Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 7, 1995)
EDITORIAL Balanced budget amendment wrong Most everyone knows that, for some time, the federal government has racked up n sizable deficit by spending millions of dollars it doesn't have. Congress wants to solve the problem by passing a bal anced budget amendment to trie Constitution Howev er, the amendment is a short sighted idea that will have massive and unnecessary implh at ions for the country. Everyone would agree it ss necessary to reduce the deficit It isn’t right that the federal government is liv ing beyond its means year after year for several decades. But a balanced budget amendment goes too far By legal ly ~ constitutionally — requiring the government to balance its budget, tho hands of the government will effm lively U* finan cially tied If this hap pens, how will America ever las able to afford cost ly programs like Medicare arid Social Security, or be able to cope with <>mor goneies such as natural disasters? // Americans should lake the pressure off of Congress to /w s s a IhuJ hill and lei them look for the right answers, not the easy ones. Although huge deficits are outrageous, a balanced budget amendment Is equally unacceptable. Supporters are depicting the deficit as an urgent problem that will destroy the country if it is not dealt with in the next few months. However, no one is imminently trying to fore close on the United States, so what's the hurry ;' A better approach to reconciling the nation's books would be to take a more gradual approach. There is no need to go from large deficits to a balanced budget in a year or two. If the transition was spread over many years, il would bo more palatable and acceptable to the econo my and would give Congress the necessary time to piece together solutions for funding programs that might oth erwise be cut in a knee-jerk slashing of budgets with the balanced budget amendment. it looks likely thal Congress will pass the balanced budget amendment at any cost because it is a political ly popular idea. Constituents and members of Congress alike, looking for answers to the problem of a ballooning deficit, favor the idea of a seemingly quick and simple answer to a perplexing problem. On the other hand, members of Congress who don't support the amendment feel they will be in trouble back homo for their opposi tion, and might support the idea despite their convic tions. Americans should take the pressure off of Con gress to pass a bad bill and let them look for the right answers, not the easy ones. The federal government must take stops to ensure that no more money is spent than is taken in. The way to do this is through logical, gradual cuts in spending. This process will not be easy or quick, nor will it give the dra matic effect of an instantaneously balanced budget 1 lowevor, it will give Congress the flexibility it needs to solve the budget problem the balanced budget amend ment will not. Oregon Daily *>0 &0* ll» IUC4W| O«€G0N I <->•»»! * <*►*> ami) Prouge fnaty du»*ig me tcfoet y«a< *nd Tand Thuiaday dunng Ihe lummet by ib» Oregon 0»ity (nvM eufc*jb«*a Co . W: * Bw Or*»w**y of Ongexv 8 ugon*. Oregon The frmrav otmatm •niitoenserety of (h# ixvwirty ««h te><m m XX at me f it) MUn<xt em it a member o* fha Aanciatad f*n»a ls« f.meteU *» privst* p»OP*fty TS# unIMfuf itWHf 0) ut* Of papwt a pro*aC\4jt»* by taw EdIKx-M-CXtof a.*y Solo Men*g*>g Editor Editorial Editor Hew* Art Editor f reelance Editor O®«0 Thom FVMw Hwm J*n ta, ton ffcm.wa* Nwi Editor Sport* Editor Supptwrwot* Editor Htghl Editor Mature.* War'* OntUu; T>ttu Co**«n Pt**g Aaaoctata Edtttva Taaryt I •d'anaatwr SfixMrv uwvirtAivfw Mar.oMn* ( award* Cammunay. T Marty Sm*h Mtgrtar fax atmnfA&Knftratcn N#wr» Staff Stmn AaAtury Amy CotumCo Pal Oafy. Amy L Dawanport. Prtmo toman* Clay*# f ormarv Ow* fo«. Mas! liarton. Gary C»a»» Joa Harwood. Knt Harvy Ti<m» Koarnay Shannon A Adult Adam K.rtcnar. Sutanne Mans Mart AATyt#. Ban Moattua. Nat am Montgomary. Am U-w Aomtatd. Coiaan PctWg, Sherry R»n*y Kata Satwurtn. f‘mJ Van Strata Kan W*»». Brian Woman Qanaral Manager Judy H>et* Adverti ting Olfactor W»'» Ati* Production Manager tukcnete Rott Achrerttatng Arm# Amador. An*a Borgamt MarOQ Chrog Tony f o• Em Herther N MarimarV Maaon Sarah MacM. tom MmatataatS. Ama, WakaA Claaainad Bacty Mar twr. M»"aga> Ky*e Oevr* Joa Se**n Dtatribution: John long, taren HaAoc : Bagma /farpnw Boaineaa: Kathy Carttena. Stfteryalaor Judy ConnoAy Proctocttoti Oarx a MCofcb. ProduclKxn CoctrtAnaror Shaw- 3 A$a*a. Tara Gauttnay tVad Joaa Jarmtar Ncaand. Oayton Yee Hrwvoom MOSMt Dtapiay Adverttalng J46JM2 Buatnaaa Otnca M*»5tl CtaaaMad Advartiatng MAAMy r /. pur ajose /*/ note 2 B€E 5r/>v6S 1 3 AJOSE up A *4. CAnT «£A^Oi^ N>Oit ^ f....WT pur. :A J VOii >Otl