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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 28, 2000)
D«z/vNebraskan Since 1901 Editor Sarah Baker Opinion Page Editor Samuel McKewon Managing Editor Bradley Davis Told you so Hall not Abel to stand behind symbol of tolerance Picture this: A group of Abel Residence Hall’s finest stumble into the place they call home. Someone gets the ingenious idea to steal the Allies pink triangle off the Abel Residence Hall Association’s door. They do. Repeat at least 10 times, probably more. Unless Abel is home to a person afflicted with obsessive-compulsive geometry disorder, the pink triangles are endangered because of the prevalent attitude in die dorm seems to be this... Screw the residence hall government and screw the pink triangle. By placing the pink triangle on its office door, the Abel Residence Hall Association was attempting to take a stand against homophobia. This is a good thing. The members of the organi zation are, at best, concerned with fighting intol erance on campus, and, at worst, indifferent to die matter. But, as we stated in our original editorial on this issue, the problem is that many Abel resi dents, along with the residents of other UNL halls, don’t agree. Many are intolerant Many are immature. Many are normal 18-year-olds living in Nebraska attending UNL The ARA is fighting the battle backwards. To combat this attitude so prevalent in the resi dence hall and on the campus, they have posted a pink triangle. This isn’t going to change peoples’ minds about gay, lesbian^ bisexual and transgendered people. It's going to give your average freshman ample opportunity to put a pink triangle up in his dorm room next to the Tyra Banks poster. It was bound to happen, this mass thievery of pink triangles. Common sense dictates that there would be a backlash to the ARA’s decision to put the original pink triangle up. We predicted as much this semester, stating that Abel, because of its reputation as a rather rambunctious place, would be the last place on campus such a symbol would be welcomed. After that editorial, we received many angry phone calls and letters, mostly from members of the ARA and residents of Abel They said we had degraded their organization and dorm, manag ing to tear down the tolerance they had built within the dorm with our 15 inches of copy. Well, recent events seem to prove that we did n't do that, as the symbol has been tom down about 10 times. Now, the ARA is going to buy a glass case to protect its card. Ifa card of tolerance needs to be protected, what message does this send to gay students? That they need protection? Then there is the statement of the ARA presi dent, who said the problem of students who take signs down is “not our problem. They elected the people in the office who voted for this.” The president is correct But what is incorrect is that when elected, people can do as they please, right or wrong, separate from their con stituents. Rather, the problem of the general Abel student body is exactly the problem of the elect ed officials. What else are they there for? We don’t question that taldng the sign down repeatedly is childish and immature. We addressed that in the original editorial. We also knew a small group couldn't force a symbolic mandate on students, and the symbol wasn’t nearly as important as actual treatment. We are not pleased that the sign is taken down, just so we can be right about Abel. We would have liked to be proven wrong. But Abel residents have yet to prove themselves ready for this tolerance. The ARA believes a glass case will solve the problem. It will only serve to push the problem into the background, as the symbol continues to be hollow. And that’s saying nothing for the fact that glass can be broken. Editorial Board Sarah Baker, Bradley Davis, Josh Funk, Matthew Hansen, Samuel McKewon, Dane Stickney, Kimberly Sweet Letters Poficy The Da#y Nebraskan welcomes briefs, letters to the editor and guest columns, but does not guar antee their pifcfication. The Daly Nebraskan retains the right to edit or reject any material submitted. Sitomitted material becomes property of the Daly Nebraskan and cannot be returned. Anonymous submissions wfl not be publshed. Those who submit letters must identify themselves by name, year in school, major andfor group affifartion, if ary. Submit material to: Daily Nebraskan. 20 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St. Lincoln, NE 68588-0448. E mafc letteraOuninlu.unl.edu. Editorial Policy Unsigned editorials are the opinions of the Fall 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 erf Regents. A column is solely the opinion bf its author a cartoon is solely the opinion of its artist The Board of Regents acts as pubisher of the Daily Nebraskan: po* cy is set by the Daly Nebraskan Edtoriai Board. The UNL F>ublicabons Board, established by the regents, supervises the production of the paper. According to policy set by the regents, responsi bjlty tor •« editorial content of the newspaper lee solely in the haids of its employees. Ill OPPRR To PROTg^T CAMPiAS £lMl-LAhD$'-AP£ Smv>CZ$ mas VouS£t> if# Tr&es With a coating gF pox Utfiwe. euT m THgsg ^ ■pp THAT 15 WH7 [WE ARE ASKinG-lOiAy in-|H£ wvfwfrbKfKn *r ihe HoLTPAi^mm WSEAS0tT1 To THINK TWICE WlE WALKING- MoM£ DKMfc AgouT you PuBLlCLy mme. ^ipo'Jektmt fRfir m$£ op Parked car. Art)Redirect vour steawn^ STRENA To A CMW &&R&E&I To mp KEEP ouR QWffys BEAUT;puL U4)S C\lRl$TtiA5. 