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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 19, 2001)
Monday Editor in chief: Jack Clifford Managing Editor: Jessica Blanchard Newsroom: (541) 346-5511 Room 300, Erb Memorial Union P.O. box 3159, Eugene, OR 97403 E-mail: ode@oregon.uoregon.edu EDITORIAL EDITOR: MICHAEL J. KLECKNER opededitor@journalist.com One Civil War the Beavers deserved to win So Oregon State University won the Bend branch cam pus. Don’t get upset; it’s probably for the best. The Emerald editorial board has n’t written to date about the Civil War battle for Bend, not because we forgot it was happening but be cause it doesn’t seem to affect stu dents here very much. Yes, it was important to the University admin istration, and it was a long-term ef fort to increase the value and pres tige of the University. But it wasn’t an issue that made us squirm. As it turns out, those in the com munity who invested in the Uni versity’s winning the Bend deal will probably be happy we re mained silent. Yes, we love our university and want it to win, win, win in everything it does. But we believe OSU had a better proposal. Recently, the arguments over which university should expand to Bend have sounded like a culture war. Indeed, parts of the editorial board’s discussion had cultural overtones. Phrases such as “new economy,” “changing culture” and “elitist” were thrown around the room. There are, then, at least two ways to frame the purpose of bring ing a state university to Bend. First, there’s the notion that Cen tral Oregon’s economy is changing and the citizens need to change with it. To this view, Bend needs a liberal arts infusion to “culturify” the region and to allow Central Oregon a chance to advance in the new economy. More is needed than simply degrees in engineering and computer science. A whole new way of viewing the world needs to be imported to Bend, to accompany the growing population that is al ready changing the cultural make up of the area. Then there’s the other side, which asks why Central Oregon must be forced to think and act like the Willamette Valley. In stead of demanding that every one take undergraduate classes in philosophy and sociology, why not offer the region more of what it wants: skills to compete in the new market and courses that complement the culture Central Oregonians value. In stead of demanding worker re training, teach workers the skills and help them identify the mar kets so they can be competitive. These two views can be divi sive. The editorial board was split, although the majority was in favor of allowing Bend to decide what they needed rather than sending them a “Eugene Lite” to focus on liberal arts. Appar ently the demograph ics of Bend really have been changing in recent years, however, as the community there also has seemed to experience this bat tle. There was no over whelming majority in fa vor of either campus. We can’t know if the State Board of Higher Education felt the culture war, but we can say we agree with its decision, based on both schools’ proposals. To be fair, we’ve only skimmed the full text of the pro posals. We focused on the sum maries, which should give a repre sentative sample of the schools’ attitudes. Ultimately, we believe OSU’s proposal sounded the most cooper ative and focused on the best inter ests of Bend. The first paragraph of OSU’s summary discusses its in tent to work with the community. The third paragraph mentions the 24 public meetings OSU held to Giovanni Salimena Emerald find out what Central Oregon want ed. Much of the entire summary is focused around how OSU will form partnerships and how OSU’s programs will provide success for the community. The proposal even mentions working with the Univer sity of Oregon in the “Partner ships” section, which, after the state board’s decision, OSU said was always part of their plan. Like wealthier cousins often are, perhaps the University was a bit cocky in its approach. The Univer sity’s first paragraphs vaguely men tion collaboration with others in the Bend community, but mostly they focus on explaining again and again just how great the University is. Reading the summary, one gets the feeling that the University is so darn great and has so much money to spend, it would be a shame not to have this greatness go out to Bend and grace everyone with its pres ence. The University goes on to ex plain that Bend needs more liberal arts. There is repeated mention of the money that can be offered. To ward the end of the summary, the University discusses “A Spirit of Cooperation.” In this section, OSU is not mentioned. Later, in the “Success for Central Oregon” sec tion, the University once again highlights the many things that make it great. We love the Ducks, and we hope they can win some more games. We believe in school spirit, and we have an ingrained dislike for OSU, just like we’re supposed to. But OSU’s proposal fits Bend better than ours does. More money isn’t always the answer. Sometimes, cooperation and community go further. We’re glad the state board chose commu nity. This editorial represents the opinion of the Emerald editorial board. Responses can be sent to ode@oregon.uoregon.edu Consider the memories, not the fear m SCRIBBLES ■of P SANITY m jaYna bergerson A friend, a girlfriend and a daughter who is not remem bered for her smile or her dreams so much as for her death: Jill Dieringer died of meningo coccal disease. That is the truth. And this disease is scary. But it is not who Jill was, and it should not be her legacy. I regret that I never knew her. The Emerald’s article about her death was the first I had even heard her name. The picture showed a beautiful young woman excited about the possibilities of life. However, the article revealed a dangerous disease that can kill some one in 48 hours. My mind didn’t focus on the face ' smiling up at me from the page. It was the words that consumed me. Meningo coccal disease? What is it? Is it spread ing? Is there a cure? Questions paraded through my brain. And obviously I was not the only one who felt this over whelming concern. A fellow classmate of mine belongs to the Kappa Delta sorority. Before class, she talked with a few people in the hallway about the disease. Dis tressed, she recalled the reaction she and three Kappa Delta sisters received from fellow students. The four were avoided throughout the class by every one of their class mates. One of her classmates who felt she was endangering everyone ap proached her and demanded to know why she was in class. Then this young woman talked about how the blood bank stipulated that those who had per sonal contact with Dieringer could not give blood. To the uninvolved, these seem like logical precautions. To Dieringer’s friends and to those who knew her, it seems like a slap in the face. A friend dies, and instead of receiving support, they get treated with misplaced fear. They were at risk. Advised to go to University Health Center, they obeyed, all the while wondering if they would be alive the day after tomorrow. At the clinic, they learned that most of the time when people are exposed to meningococcal disease, their immune systems can handle it without difficul ty Occasionally, an “invasive disease” occurs, but it is so rare that less than 1 percent of people who are exposed will develop symptoms. Unfortunately, Dieringer fell into that 1 percent. The sorority sisters received the antibiotics just in case they might be susceptible to the disease, and then they were sent away. No quarantine, no fuss. Fear dissolves when the light is turned on to reveal the truth. The mon ster who sent shivers down your spine as a youth was no more than a stuffed panda bear. Meningococcal disease is no monster. Flip on the light and see that it cannot get you. It is a horrible disease, without a doubt, but it is harmless if you know what it is and how to protect yourself. Dieringer did not deserve to die of meningococcal disease. No one de serves such a fate. But most of all, she doesn’t deserve to be remembered this way. Please remember the truth instead of the fear — a beautiful life instead of death. Jayna Bergerson is a columnist for the Oregon Daily Emerald. Her views do not necessarily represent those of the Emerald. She can be reached at bjay@gladstone.uoregon.edu. Poll results Every week, the Emerald prints the results of our online poll and the poll question for next week. The poll can toe accessed from the main page of our Web site, www.dailyemerald.com. We en courage you to send us feedback about the poll questions and results. Last week’s poll question: What has been the single most satisfying aspect of your educa tion at the University of Oregon? Results: Professors and curriculum — 37 votes, or 19.8 percent Extracurricular activities — 33 votes, or 17.6 percent Earning a degree—21 votes, or 11.2 percent There is no satisfying aspect — 96 votes, or 51.3 percent While none of our polls is scientific, these results are skewed. Roughly 80 votes were cast for the last choice, probably by the same person, within a few hours after the poll was posted. Still, it shows that someone is very frustrated. Take the results as you will. This week’s poll question: What is the most important issue in the ASUO Executive election? The choices: Diversity Campus safety Renters' rights Incidental fee Relations with authorities and decision makers
