2
WEdNEsdAy, OcîobER 27, 1999
Opinion
TR e CI ac I camas P rìnt
BY CHRIS LUNO5REM--------------
May we please
speak now officer?
n Friday the 15th of Octo
do that on a daily basis. Even reckless
ber around 4:45 p.m. I
drivers are not beaten, and most are
was switching buses at not even ticketed or arrested. There
5th and Main. As I turned the are
cor
accidents
that cause bodily dam
ner and began to walk west, I heard age or even death when hundreds of
what sounded like a fleet of emer
people gather in an area, but of course,
gency vehicles headed my way. Six this could happen at any gathering. If
Portland or Multnomah police the issue under protest is of a sensi
cruisers turned the comer onto 5th tive nature there may be fighting, but
Street at a reckless speed, acceler
should people be subjected to
ated for one block then came to an
harrassment, police violence or arrest
abrupt stop a short distance from
for something that may happen, no
where I was standing.
matter how probable? So whyare pro
My first reaction was to look be testors around the world subjected to
hind me for an escape route from
such extreme forms of prejudice and
whatever catastrophic event had ne violence?
cessitated six police cars. When I
Consider the protest at
turned back toward the scene, I was Tienanmen Square. What terrible
surprised to see a crowd of people, weapon of destruction could the
who were in close proximity to the peasantry of China wield? What
now-stopped police cars, were not horrors were anticipated and pre
moving away from the scene and vented with the use of violence and
some were moving closer.
incarceration? What evil could come
The bus I was transferring to from a nonviolent public display that
would stop on the same corner could cause a man to obey an order
where the crowd was gathering, I to take up arms against his fellow
had faith that if there were a danger countryman? The answer to all of
ous situation, people would have these questions is: the dissemina
been told to disperse, so I walked tion of ideas.
into the crowd. When I arrived at
Ideas, knowledge, and education
the comer, the crowd had become are, as every ruling class knows, the
more dense, and I realized I was most effective defensive and offensive
crossing through a procession of weapon known to mankind. In the
about 30 to 50 people. Some were ante-bellum south the crime of teach
carrying signs and almost all of them
ing aslave how to read carried aheavy
were chanting.
penalty. McCarthyism was effective
I successfully pushed my way
in preventing ideas such as the forma
through the crowd, accidentally tion of unions, and open discussion
stepping on some feet, and crossed of social programs. Today, instead of
the street. I realized I was not going crying dcommunisto, we silence one
to miss my bus, which was the fore
another with the threat ofbeing labeled
most thought on my mind, so I fo politically incorrect.
cused my attention on the scene
Mumia Abu-Jamal is not a foreign
behind me. A procession of people political prisoner, he is a prisoner in die
were protesting the incarceration of United States. Jamal isacriticofpolice
Mumia Abu-Jamal.
violence against the colored popula
I was not familiar with the name. I tion of Philadelphia. In 1982, he was
thought it was probably a political pris
accused of shooting a police officer
oner from another country. By this and found guilty under questionable
time the police had left their vehicles circumstances. He is facing the death
and were outfitting themselves with penalty and will be put to death on
riot gear. I now felt like I was in another December 2nd if his message is si
country. The scene that was unfold
lenced.
ing in the middle of a crowded Port
Given these facts, it is ironic if not
land rush hour did not look any differ
suspicious that the police of our ra
ent than some of the many scenes we cially segregated city have vigor
are shown bymedia coverage ofplaces ously attempted to silence the stu
like Indonesia, Somalia or China.
dents of PSU, during their peaceful
I am amazed whenever I see foot
protest of Mumia's treatment, with
age of armed police beating and the threat of violence and arrest.
harrassing unarmed people. I won
Who sent them there? Was the bra
der, who sent them there? What zen show of aggression necessary?
threat could a group of unarmed pro Was it responsible? Would the po
testors pose to armed and trained
lice have acted as aggressive, or re
police? Ifthere is athreat, why insti
sponded at all, if it were 20 to 50 stu
gate a violent reaction by blocking dents dressed in soccer or football
the road or arresting protesters for uniforms and cheerleading outfits?
peacefully opposing oppressive
How far does our freedom of
forms of government policy? Of speech extend itself? Does it over
course the answers to these ques
ride bureaucratic regulation? Will it
tions are many, but at the same time
survive domination by the current
only one.Those men are there with
money-driven corporate media. Is it
batons and guns because they be
a great stretch of the imagination to
lieve they have been sent to protect consider that we, as Americans, may
the current form of government.
not be any more free of thought,
Good or bad, right or wrong, those
speech, or action than citizens of a
men are there because they were less democratic nation of whom we
ordered to be there. So what threat have been inclined to feel superior?.
to the government could come from
If you care to know more about
a hundred or even a thousand un
Mumia, call the Free Mumia Coali
armed civilians gathering peacefully tion at PSU 287-4217.
for a noble cause?
They may block traffic but people
Glenn McCarthy, student
O
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Do deer disregard
danger diamonds?
know you all have seen some my belongings, when out of no
where I hit this animal. I hit the
thing in your life that you ques
tion the purpose of. I have deer with the left side of my car,
then swerved
found the yellow diamond caution
and
went
; down the steep
shoulder off
the road. In a
state of shock
and concern
for this animal,
StaffWriter Ijumpedoutof
my
car.
I
climbed up the slope and saw the
signs with the deer on them to serve
absolutely no purpose to drivers.
deer was gone. Then of course I
Are there actually boundaries
looked around, and there was no
where the deer are supposed to live warning diamond. How was I to
and cross the road? Are all these know I should proceed with cau
deer that are running out into the tion?
middle of the road, where there is
Should l as a driver, always drive
no warning diamond, just disobey
as if there could be deer on the
ing the person who set up these road? If that is the case then I don’t
boundaries? I would love to talk think that we should waste the
to the person who informs the deer money of the taxpayers in order to
they are not to cross the road un
post these signs. I see these signs
less there is proper warning given
as flashy, yellow diamond-shaped
to drivers, because this highway
distractions that give a driver a false
man is failing at his job. The dear feeling of safety if there is not a
deer are totally disregarding the sign present.
signs and the instruction of the
I wonder how many accidents
Highway Department.
actually occur where a warning dia
When I was moving to Oregon mond is present? The sign failed
City from Redmond, OR, I encoun
me [by omission!]
tered one of these delinquent deer
Is it the delinquent deer that is
that didn’t obey the warning dia
at fault or the people who give us
mond boundaries. I was driving drivers a false impression of the
along with my car packed full of warning diamond boundaries?
J
A freshman’s
look on life!
CORRECTION
In our last issue, Mrcella Red Thunder's name was mispelled in a photo
caption that accompanied the story, "AC Delco plugs into Clackamas
Auto Department."
i feppv IMIowefm! j
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