editorial
r
Not forgotten
The ASUO’s proposal for a student-faculty governing board
for Mac Court may have been tabled but it has not been forgotten,
at least by the ASUO. They hope to revive the issue and bring it
before the March general faculty meeting. This time the ASUO
plans to concentrate more heavily on the political groundwork
necessary to gain faculty support for the proposal.
Last week the proposal's day in court before the general
faculty was extremely short-lived. The administration's objections
to the proposal so over-shadowed the meeting that discussion
was stifled. Pres. William Boyd's unprecedented move of relin
quishing the chair to speak against the proposal brought the full
weight of his office to bear on the faculty members present. When
he spoke against the measure, his voice carried the authority of
the president of the University and was not the voice of a faculty
member. In addition, the opposition of Dave Frohnmayer, the
University's attorney, raised the spectre of legal difficulties arising
from the language of the proposal.
The ASUO was not even allowed to adequately respond
to either Frohnmayers or Pres. Boyd's opposition. In fact, Dave
Donely, co-sponsor of the proposal, was not even allowed to
speak. Donely's background and research into the history and
operation of Mac Court was ignored and the faculty lost a prime
source of information on the proposal.
The motion to table the proposal quickly followed the
administration s vocal opposition to the plan and left some of the
supporters feeling frustrated in their efforts to gain support and
approval from the faculty members present. Donely charac
terized the meeting as a "farce." Don Chalmers, ASUO consul
tant, charged that the administration's comments "created .. .
paranoia and fear in the faculty,"and prevented "effective de
bate.” ASUO Pres. Jim Bernau saw the motion to table as"a
reaction to some very fine speaking.”
Fortunately the ASUO has decided to tackle the issue again.
The ASUO s decision to work at the grassroots level and contact
individual faculty members that voted for the motion to table is a
practical and effective tactic. By using this method the ASUO can
answer questions and discuss the proposal s merits in a less
intimidating setting.
The proposal deserves to be reconsidered and should be
brought up at the March general faculty meeting. At this time,
hopefully, both sides will be heard from fully and the ASUO
allowed to refute the administration’s rhetoric.
V
J
Letters
Drawing excludes
This letter is in reference to the
drawing of “The Typical Oregon
Student," found on page 4, sec
tion B of the Jan. 15th Emerald.
This drawing of a guy in jeans and
jacket seems to be in direct con
tradiction to a reply given to a stu
dent in the Jan. 14th Emerald,
stating that the Emerald made an
effort not to use sexist journalism.
However, not only is this draw
ing sexist, but it excludes the rest
of us who don’t fit into the role of
the Youthful White American
Male. (Of which there is a notable
per cent represented at this cam
pus.)
In the future, maybe the
Emerald should try and practice
what it preaches.
Nancy Neuenburg
and 24 co-signers
Editor's note: The drawing refer
red to is clearly labeled, “The Typ
ical Oregon Student” and natur
ally excludes all who do not fit the
definition of typical. The typical
(majority) student at the UO is 18
to 25 years old, male, white and a
US citizen.
Fill had
I cannot help but feel I am not
alone in my complaint against the
UO bookstore. After three and
one-half years I have finally had
my fill of the incompetent methods
used in handling and ordering
classroom texts.
After finally deciding on my
class load for this term I took the
dreaded trek to the bookstore. I
was searching for books required
in four of my classes. Since it was
the fourth day of classes, I was
somewhat wary of my success at
finding all of these gems. I never,
however, expected to walk out
empty-handed. It seems that bet
ween the professors who short
order and the bookstore, which re
fuses to order over an expected
class load, we find ourselves con
fronted with an awkward and truly
sad problem. Some might argue
that I should have stood in those
horrendous lines on Friday or
purchased my books before re
gistration. The obvious fact is that
it makes no difference when you
buy, someone is left out. I under
stand that many other bookstores
catering to universities over order
and give the student the benefit of
the doubt; any books that are not
used are then returned to the pub
lisher at a minimal cost. I am sure
that our bookstore has at least one
reason why it continues their ab
surdly inadequate policies.
Unfortunately, I cannot present
a solution to this problem at pres
ent, mainly because I have not to
tally researched all contributing
factors. The problem, however, is
there and it needs immediate at
tention. How can I possibly have a
reasonable chance in my classes
when I will not have a text until the
third week?
John Billingsley
Sr., geography
Take a hike
We, the members of the Coali
tion against UFAB, hereby de
mand that the arrested members
of the UFAB-supported demon
strators admit to their horrendous
'DEAR FIDEL THE AMERICANS ARE GONE, GOING m I THINK
UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES ANGOLA IS MAYBE NO PLACE FOR A CUBAN,1 THINK...
V\5'' ?*•
• -■ ■ .Tv»
crime of being obnoxious and im
mature. They should also
apologize to the most honorable
Dr. William Boyd, President of the
University, in a letter of at least
283 words (to be proof-read by at
least seven members of the En
glish department).
