VIEWPOINTS
EDITORIALS. OPINIONS. LETTERS TO THE EOITOR
Japandi
“enounces raoe
ants °s- toons oJJ’
■ OUR OPINION: US
military should leave
Japan, let island nation
defend itself
bist month three t; S. ser
vicemen stationed in Oki
nawa apparently <!**» idmi to
demonstrate their collective
cruelty hv allegedly raping a
12 year old (Jkinaivan
schoolgirl.
I I'ltve it to tin- military,
with its am nmt and unat
coptabin boot c amp habits of
teai hing recruits how to
degrade women, to really
moss things up with an
important ally
Today we'll refrain from
discussing how this I raged \
brings to light tile need for
men to grow up and learn
:;>>vs til b-ep thei: 1;< inn.>::i
I ho U S. has maintained
military installations thorn
sin<o inn end of World War
II in order to counter the
possible throats of China,
Korea and Russia (hiring the
(old War soars
However, that war is over
and it might be time to bring
some of those troops home
or send them toother parts
of the globe where war is
either underway or threaten
ing Can we all say Bosnia?
The biggest argument
could be that it is high time
for Japan to build up her
own full-sc ale military Of
course that would mean
rewriting the agreements
signed by the I LS. and Japan
at the close of the World
War II. but again, that out
dated < barter speaks for
itself it's !>tJ-\ears ii!'! i'lie
international landsi ape has
t hanged and Japan has
t hanged besides. ( reeling
an entire national defense
uii'i' » * "imwi, i in » i v n mi
ness of rape is a topic we've
covered Itefore and will cov
er again. It's a national epi
domic and yet another
symptom of a so< iety with
some very serious problems
Instead, we're going to
look at the resulting fallout
over this nasty international
incident
Three days ago about
(iO.OQO angry (ikinavvans
staged an anti-U.S.-military
tally an their southern Japan
ese island. Keen after years
of growing tensions between
the 11.8. military and the
Japanese, the polite Asians
couldn't quite got riled up
enough to tell all the damn
Yankees to go home
They just want some of the
damn Yankees to go home.
As they decried the rape
of the schoolgirl, protesters
voiced an opinion whit h
may finally be a good thing
to consider. They want the
number of I S. troops on
(tkinawa reduced
it's a reasonable request.
Why arc* we still in Japan?
instill 4 ^
stressed economy a much
needl'd boost.
On the other hand, Arnori
< a i an't overlook its nation
al interests and commitment
to its allies and, of
course, we won't
China, with its nuclear
capability and one million
person army, would be a
very scary opponent if war
were to break out. and it
seems that volatile, unpre
dictable North Korea pre
sents a more immediate
threat to peace in the Pacif
it i( hostilities did erupt.
Amerii a would quickly
move to defend its interests
and allies.
Until then, there are
approximately 30.000 U.S.
troops on Okinawa and it’s
time to bring a lot of them
home
Maybe we can even teach
some of them how to keep
their pants on
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2 Or<\)on Da-\ Efneraia Tuesday. Octotx f 24. 1996
i.
Of all the simpering, sao:ha■
rine platitude* that abound in
Kugette, that one hugs im
something fierce Fractic <• Ran
dom Act* of Kindness
Well, 1 suv don't do it 1 suv
JAPAN JAVS it SENT us
A WARa/WG IT WOUUD 8£
ATTACKING P£A»L M ARBOR.
BUT /T WAS AN WOUft LATE
SO TREV'RE APOLOGIZING.
LETS SEE... ABduT 4<*V,ooo >*>u«s (.ATf.
