6The Dsiiy Tar HeelMonday, March 2, 1981
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SUSAN MaUNHY. Ajwc"C M"'"
Mark Murrell. Amlu,- Editor
Jonathan Rich, axmuk EJuor
Edwin a Ralston, vtmmiiy Editor
John Royster. cuy Editor
CHARLES HERNDON. Sutcattd National Editor
Beth Burrell. Nm Editor
&nou Barkis, Spm Editor
Tom Moore. Am Editor
DONNA WHITAKER, Features Editor
SCOTT SHARPE. Photography Editor
ANN PETERS, Weekender Editor
NORMAN CANNADA. Ombudsman
Mb
5M year of editorial freedom
Out
of b
usmess
In 1976, the Campus Governing Council went into the business of
granting money for residence enhancements by establishing the Residence
Unit Grant and Loan. Fund. The fund was set up to provide money for
improvements in dormitories. Since then, almost $1 1,000 has been spent
on items such as refrigerators, ice machines and meat slicers.
Last week, however, the council voted to abolish RUGLF and send the
remaining money back into the general surplus. As an alternative, the
CGC has established a permanent procedure by which residence units, as
well as student organizations, can petition the Finance Committee for
loans.
The CGC's decision to eliminate RUGLF does not mean the council
could not sympathize with the needs of dorm residents. Rather, since
1976, many questions have been raised about the fund. Finance
Committee Chairperson Dianne Hubbard said the council was critical of
fUJGLF because there were no stringent guidelines for granting the
money. More important was the fact that student fees were being used to
pay for something that only affected a specific group of people. It is not
fair for students who have been closed out of their dorms, or who choose
to live off campus, to help finance the expenses of their on campus
counterparts.
Although several groups have charged the council with acting too
hastily, the CGC did not reach its decision without doing proper research.
The council also acted responsibly by ensuring that the remaining money
in the fund be spent either on open student activities or be made available
to the residence units as loans.
This is not to say that the residence units do riot need the money
provided by RUGLF. Many dorms have used the money as an alternative
source of income for enhancement. The money often has helped smaller
dorms to pay for major improvements that could not be covered with the
enhancement funds from University Housing.
An alternative source of revenue may very well be needed, but the
means of paying for improvement of the state-owned buildings does not
lie in the Student. Activities Fee. Residence Hall Association president
Robert Bianchi says he will work with the Department of Housing to find
other sources of revenue. Perhaps a better solution would be evaluation
by individual dorms of their own needs. Because the extra money
provided by RUGLF is no longer available, dorms must look carefully at
their own enhancement needs and decide to pay for them through the
new loan procedures, to go through dorm enhancement funds, or
possibly to go without the improvements. r
The responsibility now lies with the residents of the dorms not with
other students who have been paying for the refrigerators, ice machines
and meat slicers. The council has acted responsibly in following its own
principles: RUGLF is out, the out-of-business sign is in.
Checkmate
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By SARAH FULCHER
Before 1974, women's varsity athletic
teams at The University of North Carolina
were not officially recognized. At least,,
not as athletes.
Just ask Frances Hogan, UNC women's ,
athletic director.
. Women's "club teams" used to sit
around and drink hot tea and eat choco- ...
late cookies after a game like young
ladies were supposed to instead of
celebrating a victory or crying over a loss.
Neither of the competing teams was
allowed to discuss winning and losing
it just wasn't proper.
Now, Carolina's women athletes don't .
worry about what's proper. They go all
out for victory in every sport UNC pro
vides under Title IX. -
Women athletes at UNC include bas
ketball players who are tough enough to
scrimmage against the men's Jayvees.
There are runners known to many on
campus as "golden girls". who can
burn up Fetzer Field's track. Also com
peting for Carolina are volleyball spikers
who display fast fists and muscular swim
mers who cut through water as though it
were air.
Like many other institutions, UNC is
cutting back on scholarships to its recruits
due to a crunch in funds. Yet, when a. fe
male sensation is discovered, she usually
is awarded a financial aid "package of
either room, board and tuition or a full
ride.
