Moments of recognition
As graduation nears, thoughts of teachers past rise to surface
I spend a lot of my ink griping and
moaning about what’s wrong with this
thing or the other, so I want to pause
and give thanks.
This is my thanks to three teachers
who were not only good, they were
great - they were everything a good
teacher should be and more, and
because I don’t have the power to give
away big money or fabulous prizes, all
I can do is offer my thanks and tell the
whole campus to consider taking
classes from them. I offer these
three teachers as my personal & j
favorites from five years of con
stant schooling.
Michael W. Combs
professor - political science
I don’t know whether Professor
Combs would remember me or not,
because it’s been a few years since I
last took a class with him.
My first class with Professor
Combs was Political Science 100
my freshman year. It was my hope
that half my classes would be as
exciting as his.
Professor Combs refers to
everyone as “Scholar,” which I sus
pect is just his way of getting
around memorizing names, but it
also adds a layer of respect in a
class where tension runs high.
Class with Professor Combs i
revealed how truly deep-seeded the /
political aiguments run, as /
Republican and Democratic ideals ,
were bandied back and forth with
^Jp^ependents firing shots at,
both sides.
I would later take Blacks in
American Politics with Professor
Combs and come to a beker under
standing of some of the racial issues
that underscore so many political
debates.
Some days, class would drag and
the room would be mostly silent,
except for Professor Combs’ lecturing.
However, most of the time there was
inspired debate of the highest order
with Professor Combs at the head of it
all, offering points that both sides
might have overlooked.
If you’re looking to learn a little bit
about true politics, I can’t recommend
Professor Combs highly enough.
Alfred A. “Bud” Pagel, Jr.
associate professor (Emeritus) -
news-editorial (semi-retired)
Figuring out how to describe Bud
Pagel is not an easy task. Still, any pro
fessor who has the gumption to start
class with an overhead titled “Don’t
you have anything nice to say, fat
man?” is immediately going to elicit
chuckles.
Bud’s a little like Santa Claus -
he’s jolly, he’s got a sharp eye and he’s
willing to judge everything. I’m not
sure about the reindeer, though.
The first day in News Writing and
Reporting, I remember Bud saying,
“Let Uncle Buddy tell you a story...”
I was at a time in my life where I
was becoming disenchanted with jour
nalism as a profession. The idea of
working for a newspaper was losing its
appeal for several reasons.
One day I sat down and talked to
Bud about journalism and my growing
frustrations. What he said to me would
eventually reshape my life and trans
form my way of thinking.
“There’s all kinds of journalism
out there. Don’t be
afraid to find one you enjoy.”
Beyond just personal issues, Uncle
Buddy helped refine my writing more
than any other teacher on this campus.
He helped turn my writing ability from
a chain saw into a scalpel.
But most of all,Uncle Buddy made
class a sheer pleasure to attend. The
aforementioned overhead came after
four weeks of constant criticism of our
stories, and I think Bud could tell we
were getting frustrated. So, with a sin
gle overhead, he gave us the positives
we so desperately needed with a few
solid laughs to help the wounds heal
over.
Uncle Buddy’s in semi-retirement
now, only teaching one class a semes
ter, which means it is usually fought
over, and I stress to you, if you’re a
news-ed student, do not pass up the
chance to learn from this man.
Thomas C. Caramagno
associate professor - English
An English class that features
showings of “Monty Python and the
Holy Grail” and “Mystery Science
Theater 3000”? A syllabus that
includes Douglas Adams’
“Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy”?
Tom, out of all the professors here,
knows how to keep a class interesting.
I took two classes with Tom - 20th
Century Literature and 20th Century
British Literature - and every minute
of class was surreal, wacky and edgy.
I loved it.
Much of what Tom teaches focus
es on modernism versus post-mod
ernism. To help illustrate that discus
sion, he gets anything and everything
that can help. ;
He uses pop culture often as a way
to help students understand subtleties
and inflections within texts.
Even texts that I didn’t enjoy he
made interesting.
rom nas mis sinister, emoiuerea
cynic’s sense of humor that is both bit
ing and intense. He’s willing to poke
fun at everyone, including and espe
cially himself.
He also goes out of his way to cre
ate discussion and make the class as
much fun as possible.
It’s unfortunate, I think, that he
doesn’t teach more classes. I know he’s
written a book on Virginia Woolf, so
perhaps some day in the future he’ll
teach a course that focuses solely on
her. Or Douglas Adams, perhaps.
He honestly could be teaching
something obscure and bizarre, and I’d
still take his class.
He really is that good.
There are many other good teach
ers across campus; this I know. So
instead of writing letters in anger, do
me a favor and write us a letter about
your favorite teacher.
We can’t control their pay, but I’m
going to shout their praises from every
rooftop. Sooner or later, the adminis
tration will have to listen, or the roar of
applause will overwhelm them.
Cliff Hicks is a senior news-editorial and English major and a Daily Nebraskan columnist.
On the edge
o Three tumultuous areas of globe bear watching
Compared to the war-tom history
of the 20“ century, the second millen
nium is beginning relatively peaceful
ly. There are only a handful of hot
spots that you should be concerned
hbout. Here are the three most impor
tant ones with my prognosis:
^ Hot Spot #1: South Asia.
The Flayers: Pakistan and India.
