Not at Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving vacation and Homecoming
on the same weekend? Ridiculous. It must
be a nasty rumor started by some crank.
Everyone knows Thanksgiving is only a
slightly better time than Christmas vaca
tion. Why, if Homecoming were at Thanks
giving, students would have to return from
vacation early, if indeed, in some cases, they
could go anywhere at all. Since freshmen
could not live in the dorms over the vaca
tion, they would have to live in motels (for
bidden by University regulations) and the
University surely wouldn't want that.
ANOTHER reason we're so sure Home
coming won’t be at Thanksgiving is that
the two people most directly in charge of
Homecoming, acting alumni director Bill
Landers and Soph class president Dennis
Lynch, have both agreed that this is not
the best time. The people who are spreading
this terrible rumor say that Thanksgiving
was chosen because it is at that date that
we play OSC, or OSU, as the case may be.
The only alternative to that is the San Jose
State game Oct. 21, which, rumor says, the
committee felt fould not be a big enough
drawing card for alums to make the trip.
THE THEORY, supposedly, is that
Homecoming is an alumni show, and that
students just set it up. This, of course is the
rankest nonsense, since the bonfire, rally,
and varsity show are mainly for students.
Some say that the football game is the only
reason alums come down, but we maintain
that they come back to see their old friends
and that a game is only a minor attraction.
Friends will be the same no matter who
plays the football game.
IF THE OSC game is such a red-hot
drawing card (and it might not be if our
team and their team play only mediocre
games next season) then maybe the alums
will come down anyway. They probably
won't want to, though. They might have
other committments at Thanksgiving, like
family reunions and things like that. Maybe
they wouldn’t come to Homecoming for the
same reason, if Homecoming were at
Thanksgiving, that is.
But of course, this is all just a nasty ru
mor. It just has to be. Nobody would plan
Homecoming at Thanksgiving. Would
they ?
Good System with Two Faults
Pacific Telephone-Northwest operates an
extension system for the University design
ed to serve the communication needs of the
University and its students. Except for two
minor deficiencies, the extension service has
been doing a fine job. But the system, as a
whole, works so well, and the faults are so
minor, we wonder why they are allowed
to continue.
THE FIRST complaint is that operators
are unable to provide changes of number for
students who have moved since fall term.
At present when one tries to find the num
ber of anyone who has moved since fall
term, he is referred to the fall term Pig
gers’ Guide, which is somewhat less than
helpful. If the operator does not recommend
the Piggers’ Guide, he advises checking
with the registrar's office. Just for laughs
we tried that once, and they told us we'd
have to come over in person. Too bad if
you call after 5 p.m.
IF THE UNIVERSITY would give a
list of the changed telephone numbers to
the operators at the beginning of each term,
the system could perform more smoothly.
This could he done immediately after reg
istration each term, and the extension sys
tem people have e*ven requested it. Why it
hasn't been done is anybody's guess.
THE SECOND complaint is the frustrat
ing experience of dialing a dormitory be
tween 9 and 11 p.m. and somehow getting
in touch with six or eight different people
all at once. The reason for this, according
to the telephone exchange supervisor^ is a
deficiency in the equipment. Another cause
for crossing lines is students who dial “9”
and then dial "0” in the hopes of reaching
the city operator. Unfortunately, all this
does is throw a trouble switch at the Uni
versity switchboard, and the lines will be
snarled until the student hangs up.
BUT THE MAIN FAULT is in the
equipment deficiency, which the staff of the
extension system admit quite openly. Since
the Pacific Telephone Northwest operates
the extension system for the University, it
should be the responsibility of the Univer
sity to request that the equipment trouble
be cleared up.
Why this hasn't been done is anybody’s
guess.
Letters to the Editor
A PHONY LETTER
Dear Emerald Editor: I real
ly think that Thanksgiving is
OREGON DAILY EMERALD
The Oregon Daily Emerald is published
four times in September and five days a
week during the school year, except dur
ing exi.mina.tion and vacation periods by
the Student Publications Board of the
University of Oregon. Entered as second
class matter at the post office, Eugene,
Oregon. Subscription rates: $5 per y*ar,
$2 per term.
Opinions expressed on the editorial
page are those of The Emerald and do
not pretend to represent the opinion of
the ASUO or the University.
DAN PFAFF, Editor
STEVE MILLIKIN, Business Manager
RON BUEL, Managing Editor
KEITH POWELL, News Editor
TED MAHAR, Editorial Page Editor
PHIL COGSWELL,
Assistant News Editor
DULCY MORAN,
Assistant News Editor
YVONNE EGGERS,
Assistant Managing Editor
DAVE SANDS, Photo Editor
PETE DOWNS, AL HYNDING,
LARRY KURTZ, Triumvirate
BARBARA CHANTRY,
Women’s Editor
EDITORIAL BOARD :
Dan Pfaff, Ron Buel. Keith Powell,
Ted Mahar, Phil Cogswell, Yvonne Eg
gers, Jim Boyd, Sue Hunter, Larry
Lynch, Virginia Anderson, Allison Blak
ely, Gayle Osburn.
a really dumb time to have
Homecoming. We students do
not get a chance to go home and
see our parents very often and
if Homecoming was at Thanks
giving then we’d get cheated
out of going home even then.
