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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 6, 1956)
+ EMERALD EDITORIALS + Black-bordered Report If there is anything at all encouraging about the black-bordered pledge class grade reports, it must be the improvement made by the fraternity pledges. In only four years, at their current rate of improvement, they'll catch up with their somewhat more static sisters. A total of slightly over 38 per cent, 155 out of 407, of the fraternity pledges didn’t make a 2 point fall term. This is down from over 43 per cent in 1954 and nearly 4S percent in 1953. Even after four years of pouring over the grades, such a percentage still shocks us. The average for the fraternity pledge classes was 2.153, the average for the freshman men’s dorms, 2.13. Neither are particularly respectable averages. Just a glance at the sorority pledges grades makes them appear better than their fraternity counterparts. The grades them selves are. but the grades are below those of last year and only slightly above those for 1953. Out of the 285 sorority pledges, 55 did not make a 2 point, for an average of 19.3 percent, as compared to 18.3 percent last year. Last year's top sorority pledge grades were a 3.22 and a 2.89—pretty respectable averages. This year the top was 2.841, the low a 2.013. The women did not do as well as usual. The most shocking thing was the num ber of fraternity pledge class below a 2 point. The average for three whole pledge class was below a 2 point. A few individual 0.00’s did nothing to help them. A number of the fraternities have been operating study tables throughout the term. This, with the better study facilities in the new dormitory, may have helped the men improve their grades. Obviously, however, there is still room for considerable im provement. Possibly the place to start is with the In ter-fraternity council and the fraternities themselves. Sorority grades are usually higher than the fraternities. Panhellenic does not permit women with less than a 4 stanine to rush. IFC might consider a similar limitation! The fraternities are not able to maintain strict control over their freshmen. Com pared to the women, they are relatively <£ree from University-set restrictions. The an swer would seem to be more careful mem bership selection, with consideration given to the student’s potential. Some guidance on the part of the frater nity must follow this if the fraternities are to continue to exist. Those 155 men, and 55 women, will not be moving into their houses next fall if they don't do better in their scholastic endeavors winter and spring terms. If they don't, the loss will be the fraternities, as well as the University’s. W e look to the fraternities for action.—(S.R.) Some New Films Ever attend a Student Union movie? It you haven't, you may have been missing some worthwhile entertainment. All rabid movie-goers should take careful note of the list of Sunday movies that the SU movie committee provides each term. Last term there were several fine films on the slate. The schedule for winter term looks even better. From this corner it looks as though the top two movies this term will be shown on Jan. 15 and 22. The first, “With a Song in My Heart," is the film story of songstress Jane Froman. The second, with James Stew art and June Allyson as the stars, is “The Glenn Miller Story.’’ Another which will probably attract a large audience will be “Snows of Kiliman jaro,” Jan. 29. The first movie of the term will be “Bird of Paradise,” Jan. 8. The others, in addition to the three mentioned above, are “Johnny Belinda,” “Genevieve,” "So Big,” and “Ti tanic.” What we like most about the presenta tions of the movie committee this year is that they are halfway recent hits. Most of the pictures this term are not more than a couple of years old.—(B.R.) Footnotes The Most Deserted Place of the Fir>t Week of the Term—the library—hasn’t been living’ up to its reputation. Guess too many people are trying to atone for their fall term follies. * * * Only 48 weeks later the duck tracks up Hello Walk have almost disappeared. Just goes to prove how permanent washable paint is. * * * One enterprising student has come up with a new way to beat the registration lines at Emerald hall. He mailed his check and cards to the business office. * * * Suggested research project: a chemical analysis of what passes for coffee at the Student Union. INTERPRETING THE MEWS French People Protest Against Status Quo; Join Extremists By J. M. Roberts Of the Associated Press The idea of Premier Faure that elections at this time would give France a more stable gov ernment, and the refusal of the last National Assembly to give him the election reforms he thought would help, have pro duced a shocking political di lemma. The French people have regis tered their protest against things as they are by adding to the strength of groups — the Communists and the anti-taxers —whose chief objectives are the very opposite of stabilization. Since the extremists always tend toward union, there is even the possibility of a so called popular front govern ment, of the type formed in various Eastern European countries after the war which tdtbnately led to complete Communist control. Observers thought it more like ly that the moderate