Oregon Daily Emerald
Wednesday, January 19, 2005
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■ In my opinion
Not in our house
Fool me once, shame on you.
Shame on the American people for
letting a culture of torture become
quick-fixed with a few mock trials.
Despite the fact that the current
regime has undermined the war on
terror by reminding the anti-American
world just how hypocritical we are,
the voters seemed unwilling to oust
President Bush, even when taking
into consideration the horrors of Abu
Ghraib. At the very least, the presi
dent could offer himself some denia
bility by outsourcing the torture as
well as the tech jobs — but what do
you expect from a government that
can’t even figure out how to bribe
somebody properly?
Fool me twice...
What did you think would happen
in a closed camp of prisoners who
are unable to see the light of day,
much less a lawyer? The fact that Mr.
Rumsfeld was keeping such respected
organizations as the Red Cross away
from our detainees might have been
a clue that something was wrong —
there is a reason that due process is
so heavily enthroned in the constitu
tion: The government was considered
untrustworthy.
The outrages at Guantanamo Bay
have gone horribly underreported in
the media. The New York Times tells
horror stories gleaned from anony
mous interviews of the overseers of a
dark process of systemic humiliation,
where one in six prisoners faced ille
gal treatment. The only dishonor here
is to America, where the shores that
are supposed to be sweeping bastions
of liberty have become nesting places
for the apathetic shells of men and
women who don’t seem to give a
damn about enemas forcibly admin
istered, Meow Mix commercials
played at maximum volume and peo
ple under the aegis of a government
lolling pitifully about in its own feces.
Apparently, all those wonderful
values preached from every single
politician’s pulpit can be swept under
a throw rug. The U.S. signed a
JENNIFER MCBRIDE
QUASHING DISSENT
declaration of human rights admitting
that some civil liberties have no bor
ders and that basic humanity cannot
be taken away with a label of “enemy
combatant.” Most of our treaties, our
world obligations, might as well
include the words: “as if. ”
It is time to face up to a couple of
myths: One, that the American people
are the most generous in the world.
We may talk big, but our pitifully
small foreign aid budget may not
swell much despite tsunamis. The
U.S. pledged $1.1 billion to the city of
Bam, Iran, rocked by earthquakes in
2003, but, according to the Econo
mist, only $16.7 million ever man
aged to make its way to the humani
tarian coffers because tax cuts are
apparently more important than hu
man lives, as long as those lives are
far enough away that the media forget
them after the cameras are gone.
Another myth is the idea that our
military can do no wrong. How can
you trust an organization to police it
self when torture occurs not once, but
twice, months apart in two different
places? National security is the first
priority of any government, but if
there is so little to be gained, why are
we embarrassing ourselves, generat
ing more guerilla fighters and destroy
ing our ability to negotiate with
the world if those actions can’t even
guarantee us a little safety?
I’d bet money that more Ameri
cans can name the football teams in
the playoffs than can discuss the de
tails of any of those resoundingly im
portant issues, which is perhaps why
the Republicans in Congress are
happily licking President Bush’s
cowboy-booted feet. Their cowardice
sickens me and makes me ashamed I
ever considered myself a conserva
tive. Where is the backbone of the
Grand Old Party? Where is the back
bone of the people who voted for
them? Can’t anyone outside of news
paper editorial pages at least pretend
to care about the qualifications of a
man who called the Geneva Conven
tions “quaint” and “obsolete?”
The Bush Administration’s protec
tion of rights has been less than rab
id, and Congress has still failed to es
tablish an independent watchdog
group that can monitor the govern
ment properly. President Bush has
graciously gummed the wheels by
setting up his own committee, but
somehow their autonomy strikes me
as less than complete — it might
have something to do with the fact
that the oversight board has no pow
er of subpoena. Federal judges ap
pointed one after another tear up our
civil rights like predators, and the ad
ministration is trying to anoint W.
David Hager, a doctor who refuses to
prescribe birth control prescriptions
to unmarried women, as head of the
FDA’s Reproductive Health Drugs Ad
visory Committee. These actions are
pretty much uncontested in favor of
tongue-biting party loyalty. Courage
in the Senate is apparently a dish
served ... well, never.
If Congress continues this phenom
enally appalling trend of rights-shred
ding that makes the Supreme Court
look like a bunch of hippies, we in
flammatory columnists may all be
facing manacles by 2008. Freedom of
speech and religion are already on the
chopping block.