I think it is only right that you
shouldn’t have other holidays
and staff interfering with
Homecoming, after all it’s not
something you have every day.
If those guys in the athletic de
partment want to have Home
coming when we play the Bea
vers, then why can’t they
change the Oregon State game
over to another weekend. I real
ly think the whole thing is real
ly dumb.
Juanita Greenback,
Freshman.
* *
RIGHT AND WRONG
To the Editor:
In regard to the recent ar
ticle, “The Strange Silence
Among the GOP’’ it is the opin
ion of Messrs. Phillips and Rus
sill that some part of the Ken
nedy administration has flubbed
with regard to the Cuban and
Laos affairs. Some people seem
to think that whenever there
are two sides to an issue and one
side is right and the other is
wrong, when in actuality both
sides may be right, or both
may be wrong. In actuality both
sides of any issue usually incor
porate some right and some
wrong tenets in their policy.
As specifically regards the Cu
ban question, it was the old
story of jets and tanks, U.S.
small arms. Anyone cOuld guess
the outcome had he paid heed to
the Hungarian revolution. What
do Messrs. Phillips and Russill
suggest that Kennedy do. He
could send the U.S. troops and
easily take Cuba but is Cuba
worth training the brand of
“Bully” associated with our
country. Unfortunately senti
ment doesn’t carry the same
authority as tanks.
Carl E. Mel I or,
Grad in physics.
The Best of Biblcr
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JCilk P,nJ(
The Jazz Festival:
Considering, Reconsidering
By KEITH POWELL.
Emerald Nfws Editor
On April 6 the ASUO Senate
voted to approve the now-lan
quishing Student Union board
sponsored three-day jazz festi
val by a vote of 13 to 16.
On April 20. the Emerald pub
lished an editorial angrily an
nouncing that SO,000 was too
much money to be spent on a
project which might not be fi
nancially successful during its
first year.
ON THE same evening the
ASUO Senate, never noted for
its firmness of mind (i.e. the
5-month USNSA fiasco), with
drew its support of the festi
val.
The ASUO Senate is not so
powerful that its disapproval
may scuttle a SU board proj
ect so easily, but all board spe
cial attractions carrying a price
tag over $1,000 must be un
derwritten by the University's
Budget Board. Aiding by the
Senate is not expected to help
the cause of the jazz festival
before the Budget Board one
whit.
WHETHER or not the edito
rial influenced the Senate vote
is a moot point, but the edito
rial must be challenged, even
if somewhat belatedly, because
(1) it was written by one mem
ber of the editorial board with
out the discussion of the full
board; (2) it contained factual
errors; (3) the editorial took
a highly superficial approach
to the problem, and (4) the edi
torial seemed to take the po
sition that the safe way is the
only way.
Although the occasional de
vice of capitalizing all the
letters in the word ‘jazz' was
so gauche as to be almost
charming, one cannot overlook
the damage the editorial seems
to have done to the cause of
the jazz festival.
FIRST of all the factual er
rors; The editorial said that
the Junior Prom lost $1,800 and
the Sophomore Swing ‘‘very
close” to that amount because
of jazz artists Andre Previn
and Shelley Mann, who played,
incidentally, only for a pre
dance concert not for the
dance.
Si Ellingson, SU director,
said May 11 that the Swing lost
only $975 and the Junior Prom
only $1,000. This may be a
minor point but it is indica
tive of the seeming lack of in
vestlgatlon or serious interest
in the festival.
INCIDENTALLY, Hi Elling
eon said that "losses would have
been even larger" if jazz ar
tists hadn't been brought in. In
fact, even "top” popular ar
tists “with a much more varied
appeal" couldn't make a suc
cess of such antiques as the big
campus dances, which are con
siderable less popular than in
past years except for Homecom
ing.
The editorial also failed to
suggest that 11 pre-dance con
cert is hardly the occasion to
schedule Jazz artists who de
mand more concentration than
people psyched up to dance are
willing to give out.
THE JAZZ festival is a gam
ble, of course, no one denies it.
And. ironically, the kind of fes
tival what ran be a financial
success, is the kind that needs
the breadth and the big names
that the Emerald and Senate
oppose because of cost.
About half of the income
from the Festival would have to
come from outside the Eugene
area. This problem could be
hoped with in great measure by
scheduling it during the spring
or easter vacations of the se
mester schools on the coast.
AND IT is only with b i g
names and a program of depth
that these students are going
to be attracted to, and this is
said with no sarcasm intended,
the hinterlands of Eugene.
The editorial seemed disturb
ed because some student monies
may be lost. However, but here
again the matter was not looked
into very deeply.
The Student Union Board
will sponsor next year as It has
in years past, several other spe
cial attractions, besides the
jazz festival. The editorial's stri
dent cry for more "popular" en
tertainers will be gratified here
— and help absorb whatever
losses the jazz festival might
have the first two times out.
Ellingson says that with
careful selection by tlie SU
board popular artists can be ob
tained who will, if not com
pletely absorb, will go a long
long way towards absorbing
whatever losses the festival
might incur.
But more disturbing than the
errors and the superficiality of
the editoriul is the attitude also
seemingly shared by the Sen
(Continued on page 3)