EDITORIAL
New energy strategy
barely gets support
Lust Wednesday, the House passed 381*37 the first
energy strategy bill in more than a decade. The mam
moth 1,500-page piece of legislation is supposed to
guide America's energy use into the next century.
It's about time. Some of tho bill's provisions are
quite extraordinary, if not common sense — requiring
the federal government to cut back on energy use, a
moratorium on most offshore drilling and new efficien
cy standards in the private sector, to name }ust the
highlights.
However, tho bill is hardly perfect. From this cor
ner, it gots lukewarm approval; a polite, back-of-the
hand, symphony clap.
In February, tho Senate passed a similar measure.
The two bills now go to a conference committee, and
eventually, the president's probable signature. It is
hoped the joint committee will strike some of the par
ticularly noxious parts of the existing bill and add
some of the more environmentally sound ideas left out.
For sturtcrs, the House
and Semite bills both
would streamline sturt-up
licensing for nuclear pow
er plants. Rep. George
Miller. D-Calif.. had pro
posed an amendment that
would make it easier for
critics to stop construction
of the plant if safety con
cerns were raised, but the
House deleted the propos
al.
Trying to ram through
a nuclear power plant li
cense without sufficient
Aesthetic
considerations
aside, If an oil
platform were to
go glut off the
Oregon coast, It
would destroy
the state's fishing
and tourism
Industries.
debate from the people who would huve to live near it
seems short-sighted and dangerous. The pros and cons
of nuclear energy can be debuted in another forum, but
oven supporters of the plants should agree that stifling
debate about safety concerns is just pluin dumb.
The only part of the House bill Bush and Co. has
threatened to veto is tho extension of the limited mora
torium on offshore drilling of the Outer Continental
Shelf. The Senate version has no such provision, and
Energy Secretary )umcs Wutkins has alreudy stated he
and the rest of tho Cabinet gang would push to get tho
proposal dropped in the joint conference.
One cun be sure the Republican administration is
getting heavy prossure from profit-monomaniac oil
conglomerates anxious to turn the West Coast into a
muss of oil derricks and pipelines. Aesthetic considera
tions aside, if an oil platform wore to go glub off the
Oregon coust, it would destroy tho state's fishing and
tourism industries. In comparison, the Alaskan oil
slick would look like the spillover at tho local gas sta
tion.
The energy plan debate is not over yet. The confer
ence committoo will provide a groat forum to talk
ubout the particulars. Nuclear power and offshore oil
drilling are just too important to ignore and let Bush
and Co. have its way.
Oregon Daily
Emerald
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LETTERS
Eat this
Whoever wrote the Moy 22
editorial need* to oat hi* word*
Talk about prejudice, bigotry,
etc.! The writer accuses the Or
egon Citizens Alliance of trying
to Impose Its will on others,
and demoting Springfield resi
dents (gay* and lesbians) to sec
ond-doss citizens, '11100 it said
people who voted for Measure
20-OB could be guilty of trying
to •‘ostracize, stigmatize and
condemn."
The homosexual community
and their supporter* seem to
never tire of using buzzwords
and seeking to engender sym
pathy. Straight people are al
ways accused of bolng "fearful,
ignorant and homophobic.”
Whoever wrote the (xlltoriul Is
more likely fearful and Ignorant
of the (X^A members. As homo
sexuals continuously assert,
"Why, we're your friends and
neighbors lawyers and doc
tors, etc. ..."
Co in the free speech area
during Cay Prldof?) Week If
you want to see people trying
to shove their Ideas, religion
and philosophy down other
poople's throats! If lt‘s such a
groat thing to take pride In,
loave It alone ... others will rec
ognize It.
1 haven't found anyone yet
that can define the "rights" that
pooplo say they aro losing. All
of us have the sume equal rights
under the Constitution. Seeking
minority status is a "special
right
After the measure passed, the
homosexual community began
making all kinds of threats as to
what they would do. With all
the hate crimes committed
against individuals und busi
nesses In the area, what a great
idea! ' We'll show 'em!"
I suggest that certain people
clean their own backyards first.
Ron William*
Eugana
Double drivel
I'm writing in rosponse to
Don Peters' May 21 common
lory. To bo perfectly, frankly
and utterly blunt, it made mo
run 11 y terribly III.
It is flip, irreverent attitudes
such as the one displayed in
this piece that have reduced
our fine example of a political
system to the decaying, corrup
tlon-infested mess It Is today. If
this young man has nothing to
say about this election other
than what campaign servos the
best food during ballot-count
ing time, he has no right to say
ho "really (does) love politics."
Perhaps if know-it-all typos
like Peters would get off thoir
"ha-ha, aren't I clevor" trips,
and join the rest of us in trying
to effect real, lasting and mean
ingful change in this sick, de
generate society of ours, we
would ovontuolly bo loft with
nothing more Important to dis
cuss than food.
Out until then, there ore vital
ly important Issues to deal
with, and it would greatly be
hoove the Emerald to devote
more space to doing just that,
and less space to the self-serv
ing drivel of self-righteous, self
serving, in-your-face clowns
like Peters
Teresa Knezok
Orephlce Editor, Oregon Com
mentator
Just do it
In response to Debra Prye'e
letter (ODE, May 26), I would
like to say that all of the people
Involved with CARE and the
many other organizations on
campus fully understand that a
man can be raped, and that his
assailant can be a woman as
well.
While we rocognlze this and
do what wo can to not overlook
It. It's hard to focus on the
many issues of rape (i.e. worn
on, men, cntidren, eidors ... ev
erybody!) with the small hand
ful of dedicated and over
worked students and faculty we
have actively involvod in work
ing to create a rape-free envi
ronment on this campus of over
16,W)0 people.
Because we have so few peo
ple involved in a relatively
large community, we need to
put our energy in one direction
so we can be as effective as pos
sible. We recognizo tho most
prevalent issue is the woman
survivor/male assailant scenar
io; therefore, we focus our at
tention there. Until we got more
members, that's tho way It will
be. (Take this as an open invita
tion to get involved.)
My udvlco is instoad of wor
rying about what we involved
people don’t got done, worry
about what you’re preventing
from getting done by not being
involved.
Rape is everybody's issue, so
all aspects will not gel fully
rucognizod and dealt with until
everybody gots Involvod. Until
that time, don't look to the peo
ple doing something already to
start your ‘‘People Against
Fear" organization. Chances
are, these people are already
doing everything they can.
Scan Foxtay
Co-d tractor
Man Agalnat Rapa
Speakbeck
Springfield voters have spo
ken in support of the OCA and
Its messages of hate. Now it is
time to speak back. Today I am
beginning a personal boycott of
all Springfield businesses until
measure 20-08 Is rescinded. I
urge others to do the samo.
David R. Sokoloff
Physics
LETTERS POLICY
Letters to the editor must be limited to no more than
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