EDITORIAL
Deadline threatens
chance for peace
Allowing himself little room to maneuver, President
Bill Clinton announced last week that all American
troops will be recalled from peace-keeping duty in oast
Africa's war-torn Somalia by March ,11. Period.
Clinton did not provide himself a back door if things
should go sour. Ho might as well have said, "Road my
lips." If circumstances should demand a change in plans
or an extension of the deadline, Clinton would not be
able to adapt. He's stuck; Somalia bo damned.
Tho strict deadline is an obvious attempt to quiet
those who believe that involvement in Somalia could
end up as "another Vietnam.” This paralyzing fear of
military commitment is understandable, but it places
unreasonable demands on foreign policy decision mak
ing. Are we going to abandon all causes that don’t
appear to be winnable in a matter of months?
As tho world's only remaining superpower, the Unit
od States has a responsibility to support the United
Nations in its efforts to keep peace and provide relief
to people in poor and war-torn nations. There is a limit
to how long wo should be expected to prop up a coun
try, of course, but placing an absolute deadline for U.S.
involvement in Somalia is a potential pitfall. If tho sit
uation there worsens, it will be difficult for Clinton to
order tho troops to pack up and go. knowing that tho sit
uation is little different than when they arrived.
The U.S. legacy in Somalia should not be one of
heavy-handed control. We should make every effort to
encourage peace talks between the warring clans, and
hopefully leave Somalia with some form of transitional
government in place. But expecting all that to bo done
by the end of March, even with an expanded U.S. pres
ence in the meantime, is highly optimistic.
Fortunately, the president's announcement does indi
cates that he realizes that it was a mistake to abandon
the stated role of the United States in Somalia from one
of humanitarian relief to hunting down warlord
Mohamed Farah Aidid. Whatever threat he may have
posed, taking him on was a grievous error, which has
already led to the deaths of at least 18 American ser
vicemen and the capture of another.
Clinton has dispatched distinguished negotiator
Robert Oakley to Somalia to help jump-start peace talks
that have boon stalled there for months. Clinton has stat
ed publicly that there needs to be an "African solution
to an African problem" and hopes that Oakloy (who was
the Bush administration's representative in Somalia)
will inspire the neighboring states to take the initiative
in helping to reestablish long-term order and a stable
government in Somalia.
Such an arrangement would bo idoal. Continued U.S.
presence in Somalia will only foster anti-American sen
timent in the region, no matter how noble our inten
tions. If our armed attempts to create a long-standing
peace are going to be disregarded as evidonce of Amer
ican imperialism, then the only option available is to
leave it up to the Somalis. And hopo for the best.
Oregon Daily
Emerald
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LETTERS
Driking on job?
As n longtime resident of
Eugene, I decided to take advan
tage of having the University
nearby by registering for a doss
this fall. Today, as I was waiting
for my student ID to be
processed. I glanced at the load
article in the Emerald {ODE.
Sept. to), regarding the "ASUQ
Executive pa i r'' by Scot
Clemens.
As I opened to the continua
tion on Page 3, 1 noticed the
"Ai ( ent On” box highlighting
each of the execs personally. I
was astounded to see that the
third item considered of greatest
importance to highlight was
their "Favorite 'Driking' Estab
lishment.”
Six years ago I took an under
grad economics class with Barry
Siegel, who is an outstanding
and interesting teacher. Barely
half of the c lass would show up
each session. 1 realized this
when the exam came.
This fall I am taking Chinese
101 and attendance appears to
be excellent. 1 trust this means
that the students are there to
learn this time.
However, my experience five
years ago and the apparent fas
c ination of the student body
with the trendies! "driking"
establishment leaves me with
little doubt why the tax-paying
public is and will be reluc tant to
increase its tax burden unless
there is a greater reason to do so.
Gail Newton
Eugene
Stealthy OCA
The content of Martin Fisher's
column on the Oregon Citizens
Alliance [ODE. Oct. 4) comes off
nearly as reactionary and shal
low as any typical pro-OCA
argument. The danger of this is
that by failing to understand the
OCA's goals beyond the gay
rights issue. Fisher depicts it as
less of a threat than it truly is.
In the article. Fisher para
phrases Mabon as saying that if
the courts overrule the OCA's
initiatives, his group would sim
ply replace the judges. Fisher
scoffs at this remark and makes
a weak joke about shaving
cream and brain cells; then, he
ironically says, "Think about
it."
Ever since Pat Robertson's
failed presidential run, his
Christian Coalition, of which the
OCA is a part, has explicitly
stated its new approach: run
ning "stealth” candidates who
operate "below radar" by run
ning in local elections rather
than in the national arena (their
words). It targets local offices:
school boards, city councils,
mayoral seats, and yes. Martin,
they even run candidates for
judicial seats.
These are races to which few
voters pay much attention —
races where a little of Pat's mon
ey goes a long way. Once the
Oregon Supreme Court becomes
packed with conservative Chris
tians, it can interpret the law
any way it sees fit. and we will
all suffer.
The OCA has every right to
exist. Oregonians should not try
to ban the OCA; rather, we
should try to render it political
ly impotent. If we focus only on
the fiCA itself, or its flagship
issue, homosexuality, its ulti
mate platform proceeds
unscathed. The OCA is the
embodiment of Pat Robertson's
"Think Globally. Act Locally”
campaign; never forget it.
Tyler Hoffman
Eugene
Spicy numerals
I'd like to clarify a few points
that might have been foggy after
the publication of the article in
Sept. 29 Emerald. The course is
being offered winter term, but is
not a regular course yet, i.e.
although it has a CRN and title
assigned to it. this does not
mean it is going to be offered
next academic year for sure. It is
a three-credit course with grad
ed option, as mentioned, and
serves ns u I.ING '199 course for
academic requirements.
Two other omissions that I'd
like to have seen are the fact that
it is taught on a voluntary basis
and much of the credit for
arranging it goes to Professor
Tom Givon from the linguistics
department. For people excited
to know how much Arabic they
already know, I mention, in
passing, that the decimal digits
(0 through 9) are Arabic. We
Arabs use Indian numerals
maybe because we bought their
spices and got the numerals free.
If this is confusing, people
interested may talk to me at 345
3160.
Abed Khooli
Physics
Enquirer
Please!!
Has anyone on your staff
reviewed the content of your
newspaper recently? I thought
you were supposed to be a Uni
versity newspaper, focusing on
campus and local interests.
1 don't mind the inclusion of
some national news, since, for
many students, your rag may Imj
their only access to a daily
newspaper. However, I am dis
appointed in your selection. Just
look at your AP headlines from
your Wednesday. Oct. 6. edi
tion: "Portland women plead no
contest to hand sex." “Prisoners
may be tough, but security is
tougher." "Buttafuoco finally
admits he slept with Amy Fish
er." "Priest admits to molesting
28 children in the 1960s." "Wife
maims man. pleads insanity."
and the ultimate: "Alligator gob
bles up woman, 70."
Really!! This is what I expect
to find at the Safeway checkout
stand. I certainly expect some
thing a bit more scholarly from a
college newspaper! Or are you
descending to the crass intellec
tual wasteland of modern-day
pop society?
Rcbaocs MMcmsII
Eugene