Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012, November 21, 1991, Page 2, Image 2

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    EDITORIAL
Homelessness and
hunger issues real
Most people have long associated hunger and
homelessness with a select group of folks easily labeled
everything from lazy to incapable "It's their own fault
they’re hungry and/or homeless." is this line of
thought, making the parasitic group and all their self
induced problems pretty easy to shrug off
Well, these righteous people better take note, the
hunger/homelessness issue is now growing by leaps
and bounds, and they may even taste a bit of it them
selves before too long.
The term "working poor" is becoming increasingly
familiar, characterizing those who work. but remain be
low the poverty line Bootstrap ideology chimes that if
people work hard, they "ill realize the American
dream is proving evermore false
Working hard guarantees less and less nowadays
The biggest poverty rate jump in the last 2U years was
in 1‘Mtd, which boasted consequences like lf> million
families who paid over lf> percent of their incomes for
rent, and 8 million who paid over fit) pen ent
As housing becomes increasing!) hard for average
working Americans to 'afford we mas begin seeing
mure ot mem joining me
ranks nl the homeless
Something they thought
th«;\ (i never sec These
(In'ifui i :tizens would no
doubt bo bewildered, mu!
termg as thev p.u ked their
things, "but I did ul! I uas
supposed !o do - worked,
married, had 2 :> kids: I
i an t be homeless
The issue of affordable
housing and homelessness
utfei is everyone, as does
hunger
Not surprisingly, pen
pic are going hungry in
Ainerii a and the res! o!
It may not be
long before those
people who stare
down at the
hungry and
homeless are
asking for soup
kitchen
directions and a
place to put
down their own
blankets.
Hi* worm iin an m ui * i i >
rtomii dynamics, and not because of overpopulation or
lack of production capabilities linough food is mm
produced to provide every world citizen with t tit It I
i .dories per day
Distribution is the culprit, bet ause it naturally fol
lows the monetary path hating is dictated In who can
afford it not who's hungry And never mind that the
United States was the top food exporter during the
‘80s millions of poor Americans still went hungry in
!.ivor of importers who could afford the goods
The market system at svork A good thing, right:’
Well sure' But ne need to pay attention to our priori
ties It may not he long before those people who stare
doyvn at the hungry and homeless are asking to: soup
kiti hen directions and a place to put doyyn then oyvn
blankets
A hit drastii \ever happen to me7 Maybe it won't
Hut it's time to realize these problems aren't as far
ayy.n as they seem They affect ail of us ;ti one way or
another, sooner or later
< >r,\'nn Darts
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LETTERS
Climb
Upon arriving at the knight
Library this past S u nil .1 V
around p rn i found myself
in .hi unusual sit nation I was
standing in tin lobby with no
less th.m Hi, perhaps 5(1. of rnv
fellow students waiting for tile
rather large intimidating, tin
deniablv gaudy iron gates to he
,i; ■ , > • . i ■ We mju Ill gal li ad ■
mltt.un e U, tin fat iltlV Yes in
deed, some imitteritigs id irnt.i
linn were expressed about the
rei ent i uitwi k in the library's
hours
In a highly stresses! state of
mind fl had a paper due the
prey it hi s i ridax. xx hit h I hadn't
started veil, i tossed ItIV hark
pai x oxer the gate atid prtx eed
ed In (limb i had research to
do and little time to do It In !
Me • essfully landed on the oth
er side I x\ as expecting some
real l inn, hut nothing hap
peried There was no pain in
xe.xed, I xxas not arrested fot
trespassing and no one asked
me to leave In fai t the librari
an at the front disk simply
xx ati.lied me \x alk by
Mx suggestion to my fellow
students is this If votr do not
. k> die rn xx library hours :!
you feel it is vour right to have
at i ess to the materials in the li
hrary d you think building a
mullimithon dollar addition to
tire lai dity and then cutting ac
cess to It Is hypocritical, tf you
know you are paving loo mill h
inonex to have to put up with
this i rap, don't just stand there,
climb over the damn gate* The
library is there for our benefit,
xx- shouldn't let anyone sax we
i all t use it when we need to.