Carolina is unique. Not all schools pro
,vide equal facilities for women. Those
who do not are asking for trouble. One
Ivy League school that did not provide
adequate facilities for women encountered
a problem UNC Athletic Director John
Swofford hasn't yet had to face.
Harvard's women's crew team, enraged
by being denied a dressing room, stormed
into the athletic director's office and
changed into their workout clothes right
in front of him. He gave them equal space
the following day.
At UNC, our women can eat steaks
and ice cream along with the football
, players at the Ehringhaus training table.
Sports Medicine welcomes them into its
facilities to treat injuries slight or
serious. Women can receive free tutoring
at Kenan Field House's nightly study hall
sessions. They can lift weights on expen
sive Nautilus equipment in Carolina-blue
carpeted rooms complete with a stereo
sound system. And; as you've probably
noticed, these females proclaim their sta
tus just like their male counterparts. They
wear, their UNC letter jackets like every
one elsev "
r i t
Think about it. If Carolina didn't pro
vide sports for women, we'd probably
have women competing on men's teams.
Wouldn't that break the tradition here?
For example, before moving to Atlanta,
I attended Scotland High School in North
Carolina for a year. 1 wanted to run on a
team, so 1 joined the boys'. cross country
team. There wasn't one established for
girls. I had to endure frustrations of run
ning arOund with the boys. Believe me,
no female athlete at UNC would want to
do that.lJ .....
It was,, rough, more mentally than
physically.
"Hey Baby!," they'd mock, "got any
fries to go with that shake?" Once a guy
grabbed me by the arm and tried to throw
me down on the ground before I passed
him on the straightaway, cursing, "Ain't
no girl gonna beat me."
But I did. I placed 52nd out of 75 male
competitors in my last race and scored
for my team. One runner picked me up
and tried to kiss me for doing so well.
But a female athlete doesn't want kisses
. after winning. She wants recognition, me
dals ahel memories to motivate her even
further;.;
It's' amazing. Carolina students just
don't attend women's competitions.
Possibly, people don't come because
women's athletics at North Carolina and
other schools is a non-revenue sport., That
means they don't rake in the dough. Bas
ketball and football are the University's
money makers. People will pay to see a
ball dunked by Al or a touchdown made
by Amos. Why then will people not come
to see Nancy break the first five-minute
mile for Carolina?
Students pack up their backpacks and
head for the drabness of the libraries
when women's games are played. Why
study books when you can study women's
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sports? Women can play tough. Women
can compete viciously. They do it all the
time.
Who knows? They might win more
matches if students would help boost
them to victory. Hearing someone cheer
your name makes adrenalin pump through
your veins so that you've just got to break
that tape or make that 12-footer. Com
petition is the same in this aspect of
men's and women's sports here. Winning
for Carolina is all that counts.
UNC women's athletics somehow need
to break the barriers which keep them
from fitting into Carolina's serious tra
dition. Tar Heel women competing in
sports is not a joke. If it were, then a
distinguished institution like Carolina
would not provide the opportunities.
Many students are missing out. Caro
lina's female athletes are developed,
skilled, agressive and beautiful to watch.
Take a look around campus tomorrow.
Some of these women are as fine to watch
in action as Carolina's cheerleaders.
Imagine what could happen if the As
sociation cfT Intercollegiate Athletics for
Women passed a rule allowing females
to compete in contact revenue sports.
Picture it. Maybe soon. Maybe years
from now.
The Tar Heels starting quarterback
bounds into Kenan. The crowd, as usual,
all decked in traditional colors, rises to a
standing ovation.
Suddenly, the quarterback's helmet is
removed to reveal an athlete with long
blond hair.
Look, Carolina. It's a woman.
Sarah Fulcher, a freshman journalism
major from Atlanta, Ca. is a member of
the women 's varsity track team and Cam
pus Calendar Editor of The Daily Tar
Heel.
letters to the editor , ; ' ' ' s
mpus po ofperjhrmmg duties
The latest move in the North Carolina General Assembly's Equal
Rights Amendment chess game has left the proposed amendment tech
nically alive but mortally wounded.
Last Friday, 13 Senate leaders all men signed an agreement not to
discuss, debate or vote on the issue throughout the remainder of the
1981-1982 session of the General Assembly.
