Letters —
Piece misguides
Your editorial endorsing Jerry
Brown for President was the most
irresponsible misguiding piece of
journalism that I have read in the
Daily Emerald.
My first allegation is that your
editors are two-faced. Your
whole-hearted endorsement of
Jim Davis for ASUO president
was based on the fact that he had
the most experience in student
government, and thus was the
most qualified for the job. May I
ask the Emerald what Jerry
Brown’s qualifications are for
President of the United States?
They are meager at best. He has
not even completed his first term
as governor of California. Ronald
Reagan can at least claim that
much.
In addition to your sudden turn
around of belief, your reasoning
for backing Brown discredits the
intelligence of all Emerald read
ers. You distrust Carter for not ad
dressing the issues, yet what is
sues do you address? The
Emerald seems to be impressed
only by Jerry Brown’s sen
sationalism. Yes, Jerry Brown is
honest and shows candor, is
charismatic and can excite
crowds. These, however, are not
the sole qualifications for Presi
dent of the United States.
There are only two candidates
on the Democratic ballot that are
qualified to run for President. They
are Frank Church and Morris
Udall. Udall dropped out of the
race in Oregon so that Church
could get his votes and effectively
stop Jimmy Carter. Frank Church
offered the best hope of upsetting
Jimmy Carter’s peanut wagon, not
Jerry Brown. A close look at Frank
Church will reveal that he is every
bit as candid and honest as Jerry
Brown, but unlike Brown has nine
teen years of hard work and ex
perience in the Senate to back his
claims that he can bring about
change. I appeal to those of you
who support Jerry Brown to take a
second look at Senator Frank
Church. You will not be disap
pointed.
Jerry Nemer
gen. sci., sr.
A little scared
Dateline 1990: “With the ex
haustion of our natural sources for
metals nearly upon us, mining
companies are looking more and
more at the old landfill sights as a
final source of metal.”
I think most of you can easily
see how we are fast approaching
this situation. For an in-depth
look at just where we stand in rela
tion to our resource supply, refer
to The Limits to Growth by
Meadows.
Let’9~say you already consider
the situation serious, as I do, but
are asking yourself, “How can I do
anything to change this crazy
course we’re on?” The answer
might seem simplistic at first, but
please take a minute to think
about it.
Begin recycling in neighbor
hood groups, “BRING"—we are
an organization committed to the
job of helping people to be less of
a burden on the environment.
In the past few decades Ameri
cans have grown to enjoy the con
venience of disposable packag
ing. You’ve paid for it at the cash
register, you’ve paid for it with
taxes used for clean-up crews,
now maybe you’re paying for it
with your conscience.
If you are feeling a little guilty, or
maybe a little scared of the con
sequences, here's what you can
do. Start buying your goods in
Paire 4
reusable containers. I know plas
tic is convenient, but for Christ's
sake, we can’t find anybody who’ll
recycle it. Glass and most metals,
on the other hand, are very easy to
recycle. Many glass containers
are perfectly good for reuse. This
is the best way to go of all. Much
energy is saved when a container
is sterilized and reused rather
than crushed, melted, and made
into new containers.
Which ones are reusable?
Good question. The answer may
be found at any BRING mobile.
We are just full of this information
and readily give it to anyone who
asks. BRING mobiles are every
where, too. You can find out when
it’ll be in your neighborhood by
looking in the Register-Guard on
Friday for location and time on
Saturday.
I have a feeling from the poor
turnout that most of you don't
know-about the BRING mobile on
campus every Monday 1:30 p.m.
to 3:30 p.m. at the comer of Uni
versity and 13th. You can have all
of your metal and glass recycled
plus get information on reusable
containers.
Please help us provide this ser
vice to you by participating in the
recycling effort. A little bit of effort
from each one of you will go a long
way in the years to come.
Paul Scott
photography, jr.
Not naive
I am an immigrant to the United
States from Sweden. Having lived
in another culture for half of my
life, I have two angles, so to
speak, from which I make my ob
servations. I appreciate things
which Americans probably don’t
notice unless they have lived in
another country.
In the late ’50’s, Europe was still
suffering from the ravages of
World War II. At the expense of
personal comfort, all efforts were
put into reconstruction. Living was
pretty meager then. To many
people, America once again
seemed enticing; The New Land,
a place where dreams were fulfil
led. My parents were also eager to
leave the old country. I was only
six at the time, but I can still re
member the grandeur, the ex
citement of coming here. I had
never flown in an airplane before,
and it was breathtaking to see
New York City at night, blazing
with countless lights. The next
morning when we got off the
plane, we were in Salt Lake city,
surrounded by snow-capped
mountains. There were so many
things that were strange and new
to me, not the least of which was
learning a completely different
language I had never before seen
a TV, or been in a supermarket.
Naturally, I had never before seen
the likes of such beautiful country,
so varied and rich. In spite of all
the natural beauty and the modern
contraptions, though, the thing
that impressed me most was the
Americans themselves. They all
seemed to be broad-minded,
friendly, with the “howdy, podner"
personality of John Wayne. Com
pared to the rigid culture of Swe
den, people were easygoing and
liberal. My whole family at once
relaxed their outlook and stopped
worrying about their language dif
ficulties.
