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EDITOR IN CHIEF
Ryan Frank
EDITORIAL EDITOR
Kameron Cole
John Glenn’s voyage inspires awe
John Glenn’s second voyage to space gives NASA
an opportunity to rebuild an American dream
There are few days when we can take a pause and ex
amine, as Americans, where we have been and
where we are going. Few days when we determine
the pattern that will weave our cultural fabric.
When John Glenn, at the age of 77, boosted back into
space, it was a day for us to reaffirm a condition that is more
or less a part of our collective human identity; the belief
that great things can be achieved when we work together.
Glenn’s voyage provides Americans with the opportuni
ty to look at space, our relationships with each other and
where we are going as a nation. Unified, at least temporari
ly, with a sense of national identity. And unified with a
sense ofhuman identity. The bigger picture — our world
and our place in the universe.
This is also ar. opportunity for NASA to rebuild a long
Opinion
James
Scripps
term space program, and a cnance to ensure
its future by becoming new to the middle
school generation. It is also a chance to re
vive the school-age dreams that disappeared
for us when the Space Shuttle Challenger ex
ploded 12 years ago.
Putting Glenn into space is probably not
necessary for the scientific knowledge that
he will bring back. It is simply an attempt to
rebuild NASA’s image. And despite the
transparency of NASA’s public relations
machine, there is something important and
noble about how NASA is positioning itself
and the United states tor a revival ot the
frontier spirit that played such an integral role in the cre
ation of the space program.
Glenn's role in this strategy is to reinvigorate the debates
and questions that fueled the movement which made him
the first human in space 36 years ago. It was the challenge of
"new horizons” in science and culture that spirited inter
national competition to be the first country to claim the
greatest expanse known to humankind.
Nearly four decades later, the space race has come to rep
resent something bigger than the achievement of one coun
try pitted against another. Humankind looks to the skies not
to achieve domination, but to achieve cooperative enlight
enment. Our greatest test has been aboard the space stations
Alpha and Mir where we learned that humans cannot work
in space with the same uncompromising diplomacy with
which we work on Earth. Space must be different.
Glenn’s second odyssey serves a dual purpose for NASA
and the future of the space program. First, it makes us accept
the fact that there will soon be a day when space travel will
not be as technically restricted. You will simply be able to
buy a ticket and fly. Second, it prepares us for NASA’s great
est frontier challenge ever- the manned mission to mars.
But in addition to giving us a glimpse into the future, this
trip allows us to look into the past. Thus, in a roundabout
Gioi 'em ni Salimena/Emerald
way, we can experience the world in a way that our parents
experienced it.
It is often asked of their generation, “Where were you
when Neil Armstrong walked on the moon?" Most respond
that they were somewhere watching TV, listening to the
scripted dialogue: “One small step for man, one giant leap
■ for mankind”
It was a shared mo
ment of great magnitude.
It’s impossible for me to imag
me uie mumem. it was one oi me great
est turning points in modem history. But for a
split-second on Thursday, as the Space Shuttle Dis
covery lifted off to embark on its historic journey, I felt con
nected to that day when Americans and the world watched
in awe as the frontier of the universe unfolded before them.
James Scripps is a student abilities reporter for the Emerald. His
views do not necessarily represent those of the newspaper.
Letters to the Editor
Rioters in the wrong
Thank you for speaking for the majority.
I agree with your riot editorial (ODE 10/29)
and I am glad to know that the student pa
per, the voice of the students of the Univer
sity, is focusing on the real issues and does
not look for scapegoats, be they the police or
the media. Alcohol and a bunch of trouble
seeking, police bashing idiots do not mix.
And they are even proud of what they did!
I love the University, and 1 am proud of
being here. I am definitely not going to let
some drunken minority spoil this for me. If
[the rioters] want to rip down signs and de
stroy lamps, why don’t they do it in their
own houses?
Matthias Kubr
Environmental Studies
Riots are like a pimple
This letter is in response to the editorial
published on the web version of the ODE for
11/2/98. Although I am only able to visit the
University of Oregon via the web from Min
neapolis, I appreciate knowing that the uni
versity that 1 graduated from is alive and well.
While my time at the University was almost
ten years ago, I still feel a connection to this
great institution and the city of Eugene.
In what may be a first for me, I am in com
plete agreement with the thoughts and opin
ions expressed by the editors: specifically
regarding the Halloween riots. I refuse to be
lieve that a small number of miscreants
should be able to infect the University with
such self-centered nonsense as that which
was quoted in the paper. These retarded he
donists should be recognized for who they
are: immature individuals who wish to have
no consequences for their actions. These
people have no respect for themselves nor
for others. If, as Mr. Blume points out “it’s a
U of O tradition,” then when did breaking
the law become part of the UO tradition?
When did disrespect for police and our
neighbors become part of our common her
itage? I dare say it never has been and hope
fully it never will.
Maybe we should feel sorry for these mis
guided individuals. Maybe we should recog
nize that they have a God-given “right” to
party and destroy other peoples’ property.
Maybe we should be tolerant of their unique
“party” lifestyle. Or maybe we should call it
as we see it and condemn immature behav
ior by a bunch of spoiled brats. The situation
is like a pimple on the University's collective
backside that simply needs to be squeezed.
Joe Seidel
University Graduate
Police should share blame
My name is Matthew Rutman, I am a ju
nior at the University of Oregon and a mem
ber of the Student Cooperative Association.
On Halloween night I had the extreme mis
fortune of being present while the Eugene
Police Department “took action” outside of
the Campbell Club, which was having a
non-keg party with internal security.
I watched the police drive down Alder
Street in SWAT vans, paddy wagons and pa
trol cars. I watched them gather their forces
across the streets under a swathe of bright
lights at the tennis courts. I watched them
chase people down like cattle at slaughter
time-tackling and arresting several in our al
ley.
Never did I see the police behave in a
proactive way. Never did I see them trying
to diffuse the situation by using their PA sys
tems or attempting to talk to the people.
They waited and watched the crowds grow.
Meanwhile the crowds were watching the
police, getting angry and frustrated, That’s
when they [tire crowd] started acting aggres
sive and pulling out a few signs. In my opinion
a lot of the violent acts were in response to the
presence and manner of the police at the scene.
How can we respect police when our ex
periences with them time after time have
been negative. We have seen them spray our
friends with pepper spray, tear gas groups
of people gathering on the streets and harass
people at parties. We haven’t seen them in
a proactive way that inspires respect. We
haven’t seen them bust the methampheta
mine dealers that haunt our streets. We’ve
only seen them write up minor in posses
sion tickets and shoot tear gas canisters at
us. Priorities need to be set for our police de
partment. Since they can’t seem too that on
their own. I think it’s time for a citizen re
view board to help them do it.
Matthew Rutman
_ University Junior
CORRECTION
In the caption accompanying the story “Po
lice confront riot problem”(ODE, Nov. 2), the
man in the picture should have been identified
as Rick Dancer, a KEZI-TV reporter, recording
police footage of Saturday’s riot.
The Emerald regrets the error.