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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 6, 1985)
editorial Reagan’s priority — building more bombs The budget recommendations sent by President Ronald Reagan to Congress on Monday, if passed, will continue to take this nation down the road of social despair and increas ed militarism. Framed in the ever-handy talk of a growing Soviet military threat and American vital interests, Reagan has sent forth a budget that ignores the national deficit, sky rockets military spending, attacks social programs, and leaves the American people on their own to grapple with growing financial problems in an unstable economy. Small-scale farmers are being told to tighten their belts and face up to foreclosures. Students are being told that despite the rising costs of education, they must take cuts in financial aid. Medicare patients are being left with rising hospital bills and less assistance. Rural development pro grams in poverty-striken areas like Appalachia are on their way out. The list goes on. Translated to the grassroots level, the recommended budget cuts mean a loss of the equivalent of 4,800 police of fifcers and 5,500 teachers in New York. In the Northwest, it means the termination of Amtrak passenger service. Nation wide, it means that approximately 500,000 students will be cut out of the Guaranteed Student Loan program and 150,000 will lose eligibility to receive Pell Grants. Where is all the money from these budget cuts going? It’s going to 48 more MX missiles, 48 more nuclear-tipped B-l bombers, another Trident missile submarine, 13 new navy ships, 840 new M-l tanks, 716 Bradley fighting vehicles, 144 Apache attack helicopters, and, along with other military “necessities,” it’s going into continued reseach and development of new weapons systems, in cluding the President’s “star wars” plan. In short, Reagan has once again asked Congress to appropriate money for the largest military build-up in peace-time history (a record defense budget of $313.7 billion), while telling the American people to accept many of the largest cuts ever made (excepting Reagan’s 1980 budget) in social improve ment programs. As Sen. Mark Hatfield rightly put it on Monday, Reagan has submitted a “fantasy budget in a land of never-ending deficits.” But unlike a fantasy, if Congress grants most of Reagan’s requests, then America will be led down a road of economic and military chaos, as our nation enters military conflicts abroad and experiences social turmoil at home. Parking lot idea offers only a partial solution The news that the Alder Street tennis courts will soon be the site of a new University parking lot brings mixed feel ings. But it should not be greeted with total despair. Parking has been a chronic problem at the University, and the com promise to turn the tennis courts into a parking lot during the school year and then return them back to tennis courts during the summer is not the worst idea that has been presented. Still, the plan is at best a partial solution that will only work if the University keeps its part of the deal by mak ing sure that the tennis courts are properly prepared for sum mer use. While not solving the parking problem entirely, if done carefully and with guaranteed student access to the new parking site, then it can help. What concerns us more is the future plan to create a two-story parking garage in the same place with a tennis court on top. Such a building and the added traffic it would bring would make this scenic part of Alder Street less attractive and possibly more dangerous to bicycles. «-____ _ The Oregon Daily Emerald is published Monday through Friday except during exam week and vacations by the Oregon Daily Emerald Publishing Co., at the University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, 97403 The Emerald operates independently of the Universi ty with offices on the third floor of the Erb Memorial Union and is a member of the Associated Press. General Staff Advertising Director Susan Thelen Production Manager Russell Steele Classified Advertising Vince Adams Controller Jean Ownbey Advertising Sales: Laura Buckley, Tim Clevenger, Jen nifer Fox, Marcia Leonard, Rick Martz, Nancy Nielsen, Laurie Nobel, Roberta Oliver, Brett Pickman - Intern, David Wood Production: Kelly Cornyn, Stormi Dykes, Julie Freeman, Kathy Gallagher, Dean Guernsey, Susan Hawkins, Rob Kraft, Ross Martin, Karin McKercher, Lauri Neely, Kelly Neff, Kara Oberst, Curt Penrod, Michele Ross, Alyson Simmons, Peg Solonika, Tim Swillinger, Colleen Tre maine, Hank Trotter. •» a letters umm LAIft'&K HELPED *ni$nwr, ^SCOUKHM* C-. S.CtEAN.AND ■reverentt Not right How effective is the political cartoon in its parody of vigilan tism? Let’s look past Doonesbury and Bloom County and see the results of this hate. It’s not funny. Last week Darrel Cabey, 19. who has been in a coma for three weeks, was operated on. Doctors removed part of his ribs to drain infected pus from his lungs. He is par tially paralyzed, has brain damage, and breathes with the aid of a respirator. He is near death. I realize Doonesbury and Bloom County are trying to make us see how stupid this type of violence is, yet something is not right. I laugh... but I don’t feel right. Would we use this type of media vehicle for the starving masses in Africa? 