School was really enjoyable.
There were so many different
nationalities, customs and tradi
tions to be exposed to. This is
probably the reason why life flows
so freely here, there is no one uni
versal set of traditions to go by.
There is also room for experimen
tation and innovation.
I
He’s been very discreet about his presidential preference
opinion
Avoid process’ temptation
During this present school year, nearly 200
persons have sought admission to our
master's-level (College of Education) counselor
preparation program here at the University of
Oregon. They competed for about 25 spaces for
new admits commencing with Fall term 1976
Against the perspective of declining student en
rollments in other instructional programs offered
on campus, at first glance these applicant figures
might appear to represent an occasion for con
siderable joy. Any feeling of initial delight over the
large numbers of applications we review each
year, however, must be tempered by a sobering
acknowledgment of the limited instructional re
sources we command and the reality of labor
market statistics which are not overwhelmingly
encouraging with respect to current supply and
demand patterns for salaried counselors
Lest my comments be considered "skewed," it
might be noted that two national psychological
organizations have recently recommended that
the awarding of terminal M A degrees m clinical
psychology and personal counseling be curtailed
In the April 5, 1976, issue of the Chronicle of
Higher Education the following excerpt from a
statement released by the clinical psychology di
vision of the American Psychological Association
is cited (p. 9);
"We believe that the proliferation of terminal
M.A. programs in clinical psychology and the ex
pansion of the number of students enrolled in
these programs is a disservice to a great many of
the students involved... In some instances these
programs seem designed to augment tuition in
come, leading to the rapid expansion of numbers
enrolled in courses without corresponding con
cern about the intimate apprenticeship training
required in any professional field and without re
gard to the dwindling job market for master s-level
people."
The thrust of these observations is to the effect
that educational institutions must avoid the temp
tation to “process students' in ways which are
potentially incompatible with the principles of
ethical fair play.
Another relevant case in point (which admit
tedly is not based in those sectors of the Univer
sity with which I am most familiar) is that of the
College of Business. In the April 21,1976, issue of
the Emerald Dean Richard West was quoted as
having said that, "The head-count (in the busi
ness college) is going absolutely wild... We must
have either more resources or we must start re
stricting student enrollment.” Dean West al
legedly believes that financial resources from
other areas of the University should be switched
to the College of Business to accomodate the
enrollment bulge being experienced there.
My personal reaction of Dean West’s proposed
“solution” to the deluge of applicants currently
seeking admission to business programs of study
is one of disquieting concern For he seems to be
arguing for accomodating the large student influx
without first formulating a policy which addresses
the broader context of the senous imbalances at
hand While I cannot vouch for the accuracy of
these tabulations, the College Placement Council
recently reported a decline in the number of job
offers for Master of Business Administration
(MBA) candidates In the April 1976 issue of
Counseling for College (A publication of the Of
fice of High School Relations. Oregon State Sys
tem of Higher Education), it was reported that the
volume of job offers m the two MBA categories
surveyed is running well behind the figures for last
year
If these reported trends in the marketplace are
reasonably on target, then the pivotal ethical
question here is clearly that of whether or not
students should be processed’m numbers far m
excess of the viable employment spaces availa
ble for them!?
There are those within the University oommun
ity who would undoubtedly argue that educational
institutions in an overall "steady state (to borrow
President Boyd s apt expression) should not sen
ously concern themselves with questions of social
ethics and philosophic balance Clearly my per
sonal convictions are charted in a more humane
and socially responsible direction. Accordingly, I
can t help wondering why the alternative of re
stricting student enrollment does not seem more
appealing to those administrators on campus
who are seeking thoughtful solutions to the admit
tedly baffling dilemma of enrollment imbalances
confounded by the continuing clamor for student
credit hour production."
Certainly there is no easy answer to these per
plexng conditions' Nor shcxid it be inferred from
these observations that I frown upon "reasonable
risk-taking' on the part of competent, venture
some, adequately informed students Somehow,
though, I can t elude the impression that even in
the groves of academe we are too often tempted
to place priority on political expediency and
economic motivations—and to partially neglect
the higher human values which transcend con
siderations anchored to chiefly pragmatic and
cost-accounting cntena.
Actually, the massive imbalances which
abound in our society today cry out for far-sighted
planning and humane controls which might dis
courage the tendency to lean toward the expe
dient, but frequently exploitative, "obvious solu
tions." The improbability of such dramatic struc
,ural change, however, should not dull our sen
sitivity to the ethical parameters in American
higher education.
Ron Rousseve, Ph.D.
professor of education
UO College of Education
Looking back, 17 years later, I
find that those were not naive per
ceptions from an impressionable
age. They were real, and to my
surprise, people really haven’t
changed that much. They are still
just as generous and tolerant. Un
doubtedly, this is what attracts
foreigners to this country. Natur
aHy, there is money here and all
the other good things that go with
it, but it the Americans were mean
and unpleasant, who would stay?
I love it here, and in spite of the
problems, the United States is
really where it's at.
Christina Haggstrom
aeon., Romance lang., sr.
Letters policy
The Emerald will accept and try
to print all letters containing fair
comment on ideas and topics of
concern or interest to the Univer
sity community.