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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 8, 1965)
Northwest Review Magazine's Demise is a Sad Chapter The long awaited decision on the North west Review, the University’s quarterly lit erary magazine now under suspension, is still being delayed. Last May President Flemming announced that the responsibility for publishing the magazine had been transferred from the Student Publications Board to the Faculty Publications Committee. This change in jurisdiction followed a storm of criticism of the last issue of the magazine that was published. The issue in question, published in the fall of 1963, was castigated for its “filth and decadence in the guise of higher educa tion.” The strongest critic of the magazine, decrying the lack of morality exemplified in the Review’s poems, circulated a flyer around the state so everybody could read these “dirty” poems and see how bad all of higher education really is. The next step in this long drawn out saga was a call for the removal of President Flemming by these supposed moral stal warts of our community for permitting such “filth” to be perpetrated on the public. In the meantime, the Faculty Publica tions Committee hired a new editor, and suspended final publication scheduled for last Spring Term. The State Board of Higher Education supported Flemming for his handling of the affair. Flemming appointed an ad hoc commit tee last summer to formulate a statement of policy for University publications. It was understood the magazine would be rein stated. Now that the policy statement has been given to Flemming and delivered to the Senate to be acted upon, it is safe to assume some action should be forthcoming. However, the Faculty Senate has chosen to postpone making any recommendations about the policy statement at this time. So the next issue of the Northwest Review, if published at all, apparently is subject to more bureaucratic procrastination. It is only fair to ask: Why? Certainly a time lapse of six months ought to be enough time to allow the Fac ulty Publications Committee to make a de cision about the future of the literary mag azine. However, since the Faculty Senate chose to table the matter until its next meeting, we can look forward to more de lays and more excuses. It is time for the faculty committee to either renew publishing the magazine or throw it out altogether. A final decision is owed to the members of the University com munity. In the future we will see if the faculty and President Flemming wish the Univer sity to boast a literary magazine that we can be proud of, or merely are attempting to avoid becoming embroiled in arguments. Symbols Everywhere Two years ago, when the “0” mysterious ly disappeared from Skinner’s Butte, we thought that was the end of another tradi tion. But it appears that there is a good deal of sentiment for restoring the “O.” It was returned—in pieces—last term, presumab ly by Oregon State students. A group of Eugene businessmen have sponsored the restoration. It stands all welded together on a bit of city land on Skinner’s Butte. And now it appears that thejfreshman class is going to paint it, which will put us back where we started. Traditionally the “0” was painted during homecoming by applying paint to fresh men and then applying the freshmen to the “0.” We trust this is not what the present freshman class intends. This kind of tradition seemed to be on its way out the past few years, along with kangaroo courts, millracing, etc. The rea son for this decline seemed to be student apathy about such things. The modern col lege student has things on his mind more important than “O’s” on Skinner’s Butte. Most University students probably couldn’t care less. Whether or not there is a metal “0” on Skinner’s Butte doesn’t seem to matter as much as the political, academic, and social life of the University. Unlike its neighbor up on the hill, the cross, it’s hard to make a controversy out of the “O.” There’s no principle involved. If a group of people want to go to all the trouble of putting a metal letter on Skin ner’s Butte, let them. Just so they 'don’t bother the rest of us. War—Kiddies’ Style This Christmas many children, and prob ably some adults, received one of the new “war games” currently flooding the market. They might have received “Stratego” which includes bombs and assassins, “Tac tics II” which uses hydrogen and atomic bombs to conquer a map of the world, or “Risk” which is relatively mild, using only limited means of warfare. The value of these games in themselves is dubious. Perhaps it may be argued that such games teach children the realities of the world today. Yet is seems unlikely that a child will learn anything about the ten sions that are currently evident in the United Nation^ or situations such as the rebel massacres in the Congo. Instead, we learn that we can gain power and win the "game by setting off a nuclear bomb or shoot ing the opposing leader in the back. It would be absurd to charge that such games will build a generation of junior sized Hitlers or Mussolinis. It is possible, however, that such games will further the already confused image that children of this decade have of war. Roughly two years ago several television networks began their fall season with new programs reliving the glories and herosim of World War II and the Korean war. This, coupled with a spurt of old war movies currently being shown on television has given Americans a long exposure to Hollywood’s version of war, a somewhat glorified and frequently gory pic ture. Perhaps the final step in this current pre occupation with war and world conflict is the toy set manufactured by a leading toy concern. It features your own combat divi sion with a tank which can blow up some of the other pieces in the set. An active toy for young and old alike. One thing which all of this may mean is that attempts in recent years to make heroes of doctors, lawyers and teachers haven’t succeeded. Instead, we have had to revert back to the traditional heroes of stor ies and films, the cowboys and soldiers. For the cowboys, the stakes are the same, the ranch land, the pretty girl and peace with the Indians. For the soldier, the stakes are now all of humanity and not the glory of battle alone. Definitely not a game. *«<!