'DONATE W ?££ ~ URMT£ M A T*S£ <g* NealObermeyer/DN Love, hate and the law Like many in the media, the DN still doesn’t understand people’s response to President Clinton. Monday’s editorial stated that “most hate him for his personal life, not his economic policy.” The fact is that very few people hate him. Many feel his behavior was wrong, and when he lied about it under oath to a grand jury, he ought to have been held accountable and removed from office, not for his sexual behavior but for his per jury. That's not hatred but simply a belief in the rule of law. The editorial also states that, “Love him or hate him, we don’t doubt whether President Clinton is qualified to be president.” The fact is that, when a man who is responsible for defending the Constitution won't even tell the truth when he’s under oath, then we have no logical reason to assume he’s telling the truth when he’s simply addressing the nation. Integrity can't be compart mentalized. Either a man is honest or he isn’t, and if he can't be trusted, then he lacks the moral qualifications to be president. It’s not enough to simply have a good economy. Brad Pardee staff member University Libraries Back to the good or days WANTED: One or more conservative states that are willing to secede and return to the original values set forth in the U.S. Constitution. Looking for state that will respect and focus on the impor tance of personal responsibility, families, truth, law, fairness to all and future generations of its cit izens. Willing to relocate. Ken Murphey Yucca Valley, Calif. Floyd and I: Nothing but trouble It’s not that / should not be on the road today. You see, it's Floyd’s fault. I feel that the only person that truly knows me, besides my savior, Lothar, is my Bronco 11. inougn my 1—*— -1 Bronco is not technically a Karen “person,” we have been a Brown couple for 5 1/2 years, and, mhhmhhmb holy cow, we have been through a lot together. My partner’s name is “Floyd the Barber,” and we’ve decided to break up (gas-guzzling piece of crap) and start our new lives. He had an affair with a young, blonde musician named Andrew and I had one with a 2000 Lexus. Was it worth it? No, but we came to grips with our spreading differences, and now I would like to recap the good times we’ve had throughout our anti-tepid love-hate relationship. I’ve changed a lot over these years, (I would never buy a Ford again, nor an SUV.) and I see a renaissance of sorts on the horizon. After seeing Floyd get sicker and sicker (I saw him cough up oil the other day.), I am ready to be free of the hassles of an ’85 Bronco II. But still I shed a tear when I think of what the backseat and I have shared, and I know that “parking” won’t be the same on my bicycle. Trips across Nebraska (August 1996-August 2000) Winter trips: It's not that I mind so much having to stop every hour to scrape ice off the inside of the car windshield as I mind seeing my breath the whole way home and having to wear a hat, gloves and a snow suit. The heater was broken when I bought Floyd and, as always, I was too broke to fix it. My mantra for the winter’s travels soon became: “You’re not alone; no one’s heater works. You're not crazy; that was an elephant.” I thought that thinking my car is just as good as that 1998 Venus Flytrap would ease my pain. However, the frostbite spread, and I now have no fingers and only three toes. “Three toes are better than none, elephant.” My only true complaint is that once I arrived home with a 104-degree temperature. Floyd was just as sick as me, and we spent the next week eat ing chicken-noodle soup and gasoline. Summer trips: Because Floyd’s engine ain’t so "up to par” (He doesn’t really like to go over 5 mph.) the engine overheats more quickly than a McDonald’s ham burger under a heat lamp. Because I’m insensitive and lead-footed, I decry Floyd's senseless pleas for ease. Here’s my summer joke: “What do you get when you cross an ’85 Bronco II with 100-degree outside temperature?” Me, naked and sweaty. Not a pretty picture, with my hairy back and warts, but it’s necessary. And to add fuel to the fire, Floyd lacks an air condi tioner. Therefore, I have to turn on the heater (that I got fixed) to draw heat away from the engine. So... naked, sweaty me drives down the interstate and soon the heater, which I alternately point on my feet and head, becomes too much. I must buy cold bottled water to pour on my feet and arms every 20 minutes while watching the engine temperature dial slowly climb to the top of the “H” in Too Goddamned Hot. After I pass York, just starting the first leg of the 400 miles home, my compact-disc player stops working. It’s too hot. Everything is too hot. I drive the rest of the 320 miles without any