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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (March 11, 1983)
II letters Question At last a "hero” Israeli cap tain visits Eugene "to educate Americans” that Christians in Lebanon, as he declared, were actually the ones who massacred the Palestinians and that — antisemantically as usual — Israel fell victim of "the world’s media coverage of Israeli military actions" in its invasion of Lebanon. Unashamed, Avishaye con ceals all motives and conse quences of the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the massacre of thousands of human beings and the demolition of Beirut. And yet he dares to say it is important for Americans to understand why Israel invaded Lebanon and that "Israel was innocent!" Finally, he justifies Israel’s invasion of Lebanon because Israel couldn't tolerate attacks from the Palestine Liberation Organization. But now that the PLO has left Lebanon (seven months ago), a challenging question persists: Why is Israel still oc cupying Lebanon? A question, the "hero” captain escaped. Amer Alaghbary Race relations The sociology department, sometimes labelled “liberal,” or even “radical,” acted in a typically reactionary fashion on March 1. Two years ago, spurred by student pressure to develop a stronger race rela tions program which would also serve as a recruiting device for racial minority students and faculty, this department voted overwhelm ingly in favor of filling the next faculty vacancy with a person whose major emphasis would be race relations. At this time, there is only one faculty member, albeit an excellent one, whose em phasis is race relations, thus making this extremely relevant aspect of sociology an under committed one. Yet, when this vacancy oc cured, the job announcement posted read “social psychology and/or race relations.” And on the list of can didates at Tuesdays depart ment meeting only three out of the eight candidates In the final draft had a major em phasis in race relations. The remaining five candidates had a major emphasis in social psychology and no emphasis in race relations. A few days prior to the last meeting of the hiring commit tee each member received a memo from the head of the department, Ben Johnson. The memo reinforced an emphasis on social psychology. One can only speculate on the memo Johnson got from Richard Hill, the vice provost for academic affairs. Hill is also a full pro fessor in the sociology depart ment with an emphasis in social psychology. At the March 1 meeting there were protests from graduates, undergraduates and faculty that the “turn of events" had excluded ex* cellent race relations ap plicants, who had no em phasis in social psychology Furthermore, as a graduate student stated, the depart merit may be libel for suit because of the hiring procedure. The issue of race relations is being skirted. For two years hiring someone in this field had been a top priority. This priority was nullified by a memo (or memos), irrespon sibility (or ignorance), and self interest. One person on the faculty voted “nay” to the motion to go on with the nomination. He is the only person of color on the faculty. A vivid lesson in race relations. Kevin Barclay sociology, women’s studies Threatening The sentiments and fears of Eric Stillwell, the political science student whose letter to Soviet leader Yuri Andropov appeared in the Communist Party paper Pravda, are characteristically American. Stillwell’s concern that “the CIA will probably start spying” on him (though not unfound ed) struck me as being primari ly symbolic; symbolic of an era much like the 1950s. Today, just like then, being labelled a “communist sym pathizer” is serious business. Why? America’s present cir cumstances provide a good answer. American people today are frustrated — frustrated by unemployment; frustrated by a deteriorating economy and frustrated by growing social injustice. In essence, they are frustrated by the fading of the American dream. Like all frustrations, these too need outlets. The barrage of gut-level simplistic na tionalism and aggressive anti communism emanating from the White House has provided one such outlet. The United States vs. them syndrome is something Americans can identify with. It helps us forget what we don’t have and remember what we do... “At least we’ve got our freedom...” "We're still a lot better off than they are...” “It's the communist system ♦hat makes them so much worse off than us..." Before you know it, the American nightmare disap pears and the dream seems real again. It makes me wonder though, can there be an American dream without a Soviet threat? Somehow I think not. In essence, the publishing of Eric Stillwell's letter represents a threat to the Soviet threat: and to many Americans, that ip itself is threatening. Christian Gunther senior, sociology WARNING- THE ATTORNEY 6ENERAL HAS DETERMINED THAT SUSPECTED POSSESSION Of TICKETS TO MOVES CRrTiCALOf AClP RAIN AND NUCLEAR WAR, MAY BE HAZARDOUS TO YOU* HEALTH. your turn Our semester system On Feb. 3, the Emerald in formed us that the semester vs. the quarter system discus sion had begun. Only six hours later, the Senate (comprised of Student University Affairs Board members and select faculty) voted to support a pro posal from the faculty to adopt a late semester system. Students who may have realized that contact with their SUAB representatives was crucial, were