6
Editorials
Spouses:
Degree of
The Guilfordian February 25, 1983
by Peter Fraunholtz
Staff Writer
This week the California
Supreme Court will decide
whether or not a degree in
medicine, and ultimately every
professional degree, earned
while married should be con
sidered "joint property" making
the future earnings attributed to
it subject to an even distribution
in the event of divorce. For many
women the question to be
answered is how should the
woman who works to put her hus
band through Med., Law or
M.B.A. school be compensated if
the couple splits.
The California Medical
Association has entered the
arena against the claim due to
"general agreement that Doctors
don't want their degrees to
become a target for a vindictive
wife or a potential future
creditor," according to C.M.A.
Lawyer Fred Hiestand. Missouri
Law Professor Joan Krauskopf
calls the decision "one of the
most important women's issues
in the country," since "it is still
the woman who is putting the hus
band through school." Why
should doctors fear the latent vin
dictiveness of their spouse, and
from what ground stems the im
portance of this issue?
For the majority of people who
enter professional school this is
clearly seen as a means to the
sense of fulfillment they foresee
in a combination of substantial
monetary compensation, the
challenge of a high level of
responsibility and a good degree
of professional success.
This goal, however, takes
several years of schooling to at
tain, due to the slow process of
learning the ropes of the real pro
fessional world and working
one's way up "the company lad
der." For doctors there's the
need to establish a strong prac
tice early, not only for profes
sional reputation but also to begin
paying off the debts incurred by
the high costs of opening a
private practice.
Until recently this scenario has
been widely considered to be the
norm for the young married pro
fessional man. Now, however, as
more and more women are con
sidering a professional career of
their own, the goals of the spouse
behind the professional school
student are putting pressure on
the traditional norm. That in
creasingly greater numbers of
young people are waiting longer
before getting married might be
a reflection of this pressure.
Traditionally the role of the
woman has been to hold down a
job in order to pull the financial
weight and to provide a stable,
supportive element in husband's
campaign to establish himself
professionally. But how long can
a woman put aside the beginning
of her career training for the sake
of her husband's?
Many students today fear not
going on right after college
graduation believing the "life
after school" existence will
distract them forever from world
often find it very difficult to get
the ball rolling again. The pro
blem is complicated even further
by the decision to start a family
before both young adults have
gotten their feet on the ground
professionally.
Simultaneous professional
school study would in most cases
be financially impossible, and
enough time for the relationship
would be hard to find. And the
number of men who would be
willing to work and take on the
supportive role first might be in
creasing but not to significant
levels yet. So the woman seems to
be condemned for the time being
to the professional "backseat,"
perhaps on the road to a vindic
tive attitude but not in a hopeless
situation.
What is needed most byway of
a solution is greater willingness
on the part of the degreed hus
band to focus a little less on the
urgency of his need to rapidly
progress towards his personal
career goals and a little more on
that same need in his wife. He
needs to see the long run benefits
for his relationship brought about
by a change in the household
situation he's become comfor
table in rather than the benefits
for his career of perpetuating it.
The importance of the verdict
in California for many women
stems from the sad reality that
the courts must first tell us all
that an unfair and destructive
situation is indeed unfair and
destructive and must be cor
rected, something that our own
blind ambition prevents us from
finding out at home.
The above quotations are from an
article in the Sunday, February 13,
1983 edition of the Greensboro Dai
ly News and Record by Roxane Ar
nold entitled "Divorce."
Letters cont'd, from page 5
Hats Off
Dear Editor,
Due to successful planning by
Dick Dyer. Bob White, and John
Lindstrom, we were all wonder
fully surprised to come back to
school and find all of Milner
Dorm painted.
We wish to specially thank
John and the painting crew for
their great work. Contrary to
past opinions, the maintenance
staff has been quick acting on
WHAT DO YOU DAYDREAM
ABOUT MOST OFTEN?
Julie Yindra: The Venetian men
walking in St. Mark's Square in
Venice.
Diana Wurster: Life on a
paradise island with the beautiful
blue ocean and a white sandy
beach.
Brad Williams: Hoboken at dusk.
Donna Horton: Joe Albright.
Sabine Clark: My future and go
ing back to Germany.
Susan Harvey: You.
Barbie Page: Getting into sum
mer.
Bryan Elliott: Racing a bike.
Doug Revelle: My fiance.
Linda Dixon: The future.
Natalie E. Dolan: I dream about
making a real contribution to the
world, that people will remember
me by.
Nancy Wittpenn: Robb.
Elizabeth Hyde: Sleeping late.
Friendly
Talk
DESCRIBE THE KITE YOU
WOULD MOST LIKE TO FLY.
Natalie E. Dolan:Large,
tetrahedron type in bright colors
like fire-engine red, kelly green,
and super yellow.
David Teague: A golden dragon
with a long tail.
Alison E. Horan: I'll stick to the
traditional diamond shaped
paper kite with a tail made out of
old sheets. It reminds me of when
I was a kid when I used to walk
the playground and fly my kite
along with the rest of the kids.
Diana Wurster: A bright blue big
kite.
Sabine Clark: A box kite so I can
sit in one of the corners and soar.
Mark Gurley: What kinds are
there?