tunes. In North Platte I go crazy from listening to myself talk about why robots are better lovers than telephones. At the truck stop I eat 68 Twinkies, drink 14 Jolt colas and try to kidnap a baby which I mistake for a roll of toilet paper. With the cops on my tail, I try to blow my hose with the baby’s arm, and they catch Floyd and 1.1 explain to them that my car is a Ford and they glad ly release me saying: “We’re sorry you have to deal with this, ma’am. Good luck and... keep the baby.” Sidewalk driving (May 1998) I was bored in my small town, and I decided to be “white-trashy" with my friend. I drove Floyd up onto the sidewalks while yelling: “Look out, you pedestrians. I can’t control my car! Wooh!” Well, the only pedestrian in sight was a police officer. Officer Don Short. Short-tempered was he, as he stood about 5-foot-2, fuming at my stupidity. “What are you doin’?" • "Just looking for something to hit.” He slapped me first with his hand and then with a court date - reckless driving (three points off my license) and a $50 fine. Boy, was he pissed when he found out I used to babysit for the district attor ney. My punishment was reduced to no court date, one point off my license, and they had to pay me $3,000. There are so many more stories, but I won’t bore you with them. I’ve written another haiku in honor of Floyd that I hope he gets to read: TWo pedestrians hit. Jail time for me. Kudos to you. Vroom, vroom, SCREECH! Tell us what you think. Call: (402) 472-2588 Email: letters@dailyneb.com * A courteous word is all we're asking “University operator, how can I help you?” “Yeah, gimme the num ber for Michelle Smith.” “That num- ■ ber is 472-1010." OwuBU That’s just a typical rude caller I have to deal with as a university operator. Most callers generally are courte ous and actually say “hello," “please” and “thank you.” But it’s amazing how many people don’t. For the last few months I have been missing in action working as a univer sity operator. You won’t see me, but you’ll hear me. And with my distinctive British accent it won’t be difficult to recognize me. I applied for the position because I was curious about how the operating system works. Now I know it all. Working as an operator is interest ing, and it can be a demanding job, requiring one to assist different people in different situations. When you’re an operator people expect you to know everything. We don't have the answers for everything, but we always try to help our callers as well and as quickly as we can. I can assist a caller with- ^nen in 10seconds. you’re CM «iof “H; operator, computers, and people when you under- expect you stand the system . it’s fairly easy to tO know find information, everything. Operators search » , the names of indi- aOn t viduals by last have the namMy°onbl fuMi- answers ing because I am for every providing informa- Mng fcuf non and assistance . to many individu- W6 always als in the state, city, f yy tO help county and univer- ., sity. I speak to a 0W/' Callers mixture of people: as Well and county jail auicklv inmates, students, LiulLKlY faculty and foreign- as We Can. ers. - However, as much as I enjoy being an operator, I have a lot to complain about because I occasionally have to tolerate a lot of nonsense. People generally call the operator for a number of reasons. During my training, an ignorant “loser” student who called just burped and hang up. There are people who call up and ask for a number, and it’s obvious that they don't bother to write it down because they ask you to repeat the number five times. There are some callers who simply do not know what they want. I call them the confused callers. There are many callers who call from the noisiest places and try to have a conversation with the operator and their friends at the same time. That’s just rude, and I shouldn’t have to toler ate it. mere are aiso cauers wno are too lazy to look through the phone book or dial a number. “Can you transfer me, please?” they say. They use operators as a quick search alternative. There’s nothing wrong with that, but operators should not be abused. Among operators’ most regular customers are the greeks. The sorori ties and fraternities are constantly call ing the switchboard to get telephone numbers. They’ll give you little stories about themselves. I’ve memorized all the phone numbers to every fraternity and sorority. One guy called last week and said that he met some girl at a party, but he couldn’t remember her last name, but her first name sounded like Carissa. Like I said, we only search names by the last name and a complete name always helps. So, unfortunately I couldn’t help him. Then there are other funny charac ters who call and say: “I can’t find my birth certificate. What should I do?” I feel like saying, “Ask your mom - how should I know?" But I can’t say that. The convenience of having opera tors makes life easy for all of us. We all call the operators. Just dial zero on campus and we're there to help. Just remember to treat the opera tor with respect and to say thank you. “You’re welcome.” From your university operator. A