opinion
I sally hodgkinson
even editors get the blues
He s dressed in Levi's and a football jersey,
tbe top of his balding head bright red from the sun
Hi. I'm Ken Kesey.” he says to the high
school journalist Huge hand Strong grip “Let me
show you around the farm."
The almost-18-year-old had just finished
reading The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test and. like
so many other groupies that made the trek to the
Kesey farm outside Pleasant Hill, came to catch a
glimpse of the legend — as if to reassure herself
that crazy decade still had some remnants
But Further the bus that survived the Merry
Pranksters adventures, is out to pasture Cows
graze nearby, ignoring the relic
Kesey dutifully answers questions about the
60s as rf talking about a faded photograph
The Smithsonian Institute wanted the bus. but
somehow I like it here he says It belongs
The clouds scuttle over the green hills,
cooling the air with a slight sprinkle Amid the
cows, the fading Day-Glo bus the bam-turned
house and his family. Kesey also belongs
He doesn't regret the Pranksters days he
says He had a great time
I didn't want to come back, he says I was
having fun in California with the Pranksters But
something pulled me back to Oregon
The hills enclose the quiet countryside, pro
tective A cow ambles over to a choice clump of
grass near the wheels of the bus Kesey proudly
shows his blueberry plants to the visitor
It doesn't make sense to plow up an orchard
to put in mobile homes. Kesey says If you got
good roots, it's sensible to take advantage of
them
Three years later. Kesey is the keynote
speaker at a benefit brunch for the University
Library He s wearing a tweed jacket — no tie The
top of his balding head is bright red from the sun
The last of his blond hair is gathered in tufts on the
side of his head
He sips a gin and tonic
The crowd — many who probably tsk-tsked
over Kesey's early adventures — fawn over him "I
once sent him a check for something." one senior
says "He had to endorse it. and that s how I got
his autograph "
Kesey is the favorite boy come home He talks
of classics, the library, the damage the 60s gen
eration did to the English language, growing up in
Springfield and hts youngest child's graduation
from Pleasant Hill High School
He ends his appearance with a story, "Little
Tricker the Squirrel Meets Big Double the Bear "
He's a master story teller, and the audience is
captivated "I'm Big Double." Kesey growls, and
I ate the ridges raw and the backwoods baid
After the speech the former high schooler
walks up to Kesey “Do you remember me’" she
asks “Kinda," he answers, surrounded by suits
and carefully manicured hairdos
She shrugs, turns and walks away
ygjs
Bikes and ‘Nuts’
A coupte of comments one on the
campus bicycle situation another about
the Mixed Nuts comic strip
First — it seems to me that the
transportation subcommittee of the
Campus Planning Committee might have
had its mind set on banning bicycles
from campus walkways even before
meetings began to decide what to do
about the bicycie-pedestriar conflict At
the meeting l attended on Aprr 17 most
comments were certainly not in favor of
the subcommittee s recommendation
As far as I know thus far nothing has
been tried to reduce the frequency of
bicycle-pedestrian accidents It seems a
little repressive to mstrtute a regulation
that in effect almost totai'y bans bike
ndmg on campus walkways when less
restrictive and potentially successful
alternatives have not yet been tried In
my letter of April 23 I suggested one
such alternative l won't repeat the det
ails here however I'm convinced that if
the University public is made aware that
a bicycle-pedestrian problem exists and
rf the media and campus groups try to
educate the public in campus courtesies
any need for the proposed regulation wil
subside Newspaper articles tree radio
plugs handouts to bicycle registrants on
campus transportation etiquette and
some weli-piaced signs would be far
cheaper an important factor nowadays )
than the proposed regulation
Aisc l d like to register my support of
Mixed Nuts Although Doonesbury is a
great strip | enjoy Steve Latter s zany
work more In different ways both strips
poke fur at our politica economic and
sooa mores : enjoy watching a ioca
artist develop ! enjoy reading a strip that
can t be found anywhere else Please
NW kX)i W rORWr I iN flu. A^sc 3EJW5i I KAV£ A LOT OF STTT On YOu:'
continue Mixed Nuts next school year
Bill While
Graduate, special education
Crying wolf
At a recent meeting in the EMU getting
my hackles up when a young man called
the United States fascist I called him
ignorant I am sorry about this harsh
anguage Confused would have oeen a
better term
Paoe A
I suspect our ruling elite fearful that
we the people have become unman
ageable (may) calmly contemplate
bringing fascism to the United States
Precisely because of this real fear I get
up-tight at the constant cry (of) fascism
emanating from a certain section of our
left Remember the shepherd who cried
wolf once too often' Conjuring fascism
before its time dulls our vision and
weakens our vigilance
Students who honestly believe fascism
is here already should use the oncoming
vacation to read books which depict
fascism m action
A.E. Brettauer
1240 East 23rd Street
Nice guys finish . . .
As a student who enjoys hot showers
and reading by lamp rather than
candlelight. I feel compelled to voice my
discontent concerning EWEB s most
recent rate increase Why is it that our
current economic system penalizes
EWEB consumers for attempts to con
serve power and use electricity more
efficiently by a rate increase7
Furthermore, I do not support the use
of nuclear power and certainly do not
approve of my EWEB rates increasing to
fund bonds for a financially troubled
nuclear power plant under construction
in Washington Afterail what purpose is
there in financing additional energy
generators when our rates are going up
due to decreased use of present
systems7
Tracy Smith
Junior, economica
etters policy
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