£pmyKZ5' * Investigation in Mississippi iiiwi!aiiiiii:!i!ii>;:i!!ii;i:i!iiiiiiiwuuauiaiiiui kjhtU li lu'ggs Teacher’s Salaries Facing Critical Era One of the major complaints that surounds educational policy everywhere is teacher's salaries. It appears that this year will be no exception, at least in Oregon The State Board of Higher Edu cation has recommended that the 1965 Oregon Legislature appro priate $8.6 million to step up academic salaries in the next biennium. But the budget was trimmed considerably and Gov ernor Hatfield will present only a $3.1 million version to the leg islature. Average Lower This can only indicate that the average salary level at the Uni versity will drop down the line in ranking with the 19 other col leges and universities with which it compares salaries. In 1957 the University ranked 11th; last year we ranked 14th. If the watered down budget passes the legisia ture we can expect to drop even further. Needless to say the State Board is not too pleased with the budget cut. The governor has said that the revised figure will en able Oregon’s institutions to main tain competitive levels. State Board members, however, charged that he is figuring wrong—that the new budget falls $15 million short of maintaining even last year’s position. The average salary at the Uni versity during the last biennium was $9,466. The proposed increase recommended by the State Board would have graduated the average level to $11,659 over the next two years. Teachers Needed It is easily deduced that Ore gon’s colleges and universities cannot hope to command qualified professors by offering them lower salaries than those found at com parable institutions. With spiral ing enrollments the University will need a large number of new teachers during the next decade and the competition for teachers will increase greatly. Oregon is not the only state in Emerald Editor; Reply to Agger “Professtor” (sic) Agger quix otic “snide and uniformed” verbiage in the January 5 Em erald seems worthy of only a few brief comments. It descends to the level of spurious pro jected opinion. To cite Drew Pearson as an authority on any thing is like seking Billy Sol Estes’ advice on the soy bean market. In each instance one is left holding a large bag of hot air. Kenneth W. Wegner Assistant Professor Counseling Center the same situation. The campus newspaper at Wayne State Uni versity recently reported that a dean, an assistant dean and two professors had resigned within a one-month period; it saw the move as indicative of a trend of faculty members moving away from the campus to more lucra tive positions. Song Familiar Wayne State President Clar ence Hilberry said. “We have re peatedly emphasized our needs to the State Legislature. Unless funds are provided we shall con tinue to experience the kind of situation where new or more pros perous institutions attract our best people.” The song sounds very familiar to Oregonians. In February, 1964 the Wayne State chapter of the American Association of Univer sity Professors issued a report stating that the average salary for full professors at that insti tution was $11,480, falling nearly $10,000 below the comparable figure at the association's highest ranking schools. Oregon's current average for full professors is $11,975, just above that at Wayne State. The State Board has made re peated demands to the Oregon Legislature during the past sev eral years. Many of them have not been met; most budgets have suf fered severe cutbacks and tui tions have been raised as an almost annual event. Not Feasible This all rests beside the fact that it is simply not feasible for a person to teach who cannot afford to, and it remains highly unlikely that we will retain good professors very long if the salary level keeps dropping during every biennium. Teachers will not abound if we do not raise salary levels above that of the truck driver or the salesman. It is hoped that the upcoming legis lature will contain members re sponsible enough to forsee the needs of Oregon’s schools and meet them on reasonable grounds. OREGON DAILY EMERALD The Oregon Daily TCmcrald is pub lished five times in September and five days a week during the academic year, ex cept during examination periods, by the Student Publications Hoard of the Univer sity of Oregon. Entered as second clast matter at the post office, Eugene, Oregon. Subscription rates $5 per year; $2 per term. Opinions expressed on the editorial page are those of the Emerald and do not represent the opinions of the ASUO or the University. Cathy Neville, Editor J. Craig Mathicsen. Business Manager Chuck Beggs, Managing Editor Kenneth R. Kappcl, Advertising Manager Stephen Green, News Editor Dave Jordan, Associate Editor Phil Scmas, Sports Editor
