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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 20, 1996)
Should Eugene’s Urban Growth Boundary be expanded to accommodate a rising population? Let us know. editorials, letters, commentary and perspective B BY MAIL: P O Box 3159, Eugene, OR 97403 BY PHONE: (541)346-5511 BY E-MAIL ode@oregon. uoregon. edu IN PERSON: Suite 300, EMU Internet requires safe surfing ■ OUR OPINION: Cyberspace patrons must approach the new world with caution It’s a common fact that the Inter net is full of idiots. Anybody who has spent time on the World Wide Web can attest to this. Conspiracies, claims and stupid obsessions clog every word search f we try. Web pages f detailing movie «' stars’ every life de- f tail (and usually “ex- f elusive” nude pho tographs) are too many to count. Societal and government theories abound. In our usual search for the legitimate, we continually run into rambling blather. To prove our point, we recent ly looked for the ridiculous in cyberspace instead of letting it find us. Using key words like “bombs” and “conspiracy,” we came across many deceiving pages with seemingly harmless labels like “pyrotechnics” and “fireworks.” After a bit of probing, we found detailed instructions on the cre ation of all sorts of explosives. And “conspiracy” unearthed a treasure trove of ideas as well. The Great Pyramids, Bible, Mars and even the Internet itself all fac tored into their own sordid plots. These pages, complete with the usual links to X-Files and Dungeons & Dragons sites, aren’t afraid to pre sent their opinions — no matter how CHRIS HUTCHINSON/Emerald warped those views are. But it is where these sites turn from opinion and claim to be fact that things can go horribly wrong. Just ask Pierre Salinger. A former ABC News Correspon dent and press secretary to President Kennedy, Salinger came across a In ternet posting about a “hot” theory regarding the July 17 TWA Flight 800 crash. After an nouncing his findings in a Nov. 7 speech in Paris, the former newsman was alerted by the FBI that the document was ,: actually a random post il ing by a 66-year old re */ tiree in Florida with absolutely no validity whatsoever. For Salinger, a respect ed journalist, the document’s_ theory of a mid air collision be tween the flight and a B-2 bomber was too much to re sist. It seemed too juicy, too possible and too real not to be true. Salinger’s experi ence isn’t unusual. Seeing words in print can be a temptation for assumed truth in all of us. And the Internet, the site of the most available information, is also the least reliable. No major restric tions on content exist yet, and the authors of questionable material have no obligation to reveal their identity. Sharon Lopatka, an Internet junkie from Maryland, carried on an inti mate on-line conversation about sex and death with fellow cyber-resident Robert Glass. When the couple final ly met face to face in October after months of shadowy communication, Lopatka didn’t make it out alive. Two weeks later, police found her body in a shallow grave in Glass’s yard and he was named the prime suspect. We can learn from Lopatka’s mis take. We can recognize the Internet is a place for those who are afraid to meet real people and reveal them selves in the process. And we can learn from Salinger. We can see the Internet is a place for cowards — and those too lazy to seek gen ^ uine publication for their “works.” No matter how idiotic much of the Internet’s content may be, it has a right to be there. But it doesn’t require nor does it necessarily deserve our re spect. The Internet is a ! ""'-v.. privilege we all have. And its influence will be hard to avoid in the future. But using its resources doesn’t mean we forget its many faults. This editorial represents the opinion of the Emerald editorial board. LETTERS POLICY The Oregon Daily Emerald will attempt to print all letters containing comments on topics of interest to the University community. Letters to the editor must be limited to no more than 250 words, legible, signed and the identification of the writer must be verified when the letter is submitted. The Emerald reserves the right to edit any letter for length or style. The Oregon Daily Emerald is published daily Monday through Fri day during the school year and Tuesday and Thursday during the sum mer by the Oregon Daily Emerald Publishing Co. Inc., at the University of Oregon. Eugene. Oregon. A member of the Associated Press, the Emerald operates independently of the University with offices at Suite 300 of the Erb Memorial Union. The Emerald is private property The unlawful removal or use of papers is prosecutable by law EdItor-in-Chief: Steven Asbury Managing Editor Jennifer Carter Night Editor. Thom Schoenborn Community: Jennifer Schmitt, editor. Jean Bond. Christian Hill Entertainment: Nicole Kreuger, editor. Jesse Stephenson Higher Education: Tamyra Howser. in-depth. Laura Cadiz. Benjamin Kwasney Opinion: Ashley Bach, editor. Chris Hutchinson, illustrator. Brian Diamond. Larry Haftl. Sonja Sherwood Politics: Shcna Cohn, editor. Doug Irving Student Activities: Kristin