EDITOR
Paula Lavigne
OPINION
EDITOR
Kasey Kerber
EDITORIAL
BOARD
Brad Davis
Erin Gibson
Shannon Heffelfinger
Chad Lorenz
Jeff Randall
Quotes
OF THE WEEK
“I have never seen this amount of
support for a teacher. Students say
good things about the man, and
many don’t want to see him go.”
- Ben Wallace, on students rallying
to keep adjunct chemistry instructor
Bill McLaughlin
“We should never forget what
became possible with students
working together on this campus.”
- Paul Kelter, UNL chemistry pro
fessor, on students rallying to keep
adjunct chemistry instructor Bill
McLaughlin
“And I want you to know that
even though I’m saying goodbye, I
will never forget you, because even
death can’t end a life like yours.”
- Shannon Heffelfinger, a UNL
sophomore and Daily Nebraskan
senior sports reporter, to her friend
and roommate, Laura Cockson, who
died Saturday in a car accident
caused by an alleged drunken driver
“I’ve pretty much massacred any
semblance of a personal life I had.”
- Sara Russell, ASUNpresident
elect, on the result of leading a stren
uous student government campaign
“We need this money. There is no
way around it.”
- Tad McDowell, parking services
manager, on increasing the cost of
student parking permits by $12 next
year
“I’ve been traveling around this
year looking for a country that
needs a president.”
- Bob Dole, speaking Tuesday to a
Success 2000 conference in Omaha
“This settlement is significant
for Nebraska not only because of
the money but because it requires
the tobacco company to take steps
to curb tobacco use among
Nebraskans.”
- Gov. Ben Nelson, on the state’s
settlement with the Liggett and
Brooke Tobacco Group
“I wanted to win. There’s no
pride for me. We were up by 10. We
just gave it away.”
- Tyronn Lue, NU point guard who
scored 18 points in a losing effort to
Arkansas in the first round of the
NCAA Tournament
“If he decides to stay, we’ll have
one of the best teams in Husker his
tory.”
- Andy Markow ski, NU forward, on
the possibility of Lue forgoing his
senior year for the NBA draft
Editorial Policy
Unsigned editorials are the opinions of
the Spring 1998 Daily Nebraskan. They
do not necessarily reflect the views of the
University of Nebraska-Lincoln, its
employees, its student body or the
University of Nebraska Board of Regents.
A column is solely the opinion of its author.
The Board of Regents serves as publisher
of the Daily Nebraskan; policy is set by
the Daily Nebraskan Editorial 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 editorial
content of the newspaper lies solely in
the hands of its student employees.
letter Policy
The Daily Nebraskan welcomes brief
letters 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.
Submitted material becomes property of
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not be published. Those who submit
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affiliation, if anv.
Submit material to: Daily Nebraskan, 34
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Haney’s
VIEW
Guest
VIEW
For my sisters
Now is a time to remember,; a time to act
66
Most of us think this is a story that we
will only read about. That is what I thought
only one short week ago. It can happen to
any one of us.”
I would like to start out by saying
thank you on behalf of my family to
all of you who have prayed for us,
brought us food at the hospital,
helped out back in Friend, visited my
sisters in the hospital and given us a
shoulder to lean on in this time of
great tragedy.
The support we have received
from the university and the entire
communities of Friend and Lincoln
has been unbelievable. I would espe
cially like to thank Vice Chancellor
of Student Affairs James Griesen for
all he has done for my family and
me.
It’s amazing how much people
are willing to help a family in need.
We have received countless flowers
aiiu carus lur uum nrm anu aaran
and for the funeral. The cards are
continuing to come in by the hun
dreds. We have received sympathy
from so many people we didn’t even
know; it’s absolutely unbelievable.
Both Laura and Sarah’s sorority,
Gamma Phi Beta, and my fraternity,
Alpha Gamma Sigma, have been
incredible. Gamma Phi started wear
ing ribbons in memory of Laura and
to increase the awareness of drinking
and driving.
AGS has been especially helpful
to me. There has not been one mem
ber who has not offered to do some
thing for me. Their support is what
has kept me going. Both houses had
an unbelievable showing at the funer
al on Wednesday. Members of
Gamma Phi and some of Laura’s
other friends even made a poster
board covered with memories of
Laura.
Sarah and Erin continue to
improve every day. We are very
thankful of this, but I can’t keep from
thinking that this could have been
avoided. Most of us think this is a
story that we will only read about.
That is what I thought only one short
week ago.
It can happen to any one of us.
Every year thousands of people die
in alcohol-related accidents. But still,
on any given Thursday, Friday and
Saturday night you could probably
count hundreds of people leaving the
bars here in Lincoln too drunk to
drive. If just one of them should hap
pen to fall asleep at the wheel, hap
pen to overlook a red light, or just get
too confident with their driving, you
too could lose a father, a mother, a
sister, a brother, a friend or all of the
above.
What if that driver shoriil&happen
to be you? Just think how you would
feel for the rest of your life knowing
you ended someone else’s life way
too soon. You would be miserable for
the rest of your life just because you
were too embarrassed to call some
one sober or you just didn’t want to
bother anyone.
Right now, two of my little sisters
are lying in intensive care rooms cry
ing constantly because they are in so
much pain. Sarah doesn’t even know
that her big sister, her idol, died near
ly a week ago. Erin is beside herself
because she loved Laura so much.
Neither girl could even go to the
funeral to say goodbye to a person
who did so much for them.
Our lives have been changed for
ever, all because of one man who
thought he could drive after drinking
and run from the police who were
simply doing what they were trained
to do. There is no one to blame in this
situation except for one man. I have
confidence in our judicial system, so
I know he will get what he deserves.
There is nothing that can be done
about the past. All we can do is try to
change the future. From now on, I
want each and every one of you read
ing this to think hard next time
before you drive after a night of
drinking.
I want you to ask yourself if you
are prepared to end someone’s life
that is dear to so many people. I want
you to ask yourself if calling a sober
driver is worth the 35 or so cents to
the family of the person or persons
you may injure or kill. If I could, I
would go back and give this guy a
million dollars just to have Laura
back with us.
As a tribute to Laura, I ask each
one of you to offer to be a designated
driver on a weekend night sometime
this semester. If this would save even
just one life or prevent one accident,
it is well worth your time. I can guar
antee you one thing: All those groups
against drinking and driving just
gained five very strong supporters.
Once again, thank you all who
have helped my family in our time of
need. We couldn’t have gotten this
far without each and every one of
you.
Steve Cockson
senior
business administration
I- *---*.
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