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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 22, 1996)
VIEWPOINTS nmoftiAis opim HIlf R$ TO TMf i OHOR Kelton plays politician by going with the flow ■ OUR OPtNION: Out ASUO vice president follows public opinion like a hungry puppy Zachary Kellon is wail on his way to bacuming a politician. In his public statements about funding the Oregon (Mivnwntator. the ASUO vie® president has offered i bn most dramatic and dis turbing reversal of opinion to be seen in student gov* nrttmnni this year In a Inttnr responding In an Emerald columnist's call to defund Ib« publication two weeks ago. Kellon expressed his desire to son il stripped of its student-fee funding tin said he wanted the student body to vote on the (Umunentator'* budget — » ram procedure for any stu dent group on campus — and was "confidant that stu dents' outrage at the mags cine's content (would) result in dramatic editorial change or removal of the publica tion from the ASUO bud g««" Kellon also threatened to veto any ASUO Programs finance Committee decision that did not pul the (Umi numtaloi'a budget on the ballot. But we heard a different Kellon at the journal's PFC hearing Monday night. "I must emphasise that I do not. in a personal or pro fessional cajHM tty, want to see the Coaunt'ntalnrbudget placed OH the ballot." he wrote in a statement to the committee, adding that he would ‘be comfortable'' with the any decision the PPC might make. (antic again7 fn fewer than two weeks. Vic* President Kellon made a 1 BO-degree turn In the end be made the right decision, hut that dons n'l excuM hi* moralconvio Hon-of the day conduct In the mail that followed his initial statement. the Knuwilct« editorial pages were filled with letters crili* cixintt his position It was soon clear that the vice pres ident did not speak few everyone, not even his own president. In his second statement, written because he saw whic h way the wind was blowing. Kelton wrote that the first letter was com posed in "frustration” with the? way previous student government committees had decided controversial bud gets such as the Comanmla tot He sard the content of his letter had been "harsh." but argued that he did not want the members of the PFC to think that he had a "lack of rasped or recognition" for their work Hut what else could it be? He threatened to override any dec ision they made that didn't satisfy his demands He then dismissed any con cerns the PFi: might have about the Comimnlatar’* First Amendment rights at an "age-old" argument against censorship — an argument kelton apparently hails/felt had outlived its usefulness Kelton's change of heart would seem less troubling if he hail admitted he was wrong, or even that he understood why he should n’t carelessly interfere with the fee allocation process that he now claims io hold "In the highest regard ." We can only hope that kelton will choose his words more larefully in the future and resist throwing his weight around without thinking it through — and lie glad that this time, public opinion was not on his side MUM I DOfJ T iyM£RE IT CrftOM, But **'**€ <*»»<, To HKJ£ K> o^rRot wis exTRfM^r c\omp ■Ji tt.. A o"\p I mtM *♦*-«* Cowr**.' I u*Jt rut JoomO <* TWAf ODE eats words right off an EMU plate Your opinion regarding healthy food choke* in the EMU (ODE, Feb 8} was timely and quit* possibly ton accurate |Hwo4tl Administration and the EMU Boanf of Dim tor* malt mi an- needed to make significant change* in our food twvioi offering* and physical design. and in ihe *vstems that iuMxat tervtce (wlivwy — four year* ago !Tw initial response wai to hire an architec tural firm to review design option* and a market research firm to conduct a campus-wide remarch study that would a*ai*t in the identifl cation of food offering* desired by the nwrnnu nily The revolt* of threw initiative* were major far ***** in the EMI Hoard of Director* requesting a Itttb more than U million from th# Oregon State System of Higher Education student build ing fee fund The board was successful in their request and we received the fund* last summer the process of addressing the concerns luted ui your opinion has already begun This fail the EMU worked with Thomas Rlcxa Associates to condui t focus group* leading to the creation of a market research instrument that asked the campus community what they valued in food aarricst. what theu preferences were in food concept*, physical environment and much more The response rate was mu optional We had hoped to receive M)0 usable survey responses (a number beyond the amount neces sary to provide data that could he interpreted with a high level of accuracy). We received almost 1,100 usable responses We are just beginning to receive the final tabula lion of that information The process of changing food eervice concepts in response to community needs will be very COMMENTARY challenging and inclusive. Currently, two groups made up of students, faculty and staff are reviewing the accumulated data by listening to audio tapes of the focus group*, reviewing the literature, visiting other campuses and scheduling open meetings to gam more input The**> subcommittees and the final committee that will help guide the architect and the EMU already realize that the sources available — the $■* 02 million will nol be enough to meet all of our needs They are aitemntmg to make these funds stretch as fat as possible The ideal time line is to finish initial planning this spring term, select an architect later in that term and begin renovations nest summer The process may not fas as fast as we would like, but it needs lo be thorough Until a renovated service is available, please visit and try some of our newer options Sarnu rai Duck, a locally produced "bento" boxed lunch; our new fresh salads, including Chicken Caesar. Traditional julienne. Thai Chicken or Shrimp Caesar (all made fresh daily); our expanded deii sandwich bar, as well as Little Caesar's. Taco Time, and the salad bar and Asian cuisine available in the Skylight We may not be there yet. but we are on the way to providing food service products that are customer driven Dutly Millet It Director of the Erb Memorial Union UTTfRS Experience Learning It seem* unfortunate that a* a •indent *o interested in learn in* about other culture*. Lyon* ha* apparently not looked beyond tha cultural identities of fits professor*, in the words of his textbooks. to “learn* [one. Feb 14) learning it an interactive process that reouire* the active participation of the recipient The University may not have as many professors of color aa Lyons would desire: however, the university environment provides ample opportunity for people to experience diversity and leant from its offerings Obviously. Lyons has over looked the International Stu deni Association and its associ ated functions: the numerous cultural nights sponsored by the Indonesian. Malaysian and Chinese student organizations (just to name a few); and differ ent lecture series in various departments around the Uni versity, Furthermore, if Lyons found the University so lacking in diversity that he felt his educa tion was suffering, perhaps he should have sought his own opportunities to experience other cultures first hand and out side the confines of academia Lyons himself commented that history is not an objective process, so we would think he would actively seek the chance to form hi* own opinion* Back to the issue of the cul tural identities of Lyon*' pro fessors. we are dismayed by his insinuation that because the majority of University profe* *or* are of "European-Amen can" descent, they all represent the same ideas Of course the goal of "multi culturalism" is good, and we hope the University strives to create a campus of diverse thought and experience, but it’s unfair to degrade the rich envi ronment of ideas that already exists. Sera Feed Institute ot Molecular Biology Joseph Tufa Biology