leftists of former Premier Mendes-France and kindred groups might be able to form a government, but there was little hope of any govern ment which would be able to move confidently toward settle ment of the many issues which beset France. The best-looking hope, but one which showed no immediate signs of attainment, was that Mendes France and Faure would com promise enough of their differ ences so that some semblance of down-the-m i d d 1 e government could be resumed. Even this, however, would not give France any more sta ble government than those which have been repeatedly voted out of office since the war. The Poujadist anti-tax move ment, although it merely ex pressed and consolidated an atti tude which has long been recog nized as one of France’s most dis ruptive, acquired surprising strength at the polls. Its success adds to the ten dency of the country to duck the facts of cold war and give up in the face of its rising costs, just as the country gave up in the face of Communism in Indochina. It is obvious that, even while their representatives were agree ing to the recent forming of the North Atlantic Treaty Organiza tion, many Frenchmen were turning away from it. The most startling and dis turbing thing in American eyes will be the gains of the Com munist Party, which had been generally considered to be los ing ground in the face of Rus sian mistakes and an Increas ing general prosperity. The vote reveals a strong ten dency for the people to turn to the Communists when they wish to protest without being able to center on concrete policies of re form. Packing Again / —-- a "SAY. THOSE WERE PRETTY T0UGH'FIRSTDAY'AS5I6NM!N7SMW'' THE LOOKING GLASS Military Bureaucracy Eclipses Air Power Rise By Bob Davis Emerald Columniit “The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell” is the simply arid com petently told biography of Brig adier General William Mitchell of the Army Air Service, as the Air Force was called in the first decade of the twentieth century. Mitchell was a man dedicated to the development of the mili tary aircraft and the increased responsibility it should have in future wars. In 1921 he staged a demonstration of airplane po tential when a group of his rick ety bi-planes droned and sput tered over an “unsinkable” cap tured German warship. Each dropped its destructive load until the ship became painfully sinkable to the military and ci vilian dignitaries that were out to watch the demonstration. A new dawn In military his tory was about to break, but the rising sun of air power was soon to be eclipsed by the tradition and bureaucracy of the military establishment. Mitchell was shunted into the wide open nothingness of Texas where the old school militarists hoped he would soon forget all about the troublesome new airplane. Mitchell was not to be quieted. however. After several men had been killed in a naval an plane crash, Billy contacted the press and in violent terms stated that the recent crashes were the re sult of ineompentcy, negligence, and almost treasonable admini stration of the national defense hv the War and Navy depart ments. An outburst like that in the military natuinlty called for court-martial proceedings lie used his testimony to the fullest in order to get the plans of his his force vision out before those whose help he needed. He d« - scribed quite accurately the rob ot the air force as it functions today. He predicted the attack on Pearl Harbor with almost mystical preciseness. Billy tvas suspended from the ycrvlec for five years and so resigned. He beeuine a martyr to the air force cause and his name drew a sort of evangelical spirit into the later air power advocates. Gary Cooper is the Hollywood fascimlle of General Billy and does a capable job although Cooper's veranda vitality in speech and mannerisms does not always convey the zest and exhuberance of the fire-ball General that helped fill the skies with American aircraft. The Oregon D»ily Emerald is published five days a week during the school year, rvept during examination and vacation periods, by the Student Publications H< ard of the I 'ni *er«Hy of Oregon. Entered as second class matter at the post office, Eugene, Oregon Sub scription rates: $5 per school year; $2 per term. Opinions expressed on the editorial page are those of the writer and d) not pretend to represent the opinions of the ASUO or the University, Unsigned editorials arc written by the editor; initialed editorials by members of the editorial board. GORDON RICE, Editor DONNA RUN BERG, B-.siness Manager SALLY RYAN, Editorial Page Editor JACK RAD1CH, Adve,lining Manager JERRY CLAUSSEN, BOB ROBINSON, Associate Editors SAM VAHEY, Managing Editor ANNE RITCHEY, News Editor JOAN RAINVILLE, Asst. Advertising Mgr. CHUCK MITCHELMORE, Sports Editor NANCY SHAW, Office Manager EDITORIAL BOARD: Gordon Rice, Ritchey, Bob Robinson, Sally Ryan, ferry ClauHsen, >am Vahey. Chuck Mitchelmore, Anne Ass’t News Editors: Bill Mainwaring, Marcia Mauttey, Loretta Meyer, Cornelia Fogle. Feature Editor: Carol Craig Women's Editor: Cay Mundorff. Photography Editor: Pete Taussig •l'8*’!.Adv. Mgr.: Laura Morris Classified Adv. Mgr.: Pat C'uihnio Ass t Office Mgr.: Becky Tor/ler Circulation Mgr.: Ken Klanrtky hxerutive Secretary: Grri Goebel Ass t Sports Kditora: Al Johnson, Jack Wilsou.
