Oregon daily emerald., November 16, 1981, Page 4, Image 4

opinion
To no surprise
PNRC moves on
The announcement the National Wildlife Federation will
relocate the Pacific Northwest Resource Center came so
anticlimatically it passed with hardly more than a muttered
protest
The on-campus PNRC. NWF representatives say, will be
consolidated with a regional office in Portland
But one question remains unanswered — when will this
relocation take place9 In our view, the sooner is not the
better
The PNRC contract with the University is scheduled to
expire in December This December date has been touted as
the most convenient for PNRC to pack its bags and move
off-campus That convenience seems to be more in the eyes
of the University administration
A December move for PNRC presents a number of
difficulties for the law school and law students — not the
least of which is that an important area of study for University
law students has been pulled from under their feet
The University’s PNRC was one of only four such
environment-oriented higher education law programs in the
country. Many University law students expressly came here
to participate in the PNRC's Environmental Law Clinic The
loss of the PNRC means a number of those law students will
be leaving the University.
The removal of PNRC should be postponed until the
close of this academic year There are law students already
signed up for PNRC work next semester This is a rather late
date to force those students to scramble their schedules to
fill the gaps.
NWF has offered to negotiate funding with the University
to keep PNRC functioning temporarily on-campus They
have been more than conciliatory requesting the University
help with PNRC administration costs The University faculty
have added their assent to retaining PNRC on-campus, at
least through the academic year Nearly all the parties
concerned with PNRC are in agreement that a December
termination is undesirable
However, the University administration appears less
than enthusiastic about having PNRC on-campus a minute
more than contracted
Pres Paul Olum has been quoted saying if NWF did
contribute to PNRC "with no strings attached then the
University administration would "consider" letting them stay
on for a time This is a classic "non-commital" statement —
which seems to be the hallmark of the present University
administration
Olum knows NWF cannot fund PNRC in total The
"strings” NWF have in mind are for the University to hire a
full-time administrator while they financially back the pro
gram This is a reasonable exchange for funding until the end
of the academic year
If "strings" of this nature are not to Olum's liking then
he’ll have to renounce nearly all the grants and endowments
given by individuals and groups to this University There are
more than a few money gifts to the University with "strings "
It's naive to believe "strings" don't exist in almost every
money gift
Although, for NWF to request any complimentry funding
from the University only hastens the demise of the PNRC
on-campus The University's reflex-action is to turn their
pockets inside-out
We don’t see the University as destitute as it would have
NWF and PNRC-backers believe There are funds to
cooperate with NWF’s financial backing of PNRC through to
June
So many powers-that-be must be pleased to hear PNRC
has been pushed off-campus Regardless, the University
owes it to the law students presently in the PNRC program,
and signed up for next semester, to gradually phase-out the
center by June
I--1
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il&r “ ^
^ *■ V.w>'«#r. «NM»
'BY NAB I'VEGCfflT.’ WE lL GET SOME U»6 -TERM CREDIT Wt U UPGRADE THE WHOLE PLANT WE'LL IMPROVE OR
PRODUCTION SCHEDULES, WtU HIRE MOKE WORKERS. WLL&W MORE,WE'LL HA\/E THE CMRY WWING AjAIN!'
solly hodgkinson
editor’s note
Most days the ram and wind provide a
background hum to the bustle of life na
ture's muzak
Newcomers, visitors and those who
never feel comfortable with the ram curse the
wet, scuttling about under the protection of
multi-colored umbrellas that clash with the
outdoor carpet of red. yellow and orange
leaves They make snide jokes, send Oregon
Ungreeting Cards back home, and often
leave for a sunnier, easier climate
Others listen to the duet of wind and
ram, shaking off the wet drops with the
unconscious ease of a hound To them, the
ram is a familiar friend tapping a lullaby on
the roof and windows
Some just watch the rain and wind
teasing fallen leaves into dancing on the
soggy green ground disrupting neat piles of
carefully-raked colors, spinning and twisting
leaves still stuck on trees
But most days the ram and wind are easy
to ignore Weather is used for small talk and
pushed onto Page 2 of the paper with vital
statistics and fire runs
Then one night the wind and rain roar
into the forefront of our lives — too loud to be
ignored In a rage, the wind strips leaves off
trees, knocking down branches and trees at
90 miles-an-hour The rain slashes through
the night, pounding an angry cantata against
roofs and windows
Electrical lines are flung to the ground
like wet spaghetti People are left without TV,
lights and power — helpless bystanders For
two days nature — not man — dominates the
news
As quickly as it comes, the rage abates
Creation returns to a familiar pattern the
wind shoos leaves over downed branches,
the rain settles back into a calm melody Two
men maneuver a spacecraft to a perfect
landing in California — Oregonians clean up
the clutter left by the nature
For two days we are reminded creation
is not tame Squeezed in the grasp of the
storm, we remember how little we actually
understand how helpless, how dependent
we are
We soon forget
ers
e
Free lunch
I knew that I had truly reached
the promised land the land of
milk and honey when Professor
Altru announced his class
grading policy Since some
students weren't as good as
others, points would be taken
from the good and given to the
not-so-good and that way
everyone would pass the
course At first it was all right,
but then I noticed some people
were getting the same grade I
was, without even taking the
exams It was at this point that I
started to slack-off and low and
behold, it didn't hurt my grade
But then a terrible thing hap
pened. Professor Altru died
and we got a new professor
Now this new professor didn't
see things the same as the old
professor he thought that each
person should earn their own
grade When he announced the
new policy a large group stood
up and called him evil, and said
that some people would fail I
looked around and saw that all
of those that denounced him,
were the same ones that would
fall
Nobody has the right to take
the fruits of my labor and give it
to someone else The free lunch
is over; let each person succeed
or fail on their own merits, with
out government interference
Terry Plaisted
Mill Street
Bike notes
To all of the bike riders out
there who are upset over the
problem of campus security
cutting bike locks off of bicycles
with no permits — please read
on
Every time I parked my bike
(which had no permit) on cam
pus, I was afraid I d get out of
class and find it stolen" by
campus security I finally went
and bought a permit and
learned that there are a lot of
misconceptions being spread
on the subject I was surprised
to learn the following
1) not one lock has actually
been cut due to the absence of a
permit
2) a bike without a permit will
receive five written warnings,
explaining that the lock will be
cut if a permit is not acquired
3) Bike locks may be cut if a
bike is blocking a fire exit or a
handicapped access
4) the $2 fee for the permit
helps pay for bike racks and
other services to bicyclists (i e
cutting your lock for you if
you've lost your key and need
your bike)
Also, the serial number of
your bicycle is recorded on the
permit application This is an
excellent way to identify your
bike — at least three stolen
bicycles have been returned to
their owners through this ser
vice
Lastly, it you do see someone
in green pants cutting a bike
lock (as previous letter ex
pressed fear of), grab them —
the campus security officers
don't even wear green pants1
Tamara Olcott
RPM Graduate student