1 have heard those who say he got what he deserved, and I wonder just where their heads would be at if they grew up in a New York ghetto. I realize that this is no excuse, but it must be taken into con sideration. The bottom line is that only justifiable force may be used to stop a crime. Ber nhard Goetz’s act was far from justifiable; Darrel Cabey was shot in the back as he tried to flee. If Goetz is allowed to get away with this, it will be a signal to all the crazies who have somehow been keeping it together that now they can act out their fantasies. As for the cartoons, I don’t know the answer. To me they are more entertainment than a consciousness raiser. Those that see the horror of this act already realize it, and those that haven't Editor Managing Editor News Editor Editorial Page Editor Photo Editor Sports Editor Sidelines Editor Entertainment Editor Assistant Entertainment Editor Night Editor Associate Editors Administration Higher Education Politics ASUO Student Activities Community Features Michele Matassa Mike Sims Michael Kulaga Costas Christ Michael Clapp Brent De La Paz Sheila Landry Kim Carison Mike Duncan Michael Kulaga Jolayne Houtz Michael Hosmar Paul Ertelt Julie Shippen Diana Elliott Cynthia Whitfield Lori Steinhauer Reporters: Sean Axmaker, Dave Berns, Robert Collias, Thomas Henderson, Allan Lazo, Capi Lynn, Scott McFetridge, Stasia Scarborough. News and Editorial 686-5511 Display Advertising and Business 686-3712 Classified Advertising 686-4343 Production 666-4381 Circulation 686-5511 will only laugh with a deeper satisfaction at this sad event. Danny Suire History Wrong meaning 1 feel compelled to make a small but important correction in Lori Steinhauer's article “Male issues explored" (ODE, Jan.21). During the Men and Masculinity Conference, I at tended a workshop in which many women expressed feel ings of frustration and anger about their relationships with men. There seemed to be a con sensus among these women that men were primarily motivated by sexual desires, rather than an interest in developing intimate friendships. As a parallel, Ms. Steinhauer also reported that according to me “many of the men feel women are primarily after a free dinner or a free night on the town.” Never having been interview ed before, I find it very in teresting how two independent ly stated but related thoughts can be misunderstood and com bined to convey the wrong meaning. I doubt that many men feel that women are strictly out for a “free lunch.” What I said was that many of the men at the workshop expressed strong feelings of resentment that women often automatically expected men to pay for dinners and dates. In fact, one man com plained that over a period of several years and perhaps hun dreds of dates, none of the women had ever offered to pay their own way. It seems to me that what is im portant to our psycho-emotional survival in the '80’s, ’90’s, etc. is the development of an in creasing sense of equality, understanding, and trust be tween men and women. To reach this goal we need to en courage attitudes and behaviors that are indicative of coopera tion and mutual respect. Steven Hymen, Ph.D Eugene r Wrong men In her letter (ODE. Jan. 28), Cheri Snell points out that men are as much to blame for abor tion as women. Her point is well taken, although 1 think that she is directing her fire at the wrong men. Male pro-lifers are not ad vocates of the immoral and ir responsible Playboy sexual philosophy — "Sex. go for it!" — a philosophy which has undoubtly contributed heavily to this nation’s explosion of un wanted pregnancies. On the contrary, it is the male purveyors of the Playboy men tality who are probably the most unabashed supporters of abor tion on demand, for two reasons. First, with legalized abortion available as a backup to concep tion control, more women are less inhibited about engaging in promiscuous sexual activity. Thus, men who are interested in making sexual conquests now have a larger pool of "easy” women to choose from. Second, legalized abortion has effectively removed any need for men to be responsible about sex. Women, of course, have always borne the greater risks when engaging in sex. However, our society has im posed at least some sanctions (i.e. shot-gun weddings, child support payments, etc.) on the sexually irresponsible male. Now, however, men may copulate to their heart’s con tent; and if they get their part ners pregnant, so what? “She can always have an abortion.” Thus, men who, in the process of recklessly fulfilling their own lusts, get a woman pregnant and then encourage her to have an abortion have made themselves willing accomplices to a heinous crime. Tom Visoky Jounaiism 1 letters policy The Emerald will attempt to print all lotters containing fair com ment on topics of interest to the University community. Letters to the editor must be limited to 250 words, typed and signed, and the identification of the writer must be verified when the letter is turned in. The Emerald reserves the right to edit any letter for length and style. Letters to the editor should be turned into the Emerald office, Suite 300, EMU.
