EDITOR
Paula Lavigne
OPINION
EDITOR
Kasey Kerber
EDITORIAL
BOARD
Brad Davis
Erin Gibson
Shannon Heffelfinger
Chad Lorenz
Jeff Randall
Our
VIEW
Save
Bambi
Wilderness Park needs
to be spared of mall
Today Lincoln’s City Council has a
chance to prove they really do care about
the opinions of some of their citizens.
More than 2,000 petition signatures,
hundreds of flyers around town and calls
from concerned Lincolnites have prompted
the Lincoln City Council to reopen public
hearings regarding the proposed re-zoning
of 140 acres of land east of Wilderness Park
to make it fit for industrial development.
That’s right, a strip mall could be
Wilderness Park’s new neighbor.
Originally created as a flood plain to
divert flood waters from key areas, includ
ing the Haymarket District, Wilderness
Park has grown to be a magical place in the
eyes of many.
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back through the park, it offers a unique
experience. Just a 10-minute drive or 20
minute bike ride from the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln City Campus,
Wilderness Park’s thousands of densely
wooded acres provide a chance to quite lit
erally get lost in the beauty of nature.
Along the trail that runs through the
park, it’s quite easy to encounter many dif
ferent kinds of wildlife, including the occa
sional deer.
And Bambi could suffer from the pro
posed development.
Last spring, the City Council voted to
study how development around Wilderness
Park would affect the ecology, traffic and
floodwater runoff.
While this study is helpful, it could take
up to two years to complete. And for the
potential developers, two years is too long
of a wait.
Jumping into a project of this magni
tude without fully studying the conse
quences could be environmental suicide.
Once a part of nature is destroyed and the
animals are chased from the park, they can
not be replaced.
And today is the last chance to make the
developers wait.
Kich Koaenburg, owner ot Bike
Pedalers and the legislative co-chairman of
the Great Plains Trails Network, has done
his share of work on behalf of Wilderness
Park and is confident the City Council will
make the right choice.
“I think our current City Council has a
good grip on what the people want, and I’m
comfortable that they will make a wise
decision.”
If you care about the future of
Wilderness Park, attend the public hearing
at 1:30 p.m. at the County City Building
located at 555 S. 10th Street. The City
Council will be there entertaining any con
cerns about the park.
And it is your concerns that could very
well save the park from being harmed by a
strip mall.
T
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Haney’s
VIEW
Shot down
Killing concealed weapon bill right move
BRETT SCHULTE is a
senior English major and a
Daily Nebraskan arts and
entertainment assignment
reporter.
As we approach the eve of a new
millennium - an era defined by the
fall of a communism, the proliferation
of democracy and the advent of inter
global communications - you might
believe that the citizens of the world,
and Americans especially, are usher
ing in a period of enlightenment and
advanced thinking.
And what better way to protect
this peace than with a concealed
weapon?
But, wait a minute, someone else
might have a gun, too. Better wear a
bulletproof vest Of course there are
still shots to the head (never pretty).
Get a helmet
But don’t stop there. Every time
you leave the house you run the risk of
getting killed. Stay at home. But don’t
most murders occur in die home?
Better put bars on the windows...
It doesn’t take much to turn a soci
ety based on freedom to one paralyzed
by paranoia.
Last week, a bill that would have
introduced the legal possession of
concealed weapons to the state of
Nebraska was defeated when lawmak
ers voted to cease debate on LB465.
It is a victory for law-abiding citi
zens of our state, despite the rhetoric
of conservative state lawmakers bent
on the increasing militarization of our
country.
The second amendment is a weak
argument for the armament of our citi
zenry. As most people who have taken
a political science class understand,
the Constitution of the United States
of America is a living document and is
subject to interpretation, revision and
amendment.
tt-—
Encouraging the arming of the American
populace is a fatal move to an increasingly
tyrannous society - not a step toward
freedom!’ :
It is true that the Second
Amendment declares we have the
right to bear arms - but it never tells
us when to stop. So the question is:
Should we ever start? Absolutely not,
despite what it says.
The idea that it is a perfect docu
ment that should be followed verbatim
is as dangerous as believing the same
about die Bible.
And the idea that God hates gays is
about as absurd as die idea of arming
citizens to guarantee a safer society.
How can we teach children the
ideals of peace while teachers and par
ents pack revolvers under their
clothes?
How can we continue to teach the
world the benefits of freedom and
democracy when we have to arm our
citizens to protect them?
We can’t
Force did not save Vietnam from
the specter of communism. Instead, it
tore apart two nations, and it cost lives
in both. Force was not the solution to
the latest crisis with Iraq - patience
was. As a result, many lives, both Iraqi
and American, were saved.
While the federal government is
slowly learning from its experiences
with violence, more and more local
governments are digressing into mili
tia states.
With the recent conservative back
lash washing across the country, we
also are experiencing the re-emer
gence of the American gun culture.
The militias in many Northern
states and hate groups across the
country are the most radical manifes
tations of this movement, but it is
affecting everyone.
Two weeks ago, a couple of
Arkansas boys blew away four girls
and a teacher in front of their school.
They understood how to kill long
before they understood death.
Their access to weapons, and their
training in their use led to one of the
greatest tragedies in our decade. It is
only one of many involving guns.
Advocates of concealed weapons
say that by placing legal guns in the
hands of responsible citizens we will
ensure die safety of everyone. The two
young boys who killed those four girls
and a teacher carried legally licensed
guns.
Guns don’t create safety, they only
create victims. Police, who are well
versed on die consequences of
fitparms, are unilaterally opposed to
the passage of a concealed weapons
bill, and rightfully so.
They have seen what happens
when guns me involved in passionate
situations. They have seen reasonable
people go suddenly crazy and violent
and, most importantly, they have seen
police officers killed because of it
Encouraging the arming of the
American populace is a fatal move to
an increasingly tyrannous society -
not a step towards freedom.
It is ironic that conservatives, who
notoriously push for the freedom of
individuals, are doing so much to con
trol them by fear. And while they criti
cize liberals for throwing money at a
problem, I believe it is a far better idea
than spraying bullets at it
Concealed weapons will obviously
not help our society become safer or
instill values in our young people.
That kind of thing needs to be done by
example.
It needs to be taught by teaching
young people respect and values. It
needs to include a return to the family
and a reason for young people to
invest in our society - one where they
are not afraid of strangers or the
weapons they are hiding.
It needs be done with patience and
education.
Of course, who wouldn’t listen to
a person with a gun?
Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 "R" St., Lincoln,
or £sx to (402) 472-1761,.ore-mail <lfittera@unlinfa.unl.edu..
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