OPINION
Packwood may finally be forced to answer to the public
LiaS.alciccia
Bob I’.h kwood may finally
gat it After a turn of
events it looks like our
infamous Senator will finally
have his day of reckoning bat's
hope so, after all the talk, talk,
talk without any serious
answers that’s been blowing
around for a year since Pack
wood’s dirty linen was aired.
The turning point occurred I ri
dny. After his peers in the Senate
almost unanimously voted
against his right to privacy for the
subpoena of his private diaries.
Packwood finally realized that
the allies he thought he could
count on all along weren't there
for him.
Seeing an advantage in going
after Packwood for not only
charges of sexual misconduct. but
the criminal misconduc t that his
diaries imply. the wolfish hoy s
on the hill abandoned their usu
al stance of protecting a fellow
stud and decided to rip every
shred of dignity and pretense
from Pack wood's carcass that
their tooth and claws could col
lect.
They bat ked him into such a
tight corner that Pat kwood
agreed to resign (*•» a u se he knew
he was cornered and he had no
excuses left to snarl The right to
privacy excuse was y\earing thin,
anti the semi-confessions of
wrongdoing that he how led to the
Killies Committee and the press
didn't throw anyone off his trn< k
So at the time when Capitol
I till was "flooded" with rumors
of Pat kwood's resignation, right
when we thought it v\as ( urtanis
for this drama without any res
olutioil of the plot, tile Justice
Department stepped in with
another subpoena for the diaries
And now the judicial branch
has a perfei t chance to live up to
the concept of justu e Although
many. 1 su.sjiet t. would like to s»-e
him get tho hell out of office now,
last weekend's turn of events will
possibly orchestrate two things
that are vital in working through
tho issues that plague tins nation
First of all. tf Pa* kwood goes
to trial to answer to * barges lev•
eled against him by the publu .
the press and his peers, it will
hopefully set a prts edent for the
bovson the Hill that has not pro
viouslv been adhered to It's
called accountability Bv dredg
ing up all the unthinkable mis
representations off )regon con
stituents from his tolI-oll journals,
and by making him answer to the
i barges, the |ustii e Department
will toll the world that A merit an
politicians can no longer hide
from the public They can t just
resign and have some other cor
rupt politician pardon them
they have got to defend them
selves just like the rest of us
The law says that Congressmen
and women are not accountable
for crimes in the same way the
rest of us .ire They have to
answer only to their oyvn hthu s
Commitoe that, until nor*. has
had a history of protecting and
overlooking corruption Hut now
not only does the Pthics Com
mittee w.uit Pock wood's head on
,i platter. so dons the !usti< e
Department, which says ttint it
Packwood is guilty of i rinnn.il
u tiv il\, it's ils business. too And
if Hob Pm kwuod finally realizes
that his Inchon and harassment
are not just something hit s got to
explain to Ins buildius in the l eg
islativn (train h. hut also to the
Judii nil Brant b anti, most impor
tout t> , to the Unit mi States i iti
/nils ami to the Oregon con
stituents who put him into offtt n.
all will not l>n for naught
Another key pttw etient that hts
trial would set is one that 1 t an
not stress enough It yvil! send the
strong message to sexual
harnxsers everywhere and the pig
gish employers who condone
them that yon t an t get away yvith
unyvunted sexual behavior any
more The ( laretu e Phottias con
firmation hearings may have
opened some eyes to the issue,
hut yy.iti lung a hunch of stodgy
old men nttm k Anita Hill s alle
gations that she yyas indeed
yvronged by I'homas isn't many
women s ultra oi |usiu:e.
Hv making nn example out of
this public figure, government
has it i ham e to send n message
to working women that it t ants
about their welfare Working
women, for oih e. couId have the
i ham e to be taken seriously in
their right to a harassment-tree
env ironment and would not have
to put up with the sexual intim
idation that was pre\ iouslv < on
sidered a given in their lives
It I’,ii kwood is held aicount
able for and made to answer to
the crimes of which he is
ai i used, the American pufilii |ust
tnav regain a little faith in a sys
tem that savs von can cover up
unv i rime with a smile and an
expensive suit Women would
rest a little easier knowing that
piggish politii inns, no matter
how important they are. will he
asked to oink in a smaller trough.
Most importantly, people like
him mill not get so much encour
agement to slav I lint wav If lie
doesn't get d now . he never w ill
/.in Solt'ii l itus ii reporter for
ihr l inerald
LETTERS
Great musician
On Friday, Nov. 12, Musit
Professor Edward Kammurer
died from complications of
leukemia at age 54.
On Saturday. Nov 11. an
extensive article by Kimber
Williams, including a picture of
professor Klnmmerer. was pub
lished in the Hegister-Gunni.
The article began. "Eugene
mourns loss of gifted University
of Oregon teacher and musi
cian."
On Sunday, Nov. 14. friends
gathered at Beall Hall on the
University campus to pay trib
ute to this fine and talented
man. He was acclaimed by fel
low University professors and
deans as well ns University
musicians, members uf the
Kugene Symphony and Orches
tra and jazz colleagues.
On Monday. Nos 15, 1 vainly
searched the Oregon Daily
Emarald for the acknowledge
ment of the passing of this wor
thy University musician and
teacher 1 did the same thing on
Tuesday, then Wednesday.
Thursday and Friday. Not one
word.
I am appalled at the total lack
of dignity this former award
winning University paper is dis
playing Where is the loyalty to
a University teacher and alum
nus (BA in music education and
MA in music) who was impor
tant enough to bo Imslowed with
the title of musician laureate of
iho stall' of Oregon by a formnr
governor, a University music inn
who was commissioned to umi
pose a piano solo that was
nine eel in a tinie capsule to a
cornerstone of Villard I fall and a
man who shared his music
"with gre.it abandon and
unhounding generosity with
thousands and thousands of
people"?
In today's (Nov 19) Heg/ster
Guard, it was announc ed that
the University's music school
has established a sc holarship to
aid students in |u//. studies in
memory of Edward hammerer 1
am sure the lucky rec ipients of
this scholarship will nave the
good taste to c arry on the mem
ory of such an outstanding Uni
versity musician. It seems a real
shame iliiit the Emerald could
not even 01 knowledge the loss
of sue li a gifted tern her. mentor
and alumnus
Nancy Nelson
Eugene
Applause
l.ia Salt n i la's opinion column
j()/)/•.'. Nov 18) was brave. elo
quent and moving
I teach a seminar tailed
Women and the l aw I'lie da\
(adore the b.nwruhl published the
mug shots of the three Afrit an
Amerii,an men an used of sexu
al assault, the only Afrti an-Amer
lean in this seminar had made me
and the rest of the ( lass confront
how differently Amerii an soei
et\ through l>i" and the media
treats him k and while men
ace used of sex t rimes Her point
was reaffirmed with n vengeance
when the photos appeared on the
t'mi'rahl’s front page the next
day
Ms Sail ice ias examination ol
the Kniera/c/'s guilt and innn
c mu e along will) her own was
one of tlie best disc ussions ot
rac ism by a while person that I've
ever read Km ism in Amern a is
omnipresent and very compli
cated Ms Salem c.io understands
this Responding to her c hallenge
to the rest of the University com
munity to talk, to each other aliuut
rac ism is our only hope for mean
ingful change.
Caroline Forell
Associate Professor
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