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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 12, 1994)
EDITORIAL Gridiock tarnishes Congress’ image Partisan politics and a new Republican motto ol "Nothing passes before Nov. 8” will forever stain the J03rd Congress and permanently damage the legisla tive branch's credibility. When voters ousted entrenched incumbents on masse in 1992 and swept a now crop of inexperienced reform ers into Congress, there was an optimistic hope that busi ness (or lack thereof) as usual would end. Voters and pundits alike dreamed of legislators will ing to put party affiliations aside and begin a new era In which the business of the country became the solo focus of the lawmakers. Unfortunately, the Idealism quit Uy faded to mean spirited stall tactics and unreasonable partisanship. The five health care plans wont down with nary a whimper. Amending the environmental Superfund laws lost to the COP's insistence) that Clinton and the Democ rats should receive no credit for passing a major envi ronmental statute. All this despite joint support from environmentalists and industry. The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, sponsored by Republicans during tin* Reagan and Bush administrations, couldn't muster enough votes and is dead until after the Nov. 8 elec tions. when GOP support will most likely return. Worst of all. a bill designed to stop members of Con gress from accepting gifts, trips and meals from lobbyists fell to a bipartisan filibuster. It seems the only thing Con gress can agree upon is the continued flow of freebies from special interests. It is apparent that the tactics used by the Republican Party, led by Bob Dole and Newt Gingrich, are ploys to increase the public's perception that it is the Democrats who are responsible for the endless gridlock. But voters should see through the smokescreen and realize the blame lies at the foot of the Republican minor ity. Instead of worrying about the legislation and policy in the public's interest, many GOP lawmakers are pos turing for a takeover of the House and possibly the Sen ate Hoping that a no-action Congress will influence November's outcomes, the Republicans are taking a sub stantial gamble while holding hostage the important issues facing this country. So once again voters will blame Congress for all that plagues the country, increasing their calls for more reform. Possibly, another round of incumbents will fall, as seen already in the case of Rep. Mike Synar of Okla homa, who lost to a retired school teacher who spent 517,000 on his election campaign. No matter what happens during the upcoming elec tions. Congress will have to live with voter cynicism and a tarnished reputation until it proves to the voters that the public's interest is foremost on the agenda, rather than the recently demonstrated personal posturing that did nothing more than inflame constituents. Oregon Daily Emerald p o ooi m% t-uctm cmtQOH'P' lha Oyoei CWy fmmtMis put*»h«I doily Monday through 1 nday during Pie school Ml Ds«y year and Tuesday and Thursday during the nmme by the Oregon Publishing Co . Inc at the Umvemrty ol Oregon. Eugene. Oregon The tmttiUd operate* ndrpendentty or the University mm offices *t Enter eld oOtes at Suae 300 ol the Managing E Editorial Ed operate* mdrpendentty oI the Unrvervty Erb Msmonel Union end it a member ol the Associated the** The CmoraW n pm ale property T lye unlawful removal or u»e ol paper* > prosecutable by tear Editor In Chief Katy Soto I Editor David Thorn Newt Editor Rebecca Mernfl Edhor Joe Harwood Sports Editor Ovu Metr Graphics Editor jell Pasiay Photo Wtor MchoM She*** Ere*lance Editor Alain* Baum Supplements Editor Tima Most •h-OepiH Edhor Ed Kloplenstein Night Editor T urxa E tdxtrtaehar a tend ala Editors: I riwtencti von Carp. Student CSovemment A-lmhe* Marcaiene f dwards. Corvwiiwry Ttflany Smith. FAghar l ducabon Arbnmislrahon Netea Staff: ton Beilinas*. Wilson Chan. Amy Columbo. Ta»ha T ichensehei Abe I «vr*Ja Pnmo Fontana. Gayte Forman. Christopher I or Man Fusion Clary Grass Saw llerxterion. An* Henry. Trevor Kearney. Adam Kmcher Ma* MTyrc Hrvi Moetvus Anne Miser KomteM. Sherry Barney Robtse Fleevea lia Saticcu Paul Van SrcMe Kim Wt»»s Darnel Wont Brian Worn** Oener al Manager Judy R*ecJ Advertising Director' Mar* Waiter Production Manager: Me hem Roe* Advertising Marco Ching, Tony For 1 tin Hersher. h-co<e Herfmar* Jeremy Mason, tfehw Maine. Swan Mac he* Tom Mttntitaedt. Kersey Wr*si’ Cteeeltled: ttecSy Merchant, Aianager Sen Tre Ter* Dtetrltoubon: John long. Ferenc Rekocti. Regna /supn* Businaee Katny Carbon*. Spenoor Judy Connoey Production: Dahlia McCobb Production Coordinator Shawn* Abeie. Greg Desmond Tara Gauitney, Brad Jon*. Janrvtar Roland. Matt Thavjviyl Dayton Vee Newsroom .. MP-SStt Display Advertising _MS-3T12 Businas* Office J40S512 Classified Advertising.MbiMT \ WAIT/ I NEED TO TAKE /he cP£D»r/ 1 ' r cant. T Don't KNOW HOU/ , IT WORKS' Hit ^46 < u.iopfis fctvu. TUiM