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Friday, April 26,2002
Editor in Chief:
Jessica Blanchard
Managing Editor:
Jeremy Lang
Editorial Editor:
Julie Lauderbaugh
Assistant Editorial Editor:
Jacquelyn Lewis
Yesteryear’s Editorial
Raw log
export ban
to benefit
Oregon
While Tuesday’s Senate approval of a
federal log export ban is only the be
ginning, it is the first piece of good
news in the timber crisis for a long time.
The Senate overwhelmingly passed Oregon
Republican Sen. Bob Packwood’s amendment
to a Department of the Interior bill that would
allow Oregon and her fellow West Coast states
to ban most log exports off of state lands.
Two weeks ago, Oregon Rep. Pete DeFazio
called for a total ban of raw log exports. The
Senate bill doesn’t go quite that far. After all,
owners of private timber
acreage can do whatever
they want with their logs —
including selling them
overseas for an enormous
profit.
A complete ban will only
occur in stages. Consider
the Senate ban step one.
One of the major provisions
of the bill prohibits a common
practice known as “substitution.” It’s the timber
equivalent of a three-card monte game. Here’s how
the scam works: Private timber companies, with
their own log supply, bid in federal timber sales.
They send the federal logs to the local mills, while
exporting their timber overseas—usually to Japan.
This and other variations sap log supplies, forcing
mill closures and unemployment.
A raw log export ban, modeled after DeFazio’s
proposal, is the only way timber countries are
going to be able to stay in business. Most have
realized this and come out in support of Pack
wood’s plan. Some Washington legislators are
squabbling about some of the bill’s provisions,
but the state neither carries the power nor the
seats to sway many lawmakers.
It’s foolish for any timber industry official to op
pose a log export ban. Granted, the proceeds from
such export sales are enormous and must seem at
tractive to companies in dire financial straits. But
the practice is completely deceptive. Umber offi
cials are toying with their companies’ future
health in exchange for short-term economic profit.
It’s an old stoiy, but with a possibly different
| ending. There is no reserve of old growth timber
i to fall back on anymore. With the spotted owl-old
; growth ban likely to go into effect, timber compa
nies will lose a huge amount of board feet. With
out a log export ban, they’ll lose even more.
The battle over the bill isn’t over. It still has to
weather a bicameral conference committee, where
the Washington delegation is expected to lodge
their complaints against the “substitution” codicil.
Hopefully, the other legislators won’t listen to them.
University
of Oregon
125th
ANNIVERSARY
Originally
published on
April 26,1990
This editorial was taken from the April 26,1990, edition
of the Oregon Daily Emerald.
Letters to the Editor and
Guest Commentaries Policy
Letters to the editor and guest commentaries are
encouraged. Letters are limited to 250 words and guest
commentaries to 550 words. Please include contact
information. The Emerald reserves the rightto edit
for space, grammar and stylo.
CORRECTION
The Pulse calendar {ODE, April 25) should have listed the
University student ticket price for the April 28 jCubanismo!
concert as $18,50,
The Emerald regrets the error.
"1
Peter Utsey Emerald
Letters to the editor
Racial slurs, in any case,
should not be tolerated
Defend racial slurs on behalf of the
First Amendment. Use racial slurs for ed
ucational purposes. Make no mistake
about it. Racial slurs, as discussed in the
Emerald, have nothing to do with the
First Amendment or education (“Absur
dity about the ‘n’ word,” ODE, Aprli 16).
The use of racial slurs is instead about the
return of Jim Crow.
Jim Crow was the racist ideology that
shaped the United States between the
late 1800s and mid-1960s. The academ
ic orthodoxy and its products have nar
rowly portrayed Crowism as unfair
laws and legal segregation. However,
Jim Crow was about more than laws and
segregation.
Jim Crow focused on the degradation
of racial minorities through racial epi
thets. Many religious leaders condemned
racial minorities through racial epithets.
Educators used racial slurs to teach socie
ty about white supremacy. All of these in
justices and more were committed under
the guises of the First Amendment and
education.
Some scholars argue that Jim Crow is
alive and well. He just knows how to
hide, how to lie. The First Amendment
and education combined with racial epi
thets are examples of Crow’s lies and ex
istence. Do not sanction the use of racial
slurs. Jim Crow terrorism must not be al
lowed to resurface.
Javier Ayala
Eugene
U0 can be proud
of team mascot efforts
Thank you for the article about the
University of Oregon’s law students’ res
olution against scheduling games and
events with universities using American
Indian images or names as team mascots
(“Students petition against mascots,”
ODE, April 16).
The resolution is an excellent state
ment that institutionalized racism, in
cluding the reduction of a race to the po
sition of a mascot, is illegal and the Uni
versity recognizes its obligation not to
support institutionalized racism.
Institutionalized discrimination and
stereotyping is not tolerated toward
any other minority race. No other mi
nority race is abused as mascots or to
kens of luck.
“Indian” mascots teach students, fac
ulty, staff and people in ’the community
how to stereotype a group of people on
the basis of race, religion, ancestry and
cultural ethnicity. These stereotypes are
promoted as they are carried into other
schools during sports competitions.
The resolution being brought for
ward by University law students and
sponsored by the Sports and Entertain
ment Law Forum is an excellent recog
nition of the last point. Stereotyping
harms everyone.
Along with other societal abuses, “In
dian” mascots, names and logos mar
ginalize American Indian children and
adults. “Indian” mascots and logos turn
native people into artifacts, making
them of value only as people who no
longer exist.
Stereotypes limit the ability of non-na
tives to interact fully with native people
as fellow human beings. Stereotypes cre
ate friction and hard feelings between
people and can often lead to what
amounts to displays of bigotry and
racism.
The University is to be commend
ed for its socially-conscious students
and faculty.
Alice Huffman
B. Randall Huffman
Covington, Ky.
Representing
institutional intolerance?
John Kostick’s letter conveyed his
opinion that when he must come into
contact with the queer community’s
events, “I just ignore and bite my lip at
most of the things that I may find offen
sive and all that crap that I consider inap
propriate behavior” (Life should not be a
drag,” ODE, April 23). Some of this
“crap” is a drag show put on a few nights
ago, which, to Kostick, was “crap being
thrown” at him from “every direction
and the funds being wasted on it.”
I wouldn’t take as much offense to this
if it was from just another straight male,
insecure in his own sexuality and the
University’s diversity. But this isn’t just
another closed-minded individual who
would rather the world conform to his
“nuclear family” ideals where Joe mar
ries Betty, they have two wonderful chil
dren and live happily ever after. If Betty
would rather marry Nancy, then mean
Mr. Kostick will step in as an EMU ad
ministrator and let them know that they
are being “offensive.”
Is it appropriate for Kostick to verbal
ize his intolerance for the LBGT commu
nity in our school paper and represent
not just himself, but because he is the
“EMU accountant/payroll administra
tor,” the accounting department as
well? Is this the type of administration
we want controlling our accounts? Mr.
Kostick, if you want to live in your little
homophobic box, go for it, but check
your bigotry at the door before you han
dle my money.
Andrew Whitmarsh
senior
English
The typical ‘Negro’
male student
“I am not too fond of the typical Negro
male student who drops his food all over
the counter and leaves his area very
messy.” Sound offensive? You bet! You
would probably never find the above stat
ed quote in the Emerald. But, you can
find it in our Emerald verbatim (“Rub-a
dub-grub,” April 22), except change “Ne
gro” to “Caucasian” — this is racism and
ought not be printed. Enough with the
double-standard already!
Donald E. Burton
Eugene