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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 17, 1987)
Editorial —A Scarlet letter warning a sign of the times An FBI report recently listed Portland as one of the most dangerous cities in the country, ranking the Rose City above larger cities such as Cleveland and Washington, D C. "It goes back to the old story of where do you put these people (criminals) and what do you do with them." Police Chief Richard I). Walker said Finding a place to keep and rehabilitate criminals in a society that demands safety and fair punishment has become increasingly difficult, jail overcrowding and a rising crime rate only perpetuate the problem. But early last June. Multnomah Circuit Court Judge Dorothy Baker came up with one solution to end this cycle. When Baker sentenced Richard Bateman to one year in jail and five years probation for molesting two neighlxirhood children, she added an unusual condition. Bateman is re quirnd to post signs on the doors of his home and t ar stating: "Dangerous sex offender, no children allowed." If Baker had sent Bateman to prison for the maximum possible term, he probably would have been released on parole within months. In passing the sentence. Baker said the signs will better protect the community While this may alert the neighborhood to Bateman's crime, it certainly will not solve Bateman's problem. As Arthur La France, a professor at Northwestern School of Law. argues, Bateman has become a prisoner within the society and the community has become his jailkeeper. The basic idea behind this nations's penal system is not only to punish people, but also to help them overcome their past and re-enter society. Branding Bateman with a "scarlet letter" works against this principle by making Bateman a spectacle. Instead of trying to overcome his problem, the sentence emphasizes Bateman’s crime in bold, three-inch letters. It invites the community to shun and ostracize him — to judge him for his crime without the benefit of an explanation Bateman protested the sentence to the Oregon Court of Appeals, arguing the signs will prevent him from getting a job or a new place to live Mis concerns art; justified The distrust and hatred generated in a community can be very strong. As a result, these signs do not work to help Bateman or the community; they ordy stress the point that Bateman is a convicted sex-offender and will not lx; welcome into the community. This type of negative reinforcement will not change Bateman's ways or prevent him from committing morn crimes. Instead it only perpetuates the problem it is trying to solve. Bateman's case is only a small reaction to a much larger problem. Our society is searching for a way to punish and rehabilitate its criminals while keeping our communities safe. But this example should not lie ignored or accepted. Im prisoning Bateman within the society is not an affective or fair punishment. It shifts the burden of trial and judgment to society. We should not condone such a desperate action. Rather we should recognize the overshadowing problem and work for a better solution. If we do not try to achieve this ultimately we all will become victims. HEMS &■ si^sis Letters Deadly theory ilnim I must say that in his latter to the editor, Jon Wollander has shown the world. !>oth gays and straights, that he lives in what is obvious ly a fool's paradise (ODE, Nov. 4) Wollander is against (Gov Neil (Goldschmidt spending tax payers' money to educate the public on AIDS prevention through the use of posters ad vocating the use of condoms. How is this different from the government spending our money on advertisements pro moting the use of a seatbelt while driving? There is no dif ference. Both condoms and seatbelts help save lives (when used properly). And if one life is saved, isn't it worth it? I think so. I've always bean taught that the gift of life is priceless. And if (Goldschmidt's ad campaign saves lives, he's given the greatest gift of all. You say that the posters should show a body ravaged by AIDS with the caption: "Con doms fail — AIDS doesn't." (Nice scare tactic, by the way; it brings out the Republican in you.) Well, yes, condoms do fail But then again, so does Oregon Daily Emerald P.O. In JIS4, Kucrar, Oregon *141.1 The Oregon Daily Emerald la published Monday through Friday except during exam week and vacations by the Oregon Daily Emerald Publishing Co . at the University of Oregon. Eugene. Oregon The Emerald operates independently ot the University with offices on the third floor of the Erb Memorial Union and is a member of the Associated Press The Emerald Is private property The unlawful removal or use of papers is prosecutable by law General Staff Advertising Director Production Manager Classified Manager Assistant to the Publisher Susan Thelen Michele Ross Kelli Meson Jean Ownhey Advertising Salss: Tsrt Boring. Gary DeLossa. Tom Leech. Catharine Lilia. Rick Mart.’ Laura McKinney. Joann Nelson. Julie Paul. Barbara Rogers. Scott Thorkildson, Joan Wildermuth Newt and Editorial Display Advertising and Business Classified Advertising Letter Perfect Graphics Production Circulation 606 5511 666 3712 6064343 606 5511 606 4301 606 5511 Editor Managing Editor New* Editor Editonal Pag* Editor* Sport* Editor Photo Editor Qraphtc Design Editor Special Issues Editor Entertainment Sports Segment Editor Night Editor Stanley Nelson Scott Maben Carolyn Lamberson Angela Mumz.'Steven Hoemscti Aaron Knox Shu Shing Chen Lorraine Rath Kelly Kortekaaa HC Hutto Scott Maben Associate Editors Community Stephen Maher Higher Educatlon'Admimstratlon Michael Drummond Student Govjrnment 'Activities Will Halbert Features Kelly Kortekaas Reporter* Betsy Clayton. Paula Green. Frale d* Guzman, Craig Harris. Gary Henley. Andrew LaMar. Jett Morgan, In grid Petersen. Caml Swanson. Kelvin Wee Photographers: Sherlyn B|orkgren. Christophs Chabaudie. Andy Cnpe. Clift Etzel. John Giustlna. Bobbie Lo, Gregor Okorn. Andre Ranteri. Ted Shepler. Michael Templeton. Dan Wheeler Production: Sandra Daller / Ad Coordinator Kelly Alexandre, Ronwin Nicole Ashton. Virginia Baniaga, Laura Carhart. Eva Cohen, Stephanie Drynan. Dolores Fer raro. Shannon Gaither. Lisa Haggerty, Stephanie Holland. Deirdre Kelly Eliot Knight, Chris Knox, Jung Lee, Bobbie Lo, James Mason, Angela Muniz. Ted Shepler. Linda Sperling. Lisa Svanevik, Ingrid White. Kelly Williams. Serena Williams, X Kang Xle your precious institution of marriage. A recent survey done on a na tional level has shown that 4ti percent of the population has cheated on its marriage part ners It does not take a genius to figure out that your wife or hus Itand can bring you AIDS from one of their extracurricular activities. And it does not take a mathematician to figure out that a 40 percent cheat rate is a lot w'orse than a condom breaking Your wedding ring theory is deadly, Let’s hope nobody bought it. Dan (>ruber Knglish Technology There is a misconception that technology alone can solve im portant problems. Technology in a vacuum solves only the im mediate financial needs of the institution that receives the grant to develop the technique. Institutions have a higher suc cess rate at being awarded grants if they appear able to translate a discovery into something useful. This is ob viously the University’s motive for supporting a research park. But we should not confuse the word useful with ap propriate. Applying the technology of atomic energy to the construction of bombs hard ly seemed appropriate in the beginnings of atomic science: Even Einstein felt this applica tion to be foolish Letters Policy The Kmereld will attempt to print all letten containing com menta on topica of internal to the Unlveraily community Com menta mutt he fac tually accurate and refrain from personal attacks on the character of others letters to the editor muat he limited to no more than 2S0 words, legible signed and the Identification of the writer must be verified when the letter is submitted Sometime after VVW11. a new technology of plastics fabrica tion came about. Today, the use of persistent plastics in con sumable products is creating a solid waste problem and caus ing considerable damage to the environment. The application of computer technology in the area of stock trading recently demonstrated a complete lack of foresight It has been common knowledge for several years that styrofoam products release a gas that damages the protective layer of ozone in the upper at mosphere. though styrofoam coffee cups are used at all the public forums on campus. In many ways, our society is ill-prepared to control inap propriate uses of the technologies we already have. Short-term economic benefits should not determine ap propriate uses of technology and the myths surrounding the utility of future technologies must be examined. Francis Saffell Eugene Parking problem The parking situation for scooters and motorcycles around campus is inadequate. The few designated areas left are crammed and overflowing with motorcycles and scooters. Thus all scooters parked outside or even partially outside the boundry line get tickets. All the construction around campus has made the problem even worse. There is no parking on the corner of 13th Street and Kin caid Avenue or between Univer sity and Kincaid Streets on 13th Avenue. Students with classes in Gilbert, Fenton. Chapman and other Halls end up walking several blocks. Thirteenth Street should lie opened up for scooter and motorcycle parking, thus reliev ing a large part of the problem. Mike Kademacher Student