you ttiCsHT 9hCM TO 4#H*VS<S ■ OPINION Internet users: Keep it clean! Anne Moser. Kornkei.!) changes Keeping up to dale requires frequent use of the Internet and all its resources Tunneling into Ohio State's library system databases via Gopher without a due how to get bar k out is only one of the |>crils of being a new user. The democratic strut lure of the Global Village, Cyberspac* or the net mandates that when someone helps a new user find his or her way around it's almost expected that person will repay the favor by helping somebody else The first rule of thumb when using the net is don't let afraid to ask for help! riting a column about the internet is risky because it constantly Thousands of individual computers access the Internet That is the net's greatest strength and its greatest weakness. This brings up the basic problem on campus: hardware access Most newly initiated computer dweebs hog hours at the various computer centers while wannabes wait for a terminal to open up. The secret to getting on the Information Superhighway is not to try getting on between 9 a m and 5 p.m Go to the labs during "ofT' hours and /.am!, the open road goes on forever Hut for students still stuck in the T hate computers'' phase, remember — NO ONE learns how to use Internet in a day The EMU and the Computing Center and the whole mess of (..omputer whiz kills take on an elitist air to keep novices off the hardware because of the lack of available terminals. This brings me to my next [mint of the $50 computer fee. the University administration and more than 15,000 students wanting »c< ess, an insufficient number of seminars to learn about using all the on-line education opportunities and everything else in between. Did the Computing Center and the administration think that students wouldn't want to gain ai l ess into the World Wide Web? Hopefully, things will get worked out soon so more students will have the chance to sharpen their computer communication skills communication in the electronic world, through e-mail and bulletin hoards is publication. Publication brings with it responsibility and the ability to stay in touch by being on the l»‘st behavior any new user can ask. of him or herself Internet do’s and duals include thinking before sending e-mail Follow the rules and the electronic publishing world will be a happier place. Anyone can down load a letter and repost it to another bulletin board. Netiquette isn't just a pleasant suggestion Netiquette is protocol. He cool, chill, smile, and mn! ( Hut beware some of the folk on the 1-way are the people Mom and Dad said to avoid!) E-mail communication ruquin* a solid background in grammar An appreciation for not what gets said, as most folk on bulletin boards ask questions while those with the answers are too busy to post a random teaching seminar on-line, but how something is said is a necessity. Computer technology is a tool. In the wrong hands, tools can sometimes be misused and/or used as a weapon. The sound of silence means more today than ever before. Using language that may have more than one meaning or may be offensive to others defeats the purpose of communicating as a faceless entity across oceans and continents. Outspoken, informal speech that is continuously available doesn't mean users can forgot they're sending their thoughts back and forth with n li\ing, breathing human being. When popular magazines print e-mail responses with obscene language, to keep the author's intent pure, the magazines aren't simply showing their ignorance, but the lack of originality on in author's part, which then alienates others who may not want to read any further. Regardless of how intelligent a writer's opinion may he or the point her or she may contribute to the ongoing conversation via the electronic world, without respectful use of language the author's intent will have boon lost. This doesn't mean a new user shouldn’t take a chance after getting run off by a native who loses his or her cool by spewing verbal garbage about perceived or real computer ignorance, learning by doing is the only way anyone can got really proficient at cruising' the 1-way. Connection is the key. The Emerald and the Oregon Commentator have gone on-line to maintain that connection with the this campus and campuses worldwide. By tweaking fn*! of the printing restraints set on newspapers, lx>th have become more interactive and enable readers to engage in more open communication. Computer news fosters participation in today's media that did not exist in the past. The on-rushing technology intends to bring more fair-minded opinions that can help sort out today's complex social issues. And for new users, when the worst happens, hit control C. The connection to that unknown tunnel from the cyber-world will he broken and it's possible to begin once more. Anyone wishing to respond directly to this column can send an e-mail message to Kornfeld® duckmail.uorogon.edu. Anne Maser-Komfeld is a columnist for the Emerald.
