EDITORIAL
Drug war won't be
won by drug czar
President Bush last week named Florida's lame
duck governor. Bob Martinez, to direct the office of Na
tional Drug Control Policy. Martinez replaces current
drug czar William Bennett , who will now head the Na
tional Republican Party.
With Republican Party Chairman Lee Atwater step
ping down due to illness, and Martinez losing the race
for governor in Florida, the time was right for Bush to
do some shuffling and find a job for his old friend.
Martinez is a bad choice on Bush's part. He favors
tougher penalties, law enforcement and building pris
ons rather than treatment and prevention.
When Bush appointed Martinez he said of him,
“He stiffened the Florida code and then added the
prison space' to enforce it ... as a governor who signed
more than 1 tl) death warrants he understands tough
choices."
But while Martinez was making those “tough
choices" and spending millions of dollars adding pris
on space, the amount of drugs coming into the state es
calated. and drug-related crimes grew significantly.
The lesson Martinez should have learned from his
Florida experience is that attacking the supply is not
the answer to eliminating drug abuse. The battle
against drug abuse should be focused on eliminating
the demand. Treatment of current drug abusers and
drug-prevention programs should be getting the major
ity of attention and money.
It is a matter of simple economics. As long as there
is a demand for the product someone will be willing to
take the risks involved to satisfy, and exploit, that de
mand. Making drugs harder to get makes them more
valuable Because they are more valuable, the incen
tive to smuggle them also increases. Focusing on stop
ping the supply, while only paying lip service to con
trolling the demand, perpetuates the cycle rather than
ends it.
The war on drugs is draining resources from places
where they could do some good. A government that
wanted to end drug abuse would help addicts rather
than imprisoning them. Signing smugglers' death war
rants or imprisoning them only means someone will
take their place and risk the penalty for the huge prof
its. Eliminating the smuggler's market ends the activi
ty altogether.
Martinez is expected to bring a more business-like
attitude to the job. Maybe that sense of business will
allow him to see the futility of fighting the supply rath
er than demand.
^UEpwansa
WHAT AN
AMATEUR...
Enough apologies, start the healing
University law school Associate Dean
Chapin ('.lark publicly apologized Friday for
a "lack of sensitivity" in his handling of the
Greg johnson incident.
Johnson disclosed his homosexuality
during a ( lass discussion on "National Com
ing Out Day." Some students later com
plained that lohnson's discussion did not
contain dialogue relevant to the class's pur
pose.
Clark is the latest person to apologize for
this blunder. It’s refreshing to hear an apolo
gy instead of the usual avoidance-bantering
that sometimes accompanies mistakes.
While there are obvious homophobic
rumblings in the law school, no one needs
to resign or be fired over the affair. After all,
this is a learning institution -— and even law
school deans can't know everything.
However, the controversy is serious
enough that President Myles Brand request
ed an investigation by the University's Of
fice of Affirmative Action. Combined with a
University task force report showing wide
spread discrimination against gays and les
bians. it is quite clear that sensitizing the
University about gay and lesbian concerns
must begin immediately.
It does appear that the law school was
more concerned with the students who ob
jected to Johnson's comments than with
Johnson himself. All students have listened
to instructors discuss subjects not germain
to specific classes, but not often to an in
structor coming out.
Johnson has accepted Clark's apology.
Even though saying "I'm sorry" doesn't
take away hurt feelings, the law school
should use this experience and take steps to
resolve the uneasy feelings between itself
and gays and lesbians.
LETTERS
Safe risk
Greg Zobel's letter about be
ing harassed by "self-righteous
security” at the Bob Mould
show is entirely all to true.
Most often a show of Mould's
caliber creates a natural re
sponse of aggression within the
audience, which is then re
leased by forms of dancing
known in our subculture as
slamming, moshing. pogoing.
skanking and so on.
The security should realize
this, and understand that not
everyone who is in the pit is a
risk to a safe show. 1 seriously
doubt that people will start do
ing the hustle at shows like
these; so get used to it folks,
and enjoy the show.
Robert (lallison
Eugene
Honor King
In response to Richard Bald
win's letter (ODE. Nov 20)
When I first giant ed at the title.
I thought it would tie a letter in
support of this well-deserved
day honoring l)r Martin 1.other
King However. reading
through thi* I saw that
there were most definitely a
few things that needed to be
cleared up concerning the rea
sons King should Ik; honored.
First of all. Baldwin staled
that King was an "inappropri
ate role model" because it has
been rumored, may I put an
emphasis on rumored, that he
had extramarital affairs Well if
that is the case, there should
not lie a day to honor John F.
Kennedy because there are ru
mors in regard to his having an
affair with Marilyn Monroe!
If that is the case, there
shouldn't be any day honoring
America's historical presidents
because many of these married
men had children by slaves on
their plantations.
Secondly, if King is to be
persecuted now for supposedly
plagiarizing some of his works,
there has to he hundreds of oth
er leaders who should line up
right behind him to get their
punishment dished out to them
also
St) now as tiie evidence
stands. Baldwin should look
again at his reasons or ex
cuses. for not supporting a day
for king If indeed King's birth
day is celebrated on this cam
pus. perhaps Baldwin should
stop and wonder why even en
tertained such a silly notion of
not being part of this great cele
bration.
Tonya Menefee
Eugene
Parlez quack
Today two former University
marching band members, mem
bers of the only University
Man hing Band to man:h in the
Hose Parade and the Hose
Bowl, were sitting around hen;
in a Paris apartment drinking
wine and watching CNN news
when what should we see but a
report from Eugene. Oregon
about the Stanford Marching
Band.
You were eity-slickered; they
got exactly the reaction they
wanted. Oregon Slate Universi
ty is for farmers but the Univer
sity seems to still lie for rubes.
Where the hell is your collec
tive sense of humor and hospi
tality? From what we saw. the
performance was innovative,
relevant and satirically pro
vocative, you should have seen
our top hat formation ... yawn.
In conclusion, to quote an
anonymous source, '■marching
bands have as much to do with
music as bull-fighting has with
agriculture."
Dennis Atkinson
M.M. 1963
David Maves
B.M. 1961
Out of line
I am writing to demand the
immediate firing of Dean Mau
rice Holland of the l^w School
for his blatantly homophobic
actions. It is outrageous that
Myles brand would be willing
to allow this bigot to remain in
his job Given his recent "Jessie
Helms" behavior (demanding
that a gay law professor apol
ogize for coming out to his
class). Holland clearly must go.
Even if you are in agreement
with the homophobic mentality
of Holland, it is not difficult to
see tin* ugly implications of his
attempt to control classroom
discussion. If coming out to
your class is forbidden, does it
then follow that a professor
will be censured for discussing
his perspective as an African
American?
I, for one, do not want to
spend my money or attend
classes at a university that has
administrators or professors
who have a shopping list of
what is "acceptable" classroom
discussion.
But beyond that. 1 am sick
and tired of lesbians and gay
men being second-class citi
zens on this campus. When we
stand up for our rights we are
told that we're "forcing our
agenda" on the poor, down
trodden breeders. When we run
for political office on campus
openly as gay or lesbian, we're
accused of representing only
"special interests."
When "fag" jokes are told,
and when lesbian and gay stu
dents. professors and staff are
humiliated and attacked, no
one gives a damn.
Well kids. 1 for one am fin
ished worrying about offending
heterosexuals.
Tim Hughes
Queer Nation