Film documents 1970s-era group of extremists
The Weathermen, a group
of extreme leftists, are the
subject of a documentary
showing at the Bijou
By Ryan Nyburg
Senior Pulse Reporter
Political views seem to work circu
larly, and it is amazing how frequent
ly the ex
-- tremes of
MOVIE wms,^
REVIEW 'ook like
- each other.
This might
explain why the Weathermen, who
are the subject of the new documen
tary "The Weather Underground," of
ten remind me of fascists.
It's not a pleasant comparison, but
the viewpoints of the extreme left and
the extreme right are often difficult to
tell apart, and the Weathermen were
about as extreme left as it gets. Coming
out of the student protest groups of the
1960s, the group was responsible for a
number of bombings across America
throughout the 1970s in protest of just
about everything worth protesting dur
ing that politically charged time period.
While the group took precautions to en
sure no innocent lives were risked, the
idea that society can be molded to a par
ticular viewpoint through the violent ac
tions of a militant group is not far off
from brown suits and red arm bands.
With this in mind it is refreshing to see
that the documentary doesn't hold the
members of the group up as heroes or
martyrs. But the filmmakers' evenhand
edness with tire subject is rather exasper
ating, and it seems that in the attempt to
remain unbiased they have created a
film with no point of view whatsoever.
Composed of interviews with former
group members and others involved in
the politics of the era — along with liber
al amounts of stock footage — the docu
mentary attempts to get a handle on the
Weathermen's effectiveness while plac
ing it in context with the then-turbulent
society. 1 low successful the documentar
ians were is a matter of debate.
During the film, it often occurred
to me that some of the political
movements the group was involved
with would have made more inter
esting subjects for a documentary. 1
would rather have seen something
on the prisoners' rights movement in
the early 1970s, or a better yet, a full
documentary on the more com
pelling and effective Black Panther
Party Yet the film merely skims over
these groups, provoking some inter
est before quickly moving on. It
sometimes feels like the filmmakers
knew their subject wasn't all that
compelling and tried to supplement
it with more interesting material.
It is odd being able to call a group
that successfully bombed the U S.
Capitol and broke Timothy Leary out
of prison "uninteresting." But that is
what the group is. On the whole,
they were no more effective than the
wide range of forgotten organiza
tions that formed around that time;
the only difference was their high
profile. The film's sole purpose then
seems to be the presentation of a
case study: how a radical organiza
tion like this can form, function and
then fall apart.
So the film does have some value,
but the simple fact is, the Weathermen
do not make for the best viewing. Even
the interviews hold little of interest as
so few of the former members have
any discernible personality. One of the
few in the group who does make a
compelling figure is former member
Brian Flanagan. He actually seems to
regret his involvement with the group,
and then made an interesting compar
ison between the bombings he and the
Weathermen were involved in and the
terrorist actions of Sept. 11.
It is true that the Weathermen were
working for a good cause, and that the
system they were fighting was corrupt.
But their tactics were so misguided
that it is difficult to elicit any sympa
thy for them or their causes. Bombing
for peace doesn't work, no matter
who is setting off the bombs.
"The Weather Underground" will
open tomorrow at the Bijou Art Cin
emas at 492 E. 13th Avenue.
Contact the senior pulse reporter
at ryannyburg@dailyemerald.com.
Student groups go trick-or-treating to benefit food bank
Alpha Phi Umega and
OSPIRG will aid a local
food bank by taking to the
streets to gather donations
By Lisa Catto
Freelance Reporter
Many University students feel too
old to dress up and go trick-or-treat
ing on Halloween, and some just
don t have a good reason to go.
But this year, two student groups
are giving all students the chance to
dress up for Halloween and help the
community.
Tonight Alpha Phi Omega, a cam
pus-based service organization, and
OSP1RG will be collecting canned food,
which will be donated to FOOD For
Lane County, the second largest food
bank in Oregon. The groups will be
knocking on doors in neighborhoods
surrounding the campus.
Alpha Phi Omega is meeting at 6
p.m. in the visitor's parking lot at the
comer of East 13th Avenue and Agate
Street while the Oregon Student Pub
lic Interest Research Group will meet at
5:30 p.m. by their office on the EMU's
ground floor.
Alpha Phi Omega Media Relations
Chairman Cory Portnuff said the two
organizations are not working as a
team, but they have split up the neigh
borhoods they are going to cover to
reach as many people as possible.
Portnuff said his group has done this
project for the last three years.
"In the past we have had up to 40
volunteers and collected up to 800
pounds," he said. "This year we are aim
ing for more."
Portnuff said this project is good for
students to give back to the community
that supports them.
