Editorial
Iran may draw U.S.
into unapproved war
Hostilities between the United States and Iran in the
Persian Gulf have been escalating continually since U.S.
military forces began to escort Kuwaiti tankers and increase
their presence in the war-torn region.
First, the Bridgeton, a U.S.-flagged Kuwaiti tanker be
ing escorted by U.S. naval vessels, struck an Iranian-layed
mine in July. Next, on Sept. 21, a U.S. military helicopter at
tacked an Iranian ship laying mines. Then, on Oct. 8. U.S.
helicopter gunships sank three Iranian patrol boats after they
opened fire on an American observation helicopter.
Most recently, on Friday. Oct. 16. a U.S.-flagged
Kuwaiti tanker, the Sea Isle City, was struck by a silkwerm
missile fired from the Iranian-held Faw Peninsula.
Currently, the Reagan administration is considering ap
propriate retaliatory action against silkworm missile in
stallations along the Iranian coastline.
As violence escalates in the Persian Gulf, it is becoming
increasingly possible that the United States may be going to
war with Iran. Not only are the Iranians provoking the
Reagan administration with almost daily verbal abuse and
now direct military action, but also the Reagan administra
tion has responded proportionately to Iranian initiatives.
As the severity of the Iranian attacks increases, so does
the forcefulness of the U.S. response — a relationship that
may lead to war between the United States and Iran.
However, before the U.S. military launches a retaliatory
strike against mainland Iran, the War Powers Act. which re
quires the president to report to Congress anytime U.S.
military forces are introduced into an imminently hostile
region, should be invoked to ensure that Congress and hence
the American public approve of the Reagan adminstration’s
increasingly belligerent foreign policy toward the Persian
Gulf
Thus far. the Reagan adminstration has refused to com
ply with the War Powers Act. arguing hostilities are not im
minent in the Persian Gulf and the act is unconstitutional.
After Friday's Iranian missile attack on the U.S.-flagged
tanker Sea Isle City, hostilities not only are imminent, but
also clearly manifest in the Persian Gulf. Therefore, the ad
ministration's argument that the War Powers Act does not
apply to Persian-Gulf security policy because hostilities are
not imminent is absurd.
The administration also has argued that the War Powers
Act is unconstitutional. Although this argument may prove
true in court, the War Powers Act was passed in the wake of
the Vietnam War to limit presidential authority to commit
U.S. forces without an official declaration of war from
Congress.
The War Powers Act provides a legal barrier against the
United States entering a war without congressional approval
— approval from the representatives of the people.
It is debatable whether the War Powers act is un
constitutional; however, entering a war without congres
sional approval is clearly unconstitutional.
As violence escalates in the Persian Gulf war and U.S.
military forces are increasingly involved with it. the Reagan
administration must have the approval of both Congress and
the American people for its foreign policy to be successful.
The War Powers Act is the simplest, most direct way to
facilitate this approval.
PEE’VIEFS
BIG
ADVENTURE:
Letters
Games
DM. Holiman's simplistic
concern about gaming suggests
myopic analysis of a cultural in
stitution and unsubstantiated
correlation between money and
social corruption All of the
lamentable examples offered by
lloliman are true and we all be
moan behavioral pattorns which
flaunt morality and defy legal
tenets We decry such acts
when they are committed by
politicians, educators, musi
cians lumbermen, students and
athletes.
To suggest that television and
the visibility afforded through
television is the major con
tributor to athletic immorality is
naive The establishment of the
of the athletic hero heroine is
a social creation and to the ex
tent that such superhumans do
not live up to our fantasies of
perfection, they appear flawed.
Not unlike the preacher's
children. Athletes are
motivated by both status and
money. So are journalists,
physicians, theologians and
professors.
Unlike lloliman. I am not ap
palled by the individual who
decides to dedicate self to a
Oregon Daily
Emerald
The Oregon Daily Emerald la published Monday
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single activity. I applaud the
professional tenacity of iny col
leagues who spend hours in a
laboratory, who become ex
cellent business people, who
concentrate on the cello to pro
vide musical interpretations
beyond the ordinary, who hone
their talents to display the
grandeur of humankind. If sport
skill is one of those aspects of
human grandeur, sobeit.
Sports are games. What is
"disproportionate and curious"
about spending one's life im
mersed in a game? Games are
guided by discernable princi
ple. are voluntary, are attentive
to logic, are predicated upon
equality and are described as
joyful. Not a bad way to create
what Holiman suggests is a
"freak.*'
Celeste Ulrich,
Dean, College of Human
Development and Performance
Go Ducks
While following the media
coverage of the Duck's football
team this season, I have noticed
the absence of any of the ar
rogant statements made in the
past.
The team's accomplishments
on the field this year have been
enough to make any football
program proud, but likewise the
behavior of the players with the
press and on campus has been
outstanding.
Wins over the likes of
Washington and USC have not
produced the cocky comments
that in years past have been
made after wins over teams like
OSU and Cal.
This year's team is worthy of
respect and support regardless
of what happens during the re
mainder of the season. I do,
however, hope that this team
will have many more oppor
tunities this year to win
gracefully. Go Ducks!
Doug Barragar
Senior, political science
Inverted Ideas
According to the Oct. 13
cover story of the Emerald. Tim
Hughes, the director of the Gay
and lesbian Alliance at the
University, said that they are
rallying to show their support
for the Washington D C. gay ac
tivist march
The rally is to protest the
Supreme Court stand on the
l!)8t> Hardwick decision stating
that sodomy among consenting
adults, even in the privacy of
their own homes, was
unconstitutional.
(The American Heritage Dic
tionary simply defines sodomy
as "anal copulation ")
Hughes goes on to say that
"they are taking away our right
to love whom we choose in the
way we choose."
If I have a girlfriend that I care
for deeply and truly love. 1 can
promise you that I am not going
to express that to her by engag
ing in anal intercourse
However, that is my opinion,
and unfortunately you are en
titled to your own opinion as
well.
In the Emerald's article. Tim
Hughes went on to state that it
is not enough for the govern
ment to provide information on
AIDS and that you want them to
take a stronger stand on the
issue.
Well what do you think they
have done? By making anal
copulation unconstitutional,
the federal government is ac
tually attempting to do away
with one of the major causes of
AIDS.
If you truly want to help fight
in the war against AIDS, then
gay activists should stand
behind the Hardwick decision
100 percent.
Instead of attaching condoms
to all of your fliers, why don't
you start attaching your fliers to
cast-iron trousers?
Jeff Momarich
Sophomore