Simpler system for
registration needed
At most colleges. students read Samuel Beckett's
“Waiting for f.odot '' At the University. students not
only real) it. they live it
For years, computerized registration has played the
role of the University's Godot. Evervlmdy has been
waiting and waiting, but it hasn't quite arrived yet
As some of you might have heard, the Oregon liai
l\ 1'mrrald broke the news first. The University was
going to receive a computerized registration process;
the cutting edge of technology, administrators said
One thing: The article ran on Feb. 2H. l'X>7. and
the new proc ess was promised for fail term, I9»>8
More than 20 years ago.
We understand bureaucratic delays Hut 20years’?
To be sure, arena registration is thrilling Nothing
ian get the heart (lumping like standing in line for an
hour, waiting to get the class you need to complete
your schedule and finding out the guv in front of you
has taken the last spot on the* list
Good lor the cardiovascular system perhaps, but
organized? No.
Nearly every other school around has some sort of
c omputerized registration: the University of Washing
ton. the University of Arizona. USC, UCLA, and even
Lane (^immunity College.
Oregon State* University also has c omputerized reg
istration Ac cording to its registrar, tin: entire process
takes 20 minutes It's had the system since 1000.
In fac t, of the seven universities and colleges in the
Oregon State System of Higher Education only the Uni
versity and Oregon Health Sciences University don't
have some form of registration
It seems odd that the largest OSSHE school has the
most archaic registration process. Computerized regis
tration would eliminate paperwork, hassle and the
need to borrow Mac: Court for two days each term. It
would be easier on administrators, faculty and stu
dents alike.
Now. we come to find that the University is active
ly pursuing a computer system not only to register stu
dents. but handle admissions, billing and cataloguing
as well Bits and pieces of the system are already in
place, but it will be a while before they're integrated
and running.
Estimated time of arrival: spring term. i‘t‘H
University registrar Herb Chereck said the system
will bring the University into the 20th century, kick
ing and screaming to be sure, but 20th century never
theless.
What Mr. Chereck doesn't realize is that by the
time the system is on-line and running, it will lie al
most the 21st century.
Nothing like keeping up with the times.
Godot never showed up. Maybe a easier registra
tion process will.
Oregon l)uil\ - _
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Editorial
•EAWr*r
srei
High hopes for drug tests are unrealistic
Drug testing programs recently launched in
Oregon high schools undoubtedly were de
signed to decrease substance abuse by stu
dents However, when such a program also
results in the decrease of students’ basic
constitutional rights, serious questions
should he raised about the fairness and toler
ant e of sin h methods.
In the Kosehurg school district, an origi
nal drug testing program would have re
quired student athletes or leaders to resign
from their office or team if they refused to
participate in the "voluntary" tests. The
program has sini e been revised after the im
mediate outi ry from the American (,’ivil Lib
erties Union, parents and students that the
plan was clearly a violation of democratic
principle
In the Kugene school district, a volun
tary drug testing program will begin at
Churchill High School this fall. While stu
dents who refrain from participating in the
program will not he penalized, those who do
sign up to be tested will also be signing
away their constitutional rights to protection
from unwarranted search and seizure.
Therefore, the student who is noble or
cooperative enough to agree to drug tests
will no longer possess the same basic free
doms as those who decline to get involved
in the program. As a result, undeniable
rights such as protection from search and
seizure may seem much more deniable in
the eyes of students who must surrender
these freedoms in order to do the "right
thing and be tested.
Besides the question of the constitution
al validity of such programs, there also lies
the possibility that students will feel pres
sured by parents or school officials into par
ticipating. The student who is asked to sign
up and refuses may suddenly be viewed
with mistrust or suspicion. In essence, the
decision to test or not to test will be just one
more pressure placed on the alreadv
stressed-out high schooler.
Coercion and pressure to stop doing am
thing is rarely, if ever, successful in the long
run. Drug testing programs in schools, how
ever "voluntary” they propose to be. create
the dilemma of being damned-if-you-do and
damned-if-you- don't. Those who do partici
pate will be stripped of certain constitution
al rights, and those who don’t suddenly nun
seem "suspicious” or uncooperative in the
eyes of some proponents of the program
Obviously, this latest weapon in the war
on drugs not only has some serious kinks,
but it may also end up backfiring on us .ill
Letters
Overkill
I saw tin1 oilier dav where
some disgruntled dude wasted
,i hunch of to workers with a
semi automate assault rifle
Hey like the big dude mail him
self. deorge Hush, said these
things are bound to happen \o
reason to ban the sut kers I
agree, hut the lust thing you
know some bleeding hearts
want to take away my constitu
tional right to hear arms.
In fact. I’m damned tired of
all the restrictions which at
ready exist It's about time we
start reversing this steady ero
sion of basil American free
doms! 1 can't understand why
I'm not allowed to own a ba
zooka u ith armor pieri mg ordi
nanc e (for that really big buck),
or a shoulder-mount surface-to
air missile launcher for duck
hunting
How about a cruise missile7
()r a tactical neutron bomb to
lake out a herd of Alaskan cari
hou and i ook the damned
things at the same time Ok.
Ok I can just hear you liberals
out there saying, "But is that
salt1?!" llt-\. atom bombs don't
kill pimple, people kill people.
II thermonuclear warheads .in
outlawed. only outlaws will
ow n them.
Assault rifles, George Bush,
and the XKA: three reasons to
lit- proud to be an American
Richard Wiener
Physics
Unfair
I would like to bring Section
S153 of the Anti-Drug Abuse
Act of ltIHH to students' atten
tion
Ibis federal act requires Pell
Grant recipients to certify they
"will not engage in the unlaw
ful manufacture, distribution,
dispensation, possession, or
use of a controlled substance"
during the period covered by
the grant They will not receive
federal aid until they sign this
statement
William Bennett, the national
drug control policy office direc
tor, has suggested random drug
tests or snitching' as a way to
enfort e the statement.
Although the ASI t) and ( hv
gon Student I.obln do not en
courage or support drug use
we oppose this form of drug en
fori ement Random drug test
ing is a violation of the fourth
Amendment and an invasion ol
privacy.
Furthermore, this act singles
out and discriminates against
low-income students 1 heir
only means of obtaining an cd
ucation is through federal aid
'IJmv must sign this statement
and he subjected to drug tests
to go the school, w hile students
with other sources of mones do
not.
The ASI tO and OS I. are cir
culating petitions against drug
testing for financial aid "'■
will send the signatures to
President Hush and the Oregon
Congressional Delegation and
ask them to revoke this dis
criminatory law Anyone inter
ested in signing the petition
should come to the ASI O of
fices in Suite -1, EMIT
Angela Muni/
ASI T) State Affairs
Coordinator
Tuesday. September 2fi. 1