jJ_^ \J ■ COMMENTARY Clinic violence committed by radicals Fr Jose Pimentel Ft Fred Luca Bro Jordan Vajda The Jan. 23 editorial in the Oregon Daily Emerald announced that the ques tion on legalized atxcruon in the United States has already Iceen decided. l or the editors it was no longer worthy of discussion Rather, violence at abortion clin ic s is the only remaining issue Yet such dismissals of the anti abortion position as irrelevant are in fac t the true cause of the clinic violence the editorial deplores Americans consistently fail to understand the roots of terrorist acts such as the murder of abor tionists Refusing to understand the causes of terrorism, we dehumanize the terrorist and fail to ac knowledge that we our selves ore implicated in the ter rorist act. Terrorism is not a First resort In the case of abortion this should he obvious Anti abortion sentiment and [cohticat action Icegan well before Roe \ ■, Wade when several states legal ized abortion in the early 107l)'s Two decades passed Ice fore Dr Gunn was shot In spite of the Iceating and jailing of anti abor tion protesters, their protests remained peaceful for nearly twenty years Why has violence now appeared? Violent protest has appeared for the same reason it always appears a growing per ception by a radicalized group of dissenters that their legitimate voice has been silenced and that peaceful change is impossible because of its adversaries' monopoly on power. In the tase of anti-abortion protest, this dynamic should be obvious to the impartial observer When the Supreme Court ruled on Wade and effectively legalized abortion on demand up to the day of birth, this decision was opposed by the vast majority of Americans Statistics have remained con slant for two drtcades about one-fourth of Americans sup port abortion on demand at any point in pregnancy; about one fourth reject abortion under nearly all circumstances; over half would allow abortion only under certain circumstances, especially for danger to the life of the mother or during the first months of pregnancy. a Clinic violence, like terrorism general ly. is the product of a sense of powerlessness and exclusion - ww r r Yet, of the more than one mil lion abortions performed in the United States each year, less than one in a hundred is per formed to save the mother's life. When the actual effect of Roe is spelled out to those being polled, they reject it by a large margin The Pro-Abortion Movement has much to fear from people hearing such statistics about Roe and currant practice. Those who oppose abortion also know these figures very well. They also know that prestige media ignores them, and the courts and Congress have proved unwilling or unable to modify the current practice of abortion on demand. I hey also know their support of “pro-life"candidates — e g Rea gan, Bush and countless mem bers of Congress — has been rewarded with no reform legis lation at all and by judicial appointments unsympathetic to changing Roe. They also correctly sense that the informat ion managers of our society are hostile to the anti abortion message. This hostility is symbolized hy the media's near universal use of the Pro Abortion Movement's jargon of “pro-choice" and "anti-abortion rights" and by the regular pre sentation of opposition to abor tion as the "ideology" of the "celibate Catholic clergy" or of yahoo fundamentalists. The violence at the clinics did not come from labeling abortion murder: the anti-abortion move ment made that connection for more than 20 years without an) violence. Clinic violence, like terrorism generally, is the prod uct of a sense of powerlessness and exclusion The linking of clinic violence to the labeling of abortion as murder is plainly another attempt to silence the voice of anti-abortion dissent Some would even suggest laws to forbid those who oppose abortion from speaking their convictions publicly “bet ause it will incite violence.” That such attempts at repres sion are reported without i ri tique by journalists implicates them in a subtle by pervasive silencing of the real voices of those who oppose abortion. The Pro-Abortion attempt to forbid dissent will only prove to others who oppose abortion that they are being silenced and that peaceful means of dissent have become futile. Unless this is recognized, the future bloodshed at abortion clinics will be on the hands of the Pro-Abortion Movement, whose tactics of exclusion have created the very terrorism it now hypocritically denounces. Fr lost- Pimentel, Fr Fred Imcci, and Bro Iordan Vajda. are ordained priests with the Sew man Center ■ CORRECTION I he ( tregon Daily Emerald regrets etc. The Oregon Daily t.merald regrets etc 1 he Oregon Daily Emerald regrets etc ! he Oregon Daily t.merald regrets etc. Etc.