This would put ERA in limbo effectively until the June 20, 1982 na
tional ratification deadline slips by and the pressure for North Carolina to
take a stand on the issue abates.
North Carolina probably will not be one of the three states that are still
needed for the proposal's national ratification. Thirty-five states already
have passed the measure.
. The agreement announced Friday was viewed by some as an attempt to
avoid bad publicity for the state. If ERA is prevented from being dis-
cussed and voted on in the Senate, the history books will never say North
Carolina took a stand against it.
Some legislators say that the bargain was the best deal that ERA sup
porters could hope for since Senate defeat was almost certain.
There are many people on both sides who think that the entire scheme
is a cop out and they are right for calling it one.
Proponents, opponents, Democrats and Republicans signed the mea
sure, but since no women were consulted beforehand and the agreement
was sprung on the public at a sudden press conference, it cannot help but
seem a devious scheme.
Many legislators see the agreement as a way to save face for North
Carolina in the national accounts of the ERA battle. This indicates that
there are people in the General Assembly who are afraid to stand up and
be counted for their position.
Instead of being squeamish and non-committal on the issue, politicians
should see it through the normal channels of government. ERA should be
discussed and voted on in both houses of the General Assembly. Each
legislator should go on record once again for the fifth time as either
being for the amendment or against it.
If North Carolina defeats the bill, the state's reputation must and
should suffer the consequences. Hiding behind an agreement that re
moves the controversy from consideration appears to be outright
cowardice.
In an effort to avert adverse publicity down the road. Senate leaders
arc bringing on an onslaught of it now and causing the state to gain the
reputation of refusing to take a stand one way or another.
Gov. Jim Hunt, who cancelled a trip to Washington Friday after the
agreement was announced, is justified in his disappointment wilh these 13
legislators. '
Other legislators' are understandably dismayed and are wise to check
into the legality of the move and to what extent it actually can be binding.
The issue now is how a controversial proposal should be handled. ERA
already has been pbced in check by a clever legislative maneuver that
sought to kill the bill in the Senate's anti-ERA Judiciary I committee.
Now this agreement, if abided by, will kill the measure once and for all.
It is a ploy gainst ERA no matter how cleverly it is disguised by the
signatures of a few male ERA supporters. ERA is an issue that merits
discussion and fair treatment; it should not be slighted just because the
state fears for its reputation.
Many ERA proponents such as Beth McAllister, president of North
Carolinians United for ERA, don't want to give up without a fight, and
they shouldn't have to. Their voices should be heard once again by the
legislature.
They have the right to argga? rod discuss the amendment up until the
day the legislature votes on it. Any attempt by 13 senators to impede the
free discussion and serious consideration that any controversial proposal
deserves should be looked upon by the citizens of tins state with disfavor.
1 lie maneuvers of a few l ey senators Friday staken the traditional
chan.nek of t'ovcrnment in this state. Though opponents may finally have
won this long complex r.atue in the legislature, their strategy serves as a
poor example of the proper way to consider a controversial issue.
To the editor:
1 was very distressed to read the criti
cisms James Mitchell Cox expressed con
cerning our University Police (DTH,'
Feb. 25). The campus police have proven
to me over the past year that they are
totally capable of performing all of the
appropriate tasks required of them.
I would argue that they don't need
some of the training that they already
have, such as riot control. The examples
Cox gave to the contrary only reflect
poorly on him, not the police.
When one has a party where people
get so drunk that they can't breathe, it is
not surprising that no one would be sober
enough to remember that medical help
comes from people trained in medicine,
not police work. There is a three digit
number which allows you to specify if
you need police, fire, or medical emer
gency help. If he had called the fire
department do you suppose Mr. Cox
would be complaining about them?
In reference to the other example which
Cox said pointed to a lack of police train-'
ing, I must agree with the officer's actions.
Most dorm thefts are the result of negli
gence, like unlocked doors and windows,
and passed-out people. If this were the
case in the example Cox gave about the
tragic loss of someone's stereo, then there
was no forced entry, no evidence, and,
especially, no case against some third'
party with accusations raised against him.
