be an extreme,
harsh expectancy.
So I won’t advocate eliminating
the use of other languages. However,
I hope that our country would raise
our standards and sanction the use
of English in all governmental
operations.
Harder is a sophomore broad
casting major and a Daily Nebras
kan columnist
John
FULWIDER
Unde Sam wants >ou?
Students' effort to change
policy on right track
»
The world got a tiny bit easier
to live in last week.
Around 70 students from all
four Lincoln public high schools
appeared before the Lincoln Board
of Education to propose that the
board ban from the schools job
recruiters who discriminate when
recruiting.
Specifically, they’re thinking of
recruiters from the U.S. Armed
Forces—forces comprised of
some of our country’s most
honorable women and men.
Women and men who are dishon
ored somewhat by the armed
forces’ “don’t ask, don’t tell”
policy of discrimination against
gays, lesbians, bisexuals and
transgendered persons who are
open about their sexuality.
The school board took no action
~ on the resolution. But the students’
effort was not wasted. With their
dedication, they inspired people to
fight on against discrimination in
all its detestable forms.
The Lincoln Board of Educa
tion adopted this Educational
Equity Policy in 1978: “Educa
tional equity is an educational
philosophy which seeks to prepare
all students to be citizens commit
ted to recognizing the dignity and
worth of human beings, regardless
of economic status, and affirming
the differences and similarities of
race, ethnicity, culture, religion,
sex, age, mental, physical and
linguistic abilities.”
(The students say Lincoln
Public Schools officials have said
“sex” is taken to mean both gender
and sexual orientation.)
What the students want is for
LPS to follow its policy by banning
from the schools any recruiters
(military or otherwise) “who have
as a stated policy that they do not
extend equal rights to all qualified
individuals... ”
iney nave a larger long-term
goal, as well — to force the
abolition of “don’t ask, don’t tell.”
They hope other school districts
will follow Lincoln’s lead, adopt
ing their own nondiscrimination
policies. The armed forces would
then have so much trouble finding
new recruits that they would need
to give up on discriminating
against homosexuals.
Part of the students* motivation
for eliminating the policy is anf
article in the Feb. 26 New York
Times that showed military
discharges of homosexuals have
gone up since President Clinton
enacted “don’t ask, don’t tell” in
February 1994.
The Times cited Department of
Defense statistics that showed 850
homosexual men and women were
discharged in the fiscal year that
ended in February. That was an 18
percent increase from the year
earlier and a 42-percent increase
from 1994.
This is egregious. Those 850
women and men voluntarily took
an oath pledging they would go to
their deaths if necessary to defend
the freedoms Americans enjoy.
Their deaths! — and yet they’re
not good enough because they’re
different.
«
This is egregious.
Those 850 women
and men
voluntarily took an
oath pledging they
would go to their
deaths if necessary
to defend the
freedoms Americans
enjoy.”
The students say discrimination
by any employer in general; not
discrimination by the military
against gays specifically, is the
target of their efforts.
Still, military discrimination is
hard to miss. Despite comments by
school officials to the contrary,
listening to military recruiters isn’t
a voluntary thing. Lincoln public
high school students are required
to attend a career education class
in order to graduate. One of the
class’s required sessions features ai
military recruiter. Jiitnijr
Because of this, the students
think LPS is actively promoting
discrimination — in direct
violation of its own equity policy.
“Therefore you’ve got to either
change the equity policy or get the
military out for recruitment
purposes,” said John McCall, one
student helping lead the anti
discrimination effort.
Tne students think the military
has a legitimate educational role in
the schools — for example, Navy
submarine engineers talking about
nuclear power. The students aren’t
anti-military, they’re simply
against the policy the military is
forced by its commander-in-chief
to obey.
Some school districts already
have nondiscrimination policies
similar to the one the Lincoln
students want — among them
Portland, Ore., San Diego, San
Francisco and Rochester, N.Y.
McCall said it took Portland
three years to finally adopt its
nondiscrimination policy. He’s
hoping for a miracle here in
Lincoln — adoption of the policy
this year—but is prepared to wait
it out.
McCall, a senior at Lincoln
Southeast High School, won’t be
around next year. But die organiza
tion he helped found, Students fa
Discrimination-Free Schools,
claims enough sophomore and
junior members to carry on the
fight when he and compatriots
Erik German and Emilie Eagan
leave far college.
Speaking of college — McCall
plans to attend Colgate University
next year. The diversity coordina
tors here at UNL would do well to
at least try attracting him here. Our
university could certainly use such
an open-minded and socially
conscious student.
Perhaps some recruiting efforts
are in order.
Fulwider is a junior news
editorial major and the Daily
Nebraskan AP Wire Editor.