EDITORIAL
ASUO stipend hike
a burden to students
Tuition has escalated more than 50 percent since the
last increase was given to the stipend budget of the ASUO.
over five years ago. In other words, the cost of attend
ing the University has risen dramatically, while the pay
checks brought down by such student government offi
cials as the ASUO president have not risen at all to keep
pace.
Good.
The attempt by the ASUO to “correct" this oversight
went by almost unnoticed, as the Incidental Fee Com
mittee on Monday granted an 18.1 percent Increase to
the ASUO. most of which will go toward raising the
stipends of ASUO officers. The president and vice pres
ident's stipends will go up to $400 a month each.
It could've been worse. The ASUO came to the meet
ing with a request for a 100 percent increase in such
stipends as the president's.
So while the financial burden being shouldered by
individual students is going up all the time, the ASUO.
the humble servants of the student body, have succeed
ed in making that burden a little heavier.
There is a double standard (wing applied to the ASUO
and the various other programs being funded by inci
dental fees. In the past, the IFC has stated that stipends
should not be considered compensation for labor, in the
same manner that an employee at Burger King gets paid
for doling out french fries. It is assumed that those peo
ple who are in stipend positions want to be there, and
that they enjoy what they are doing. If that weren’t the
case, they wouldn't have run for office in the first place.
Then? is more to be gained from holding an ASUO posi
tion than a paycheck; it is a way to gain valuable expe
rience and build a resume. ASUO President Eric Bowen
has said that.his position is paid less than minimum wage.
But stipend positions are not intended to pay well; they
are more like an internship than a job.
This is precisely the same justification that the 1KC has
offered when lowering the stipends of positions outside
the ASUO this year. But when the stipends of the stu
dent government itself came up, the ASUO asked for a
different standard to be applied, and the IFC agreed
(although somewhat reluctantly).
In the course of that agreement, IFC member Joey Lyons,
a candidate for ASUO vice president, declared that he
would abstain from the decision, because of a conflict of
interest. The position for which he is running is one of
the ones which will be receiving a stipend raise When
it appeared that a lesser increase than requested would
ho approved by the IFC without his opposing vote, he
changed his mind and decided to vote to block the low
er increase.
But that is not the issue here. The issue is whether the
ASUO was really looking out for the students when it
asked to bo paid twice wnat it has been getting for the
past five years. With tuition rising, and the IFC making
its last year in existence a costly one for students, it’s
hard to justify a pay raise for the ASUO. Now more than
ever, students need to keep their money ... not put it in
the ASUO’s pockets.
Oregon Doily
Emerald
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LETTERS
Lifelong lessons
I am writing this loiter to thank
the University of Oregon State
Public: Interest Research Group
c hapter for their work. Both
before and since 1 was appoint
ed os an Oregon slate senator. 1
have been well aware of the
important work ofOSPIKG As a
University student, 1 was
involved in the origins of the
group, an organization dedic at
ed to the public interest through
informed advoc acy
In the last several years
OSP1RG has taken a statewide
important role in sue h matters as
toxic use reduction and cam
paign financ e reform University
OSP1KG students have gone on
to bec ome judges, scientists and
to assume other positions of
responsibility in society The
lessons learned through OSPKIG
are lifelong lessons, and the ongo
ing work to be done today con
tinues that tradition. I urge every -
one in the University community
to become involved with
OSP1RG
Peter Sorenson
Oregon State Senator
Original sin
I enjoyed the artic le on reli
gious intolerance on campus
[ODE. April 14). 1 must agree
that there is much more of such
intoleranc e on c ampus than is
reported; or anywhere else in
the world for that matter
We are all believers and non
believers alike, prejudicial
against any religion that says
them is a God in c ontrol and we
are not living as we were meant
to. It is the one thing that no
individual can. by natural incli
nation. tie objective about it.
The reason is that we are all
guilty, and further, we want to
remain guilty. We would rather
rule our own lives, however
shabbily, than be healthy ser
vants of God We live like crim
inals. always in hiding, runniijg
from the law to keep breaking
the law "Freedom or Death!"
It's mankind's eternal cry.
We misunderstand freedom
and so incur death This idea, by
the way. is not new It is called
original sin. We hate the idea
and thereby prove its truth.
Nobody who pride* themselves
on their beauty enjoys looking
in the mirror in the morning —
truth hurts
Matt Fox
Classics
Pests
Of the 700 million pounds of
pesticides sprayed annually in
the United States, about t per
cent actually reaches its target.
What happens to the other 99
percent, you ask' It gets into our
drinking water, our ground water
and the air we breathe. It is
known that at least 66 of the :i(M)
different pesticides used on crops
are potentially cancer-causing,
according to the hnvironmental
Protection Agency, and the Nat
ural Resources Defense Council
estimate that 5500 to 6200
preschoolers will get cancer just
because of their exposure to pes
ticides m produce. These pesti
cides are used to improve the
output of crops in the US. hut
since the 33-fold increase in their
use since 1945. there has been no
reduction in pest damages. Obvi
ously pesticides pose direct
threats to everyone, yet |>eoplu in
Oregon don't have legal grounds
to demand access to information
about the effects of pesticides.
However. OSPIRG printed
three reports in 1992 to warn
resident of Oregon about pesti
cides and what alternatives
there are so that we can natural
ly, safely defend our crops
against posts. In the general
elections on campus April 26
27. students will he given the
choice as to whether or not they
want to continue to fund
OSPIRG and their work.
OSP1RG provides solutions by
educating people about impor
tant environmental and con
sumer issues such as pesticides,
and by giving students a place
whore they cnn take action by
interning or volunteering with
the Pesticide Action Group.
Vote "Yes” for OSPIRG.
Anne Marie Dutcher
Eugene
Earth Week
Earth Week is here and it's u
good ( banco for all of us to think
about what is happening to our
planet, and what we each can do
to save it Recycling is an easy
but vital way to make every day
an Earth Day. Student Kecyi ling
is working hard to make recy
cling easy for everyone on cam
pus, but we need your support.
On April 28-27, you can show
your support for recycling by vot
ing to approve a ballot measure
that would increase student fees
that Student Recycling needs in
order to expand its services.
Please vote!
Remember every ton of paper
that gets recycled saves 17 trees,
8.000 gallons of water, and 4,100
kilowatts of electricity. Support
the planet, support student recy
cling.
Britt* Wells
Student Recycling
Stop noise
Eardrums are not recyclable
The Earth Week noise pollution
coming from the EMU area must
stop I attended lectures seven
times during Earth Week and at
least twice the professor said
something interesting. But. both
times, 1 was prevented from hear
ing it by Earth Week noise pol
lution.
If it doesn't stop, I'll throw
Snapple bottles in the trash and
make extra photo copies of every
thing. Then I'll hop into iny 1970
Fora and go get a steak dinner.
Take that.
Jay Remy
Journalism
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