opinion
I corf femald
back pages
The recent arson conviction and subsequent suspended
sentences of RCYB members John Kaiser and Nancy Whitley
brought to a close that group's cause celebre Being an
old-time leftie, I followed the trial with more than passing
interest — although, with something of a jaundiced sidelong
glance The trial proceeded according to the usual theatrics
set forth by activist trials from the 1960s-70s with the
usual imperialist props and dialogue of repression and
peoples' justice miscarried all in the especial white of
television lights and the cacophony of camera shutters It's
good to see the traditions of courtroom drama being rever
entially upheld by the young Turks
I interviewed two RCYB members in September and was
slightly chagrined with their politics. On one question I had to
coax for the answer I wanted. "You do believe in armed
revolution, don't you?” I asked "Oh, uh huh, yeah sure,"
they replied.
A friend described Eugene as a “hotbed" of political
activism Though, from what I've seen so far, Eugene is tepid
at best I’ve been in hotter beds
Reading the Yellow Ribbon trial reports and watching
the EMU-patio-RCYB-road-show made me recall old friends
from the time political activism was as much a part of
maturation as getting sick on Colt 45 malt liquor
Fast Fred was from an upper-middle-class family who
lived in a suburb of Detroit One year in Ann Arbor and he was
a confirmed White Panther and a zealous follower of the
MC5. Fast Fred dragged me out of heroin addiction and
hurled me into the revolution Perhaps I owe him my life
Though, when he needed to figuratively "die" to escape
federal prosecution. I had the blank papers for his new lease
on life Perhaps we’re even
Annie was Fast Fred's convivant She was 16 years-old
and a Berkeley radical reared between Sproul Plaza and
Ashby Street among the seamy street people of Telegraph
Avenue Annie’s father was a tweedcoat, or a goatee, or a
pipe — something other than a human being who lectured on
Sociology to dozing freshmen. I gave her my M-1 carbine for
her seventeenth birthday. Annie lived with Fast Fred for a
time, and then pursued her feminism to its ultimate —
marrying another woman
Wendy was from New York City, our liaison to such
groups as Armed Love and Up-Against-the-Wall-Mother
fuckers She wouldn’t tell me much more, but Wendy could
field strip almost any weapon in seconds There's not too
many questions worth asking a woman while she's tearing
down a Kalishnakov Wendy had the eyes of an ingenue and
the grace of a panther She and I spent the nights thrashing
about only to wake the next morning as distant as two
deputies of the politburo
We were a cell — a Mao tse tung study group We'd sit
around theorizing on the revolution, meanwhile practicing
the politics by feeding poor kids in the Fillmore District a hot
breakfast before school, or collecting clothing and groceries
to distribute to welfare families, or arguing tenant's rights
with slum lords Remembering the craziness of riots, and the
guns, sometimes embarrasses me However, I’ll always be
proud of the things we did in the community
We probably won’t see the likes of such political activism
in the United States in the near future Kaiser and the RCYB
are the estranged children of a radical hysteria They are the
more moderate second generation This is also true of
groups on the right, such as the YAF They are the well
behaved prodigy of past right-wing excesses. And in a very
definite way, politically active groups, right or left, deserve
our respect and all we can do to ensure their existence The
climate of diverse political sentiments strengthens this
singular American democracy
daily 7emerald
The Oregon Daily Emerald is published Monday through
Friday except during finals lyeei and vacations by the Oregon
Daily Emerald Publishing Co at the University ot Oregon
Eugene, Oregon, 97403
The Oregon Daily Emerald operates independently ot the
University and is a member ot the Associated Press Offices are
on the third floor ot the Erb Memorial Union
New* and Editorial
Display Advertising and Business
Classified Advertising
Production
Editor
Managing Editor
News Editor
666-5511
686-3712
666-4343
666-4381
Sally Hodgktnson
Gabriel Boehmer
Harry Esteve
Assistant News Editor
Photo Editor
Graphics Editor
Editorial Page Editor
Sports Editor
Associate Sports Editor
Associate Editors
ASUO
Community
Departments and Schools
Higher Education
Features
Politics/Environment
Night Editor
Garwral Staff
Classified Advertising
Production Manager
Advertising Director
Ad Services
Controller
John Healy
Boh Baker
Max DeFtungs
Cort Fernald
Steve Spat/
Jett Dickerson
Dane Claussen
Marian Green
Debbie Howlett
Ann Portal
Caroline Petrich
Hon Hunt
Ann Portal
Sally Oljar
Ann Peterson
Darlene Gore
Carol McMullen
Jean Ownbey
NV
letters
Keeping afloat
Who is it that controls
Oregon's higher education? It's
those who have the money to
help keep it afloat Who is it that
has the money to help keep
Oregon's higher education
afloat? The major timber cor
porations and the military
(ROTC) What are the primary
functions and aims of the major
timber corporations and the
ROTC7 To tear down the forests
(for quick profit) and to teach
young people to kill, maim and
destroy So, by simple logic of
the transi|ive property (if A
equals B and B equals C, then A
equals C) the functions and
aims of those who control
Oregon's higher education are
to tear down the forests for
quick profit and to teach young
people to kill, maim and destroy
Interesting thought, isn't it?