That the police wouldn't storm some
one's room at 1 a.m. and wrest him out
of his sleep for interrogation shows that
these are not your average American killer
cops like in Chester, S.C., Miami, Hous
ton, New Orleans, Wilmington and Chi-.
cago, to name a very few,
Perhaps one day man- will be so ad
vanced that police interrogation at . 1
a.m. will be unheard of and the same
fellow who transplants your heart will
tune your piano. Until that day, we can
thank the ideas of Cox, like these, for
holding us back. -
Christopher Kueny
. 137-A Johnson Street
Condom controversy
To the editor:
Contests seem to be a very good way
to throw attention to any given subject.
For example, car dealers tend to have big
contests occasionally in order to sell more
cars. Certain groups on our campus also
hold contests and exhibitions in order to
raise money for their causes. v -
I have noticed that many contests ask
one to guess the number of items in a
container. This last form of contests has
gone too' far! ,, . ;.r
The Student Union presently has a dis
play on the ground level that asks students
to guess the number of condoms in a
case. If that is not bad enough, the con
doms have been blown up (uh, I mean
inflated). 'This unusual display is called
"Condom Art." Quite. a catchy name.
This display has severe social implica
tions. Who was it that put those prophy
lactics to his lips to blow air into them?
If that isn't bad enough, do you suppose
we should blame the designers of .this
terrific new art form if there is an increase
in pregnant women at Carolina due to a
shortage of condoms? I mean there must
be about 120 of them in there! It is also
my guess that our student fees were used
to finance this insulting extravaganza. I
hope that my letter sparks some interest
in the subject of how our money is being
spent. .
Tim J.M. Rohrer
318 Everett
Open house
To the editor:
Today, Tuesday and Wednesday from
1 to 5 p.m. in Suite C of the Union, my
cabinet and I will be taking applications
and talking to people interested in work
ing with Student Government this coming
year.
There are 1 1 cabinets in my adminis
tration, and all of them need staff mem
bers. These cabinet departments concern
themselves with issues ranging from minor
ity affairs, the curriculum and book prices
to state, national or town relations. Spe
cial emphasis in my administration will
be placed on making Student Government
more visible and more responsive to our
interests. I am therefore also looking for
people interested in being Student Gov
ernment representatives on their hall, in
fraternity and sorority houses, and in
apartment complexes. Time commitments
for all positions range from 2 or 3 hours
av'wcek'arid'up.
Applications for student body treasurer
and assistant treasurers are also now
available in Suite C and will be due on
Friday.
Anyone interested, please come by. We
need your ideas and your help.
Scott Norberg
Student Body President
Letters?
The Daily Tar Heel welcomes
letters to the editor and contribu
tions of columns for the editorial
page.
Such contributions should be
typed, triple-spaced, on a 60-spacc
line, and arc subject to editing.
Column writers should include
their majors and hometowns; each
letter should include the writer's
name, address and telephone
number.
Soaps s Time mmr on at a smuh
s pace
By DAVID POOLE
A week ago last Thursday, one of the main characters
on the soap opera General Hospital was shot and left
dying in a pool of her own blood in the kitchen of her
apartment in charming Port Charles.
Last Thursday, someone on the show finally found
her. And while seven days may seem like a long time
for someone to lie dead without a neighbor noticing the
smell, those of us who know about S02ps know that in
Port Charles, Lhnview, or Pkie Valley or anywhere
else in soap opera land seven days is nothing, f
A lot of people think watching television is a waste of
time and swear that soap operas are undermining the.
stability of the republic.
Admittedly, some of the people who watch do 0 a
little nutso. Last week, when someone finally found
Diana Taylor's body on General Hospital GH, in the
vernacular),- a congregation of GH fans who were fa
thered in the Union let out a cheer louder train met
heard at Carolina basketball ames. Some people in
New York and Los Angles have been known to attack
the actors who play the more despicable characters when
they see them on a crowded street..
That's a little much, although I'll admit I'd like to
hae 30 minutes alone in a room with Dorian Lord cr
Erica Kane or Monica Quartermaine so I could stream
them out. The only people 1 really can get rr.ai .!, though,
arc the people who write the scripts.