I have another paper due
te xt week, so I'm sure I'll he
visiting the library again next
Sunday I might have to go over
the gate again or through a win
doxx hut I'm going to get tn
The information in the knight
Library is put there for me to
use. and I intend to use it
Jerry Alicki
Student
Stirring up
Regarding Brian Hoop's letter
to the Nov 13 Emerald. I must
say nothing stirs up controver
sv quite like the issue of race
Labeling the recall effort "a vi
nous rai 1st attack is ludi
c runs As for Hoop's never hav
ing txc-en caught because he has
the privilege" of being white,
no one has the "privilege" of
being while. black or any other
r.iw, that apology is deter
mined by genetics
The !,t< ! ts Jo Scm|a Watson
was cited lor shoplifting from
the University bookstore, riot
because of Iter race*, hut be
cause sin was trv trig to steal
Does tins have anything to do
with Iter ability to lead in tier
position as AM () site prose
dent' That's wfi.it the student
hotly of the University is being
ask.-it to tie; ide through a peti
tion and ret all effort
As for being {to! it it ally moti
vated, those on this campus
who choose to vote, have a
right to know about their elect
ed offitials. pis! as we were
informed about Mike Col
son s alleged note tampering
before hist spring's elections
Despite this retail effort anti
those opposed to it. politically
savvy leadership realize that to
re> ail an offit lal is mut h more
difficult than getting them
elected in lilt first plat e
( lat k Smith
Student
Radical change
To everyone All right, listen
up folks You're going to hear
this until we all get it right
(foe Our economic system Is
addle ted to grow th This means
we keep using more and more
id everything Infinitely Two
Our planet is finite, with a hm
ih-d (albeit large; resource base
Three We arc1 me teasing, not
reducing, pollution levels
Add it up Our consumerism,
our dependent e on material
things to make us happy, is go
ing to make our children very,
very unhappy
Kee ycIing is not enough
N ice, h u t not e n o u g it
Ketomusm is not enough We
need a radical change in the
way yye live our lives and in
what yse value We need a soci
ety that conserve's Tell the po
litical "leaders' whul it is you
yvunt Think about the drain on
the planet every time you buy
something you don't need, or
drive instead of hiking, walking
or bussing. Do you want to tell
vuur children, "(lee. I'm sorry
yye left vou with a toxic, yvast
ed, barren plane! l.et me tell
you hoys nice it was in the old
day •. ' I don't think so
Jeff Heiman
International Studies
Kudos
Please <i(.( i‘j»l mv ( ommenda
lion lor vnur excellent editorial
Marketing technique' was
just simple- fraud. I ()l)l:\ Nov
1) on Slate Sen Png John s
shortt omings
U s had enough to lie lo raise
campaign funds, but it"s worse
vet to admit it publicly and to
show no shame And still
worse when the person who
does that is an elected official
as )olln has been lor more than
12 years.
The farts about her lying to
assert that she hut! a deficit in
order to raise money .ire not in
dispute The investigation es
tablished that her pH kup trui k
was repaired, but wasn't used
lor a campaign purpose, direr (
ly or indirectly , at the time ol
the at t idem
All that's loft, because Jolin
won't i.onsider resigning, is to
have her recalled That means
gathering a large numixir of sig
natures hum voters in her dis
trli t. a big job, but it needs to
be done and will lx- done Call
t>H7-21H it you want to help
( hai les Porter
Kugene
Stealing
Jo Sonju Watson stole Iroiii
the University Bookstore But
slit- didn't really steal from the
store, she stole from each and
every tine ol us What she did
affects us all, either directly in
that her shoplifting raises the
prices we pay, or indirectly m
that she promotes the notion
that stealing is Ok and some
thing that all of us do
Watson stole and then failed
to appear in court She didn't
serve her sentence, and now
she doesn't seem the least bit
penitent lor her crime I would
say ibis string of events illus
trates a severe character disor
der A glaring absence of moral
ity and decency
To my knowledge, the ASl'O
is responsible for appropriating
certain funds I seriously ques
tion the ability of Watson to
perform this task fairly In light
ol her behavior.
This is not a race or gender
issue, hut simply a matter of
ethics Recall Watson.
Cory I.nrvik
English