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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 20, 2000)
Send me an e-mail Government should loosen its grip on technology laws After years of pressure from software companies, the United States has finally updated some of its draconian tech nology laws. Beginning soon, companies making encryption software - used to encode and decode files to maintain privacy - will have the ability to sell to overseas companies and individu als. So what, you say? Why wouldn’t they be able to, you ask? For years, these companies have had to follow the outdat ed laws the U.S: government has imposed. The government had taken a dramatically anti-technology approach when it came to encryption instead of changing to matcmne times. U Earlier in the encryption wars, the Wrldl S government wanted a master key that * tho rtnirtf nf would allow it to decrypt any deported me? point OJ encryption. This was for national encryption security reasons. y r The government argued that drug if the dealers and terrorists would be prime software-buying candidates. Thus it government should have the right to rifle through j j their e-mail, and everyone else’s. CCtn IOOK Naturally, the companies refused and thrnuah it? banded together to combat this. tnruugri tt. Turning a key over to the govern ment was a ludicrous idea. Should all citizens be required to give a copy of their house keys to the government if they have an overseas guest? What’s the point of encryption if the government can look through it? Why should our government have the ability to look at transmissions between two foreign entities in the name of national security? Our government is just as capable as any other of abusing any power it is given. But the laws were changed without passing any keys over to anyone. Now, both private individuals and corporations can buy U.S. encryption technology freely, although U.S. companies still require a license to sell their technology to most foreign governments. According to http://www.CNN.com, “The new regula tions do not change restrictions on exports to Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Sudan and Syria, which the United States classifies as state supporters of terrorism.” We agree that in areas where the problems are more likely, caution is wise. This is the first step in a positive direction for the United States to reform incredibly outdated technology laws. We only hope the government doesn’t stop here. Editorial Board Josh Funk (editor) • JJ. Harder • Cliff Hicks • Samuel McKewon • Dane Stickney • Kimberly Sweet • Lindsay Young 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 submissions.Submitted material becomes property of the Daily Nebraskan and cannot be returned. Anonymous mate rial will not be published. Those who submit letters must identify themselves by name, year in school, major and/or group affiliation, if any. Submit material to: Daily Nebraskan, 20 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St., Lincoln, Neb. 68588-0448 or e-mail to: let ters@unl.edu Editorial Policy Unsigned editorials are the opinions of the spring 2000 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 acts as publisher of the Daily Nebraskan; policy is set by the Daily Nebraskan Editorial Board. The UNL Publications Board, established by the regents, super vises the publication 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. The Daily Nebraskan strives to print fair and accurate cover age; any corrections or clarifications will be printed on page three. Obermeyer’s VIEW in South caelounJA... pew/w -thatN >/ou -rAK^ th^ \ —r-' con?ev£Rtt£ / kut'tcalls v _ ^ f ToMlMPOUR I f yjdcU HgRiTA^? I 'l_V_•/ > ^ \/Ct&Llooc | Unlikely battle cry Graffiti transformed into sexual call to arms “FRATS EAT COCK” It was written in black ink on a parking meter in front of Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity, directly across from the Nebraska Union. I parked my car at that meter for five hours on Monday, so I saw it. There was a pink ticket on the car next to mine, reminding me the meter maid was out checking for parking vio lations; surely she saw it, too. I plugged the meter three times on Monday. Luckily, I didn’t get a ticket “FRATS EAT COCK” I can’t give exact statistics, but I am quite sure there are a lot of people in this world who eat cock. I think I should change that state ment so it’s less derogatory. Instead of “people eat cock,” let’s try: “there are a lot of people who perform oral sex, specifically on males.” This is still a little shocking, because many people don’t want a public newspaper to print articles that mention oral sex in any way, shape or form. The term “oral sex” is a much more acceptable term in a public forum than the slang phrase “eat cock.” Language still does have a lot of power. The graffiti on the parking meter translates to: Male fraternity members perform oral sex on other members of the male sex. The homosexual commu nity is known to frequently engage in this activity. This is homosexual sex. Ten percent of the U.S. population is homosexual. In efforts to drive up depleting rush numbers, promote diversity and change their image, some fraternities nationwide and at UNL have knowingly and actively encour aged homosexuals to join their chap ters. (I was in a fraternity. The fraternity had a known homosexual alumnus. No big deal.) - - There are homosexual members of fraternities. There are also heterosexual members. Many of the heterosexual members of fraternities engage in het erosexual sex. Consequently, homo sexual members of fraternities engage in homosexual sex. “FRATS EAT COCK” Somebody in Lincoln wanted someone else to know about that So they put it on a parking meter. And for good reason, the statement is absolute ly correct. Some fraternity members do engage in this activity. Truly, a very, very observant person wrote this on the parking meter. He or she only wanted to share observations. There is good here. These words should not be con demned; instead, they should be cele brated. I am sure this person’s aim was not to spread the message of diversity that is evolving in fraternities, but to try to do something more - something much, much more. The graffiti artist had a vision and used the bold, daring, somewhat con troversial and nonpolitically-correct language: “Frats eat cock.” This silent expressionist saw that he or she could force the public to know that homosex ual fraternity members are indeed hav ing homosexual sex. By pronouncing the act of homo sexual sex, he or she is spreading the message - that sexual liberation is tak ing place within the homosexual com munity in Lincoln. People need to listen. “FRATS EAT COCK” Not the words of hate, but only the words of revolution. And just like Arrested Development said, it’s start ing to rain. The words to ignite change are on a parking meter right across the street from the Nebraska Union at the University of Nebraska- Lincoln. It’s time to force it into the skulls of the closed-minded. Males are having oral sex with other males. And some of the males who epitomize masculinity, the ones in fraternities, are eating cock with the rest of them. In order for the mass public to truly accept homosexuals and the new vision of fraternities, it needs to accept homosexual sex. People need to hear about eating cock. People need to visualize it and get it out of the dark closed, closet that is their minds. They needn’t fear these words. Instead, they need to accept these words. “Frats eat cock” is a battle cry to spark a major change. I want to hear the phrase loud and clear. Scream it at each other. Scream it at me when I walk by. Stand up on desks, and yell it aloud. Fraternities, get your brother hood on your front lawn and proclaim it like raving Southern Baptist minis ters. I want to see cock-eating signs and cock-eating banners and posters and pins. I want to see a closing down of 16th Street making the Channel 10 news because a bunch of crazy, pos sessed college activists took over the street deciding they’d let everybody know “Frats eat cock.” This should start a nationwide movement The nation and the world are only going to be better places when they realize homosexuals everywhere are eating cock. Because of what the words stand for, we must grind these words into the souls and hearts of the masses until the masses finally have the reaction we want them to have which is no reaction at all. Trevor Johnson is a junior secondary education and English major and a Daily Nebraskan Columnist .ti: U.jily alcr', 1>u-iHtn *f“* “‘| * w**jax* •rli*-‘ •r“‘ .NE 5^, n’r e-iuil efftraMlUufli. ‘ -1111*: ►v: s»f!->.T .jhri ■''f.lUriR (ihnrtK ;:«.:DlTHfc .