AajC ASK 'wow WMTJ TH/i
8uS«w£SJ ABOvr TKAOf 8a#Ri(QS 3
Enough already with the ‘random’ acts
I knew there was something about Pinkmnn 1
didn't like Now. after reading about him in
Tht‘ Hfftistrr lUuttti a fttvv weeks ago. I know
what it is
No, it s not that he was a child molester. As a
matter of hu t. I think he deserves a lot of respect
for how he dealt with this issue. I'm referring to
Ins purpose in life the reason why he dons
his fuchsia leotard and hops on that unicyi I"
every day to prnctii « random acts of kindness
am! senseless \t Is n| !>e,uilv
if
Just pin u little bi>\\ to your blouse tout it w ill
all blow away Yeah, rit^hl
33
Activism in this country is for personal gams
We do it ior self-fulfillment ant! satisfaction. Rut
I wouldn't i art- if activism were actually active,
instead of puking!} passive
Another unique type of American at tivlsm is
the ceiehritv form I don't know what it is but it
would setrni that something about Hollywood
fires up the sot oil consciousness of its inhabi
tants Ail of them stars have a cause
Model Christie Turlington de< ries the fur
industry and at the same time poses in nils for a
fur company. Ku ki lake gets arrested on an
anti-fur protest at the same time her face is on
the cover of Peoplr Richard Gere totes around a
token Tibetan arid asks people to send peace
vibes to Chinese government officials Madonna
does publii service announcements admonish
ing people to vote even though she doesn't.
I'.verv time a natural disaster happens, sure
enough a group of sis ond-rate musicians has
gathered to make the benefit alburn
At the end of the day, 1 suppose a lot ol peo
ple are introduced to issues because of the
i eleb* ,u in ism And tins ig good it it gat* pen
pie thinking and acting.
Giyli
format
JfICIl tut’ jJUipU'it’IUi fit .1 > 1JI
kindness alt the time. not just
when it tickles your fan< y.
Work for justice and equality
every single dev of your life. be it by voting,
writing a letter or just plain opening your mouth
mi hen you hear someone perpetuating a rat 1st
stereotype l)o anything, hut just do something
What does that stupid saying moan?
1 know it's just a response to the senseless
acts of violence that wo see going on around us
every dav I'll (mint out here that although the
violence we witness is horrific and wastes life,
it is not senseless There is a reason why gang
members kill each other
Perhaps if wo look into the causes of these
kinds of violence rather than just pointing our
fingers, si ratching our heads and tsk-tsking
about its senselessness, mavtie we would fig
mu umbo activism is also gross it lypuies
what 1 hate about Anwru.an activism in general:
narcissistic actors and musicians are active
because it helps their careers Kvery time Johnny
Do-Goodur protests something or other, his
career stoc k goes up.
"Ask not what you can do to help a cause; ask
what helping that cause c an do for you." That is
what we've come to.
Practice random acts of kindness Do it if it
feels good
Enough already.
Plenty of iieople out there toil daily to bring
Justice, equality and peace to this world. And
there are even some celebrities who quietly
practice good deeds. (Paul Newman gives away
all the proc eeds of his food products to charity,
and he keeps a low-profile* about it Good for
him.)
Whether these folks do it because their social
c onsciousness urges them to or because it makes
them ft*el good, I don’t care. The fact is. they are
actively working to make tins world a better
place, ncjt just espousing empty virtues on the
back of their bumpers
Now why not practice that.
Gayle "Have a Nice Day" Forman, a senior major
ing in journalism, is a columnist for the Emerald.
un> out how to end it
And OK. it's just a hunijier slicker; no need
for roe to get so huffv
Hut it seems to me that people here, in their
attempt to make nuev nit» to everything and
everyone, have taken that token phrase to heart
No longer is it iust a bumper at it kt<r; it’s a wav
of life. And an unproductive one.
I don't mean to critic iz« Pinkman, but aren't
there better wavs to ameliorate the world than
cruising around on a one-wheeled hike making
goofy faces?
Pm not saving goofing around and making
people (eel good doesn't have its place. But
when cliches become the sole form of political
activism, we are in trouble. And if you've
looked around this country lately, you’ve proba
bly realized we're in it pretty deep.
Of course, this sort of Care Hear activism in
not just a Eugene thing
We live in a nation of ribbons — pink, blue,
purple, green. For every cause there is a ribbon.
That is how Americans think you can solve a
problem Just pin a little bow to your blouse and
it will all blow away Yeah, right