We also demand that the story
time at the Day Care Center be
shortened 20 minutes daily.
Furthermore those who oppose
tuition hikes should take up jog
ging or cross-country skiing.
We believe that the noise level
at future demonstrations should
be kept to 3.45 decibels (or less)
so as that the other 15-plus
thousand students here can get
their money's worth in their clas
ses. These demands are non
negotiable.
Greg Stiles,
The Only Member of
a Non-existent Group
Blame friends
When do “college pranks”
cease and acts of vandalism
begin? Being an RA in a freshmen
dorm, I've had to ask myself this
question increasingly this term,
even though it is only three weeks
old.
During fall term in the dorms,
you ve consigned yourself to the
fact that these pranks will run the
gamut from pennymg doors, to
shaving cream and vasolme on
the door knobs. In most cases
though, this mystique wears off
by the end of fall term. This year
we have been plagued by re
peated cuteness on the part of
the dorm residents to the point of
jeopardizing the personal safety
of all dorm residents We have
had repeated smoke bomb occur
ences and, m one case, a Eugene
fireman became ill. There seems
to be an assortment of people who
love to burn paper off the bulletin
boards—not to mention the car
pets. Last night our local bomb
squad blew a hole in a toilet fixture
to the tune of nearly one-hundred
dollars.
Haven't we arrived at the point
where we are no longer dealing in
pranks, but in people s safety?
People complain when their living
costs nse—let them blame their
friends for part of those costs. It is
about time that everyone check
their priorities for being at school
and save others some time and
expense!
Peter B Wagner
History
Exclusion felt
I am totally disillusioned with the
women s rights movement. In this
day and time of social equaliza
tion, it is shocking to find that an
important sexist hallmark is left
standing. Forthright sexism must
either be eliminated totally or re
main an American institution. The
tempest of sexism I am referring to
is the plaques on Gerlinger Hall
which reads Women s Memorial
Hall. I feel that this excludes
one-half of this University s popu
lation and thus should be changed
to read People s Memorial Hall
After all, if the women need to
change our 100-year old school
song so that it will not be sexist,
why don t they strive to make the
Gerlinger plaques non-sexist as
well9
Steven Fogelson
Jr., Pol Sc
commentary
v
War games
A few weeks ago I attended a sporting event,
the most common American exhaust pipe for the
letting of mass aggression. Although I went to the
arena with the intent of observing team sports, I
found the attending crowd much more fascinat
ing.
What began as a hearty ovation for the home
team and a benign welcome for the contenders,
culminated, at the end of the game, in one fan
shouting, as an opponent writhed in pain on the
floor, “I hope he is dead."
The gradual progression of crowd hostilities
toward the challenging team and the "near
sighted" referees led me to conclude that observ
ing competitive sports facilitates the manifesta
tion of human aggression, expecially in a mass
setting. At this time I neither wish to assert that
such events generate aggressive forces nor that
they merely nurture latent tendencies, which, in
the absence of these relatively controlled forums,
would be vented in a more destructive fashion. A
far more interesting social phenomenon presents
itself-the phenomenon of social loyalty.
I observed that the overwhelming majority of
the sporting aficionados supported the "home
team to the exclusion of the visitors. I asked my
self: What possible quality do the members of this
team share that the members of the other team
lack? Are they more pious; more virtuous; more
wise? Certainly not! Are they then stronger; more
skilled; more agile? If these were the qualities
which the fans admired the most, then they would
root for the team with the best plays, the most
points--the team that won the game. This, of
course, was not the case. They invariably rooted
for the “home” team, which incidentally, sue
cumbed to the superior performance of the oppos
ition.
Continuing this inquiry a bit further. I concluded
that the only quality which all members of the
home team shared was their affiliation with a
particular educational institution. Thus, it was not
the team which the crowd so vigorously sup
ported, but the institution It was not the belief in
the superiority of the players which breeded hostil
ity, but the belief in an institution
Again I inquired: What possible quality does
this institution enjoy which the other institution
does not? Does it provide a finer education; a
broader cultural enrichment; a more nourishing
social climate? Although I concluded that the in
stitution failed in each of these three respects, I
soon recognized the question as immaterial. Had
this institution a superior educational, cultural and
social environment, I could conclude nothing con
cerning the playing abilities of the home team,
and, had ! supported the team on this basis, I
could have found myself in the illogical position of
supporting a team consistently inferior in the
arena.
Thus, the basis of support is reduced to physi
cal proximity or personal allegiance, the historical
determinants of one s political alliances. Histori
cally these alliances were most violently expres
sed in political strife.
We observe the same phenomenon in the
realm of sporting events. The institution becomes
the state; the home team becomes the defenders
of that state; and the game--cold, ruthless, sav
age war.... "I hope he is dead."
Mark Evans
psychology, Sr.