Susan Harvey: One built by Alex
ander Calder.
Elizabeth Hyde: Oriental dragon
kite.
Vivian Smith: A large butterfly
shaped one.
Brad Williams: Purple and red
metallic globe.
Dennis Kirschbaum: A gigantic
coffee cup.
Milner problems. We are ex
tremely grateful of their con
tinued efforts to improve the con
ditions of our dorm and feel it is
time that maintenance gets the
respect they deserve.
Sincerely,
Gene Mirkin
President of Milner Dorm
John Denßleyker
President of Milner Dorm
WHO DO YOU PLAN TO SEE
OVER SPRING BREAK?
Julie Yindra: Not a soul except
the seagulls on Cape Cod!
Alison Cowan: God.
Sabine Clark: Laurie Anderson.
Diana Wurster: My roommate's
grandfather.
David Teague: The folks and the
cats.
Pete Fraunholtz: A new
employer.
Mark Gurley: My boyfriend and
my parents.
Doug Revelle:My fiance.
Brad Williams: Spirit of the
Week.
Vivian Smith: Hopefully no one.
Susan Harvey: Mein Bruder.
Linda Dixon: My family and
friends.
Donna Horton: Steve, Joel, Den
nis, Mike, Greg, Susan and
Karen.
WHAT TYPE OF HAIR STYLE
IS ATTRACTIVE TO YOU?
Sabina Clark: Shining, stream
ing, gleaming, flaxen, waxen.
Alison E. Horan: Neat. On guys, I
like short hair with a little wave
in it. I like it parted on the side.
Vivian Smith: One that looks
good on whoever is wearing it.
Diana Wurster: Long and styled
(female). Feathered and blonde
(male).
Julie Yindra: Definitely not a
crew cut! Otherwise, I'm not
sure.
David Teague: Anything that
doesn't look like a brillo pad or a
shaving brush.
Mark Gurley: Short "punk-gay"
style.
Tripp Pitman: Medusa head.
Bryan Elliott: Anything in style.
Susan Harvey: I like Tiny Tim's
hairstyle.
Linda Dixon: Short and sassy.
Barbie Page: Over the ears.
Pete Fraunholtz: Natural, but
well kept.
Nancy Wittpenn: Messy, curly
hair.
Drip, Drip, Drip
Dear Editor,
Just a quick note before I go to
sleep. This might be a good sug
gestion for an article or maybe
just for a letter to the editor. It's
about water. Perhaps it's just a
fetish, but it bothers me to see
water dripping from faucets. I
don't know what the statistics
are, but a drop a second adds up
to alot of water. It seems silly to
be concerned since % of the earth
is covered with water, but
Guilford has to pay for it any
HAVE YOU NOTICED THE
NEWLY PLANTED TREES
(BUSHES) ON CAMPUS? WHAT
DO YOU THINK?
Elizabeth Hyde: Yes. They have
improved the appearance of the
campus, but they seem to be
planted where I liked to walk.
Alison Cowan: I haven't noticed
them, I might when they get big
ger.
Nancy Wittpenn: Yes, they're
great for both humans and pup
pies.
Natalie E. Dolan: You bet! Love
it! They damn well better grow
before the students destroy 'em...
David Teague: Yes -1 think they
were put there to keep us off the
grass.
Mark Gurley: I'm in favor of
anything that keeps Guilford
from becoming a "concrete ci
ty," like some larger univer
sities.
Tripp Pitman: My dog has.
Pete Fraunholtz: Let's have
more.
Donna Horton: There's more ox
ygen! Seriously; I think they are
beautiful!
WHICH IS MORE IMPORTANT:
DOMESTIC ECONOMICS OR
FOREIGN AFFAIRS? WHY?
David Teague: Foreign affairs -
domestic economics can't blow
us all off the map.
Doug Revelle: Domestic
economics - In a year and a half I
will be graduating; I want the
economic climate such that I can
find a highly rewarding job
without spending a couple of
years in the process.
Alison Cowan: Foreign affairs. If
we have a nuclear war, we won't
have any domestic policy to
worry about.
Natalie E. Dolan: Domestic af
fairs. We have to be right in our
own minds before we can start
messing with other's minds.
Nancy Wittpenn: Foreign affairs,
because I'm a romantic.
Susan Harvey: I don't feel like
thinking!
Dennis Kirschbaum: Neither! All
you need is love.
Pete Fraunholtz: Neither is more
important than the other. We
(private individuals and enter
prises as well as the government)
have the simultaneous respon
sibility of solving the problems
"under our own roof" and dealing
in a constructive, long range
oriented way with our allies, the
Third World and the Communist
Block.
Alison E. Horan: Actually they
are both pretty important and
both need to be straightened out
big time.
Tripp Pitman: d. None of the
above.
way. The price doubles when you
add in the energy to heat it. I
know that in just the one
bathroom on my floor (Milner 3rd
South) three sinks and two
showers drip at a steady stream.
It takes a little bit of effort to turn
the handle tightly, but I think the
main problem is that people are
unaware. I wish people would
realize how much of their room
money dribbles away down the
drain. Perhaps maintenence can
do something too, like get new
washers.
Name Withheld