One thing is certain: I’d prefer Miss
Beazley, President Bush’s newest
Scottish terrier, to be attorney general
over Mr. Gonzales. If the American
people knew a thing or two about
pride, they’d be willing to scream
with one voice: “not in our house.”
jennifermcbride@ dailyemerald. com
INBOX
LTD charges higher prices
for lower quality service
I am addressing the fact that for the
last two years the LTD bus service has
increased our prices and decreased
our bus service. In other words we are
paying more and getting less. And
now they want to cut the drivers’ pay
and benefits—to what end? I thought
LTD was the community’s transit
service provider, but it seems more
like LTD is in the business of creating
grandiose public works projects in
stead of serving their customers
wants, which is decent bus service
like we used to get.
The following is taken from a poster
displayed prominently all around LL.
Bean in Freeport, Maine and also is dis
played where I work. I think that Mr.
Hamm and other board members need
to be reminded just why they are there
and why LTD exists:
What is a customer? A customer is
the most important person ever in this
office ... in person or by mail. A
r
customer is not dependent on us ...
we are dependent on him. A cus
tomer is not an interruption of our
work... he is the purpose of it. We are
not doing him a favor by serving him
... he is doing us a favor by giving us
the opportunity to do so.
Judy Young
Eugene
LTD drivers only want
what magagement owes
If I were to ask, “Would you like
your employer to pay for all your ben
efits?” I doubt the response would be,
“No, I love having wages deducted
from my check.” People have been
led to believe that they are not wor
thy, that they are undeserving of the
employers paying for their benefits. It
saddens me people feel this way.
The goal of the LTD labor strike is
not just about us; we're fighting for
the good of the American labor force.
Our direction takes us toward no em
ployee contributions being the norm.
Can you imagine a place where every
one makes a living wage? Americans
are going in the wrong direction. Just
because everybody is doing it does
not make it right.
I would like to be clear about what
we are asking for: no more money, no
more benefits, nor anything else. All
we want is to extend our current con
tract. We are being asked to take cuts.
If a strike occurs, the people hurt
will be the customers, the same cus
tomers hurt by fare increases and
service cuts. It’s not just about health
benefits, it’s about bad management
choices. It is our goal to make things
better for everyone. I would love to
have six minutes in between runs to
really listen to customers and literally
walk them to their next bus making
sure they got where they were going.
Those days are gone, as are most as
pects of customer service thanks to
something they call efficiency.
Rebecca Emerson
LTD Bus Driver
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■ Editorial
LTD drivers
might strike;
Torturer gets
ten years
LTD leadership has one last
chance to prevent strike
The Emerald fully supports Lane TYansit
District drivers, and other union members, in
their struggle with LTD leadership.
Today the two sides will sit down for one
more try at mediation. The main issue in the
dispute involves health care coverage: Union
employees want to keep the benefits that they
currently enjoy, while LTD insists it cannot af
ford to do so.
We hope that an understanding will be
reached so that a strike can be avoided. But
if LTD refuses to meet the union’s demands,
the Emerald fully supports a strike, even
though the impact would be very costly
to University students and the Eugene
community as a whole.
According to an Emerald report (ODE: “Eu
geneans back LTD drivers at demonstration,”
Jan. 14), LTD gets over a half-million dollars
in student fees to provide students with free,
unlimited rides. Nearly 3,000 University stu
dents and employees use the bus to get to and
from campus. Lane Community College stu
dents would be also be severely impacted if a
strike occurs.
We hope the LTD will refund student fees
if bus service is shut down. We hope that
University students will attempt to carpool
to school. And we hope that the community
will not blame the union for the added frustra
tion. We must stand in solidarity with the
drivers as they fight for the rights that
all workers deserve: a family wage, health
benefits and respect.
Let the punishment fit the crime;
justice must prevail in abuse cases
Charles Graner received a sentence of
10 years for his role in the abuse at Abu
Ghraib. Many Iraqis are disappointed at the
sentence, some saying that he should serve his
sentence at Abu Ghraib enduring the torture
he inflicted on the prisoners under his care.
Others have argued that he was simply doing
what he was told, and should not be culpable
for following orders.
The sentence was an appropriate beginning.
Graner deserved a decade for his immoral ac
tions. He is a remorseless, sick man incapable
of shame. After his sentence, Graner actually
said, “I did not enjoy it. ” Right. That is why he
was posing and smiling in those photos be
hind a mountain of naked prisoners. I’m sure
it was pure hell for him.
Justice will not be served, however, if
the prosecutions end here. Graner was not
acting alone. He was a morally-challenged
proxy for an evil scheme developed and
condoned by his superiors. Those up the
ladder must also be made to pay for their ac
tions if this ruling is going to convince
the Iraqi people and the world that we are seri
ous about spreading the idea of liberty and
justice for all.
EDITORIAL BOARD
Jennifer Sudick
Editor in Chief
David Jagemauth
Editorial Editor
Steven R. Neuman
Managing Editor
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Copy Chief
Adrienne Nelson
Online Editor