These folks know they've got rr.gcr.s cf pxrls plan
ning work and class schedules so they draw the story
lines out over weeks sr.! vr:ks arvJ zi the same time
manage to make the '.: . r i , :5 thai if he or she goes to
the bathroom he'll n.l.v t:..V. r t i).s show's been fclli
irv toward for tlx month.
To prime examples. This summer, Luke Spencer
and Laura Ua!dm the heartthrobs cf Gil were
running from the r.cb (or wr:ks Hcaus? they had
si:.ne information that couU tend seme rttpecuJ tus-i.'ir.s:nan-iurned-rlr.e-bets
vp the titt far 400 sears,
li e mob hired a tut man to fir. J then sr.d h; C'4.
But this was no ordinary hit man. He found them,
but instead of killing them he worked with them in a
hash joint for a month and became their good buddy.
When he finally got ready for the'showdown, Luke and
this hit man were facing each other across the courtyard
square of this little town. It couldn't have been more
than 75 yards wide, yet it took them three days to walk
to the middle and face each other.
The other example comes from The Guiding Light, a
CDS soap. That show's bad guy, Roger Thorpe, must
have died four times. Finally, after the writers decided
they'd exhausted all the ways for him to come back to
life, the show's "heroes," the Bauer brothers, pushed
him off a cliff.
They don't fool me, though. Three years from now,
that rascal will probably come back on the show and
murder somebody.
Lan3ti W 4i 4
y v w
the news that Ronald Reagan had arrived safely for the
Republican National Convention. Once Reagan was
off the plane and into the airport, they cut back to the
show and Luke was OK, making his getaway.
Then, just a couple of weeks ago, 'The Guiding Light
was at a climactic moment when Jennifer Richards was
about to reveal that she was really Amanda Wcxlcr'f
mother something we'd been wondering about for
years. This took place in a courtroom in which Amanda
was sitting there watching, t ot The Guiding Light fans,
this was a big moment.
Suddenly, Dan Rather came on to tcil us that nothing
had changed in the hostage situation. There was no new
information and CDS just wanted us to know that.
I.
When the show came back on, Jennifer was crymg
on the witness stand, having spilled her guts. Amanda,
who was pregnant, was on her way to the ho-piiah It
was the kind of event they'll talk about on the show for
40 years and noHody saw it.
Time has no meaning on soap epcra. I've seen one
afternoon last eight days on some soaps. But, in the
same time frame, a kid ros from a three-tIa-c!J in
far.t to a precocious kindergarten student.
Then, there are ntws breaks.
News breaks are good ideas, on the who!. The net
works come in during the day sni, in a courk of min
utes, fill the ludicnce in on news from the teal world.
It's fine, s lortg as they Co it between shos.
' Twice, however, news breaks have ruined a day rami
amort t all days on soars - days when something really
ptrts. Early this s-ummrr, Lul? Sp?r.ccf had been
led effatsit by Uv.l L,di.ii.naOfcht orr
But here is my favorite soap opera story. All My
Children fans know Joe and Ruth Martin. Currently,
their tlluful union is in arrears and Joe it seems Lcora
Sanders on the side (Lcora b the wife cf wife-beater
Kurt Sanders) while Ruth h off in Iowa protecting her
&on Joe from a Down's Syndrome epidemic but
that's all another itory.
Anyway. Ruth and Joe tod a son named tby on
the show. One day, Bobby wrnt ttp-.hs.'ri to find hit
thoet. The writers fyfgf &bou! tCan and he's st.3 yptfalrs
IcKillrt! fot those shoes. It's Utn tcscral scan.
On? day, that Lute I id wi'l cos? down ht'H be
cc-mtited of a murder. Voa Jm! witch, tecju'-t im
hooked arid I sure wtU.
kr
Lt,ie's romance with Laura
' wife. LtAe was
m thewitrr, fibvut todroAn, when Ar.Ccs.-r ? t,n whh
tt a fvfrtnat, iiJf wrr'.Vf en J ;'.. . The D-.!y Tf
Htd thti!&wf;:.ify.'etfcfl fct J.??.y