Marie Tallant, the coordinator for
OSPIRG's Hunger and Homeless cam
paign, said the first stage of its cam
paign, which includes the Halloween
project, is meant to create awareness
about hunger and homelessness.
"This program is a fun way to help
people and get involved in hunger is
sues, "Tallant said.
OSPIRG is trying to get its name out
in the neighborhoods, Tallant said.
Turn to HALLOWEEN, page 8A
r
^poppiV
_/tna4oli&.
"The Land East"
Traditional
Greek & Indian Food
Lunch
Monday through Saturday
Dinner
7 Nights a Week
992 Willamette
Eugene, Or 97401
343-9661
Second Season Presents
Tickets:
UO Ticket Office
EMU: 346-4363
UT Box Office
Evenings of Performances
Paula Vogel
Oct. 29, 30, 31,
NOV. 1,6, 7 & 8-8 PM
Arena Theatre
No Late Seating
The Dead Sea Scrolls
the Word of God in Ancient
Judaism and Christianity
3:00-4:30 p.m., Friday, October 31,2003
110 Knight Law Center
lecture: How the Bible Became a Book
William Schniedewind, UCLA
discussion: How the Dead Sea Scrolls affect our
understanding of the nature and use of Scripture in
ancient Judaism and Christianity
Martin Abegg and Peter Flint, Trinity Western University, Rob Kugler, Lewis
and Clark College, and Steve Delamarter, George Fox University
Daniel Falk, University of Oregon, moderator
Reception and book sale follow
How the
BIBLE
Became a
ROOK
■
and
An equal-opportunity, affirmative-action institution committed to cultural
diversity and compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act
Call (541) 346-4971 or e-mail dfalk@oregon uoregon.edu for information.
UNIVERSITY OF OREGON
Oregon Daily Emerald
PO Box 3159, Eugene OR 97403
The Oregon Daily Emerald is pub
lished daily Monday through Friday
during the school year by the Oregon
Daily Emerald Publishing Co. Inc., at
the University of Oregon, Eugene,
Oregon.The Emerald operates inde
pendently of the University with of
fices in Suite 300 of the Erb Memorial
Union. The Emerald is private prop
erty. The unlawful removal or use of
papers is prosecutable by law.
NEWSROOM — (541)346-5511
Editor in chief: Brad Schmidt
Managing editor: Jan Tobias Montry
Freelance editor: Aimee Rudin
News editors: Jennifer Marie Bear, Ayisha Yahya Senior news re
porters: A. Sho Ikeda, Ali Shaughnessy News reporters: Caron
Alarab, Chelsea Duncan, Jared Paben, Chuck Slothower
Pulse editor Aaron Shakra Senior Pulse reporter: Ryan Nyburg
Pulse reporter: Natasha Chilingerian Pulse columnists: Helen
Schumacher, Carl Sundberg
Sports editor: Hank Hager Senior sports reporter: Mindi Rice
Sports reporters: Jon Roetman, Jesse Thomas
Editorial editor: Travis Willse Columnists: Joseph Bechard, Jes
sica Cole-Hodgkinson, Peter Hockaday, David Jagernauth
Illustrators: Steve Baggs, Eric Layton
Design editor: Adelle Lennox Senior designer: Sean Hanson
Designers: Kimberly Premore, Kari Pinkerton
Photo editor: Adam Amato Senior photographer: Danielle Hick
ey Photographer: Lauren Wimer Part-time photographers: Tim
Bobosky, Mark McCambridge
Copy chiefs: Kim Chapman, Jennifer Sudick Copy editors: Gabri
elie Barber, Rebekah Hearn, Ben Pepper, Brandi Smith, MacKen
sey Thompson
Online editor: Erik Bishoff Webmaster: Eric Layton
BUSINESS — 346-5512 General manager: Judy Riedl
Business manager: Kathy Carbone Receptionist: Sarah Go
racke Distribution: Mike Chen, John Lrng, Matt O’Brien,
Michael Sarnoff-Wood, Ben Swagerty
ADVERTISING — DISPLAY 346-3712 CLASSIFIED 346-4343
Director: Melissa Gust Sales manager: Michelle Chan
Special publications and classified manager: Hilary Mosher
Sales representatives: Tim Bott, Army Feth, Patrick Gilligan, Megan
Hamlin, Kim Humphries, Alex Hurliman, Tyler Mack, Shannon Rogers,
Dan Sawaya, Katherine Vague Assistants: Liz Carson, Katy Cooney,
Sabrina Gowette, Thomas Redditt, Keri Spangler, Kate Workman
PRODUCTION — 346-4381 Manager: Michele Ross
Production coordinator: Tara Sloan Designers: Jen Cramlett,
Kristen Dicharry, Matt Graft, Andy Holland, Marissa Jones, Jonah
Schrogin