EDITORIAL
Students must help
prevent tuition hikes
(jotting an education used to bo about acquiring
knowledge in all of its abstract and concrete forms. Stu
dents studied subjects ranging from literature and phi
losophy to quantum mechanics and organic chemistry.
Along the way. students are supposed to grow into ma
ture. responsible adults who have the life experience
to complement their education.
Since the passage of Measure 5 in 1990. the lessons
being taught in higher education in Oregon have all
been about money. Specifically, how are the public col
leges and universities going to get more of it?
On Friday. July 22, the Oregon State Board of Higher
Education approved the 1995-1997 biennial budget pro
posal. which includes a 9 percent tuition increase for
residents, a 3 percent increase for nonresident under
graduates and an 18 percent increase for nonresident
graduate students, h also contains a $50 per term tech
nological resource fee the University will charge begin
ning this fall.
Student lobbyists called on student leaders from Ore
gon's schools to say “enough is enough" and demand
that Governor Barbara Roberts "put more money into
the higher education budget and to earmark that mon
ey so that the proposod 9 percent per year tuition
Increase could bo 3 percent per year instead." This is a
nice thought, but there is no concrete source for this
money, which is predicted to come from taxes and the
lottery.
This Increase is a slap in the face for resident students
who have stuck it out with an Oregon school because
they didn’t think the state would really sell them down
the river. Unfortunately, that is exactly what has hap
pened. But asking the already emaciated state govern
ment for money it does not have yel is not going to help.
Neither is blaming the State Board of Higher Edu
cation. In light of Measure 5. innovative solutions are
few and far between. Right now the board is considering
a proposal for using a system of differential tuition
(tuition would vary from school to school, dependent
upon market forcos) and a proposal to turn the whole
system into a public corporation.
The issue should not be brought down to a "Give us
more money” situation. With so many Oregonians mak
ing the samo cry. it is doubtful that anyorto would hear
the students’ demands. Students should play a more
active role in keeping the cost of a college education
down.
If we were not creative people, seeking a better world
for ourselves and those who come after us, we would
not have embarked on the incredible, albeit bumpy,
journey of education.
College years are one of the only times in life when
people are allowed to spend a majority of their time just
contemplating without creating something concrete. It
is possible that somewhere in some public university in
Oregon there is a person who is going to develop a cure
for AIDS or a person who is going to figure out a way for
us to preserve more of our precious natural resources.
If this tuition increase makes you angry, but angry is
all you are. and you are not motivated to try to find a
better solution, you had better be prepared to get angri
er. This is only the beginning. But. if you are truly a stu
dent, you will at least try to find a better solution. If you
can come up with something hotter, the President's
office is in johnson Hall.
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LETTERS
Zionist fascism
Semper fi: For the U S. Ma
rines used as cannon fodder
during the Israeli retreat from
Beirut. Let's avoid the obscuring
nature of /.ionist hype and con
sider the real issue the nature of
the Jewish state
Israel chose the model of a
centralized autocratic regime
with nationalistic policies, regi
mented industry, commerce and
finance, censorship and sup
pression of opposition. Web
ster's defines tins as fascism
Similar Western nations were
Italy under Mussolini and Ger
many under Hitler.
The Zionists have likewise
pursued an aggressive military
policy against the racially arid
culturally different residents of
Palestine. It began as simple ter
rorism, including the massacre
of most of the Palestinians in
Deir Ynsim in 1947. This c o
incided with the U N -sanc
tioned division of Palestine into
the tillable Jewish section, leav
ing the Palestinians with Gaza,
the underdeveloped heights of
Judea and Samaria, and the bar
ren West Bank. The atrocity
incited hundreds of thousands
of Arabs to flee for safer havens,
freeing up yet more real estate
for the evergrowing Jewish pop
ulation.
This caused the problem of
the stateless Palestinians, refu
gees and victims of Zionist oc
cupation tactics. Isn't it obscur
ing the issue to ignore the Camp
David accords? How about the
listing for the Inst eight years of
Israel as one of the worst
abusers of human rights by
Amnesty International? The
same eight years of the Intifada
"uprising"? All the while the
Zionists continue to suck at the
pork barrel of U S. deficit
financed foreign aid. See The
Lobby: Jewish Political Power
and American Foreign Policy,
by Edward Tivnan.
Let's not obscure the issue.
We fought World Wrar II to wipe
out the German and Japanese
versions of fascism, but with the
PC' Israeli brand, we just throw
money at it. Semper fi.
Donald Stowman
Eugene
Enlightened
From Stephen Crawford's July
19 commentary (ODE), it would
seem ho believes certain fudeo
Christian beliefs should bo
overtly given the weight of law
by the U S. government.
It seems he thinks that only
those rights which ant "God-giv
en," i.e., that are acceptable to
the religious doctrines that he
defines as "Christian,” should
be protected by the Constitution,
and that he agrees with the con
servative, Reagan appointee jus
tices that lesbian and gay peo
ple, making love in the privacy
of their own homes, can be
made by a state into criminals.
It was the ideas of the en
lightenment that served as in
spiration for the Constitution.
These were ideas that were gen
erally anti-trad it ion/religious/
superstitious in nature
People were starting to think
that they could question their
cultural traditions, and look at
the world, their societies and
their selves as they actually are.
rather than as tradition says that
they are supposed to be — and
that they could think about
these things rationally.
Where the law succeeds, it
succeed* because it dews this —
it tries to look at the world as it
actually is And where it fails,
it seems to fail because it comes
from people's preconceptions,
dogmatic belief systems, mis
understandings. greed, or poli
tical expediency.
The Constitution is a great
document because it was based
on the idea that if you could see
the world as it is. and think well
about it, you could make a better
society It is great because it
broke with tradition, and pro
posed new, bold ideas, not
because it was based on any par
ticular religious doctrine.
It went beyond the majority.
Christian mores of the time,
whic h allowed for such things
as the genocide of Native Amer
icans, slavery, child abuse,
witch burnings, and the exclu
sion of women from political
and economic power, and it told
people that there can lac a place
where they can speak, think,
and live without fear of oppres
sion. It continues to say this, to
everyone.
Ben Iglauer
Computer and
Information Science
Freedom
Open lotttir to Stephen Craw
ford (ODE. Fuly 19):
I certainly hope you do not
preach philosophy like you
preach history. The framers of
the Constitution did indeed
have religion in mind; that is
why they definitely state the
separation of church and state
and why the three sections of
our government — legislative,
judicial and executive — exist.
They realized that in the heat
of passion crowds can vote for
the moment and so the other
branches can rein in discrimi
nation and mob rule. This coun
try was founded by people, who
were escaping the turmoil of
repression in the Old World and
fleeing here to begin a new
endeavor of personal freedom.
The majority does rule in
most cases except when it tries
to run over the individual rights
of others. I am sure the Church
of England and the Roman
Catholic; Church agree that to
distort the context of documents
is despicable but they must
change and correct past injus
tices (civil rights, woman's suf
frage and the abolition of slav
ery).
Any attempt to force u partic
ular narrow religious viewpoint
on others through the establish
ment of "law" is theocratic, not
democratic. You have the right
to believe in and practice your
religion, but you do not have
any right to pass any judgment
or infringement upon my right
to practice and believe some
thing different
If you think homosexuality is
a sin. then do not do it. I douht
that you are without sin. and
therefore can cast the first stone.
1 think you will find that the
laws of America go back to
Creek, Roman. English and
ludean law. not Christian. You
should rediscover history and
philosophy. Remember, reli
gious freedom is freedom of —
and from — religion.
James Dean Poynor
Eugene