Christian Gunther
Junior, sociology
Yellow ribbon
I would like to state that the
political validity of the yellow
ribbon burning (as an act that
exposed the CIA and U S im
perialism and clearly stood with
the people of Iran) has been
vindicated by many
developments The charges of
first degree arson, the trial that
was carried out, and the guilty
verdicts all that has been done
to these defenders, has been
done carefully These actions
by the state have been carefully
planned and timed to yield the
most powerful response possi
ble to undermine the strength of
this political action There can
be no doubt that the court at
least has realized the validity of
this act. and that they see the
danger involved in allowing
such acts — which expose the
system — to be seen in public
Another reason the act was
valid politically is that although
some groups claimed that their
protests were ruined by the yel
low ribbon burning, they had. in
fact, not made any such plans
public, and did little or nothing
to inform the public or campus
that Victor Tomseth was even
coming, let alone what it could
mean to aware protestors
The yellow ribbon burners did
make the presence of the CIA
on campus a well-known fact
They did accomplish a well
phrased protest, in public,
where someone had a chance
to hear and see it, or hear of it
and be involved in public debate
over the questions brought out
by Tomseth s visit, and they are
currently facing sentencing as a
result of this action and political,
alias, convictions This calls for
support — of the RCYB if you
wish — but, certainly of the act
of political demonstration
Molly Wldmer
Equal time?
Equal time for evolution and
scientific creation in the
classroom?
The article in the Emerald
contained several more or less
severe flaws
Trivialities first
What science in high school
is about is the consensus of the
majority of scientists about the
current understanding of our
world, usually with a delay of
about five or ten years The
majority of the scientists think
that the history of our planet and
the development of life thereon
can presently be described
most accurately in terms of
evolution If the •‘scientific
creationists” think that they are
right, they will eventually con
vince their colleagues at some
time, and there is no need to
legislate one thing or the other
A decade earlier or later is in
substantial
So far divine intervention in
the course of history of our
planet has been notoriously
elusive, as if the creator did not
want to leave any track thereof
Since “scientific creation” is
by no means an equally well
founded alternative to evolu
tion, it deserves not as much
time in the classroom as the
latter, at least presently
"Reason cannot come from
non-reason, no matter how
many billion years one waits"
This sounds good, convinc
ing, absolute, true
Incidentally, what is reason?
How does it work, at least in
humans? No one knows that
today We are barely getting a
glimpse at how the periphery of
our and other brains work We
are just beginning to under
stand. how seeing and hearing
works The question of how they
develop can only be addressed
once we understand them
There is. however, presently no
reason to assume that we will
never be able to figure out how
reason works, although it may
take a long time (a century or so.
but that is insubstantial)
Now the solution to the ques
tion about the philosophical
flaw Our present limit of know
ledge has been mistaken for
some inherent boundary of
knowledge, without any sup
porting evidence
The Catholic Church found
out about the validity of the as
sumption, in a particularly pain
ful way: They were on the "re
treat" for the last four centuries,
as scientists ignored any objec
tions to their pushing the limits
of our knowledge further and
further
The problem with "scientific
creation” is that it is mostly dis
guised evasion of some hard
philosophical work What is our
position in the world, in the un
iverse, in relation to God. if
evolution accurately describes
our origin
Nikolaus von Bargen
Graduate Student in Geology
letters policy
The Emerald will accept
and attempt to print all
letters containing fair
comment on issues, ideas
and topics of interest to
the University community
The Emerald reserves
the right to edit any letter
for length, style or con
tent Publication is
dependent upon the
space available