Bailey, editor. Angie Suchy, Tom Potter Sports: Mark McTyre, editor. Andrea DeYoung, assistant editor Chris Hansen. Ryan Frank. Ryan Halvorsen Copy Desk: Thom Schoenborn, copy chief. Sarah Kickler. Paul Meznarich, Mike Schmierbach, Kendra Smith Presentation: Dennis Bolt, editor. Matt Carton Photography: Mathew Stiffler, editor. Andrew Brackensick. Joe Bunik. Amanda Erickson, Shannon Kilduff, Chad Patteson Freelance: Lara Pittman, editor. On-Line: Nicholas Stiffler General Manager: Judy Riedl Advertising: Becky Merchant, director. Anne Amador, Lee Yen Beh, Marco Ching, Yujin Chi, Matt Johnson, Anne Miller, Trina Shanaman, Rose Soli, Matt Solomon, Greg Walsh Classified: Tara Sloan, manager. Natasha Lumpkin, Debbie Levy, Heather Moye Production: Michele Ross, manager. Ingrid White, coordinator. Shawna Abele, Laura Daniel, Susan Head. Trevor Kearney, Tara Knight, Melissa LeBahn. Molly McCanta, Allison Stormo, Mike Young Business: Kathy Carbone, supervisor. Judy Connolly Distribution: John Long, John Pauli. Ferenc Rakoczi Newsroom.(541)346-5511 Display Advertising.(541)346-3712 Business Office.(541)348-5512 Classified Advertising.(541 j 345-4343 LETTERS Innocent alumni I was apprehensive about returning to campus because of some not too happy memories. Nonetheless, I looked forward to visiting some favorite campus haunts dur ing mine and my husband’s homecoming visit with my step-son. As we walked on campus, I was overjoyed to find an Emerald still intact. I took it to Rennie's Landing, as I had many years ago, and anticipated a good cup of coffee, greasy hashbrowns and eggs and reading the ODE. Those fond memo ries were soon squelched as I read the Emer ald's editorial on Homecoming [ODE, Nov. 8). The editors were referring to me, an alumnae, in numerous ways. Homecoming was an event interested in pleasing those “aging alumni and parents who write the checks.” The Duck Party was “a great ex cuse for alumni to get uncontrollably intox icated.” The Fun Run was a “scary” event watching “large groups of 50 and 60- year olds ‘powerwalking’...students just would n’t want anyone to keel over.” Where is all this animosity coming from? I’m only 34 years old; 1 don’t drink alcohol; I don’t powerwalk or run, and I feel quite comfortable finding my own entertain ment. Is it so bad that a University where I spent seven years of my life and thousands of dollars invites me back to enjoy a week end? You asked, “What ever happened to pa rades, bonfires and true school spirit?” Yet you also mentioned the under-25 students “don’t care and probably never will”? If you don’t care, then what are you com plaining about? If you do care, quit com plaining and do something about it but don’t attack me. Kate Newton Alumnae Don’t forget Can it be that the Emerald has already for gotten the lessons of intolerance from last week? How are students supposed to take your publication seriously when, a week af ter your last bout of ignorance and apology, you publish an asinine column by Brian Di amond on affirmative action? Diamond claims the main “flaw” in affir mative action is that it “leaves many white males feeling cheated by the system and even more resentful” and this ultimately is counter-productive for women and minori ties. So, the inference is that not only is af firmative action flawed because white men don’t like it, but women and minorities should feel bad that they have offended white men by standing up for their rights. It seems that if white men are feeling bigot ed, Diamond expects those affected by that bigotry to recant their bid for equality. I’m glad to say that I can’t follow that logic. Diamond also says that approximately 50 percent of female-headed households live below the poverty line, while “African Americans and Hispanics are doing a little better.” I’d like to remind Diamond there are women of color who are female heads of households, and that your biased data doesn’t represent the overlapping identi ties. How can such skewed data be meaning ful? Diamond bases his column on biased statistics and faulty logic, which in turn in validate the conclusion he draws from them. While classism is often ignored as an oppressive reality, addressing only class is sues would ignore the reality of racism and sexism in this country. Tracy Scham Religious Studies To Russell Donnelly: Now that the University physi cist is $5 million richer after receiv ing a grant to de velop his “cryo stat,” the University is better off as well. A stronger scientific reputation and good public rela tions are already becoming a reality for the University’s science depart ment. And stu dents may also benefit from Don nelly’s experimen tal helium device. With more revenue and prestige, better faculty and funds will come our way — and not just in the science depart ment. To Gov. John Kitzhaber: His vow to keep higher education funding at near the same rate amid Measure 47 is gal lant and appreciat ed. Now his new task force and rhetoric must be come action. The State Legislature won’t be easy to work with. And he, like all of us, has one thing against him al ready: reality. The money will be hard to find — but not impossible.