The History: The region already
has seen three official wars between
these two countries since their separa
tion and independence in 1947,
although they’ve all been relatively
minor. Pakistan is 98 percent Muslim,
while India is more mixed but predom
inately Hindu. However, the recent
skirmishes have little to do with reli
jgion and much more to do with
geopolitics.
In the Southwest Himalayas lies
one of the most breathtaking and exot
ic lands in all of Asia- Kashmir.
Before the recent skirmishes broke out
there, the region was one of the fastest
growing tourist sectors in the world.
Beyond tourism, the mountains
may hold vast reserves of valuable
metal deposits and are a key crossing
into neighboring China. The popula
tion in Kashmir is sparse, predomi
nately Muslim and barely a pawn in
this regional power struggle.
What’s at stake: Mainly just
national pride and regional hegemony,
of which India appears to be far in the
lead.
India is eight times the size of
Pakistan, and its economy is four times
as big. It’s no wonder Pakistan tested
its nuclear bombs in the middle of
1998, right as the Kashmir situation
was climaxing.
Predictions: Don’t look for World
War IE to start here. Although these
two quickly developing nations now
have nuclear power, their sagacious
heritage, which goes back more than
5,000 years, will in all likelihood pre
vent a thermonuclear confrontation.
Eventually things will settle, and
India will acquire Kashmir. While
reunification is not in the foreseeable
future, nor is a serious war, both coun
tries know they have too much to lose.
Pakistan and India both have incredi
bly high and stable GDP per capita
growth rates and will not sacrifice this
upward mobility for an exotic, yet triv
ial, Kashmir.
Hot Spot #2: Central Africa
The Players: Up to 15 countries
all vying for control of the diamond
and gold-rich Congo.
The History: The Democratic
Republic of the Congo, formerly
called Zaire, was controlled by a
United States-supported dictator
named Mobutu for 26 years. When he
finally was deposed in 1996, he was
followed by another illegitimate leader
named Laurent Kabila in 1997.
Initially, the world had high hopes
for Kabila. He fought against the evil
Mobutu for decades. It wasn’t until he
received the support of most of East
Africa that he eventually came to
power.
After a year in office, Kabila
proved to be just another power hun
gry, corrupt dictator with a God com
plex. He banned all political parties
and the free press and showed no signs
of progress.
The rebel force that put Kabila in
power was betrayed. They separated
from him and declared another civil
war for Congo leadership, which
quickly grew into a massive and
diverse force of at least nine countries.
Kabila quickly allied wife several
southern African leaders to maintain
his own presidency but slowly has
been losing ground. The rebel move
ment splintered off into at least three
groups and is now hunkered down in
Eastern DRC.
What’s at stake: Diamonds, gold,
copper, mines and lots of money.
Every country, rebel force and merce
nary group feat is allied to whatever
side in this stalemated civil war is get
ting some kind of concessions from
the DRC.
Predictions: This one could get
uglier and be drawn out for awhile.
Luckily for the poor Congolese,
between ceasefires and factioning,
both sides have lost steam and the
rampaging of the countryside has tem
porally staggered.
Peace accords by continental pow
ers will not hold, and the internationals
are hesitant about settling what they
consider to be Africa’s first world war.
Look for peace to return to the
Congo if and when a regional power
can be reformed or if the UN steps up
to this daunting challenge. At the cur
rent time, neither route appears immi
nent.
Hot Spot # 3: Taiwan and China.
The Players: The mainland
Communist Party of China, and the
Nationalist Party of Taiwan, capitalist
and communist ideologies.
The History: In 1949, Beijing is
overrun by communists, and the
Nationalist Party is forced to flee to
Taiwan under escort from the West.
Fifty years later, the “one country,
two systems” philosophy has made
Taiwan the model of capitalist devel
opment and China the battery of suc
cessful communism after the USSR.
The Nationalist Party in Taiwan still
has power and remains defiant despite
speculation (and some full-scale mock
invasions) of mainland China invading
Taiwan to unify all of China.
Recently, the island has shown
strong support for a Taiwanese
Nationalist president who possibly has
plans for declaring independence.
IfTaiwan declares independence,
China stands to lose a lot more than
just the fastest growing economy since
WW II. They would lose respect inter
nationally, which could then have a
domino effect of encouraging several
other islands and free trade zones to
seek their own sovereignty.
Predictions: With Taiwan’s legacy
as the jewel of the British Crown and
capitalism in the Far East, China
knows that if it invades the island
most, if not all, of the international
powers will label this as an act of
naked aggression and come to the
island’s aid. Furthermore, invading
Taiwan would have serious implica
tions on China’s admission into the
WTO and could lead to the destabi
lization of Beijing. The invasion will
have to wait.
On the contrary, it appears that
capitalism from Taiwan and China’s
free trade zones are slowly seeping
into every comer of the mainland.
Look for China to accommodate and
tolerate this liberalization in order to
maintain its recent high growth rate.
As the one billion peasants slowly
become more empowered and as inter
national capitalism brings more global
ideas and movements to China, a mas
sive and perhaps violent revolution,
possibly involving democracy, could
grace the middle kingdom within a
generation and ultimately give China
superpower status.
Ddvid Baker is a senior sociology, anthropology and African studies major and a Daily Nebraskan columnist.
