EDITORIAL
Thomas nomination
a reflection of times
Clarence Thomas, nominee to the US. Supreme
Court, is one of the Horatio Alger stories conservatives
love to talk about. Born poor in rural Georgia, educated
at Yale Law School. Thomas is approaching the pinna
cle of his career — lifetime membership in the coun
try's most exclusive club.
The furor over his nomination stems from many
sources. At 43. he would be one of the youngest jus
tices ever. His judicial career is skimpy, his qualifica
tions sparse. But it is his race and his supposed politi
cal views that have garnered the most attention.
Thomas is black. He is also conservative, a near
180-degree flip-flop from the man he is replacing,
staunch liberal Thurgood Marshall.
Critics call his nomination a political maneuver.
They claim that by nominating a black. Bush has virtu
ally guaranteed confirmation, thus putting yet another
conservative on the court. Dissenting senators have to
balance possible charges of racism (and subsequent
loss of votes) against fair review of the nominee. For
them, it's a no-win situation.
Time to face some cold, hard facts. Since 1968. lib
erals have only been in the White House for four years.
During that time, there were no openings on the Su
preme Court. Thomas, if confirmed, will be the seventh
new justice since Nixon took office.
Despite what our toreta
thers intended, the Supreme
Court is a political creature
because the power to nomi
nate and confirm rests in the
hands of elected officials.
Supreme Court nominees, us
a rule, reflect the polities of
the President who picks
them. With conservatives
making all the appointments
over the last ICi years, it
should not come as an illogi
cal shot k that the Supreme
Court is now leaning signii't
i antlv to the right.
Clarence Thomas
Thomas" critic s point to
his spotty record as chair
man of the Equal Employ
ment Opportunity Commission during the Reagan ad
ministration. his dabbling with the concept of "natural
law," and his unwillingness to expound on his politi
cal beliefs during the confirmation hearings. His nomi
nation is opposed by both the National Association tor
the Advancement of Colored People and the Congres
sional black ('.aliens.
But political experts agree Thomas is almost guar
anteed confirmation, even it today's Senate Judicial
Committee gives him a no recommendation. He is
qualified enough to make himself a borderline candi
date. and the possibility of a black conservative on the
c ourt is enough to sway some of the hedging senators.
He also has managed to avoid getting pinned down
on his political beliefs, as Robert Bork was in 1987.
Bork's mistakes have been heeded well, and the last
two nominees — David Souter and Thomas — have tap
danced around questions with the skill of an Arthur
Murray cli.se ipic*.
Add the Oregon Daily Emerald to the list of groups
who oppose- Thomas" nomination But like all the other
critics, it doesn't look like it will make much differ
ence 'Thomas is going to be the next Supreme Court
justice, and we all have to wait for the ramifications.
It would be nice to live in a world, like Martin Lu
ther King |r. sought, where; Thomas would be judged
on bis experience1 and qualifications alone. But the Su
preme Court process is politically oriented, and poli
tics is not so open-minded.
TMUK 'lou Wfc "(OUK SIXVWT?
LETTERS
Not funny
i inn personally offended by
tbe ignorance displayed by the
I mcmld In printing tho cartoon
(hi.tr tho Irt'shmnn (Sept 25)
This cartoon clearly degrades
the greet system
Ni i! Storpen has obviously
done little research into tire or
ganization he has chosen to
condemn. Although the greet
svslem d ass have its flaws, it
provides benefits that contrib
ute to the character and devel
opment of nil its members This
'..ionist has ni eused the sys
tem ol alcohol abuse, female
degradation and u course to
ward inedioerilv These false
ut.i usiitions c an only stem from
blatant stereotyping.
Not only does the greet sys
tem condemn these act usa
tc ns, it attempts to offer a
place of growth in maturity and
ideals through brother
hood/sisterhood The facts il
lustrate this claim Over Ihe
course of hist year, the gree t
system donated thousands of
community service hours It
participated in seminars regard
ing issues such as rape, .den
ied drug abuse, and discrimi
nation. As well, a greater per
cent,iga of greets graduate than
cl i independents. These lacts
clearly denote benefits offered
by the greet system
il we are to generalize as
Storpen has done, and inde
pendents are non "conformist,"
pen-minded and above Greet
"mediocrity." this cartoon is
nothing hut complete hypo
crisy This is a eloso-minded.
Ignorant statement. I feel I am
what would he considered a
liberal activist with many more
concerns regarding the quality
. T the world in which we live
beyond that of just the greet
system However, greet life has
iiffrn■ ! mu n lot of growth, and
! ,im truly glad to be a part of it.
If we are to further ourselves as
,i I'niversity and as a society,
we must overcome ignorant,
ne - idr.l thinking illustrated
by this cartoon.
Russell Me (doth I in
I ainbda Chi Alpha
Conformist?
I'll tie the first to admit that
maybe I'm not getting the joke,
hut I think this is one joke
that's being beaten into the
ground As a member of u fra
ternity, I'm insulted by Neal
Skorpen's portrayal of greeks in
his Ost .ir the I'rcshmnn strip
[ODE, Sept 25).
Forgive me for indulging, but
1 would like to suy a few things
ubout myself in an effort to en
lighten some dint souls who
can't resist stereotyping the
greek system If pressed, I
would say I lean a hit lelt, 1 be
lieve in a strong America, but
not at the expense ol those we
exploit here and abroad. I feel
in my heart that abortion is
wrong, but I would fight hard
to keep iny government from
making that choice for me liv
eryone should have access to
housing and medical care.
I don't feel someone's sexual
orientation should have any
bearing whatsoever on the
treatment they receive from the
government or their fellow citi
zens. The idea of rape or sexual
harassment makes me ill. 1
can't sav I'm adverse to making
good money, but part of that
joy flows from a desire to make
sure that some of that money
flows to people and organiza
tions that need it more than me
Most of all, 1 love and cherish
this planet we live on.
Yes, 1 have plenty of faults; 1
drink too much. I can he vain
and materialistic at times, and
though I try. I can't always live
my life according to Hod's
teachings.
Conformist? We all conform
to groups, whether it’s a hunch
of "hippies” with lie-dyed
shirts and sandals, or a hunch
of greeks with polo shirts and
K-swiss tunnies, or anyone in
between. In short. I’m a normal
person, and 1 hope I can he rec
ognized and respected as such.
Jamie Bahum
kappa Sigma
Hmm...
It we were to come up with a
new form of energy which
thrives on unwavering bureau
cratic stupidity, the l Diversity
could save itye world! )ust a
thought.
Gary M. Rosenstein
TCP
LETTERS POLICY
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l niversitv community.
Letters to the editor must be limited to no more than
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writer must be verified when the letter is submitted.
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length or style
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