pressured for time to act; the student body’s only voice in the issue at the Senate meeting was the SUAB, and the Senate voted on the issue the very same day students became aware of it. Unfortunately, many people (ourselves included) didn’t know that students elect one peer from their department to represent the student body within that department on issues similar to this one. We didn’t know how or why we should loot, for our SUAB representative. We realize students must take some responsibility for keeping themselves informed. The SUAB works hard, but to represent us it needs our in put. We feel, however, that there has to be some way for SUAB to make itself and Its function more widely known. Somehow, more open com munication must be estab lished between us all. On March 2, only four weekdays later, the University Assembly (comprised of SUAB and the entire faculty) met and voted In support of the late semester system 169 124. Students who were not members of SUAB did not have speaking rights at this meeting. The faculty, which seemed to already know what it wanted, rushed the decision making process by closing the discussion after one hour, and voted. In less than a week, we bid "aloha” to the quarter system. While we favor the Univer sity's current system, we can see the value a semester system offers. We believe the faculty generally supports the semester on the premise that it offers the student a better, more in-depth education. When given the choice be tween early or late semesters, however, all other student con cerns have been overlooked, and the faculty chose a system which benefits themselves. Their decision seems to revolve around the "weather issue" which argues that late August/early September is the nicest time of year and we shouidn't have to spend it in school. Granted, it would be nice to be out in the September sun, yet, not at the expense of tak ing finals after Christmas break. Nobody wants that dark cloud hanging over their head during an otherwise festive season. Wouldn't the faculty also benefit from a four week Christmas break, as is typical of the early semester system? Semester breaks, which under the late semester system would occur a little less than a month after Christmas, also presents some difficulties. Any money students would save from not having to purchase books for a third quarter etc. would pro bably be spent trying to enter Oregon daily _ emerald The Oregon Daily Emerald It pubKthed Monday iruougn Friday err. apt during aiam »Hk and vacation* by in« Oregon Dally £maraid f>ijWi»ning Co m in* University ol Oregon f wgena, OW 97*33 The Emerald operate* independently o( the University «vtih olltcee on the third floor ol the Erb Memorial Union and ta a member of the Associated Pres* Mew* and Edttertet MMiStt Diaplay Advertising and teatne** tea 3M2 Cun allied Advertising SOS HO Production IH4UI Clrc ut*ftern MAH It Editor Managing Editor New* Editor Assistant News Editor Editorial Page Editor Photo Editor Sports Editor Associate Sports Editor Entertainment Editor Night Editor Assoc tele Editors Higher Education Departments and Schools Student Government Features Politics Student ServiceslCommuntty Altai's fltntfd Staff Advertising Manager Classified Advertising Production Manager Controller Harry Esteve John Healy Marian Green Con Fernaid Joan Nytand Bob Baker Mike Riplmger Paul Danzer Jonathan Siegte Cort Fernaid Sandy Johnstone Frank Shaw Richard Burr Sean Meyers Michele Matessa Alata Zak Darlene Gore Sally Oljar Victoria Koch Jean Ownbey tain themselves during this ex traneous 10-day break. Out-of state and foreign students surely can’t afford to go home again and dorm residents might be charged for staying over the break. This two-week vacation would be better off being consolidated into a four week Christmas break, typical of the ealy semester system. If the fall term began two weeks earlier than proposed, allowing us to take finals before Christmas, Spring break would suffice as a vaca tion and we would finish earlier in the spring. The late semester system cuts off two weeks of summer job income. The current system terminates in mid June (as will the late semester) at which time many other students have had first crack at the job market. Although they begin their summer posi tions two to four weeks before we do, the quarter system allowed us to work a full month after they got back to school in the fall. A student can earn anywhere from $200 to $600 in two weeks, which is money a poor student and a poor university needs. A typical ear ly semester system begins late August and ends mid or late May. This would give us an equal opportunity to seek summer employment. If you, as students or facul ty, «*re in any way unhappy with the Assembly's decison to convert to the late semester system, then please take some sort of action. The deci sion to support this system will not be official until the State Board of Higher Educa tion approves it in April. We still have time to voice our concerns The State Board of Higher Education has an of fice on campus located in Johnson Hall. We urge you to write them a letter expressing your own views. If you see a petition asking the SBHE to re ject the proposal, please take the time to sign it. A transition has been pro posed which will affect the en tire University community,. Let’s make sure we make the best decison for all of us. Lani Nicholson junior, telecommunications
